The Investigation | Mikael

Chapter Five

 In that moment, I feared for my life. 

 I should have known it wasn't safe for me to go out alone, and I should have known I wouldn't be able to rely on Marcel to save me. Here was the man I was supposed to be hunting down. Instead, he found me, took me by surprise, and now had me at his mercy. 

 I began studying his profile without realizing it. His face looked as it had in the sketch I had been given, and he fit the description: looked to be middle-aged, tall, blond, blue eyes, formidable. He was wearing an old jacket with a few threads coming undone over a black shirt, and I noticed a small rip in the left knee of his jeans. His face looked dirty. He clearly not in top form, but was still able to take me by surprise and shove me to the ground. 

 Mikael now stood over me, staring down at me. I was expecting him to kill me; what else was I supposed to expect from him? 

 "I suppose you've been hearing Marcel's side of everything," he said in the same calm tone. "Poor thing. Are you armed?" 

 I remembered the pistol hidden in my jacket, but silently shook my head. I thought it better not to tell him I had a weapon. 

 "Well, even if you did, it wouldn't do much damage." Mikael grabbed me by the front of my shirt and pulled me to my feet. "What's your name?" 

 "F-finnamore," I stammered. "It's Finnamore Laverty. Everyone calls me Finn, though." 

 "Hmm. Accent?" 

 "I'm Irish." 

 "I thought so." Mikael turned his gaze to the brick wall I had just been touching. "Are you here to watch over him? To make sure no one comes looking to take him away? If you are, then perhaps Marcel does have a little decency. That or he wants to keep Niklaus for himself." 

 He apparently thought I was put here to guard Klaus' makeshift tomb. I thought about saying yes, but would he know I was lying? 

 "I'm just checking on the condition of the place," I said, pushing down any nervous feelings. "Making sure there's no intruders." 

 "No intruders?" Mikael repeated. "Well, I suppose you've already caught one." 

 Now I knew he was definitely messing with me. A vampire my age was no match against him. He could kill me anytime he liked, yet he was choosing to have a conversation with me instead. 

 "You see, he must stay alive," he went on. "My stepson, I mean. It does mean something to me now. Well?" 

 "Well, what?" I asked. 

 "Aren't you going to get Marcel, or whoever else is with you? You've found me. Isn't that what you're supposed to do?" He smiled at my surprised look. "I knew Marcel was going to send someone after me; now I know who. Well, Finnamore Laverty, what are you going to do?" 

 I was frozen in place. I didn't know what to do. My pistol and its wooden bullets might slow down, but I didn't think it was going to be very useful. If I whipped out my phone to call Marcel, how much longer would I have to live, even if I ran? I didn't want to go to Marcel without being sure I had him. 

 "I see. Well," Mikael reached out and gently touched my chest, "I suppose I will be seeing you some other time, Mr. Laverty. Perhaps we'll meet here again tomorrow night." 

 He turned away from me, and then, with vampire speed, he was gone. 

 I stood alone for who knows how long. He'd left, because I had just let him leave. How was I supposed to explain this event to Marcel? 

 Walking home, I was too busy in my own head to stay alert. Did Mikael mean he wanted to meet me at the Mikaelson compound tomorrow night? Why? Wouldn't he think I would tell Marcel? And now the question was this: what was I going to tell Marcel about my first night on the job?