Strolling Into the Night

Nathan remained quiet, his eyes nearly black now as he slowly stood and slid a shaking arm around her waist, pressing her against him before he bent his head to her neck, his lips parting as he first kissed the cut and soon moved on to creating a suction.

Caleb's head snapped up and he automatically jerked against his chains at the sound of footsteps; the move sending painful sparks up his back as he cried out, this coming as quite the surprise.

Lena blinked slowly, she reached up to curl her fingers in his shirt, feeling an unfamiliar, warm tug deep in her abdomen before she shut her eyes and leaned into him.

Kiran moved towards Caleb, frowning deeply, his mind sliding into gear, "What the fuck?" he breathed out, studying the contraption his brother was hooked up too.

Nathan made a low noise, suddenly more eager as he pressed her tighter against him, feeling his lengthening canines sink into her skin as he bit down.

Caleb's jaw tightened as he looked up at his brother, "What the hell is in my back?" he said through his teeth.

Lena felt her lips part in a sigh as she felt every movement of his mouth and teeth deep in the pit of her belly, making almost everything in her pretty head stop and she barely heard the train whistle or felt the jerk of the engine as it pulled out of the station.

Kiran swallowed hard and moved around him to study his back, he felt bile rise in his throat, "Holy fuck." he breathed, glancing at Shia and gesturing for him to stand on the other side of Caleb, "We need to get these out of you." he muttered, looking a bit horrified. Shia shook his head, his lips twisting before he took his belt off and moved to hold it straight out to Caleb, "Bite down on this." he said.

Nathan shut his eyes tight, savoring the sweet taste of her on his tongue for a dangerously long while before he made a noise, pulling back from her without letting go of her waist, "Shit," he breathed, looking down at her wide-eyed, blood trickling down his chin, "Are you alright?"

Caleb blinked, studying the belt for a moment before he actually realized how painful this would be and he bit down on it, shutting his eyes.

Lena felt her knees wobble as she slumped against him, "Hmm?" she breathed, blinking up at him with a sleepily lusty sort of look.

Shia moved behind him again before both he and Kiran took hold of the chains, "On the count of three." Kiran whispered, "One," both he and Shia ripped them out of Caleb's back, "Two, three."

Nathan blinked down at her, his brows pulling together in a sort of confusion as he scooped her into his arms, becoming quiet again as he turned and carefully laid her on the bed.

Caleb didnt even get to bite down harder on the thing as he jerked against his restraints; the pain sending white flares into his head as he cried out, his pretty head lolling forward as he dug his fingers so hard into the armrest it hurt.

Anna hugged herself tighter as she continued walking barefooted down the curb, her gaze on the pavement as tears rolled down her cheeks. In that moment, she was too distracted with all the horror in her mind, that she didn't even see the man she'd called her father for eighteen years, and she bumped directly into him.
John's blue eyes seemed to light up as he stared down at his little girl, whose appearance had changed a lot less than his own and he shook his head, "You're alive," he whispered, raising his worn out hands to frame her pretty face with them and she swallowed hard, "Daddy?" she breathed, wrapping her arms around his waist and burying her face against his shoulder; the faint smell of cologne, cigarettes and coffee having her body warm with the sweet reunion.

Lena smiled up at him, "Why are you looking at me like that?" she breathed, biting her lower lip as she tilted her head back against the pillows.

Kiran shuddered, his throat even tighter as he started to remove the rest of the chains from his brother, "Is there anything else?"

"You were looking at me funny," Nathan muttered, narrowing his eyes almost suspiciously at her as he remained at the foot of the bed.

Caleb took a shuddering breath, slowly shaking his head, "I don't think so," he breathed.

Lena bit her lip, "What did it look like?" she mumbled, watching him curiously from beneath heavy lids.

Kiran let out his breath, "Who the hell would do this shit?" he muttered, shaking his head as he moved to help Caleb get up.

Nathan pursed his lips into a thin line, looking skywards for a moment before he tried to mimic the look she had given him; looking more like a bad impression of a porn actor.

Caleb held up his hand, "No. Touching," he said, shakily even as he raised his gaze to his brother's face, something so utterly pained in it as he began to push himself out of the seat, "The voice was distorted, but.. it sounded familiar: really familiar."

Lena's pretty mouth dropped open before she dissolved into giggles, she rolled onto her side, grinning widely as she managed to get to her knees and crawl towards him and sit on her knees, "Help me undress." she mumbled, her arms feeling much heavier as if she exerted all her energy when she moved.

Kiran frowned deeply, "Who do you think it was?" he muttered, running his fingers over his hair.

Nathan narrowed his eyes at her again, obviously not finding this one bit amusing as he gestured for her to lift her arms.

Caleb slowly shook his head, "I don't know," he mumbled, "Not yet. But when I get home, I'll find out," he breathed, shutting his eyes the moment he could stand without wobbling too much, trying to focus.

Lena lifted her arms over her head, watching him still, her light blue-silvers eyes shimmering, her lips still quirked into a little smile.

Kiran frowned worriedly, "I need to find Anna and check on the boys." he mumbled, "Shia can get you home?"

"Stop smiling like that, missy," Nathan muttered, bending a little to wrap his fingers in the hem of her shirt and pull it over her pretty head.

Caleb ran his fingers over his hair, "Kiran," he muttered, not caring much about Shia's response as he kept his eyes closed, "I'm really sorry about what you had to do," he breathed, "I mean that," he muttered, not waiting for his brother to answer him before he disappeared to his apartment in New York.

Lena arched a brow at him, "Why?" she mumbled, biting her bottom lip instead as she cocked her pretty head at him.

Shia sighed, "I'm sorry too." he muttered before he disappeared to his own home in New York, leaving Kiran alone.

"You're making it hard for me to sleep in the same room as you," Nathan muttered, gesturing for her to move around so he could get her slacks off.

Anna laid in the warm bath tub in her father's bathroom, the close-to-boiling water still filled with strawberry-scented bubbles that seemed to soothe her sore skin and wash the blood away. She twirled her glass of ice-tea on the edge of the tub before she tilted her head back against the cool marble and placed three white pills that her father was still taking for his shoulder-injury in the army, and shot them back with the ice-tea before letting herself sink beneath the surface.

"Oh." Lena breathed, wiggling around so she was on her back now so he could get her booties and her pants off, "Do I...frustrate you, Mr. Hart?" she mumbled, trying hard to keep a straight face.

Kiran sighed as he concentrated, feeling for his woman before he brought himself to Anna, bypassing all formalities as he stood over her in the bath, "Anna?" he mumbled.

Nathan yanked her booties off, one at a time before he raised his gaze to her face, frowning a little, "Yes," he muttered, moving on to pull her slacks down her hips.

Anna twitched underneath the water before she emerged again, taking a deep breath as she quickly wiped the water and bubbles from her face, "Kiran," she breathed, her gaze fixing on his face.

Lena lifted her hips to help get them off as she studied him, "You're forbidden fruit, Mr. Hart." she mumbled, almost sleepily as she shut her eyes.

Kiran's throat tightened as he watched her before he dropped to his knees in front of her, "I am so sorry." he whispered, feeling his eyes sting.

Nathan rolled his eyes at her one more time as he wiped the blood from his chin, deciding to let her sleep as he found a chair not too far from the bed.

Anna blinked up at him, "Me too," she breathed, her throat tightening as she pulled her knees to her chest, "I'm so sorry I freaked out afterwards, I was.. overreacting," she whispered, feeling so terribly dumb for reacting like she did.

Lena curled up on the bed, pulling the duvet around her while keeping her eyes shut, "There's room for you in bed when you're tired." she breathed, that small lip quirking smile returning to her lips for a moment.

Kiran shook his head, "I hurt you and I am so sorry, I never want to hurt you like that." he choked out.

Nathan couldn't help the hint of a smile that graced his lips as he ran his fingers over his hair, "Thank you, Lena," he muttered, leaning back in the chair, "Now rest."

Anna's brows pulled together as she watched his face, her heart tightening in her chest as she pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth, "You had to," she breathed, feeling her pretty face flush as she dropped her gaze, "I think.." she paused, slowly shaking her head to herself, "I think we might need some time apart, Kiran," she whispered, shutting her eyes.

Kiran studied her face before he nodded slowly, "Anything you want." he whispered.

Anna swallowed hard, unable to keep the sting out of her eyes as she shut them tighter, "I'm sorry," she whispered, sounding like she was choking as she hugged herself tighter, keeping her head lowered.

Kiran shook his head before he stood slowly, "I'm sorry." he whispered, bending down to kiss the top of her head before he disappeared.

Anna's lips twisted, the tears starting to roll down her cheeks once more as the pain returned in threefold despite of the painkillers and a sob shook her thin frame; guilt and regret making her feel sick to her stomach.

The next morning, a train headed for Andorra...
Lena made a little noise as she stretched out her limbs, hearing satisfying little pops before her lids fluttered open and she glanced around to see if Nathan had indeed slept in bed with her last night.

The Norratov/Stark apartment...
Lynn arched her back, feeling pleasurable tremors move through her abdomen as she continued to move her hips against Aiden, groaning out his name as she felt the pleasure building.

Nathan was still sound asleep; having decided to stay in the chair that would surely have broken his spine overnight. He made an adorable sort of snoring noise as he twisted a bit in the seat, but he remained in his dreamless state.

Aiden bit his bottom lip, his head tilting back against the pillows as he dug his fingers into her thighs; the pleasure making his curly head fuzzy as he shut his eyes, simply enjoying the alone-time he had with his woman.

Anna finished dressing in the clothes John had bought for her; an oversized white blouse with bare shoulders and well-fitted jeans stuffed into her beige UGGs. She picked up her temporary cellphone, her lips pulling into a thin line as she dialed Drake Hawthorne's number and moved on to fisting her hair to get some volume into her cursed curls.

Lena rolled her pretty eyes at this, "Silly old vampire." she breathed as she slid out of bed still in her bra and panty set, she glanced around the room before she spotted the phone by the door and tiptoed across the floor to it, she dialed the number for the kitchen and ordered breakfast for them before she tiptoed to Nathan's seat, tapping him on the shoulder carefully, "Nathan?" she breathed.

Lynnie felt the muscles in her abdomen start to clench as pleasure spread through her muscles and she shuddered, moaning out his name as her lids fluttered.

Drake Hawthorne rolled over in bed, the sound of his phone making his nose scrunch up in the most adorable way before he reached for it, not even bothering to open his eyes as he answered, "Hello?"

Nathan stirred a bit, a grunt emerging from his throat as he opened his eyes, blinking rapidly, "What?" he mumbled, trying to focus his gaze on her.

Aiden's lips parted in a sweet gasp as the pleasure peaked and he hooked his fingers around her thighs as he lifted his pelvis; pressing himself purposely deep into her.

Anna bit her bottom lip, "Hi, it's Anna," she muttered, switching the phone to her other ear to fist the other side of her hair, "Did I wake you?"

"I'm going to take a shower, a server is bringing breakfast on a trolley." Lena breathed, looking him over before she smiled slightly, "You could have slept in bed." she mumbled.

Lynn tightened around him, her body still trembling as she curled her fingers against his chest, her pretty eyes shimmering with warmth and love as she looked down at him.

Drake made a noise, "Yeah but it's okay, what's up?" he muttered sleepily as Veronica stirred next to him, "Who is it?" she mumbled, rolling over into his side, "It's Anna, baby, go back to sleep." Drake breathed, rubbing his face.
"Hi Anna." Veronica called sleepily before she settled back against his side.

Nathan gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "It felt inappropriate."

Anna couldn't help the slight smile that curved her lips at the sound of the woman, "Hi, Veronica," she muttered, sitting down on the edge of the bed as she finished with her hair, "Anyways, I need to get to Barcelona to pick up Aidan and I was wondering if you could take me?"

Lena's lips pursed into a tight line, "I'm sorry." she muttered, "I'll take the chair tonight, you can have the bed." she breathed, all trace of teasing gone.

"Sure, let me get some coffee and I'll be right over." Drake mumbled, "Where are you again?" he breathed, yawning.

Nathan slowly shook his head, "That won't be necessary," he said in a softer tone as he looked up at her fully, "Enjoy your shower."

"Louisiana," Anna muttered, "It's the white two-story just off the main road, you can't miss it," she breathed.

Lena bit her lip now before she gave a slight nod and padded towards the bathroom to enjoy her shower, thinking over things.

"I'll be there in fifteen." Drake breathed, starting to get out of bed, feeling it would probably be inappropriate to ask about his brother.

Anna nodded slightly to herself, "I'll see you then: thanks, Drake," she breathed, hanging up before it could get awkward and she straightened, starting downstairs to grab breakfast.

Drake Hawthorne and his black Impala appeared outside the house Anna had described but fifteen and half minutes later, he left the engine going as he slid out of the car and started for the door to knock.

Lynn made a sweet noise as she snuggled against Aiden's chest, "Good morning." she mumbled, unable to help herself as she smiled sweetly.

Anna glanced out of the kitchen window, a slight smile curving her lips as she hopped off the kitchen counter and grabbed her keys before she opened the front door, "Hey," she breathed, looking over the ever-so-handsome Hawthorne brother.

Aiden made a noise, "Morning, sweetheart," he breathed, sliding an arm around her waist.

"Hey sweetheart." Drake mumbled, running his fingers over his hair, looking ever handsome in his dark jeans and well-fitted black t-shirt beneath the Hawthorne signature leather jacket, "You ready?"

Lynn smiled to herself still, "I love you." she mumbled, rubbing her cheek against him when their bubble was broken by the shrill ringing noise of her cell phone.

Anna nodded slightly, "Thanks again," she muttered, stepping out and making a little twirl on her heel to lock the door, "How are you?" she asked softly, not looking up at him.

Aiden made a louder noise this time, "I love you too but I want to strangle your cell phone," he mumbled, narrowing his eyes playfully at her.

Drake smiled softly as he thought about this, "I'm really good." he said sincerely, "Veronica makes me happy." he breathed.

Lynn wrinkled her pretty nose, "I wish I could too." she sighed as she reached for it to answer it, she was silent as she let the voice, presumably Stacey, speak for a while her eyes getting wider and wider with each word, "We'll be there soon." she breathed before she hung up and looked up at Aiden, "We won."

Anna couldn't help the more genuine warmth that came into her smile as she looked up at him, "Good, I'm happy for you," she said softly, turning to start towards his car.

Aiden blinked slowly, "We won?" he mumbled, knowing exactly what she was talking about as a wide grin spread across his lips.

Drake turned on his heel to follow her, "So, how are you?" he muttered, moving around the Impala to open the door for her.

Lynn couldn't help the grin curved her lips, "The Blackwell Tower is on fire." she breathed, "Stacey wants me down there to officiate the end of war." she muttered, "Come with me?"

Lena stepped out of the bathroom countless minutes later, figuring breakfast would be there and getting cold by now; she ran her fingers through her wet curls, having dressed herself in black hot pants and a larger, off the shoulders grey t-shirt.

"I'm great," Anna said meekly, the falseness of this statement evident on her pretty face as she slid into the passenger seat of the car.

Aiden nodded slightly, "I'd love to," he breathed, sitting up with her.

Nathan had already grabbed himself a plate of breakfast, sitting cross-legged on the bed as he ate, not looking up at her as he did.

Drake frowned a little as he moved to his side of the car, pursing his lips as he switched gears and started down the street, "Liar." he muttered, "What's wrong?"

Lynnie grinned widely at this before she kissed him, "We should go on vacation after this." she breathed, rubbing her nose against his before she slid off of him and started for her closet to dress.

Lena bit her lip as she made herself a plate and moved to the chair he'd slept in last night, sitting cross-legged, "Can I ask you something?" she mumbled, taking a bite of the bacon on her plate.

Anna's nose scrunched up a little as she leaned back in her seat, sighing, "It's.. complicated," she breathed.

"Yeah?" Aiden muttered, getting out of bed to grab his worn jeans, "Where do you want to go?"

Nathan raised his dark gaze to look at her, swallowing before he nodded, "Sure."

"I'm used to it," Drake muttered, pushing the car faster and faster, "Talk, missy."

Lynn thought for a moment, "Our own private island." she called back as she dressed in dark jeans and black lacy camisole.

Lena swallowed as she studied him, "What's with your sister and my brothers?" she asked, cocking her head curiously.

Anna shut her eyes a moment before she took a deep breath, gathering her hands in her lap, "Yesterday, someone made Kiran.." she mumbled, pausing for a second before she exhaled, "Hurt me." she bit her bottom lip, keeping her gaze forward now, "I told him I needed time away from him and now I regret it."

"We have one of those?" Aiden mumbled, more to himself than anything as he dressed in his jeans and moved towards the drawer to find himself a fresh white t-shirt.

Nathan arched a brow at her, "What do you mean?"

Drake pursed his lips, silent for a long moment, "I don't think you should regret it." he said softly, "I think you did it for the best and Kiran will understand that in his own time."

Lynn slid into her leather jacket and a pair of ankle boots, "I brought one a few weeks after you..you know, I was going to disappear for awhile but Caleb talked me out of it."

Lena bit her lip, "Well, she's always trying to hurt them." she mumbled, "And I know all the things Caleb and Kiran say about her but it's only part of a story, you're her brother, you'd know the other half, right?"

Anna looked over at him now, her brows pulling together at this as she studied his face in a curious manner, "Really?"

Aiden pursed his lips, looking quite impressed, but he remained quiet as he finished dressing.

Nathaniel gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "She's infatuated with Kiran," he muttered, taking a bite out of his bacon and chewing it down, "And she's very angry with Caleb for hurting her."

Drake nodded slightly, "I think it was for the best, honestly, you probably need time to decompress and deal with your thoughts, Kiran probably needs the same." he said softly.

Lynnie moved towards her dresser to grab her brush, drawing her just-fucked curls back into a neat pony tail, "We can bring the kids home." she breathed after a moment.

Lena considered this a moment as she chewed on another piece of bacon, "Did he leave her?" she inquired after swallowing, "Caleb does that."

Anna nodded slowly, a slight smile gracing her lips as she leaned over to kiss his cheek, "You're a lifesaver," she breathed, settling back in her seat as she seemed to relax some.

Aiden glanced up at her, a soft smile curving his lips, "I know, darling," he breathed.

Nathan nodded slightly, "He thought she was corrupting him, so he left while he still could," he muttered, shrugging again, "Can't blame him."

Drake grinned at this, "It's nothing, dahlin." he breathed, a few moments before he blinked them to Maximus' street in Barcelona.

Lynn turned to him, a soft smile lighting her pretty face, "Do you ever think we could have one?" she mumbled, biting her lip.

Lena gave a slight nod, "You know, my older brother was in love with your sister once, he thought he was anyways." she mumbled, thinking about this, "Why is she infatuated with Kiran?"

Anna's smile widened some and she couldn't help the roll of her eyes; knowing that Drake had no idea how much she meant that.

Aiden's pretty eyes seemed to widen a little, "A baby?" he mumbled, studying her face.

Nathaniel pursed his lips tight together, seeming to think about this very hard for a moment before he answered, "I have no idea," he muttered, "I can't see what she wants from him, to be honest," he said, wrinkling his nose, "Not to speak ill of your brother, but he's an ignorant child with a shotgun."

Drake bit his lip as he pulled the car of up to Max's place, the air seeming to shift, "Huh." he muttered, "Come on." he said, cutting the engine before he slid out of the car.

Lynn nodded as she studied his pretty face, "Our baby." she mumbled, "He or she could have your eyes, my nose, have you ever thought about it?"

Lena's lips twisted, "Sometimes." she conceded, "He doesn't realize how important he is or how strong he could be; he has our mother's self-loathing complex." she breathed, "Maybe Evangeline saw that in him, his potential to fix everything or destroy it all, Claudia did, she nearly ruined him."

Anna slid out of the car, frowning a little, "What's wrong?" she muttered, shutting the door as she glanced over at him.

Aiden nodded slowly, "I have," he breathed, a slight smile gracing his lips, "If I was gonna have babies with anyone, it'd be you."

Nathan gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "Maybe."

Drake shook his head, "I'm not sure but Maximus isn't well." he breathed, glancing over at her as his eyes darkened with worry before he started towards the front door.

Lynn's smile warmed, "We could start with one first, I'm sure the kids would love to have him or her." she breathed, slowly starting towards him.

Lena bit her lip, "Why do you help her?" she inquired softly, "Do you like to hurt them too?"

Anna bit her bottom lip, worry starting in her belly as she followed him rather quickly.

Aiden's smile widened some as he watched her closely, "I think I'd like that," he breathed.

Nathan kept his gaze on her now, frowning some, "She's my sister, Lena, of course I help her."

Raya pulled open the front door before they could even knock, "Lena's missing." she said in answer to her brother's unspoken questioning, "And so is Nathaniel Hart."

Lynn put her arms around his neck as she reached him, "Let's make a baby then." she breathed, smiling softly as she leaned up to kiss him.

Lena pursed her lips, "I know but..." she paused trying to articulate her words, "I would do anything for my siblings, I'd follow them to Hell but I would never ask them to join me, you know?" she mumbled, frowning deeply, "I'd never let them, not if it meant they'd die over and over again."

Anna blinked slowly, "Oh, no," she breathed, knowing far too well what the Hart family and their associates did to young girls.

Aiden slid his arms around her, kissing her deeply for a long, thorough moment before he smiled against her mouth, "Let's keep it in our pants till we get back, yeah?"

Nathan's brows pulled together, "If I had to die for my sister, I would," he muttered, "We have a bond. If she needs me, I'll go down with her."

Drake blinked slowly, "Has Max told mom?" he breathed, worry starting to make his heart hurt, "Have you sent out any searches?"
Raya bit her lip, "No, he hasn't told mom but he has been...interrogating Ethan Emerson." she muttered, "And he's sent his vampires to hunt for them." she breathed, moving aside to let them in.

Lynn bit his bottom lip, "I'll try." she breathed, smiling against his mouth, "Let's go, I imagine the faster we get this done, the faster we can get back into bed."

Lena nodded slowly, "I understand." she breathed, studying his face intently for a moment, "Were you Made together?" she mumbled, speaking of vampire things.

Anna stepped into the house, a worried frown tugging on her lips as she looked up at Raya, "Where's Aidan?" she breathed, wanting to get out of their way as soon as possible.

Aiden grinned wickedly at her, but he didn't say anything, kissing her pretty mouth again as he waited for her to poof them there, not wanting to move away from her.

Nathan gave a slight nod, "Yes," he muttered, cocking his head a bit to the side, "Why are you so interested?"

Raya gestured to the living room off to the side, "He's playing the twins." she breathed as Maximus stepped out of a door seemingly to the cellar, wiping blood from his hands with a hanker-chief when he looked up at Anna and Drake, "Hello Anna, Drake." he muttered, almost calmly.

Lynn leaned into him as she brought them to the street where the Blackwell Tower burned, she didn't move away from Aiden though, caught up in thoughts of baby making before someone cleared their throat and she looked up, her eyes widening at the sight of her children, Lucas Taras and Isabel Hawthorne.

Lena bit her lip again, "I'm trying to figure you out." she said honestly as she stood to put her plate away before returning to her seat, "You're not the man I imagined locked in my great grandfather's basement."

Anna inclined her head a little, "Hi, Max," she breathed, quickly scurrying out of the way to move towards the living room; knowing Ethan deserved every bit of the treatment he was getting.

Aiden frowned a bit when he followed her gaze, "What the hell.." he mumbled, looking between them.

"Is that a good thing?" Nathan muttered, his eyes almost intently on her.

Lucas Taras inclined his head to them, his handsome face was covered in blood and soot, "Mother." he breathed, something warm about the way he said, "Do you like it?" he muttered, glancing at the building he'd burned.

Lena nodded slowly, "Yes." she breathed, keeping his gaze, "It's a good thing."

Four days later, Norratov-Stark apartment...
Lynnie smiled to herself as she continued to cook, she looked like a domestic goddess wearing a white lacy apron over her tight strapless red dress; it would only be an hour before Maximus would show up with her babies, she smiled even more to herself, listening to Lucien and Shia telling each other jokes and Aiden and Kiran talking among themselves.

Kiran's jaw was tight and the smile on his face didn't reach his eyes, "So you're thinking about having a baby with my mom, huh?" he muttered, looking at his brother without really seeing him.

A train to Andorra...
Lena sat up suddenly, gasping for breath, "They're coming." she whimpered, fear making her immobile for a moment before she gathered her wits and glanced around for Nathan in the dark, "Nathan, they're coming."

Aiden gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "We're working on it," he muttered, cocking his head a bit to the side to study his brother closely, "Something wrong, brother?" he asked softly, for his ears only as he heard the ping of the elevator and Anna Thomas stepped out; looking as naturally beautiful as ever in a dark-grey dress with black leathery leggings underneath and black Jimmy Choos, a soft smile playing on her lips as she ran her fingers over Aidan's hair, "Go say hello to your dad, baby," she breathed.

Nathan made a noise, "What?" he mumbled, forcing himself awake, "Who's coming?"

Kiran forced his smile even more, "Of course not." he said, turning as Aidan came running towards him, "Hi dad." the seven year old child breathed, grinning up at his father.
"Hi kiddo." Kiran breathed, swallowing hard, the fake smile not even warming as he looked at his own son.

"Demons." Lena breathed, "They're on the train." she muttered, getting out of bed quickly, grabbing her jeans from the floor to get into them, "We have to leave, we have to get off the train." she mumbled, panic making her words tremble.

Aiden's lips formed into a slight frown as he eyed his brother suspiciously for a moment before he looked up at Anna, "Hi, sweetheart," he muttered, rising from his seat and bending his pretty head to kiss her cheek as she reached them.

Nathan got out of bed rather quickly, "I can transport us out of here, Lena, just say the word," he muttered, pulling his jeans on.

Kiran swallowed hard again as he looked up at Anna but he didn't say anything but he stood and without a word turned to find the den and his mother's cache of liquor.

"They can follow us like that." Lena whispered, grabbing her converse to pull them onto her feet, "Oh God, it's so dark in here." she breathed, clenching her fists in her hair for a moment as she tried to calm down all the things in her head, "Yes, yes, transport us away from here, Nathan, there's a city a few miles down, we'll go there, we can't lead them back to New York." she mumbled, her throat tightening.

Anna smiled rather vaguely up at Aiden before she looked after Kiran; for a moment debating whether or not to go after him, but instead she excused herself from Aiden side and began into the kitchen to find her favorite ex-mother-in-law.

Nathan said nothing to this, afraid he'd freak her out further as he moved towards her and an an arm around her waist before transporting them the hell out of there.

Lynn looked up at Anna from her cookie batter, "Hi sweetheart." she breathed, smiling softly at her, "What's wrong?" she mumbled, studying her closely.

Lena let out her breath when they touched down on the streets of a small Spanish village, she sagged against Nathaniel, laying her forehead against his chest as she tried to regather her thoughts, feeling much better in the light of the street lamps.

Anna's plump lips pulled into a slight pout as she moved to sit by the kitchen island, putting her elbows on the tabletop and her chin in her hands, "Your son just ran away from me: literally," she muttered, raising a brow at herself, "I feel like a whale."

"You alright?" Nathan muttered, his muscles tensing a bit when he realized how close they were, but he didn't move, simply looking down at the top of her head.

Lynn frowned at this, "Kiran's been acting odd to all of us, my love." she breathed, turning to face her, "And you're not a whale, why would you think that?"

Lena swallowed hard as she lifted her face to look up at him, actual fear showing in her pretty eyes, "My family is going to die, Nathan." she whispered, "Michael the Archangel is risen, he's coming to kill us all."

Anna wrinkled her nose a little as she met her mama's gaze, looking rather guilty for a moment as she raised her shoulders, "I'm pregnant," she mumbled, biting her bottom lip rather sheepishly.

Nathan blinked slowly, needing a moment to process this before he shook his head, "The Angel?" he breathed, swallowing hard, "Holy shit."

Lynn blinked slowly before an 'awww' sort of smile curved her lips, "You're pregnant?" she gushed, putting her bowl down to move towards her and pull her into a tight hug, "Aiden and I are trying to have a baby too." she breathed.

Lena glanced around the street, "We should find somewhere to go." she mumbled, reaching up to rub her face.

Anna made a sweet noise as she wrapped her arms around Lynnie, giving her a squeeze, "That's wonderful, mama," she breathed.

Nathan nodded slightly, "Let's start walking," he muttered, slipping an arm around her waist to start down the street with her.

Lynn kissed the top of Anna's pretty head in the most motherly fashion, "I am so happy for you." she breathed, "Kiran will come around, he always does." she said softly.

Lena let him lead her, glancing around every few moments for signs of darkness when she caught sight of a neon sign in Spanish, "There's a motel." she breathed, pointing it out.

Anna pulled back a little to look up at Lynnie, swallowing hard, "What if he doesnt?" she mumbled, "I.. I can't function without him."

Nathan pursed his lips, but he said nothing as he steered them towards the motel.

Lynn pursed her lips as she studied Anna's face, "He will." she breathed, "Kiran always does, believe in that." she said as the elevator pinged announcing the arrival of Maximus and her other children.

Lena swallowed hard, a shiver wrapping up her spine and she glanced back but saw no one, "Did you feel that?" she mumbled, moving faster now.

Anna bit her bottom lip, but she said nothing in reply this time as she took a step back to let Lynnie greet her guests.

Nathan slowly shook his head, "What?" he mumbled, briefly glancing down at her.

Lynn bit her lip and took Anna's hand instead before she led out of the kitchen to greet Maximus who stood with all of her beautiful children, she smiled softly, glancing over all of them when she blinked, "Where's Lena?" she breathed.

Lena frowned deeply before she shook her head, "It must have been a cold chill." she breathed as they reached the motel, "Let's just get inside."

Anna swallowed hard, feeling Aiden soon appear at her other side, almost protectively as he looked over the children as well, frowning.

Nathan pursed his lips as he stepped inside with her, but he didn't say anything; absolutely acute and aware of their surroundings at the moment.

Maximus swallowed hard, looking damned and ashamed, "Lena's gone, Lynn." he said softly, bowing his head as he stuffed his hands in his slacks, "Nathaniel Hart kidnapped her and we can't find her." he breathed.
Lynn blinked slowly, the blood draining from her face as she felt her knees buckle, "Oh my God." she breathed, grabbing her throat like she couldn't even breathe.

Lena moved from his side for just a moment to get a room for them, paying quickly, before she returned to take his hand and tug him towards the stairs, wanting to get to a room where she could lock the door.

Aiden's jaw tightened as his gaze focused on Maximus and it seemed to darken some as he spoke, "You had Ethan at your estate as well," he breathed, "I'm sure you interrogated him, what did he say?"

Maximus shook his head, "He said Lena came down there and freed Hart herself, it was just bullshit." he muttered, running his fingers through his hair, "I killed him." he breathed, shutting his eyes for a moment, "I'm so sorry."

Aiden raised a brow at this, "Are you absolutely sure, Max?" he asked, sounding rather stern, even in his sweet accent, "Did you check?"

Max bit his lip, "All her things are in her room, there's no sign she packed or anything." he muttered, "Why would she need him? It doesn't make sense."

Lena pulled Nathan into their room before she shot the door and locked it, leaning against it for a moment as she shut her eyes, "They can still get us here, can't they?" she mumbled, meaning the demons.

"Maybe she was going somewhere and needed protection outside of the family," Aiden muttered, frowning to himself as he tried to think of a possible reason for this.

"Probably," Nathan muttered, crossing his arms over his chest as he watched her face.

Maximus blinked slowly, "But why?" he muttered, shaking his head, "What are we missing?" he breathed.

Lena opened her eyes slowly to look up at him, they were the darkest blue they had ever been, flecks of silver shining like steel around her irises as she studied his face intently, "Nathan?" she said softly, taking slow steps towards him before she leaned up on the tips of her toes to kiss his bottom lip.

Aiden slowly shook his head as he slipped back into his seat; his fingers tracing his jaw as he tried to think this over, coming up with solutions for how she could have gotten out of Barcelona and how far she would be, "Tell me everything you know."

Nathan made a noise as he took a long stride backwards, "What are you doing?" he said through his teeth, his light-brown eyes boring into hers as his entire body seemed to tense.

Maximus frowned deeply before something dawned on him, "Lena had an episode." he muttered, "She...she has visions, Aiden, and she hears voices." he said, "She wouldn't talk to me about it though but I just..she knows they're bad men, why would she ever take one of them for protection?"

Lena swallowed hard, "It's just I could die tomorrow or in a few hours." she breathed, "And before that happens, I want..I want you." she mumbled, keeping his gaze.

Aiden's eyes narrowed a bit, as if thinking deeply before he glanced up at Maximus again, "Have you taught her anything?" he muttered, "Stuff that could make her think she can control a vampire?"

Nathan stared at her, not even blinking once as his gaze hardened, "No," he said.

Maximus pursed his lips, "Blood oaths and few other tricks." he muttered, thinking back on all his tutoring lessons with his great granddaughter.

Lena blinked slowly, "Why?" she whispered, studying him.

Aiden raised a brow at Maximus, for a moment wondering how the wise vampire could miss something like this as he shook his head, "He's her fucking bodyguard, Max; Evangeline Hart's little brother. Do you have any idea how dangerous he is, if they made a deal and he finds a loophole?"

"Because you're a child," Nathan hissed, moving away from her to seat himself in a chair in the farthest corner, "Go to sleep."

Maximus sunk into a seat, burying his face in his hands, "Goddamn it, Lena." he breathed against his fingers, his thoughts scrambling into all different places.

Lena blinked slowly before she shook her head and seated herself at the edge of the bed, she placed her hands on her elbows as she thought for a very long moment, "I'll set you free." she said softly, "I'm going to call my dad and you shouldn't be here when he gets here." she muttered.

Aiden shut his eyes a moment, "We could trace her steps," he muttered, "It might take a while, but we could."

Nathan watched her closely, "And you'll let him take you home?"

Lena nodded slowly, "Yes." she said softly, "It's time to go home, I need to warn my family before it's too late." she breathed, "And if they find they'll try to hurt you, I won't let them so you need to leave." she mumbled.

Nathan slowly straightened, moving towards her in silence before he bent his head to kiss her forehead, "I am sorry about this," he muttered, "Come see me, if anything," he whispered before he disappeared.

Lena felt her throat get tight as she sat for a few moments, she pursed her lips before she moved around the bed to the little phone set on the nightstand, she picked up the receiver and dialed Aiden's number from memory.

Aiden sighed, taking his cellphone out of his pocket as soon as he felt it buzz. He studied the number for a moment, recognizing the Spanish digits before he picked up, "Lena?"

"Hi." Lena breathed, feeling her eyes sting as soon as she heard his voice, "I'm sorry about leaving but I thought," she paused, biting her lip, knowing how must sound, "I thought I was being clever."

Aiden slowly shook his head to himself, "It doesn't matter right now, Lena," he breathed, "Where are you?"

Lena bit her lip as she recalled the name from the map of train routes she'd read before taking the journey, "I'm in a motel." she breathed, "I'm alone."

"Where's Hart?" Aiden asked quickly, slowly standing as he held his hand out, gesturing for Lynnie to grab him a pen and paper.

Lynnie moved to get him the stationary and a pen from her desk, watching his face as Lena answered, "I don't know, I set him free, he just disappeared." she breathed, running her fingers through her hair, "Please don't go after him." she whispered.

"I can't promise you that," Aiden said simply, writing down the name of the motel she had mentioned and then an address in London, holding the pad out to Maximus.

Maximus gave a slight nod before he disappeared to the address in London.
Lena swallowed hard, "Aiden, you don't understand, if you kill him, I'll die too." she whispered, "I didn't unbind us." she whispered, feeling tears slide down her pretty face.

"Then I'm sure Maximus won't kill him before he comes back," Aiden said, glancing up at Lynnie and gesturing to the second address on the pad.

Lynnie was there in moments, wrapping her daughter in her arms before she could even speak and brought her home; she held Lena out at arms length as soon as they were there and studied every inch of her, "What the hell were you thinking?" she breathed, her own eyes full of tears.

Aiden sighed as he put his cellphone down on the pad, a slight frown tugging on his lips as he simply watched them in silence.

Lena swallowed hard, "I'm sorry." she breathed, reaching up to wipe at her face.
Lynn studied her, "Why are you crying, sweetheart?" she said more softly, reaching up to tilt her chin up and look at her eyes, "Did he hurt you?"

Aiden's gaze fixed on Lena's face now as he waited for her answer, keeping quiet now.

Lena shook her head, "He didn't hurt me, he didn't even touch me." she breathed, biting her lip as her great grandfather appeared with Nathaniel Hart, himself.

Aiden slowly stood when Nathaniel Hart was in the room, a sudden iciness coming into his eyes as he moved towards him, "Did you hurt her?"
Nathaniel's lips twisted into a grin as he jerked away from Maximus, glancing back at the man like he was filth before he finally looked at Aiden, coolly even, "No," he said, raising a brow at him before his gaze flickered towards Anna and his gaze locked onto hers, the simple look sending shivers up her spine.

"Let him go." Lena breathed, "Please, I gave him my word." she mumbled, swallowing hard as she looked up at her mother now, trying to plead with her, "My word, mom."

Nathan's grin seemed to become more crooked now as he took a step in Anna's direction and she automatically took a step back, neither of them saying anything as their gazes remained locked, intent and absolutely lethal. Nathan's next step became more hurried and it had Anna turn, starting a run towards the kitchen before Nathan was less than a feet in front of her, their bodies nearly touching when she stopped and he gazed down at her, a curious look coming into his eyes, "What did you do?" he murmured, cocking his head a bit to the side as he raised his hand, studying her closely as he moved his hand to run his fingers over her hair, but he didn't, keeping an inch between her hair and his palm, "What is it about you, huh?"

"You need to get away from her." Kiran Hawthorne breathed, his gun suddenly placed against the back of Nathaniel's head, "Now."

"Why?" Nathan said, rather quickly without stepping away or moving his hand, "I'm not hurting her, not even touching, see?" he breathed nodding to his hand that was now making its way over Anna's pretty face, as if demonstrating for her how easily he could end her, his grin fading into a curious purse of his lips, "Funny, isn't he? One moment he's the coldest bastard in the room and the other, he's willing to spray my brains all over you, isn't that curious?" he mused, keeping Anna's gaze.

"No matter how I act," Kiran breathed, "There will forever be always." he said softly, hoping Anna would know exactly what he meant, "Move, Hart, or I will shoot you, here and now."

Nathaniel smirked, deciding that he wasn't going to address Kiran at all as he continued searching Anna's eyes, "Listen to that, your loving protector, willing to take the risk of putting a bullet right between your eyes," he murmured, slowly shaking his head, "He knows there's a good chance that I'm faster than his trigger is and the moment he pulls it, you'll be right in front of that bullet and oh my, Evangeline will be pleased with this scenario, Kiran Hawthorne, killing the mother of his babies because he had to be the hero."

Kiran's jaw tightened before he reached forward to wrap his fingers around Nathaniel's neck and shove him to the ground and for good measure raised his gun to put a bullet in the vampire's abdomen.

Nathan moved, standing directly in front of Kiran now, with his back turned to Anna as his arm shot out at an incredible speed to nick Kiran right in the throat, "Don't touch me," he said through his teeth, practically hissing as he stared hard at the boy and took a step to the side to be able to look at the oh-so-unhappy couple.

Kiran stumbled back before he caught himself, his eyes darkened as he reached up to rub his hurting throat and he cocked his gun again, "You don't like to be touched much do you, Nate?" he said through his teeth, cocking his head a bit as he studied the vampire, "Still fucked up after all these years, my daddy hit me too, you know but I got over it."

Nathan's lips twitched into the ghost of a smile as he turned his gaze on Anna once again, loving how immobilized she was as he cocked his head a bit to the side again, "Let's not turn this into a pissing contest," he breathed, his gaze briefly flickering to Kiran, "You would lose," he said, returning his gaze to Anna as the curious look came back on his face and after a short moment of raveling in the girl's thoughts, a look of disgust came over his gaze, "Oh, I see," he breathed, slowly shaking his head, "I see everything, kitten, I know what he did to you and it's not the first time, is it? Nooo, he's ravaged you like that before, poor thing, poor little girl, so alone in this world and so used, you don't even see it." he clicked his tongue against his pallet as he noticed the tortured look coming into Anna's eyes, "And he liked it too, how couldn't he? Being in control of pretty things is something that excites every little boy like him, and you know it, you do, he wouldn't be able to finish like that if he wasn't enjoying beating and fucking you raw." he shuddered, obviously on a roll here, "It makes perfect sense, kitten, your obedience is what makes you strong, what gives you power, but somehow he manages to take that away from you every single time; but I can fix it, love, I can take you places you've never imagined, places where pretty little girls like you have the power, wouldn't you like that?"

"Wouldn't you like that?" Kiran breathed, his eyes shimmering and darkening, "You could dress her up just like Evangeline, you've always loved your sister so much," he muttered, moving suddenly to wrap his fingers around Nathaniel's throat and pin him against the wall, "Does Eva tell you how much she loves you after you fuck her?" he muttered, disgust twisting his lips, "I may be a monster but I will never be as disgusting as you, Nathaniel, or as pitiful, as weak. You think you can say all these things, that you'll make me lose it or hate myself, I already lost it, I already hate myself so whatever you can say about me, it's all ready inside my head," he shrugged, "You, though, you'll never be free, Nathaniel, never. You're loyal to a fake, a woman who loves no one, not even you, that makes you so tragic, you've lived so long without living at all because of that woman, it's so sad." he muttered, looking genuinely sad for a moment as he shook his head.

Nathan's lips twitched into the most wicked grin, but it didn't reach his eyes this time, as if some of Kiran's word had stuck to him, but he didn't comment on them, simply letting himself stay up against the wall, "This little scene was never about you, Kiran," he choked up, his gaze flickering as he nodded towards Anna, "I might be sad, but I do know how to affect little, used kittens like her," he breathed, his gaze returning to Kiran's face, "Read her mind, please, cause you don't know a thing about pain until you do."

"It's time to stop talking now, Nathaniel." Kiran breathed, his look so far away as he put the gun between them and lodged a bullet right into his guts.
Lena gasped before she dropped to the floor, blood dripping from her lips and seeping into her cotton shirt from a wound she didn't have, her lids fluttering as she seemed to stop breathing.

Nathaniel gritted his teeth in pain as he slid to the floor, his hand pressed to the wound while he glared up at Kiran, "Look at what you did now, Hawthorne," he breathed, shaking his head.
Anna blinked slowly, not even seeing what was happening around her as the tears welled up in her eyes, soon spilling over her cheeks as she automatically raised her hand, her palm almost protectively on her flat stomach as she stared at Kiran, the man she loved irrevocably and it broke her heart into pieces, forcing her to turn on her heel and hurry towards the elevator, her breath hitching in her throat as she pressed the button, several times, as if this would get her out of there faster.

"She tried to protect you." Kiran muttered, starting towards the den again, "That makes her a traitor."
Lynn whimpered as she dropped to her knees beside her daughter, "What's happening?" she whispered.

Aiden's eyes widened some, feeling something snap inside of him as he turned and moved rather hurriedly after Kiran; grabbing the back of his brother's shirt and roughly turning him before he slammed him up against the wall, "I don't know what the fuck is wrong with you, Kiran, but it ends now," he said through his teeth, his hardened gaze boring into his brother's, "Fix this."

Kiran blinked slowly, "I don't know how." he breathed, looking like a lost child all of a sudden.
Midst the ensuing chaos, Luis Adams appeared, kneeling down beside Lena, he lifted her into his arms, tilting her head back to sink his fangs into her throat.

Aiden let go of him, his gaze still hard and only focused on Kiran's face as he took a step back from him, "You have to figure that out for yourself, but this has to stop," he breathed, "If you keep this up, you're gonna lose everything and the first thing just got into that elevator. What are you gonna do about it?"

Kiran shook his head, "I don't know." he breathed, pushing off the wall to walk into the den.
Luis stopped after only a moment before he lifted her into his arms, "I have to take her." he muttered, standing, "I'm taking that one too." he muttered, starting for Nathaniel.

Aiden frowned deeply at his brother as he shook his head, "You're such an idiot sometimes," he called after him before he turned to look after his woman.
Nathan frowned deeply as he looked up at Luis, but he remained quiet this time, simply assessing the vampire.

Luis cocked his head for a moment before he bent down to curl his fingers in Nathan's shirt and disappeared to his home, "Stay." he said, glaring down at Nate as he left him in the foyer, "Natacha?" he called.

Natacha soon emerged from their bedroom, a worried frown curving her lips as she looked down at her man, "What happened?"

"I need to Turn her, will you feed her afterwards while I deal with him?" Luis breathed, glancing at Nathan.

Natacha pursed her lips as she glanced at Lena, giving a slight nod after a moment, "Of course, love," she breathed.

Luis took a breath as he knelt with the girl again, he tilted her chin and sunk his fangs back into her throat, drinking deeply for a dangerously long while before he lifted his pretty head, blood slipping down his chin as he raised his wrist to puncture the veins with his teeth and hold it above her lips, watching his old blood drip against them until they parted and she reached up to take his hand and drink. Lena drank deeply for a moment before she let go, feeling warmth rush through her young limbs before she tilted her head back, letting out a small cry as the Change immortalized her and damned her; she blinked slowly, studying Luis' emerald eyes, "What happened?" she breathed, "I thought I was dead."
Luis smiled softly, "Loophole," he said gently, studying her face, "You're going to stay with us for a little while, Lena, it's always the hardest the first year." he breathed, "Natacha's going to take you to feed, all right?" he said, glancing up at his woman.

Maximus felt the change in his old soul and he looked up at his granddaughter who had wrapped herself in Aiden's arm, "Luis' turned her, Lena will be okay." he said gently.

Natacha smiled softly as she moved towards them, holding her hand out to Lena, "Come on, love," she breathed.

Aiden tightened his arm around Lynnie as he bent his head, kissing the top of her hair, "She'll be okay," he mumbled, sounding distracted with his own thoughts.

Anna swallowed hard when she found herself in the elevator again. She'd wiped the tears from her pretty eyes, but the pain was still evident in them as the elevator doors slid open and she stepped back into Lynnie's apartment, not really acknowledging anyone there as she moved towards the den and stepped inside, shutting the door behind her as her gaze fixed on her ex-husband, but she said nothing.

Lena looked between them for a moment before she took Natacha's hand and stood as Luis did, the old vampire turning to move down the stairs towards Nathaniel Hart again.

Kiran didn't seem to notice her, he had glass in one hand, his back turned to the door and stared straight at absolutely nothing, stuck in his own head.

Natacha's smile didnt waver as she began towards the kitchen with Lena, not saying anything as she released her hand to saunter towards the fridge.
Nathaniel sighed as he twirled the bullet between his fingers; having used the spare time to dig it out and he now stood, not looking up at Luis as he studied the bloody thing.

Anna clasped her hands together in front of her as she studied the back of Kiran's head; unable to help the ghost of genuine fear that came into her eyes before she mustered up the courage to speak, "You didn't disagree with him," she whispered, meaning Nathaniel.

Luis pursed his lips as he studied the vampire, knowing his actions of this night wouldn't make him the most popular vampire among his friends, "Come." he breathed, gesturing to his den, "We should talk."

"I never like to hurt you, I told you that." Kiran muttered, "But I am a monster, no matter what." he breathed, looking into his glass, "You hate me."

Nathan pursed his lips into a thin line as he gave a slight nod, obviously not getting any hostility from this one as he gestured for Luis to lead the way.

"I could never hate you," Anna whispered, her throat tightening as she remained by the door.

Luis turned on his heel to walk towards his den, allowing the vampire inside before he shut the door behind them, "You and I are alike, you know?" he mused, "I used to fuck my sister too." he smirked at this as he moved towards his liquor table.

"Yes, you could, you have." Kiran muttered, "You do, I know you do, you think I did it on purpose but I didn't, I would never do that, never," he whispered, his eyes stinging.

Nathan couldn't help the hint of a smirk as he ran his fingers over his hair, "And how did that work out?" he muttered, watching Luis almost curiously.

"I know you didn't do it on purpose," Anna breathed, tears welling up in her eyes again, "You.. you had to, I know that, but why do you think you're a monster if you didn't enjoy it?" she whispered.

Luis pursed his lips as he leaned back against his desk, "When she left me the last time, I went after her again." he muttered, "And I cut her from here," he placed a finger against his left cheek and slid down towards his lips and across them to his other cheek, "To here, so no other man would touch her and then I found Natacha, I killed her."

"I don't know." Kiran whispered, shutting his eyes, his throat so tight it hurt, "I don't know what's happening up here anymore." he said, gesturing to his head.

"Why?" Nathan muttered, genuinely curious now as he cocked his head a bit to one side.

Anna's lips twisted before they parted, and she readied herself to shout at him, absolutely frustrated before she felt the shift in the air and Evangeline Hart stood in front of her, "Don't you see what you're doing to him?" she scolded, frowning down at her as if she was an disobedient child, "You're hurting him, Anna, now leave," she said quietly, holding the girl's gaze until she turned and left the den to find her son.

"Because I didn't want her to ruin Natacha too." Luis muttered, tilting his head back to look at the ceiling for a moment, "Livea ruined a lot of things for me but I wouldn't let her take this woman, not ever." he breathed.

Kiran swallowed hard, "I thought you were dead." he muttered, finishing his glass.

Nathan nodded slowly, his shoulders raising a little and then dropping in a shrug, "That's.. sweet, and all, but why are you telling me these things?"

"I was," Eva breathed, slowly turning to saunter around the desk to him, lowering herself by his side to look up at him, a worried look in her light eyes, "How are you feeling, love?"

Luis gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "There's a way to be free, Nathaniel." he muttered, moving suddenly to wrap his fingers in Nathan's hair and yank his head back, his canines lengthening into fine points before he sunk them into the other vampire's throat.

Kiran shook his head slowly, "I'm not well, Evangeline." he muttered sincerely before his gaze flickered to her face, "What do you want from me?"

Nathan's eyes widened, "What the hell are you doing?" he hissed, trying to jerk against Luis' hold.

Evangeline's pretty face seemed to soften as she studied Kiran's eyes closely, "I want to help you, Kiran," she said sincerely, slowly shaking her head, "I don't want to see you hurting like this, especially not when I can help you."

Luis tightened his hold on Nathan, drinking deeply for a long moment before he pulled his teeth from his throat, not hesitating before he ripped open his wrist again and shoved it up against his mouth, "Drink. Now." he said in a way that implied he'd force him if he had to.

Kiran blinked up at her, "How?" he breathed, studying Eva's pretty face.

Nathan narrowed his eyes at Luis, for a moment toying with the idea of biting the man's hand off before he did as he was told.

Evangeline felt a soft smile curve her lips, "I want you to stay with me, for a little while, or as long as you need," she breathed, raising her hand to trace his jaw with her slender fingers, "No one will judge you there; it's peaceful and you can get better, get some sort of release for your problems," she murmured, still studying his pretty face closely.

Luis' eyes darkened, dancing in the faint lights of his den, he kept his wrist to Nathaniel's mouth as he reached through him, severing all the bonds of his old maker before creating one between them and his own vampires; he let the other drink from him for a moment before he pulled his wrist away, "Welcome home." he breathed, a devilishly pleased smile curving his handsome lips.

Kiran swallowed hard, "That sounds nice." he whispered, studying Eva's gaze, "That sounds really nice."

Nathan made a noise, blinking slowly as he reached up to wipe the blood from his lips, "That was kind of a bastard move," he breathed, not sounding too displeased.

Evangeline shut her eyes for the briefest moment, feeling something twitch inside of her before she sighed, looking up at Kiran again and choosing to ignore it, "I can take you there now, if you want," she breathed, running her thumb over his cheekbone.

Luis gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "I've always been sort of a bastard." he grinned, "Come, are you hungry?" he muttered, starting out of his den.

Kiran nodded slowly, "Yes, I want to go away." he breathed, his eyes shining as they bore into hers.

"Starving," Nathaniel muttered as he turned to follow Luis, pursing his lips, "This Natacha of yours," he murmured after a little while, "Is it Caleb's mother?"

Evangeline gave a slight nod as she took his hands in hers and shut her eyes, gathering enough focus before she transported them to the terrace of her estate in Greece; the beautiful sunrise still in the horizon from their place by the pool.

Luis cocked a brow, "It is." he breathed, "Why?" he muttered, glancing back at Nathaniel.

Kiran looked out at everything, a soft sigh escaping his lips, "It's beautiful." he breathed, cocking his handsome head.

Nathan gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "Caleb's mother isn't particularly thrilled about my existence," he muttered, scrunching up his nose a little.

"I'm glad you think so," Evangeline said softly, glancing over at him for a moment before she sighed, "Make yourself at home, darling, I'll be in my bedroom if you need me," she murmured, turning to leave him to it.

Luis wrinkled his nose a bit, "I'll talk to her." he breathed as they entered his kitchen where Lena Vladislav was sitting up on the counter, sucking down her third blood bag, "Save some for the rest of us, sweetheart." he muttered, smiling gently at the girl.

"Wait." Kiran breathed, glancing back at her, swallowing hard, "I owe you a dance." he said, studying her.

Natacha couldn't help but smile at this as she ran her fingers over Lena's hair, her light gaze quickly finding Nathan's and her eyes narrowed a bit, "Please, tell me you've brought the Hart boy here to decapitate him."

Evangeline glanced back at him, raising a brow, "Forgive me, honey, but last time I danced with a Hawthorne, I got blown to bits," she breathed, smiling softly at him.

Luis bit his lip, the monstrous vampire looking quite sheepish now, "Not exactly." he breathed, holding his hand out to his woman, "We should talk." he muttered, glancing at Nathan for a moment, "Bags are in the fridge, help yourself." he said.

Kiran felt a small, genuine, smile curve his lips as he opened his blazer, "No bombs, promise." he said softly.

Nathan gave a slight nod, but he didn't say anything as Natacha took Luis' hand, looking quite suspicious.

Evangeline rolled her pretty eyes at him, "Fine, I'll dance with you," she breathed, stepping out of her heels to put her at a good head shorter than him before she moved towards him again.

Luis led Natacha from the kitchen, he bit his lip harder, articulating his next words carefully, "I sort of took Nathaniel into my coven." he said softly, studying Natacha's closely for her reaction.
Lena finished her bag of blood, feeling full and warm down her toes, she licked her plump, red lips as she slid off the counter and without a word kicked Nathaniel Hart as hard as she could in his shin.

Kiran smiled softly at her as he took one her hands in his and placed the other on her waist, "I don't know why you're being so nice to me." he said softly, "I've never been too kind to you, Evangeline, I've never been to kind to anyone, maybe we can fix that while we're here." he breathed.

Natacha's perfect brows seemed to rise a bit at this, "You sort of did, or you did?" she muttered, sounding like his next answer could earn him a kick in the groin.
Nathaniel cried out, hopping a little on one foot as he glared down at her, "What the hell, Lena, what was that for?"

Evangeline placed her free hand on Kiran's biceps, "If that's what you want," she breathed, studying his gaze almost curiously.

Luis pursed his lips, "I did." he said honestly, "I see something in him, Natacha, something like me." he breathed, studying her gaze.
Lena narrowed her pretty eyes at him, "Hmm? I don't know if you remember being there when you ruined the only good relationship my older brother's ever had or fucking with my favorite sister-in-law but I don't think I will ever forget the moment when my own brother called me a traitor for trying to protect you." she said, trying to keep her tone level as she continued to glare at him.

Kiran nodded slowly, "I'd like that." he muttered, "Maybe I'll finally understand you."

Natacha raised one brow higher at him, "Like what, Luis?" she muttered, the disagreement obvious in her tone.
Nathaniel narrowed his eyes at her, "I was doing her a goddamn favor, kid, God," he mumbled, frowning deeply at her, "I'm sorry for what happened to you, I didn't expect that."

Evangeline nodded slightly, the softness of her smile still evident as she moved with him, "What else do you want to fix?" she breathed; seemingly starting session one.

Luis sighed, "Like when I was younger, chained down by circumstances, needing to be freed." he said softly, "I had to fight to free myself, for centuries even, I just thought to give someone a fighting chance, let the past not matter." he breathed.
Lena bit her lip as she crossed her arms over her chest, "I know." she mumbled after a moment as she dropped her gaze, "I knew about you, I knew about your sister but I didn't care, I just wanted to protect you," she breathed, "It's so foolish, a girl's fantasy to fix all the broken, little toys, I am a child, I'll be one forever now." she muttered, shaking her head.

"I don't know exactly." Kiran said honestly, "What do you think I should fix?" he muttered.

Three weeks later, John Crewe residence, New Orleans, Louisiana...
Caden Landry pulled his black Mustang up to the Crewe residence and cut the engine, he looked ever handsome in his black suit, having come straight from the airport, he ran his fingers over his hair as he started for the front door, ringing the doorbell like a polite young man.

Natacha's eyes seemed to narrow further, frustrated that he always knew exactly what to say, before she sighed, "Fine," she mumbled, making a gesture with her hand, "You can keep him, but if he misbehaves.." she paused, giving him a face that implied that he would simply die.
Nathan wrinkled his nose at her, "I'm sorry," he mumbled, studying her face with a lack for words.

Evangeline gave a slight shrug of her shoulders, "I know what you were forced to do, love, and I want you to know that I won't think any differently of you," she breathed, cocking her pretty head a bit to the side to study him more carefully, "Did you enjoy it?"

Anna looked up from her place by the desk in the corner of the kitchen, wrinkling her nose a little as she stood, "Coming," she called, wondering who could possibly be ringing the doorbell while her father was working and little Aidan was at school. She smoothed out her oversized, white off-the-shoulder blouse and made sure her low-waisted jeans weren't ratting her out before she opened the door.

Luis grinned down at her, "Understood." he breathed, bending his head to kiss her beautiful mouth, "I love you." he said softly against her lips.
Lena shook her head again, "It's not your fault, Nathaniel, not entirely." she mumbled, giving a helpless little shrug of her shoulders, she took a deep breath, "I'm hungry again." she muttered, derailing the conversation on purpose as she started for the fridge.

Kiran swallowed hard, considering this for a long moment, "I think so." he breathed out, his words shaky as if it was the hardest truth he'd ever told.

Caden raised his gaze to Anna's face, "Hey dahlin'." he breathed, smiling softly at her.

Three weeks later, Greece...
Evangeline made a sweet noise as she laid her head against a pillow next to Kiran's feet, running her fingertips along his thigh, "How are you feeling, love?" she breathed.

Anna blinked slowly, "Cade," she breathed, a surprisingly soft smile curving her lips as she studied his face, "What are you doing here?"

Kiran thought about this for a moment, feeling surprisingly calm inside, "Good." he breathed, smiling softly to himself as he folded his arms under his head, "Can I ask you something personal, Miss Evangeline?" he drawled after a moment.

Caden grinned, "I came to surprise you, I just got back from Hong Kong." he breathed, opening his arms a little, "Can I have a hug?"

Three weeks later, The Adams residence, Baton Rouge, Louisiana...
Luis Adams smiled to himself, the vampire looked ever handsome in his dark slacks and cream colored button up, his brown locks brushed back from his beautiful face, his emerald eyes sparkled as he looked across the table at his beautiful woman, on either side of him sat the newly blooded entrants of his coven, Nathaniel Hart and Lena Vladislav, the latter looked beautiful in a cream colored dress fitted to her body, her dark curls hanging loosely and forever perfect around her pretty face; she was trying to sit still and almost made Luis fidget, feeling her hunger, he reached out to put his hand over hers on the table, "Valentino and the others will be here, soon, then we'll eat." he said as if speaking to his own daughter before he returned to studying the lovely Natacha.

Evangeline couldn't help but breathe a laugh as she laid back against her pillow, "I think we're beyond the point where you have to ask," she breathed.

Anna's lips seemed to widen into a warmer smile as she stepped into his arms, slipping her own around his waist, "I missed you so much," she breathed, meaning it with all of her heart.

Natacha raised her gaze to her man's face; as always stunned by his beauty and her lips turned up in a small, warm smile.
Nathan pursed his lips as he glanced over at Lena, "Bite your tongue," he breathed, unable to keep his lips from forming into a grin.

Kiran pursed his lips thinking for a moment, "What made you the way you are?" he mumbled, wrinkling his nose a little as if he wasn't sure that made sense.

"I missed you too." Cade breathed, bending his head to kiss the top of hers, "What's been happening while I was away?"

Luis grinned crookedly at her, unable to help himself, 'I love you,' he mouthed across their dining room table as if they were really the only ones there.
Lena rolled her pretty eyes at him, "Maybe I'll bite your tongue." she breathed, obviously teasing as she gave him her small lip quirking smile.

Evangeline pursed her lips, "You say it like I'm horrible," she breathed, her gaze turning to the ceiling as if she was actually hurt.

Anna made a noise as she pulled back from him, a bright smile now lighting up her face as she took one of his hands and placed it on her baby bump.

Natacha bit her bottom lip in her playful, sweet manner, 'I love you more' she mouthed back.
Nathan narrowed his eyes at her, "I'd like to see you try," he teased, wiggling his brows a little.

Kiran bit his lip, "I didn't mean it like that." he said, "I just want to know who you are, really," he breathed, "I want to know where you come from?"

Caden arched both brows as a grin widened his lips, "I assume Kiran is pleased?" he breathed, "Where is he anyways?"

Luis rolled his eyes playfully, 'Impossible,' he mouthed, still grinning widely when their front doorbell rang and he stood to answer it.
Lena cocked a brow at him, "Is that a challenge, Mr. Hart?" she breathed.

Evangeline pursed her lips into a thin line, thinking about this for a moment, "I am like this because I was taught, at a young age, that love is something that breeds weakness, so I refrain from feeling it whenever I can," she breathed, biting her bottom lip.

Anna's smile seemed to fade as she bit her bottom lip, "He's.. not in the picture," she breathed, stepping back to let him come inside.

Nathaniel gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "Maybe," he breathed, something dark coming into his pretty blue eyes.

Kiran nodded slowly, "I understand." he breathed, "My grandmother tried to instill the same philosophy into my mother but as you've seen she rebelled." he muttered, smiling a little to himself, "Love is..not so bad sometimes."

Caden stepped inside, a slight frown tugging his lips, "Do you want to talk about it?" he breathed.

Lena felt something warm clench in her abdomen as she bit her lip, "After dinner." she breathed, keeping his gaze even as Luis returned with a handsome dark haired vampire with sparkling tawny eyes, "Valentino," he breathed, "You've met my wife, Natacha." the vampire bowed his pretty head in her direction, "The other two staring intently at each other across the table are my entrants, Nathaniel Hart and Lena Vladislav." Luis muttered, grinning to himself.

Evangeline made a noise as she pushed her back off the bed and moved to straddle him once more as she smiled down at him, "Sometimes," she breathed, bending to kiss his pretty mouth.

Anna shook her head a little, "It's not worth talking about," she breathed, shaking it off rather quickly before she gestured to the kitchen, "Are you hungry or anything? I wanna hear about your trip."

Nathaniel seemed to snap out of it, looking up at Luis and the new guest with pursed lips, "Nice meeting you," he mumbled.

Kiran kissed her mouth before he smiled softly, "I hope you find a guy you can fall in love with." he said softly.

"I'm starving." Cade breathed, "And it was just boring, old business, killed a scientist, blah." he muttered, rolling his pretty eyes.

Lena blinked up at Valentino, smiling politely, "Its a pleasure." she breathed.
Valentino grinned, "To both of you as well," he muttered, "Welcome to our fucked up little vampire circle."
Luis rolled his pretty eyes, "I resent that, Val." he muttered, teasing as he gestured to his fourth-made to sit.

Evangeline rubbed her nose against his, "Why would I want that when I have you as my playmate?" she breathed, lifting herself a little as she reached between them to grasp him.

Anna couldn't help but grin at him, "It sounds pretty exciting to me," she breathed, starting into the kitchen to make him something to eat, "You should chill with me more often, Kitten, you work too much."

"Me too," Natacha breathed, draping her leg over her knee as she leaned back in her seat, putting on her best pouty face.

Kiran felt a shudder wrap up his spine as he bit his lip hard, "Because everyone deserves someone to love?" he breathed.

Caden rolled his eyes again, "I really should, it's about damn time I retire." he nodded.

Valentino smiled softly at her, "I say it with love." he breathed, "I swear."

"Shut up," Eva breathed, biting her bottom lip hard as she took all of him into her, her abdominal muscles clenching.

Anna nodded a bit to herself, "Speaking of, how's the love life coming along?" she breathed, flipping the French toast on the pan.

"You better," Natacha breathed, that sweet pout of hers forming into a soft smile.

Kiran grabbed her hips, all the thoughts in his head silencing at once as tilted his pelvis to press deeper into her if possible..

Caden pursed his lips, "I met a woman but I don't know." he mumbled, giving a slight shrug of his shoulders.

Luis smiled at this, opening his mouth to say something witty when he heard his front door opening and within mere moments, a slender, curvy woman appeared in the tightest little red dress and Manolos, brown curls dancing around her pretty face, her olive green eyes shimmered as she smiled in cruelly sweet manner, "I hope I'm not late, Luis." she breathed, only looking at him.

.. Evangeline tilted her head back, all sorts of fuzziness coming into her pretty head as she moved her hips against him, harder and faster by each move as she felt the pleasure start to build up in her abdomen and she breathed his name.

Anna's lips pulled into an impressed sort of pout as she flipped his French toast onto a plate and began back into the living room, gesturing for him to take a seat on the couch, "Tell me about her?"

Natacha's gaze fixed on the woman and she automatically raised a brow, but she said nothing, already considering taking her stilettos off.

Kiran tilted his hips up to meet her, pleasure building in his abdomen.

Luis felt his spine tense in the worst way as he studied the woman, "Livea." he breathed, "Why don't you ever stay dead?"

Evangeline's lips parted in a gasp as she took one of Kiran's hands and pulled him into a sitting position, forming his fingers into a fist in her hair, as if urging him to be rougher.

Natacha's brow rose higher at the mention of the name, undraping her knee as she watched Luis closely now.

Kiran yanked on her curls, moving harder against her as he pressed his lips against her throat.

Livea's lips pulled into a deep pout, "And here I thought you would miss me, brother." she said softly as she moved towards him, she grabbed his chin, tilting back his pretty head as she bent down to kiss his mouth.

Evangeline whimpered, the mere moves sending sparks into her pretty mind as pleasure peaked in her abdomen and she tilted her head back, moaning his name.

Natacha's jaw tightened, her usually so light and warm eyes darkening into ice, but she remained quiet, knowing her man knew how to handle himself.

Kiran gritted his teeth as he slammed into her a last time and held himself there as pleasure burst in his abdomen.

Luis' arm shot up to wrap his fingers around Livea's throat, a growl on his lips, "Come." he said standing, "Let's talk, Liv." he breathed, dragging her towards his study by her neck.

Evangeline shut her eyes, a sweet sort of pain in her abdomen as she tightened around him, running her fingers over his hair as she leaned her forehead against his, "Are you going back?" she breathed.

Nathaniel bit his bottom lip, having a faint idea of who this woman might have been as he glanced over at Natacha; the absolutely murderous look on her beautiful face confirming this as she got up and practically stormed into the kitchen.

Kiran made a noise, "Back where?" he mumbled, nipping at her pretty neck.

Lena bit her lip as she watched Natacha go, "His sister?" she breathed, turning to raise a brow at Valentino.
The older vampire smirked, "It's much more complicated than that, darling." he muttered, "Luis and Livea...they were..together." he said, trying have some semblance of delicacy when it came to speaking of the vile woman and his sire.

"To your woman," Evangeline breathed, her fingertips trailing down to the back of his neck and down his back.

Nathaniel pursed his lips, "Were they together, as in having sex or 'together'?" he muttered, curious now.

Kiran bit his lip, "I love her, you know." he whispered, "I want to go back eventually." he said softly.

Valentino sighed as he leaned back in his seat, "A bit of both, on and off these last few centuries." he breathed, "They were...obsessed with each other, circling like two wolves always, if he left she followed, if she left he chased, on and on." he muttered, shaking his head, "He is different with her than with any other woman much like he is different with Natacha, with Livea he is the Monster, he is hers, he even let her kill him for her own pleasure." he breathed, his eyes darkening, "You will come to hate even the sound of her name soon."

"Eventually," Evangeline repeated, gently kissing his forehead, "What are you going to say to her?" she breathed, obviously starting their next session.

Nathaniel wrinkled his nose a bit to himself, "Don't you think he'll kick her out of here or something?" he muttered, nodding towards the kitchen, "Her presence obviously bugs Natacha."

Kiran thought for a moment, "I will tell her that I love her." he began, "And I'll tell her..hmm?" Kiran wrinkled his nose, trying to articulate all the words, "I have to be careful, I don't want her to runaway again, you know?"

Valentino bit his lip, "I hope so." he said honestly, "I hope he doesn't Natacha's heart like he broke the others." he breathed, his ears pricking when he heard the door to the den slam open and Livea Adams sauntered out, "Where is she?" she hissed, her eyes flashing as she licked her teeth, "Where is this woman who ruined my brother?"

Evangeline nodded slightly, "But you have to be honest with her, love, about everything, or she'll run away again."

Natacha pushed the kitchen door open, standing only at her 5'9 now as she threw her first Christian Louboutin at Livea, "Right here," she said, rather calmly.

Kiran nodded, "I know." he said softly, "I'm going to tell her everything, I just don't know all the words I'm going to say yet."

Livea made a noise as she moved out of the way of the heel, her perfect curls a bit messier as she glared at the woman, "What did you do to him?" she growled, placing her palms on the table top as a growl ripped up her throat and her eyes darkened, "He's weak now, weak with love." she nearly screamed, "For you," she said as if this were the most outrageous damn thing she ever heard before she sucked in her breath, "But my Luis will come back, he will always come back, he needs me the way I need him, we will always need each other." she said through her teeth.

Evangeline couldn't help but smile at this as she kissed his forehead again, "I'm proud of you," she breathed.

Natacha slowly moved towards the table, mimicking Livea's move as she placed her hands on the other side of the table, glaring at her hard, "You have no idea how pathetic that makes you, Livea," she said, her light eyes absolutely icy, "Who do you think you are, coming into our house, dressed like a goddamn whore and try to ruin everything?" she hissed.

Livea's lips pulled into a cruel smile as she met the woman's glare, "Do you not know yet?" she breathed, suddenly eerily calm, "I am the first woman he ever loved, the first woman he was ever bound too, and I will be the last. Always." she muttered before she disappeared in a flash of darkness.

Natacha's lips parted in a sigh as she shut her eyes a moment, some explainable emotion fluttering over her beautiful face before it was gone and she pushed away from the table, starting towards the door in silence.

Luis blinked slowly before he moved wrapping his fingers around Natacha's arm, "Where are you going?" he breathed, his emerald eyes dark and flickering as he studied her face.

Natacha immediately jerked her arm out of his hold, glaring up at him, "Don't touch me," she said through her teeth, shoving the door open to leave the room.

Luis blinked, hurt blossoming in his chest before fading into the old, familiar rage, he growled, baring his teeth as he took a step after her and Valentino was there suddenly to catch him; he shoved against the other vampire, "You cannot leave me." he screamed after her, his eyes blackening out, "You are mine, mine, I will find you." he roared, "I will find you." he shoved against his fourth-made who was doing all he could to keep his sire back even at the risk of his own neck, "And I will kill you for this."

Natacha shut her eyes tight, feeling her heart break into bits and her eyes darkened, tears welling up in her gaze as she turned, suddenly not caring how dangerously angry she would make her husband as she stared back at him, "Come get me, you lying bastard," she hissed, throwing her second Louboutin at him before she turned on her heel and steered for the front door.

Luis snarled after her, shoving Valentino away from before he started after his wife, murderous rage on his handsome face before he was cut off by two more of his vampires, throwing him back as Valentino moved to grab him from behind, his teeth grit as he got an arm around Luis' throat in an attempt to haul him away.
Lena had stood from the table, her eyes getting wider and wider as the fight progressed, "Oh my God." she breathed, shaking her head before she gathered her wits and took her cellphone from her cleavage, knowing now would be a good time to call Caleb.

Natacha stepped out of the front door, the scenario finally catching up to her as the tears began to spill down her cheeks and she began barefooted away from the house, his words repeating themselves over and over again in her head.
Caleb answered the phone within moments, shutting his eyes as he made a low noise into the phone, "Hello?"

"Caleb?" Lena breathed, looking up at as Luis had thrown off a few of his vampires and was crashing through the house, "It's Luis and Natacha," she breathed, hurriedly going on to explain what was happening, "He lost it, he threatened to kill her."

Caleb's eyes widened, "Shit, I'm coming," he mumbled, hanging up before he grabbed a post-it from his table, scribbled down a message for Eliya and disappeared to the front room of Luis' house.

Luis growled when Caleb appeared, his rage vibrating off of his skin as he threw his vampires from him and started for his stepson, "She left me." he said, "Do you know what I do to women who leave me, Caleb?" he breathed, sounding eerily calm suddenly, "I scar their faces and then I kill them." he said through his sharp teeth as he lunged at the boy as if just reminding of his mother made him angry and Valentino moved again to stop him.

Caleb's lips twisted with a snarl as he glared hard at his stepfather, taking a step towards him as he gestured to one of the vampires, "Go get my mother," he said, a plan obviously forming in his head.

The vampires gave pause before Valentino snapped at them, "Go. Now." he growled, keeping an arm tight around Luis to hold him back from doing anything stupid. A dirty blonde male with soft blue eyes named Dominic gave a slight nod and disappeared out the door to get Natacha.

Kiran rolled his pretty eyes at her, "You're cute when you sound kind of like a therapist." he breathed, smiling crookedly at her, "I want to ask you questions now, okay?" he said, laying back and keeping her with him.

Caleb's eyes narrowed a bit as he grabbed his stepfather as well and began to shove him towards the dining room again, "Tie him down. Fast."
Natacha had made it out onto to the street, grumbling and cussing to herself in Russian as she walked down the side of the road, needing to think.

Evangeline made a low noise as she relaxed against his chest, shutting her pretty eyes, "Okay," she breathed, gently tracing his collarbone with her fingertips.

Valentino slammed him down into a chair as another vampire got a thick chain from the basement and together they chained down their sire.
Dominic took a breath as he reached Natacha, "Mrs. Adams?" he breathed, "Your son is inside with Luis, he wants you to come back." he said gently.

Kiran put his arms around her, turning his gaze to the ceiling, "What were your parents like?" he asked softly.

Natacha stopped, turning a little on her heel to face Dominic, her lips pursed into a thin line as she considered this for a moment, "Thank you," she breathed, raising her hands to wipe the unwelcome tears from her eyes before she started back towards the house.

Evangeline pursed her lips, thinking about this for a moment before she sighed, "Of what I remember, my father sold me to a rather wealthy tradesman to keep his land and my mother stood idly by," she breathed, "That seems to explain it all."

Dominic turned after her, "I'm sorry." he said after a moment, "For the way Luis acted, he's.." he shook his head, "He gets like this when he's angry."

Kiran frowned deeply at this, "They sound awful." he muttered, giving her a slight squeeze, "I was thinking about something." he breathed, "When I leave, I'd like you to visit my great grandfather, I think he can help you."

Natacha swallowed hard, offering nothing but a slight nod as she made her way back into the front room of the house.

"What makes you think I need help?" Evangeline muttered, sounding rather soft as she raised her pretty head a little to look at him.

Luis stilled the moment he could feel her, his whole became like stone, his beautiful emerald eyes the deep black of the pit but he was silent.

Kiran bit his lip, "Love, if I'm seven shades of fucked up." he started, "You have to be at least fifty..and you're trying to help me so I would like to help you in return."

Natacha froze as soon as she reached the entryway; remaining there until Caleb was at her side, protectively slipping an arm around her shoulders to lead her a bit closer to his stepfather, where she frowned, "Why have you chained him?" she breathed, her gaze fixed on his face.
Caleb pursed his lips, "To keep him from acting retarded."
"Unchain him," Natacha said coolly, her gaze still on Luis'.

Evangeline couldn't help the roll of her eyes as she moved her head to gently kiss his throat, "Fine," she breathed, grazing the vein with her lengthening canines.

Luis remained silent, keeping her gaze as Valentino bit his lip, contemplating the cleverness of this before he moved forward and removed the chains but Luis remained seating, "I never lied to you." he said after a moment, "I told you everything about me, I just didn't tell you everything about her and her effect on me. I was ashamed." he said, keeping his black gaze right to hers.

Kiran grinned a bit at this, "I know Max will take you." he said softly, "If anything he'll do it to get back at Luis for taking your brother into his Coven." he muttered, glancing down at her now.

"Ashamed?" Natacha breathed, her lips twisting as she stood close enough to him now, for her beautiful man to reach up and rip her heart out if he pleased and she almost per automatism raised her hand, slapping him hard across the face, "I thought you told me everything," she shouted, the usually so collected woman now filled with anger as her pretty face flushed, "I thought we accepted each other's pasts, I thought you loved me, Luis. Do you have any idea how embarrassing this is? To find out you've been played for a fool for almost thirty years?"

Evangeline's pretty lips formed into a sharp grin against his throat, "I'd rather have you take me," she breathed, lifting herself a little to get better access to the crook of his neck before she bit down, simply for giggles.

Luis blinked slowly, fighting the urge to stay seated as he watched her face, "You changed everything." he whispered after a moment, "You came into my life and it was like I could breathe again, you were the woman I waited centuries to find." he breathed, standing slowly, "I have never loved anyone the way I have loved you, the way I do love you, not even Livea." he raised his hands to frame face, "I have beaten, raped, and murdered women in the worst ways imaginable but I have never lifted a hand against you." he breathed, running his thumb along her lips, "Natacha, I would let you kill me if it pleased you, here and now. Livea is poison, she ruins everything, you were going to leave because of what she said." he whispered, his now emerald eyes flickering and shimmering as he kept her gaze, "You pulled away from me, it hurt, I don't understand why you were going to leave me and the only reaction to hurt I've ever known is to react violently, like the damned monster I am." he muttered, "But I could never do it, I could never kill you, I would die if you didn't exist." he breathed, dropping his hands to his sides, "I am so sorry."

Kiran blinked before he wrapped his fingers in her hair and yanked her head up, "No biting." he breathed, narrowing his eyes at her.

Natacha blinked slowly, her gaze flickering across his face before she raised her hands to curl her fingers in her hair, "I don't know what to do," she whispered, dropping her gaze to the floor.

Evangeline made a low noise, "Why not?" she breathed, her slightly bloodied lips pulling into a pout as she looked down at him.

Luis slowly got down to his knees, like a man relinquishing all of his power as he reached up to put his arms around her waist and lay his forehead against her abdomen, "Please, don't leave." he whispered.

"Because I said so." Kiran retorted, cocking brow at her.

Natacha released her curls, keeping her eyes half-closed as she gazed down at him, running her slender fingers through his hair, "Okay," she breathed, "I'll stay."

Evangeline couldn't help the grin that curved her lips, "Good boy," she breathed, pleased that he was in charge again.

The tension seemed leave Luis shoulders as he hugged her tighter, not rising, inhaling her scent as he shut his eyes tight, "I'll tell you anything you want to know about her, I won't keep anything from you ever again." he said softly.
Lena bit her lip hard, she could almost feel her sire's sincerity, his worry, his hurt, and his fading rage through their maker's bond, it was overwhelming and she wondered how the others dealt with it as she moved around the table towards Nathaniel, gently touching his arm as she nodded towards the back door, in a gesture asking if they should go.

Kiran grinned crookedly at her, "You treat me like a child sometimes." he muttered, making a face at her, "And you always make a joke or sexual pun when I try to talk more seriously." he breathed, studying her, "You deflect a lot in my opinion."

Natacha tightened her hold in his hair as she felt her throat tighten and she remained quiet now, knowing she'd choke up if she spoke again.
Nathaniel nodded slightly as he stood, quiet to not ruin their moment as he started for the door, seeing Caleb leave the room out of the corner of his eye.

Evangeline slid off of him, offering a slight shrug of her shoulders as she studied him, "Feelings aren't exactly an appealing subject to me, love, you should know that," she breathed, cocking her pretty head a bit to the side.

Luis stayed on his knees for a few moments longer before he started to stand slowly, he watched her face carefully as he put his arm carefully around her, just to be touching her still, "What do you want me to do?" he said gently.
Lena bit her lip harder, not speaking until they'd gotten through the back door and stood on Luis' veranda, she let out her breath, "That was..." she shook her head, "Intense." she mumbled, her lips twisting as she tried to reign in her own emotions.

Kiran pursed his lips, "Well, if you were to feel, what are you feeling right now?" he breathed, starting her first session.

Natacha bit her bottom lip as she raised her gaze to her man's face, "Be with me, and keep your awful sister out of our house," she breathed.
Nathan gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "It's a vampire thing, darling."

Evangeline raised a brow at him, leaning her weight on her left hand and pursing her lips, "The closest thing to love, I presume," she said honestly, holding his gaze.

Luis felt a soft smile curve his lips, "Done." he said softly, glancing back at Valentino and his other vampires, "If you see Livea even near the house, kill her." he said before he turned back to his woman, "Do you want to go upstairs?" he muttered.
Lena's lips twisted as she turned to lean against the banister wrapping around the veranda, "Speaking of vampire things," she began, her pretty lips forming into a pout, "I never got dinner." she mumbled, running her fingers over curls.

Kiran cocked his head a bit, a soft smile curving his lips, "And feeling this way, what does your head say about it?" he inquired.

Natacha nodded slightly, "Please," she breathed, that soft, absolutely loving look returning to her eyes.
Nathan cocked his head a bit to the side, smirking at her, "Do you want to go hunt?"

Evangeline couldn't help but roll her eyes at him, "Uncomfortable, Mister Hawthorne," she breathed, her pretty head still tilted to the side as she smiled at him, "If you keep asking nosy questions, I'm gonna have to send my playmate home," she murmured.

Luis seemed to relax even more with this as he began to lead her upstairs again, "I love you." he said softly, looking down at her, his emerald eyes shimmering.
Lena nodded slightly, "I would like that." she breathed, smiling a little at this, "Luis took me my first time last week." she said, a bit of pride entering her tone, "He said I'm a natural predator." she muttered, grinning widely at this as she looked up at him.

Kiran bit his lip as he studied her for a moment, he didn't say anything as he slid out of bed, "Come on, get dressed." he said softly, picking his jeans up from the floor to slide them on.

"And I love you," Natacha breathed, nothing but sincerity and love in her voice as she leaned against him.

Evangeline frowned a little at this, "Where are we going?" she muttered, sliding out of bed to grab her summer dress from the floor.

Kiran glanced up at her as he pulled his dark grey t-shirt on over his head, "I'm taking you to Max." he said, sitting on the edge of the bed to pull on his timberlands.

Evangeline wrinkled her pretty nose a bit, "Kidnapper," she scowled, narrowing her eyes at him before she slid on her strappy stilettos.

Kiran rolled his eyes, "It's not kidnapping if you all ready consented to going." he muttered, raising a brow at her before he held his hand out to her, "Are you ready?"

Evangeline gave a slight nod before she took his hand, biting her bottom lip almost nervously; something so unlike her.

Kiran smiled reassuringly at her before he blinked them Maximus' estate in upstate New York, he cocked his head to listen to the large house for a moment, squeezing her fingers, "Ah, library." he muttered before he began towards it, already hearing the old vampire and what seemed to be his prey.

"Sounds like the old man is having fun," Evangeline breathed, letting him lead her.

Kiran couldn't help but grin at this as he opened the door to the library and peered inside, Maximus stood at his piano, a pretty, rather young woman in a maroon satin gown bunched around her waist was sprawled elegantly across the lid of the piano, her face was turned towards them, Max's was buried against the girl's neck, his fingers tracing her naked sides as his other hand cradled her head; her plump lips parted in a sigh and her lids fluttered before Maximus moved his handsome face away, looking ever handsome in a dark tailored suit with a white dress shirt beneath, he sat on the bench of the piano, puncturing the girl's wrist and spilling the last of her blood into a wine glass he had on hand before he turned to them, not a strand of dark, shaggy hair out of place or a drop of blood on his perfectly trimmed goatee. He leaned back against the piano, his whole demeanor screaming power, arrogance, predator, his handsome lips quirked into a sardonic sort of grin, "Kiran, what have your brought to my doorstep now?"

Evangeline cocked her pretty head to the side as she squeezed Kiran's hand; for a moment looking like his proper girlfriend and she remained quiet, another thing so unlike her.

Kiran gestured to Eva, "This is Evangeline Hart." he said softly, "I want you to help her Maximus, please." he breathed.
Maximus raised a brow as he turned his gaze to Eva, his dark eyes shimmering as they slid from the top of her head down to her toes, "I've heard a great deal about you, Miss Hart." he breathed before he cocked his head at his great grandson, "What exactly do you think is wrong with her Kiran? What do you think I can do about it?"
Kiran pursed his lips again as he tried to think of how to articulate this, "She's..damaged, Max." he said softly, "Like me and you..like Sarai." he muttered, knowing this would peak an interest in the old vampire's heart before he grinned wider, "Besides, I'm sure it would piss Luis off to no end to learn you were housing Evangeline Hart."

Evangeline's lips formed into a smirk as she remained quiet, raising her hand to run her fingers over her just-fucked curls.

Maximus pursed his handsome lips as he considered this, "Fine." he breathed, "But I have two conditions." he said.
Kiran raised a brow, "What are they?" he inquired, squeezing Eva's hand again.
"Make amends with your sister." Max said, narrowing his eyes at his great grandson, "The other condition will be between myself and Miss Hart, leave her now." he muttered.
Kiran nodded slowly, biting his lip as he turned to Evangeline, "I think this is it then sweetheart." he said softly, he bent down to kiss her forehead, "Call me if anything." he breathed before he nodded to his grandfather and disappeared to Louisiana.

Anna made a noise as she stared at the television; snuggling up against Caden's side as Jigsaw claimed another victim and she very protectively pulled her blanket over her baby bump, wrinkling her pretty nose, "Thanks for staying here, Kitten," she muttered, glancing over at him.

Caden grinned, wrapping his arm tighter around her shoulder, "No problem, dahlin." he breathed, the movie obviously not bothering him in the slightest when he heard the doorbell ring, "Someone's here, want me to get it?" he muttered, a teasing smirk on his lips, "Just in case it's Jigsaw coming for you?"

Anna narrowed her pretty eyes a bit at him, "That's not funny," she grumbled, sticking her tongue out at him before she nodded, looking quite sheepish, "But you should, just in case."

Caden grinned down at her before he stood and began towards the front door, raising a brow as soon as he opened it to study Kiran Hawthorne, "Not exactly, Jigsaw, darlin." he called back to Anna as he gestured for Kiran to come in.

Anna raised her gaze to the entryway, her heart clenching in her chest as Kiran came into view and she wrapped the blanket tighter around her, quiet.

Kiran bit his lip as he stepped into the house, "Hi Anna." he said softly, "Can we talk?" he breathed.

Anna gave a slow nod, unwrapping herself of the blanket and revealing the bump, enhanced by her strapless, white tube top, but she said nothing, simply pausing their movie before she started for the kitchen to have their conversation in semi-private, knowing her bestie was at her rescue if needed.

Kiran bit his lip hard, noticing her belly but not commenting on it yet as he followed her into the kitchen, "Anna, I want to be with you." he started, "I really want to be with you but I know there are some things we need to talk about before we can even make that step again."

Maximus was silent as he assessed Evangeline's pretty face, "Condition two," he started before he moved wrapping his hand around her throat and pinning her up against the wall with his body, he tilted her chin, baring his fangs to her before he buried them in her throat.

Anna swallowed hard, "What do you want to talk about?" she breathed, not looking at him as she grabbed a kettle, filling it up with water before she returned it to its station to make tea.

Evangeline cried out, shutting her pretty eyes tight before she gritted her lengthening teeth, automatically raising one hand to curl her slender fingers in Maximus' hair.

Kiran bit his lip, "That night, you asked how I could think I was a monster if I didn't enjoy it?" he began softly, "Deep inside I do, not the rape but the roughness of it, the control." he muttered, hoping he was making sense.

Maximus drank deeply of her, reaching up to cradle her head between his hands before he pulled back, taking to his own wrist he filled his mouth with his own blood and cradling her head again, pressed his mouth over hers to give her his blood.

Anna shut her eyes for a moment, her displeasure with this becoming obvious for the briefest moment before she continued her little mission to make tea, "What made you realize that?" she muttered, still not looking at him.

Evangeline's lips parted, willingly taking his blood as a shiver crawled up her spine.

Kiran bit his lip, deciding to be honest, "Evangeline." he breathed.

Maximus held them there for a few more moments before he pulled back, licking his lips of blood, he studied Evangeline for a long moment, "Come, I'll show you your room." he said.

Anna's throat seemed to tighten some as she finally turned to face him, her backside against the edge of the counter as her light gaze fixed on Kiran's face, "How?"

Evangeline made a pleased sort of noise as she raised her hand to run her thumb over her lips, wiping the blood from them as she pushed off the wall to follow him.

Nathaniel couldn't help the slight roll of his eyes, "We'll see about that, darling," he breathed, holding his hand out to her.

"We talked a lot, I had time to think in Greece." Kiran muttered, "She was not her usual evil self, she was nice." he mumbled.

Maximus led her from the library towards the grand staircase, "All the rooms in the house are open to you except my chambers." he explained, "You will not enter unless instructed to do so." he said matter-of-factually as he led her to a set of double doors on the second floor, he pulled them to open to reveal an apartment furnished in creams and elegant cherry wood, equipped with a living room set and a large four poster bed, to the wall just in front of them was a set of French doors that led to a balcony, "Will it suit you?" he muttered.

Lena took his hand, stepping closer to him, "Are you doubting my predatory abilities, Mr. Hart?" she breathed, the slight tilt of her lips implying the playfulness of the statement.

Anna nodded slowly, her gaze dropping to the floor as she pursed her lips, "You slept with her," she said, this not being a question.

"Yes, thank you," Evangeline breathed, her light-blue gaze shimmering as she looked over the room in front of her.

Nathaniel's lips parted in a gasp, "I would never," he breathed, pulling her even closer to him as he slid his other arm around her waist, his pretty eyes darkening as he gazed down at her.

Kiran gave a slight nod, "I did." he answered honestly, "But I don't love her and I made that very clear to her, I love you." he said, holding her gaze, "Only you."

Maximus pursed his lips, "I filled your closet." he said softly, a sort of wickedness tilting his lips, "I knew you were coming yesterday." he breathed.

Lena bit her lip as she studied his gaze, "I think you do." she breathed, "And I take that as another challenge, Mr. Hart." she said softly, her blue-silver gaze shimmering as her lips quirked up into a small smile.

Anna slowly shook her head, "Get out," she whispered, raising her hands to curl her fingers in her hair as she shut her eyes tight.

Evangeline took a step into the room as she glanced over her shoulder at him, tapping her temple, "I heard a lot about you too, Maximus," she breathed, unable to keep the smile from her lips.

Nathan rolled his eyes at her once more, but he said nothing as he pressed her front against his and transported them to the city.

Kiran studied her face, "No." he said softly, "I'm not leaving." he muttered, "I'm not giving up and I'm not running away," he said, "Anna, I love you, I love you more than life itself, all I did these last three weeks is try to fix myself so I could be better for you." he breathed.

Maximus cocked a brow, "What kinds of things have you heard, Miss Hart?" he breathed, leaning in the doorway of the room, his arms crossed over his chest.

Lena bit her lip again as she tilted her head up to study his pretty face, a soft smile curved her lips, "Well, show me how it's done, old man." she breathed, her smile unfurling into a wicked sort of grin.

Anna raised her gaze to his face, "I don't want you, Kiran," she breathed, something resentful in her pretty face as she studied him very carefully, "For the past three weeks, I've been beating myself up about telling you we needed time apart and all the while, you've been screwing the woman who's been trying to ruin our lives for twenty years," she said through her teeth, automatically grabbing a teacup from the counter and throwing it at him.

"Oh, just some small things," Evangeline breathed, "About your visions, the almost brother-like competition between you and Luis Adams, stuff like that," she muttered, sauntering further into the room to look at it properly.

Nathan snickered, slowly shaking his head at her, "Ladies first, darling," he breathed, gesturing to the crowd of people on the street.

Kiran ducked before it could hit him, he blinked slowly at her, "I'm sorry," he said softly, his gaze sincere, "I'm sorry, Anna."

Maximus' grin remained, "So nothing really." he muttered, "There are a lot of things I don't think you do know about me." he breathed.

Lena pursed her lips, her gaze traveling past him through the crowd as she remembered what Luis had taught her, soon finding the ever loner among the people, he was a young man with a hooked nose in a hoodie and jeans too large for his thin frame; Lena slid her tongue along her lengthening teeth, her eyes darkening with hunger before she moved, coming to stand in front of the man, she cocked her pretty head at him, clasping her hands behind her back, in her cream colored dress she looked almost younger, "Could you help me?" she breathed, capturing him in her gaze.

Anna took a deep breath, looking like her hands were trembling now as she stared at him, "I don't know if you noticed, but I'm pregnant and I don't want you in this child's life," she said, her light eyes shimmering, "You ruin everything, Kiran, do you even realize that? Nathan was right about you, even though I hoped he wasn't, he was; you've ruined me and you've ruined our children and I'm not gonna let you ruin this one," she whispered, looking almost light-headed as she kept her gaze on him.

Evangeline gave a slight shrug of her slender shoulders, "Maybe you'll tell me, then," she breathed, turning her gaze back to the room.

Nathan crossed his arms over his chest, watching her curiously as he cocked his pretty head a bit to the side.

Kiran blinked slowly at her, hurt entering his gaze before he began to back away slowly, "I'm sorry." he whispered before he disappeared.

"Oh, I think I could show you instead." Maximus breathed, "But not tonight." he muttered, "If you're hungry, come to me, I will be in my den." he said, turning to leave.

The young man's gaze widened as he stilled, "Of course." he breathed as if helping this beautiful stranger was the most natural thing in the world.
Lena's lips pulled into a soft, endearing smile as she held her hand out to him, "Come." she said, watching him take her hand before she led him down into the darkness of an alley.

Anna shut her eyes tight as she slid to the floor with a whimpering noise, burying her face in her hands.

Evangeline nodded a bit to herself, but she didn't say anything as she dropped onto the edge of her bed.

Nathaniel's lips pulled into a wide grin as he watched them disappear; taking this time to find himself a pretty victim in the crowd.

Maximus stopped for a moment, "As a matter of fact, be in my den within the hour." he said, before beginning away again.

Daphne Canbaz appeared in the empty living room of the Stark's apartment, she looked ever beautiful in a tight black dress, her curls falling in perfect waves down her back, she licked her lips, listening to the house, the woman and the child were sleeping but the man was up, the man she'd come to see; she ran her fingers over her hair as she started towards the smell of him, her Louboutins clicking against the floor until she reached Aiden Stark's den, she smiled in a sweet manner, "Aiden?" she said softly, cocking her pretty head as she studied him at his desk.

Lena wrapped her arms around the man, letting him place his hands on her waist as she buried her fangs in his throat, she drank deeply, warm pleasure filling her body all the way down to her toes. She heard the man gasp and knew his end was near, she drank for a few moments longer before she pulled back, cradling the young man's face in her hands, she broke his neck and let him fall from her.
"So beautiful and so young." a voice breathed from the opening of the alley, it was deep with that rich sort of English accent that made shivers rip up ones spine.
Lena blinked slowly, raising her gaze to the man who'd spoken, he was a beautiful creature to look upon, sinewy in build, his dirty blond hair was styled perfectly on his pretty head, his deep blue eyes shimmered with amusement as he seemed to devour her in his gaze, he oozed arrogance, a true predator in every sense of the word, "You would make a pretty pet for my mistress, Claudia." he breathed, moving towards her slowly as to make her take a step back, he rolled up the sleeves of his white button down shirt as if readying himself, "She could dress you up in all these pretty dresses, you could be her doll, she does love her dolls." he whispered and suddenly he was a mere few inches from her, making her eyes wide as she stared up at him, her whole body tensing; a wicked smile curved the vampire's lips as he raised a hand to run his finger down her cheek, "You would be so perfect, she loves her them with a natural instinct for death." he breathed, flicking his tongue across his teeth.
Lena gritted her teeth, "Don't touch me." she breathed, reaching up to slap his hand away when he caught it his fist and snapped her wrist with a mere movement making her cry out in pain before his other hand grabbed her face, digging his nails into her cheeks, he grinned in the most devilish manner as he pressed against her, dropping her broken hand to bring his own to the hem of her dress, "Damn you're pretty." he hissed, digging his nails into her thighs as he began to drag it up her leg, leaving rivets of blood on her skin.

Aiden glanced up from his desk, frowning a little at the unknown pretty woman before him, "Can I help you?" he muttered.

"God, I hate vampires," Nathan muttered from behind the bastard before he reached out, wrapping his fingers in the back of his shirt before he yanked him away from Lena and moved to throw his ass through the alley.

Caleb Vladislav pursed his lips as he ran his fingertips over the black mahogany desk he sat by. His gaze raised to the large panorama windows, looking over the broken city of Atlanta, one of the few places that had been left behind after their quite modern Armageddon. The rest of the flat-like office he sat in was furnished in the same wood as the desk, the walls and fabrics of the chairs a smooth navy blue and was only lit by two little lamps on either side of the desk.
"Is the office to your liking, Mr. Vladislav?" the tall, thin woman murmured from the entryway, a soft, curious smile playing on her painted lips as she ran her thin fingers over her straightened blonde hair, obviously a little bothered by the pretty Russian in the Armani suit as she met his gaze, his blue-green eyes intently on her, "Very much, thank you," he breathed, a crooked grin curving his lips when she nodded, almost nervously, "I'll let Doctor Shakirova know," she breathed, inclining her head to him before she turned to leave.
"Hey, darlin'," Caleb muttered, his grin widening as she glanced back to meet his gaze, "Send Doctor Kane up here, I wanna speak with him."

Daphne's smile didn't waver, "You can help me in so many ways." she breathed, her gaze moving over him in a hungry manner before rising to his gaze once more, "But I'm here on behalf of my sister, Claudia Canbaz, have you heard of her?" she inquired, cocking her pretty head at him.

The vampire snarled as he pulled himself away from Nathan, hardly stumbling as he bared his teeth in a cruel grin, his pretty blue eyes darkening as they assessed the other vampire, "I apologize, does the girl belong to you?" he muttered, his tone full of derision.

Claudia Canbaz stood over Eliya's sleeping form, she studied the woman, she'd always found her quite pretty, small, and seemingly defenseless like a porcelain doll, "Ah but alas you do have strength." Claudia muttered, more to herself than anything as she ran her finger along the curve of Eliya's nose before she grabbed her chin roughly to wake her, "Wake." she hissed, lowering herself beside the woman to look into her eyes as they feared with slight panic, "Good, you should be scared, darling, no one is here to protect you." she breathed, her lips quirking into sickeningly sweet, cruel grin, "Your Caleb is gone, Eliya, he's left you again, and this time he's not coming back." she said, her cobalt blue eyes shimmering as they poured the seeds of half-truths and doubts into the woman's head.

"Probably," Aiden muttered, raising a brow at the woman without saying anything else.

"Yes, she does," Nathan said, cocking a brow as he kept his darkening gaze on his face.

Caleb leaned back in his leather chair, a wide grin spreading across his handsome lips as he slid his cell out of his pocket and dialed Adam Hawthorne's number, only waiting few moments before the boy answered, rather groggily,
"Caleb, what's up?" Adam mumbled into the phone.
"A lot, kiddo, where are you?" Caleb muttered, pouring himself a glass of bourbon.
"On my way back to the apartment," he replied, sounding rather suspicious, "Why?"
Caleb's lips curved into a smirk, "Because I've got a job for you in Atlanta, be here in twenty minutes, wear a suit," he said, rather coolly before he hung up.

Daphne's smile sweetened, "Claudia sends her congratulations on your new child." she breathed, "She says she can't wait to rip it out of mommy's womb and eat it." she said, flashing her sharper teeth.

The vampire cocked his head, "A word to the wise then, keep her close, a pretty thing like that, so young and ripe for the taking, will be taken," he hissed, his gaze flickering behind him to the girl.

Aiden's eyes darkened as he slowly stood, "You can tell Claudia, the next time she sends a skanky vampire, or anyone else, to my house, I'll personally shove a rusty hunting knife down both of your throats," he said, reaching into the top drawer of his desk to grab his 9. as he cocked his pretty head a bit at Daphne, "Do you understand, princess, or do I have to talk slower and let you take notes?"

"I'll try to keep that in mind, Prince Charming," Nathan muttered, moving towards Lena and grabbing her arm before he started out of the alley with her, "You ever touch her again and I'll eat you alive," he called back, steering Lena rather roughly onto the streets.

Daphne tilted her chin up, a soft laugh escaping her pretty lips, "I understand." she said before she became more serious, "Claudia has plans though and you and your woman will not like them and I don't think there's a threat in this world that could come from your pretty mouth to stop it."

Lena blinked slowly, finally able to breathe again as she felt blood dripping down her thighs and wet on her cheeks, "Thank you." she said after a moment as she glanced behind him, grateful to see that the vampire wasn't following.

"It's really sweet that you think that either of you can scare us," Aiden muttered, raising his gun to aim it directly at her forehead, "If this Claudia bitch wants to make threats, she should have come herself. Now leave my fucking house."

"You're welcome," Nathan muttered, still holding her arm rather tightly as he led her through the crowd, "Guess we can't have you wander off by yourself now, or Luis would have my head."

Daphne smirked at this, "I'll tell her you said so." she breathed, raising her hand to finger-wave, "Ta-ta, Aiden." she said and disappeared.

"Well, maybe not your head but I don't think he'd be pleased." Lena muttered, biting her lip as she glanced up at him, "Are you okay?" she asked softly.

Nathan glanced down at her as he loosened his hold, soon letting go of her completely before he narrowed his eyes rather playfully, "I'm hungry," he muttered, "And now I have to suck on a blood bag, so thank you for nearly getting raped," he said before grabbing her shoulder to take them back home.

Lena made a noise as soon as they were at Luis' again, "It is not my fault that homicidal and yet attractive vampires find me so appealing." she breathed, trying to make light of it even though she could still feel her heart in the pit of her stomach.

Claudia appeared in Caleb's office in mere seconds, bypassing all protocol, she smiled as soon as she saw him, her hands at her sides coated in blood still warm, "Hello Caleb." she breathed.

Nathan pursed his lips, his gaze on her as he slid his arm around her waist and pressed her against him. He said nothing, simply bending his pretty head to hers before he kissed her deeply, in his most irresistible way.

Caleb glanced up at her from his place by the desk, a drunken grin curving his handsome lips as he held his hand out for her, "Come here, baby," he breathed, obviously not noticing the blood.

Lena blinked before she shut her eyes and leaned into him, kissing him back almost hungrily, feeling warmth clench deep in her belly and spread down to her toes.

Claudia cocked her head as she slid her bloodied hand into his, "Did you miss me, baby?" she breathed, biting her lower lip as her pretty blue eyes shimmered.

Nathan bit her bottom lip to break their kiss before he grinned, "Feeling better?" he breathed.

"You have no idea," Caleb breathed, his dark eyes on her as he spread his legs a little before pulling her into his lap, "What's with the blood?"

Lena made a sweet, little noise, her eyes that dark shimmering blue with bits of steel around her irises as she looked up at him, "Much better." she breathed.

Claudia smiled, "You don't recognize it?" she muttered, holding up her hands, "I just finished with your ex-wife." she grinned up at him, "My brother is taking his turn now, ripping apart her insides, he can so rough sometimes."

"Good," Nathan breathed, releasing her as he took a step back, "Go to bed, sweetheart, I'll see you in the morning," he muttered, turning to start back to his own room.

Caleb blinked slowly, his smile fading as he stared at her pretty face, "What did you do?" he breathed, obviously having sobered up by now, "Why?"

Lena bit her lip hard, watching him for a moment, "I take it you're not interested in keeping me company then?" she breathed, a teasing smile curving her lips before she turned to start towards her own room.

Claudia's gaze flickered to his face, "She kept me as a pet for a year." she muttered, "Don't look so surprised Caleb or hurt, you know I despise her and I despise you for loving her, it's the only thing I absolutely hate about you." she breathed, keeping his gaze, "Eliya knows you left her, she's dying with that thought in her head, that you're never coming back to her."

Nathan couldn't help but grin at this, but he said nothing as he continued towards his room.

Caleb's brows pulled together as his gaze flickered across her face, "How could you do this?" he breathed, grabbing her hands and shoving her back to get her off of him, "Did I really cross you so badly?" he asked, sounding almost hurt, "You know, I actually thought you loved me for a while and for a moment, I actually thought I loved you too, but this.. you've taken your little jealousy-vendetta too far, Claudia, we never hurt you like this."

Claudia turned on her heel to face him, "Oh you haven't?" she breathed, her eyes darkening like the ocean before a storm, "I could have given you everything and you spit in my face every time." she hissed, "I'm so tired of it, of you, I'm so tired of you, this isn't jealousy, Caleb, this is the final show, this is my revenge, this is for me." she breathed, her eyes darkening even further, "Do you know it's funny? The Claudia you thought you loved for even a moment was a creation made by your wife?"

Caleb couldn't help the slight smile that curved his lips, a sadness playing on his face as he shook his head at her, "No," he breathed, "I thought I loved you when you told me you'd give me everything I ever wanted," he muttered, giving a slight shrug of his shoulders, "But then you fucked yourself, just like you're doing now. It's pathetic, Claudia, you're pathetic," he said, his eyes cooling now as he stood, staring at her, "You know what you should do, baby? You should take this," he breathed, reaching into his inner pocket and taking out what seemed to be an ice-pick, "And kill me. Right now. Take your revenge and stop being such an evasive little bitch."

Claudia cocked her head to the side, studying his handsome face, a soft smile curving her lips, "Not tonight, Caleb." she said softly, "I have much more planned then to end it all tonight." she breathed, taking a step back before she disappeared with a flash of darkness.

Three days later, Upstate New York, Maximus' Estate...
Maximus pursed his lips as he slid the wet cloth along Evangeline's shoulders, "Who was your Maker?" he inquired softly, his gaze following the drops of water as they slid down her spine, they sat in his large marble tub, her back against his front as he washed her gently and thoroughly.

Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Luis Adam's Estate...
Luis ran his fingers over his hair as he moved through his home, pursing his lips as he thought about these fast few days, he sighed as he found himself in his study; he smirked, crossing his arms over his chest as he glanced over the chess game going on between Nathaniel Hart and Lena Vladislav, "It's a sad day for us kids, powerful, beautiful vampires, stuck inside playing chess." he mused as he smiled pleasantly at them.

John Duncan's Prenatal Clinic, Upper East Side, New York...
Lynn bit her lip hard as she reached over to take Anna's hand, feeling a bit nervous as they sat at the waiting room in her doctor's office, "I always get anxious about these things." she admitted, glancing over at her ex-daughter-in-law, "No matter how many kids later." she mumbled.

Evangeline pursed her lips, considering the relevance of this question for a moment as she ran her fingers up her thighs and over her knees, "He was a trader," she muttered, "I think he was named James."

Nathan scrunched up his nose a bit at Luis' statement, "I still blame Lena," he muttered, raising his gaze to the girl's face as he narrowed his eyes a little, "I haven't killed anyone in two days."

Anna gave her ex-mother-in-law's hand a gentle squeeze, "I'm sure your baby is just fine, mama, it has a mix of two super-genes, remember?" she breathed, a soft smile curving her lips that didn't quite reach her eyes as she glanced back at Lynnie.

Maximus leaned down to bite her neck right under her ear, "I'm satisfying a curiousity, Eva, not everything is a session." he breathed, nipping at her earlobe now, "You think his names was James?"

Lena made a noise as she looked up at him, narrowing her eyes as well, "How is that my fault again?" she mumbled as Luis pulled up a seat to their chess game.

Lynn smiled softly at this for a moment before she turned her gaze to Anna, "What's wrong?" she asked softly.

Evangeline made a low noise, turning her pretty head to look back at him, "Yes," she breathed, "He bought me off my father and he Turned me a week after."

Nathan gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "I can't leave you alone, remember?"

Anna pursed her lips, leaning back in her seat as she gathered her hands on her little bump, "Everything?" she breathed, turning her shimmering gaze forward.

Maximus studied her pretty face, bending his head a little to kiss her nose, "You have such a pretty, little, nose, so delicate and fine." he muttered before his gaze flickered back to hers, "What happened to James after he Turned you?"

Lena couldn't help the twitch of her lips into a small smile, "There's a smaller chance I'll get attacked in Luis' house, I think you secretly can't get enough of my company." she breathed, teasing.

Lynn bit her lip, "Talk to me." she said softly.

Evangeline couldn't help the slight smile that played on her lips as she studied Maximus' pretty face, "Nathaniel came to kill him, but he failed," she murmured, "James Turned him as well, to make our bond immortal forever: then we killed him together."

Nathaniel rolled his eyes at her, like he'd gotten used to doing, "Yeah, that's it, sweetheart," he said, gesturing to their board, "Now, play."

Anna bit the inside of her lip, slowly shaking her head, "It's just.." she started, swallowing hard, "I can't move on from what happened in Louisiana with Kiran, no matter how much I want to," she breathed, glancing up at her ex-mother-in-law, "He stayed with Evangeline for three weeks. He slept with her, Lynn, I can't forgive that."

Maximus' felt his lips quirk up into a slight smile, "How sweet." he breathed, "My sire Turned my brother and I as well but he wanted us bound to him forever, it was then I met Claudia, and she helped me kill him." he said, giving a slight shrug of his shoulders.

Lena rolled her eyes back at him as she leaned forward, studying the intricately sculptured marble chess pieces, her gaze becoming intent as she reached forward to have her knight move in his infamous L formation to take out Nathaniel's queen, "Check." she breathed, leaning back in her seat.
Luis pursed his lips as he studied their game for a moment, "There are rogues in Alexandria, we'll go down there, and kill them." he said, glancing up at Nathan, a crooked grin curving his lips, "It'll be fun."

Lynn pursed her lips tightly, "Because he slept with her or because it was Evangeline?" she asked softly, biting her lip now as she tried to think over this.

"How romantic," Evangeline breathed, a teasing lit to her voice as she turned her gaze forward again; fighting the urge to lean back against him.

Nathan pursed his lips as he glanced up at Luis, his brow arching a bit, "Rogues, huh?"

"Both," Anna muttered, rather quickly since she had obviously thought a lot about this herself and she shook her head, "I can forgive him the fact that he slept with someone else, but I can't forgive him for being with her for three weeks," she breathed, unable to keep herself from shutting her eyes tight, "He forced my hand and he just kept apologizing."

"You can lean back." Maximus said softly, taking her shoulder gently to move her back against him, his muscles tightening for a moment before he relaxed and moved the cloth down her chest to wash her breasts.

Luis gave a slight nod, "Bastards, always disturbing the peace." he muttered, rolling his eyes to himself as he leaned back in his seat, "You in?"

Lynn bit her lip, "Maybe he's sorry then." she said softly, "Look, I know whatever I say is going to come out biased and mom-like but Kiran's my son and I know him, Anna, he's never loved anyone the way he loves you and I know he makes mistakes, a lot of stupid mistakes but he always comes back to you, always."

Evangeline seemed to relax against him; her light gaze following his hands as she ran her tongue over her teeth, "You don't like to be touched," she breathed, this not being a question.

Nathan gave a slight nod of his pretty head, "I'm in," he muttered, glancing over at Lena with a teasing sort of half-grin.

Anna swallowed hard, "Maybe that's the problem," she breathed, opening her shimmering eyes again to look at her ex-mother-in-law, "I said a lot of horrible things to him, mama, and I meant them: maybe he's not supposed to be with me, maybe he's supposed to be with someone like Evangeline, someone who can satisfy his needs, whatever the hell they are. Maybe we're just not good for each other."

"No, I don't." Max amended, "I don't like to be bitten either." he muttered against her hair as his hands moved down her stomach.

Lena opened her mouth to say something to this when Luis cut her off, "No, you're not coming." he said, looking at her pointedly.

Lynn bit her lip, "I don't know, sweetheart." she said softly, "I can't speak for him." she mumbled, frowning to herself.

"That's a damn shame, Max," Evangeline breathed, shutting her eyes for the briefest moment, as if genuinely enjoying his touch.

Nathan's grin widened some, "You and Natacha can share some.. quality time; knit or something."

"I know," Anna breathed, reaching up to wipe at her eyes before the tears could start building as she dropped her gaze onto her bump, "I just don't know what to do."

"Oh?" Max breathed, his hand moving to the junction of her thighs, "Do you want to bite me?"

Lena narrowed her eyes at him as a pout formed her lips, "I do not knit." she grumbled, "And nor shall I ever knit, I suppose Natacha and I could have some fun of our own." she mused, a mischievous sort of smile spreading across her lips.

Lynn studied Anna for a long moment, "Raise your children, find as much happiness as you can, and hold onto it."

Evangeline sucked a breath in between her teeth, "Yes," she whispered, moving her pretty head to lean it against his shoulder.

Nathan couldn't help the accustomed roll of his eyes as he leaned back in his seat, "Fun is limited between two women, kitten," he breathed, his darkening eyes on her face in his most teasing manner.

Anna nodded slowly, but she said nothing this time as she clasped her hands together on top of her little belly and bit her bottom lip, considering this.

"Maybe if you're good, I'll let you." He breathed, taking his slow time with her as he bent his head to kiss the corner of her mouth.

Lena grinned, "We're in a house full of attractive vampires, I'm sure we'll find someway to entertain ourselves." she breathed in a playful manner.

Evangeline made a low, pleased noise in the back of her throat as she shut her eyes again, "What does it take for me to be good?"

Nathan rolled his eyes again, but he didn't say anything to her playfulness this time as he stood, adjusting his blazer, "Time to kill some rogues then."

Maximus smiled at this, "I'll think of something." he breathed, moving his hand away after a moment and wrapped his arm around her before he stood with her to get out of the tub.

Luis stood as well, rolling up the sleeves of his grey fitted sweater, "Let's do this." he grinned.
Lena bit her lip becoming serious as she looked up at Nathan, "Be careful." she said softly.

Evangeline's pretty lips pulled into a pout as she let him get her up, "I feel cheated," she mumbled.

Nathan's lips formed into a slight smile as he looked down at her again, "Always, darling," he breathed, bending his head to kiss her forehead.

Maximus grinned, "I'll make it up to you." he breathed, not even bothering with towels as he lifted her in his arms and started for her bedroom, dripping water all over the floor.

Lena bit her lip as she reached up to curl her fingers in his shirt, moving her head to kiss him deeply, "Always? You better be." she breathed, standing to move towards Luis, she leaned up to whisper something in his ear before starting for the kitchen.

Evangeline made a sweet noise, "You're getting everything wet, Maximus," she breathed, sounding almost playful as she slid her arms around his neck, her blue gaze intently on his pretty face.

Nathan blinked slowly, both of his brows raising as he raised his hand, glancing up at Luis as he ran his thumb over his bottom lip, "What did she say?"

"I would hope so." Maximus breathed, grinning down at her crookedly as his eyes darkened with a sort of lusty playfulness as he moved towards her bed to set her down, obviously not worried about being wet as he crawled on top of her.

Luis bit his lip, trying not to grin too widely, "It was adorable, really," he muttered, "She said, 'You might be my sire and Godfather but if you don't bring him back, I'll kill you.'" he breathed.

Evangeline bit her bottom lip; a sort of nervousness briefly flashing across her flawless face as she wrapped her legs around Maximus, one of her hands raised to run her fingers over his hair.

Nathan's brows seemed to rise even higher at this as he bit his bottom lip, "Interesting," he breathed, unable to keep himself from scrunching up his pretty nose.

Maximus bent his pretty head to place kisses along her jawline as he pressed the tip of him against her.

Luis raised a brow at him, "Is it?" he muttered, glancing behind him a moment before he made a gesture, "I just sort of assumed.."

Evangeline's fingers turned into fists in Maximus' hair as she shut her eyes, sucking her bottom lip in between her teeth as she lifted her pelvis a bit to meet him.

Nathan shook his head, "No," he muttered, making a gesture with his hand, "She's a child, I wouldn't."

Maximus sunk into her inch by inch, feeling every part of her as tingle started in his abdomen..

Luis pursed his lips, "We're vampires, Nathaniel, the appearance of youth is inevitable." he muttered, "But I've known Lena Vladislav a long while, she's hardly been a child since her father walked out on her mother." he said with a slight shrug as he started from the den.

.. Evangeline tilted her head back against the pillows; a pleased whimper emerging from the back of her throat as she dug her nails into Maximus' shoulders and she shuddered, clenching around him.

Nathaniel pursed his lips, his hand raising to run his fingers over his hair as he followed, "I know that," he mumbled, wrinkling his nose, "But I can't really convince myself to.. you know, with her."

Maximus gritted his teeth as he continued to move against her for a little while longer, pleasure building in his abdomen before he pressed deeper and harder into her, letting the pleasure explode.

Luis wrinkled his nose, "I hadn't noticed, does she look twelve?" he muttered, giving another slight shrug of his shoulders, "I'm not telling you to fuck her, Maximus would kill me if I did, I'm saying not to throw away an opportunity for a good thing because she's younger than you, she obviously cares for you." he breathed, "But if you are, then find a prettier older thing and fuck her brains out because I haven't seen you get laid since you've lived in my house."

Evangeline's lips parted in a moan of his name as fireworks exploded in her abdomen and she shut her eyes, soon quivering beneath him, panting.

Nathan wrinkled his nose, simply dropping into his pensive silence as he slid his hands into his pockets, pursing his lips.

Maximus bent his head to kiss her mouth hard, his own old heart beating erratically beneath his rib cage, shivers still dancing up his spine as he pressed against her still.

Luis glanced back at him for a moment but he didn't say anything before he blinked them to a warehouse in the backstreets of Alexandria without much warning.

Evangeline bit his bottom lip, per automatism before she froze for a moment, her pretty eyes blinking open to search his face.

Nathan felt a shudder move over his bones as his shoulders tightened, but he remained quiet; taking his hands out of his pockets as he glanced around the place Luis had taken them to.

Four days later, Claudia Canbaz's estate in Syracuse, New York...
Luis Adams ran his tongue along his teeth, his eyes having not lightened in four days since his coven and wife were attacked, since his best friend and brother now lay on his deathbed, he'd come with the remainder of his vampires from youngest to old, he led them towards Claudia's estate, ready for a fight. He slid his glance to his stepson for a moment and then to Evangeline Hart but for the first time in his five hundred years there were no words the vampire could think to say before the double doors to Hell were opened and they were ushered inside.

Caleb Vladislav's lips were pressed into a thin line as he followed his stepfather, his eyes dark with some unreadable emotion as he did, not even looking in Evangeline's direction, even though the usually so cruel vampire had shown a different side of herself and had come to assist them.

Luis curled his fingers into fists, his knuckles whitening as his gaze darkened to near black as they were led by Claudia's pets to the large ballroom of the estate, Claudia Canbaz stood there herself with Daphne, Andreas, and all eight of her Originals but Luis' gaze didn't go to them, it went to the two seated figures against the back wall; Eliya St. Claire was chained to her seat, she was thin and frail looking, covered in bruises, bloodied up, her beautiful dark curls not a mangled mop on her pretty head, a crown of razor sharp thorns sat her brow and made rivets of blood drip down her face and neck onto the satin white dress she'd been given to wear, her pretty mismatched eyes burned with agony. Kiran Hawthorne sat beside her, a thin, mess of his old self, he only wore slacks to show the bruises, the lacerations, the bloodied flesh of his that would scar, his own hair and beard had been cut off to shame him, his lids fluttered and he seemed to have trouble breathing. Claudia's brilliant blue eyes shimmered as a cruel smile slid across her lips, "Welcome," she breathed, "To our party."

Caleb's jaw clenched so hard it clicked, his gaze fixing on his brother and his ex-wife as he reached back, wrapping his fingers around his loaded gun before he aimed it at Claudia's pretty head, "You fucking bitch," he said through his teeth; caught off guard when Evangeline's fingers wrapped around his wrist and she yanked his arm down, glaring at him, "Compose yourself," she hissed.

Luis' spine tensed as he met Claudia's gaze, seeming to ignore Caleb's outburst, "This is what you've come to, Claudia? Torturing children?" he breathed, his black eyes shimmering.
Claudia's smile didn't waver, "Children? Hardly, Luis." she breathed, gesturing to Eliya and Kiran, "They deserved every bit of this, I actually feel as if I've been generous."

"Generous?" Evangeline repeated, her icy gaze on Claudia's face now as her expression hardened, "You crossed the line this time, sweetheart."

Claudia cocked a brow as her gaze moved to the woman, "The pot calling the kettle black?" she hissed, her smile fading, "They've hurt me, these two, they've hurt me and the fact that I didn't have their limbs cut off, is very fucking generous of me."

Caleb's eyes seemed to darken as he shook his head, "You're fucking unbelievable," he breathed, starting towards Kiran and Eliya without any regard for Claudia's plans, "So what was the idea of this little party, Claudia? You invited us here to watch them die?" he asked, obviously irritated.

Andreas Canbaz moved to shove Caleb back as Claudia spoke, "Something like that." she breathed, moving to stand behind Kiran, her nails wrapping into his throat, "Do you want to watch them die, Caleb?"

Caleb's lips twisted in a snarl as he fell on his ass and he glared up at Claudia, as if Andreas wasn't actually there, "No," he said, rather loudly, making his panic rather evident, "Just stop it, okay? Please, Claudia. It can't possibly be them you actually want dead."

Claudia dug her nails into Kiran's throat, making him gasp, "Aren't they?" she breathed, "They mean so much to you, I can see all the panic in your gaze."

Caleb kept his gaze on hers, a nervous sort of half-smile curving his lips, "But you know who means more to me than them, don't you?" he breathed, slowly pushing himself onto his knees, "Come on, Claudia, baby, you know me better than this."

Claudia studied him, "You want me to kill you instead?" she breathed, "Because the only person you care about is yourself?" she muttered, a cruel grin curving her lips, "Well, be that as it may, I think I'll kill this one just to make it hurt a little." she said and ripped out Kiran Hawthorne's throat.

Caleb's eyes widened as the blood seemed to drain from his face, nothing but disbelief in his falling expression as he stared at his brother; not even able to say anything as Evangeline moved to stand behind Caleb, darkness in her eyes as she curled her fingers in his hair and hauled him to his feet, "This ends here," she breathed before she reached into Caleb's jacket and grabbed the hunting knife he'd specially prepared for Claudia and she shoved it into Caleb's back.

Claudia cocked her head at Evangeline, her lips parting, "You..you killed him?" she breathed before a grin spread across her lips and she giggled, "Silly vampire." she muttered, moving to wrap her bloodied fingers around Evangeline's throat and lift her from the ground, starting to crush her windpipe.

Evangeline made a low noise, something indifferent coming over her pretty face as she looked down at Claudia, "Death isn't new to me," she choked up, a grin curving her lips as she dropped the knife to the floor.
It didn't make it down to sound a clatter before Caleb caught it and he struggled to keep himself straightened as he moved to shove the blade into Claudia's heart.

Claudia hissed, dropping Eva to reach up and curl her fingers around the blade as her gaze slid to Caleb, "It doesn't end with us." she whispered as she slid it out of her heart, feeling the muscle squeeze and heal itself.
"But it will end with us." Maximus Allier breathed from his place at the door, his eyes were a brighter, shimmering blue and he looked more powerful and more healthy than he had in centuries, "You and me, Claudia." he whispered, moving to stand right before her, "Just us." he said, curling his fingers around her throat, "Luis, get them out of here." he said, "All of them."

Caleb didn't really seem to react to anything else as he started towards Eliya, but he didn't even get close to her before he dropped to the floor; the only thing he felt being the sensation of warm blood coating his back.
Evangeline gritted her teeth when she touched the ground again and she reached up to rub her throat; doing her best to avert her gaze from the death scene in front of her before she started for the door, not caring if the Vladislav bastard ended up dead anymore.

Luis moved to his son's side, he put his arm around him, "Come on, kiddo, you can't go out like this." he said, blinking them to a hospital, knowing his vampires could do the rest.

A month later, A diner in Nebraska...
Eliya St. Claire bit her lip as she finished taking the order of the family at table Seven, she read it back to them, getting a slight nod before she started towards the kitchen to give the order to the cook, she looked so unlike herself, in a plain light pink dress and white apron, wearing white tennis shoes, her black curls having only grown out a little to right under her ears, there was no smile on her pretty face and a sadness seemed to never leave her gaze.

Caleb Valdislav's Office, Georgia...
Kiran Hawthorne bit his lip as he made his way towards his brother's office, he wore an Armani suit, a thin fuzz of hair having grown back on his head and the beginnings of a beard shadowed his jaw, he glanced around, feeling a little lost, the dark shadows under his eyes alluding to nights woken up in terror, terror that plagued the edges of Kiran's mind at almost all times.

Anna Thomas bit her bottom lip when she stepped into the diner; her light eyes scanning the place as soon as the door closed behind her. She looked pretty, but it was obvious apart from her bump that she had lost weight; her cheekbones and jaw more defined than usually and her skin even looked pale against her white summer dress, but she couldn't fight the slight smile that curved her lips when she spotted her best friend, relief filling her eyes at the sight of her, very much alive.

Caleb Vladislav soon stepped out of his office, a slight smile curving his lips when he spotted his brother, but it didn't quite reach his eyes; seeing him in this state having him more than worried. He looked good himself though, the wound on his back hardly affecting his movements anymore and it was close to invisible under his Armani suit, even when he extended his hand to his best friend, "Brother, it's good to see you."

Eliya didn't notice at her first as she moved around the counter, starting to refill the sugar containers, a slight tremor to her fingers when she glanced up, her eyes slowly widened, "Anna?" she breathed, obviously a bit surprised.

Kiran blinked up at him, looking a bit distracted as he took his hand, "Caleb, it's good to see your well." he breathed, smiling slightly even though it didn't reach his dark eyes.

Anna ran her fingers over her hair, "Hi," she breathed, unsure if she should feel like she was intruding or not as she moved towards her best friend.

Caleb pursed his lips, "I'd ask if you were okay, but it's pretty obvious that you're not," he muttered, letting go of his brother to step aside and gesture into his office, "What's going on?"

Eliya swallowed hard as she put down the sugar containers, she held up one finger, and moved towards another waitress, she muttered something, getting a slight nod before she moved around the counter again, she took Anna's hand, "I'm on my break." she mumbled as she led her friend towards an empty booth in the back of the diner, "What are you doing here?" she whispered, looking up at Anna again as she slid into her seat.

Kiran bit his lip as he moved into the office, "It's nothing." he said softly, a lie he was so used to telling by now, "What's going on with you?" he muttered, glancing back at his best friend.

Lena’s eyes darkened as she burst through her great grandfather’s conference room, her jaw tightened as she glared around the table at Maximus, Luis, her mother, a few of her older siblings, and the rest of the vampires in Luis’ coven, “I can help.” She breathed, “But you need to include me in on these meetings.” She muttered.
Luis studied his fledgling for a moment before turning to look at Max and Lynn as if this were something he’d argued with them about at length but he was silent, deciding to let them deal with this, Maximus sighed, “Lena, darling, you don’t need to be here, it’s too dangerous.” He said as gently as possible.
The girl blinked slowly, “I do need to be here, Max, he was my brother.” She said her throat tightening as she thought of Kiran, “I need to help.”
“Is.” Lynn breathed, placing a hand on her swelling tummy, “Kiran is still alive,” she muttered, glancing up at her daughter.
Lena shook her head as she looked between all of them again, “No, he’s not.” She whispered, “If you’re not going to tell yourselves the truth then let me tell it to you.” she said softly, “Kiran doesn’t sleep anymore, he can’t even be alone at night because he wakes up confused and terrified to the point that he doesn’t even recognize us for a few hours; he barely leaves his house anymore, he barely talks.” She mumbled, feeling her throat tighten even more as her eyes stung, “That man is a ghost of my brother, a ghost, our Kiran died when Claudia Canbaz ripped out his throat, and if killing all of her Originals brings him back than I want in, I’d do anything to save my brother.” She breathed, feeling a tear slide down her face as she looked into her great grandfather’s face, “Please let me help.”

Anna pursed her lips into a relatively thin line as she slid into the booth, clasping her hands together on the table, "Your postcard was the first clue that something was wrong," she breathed, raising her gaze to Eliya's face, "I wanted to see how you were doing."

Caleb gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "Working," he muttered, gesturing for his pretty, blonde secretary to grab them some alcohol before he moved into the office, "I actually wanted you to come here for a reason, other than seeing how you were doing, which you obviously won't share."

"I don't see why not," Aiden muttered, glancing over at Lynnie for her opinion.

Eliya shook her head, "I'm...fine." she breathed, the lie almost trembling on her lips before she swallowed hard and her shoulders drooped, "I don't sleep anymore, Anna," she whispered, her eyes filling with tears, "I'm so scared, what they did?" she shook her head, "What he did?" she swallowed hard, "This might be the first time I can't forgive him for leaving me."

Kiran swallowed hard as he found himself a seat, "What's the reason?" he mumbled, looking up at his friend.

Lynn looked up at her man, she shook her head, her eyes filling with tears, "I just..I can't let her do this." she whispered, her throat tightening, "She's so young, Aiden.." she shook her head again, pursing her lips tight.

Anna felt her throat tighten as she dropped her gaze to her hands, nodding slowly, "I understand that," she breathed, swallowing hard, "Hasn't he contacted you? Talked to you at all?"

"I want to keep you busy, brother," Caleb muttered, seating himself behind his luxurious desk as he looked at his best friend, "I wanna offer you a job, here, with me. I guarantee you things will get better."

Aiden pursed his lips, raising his hand to run his thumb over her jaw, "I know, baby," he breathed, something so compassionate in his dark eyes, "But she's not too young to learn how to fight. Not how this world is evolving and it's only getting worse."

Eliya shook her head, "I wouldn't be surprised if he still thinks I'm in New York." she whispered, tears dripping down her pretty face.

Kiran bit his lip, "What kind of job?" he asked softly, glancing up at him, "What would I have to do?"

Lynn swallowed hard, "I know." she breathed after a moment, tilting her head, "But not with this, not with these people, what they did to Kiran.." she shut her eyes for a moment, feeling the tears welling in them, "We'll teach her what we know but she doesn't go into the field." she breathed.

Anna slowly raised her gaze to Eliya's face again, biting her bottom lip, "I don't like it that you're up here, all alone," she breathed, a worried line creasing her forehead.

Caleb gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "There are several options," he muttered, running his fingers over his hair, "It's NWO, Kiran, you can rule whatever fucking area you want to."

Aiden nodded slowly, "Agreed," he muttered, glancing over at Maximus and Luis.

Eliya swallowed hard, "What am I supposed to do?" she breathed, opening her eyes slowly to look at her friend.

Kiran shook his head slowly, "I'm not in any shape to rule anything right now, Caleb." he breathed, looking up at his brother, his tired eyes making him look so much older.

Maximus and Luis both gave agreeing nods as Lena looked between them all again before she shook her head slowly and turned on her heel to walk away before she could say something regrettable.

"Come back home," Anna whispered, holding her gaze now as she reached over to carefully take her hand in hers, "Please, Elle."

"I know you're not," Caleb said, his gaze not wavering from Kiran's face as the pretty secretary came into the office with their drinks; placing a nice whiskey with no ice on the little table next to Kiran's seat and another one in front of Caleb before she started for the door, obviously knowing her place around her boss, which simply had Caleb smirk to himself, "I want you to get your sense back, Kiran, I don't think you can do that on your own, all locked up in your apartment."

Aiden wrinkled his nose to himself, but he said nothing to this as he began drumming his fingers against his knuckles, thinking quietly to himself.

Eliya swallowed hard, "I'm not ready to go back." she whispered, biting her lip hard.

Kiran ran his fingers through his hair, "I'll make you a deal." he said softly, thinking about this for a long moment, "Come to Nebraska with me and I'll take your job." he breathed.

Maximus sighed, running his fingers through his hair, "She'll try to run." he muttered, sliding his glance towards Luis.

Anna bit her bottom lip, "I know," she breathed, "But I want you to promise that you will, when you're ready."

Caleb couldn't help the arching of his brow as he stared at his brother, incredulously, "Why the hell would I ever be in Nebraska?" he mumbled, feigning ignorance.

"Of course she will," Nathan muttered from his place by the table, wrinkling his nose as he slowly stood, "Good thing is, she sucks at it."

Eliya bit her lip, nodding slowly, "Will you stay with me tonight?" she asked softly.

Kiran raised his gaze to Caleb's face, "Anna and Eliya are there." he said softly.

Maximus snorted, "She can't be that bad, she did manage to get out of Barcelona." he muttered, shaking his head, "Of course, we were all convinced you kidnapped her."

Anna nodded slightly, "If you want me to," she breathed, a small smile curving her plump lips now as she watched Eliya's face.

"And you're sure it's clever to go see her like this?" Caleb muttered, gesturing to his brother as he took a large sip of his whiskey.

Nathaniel gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "I'll see that as a fault on your behalf, Maximus," he muttered, inclining his head to them before he started for the door.

Eliya nodded slowly, "I want that." she said softly, giving Anna a small, weak smile.

"I need her." Kiran said softly, "I just need to look at her." he breathed, "Please come with me?"

Maximus rolled his eyes, "I think I'm starting to like that vampire." he muttered, smirking at Luis.

Anna's smile seemed to warm up a bit as she nodded again, "When are you off?" she breathed, gesturing to the diner.

Caleb's pretty nose scrunched up a bit, but he couldn't help but nod as he studied his brother's face, "Yeah, I'll come," he mumbled, finishing his drink before he stood.

Aiden's lips curved into a slight frown at this, "I think you're giving him too much leash," he muttered, looking at Luis, "Nathan Hart is dangerous, no matter how witty he can be."

"An hour." Eliya mumbled, "I should get back to work, will you wait here?" she muttered, starting to stand.

Kiran got himself to his feet, "Thank you." he muttered, "Could you blink us there?" He gestured to his head, "I can't concentrate enough to get a lock on where I want to go anymore,"

Luis' lips pulled into a slight smile, "I'm giving him too much leash?" he breathed, cocking his head a little as he leaned back in his seat, raising his hand to run his thumb along his bottom lip, "Why do you think that?"

Anna nodded slightly, her smile widening some as she leaned back in the booth, raising her hand to fix her curls, "I'll wait."

Caleb gave a slight nod again, but he didn't say anything this time as he reached out to grab his brother's shoulder before transporting them outside the little diner in Nebraska.

Aiden's gaze remained on Luis' face, unwavering as he ran his fingers over his curls, "Because he isn't chained to the wall of your basement, that's why," he muttered, "You didn't see him at the apartment, when Maximus got him. That's how he is, that's how he's always been."

Kiran sighed, feeling a bit woozy for a moment, "I need to sit down." he muttered, unsteady on his feet.

Luis gave a slight shrug, "I know, Aiden." he muttered, raising his gaze to the man's face, "I've done a lot worse than use witty words and rape a few women." he breathed, nodding to his vampires, "And so have they; I have the man living in my house, bounded to me, in my opinion the leash I keep on Nathaniel Hart is fairly tight."

"You can sit inside," Caleb muttered, not releasing his hold on Kiran's shoulder as he steered him towards the door to the diner, leading him inside.

Aiden offered another shrug, "Whatever you say, Luis," he muttered, "Just don't come crying to me when you wake up one day and he's eaten your wife's face while you slept."

Kiran tried to catch his breath, letting his brother lead him as he tried to still the nauseousness creeping his stomach, his slightly blurred gaze spotting the girls towards the back of the diner.

Luis cocked a brow at him, "What did he do to you, Aiden?" he muttered, pursing his lips as if genuinely curious.

Anna didnt even notice the boys coming through the door; seeing nothing but two suits entering as she turned her attention to her fingers, twirling her thumbs as she pursed her lips.

Aiden's brow arched a bit as he ran his fingers over his hair again, "Personally? Nothing," he muttered, "But back when I shared a place with Caleb and Isaac in London, I brought a woman home from a late night at the pub," he said, wrinkling his nose at the memory, "When I woke up, he was peeling off her skin, staring at me. Apparently Evangeline didn't like it when there were girls in Caleb's presence."

Eliya slid out of the booth, hearing the door, she took out her little order book as she turned to the door, freezing in her place when she saw Kiran and Caleb, "Oh my God.." she breathed, the pen and order book slipping from her fingers to clatter to the floor.

Luis wrinkled his nose, "Nasty." he muttered, picturing it, "He didn't dance around in them afterwards, did he?"

Caleb bit his bottom lip, letting go of Kiran's shoulder to finger wave at his ex-wife, "Hey, baby."

Aiden slowly shook his head, obviously not amused as he leaned back in his seat, turning his gaze on Lynnie now to calm himself.

Eliya stared at him hard, her eyes filling with a mix of love, loss, and agony, "Hi." she whispered, ducking her gaze as she crouched down to pick up her things.

Lynn had scrunched up her face, looking a bit ill as she pictured this as well, "He's not invited to our Christmas parties." she muttered, glancing up at Aiden with a shake of her pretty head.

Caleb bit his bottom lip as he crouched in front of her, helping her pick up what she'd dropped, "Sorry 'bout that," he muttered.
Anna blinked slowly when she glanced from from her twirling thumbs and she froze, recognizing her ex-husband even without his full head of hair and her heart seemed to drop into her stomach as she swallowed hard, unable to move out of her seat.

"I wont argue with that," Aiden muttered, a soft smile curving his lips as he watched her face.

Eliya shook her head, "It's okay." she mumbled, not looking up at him again as if focusing on putting her things in order when really she was barely paying attention to anything but him.
Kiran leaned against the booths for a moment as he studied her, slowly but surely making his way to her, "Hi." he said softly.

Lynn moved her head to lay it against his shoulder, "If it makes you feel better, I promise to never wake up beside you with half my face missing?" she offered, smiling a little.

Caleb held her pen out to her, a soft smile playing on his handsome lips as his gaze remained on her face, intently even, "How are you?"
Anna blinked once more, fixing her gaze on his face before a small, incredulous smile curved her lips, "Hi," she whispered, her breath hitching in her throat.

Aiden couldn't help but roll his eyes at her, "Let's get home, I don't want the baby absorbing all of this shit," he muttered, slipping an arm around her shoulders as he glanced down at her for confirmation.

Eliya bit her lip as she reached up to take the pen from him, "I'm not that great, Caleb." she muttered, swallowing hard as she straightened.
Kiran settled himself in the booth across from her as he studied her face, "How are you?" he asked softly.

Lynnie nodded, "Let's get out of here." she breathed, smiling softly at him as she placed a hand against her tummy.

Lena pursed her lips as she dug through a shoe box of her old passports, now in her room at Luis' house, mentally noting to see Cisero for an updated photo when she chose the one she'd taken to Barcelona, she studied the picture for a moment thinking about that trip before she shook her head and stuffed the damn thing in her pocket so she could get her bags ready.

Caleb frowned a bit, straightening in perfect sync with her as he continued to watch her face, "Is there anything I can do?"
"Not so good," Anna breathed, gathering her hands in her lap as she studied all of him for a long moment before biting her bottom lip, "Where did your hair go?"

"Running off again?" Nathan muttered as he leaned in her entryway, his arms crossed over his chest as he watched her curiously.

Eliya raised her gaze to his, "Now you want to do something?" she whispered, feeling tears sting her eyes again.
Kiran bit his lip, "I was kidnapped and held, tortured, along with Eliya but Claudia's vampires, they cut off my hair." he whispered, looking down at the table.

Lena pursed her lips as she stopped packing to glance up at him, "I don't look at it as running off, it's more like doing a job that I know I can do." she breathed, studying his face, "Are you trying to stop me?"

Caleb's brows pulled together in a frown as he watched her face, almost curiously now, "You don't think saving your life was enough?"
Anna blinked slowly, suddenly feeling the muscles clench in her chest as she studied his face, every inch of him that she could see before she swallowed hard again, "I'm sorry," she whispered.

Nathan gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "Why would I?" he muttered, remaining in the entryway.

Eliya blinked slowly as she stared at him for a long moment, "Seven days." she whispered, "For seven days, I was beaten and raped and shamed." she breathed, "And every thought I had, every prayer, was that you would save me, that you would prove Claudia wrong, and you didn't." she said, tears sliding down her face, "You never came, in that room, it was all ready too late."
Kiran swallowed hard, "It's not your fault." he mumbled.

Lena shrugged, crossing her arms over her chest, "Because we're friends and you don't want me to go off by myself and get killed?"

Caleb stared at her; guilt suddenly washing over his handsome face as he shook his head, "I'm sorry," he whispered, nothing but sincerity and hurt in his voice, "I'm so sorry, Eliya."
"Maybe not, but I still feel awful that this happened to you," Anna breathed, her gaze dropping to her hands once more as she pressed her lips together, "Why are you here, Kiran?"

"So you expect to get killed?" Nathaniel muttered, raising a brow at her, "How much good do you think you'll do your brother if you're dead?"

Eliya shook her head, "Those are just words." she breathed, "I could tell you I forgive you because I hate it when you sound so hurt but they would just be words."
Kiran bit his lip, "I just needed to see you." he whispered, "I needed to be near you."

Lena bit her lip, "Do you ask yourself the same question when you go off into the night to torment my sisters-in-law, expecting you could die?" she countered, arching a brow

Caleb blinked a few times, still staring at her in disbelief as he shook his head again, "I should probably go, then," he breathed, slowly backing towards the door, starting to look like a wounded animal as he kept his gaze on her.
Anna shut her eyes for a very long moment, thinking quietly to herself for a while before she slid out of her seat and rearranged herself next to him; not saying anything as she reached for his hand, her fingers wrapping around his wrist before she placed his palm on her bump and raised her gaze to his face once more, searching his eyes.

"That's not even remotely the same thing," Nathan muttered, both of his brows raised now, "Why would you bring that up?"

Eliya's throat tightened so hard she couldn't breathe for a moment, "Wait." she choked out, "Don't leave." she breathed, her face crumpling as she began to cry hard, "Don't leave."
Kiran swallowed hard, splaying his fingers against her bump, "A boy?" he asked softly.

"Isn't it the same?" Lena muttered, "You seem to think it's perfectly fine to die for your sister but I must be a fool if I want to die for my brother." she alleged before sighing and sinking down onto the edge of her bed, "I'm not trying to attack you." she mumbled, "I just want you to understand."

Caleb froze, almost immediately before he started towards her again; not caring if she wanted it or not as he slid his arms around her, crushing her against his chest, "Don't cry," he whispered, gently kissing her hair, "Please, don't cry."
Anna nodded slightly, "Your boy," she breathed, a small, warm smile curving her lips as she continued to watch his face closely.

"I do understand," Nathan muttered, pushing out of the entryway to seat himself next to her, "But.. I don't want you to do the same."

Eliya buried her face against his chest, reaching up to curl her fingers in his lapels, "I just don't understand." she whimpered, "Why did you leave me?"
Kiran felt his lips curve up into his genuine smile in a month, "My little boy." he said softly, feeling his eyes sting.

Lena turned her head to study him for a long moment, "Why not?" she asked softly, biting her lower lip hard.

Caleb shut his eyes, "I just had to go," he whispered, "I didn't want to hurt you, I was trying to keep you safe."
Anna's smile widened some as she raised her hand, very carefully running her thumb over his jaw to feel his stubble against her skin, "I missed you so much," she whispered, fighting her urge to lean in and kiss every part of his face as she bit her bottom lip.

"Because how the Hell am I supposed to survive here without you?" Nathan said, raising his gaze to her face and immediately looking like he regretted the statement.

Eliya swallowed hard but she didn't say anything to this when she felt a tap on her shoulder, she pulled away from Caleb's chest to look up into her fellow waitress' face, "Oh, Cindy, I'm so sorry." she started, reaching up to wipe at her face, "I'll work late tonight, it's just.."
Cindy the waitress shook her head, "I'm sorry, Elle," she said as gently as possible, "Manny thinks you should go home." she breathed, biting her lip in an absolutely guilty way, "And he doesn't want you coming back."
Kiran studied her, "Really?" He breathed, "I missed you too."

Lena blinked slowly, "Oh." she breathed, moving her head to kiss him without really thinking about it.

Caleb slowly let go of his ex-wife, his brow raising as he glanced towards the kitchen, expecting this Manny-person to be out there as he pursed his lips, "Excuse me for a moment," he muttered, fixing his blazer before he started towards the kitchen to find Eliya's boss.
Anna bit her bottom lip harder, her thumb briefly brushing over his, "I'm so sorry for what I said to you, Kiran, it was awful," she breathed, feeling her eyes sting, "Please, come home."

Nathan made a low noise; feeling his shoulders tense for a moment before he raised his hands, moving his fingers into her hair as he kissed her deeply.

Manny Valastro stood at the back burner, having turned his attention away from the waitresses as he started the next order of food for his customers, he only glanced up when he heard the kitchen door swing open, frowning when he saw the suit, "Can I help you?"
Kiran studied her face, "I want to come home so badly." he breathed, biting his bottom lip hard, "I'm so sorry for what I did, I didn't mean to hurt you."

Lena kissed him hard, feeling warmth clench in her abdomen and spread down to her toes as she raised her hands slowly to cup his pretty face between them, the tips of her fingers curling in his hair.

Caleb's lips twitched into a slight, pleasant smile, "Yeah, are you Manny?" he muttered, clasping his hands together in front of him.
Anna bit her bottom lip even harder for a moment before she felt the sting of the skin breaking and she leaned in closer to him, pressing her lips against his in the most loving way, her hands framing his pretty face as she shut her eyes.

Nathaniel pressed his lips harder against hers, his hands moving to her sides before he pulled her closer to him, soon tilting back on the bed and bringing her on top of him.

Manny cocked a brow as he studied the suit, "Yeah, what's it to ya?" he muttered, turning to him fully now.
Kiran made a sweet noise as he kissed her back deeply, shutting his eyes to savor her.

Lena made a noise low in her throat as she snaked her tongue into his mouth to taste him, feeling the shivers through her entire body, she shimmied around on top of him so she was straddling him.

Caleb smirked, "You just made a very big mistake, Manny," he breathed, taking a step towards the man before he punched him in the teeth, as hard as he possibly could.
Anna felt warmth spread through her chest as she seemed to lose herself; like they were the only two people in the world and she kissed him harder, "I love you," she whispered against his lips, "I wanna go home with you."

Nathaniel felt a growl emerge from the back of his throat as he slid his tongue against hers; his fingers moving onto her hips and tightening, bruisingly hard as warmth started in his abdomen.

The big man's head snapped back as he stumbled back onto the floor, obviously caught very off guard as he groaned, reaching up to touch his broken teeth, "What the fuck?" he choked out, spitting up blood into his hand as he stared up wide-eyed at Caleb.
Kiran smiled softly, "I love you too, so much." he breathed, raising his hand to touch her face gently, "I want to go home with you."

Lena shuddered, her toes curling, she nipped his tongue with her teeth before pulling back for a moment to get her shirt off over her head before she returned her mouth to his.

Caleb sighed, gritting his teeth before he stomped Manny once in the ribcage, "Let that be the last time you ever treat a hurting woman like that again," he breathed before he turned to leave the kitchen.
Anna blinked slowly, feeling the tears roll down her cheeks now as she studied his face, "Things will get better between us, baby, I promise," she whispered, reaching up to entwine their fingers, as if only waiting for him to take them home.

Nathaniel bit her bottom lip, drawing blood before he made a low noise, "Wait," he breathed, placing his hands on her arms to push her back a little, "You're not a virgin, are you?"

Eliya sniffled, having been gathering her things from her little cubby when she looked up at him, "Did you beat him up?" she mumbled, making little hiccuping noises as she reached up to wipe at her face.
Kiran bit his lip, looking down at their hands, "I can't blink." he mumbled, frowning deeply to himself.

Lena felt her face flush as she looked down at him, "No, I had sex once last summer." she mumbled, biting her lip, "Is that a problem?"

"Nah, just talked to him," Caleb muttered, a sheepish sort of grin curving his lips as he held his hand out for hers, "You're coming to Georgia with me, darlin', you don't have to work at no damn diner."
Anna pursed her lips, "Oh," she mumbled, deciding not to press for an explanation as she slowly stood, not releasing his hand.

Nathan slowly shook his head, "Nuh, I can teach you a few things then," he breathed, unable to keep the grin from curving his lips as he reached between them to undo his jeans...

Eliya sniffled, "Are you offering me a job?" she mumbled, reaching up to take his hand carefully.
Kiran stood with her, swallowing hard as he managed a small smile for her, "I've been a little...crazy these last few weeks, still trying to get my bearings, you know?" he mumbled.

... Lena gasped, feeling pleasure spiking through her abdomen, building as she continued to move her hips against Nathaniel, she tilted her pretty head back, her lids fluttering as she moaned his name.

"Yes, a real one," Caleb muttered, gently squeezing her hand as he glanced over at Kiran and Anna, not allowing the girl to respond to Kiran's little confession as he cocked his head a bit to the side, "You coming back to Atlanta, Hawthorne?"

Nathaniel tilted his head back against the pillows as he met her movements, the pleasure building as he gritted his teeth, "Be quiet," he breathed, pleasurable spikes starting in his abdomen.

Kiran glanced down at Anna, "Is that okay?" he mumbled, studying her pretty face, "Maybe we can look for houses down there?"

Lena bit her lip hard to keep from crying out as the pleasure kept building and then exploded making her shudder and clench around him in the most delicious ways.

Anna raised a brow up at Kiran, cocking her pretty head a bit to the side, "I thought Atlanta was deserted," she breathed.
"It was," Caleb muttered, pulling his little ex-wife closer to him, "We're rebuilding."

Nathaniel's lips parted in a sweet breath of her name as he dug his fingers into her hips; exploding like never before as his entire body tensed.

Kiran glanced down at her, "Then we'll build a house?" he offered, "We'll be fine." he said softly, smiling a bit at her.

Lena felt tremors in her abdomen still as she collapsed against his chest, her heart beating against her rib cage almost painfully as she panted.

Anna bit her bottom lip for a moment before she nodded slightly, "Okay," she breathed, slipping her arms around his waist as she leaned against his chest.
Caleb couldn't help but grin at them, "Sweet," he muttered, shutting his eyes before he transported them back to his office in Atlanta.

Nathaniel's lips were still apart as he panted, his pretty eyes on the ceiling while he slipped his arm around her, "That was.. unexpected."

Eliya glanced around the office, "This is your office?" she asked softly, glancing up at Caleb, a brow slightly raised.

Lena kissed his chest, "Good unexpected?" she mumbled, glancing up at him as she tried to calm her racing heart.

Caleb nodded slightly, glancing over at his desk to see that Stacy had already removed their glasses and put back to their original position, "It is," he breathed.

"Very good," Nathan breathed, holding her tight against him.

Eliya bit her lip as she clasped her hands together, "And you want me to work here?" she mumbled, glancing around the office still.

Lena smiled softly to herself, "I won't leave." she mumbled, rubbing her cheek against his chest.

Caleb gave another nod, "Yes," he muttered, a slight crookedness forming his lips as he cocked his head at her, "I promise I'll be real' professional."

"Good," Nathan muttered, his fingers sliding over her back to have his knuckles run down her spine as he sighed, "Your brother's gonna be fine."

Eliya bit her lip, a small smile quirking up her lips, "Okay, I'll work for you." she mumbled, "Where's my desk? Where am I going to stay?" she breathed, looking up at him.

Lena bit her lip, "I really hope so, I know Kiran can be an ass but it breaks my heart seeing him like this." she said softly, tingles following the path of his knuckles down her spine.

Caleb's grin seemed to widen as he gestured to the door, "Your desk is outside, I'll have Stacy cleared out in the morning, and you'll be staying over there," he muttered, making a slow turn on his heel to look out of the panorama windows, his gaze fixing on a skyscraper much like the one they were standing in, "You can either stay with me or get your own studio in the building, of your choice."

"I'm sure," Nathaniel murmured, shutting his eyes once more as he continued caressing her spine.

Eliya bit her lip as she turned to the building, thinking for a long moment, "I guess I can stay with you tonight and then we'll see about my own place, I'm pretty tired." she mumbled, her lips twisting.

Lena shut her eyes as she snuggled against his chest, "I like this." she said softly, forgetting for the moment about her ghost of a brother and the Originals, "I like being like this with you." she breathed.

Caleb gave another nod to this before he turned to his brother, "So, you wanna stay?" he muttered, a small, hopeful smile playing on his lips.

Nathan sighed, softly even as he continued running his fingers along her spine, "It is kind of nice, isn't it?" he breathed.

Kiran glanced down at Anna before returning his gaze to Caleb, "Yeah, we'll stay." he smiled.

Lena kept her eyes closed, feeling so relaxed against him, "We should be like this more often." she said softly.

Caleb's smile turned into a fully fleshed grin at this as he turned to his desk, "The shield around Atlanta goes up in about thirty minutes, it should be enough for all of us to get settled for the night," he muttered, grabbing a few key cards out of the drawer in his desk.

"Definitely," Nathan breathed, sounding absolutely exhausted now as he hugged her to him, "Can I stay with you tonight? I don't want to move."

"The shield?" Kiran mumbled, "A no-poof shield?" he breathed, glancing up at his brother.

Lena smiled to herself as she tightened around him, "You can stay." she breathed, "I wasn't planning on getting up any time soon to let you leave anyways." she mumbled.

Caleb made an agreeing noise, "Exactly," he muttered, this obviously not bothering him much as he slid his cellphone out of his pocket and held one of the key cards out to Kiran as he dialed.

Nathaniel breathed a laugh, "I see," he murmured, still feeling tingly as hell as he kept his eyes shut.

Kiran frowned, that old paranoia creeping around the edge of his subconscious but he didn't say anything as he took the key card.

Lena snuggled against him, not really opening her eyes as she shoved her things off the bed and pulled the duvet up around them.

Caleb turned away from them now when someone picked up on the other end of the line and he grinned, "Adam, you got about twenty-five minutes: you going home?" he muttered, running his fingers over his hair as he listened to the boy's reply and he nodded to himself, "Got it, I'll set something up in the morning, now go home."

Nathaniel made a sweet noise, but he didn't say anything else as he shifted a little beneath her to get comfortable before he sighed, obviously drifting off rather easily.

Kiran arched a brow at his best friend, "You have Adam working here?" he mumbled.

Caleb glanced up at Kiran, giving a slight, indifferent nod as he listened to Adam's reply once more before rolling his eyes, "Fine, get your ass up here, your parents are in my office," he said before hanging up.

Kiran pursed his lips, some of his old fire lighting up his gaze, "Why didn't you tell me my own son was working here? For you?" he muttered, arching his other brow.

"Is it a problem?" Caleb muttered, arching a brow at his brother as he slid the cell back into his pocket.

Kiran pursed his lips, "It depends on how he is." he mumbled, his gaze sliding towards the window, his spine tensing when he realized how late it was, "It's getting dark." he seemed to choke, the old fire dying in the fading sun.

Anna blinked up at her ex-husband, frowning a little, "Are you okay?" she breathed, reaching up to touch his face in the most comforting way she could.

Kiran shook his head, something like fear crawling into his gaze, "It's getting dark." he whispered, his chest tightening, "They come out in the darkness."
Eliya's twisted as she reached up to curl her fingers in Caleb's suit sleeve, "I want to go now, please." she whispered, her eyes stinging and she could barely look at Kiran, "I don't want to get caught in the dark, please."

Caleb frowned at them, "Are you serious?" he mumbled, obviously not quite following as Adam came stumbling into the office, his eyes wide and the black in his eyes eradicating the chocolate-brown as he panted, "They're out," he choked up, bending so low his head was between his knees, as if he'd run the whole way up there, "The infected, they're out early and Dmitry put up the shield. We're stuck."

Kiran made a wheezing noise, grabbing at his chest as his knees buckled underneath him and he seemed to stop breathing, rocking back and forth on his knees and mumbling incoherently to himself. Eliya's face crumpled as tears slid down her cheeks, "No, no, we can't be stuck." she whimpered, tightening her hold on Caleb as if she needed to in order to stay upright.

Anna frowned deeply as she slid to her knees next to Kiran, taking his face in her hands, "Baby, look at me," she whispered, "You're okay, nothing's gonna happen, alright? You're safe," she breathed.
Caleb sighed, slipping an arm around Eliya to steer her towards his desk, "Here, sit down, I'll take care of it," he muttered, gesturing to his chair as he let go of her to grab his shotgun from the cabinet behind the desk.

Kiran looked up into Anna's face, his gaze so lost, so broken, he couldn't bring himself to speak as continued to rock a little, his heart aching so bad in his chest.
Eliya curled up in Caleb's seat, hugging herself tightly as she stared off into the distance, "That's how we knew they were coming." she whispered, "They always came when the sun went down, they wanted us to be scared of the dark, everything would hurt in the dark, we would bleed again." she breathed, "I could hear Kiran screaming in the cell next to me, he was always screaming, and then I realized it was me, I was screaming, the vampires liked it when we screamed." she mumbled, reaching up to curl her fingers in her hair.

The morning after...
Lena sat up suddenly in bed with the taste of someone else's blood on her tongue and her heart pounding against her rib cage as the dream she had contorted waking reality for a few moments, she shut her eyes, her shoulders relaxing as she realized she was safe and more importantly not alone in bed. She glanced down at Nathaniel, smiling softly to herself as she bent over him to kiss his rather lovely nose, "Morning." she breathed.

Anna swallowed hard, "Caleb, is there anywhere I can take them?" she breathed, looking up at her ex-boyfriend with a slight frown as he nodded, "Fifth floor is a panic room in itself," he said, tossing a shotgun to Adam who couldn't seem to stop fidgeting.
Anna nodded slightly, slipping an arm around Kiran's waist, "You gotta get up, baby, we're getting out of here."

Nathan made a low noise in his throat as he opened his eyes, "Morning, love," he breathed, his lips forming into a sleepy sort of smile.

Kiran blinked slowly, starting to lift himself when the pain in his chest brought him back to his knees as Jacob Hawthorne made his way into the room, "Damn it, I knew I should have got him home before dark." he breathed, coming around to his other side to help his little brother to his feet.

Lena smiled to herself, moving her head to kiss his smile, "You have the sexiest smile I have ever seen, Mr. Hart." she breathed, "It does something to me.."

Anna slowly rose to her feet, automatically stepping away from her man and his brother as she sighed, "What's going on, Jake?"

Nathan made another noise, "You're stirring dark things inside of me, Miss Vladislav," he breathed, his pretty eyes half-open and watching her in his intent manner.

Jacob bit his lip hard as he looked up at Anna, "It's really bad." he whispered, his throat tightening as he had Kiran lean against him, "He's so bad." he breathed, shaking his head.

Lena raised a brow as she lowered her head to kiss his neck, "What kind of dark things?" she breathed.

Anna bit her bottom lip, hard enough to draw blood as she watched Kiran; unable to take her eyes off of him now as she swallowed hard, "Is there anything I can do?"

"Hunger," Nathan breathed, running his fingertips along her spine once more.

"Be here for him." Jacob breathed, studying her face.

Lena slid on top of him so she was straddling him, "Hunger for me?"

Sunday, a week later...
Lynnie squeezed Aiden's hand as they stepped through the door to Maximus' front parlor, the woman wore a fitted red dress, outlining her little baby bump, her dark curls hung down her back in their natural perfect waves, "It's been years since a Sunday Family Dinner." she mumbled, glancing up at her man as she pressed her other hand against her bump, absolutely loving the feel of it as Lucien ambled in behind them, looking handsome and so damn cute in his jeans and button up, "Mom, I hate these clothes." he grumbled, making a little face.

Kiran Hawthorne bit his lip as the taxi pulled up to the curb outside his great grandfather's estate, he took a breath, glancing down at Anna, "Are you ready?" he mumbled, running his fingers over his hair in an almost nervous gesture.

Lena Vladislav studied herself in the mirror a last time, she wore one of the dresses Maximus had brought her on her last birthday, deciding to make amends in this small way, the white, flower-printed, Oscar de la Renta was well fitted in the bodice and flowed out nicely from the tight waist; she left her curls loose and flowing in perfect tendrils around her shoulders. Lena slipped into her wedges before she left her room to find Nathaniel, hoping to see him before she left.

Eliya bit her lip as she settled down into the couch beside Caleb, keeping a few inches between them as she took a few pieces of popcorn from their giant bowl, "I can't believe you're making me watch this movie." she mumbled, glancing up at him as the opening credits to Scarface began on the plasma.

Aiden glanced down at Lucien, his eyes narrowing a little, "You look adorable, champ, you're supposed to," he muttered.

"Are you?" Anna muttered, raising one hand to run her thumb along his jaw as she, almost protectively pressed her other hand against her baby bump, outlined by her baby-blue summer dress.

Nathaniel laid across his bed in his room; his lips pursed as his dark gaze flickered across the the pages of Art of War.

Caleb couldn't help but roll his eyes at her as he leaned back against the back of the leather couch, "It's the greatest movie. Ever," he muttered, glancing down at her as he narrowed his eyes.

Lucien made another face, "I don't want to look adorable." he grumbled as Lynn reached down to run her fingers through his curls, "Lucien, you could be wearing a sac and still look adorable, sweetheart." she breathed, smiling warmly.

Kiran bit his lip, "I think so." he said, "But will you hold my hand all night, just to be sure." he breathed, giving her a small smile.

Lena bit her lip as she pushed open Nathan's door, leaning in the entryway as she studied him, "How do I look?" she asked softly, running her fingers down the skirt of her dress.

Eliya rolled her pretty eyes at him in an almost playful manner, "You obviously haven't seen Moulin Rouge." she breathed, giving him a small smile.

Aiden rolled his eyes at them, but he didn't say anything else as he bent his pretty head to kiss her temple, "Are you excited?"

Anna gave a slight nod, even though the worry in her eyes was still evident and she leaned in to kiss his cheek, "Of course, baby."

Nathan glanced up from his book, giving her a very appreciative once-over before he smiled, "You look wonderful."

Caleb made a face at her, "I've seen Moulin Rouge," he mumbled, turning his gaze back to the TV, "It was disappointing, especially because I was sure it was porn."

Lynn smiled softly, "Yes." she mumbled, raising her gaze to his, "I've missed these dinners." she thought for a moment, "The last time we had one I was dating Alexander." she said, wrinkling her pretty nose.

Kiran slid his fingers into hers, pretending he didn't notice the worry in her gaze as opened the door and slid out of the cab.

Lena smiled softly as she ambled towards him slowly, "Wonderful enough to eat?" she breathed in a teasing manner as her eyes shimmered.

Eliya made a noise, "How did you think Moulin Rouge was porn?" she breathed, throwing a piece of popcorn at him.

Aiden wrinkled his nose a bit, "So, we're celebrating the babies tonight?" he muttered, the subjects of their gatherings always fascinating him.

Anna bit her bottom lip, but she didn't say anything as she followed him out of the cab; her worry suddenly replaced with nervousness at the sight of Evangeline Hart waiting for them by the entrance, looking absolutely stunning in her thin, black open-back gown that didn't seem to cover much.

"Always, love," Nathan breathed, marking his page before he put the book down.

Caleb raised a brow at her without looking in her direction; catching the piece of popcorn in his fist before popping it into his mouth, "It's about a whore in a whorehouse in France, what was I supposed to think?"

Lynnie nodded, "The babies, Kiran and Anna, Lena's vamperversary." she breathed, "Any little thing." she mumbled, leaning up a little to kiss his chin.

Kiran blinked slowly as he looked over Evangeline, "Eva?" he breathed, cocking his head at the pretty woman, "Are you here for Max?" he mumbled, giving her a small smile.

Lena crawled onto his bed, crawling over his legs to straddle his waist, "I have to leave soon." she breathed, her pretty lips forming into a pout as she looked down at him.

Eliya rolled her eyes again, "You have such a way with words, baby." she breathed, throwing another piece of popcorn at him.

Evangeline slowly shook her head as she moved to meet them, "I'm actually here for you, love," she breathed, briefly glancing down at Anna who quickly let go of Kiran's hand, biting her lip, "I'll meet you inside," she said softly, starting for the front door to give them some privacy.

Nathan mirrored her pout as he placed his hands on her hips, his gaze fixing on her pretty face, "Are you going to that dinner-thing at Maximus'?"

"I know I do," Caleb breathed, catching this piece as well before he popped it into his mouth, finally meeting her gaze with a wide grin.

Kiran bit his lip, looking after Anna before he turned his gaze back to Evangeline, "Why me?" he mumbled, running his fingers over his head again, for a brief moment wishing he had hair again.

Lena nodded slightly, "We're all sort of forced to go." she mumbled, wrinkling her pretty nose, "Apparently, I'm being celebrated." she said, smiling softly, "I wish you were coming with me."

Eliya smiled genuinely as she met his gaze, "I missed your way with words." she said, turning her gaze to the tv now.

Evangeline couldn't help but smile softly at him as she stopped moving, standing only a few inches from him now, "Anna reached out to me a few days ago," she breathed, raising her hands to frame his pretty face with them, caressing his cheekbones with her thumbs, "She asked me to help you."

Nathaniel wrinkled his nose a bit at this as he shook his head, "Not today, darling," he breathed.

Caleb pursed his lips for a moment before he ran his fingers over his hair, "I missed your pretty mouth," he muttered, glancing down at her again, "Preferably against mine."

Kiran bit his lip harder now, "She's more worried about me than I thought." he mumbled, studying Eva's face, "I don't know how to help myself anymore." he breathed, gesturing up to his head.

Lena bent her head to kiss his pretty mouth, "It's just as well, I think my stepdad wants to kill you." she mumbled, kissing him again.

Eliya raised her gaze to his again, she swallowed hard, "Do you want to kiss me?" she breathed, tilting her pretty head back against the couch.

Evangeline's gaze seemed to warm up a bit as she shifted one of her hands to tug on his chin to release his lip, "I wanna take you somewhere different this time," she breathed.

Nathaniel couldn't help but smile against his mouth, "Mmh, yes, Aiden," he breathed, rolling his pretty eyes, "He doesn't like me very much."

"Yes," Caleb muttered, his gaze on hers in his most charming way as he reached over to brush his thumb over her lips, leaning in slowly, "If you'll let me."

Kiran swallowed hard as he studied her gaze, "I don't want to leave Anna though." he said softly, "Every night when we sleep in the same bed, I don't wake up screaming." he confessed, something like panic coming into his gaze.

Lena grinned, "I don't know why, you're so charming." she breathed, half-teasing as she kissed his bottom lip.

Eliya nodded, her heart beating faster against her rib cage, "Kiss me." she said softly, keeping his gaze.

Evangeline hushed him; obviously seeing the panic right away as she leaned in to kiss his forehead, "I'll make sure you'll be in her bed, every night," she whispered.

"I agree," Nathaniel breathed, gently squeezing her hips as he grinned at her.

"Are you sure?" Caleb breathed, so close now his lips were brushing against hers.

Kiran swallowed hard, "Promise?" he said softly, studying her gaze intently.

Lena felt a shiver crawl up her spine as she studied him, "Mm, your smile does something to me, Mr. Hart." she breathed, biting her lip hard as she raised her shimmering gaze to his, a lusty sort of sparkle in them.

Eliya didn't answer him except to lean into him and kiss him deeply, her lids fluttering as she felt warmth spread down to her toes.

"I promise," Evangeline said softly, holding his gaze without even blinking, "Whenever you're ready to get better."

Nathaniel's eyes narrowed a little at her, "Don't look at me like that, kitten, you know what it does to me," he breathed, "And you have to go."

Caleb made a low noise in his throat as he raised his hands, cupping her beautiful face in them as he kissed her back hard, shutting his eyes.

Kiran bit his lip, forcing a little smile, "Can we have dinner first and talk about all this stuff after?" he asked softly.

Lena pouted a bit, "I know." she grumbled before a wicked smile spread across her lips, "But after dinner, I'm coming home to have you for dessert." she breathed, bending her head to kiss him again when there was a slight knock on the door, "Lena, you're going to be late," Luis said, cocking his head at them from the doorway, "I'm going to have Mael escort you."

Eliya raised her hands slowly to curl her fingers in his hair and kiss him back harder, almost hungrily, pouring herself into the kiss.

Eva nodded slightly, "Of course," she breathed, holding her hand out for his.

Nathan couldn't help but grin up at her as he shifted his hand, giving her backside a good smack, "Get moving, woman."

Caleb made a sweet noise, letting go of her face to move his hands onto her hips and tilt her back on the couch, adjusting himself on top of her without squishing her.

Kiran slid his fingers into hers, "Max was worried about you." he said after a moment, "You disappeared after Claudia's party, I don't remember it much." he mumbled, wrinkling his nose, "I was worried too."

Lena made a little noise before she rolled her eyes, "I'm going, I'm going." she mumbled, wiggling against him a little just to tease him before she slid off his waist, she straightened her dress and ran her fingers through her hair once before she turned to face Luis and his very handsome nephew, "I'm ready." she mumbled as Mael offered her his arm, she took it, glancing back at Nathan with a slight finger wave, "I'll see you for dessert, Mr. Hart." she grinned before letting Mael lead her away from the room.

Eliya made a sweet noise against his mouth, letting the popcorn bowl clutter to the floor and spill as she spread her legs to hook them around his waist, glad she only wore hot pants and one of his old t-shirts.

"I suppose my mentality didn't take well to your death, no matter how brief it was," Evangeline murmured, glancing over at him as she started for the front door.

Caleb bit her bottom lip, hard as he ran his fingers up under her t-shirt; wanting to feel her skin as he cupped her breasts in his hands.

Kiran glanced down at her, "It's cause you really like me, huh?" he breathed, giving her another small smile.

Eliya felt a shiver pass up her spine as she moved her fingers down his chest, flicking her tongue out along his upper lip as heat moved down her belly.

Evangeline couldn't help but roll her pretty eyes at him, "Don't toot your own horn, darling," she breathed, her lips forming into a soft smile, "But yes, I do care for you."

Caleb gently bit her tongue, his hands roaming all over her now, almost hungrily before he made a noise, shifting his weight to lie half on her, half on the couch, "Shit," he breathed, unable to keep himself from grinning at her as he ran his fingers over his hair.

"I care for you too, Eva." Kiran said softly as he pushed through the front door of Maximus' house, his gaze immediately searching out Anna.

Eliya made a sweet noise, "I need you." she breathed, her eyes shimmering as she found his gaze.

Evangeline smiled softly at him, but she didn't say anything else as she leaned in, stealing a kiss from his pretty mouth before she began through the house by herself.
Anna stood a bit off to the side, chewing her bottom lip in an almost worried manner as she watched their friends and family, one hand on her bump and the other fidgeting with the ring in her necklace.

"You don't think we're moving too fast, considering?" Caleb mumbled, his smile slowly fading now as he watched her face curiously.

Kiran blinked a bit to himself, reaching up to touch his lips before he smiled to himself and started towards Anna, "Hey, you're supposed to hold my hand, remember?" he breathed.

Eliya made a face at him, "I don't want to think about anything but me and you, in this moment." she said softly, studying him, "I want to get lost in you, Caleb."

Anna glanced up at him, a soft, sort of relieved smile curving her lips as she held a hand out for his, "Sorry," she breathed, tilting her head a bit to one side as she looked him over, "You okay?"

Caleb didn't hesitate for another moment as he leaned in, pressing his lips against hers once more as he slid his hand down her abdomen and into her hot pants...

Kiran bit his lip, "For the most part." he said, taking her hand, "You're really worried about to call in Eva, huh?" he mumbled, studying her pretty face.

... Eliya arched her back, pleasure starting to build in her abdomen as she screamed Caleb's name, digging her fingers into his shoulders.

Anna gave a slight shrug of her slender shoulders, her smile fading as she studied his eyes, "She's helped you before," she breathed, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

Caleb gritted his teeth; pleasure peaking in his abdomen as he slammed into her, finding his release in a breath of her name as he bent his head to kiss her throat, pressing into her as deeply as he could.

Kiran pursed his lips, "I know." he said softly, "But I need you, don't forget that, okay?" he breathed.

Eliya screamed out his name as pleasure erupted over and over again in her abdomen, her toes curling.

"How could I?" Anna breathed, her gaze still on his as she raised their hands to kiss his knuckles, "Just remember, I don't have to know what you two do when you're.. together: whatever helps you, okay?"

Caleb made a noise, clamping his hand over her mouth as he hushed her, "You're waking up the entire city," he whispered against her skin, pressing into her deep enough to feel resistance.

Thirty minutes to an hour before...
Mael led Lena out of his Uncle’s estate, “Luis said to feed before we go, he wanted to get us something from the fridge but a fresh hunt is always more satisfying.” He breathed, glancing down at the beautiful and utterly unattainable girl on his arm, “Would you agree?” he muttered.
Lena blinked as if coming out of her own thoughts, she gave the boy a polite smile, “Oh, sure.” She breathed, giving a slight nod of her head even as she seemed to return to her thoughts.
Mael paid no mind to her aloof behavior, only smiling slightly to himself as he brought them to Upstate New York in a few steps, a good twenty miles from her great grandfather’s estate, “There’s a woman a few miles down,” he said, slipping his arm from hers to take her hand and begin in that direction.
Lena blinked out of her reverie once more to look down at their hands, something cold turned over in her stomach, “You don’t have to hold my hand.” She said, sliding her fingers away from his, she watched him blink up at her, a slight bewildered expression on his handsome face, “You don’t have to impress me, Mael, or hold my hand,” she said, trying to be gentle but knowing she probably sounded more cold than gentle. She could see Mael’s jaw tighten subtly but the boy gave a small, mirthless, smile, “You see right through me, Lena.” He muttered before he continued towards his meal without as much as a backwards glance to her.
Lena’s lips twisted but she didn’t bother to go after him, not wanting to encourage any ideas in the vampire, she sighed, smoothing out the skirt of her pretty dress again, hoping to be at her great grandfather’s soon when the air shifted. Lena turned slightly when a sudden, almost blinding pain erupted in her left temple, her lips parted in a gasp and she started to spin out of consciousness, feeling her ankle twist painfully as her wedges bent out from under her, her elbow hit the concrete sending a jolt of agony up to her pretty head. She vaguely felt hands on her, ripping her dress, and then a burning pain in her throat.
Mered the Original couldn’t make out the assailant with his fangs buried in the girl’s throat, he gritted his teeth, moving to curl his fingers into the vampire’s shirt and rip him away, he was persistent, trying to get a grip with his fangs before the stronger man finally threw him off of her, the vampire disappeared before Mered could even heard and he grumbled a curse under his breath before he knelt beside Lena. An urgency had led him to her, a tug in the fiber of his being, he’d only felt with one other, he studied the girl, turning her carefully on her back, she was so young and she hadn’t yet fed; it frustrated him greatly that he could feel anything towards this child and that he didn’t understand the bond formed between them, formed between her and his own Coven, “What are you doing to us, Lena Vladislav?” he muttered to no one as he tucked a strand of her hair away from her pretty, bruised face, he could smell the boy suddenly, waiting a few dangerous seconds to make sure he didn’t share the same scent as the assailant before he disappeared into the shadows of the alley to watch him find her.

Kiran's lips quirked down, "I don't want to do anything with her but talk." he mumbled, slightly confused all of a sudden when Maximus descended his staircase, the old vampire looked ever handsome in dark slacks and a white dress shirt, he held a glass of red liquid everyone was sure wasn't wine and lifted it to his family, "Welcome to the first of hopefully many more Sunday Family Dinners." he said, a sly grin curving his lips, "May no one end up in the hospital." he breathed when the front door crashed open and Mael Adams came through the door carrying Lena Vladislav in his arms, "I swear, I only looked away for a moment." The boy breathed, the young girl laying limp and bloodied in his arms, "Just a moment."

Eliya's lids fluttered, her eyes nearly rolling back in her pretty skull, she felt so much pleasure, she tightened her legs around his waist, her heart pounding ridiculously hard against her rib cage.

Aiden's eyes widened as his head snapped up and he immediately released Lynnie, running towards the door, "What happened?" he breathed, raising his arms to take Lena from the boy.

Caleb gently nibbled on her throat, making a sweet noise as he released her mouth, "I love you, do you know that?" he whispered, kissing the skin.

Mael shook his head, "I don't know." he said, looking utterly miserable as he handed her over, "We were hunting, I only looked away for a moment, I had to feed, and when I turned around she was gone, I found her in an alley a few miles down." he shook his head again, "I'm so sorry."

Eliya wrapped her arms around him, "Sometimes." she said sincerely, "Sometimes I'm not sure." she mumbled, blinking down at him slowly.

Aiden slowly shook his head, not even responding to the kid as he turned away with Lena and hurried towards the kitchen; bent on checking her for injuries.

"Well, I do," Caleb said, sounding a lot more serious all of a sudden as he raised himself a little to look her dead in the eye.

Lena's head lolled back, revealing the bite marks on her throat and shoulder as if a vampire had dug into her and couldn't find perch with his fangs, making the job look sloppy and even more bloody, she had a bruise the size of a knot denting in the left side of her skull, her right arm was bloody down to her fingers, and her right ankle was starting to swell as if it were broken, her dress was ripped apart in various places; Lynnie and Maximus followed Aiden into the kitchen, both wearing looks of utter panic, "Is she breathing?" Lynn whispered, feeling tears sting her eyes.

Eliya swallowed hard, keeping his gaze, "I love you with every single bit of me, Caleb." she said softly, reaching up to touch his handsome face.

Aiden made a low noise as he placed her very carefully on the kitchen counter, "I-I don't know," he breathed, releasing her to press his fingers against her throat.
Evangeline made a low noise in her throat as she moved towards Kiran and Anna, "I'm sorry to do this, sweetheart, but I have to steal your lover for the night," she breathed, waiting for Anna's slow nod before she held her hand out to Kiran.

Caleb's lips formed into a small, genuine smile at this, "Thank you," he breathed, his gaze still on hers as he relaxed against her once more.

Lena's heart beat slowly, her chest moving up and down in small, pained movements, Lynn swallowed hard, feeling her heart sink to the pit of her stomach as she watched her little girl.
Kiran blinked slowly as he took Eva's hand, "He's in the room." he choked out, looking up at Eva, everything running much slower inside his head.

Luis moved up the steps two at a time towards Nathan's room, he didn't bother to knock as he moved into the vampire's room, "Lena's been attacked." he said, his eyes darkening.

Aiden sighed, raising both of his hands to tug on his curls, "How do we fix this?" he mumbled, glancing up at Lynn, "Blood?"
"Who is?" Evangeline muttered, tightening her hold on his hand as she turned to lead him towards the front door.

Nathan sat up on his bed rather quickly, staring at Luis, "What?" he breathed, "By whom? Is she okay?"

Maximus blinked, "Yes," he said, answering for his granddaughter, "There is blood in the fridge." he muttered, starting towards it now.
"The Original." Kiran breathed, his gaze becoming distant as his chest tightened.

Luis shook his head, "I don't know." he said honestly, "Mael said he only left her side for a moment and when he found her she was bloodied up and unconscious." he mumbled, "I can take you to her."

Aiden nodded slowly, but he didn't say anything else as he slid into a chair by the counter.
"Leave it," Evangeline murmured, pulling him out of the front door before she slammed it shut and released Kiran's hand to take his face in her hands, "Do you trust me?"

Nathaniel nodded slightly, hopping out of bed to pull on a sweatshirt, something so unlike him to wear as he sighed, "Please," he muttered.

Kiran nodded slowly as he studied Eva, "I trust you." he breathed, "Please get me away from them." he whispered, sounding like a lost child.

Maximus took a blood pack from his fridge before hurrying to his granddaughter's side, he ripped the pack open, grasping her chin to part her lips so he could drip the cherry red life saving liquid into her mouth.
Luis moved towards Nathan to take his shoulder carefully and blink them to Maximus' kitchen.

Evangeline gave another nod before she leaned in, pressing her lips against his as she transported them to her vacation house on the cliff in Greece.

Nathan blinked slowly when they appeared; his gaze immediately fixing on Lena as his jaw clenched, "Where's Mael?"

Kiran blinked slowly, glancing around for a moment as his chest un-tightened, "Thank you." he said softly, looking back at Lena.

"I'm here." The boy said from the entryway of the kitchen, looking guilty as all hell, his emerald gaze on Lena's form as she began to arouse from sleep, reaching up slowly to take the bag from Max and bring it to her lips.

Evangeline seemed to relax a little as a soft smile curved her lips, "Sit down, love," she breathed, gesturing to the bed behind him.

Nathan looked over his shoulder at the boy for a moment; a snarl twisting his lips before he turned, immediately grabbing him by the collar to slam him up against the wall, "What did you do?" he hissed, his eyes blackening as he bared his lengthening canines.

Kiran bit his lip as he sat down, he ran his fingers over his head and made a face to himself, "I miss my hair." he muttered, wrinkling his nose, "Is that vain of me?"

Mael's eyes widened slightly, "I-I.." he swallowed hard, his guilt giving way to misery, "I took her hunting when Luis told me not to, I wanted to impress her, it was so stupid, I tried to hold her hand and she told me no, she couldn't even humor me so I walked away from her but it was only a few minutes." he choked up.

"Yes," Evangeline said, the humor evident in her voice as she moved towards the nightstand and grabbed a box out of the drawer before she sat down next to him, kicking her stilettos off, "But it'll grow back. We'll have something to tug on, Anna and I."

"A few minutes?" Nathan said through his teeth, one of his hands shifting to wrap his fingers around the boys throat, "Luis told you to escort her here, didn't he? And what do you do? You leave her, while there's Originals on our asses; what kind of retarded little infant are you?"

Kiran bit his lip, not going to comment on her statement as his eyes found the box in her hands, "What's that?"

Mael swallowed hard again, "I wasn't thinking." he choked, gritting his teeth tight, knowing that whatever this man did to him now would be nothing compared to the punishment he would get from his Uncle later.
Lena finished her bag of blood, feeling the warmth of it spread down to every aching part of her, she blinked, starting to sit up slowly as Maximus removed her wedges to take make sure her ankle was healing properly, the young woman felt woozy, her vision still a bit blurred but she managed to find Nathan's form as if he were the only one she could find even if she were blind, "Nathaniel?" she mumbled, his name a bit slurred on her red stained lips.

"Wonderland," Evangeline breathed, her smile widening some as a look of almost fascination came over her pretty face, "You need to relax, get some peace inside of that pretty head of yours."

Nathan made a low noise in his throat as he pushed back from Mael and he turned to Lena, a soft smile forming on his lips as if nothing had happened, "Hi, darling."

Kiran blinked slowly up at her, "Drugs?" he asked softly, "What kind?" he muttered, deciding to trust she knew what she was doing.

Lena finally managed to blink the blurriness from her gaze as the throbbing pain in her head and most of her body started to dissipate, she reached up slowly to finger the fading teeth marks on her neck before a shudder passed up her spine and she slid off the table, moving towards him to wrap her arms around him, her eyes starting to sting, "Some vampire attacked me." she breathed, her heart in her throat.

"Heroin," Eva muttered as she opened the box, producing a clean syringe that had already been prepared, "Take your shirt off," she breathed, glancing over at him as she placed the needle between her teeth and shifted a bit on the bed to take his belt off.

Nathan sighed, slipping his arms around her before he buried his face against her hair, "Do you know who it was?"

Kiran swallowed hard but he did as he was told, taking his shirt off to reveal the puffy, pink scars that littered his back and chest, "Not as pretty as I used to be." he muttered, with a slight shrug.

Lena buried her face against his chest, "No, he hit me before I could even see him." she said, shutting her eyes tight.

"Beautiful as ever, love," Evangeline mumbled past the syringe as she pulled his belt off; looking into his face with nothing but sincerity before she settled back next to him, grabbing his arm to strap on the belt.

Nathan sighed against her hair, shutting his eyes, "I'll find him," he whispered, gently kissing the top of her head, "Don't worry about it."

Kiran studied her face, not looking at anything but her as he remained silent, trusting her.

Lynn bit her lip, her eyes shimmering as she studied her daughter and Nathaniel Hart, "What is this?" she asked softly, moving hand down to her bump.

Evangeline dropped her gaze from his to the crook of his arm; very slowly bending her head before she pressed her lips against the vein, as if trying to calm him before she uncapped the needle, biting her bottom lip as she inserted it into his vein, "No more nightmares, baby," she breathed, injecting the drug into his bloodstream before she very quickly discarded the needle and unstrapped his arm to let him react to it.

Nathaniel slowly opened his eyes to look up at Lynn, but he didn't say anything, simply looking her over in an almost irritated way.

Kiran felt the liquid spread through his bloodstream, within in moments he felt his limbs become warm and heavy as he dropped back onto the bed and all the nightmarish little thoughts that had plagued him for a month or even his whole goddamn life started to turn into cotton candy right inside his pretty head.

Lena kept her arms tight around Nathan as she glanced over her shoulder at her mother before she looked up at Nate again, "This is...us." she breathed, nodding at how lovely and right it sounded before she laid her head against his chest again.
"Oh." Lynn whispered, swallowing hard, "And when did it happen?" she mumbled, trying to figure out how she hadn't noticed.

Evangeline couldn't help but smile as she crawled across the bed to the pillows, positioning herself in a legged pose before she very carefully began to run her fingers over his forehead and the little hair he had, humming sweetly to him as she watched him.

"A week ago," Nathan muttered, straightening a little as he kept his gaze on Lynn.

Kiran tilted his head back to watch her for a long moment, "You are quite beautiful Evangeline Hart." he breathed, feeling like cookies baking in a pan.

Lynn nodded slowly, "Oh." she said again, her eyes still shimmering as she sunk into a seat beside Aiden's, purposefully pursing her lips tight to keep from saying anything hypocritical or regretful as she turned her gaze to her man, just to look at him.

"So are you, Mr. Hawthorne," Evangeline breathed, still stroking him rather lovingly as she smiled again, "How are you feeling?"

"Like a star in fire." Kiran breathed, "Like a cookie in the oven, like that really nice sex you can only have outdoors on a summer day." he drawled.

Lena tilted her head back once more to look up at Nathan, "Will you take me home?" she said softly.
"Not quite yet." Said a male voice from the entryway of the kitchen, his voice that rich English accent that made spine shivers, "Not while I have you all in one audience." Mered the Original said, his darker blue eyes shimmering as they moved over all of them.

Evangeline breathed a laugh, leaning back against the headboard, "You're getting me all hot and bothered already, love," she breathed, reaching up to slide the straps of her dress down her shoulders.

Nathan's spine tensed as he let go of Lena and made a quick turn on his heel; frowning deeply when his gaze found Mered and his jaw tightened, but he remained quiet.

Kiran studied her, "I'd like to lay here for awhile, just like this, I don't think I'll ever move." he said, his violet-silver eyes shimmering.

Mered crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned against the door frame, "No need to get all tensed, Cupcake." he breathed, his gaze moving to meet Nate's, "I bare your girl no ill-will which is why I'm here, I saved her life in that alley, and I don't know why." he said, pursing his lips.

"Not that I would mind, but I think your girlfriend might miss you," Evangeline breathed, adjusting herself a bit on the bed as she got her dress off, now lying on her side in nothing but her lacy panties as she looked over at him.

Aiden's jaw tightened a bit as he looked up at the bastard, "That makes you pretty damn stupid, doesn't it?" he breathed, matching the vampire's accent as he cocked his pretty head a bit to the side.

"Can she move in?" Kiran mumbled, blinking slowly, "Like in three's company?" he said, starting to hum the theme song to the old television show.

Mered's pretty eyes darkened as he turned his gaze on Aiden, "In normal circumstances I would have ripped your tongue out for talking to me like that." he said through his teeth, "But, the girl cares for you and it would hurt her if I killed you." he breathed, "And though deep down in my wretched soul, I want to fuck her insides bloody, I can't bring myself to hurt the girl." he said, "In any way, in that lies the problem, it's like we're bound."

Evangeline couldn't help but roll her eyes at him, "I only tolerante her existence because you seem to like her so much," she breathed, propping herself up on her elbow as she pursed her lips, "About that; why do you care so much for her? Honestly?"

"What a shame for you," Nathan hissed, his black eyes on Mered's face, but he didnt comment on the mention of 'bound'.

Kiran blinked over at Eva again, "She's my faith, Evangeline, she is the light in my darkness." he said, quite seriously, almost reverently, "For a month I had nightmares, I woke screaming, crying, confused, a week in her bed and I've slept the whole night through, it's been like that always." he said softly, "I could get really bad, I could get downright awful but when I look at her, I feel hope."

Mered let out a slight noise, "Do none of you understand?" he breathed, "I can't hurt her, yes, how wonderful that I can't rip her apart, that I can't even touch her if I make to harm her." he muttered as he pulled a blade from his back pocket, he held it up for them to see, "Now look." he said, stabbing himself in his own abdomen in the most painful way as to make him grit his teeth but it was Lena that whimpered, doubling over in pain until Mered removed the blade and the wound healed, "Do you see now? Bound. It goes both ways."

Evangeline's lips formed into a soft smile as she studied his face, for a long while before she sighed, "That's sweet," she breathed, leaning in to kiss his mouth once more, "You wanna stay here or do you wanna get back to your girlfriend's bed?"

Aiden shut his eyes, his teeth grinding together as he shook his head, "We can't kill you," he breathed, more to himself than anything.

Kiran thought for a moment, "I want her." he said softly, "I always will."

"But I didn't do this." Lena breathed when she could breathe again, "I didn't bind myself to anyone." she mumbled.

Evangeline rolled her eyes at him again, finding his lovey-dovey attitude rather unattractive as she crawled off the bed and slid into his shirt, nothing else as she pursed her lips, "Let's get you back to Fantasy Land, Mr. Hawthorne," she breathed, grasping his hand before she transported them to Anna's bedroom in Louisiana, where Anna sat on the middle of their bed, waiting patiently for her ex-husband, dressed in a short, silky pale-rose nightgown that seemed to cover up her bump.

"Are you absolutely sure?" Aiden breathed, his pretty eyes narrowing a bit at her as he slowly stood.

Kiran's lips tilted in the sweetest in smile, "Beautiful." he breathed, studying Anna.

Lena turned to meet his gaze, "I'm sure." she said, "The first and last time I bound myself to any vampire was Nathan." she breathed.

Anna glanced up when the air shifted and the vampire had disappeared, a warm smile curving her lips, "Baby," she breathed, absolutely lovingly as she slid off the bed and moved to put her arms around his waist, laying her head against his chest.

"Then how the hell did this happen?" Nathan breathed, his gaze only releasing the Original to look down at Lena.

Kiran slid his arms around her and hugged her tight against him, bending his head to bury his nose against her hair.

Maximus pursed his lips, "I believe it is my fault." he muttered, not letting the girl answer.

Anna sighed, inhaling his scent as she curled her fingers against his skin, "Are you okay?" she breathed, not opening her eyes.

Nathan's gaze sought towards Maximus before he frowned, "How so?"

"Right now?" Kiran breathed, "Right now, I'm perfect." he said softly, kissing her hair.

Maximus ran his fingers over his hair as he leaned against the counter, "The night of Claudia's party, I was not wholly myself." he breathed, "It is more like a dream when I try to think of it, after killing Claudia, I found myself in Lena's room, standing over her bed, I fed her blood, Claudia's and mine, I believed it to be a dream, I hoped it was but it must have been real." the old vampire said softly, seemingly lost in thought for a moment, "We must have created a bond between her and the Originals but I can't fathom why."

Anna made a low, approving noise in the back of her throat as she pulled back a little to look up at him, "Will you lie with me for a while?" she breathed, trailing her fingertips down his chest.

Aiden's lips twisted into a deep frown, "Claudia didn't want us to be able to kill them?" he breathed.

"Of course." Kiran breathed, lowering his head to kiss her nose before he pulled back a ways to crawl onto the bed, he turned on his back and opened his arms for her to crawl into them.

Mered snorted, "Claudia wouldn't have given a damn if any of us were killed." he muttered, thinking for a long moment, "You weren't yourself that night.." he breathed, more to himself than anything, "No and if you were you wouldn't have been able to kill Claudia and a bond like this? I doubt you could make." he said, glimpsing up at Maximus, "No offense, Max, you may be old but you're not nearly as old as one of us." he mumbled with a slight shrug "Which means you must have met her Maker," his lips twisted into a sardonic smile, "Oh, Lazarus, you and your wicked jokes." he mused.

Anna couldn't help but smile at him as she crawled onto the bed, making a low noise as she settled herself in his arms, "What did she give you?" she breathed, shifting a little to look up at him.

Aiden's frown persisted, but he didn't say anything as he watched Mered, somehow finding his behavior very familiar as he wrinkled his nose.

Kiran wrapped his arms around her, "Wonderland." he breathed, shutting his eyes as he inhaled her scent.

Maximus blinked slowly, "Why in the world would he do this?" he muttered.
Mered shook his head, "I don't know." he said, his blue eyes shimmering as they found Lena's face again, "I have to go," he breathed, "We will find you." he fought the urge to bow his head and disappeared.

Anna pursed her lips, "Wonderland," she breathed, blinking a few times as she shifted once more to lie half on top of him and half on the bed, her fingertips slowly making their way down his chest to his abdomen.

Nathan shut his eyes a moment; silent until he turned to face Lena again, but not addressing her, "What are we going to do?"

Kiran kept his eyes shut, not saying very much as he enjoyed her presence and the warmth in all of his limbs.

Lynn pursed her lips tight, "I think the first thing we're going to do is we're going to start telling each other things, even if they're suspicions." she said, giving Maximus a pointed look, "We've been planning on ways to kill them, you at the head of it all, and it could have killed her, Max," she muttered, reaching up to run her fingers through her hair, "We all need to be honest with each other, no matter what, when we're not honest, we allow our enemies to be one step ahead of us."

Anna sighed softly as she released her head against his ribs; simply listening to the sound of his heart beating as she slid her fingers beneath his waistband, biting her bottom lip as she mentally noted that he was lacking his belt as well as his shirt.

"Exactly," Aiden breathed, looking between all of the people in the room, "Anyone else have any secrets, something that needs to be shared? Don't be shy."

Kiran blinked slowly, looking down at her, "Anna?" he mumbled, "What are you doing?" he asked softly.

Lena pursed her lips, "I've been having dreams, vivid dreams, but I didn't understand what they were until just now.." she mumbled, "I told Luis about them and he said it was just my drive to avenge Kiran.." she said, turning to look at her sire now.
Luis glanced up at her, he had his arms crossed over his chest, and was leaning against the counter, he raised his gaze to the others, "I suspected the bond," he gave a slight shrug, "I figured she could find them or at least point me in the right direction, that's why I argued you let her in on our meetings, I didn't want to go behind your back but I didn't want to outright tell you about the dreams either, but when you didn't, when you refused to see her potential, I gave her permission to run away, to make it look like I hadn't known." he said before he narrowed his gaze at Lena and Nathan, "But someone didn't get on her plane like she was supposed to."

Anna blinked up at him, her light gaze searching his as she chewed her lip, "I'm.. touching you," she whispered, grasping him through his boxers almost gingerly.

"So you decided to use her and delete your traces?" Aiden muttered, raising a brow at the vampire.

Kiran felt tingles fill his abdomen, "Are you sure that's a good idea?" he asked softly, not moving to stop her.

Luis wrinkled his pretty nose, "It sounds so fucked up when you say it like that." he muttered, giving another slight shrug, "She wanted to be out there in the field, getting her hands bloodied, I was helping her get what she wanted; this girl has potential to be great, we can't keep locking her a way like she's a child."

"Isn't it?" Anna breathed, her gaze still on his as she stroked him, watching his reaction very carefully.

"She is a child, Luis," Aiden said through his teeth, his fingers clenching into fists at his sides as he stared at him, "Vampire or not, she is a child and we do not send children into the field. I don't give a shit what she wants."

Kiran bit his lip hard, "I think it might be." he said softly, moving his fingers over her belly down to the apex of her thighs.

Luis' eyes darkened as he met Aiden's gaze, his jaw clenching as he thought of all the things he could say as he flicked his tongue across his teeth, "You're right, Aiden, children don't belong in the field." he said, his shoulders tightening, "And she's your child now, look at her and make her believe she shouldn't be fighting along side her brothers and sisters, her coven, or him." he said, nodding towards Nathaniel.

Anna's lips parted as she sucked a breath in; her gaze locking on his as she slid her fingers into his boxers to feel him...

Aiden's jaw tightened as his gaze shifted to Lena's face, but he didn't say anything, simply waiting for the girl to speak her mind.

... Kiran pressed deeper into Anna, pleasure exploding in his abdomen as he gripped her hips, breathing out her name.

Lena bit her lip as she studied Aiden's face, "I'm not a child anymore." she said softly, "But I've been thinking these last few days that I might not be as ready for the field as I had thought." she breathed, "There are still a lot of things I need to learn, now more than ever." she said, gesturing to her ripped dress.

Anna gasped, tilting her head back against the pillows as she whimpered in pleasure and the muscles in her abdomen clenched around him so hard she hardly felt his hands on her.

Aiden relaxed visibly as he gave a slight nod to his stepdaughter, "Thank you, Lena," he whispered.

Kiran shuddered again as he held himself deep inside her, "I missed you." he breathed out, careful of her belly as he kissed her neck.

Lena gave him a small smile before she moved towards him to wrap her arms around Aiden, "Thank you, dad." she said softly.

Anna made a low noise, her lids fluttering shut as she raised her hands to run her fingers over the fluff on his pretty head and down his back, "I missed you too, baby," she whispered, feeling a slight, probably psychological ache between her legs as she relaxed beneath him, smiling to herself, "You should get high more often."

Aiden blinked slowly, but he didn't say anything, his lips forming into a soft smile as he hugged her to him.

Kiran smiled to himself but he didn't say anything as he moved his head to place kisses all over her breasts, just enjoying the feel of her again.

Lena hugged him for a few moments longer before extracted herself from his arms and made her way back to Nathan's side, the small smile never leaving her lips, "If those are all the secrets and evil vampires for today, I'd like to very much go home now," she breathed, leaning against him as she glanced around at everyone else.

Anna bit her bottom lip hard, a shiver crawling up her spine as she kept her eyes shut; vaguely hearing the sound of the front door opening and closing, with the sound of John Sommers announcing his arrival.

Aiden gave a slight nod, "Yeah, you should go home," he muttered, glancing over at Lynnie for her opinion.

Kiran blinked slowly, "Shit, is that your dad?" he muttered, briefly remembering his teenage years as he slid out of her and rolled onto his back, grabbing the blankets to cover up their nakedness.

Lynn nodded slowly, "Yeah, baby, go home." she breathed, glancing up at Nathaniel Hart, "Make sure she gets there safely." she said softly.

Anna blinked a few times as she glanced over at him, raising a brow, "You're kind of adorable, do you know that?" she breathed, a warm smile curving her lips.

Nathan gave a slight nod, "Of course, miss Norratov," he breathed, wrapping an arm around Lena.

Kiran stuck his tongue out at her, "I know." he said, that Hawthorne, crooked, half-grin curving his lips.

Lena slid her arm around Nathaniel's waist, tilting her pretty head against him as she gave her family a slight finger wave and her mother a reassuring smile, "We'll be safe." she promised.

Anna rolled her pretty eyes at him, "I swear, if I wasn't pregnant already, I'd make babies with you right now," she breathed, shifting onto her side and propping herself onto her elbow when there was a knock on the door.

Nathaniel didn't say anything else as he tightened his arm around Lena and transported them back to his room at Luis' estate.

Kiran raised his gaze to the door, making sure the covers were neatly around them before he called, "Come in."

Lena let out her breath, feeling a bit exhausted, "Can I stay with you tonight?" she mumbled, looking up at him, absolutely not wanting to go back to her own room.

It was a few moments before John peeked his head in; having obviously been debating with himself wether or not to intrude on them as an awkward sort of smile curved his lips, "Mr. Hawthorne, it's been a while," he muttered, almost immediately recognizing the man in his daughter's bed, which simply had Anna bite her thumb to keep herself from grinning too widely.

"Of course," Nathaniel muttered, smiling down at her as he released her, "I told you, I can't leave you out of my sight."

Kiran nodded to him, "It's been too long, Mr. Sommers." he drawled, grinning up at the older, "How've you been?"

Lena felt a soft smile curve her lips as she tilted her head up to study him, her pretty eyes the darkest blue they had ever been, specks of silver steel shimmering around the irises, she reached up to touch his cheek with the tips of her fingers, "Do you know how important you are to me, Mr. Hart?" she breathed.

"Good, good, thank you," John muttered, giving a slight, fidgety nod to the younger man, "I'll get out of your way, holler if you need anything," he said, popping his head back out of the room.
Anna couldn't help but roll her eyes to herself as she tilted her head a little, "Don't worry about dinner, daddy, Kiran and I'll get it," she called, receiving an accepting grunt before the door closed.

"No," Nathaniel said in a rather low voice as he watched her face curiously, studying her eyes.

Kiran smirked to himself, "I hope he still likes me." he muttered, glancing down at Anna with a sheepish sort of grin.

Lena reached up with her other hand to cup his pretty face between them, "You are, Nathan, you're so important to me, not just this last week but these last two months." she breathed, "I am grateful every day it was you I freed from that cellar." she said softly, leaning up to kiss him gently.

"For a guy whose screwing his daughter, I think you're doing alright in his book," Anna breathed, shifting a little to kiss his mouth before she slid out of bed.

"So am I," Nathaniel breathed against her mouth before he raised his hands a little to grab her hips, pulling her against him as he pressed his lips against hers.

Kiran watched her, "Where are you going?" he mumbled, not wanting to leave the bed as he settled back against the pillows.

Lena moved her hands to the back of his neck, curling her fingers in the hair there as she shut her eyes to kiss him deeply.

Anna grabbed a pair of lacy hotpants and quickly shimmied into them before she glanced over her shoulder at him, "Out to buy us some dinner," she said softly, pulling on a baby-blue pair of sweats.

Nathaniel made a low, slightly pained noise in the back of his throat as his kiss seemed to become more strained and he tightened his hold on her hips, building up to a grip that would bruise.

Kiran pursed his lips tight as he glanced towards the window, "But it's dark outside." he mumbled, raising a brow at her now.

Lena made a little noise against his mouth, feeling warmth clench down in her abdomen before she pulled back a little to study him, "Are you okay?" she breathed, brushing her nose against his.

Anna gave a slight shrug of her shoulders, "You can stay here, if you'd like," she said softly, strapping on a bra to match her hot pants before she pulled on a black hoodie that seemed to disguise her bump rather well, "Aidan's in his room, I'm sure he'd love to see you."

Nathaniel shut his eyes a moment, pulling away from her now as he swallowed hard, "Yeah, I'm fine.. I just.." he breathed, raising both of his hands to drag them through his shaggy hair, "Not tonight, okay?"

Kiran sat up in bed, "You can't go on your own." he said, starting to get out of bed, "I'll go with you." he mumbled, glancing out the window again before he nodded with a certain finality.

Lena nodded slowly, "Okay." she breathed, her eyes softening as she studied him, "We can just lay together in bed, it'll be okay." she said softly.

Anna bit her bottom lip, "Are you sure?" she breathed, studying him very closely as she sat down on the edge of the bed to pull her beige UGGs on, "I really don't mind going by myself."

Nathan nodded slightly, "Thank you," he whispered, sounding like he was choking on his own heart as he began to undress.

Kiran shook his head, "It's fine, I'm coming." he breathed, smiling softly at her as pulled his jeans back on, "Do you have a shirt I could burrow?" he mumbled.

Lena reached back to unzip her dress, peeling it off her body and letting it pool at her feet so she was only in her panties for a few moments as she moved towards his dresser to steal one of his shirts and pull it over her pretty head, "I hope you don't mind." she mumbled, tugging at the hem of the shirt before she crawled onto his bed.

Anna nodded slightly, "Sure," she breathed, pulling on her beige UGGs and messing her curls a bit before she padded out of the room, soon returning with a black Cottonfield hood-less sweatshirt that she held out to him, "This okay?"

Nathan slowly shook his head, "It's fine," he breathed, stripping off his hoodie.

Kiran gave a slight nod as he took the sweater from her and put it on over his head, "Where are we getting dinner from?" he mumbled, running his fingers over his head.

Lena settled herself against his pillows to watch him, she bit her lip, "Do you want me to distract you?" she asked softly, giving him her small, lip-quirking smile.

"Some Indian place down on Frenchmen Street," Anna muttered, holding her hand out for his.

"Yes, please," Nathan muttered, without actually looking at her as he kicked off his boots and undid his jeans before let them fall to the floor and he crawled into bed, under the sheets as to not touch her.

Kiran took her hand, "I had Indian food once, in India, but there they just call it food." he breathed, grinning at the memory, "That was a crazy time."

Lena turned on her side to face him, keeping a good few inches between them, she pursed her lips, thinking for a moment before she gestured to the small scar on her chin, "When I was six, my dad and I spent the whole day together, just me and him, and we went to the park," she started, a softer smile curving her lips, "I wanted to play on the monkey bars so he put me up on them and he held on to me at first, my mom had told him not to let me go on my own because I was too little, but I told him to let go because I thought I had it so he did and I start swinging across and I'm doing really well at first, I feel like a Russian acrobat, and I'm about half way across when I swing for the next bar and I lose my grip and fall flat on my face, a piece of mulch cut open my chin and my dad had to take me to the hospital to get it stitched and bandaged." her lips formed a wider grin now, "Then he took me for ice cream and we concocted this story to tell my mom so we wouldn't get in trouble."

Anna turned to lead him out of the room, a curious sort of expression on her pretty face as she looked up at him, "I didn't know you've been to India," she breathed, the way she said it, expecting some sort of explanation as she chose to ignore that his previous statement was the dumbest one she had ever heard.

"How did it go?" Nathaniel muttered, glancing over at her now with genuine interest.

Kiran pursed his lips, "I went there with my mom when I was about fourteen, we adopted my little sister Soroya that year." he muttered, smiling a bit to himself, "It was more like a rescue mission, we had to give her up when we found her dad still alive, my mom still writes letters to her."

Lena grinned to herself, "As soon as I walked through the door, bandaged chin, carrying a chocolate ice cream cone, my mom asked if dad had left me alone on the monkey bars, my mouth was full so all I could do was nod." she breathed, rolling her eyes, "I remember my dad's face when I did, he narrowed his eyes at me but he wasn't mad, he was playful, and he gave my mom this sort of sheepish shrug and all she could do was laugh at us."

"How did you find out about her?" Anna asked softly, biting her lip as she steered them down the stairs, silently hoping that she wasn't intruding on him.

Nathaniel pursed his lips, his gaze on her pretty face as he shifted a bit on the bed, "It sounds like you were really happy," he muttered, knowing what he said next would come out asshole-like, but he continued, "What happened?

Kiran smiled slightly, "She was like my little sister, I loved her, I wanted to protect her, when we got her she was this malnourished six year old, so unbelievably tiny, it was sad." he muttered, pursing his lips, "It was one of those times when looking at her made me want to go out and save the world."

Lena bit her lip as she considered this, "I loved my dad but he wasn't the best of husbands, I think he loved my mom but he didn't like being with her or us, really, he didn't like being..domesticated, I suppose." she gave a slight shrug of her shoulders, "One day, he dropped us off at school, I gave him a hug, I kissed his cheek, he told me he loved me, I said goodbye and that was the last time I ever saw him."

Anna nodded slightly, turning her gaze forward as she stepped out of the front door with him and started off the porch, "So, why didn't you?"

Nathaniel pursed his lips once more, nodding before he turned his gaze to the ceiling, "And now you have Aiden," he muttered, "Are you satisfied with that?"

Kiran blinked slowly, a frown starting to pass over his lips, "I don't know." he breathed, his eyes darkening as he started to lose himself in thought.

Lena pursed her lips as she thought of this, "Yes." she said softly, "Aiden's a good man, he's been better to my mom in the last six years than my dad was their whole marriage, he won't cheat on her or beat her, and I don't think he'd ever hurt us, I don't think he'd ever leave us like Alexander did." she mumbled, biting her lip, "He's my dad, he's protected us, been there for us, and we're probably the most complicated people to ever be around, and he hasn't run screaming, I love him for that."

Anna bit her bottom lip as she dropped her gaze to the pavement, "Sorry, that was a stupid question," she mumbled.

Nathaniel's lips quirked up in a small smile as he glanced over at her again, "I'm glad," he muttered, reaching over to carefully touch her cheek.

Kiran shook his head but he didn't speak, looking down at the tops of his Timberlands as he thought for a few moments, "I don't think I want to save the world anymore, it's not my responsibility." he mumbled, "But I can save the people I love when they need me too, I can save my what part of the world is mine, and I can save myself."

Lena felt a smile curve her lips again, "So am I." she said softly, fighting the urge to touch him back, she took a breath and dropped her gaze, "Do you want me to tell you more stories?" she mumbled.

Anna glanced up at him, releasing her lip from her teeth, but she said nothing, simply continuing down the pavement in silence as if she'd regretted even starting the conversation.

Nathaniel gave a slight nod, "If you'd like to," he muttered, watching his own fingers stroke her cheekbone.

Kiran swallowed hard, shaking his head as if clearing away his darker thoughts, "Let's talk about something else." he mumbled, "Distract me?"

Lena bit her lip, thinking for a moment before she reached down to lift the hem of her shirt, she gestured to the fading pink scar on her abdomen, just below her belly button stretching to just touch her hip, "A crazy vampire gave me this scar." she breathed.

Anna bit her bottom lip harder as she dropped her gaze to the pavement again, "What do you want to talk about?" she mumbled.

Nathaniel's gaze followed the line of her body until it reached the scar, having him frown, "How?"

"Anything." Kiran muttered, "You never tell me stories about when you were younger, tell me one, please." he mumbled, looking up at her again.

Lena pursed her lips, pondering how to begin this story, "Well, when I was eleven I started having having visions and hearing voices, it was right after my dad left, and Max had taken us up to his estate in Russia," she started, "I met this girl named Ophelia there, she was a little younger than me but we liked to play together, she said my family would pretend she wasn't there, that it was a part of a game, and I never questioned it at first, I never questioned anything we did, or played, until she'd gotten me in trouble with Max. You see, his ex-wife, Lucretia had come to visit and Max wanted to have this large dinner for her, so he dressed in our finest gowns and Ophelia told me to wear her necklace, it was a pretty, little locket, and it went well with the dress, so we went down to dinner together and she said we should play mirrors with Lucretia, it would be fun and at first it was, copying all her movements, she thought it was charming until she saw the locket and then she freaked out and lunged at me, I threw my drink at her, and then she was crying and she was so upset and Maximus was so mad at me that he hit me across the face..." she mumbled, her gaze becoming distant for a moment as she'd started to get lost in her own memory.

Anna continued chewing her bottom lip, considering this for a long moment before she sighed, "When I was fourteen, Jason bought his first motorcycle: a Ducati, I think," she muttered, smiling a bit at the memory as she released his hand to example the size of the thing, "It was this used, noisy beast and the red paint was so faded, but he absolutely adored the thing. So one day, he offered to give me a ride to school on it and it was like, the most exciting thing I'd ever done, so of course I said yes." she made a slight face to herself, "It went well at first, I was wearing his helmet and everything, but as soon as we reached the end of the street, he stopped and told me to take over, so I could learn how to drive it," she muttered, looking up at Kiran for a moment, "And I said yes, of course."

Nathaniel's lips curved into a deep frown at the thought of this, "He hit you?" he mumbled, finding this incredulous for some reason.

Kiran arched his brow, a slight smile curving his lips, "How was it?" he breathed, trying not to grin too widely as he pictured it.

Lena nodded slowly, "It was the first and last time." she breathed, "I was so upset, so utterly shocked, I ran from the house into the darkness of the woods, we weren't supposed to leave the house at night, something terrible had happened in the woods at night, I wouldn't know what until later though." she said softly, her gaze far away now, "I yelled at Ophelia when were far from the house, she was scared, she started to cry, begging me to go back home so I did, Max hugged me so tight I couldn't breathe but I didn't say anything to him, I couldn't forgive him just yet and I knew that really upset him." she shook her head, "I went up to my room and I demanded to know what Ophelia was hiding from me, I found out that night she'd been dead for four hundred years."

Anna couldn't help but smile widely, "It was amazing," she breathed, "I got a few blocks at what felt like a hundred miles per hour, until Jason showed me he wasn't actually holding onto the steer with me and I just.. panicked; I crashed his bike directly into a ditch," she mumbled, wrinkling her nose at the memory for a moment, "Jason sprained his ankle, I got ten stitches and I was grounded for three weeks, but somehow.." she breathed, pausing for a moment as she sighed, "It sounds pretty pathetic, but it's the best memory I have with my brother. He wasn't even mad at me."

Nathan pursed his lips, considering this for a moment before he wrinkled his nose, "So, you were seeing a ghost? Why?"

Kiran smiled softly at her, "That's sounds really nice." he breathed, taking her hand again to kiss her knuckles.

Lena shook her head, "I don't know but I was seeing her, feeling her, talking to her." she mumbled, "She was their daughter, Nathan, Max's and Lucretia's, she was murdered out there in those woods." she whispered, "That night when I went to sleep, I dreamed of him, Cyrus Merlotte, he was a vampire with a wicked taste for little girls and young women, he liked to dress them up before he killed them." her lips twisted, "I woke up, knowing where he was, even the girl he was with so I tried to tell Max about it, about everything, even Ophelia and he just got this really sad look on his face and he said, 'You're sick, Lena, just like me,' and then he turned away from me and started calling someone and he wouldn't listen to me so I tried to tell Lucretia but she just got angry and called me a liar, she threw me down into the cellar and I blacked out for a few minutes, long enough to know Merlotte had killed the girl and he was hunting again." she shook her head again, a sardonic sort of smirk twisting her lips now, "When I woke up, I found the back way out of the cellar and I ran away, you think Max would have learned from that, but he didn't, I think he blocks out the memory, really. Anyways, I went out to the main road and got a ride with a nice woman, who took me all the way to the city Merlotte was staying in."

Anna gave a slight shrug of her shoulders, "I guess," she breathed, her gaze soon finding the pavement again as they neared Frenchmen Street.

"Then what?" Nathan breathed, his gaze remaining on her face this time as he sat up a little, seemingly relaxing.

Kiran blinked slowly, glancing around them, "Wait, are we outside?" he muttered, tightening his grip on her hand.

Lena blinked up at him, "Well, when Merlotte went hunting that night, he found me." she breathed, looking down her scar as she ran her fingers tips along it, "I fought and he managed to cut me open with his hunting knife before I managed to get away, I ran, and he chased." she said softly, "He cornered me in a park, I was bleeding, and I had tripped on a tree root, I don't know what I expected to happen when I went out there but Ophelia was with me and it just seemed to make sense. He threw himself at me, he was on top of me, and then suddenly Max was there, later he said he managed to follow my scent, and ripped out Merlotte's throat, there was so much blood, it splattered on my face and hair," she made a face, "I passed out from my own blood loss and Max took me to a hospital nearby where they stitched me up." she said softly, "When I woke up after, Cyrus was standing at the end of my bed, in his black suit, a cruel smile on his face and he said, 'Hello, darling,' and he just never left."

Anna blinked up at him, frowning a little, "You didn't notice?" she breathed, tightening her hand in his as if trying to be comforting as she yanked him to a stop, "Baby, nothing's gonna happen, I promise."

Nathan nodded slightly, suddenly looking a lot more serious as he studied her face, "You still see him?"

Kiran glanced around as if searching for something in the dark before he brought his gaze to Anna's again, "Okay." he breathed, "I trust you." he said softly.

Lena nodded slowly, "On and off for the last six years." she breathed, looking up at him again, "I'm kind of a nutjob, Mr. Hart." she said softly.

"Thank you," Anna breathed, her brows pulling together in a frown before she began walking again, tugging him along with her.

"Aren't we all, kitten?" Nathaniel breathed, a soft smile curving his lips as he leaned over, planting a gentle kiss on her temple.

Kiran's lips twisted as he looked after her, "You think I'm gonna have an episode, huh?" he mumbled.

Lena's lips pulled into a soft smile, "I can't think of any more stories at the moment." she breathed, studying him, "Maybe you'll tell me one?" she mumbled.

Anna stopped moving again, frowning more visibly as she looked up at him, "No, Kiran, that's not it," she breathed, "I'm just.. worried about you."

Nathaniel sighed, seemingly a lot more relaxed now as he slid an arm around her shoulders to pull her against his side; the only thing separating them being the sheet, "I'm afraid I don't have any joyous stories, love."

Kiran studied her for a long moment before he bent down to kiss her forehead, "Treat me like I'm normal." he said softly, "Don't be worried."

Lena snuggled against him, "Tell me one anyways, if you want to though." she said softly, "I wouldn't mind."

Anna couldn't help but swallow hard, nodding even though the worry was still evident in her gaze and she leaned onto the tips of her toes to kiss his cheek, "I'm sorry. I'll stop."

"I would," Nathan breathed, bending his head a little to kiss her hair.

Kiran gave her a small smile and pressed his lips to hers, "I love you, Anna." he said softly, "You make me better just being near you."

Lena raised her gaze to his face, reaching up to run her fingertips along his jawline, "Okay." she said softly, pulling her hand away again, a slight smile forming on her lips, "We could make our own stories, you know?" she mumbled, "We'll start with the one that goes..and then the girl walked down into the cellar with nothing but a flash light and her imaginary friend and said in the most sarcastic way, 'Nice place,' as she waited to be noticed by the two dangerous vampires." she breathed, hoping to make him smile.

Anna blinked slowly, rubbing the tip of her nose against his as she sighed, "We're soul mates, remember?" she breathed, raising her hands to carefully frame his face with her fingers, "If I didn't make you feel better, what use would I have?"

Nathaniel couldn't fight the smile that curved his lips now as he squeezed her against him, "I hear it's a pretty fucked up story," he breathed.

Kiran grinned at this, "Well, you're pretty easy on the eyes too." he teased, his eyes full of warmth.

Lena grinned, "It is a little but I think it might have a pretty good ending." she said softly

Anna rolled her pretty eyes at him, "Always the charmer, Batman," she breathed, grasping his hand once more to have them walking again.

"I hope so," Nathaniel muttered, shutting his eyes for a moment as he kept his face against her hair; for some reason finding her scent quite soothing.

"Damn skippy, Catwoman." he breathed, grinning crookedly at his little woman as he seemed to forget all about the dark.

Lena shut her eyes, snuggling against him, "Everything gets so quiet when I'm with you." she breathed, "No voices, no imaginary people, just me and you,"

Anna's nose scrunched up at the word and she snorted a little, glancing up at him for the briefest moment before she laughed, whole-heartily for the first time in months and so hard that she had to press her palm against her belly.

Nathaniel shut his eyes as well, relaxing completely with her as he sighed against her hair, "It's kind of nice, in our own little world," he whispered.

Kiran quirked his eyebrow at her, "What's so funny?" he breathed, grinning curiously at her.

Lena smiled softly to herself, not opening her eyes as she relaxed against him, hoping for more nights in their own little world.

"Skippy," Anna breathed, biting her bottom lip to keep herself from laughing a bit too hard as she reached up to cover her mouth a little, straightening, "I'm sorry, but it sounded so funny from your mouth, baby."

Kiran rolled his eyes, "It's a Southern thing, really." he muttered, grinning down at her, "You know, I grew up in Louisiana, for the most part anyways." he breathed.

Kiran shook his head, "We moved to Chicago when I was thirteen, for Will's job." he breathed, "But I grew up in New Orleans." he grinned.

The next morning...
Lena stirred from her blissfully dreamless sleep, she smiled to herself as she glanced over at Nathan, she rolled over to press herself against his side, "Morning." she breathed.

Anna's lips quirked up in a more curious smile as she watched his face, slowly shaking her head, "It's so weird that we never met," she muttered, running her fingers over her hair, "I was in New Orleans, like, every single day."

Nathaniel made a low noise in the back of his throat as his eyes half-opened, "Good morning, love."

Kiran raised a brow, "Which part?" he muttered, "We were in the Quarter." he breathed, finding this rather curious himself.

Lena leaned up a little to plant a kiss on his jaw, "Did you sleep well?" she mumbled, forgetting herself as she nuzzled his neck.

Anna's smile widened some at this as she gestured up the street, "My friend Ashleigh lived in the Quarter," she breathed, obviously intrigued now, "We went to Lusher Elementary."

Nathaniel nodded slightly, "Yes, thank you," he breathed, seemingly not tensing yet as he smiled a bit sleepily at her, "How'd you sleep?"

Kiran quirked his eyebrow at her, "Are you serious?" he breathed, grinning widely at this, "I went there for a few days, I was in fifth grade but you know, I was Billy back then." he said, his grin becoming more crooked and Hawthorne-like.

Lena smiled up at him, "Mm, the best I've slept in awhile, Mr. Hart, no dreams or nightmares, it was very nice." she breathed, leaning up to kiss his sleepy smile, "Oh, what your smile does to me, even half asleep still." she said, teasing only partly.

Anna made a low noise, narrowing her eyes a little to herself as she mentally went through all the people she could remember before she raised her gaze to his face again, "It's so weird, I actually think I remember you," she breathed.

Nathaniel couldn't help but roll what little of his eyes she could see as he slid his arm around her, "Mmh, you have so much energy in the morning, darling."

Kiran blinked slowly, scrutinizing her face, "I met an Anna once, I saved her from a bully on the play ground." he mumbled, looking at her closely, "It was you?"

Lena smirked, "I can't help it, I woke up rather pleased with the world." she breathed, biting her lip, "I want to try something, don't freak out, okay?" she mumbled, shifting out of his arms to move under the sheet that separated them and slid on top of him, she bent her head to place a kiss on his chest, looking up to watch his face as she started to make a trail down to his abdomen.

Anna raised both of her hands, staring at him wide-eyed now as she covered her mouth, "Holy shit," she squeaked in response, her voice muffled by her hands.

Nathaniel's eyes widened, his gaze becoming scorchingly intense as it fixed on her face and his lips parted in some unreadable release of breath as he dug his fingers into the pillows.

Kiran's eyes widened, "Oh. My. God." he breathed, "That was you!" he nearly shouted before covering his mouth with his hands as he stared at her, "Holy fuck, baby, we're fated, I always knew it." he said through his fingers.

Lena kept her gaze on his face as she continued her trail of hot kisses down his abdomen, reaching between them to grasp him gently, her pretty eyes shimmering.

Anna slowly shook her head, something like disbelief in her gaze, "This is unbelievable," she breathed, moving her hands into her hair as she grinned at him, "You're Billy. I can't even- Holy shit, baby," she whispered.

Nathaniel's abdomen tensed, feeling a tingle going through his veins as he shut his eyes, but he remained quiet, tightening his fingers in the pillows.

Kiran moved his hands from his face as he grinned down at her, "This is crazy." he breathed, moving to cup her face between his hands before he bent his head to kiss her deeply.

Lena lowered her head to kiss the tip of him before taking him in her mouth...

Anna made a sweet noise against his mouth as she shifted her hands to curl her fingers in his sweatshirt, savoring the mere feel of his lips against hers until the warmth had filled her entire being and she smiled against his mouth, opening her eyes half-way to look into his, "My one and only," she whispered.

.. Nathaniel tilted his head back against the headboard, gritting his teeth as his body reached a point where he couldn't stand it anymore and the tingles in his abdomen fully transformed into fireworks, having him shudder at the mercy of little Lena Vladislav.

"Always, baby, always." Kiran whispered against her mouth as he rubbed his nose against hers, warmth filling his chest.

Lena curled her fingers against his abdomen, feeling warmth clench deep in her abdomen as she ran her tongue up his length once more before sitting up on her knees, "How was that?" she breathed, reaching up to trail her fingers along her lips.

Anna's smile widened, nothing but loving warmth in her eyes now as she slid her arms around his neck, "I love you," she whispered, "I'll love you forever, Kiran, I promise you that," she breathed, meaning it with all of her heart.

"Intense," Nathan breathed, a slight smile quirking up his lips as he finally seemed to relax, his gaze still intently on her face.

Kiran's smile warmed, "I love you too, with all my heart and soul, I love you here, now, and forever." he breathed, bending to kiss her again.

Lena crawled up the length of his body again to bend her head and kiss his throat, "That was my first time." she grinned.

Anna pressed her lips against his for a very long moment; losing herself in their closeness and not even caring about the people passing by as she pressed herself against him, semi-careful of her bump as she broke their kiss to look at him again, "Let's go home, I'll have my dad call for take-out," she breathed.

Nathan felt a shiver crawl up his spine as he shut his eyes again, smiling still, "Mmh, did you enjoy it?"

Kiran nodded, smiling still, "Do you know what I realized?" he breathed, "I completely forgot it was dark out and I'm not scared." he said softly, kissing her nose.

Lena bit her lip, "I think I did." she breathed, "I'd do it again," she muttered, "And right now, I feel like I could explode if you touched me." she mumbled, biting her lip harder.

"Of course you're not," Anna breathed, a soft smile curving her lips, "We're together, there's nothing to be scared of," she murmured, saying it like this applied to both of them.

"Which is why I won't," Nathaniel breathed, a wicked sort of grin curving his lips as he watched her face closely, his hands still in the pillows.

Kiran pursed his lips now as he moved towards the agent to take his gun and his cuffs, "What should we do with him?" he mumbled.

Lena swallowed hard, feeling tears slip down her face but she couldn't bring herself to look at her parents or even speak, "This conversation," A woman's voice started from the black, leather La-Z boy across the room, she slid her gaze towards it to find a thin woman in a faded red dress, she was barefoot, her long legs were stretched out in front of her and crossed at her bony ankles, her long red curls were graying at the roots and she was knitting a baby blanket, "Is over." she breathed in her sing-song English accent, "It's time to go home, Lena, they want to punish your child for his father's sins, we will not hear anymore of it." Mrs. Danvers said, peering up at her with her sparkling auburn eyes, a brow cocked, "Will we?"
Lena swallowed hard again as she shook her head slowly, "I just..can I think for a few days?" she whispered, looking up at her parents now, "Please?"

Anna's lips parted in an attempt to speak before she shook her head to herself, dropping the aluminum bat to the floor with an echoing thud as she raised her hands to curl her fingers in her hair, "I-I don't know," she breathed, "Holy shit."

Aiden frowned a bit, but he didn't say anything; allowing Lynnie to answer this as he glanced over at her.

Kiran frowned up at her now, "Why are you freaking out?" he mumbled, starting for her to take her face in his hands, "Calm down." he breathed, "It's going to be okay."

Lynn sighed deeply before she gave a slight nod of her head, "A few days and then we're coming to get you and we're going to have another long conversation." she breathed.
Lena nodded slowly but she didn't say anything to this as she stood and without really looking at them made her way into the elevator again.

Anna swallowed hard, looking up at him through her lashes as she inhaled, "He's CIA," she whispered, "What if he tells someone, what if they come looking for him?"

Aiden sighed, but he was quiet until the elevator doors had closed and he looked up at his woman, "Are you okay?"

Kiran shrugged, "I don't see how we even have a CIA anymore, really, the government has been out of commission for awhile now." he mumbled, putting his hands on his hips now as he tried to think.

Lynn shook her head slowly, "I'm scared for her, Aiden." she said softly.

Anna made a low noise, dropping her gaze back to Matthew as he began to stir, a frown curving her lips, "You don't think he's CIA?" she mumbled.

"I know, so am I," Aiden breathed, raising his hand to run his fingers over his curls.

"He might be if the CIA has become a private enterprise." Kiran muttered, "Or he's a corporate spy sent to steal the technology we're building at our company." he breathed, "He was asking about it and he seemed like he was about to shoot me for not telling him."

Lynn swallowed hard as she looked up at him, "What do we do about it, Aiden?" she asked softly.

Anna nodded slightly, a worried line creasing her forehead as she looked up at her man again, biting her lip, "So, what do we do about him if he's a spy?" she breathed.

Aiden gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, "I don't know, Lynnie," he mumbled, looking rather lost for a moment as he shook his head, "We can't force her to do it, unfortunately; we just have to rely on her being able to make the right decision."

Kiran pursed his lips, "Interrogate him and then kill him." he said, giving a definitive nod.

Lynn bit her lip, "I think she's going to make what she thinks is the right decision." she mumbled, "If she keeps it.." she shook her head, "We'll help her, right?" she breathed.

Anna's lips twitched into a deep frown at this, "And if he's CIA? Then what?" she breathed.

Aiden ran his fingers over his hair again, "What, raise the thing?" he breathed, giving a slight shrug of his shoulders, "I guess we'll have to. Grandparents and all that."

Kiran pursed his lips, "We torture him and kill him." he said with another definitive nod.

Lynnie sighed, reaching down to rub her belly as she looked at it, "I swear little guy if you give me half the shit your siblings do, you're going back in there." she mumbled, narrowing her eyes at it.

Anna's eyes narrowed a bit, "What is it with you and killing people?" she mumbled, trying to be absolutely serious.

Aiden couldn't fight the small smile that curved his lips as he studied Lynnie's belly, scrunching up his nose a little, "From my experience, Stark-kids are very easy to deal with."

Kiran gave a sheepish sort of shrug, "I kind of do it for a living." he said, a grin spreading across his lips.

Lynn arched a brow at him, "Ah so there have been others." she breathed in a teasing manner to lighten the mood.

Anna made a noise, rolling her eyes at him before she reached into her pocket to grab her cell, "I'm calling a second opinion," she muttered, dialing Caden Landry's number.

Aiden's smile widened some as he rolled his eyes at her, "No, there's been my father and his brothers, apparently they were quite easy on their parents."

Caden Landry made a noise, the sound of his phone waking him from his dreamless and blissful sleep, he picked it up after a few moments, "Why are you always waking me from my sleep, dahlin'?" he mumbled.

Lynn smiled softly at this, "Hopefully he'll take after you more than he takes after me." she said softly before her lips started to quirk down, "I think that scares me the most, she's making my mistakes." she breathed.

Lena tilted her head back against the elevator wall, having brought it to an emergency stop moments ago only to break down in solitude, she gathered a shaking breath in her lungs, trying to calm herself enough to think half-way rationally, "You should tell him." Cyrus muttered, crossing his arms as he leaned back against the opposite side of the elevator, "I think he has at least half a right to the spawn, don't you? It was his seed, after all." he breathed, giving her a lip quirking half-smile.
Lena sniffled, swallowing down another sob, "I know but I don't know where he is and he didn't give me a number to call." she mumbled, her eyes filling with tears again.
"Don't think about what your mother said." Merlotte breathed, "It's your wretched heart, not hers." he cocked his head, "If you can't find him, don't you know of one person who could?"
Lena blinked slowly, she reached into her cleavage to acquire her cell phone and dialed a number she had stolen from Kiran's phone, one she had never really thought she'd need to call, she pressed her cell to her ear and hoped Evangeline Hart would pick up.

Anna bit her bottom lip, her shoulders raising in a sheepish fashion even though he couldn't see her and she slid her free hand into the pocket of her jeans, "Sorry, I just really need your opinion on something, then I'll let you sleep," she breathed.

Aiden tilted his head a bit to one side, nothing but compassion in his gaze as he studied her face, "What mistakes are those, love?"

Evangeline Hart picked up on the last ring, nothing but dead silence in the background as she smiled against the cell, something that became evident when she spoke, "Lena Vladislav, however did you get my number?" she breathed, leaning back in the worn leather chair she sat in as she glanced over at her little brother.

Caden made a noise, "All right, shoot dahlin, what is it?" he drawled, giving the cutest little yawn a moment later.

Lynnie bit her lip, "I always fell for the bad guy, even Lena's father, Alexander." she mumbled, shaking her head, "And they always broke my heart in the end and they broke my children's hearts." she said softly before she raised her gaze to his, nothing but warmth and love there now, "You are the only good man in my life, Aiden Stark, and I love you more and more every day for it."

Lena took a breath to calm herself a little more before she answered, "I stole it from Kiran's cell phone." she breathed, her voice still thick from crying, she tilted her head back against the elevator wall, "I'm sorry if I'm bothering you Miss Eva, but I was trying to find Nathan and I was wondering if you knew where he was or where I might be able to find him." she whispered, "It's really important."

Anna took a breath, "A CIA agent, slash corporate spy pulled a gun on Kiran and now he's unconscious in the kitchen," she mumbled, glancing up at Kiran, "What should we do with him?"

Aiden's lips quirked up in a warm smile this time as he leaned over the breakfast bar to kiss Lynnie's pretty mouth, "And I love you," he breathed, "But those men are the reason you're here, without them we would never have met."

"Of course," Evangeline breathed, her gaze still on her little brother as she smiled even wider to herself, "He's sitting right in front of me."

"Torture him and then kill him." Caden mumbled, nodding his head over the phone.

Lena blinked slowly, "Oh." she breathed, "I really need to see him right now, I need him, will you please tell him that? Please?" she mumbled.

Anna's lips formed into a slight frown, "Is the torture really necessary?" she mumbled, looking down and meeting Matthew's blurry gaze now.

Evangeline raised a brow, obviously sensing the distress as she slowly stood, "Hold on," she breathed, the line going quiet as she pressed the microphone against her palm and soon Nathaniel came on, sounding exhausted, "Hello?" he breathed into the phone.

"You need to find out what he knows, what his side has planned." Cade mumbled, "I doubt he'll just divulge all of that willingly."

Lena made a noise, pressing her hand over mouth as a sob wracked her small frame, she gathered a shuddering breath into her lungs, "I need to talk to you." she breathed, "I can't do it over the phone, I need to see you." she whispered.

Anna sighed, "Okay," she breathed, looking up at Kiran again as she nodded, as a kind of 'you win' gesture, "Thanks, Cade."

Nathaniel exhaled, seemingly emptying his lungs before he took a small breath, "I'm afraid that's not possible right now, kitten," he breathed, "What's wrong?"

"No problem, hey, I'll send someone over who can help." Caden mumbled, "So you don't have to get those delicate hands of yours dirty." he said almost playfully.

Lena shut her eyes, pursing her lips tight before she spoke, "I'm pregnant." she whispered, "And everyone..my parents..think I should get rid of our baby," she breathed.

Anna scrunched up her nose at this, "For your information, I actually hit him upside the head with an aluminum bat, thank you very much," she mumbled, "But thanks, I'd like that."

"What?" Nathan breathed, shutting his eyes to himself, "Don't.. don't do that, Lena."

Caden snorted, "Look at you, Babe Ruth and all, can I go back to sleep now?" he mumbled, hearing the doorbell ring on their side of the line.
Kiran arched a brow to himself as he reached back for his gun again and started for the front door, he pulled it open slowly, his brow arching higher until it disappeared into luscious hair, "Micah?" he breathed, studying the cannibal.

Lena swallowed hard, "I don't think I can, Nathan." she whispered, pressing her hand against her bump, "But my parents are coming to get me in a few days to talk about it." she mumbled, shaking her head to herself, "I just wanted you to know."

Anna made a low noise, hearing Micah's name having her eyes widen a fraction as she glanced towards the door, "Yeah, sweet dreams, kitty," she mumbled, obviously distracted now, "Love you, bye," she said quickly before she hung up and rather awkwardly hopped over Matt to busy herself with something.

"Thank you," Nathan muttered, making a low noise in the back of his throat, "I'll come see you in a few days, alright?"

Micah Norratov's lips pulled into a small smile, "Hello, nephew." he breathed, looking ever dashing in dark jeans and a dark long-sleeved, a rather laid back look for the Cannibal, "I hear you have a little CIA problem?" he muttered as Kiran let him into the house.

Lena sniffled, "All right." she mumbled, "I'll try not to get into any trouble before then." she breathed, a small, watery smile curving her lips as she leaned towards the elevator's button panel and restarted the elevator.

Anna bit her bottom lip as she turned, her back leaning against the kitchen counter as she kept her gaze on Matthew; his little groaning noises announcing that he'd probably wake up soon, but she remained quiet, chewing her lip.

"You better not," Nathaniel breathed, shutting his eyes as he leaned back on his bed, not hanging up.

Kiran turned to follow Micah into the kitchen, watching his uncle kick Matthew in the face to knock him out again, "Hello Anna." he breathed, giving her his sexy-ass Norratov-styled grin, "Miss me?"

Lena bit her lip, not hanging up either as she thought to herself, "The Originals say it's going to be a boy." she mumbled after a moment, her hand returning to her bump.

Anna raised her gaze to Micah's face, scrunching up her pretty nose a little, "No," she said, raising a brow at the Cannibal.

Nathaniel smiled a bit to himself, "I've always wanted a son," he breathed.

Micah rolled his eyes, giving a slight shrug of his shoulder before he glanced down at Matthew, "We could do this in the kitchen or the bathroom." he muttered, "Whichever you prefer."

Lena felt a more genuine smile curve her lips, "Really?" she breathed as the elevator dinged and she stepped out into the parking garage.

"Bathroom, please," Anna muttered, her voice rather low as she returned her gaze to Matthew; a guilty sort of look on her pretty face now.

"Yeah," Nathan breathed, ignoring the impatient sound of his sister's footsteps as he smiled wider, "You thought of a name yet?"

Micah gave a slight nod as he gestured for Kiran to help him get the secret agent up, "Do you want to watch?" he muttered, glancing up at Anna.

Lena bit her lip, "I was thinking about naming him after my dad." she mumbled, "Maybe even both of them." she breathed as she started towards the exit of the parking garage where a black Lincoln town car was waiting for her.

Anna swallowed hard, "No," she breathed, raising her shimmery gaze to Micah's again.

"Alexander Aiden?" Nathaniel muttered, seemingly tasting the name for a moment before he smiled again, "I like it."

Kiran made a face at Micah, "Leave her alone, Cannibal." he muttered, narrowing his eyes at his uncle before he gave Anna a reassuring smile, "We'll be back soon, baby." he said as they carried Matt towards the guest bathroom.

Lena smiled softly to herself as she slid into the back of the town car and Mered pulled away from the curb, "Alexander Aiden Hart." she breathed, leaning back against her seat, "It's sounds good, it sounds really good." she said softly.

Anna nodded slightly, an almost hurt look in her eyes before she turned away from them to make breakfast.

"It does," Nathan breathed; silent for a long moment before he sighed, "I have to go, darling. Two days, alright? Then I'll come see you."

Kiran shut the door behind them, giving Micah a glare as they got Matthew into the tub, "Why are you being a dick to my wife?" he muttered.
Micah blinked slowly, "I wasn't.." he mumbled, frowning deeply as he thought about this, he made a face to himself, "One second." he said and left the bathroom for a moment, he stuffed his hands into his pockets as he ambled back into the kitchen, "Anna?" he breathed, "I'm sorry if I am being..dick to you." he said in his pretty Russian accent.

Lena gave a slight nod even though he couldn't see her, "Two days, I'll be waiting." she breathed, biting her lip, "I miss you." she said after a moment.

Anna glanced over her shoulder at him, blinking a few times before she turned and started for him, not even saying anything before she got on her toes and kissed his cheek, "You're forgiven," she breathed, wiping the little mark from her lips off his skin with her thumb before she turned to pad back to the stove.

"I miss you too, love," Nathaniel breathed, "Two days," he said before hanging up.

Micah smiled softly to himself, "Thank you." he said before he turned on his heel to start for the bathroom again.

More updates coming soon!

I promise to update soon!

There's so much going on!

Big things are happening!

Time for that semi-update!

CROATOAN

There is so much to update!

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