Sardonic - The Originals (The Hunter Book 2)

Chapter 65 - 'A Broken Heart Is Never Truly Fixed.'

"Every last exit is sealed. If you're thinking about jumping, don't. I already tried it." Elijah said as Klaus stood by the window, "I landed in the world's most pretentious wine cellar."

"You sorted it by vintage." Klaus said sadly before he turned to his brother, "You don't remember, do you? I thought Marcel and Wolfgang were intent on retrieving your memories."

"They were. Wolfgang failed." Elijah replied. The hunter scoffed and shook his head, "I most certainly did not. You were blocking me."

"Well, I still remember absolutely nothing, and Antoinette is dying."

"Is she?" Klaus questioned, "Right. Yes. I'd forgotten."

"What the hell are we doing here? What is this place?" Elijah asked, pacing around nervously, "This is dangerous, you and I here together."

"We're not actually here together. Not physically, at least." Wolfgang explained, picking up a pencil and twirling it around his fingers, "It's called a Chambre de Chasse. It's a magical mental prison designed to resemble your home." Wolfgang stabbed the pencil down, snapping the lead, "But don't worry. There's always a way out... A game or a riddle."

"How do we solve this riddle?" Elijah asked and Klaus shook his head.

"We don't do anything. We're square, you and I." The hybrid stated, "You got Hayley killed, and Antoinette will die because of me. I would hate to upset that delicate balance. So I'm gonna find my way out, and you're on your own."

**********

A loud noise rang out around the compound, accompanied with a flash of light and Klaus stormed onto the courtyard, "Who's there? Show yourself!"

"Oh, Nik. Always so dramatic." Rebekah sighed as she approached him and Wolfgang.

"Hello, sexy." The hunter greeted before pulling the blonde in for a hug. Wolfgang pulled away from the friend he had only seen once in two years before another loud flash burst out.

"Bloody hell." Kol said, looking around, lacking a shirt, "My least favorite recurring nightmare."

"I was in Corsica, drowning my sorrows about Hayley, and I suddenly dropped." Rebekah explained. She sighed and looked around the compound, "What I wouldn't give to spend just a decade without being dragged into a godforsaken Chambre de Chasse."

"Suppose you were in a board meeting." Klaus quipped to his younger brother, who had retrieved a shirt and pulled it on.

"I was waiting for my wife to come home from work. Once again, ripped from complete contentment for... this." Kol sighed, gesturing around at the assembled quartet, "Suppose I'll ask the obvious: piss off any witches lately?"

"Actually, my current enemies are a group of hatemongers who see myself and my daughter as abominations to the vampire race." Klaus explained as Freya arrived and Kol walked off.

"The bigoted undead." Rebekah sighed, crossing her arms, "That's new. They must have a witch-for-hire."

"A witch that's spent enough time here to replicate every detail." Kol added, re-entering the courtyard with a bottle, "This is Elijah's prized Cheval Blanc."

"The culprit may be closer to home." Freya said, her eyebrows furrowing in suspicion as she thought of the culprit, "A witch who knows the compound well and who doesn't trust you to stay away from Elijah. Someone who would risk everything to save New Orleans from plagues."

"Vincent." Klaus answered and Freya nodded. Wolfgang narrowed his eyes at the eldest Mikaelson in suspicion, knowing full well that Vincent was with him when the spell was cast, "Hmm."