Rue | Klaus Mikaelson

Chapter 28

"Just lean on me," said Nick, helping her sit up and caressing her head as Mary and several other female wolves crowded around her, soothing her and talking her through it. "I've got you. Here, take my hand."

She did, gripping it so tightly she nearly crushed all the bones in it. To try and minimize how much damage she inflicted on him, she released her pain through her screams, preferring to run her own throat raw because at least that would heal. His hand would be damaged severely if she squeezed for too long.

"That's it, honey," urged Mary. "Just yell, it's okay, it'll make you feel better. Don't forget to breathe."

"How the fuck," she demanded, shutting her eyes and trying not to push prematurely, "do you all just do this out here all the time? Knowing my body would heal without a problem... I'd go to the hospital for a damn C-section and have it over with quickly. What... are we gonna do... if he's not okay? If something's wrong?"

"I got it," said Nick, pulling out his phone. "I'll text Josh to bring Vincent and Cami. Kurt can lead them here. Anything goes wrong, a witch and a vampire are here to help."

"Yeah, good idea," said Ibeth, nodding her head wearily. "Oh god, I can feel another contraction coming. Why the hell does this have to hurt so bad? You'd think we'd have evolved to ignore this pain by now."

"Just scream," urged Mary, reaching out to wipe the sweat off of her face. "S'okay, the wolves ain't judging, and there's nobody else out here for miles."

Ibeth managed a weak, pained sob before another scream tore out from her throat.

And this scream reached her husband's ears.

He didn't know it was Christmas Eve. Marcel had removed Papa Tunde's blade from him just a few weeks prior, not informing him how long it had been since the Fall of the Mikaelsons. No one could hear him yelling in the dungeon, but he could hear everything that went on in the Bayou.

Usually it was quiet. Nothing out of the ordinary happened, and no sound managed to carry all the way to him.

But a scream of that magnitude could carry much further.

He sat up when he heard the first one, going as far as his chains would allow, only just letting him place his hands on the invisible barrier that kept him trapped. He knew those screams. The wolf within him told him who they belonged to, and what they meant.

He began to pound his fists against the barrier. "MARCEL!" he roared, hoping to get his attention. "MARCEL!"

The only reason he came down was because he wanted to taunt Klaus. Not because he'd heard his cries or cared about what he wanted. Marcel was no fool. It was Christmas Eve and out of nowhere, Josh, Vincent, and Cami were leaving on an impromptu outing? He knew exactly what was happening in the Bayou. And he knew that Klaus would know, too.

"Marcel, please," Klaus begged when he saw him, leaning up against the barrier and staring at him with wild eyes. "She's gone into labor, I must be by her side, she has no one."

"What makes you think she's alone? She has friends. She has a family. She's likable. No one would leave her alone during this."

"I am her husband. The father of her child. I should be there."

"Funny that you thought I'd let that happen," said Marcel. "She's better off without you. They all are."

Ibeth couldn't hear the way Klaus yelled back the entire time, wishing she could know that he was there, even if from a distance. He clawed at the boundary spell, his already-dirty fingernails breaking and bleeding as he tried to reach her, hoping to soothe her pain.