We stopped in a small town to get gas. Nik stayed outside filling up the tank with the twins still in their car seats. Hayley and I went inside for a bathroom break and some snacks for the babies. As we are checking out Hayley reaches over and snatches a hat off of the rack by the counter.
"Interesting fashion statement." I tease her and she smirks.
"Yes, very Klaus. Don't cha think?"
"Oh, absolutely." I laugh. "He'll love it."
"Anything else?" The older man behind the counter asks.
"Nope. That should be it, plus gas on the Land Rover." I point out the window to the only car out there.
The man nods and rings everything up. "That'll be $85.97." I pass him a hundred and he puts it in his draw and counts out of change. "$14.03 is your change." He smiles. I take the money from him and put it in the jar next to his register. The jar has a piece of paper tapped to it that has information on a cancer charity. "Thank you, kindly." He says and I smile and send him a nod.
Hayley grabs our bag and we exit the store. As we approach Nik Hayley pulls out the hat that says 'Mother Trucker' on it and holds it up for him to see with a smirk on her face.
"Absolutely not." He denies with raised eyebrows.
"Need to blend in." Hayley tells him. "You could start by losing the thousand jacket." Hayley adds and Nik sighs.
"Tell me again why we're on a scenic tour of methamphetamine country and not compelling a jet to some far off, preferably tropical destination?" He questions annoyed with Hayley and my idea of laying low.
"Look, I'm not the one with an army of pissed-off vampires coming after me." Hayley counters. "Can I have the keys?"
Nik bites his tongue and gives in, passing her the keys. "On a scale of one to ten, exactly how much am I going to despise this little plan of yours?"
Hayley purses her lips. "I'd say a solid 85." I chuckle in amusement and I take the hat from her hand and putting it on his head.
"Oh, good." He says sarcastically. Hayley gets in the drivers seat and I occupy the passengers, leaving Nik to sit with the twins.
__________________
Hayley brings us to a biker bar. She said she knows the guy that owns it. So, Nik gets Bexley out of her car seat and I get Hope. We place the twins in their double stroller and enter the bar. Music is playing low in the background. There are a few guy stalking the tables with what they need and a man behind the counter.
"Now I can see why you wanted to come here. I feel safer already." Nik muses sarcastically to Hayley with the gas station hat still on his head.
As we walk up to the bar, the man behind the counter meets us. "We're closed." He grunts. I lift the brake on the stroller and make sure the twins are covered with their blankets.
"You don't look closed." Nik says leaning against the counter.
"We are for you."
"Well, perhaps you failed to notice the hat." Nik states making me nudge him as I sit on the stool next to him.
"I'll take a bourbon, unless Hollis is still serving that moonshine of his?" Hayley tells the man, taking a seat next to me.
"I'll be damned." An older man says walking behind the bar. "I got this." He pats the first guy on the chest. He smiles widely at Hayley and clamps her hand in his. "It's been a long time since you danced on my bar, Hayley Marshall." My eyebrows disappear into my hairline in surprise and I look at Hayley.
"It's been a long time since I danced on any bar." She chuckles. She look at me and then the twins. "I get into a different kind of trouble these days. Hollis, meet my nieces Hope and Bexley."
"Aw, look at them." He smiles. Then he cuts his eyes at Nik and back to her hand with her wedding band. "A city boy, huh? Wouldn't have guessed that."
"Never underestimate the allure of indoor plumbing." Nik says and I shake my head.
"Hollis, this is Klaus and Kelsey." She explains, twisting her ring on her finger. "They're the parents." Hollis looks between us and nods. "We just need a place to lay low."
He nods and sighs. "You picked a pretty rough time for us around here. Lot of folks are giving up on the pack altogether." He informs her and then he smiles. "Well, for the reigning, dart throwing, tequila-shooting champ of Willoughby Lake, I just wish there were a few more people here to give you a proper homecoming." Hayley chuckles and I grin in amusement. "Hey, you guys settle in, I'll pour the moonshine. Babies drink for free." He jokes as he pours the moonshine into three mason jars.
Hollis walks away, back to cleaning and preparing the bar for later tonight. Hayley downs about half of her drink. Nik examines his glass, while I take a sip of mine. The alcohol burning my throat on the way down.
"I'm quite sure this glass hasn't been washed in the past decade, which makes it the cleanest thing in this establishment." Nik says putting the glass back on the bar. I roll my eyes and nudge him for being so rude.
"And you have hit your complaint quota for the day." Hayley sighs. "Congrats. You are officially the worst." The bar's phone rings and Hollis answers it.
"I seem to remember you sitting in my car to join this little road trip." Nik tells her. "No one had a gun to your head. What is it? Couldn't bear to spent another day giving Elijah the mournful doe-eyes?"
"That is none of your business." Hayley says.
"It really isn't." I agree with her.
"Right." He replies sarcastically. "It's only my brother and the Aunt of my daughters in my house in, oh, yes, my city."
"Weird, it's almost like you're making this all about you again." Hayley points out.
"He does have a gift for doing that." I nudge him again.
"Hales." Hollis calls from across the bar as he hangs up the phone. "If you're trying to be discreet, start by turning down the volume on the sibling's spat." He suggests as he approaches us.
"Is everything okay?" Hayley asks, seeing the stress on Hollis' face.
"Someone tried to rob the Gas n' Save down the highway." He explains. "Kayla was there. I heard it went bad for the bad guy."
"Kayla McInnis?" Hayley inquires.
"Her first." He nods.
"Wait, isn't she, like, nine years old?"
"Fifteen."
"That's still pretty young." I sigh, feeling for the teenager.
"A girl I used to babysit for." Hayley tell me and Nik how she knows the teen. "The last time I saw her, she was playing with dolls. Now she's killed someone and triggered the wolf curse." Hollis nods in confirmation. "Where is she?"
"The cops let her go home." Hollis says. "Little trailer down by the creek."
Hayley pushes her drink away and starts to stand up. Hollis turns and goes back to what he was doing before the phone call. Nik reaches behind me and grabs Hayley's arm stopping her. "Where do you think you're going?" He questions.
"Klaus, I remember when I triggered my curse. Now Kayla is going through the same thing--" Hayley attempts to explain, but he cuts her off.
"And that's your problem how?"
"I used to take care of Kayla when her mom was drinking. If she ever needed someone to talk to, it's now." Hayley says.
Nik looks at me in disbelief, but I shrug. "I agree with her. I would have loved to have someone when my curse was triggered. Instead, my step mom turned her back on me and I was on my own."
"In case you've both forgotten, we're supposed to be keeping a low profile." Nik sighs. "It's hardly the time to go play youth counselor to a bunch of misguided wolves."
"It's just down the road--" Hayley starts. Nik hits his hand on the table as he stands and he interrupts her.
"In fact, I think this little experiment is over." He grabs his jacket and puts his arms in it. "I hope you've enjoyed your trip down memory lane. But my life," He looks at me. "Our daughters lives, take precedence." He look back to Hayley. "A fact you've clearly failed to grasp. From now on, we do things my way." And with that he exits the bar with the twins.
"He can be infuriating when he is up to his ears in paranoia." I groan and Hayley nods. We both put on our jackets and follow him outside, where he is finishing strapping the twins into their car seats.
"Let's get out of here, shall we, hmm?" Nik tells the twins and they coo in response. He moves away from them to be faced with me and Hayley.
"There's a scared kid out there and I can't just turn my back on her." Hayley says.
"And tragic as that may be, it's not my problem, neither is it yours or Kelsey's." Nik counters as he closes the car door. "Get in the car. We're leaving." He turns to go to the drivers door and Hayley vamp speed in front of him.
"We're not going anywhere." Hayley says with her arms crossed.
"And I suppose you're going to stop me?" Nik counters condescendingly. "Perhaps you'll get Cletus and your other foul-smelling friends to help.
"Those friends of mine are helping us, Klaus. No questions asked." She defends. "Despite the fact that they have problems of their own, and all you have done is insult them. You don't get it, do you? This is the exact reason why we're here. Maybe if you hadn't been a dick to, I don't know, everybody, then we wouldn't even be on the run."
"I have always done what I needed to do to protect our family from numerous enemies. I make no apologies for my methods." Nik argues.
"Do you even hear yourself, Klaus?" Hayley states getting frustrated. "You're incapable of even pretending to be a good person. And you can justify it all you want with strategy and us versus them, but at the end or the day, the enemies that you have are the ones that you made. Is that what you want for your daughters? Is that how you want them to see the world?"
"This argument is ridiculous." I groan. "Hayley you're right, we should stay a bit and allow you to help the scared fifteen year old girl. That being said Nik may have made enemies, but that was a long time ago and there isn't anything we can do about that now."
"If it's both of your impulse to trust in the kindness of those outside the family, all the more reason you two need my protection." Nik responds and then he goes to open the driver door, but Hayley pushed it shut.
"I am gonna go speak to that girl because she needs my help." Hayley stands her ground. "You're gonna stay here and shut up. I've earned at least that."
"Hayley, listen to me." Nik calls as she walks passed him.
Hayley whirls back around to face him. "There is a very good chance that one day, your daughters will be dealing with the same thing that Kayla is dealing with. And if that day comes, I hope that someone makes it their business to help them too."
I reach down and grab his hand, making him glance over at me. "Being kind doesn't make you weak, Nik." Hayley nods in agreement, before turning and leaving.
_____________________
Nik and I made sure the twins are safe. Then we followed Hayley and Kayla to where they are sitting around a bonfire. Kayla is standing by a tree that has several momentums. The tree seems to be a memorial for the dead. Hayley is sitting on a log. She snatches her head in our direction when she hears up coming through the woods.
"Where's the twins?" She inquires.
"Hollis was kind enough the look after them for a bit." I tell her.
"You trust him, I trust you." Nik says to Hayley, making my smile. "Baby steps, as it were." He looks down and sighs. "Seems I owe you an apology, Hayley. I have given you and Kelsey a thousand reasons to abandon me. You guys haven't, yet. So, thank you..." Hayley looks at him in surprise and I squeeze his hand. "For my sake and for mine and Kelsey's daughter's. Perhaps you're right." Nik continues as he and I take a seat on the log by Hayley. "Perhaps it is time to start living not by my decisions, not by yours, but by what we together decide as a family. You're input in protecting the twins is important, because you love them almost as much as me and Kelsey." Nik lighthearted smile turns to realization as he looks at the memorial tree.
"What's wrong?" Hayley asks.
Nik stands and makes his way to the tree. "This was no random attack. These wolves aren't just disappearing." He pulls of a name tag and looks it over. He turns to us and holds it view. "They're being hunted."
Nik pulls out his phone and calls Elijah to explain what he had just put together.
"We got the white oak." Elijah informs him immediately after answering. "Time to come home."
"Well, at least one of us has something good to report, because Kelsey, Hayley, and I have just made a rather unsettling discovery." Nik tells him. "Seems our friends at Kingmaker Land Development are still targeting wolves. What we don't know is why."
"This whole time, we were so consumed with everything out there." Elijah responds. "This auction, this swarm of old enemies, what if it was all a distraction. Niklaus, I'm beginning to fear that the real threat has been in front of us all along."
"Lucien." I groan.