Rue | Klaus Mikaelson

Chapter 32

Vincent was in St. Anne's Church.

"Look, guys," he spoke to the witches gathered there, "I know what we're up against. There's a faction of our own people, witches. They've started to make human sacrifices to a spirit called the Hollow. Now, this thing is dark, it's angry, it's very powerful."

Elijah couldn't help but butt in, making his presence known. "It is a force my family and I are here to erase. Now, kindly excuse us, please. Mr. Griffith and I have much to discuss."

"Quite rude," noted Ibeth. "They were in a meeting."

Elijah didn't seem to care what she thought. "Okay, uh, give me a minute," said Vincent to the witches, dismissing them as Elijah kept walking forward.

"So," said the Original, "now that we've dispensed with the needless hysteria."

Vincent glared at him. "I got a lot on my plate, Elijah, without whatever trouble you're trying to bring my way."

"We want to work with you to solve this," said Ibeth calmly. "Whatever you need, we're here."

"I'll accept your help," said Vincent. "Elijah can go."

"Oh, it's not an offer," said Elijah. "Children's lives are at risk."

Vincent scoffed. "You care about children's lives at risk? What about Davina Claire, Elijah?"

The Original clicked his tongue. "So, you can only see me as some kind of merciless butcher."

"Yes, I do," said Vincent flatly.

"I'll be whatever you want me to be, Vincent Griffith. I'll be the very devil himself, but make no mistake, I would violate everything sacred under the sun in the name of rescuing my niece and protecting my nephew from suffering as she does. And right now, according to you, you are facing two evils. Wouldn't it be nice to have one of those by your side?"

"We're gonna do this my way," demanded Vincent.

"Yes, we will," said Ibeth. "What first?"

He led them to the upper balcony of the church, where he had tables prepared with spell ingredients. He reached for a small urn and started to deposit the ashes into a tiny bowl.

"And who might this be?" inquired Elijah while Vincent began to sprinkle herbs over the ashes.

"These are the ashes of a witch who lost his way," explained Vincent. "And it might just be the key to helping us find ours. This thing, um, The Hollow, its magic has a very unique signature. I felt it on this witch the other day when Marcel and I took him out, so if I can trace that energy back to its source..."

"You can find everyone who serves it," deduced Ibeth. "These people, what happens to them? It just speaks and bends them to its will?"

"It's more like, um, a broadcast," said Vincent. " I was able to shut it out, but a lot of people have a harder time doing that."

"Like your wife?" asked Elijah.

Ibeth glared at him, but Vincent replied, "You know, there's a difference between what we project and what we have inside of our hearts, what we try to hide inside of our hearts, right? Now that thing, it took everything that's dark and twisted inside of me and it used it against me. It used it again on my wife and it ended up taking everything that I've ever loved away from me."

"So, then, you have every reason to want to remove it from this earth."

"Yeah. But let's say that we run into that thing today, Elijah. It's gonna take everything that you want to keep buried, it's going to use that and make you do exactly what it wants you to do. And that's what makes you a liability to the very niece and nephew that we're all trying to protect."