Rebekah sat on the ground staring at the vampire's body, unable to believe what was happening.
"Sister…" Finn sighed—he wasn't the brother they were used to anymore—and walked over to her. "Relax. Let's embrace our freedom."
"But Niklaus…" Rebekah wept. "He hates me, Finn. He hates me."
"The messenger just said he forgives you. Come on." Finn took her by the arms and lifted her up.
"What happened back in New Orleans, sister?" Kol asked, curious.
"I was just so tired of Nik ordering me around my whole life," she whimpered. "So I led Mikael there, hoping Nik would run away and leave me alone. But he didn't leave. He stayed… and he almost died."
"Well, sister… he does hate you," Kol said flatly. Tears welled up in Rebekah's eyes again; her shoulders slumped and she sank back down, sobbing.
"Kol!" Finn snapped, glaring at him.
"What? I'm just being honest. I'd hate you too if you did that to me." Kol scowled, then winced seeing how upset she was. "But… fine. You've always been his favorite little princess. I don't think he'll hate you forever."
"Really?" Rebekah sniffled, looking up at him hopefully.
"Yes, yes, let's just go," Kol grumbled. "I know where to find one of Klaus's closest people. He ran New York before I was exiled. Now I just need to figure out exactly where we are…"
Five days later
"Klaus… you son of a bitch!" Kol snarled as they stepped out at the airport in Saudi Arabia. "How dare that bastard leave us stranded in the middle of the desert?"
He marched straight over to a luxury car dealership, dusty and disheveled, and walked right in.
"Sir, you cannot come in," the attendant said in broken English. "You are filthy."
Kol looked him dead in the eye—and replied in fluent Arabic.
"Get your manager," he ordered.
The man hurried away. It didn't take long for the manager to appear. With a little compulsion, Kol got exactly what he needed—and soon enough, they were aboard a private jet bound for New York.
"I didn't know you spoke Arabic," Rebekah said, curling up comfortably in her seat.
"I picked it up while traveling with some Persian witches," Kol replied dismissively.
Finn stayed quiet, taking in everything around him. He'd never lived through this modern era; the last time he'd been free to travel, the Middle East was just beginning to become the Ottoman Empire. All of this was astonishing to him.
One day later
They arrived in New York and headed straight for a very specific location—a towering skyscraper in the heart of the city.
"Well… this place has changed," Kol muttered, looking around at the cars, the neon, the sheer scale of everything. He'd never imagined the world could transform so much. "But this building… it's still the same."
"Let's go," Rebekah said, stepping forward and walking in with them.
The lobby went silent. Every employee turned to stare at them. Dark veins flickered beneath their eyes; some had golden irises, others hummed faintly with magic.
"Hold it," Kol said, stepping protectively in front of Rebekah. "I'm in a foul mood. Send for your boss… and I won't have to slaughter everyone in this room."
He let his power seep out. The air grew heavy and thick; outside, the sky darkened and thunder rumbled. Everyone trembled. Some collapsed to the floor, unconscious.
"So… are you going to get your leader?" Kol said, spreading his arms wide.
It wasn't long before they were escorted to the very top floor.
When they walked into the office, a man in an expensive suit flinched at the sight of them.
"Who the hell are you?" Kol demanded. "You're not Marcus. And judging by your magic… you're not even half as old as he was. How are you running this city? Where is Marcus?"
"Marcus is dead," the vampire stammered, terrified. "A vampire named Elijah killed him and put me in charge."
"Why?" Kol's voice sharpened.
"Because… Elijah is systematically removing everyone loyal to Klaus," the man said, his voice shaking. "It looks like… Elijah and Klaus are at war."
"Elijah? Pick a fight with Klaus?" Rebekah stepped forward, shocked. "They've never fought like this before."
"I don't know the details… Elijah doesn't speak much," the vampire said. He knew any one of these three could kill him in an instant.
"The only thing I heard him say was that Klaus threw coffins into the ocean… that's all I know!"
"Damn it," Kol muttered. "Looks like we weren't the only ones Klaus pushed away."
"Well then… you're useless to us," Kol said. Time seemed to slow to a crawl. He walked forward while the man stood frozen—then reached in, and tore his heart out.
He stepped back, and time returned to normal. Finn and Rebekah stared at him, disapproval written all over their faces.
"What?" the vampire gasped, suddenly able to move again. "Am I… free?"
"You are," Kol said, tossing the heart onto the floor beside him. "Catch."
The man caught it, staring in horror as black veins crawled up his neck and across his face. "Why… what's happening…"
He fell forward, dead.
"Why did you do that?" Finn asked, frowning.
"It's better if Elijah doesn't find out we're here," Kol said, wiping his hand clean. "Something's going on. Both of them are acting strange. We need to watch from the shadows and figure out what they're up to—before we get caught in the crossfire."
As the brothers Mikaelson left the building, a witch slipped into the office and saw the body on the floor. She pulled out a phone.
"Sir Nik…" she said, waiting for a response. "Three ancient vampires just killed the supernatural leader of New York. The city's been unstable since Marcus died… what would you have me do?"
"Erase every security camera that might have caught their faces," Klaus's voice came through, calm and commanding. "Send word to Elijah that those three are mine—and tell him to stop meddling in my affairs."
"Understood," the witch said. "But who should take over running the city? New York has always been loyal to you. If Elijah is taking control… we're ready to fight—"
"Don't be an idiot," Klaus cut in. "Put someone in charge who looks neutral—a witch, a wolf, or a vampire strong enough to hold the place together. Someone who won't get themselves killed trying to fight Elijah, and someone who isn't a spineless sycophant like the last one."
"I have just the person in mind," the witch said, and hung up.