╔════════════════════════════════════════════╗ ║ Chapter 51 – The Ride Home 🌙🐺🔥 ║ ╚════════════════════════════════════════════╝
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The SUV tore down the road at dangerous speeds.
Trees blurred past the windows.
Streetlights streaked gold across the glass.
Klaus didn't slow down once.
Not for curves.
Not for lights.
Not for anything.
Both hands stayed locked on the steering wheel, jaw tight, eyes cold and focused on the road ahead.
Elijah sat in the front passenger seat, phone still in hand, coordinating quietly with Freya and Davina while occasionally glancing back toward Nova.
In the third row, Malia sat forward with her elbows on her knees, restless energy radiating off her. Beside her, Lizzie and Josie watched Nova carefully, both twins far quieter than normal.
And in the backseat—
Hope held Nova against her chest like letting go would destroy her.
Nova's trembling still hadn't stopped.
Every few seconds another quiet apology slipped from her lips.
"I'm sorry..."
Hope tightened her arms around her immediately.
"No," Hope whispered for what felt like the hundredth time. "Stop apologizing."
Nova buried her face deeper into Hope's neck.
"I should've, I should've known"
"You were ambushed," Hope cut in gently but firmly. "You didn't do anything wrong."
Nova shook her head weakly anyway.
"I thought... maybe she just wanted closure or something..."
The name alone made Hope's jaw tighten.
But she forced the anger back down.
Not now.
Nova came first.
"You don't have to explain it to me," Hope murmured, brushing her fingers carefully through Nova's hair. "You trusted someone you used to love. That doesn't make this your fault."
Another shaky breath left Nova.
"I was scared," she admitted so quietly Hope almost didn't hear it.
That confession hurt more than anything else.
Because Nova was rarely scared.
Angry?
Protective?
Reckless?
Absolutely.
But scared?
Not like this.
Hope pressed a kiss against the top of her head.
"You're safe now," she whispered again.
Klaus glanced at them briefly through the rearview mirror.
Something dark flickered behind his eyes.
Kate and Scott had touched his daughter's mate.
Had tortured the mother of his granddaughters.
And somehow they were still breathing.
Barely.
Josie finally spoke from the third row, voice soft.
"Is she going to be okay?"
The SUV went quieter.
Hope swallowed.
Before she could answer, Elijah spoke calmly from the front.
"She will be," he said. "But recovery may take time."
Josie nodded slowly, though worry still lingered across her face.
Lydia sat beside Malia in silence for another moment before speaking carefully.
"I'm just..." Lydia frowned slightly. "I've seen Nova survive horrible things before. All of us have. Beacon Hills was basically trauma every other Tuesday."
That earned the faintest snort from Lizzie.
But Lydia's expression stayed serious.
"She's been tortured before," Lydia continued quietly. "By hunters. By alphas. By supernatural psychopaths." Her eyes shifted toward Nova sadly. "Whatever Kate and Scott did... it had to be worse."
Malia's eyes flashed instantly.
"It was probably mostly Kate," she muttered darkly. "Scott's a pushover. He doesn't really have the balls to do half the crap Kate does."
Hope went still.
Very still.
Then quietly:
"He stabbed her."
The words dropped like stones.
Malia blinked.
"...What?"
Hope's hand tightened protectively around Nova.
"He stabbed her with the wolfsbane knife," Hope said, voice flat and dangerous. "Kate handed it to him and he did it."
Silence swallowed the SUV.
Even Klaus's grip tightened slightly on the wheel.
Josie looked horrified.
Lizzie just whispered, "Oh my god."
Malia's expression slowly shifted from anger... to something colder.
"Oh," she said softly.
Not shock.
Realization.
"He helped," Lydia murmured.
Hope nodded once.
"And he stayed while Kate tortured her."
Nova shuddered against Hope at the memory.
Immediately Hope softened again, pulling her closer.
"Don't think about them," Hope whispered gently. "Just stay with me."
Nova's fingers weakly twisted in Hope's shirt.
"I tried to reach you," Nova whispered brokenly.
Hope's throat tightened.
"I know."
"The bond..." Nova swallowed painfully. "It kept fading..."
"But I felt you," Hope whispered back instantly. "I found you."
A small sob escaped Nova again.
And Hope realized something then.
Nova wasn't just hurt physically.
She was terrified Hope wouldn't find her.
That she'd be left there.
Alone.
Hope's chest ached.
"You listen to me," Hope said softly but firmly, pulling back just enough to make Nova look at her. "I would tear apart the entire world before I stopped looking for you."
Nova's eyes watered immediately.
"And the pack came," Hope continued. "Malia came. Derek came. Stiles, Isaac, Lydia, everyone came for you."
Malia leaned forward slightly from the third row.
"Obviously," she said like it was ridiculous to think otherwise. "You're ours."
Nova let out another shaky breath.
Then, so quietly Hope almost missed it—
"She... kissed me," Nova whispered.
Hope went rigid.
The entire SUV seemed to still around them.
Nova's voice shook harder now, words breaking apart between uneven breaths.
"She touched me... I tried to fight her... I tried..."
Hope's arms tightened instinctively around her.
"She wouldn't stop," Nova whispered, shame and fear tangled painfully in her voice. "I was too weak... and she liked that I couldn't fight back..."
Hope's eyes burned gold for a split second.
Dangerous.
Violent.
Nova swallowed shakily.
"She said..." Nova's voice cracked completely. "She said I tasted better than Derek..."
Malia's head snapped up instantly.
Lydia's face drained of color.
Both of them knew exactly what that meant.
Exactly what Kate had done to Derek when he was younger.
How she had manipulated him.
Used him.
Taken advantage of him.
Malia let out a furious growl low in her throat.
"That psychotic bitch," she spat.
Lydia looked genuinely sick.
"Oh my god..." she whispered.
Lizzie and Josie exchanged confused but horrified looks.
"What does that mean?" Josie asked carefully.
Lydia swallowed hard before answering quietly.
"Kate did something very similar to Derek when he was younger," she explained, voice tight with anger. "She groomed him. Manipulated him. Used him."
Hope's expression changed.
Whatever fury she'd been holding back somehow became even colder.
More controlled.
Which was infinitely more terrifying.
Nova immediately started shaking harder.
"I'm sorry," she whispered again, tears slipping down her face now. "I'm sorry, Hope, I tried.... I tried to stop her..."
And suddenly Hope understood.
Understood why Nova kept apologizing.
Why she looked so devastated.
Kate hadn't just hurt her.
She had violated her.
Hope's heart broke.
"No," Hope said instantly, cradling Nova's face carefully in her hands. "No, baby, listen to me."
Nova couldn't even meet her eyes.
"You did nothing wrong," Hope said firmly, voice shaking with emotion and rage. "Nothing."
Another sob escaped Nova.
"She was stronger..."
"And she abused that," Hope cut in immediately. "That is not your fault."
Hope leaned forward, pressing her forehead gently against Nova's despite the shaking rage threatening to consume her.
"You hear me?" Hope whispered fiercely. "You don't ever apologize to me for someone hurting you."
Nova finally looked at her then.
Broken.
Terrified.
Hope kissed her forehead carefully.
"You survived," Hope whispered. "That's all I care about right now."
Nova tried to respond, but her words were beginning to slur together.
"Hopey... I... I don' feel good..." she mumbled weakly.
Hope's stomach dropped instantly.
Nova's skin had gone frighteningly warm against her.
Too warm.
Sweat dampened her brow and curled strands of hair against her forehead as another weak tremor ran through her body.
The wolfsbane.
It was still in her system.
"Hey, hey, look at me," Hope said quickly, brushing damp hair back from Nova's forehead with trembling fingers. "Stay with me, baby."
Nova blinked slowly, unfocused.
"She's burning up," Josie said softly from the third row, concern immediately sharpening in her voice.
Klaus's eyes flicked to the rearview mirror again, the SUV somehow accelerating even faster.
"We're almost there," Elijah assured calmly, though tension threaded beneath every word.
Nova whimpered softly, her head falling heavier against Hope's shoulder.
Hope tightened her hold around her instantly.
"You're okay," Hope whispered, trying desperately to sound calmer than she felt. "Just hold on a little longer for me."
Even through the fever, the pain, and the wolfsbane poisoning her system, some of the terror in Nova's eyes finally began to ease as Hope held her closer.
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In the second SUV, the atmosphere was far less gentle.
Stiles drove with white-knuckled hands gripping the wheel.
Isaac sat beside him in tense silence.
In the backseat, Scott, Kate, and Allison sat restrained.
And behind them—
Derek.
Kol.
Penelope.
Watching.
Waiting.
Hating.
Kate shifted uncomfortably.
Her breathing uneven.
Her claws gone.
Human hands trembling faintly in her lap.
"What the hell is happening to me?" she snapped.
Kol smiled slowly.
"Oh, I think the universe finally got tired of your nonsense."
Scott stayed silent.
Pale.
Sweating.
Every failed attempt to heal only making the panic in his eyes worse.
Allison sat rigidly beside him, bruised and exhausted.
No one in the SUV looked at her kindly anymore.
Not like Scott.
Not like Kate.
But no one had forgotten that Allison was still the reason Nova had been taken in the first place.
The only thing stopping the atmosphere from turning completely murderous toward her was the fact that she had helped them find Nova in the end.
Still, the tension around her remained thick and ugly.
Allison swallowed hard, staring down at her restrained hands for a moment before finally speaking quietly.
"Is... is Nova okay?"
Stiles let out a sharp, humorless laugh.
"Seriously?" he snapped, glaring at her through the rearview mirror. "Just shut up."
Allison flinched.
Kol leaned back slightly, eyes cold.
"Like she actually cares," he said dismissively.
Beside him, Derek said nothing.
Not a single word.
He just stared murderously at the back of Kate's head.
Unmoving.
Silent.
Seething.
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The Salvatore School finally came into view.
Lights glowing warmly against the darkness.
Normally it looked welcoming.
Safe.
Tonight it felt like a battlefield waiting for wounded soldiers to return home.
The SUVs tore down the long drive.
Tires screeching.
Engines roaring.
Both vehicles jerked violently to a stop in front of the school.
Waiting outside were Freya.
Davina.
Caroline.
Alaric.
And Emma.
The second the SUV stopped, Klaus and Elijah were moving.
Vampire speed blurred them toward the back passenger door.
Hope barely had time to look up before Elijah opened the door beside her.
"Hope," he said gently but urgently, "give her to me. I can get her to the infirmary faster."
Hope's arms tightened instantly around Nova.
A small, broken sound escaped her throat.
Instinct.
Possessive.
Protective.
She didn't want Nova out of her arms.
Not after finally getting her back.
Not after almost losing her.
Nova whimpered weakly against her chest.
And Hope forced herself to breathe.
"They're trying to help her," Elijah reminded softly.
Hope swallowed hard.
Then carefully, so carefully, she transferred Nova into Elijah's arms.
"Please," Hope whispered.
Elijah nodded once.
Then disappeared in a blur.
Straight toward the infirmary.
Klaus immediately grabbed Freya and Davina by the shoulders.
"We need that spell now," he ordered.
Then vamp speed carried all three of them inside.
Behind Hope, the others climbed from the first SUV.
Malia.
Lydia.
Lizzie.
Josie.
All of them tense.
Worried.
Angry.
The second SUV doors opened.
Kol stepped out first.
Dragging Kate and Scott by their ankles across the pavement.
Neither looked remotely healthy anymore.
Kate's face had gone pale beneath the bruises.
Scott looked even worse.
Weak.
Sweating.
Barely able to stay conscious.
Isaac hauled Allison out next, gripping her firmly by the arm.
Derek climbed out after them.
Then Penelope.
Then Stiles.
Hope looked toward Kol immediately.
"Take them to the dungeon," she said coldly. "Headmistress Caroline and Headmaster Alaric can deal with locking them up."
Kol arched a brow.
"And miss all the fun?"
"Kol."
Hope's voice cracked slightly.
Not from weakness.
Fear.
"Nova needs you," she said. "You're the only one who knows that spell. Freya and Davina are already inside."
Kol looked back down at Kate and Scott.
Clearly unwilling to hand them over.
Not yet.
Not before he had time to enjoy himself.
But after a moment, he sighed dramatically.
"Fine," he muttered.
Derek stepped forward instantly.
"I'll take Kate."
Stiles grabbed Scott roughly by the shoulder.
"I got this one."
Kol released them.
Then vanished inside in a blur of vampire speed.
Caroline stared between everyone.
Concern deepening rapidly.
Emma looked uncertain.
Alaric's eyes narrowed at the condition of the prisoners.
Before either man could say anything in defense of Allison, Scott, or Kate.
Caroline spoke first.
"What happened?"
Hope laughed once.
A broken sound.
Then she summarized everything.
The kidnapping.
The wolfsbane.
The torture.
Scott helping.
Kate.
The spell.
And then, Hope's voice faltered slightly.
"She said..." Hope swallowed hard. "Kate forced herself on Nova."
Derek's entire body went still.
Deadly still.
"What?" he asked.
The single word came out low.
Cold.
Chilling enough that even Scott visibly flinched.
Hope swallowed hard again.
"She touched Nova," Hope said quietly, fury and heartbreak tangling together in her voice. "Not full sex, but enough that Nova ended up crying in my arms apologizing over and over because Kate laid hands on her against her will."
Silence slammed down.
Derek snapped.
Completely.
He grabbed Kate violently by the throat and slammed her against the side of the SUV hard enough to dent the metal.
His claws slid out instantly.
Sharp.
Deadly.
Wrapping around her neck.
Kate gasped.
For the first time all night.
She looked genuinely afraid.
The reaction around them was immediate.
Isaac's face drained of color.
Stiles actually looked sick.
Penelope stared at Hope in horror.
Emma's hand flew to her mouth.
Even Alaric looked stunned.
And Caroline—
Caroline's expression cracked with fury and heartbreak all at once.
None of them had known.
Not until now.
Allison's head snapped toward Kate.
Shock flooded her face.
"...Is that true?" she asked shakily.
Kate didn't answer right away.
She just smirked.
Slowly.
Then dragged her tongue across her lips.
Allison broke.
She ripped herself out of Isaac's hold before anyone could stop her and launched herself at Kate.
"You sick fucking bitch!" Allison screamed.
Her fist connected once.
Then again.
A third hit caught Kate across the jaw.
Kate snarled back, but before things could escalate further, Allison was dragged backward.
Ethan and Aiden had just stepped out of the school.
"We'll help take them to the dungeons," Ethan said coldly.
Aiden's expression was equally murderous.
"Gladly."
Alaric and Emma exchanged a look.
Whatever either of them had been about to say in defense of the prisoners died immediately.
Especially when Alaric looked toward his daughters.
Lizzie and Josie both nodded once.
Confirmation.
Everything Hope said was true.
Alaric's jaw clenched hard.
His fists tightening at his sides.
Emma looked shaken.
Already mentally shifting into counselor mode.
Nova was going to need help processing this.
Real help.
And Caroline... Caroline remembered.
Being sixteen.
Damon compelling her.
Using her.
Making her feel trapped in her own body.
Her stomach twisted painfully as she looked toward the front doors Elijah had disappeared through.
Understanding exactly why Nova had looked so broken.
Derek finally released Kate with a vicious shove.
"Move," he snarled.
Kate stumbled.
Human.
Weak.
For once.
Alaric stepped forward grimly.
"I'll take them downstairs."
Derek immediately grabbed Kate again.
Ethan and Aiden hauled Scott upright between them.
Stiles shoved him forward roughly.
Isaac tightened his hold on Allison's arm.
Then together, Alaric led them inside.
Toward the lower levels.
Toward the dungeons.
Hope didn't spare them another glance.
The second they disappeared inside, she turned toward the inside of the school towards where the infirmary is.
And ran.
The others immediately followed after her.
Desperate to find out if Nova was going to okay.