POV: Thomas Kennedy
One Week Later
It had been a week since Mary and I found out.
A week since we learned that they had finally found us.
Both of them.
Umbrella… and the Mikaelson family.
They both knew what Leon and Grace really were. They knew what ran through their blood.
The Originals wanted them dead.
Umbrella wanted something worse.
They wanted to control them.
Neither of them were going to get the chance.
My children were not going to be dragged into this supernatural war. I had spent years trying to keep them out of it, and I wasn't about to fail now.
"Dad?"
I turned my head at the sound of the voice.
Leon stood a few feet away, watching me with those sharp blue eyes of his.
"What's up, kiddo?" I said, forcing the best smile I could manage.
He studied me for a moment before speaking.
"So… how long are we gonna be in hiding?"
And there it was.
Most kids his age would've been confused or scared. But Leon had always been different. His mind worked faster than most adults I knew.
He understood more than he should.
I sighed and leaned back slightly in the chair.
"I don't know, Leon," I admitted. "If I'm being honest."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"The people after us are dangerous," I continued. "Very dangerous. Hiding might be our only option for now."
I glanced toward the window, where the forest stretched endlessly beyond the glass.
"I'm just hoping that cloaking spell bought us some time."
Leon stepped a little closer.
"Dad," he said quietly, "just tell me what they are."
I looked at him.
He deserved to know. After everything that had happened, he deserved the truth.
I opened my mouth to speak—
And then I heard it.
A noise.
Something outside.
A branch snapping.
My entire body went still.
Leon noticed it immediately.
"What was—"
"Leon," I said sharply.
He stopped talking.
I stood up quickly.
"Go find your sister and your mother," I told him. "Stay with them."
His expression hardened.
"Dad—"
"Now."
The tone in my voice left no room for arguments.
Leon stared at me for another second before nodding and running down the hallway.
The moment he disappeared, I moved.
Fast.
I went straight for the hidden compartment behind the bookshelf and slid it open.
Inside were the weapons I had hoped I'd never need again.
Advanced supernatural weapons.
Umbrella designs.
Modified rounds filled with vervain compounds, silver dust, and enchanted alloys. Enough to stop most supernatural creatures.
Not enough to kill an Original.
Only White Oak Stake could do that.
But these would slow anything else down.
I grabbed the handgun first, checking the magazine before sliding it into place.
Then the combat knife.
Then the shotgun.
My hands moved automatically. Years of training making every movement precise.
As I loaded the last weapon, a bitter thought crossed my mind.
Why the hell did I ever create that virus…
If I hadn't…
None of this would've happened.
My kids wouldn't be targets.
They wouldn't be hunted by ancient vampires or secret organizations.
They would just be normal children.
Another sound came from outside.
Closer this time.
Heavy footsteps.
Not human.
Too fast. Too controlled.
My grip tightened on the shotgun.
A shadow moved past the window.
Then—
BANG.
Something slammed hard against the front door.
The entire house shook.
I raised the weapon slowly.
Another hit.
The wood cracked.
Then with a final violent impact—
The door exploded inward.
POV: Mary Kennedy
When Leon came running in and told me and Grace to hide, I immediately assumed the worst.
Thomas had been worried all week, but the look on Leon's face confirmed it.
They had found us.
Without wasting another second, I grabbed Grace's hand and hurried toward the hidden bunker beneath the house. The door sealed behind us with a quiet click, layers of protective magic activating the moment it closed.
The bunker was small but secure. Thomas had designed it himself—runes carved into the walls, protection spells woven into the structure. It was meant to hide us from anything supernatural.
Or at least buy us time.
Then I heard it.
A gunshot.
The sound echoed faintly through the walls.
Grace jumped beside me.
"Mom… what's going on? Where's Dad?" she asked, her voice shaking.
I looked down at her, then over at Leon.
Surprisingly, he looked exactly like a thirteen-year-old boy should in a moment like this—shocked, scared, completely unsure of what was happening.
Eventually the gunshots stopped.
Silence filled the bunker.
We sat there for what felt like forever.
Every second stretched longer than the last.
Then—
Footsteps.
The door above us opened.
My heart nearly stopped.
I held my breath as the bunker entrance slowly opened.
And then I saw him.
Thomas.
Relief rushed through me so quickly it almost made my knees weak.
"Come," he said quickly. "We have to go. Now."
But what happened next…
was something I would never forget.
A hand suddenly burst through Thomas's chest.
Blood splattered across the doorway as the hand tore straight through him—his heart clutched in its grip.
For a moment, time stopped.
Thomas's eyes widened in shock before the light faded from them.
His body went limp.
I heard myself scream.
Grace screamed too, her voice full of pure terror.
Leon didn't scream.
He just stood there.
His eyes were wide, frozen in disbelief as tears streamed endlessly down his face.
For a few seconds, none of us moved.
Then survival instincts took over.
I forced myself to move, even though my body felt like it had turned to stone.
My hand slammed against the emergency switch beside us.
A hidden door slid open behind the bunker wall.
A secret escape tunnel.
I dropped to my knees in front of my children, grabbing their shoulders.
"Listen to me," I said, my voice shaking. "You have to run."
Grace wasn't even looking at me. Her eyes were still fixed on her father's body lying in the doorway.
"You have to run and don't stop," I said desperately. "Do you hear me? Don't stop running."
Grace looked like she couldn't move.
But then Leon stepped forward.
Tears still fell down his face, but something in his expression had changed.
He grabbed Grace's hand tightly.
"Come on," he whispered to her.
And then he started running, pulling her with him down the tunnel.
I watched them disappear into the darkness.
My children.
The only good thing left in my world.
Once I couldn't see them anymore, I slowly stood up.
The man who killed my husband stepped into the bunker doorway.
A vampire.
Old.
Strong.
Sent by Klaus Mikaelson, no doubt.
His red eyes looked at me with amusement.
"You know," he said calmly, tossing Thomas's heart aside like it meant nothing, "your husband put up quite the fight."
Rage burned through me, hotter than anything I had ever felt.
Good.
If Leon and Grace kept running…
They might actually survive.