Kol's blood burned.
The ground where Lisa had stood was empty, and the last traces of the dark portal had already faded into the cold morning air. His fists clenched, crackling with raw energy. He had let them take her.
That was the only thought hammering through his skull.
He turned sharply, already moving. "I'm going after her."
Brad blocked his path.
"Not yet."
Kol's eyes flared with barely contained fury. "Move."
But Brad didn't budge. Despite the overwhelming power radiating from Kol, despite what he had just done—slaughtering over a hundred hunters like they were insects—Brad stood firm.
"You run in there now, you'll be walking into a trap, putting Lisa in danger." His voice was calm but unyielding. "They planned this, Kol. You think they weren't prepared for you to come after her?"
Kol's jaw tightened. His body was screaming at him to fight, to tear through anything that stood between him and Lisa. But Brad's words forced him to pause.
"They sent hunters after you," Brad continued. "They had them fight you, knowing you'd slaughter them, and then they still took Lisa in front of you." His sharp eyes locked onto Kol's. "That wasn't a desperate attempt. That was a calculated move."
Jacob, still weak and leaning against the wall, spoke next. "Brad's right." His voice was rough, but determined. "They know exactly what you'll do next. They're counting on you rushing in blind."
Kol exhaled sharply through his nose, his fingers twitching with barely restrained aggression. Every part of him rebelled against standing still. But deep inside, past the rage, past the instinct to kill—he knew they were right.
He was strong. Unstoppable.
But the witches were smart.
Brad took a step closer, his expression firm. "We need a plan."
Jacob straightened, wincing from the effort. "I'm coming too."
Kol shot him a look. "No, you're not."
"I have to," Jacob insisted. "Lisa saved me. I won't just sit here while she's—" He clenched his fists, his voice tightening with anger. "Two days. Give me two days to heal. Just two."
Kol inhaled deeply, his patience wearing thin. But when he looked at Jacob—really looked at him—he saw the desperation, the same fire he felt burning in his own chest.
He didn't like waiting.
But he knew what it was like to be powerless while someone you cared about was taken away.
"Fine," Kol muttered. " twelve hours. But be ready."
Jacob exhaled, nodding.
Kol turned back toward the battlefield, his eyes scanning the remaining hunters who had survived the slaughter. Some were unconscious. Others watched him in fear, uncertain if they should still be fighting or running for their lives. He didn't care about them anymore.
Lisa was the only thing that mattered.
Then—another shift in the air.
Kol tensed, his power surging again as he turned toward the treeline. A familiar presence approached. Not just one. Four.
Elizabeth.
Kol's eyes narrowed as she emerged, stepping onto the bloodstained battlefield, flanked by Orin and Valen. Dain followed close behind, his towering form radiating quiet menace.
Jacob stiffened beside him. Brad inhaled sharply.
Kol's fingers twitched again, ready to strike—but Elizabeth raised a hand. "Not here to fight."
Kol didn't lower his guard. "Then what do you want?"
"To help," Elizabeth said simply.
A slow, dangerous smirk tugged at Kol's lips. "Help?" He took a step forward, his aura darkening. "After all this time, you suddenly want to help?"
"I don't care about you," Elizabeth said coldly. "I care about stopping the witches and saving Lisa."
Kol's amusement vanished
she continued, watching him carefully. "And whatever they're planning, it's bigger than just you."
Silence stretched between them. The tension was suffocating.
Then Brad spoke. "You're coming with us."
Elizabeth's gaze shifted toward him. "Obviously."
Kol's eyes flicked to his brothers. Orin and Valen looked indifferent, but they didn't protest. Dain stood with his arms crossed, his expression unreadable.
Kol finally exhaled. " Whatever."
He turned away from them all, staring toward the horizon. The witches thought they had outmaneuvered him.
They thought they had won.
They were wrong.
Kol stood at the foot of an abandoned estate.
The night was heavy around them, the air thick with magic. The towering structure loomed like a corpse left to rot in the shadows, its windows hollow and empty. A perfect place for the witches to hide.
Kol flexed his fingers. His power hummed just beneath his skin, restrained but eager to be unleashed. Beside him, Elizabeth stood with the same cold confidence she always carried.
The witches were watching. He could feel them.
They thought only he and Elizabeth had come.
They were wrong.
Because as Kol and Elizabeth made their move toward the front entrance, Jacob and Brad were already slipping into the darkness, sneaking around the side of the building.
Jacob's heart pounded as he moved. His wounds weren't fully healed, but he didn't care.
Lisa was here.
And he was going to get her back.