Jo coughed so hard she shook the bed. It was a horrible, rattling cough. Alaric just watched with a pained expression until it died down.

Caroline glanced between them. “Ric …”

Alaric turned, eyes pleading with her. She sighed and stepped forward, biting into her wrist.

“Drink.” She said as she stuck it in front of Jo’s face. “Whatever’s wrong with you, it’ll fix it.”

Jo looked to Alaric, waiting for his encouraging nod before she lowered her mouth to Caroline’s open wound. Once she started, she couldn’t stop. Something in her instinctively knew that this would fix her. 

“Better?” Caroline asked when she’d healed shut under Jo’s mouth.

Jo nodded, just barely. “A little.” 

“Good.” Alaric squeezed her leg through the blankets. “Get some rest. I’ll be back in a bit.”

He turned to Caroline and ticked his head in the direction of the hallway. 

“Where were you?” he demanded, softness gone as soon as the door to his bedroom was closed.

“Well -”

“Josie almost died!” 

Caroline closed her eyes and sighed. “I know.”

“And you weren’t there!” Alaric shouted. 

“I know.”

“Dorian took the one thing I needed to get her back! I had to ask a student for help, Caroline! We can’t do that! We can’t - that’s not how things can go around here!” 

“Ask me where I was again,” Caroline said quietly. 

Alaric tilted his head, visibly annoyed, and sighed. “Where were you?”

“I was with Matt,” she explained, gaining her own annoyance. “At the sheriff’s station. You need to come with me.”