"We should get her to a hospital," I said, kneeling beside Davina's still form. Her skin was pale, her breathing shallow.

"Oh, hello, darling." Caleb leaned lazily against the wall, smirking. "Back to huff and puff the house down?"

Klaus stiffened beside me, his jaw tightening. "Funny," he said, his voice like a blade. "It's remarkable how often a person's tongue ends up cutting their own throat."

"Alright, that's enough," I sighed. "Klaus, shut up."

Caleb's grin widened. "You might try a bit of lavender under your pillow, mate. Works wonders for pillocks with anger issues."

"Hey! You shut up too!" I snapped, exasperated.

Klaus's eyes darkened dangerously. "I promised not to kill the girl," he said, glaring at Caleb, "but I said nothing about an insolent sod."

I grabbed Klaus's arm and yanked him back before World War III could erupt. "Nik, stop. You had the chance to kill your father and didn't. You're not killing the kid either."

He glared for a moment, then sighed through his teeth. "Fine."

"Thank you," I breathed out, tension finally loosening from my shoulders. I reached for the white oak stake in his hand and tucked it safely away.
"Go get the car," he said, tossing me the keys. "We'll take her to the hospital."

I caught them, nodding. But as I opened the driver's door, something sharp yanked me backwards. My head cracked against the glass and then, nothing but darkness.I woke to cold earth and the smell of smoke.My head throbbed as I blinked up at the night sky only to see Mikael towering over me, his hand clamped around my arm as he dragged me through the woods.

"Klaus will find you," I hissed.

"Oh, I expect he will," he said with a cruel smile. "But I'll be ready."

"I've seen what that blade does," I spat. "You won't last five minutes."

"I've endured more pain than any creature living or dead," he said. "Once I feed, I'll be restored."

Panic flickered in my chest. I tried to twist away, to run, but his grip only tightened.

"You, my dear," Mikael said, "are leverage. When I threaten to rip you apart in front of him, my son will hesitate and in that moment, I will end him."

"Oh, I'm sorry," I said sweetly, "was that supposed to scare me? Because it's not working."

His face darkened. "That tongue of yours will get you killed."

"And that breath of yours will keep you single forever. No wonder Esther cheated."

His hand shot out, wrapping around my throat, lifting me off the ground.

"Silence, girl," he growled. "Before I skin you alive."

He froze suddenly, eyes narrowing.

"What is it?" I croaked.

"I hear music," he murmured. "And where there's music, there's food."

Before I could react, he dragged me toward the flickering light of a campfire. People were laughing, dancing  unaware that a monster walked among them.

"Well, well," I muttered, "hillbilly Halloween. How perfect."

Later, as the flames cast strange shadows on his face, Mikael spoke again  almost to himself.

"I can't believe you defend him," he said bitterly. "Niklaus."

"I don't always," I admitted. "But he doesn't deserve you."

"I didn't always hate him," Mikael said. His voice cracked like old wood. "When he was born, I was overjoyed. I thought, this one  this one has the eyes of a warrior. But my hope was short-lived. When I learned he wasn't mine, the relief was glorious... and fleeting. He was begat of a beast."

His eyes gleamed in the firelight, madness flickering beneath."Everything that followed was because of his obsession with wolves. He took my youngest, Henri  a child  to watch them turn under the full moon. And he was torn apart."

"It was an accident," I whispered.

"An accident?" Mikael snarled. "He murdered his own mother! She tried to cleanse him of his curse, and he destroyed her for it. He betrayed me. And you defend him!"

I stood, shaking. "I've tried to convince him not to kill you. To stop the bloodshed. But don't you see? It never ends. Centuries of pain, and still none of you have learned a damn thing."

Mikael looked at me, amused. "You haven't changed since you were a little girl."

I froze. "What are you talking about?"

"All in good time," he said.

"Why does everyone in this family speak in bloody riddles!" I shouted.

He just smiled  and then, once again, the world went black.When I came to, chaos surrounded me. Mikael and Klaus were fighting, the white oak stake glinting in the firelight.Klaus moved with fury, pinning his father to the ground. "Not as weak as you remember, am I?"

Mikael laughed, grabbed his arm, and twisted. The stake slipped, flashing toward me. Klaus blurred in front of me, intercepting it  but Mikael was faster.
He broke Klaus's arm and drove the stake into his chest.

"Klaus!" I screamed as he staggered back, gasping, his skin turning grey, lifeless but not burning.

Mikael frowned. "Why aren't you burning? If you were dead, you'd burn. Burn!"

He turned away in frustration and stormed off.The moment he disappeared, I ran to Klaus, hands trembling as I wrapped my fingers around the stake and pulled with all my strength.

"What do you think you're doing?" Mikael's voice roared behind me.

I turned, holding the stake defensively. "Stay the hell away from us. I swear, I'll kill you myself."

He smirked. "You've a warrior's heart, girl. Perhaps I'll keep it as a souvenir."

Before he could move, Marcel appeared out of nowhere, slamming into him. They fought viciously, the sound of bone and fury filling the air.

"Enough!" Mikael bellowed, pinning Marcel with a stake at his throat. "This night has been a long parade of fools. I'll enjoy killing every last one of you."

"Yeah, I wouldn't bet on it," Hayley's voice called. She wrapped a chain around Mikael's neck and yanked hard, sending him crashing to the ground.
Klaus was already on his feet, pale but alive.

"Took you long enough," I muttered under my breath.

He stepped forward, eyes blazing. "It's over, Mikael. You're outnumbered. Beg for your miserable life."

Mikael sneered. "You think having people makes you strong? It makes you weak. Come find me when you don't need fools, women, and children to fight your battles."

He tossed his stake aside and vanished into the darkness like the coward he was.Klaus turned to me, breathing hard. "You pulled the stake out in the nick of time. A moment longer, and I'd have been done for."

"Don't get all mushy," I said with a small smirk. "You're supposed to be the big bad hybrid."

He chuckled softly. "I'm sorry for stopping you from killing him when you had the chance."
"Well, he hurt you. For that alone, I'd kill him."

Klaus tilted his head. "In a thousand years, I think that's the first time I've seen him run."
"Cowardice suits him," I muttered.

Hayley and Marcel appeared beside us.

"You alright?" Hayley asked, pulling me into a hug.

"I'm fine," I said weakly.

Hayley stepped back, her expression dark. "We have another problem. Elijah's missing."

Elijah's POV

Mother's voice echoed in my head like a curse.She had trapped me again another of her visions, another cruel trick.I walked through the forest as a human once more, the air cold, the world quiet. My fingers brushed a tree marked with a carving: K + H.Two letters, intertwined a memory I didn't recognize, yet it filled me with dread.I followed the trail back toward the village, where laughter drifted on the air. I saw Tatia... and beside her, a girl whose face I couldn't make out.I stepped closer.It was Holly.Or someone who looked exactly like her down to the faint scar across her hand.