Elijah’s POV

I had left Evain upstairs to dress whilst I found some food, I cannot believe how much she looks like Ailyn. I didn’t mean to get close to her, but it was too late now. I hadn’t felt this strong in… Years. There’s something different about her blood. Perhaps that was another reason Damon kept her. I didn’t want to get involved with her, not after she had been with Damon, but I can’t keep away from her now.

I heard glass smash behind me and I spun round to find Ivan charging towards me. I swiftly moved out of his way so he crashed into the table behind me.

“You’re not welcome here.” I said whilst he got ready to charge at me again.

“You shouldn’t have taken her.” He glared at me as he missed me again and ran into the wall.

“I didn’t take her, she escaped. She escaped from you! What does that say about you and your reputation?” I smirked at him, trying to provoke him.

“I’ll just go and retrieve her then; I can smell her scent all over you. What have you done, Elijah? You’re after the same girl as Damon again? Surely you would have learnt your lesson by now?”

I clenched my jaw and let his comment pass. I needed to stay on top of this if I want Evain safe.

He lifted his head and sniffed. His eyes gleaming. “She’s upstairs. How boring, she isn’t even trying to run.” He moved to the stairs and I slammed into the side of him and we both crashed to the floor creating a dent in the stone. “I don’t know why you’re bothering, my strength is superior to yours, and you know I’ll get her eventually.”

He shoved me off and sped up the stairs. I quickly got to my feet and followed him. I had no plan, but I had to do something. He got there first, but instead of his calm reactions, he ran from room to room coming to a stop right in front of me. He slammed his fist into the wall right next to my head.

“What did you do with her?” He spoke slowly, trying to act calm, but he was furious.

“I don’t know. She was up there a few minutes ago.”

“You’re lying to me. Where is she?!” He shouted in my face.

“I don’t know!” I looked towards the bathroom, the tap was still running and the mat on the floor was crumpled up as if there had been a struggle. “No…”

“What?”

“Damon.”

We both stared at the open window in the bedroom. I guess Ivan wasn’t my greatest threat.

“Where would he take her?” Ivan asked, his anger was building up again slowly.

“Like I know.” I snapped at him. I was trying to think of any other places Damon might have. He wouldn’t be stupid enough to go back to the mansion, would he?

“Shit!” Ivan cursed loudly and started pacing the landing.

“What?”

“I know exactly where he’s taken her. The sneaky fool, I had no idea he was still running errands for her!”   

“Running errands for who?!”

“Ailyn.”

“And how do you know this exactly?” I narrowed my eyes at him.

“Because I’m doing the same thing.” He spat out at me. “Ailyn needs Evain, she’s been waiting years for her.”

“But why?”

Ivan grinned at me then slammed into me and I went flying down the stairs, crashing into the front door. When I looked up, he was gone. I needed to find Ailyn.

Evain’s POV

I struggled against Damon’s tight grip, but it was useless. His hand was covering my mouth and nose so I was having trouble breathing properly. I felt light headed and grew weaker. Crashes downstairs were getting louder and I was hoping someone would come up and find me. Damon slung me over his shoulder and jumped out the window. He landed with such force that I bounced on his shoulder and got the wind knocked out of me. My vision swam before me as he sped through the night.

“Wake up.” A sharp pain stung my face and my head jerked to the right. “I said, wake up!”

I opened my eyes slowly and saw Damon staring into my eyes. I instantly closed them again, wishing I was dreaming in bed next to Elijah.

Another slap hit my face. “Don’t think of him whilst you’re with me.” He spat at me. “Now open your eyes and eat some food. I cannot have you being unconscious for the next 12 hours.” He shoved me across the floor leaving me with a scrape down my arm.

I managed to push myself up so I was sitting, but I couldn’t eat anything that was in front of me.

“Do not make me force you.” Damon threatened.

I glared at him and forced myself to eat some food. “Where are we?”

He narrowed his eyes at me. “Somewhere that we needed to take shelter during the day. It is nearly sunset and we shall continue with where we are going.”

“And where is that?”

He laughed darkly. “A surprise, sweet Evain.”

“Don’t call me that.” I snapped at him. He seemed surprised by my confidence, but I remembered what Elijah had said about him. I couldn’t be weak around him any longer.

He slapped me really hard across my jaw. “I told you not to think of him! When will you ever listen?”

My jaw ached but I couldn’t back down. “Listen to you? You’re a liar and you used me.” Saying it out loud seemed to make it sink in. It hurt, badly.

“I’m not a liar, Evain. And I was trying to help you by rescuing you. This is the thanks I get?”

I stared at him, gobsmacked. “Rescue me? I was fine. This is the second time you’ve taken me, and neither time was optional. Who appears in the bathroom behind someone when rescuing them?! No one!”

“And if you screamed then they would have heard and you would still be there, or in worse hands. Who knows what Ivan has planned for you.”

“Who knows what you have planned for me.” I muttered under my breath, he could obviously still hear me, but he chose to ignore it.

I tried to stand and move around, but my legs gave way underneath me and I fell. My skirt billowed out as I dropped down, and lust burned in Damon’s eyes as he reached out towards my thigh. He clasped an icy cold hand on it and I panicked. It felt wrong, so so wrong. I scrambled away out of his grasp, but not without him leaving three cuts on my leg. They were relatively shallow, but blood still ran down my leg.

I looked up at Damon and he was incredibly close, inhaling the scent of my blood. “Don’t even think about it.” I cautioned him. I would not go quietly; I will put up a fight.

He backed off, sitting in a far corner. “Fear not, she would be unimpressed if there was nothing left of you.”

She? “Who?”

“Now, we wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise.”

I folded my arms in frustration and we spent the next half hour sitting in silence. It was deafening and by the end of it I wanted to pull my hair out. There was no way out and I was stuck with a psychopathic vampire. Great.

“Okay, let’s go.” He pulled me to my feet and dragged me outside. It was twilight and darkness was falling rapidly.

“Are you going to tell me where we’re going?”

He pushed me in front of him. “Walk.”

“What happened with you and Elijah?” As soon as his name left my mouth I wished I could take it back.

I winced, waiting for Damon to lash out at me again for speaking of Elijah, but nothing came. I turned back to look at him and he had stopped walking.

“Damon?” I walked over to him cautiously. “What happened?”

“Didn’t he tell you?” I shook my head. “How odd. He doesn’t miss an opportunity to lower people’s opinions of me.”

“I think you misunderstand him.”

He looked up and glared at me and then slammed me up against a nearby tree, his hand around my neck.

“Misunderstand him? You think I misunderstand him?!” He squeezed tighter and I was struggling to breathe. “You have no idea what happened, no idea. Stop acting like you know everything.” He dropped me and I fell to the floor, gasping for air. “Get up, we’re nearly there.”

I reluctantly followed him deeper into a forest. The path was winding and brambles tore at my skirt and my legs. A few times I stumbled but was lucky enough to steady myself before falling.

“We’re here.” Damon said as we approached a clearing in the forest. A small, dark cottage stood there eerily on its own.

I stopped in my tracks. “Where’s here? Who lives here?”

“Just get inside.” He pulled my arm so I was in front of him. I still couldn’t bring myself to move, so he placed his hands on my shoulders and pushed me. It was either walk in there by choice, or be dragged along.

We approached the door and just before his fist touched the door; it swung open to reveal a girl my height with straight, dark red hair in clothes that left little to the imagination.

“She’s beautiful.” The red head girl said whilst looking me over. “Your description of her did not do her justice.”

“Yeah whatever, just don’t say I’ve never given you anything.”

I looked between Damon and this girl to try and find out what was going on, but their faces gave nothing away. Damon looked bored and kept looking at his watch as if he were running late. The red head girl was beaming at me and ignoring Damon.

After a few minutes of just standing there in an awkward silence, Damon spoke. “Look, I have to go. Just be careful with her. She’s had some of my blood.”

The red head instantly frowned. “I don’t like having to share.”

“Consider yourself lucky you have her at all.”

“Wait, what do you mean have me?” I asked quietly.

They both turned, Damon staring at me as if I had spoken out of place. The red head looked intrigued and smiled. What was going on?

“You’re my present.” She twirled her hair round her finger whilst biting her lip.

“Present?”

She nodded at me enthusiastically and held out her hand. I looked at it, and then looked at Damon. He was suspiciously avoiding my questioning gaze.

“Damon? You’re giving me away?”

“I had no choice.”

I stared at him in disbelief.

“He’s right, he has no choice. Why don’t you come inside, Evain. I’ll explain everything to you.”

“I—”

“It’s okay Evain, you can trust me.” She smiled at me and grabbed my hand. Her hand was cool and she clasped onto me tightly so I couldn’t slip out of her grasp. I started panicking at the thought of being passed on like a package. Damon was just going to leave me here with some girl. No one else knew where I was. She could do anything to me. The girl moved to stand in front of me and gazed into my eyes. After a few seconds I started to feel peaceful and calm, like I didn’t have a care in the world. She smiled and stepped away.

“You can go now Damon, we’ll be fine. I promise to take good care of her.” She winked at him and pulled me into the cottage. “Bye Damon.” She closed the door in his face and pulled me into the light.

She gasped. “What happened to your face?!” She brought her hand up to touch it and I winced. “He did this to you, didn’t he?” I nodded slowly.

“You’re lucky he gave you blood. With the punches he throws, you should be dead.” She pulled me into a hug. “You need some more blood, that will heal it.” She leant next to my ear and whispered. “Then you’ll be perfect.”

I stood back confused. She stepped backwards so the light was over her and I could see her properly. Her hair was a brighter shade of red in the light and her dark brown eyes complimented it. She stood there with her hands on her hips; her filmy black see-through robe was open slightly, exposing her dark lacy underwear. I immediately looked away and she laughed. Just who dresses like this when they’re expecting company?

“Get used to it. We’re both girls, it’s nothing you haven’t seen before. This is my house and I like to walk around in this, it’s comfortable.” She raised her eyebrows at me, waiting for my response.

“Uh yeah, that’s fine.”

“Great!” She beamed at me and grabbed my hand again. “Time for food.”

“Food? I’m starving!” She pulled me into the kitchen and on a small table; there was a big plate of food. I sat down eagerly and started eating. She sat down opposite me and just stared at me. She wouldn’t stop, so I put down my cutlery.

“So… What’s your name?”

“Elizabeth, but everyone calls me Lizzie.” She rested her head on her hands and smiled at me.

I nearly choked. “Elizabeth? As in the Elizabeth that Damon…”

She nodded at me. “Yes, Damon turned me. That’s why you’re here. I didn’t want to be a vampire and he made me one. He abused me just like he abused you, but he went too far. He vowed he would make it up to me. Well, more like I blackmailed him.” She grinned at me. “To bring me someone worthy and good looking, I didn’t specify a gender.” She winked. “And then he came to me a little while ago bragging about you, the girl with the special blood. In all honesty, he shouldn’t have said a thing, but he did and I wanted you. So now you’re mine!”

“…What would have happened if he had said no?”

“Oh, I would have caused him some trouble. I’ve done it before.” She said nonchalantly as she walked over to me, pulled me to my feet and hugged me, pressing herself against me. “When you’ve finished eating, come upstairs. I have so many things to give you.” She stood back, looked me over again, winked, and walked off.