Part 6

Venice, 1221

Dafne stood next to the wall and silently observed the room full of people. Most of them were nobles, lords and ladies. All of them were vampires, members of the Strix. Elijah was very proud of the society he had created, wanting to gather great minds in an effort to build a better future. They were all very intelligent and sophisticated people. Dafne was wearing a modest light green dress and her hair was up in a bun, she didn't like to draw attention to herself. Not that anyone here would have paid much attention to her anyway. They saw her as nothing more than a human.

Yes, she was a human. A 124-years-old human who looked like a 19-years-old girl. She hadn't aged a day since she had drowned. The memory still made her shiver. She had died that day and sometimes she hoped that she could have stayed dead. Perhaps that made her ungrateful, but she couldn't deny that sometimes she was tired. This wasn't the life she would have chosen.

She looked at Elijah across the room; he was having a conversation with two men. He noticed her looking at him and smiled. She smiled too, how could she not. He was her everything. He had brought her back from the death. Because he hadn't been willing to let her go. Now she was bound to him for as long as he would live. The spell that had brought her back had linked her life to his. She would live as long as he would.

And he was an immortal. An Original vampire. Yes, he was her everything, but she couldn't deny that a small part of her was bitter. He hadn't cared whether she would want this or not, he had made the decision for her. Not that it mattered now, what was done was done. Things could have been worse. He had been good to her and spent a lot of time teaching her. She was his companion, his scribe, his confidant, whatever he needed her to be.

"Good evening," a male voice suddenly said.

Dafne turned to look at the man who had appeared next to her. He was clearly a nobleman; he had brown hair and pale blue eyes.

"Good evening, my lord," she replied and curtsied.

He smiled, took her hand and touched it softly with his lips.

"Dafne, is it?"

She was a little surprised, but she didn't show it.

"Yes, my lord."

"Tristan de Martel," he introduced himself. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, I have heard a lot about you."

She couldn't imagine what he could have possibly heard, she was nobody.

"About me, my lord?"

"Yes. I must say that Elijah is a very lucky man for having such a lovely companion."

Dafne wasn't really sure if he was mocking her, he was smiling charmingly.

"My lord is too kind."

"No, not at all. How long have you been serving him?"

"A while," she replied cautiously.

"Ah. He must be very fond of you."

She didn't reply to that, she couldn't understand what this man wanted. Some members of the Strix knew that she belonged to Elijah, but none of them usually bothered to talk to her. They probably thought that she was nothing more than a blood donor. Some of them had those too, they considered themselves too civilized to hunt and kill their meal.

"I am curious, has Elijah ever mentioned me to you?" lord de Martel asked.

"No, I am afraid not."

His expression didn't change.

"Hmm. I was the first person he ever turned."

"Oh."

Elijah had in fact talked about him, but he had never mentioned his name. So this was the French nobleman who Elijah had used as a decoy. Dafne was surprised to see him here, she would have imagined that he wouldn't have wanted to come anywhere near Elijah.

"You are the member of the Strix, my lord?"

"Yes, I am," he replied. "I admire Elijah's goal and I am honored to be a part of such a noble cause."

"I see what you mean, I also admire what he is hoping to achieve."

That was true and Dafne was happy Elijah had found something he was so passionate about. Lord de Martel looked at her curiously.

"And you? Are you a member?"

"Me? No, no, I am merely a human."

He smiled.

"Oh, I would not call you "merely" a human. You have lived a long life, have you not?"

She wasn't sure how to reply. Did he know about the spell?

"Forgive me," he added. "I was rude; a lady's age is not an appropriate topic of conversation."

"I am no lady, my lord."

He raised an eyebrow.

"Really? What are you then?"

Thankfully she didn't have to reply when Elijah arrived.

"Tristan," he stated coolly.

Lord de Martel smiled.

"Elijah. May I congratulate you for the wonderful celebration? The evening has been very interesting."

"Yes, it has. Excuse us."

"Of course." He paused and looked at Dafne. "It was a pleasure to meet you."

"You too, my lord."

Elijah offered Dafne his arm, she wrapped hers around it. Neither of them spoke before they were in the garden.

"What is the matter?" she asked.

"What did Tristan say to you?"

"Not much, but I think he knows."

Elijah didn't reply to that, he seemed tense.

"I will arrange a carriage to take you home," he stated after a moment of silence.

"Alright."

She wanted to ask some questions, like why was Tristan here in the first place, but she knew better. He would talk to her when they were alone, not here when someone could hear them. He escorted her to the carriage and gently kissed her hand.

"Are you tired?" he asked.

"Not really."

He bit his bottom lip.

"I will be home soon and I was wondering… would you like to join me tonight?"

It had been a while; she had no reason to refuse him.

"I would."

He smiled and touched her cheek.

"Wonderful. I will arrange dinner for you in my chamber. Is there anything else you need?"

She shook her head.

"No, I believe I will take a bath before you arrive."

"Alright, I will see you soon."

He helped her into the carriage and closed the door. It didn't take long before she was home. The villa where they were currently staying was very nice, she especially loved the garden.

"So," Klaus' voice said as soon as she reached the hall. "How was the meeting of the dullards?"

Dafne turned to look at him. She was aware how annoyed he was by the fact that he wasn't a member of the Strix. Not that he cared about their cause; he simply couldn't stand being denied.

"It was fine," she replied calmly.

"Hmm. Where is Elijah?"

"He will be here soon."

Klaus smirked and walked over to Dafne.

"But he is not here now…"

She suppressed a sigh; she really wasn't in the mood for this right now.

"Nik!"

Dafne was glad to hear Rebekah's voice, she was marching towards them. She certainly didn't look pleased.

"What did you do to my maid?"

"Not now, Bekah," Klaus snorted.

"Yes, now! Do you have any idea how difficult it is to find a good maid?"

"I said not now…"

"Excuse me," Dafne cut in and headed to her room. She really wanted to take a bath. She had a long night ahead of her.