Chapter Fifteen:

The machines beeped softly in the dimly lit room as the nurses checked the status of the sleeping teen. Sympathetic glances would be shot to the frowning Eric as he sat at her bedside before they quickly scurried from the room whenever he would glare darkly at them. He didn't want their pity. He didn't want them to feel sorry for him. All he wanted was for Mackenzie to wake up, for them all to go home and for this to be some sort of nightmare they would all wake up from.

But that was never going to be the case, and Eric knew it.

"She should wake up soon." One nurse commented before slipping out of the room.

Eric just grunted in response, not sure if he believed her.

But as if on cue, rustling sounded from the bed. Eric shifted in his chair, leaning forward as he inspected Mackenzie. Her eyelids were beginning to flutter as her fingers twitched ever so slightly. He was on his feet in seconds as he placed himself at her side, brushing a strand of hair out of her face.

"Mackenzie?" He urged. "Can you hear me?"

A soft moan escaped her lips and he sighed in relief. He wasn't going to be losing her today at least.

"Shh, Mackenzie, it's all right." He soothed, caressing her cheek with the backs of his fingers. "You're all right."

Her breathing changed as her hand moved ever so slowly up to her bandaged forehead. A groan sounded as her eyes fluttered open, only to be squeezed shut once again at the blinding light above her bed. Eric frowned as he flashed over to the light switch, dimming the light before returning to her side.

"You can open your eyes now." He encouraged, sitting on the very edge of her bed.

She did as she was told, almost earning a smile from Eric. The one time she listens to him, and it's in the hospital. Go figure.

"Eric?" her eyebrows furrowed as she blinked in order to focus her glazed orbs. "W-where am I?"

"You're in the hospital." He explained. "You collapsed in Merlotte's."

"Oh." She frowned as she tried to recall the last thing she could remember of that night. She could feel a headache coming on and rubbed her temple only to hiss in pain. That was right; she had fallen coming out of the stall and must have hit her head on the ground. "How long have I been out?"

"About 24 hours." He checked the time before focusing back on her.

She simply nodded as she attempted to push herself up into a sitting position, only to find her arms could barely hold her weight. She sighed and remained where she was until Eric lifted her until her back was against the sad, pathetically flat pillows.

"Thanks," she murmured, gazing down at her hands. Her frown deepened as she started fidgeting with the wires and tubes attached to her. She hated hospitals. She hated anything that reminded her that she was sick, that she was…

Oh no.

Her head suddenly snapped up to meet Eric's gaze. She knew immediately the one thing she dreaded, the one thing she feared, had occurred.

Eric knew.

He knew she was sick. He knew she was dying. She could see it in his eyes. She knew it was going to come out eventually. She knew it was only a matter of time. But like this? It had to happen like this? She may have begged her Doctor in New York not to contact her guardians, but the Doctors here would have told him in a heartbeat. It was what she had been afraid of if anything happened.

Now he knew.

"You know." She whispered, ducking her head as her tangled hair fell into her face. "They told you."

"They did." His voice had hardened. "We need to have a nice long chat, Mackenzie."

"Do we have to?"

"I think we do." He clasped a finger under her chin and lifted her gaze until her orbs met his. "You need to tell me why you never told me."

"I…" She didn't know what to say. She was at a loss for words. She knew this day would come, but she hadn't prepared herself for it. What was she supposed to say? How was she supposed to come up with a good enough excuse as to why she had kept something so huge from her own family?

"Mackenzie." His eyes began to narrow. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I was…" her mouth was dry, her tongue licking her lips as her eyes darted around the room as if something would just pop out and help her. What the hell was she supposed to do?

"Were you ever going to tell us? Or were you just planning on it being a surprise at your funeral?" he questioned in a low tone. He wasn't happy. He wasn't happy with her at all.

"I…I…"

"I want an answer, Mackenzie." His grip tightened on her chin.

Her heart started to race, pumping harder than it already was as her palms started to sweat. Why hadn't she just told him? Why hadn't she just made it easier on them all and come clean? Why had she waited? This could have all been avoided. Eric wouldn't have demanded a family outing to Merlotte's for some suspicious reason, and the stress wouldn't have attacked her body as it had. They wouldn't be here, sitting in the hospital. She wouldn't be attached to the machines she despised, and she wouldn't have to stare into those disappointed orbs of her adopted father.

"Mackenzie…"

"I was scared." She blurted out, tears forming in her eyes. She tried to blink them away, not wanting to show her weakness to Eric. But then again, she was lying in a hospital bed dying; crying was the least of her worries.

"Scared?" Eric frowned. "Scared of what?"

"Of…" she inhaled sharply. "Of you not wanting me."

His eyebrows furrowed. Was this really what she thought? Did she really think that just because she was sick, that he wouldn't want her anymore? "Do you really think that?"

She shrugged. "You haven't exactly wanted me my entire life."

"So you thought just because you were sick, that I would what exactly? Dump you on the side of the street?"

"Yes." She squeaked out. It sounded stupid to say it out loud. But she couldn't help her fears. Eric hadn't exactly wanted her over the years. He had just been stuck with her. Who was to say this wouldn't have been the last straw?

"Oh Mackenzie, Mackenzie, Mackenzie." Eric shook his head, letting go of her chin as he stood. He pushed his hand through his hair as he paced the length of the room. Did she really think that little of him? Did she really view him as a piece of scum? Had he really made her feel that unwelcome, that unloved? "Do you know how insane that sounds?"

"You sent me away to school!" she defended. "You sent me away to some stupid school I never asked for and you never let me come home even once."

"That was for your own safety." He pointed out.

Mackenzie rolled her eyes. "Safety from what? Do you even know how many vampires there were in New York?"

"But they didn't know that you were my…" he trailed off with a sigh. Maybe he should have just told her the true reason she had to be far far away from Louisiana, from the danger of her family. But that would only lead to the conversation of that devastating night fourteen years ago that he just wasn't ready to have.

He wasn't sure he ever would be.

"I call bullshit." Mackenzie crossed her arms, or attempted to before sighing and letting her arms fall back down to her lap. "You just wanted me out of your hair."

"You know absolutely nothing." Eric hissed, his eyes narrowing. "Why the hell would I have wanted that?"

"Because you've never wanted me! You tried to get rid of me before. You were just successful this time." She argued, glaring at the wall so she wouldn't have to look him in the eye. She didn't want to see the truth.

Eric wanted to pull his hair out. His frustration was growing with every word that slipped from her mouth. Was this what she really believed? How much more did he have to do to prove that he cared? "Damn it, Mackenzie, haven't I proven it to you enough?"

She snorted, rolling her eyes. "You sent me away!"

"For your god damn protection!" he roared, his hands curling into tight fists.

"For some mysterious reason." She countered.

His jaw clenched. "You're not listening to a word I'm saying."

"Well you never listen to me…"

"Which is probably a good thing as everything that comes out of your mouth is a lie." He growled. "How many times have I asked if everything was alright? How many times did I give you the opportunity to tell me that you were sick, that you were dying?"

"I told you I was scared."

"I call bullshit." He sneered.

Mackenzie bit down hard on her bottom lip. "I was!"

"And I was just protecting you!"

"From what!"

"I don't need to discuss this with you." Eric just glared at her. "You're the child, I'm the parent."

"Really? You're the parent?" she scoffed. "Since when?"

"Mackenzie…" he grunted in warning. "I'm not in the mood for this."

"And you think I am? I'm the one who's dying."

"Well maybe if you had told me six months ago, I could have helped you."

Mackenzie just shook her head. "There's nothing you could have done. There's nothing you can do. I'm dying."

"Not if I can help it." He suddenly twisted on his heel. If he stayed in this room one more minute, he was going to lose his temper. He had tried to muster all the patience possible, but she always seemed to infuriate him. All he wanted was for her to come clean, to tell him everything. But instead, she had to argue with him, insist that he didn't care. And maybe she was right; maybe he hadn't shown it in the past. But he was here now. He was trying. Didn't that matter for anything?

At least he hadn't abandoned her like Godric had.

It hit him in that moment as he was about to exit the room. Everything suddenly made perfect sense.

"You thought I would abandon you like Godric did." He slowly turned back towards her. "You thought I would just leave when things got tough, like he did."

She wouldn't look him in the eye and he knew he had hit the nail right on the head.

"Mackenzie," he sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "You know that isn't true. You know I wouldn't just leave you."

"Actually I don't know that." She murmured.

"Maybe I haven't exactly shown it in the past, but I've been here this entire time. I never once just left you."

"Technically…" she trailed off.

"I came back." He made sure to point out. He was never going to live it down that he had just shipped her off to Godric's when she was seven. But he had gone back to collect her. He had been there for her ever since. He might have sent her across the country, but if she only knew why, she would be more understanding.

"That doesn't mean you won't leave."

"But I wouldn't." he stepped forward, only to stop himself. He wanted to comfort her. He wanted to tug her into his arms. But he had never been the one to comfort her. He had never been the one to promise everything was going to be right. That had always been Godric's job.

But he wasn't here and he had made it perfectly clear he had no desire to be.

"Despite what you may believe, Mackenzie, I'm not leaving." He insisted with determination. "And neither will you."

"Don't get your hopes up." She muttered, gazing sadly down at her lap. "I'm dying, and there's nothing you can do to stop that."

"It's an interesting world we live in, Mackenzie. Anything is possible." He reeled around on heel. "And I'm not about to lose you."

She risked a glance up at him, eyeing her surrogate father as he stormed from the room. She was left feeling deflated. This was the last thing she wanted. This was everything she had feared would come true. All she had wanted was to die in peace, to curl up in her own bed and just live out the rest of her life without drama. But she wasn't exactly a lucky one.

She was dying, after all.

"It's been three nights." Pam mused as she stood in the doorway of Eric's office at Fangtasia. The pounding of the music drifted into the room, causing the Viking to frown and glare up at her. Pam rolled her eyes as she closed the door behind her, moving around the desk until she was behind him. She wasn't surprised at all to find what he had been crouched over. "A book of spells? You're honestly digging that low?"

"I'm not going to let her die." There was a fierce determination in his orbs as he flipped through the pages of the worn journal he had stolen long ago from a wrench. It had meant nothing but serving as a trophy of one of his many triumphs. But now, now it could be a key.

"Do you really think there's going to be a spell in this wretched book that's going to help her?" Pam raised an eyebrow.

Eric ignored her and continued looking. He wasn't about to give up. Even if he had to search day and night for the next month or two, he wouldn't just let her die. He wasn't ready to accept that. Not now, not ever.

"I want to save her just as much as you do, but do you honestly think wasting your time doing this is going to help?" Pam sighed, leaning against the desk.

Eric sighed as he raised his gaze to meet hers. "I have to try something."

"Why don't we just give her our blood?" Pam suggested. "We don't even know if it will work or not. It could."

"You know the consequence of that." Eric reminded her.

"So one of us will be bonded to her forever." She shrugged. "She's a part of this family."

"I know that."

"You're willing to find a witch to cast some sketchy spell on your daughter, but you're not willing to give her your own blood that could cure her?"

Eric looked away.

"Or we could always just turn her and get it out of the way."

"No." he hissed. "You know how I feel about that."

"Well then give her your blood." She pursed her lips together, tossing her hair over her shoulder as she stood and strutted towards the door. "Or I will."

"You won't." he warned.

"Then do something!"

He just glared darkly at his progeny until she huffed and stormed from the office. Cringing as the door was slammed close, he sat back in his seat and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He knew Pam was partly right. He wasn't going to find an answer in this book. But he wasn't sure what else to do. He had searched everywhere else. Modern medicine was useless, deeming her already dead. The healers he had contacted hadn't been anymore helpful. Witches were his last resort.

Unless he gave Mackenzie his blood.

He could. It would be so simple. He could give her his blood and it could possibly be all over, just like that. But he knew the consequences. He knew how opposed she would likely be to it. But he was also her…her father. He was supposed to do everything in his power to protect her. Perhaps this would be the only way.

"I wish you were here right now, Godric." He muttered to the empty room. "You would know what to do."

Mackenzie waited for hours curled up in her hospital bed, completely alone minus the nurses that would check on her vitals every so often. Most wouldn't even utter a word, the room silent except for the beeping for the machines she was hooked up to. It was starting to get to her. She wasn't used to it being so quiet, to being so lonely. Never in New York had she ever had a moment alone. Cassie never let her. Even when Mackenzie had requested time to herself, to just gather her thoughts or study without being watched like a hawk, her best friend always refused. And in a way, Mackenzie was grateful. Because she knew now that the silence was an absolute nightmare. She wanted someone, anyone to talk to.

Even if that talking was in the form of yelling.

Eric hadn't come to visit since that night. Now three days later, she was beginning to wonder if all of her fears had been correct; Eric no longer wanted her. Or maybe he never had and this was his perfect excuse to leave her, to abandon her like his maker had. She didn't want to think like that. She wanted to believe that he cared, that he was just taking time to process everything. But all the silence, it was starting to plant doubts; doubts that she was beginning to believe.

Eventually, when she was unable to take the deafening silence any longer, she carefully unhooked some of the wires attached to her arm and crawled out of bed. She had to steady herself, and it took a good ten minutes just to cross the small, cramped room, but she made it to the door without falling to pieces.

"It must be late." She murmured to herself, peeking her head out of the room and noticing the dimmed lights and the lack of staff crowded around the nurse's station.

Mackenzie took that opportunity of not being watched by the single busy nurse filling out paperwork and glanced down the hallway in hope Eric or maybe even Pam would be there, just waiting to see her. Her face fell, however, when she only saw a few other patients and a Doctor here and there. Eric and Pam were nowhere to be seen. Not that she expected to see them, but she had hoped.

"Is there anything I can get you, Miss Northman?" the nurse asked kindly from behind the desk.

Mackenzie sighed and shook her head, tucking a tangled lock of hair behind her ear. "I was just looking for…someone."

"Visiting hours ended a few hours ago." She smiled sadly at the girl. "Did you need anything?"

"No, I'm fine." Her shoulders dropped as she turned towards the door. She stopped before entering, and glanced over her shoulder at the nurse. "Has anyone come by today for me? Or has anyone called?"

Mackenzie recognized the pity on the nurse's aging face. "Sorry sweetheart."

"That's alright." Mackenzie mumbled, dropping her gaze as she hurried back into her room, resting her back against the door once it was closed. She shouldn't have been upset or surprised. Of course no one would come to see her. Of course Eric wouldn't care like she had always prayed that he did. She had just been delusional, that's all.

She spent the rest of the night tucked in the uncomfortable bed, the itchy blanket wrapped around her as she fought to sleep. She twisted and turned constantly, slipping in and out of sleep the entire night. At one point, she could have sworn she felt another presence in the room with her, though she figured it must have just been a dream.

Who would come to see her, after all?

"You silly little fool." Eric shook his head as he ran his fingers through his short hair.

A frown stretched across his lips as he reached over and lifted the blanket back around Mackenzie as she once again turned restlessly in her sleep. It was the third night he had just sat there, watching as she slept. Not once had he been caught, for which he was glad. Pam suspected where he went at night, once Fangtasia closed, after visiting hours were long over, but she never voiced her suspicions out loud. It was better that way, easier than to explain.

"I don't know how to fix this." His thumb brushed along her cheek, his frown deepening at how cold she was. She was as pale as a ghost, and was as cold as a vampire. He didn't like it one bit. He missed the pinks of her cheeks, the warmth her smile brought him. But he hadn't seen a true smile in too long, which was partly his own fault. Maybe if he had been there, if he hadn't shipped her off to school, he could have prevented all of this from happening.

"Daddy?"

The soft-spoken word jolted Eric from his thoughts, his hand jumping away as he stared wide eyed at the still sleeping girl. Her eyes were closed, though her forehead was wrinkled as she dreamt. It was the second time in the last few days she had called him that.

He had always been clear with her, and she had always understood; he wasn't her father, he wasn't her dad; he was just Eric, just her guardian. That was it. There was a line, and he had made damn sure not to cross it.

But fourteen years later, and that line was becoming blurred. It was a ragged line that he could barely even recognize any longer. And that scared him. When had he become this vampire? Where had the ruthless monster gone? When had he become a parent when it was the last thing he had ever wanted, even in his human years?

The most terrifying part of it all, however, was the fact that a small, tiny little part of him liked hearing it.

Sighing, Eric stood, knowing he had outstayed his welcome. The sun would be rising shortly and he still had research to do to find some sort of cure. It couldn't be impossible, not like the idiotic human doctors believed. This world was surrounded by the impossible. Vampires, werewolves, magic itself shouldn't have existed. But it did. There had to be something, anything, that could help them, that could fix this. There had to be.

Leaning over, Eric brushed his lips across Mackenzie's forehead before straightening and whisking his leather jacket from the back of the uncomfortable chair.

"You are not going to die." He brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes before taking a step back. "I won't let it happen."

With determination set in his icy blue orbs, Eric vanished from the room a quickly as he had appeared, not a single or nurse even aware of Mackenzie's late night visitor.

"Thanks for bringing me some clothes." Mackenzie stepped out of the small bathroom, fidgeting with the t-shirt that displayed all of her bruises.

Pam eyed the teen, taking in every single bruise, noting the new ones. "Don't mention it kid, anything to get you out of those dreadful rags."

Mackenzie quietly packed up whatever belongings Pam had brought to her over the last few days and stuffed them into the bag Pam had brought with her. She was grateful the doctors were releasing her. She wouldn't be sad to never see this room again. In fact, she hoped she never would have to. She hated hospitals. She hated the silence, the sickly smell that lingered in the air, the stark white walls that lined every single room and hallway. She just wanted to be curled up in her own bed, in the comfort of her own home. She wanted to hide away in the library and read what very well may be her last few books. She wanted to stretch out before the TV and watch some mindless reality show.

She certainly didn't want to waste what little time she had left sitting in a hospital room.

"Ready to go?"

"Where's Eric?" Mackenzie asked in a small voice as she followed Pam out of the room. They walked right on past the nurse's station and she wondered for a moment if Pam had even signed all of the release forms. Knowing her, she likely glamoured the nurses to forget that little detail.

Pam's heels clicked along the hallway, a frown settling on her lips. "He got caught up. You'll see him at home."

"Will I? Or will he avoid me there too?" Mackenzie sighed bitterly. She just wanted to see him, to talk to him, to apologize over and over again for not telling him. Had she really lost him just because she had been afraid? Or was this Eric's way of getting out now, while he could?

The blonde vampire twisted on her heel, her hands planted firmly on her hips. "You two are not going to start arguing again."

"I didn't say…"

"You are not going to mope around all day and stay locked in your bedroom at night. Don't look at me like that, I know you better than you think." She sent Mackenzie a pointed look. "Eric is…Eric. You know how he is, Mackenzie. You know he's not exactly dad of the year."

"He's not exactly a dad at all." Mackenzie's shoulders slumped. "Why does he hate me? I thought…I thought when I came back things were different but now…"

"He's just been told his daughter is dying of cancer and there's nothing he can do about it; how did you think he was going to react?" Pam raised an eyebrow. "He's not known for taking things with a calm head. Godric must have forgotten to teach him that in the past thousand years."

At the mention of Godric's name, Mackenzie cringed. Noticing her reaction, Pam tilted her head to the side curiously.

"Did you ever tell him?"

"No." Mackenzie answered quickly, brushing passed the vampire.

"Did anyone?" Pam flashed before her, pulling her to a sudden halt. "Or was it just going to be one big surprise for everyone when we got the invitations to your funeral?"

"It wasn't like that." Mackenzie insisted.

"Oh really? Then what was it like then?" ruby red lips pursed together.

Mackenzie looked away, wrapping her arms around herself. She couldn't exactly blame anyone's reaction. She should have told them the minute she arrived home. Or better yet, she should have phoned and told them the second she learned of her impending death. But she hadn't. Out of fear, yes, but she still had made the conscious decision to keep this from them. She could only use the excuse of protecting herself so many times before she started sounding selfish and uncaring.

"You should have told us."

"I know." Mackenzie risked a glance up at Pam, shuddering at the piercing glare. "I was just…scared I guess."

"Of what? You said the same thing to Eric. What were you so scared of?"

"Of losing you. Of losing everything."

Pam couldn't understand her reasoning. "That's absurd."

"Eric shipped me off to boarding school across the country; I'm allowed to think he doesn't exactly give a crap about me." Mackenzie tried to defend herself. "I was scared this would be reason enough for him to leave me."

"Like Godric did." Pam eyed her closely. "You were scared Eric and I would abandon you like Godric did when you were twelve."

"I found out you were vampires and I freaked out. Godric left and…and I figured the minute Eric knew I was sick and dying, he'd do the same thing." Mackenzie bowed her head, her hands fidgeting as she swallowed away the rising lump. She didn't want to cry there in the hallway, and certainly not again. She had shed way too many tears in the last few days.

Sighing, Pam tucked her hair behind an ear before softening her expression. "Eric's not going to abandon you, Mackenzie. No matter what you ever have to tell him, he's never going to just leave."

"I thought that about Godric too."

"And Godric is a prick." Pam rolled her eyes.

"No he's not." Mackenzie shook his head. "He probably knew I was too much to handle even then and got out while he had the chance."

"Hey," Pam quickly closed the gap between them, gripping Mackenzie's chin firmly as she forced the girl's gaze to meet her own. "Godric is an ass. And I say this as his grand-progeny. He never should have left. But it's his loss, Mackenzie. Don't you ever think you're worthless."

"Aren't I though?" she shrugged sadly. "I mean Eric sent me away to school without even a blink of an eye…"

"And he hated every damn minute of it. I've caught him sneaking off to New York on more than one occasion." Pam admitted without hesitancy. Eric would kill her if he found out she told Mackenzie, but she'd deal with him later. Right now, Mackenzie needed to know Eric cared, even if he was inept at telling her himself. "Every time I thought he'd come home with you in tow. I was surprised that he never did."

"What do you mean he went to New York?" Mackenzie's eyebrows furrowed. Eric had never come to see her, so what was Pam talking about?

A smirk slowly spread across Pam's red lips. "He was probably too much of a chicken shit to face you, but he was there. He's always been watching over you Mackenzie, no matter where you are."

"But I never saw him there."

"He never wanted you to." Pam shrugged. "That was the point. He wanted to make sure you were doing all right."

Mackenzie couldn't believe what she was hearing. Eric had come to New York? But when? And why would he?

"He's always loved you, Mackenzie, even if he's never been able to say it." Pam offered a rare, true smile.

She was dumbfounded at the new piece of information. Never in a million years would she have guessed Eric had come to New York. He may have been lurking in the shadows, but he had still been there, he had still been watching over her when the entire time she thought he just hadn't cared. But he had. Even just a little bit.

There was proof of that now.