When darkness falls
and surrounds you
When you fall down
When you're scared
And you're lost.

Be brave,
I'm coming to hold you now.
When all your strength has gone
And you feel wrong,
like your life has slipped away.

Follow me.
You can follow me
And I, I will not desert you now.

Muse – Follow Me

Chapter 16

My little girl

1 week later

"Please, Eva," Elijah pleaded desperately. "You must feed, sweetheart."

She turned her head away, keeping her mouth firmly closed. She was getting weaker every day, but she still refused to feed. Seeing her slowly fading away was breaking Elijah's heart, he had tried everything except force-feeding her, that was the last thing he wanted to do, but unfortunately it seemed that he was running out of options. He was holding a goblet which contained a mixture of blood and wine, it was very clear that she wouldn't feed straight from the source.

The hunters had made her to believe that she was evil, a demon who didn't deserve to live. Elijah didn't know how to fix the damage they had done, he was afraid that Eva's mind was shattered for good. She was so young and she had already been through too much, how much could a child's mind take? Her mind truly was a riddle, his brothers had tried to fix everything by using compulsion, but it hadn't worked, it seemed that she couldn't be compelled.

Elijah had to admit that even though he had been angry at his brothers for even trying that, he might have tried it himself by now; he couldn't bear to see her like this. He sighed and placed the goblet on the table next to the armchair, Eva had curled up against his chest. Gently he cradled her tiny frame and stroked her hair. She was very calm, mostly because of her lack of nourishment; her body wouldn't take it much longer. If she wouldn't start feeding soon, he would have no choice but to force-feed her. Klaus thought that they should have done it already; as surprising as it was, he seemed to be genuinely worried about her.

"You truly are a special girl, my little Eva," he muttered. "You have shown that even the most vicious vampires still have some heart left."

There really was something about her that seemed to bring out the protective side of any vampire; Elijah didn't think that it was just her appearance; it was her unique personality. Like all vampires, she was a curious little predator, but there was also plenty of childlike innocence in her. When Elijah had first seen her, all his instincts had told him to protect her, it had felt like a natural thing to do.

Perhaps that was paternal instinct, he really couldn't tell for sure. He had hoped to become a father when he had been a human, but faith had decided otherwise. His wife, who he had loved dearly, hadn't been able to give him children and despite of his father's loud demands, he had refused to abandon her because of that.

He would have had the right to take a new wife, no one would have judged him because of that, but his honor would have never allowed him to do that. Now when he finally had a child, he hadn't been able to protect her. The thought filled him with silent anger and despair, what kind of a father was he? She called him her father and he truly wanted to be one; he loved the little creature with all his heart.

"Please, Eva…" he started again when a knock on the door interrupted him.

"Yes?" he asked tensely, the door opened and Hoyt stepped inside.

"My lord," he muttered and bowed. There was a slight change of his expression when he noticed Eva.

"Forgive me, I did not mean to disturb…"

"It's fine," Elijah interrupted him tiredly. "What do you need?"

Hoyt hesitated, he seemed quite uncomfortable.

"I…perhaps this is not the right time, I was wondering…about the…reward you offered…"

It took a moment before Elijah realized what he was talking about, the daylight ring. His brothers wouldn't have found Eva without Hoyt.

"Yes, I have not forgotten and I intend to keep my word," he said. "I ask you to wait for a little longer."

"Yes, of course," Hoyt replied immediately. "I…hope the young lady will get better."

Elijah wrapped his arms instinctively tighter around Eva, she was completely motionless. Hoyt turned around and was about to walk out when something ran inside, something small and furry. A puppy. It was wagging its tail and barking while jumping against Hoyt's leg. Elijah frowned.

"Is it yours?"

Hoyt's eyes widened, he seemed almost shocked by Elijah's question.

"No, my lord, it is certainly not mine. I can take it outside…"

"Gawain!"

A young boy ran inside after the dog and picked it up before Hoyt managed to do that.

"Bad dog!" the boy scolded. "Bad dog!"

When the boy looked up, he finally seemed to notice where he was, there was a glimpse of terror in his blue eyes.

"My lord," he muttered and bowed as quickly as he could. "Please forgive me."

Elijah was just about to say that the boy, who judging by his clothes was a child of one of the servants, could leave when he realized that Eva had raised her head and was staring at the boy. This was the first time she had shown interest towards anything after Kol and Klaus had brought her back.

"You can go, Hoyt," Elijah said immediately.

The younger vampire bowed and walked out, the boy tried to follow him.

"Wait a minute, young man," Elijah added firmly, making him to stop. Clearly the boy was afraid; he was holding the puppy tightly in his arms.

"I did not mean to…please forgive me, my lord."

"No need to fear," Elijah assured. "Come here."

Cautiously the boy approached the armchair; Eva tilted her head and observed him intently. Elijah tried his best to curb his excitement; he had to handle this very carefully.

"What is your name?" he asked when the boy was in front of the armchair.

"Owen, my lord."

"How old are you, Owen?" he continued, keeping his tone light.

"9."

"I see. And you have a friend with you."

The boy nodded.

"His name is Gawain, my lord."

The dog barked, making Eva to flinch, but then she was suddenly smiling and reaching towards the dog.

"Owen, this is Eva," Elijah said, trying to sound calm. "May she pet your friend?"

"Of course," the boy said and looked at Eva. "Hi."

"Hi," she replied, her voice sounded weak, but she was still smiling.

Owen moved closer, lifting the dog next to Eva. She laughed when the dog licked her face, Elijah didn't think that he had ever heard more beautiful sound.

"Do you want to play with us?" Owen asked.

Eva turned to look at Elijah.

"Can I, papa?"

Elijah was so relieved that he wanted to laugh.

"Of course, sweetheart, but I would like you to drink this first."

He picked up the goblet and handed it to Eva. She hesitated, looking at him and the red liquid alternately.

"You are a sweet little girl and sweet little girls must feed in order to stay healthy," Elijah said gently. "There is absolutely nothing wrong with that."

She still hesitated, but when she turned to look at the boy and the dog, she took the goblet and emptied it.

"Very good, Eva," Elijah said and touched her nose; she smiled and kissed his cheek.

"I love you, papa."

"I love you too, sweetheart. Now go and play."

She jumped on the floor and started to pet the dog with the boy.

"He is so cute," she said.

"I have taught him how to fetch," Owen explained, he sounded very proud of himself. "Do you want to see?"

"Yes!" Eva cheered, she seemed excited.

A child's mind truly was a riddle, Elijah was amazed by it. She still needed to deal with everything that had happened to her in order to get past it, but right now she seemed like her old self again. She was his darling little girl.