I open my eyes with a groan escaping my lips. Looking around my surroundings, I notice I'm in a trunk of a car with a passed out Hayley by my side. The bumpiness of the road wasn't helping my upcoming headache.
I shove Hayley, hoping it'll wake her up and it does. Her eyes travel around the trunk and soon meets my eyes. "Are you okay?" I mouth to her and she nods, moving her feet to the back window.
Before I could stop her, her feet smashed the window which causes the car to come to a halt. "Nice plan you had there." I roll my eyes and the trunk opens, revealing Tyler. Memories from last night of me opening the front door and seeing him comes back to my mind. Why would he want to kidnap us?
"Seriously?" he sarcastically asks. "Tyler? What are you do—" I couldn't even finish my sentence when he zip ties Hayley's feet together. She immediately tries to fight him, but he grabs her. "You don't wanna fight me, Hayley. You know you can't beat a hybrid."
"Ahh! Let me go, you backstabbing half-breed piece of shi—" Hayley retorts and Tyler pulls her out of the trunk and throws her over his shoulder. "Shut up!"
His hand grabs my arm tightly as he drags me to walk by his side. I hiss in pain and perhaps a bruise will form in the future. "What are you doing, Tyler? Aren't you supposed to be with Caroline?"
"Am I supposed to be with Caroline? Do you not remember your psychotic boyfriend kicked me out of Mystic Falls? Or his charm still clouds your judgement?"
I decided to stay silent on that and let him take us to wherever. I knew if I tried to run, he'd use his vampire speed before I could even walk ten feet away, so there was no point in that.
That didn't stop me from trying to find a way to escape him or somehow find some contact to Klaus. I didn't have my phone because I left it upstairs, when I told Klaus I'd call him back. He's probably out of his mind right now.
The sun shines down on us after we walk for awhile. I spot a shack and Tyler pushes us down on the front steps. I look around my surroundings, there's a lake to my right with a dock. In front of me, there's just trees, but worn out clothes, shoes, garbage we're basically covering the property.
Hayley must've done the same exact thing because she asked the question I was going to ask. "What is this place?"
"The armpit of Louisiana." he answers, not getting the complete answer I wanted but I didn't fight him on it. Tyler pulls a knife out of his pocket and aims it towards Hayley. "What are you gonna do with that?"
"Depends on you." Tyler uses the knife and cuts the zip tie on her ankles. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.
"Hey, you attacked me, remember? You ambushed me, in my own backyard." Hayley retorts and Tyler immediately snaps his head towards her. "It's not your backyard, it's Klaus'! You're shacked up in that mansion with that psycho. A long way from the girl I've met in the Appalachians, helping other werewolves."
"Tyler, I'm sorry, but a lot has happened since the last time I saw you." Hayley says and Tyler nods. "You mean that you're pregnant? A hybrid baby, yeah, I know all about it."
Tyler looks at me, crouching down to eye level. "Are you even sure it's yours? I mean, you honestly believe some witches from New Orleans took Hayley out of everyone and put the baby in her?"
"I know nothing happened between them because—"
"Because what?" Tyler asks, his head tilted to the side. "Because you think Klaus wouldn't cheat? He's a thousand years old, you think you wouldn't bore him? What do you think happened when you and Klaus got in a fight that night your house burned down. He was furious you defended me, he probably used Hayley to calm himself down. I mean, that's probably why she was staying with him for a few days."
"Tyler, stop it." I avoid eye contact with either of them. Trying not to let his words get to me.
"Can't believe you'd actually believe some bullshit excuse so the witches could have an advantage of Klaus and his child. Sooner or later you'll find out the truth."
I didn't even know how he found out about the witches and how he knew all the background info. I guess words do spread around here.
"Nothing happened between Klaus and I. I swear." Hayley tells me, but I still refused to look into her eyes. "I only came to look for my family, that's it."
"Believe whoever you want. But, who's theory sounds right?" Tyler states, standing back up and moving towards Hayley. "Speaking of your family. I've been roaming around the Bayou, asking questions. Let me tell you what I learned!"
He pulls down Hayley's sweater sleeve a birthmark a shape of a crescent is visible on her shoulder. "This crescent birthmark means you come from a big-shot family. Some kind of royalty for the werewolves of this region. And right here—" He gestures around him, "this is all that's left of them." Which is no one.
The more I look, the more shacks and tents made of blankets that are shown. At the corner of my eye, I spot a blonde girl standing near a tree. Hayley immediately gets up and shows her tied hands. "Hey! Help us!"
The woman is startled and immediately runs away. I roll my eyes. We're never getting out of here.
"They can't help you! They're in the woods, hiding, because they were persecuted for decades by vampires." Tyler explains in a harsh tone.
A man appears a few seconds later and points to Hayley, "Is that her?" he asks and Tyler sighs with a nod. "Yeah, Dwayne. Get them both inside."
§
Dwayne's lifeless body falls to the ground after Tyler snaps his neck. Tyler drops the syringe that was full of Hayley's blood from her stomach until he injected it into Dwayne.
My hands are tightly secured by zip ties against the wall and Hayley's sitting right next to me in the same dilemma. My eyes have been searching anywhere to cut this zip tie, but nothing has seem to catch my sight.
I watch in silence as Tyler drags the dead body to the opposite side of the wall. "Don't get all judgy! Dwayne knew what he was getting into. He volunteered!" Tyler spats at the two of us.
"For you to kill him?" Hayley questions with a skeptical tone. "Dwayne is a werewolf who died with your blood in his system. The same blood you share with your hybrid baby."
I put two and two together, and realized what he's doing. "Wait, are you trying to turn him into a hybrid? That's not even possible... Hayley doesn't even have the—"
"Petrova gene? Doesn't matter. I've been running with wolf packs all over the country. One of them was tight with a witch. She had nightmare visions about your baby and how Klaus could use its blood to make an army of hybrid slaves."
"You're really going to believe some witches? Seriously, Tyler?" I retort and he shrugs down at me, "You seem to believe a lot of witches these days."
"It's just a baby!" Hayley tells him, anger spilling out of her mouth.
"Maybe. Maybe not. That's where Dwayne comes in. You see, he was happy to be the test case. If you haven't noticed, these people don't have much to live for. They'd all welcome the chance to become the superior species. Trouble is, all hybrids are sired to Klaus. They follow his every move."
Tyler finishes his sentence and grabs knife from his bag and sets it on the table. "No way I let that happen." he continues.
"How can you be so sure Klaus knows what the baby's blood will do?" Hayley asks and I shake my head, definitely not believing what they're assuming.
"What do you think? Klaus Mikaelson, killer of men, women and puppies, all of a sudden wants to be a daddy? Or, he's got an ulterior motive. Hybrids can walk in the sun. Their bite is lethal to vampires. They'll take over New Orleans by the end of the week. And you know what's going to stop Klaus then? Nothing."
I didn't even have time to defend Klaus when Dwayne opens his eyes with a gasp and starts panicking. Tyler's eyes move to Hayley then back at Dwayne. "You're gonna have to feed on her."
"What? No!" Hayley screams and starts kicking her feet as Tyler walks over to her with a knife in his hand. Her screams sound more vile when Tyler completes his task by cutting her neck.
"Tyler!" I yell, but he simply ignores me and tells Dwayne to feed on her, and he obliges. I close my eyes as I hear Hayley scream in pain. It suddenly stops when Dwayne falls to the floor and Tyler brings him outside where I can no longer see them.
"Are you okay?!" I ask her and she nods her head quickly, but her face tells a different story. I notice the knife that Tyler dropped on the floor. "Can you reach that?" I whisper, hoping neither of the men outside can hear.
Hayley tries to reach for it, but it was useless. She instead grabs a broken chair leg from the floor. She quickly hides it behind her and shoots me a quick look. "I got this." she mouths to me and I nod, wondering what she's planning on doing.
Tyler comes back a few minutes later with a grim look on his face. "It worked, didn't it? He's a hybrid." Hayley comes to conclusion and Tyler nods. "If Klaus gets a hold of you, if he gets that kid? He wins."
"Then help me hide the baby from him! Help me run!" Hayley pleads. "What?!" I immediately shot back at her.
Tyler walks over and picks the knife up off the floor. He'll find you, he'll take that kid away, and he'll make more hybrid monsters. Slaves who do everything he says."
"Tyler, whatever you're thinking of doing, there has to be another way. You're not like this!" Hayley says before she shows the wooden stake and stabs Tyler with it once he's close.
I gasp as Tyler screams in pain, but quickly pulls the stake out and glares at her. "That was stupid!"
"Get away from her!"
I turn my head quickly, seeing Dwayne in the doorway. "What do you care?" Tyler shakes it off, but Dwayne raises his voice. "I said get away!"
Tyler throws an annoyed look. "You got what you wanted, now get lost!"
"Dwayne, he's gonna kill me! And he's gonna kill you, too! He said that hybrids are too dangerous to live! You need to stop him!" I realized what Hayley was doing. It's clear Dwayne is sired to her, considering he automatically obeyed her request when he throws Tyler across the room.
Hayley gets ahold of the knife and cuts herself free, crawling over to me and cutting me free as well. She helps me up and we rush out of the shack before Tyler could catch us.
Hayley and I ran through the woods. I turn my head slightly to see if anyone is behind me, and I was safe for now. I turn my head back and see I was alone. Hayley must've gone the other way, and now I have no idea where she could be.
I stand in the middle of the woods, not really sure where I should go. "Hayle—"
A pair of hands softly cover mine and their hands hold me securely against theirs. "Shh. I got you, love."
I immediately calm down, swiftly turning to face him and my arms quickly wrap themselves around him. I pull away from the long embrace and look up at Klaus.
"It's Tyler and he knows more than he should." I tell him, but I can sense he figured out Tyler kidnapped us. "Don't mind him, sweetheart. Are you alright? Did he hurt you?"
"No, he didn't hurt me." I reply and quickly stop him from examining my face. He closes his eyes and pulls my closer, my face pressed against his chest as I breathe in his scent.
His hands cup the side of my cheeks and brings my attention to his eyes. He brings us closer, his breath against my lips. Tyler's words cloud my thoughts and it took a lot to try not to kiss him, but I couldn't help it. Our lips meet for a split second and it breaks apart.
"You find Hayley. I'll meet up with you afterwards. I promise you, my love."
And just like that, I'm alone in the woods again. I walk around, trying to pick up any noise within my range. Not shorty after, I see Elijah and Hayley sitting on a dead tree that had fallen. They're talking about Klaus, about him trying to use our child for his hybrids.
"He's over the hybrid obsession, I know this." I insert myself into the conversation and their heads snap my way.
"I know you are very loyal to Niklaus, but no matter what my brothers intentions are, they all seem to lead up to what he has always wanted."
"It's not about me being loyal to him, Elijah. I know he has changed and he had no idea the child can make hybrids." I tell him and he shakes his head, looking at Hayley, who bites her lips.
"Are you seriously going to turn against your own brother?"
"If I recall, you are the very person who turned against her own twin." he tells me, putting his hand on his hip. "That was very different."
"Is it?"
After not responding to him, his head snaps up and then at the two of us. "Seems my brother is done with your hybrid friend."
We walk back to the shack, where a dead Dwayne was waiting and Klaus is standing near his body, shoving it towards us. "There you are! I see you've found our wandering stray. Perhaps you could shed some light on the situation. This appears to be a hybrid."
"His name was Dwayne." Hayley tells him. "Well, whoever it was, I didn't sire him. Any idea how that's possible?" Klaus replies and Hayley stomps towards him. "As if you didn't know!"
Elijah holds Hayley back and walks in front of her to protect her from Klaus. "Ahhh, well, aren't you two fast friends? Oh, come on, then. What kind of horrible accusation have you conspired to levy against me?" he says, unamused.
I step in, telling him what Tyler wanted from Hayley. "The blood of our child can be used to sire hybrids and Tyler believes that you wanted to build an army with that knowledge. I, of course, didn't believe him, but..." My eyes move to Elijah and Hayley, who still seem strongly against Klaus.
Klaus turns to Elijah. "And, of course, you assume it's true. I mean, why else would I show interest in my own flesh and blood? A heartbroken little crybaby points his finger at me, and my own brother falls in line, eager to believe it! How quickly you believe the worst, especially when it comes from her."
"Oh, spare me your indignation. When have you ever demonstrated any kind of concern towards Hayley or that child, beyond your own selfish pursuits? And what was it you once said to me? Every king needs an heir!"
"My big brother. So, you doubt my intentions? Well, I can't say I'm surprised, standing next to the noble Elijah, how can I be anything but the lesser brother? A liar, a manipulator, a bastard. That's all I am to you, isn't it? And Rebekah. And, judging by the way Hayley hangs on your every word, it's clear she feels the same way!"
A frown appears on my face. I knew he always felt like less of a brother to them because he didn't share the same father as them, but I know that wasn't true at all. Elijah seems to calm down a bit, "Brother, if—"
Klaus interiors him. "You've said all that needs to be said, brother." He steps back a few steps and holds his arms out in defeat. "I'll play the role I've been given."
He turns around and I went to follow him. Instead, he turns back around and inhuman speeds to Elijah, biting him on the neck. The werewolf bite. I widen my eyes, my hand moving to my mouth in shock as Hayley screams in horror.
Klaus wipes his mouth with his hand. "You two enjoy each other's company. You'll have much to bond over, once the hallucinations and dementia set in. Consider that bite to be my parting gift to you both."
Klaus then walks to me and grabs my arm, holding onto tightly and taking me away from the scene. Once we're pretty far from their site I turn back to him and yank his grip off of me. "You go back there and give him your blood."
"I will not. My own brother chose a girl over me. And, well, he should've seen that coming." he replies back to me, walking ahead of me. I catch up to him. "He's your brother, Klaus. You can't just..." I had nothing else to say otherwise I'd be calling myself a hypocrite. There's plenty of times I went against Elena or Jeremy just because of Klaus.
"He'll heal."
§
Klaus' hands grabs onto the cup filled with scotch and chugs it down his throat. His eyes bore into mine, like he had something he needed to tell me. My arms cross against my chest, staring back at him. We are far apart, but not too far.
"What's this nonsense Tyler kept talking about? Something along the lines of you never forgiving me?"
My mouth drops open a bit, not even surprised Tyler would mention something. "Nothing. He didn't say anything." I reply, swallowing thickly.
He sets down his glass and takes one step towards me. "Well, now you're just lying to me. What did he say?" he asks again.
"He just said something about the baby. That's all." I give him a short answer and he rolls his eyes, nodding. "Well, of course I know our child can create hybrids."
"No. I mean, the baby might not... be mine."
I scan his facial reaction, but it's hard to read. And now I wish I never said anything so I could be far from the truth.
"Maya. What did he say?"
"That the baby is yours and Hayley's... which I know isn't true because—" And right after that I look up at him, expecting him to latch out at me for even consider believing it, but I got a completely different reaction. This time, his eyes are avoiding mine.
I couldn't speak. No words formed out of my mouth after that. He... he couldn't have. Klaus' eyes stare straight across somewhere else, completely lost in his own mind.
"No." I say after a moment. Warm, wet, tears fall from my eyes and down to my cheeks. "This isn't how it was supposed to happen. Please tell me you're lying. Please."
I begged of him to tell me the truth, but he didn't budge. His face remains emotionless and he doesn't even bother to look at me as I continue to cry in front of him.
"Klaus. Tell me you didn't."
He didn't say anything. He picks up his half full glass of scotch and walks out of the room with no words. Tyler was right. And I was left alone. Again.