Bloody Symphony | Elijah Mikaelson

Chapter 32

Hayley had bad news for them.

Apparently, while the two brothers and Natanya had been rescuing Freya, The Strix Coven had shown up at St. Anne's to try and rip Hayley's heart out.

"The attack was about breaking the sire link," said Hayley. "Marcel told me that Aya's witches already have a spell to do it."

"And how does your heart play into all of this?" asked Klaus.

"I'm the only un-sired vampire in history," said Hayley. "Apparently, that's the key to making it work."

Klaus gritted his teeth. "And yet, Marcel neglected to mention it this morning."

"Hey, ease up," said Hayley. "He saved me."

"But The Strix could try again," said Natanya. "He may have rescued you this one but it might not happen again."

"Let them try," said Hayley. "I'm not an easy target. They'd be better off trying to find some witchy workaround."

Klaus suddenly frowned. "Unless they already have."

"They need my heart," said Hayley. "Or one that's identical to it."

Natanya and Elijah figured it out first. "Jackson," whispered the Original.

Hayley shut her eyes and sighed deeply. "The Unification Ceremony didn't just marry us-- it also made his heart a mirror image of mine."

Klaus clasped his hands together. "We need to dig it up."

"We can't do that!" said Natanya immediately. "His heart was laid to rest beside Aiden's— it has to remain undisturbed."

"There are white oak bullets somewhere in the world, and they will eventually be shot at us. When they are, I would prefer the vampires of New Orleans be obligated to protect us. They'll be more likely to do so if our lives remain linked to theirs."

Elijah winced. "Niklaus is right. The sire-link has to remain unbroken. We have to go."

Natanya and Hayley shared a look, before both nodded, knowing they weren't getting out of this.

The problem was, the heart was already gone.

"No," breathed Natanya. "No, no, no..." she sank down beside the cabin, staring at the gaping hole in the ground where Jackson's heart should have been. "But why... how could they..."

"We'll find who did this," promised Elijah.

"And return the favor tenfold," confirmed Klaus.

They found the guilty party soon enough. They already had an inkling that The Strix were responsible. Within a few days, it had been confirmed.

Natanya had been with the Crescents one late afternoon when two wolves came sprinting toward her, letting her know that they'd found Aya, and had heard her mentioning something about white oak bullets. She'd called Elijah immediately, and he'd let her know that he would be accompanying Klaus and Hayley to go after the lead.

"Is that safe?" asked Kurt when Natanya told him what had happened.

"I don't know," she admitted. "I would think the three of them could take Aya down, but if she has a gun like Aurora, and if she really does have those remaining five bullets, then it could lead to trouble."

It was strange, talking to Kurt more often. The two had never really been close, as Kurt was one of the younger members of her generation, born after the Crescents had already fallen apart. Friendship hadn't been in the cards for them, back when they were still teenagers, as Natanya had essentially been the parent to Kurt and the other wolves who still needed guidance.