The quiet town of Bon Temps had been turned on its head with the murder of Maudette Pickens, as well as having its very own resident vampire move in. Adele Stackhouse worried about the murder had warned her granddaughter to be careful when she was out on her own.
Adele fretted about her home throughout the day, preparing it for its late night guest. Annabel sat quietly on the couch with her doll in her lap, watching the older woman clean the already clean house. The little girl couldn't help but be concerned about the events taking place in her life, a vampire was willingly being invited into the home tonight, the idea left her feeling on edge throughout the day. Back in her home in Texas, she had always been told to be cautious of vampires and strangers. It seemed dangerous to invite one into the safehaven that was their home.
But Anna kept her thoughts quiet and as night approached Tara and Jason showed up at the house. Tara Thornton was Sookie's best friend and a constant in the Stackhouse household and much like the rest of the family, had grown attached to Annabel. Although things had started off rocky with Tara not really knowing how to interact with the little girl. She gradually became used to the child and grew to enjoy being in her presence.
Jason Stackhouse on the other hand was quick to accept Annabel into the family. Mary was Jason's twin sister and having her just leave Bon Temps out of the blue that day had hurt the young man. So having Anna show up had brought apart of Jason's sister back to him, and he just adored the little girl.
Jason was sure to hold his niece on his lap for when vamp was invited into the home. It put him on edge having Bill Compton invited into his Grans home with his sister and niece there. But he had promised to be on his best behavior and with Annabel in his arms, he was less likely to act out or do something drastic.
"Welcome to our home, Mr. Compton." Adele Stackhouse warmly smiled at their undead guest when he entered her home.
"It's a very lovely home you have here, Miss Stackhouse." Bill spoke true with his southern twang as he walked into the living room. Where Tara, Jason and Anna sat waiting.
"Bill, this it Tara Thorton, my grandson Jason, and my great-granddaughter Annabel." Adele introduced her family to the vampire. Both Tara and Jason and greeted the man, but Anna stayed quiet on her Uncle's lap, clutching her doll to her chest. The dark dressed doll looked out of place against the frilly yellow dress the little girl had been forced into earlier by her Aunt.
Bill took a seat on the couch and the group conversed about the older man's life. As the vampire spoke to her family, Anna's head began to hurt. Images, and thoughts not her own came to her mind. This had happened before to the little girl, in fact at her old home this was a constant occurrence, the mind of the undead was an almost open book for Anna. Almost, she could only see and hear snippets of the vampires mind before her. Her gifts were something that had been passed down by her father, or so she had been told. But it was also a deep seeded secret her caretaker had made her promise not to tell anyone about.
"If you don't mind, Adele, if I could take Sookie for a walk, and speak to her in private." Bill asked the older woman for permission.
"Of course, you have my permission." Adele told Bill after the vampire had asked his question. "Come now Anna, it's time for bed."
The little girl slipped out of her Uncles lap and took her Gran's hand. As Anna was lead up the stairs, she looked back at her Aunt with a worried expression. Something about Bill Compton rubbed the child the wrong way, and she worried for her naive Aunt. The woman obviously didn't know the dangers of vampires, yet.
The town of Bon Temps only seemed to get louder after that night. A day later, Dawn, a waitress from Merlotte's was found murdered in her home. The fear of an unknown killer took over the little town and Anna's family seemed to be at the forefront of it. Her Uncle Jason being a key suspect, as well as the vampire, Bill Compton.
Sookie continued to see Bill, enjoying nights out with undead man and creating a relationship with him. Adele also continued to keep her young great-granddaughter close to her during the day. Anna herself kept her thoughts quiet on the happenings in Bon Temps, not wanting to voice her concerns and worry her family more than they already were.
Anna watched as her Gran planned and prepared for the Descendents of the Glorious Dead meeting that was taking place that night in the church. Bill Compton, resident vampire, would be the meetings guest of honor that night, and Adele Stackhouse could not be more excited. It was a joyous occasion for those excited to hear a retelling of the south's war efforts from someone who was actually there.
The church was full in a matter of minutes as guest arrived and took their seats. Anna stood quietly beside her Gran as she greeted everyone and organized people about. Sookie and Sam showed up together and greeted the little girl and the older woman.
"Go on Anna, go sit with your Aunt." Adele pushed the little girl towered the young woman and her date. Anna took her Aunts hand the three of them made their way to some empty seats. Sookie's relationship status seemed to be changing to quickly for Anna to keep up with.
"Here, I'll take Anna." Sam Merlotte took the little girl and placed her on his lap making room for the three of them. Anna sat comfortably on the mans lap as the church quieted down and Adele introduced Bill to the crowd.
Bills stories of his first hand accounts of the civil war really connected with the people of Bon Temps. Well, not all of them, Annabel took notice of the three local rednecks squeezing garlic in hopes of getting a rise out of the vampire. She couldn't understand why beings as fragile as humans would want to antagonize something that could easily kill them. The little girl knew the strength of vampires, seeing first hand what an angry vampire could do to a human and an innocent brick wall.
But that was before, and she had been completely safe in that moment, but here she was without her protective caretaker. It was different now, and as Bill Compton spoke of the war and his part in it, Anna felt a great longing to go home, her old home.
These people loved and cared for her, but she missed her home back in Texas. She missed her most precious person. Without him, she was left in the world without protection and he was left alone to his own dark thoughts.
Bills stories ended with the Mayor of Bon Temps giving the vampire a found photograph of his wife and family. Anna could vaguely hear the grief the vampire felt at seeing the photo. She got an image of a little girl and a young woman from that man's mind.
"Come along Anna, it's far past your bedtime." Adele and Annabel went home for the night while Sam and Sookie went out for coffee. The older woman was sure to give Anna her pill before sending the little girl off to get ready for bed. After making sure she brushed her teeth and was tucked in, Adele went back down stairs to clean up dinner.
As Anna drifted off to sleep with the help of her medicine, a noise from downstairs caused her to stir. Suddenly she was wide awake hearing the frantic cries of her great-grandmother. She felt groggy with sleep, but her heart was pounding loudly in her chest hearing her grans cries. Then there was quiet, and a slam of a door. The little girl felt panic as she slowly left the safety of her room and made her way down stairs.
With her doll clutched in her arms, she made her way to the kitchen where the light was still on. The first thing her eyes found was red, red everywhere. There was so much blood staining the kitchen floor that is pooled in the center of the tiled floor. Then, seeing the older women laying still on the ground sent Annabel's brian into a state of shock. Her Gran was lively person who cared for her and she was dead, killed while Anna was only just upstairs.
The little girl would later be found by Bill hiding in the up stairs closet clutching her doll to her chest while she hid huddled among fallen coats. She spoke to no one as the vampire carried her to her Aunt.
"Oh Anna!" Sookie took the little girl into her arms and held her tightly. Still the child said nothing and would stay that way for the rest of the night. It was the first time Anna had ever truly lost someone she was close to, and in such a horrible way. The image of her Gran laying in a pool of her own blood would forever haunt her.
As pictures and evidence were taken, Sookie held her niece tightly in her arms. To think the little girl could have witnessed her Gran being murdered. It made the young woman cringe and hoped the child hadn't seen such a horrific act.
Sookie put the little girl to bed and promised her she would be right down stairs. Anna said nothing and curled up under the covers with her doll. She wouldn't sleep that night, not with images of her Gran dead fresh in her mind. No, she only laid awake and hoped more than ever that she could go home.
Anna stayed up in her room the next day during the wake. She still wasn't talking and refused to leave her safety of her bed. She was scared, her Gran had been killed and if the killer had wanted to, he could have killed Anna as well. It was a lot for the little girl to take in, and her mind was filled with 'what if's' and the blood, so much blood.
Tara took it upon herself to care for Sookie and Anna, keeping an eye on her best friend and making sure Anna was fed during the wake. It was concerning seeing the little girl staring off into nothing, hopefully she would come out being so traumatized, but Tara almost found that unlikely.
Anna found herself cut off from the world, wanting only one thing, to go home. But as the day ended, the next morning she was pushed out the door by her Aunt. The funeral for her Gran was being held in the town's only cemetery and Anna had to attend the gathering. Annabel stood quietly beside her Aunt during the affair, staying silent as people gave them their condolences before the start of the funeral.
Anna feels her Aunt visibly stiffen when Jason approaches with a man Anna had never seen before. Sookie quickly pushed her niece behind her and glared at her brother and the unnamed man. Anna soon finds out that the man was her Grans brother, Bartlett. It was clear to the little girl that her Aunt didn't want the man anywhere near them and when he tired to console the young woman, Sookie removed herself and Anna from the scene.
The procession continued no better and with onslaught of thoughts bombarding her Aunt, Sookie lashed out and snapped. "Shut the fuck up!" It was enough to pull Anna out of her own head and look up at her Aunt. The woman then took her niece's hand and they left the funeral.
Both Anna and Sookie sat quietly at the table, plates of food left untouched in front of them. The young woman's outburst from earlier seemed to have pulled Anna from her stupper.
"I want to go home." Her voice was quiet, and Sookie's head snapped up at the child's declaration. The young woman looked at her niece sadly.
"I know Anna, I wish could do that for you." Sookie truly wished she could. She could tell the little girl must have missed her life back in Texas. Sookie will never understand why her sister had left her on her Gran's front porch, but she did, and now her Gran was gone, and it was up to Sookie to take care of the little girl now.
Sookie made sure Anna took her sleep pill before tucking the little girl into bed. Nothing could truly bring back the dead, and the thought made Sookie make a decision on her relationship with Bill. After locking the house up, Sookie went to Bills home across the graveyard. Although selfish of the young woman to leave the house in that moment, things would be different after this night and the events to come will change the lives of both Sookie and Annabel.
A/N: I decided to go ahead and post Chapter 2 tonight instead of waiting. Chapter 3 will be up next Monday. Feel free to leave and review and thank you to all the readers of Annabel, this rewrite has been a long time coming. I hope you all enjoy where this story is heading and I am super excited to continue writing new chapters.
