Chapter Two -

Previous Chapter

"Of course I did, I just didn't give a fuck who you were sticking your dick in as long as it wasn't me, or at least very rarely… was me. I don't know how long it's been going on but I have known for close to a year. " Most of the faces around the table had a surprised look to them. She did notice however that Agent Northman had kept his eyes down and was not looking at her. "I'm sorry, Bill, but I was leaving soon anyway. Why do you think I started up 'Holly Blooms', it was a means to an end. My own money."

She brought her hands to her temples, rubbing small circles into them. Her head hurt and she was expecting at this point for Bill to fill in the blanks. He didn't disappoint but he sure as hell did shock her in more ways than one with his next words...

"You already know all of this, Northman, do I really need to fill in the blanks?"

"Yes, unfortunately you do. Anything on file needs to be in your words, not mine."

"Fine" He spat through gritted teeth "First of all the woman I am seeing… would never have anything to do with this." He said looking at Sookie "I know this because I know her well, very well. Since you were leaving anyway I guess the truth will not do much more damage, Sookie, we have been seeing one another for five… ahem… years." Sookie gulped audibly bringing her hand to her throat as she took in what Bill had just admitted to and he cleared his throat again before continuing. "She works at the courthouse, her name is Lorena… Northman and she is currently four months pregnant with our first child." His voice had dropped lower at the mention of her last name but Sookie had still caught it.

Agent Northman had kept his eyes cast downward but his head shot up when he heard Sookie whisper one word. "Northman" She had been silent for a moment so he had initially thought that she had not put the two together.

"Is she related to you." Sookie asked looking directly at him. "I'm sorry that is a personal as well as inappropriate question, you are the one asking the questions here not me." She didn't allow time for him to respond before she turned to Bill. "I am not accusing her of anything, Bill, but I do feel the need to remind you that we were married for longer than you have known your… girlfriend and I have only just now learned, that I didn't know you at all. So don't act as though fucking someone, someone that would have an affair with a married man I might add, constitutes knowing them."

"Fiance" Bill replied "I was also intending to finally come clean and leave, now that we are having a baby and you seemed settled into your Flower Shop. We spoke about it and she had agreed to marry me. She knows we will have to wait for the divorce to be final, she is divorced herself and knows that it takes time to get there but I am hoping that since you mentioned that you had planned on leaving that we could maybe agree to some terms and settle things as quickly as possible."

The entire room were having similar thoughts, wondering how the hell a man who is supposed to be here regarding his missing daughter has suddenly turned the meeting into a quickie divorce settlement discussion, as well as be cold enough to bring up the rest of it. He really only needed to admit to the affair and move on but he didn't, it was a low blow to tell his wife the he was expecting a new baby when their daughter had just gone missing.

"You fucker" Quinn snarled.

"Stop" Sookie's voice which had been nothing more than hushed tones throughout the meeting was strong and full of authority. " First of all you will never learn, never marry someone due to a pregnancy. That was our first mistake, secondly I am sure that whoever her poor sap of husband was will be happy to finally be done with the alimony payments, and last but certainly not least you have taken us way off course here. Have you forgotten that your daughter, you know the one that is currently not in a womb, is missing, she is why we are here. I will not discuss anything else until this is settled."

The questions continued on for over an hour more before they finally had what they thought was enough for the time being. Bill left on his own stating that he would see Sookie at home shortly, while the agents continued to stay seated and were going over what they had so far and Quinn excused himself to use the restroom.

"Thank you, I really appreciate what you are all doing here. So, I will give you some privacy to do your own thing. You'll be in touch, right?" Sookie said as she gathered her purse and the light sweater she had worn.

"Yes, we'll be in touch and no thanks is necessary." Agent Northman replied "May I have a moment… in private before you leave?"

"Sure"

They stepped out of the room and he led her to what must be his office with his hand on the small of her back, given the reason for being here she was once again ashamed that her body was reacting to him. She felt a shock like current run through her body from his touch and it caused her to feel flushed, she felt connected to him on an intimate level and was unaware that he felt these same things.

He didn't need to pull her aside and answer the question that she found to be too personal, the moment had passed and she was not waiting for a response but he felt obligated to give her one. He wanted her to know his background, although he was not prepared to share everything just yet regardless of their similar circumstances.

After closing the door behind them he leaned his hip against his desk and crossed one ankle over the other, he was completely at ease with her and it showed. "I wanted to speak with you privately about the question you posed earlier, in regards to my relationship to Lorena." He told her.

"I'm sorry, I should not have asked."

"No, it's fine. I just was not prepared to share the facts with an entire room full of people." Eric responded "Normally I would not answer personal questions but it seems warranted here. First of all, you have my word that this will in no way interfere with my work on this case. She does not affect me in any way nor does her relationship with your husband, ok?" Sookie nodded not really knowing exactly what he was about to say other than he was referring to his relation to Bill's girlfriend.

"Lorena is not related to me by anything but name anymore, she was my wife. As Mr. Compton has already told you, he and I are acquainted due to a previous case well two previous cases but the first case was of a personal nature to me. Both my wife and I got to know him a little, her much more than I obviously, I found out about them pretty quickly and we separated almost immediately, we've been divorced for close to four years and I am better for it, believe me. Plus, this poor sap." He said pointing to himself "is more than happy to stop with the alimony payments." He ended with a small smile, hoping that she was ok with the joke given the circumstances. He knew that it helped him for people to act normal around him and even make him smile every once in a while when his own daughter had been taken.

"Thank you" She smiled though it didn't reach her eyes "Life is strange, isn't it? Did you feel like you didn't know who your wife was when you found out because I feel like I never knew him."

"No, I didn't feel that way. She was suffering and found comfort in him, it was a different situation on her part than it was on his. We were also about ready to move past one another and she just made it easier to do, we may very well have stayed together because of what we were dealing with and that would have been wrong on so many levels, done more harm than good."

"Well, thank you again."

"You're welcome and we'll do everything we can to find your daughter, I promise." He hadn't promised to bring her home nor had he promised that he would in fact find her daughter because he knew first hand that that was not always the case. So he did the best he could and promised that they would at the very least do their best to find her.

They said their goodbyes and Sookie made her way back to Quinn, she was home, changed and settled into her couch. She lied there alone in the quiet with nothing but her thoughts and cried, she had done so well not breaking down during the days events and was not strong enough to continue to do so any longer.

One week later, there had still been no sign of Holly. The park and surrounding area had been searched numerous times by both the local authorities and volunteer search parties. Nothing but Holly's thin little spring jacket had been found which contained no trace evidence aside from a few of her little girls hair in the hood, it was like she had disappeared into thin air.

It was Agent Northman that had come to her with news of the jacket, she had cried and he had held her. They were seated on her couch and he was about to lay her down, cover her up and leave when she started to cry out in her sleep. She clutched at him and it near broke his heart as her words brought back similar thoughts.

"She must be getting so cold," She cried "her jacket, she has no jacket." She had opened her eyes and was met with the sparkling blue sapphires that belong to Agent Northman.

"What if she has no one to feed her, read to her, take her to the park." She choked on the words as they left her mouth. "What if she doesn't have a warm bed or house, or someone to love her… oh god! I can't do this, I can't do this anymore…" She had trailed off and he stroked her hair until she finally drifted off to sleep, he had no answers for her. At one time he had needed an answer to those same questions and he never got it, so he did what he could and comforted her the only way he knew how.

The police had brought out tracking dogs and her scent had been traced to a few blocks away in a Walmart parking lot, where it was assumed that a car had been waiting. There were no ransom demands, no children showing up injured or worse that matched her description. She was just gone.

Weeks turned into months and after the first month or so Sookie had returned to work part time, she couldn't just sit at home… waiting. It was driving her crazy, there were days where something would set her off and she couldn't stand to be anywhere but home and in bed, sifting through photo album after photo album.

After the first week Bill had not bothered to come home, he went home to Lorena night after night. Sookie had been receiving updates every couple of days from Eric's (as he had told her to call him) team, it wasn't always the same person that called they seemed to take turns. Now almost two months later the calls seemed to come in once or twice a week because there were just no changes. It was as if she had never existed only Sookie knew different, she had carried her, birthed her, mothered her and lost her.

Three months later, five months after Holly had gone missing Sookie was standing in a line up at Starbucks and caught a glimpse of the Adonis himself. He was sitting alone, reading a paper and drinking a coffee. She hadn't spoke with him in close to a month, it was always one of the other agents that called her with an update. She couldn't explain why she knew it, but she was certain that he was avoiding her so she turned her back to him and didn't make herself known.

The barista had other ideas and called out her name loudly although she had been standing right there, being that she was sure to be the only Sookie in the area she was certain that he had to have heard. She chanced a glance in his direction and he was watching her, so she smiled and walked in his direction.

"How are you doing, Eric?"

"I'm good and you?" He asked and using his foot pushed out the chair across from him while gesturing for her to take a seat at his table.

"I'm ok, I just started back at the shop full time this month. It keeps me busy, stops me from climbing the walls, going stir crazy." She replied as she took a seat, he simply nodded at her and sipped at his coffee. The tension was still there after all these months, she could sense it between them and this surprised her.

"We have nothing new." He said softly and ran a hand through his blond locks, making a few stand on end. She could sense that giving her this news pained him on a personal level but didn't know why.

They both sat quietly, the tension building slowly. "So… Bill and Lorena had their baby yesterday, a boy." Sookie told him, while absentmindedly spinning her grandmother's ring on her finger. "He actually called me to tell me, can you believe that? I was like great, congratulations."

"He's an asshole." Eric said simply.

"I know, I'm happy for him, I am. I just don't want to hear about it right now, I don't begrudge him another child. It's just…" She trailed off.

"You're a good woman, Sookie, I would never have taken it well if under the same circumstances."

"Who say's I took it well. I hung up after and cried. I was so confused last night because I was ready to leave him long ago, I don't love him but I was so angry that the thought actually crossed my mind… why her, why does she get to have my baby?" Eric gave her a strange look that clearly asked if she was going over the deep end.

"I'm not delusional, Eric, and I sure as hell am not walking around as though I am suffering through a hysterical pregnancy or something. I know it's not 'my baby' I just meant you know that he was my husband so it was my sperm. Ok, maybe slightly delusional." She laughed and he joined. "I can't explain it, I guess for a few moments I was actually thinking it should have been me, we could have another Holly, but I know it's not the case. It wouldn't be her, and I felt horrible. Like I had actually given up on her, and wanted to replace her. She can't be replaced."

He smiled and for the first time since she had met him, she took a real honest to goodness look at him. She thought it was the cutest thing that the corners of his eyes crinkled ever so slightly when he smiled, it showed he was a little older and it was kind of sexy. Really sexy actually.

"Come on" He said, taking her hand. "let's walk, I need some fresh air." As he walked in front of her she noticed that today he was dressed casual in a fashionably worn pair of dark jeans and a faded snug fitting Dartmouth t-shirt, that showed off how defined, not to mention muscular he is. She was used to seeing him in a suit, which still looked great but hid his assets. And speaking of which, his ass was also something else to look at. If there were ever such a thing as the worlds greatest fucking ass contest, he'd take first place, hands down.

She had been so busy checking him out that she had completely missed the fact that the electric shock that ran through her body the first time they had touched, was like the tension, also still very there and very strong. He hadn't missed it though and like the first time he pondered what it meant.

"Where are you leading me?" She asked when it was obvious that he was on a mission and headed somewhere specific.

"Have you ever been on one of the guided tours at The Pioneer Heritage Center?" He asked.

"Um… no."

"It's kind of interesting, I haven't been on one in over five years but I bet they still are. The tour guides are trained and period dressed while they conduct interpretive tours, the facility was founded in 1977. It was a joint project between the University and the Junior League of Shreveport."

It was interesting and Sookie had enjoyed herself. The Center had included seven historical structures, the Caspiana House, a raised plantation cottage built in 1856 on the Hutchinson's Caspiana Plantation, the Thrasher House, a log double-pen dog trot, a detached kitchen, the Doctor's Office, the Webb & Webb Commissary, a single pen log Blacksmith Shop, and the Riverfront Mission Chapel.

"How did you come across this, Eric?"

"I read about The Caspiana House and the Thrasher House in the National Register of Historic Places and after that my daugh… ahem… my daughter brought home a pamphlet from class. They had learned about how it interprets the unique culture and social history of northwest Louisiana from the 1830's to the end of the 19th Century, the period of settlement for our area. The structures, exhibits, and artifacts serve as a history laboratory for students and teachers, for community groups, tourist, and the general public. Her teacher was a history buff and it rubbed off on… Zoey, so she asked me to take her."

"Well thank you for sharing it with me, Eric, you were right. It was interesting and I really enjoyed myself, it's funny how you can live somewhere your whole life and not experience much from it at all." She had taken note of the pain in his voice and how he had hesitated when he mentioned his daughter so she chose not to bring it up. He had mentioned her once and maybe he would again, she would leave it up to him.

The afternoon ended with the two back at Starbucks, one more coffee later and they said their goodbyes. Eric went home feeling slightly off, he had never slipped and brought up his daughter to someone that hadn't known about her yet. It wasn't that he didn't talk about her because he did, but there were certain aspects he preferred not to talk about and when it comes up with someone new you end up having to dredge up the bad with the good.

He didn't even know what it was that had led him to dragging her along with him to somewhere that until now had been something that he had only shared with his daughter.

A/N: All characters belong to Charlaine Harris, I just like to take them out to play.