When we arrived the party was in full swing. There didn't appear to be many other women there, unless you counted the waitresses, which I am well aware that no-one does. A few female vamps but mainly lots of Russell's pretty boys.
There was music playing in one of the rooms, and people dancing. In another room a buffet was set out for the human guests, with a champagne fountain. Most of it was going to waste, but I had realized that Vamps were really big on conspicuous consumption.
Eric was obviously seen as an important guest as he was invited to join the King's table. Russell was keen to hear the latest gossip from Louisiana. He particularly wanted to know how the Vamps in New Orleans were doing and whether Queen Sophie Ann was managing to rebuild her business empire after Katrina. I got the impression he was jealous of the excesses of her court, and the money she had to spend.
Eric must have been able to tell that I was getting a little bored with the Vampire business, as he took me into the other room to dance. Eric is a wonderful dancer and as he swept me around the dance floor, I completely forgot the pain from my high heels. I wasn't used to my date being the one who got all the attention though. He'd taken off his jacket, and the cut of his pants showed his muscular ass to perfection. He looked amused at the reaction he was getting,
After a few dances, my feet were beginning to suffer and we returned to the King's table, where the gossip had turned to the King of Nevada, who was apparently making his neighbours very nervous with threats of taking over some of the smaller states. Russell was concerned that he might turn his attentions south, but Eric dismissed the suggestion. "He wouldn't dare take on Sophie-Ann. She is too well established, and she has very good networks all over the country"
The discussion turned to Eric's business dealings.
"How are your property searches going, Northman, have you found anything interesting"
"I've got a few leads but nothing definite"
"Strange that none of my agents have heard from you"
"I prefer to use my own people"
"Well he's a cool customer for sure, but he's lying. Russell knows everyone who deals with property across the state and none of them have had any contacts with Northman"
Uh- oh. This was not good. Had we been caught out? I focused on Russell's business advisor who seemed to the source of the thought, but he was turning his attention back to which boy he might get as the King's cast off.
"And everything else goes well with you. I did hear a rumour that you had done something to upset Sophie-Ann"
"I have no idea what could have started such a falsehood. I am her most loyal Sheriff, and I run my area efficiently. I have certainly given her nothing to complain about"
"We are all suffering losses what with the drainers and now the Fellowship of the Sun gaining strength in this area, I'm sure you are not immune from this. You must have had your share of disappearances" Russell gave us a sardonic smile. I felt my blood run cold. It was obvious he was suspicious. Eric must have realized but I didn't dare say anything to him, the risk of being overheard was too great.
Putting on my best simpering smile, I turned to Eric "Sweetie, I'm a little warm in here, do you think we could get some fresh air". Luckily for me vamps aren't too sensitive to temperature so they probably wouldn't know I was lying.
"So are you enjoying your evening?"
"It's interesting, but I'm not sure it's going to have the outcome we expected" I gave Eric a meaningful look, wishing that we could read each other's minds. It would make things an awful lot easier.
We strolled out into the spacious grounds, through some formal gardens and over in the direction of what appeared to be a pool and stable block. Suddenly I got the strongest sensation, a feeling of intense pain wracked my body. I doubled up and almost cried out. My whole body was burning, and my hands felt as if they had been crushed. As quickly as it had come over me the sensation subsided but I knew what it meant.
"He's here, somewhere close, I can feel it." I whispered. There were Were guards around, their eyes never leaving us, so it was difficult to get too close to the buildings. We walked along their length, trying not to be too obvious. As we reached the centre of what looked like a stable block, I felt the pain again. I looked at the door, then at Eric. He gave the smallest nod of acknowledgement. I didn't dare say any more, for fear of who might overhear us. I had no idea how we were going to get Bill out. I really hoped that Eric could come up with a plan.
"We had better go back, they will think we are up to no good" Eric laughed, which I knew was just for the benefit of the guards.
"Feeling better my dear" The king was all concern when we rejoined the party. "Good, I would hate to see you come to any harm" Something about his tone worried me, but I couldn't put my finger on it.
"Well now Northman, I have something to show you, something which may be of interest" He motioned to the guards. A few minutes later they returned, dragging something dark and shapeless. As they threw it down in front of the king I became aware that it was a body. It was so badly burned that it was hard to recognise, but I knew immediately who it was. Eric's hand was resting on my thigh and he exerted just the smallest pressure, warning me not to react.
The body moved and emitted a low moan, Thank God he was still alive.
"I believe this is what you have come for, have you not?"
Eric still didn't give anything away "Majesty?" he asked
"Don't play games with me, you know this is Bill Compton, a Vampire from your area, and you are here to rescue him. With the help of his human I believe, or is she really yours now? I really can't tell what is truth and what is lies with you"
The body moaned again.
"Well I am willing to do a deal with you. Compton in exchange for the girl"
"No" said Eric angrily, rising from his seat.
Complete silence had fallen over the room as all the humans and vampires waited to see the outcome of the confrontation. I was so shocked I couldn't keep my shields up. The thoughts seemed to come from the King's business advisor.
"That's a real bummer, I was looking forward to seeing a genuine crucifixion. I've always wanted to see what its like when one of them meets the sun. Russell told us he was a worthless piece of shit, where's the harm in sending him to his final death."
It was all I could do to keep myself from shuddering.
"It's your choice Northman. Give me the girl or Compton goes to his final death."
"You can't do that, you know the penalty for killing a fellow vampire"
"And you know that as King I make the rules in my area. Compton has broken the rules of my court, and I intend to make an example of him. So what is it to be, do I get the girl?"
"Yes, I agree" I couldn't quite believe the words were coming out of my mouth. Was I really going to agree to this, to save the man who had betrayed and humiliated me. Whatever he had done he was suffering now, and I couldn't have his final death on my conscience. "There are two conditions though. You promise not to hurt me physically, and I won't, well….give myself to anyone against my will"
"I'm glad you have seen sense my dear but I am afraid you are in no position to bargain with me"
Eric pulled me to him and held me tight, claiming ownership. "I do not agree to this"
"You have no choice, you know the rules, if the human agrees to come to me I am your superior, and I take her"
"Know this, then, I will find a way to get her back, and if you have harm her, or anyone forces themselves on her, my vengeance will be terrible" I could tell from the tone of voice that he really meant it.
"If you really think you can take me on, try it. You should remember your position, you are only a Sheriff after all" He glared at Eric, who matched his stare for a full minute.
"Take Compton upstairs." He pointed at four of the comparatively plainer boys. "You go with him, he will need to feed if he is to recover. Frankie, you supervise them, he will be hungry, make sure he doesn't take too much"
He turned his attention back to Eric. "Now, no-one has ever accused me of not being generous. I will allow you an hour to say goodbye to your human. Show them to a suite"
We were led upstairs to a bedroom decorated with what looked like antique furniture and fine wallpaper. Eric put a finger to his lips as we entered the room, reminding me quite unnecessarily that anything we said would probably be overheard. Then he turned on me
"Are you mad? you don't have to do this"
"I do, they were planning to crucify him, I just can't let that happen"
"Even after everything he has done to you?"
I nodded silently.
"Truly you are too good for him." He ran a finger down my cheek and bent down to kiss me. "You won't hear me say this very often, Sookie, but I confess I have completely fucked up. I didn't see this one coming, but I promise I'll make it up to you. I'll get you back to Louisiana, to Bon Temps, and I'll be in your debt."
Then in a much louder voice, clearly intended for an external audience. "You must believe what I have said. I will come for you, however long it takes. If anyone here should cause you any physical harm or force you to do anything against your will, they will experience my vengeance, and it will be as terrible as I have promised them"
"If there was any alternative I would take it, but I don't think there is, do you?"
"If you asked me to, I would fight our way out of here"
"People would die"
"Yes, human and vampire. And it would start a war between Mississipi and Louisiana."
"I'm doing this to avoid a death, I wouldn't want that on my conscience. Anyway what do you think he wants me for?"
"I am sure he wants to use your gift. But I'm afraid that Vampire Kings and Queens do like to have their little trophies. He will probably want to dress you up and put you on display"
When we were younger Jason had loved the Star Wars films, watching them over and over on video. I thought of Princess Leia in her slave girl outfit, chained to Jabba the Hutt and shuddered.
"It could be worse though" I wasn't quite sure how "this is a small court, and relatively informal. You are brave and resourceful. I am confident that you will be able to deal with this, until I find a way to get you back. However, I think you should take a little more of my blood, it will help to give you the strength you need."
Reluctantly I agreed and we positioned ourselves on the bed. The act of sharing blood is probably the most erotic experience there is, short of actually making love. It has a lot in common after all. I drew on Eric's rich sweet blood, taking much more than I intended. Feelings of power, and passion flooded through my body, and I just didn't want them to stop. I think he was feeling the same, I could certainly feel his arousal. Finally I managed to pull away, and after a long kiss, he just held me against him, stroking my hair.
"I still can't believe she is willing to do this, there must be something I can do to talk her out of it"
"There isn't"
"Isn't what"
"Anything you can do to talk me out of it" He stared at me for a long moment. Suddenly I realized with horror that he hadn't spoken out loud. I had heard his thoughts
"Can you do that again?
"yeah I guess, can you hear me"
"loud and clear"
"how an earth could this happen?"
"It must be a result of the blood exchange. Did this ever happen with Compton?"
"No" I said out loud this time, looking worried.
"This could be useful to us. We need to test how effective it is. When I leave you must continue to send me your thoughts. We will see how far the range is"
The implications of what I had done began to sink in. I could feel myself tearing up. I thought of Bill, how much I had loved him. Did I love him still? I wasn't sure any more. Having him leave me without warning had been a blow I hadn't been prepared for. But when I thought about everything we had shared, I knew that saving him was the right thing to do.
Eric must have been aware of my inner turmoil. He held my hand gently stroking it, in a gesture that was soothing. There was a knock on the door. Our time together was over. I stood, and he held my against him, arms wrapped tight around me. "Trust me, I will come for you" He whispered. I didn't trust myself to speak. I just nodded. I couldn't meet his eyes as he left the room.
We kept up a telepathic banter as he drove away, I tried to sound more positive than I felt . Alone in the room the full horror of what I had agreed to came home to me. I managed to keep in contact with Eric until he was just outside the city limits, then he began to break up and fade. I was surprised at the distance we could maintain our link. For some reason it gave me hope that he would be able to come back for me as he had promised.
EPOV
I struggled to contain my fury as I drove away. Knowing that Sookie could hear my thoughts, I didn't want to upset her any further, but once our connection was broken I gave full vent to my rage. I was angry with Russell, I was angry with Compton, but most of all I was angry with myself.
How could I have been so stupid? Why did I not realize it was a trap? Too late I realized that Sookie was probably Russell's target all along. I knew her work in Dallas had become widely known on the Vampire grapevine, and I should have been alert to powerful Vampires wanting to use her talents.
I wasn't quite sure what upset me the most, the humiliation of being caught out by a younger, and far less clever Vampire than myself, or the thought of what Sookie would have to suffer as a result.
I punched Pam's number into my cell. "Master, how goes your pursuit of the lovely telepath" Sometimes Pam was just so tactless. "It goes badly, but that's not why I called you. Compton has been released, he is on his way back to Bon Temps. I need you to meet him, he will need some assistance. You must also arrange to keep watch on him. I knew Compton well enough to believe that he would want to rescue Sookie himself. He had neither the strength nor the intelligence, all he would do would make matters worse. I had to ensure he wasn't allowed out of Bon Temps. "You had better bring a donor for him" I thought for a moment "and Pam, the plainer the better, in fact make sure you pick a really ugly one". "Anything you say boss". I could tell she wanted to question me further but I snapped the phone shut.
In my fury, I hadn't paid any attention to my speed. I registered the flashing light in my rear view mirror and slowed to a halt for the highway patrol. I lowered my window and met his eyes ready to glamour him, only to realize that he was a Vampire. The memory of Sookie's warning on the journey to Jackson hit me like a punch in the gut. I couldn't help an ironic laugh. "I'm sorry sir, have I done something to amuse you" then looking at me more closely he realized who I was. "Sheriff Northman, you realize you were doing 148 miles per hour, that is well over the speed limit". "I'm sorry Officer, I just wasn't thinking" I was uncharacteristically humble, but not just because of the traffic cop. I was thinking of Sookie because , embarrassing as it would have been, I wished nothing more that to have her beside me right now.
A/N. I've read several other stories where Eric and Sookie can hear each others' thoughts after a number of blood exchanges, so I think its moved from plagiarism to becoming part of the FanFiction canon. I need it as a plot device but do apologise if this upsets anyone. I'm not even sure who was the first author to put it in a FanFic so can't credit them for the idea.
