Author's Note: Sorry for the delay between chapters – real life was calling more loudly than the fictional undead. I'll try to be more prompt in the future. With the break upon us, I'll be in the grips of feverish withdrawal, so hopefully I'll write more. While on the subject of writing, I'm sure it's obvious to everyone that I've lifted dialogue/material directly from True Blood Episodes and Ms. Harris' books; this is done with all due respect to their ideas and their work. I'm just having fun while attempting to fill in some of the blanks. Thanks to everyone who's reading, and a huge thank you to everyone reviewing and recommending my little project to their friends. I'm all about spreading the love and fanning the flames for True Blood.
***
Fourth Night
I was running, speeding as fast as I could through a thick wood. There was no moon, and I had to concentrate on weaving between the trees as I ran. The leaves blew in my wake, and animals scattered before me. I was sniffing desperately for an unknown sweet scent, but all I could smell was the dirt and the plants. The night air was heavy and damp, and if I could just get out of these woods, I would find what I was looking for. I had to find it, and I had to find it before dawn, but the trees never ended and time moved as quickly as I. I ran and ran, and the trees kept coming closer and closer together, and the stars raced across the fading night sky. I could feel the coming dawn, and I ran. I ran when every instinct made me want to seek the cool safety of the ground. I ran with limbs that felt dead. I ran even as I felt the blood begin to trickle from my eyes and my ears and my nose. I only knew that I couldn't stop, couldn't ever stop, because if I did, what I was searching for would be lost to me forever.
I jolted awake to my cell phone ringing. It was just dark, and I breathed Sookie's smell deeply and rubbed my face. I looked around my hiding hole, disoriented and troubled by my dream. The phone rang again, and I pulled it from my pocket and glanced to see who would be calling so early. When I realized it was Sookie's home phone, I quickly answered.
"Hello."
"Mr. Compton," Mrs. Stackhouse's pleasant voice said. "This is Adele Stackhouse, Sookie's grandmother. I hope I didn't wake you."
"Oh no ma'am," I said. "I was just rising."
"All the same, I know how I feel if someone calls before I get my first cup of coffee in the morning." She laughed. "Please forgive me, but I was hoping to catch you before you ate this evening. Would you care to have a little supper with me?"
"Um…" I stammered.
"Sookie went to the store today," she quickly said. "For you. She mentioned that you don't have electricity, and how that TruBlood you like is supposed to be warmed, and I thought maybe you could use our microwave for the time being? She's at work right now, but she's not closing tonight, and we could talk about your speaking at my meeting."
Sookie went shopping for me. She thought of my comfort. Her grandmother was inviting me to wait for her to get off work. "That sounds wonderful," I said.
"Oh good," she said. "Let's dispense with the formalities, shall we? Please just come to the back door."
***
"I can't tell you how delightful this is, Mr. Compton," Mrs. Stackhouse said. She was sitting across the kitchen table from me with a half a sandwich, a cup of soup, and an apple. "On the nights Sookie works, we eat our big meal at noon. I know she makes more money at night, but makes for a long evening for me."
I took a swallow of my warm TruBlood and smiled. Except for Sookie's absence, the scene was remarkably like I'd imagined the night before. I rested my fingertips on the old wooden table, the worn surface like a talisman against my unsettling dream that was impossible to forget.
"How long has Sookie worked at Merlotte's?" I asked.
"A few years now," she said. "She's such a smart girl, but she never did well in school." Mrs. Stackhouse shrugged. "It was hard for her. We talked about college, but…" She chewed carefully before continuing. "She had a couple other jobs after high school, but they were disasters. When Sam Merlotte offered her a place, I admit I wasn't all that pleased. The hours and everything that goes along with working at a bar... But Sookie needs to be around people, and she seems to like it. I know Sam Merlotte is a good man and a fair boss."
I nodded grudgingly.
"It's selfish of me, really," Mrs. Stackhouse said. "Keeping her out in the boonies with me, but I don't know what I'd do without Sookie. At some point, I hope she'll find someone…" Her voice trailed off, and she smiled at me. "She and Jason are all I've got left. I never thought I'd outlive my children."
I smiled sadly. "I know just what you mean," I said.
"Of course! How thoughtless of me."
"It was a long time ago," I shrugged.
"Sookie and Jason have a cousin, Hadley," Mrs. Stackhouse said. I knew my face was a practiced mask of polite interest.
"Really?"
"She's the same age as Jason, and my Linda wanted the kids after…" her voice trailed off. "Well, Linda had enough on her plate, raising Hadley alone, and I didn't think they needed someplace new after all that. They were here so much since they lived right down the road anyway. Hadley was a sweet girl, and she was very good to Sookie, but she and Jason were like oil and water. Even before my Linda died, Hadley was lost…
"Now Jason, he's just like my Corbett. Both of them too good-looking for their own good." She smiled indulgently. "No one can ever stay mad at either one of them, even when they deserve it." She laughed. "My daughter-in-law loved my son, Mr. Compton." She shook her head. "You've never seen a woman love a man the way she loved him. Like he was the very air in her lungs. And Jason, being so like him, was fine. But Sookie…"
"What about Sookie?" I quietly asked.
"Well, Sookie's special," she said.
"Her gift."
Mrs. Stackhouse smiled and sighed. "She told you?"
"Yes ma'am."
She reached across the table and patted my hand. "Sookie never tells anyone. That's something, Mr. Compton. But you know, I think even without Sookie being different, her mother would've had difficulties. She loved her children, and she did her best, I think, to do right by them, but she just didn't want to share Corbett with anyone. Not me, not Jason, not Linda or Hadley, not his friends, and certainly not Sookie." She sighed. "She wanted him all to herself. And with Sookie hearing things, but being too young to understand." She shook her head again. "There were other things, too… But those are Sookie's stories to tell. It hasn't been easy for her."
"We all have our crosses to bear, Mrs. Stackhouse."
She looked at me, and solemnly nodded. "Yes we do."
A comfortable silence fell over the table, and I looked around the room, soaking in the smell of Sookie that permeated the house and feeling more at ease than I had in years.
"Can I get you another one?" she asked, indicating the bottle of TruBlood.
"Yes, thank you."
"Now, about the meeting," Mrs. Stackhouse said as she stood by the microwave. "Night after tomorrow too soon?"
"Is there a hurry?" I asked.
"I just think that the sooner people realize they've got nothing to fear, the better it'll be for everyone." She handed me the warmed bottle. "I know, not all vampires are good. Not all people are either. Ignorance only leads to trouble, though."
"Sookie's a lot like you," I said.
Mrs. Stackhouse blushed. "Sookie is Sookie. I know a lot of people are curious about you. We usually meet at the library, but I asked the church to let us use the sanctuary so there's more room…" She looked embarrassed for a moment.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"What they say about you not being able to enter a church. That's not true, is it?"
I smiled. "No ma'am."
"I didn't figure it was. Didn't make much sense at all. I just don't understand people. The life you must've lived! The things you must've seen!" She leaned over the table towards me, her eyes sparkling. "You have a lot you could teach us, Mr. Compton. And people in this town need to understand that you belong here. This was your home long before it was ours. There's no reason it shouldn't or couldn't be again…"
I looked away and took a slow swallow of TruBlood. I wanted what she was saying to be true. I hoped as I'd never hoped before that, after spending my long life disassociating myself from everything I loved, I could come back. That I wasn't so far away that such a home-coming was impossible. That I could be a man again, and I could wake with the woman I loved in my arms. That I wasn't beyond forgiveness.
I cleared my throat. "Mrs. Stackhouse," I began, not sure what to say as I blinked away unexpected tears. My phone rang just then and interrupted me. "Excuse me, please," I said as I answered.
"Hello."
"Bill, I don't see how you expect friends to come and visit when you insist on living in such squalor," Malcolm said.
My gratitude for the interruption quickly dissipated. "Malcolm," I said.
"You sound less than enthused to hear my voice. I'm hurt, Bill. I really am…"
"No doubt."
"Do I detect a trace of sarcasm?" he said.
"What do you want?" I asked.
"Niceties over already?" He sighed. "That didn't take long."
"What do you want?" I repeated.
"We're here."
"Where
is here?"
"Your living room, honey," Malcolm said. "It's
an appalling man-cave, I might add. Fortunately, we brought our own
refreshments…"
"I'll be right there."
Malcolm kissed into the phone. "I knew you wouldn't let me down."
"Mrs. Stackhouse," I said again as I snapped shut my phone.
She waved at me. "I know you have far better things to do than to keep company with an old lady like me."
"Actually, nothing would please me more than to continue our chat." I hoped she would realize I was telling the truth. "But my presence is needed elsewhere."
"Please come again, Mr. Compton," she said as she walked me to the door, and I smiled at the thought of spending quiet evenings with her while we waited for Sookie to come home. At the last moment, she leaned in and brushed my cheek with the lightest of kisses. "Oh," she blushed. "You're lucky I'm not younger. I'd give Sookie a run for her money."
I smiled. "Thank you for your gracious hospitality," I said.
Instead of cutting across the cemetery, I ran down the long, winding drive, out onto Hummingbird Road, and then back down my drive. It'd be easy enough for Malcolm to trace my scent if they wanted to, but I hoped they weren't that interested. I stopped just on the edge of my property, and I opened my phone to call Sookie. She couldn't come over with Malcolm there. I hesitated after dialing the first four numbers. I needed to see her, and the thought of wasting a night with Malcolm when I could be with Sookie made me grip my phone so tightly I heard the plastic groan. I relaxed before I crushed it and put it back into my pocket. I walked at human speed down my drive, trying to convince myself that if I didn't encourage them, they'd return quickly to their nest.
"Baby!" Diane cooed from the porch. She ran towards me and brushed her lips against my cheek. "Where were you?"
"Out," I said, pulling myself away from her.
"Out?" Malcolm repeated. He was draped against the doorframe.
I ignored him and walked into the living room. Two humans were lying on the couches. They both smelled of sex and drugs and greasy food, and their stench would be in the fabric for days. They stared at me with hungry eyes as I walked to the chair in the corner, as far away from them as I could get, and sat.
"Where's Liam?" I asked.
Malcolm grinned. "Out."
"He had better not hunt. This is my town."
"Are you threatening me?" Malcolm quietly asked. Then he smiled. "How cute."
"Can we speed this along? I have things to do this evening."
"Baby, that's no way to treat neighbors," Diane purred.
Malcolm sniffed the room carefully. "Diane, we shouldn't be too hard on our Bill. I don't smell any humans in here. Something tells me he's not been having any fun."
"I'm living mainly on synthetic blood for the moment," I said.
Malcolm and Diane laughed. "Oh, this is worse than I thought," Diane said to Malcolm. "He needs a… What do they call them? When the humans force each other to do things they don't want, claiming it's for their own good?"
"An intervention," Malcolm said.
Diane laughed again. "Oh yes! Like on television. He needs an intervention."
"Your nest is horrible," Malcolm said as he ran his fingers along the chipped paint. "Why are you living here?"
"I'm restoring it," I said. "I'm in no hurry."
"Such a sentimental task," Malcolm sighed. "Restoration. I always found the notion rather depressing. Why relive the past? It's over."
"Some of us feel grounded by our roots," I said.
"That's dangerous, my friend," Malcolm said. "We were reborn when we were turned, and we begin each night anew. We have only the present."
"Enough of the philosophy," Diane muttered. "You're boring me. You used to be fun, Bill. What happened?"
"Atonement."
Malcolm rolled his eyes and Diane laughed. "Oh baby, you're worse off than I thought," she said.
I heard Sookie's car turn from Hummingbird Road onto my drive. She must've left work early. Once more, I focused on controlling my face. They couldn't know what she was.
"Expecting company, Bill?" Malcolm asked.
"Yes. Maybe we could continue our visit another night."
"And miss out on the fun?" he smiled. "Never."
I heard her car stop, and there was a long hesitation before her step on the ground and the car door being shut. I could feel her uncertainty through the bond, and her fear. But then, there was a strong sense of determination, and her steps were light and quick on the stairs.
"Get the door, Diane," Malcolm said.
"That won't be necessary," I said.
He smiled at me. "I think it is."
Sookie hadn't knocked when Diane opened the door. "Well hey there, little human chick," she said.
"Hi," Sookie said in a confident voice. "I'm here to drop off some information about an electrician for Bill Compton. Is he here?"
"Maybe," Diane said.
"She smells fresh," Malcolm said. I heard both their fangs pop down. "Maybe you oughta come on inside." I heard Liam on the porch, and he was growling at her, and I felt Sookie's fear and confusion, but again, determination pushed other feelings aside.
"Are you trying to glamour me?" Sookie asked.
There was a moment's hesitation. "Yes," Malcolm finally said.
"That
doesn't work on me.
"Why not?" Liam asked.
"I don't know," Sookie said. "It just doesn't. Is Bill available?"
She still wanted to see me, even after the three of them. It was too late to get her out without spiking their interest, and once again I could only hope they'd grow bored and leave quickly. "Let her in," I said. Sookie sighed with relief. Diane moved closer to her, still blocking the door. "Diane," I repeated. "Let her in."
"Oh," she pouted. "Fuck him."
"You have," Malcolm sneered.
I felt her flash of disgust and anger through the bond, and I silently vowed to someday repay Malcolm for his flippant remark. Sookie walked inside, and Diane leaned in and licked her neck. Sookie pulled away as Diane moaned and laughed. Malcolm quickly shut the door, too quickly for Sookie to see, and she walked bravely into the living room. The humans didn't rise to meet her, only stared from the sofas. It must look awful to her: no lights, two drugged and mostly naked humans, and three out of control vampires, and I was the unwilling host to it all.
"If y'all excuse me and Bill a minute?" Sookie said, looking only at me. "We have some business to attend to."
"Where'd you find this?" Diane leaned in and sniffed her ponytail. The three circled closer, and Sookie stood trapped like a butterfly in a cave.
"Man," Liam said. "She smells fuckin' sweet."
"And to think, just five minutes ago you were telling you how you were mainly living on synthetic blood," Malcolm said. "You big poser."
"I don't know, Malcolm," Diane said as she nuzzled Sookie's cheek. "She looks like a virgin to me."
"That's none of your damned business, you nosy bitch," Sookie snapped.
Diane pulled Sookie's head back by her hair, exposing the delicate and pulsing artery in her neck. "It is my business, cupcake. You want to know why? Because virgin blood is the best tasting blood there is."
I gripped the arms of the chair, visions of the one and only time I played with a virgin superimposed on Sookie in the living room. That girl was a blond, too, and afterwards, I'd told Lorena never again with a virgin. Lorena had laughed at me, and then she took me into her arms and stroked my hair gently. "You're so sweet, William," she'd soothed. "This will pass." But she never picked another virgin after that.
That night, she'd refused to glamour the girl. "What's the point?" she said as the girl cried and pleaded. "We're going to kill her anyway. I like the taste of adrenaline." She'd held the girl down and ordered me to fuck her. She'd licked the maiden-blood from my cock before allowing me to continue, watching with wide eyes and descended fangs as I thrust into the screaming girl.
"Well," Diane continued, as I forced myself back to the present. "Second best. The best is…"
"Baby's blood," Liam added.
"Yeah!" Diane moaned.
"I get hard just thinkin' 'bout it," Liam said. He rubbed himself against Sookie, pressing her to his hard-on. I could feel her fear as her heart thumped loudly in her chest, only spurring them on as the distinct scent of her blood rushed to the surface of her skin. I quickly weighed my options: I could kill Liam easily enough, but Malcolm and Diane would fight for their nestmate, and Malcolm would fight for his Child. Liam pulled Sookie's head to the side and offered her neck to Diane. "Ladies first."
Diane leaned in, her fangs almost touching Sookie skin, before I stood up.
"Stop." My tone was such that Diane immediately pulled back.
And then I said only three words, but powerful ones I'd never said before and had vowed to never say. Despite the Queen's orders, and with my anger barely in check for their scent on Sookie, and my lust for her about to consume me, I said, "Sookie is mine."
My nails drew blood in my palms as I clenched my fists as tightly as I could. Malcolm tapped Diane on the shoulder, and she released Sookie, who reeled slightly, heart still thumping in fear.
"Well," Malcolm slowly said. "If you're Bill's, I certainly don't want to do anything to disturb your little arrangement." He looked at me, and I knew that he knew I'd never claimed a human. He knew I hadn't had her, too, and he was confused, but his amusement was stronger. Malcolm strolled over the couch and flopped next to the human male. "That's why I bring Jerry with me where ever I go. He's like mad money." Jerry immediately crawled onto Malcolm's lap, rubbing himself against Malcolm like a cat in heat.
"Someone needs to get down on my Johnson," Liam said as he unbuckled his belt. The woman slinked towards him. When she pulled out his erection and put it in her mouth, Sookie blushed and looked away.
"Oh," Diane said from the arm of the couch as she watched Malcolm feed from Jerry. "She's innocent." She laughed that irritating laugh of hers.
"She's mine," I repeated because it sounded so good to say out loud.
"Yeah, yeah," Diane sulked. "We got it." She glared at me before turning towards Sookie. "So why aren't you over there taking care of your Master, human?" Sookie looked at me, not understanding what Diane meant. "Can't you see how hungry he is?"
"Bill?" Malcolm said from Jerry's neck. "If you're hungry, you're more than welcome to have some of Jerry." He patted Jerry's muscular back. The man rose and walked seductively towards me. He leaned back on the sofa, soft fingers caressing his neck.
"Come on," Liam said to the woman. "Suck it!"
Diane laughed as I felt myself instinctively lean towards Jerry. The blood lust from my anger and desire for Sookie was strong, and the bite marks Malcolm had left oozed. The scent of fresh blood went immediately to my head. Before I could stop myself, I felt my fangs slide down. I looked to Sookie, trying to will myself away from the man, humiliated and shamed, but the pull of the blood was like gravity. I leaned in closer, and when my fangs were almost on his pulsing vein, Sookie stepped forward.
"Stop!" she said. "He has Hep D." She looked around, confused. "What is Hep D?" she asked no one in particular.
"Fucking bitch!" Jerry screamed as he lunged at her. He pushed her to the coffee table and held her by the neck. "They fucking killed Marcus," he said, as if that meant something. He pulled back to strike her, but I rushed forward, snapping his wrist before he could hurt her anymore. Jerry clutched his wrist, and Malcolm was over him in an instant, glamouring him to sleep before he uttered a sound. Liam came loudly, pulling out of the woman's mouth so she wouldn't swallow his blood, catching it in his hand instead. I leaned close to Sookie, who was still sprawled across the table. She coughed and gasped for air.
"Well, this has all been very… illuminating," Malcolm said. "But we've got a long drive back to Monroe, and I'm sure we'll all want to have a little talk with Jerry when he wakes up." He easily threw the unconscious man over his shoulder and walked towards the door.
"Janella," Liam said as he fastened his jeans. "We're being evicted."
"Hey!" Diane exclaimed from her perch on the sofa. She hadn't moved at all during the moments of action. "Isn't anyone even the slightest bit interested in how this little bitch knew about Jerry?" Diane was always the clever one. Malcolm may be older and more powerful, but she was definitely the brains of the nest.
Sookie looked at me, and I willed her to be quiet. "You can't speak yet, can you sweetheart?" I said.
Diane was over my shoulder in a flash, her breasts pressed against my back. "I can make her talk."
"Diane," I said, my mouth threateningly close to her ear. "You forget."
"Yeah, yeah," Diane said. "She's yours. Whatever." Diane sped away from us, and the group walked out the door, Jerry still slung over Malcolm's shoulders.
"Jerry, you stupid bitch," Malcolm said as they were leaving. "No one fucks with me and gets away with it." Knowing that Malcolm would punish his human made me feel oddly calm, and as the door shut, I felt Sookie's relief through the bond.
I put my hand on Sookie's face. Now that they were gone, all I could think about was the fact that she was mine. Minemineminemineminemine. I hadn't intended to claim her, but it felt so right. Part of me felt guilty, knowing deep down that I hadn't called her and kept away on the off-chance that something like this might happen. I knew how unique her scent was. I knew how Malcolm and his nest reacted to such pleasures. I shook away my uncertainties for the time being and focused on her. I gently helped her up, and she immediately brushed me away. I sighed and walked to the doorway to give her space, not wanting to feel her rejection.
"I'm sorry you had to witness that," I said quietly. "Their visit was unexpected." She continued to sit on the coffee table, and she looked very small and very young in her little denim skirt and ponytail. I wanted to gather her into my arms and lick her eyelashes and nuzzle away the scent of Diane and Liam's fingers…
"What's Hep-D?" she finally asked.
"Hepatitis-D is the only blood-born pathogen to which we are susceptible. Malcolm must be furious."
"Hepatitis?"
"A mutation," I explained. "Relatively harmless to humans, oddly enough."
"I've never even heard of it," she said.
"That's because we've kept it out of the media."
"And it makes you sick for a year?" she asked. She must've heard that craziness in the man's thoughts. Misinformation was essential to our mainstreaming efforts.
I couldn't help but smile at her obvious concern for my safety. "No," I said. "It just makes us weak for about a month or so. The biggest danger to us from Hep-D is being captured and staked during that time."
"Yeah," she said, sounding angry. "You don't want your weaknesses to be public knowledge."
"Precisely."
"And what the hell did you mean – Sookie is mine?" I'd never heard her curse before, not in all the weeks I'd been following her.
"I was communicating to the others that you are human, and therefore I am the only one who can feed on you."
She stood up and walked towards me. "You most certainly cannot feed on me!" she said.
"Well of course I can't, Sookie," I said, trying desperately to make her understand there'd been no other way to protect her. "But had they know that they would've considered you fair game, and I wouldn't have been able to stop them from attacking you. It'd be three against one, and Malcolm is much older than I am and quite strong."
"You and Diane…" her voice trailed off. "Dated?"
"We…" Once more I found myself not certain of what to tell her, so I settled again for partial truth. "Had sex once. Just after she was made vampire back in the late 1930s."
"What?" she said, stepping back. "Gross… Bill… She's so… They're all so mean, so…"
"Vicious," I finished for her. "Yes they are. They share a nest, and when vampires live in nests, they become more cruel, more vicious. They become laws unto themselves. Whereas vampires such as I, who live alone, are much more likely to hang on to some semblance of our former humanity." I moved towards her, willing her to not flee.
"Here," she said, holding a folded piece of paper between us like a shield. "Contact info for two electrical contractors. They're willing to come out at night and give you quotes."
"Thank you," I said.
"I have to go."
"May I kiss you goodnight?" I asked.
"No." She shook her head. "I couldn't stand it after them." She quickly left the house, and I heard her start her car and head back down the drive towards Hummingbird Road. The thought of Malcolm lingering in Bon Temps made me clench my fists again, and I dropped the paper to the floor as I ran out after her.
She had a head-start, but I quickly zipped through the cemetery. I felt her sadness, and it mixed heavily with my own.
I was standing on the porch when she parked her little car. I saw her wipe away a few tears before she got out. She walked slowly towards the door, and she didn't see me until she looked up.
"Goddammit, Bill!" she said as she jumped. "How many times do I have to tell you? Do not do that!"
She'd only told me last night, and she'd said she wasn't upset, but I decided not to mention that. "I'm sorry," I said instead. "It wasn't intentional. I just got here. I just wanted to make sure that you were safe." I stepped off the porch towards her, and she stood, her arms defensively crossed and tucked into her sides.
"Why can't I hear your thoughts?" she finally blurted out. "Do you even have any thoughts?"
"Oh I have thoughts," I said. "Many lifetimes of thoughts."
"So why can't I hear them?"
I sighed. "I don't know. Perhaps it's because I don't have brain waves."
"Why not?"
"Because I'm dead," I said, pointing out the obvious.
"No," she insisted. "You're not. You're standing here, talking to me."
"I have no heartbeat," I said, angry at the fact that I was so different. "I have no need to breathe. There are no electrical impulses in my body. What animates you no longer animates me."
"What does animate you then?" she asked. "Blood? How do you digest it if nothing works?"
I shrugged my shoulders. "Magic."
I felt her anger flare. "Oh come on, Bill," she practically spit at me. "I may look naïve, but I'm not. And you need to remember that."
"You think it's not magic that keeps you alive?" I said as I stepped closer to her, bathing myself in her scent. "Just because you understand the mechanics of how something works doesn't make it any less of a miracle, which is just another word for magic…" I leaned closer, wanting to taste her lips. "We're all kept alive by magic, Sookie," I whispered. "My magic's just a little different from yours, that's all."
She leaned her head back and shook her head. "I think we need to stop seeing each other," she said as she quickly darted up onto the porch.
"Why?"
I asked, unable to keep the anger from my voice. She was mine, and I
was hers, and there was no undoing that now.
"Because you don't
breathe. You don't have any electrical… whatever it is. Your
friends want nothing more than to rip my throat out. And because
vampires killed that preacher from the Fellowship of the Sun Church,
and his wife and baby. You look me in the eyes and tell me they
didn't do it."
I hadn't heard of this, but I knew the Church was dangerous. It was only a matter of time before some tragic accident occurred, something freakish and deniable. She would stand there, self-righteous in front of me, and blame me for violence?
"Humans have killed millions upon millions in senseless wars," I said. "I do not hold you responsible for that."
"Bill, night before last, I had to bury my bloody clothes because I didn't want my grandmother to find out I was almost killed, and tonight I was almost killed again. Why on earth would I continue seeing you?"
I walked up onto the porch and stared into her eyes. "Because you will never find a human man you can be yourself with." Her eyes filled with tears, and I felt the crushing weight of her despair. "Sookie," I said, reaching out for her hand.
"Do not touch me," she said as she opened the door. "Just go. Please."
"Dammit," I muttered to the closed door before running back to my house. I grabbed my car keys and sped off, once again, to Monroe.
***
"Hello."
"Andre, this is Bill Compton."
"Bill," he said. "This is an unexpected pleasure."
"She's mine," I said.
There was a pause. "Her majesty will not be pleased, Bill."
"It was unavoidable," I said.
"I'm sure." Andre's voice was dangerously quiet. "This will complicate the situation. You do realize that the Queen asked you not to claim her for your own safety."
"I had no choice," I insisted.
"Have you explained it to her? Does she know that she can refuse you? Choose another?"
I took a deep breath that I didn't need. "She's had my blood," I finally said.
"Explain."
"The drainers I told you about? They tried to kill her."
"Yes, I saw in the paper that there were two nefarious humans found crushed in a freak accident. I assumed you were responsible."
"She would've died," I said. "I had to heal her."
"Just like you had to claim her?"
"Yes," I said.
"What happy coincidence," Andre said, and then the line went dead.
***
"Malcolm," Lorena said to the tall, slender vampire who opened the ornate townhouse door.
"Lorena!" he said, kissing her on both cheeks. "It's been too long. The Queen sent word that you were headed this way, but I expected you sooner."
"This is my William," she said.
"Ah," Malcolm sighed as he leaned close to me. "He's exquisite."
"He's mine," she sharply said.
"We've always shared in the past," he smiled.
"Not this one," she said. "May we come in?"
"Of course, of course," Malcolm said, holding open the door. "My manners are deplorable. Welcome to my nest."
"William," Malcolm said to me, politely nodding his head.
"Bill," I corrected.
"Bill?" he smiled. He looked to Lorena, who was removing her traveling cloak and gloves.
"Don't mind him, Malcolm," she said. "My William is having a difficult time adjusting. So whatever entertainment you have planned, make sure it's not going to scare him."
"How sweet," Malcolm said. "He's sensitive, too…"
"I can be patient," Lorena said. "I think the palace was a bit much to one so young."
Malcolm led us into a luxurious drawing room. The room was awash in candles, and a fire burned merrily in the hearth.
"The Queen was well, and her feeding room, as always, was delightful. But then we had to leave Louisiana immediately," Lorena said. "Such a shame… I really like it there, and now we have to check in here. Such a hassle."
"St. Louis has certain appeals," Malcolm said. "Although the king is an insufferable bore. But then again, who would want to rule the Midwest?" Malcolm shuddered and Lorena laughed.
"William," Lorena said to me. "Malcolm and I traveled over from Europe together. We shared a nest near New Orleans for several years."
"She doesn't look it," he said with an affectionate smile and wink. "But she's the tiniest bit older."
"Malcolm!" Lorena chided. "It's not polite to speak of a lady's age."
"You, my sweet, were never a lady." His fangs slide down, and he licked one. "It's what I love most about you. Have you fed?"
"William has once, but that was hours ago," she said.
"Yes, the young are always so hungry…" Malcolm said. "Come, I know the best place. Not to worry, it's all very up-and-up."
"William," Lorena said. I went to her side and offered her my arm. She smiled at me as she rested her small hand on me.
"Such good manners," Malcolm sneered.
"Yes," Lorena laughed as we exited the house and stepped into Malcolm's waiting carriage. "There's something to be said for a gentleman." She kept her hand on my arm as the carriage ambled down the street. Malcolm sat across from us and shook his head.
"You're the very picture of domesticity. I never would've believed it." He smiled again, something sinister and cold that didn't reach his eyes. "I never thought you'd find what you were searching for. He's it?"
"Yes," she said.
"May I?" he asked Lorena, indicating me with a nod of his head. "Just a taste?"
"No blood," Lorena said. "He's mine."
Malcolm nodded his agreement, and then shifted forward so quickly he was a blur even to me. He ran his fingers through my hair and traced my lips with his tongue. "Exquisite," he whispered.
"That's enough," she said. "Make your own."
He slowly sat back in his seat, laughing once more. "Touchy, aren't we?" he said. He turned to me, rolled his eyes and said, "Women."
"What happened to Philippe?" Lorena asked.
"I released him a few years ago amicably enough. It was time. For the moment, I'm enjoying just my own feelings," he tapped his head. "I'm sure one of these days, I'll be struck and make another. Or I'll call him back. So it goes… Oh!" he suddenly exclaimed. "We're here."
I stepped from the carriage and helped Lorena down.
"It's the best," Malcolm said, pulling us inside the bar. "Are we getting separate rooms, or all together, or do you want to take it home? They're really quite flexible for the right price."
"Together's fine," Lorena said. "But remember, don't frighten William."
Malcolm stepped up to a tall man wearing a black suit and whispered into his ear. With all the noise, I couldn't hear what he was saying, but the man smiled, and I saw Malcolm slip a thick fold of bills into his pocket.
"Please, come follow me," he said to us, and we followed him up the wide staircase. I didn't miss it when Malcolm moved at vampire speed to retrieve his money from the man's pocket.
The suite was lavishly decorated, and four young women entered shortly after we did.
"Mr. Smith," one of them said, bowing low to Malcolm.
"Ah," he said, "Cassandra. I'd hoped you'd be available this evening. These are my dear friends, Mr. and Mrs. Brown."
A pretty red-head came up to me and bowed. "Mr. Brown," she said.
Lorena pushed her away. "Don't speak to him unless I give you permission," she said. The girl nodded again.
Malcolm flopped onto a low sofa, pulling Lorena next to him. "You really must relax," he whispered in her ear. The humans couldn't have heard what he was saying. "No one's going to hurt your boy. You need to have some fun." His tongue darted out and licked her ear. "Remember how much fun we used to have?"
I stood near the fire, staying as far away from the girls as I could, the small room intensifying the scent of their blood. I tried to lose myself in the sensations of the heat on my skin, the colors of the flames as they flickered.
"Ladies," Malcolm said, "I think perhaps a little entertainment for my friends before we begin. I've been raving about you all evening."
The women moved in a well-rehearsed dance of seduction. It started out slowly and gently, with whispers of kisses and the softest of caresses, but when they started undressing each other, I had to look away.
"William," Lorena said softly. Both she and Malcolm were looking at me, not the girls rubbing and kissing each other. "Come here."
I sat at her feet, and she gently ran her fingers through my hair as she whispered in my ear. "This is for you, William. They're lovely, aren't they? And they won't be hurt. Not tonight. They won't remember anything but pleasure. Neither will you. I promise."
I was so hungry, and I hated myself, and I hated her, and yet I clung to her as the only anchor in my new and frightening world.
"Come, Bill," Malcolm said as he leaned forward and pulled one of the girls into his lap. He kissed her neck as she ground herself on him. I smelled it immediately when he broke her skin, and when he looked at me over his shoulder, there was blood on his lips. "No need to be shy."
I couldn't stop my fangs from sliding down, and I felt the growl in my throat as Lorena motioned the girls closer.
"Yes, William," she whispered, stroking my cheek. "Yes…"
***
I pulled into their driveway, flashed to the door, and knocked loudly. Malcolm opened it moments later, and I walked in without a greeting.
"Well, look," he said. "It's everyone's favorite buzz-kill."
"Hey baby," Diane said, setting down a glass filled with blood.
"Mr. Mainstream," Liam said as he held out a pitcher of blood. It smelled human and fresh. "Thirsty?"
"No," I lied.
"Hungry for something else?" Diane asked. She stepped closer to me. "I remember you having a very sizable… appetite." She went to touch my chest, and before I thought about it, before she could offend me again, I growled and pushed her away. She flew across the room, crashing through a wall. As she pulled herself from the wreckage, Malcolm and Liam laughed, their fangs extended.
"The three of you will stay away from me and Sookie from now on," I said to Malcolm.
"I'm your elder," he said, pushing past me and sitting on the plastic-covered sofa. "You have no authority here."
"There are higher authorities," I threatened.
"I'm not afraid of Eric," Malcolm boasted, although I knew he was lying.
"Higher than him," I said.
"Well," Malcolm said, his voice thick with implication. "Then she can speak to me."
"She can suck on sunlight, for all I care," Diane added.
"You are doing nothing to help our cause," I said.
"Not everyone wants to dress up and play human, Bill," Diane sneered.
"Yeah," Liam added. "Not everyone wants to live off that Japanese shit they call blood either. As if we could." He took a gulp from the pitcher.
I sighed. "We have to moderate our behavior now that we are out in the open."
"Not everyone thinks it was such a great idea," Malcolm said. "And not everyone intends to tow the party line." He leaned over and put his hand on mine. "Honey, if we can't kill people, what's the point of being a vampire?"
"Where's Jerry?" I asked.
"We left him on the side of I-20," Malcolm said, sounding almost sad. "Well, most of him, anyway. I kept a souvenir or two…" Diane laughed and took another delicate sip from her glass.
"Janella felt so bad about what Jerry did," Liam said, holding up the pitcher as if in a toast. "She made the ultimate sacrifice."
I walked to the entry way, and hanging upside down in the kitchen, bleeding out into a bucket, was the human female. She was already wrapped in plastic, ready to be easily disposed once her blood was out. The three followed me, Diane laughing the whole time.
"Y'all make me sick," I said.
"You used to be fun," Diane accused. "Is this all on account of that blond breather?"
"If you insist on flaunting your ways in front of mortals," I said. "There will be consequences." I left quickly, closing the door quietly behind me.
***
When I got home, I considered going over to Sookie's and sneaking in again. I wanted to walk up the stairs to her room, curl up beside her in bed, and hold her while I explained everything. What a relief it would be to not have secrets from her. But in the end, I wanted her to come to me. I wanted her to come to me not because she couldn't be with a human man, as I'd suggested on the porch, but because she picked me. I wanted to be hers, but not for lack of options.
I stretched out on the coffee table where Sookie had been just a couple hours before, and I closed my eyes.
"Sookie?" I called through the bond. "Sookie? Can you feel me?"
I focused all my energy on the little hum in the back of my head that was Sookie, and I felt her asleep. I could feel her sadness, and I felt her longing for me. It seemed so wasteful, to be alone and wanting her just across the field from where she lay alone, wanting me. Such a delicate dance she required.
I imagined her coming to me across the field, running in her bare feet in a little white nightgown with eyelet lace. She'd hurry up the steps and push open the door, and she'd stand before me, gasping for breath and flushed from the run.
"What are you doing here?" I'd ask her, standing up and moving close enough to feel her breath hot on my face.
"You scare me," she'd say.
"Don't be afraid," I'd whisper into her hair.
I'd gently pull her to me, and I'd lean down slowly to kiss her softly. She'd moan into my mouth, and my tongue would tease her lips until she let it in. I'd drink in her sweet taste, and her tongue would catch onto the rhythm and wrestle gently with mine.
I'd trail my lips and tongue down her neck and across her throat, and I'd feel her pulse beating rapidly under my mouth. I'd suck her soft skin into my mouth, being careful to not scrape her with my fangs. As much as I longed to, I wouldn't bite her. Not yet, not until she wanted me to. I wanted to show her how good I could make it feel, but I wouldn't until she asked. Instead of biting, I'd softly kiss her pulse once more before moving way back up to her mouth.
We wouldn't need to talk. We would feel each other's need. Not want, but need, and we would understand that words, even the sweetest words ever uttered, would fall hollow and limp compared to our desire.
As I kissed her, I'd unbutton the tiny buttons on the back of her nightgown that would remind me of ladies' undergarments from when I was a man, those tiny little buttons that required skill to unfasten without ripping the lace. Her breathing would grow ragged, and she'd tug my hair as I pulled the straps down over her arms.
She'd glow in her nakedness, unashamed as she'd stand before me, and I'd have to taste her. I'd kiss my way down her glorious breasts, sucking her nipples into my mouth, and across the tight skin of her belly. I'd be on my knees, kneeling before her as the unworthy do before their God, and I'd bury my nose in her soft, golden curls.
She would be glistening in the candlelight, her secret place red and swollen. I'd tease a single finger along her wet folds, her body shuddering under my touch. I'd nuzzle her, drinking in her fluids, which tasted sweeter than any blood. My thumb would trace lazy circles while my tongue plunged into her as far as it could reach. She would moan and buck into my hand, whispered pleas escaping her lips.
There on the coffee table, alone, I stroked myself and wished for Sookie. I felt her through the bond, and I knew she was just as frustrated as I, and I thought again about running across the field. Even as I came into my hand, I felt unsatisfied, and even though there were a couple hours until dawn, there was nothing I wanted to do. I left messages for the electricians and surrendered myself to my hole.
