Apologies that it has taken so long to update - and that this is only part of the chapter...

I hope to get the rest of the chapter (and more of the story!) sorted during my time off over Christmas.

Hope you enjoy the taster until then!

xxx

**UPDATE***

If you are wondering whether to work over Christmas next year; don't. However much you think you need the money, you need to see your family more. Lesson learnt.

Anyway, here is the rest of this chapter and I have ideas planned out for the rest so here's hoping I can get them sorted for you

Hope you like.

xxx


I left the bar and stomped towards my car but hesitated at the door, too angry to concetrate on where to actually go. Just away, I thought to myself, away is better than here right now.

I heard the door of Fangtasia open again and saw Bill carrying Lafayette with Sookie close behind him. The pained look on Lafayette's sweating face, along with his grey pallor was enough to incite another wave of anger but also an equal measure of compassion. It made me able to chastise myself for being a selfish brat. I trotted over to them, helping Sookie hold his injured leg as still as possible while Bill took most of the weight from the other side of the vehicle.

When Lafayette was settled in, Sookie took charge "I need to get him to a hospital and you need to get as much stuff out of Eric's house as you can; you're staying at mine" I didn't even have time to argue or thank her as she turned on Bill "You go with Alex"

She paused to allow Bill the second or so to deliberate before nodding.

"And you," Sookie said over her shoulder "can hush up." God know's what Lafayette had been about to say.

She turned to Bill again, taking his hand before he could say what was on the tip of his tongue "Don't worry, you'll probably be back at mine before I am" she kissed him quickly and then turned to me. "You're welcome Alex." And she got into the driving seat and sped out of the car park.

Bill and I looked at one another and then headed to my car. I tossed the keys to Bill which he caught effortlessly. I'd rather he drive; with his quicker reflexes and decades of experience I knew we'd get there faster.

The journey was fast but not frightening, and the only conversation was the directions I was giving Bill. When we pulled up to the house it was in darkness, but that meant nothing. If Eric was lurking, he certainly didn't need the light on. Or maybe Pam would be there - If anyone would take pleasure in scaring me it would be her.

I took a moment to steel myself before getting out of the car and heading for the front door. When I realised Bill had the keys I turned and watched as he was just stood there, about halfway between the car and the house.

"Bill?"

My voice seemed to snap him out of it and he looked directly at me, and began to walk forward as though he had to think about each individual step. Upon reaching the the porch he went straight to opening the door and stepped into the house in front of me, which I thought was a tad ungentlemanly.

"Are you ok?" I asked, watching him with a mix of curiosity and suspicion.

"Did you know there are wards on the house?"

"Wards?"

"I'll take that as a no" he dragged his eyes away from the interior of the hallway which he seemed to be examining in great detail, and faced me "Wards are spells cast by witches. These ones happen to be quite strong" he left me to frown at that as he moved to look first in my would-be office and then the living room. "How often is Eric here?"

"At least every other night?" I replied, thinking it was probably more than that...

"And you don't sleep together?" He must have seen the shock on my face "I apologise for my bluntness"

It wasn't so much a shocking subject, it was more that southern gentleman Bill had asked it. "It's ok. And no, we havn't slept together" I said, while blushuing as Bill had seen how close we had gotten. He simply nodded and walked to the kitchen. I followed him asking "What is going on? We need to get my stuff and get out of here"

Bill turned from looking in the pantry back to me and nodded. He held the kitchen door open for me but that didn't stop me seeing him glance back into the kitchen. I didn't like it.

We headed upstairs and I got my small holdall and literally dumped clothes from my wardrobe in there. I went to the bathroom and did the same with the essential toiletries. I didn't want to come back to this house ever again, so I'd have to get removal men sorted to get the rest of my stuff

Once zipped up Bill took the bag and carried it easily down the stairs and out the door. He slung it in the back seat and we were off and away before I really noted I had left the house. I sighed in relief, already feeling better the further away I got.

"Now" I said, my mind clearing somewhat "why would Eric have wards on a house? What do they do?"

Bill looked uncomfortable, which did not inspire me with confidence. "The wards on that house mean it is hard to focus on. If you had not been there I would have walked right past it." I frowned but let him continue, "It also made me want to stay away when I did concentrate" He glanced at me and then back at the road "It was a struggle for me to overcome, but not impossible. I'm surprised you had no difficulty at all"

I didn't want to know what that implied.

"Maybe it doesn't work on humans?"

"That is unlikely" Well, at least he made an effort not too sound too patronising. "Except perhaps the witch that cast it" He eyed me again at this point.

"I am not a witch, Bill."

He nodded but remained silent. Stupid vampire. How could I cast a spell without realising it? Forget that, how could I be a witch when I didn't even know they existed? Add that to the growing list of 'Why am I surprised?'.

I sighed and tried to actually think about what Bill was saying and suddenly remembered Sam's reaction when he had dropped me off after I had been attacked by Rene. I had assumed he just still wasn't my biggest fan but maybe the spells were doing their thing on him. But why not me? I wasn't sure I wanted to know so I asked another question instead.

"Do vampires usually have spells on their properties?"

I watched Bill flex his fingers around the steering wheel before taking a sharp turn. "Its not uncommon, but it can be a bit extreme for an unimportant building. It is a property that he rented out?"

"Yes, but he hasn't had anyone in there in the last 5 months" or he hadn't had any rent on the property since then anyway. I'd seen his accounts so I knew. I figured he had just been using it as a convenient place to take fangbangers for a good time, but that wouldn't make it important. "Could you tell how old the spells were?" I asked, almost embarrassed at the lightening quick thought that maybe Eric put the spells on the house becasue I was staying there.

"No"

Well, that was that theory out the window - or at least on the shelf with no proof.

"So when you were on the porch you were OK?" That is certainly what it seemed like at the time.

"Yes, wards are commonly used around the perimeter of a property"

"So what were you doing in the kitchen?" I asked, pleased he'd walked into that one. My smugness faltered however, as I watched him squirm in the seat. He actually squirmed. It was funny and terrifying all at the same time.

"Vampires often have several resting places they- "

"Eric sleeps in my house!" I all but screamed at him, making him wince. How could Eric do that without telling me, without me finding out? At least I knew what he found so important; himself.

I felt sick.

I had been there when he was. Oh my God; every single orgasmic dream I had while I thought I was alone... And I had acted aloof and nonchalant when I saw him and he knew everything. "Oh my God." I put my face in my hands and continued to cringe into myself. I am such a fucking idiot. Although Bill hadn't said 'yes you are right' he was most definately not correcting me, which was exactly the same thing.

I sat up straight and lent my head back against the seat and sighed loudly "I don't suppose you can tell the last time he slept there?" I asked, holding out for the smallest bit of hope that Bill would say 'oh no, not in months'

"Not last night, but definately within the last week" he answered stone faced.

Great. Last night had been the only time I hadn't been there myself. Even Eric couldn't have planned it so exactly that I would feel more embarrassed than I had ever felt, ever. And so stupid!

"Don't tell me. The house reeks of him. I reek of him. And he's probably been sleeping there solidly for months" It would be just my fucking luck.

"I can't be certain of that" He said diplomatically.

"What a cop out" I muttered, crossing my arms and sinking lower into the seat.

Needless to say the rest of the car journey was in silence.


After an evening, a day and part of the next evening, I could confirm that I was officially still seething, though my anger had subsided and given way to more selfish emotions (big surprise there). The prevailing feeling, I'm sorry to say, was embarrassment. After all the smart talk I had given Grace and Sookie, I was now an example of how things went wrong. I was frustrated with myself, that my infatuation had gotten the better of me. And I was ashamed that I was so very disappointed about it; that Eric was not good, he was a vampire and not human at all. What human could do that to another person?

But that wasn't right; there were plenty of people who had and/or would do that kind of thing to someone. The important thing was that I wanted nothing to do with anyone who could do that – human or vampire.

Why couldn't things be black and white?

"'Cos that's not the way the world is, honey" Sookie had said last night at her home, picking up on my mental lamentations. She was right, of course, but that didn't make it any better.

I wished he was just bad or good, one or the other, not a maddening mix of both. Eric had kept people captive, tortured them and killed them. But he had also saved my life, as well as Sookie's for that matter.

However disturbing it was to think that I had been living with the guy without realising it; he hadn't flaunted the fact, which was confusing. He probably correctly realised that I would insist on leaving, but I couldn't see what he gained from it. I blushed, of course there was the night time entertainment which I had no doubt Eric would have been an avid witness of. But he kept his promise from so long ago; never without my consent.

I had the even more disturbing thought that maybe me just being there, and having wild, sexual dreams about him, was enough for Eric.

No. I scoffed to myself, there had to be something more, something bigger that I wasn't seeing. There was a reason Eric kept me in THAT house, but did I want to know what that was?

I sighed, not having any idea of any answers to any of the questions whizzing round my head. I felt sorry for Sookie who must have had to endure my stormy mind all night, and day and now evening on the plane.

I say plane, but it was more of a private jet.

Pompous vampire. I certainly wouldn't have booked this opulent mode of transportation, but I had not made the bookings after all; Bobby had, and he spared no expense. I think it must have made him somewhat pleased with himself that he could insist on the best of everything, even if it was for someone else to enjoy.

Saying that, the seats were divinely comfortable, and I had slipped into a semi-dozing state the moment the plane tipped back into its steep ascent to cruising altitude.

I saw Sookie get nervous at take-off but she didn't ask for her hand to be held or anything like that.

Then I thought she probably wouldn't appreciate all the 'me' thinking but what could I really do about it?

"Did you want me to move further away? Would that even work?"

She turned away from the window to answer me "It might do, but I'm pretty much used to it. And to be honest you're being drowned out by one of the stewardesses." She glanced at the two women who had their backs to us at the front of the small aisle, shrugged and went back to watching the passing clouds beneath us, leaving me to get back to my thoughts.

I slipped into a fuller state of sleep for the hour or so of the flight, thinking in my more lucid moments, that it would be nice to get back onto a diurnal life style again. I woke up fully when I felt the plane begin its decent. Looking out the window I could see the Dallas skyline come into view. It had an orange/red haze, probably from a mixture of pollution and the lowering sun, but it made it look pretty. It also made me wonder what the night would bring.

I looked over at Sookie who was avidly staring out the window just as I had been - may be a bit more avidly. She turned to look at me and she had such a childish grin on her face I couldn't help but smile right back at her.

"This is so cool" she said, slightly slowly. I looked at her more closely and saw two little vodka bottles on her fold down tray. Empty. I wondered how many she had finished off while I had slept.

"Only a few" she smiled more clearly, but then hiccupped and laughed at herself. Well, this was something new.

"I know" Sookie giggled and went back to watching our decent over Dallas.

The landing was one of the smoothest I had experienced and Sookie was fine with the whole thing. Though she may have been a bit more numb for the landing than she was for the take-off...

Taxiing took longer than I thought but then I realised we were making our way to one of the smaller hangers, and not the main terminals. More expense, I noted. When we finally got the OK, Sookie tipped the two hostesses very generously and stepped out into the fluorescent light of the hanger.

"Yoo hoo" she called and waved down at the ground. I peeped round her to see there was a limo waiting for us, the driver holding up a card reading "Northman party". That grated on me, and I wondered if Bobby had done that just to annoy me. Though, would he have known so quickly that I had quit?

I wouldn't put it past him

Sookie had ceased waving and made steady progress down the stairs to the ground and then trotted over to the driver. I went after her and started going over the arrangements in my head. We were a couple of hours late, thanks to hold ups at take off, so we would probably miss our dinner reservations, but the hotel would be able to get us somewhere, surely?

I glanced at the driver who had motioned as well as said for us to get into the limo, but I guessed Sookie wanted to make sure Bill was unloaded ok. I would be the same if it was Eric

No it wouldn't! I interrupted my own thoughts with a physical jerk of my body. I was shocked I could still unconsciously think like that. Sometimes I swear my own mind works against me...

"Just get in the Limo" the driver said again, making me look at him sharply.

I stepped between him and Sookie and looked down at the sweating, blonde haired and blue eyed driver. "Are you Mr Jose Vasquez?" I plucked the name out of my memory from the email that Bobby had sent me – finally seeing something good about the guy; his almost unhealthy compulsion to include every detail.

The driver's eyes widened but he grabbed for both mine and Sookie's wrists, which I wasn't expecting.

"Got off me!" Sookie shouted.

I was about to take a swipe at the guy when Bill was suddenly in front of him, holding his throat and making the guy go even more red. "Speak and it will be the last thing you do."

A bit overdramatic but it worked for me.