Chapter 10

A low yipping sound woke me up sometime later. My whole body felt like a sack of rocks and I struggled to push myself into a sitting position. I looking down at the floor I found Lupin looking at me with wide brown eyes and a pouty look on his puppy face.

"I'll get you food in a minute buddy." I grumbled, waving him away. He barked up at me, not taking 'later' for an answer. I rolled out of the other side of my bed my feet hitting the soft floor and sinking in. I got to my feet and swayed a little, stretching as I shuffled toward the closet. I pulled on a pair of boxers in my dresser and a cotton t-shirt before I walked out to the kitchen and got Lupin his breakfast.

The clock told me it was 5:30, but when I looked out the window the sun was setting not rising. I ran back into my bedroom and picked up my phone, it was 5:30 at night?

"Lupin I'm so sorry!" I said coming back into the kitchen and pulling out his doggy treats I gave him a few, put food in his bowl and refilled his water. He lapped it up happily while I grabbed a pair of basket ball shorts and tugged them on over the boxers, Lupin waited patiently by the door for me and we went downstairs.

He did his business, sniffed, rolled and chased a squirrel and then we went back upstairs. It was really hot in my apartment so I kicked the basket ball shorts off and turned the AC up before going to make myself some dinner.

But my fridge was empty. Damn.

Going back into my room I picked up the pizza number and dialed it quickly they answered and I asked for delivery, "I'd like a large pepperoni pizza with extra cheese, French fries with cheese and chicken tenders, with hot and ranch sauce. I've got cash." He told me the price would be 30 bucks and it'd be thirty minutes.

I found my wallet and fished out 35 dollars and set it on the counter before I went to the bathroom and brushed my teeth. I found a brush and tugged it through my hair and then flopped down onto my couch.

It smelled like sweat, and had a few stains on it. I jumped up and went into the kitchen to dampen a cloth and go carefully wipe off the couch. I dry it off after and then sit down once more, propping my feet up on the couch and turning on a recorded episode of the Vampire Diaries.

Half way through, and thankfully on a commercial break, a knock came to my door. I bounced off of the couch and walked silently to the door, peeking through the peep hole, it was just a normal guy with a pizza delivery hat on.

I cast my mental net out, he was normal.

I picked up my money, unlocked all six locks on my door and pulled it open, "it'll be 30 dollars." He said handing me the boxes. I snatched them from his hands quickly and shoved the money into his hands; I could feel a vampire coming down the hall.

"Thanks, you might wanna leave quickly. Vampire." I slammed the door shut and hooked every single lock on my door before twisting the dead bolt and watching the red haired vampire move past my door, my heart jumped into my throat, even though I could tell this girl was much taller then Sophie Ann.

I darted into the kitchen with my food, sorting everything out. I took the chicken strips out of their box and wiped it down so they wouldn't get all soggy and stuck two onto my plate and the rest into the fridge. I dumped half of the fries and the ranch and hot sauce onto my plate and then took the pizza box and my plate into the living room just in time for the show to come back on.

I pulled out a slice of pizza and munched on it happily while watching Elena, Klaus and Rebecca interacting on the screen before Rebecca dragged Tyler off. My pizza filled my stomach until I thought I was going to be sick.

I was sucked into the end, like sitting on the edge of my couch watching Damon and Elena have their moment, Lupin snuggled up in my lap happily, "well isn't this cozy?" the TV and Eric said at the same time.

I practically screamed when I heard his voice and Lupin jumped up from my lap and ran toward Eric, tripping over his long legs until he skidded to a halt and growled at Eric confused, should he be protecting me from Eric he seemed to wonder, tilting his head to the side.

Eric bent down and scratched Lupin's head before coming over to sit beside me, "you scared the shit out of me!" I yelled, standing up and glaring down at him angrily. He chuckled and reached up to cup my face pulling me down to his level, getting into my personal space.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, brushing his lips against mine with a smile, "your lips taste like pepperoni." He chuckled, giving my arm a gentle tug until I flopped down on the couch beside him.

"Good, now shut up. I've got things to watch." I told him finding the next show on my list. I had a whole row of the Ringer to watch. Eric stayed and watched the show with me, the whole time. I was pretty sure he was getting sucked into the show, and I thought about teasing him, but I enjoyed having somebody around to keep me company.

"Her hair looks so nice that way. I could never pull that off." I mumbled mostly to myself looking at Sarah's hair. It was pulled back tight on her head and in a tight pony tail with hair wrapped around it to hide it the hair band.

"I don't know, maybe you could." I guess, looking back now, watching TV with Eric helped me learn a lot about him. He knew out to get rid of a body, new the best way to run away and not get caught, he knew a little bit about fashion, and he knew how to do hair.

I was sitting in front of the mirror now looking at my hair. He'd straightened it and pulled back for me and up into a tight pony tail, I decided it looked nice, "so don't you have to go to Fangtasia?"

"Yes, did you want to…?"

"Mm, yeah. I don't wanna sit around here bored all day. Where's Anastasia at these days?" I inquired.

"She'll be at Fangtasia tonight, why don't you get ready and I'll go change and pull my car around. You can even bring Lupin if you'd like. I'll meet you downstairs" He suggested, kissing my temple, I smiled at him in the mirror as he walked away.

My stomach seemed to flutter when he smiled back at me before he left the bathroom. I got off of the stool I was perched on and went into my bedroom. I found a nice pair of jeans and shimmied into them after stripping out of the boxers.

I changed out of my shirt and put on a bra before pulling on a semi-baggy shirt that fell off the shoulder. Out of fear I wrapped a silver chain around my neck twice, and let the excess run down the shirt.

I slid on a pair of rather high pumps, added some mascara, eyeliner, and eye shadow. "Lupin!" the puppy came running into the room barking happily. I picked him up, hooked on his leash; I grabbed my keys and phone before skipping out the door, locking it as I went down the steps.

I almost missed the vampire sneaking up behind me; I spun around, clutching Lupin hard to my chest in one hand and gripping the railing with the other. The red haired vampire was watching me from the top of the steps.

Not Sophie-Ann, "Hello." She says with a smile, I can't tell if it's friendly or not but a chill crawls up my spine, she looks familiar, "do I know you?

"I don't know." I replied taking another step down the stairs, trying to calm my rapidly beating heart. I was panicking and I knew it, "you've probably just seen me around the complex." I offered lamely.

"Yeah, probably." She said, giving me a strange look, I took another step down and suddenly I was sprinting across the parking lot I ran until I spotted Eric's corvette, Eric was folding out of it, "back in, back in!" I urged as I rounded the car and threw myself into the passenger seat, "drive!"

He did as I ordered and sped out of the parking lot, only slowing down once we got near Fangtasia, "what happened?"he looked over at me with a concerned look on his face. I could feel it running through our bond as well.

"I just ran into a vampire and she thought she knew me and I panicked and ran, okay?" I snapped my heart still beating rapidly in my chest. I looked down at Lupin and frowned. I could feel his pity for me through the bond as well as anger as he pulled into the employee parking space, "don't you dare do that." I hissed angrily.

"Do what?" he asked innocently.

"Pity me." I almost snarled, fumbling with the door as anger rooted in my stomach, "I don't want anything from you, especially your pity."

"Now-."

But I was already on a super angry roll, "no, don't interrupt me! I'm sorry I asked you for whatever I did when I was seven, and I'm sorry you've got to take care of me because we're blood swore from that and bonded now, and I'm fucking sorry I walked into your life. If you're going to pity me and act angry from this one little incident."

"Sookie, I'm not mad because of the incident. I'm mad because you ran away. And scared me, I thought someone hurt you!" he yelled back, but it sounded like he was holding back.

"I'm sorry I got freaked out! I got kidnapped and tortured by a bunch of vampire when I was little! I'm sorry you guys scared the fucking crap out of me! I'm sorry I'm human! I'm sorry I'm alive!" I screamed, shoving the door open hardly noticing that Lupin had jumped from my lap.

I slammed the door shut and stalked away from him and the bar, anger boiling through me as a red haze took over. He caught up with me quick just like I expected and grabbed my arms, "don't you dare walk away from me." he growled.

"Don't touch me." I hissed, shoving his chest, "if you don't want to be apart of this fine. I'm sorry I sucked you into this when I was a kid; I free you from your fucking promise if you can't handle me being a basket case! I'll just go find a witch and break our bond too."

"Don't you dare." He growled.

One second we were in the parking lot the next we were in his office, the door slamming shut behind us, how had he gotten it open so fast? That doesn't fucking matter, "you can't just whisk me off to wherever you please Eric!"

"I can. And I will. And I just fucking did now shut up!" He snarled back, his face inches from mine.

"No don't tell me to-." His lips slammed against mine, he then shoved me away so I was sitting down on the couch so he could glare down at me.

"Listen to me. I am not leaving you or mad at you. Okay? I got it, this isn't a walk in the park, what the hell is wrong with you today?" he asked, glowering down at me.

"I'm sorry." I whispered the anger evaporating, "I don't know." That was the truth, I felt like I was going insane. Tears burned my eyes and I felt them trailing down my cheeks. He sat beside me and pulled me into him, my head rested on his shoulder and I cried freely against him.

"So Eric should be…" we sprang apart as soon as the door opened and I wiped furiously at my face keeping my head ducked, "in here. Sookie I believe you lost this in the parking lot."

I peeked over at Pam from behind my hair, she was holding Lupin, "oh my baby! I'm so sorry!" I jumped up and snatched him from her hands, he whimpered at me with a puppy pout, "I'm sorry sweetie." I slumped down on the couch and held him to my chest scratching behind his ears as I curled up into a ball in the corner.

When I looked up I found a black nose right in my face and Nyx's pink tongue hanging out of the side of her mouth as she looked at me, "hey Nyx." I greeted, she woofed and I followed her pink leash up to Anastasia's arm and her smiling face.

"Hey Sookie." She greeted, as if she knew I was looking at her. Jerk.

"Hey Anastasia." I replied, Lupin seemed to bed backwards in my grasp to look upside down at Nyx's face, "awh, Nyx and Lupin look so cute." Eric and Pam gave me a look that told me they thought I was strange as I watched the two interact.

"What have you found Ana?" Eric asked, getting up from the couch and moving behind his desk, pushing his chair in and flipping through some papers.

"Down." Anastasia commanded Nyx, dropping the leash to her holster and crossing over to the chair at Eric's desk. I wondered absently, watching how effortlessly she seemed to move, how often she was here. She pulled out her laptop and set it down on the desk, typing away before spinning it toward Eric, "someone has been getting at your money. About sixty thousand dollars in fact."

Pam and Eric glanced to me, I peeked over at the from under my eye lashes nervously, "you don't think I did it do you?" I squeaked. Eric and Pam both laughed and I glowered, picking my head up, "don't you laugh at me!"

"We looked at you because you can read the humans." Pam explained with a roll of her eyes. I frowned at her and then stuck my tongue out in a childish way before slumping into the couch.

Long Shadow came in so he could be informed about the money once they discussed it Eric looked toward Long Shadow, "Get Ginger, Belinda, and Bruce."

"Why do you think it was a human?" I asked once Long Shadow was gone, Pam and Eric both turned to me shocked, I squeaked and backed into my seat farther.

"I agree with her." Anastasia added in, "it could be a vampire, or a human, you never know."

Everyone fell silent as Long Shadow entered the room with Bruce. I noticed that like when Long Shadow entered the first time Nyx moved toward Anastasia, and this time she stood and watched as he moved across the room, guarding Ana who was facing the computer, her back to Long Shadow.

Bruce was put into a chair and he was shaking with nerves, I kneeled down beside Bruce and looked into his face, grabbing hold of his wrist. He looked between the vampires, Ana and me. His mind screamed with panic, he didn't know what was going on.

"Bruce, have you been taking money from Eric?"

His eyes went wide and he shook his head, "no. no." his mind confirmed as much and I backed away shaking my head. Ginger stepped into the room and I held back a look of disgust, until she shot a flirty look at Eric.

I growled in displeasure, even though I knew Eric had no interest in her it still pissed me off. "hey sweetie." She purred in his direction.

"Sit down and shut up." I all but snarled at her, standing between her and Eric, cutting of her view of my Viking.

Whoa, mine?

I shoved the thought away, "Ginger, answer her questions." Eric demanded, it wasn't too noticeable but he had a hint of laughter in his voice. As soon as I reached out to touch Ginger she screamed, Pam was behind her in a blink pushing her down into the chair so she was immobile, she nodded at me.

I grabbed Ginger's wrist again, "did you take the money?" her mind was crazy, like a bomb site and I could tell she knew who did, "who was it?" but that part in her mind, completely blocked off, her memory was wiped.

"Vampire." I breathed the word under my breath and ran my fingers over a bite scar on her neck, "he's bitten her and glamoured her to forget. Bring in Belinda." I ordered Pam, instantly sending her an apologetic look.

"Don't make it a habit Miss Stackhouse." She warned, but it seemed to be an empty threat, leaving the room, Belinda came in calmly and sat down in the chair in front of me, her eyes moving over everyone in the room before settling on me.

"Belinda, what vampire has Ginger been with?" I reached out and snatched up her wrist gently.

"Anyone that would have her." She stated bluntly, she had an image in mind, but no name. I needed a name, damn it.

"Who from here?" the name jumped forward in her mind quickly, my eyes snapped to him before I could think it over and he was suddenly on top of me, biting my arm as he snapped to get anywhere near my throat.

My mind shut down and I curled up, I was half aware of a mass on top of me and the scream tearing my throat up. I knew he would kill me to keep his name from leaving my mouth, but he obviously didn't understand that dead or not he was clearly guilty.

His body pressed harder on me and I met his brown eyes, my mouth still opened from the scream when he suddenly burst to pieces, his blood flowed into my mouth, I screamed again and propelled myself backwards away from his decaying body. Eric was in front of me in a second, pulling me into his embrace as I quaked in fear. Belinda was gaping wide eyed as Pam crouched in front of her trying to get her to look at her; Lupin was covered in blood glaring down at the bloody remains of Long Shadow.

"Oh my poor baby!" I said, running over to him and picking him up. Nyx who had been merely a few feet away was also bloody and she looked angry. But as soon as she seemed to realize things were calming down she backed up and sat beside Ana.

"How much blood?" Anastasia asked, her head moving around the room waiting for an answer. I surveyed the room and thought the image into her head, she grimaced and I heard her think how thankful she was she was clean.

"I want something to change into…" I whispered, disgusted as I set my poor dog on the ground.

"Come on Sookie, and bring the dog. I'll bring something to clean Nyx with." Pam gripped my upper arm, scooped Lupin off the ground and dragged me out of the room to a bathroom across the hall.

She was gone for a blink and back two heartbeats later, flipping the lock on the door,

"Strip. Here's a few towels, I'll put the clothes on this chair. I'll wash him in the handicap stall sink." She scooped Lupin from the floor and walked away. I peeled off the dirty clothes and dropped them to the ground, they made a nasty squishing splat sound as they hit. I ended up having to get rid of my bra as well.

I used one of the towels to wash the blood away and the other to dry myself off before I tugged on a clean shirt and the pair of shorts that Pam had brought me, I had yet another pair of the classic 'Bite Me' shorts.

I had a feeling soon I'd be the proud owner of at least 10 pairs of these things; I sighed and looked down at the shirt. It had a pair of very artistically drawn lips with fangs and blood and Fangtasia written underneath it.

The font looked like the words people carved into their skin. Jagged and rough. It looked nice written in blood. I ran my fingers over it and smirked, wondering who designed it. I smoothed out my hair as best as I could and then turned to the ugly bite mark on my arm.

I ran my arm under the water again and went over to the paper towel machine, I pulled down the little lever until I had enough to wrap around my arm. I ripped it off and proceeded to do just that.

I heard a giggle from the other end of the bathroom and my jaw fell open. I spun on my heel and stared wide-eyed at the blonde vampire who was the source of the giggle, and then to my soap covered puppy, who shook and elicited another giggle from Pam.

I pinched my arm.

Nope I wasn't asleep, and Pam was still standing there playing with my puppy in the sink. She was rinsing him off as best as she could with him wiggling around and trying to jump out of the sink.

I guess she deemed him 'rinsed' because she grabbed a new towel, wrapped him up in it and carried him out of the stall and out toward me, she grabbed my arm, glanced at the gross clothes on the floor and pulled me back across the hall into Eric's office. Code 3,5,6,0.

The office was still a horror scene, but I knew it wouldn't be that way for much longer, everyone else was gone but Pam grabbed a plastic bag and pushed me back out, Lupin still in her grasp.

We went to a door one down from Eric's, code 5, 4, 3, 7, and we found Ana and Eric assembled inside. Pam kneeled by Nyx and cleaned him up before sitting down on a black leather couch. She toweled Lupin off and made a few faces at him.

I could tell even Eric thought this was strange, and when she peered up at us her face went from glee to blank in a blink and she dropped her hands to her sides. Lupin barked at her and when he got no response he jumped promptly off her lap and walked over to Nyx.

I suck, I know I suck. But it's summer now and this is going to be a priority along with my other 4 stories and I've been writing a lot lately and if anyone is even interested in this anymore I'll gladly update!