SPOV
Claudine and I are sitting on the couch together, pouring over information on the drainers as my mind is spinning. I'm having a hard time concentrating on the facts of the case as the faces of Eric and Godric keep floating through my mind. I just can't seem to stop thinking over Godric's words from last night. I let out a loud sigh as I fall back against the couch. Claude enters the room then and I glare at him as he grins widely.
"Good morning," he states cheerfully as I scowl at him and Claudine shakes her head at us.
"You are so fucking dead," I inform him as I point a finger at him. Claude's grin only widens at my threat.
"Whatever did I do to incur such wrath, Cousin?" he asks, feigning innocence.
"I really don't need the details of my love life broadcast to the force, I have a hard enough time holding my own without you giving them fuel to add to the fire," I tell him as he shrugs, plopping down to the chair next to us.
"Sookie, I'm the one to blame, I shouldn't have entrusted Claude with such delicate information," Claudine tells me with a small frown.
"I really don't see what you're so upset about," Claude tells me. "I'd be honored to have either of those two hunky sheriffs on my arm." I roll my eyes at him, but am having a hard time smothering a grin at the thought of Godric and Eric trying to fight off my cousin's advances. Claude grins at me and I finally lose my battle as I grin back at him. "Forgiven?" he asks as he bats his long lashes at me.
"Fine, but you better not try and pull shit like that on me again," I warn him. "Don't think I won't fuck you up." He chuckles loudly then and Claudine grins at the two of us, shaking her head once more.
"So, what you working on?" he asks us as he kneels before the coffee table, looking over the piles of papers.
"Grandfather has asked that we help the vampires catch a ring of drainers," Claudine informs him as he nods lightly. Colman walks in the front door then and we all turn to greet him as he grins at us.
"Heard you had a bit of luck last night catching some drainers," he tells us as he sits next to Claudine, leaning over to peck her lips lightly. "We caught one last night as well," he tells us with a grin.
"Was it another werepanther?" Claudine asks him as he nods to us.
"That settles it then, we definitely need to check out Hotshot tonight," I muse as I look down to the paperwork once more. "Kind of hard to believe such a run-down, backwoods community has the means to pull something like this off, don't you think?"
"The equipment they were using was brand new and top of the line," Colman adds. "Which is odd, given the state of the drainer himself; I don't think that man has bathed once in his life, he was certainly worse for wear."
"And the mystery deepens," Claude muses as we nod to him. We continue to look over details of the past attacks, searching for any clues when Colman looks up at me with a smirk.
"What?" I spit out, waiting for the teasing to continue.
"Ben was asking about you last night," he tells me as my brows rise in surprise. "I think he has a bit of a crush on you, Sookie."
"Yeah, I know," I tell him with a sigh as the three of them stare at me. "He asked me out yesterday," I tell them with a shrug.
"And you failed to mention this because?" Claudine asks as I roll my eyes at her.
"Mostly because I'm not interested, but also because evidently, you can't seem to keep your big mouth shut," I tell her with a smirk as she grins at me.
"He seems like a really nice guy, Sookie, I think the two of you would really hit it off," Colman tells me as I sigh.
"Maybe so, but I kind of have feelings for someone else," I say carefully as he smirks at me.
"Please tell me it's Preston," he teases as I flip him off, earning us a round of laughter.
"Since Claude already let the cat out of the bag, I guess it's no surprise to you that I'm kind of crushing on the sheriffs right now," I tell him as he grins, nodding his head at me.
"So, it's true, the mighty vampire hunter has truly fallen for the charms of her fanged foe," he says with a smirk as I roll my eyes at him.
"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up," I huff as he reaches over and clasps my knee softly.
"You know I'm just giving you shit, Sookie. I think it's great you're breaking down the barriers the way you are. I'm proud of you, Kid," he tells me as I look to him in surprise. Both he and Claudine are grinning at me and a small smile comes to my face at his kind words.
"Thanks," I tell him softly as Claude clears his throat loudly. I glance over at him as he waggles his brows at me. Dear God, don't let me have to kill him, please. "What?" I ask him as he grins.
"Well, don't keep us in suspense, we want the juicy details," he says as I roll my eyes at him.
"There aren't any juicy details for me to reveal, believe it or not," I tell him with a shrug. "We all know we like one another and they're kind of waiting for me to decide what to do about it."
"Then what the hell are you waiting for?" he asks excitedly. "Because I swear to God, if you don't jump them soon, I will," he tells me as the room erupts into laughter. Once we quiet our laughter, the three of them are all looking to me for a response and I sigh, shaking my head.
"I don't know what I'm waiting for, honestly," I tell them with a shrug.
"Then for the love of God, go for it already!" Claude exclaims as I grin at him.
"Maybe I will," I concede with a grin.
EPOV
Dr. Ludwig assured me Pam will make a swift and complete recovery, and this has helped to settle my anxieties over my child's health, but I still have asked her to stay at the house with Godric and I until we can be assured these drainers will no longer be causing further complications.
Now as Godric and I enter the dilapidated community of Hotshot together, I wonder how such a failing community has managed to organize such a large ring of drainings. There is obviously more here than meets the eye. Sookie steps out from a large outbuilding waving to us then as we make our way over to her.
"You won't believe what we've found," she tells us as we follow her into the building. The inside is a stark contrast to the weathered, rusted outside of the large building. There is plastic sheeting covering the whitewashed walls and all the equipment in the room is shining and brand new. There's a large refrigerator set at the center of the room with shelves filled with tubes containing our sacred blood and Godric's fangs shoot down in fury at the sight.
"Blasphemous," he hisses out as I nod my agreement. Claudine is standing over one of the stainless steel tables with papers strewn before her as she looks to them with concern etched upon her face. I walk over to join her as she looks up to me with a furrowed brow.
"It's a list of vampires that have been targeted," she explains. "Both you and your Maker are listed," she informs me softly as my own fangs shoot down in anger. The audacity of these fucking weres, to think they could target such ancient warriors as Godric and I. Ludicrous. Sookie and Godric join us then and I glance down to see them holding hands, which calms my fury slightly. Godric looks down to the list then, reading over the names before looking up to me in concern.
"Every one of the vampires listed is old, ancient even, and quite powerful," he tells me as I look down over the list of names with him to see he's right in his assessment.
"Why the fuck would they risk hunting such powerful vampires?" I muse aloud.
"The older the vampire, the more money their blood is worth on the market," Sookie says softly as she looks to the two of us in sympathy.
"We must inform the queen of this, her kingdom could be rendered defenseless if this many powerful allies were dispatched," I tell Godric as he nods his agreement. "This could very well be the start of a hostile takeover of the state."
"That could explain why the weres here were all glamoured. Their brains are fucking Swiss cheese," Sookie tells us as I nod to her. That settles it then, we're looking at a vampire culprit.
"Um, guys," Claudine calls out as we turn to face her. "I think we have a bigger problem here," she says as she looks to Sookie in concern. "Eric and Godric aren't the only ancients to make the list, Sookie. Warlow's name is listed as well."
"What?" the three of us ask in unison as Sookie grabs the slip of paper from her cousin's hands. "It says here Warlow is over 5,000 years old," she says as she looks to me and Godric in shock. "Shit, is that even possible?"
"I have never heard of a vampire existing for such a long period," Godric states as he looks to me with worry. "He must be incredibly powerful, and therefore should be considered immensely dangerous."
"And if his name is listed here, it means he must be located somewhere within the state," I say softly as Sookie looks to us in anger.
"Fuck. Claudine, we need to talk to Niall about this," she tells her cousin who nods her agreement.
"Sookie, I don't want you going after Warlow alone," I plead as she looks to me in anxious frustration.
"Please listen to Eric, Dear One, if this vampire is truly this old, he will be nearly indestructible," Godric tells her with pleading eyes as Sookie lets out a small sigh.
"I guess you're right," she concedes as I pull her into a tight hug, placing a kiss to the crown of her head as my anxiety lessens only slightly. There is still an immensely powerful and potentially dangerous vampire out there that was responsible for her parents' deaths and we still have no idea why they were targeted by him.
"Thank you, Sookie," I tell her as I pull away to give her a soft smile. She grins up at me and the sight of her glowing face sends a wave of warmth through me. She turns to Godric then who pulls her against him into a tight embrace.
"Please be careful, Dear One. I will see what information I can unearth about this vampire, Warlow," he tells her as he places a kiss to her forehead.
"Thank you both for your help," she tells us softly. "As much as I'd like to see Warlow pay for his actions, I promise not to run off half-cocked," she assures us as I feel Godric's anxiety lessen slightly along with my own. Claudine steps before us then, nodding to the both of us before linking Sookie's arm with her own.
"We shall return shortly, Sheriffs. We will meet you back at Fangtasia," she tells us as the two of them "pop" from the warehouse. Godric walks over to the table as he begins collecting the array of papers. I can feel his anxiety through the bond and I know he is just as worried about Sookie as I am.
"She will be fine, Godric," I tell him softly as I place my hand upon his shoulder. "Niall will not allow harm to come to his kin."
"I certainly hope you are correct in this assessment," he says quietly as he looks around the room in disgust. "Now we must decide what to do with this place, my child."
"We'll collect what evidence we need to present to the queen and then we'll burn this fucking place to the ground," I tell him as he nods to me. I stand before the large cooler of blood with a grimace. The blood is sacred, Godric taught me this, that someone would do something so heinous sickens me to my core. I open the door and take a sample of the vials before kicking the large cooler across the room. It smashes to the wall with a loud crash as the glass doors shatter and the various vials smash along the stark, white shelves.
Godric finishes collecting the paperwork and the two of us exit the warehouse. I look down to see an old gas can and lift it to find it's still partially full. I pull a handkerchief from my pocket and Godric hands me a pack of matches. I light the Molotov cocktail and hurl it at the building before the two of us walk away from the now smoldering outbuilding.
"Let us return to Fangtasia," Godric tells me. "I want to search the tomes for clues concerning this vampire, Warlow." I nod to him as we climb into my corvette with our evidence in tow. I'm hoping the age of this vampire was somehow a misprint as I have no idea how we will defeat such a powerful opponent.