Eric and Sam watched Roman and two of his men drag a thrashing Mac Rattray out of the interrogation room and into the service lift that would go straight to the basement garage. From there, they would deliver the Rat to Anthony Murello who had an underground holding cell beside McCarran Airport.
Big Tony was anything but big. He was a small, pudgy man with a bad leg in his fifties, who looked like a cross between Danny de Vito and Martin Scorcese with his horn-rimmed glasses and walking stick. He was mild-mannered and he talked with a lisp. He didn't look imposing at all.
But looks could be deceiving.
And in Big Tony's case he had deceived a lot of lowlife con artists and bookies who had tried to in his fiftiescross him. Big Tony ran backroom gambling operations all over Nevada and Atlantic City. Because of that most big casino owners ostracized the mob boss.
They weren't happy with the fact that Anthony Murello's underground gambling operation was taking a slice from their cake without paying any taxes.
But Eric Northman wasn't like most casino honchos. He didn't mind that Big Tony was making money illegally while he did everything by the book. The Viking was profitable enough to bother himself with other people's loot. Besides, Big Tony owed Eric Northman a favor.
It happened five years ago, when Eric was still relatively new in the gaming business.
A group of hotshot FBI agents tried to bust Big Tony in Reno. Murello barely escaped the raid. However, his mistress and his two brothers weren't so lucky. By the time Tony ordered a hit on the agents it was already too late, the Bureau had already sent more agents, along with the local police, to take down what was left of Murello's operations.
Tony asked several casino owners for help but they all turned him down. All except for Eric Northman, who was keen on collecting favors from everybody who might be useful to him.
He hid Big Tony and the rest of his posse in one of his safe houses in New Mexico while his lawyers worked on Tony's case. Eric managed to bail the mistress and the brothers out, while his East coast lawyers played the frame-up angle. The trial dragged on for over a year, but in the end, Eric Northman and his group of top legal advisers won. The Murellos walked with the condition that none of them would conduct any form of illegal gambling in the US or they would be sent back to jail for life without pardon.
But, of course, once rotten would always be rotten in Vegas.
After three years of lying low, Big Tony resumed with his operations but with stricter rules and more severe punishments. Cheats and snitches would be prosecuted without question, but not without inflicting tremendous pain on them first.
Big Tony's favorite form of torture was castration using a rusty serrated blade. The procedure itself was excruciating enough but what really made it special was the tetanus bacteria brought by the non-sterile tool.
Eric's recollection was interrupted when a female staff from Roman's security team entered the interrogation area and handed him an ice pack. Not a minute later, Pam came bursting through the door, too.
Eric took one look at Pam and he knew, whatever she had to say did not bode well for him.
"We have a situation." Pam told Eric while the Viking was icing his swelled knuckles. "Kibwe managed to break the spy you picked from El Gordo. His name's Franklin Mott and he's working for Sophie Anne. The bitch flew in yesterday from Paris. She got wind of Stan's financial trouble and wanted to seal the deal on Queen Regent as soon as possible."
'Fuck!' Eric thought.
Kibwe was part of his security detail. He was the African-American guy who kept an eye on Eric and Sookie earlier. When Eric arrived at the North, Kibwe was still giving the lanky mole the Northman treatment. Eric was actually on his way to check up on them again but Pam beat him to it.
Sophie Ann Leclerq was the youngest heir to the Leclerq Group of Companies, which specialized with textiles and crafts. The Leclerq family was one of the oldest and richest families in the South. Sophie Anne was the most ambitious among her siblings - Sigebert, Wybert, Andre. She wanted to invest in the hotel business as well and she had been eyeing the Queen Regent hotel beside the Luxor in Vegas for some time now.
Ever since Stan Davis, the owner and CEO of the Luxor filed for bankruptcy early this year.
Eric Northman wanted Queen Regent way before Sophie Anne did. He started bidding for the hotel a couple of years ago when one of his spotters discovered Stan's tax trouble with the IRS. Queen Regent wasn't as prestigious as the Bellagio or Sands but it was located smack in the middle of the North and Luxor.
Since the Viking had already acquired the majority of the shares at the Luxor, only two months ago, purchasing Queen Regent would allow Eric to expand the North and adjoin it with the pyramid. If that happens, he would own the biggest casino resort in all of Vegas.
And he wouldn't let a snobby little rich girl interfere with his goal.
"Where is she?" Eric asked as he flexed his bruised fingers. He cursed himself for punching the Rat but he couldn't stop picturing him looking at her with his snake-like grin.
"Sophie Anne's staying at the Four Seasons. I checked with Stan and he confirmed that Sophie Anne scheduled a meeting with him tomorrow morning at the Regent. He's in the process of aggressively liquidating his assets," Pam replied. "Kibwe confiscated this from her mole." Pam passed an iPhone to Eric. It was password encrypted. Pam pressed four digits and the screen was unlocked. She browsed through the applications on the screen before she landed on the sunflower icon that contained the photos.
Eric sifted through the photo slides and he could feel his temper flaring as he stared at the pictures Franklin Mott took of him and her. From the lobby at the North all the way to El Gordo.
"Mott didn't get the chance to email it to Sophie Anne yet. He probably wanted to give it to her in person so he could ask for more money," Pam answered Eric's unspoken query.
Eric felt a wave of relief wash over him. There was no way he would allow Sophie Anne to drag her into this. He was certain if Sophie Anne had knowledge of her, the Frost Queen would not have any qualms using her as leverage. He was sure because that was exactly what he would have done. Alas, Sophie Anne was a boring little twat, whose only skeleton in the closet was her bisexuality.
"Call Stan and tell him I'll sit in tomorrow with his meeting with Sophie Anne," Eric told Pam, who was already dialing before Eric was finished barking out his order.
A few minutes later and it was mission accomplished for Pam. However, Eric wasn't done with her.
"Get me Sookie's number from the previous owners. Her contact number wasn't included in her dossier you submitted," Eric asked again.
"That's because she doesn't have one. She has no landline or mobile phone," Pam answered with some flippancy in her tone.
Eric knotted his brows as he scoffed at her. "Who doesn't have a cellphone at this age anymore? What is she, Amish? What does she use to call her brother in Louisiana?"
Pam shrugged. "Maybe they just light up firewood and one of them will keep a look out for smoke."
Sam chuckled at Pam's joke but Eric wasn't amused. How could he tell her that he couldn't make it to their tour tomorrow?
'Who the fuck cares? She doesn't. She'll be glad you're not there,' a mean voice inside his head rambled.
Eric pinched his eyes to shut the fucking voice up. He turned back to Pam. "How many employees does Fiordillatte have?"
"Twenty five, give or take. Including the waitstaff."
"Get the specific number then order as many cellphones to give to the staff. Make the previous owners give them away so it won't look suspicious. Tell them it'll be like a signing bonus from the new boss, a sign of good faith," Eric said as he ran his fingers through his short dark blonde hair.
Pam and Sam both gave Eric a curious look. It was Pam who voiced it out. "Why not just give Sookie a phone, I'm sure the other employees aren't as backward as her."
"Because she won't take it. That girl has too much pride to accept a gift. But if it's given in bulk to all the other staff, she'll think it is a work thing," Eric explained exasperatedly.
Eric could already imagine her face if she finds out it was from him. He took a deep breath. Why couldn't she be like the other women he dated who would giggle and blush at the sight of a gift from him, he thought.
Pam leered at Eric before she walked away. "At least when you do fire me, I know where to look for a job. I heard the Italian resto by the Flamingo has a very generous boss," she drawled as she exited the holding area.
Eric paid Pam's sarcastic remark no mind as he moved on to Sam.
E/S
Sookie woke up before her alarm clock went off. She could see the graying sky through her window. She checked the time and was surprised to realize it was only five in the morning.
'Am I excited or what?' she thought sardonically. The idea of getting worked up over seeing Eric Northman was unacceptable. She told herself that she was indeed thrilled, but not because of Eric Northman.
'No siree, Bob.'
It was the idea of playing Scully that enticed her to the point of restlessness. Even though her Mulder was more like murder to her.
She went back to bed and closed her eyes, willing herself to go back to sleep for another hour.
But tried as she might, she couldn't.
She tossed and turned until she finally gave up. She got up, made her bed then boiled a cup of water from the electric kettle for her instant coffee.
She found some leftover spring rolls and two fortune cookies in her small fridge from last night's dinner. She didn't have a microwave, only an old toaster, so she ate the rolls and cookies as she found them: ice cold.
Afterward, she took a leisurely bath, and thirty minutes later she was all dressed and brushing her hair dry, in front of an electric fan. She didn't want to use the air conditioner that came with the apartment. They didn't have one in Bon Temps and she didn't know how much it would cost her to utilize it, no matter how sparingly. She was used to the simplicity of the fan anyway, she thought.
After much internal debate, she ended up wearing her skinny jeans that she paired with a loose and frilly pink top. She reasoned to herself that she would be comfortable wearing something flattering to match the enormous ego of Eric Northman. She even sprayed a little cologne she bought from the drugstore last night while Jason was ordering Chinese takeout.
She took the bus on the way to the Golden Nugget hotel, the pick-up and drop-off point of the tour.
Because it was still early for the tourists and residents alike, Sookie made it to the Golden Nugget with more than twenty minutes to spare. The head of the VIP tour greeted her and offered her refreshments while waiting for the rest of their party to arrive.
Ten minutes before 7.30am, the tour guide let Sookie inside a massive white SUV. Sookie was getting twitchy, it was almost time to leave and none of the other passengers were showing up.
She was beginning to wonder if Eric Northman would be her only company in the trip. It wouldn't be impossible considering who he was. It wouldn't be beyond him to book the whole tour so he would not have to sit beside a complete stranger for eight hours.
She checked the time at the van's dashboard. It was 7.25am, five more minutes and she would be free to go X-Files by herself, without the constant intrusion of Eric Northman with all his annoying questions.
Her gaze flickered back to the digital clock, 7.27am, three more minutes and the van would leave with or without him.
Another glance, 7.29am. 'Where the hell are you, Eric Northman?!'
Then the door swung open and Sookie almost fell on her seat from relief. She put on her trademark scowl as she gazed at the door, ready to shoot daggers at him.
But it wasn't him.
She balked in her seat as her lips parted in astonishment. She gaped at the medium-built man with ruffled reddish blonde hair - with a scar on his left cheek - as he made his way inside the van.
"Miss Stackhouse?" he asked.
Sookie's eyebrows drew together as she eyed him suspiciously. "Who's askin'?"
The man went inside the van and sat across her. He extended his hand to Sookie as he introduced himself with a meek smile. "Sam Merlotte. Mr. Northman sent me on his behalf. He had an urgent business he couldn't get away from. He sent his apologies."
'Yeah, I bet. He must have overslept so he sent the first guy on his speed dial,' Sookie thought bitterly.
She was surprised on how disappointed she felt when the insufferable jerk canceled on her. It might be because she came up with a lot of snarky comebacks for him last night.
Sam saw a flicker of dissatisfaction broke across her face before she composed herself to seem unaffected. Although her saddened look flashed only fleetingly, it didn't escape the Hawk's eyes.
He made a mental note to himself to include her reaction in his report to the Viking later.
After Pam left last night Eric asked Sam if he had been to Area 51.
The Hawk was a computer expert who had a degree in Electrical Engineering from Caltech. He had a vast collection of graphic novels, a fancy word for comic books, from both Marvel and DC. Most of his collection, aside from the smut comic books, were all in mint condition. Every year, he would take a weeklong vacation from work to attend a comic convention in San Diego.
In short, Sam was a total geek. And yes, he had been to Area 51, many, many times before.
So when Eric asked him if he would be interested in visiting Area 51 again. He didn't even ask the Viking if it was a trick question, he just agreed.
When he found out he would be going with the blonde they caught colluding with Bill Compton, he couldn't keep the grin that crept on his face. "Don't get any stupid ideas, Hawk. I know where you live," Eric warned Sam before they parted last night.
Julius, the tour guide pulled Sam out of his pondering when he asked them if they were ready to see where the little green men landed.
The trip turned out to be enjoyable to a certain degree for Sookie. After Sam introduced himself as Eric Northman's head of surveillance at the casino, Sookie was ready to hate him as much as she despised his employer.
But Sookie found it hard to loathe someone as polite, modest and nerdy as Sam. When they reached the expansive dry lake that had a breathtaking view, Sam enthusiastically assumed the role of the tour guide.
Sam was like a voice recording running on Energizer as he pointed out scenic tour spots to Sookie. He turned out to be more knowledgeable about the area than the tour guide himself.
Julius had taken the role of official photographer as he insisted on taking Sookie and Sam's pictures at the places that were symbolic to extraterrestrial beings. They visited the famous Little A'Le'Inn where they stopped for lunch, then they headed off to the Area 51 Research Center and the Black Mail Box.
Since Sookie didn't have a camera she was more than pleased that her package included souvenir photos. Julius asked if Sookie and Sam could pose together at the Extraterrestrial Highway but Sam, out of fear for what Eric would do to him if he saw the pictures, graciously declined. Which Sookie appreciated immensely.
Despite Sam's delightful presence, Sookie found herself missing Eric Northman's irritating company. She quickly shook it off and chalked it up to the eerie scenery. She always had an unusual curiosity toward the unknown and dangerous.
Sookie gave herself a good chiding the second time she caught herself thinking of Eric Northman.
When they got to the actual perimeter of Area 51 - where a sign read, "use of deadly force authorized," - Sookie couldn't help but laugh at its dark humor.
They were on their way back to Vegas when Sam started talking more about himself and less about the aliens.
Sookie found out that Sam, like her, was also an orphan. He and his brother Tommy stayed at foster homes since he was eight and Tommy was four. Their parents died in a fire when their house in Florida was set ablaze due to a gas leak. They barely made it out alive, which explained the scar on his face. But since they had no other relatives who could take care of them, they were thrown from one home into another.
Sam was smart so it wasn't hard to find a home for him. But Tommy wasn't like him. He was a troublemaker. But because Sam refused to be separated from his brother, the two of them had a difficult time staying at one place for long periods.
Tommy realized what a burden he was to Sam and decided to run away when he was nine. Child Protective Services looked for Tommy but they soon found out it was difficult to find someone who didn't want to be found. After two months of relentless probing, the government agency finally gave up on the younger Merlotte.
Sam was devastated. He threatened to run off, too, to search for his brother but the CPS kept him on a tight leash after what happened to Tommy. A year later, he was adopted by a middle class family from California. His new family was very accepting. They loved Sam and gave him proper education to hone his above-average intelligence.
After he graduated from Caltech, he went straight to Vegas. With his impressive resume, Godric hired him on the spot. Sam never told Godric though why he wanted to work in Las Vegas, of all places. He didn't tell Godric it was because he was looking for Tommy, who was last spotted in Vegas a couple of years back.
Sam started his wild-goose-chase in the City of Sin. But after five years he still couldn't locate his missing brother.
It was only when Eric Northman took Godric's post that Sam finally got reunited with Tommy.
Eric, during his first year as CEO, became adamant on keeping tabs on all the people working under his wing. After much digging around, the Viking found out about Sam's fruitless quest to find his sibling. Unbeknownst to Sam, Eric deployed a team of private investigators to look for Tommy. Eric didn't want to let Sam in on the mission to spare him the heartache in case the operation turned out futile as well. The Viking, through his contacts from the law enforcement in Vegas, issued an all-point bulletin for Tommy Merlotte.
After three months of persistent hunt, spearheaded by Eric, Tommy was found. He became a crystal meth addict, who was working as a runner for a small narcotic syndicate based in Carson City.
Two years of rehabilitation later, Tommy came back to Sam. He was now working at the home for the aged facility in West Las Vegas.
Sookie didn't realize she was crying until Sam offered her his handkerchief.
She was a sucker for reunion stories. It might be because she never had one.
'What do you know the devil has a heart,' she thought in amusement. Eric Northman was a walking contradiction, she added internally.
Sookie was at odds with her emotions. She could feel the truth behind what Sam told him but the jaded part of her was having doubts. 'Why would you believe the devil's advocate, Sookie?' it whispered in her head. 'Eric Northman's playing you. Don't trust him or anyone who works for him.'
Her fist involuntarily clenched as she tried to shoo away the awful voice.
There was a part of her that wanted to share some of her tales of woe to Sam, but she couldn't. Somehow, it didn't feel right. Yesterday when she was revealing her series of unfortunate of events to Eric Northman, she was amazed at how easy her secrets came pouring out of her mouth. Sookie decided it was because it was easier to confide in a stranger than a friend. It boggled her mind why she was apprehensive toward the geeky but delightful Sam Merlotte but not to the arrogant and apathetic Eric Northman.
By the time they reached the Strip, Sookie was still baffled. Sam asked Julius if he could drop him off at the North instead of the Golden Nugget. He told Sookie that his shift would start at seven o'clock tonight. Sookie found herself thinking of the owner of the North. She wondered if he were done with his exigent meeting. If he were back at his hotel?
Sam bid Sookie good bye as he got off at the lobby. For a fleeting moment, Sookie debated whether to get off as well and follow Sam inside.
But before she could make up her mind, their SUV was already making its way back to the Golden Nugget. Private cars and hotel shuttles were merging in one lane causing a bottleneck toward Fremont Street that their driver decided to make a U-turn to the Luxor and use the special lane the hotel allotted for private vehicles.
As they were passing by the lobby, Sookie caught sight of tall, blonde man assisting a beautiful redhead inside a black and shiny stretch limo. Sookie did a double take as the tall guy in a gray and white suit, planted a kiss on the redhead's knuckles before he flashed her what Jason called was his 'dashing smile.'
Sookie forced herself to look away. Luckily, the SUV started moving along.
'I told you so. Eric Northman will get bored with you faster than you can say asshole,' the voice inside her head taunted her.
"Asshole," she whispered before a single tear rolled down her eye.
A/N: I do not own the characters. I only wish I do.
Please don't kill me! I know this isn't what you expected. I just want to set the stage for the opening of the restaurant, which will be up in the next chapter. Don't hate me, puh-lease!
I'm sorry if you guys find the back stories in this chapter to be sleep-inducing. I only want to highlight the different faces of Eric Northman.
As always, you guys are the best! Thank you, thank you, thank you for the reviews and feedback. They feed the muse truly. Again, I have no beta and this is hot off the press, so please forgive the glaring mistakes. Love, love, love, my sweets!