Hello to anyone out here still around to read this next update! My biggest and most heartfelt apologies for disappearing off the face of the universe. Thanks for all the reviews, follows, favorites and PMs I've received over the last few months. Very humbling to see you're still around and reading. I haven't logged in since March-ish so it was a treat to read all the reviews and the few PMs I received :) Thank you!
My master's is completely kicking my ass. As I mentioned to a few of you in PM, I have very little time between my online study and being a SAHM. I'm kicking butt at school and have been getting some amazing grades so I'm pretty chuffed about that. It has meant that I have had zero time and brain space to work on this story. That said - not a day goes by without me thinking about this story. I've missed the community here and all the other stories here that I'm sure I'm very behind on reading.
Okay, onto the next couple chapters. I've completely revised the final section that was troublesome the first time around, but it became so long that I had to split Chapter 11 into two parts. So any of you who read Chapter 11 before I pulled it won't see new content until halfway through Chapter 12.
I'll be honest, I can't guarantee how often I can keep updating this story... I'm hoping I can get the ball rolling again and trickle through with regular-ish updates from here on. Much love x
Chapter 11
The gods had condemned Sisyphus to ceaselessly rolling a rock to the top of a mountain, whence the stone would fall back on its own weight.
They had thought, with some reason, that there is no more dreadful punishment that futile and hopeless labor. - Albert Camus
The old Compton home had undergone extensive renovations since I'd seen it last. No longer the ramshackle two story wooden home, it now stood a stunning example of Louisiana plantation architecture. The garden had been beautifully landscaped and incorporated almost every native mainstay you'd expect to see in a Louisiana garden. The porch light was on, with two small American flags hanging proudly off the tall white pillars on the front porch.
As Eric and I climbed the front steps, I telepathically moved within the dwelling to confirm the three individuals, two human and one vampire, were still inside. I pressed the ringer, a chiming bell sounding throughout the home inside. Bill answered the door, dressed in pressed khaki chinos and a red, white and blue seersucker button up. It was the furthest possible outfit away from Eric's black v-neck tee, faded denims and flip flops.
He proffered a polite smile to the both of us before speaking, "Good evening Sookie. Sheriff."
"Councilman," Eric nodded, his expression flat, but tone just this side of derisive.
"Hi Bill, sorry to call on you without warning. I was just wondering if I may speak to you for a few minutes this evening?"
"Of course, please come in. I'd ask if you could please keep your voices down as Benjamin is sleeping."
He opened the door to allow our entry and a small blonde woman appeared at his side, she was dressed in a navy and white linen shift, a red patent leather belt drawn tight around her waist. She held a delicate kind of beauty, a button nose and almond shaped brown eyes that were warm, but questioning.
"We have company, Bill?"
"Sookie, I'd like for you to meet my wife, Bethany. Bethany, this is Sookie Stackhouse an old friend of mine, and Eric, you already know."
Well, blow me down. Bill Compton, aspiring politician - and family man.
"It's lovely to meet you, Sookie" she reached over and shook my hand warmly. She knew of my old associations with Bill, but seemed unperturbed by my uninvited presence. "Bill has told me you own the old farmhouse across the cemetery."
"Lovely to meet you too. Yes, that's the old Stackhouse family home. I've just moved back in actually. It's part of the reason why I'm here to speak with Bill tonight."
We moved into the sitting room, and I seated myself on a large cream colored lounge. Bethany offered sweet tea and bottled blood, to which we all declined, and the slight blonde politely excused herself from the room.
The sitting room was styled in a grand aesthetic that perfectly matched the era of the manor, with glossy polished floors, a large canterbury style area rug adorned with small flowers, pale blue walls and thick velvet draperies.
"Congratulations on the marriage, Bill."
"I believe the same can be said for you, Sookie, and welcome back to Bon Temps," he spoke with a smile that did not quite travel to meet his eyes, his gaze darting lightning fast from me to Eric and back again.
"Thank you...And you have a son now?" I hoped it wasn't impolite to ask, but the question was burning me with the need to know.
"Yes, Benjamin is a my step-son. He turned eight last May. Bethany is a widower, Benjamin is her child from her first marriage. Beth and I have been married three years now."
"I'm so happy for you. Your home is so lovely too. Makes me want to begin working on my old thing." The old farmhouse was in such need of upgrades I'd have to work well into next century just to pay for it.
"Thank you. It was a long time coming, but Bethany was an invaluable help and inspiration with the renovations."
"Well, you've both done a lovely job." I cleared my throat, folding my hands neatly across my lap, as I carefully chose my next words. "Bill, firstly, I'd like to thank you for officiating our pledging last night. It was an unexpected, but lovely surprise."
Eric looked smug and leaned back on the couch beside me, his arm coming to rest loosely behind my shoulders. Eric knew very well I hadn't considered it a lovely surprise at all.
"I also wanted to talk to you about the vampires that visited Tara a few nights back," I continued. "She said you chased them off?"
"Yes, I smelled them out in the woods the night before and saw them approach the farmhouse the next night. I intervened."
"Did you recognise them?" I asked, leaning forward slightly in my seat. "Or maybe know them from your database?"
He shook his head in reply, "They are most likely on the database, but it is now 200 000 strong with vampires in North America alone. I'm not familiar with every vampire in America. They left before I could even speak with them properly."
"They're bounty hunters sent to apprehend me. There have been a number of them. Those two you saw returned to my home again tonight, but were run off."
"Why do they want you?"
"Your guess is as good as mine. So far we can't even figure out where they got their orders from, let alone from who. My bodyguard has said she's been looking through all the usual means and through her contacts, but has come up with zilch. I think Eric's probably done the same." Eric nodded in agreement.
"Your bodyguard? The banshee who accompanied you last night?" Bill asked his brows rising in a mild astonishment and when I nodded he became thoughtful for a fraction of a second. "Did she think to check the Voynich Exchange?"
"The what?" I looked across to Eric, who shrugged, looking as puzzled as I felt. "What's that?"
"Well, have you ever heard of Silk Road?"
"The ancient trading route?" asked Eric skeptically.
"No, not that Silk Road. The other Silk Road was an online black market trading site hosted on the deep web. It was where search engines couldn't reach and people could buy, sell and post anonymously. Voynich Exchange is one based on a similar premise, except it is frequented by supes, mostly vampires from what I've heard. Many things are bought and sold on there - live donors, pets, fairy blood, and murder for hire, for example."
My eyes widened in surprise. The extent of my knowledge with the internet was minimal, all I'd used it for was for searching on Google, email, and watching cat videos on YouTube. It seemed incredible to me that such a thing even existed.
Bill stood and motioned for us to follow him into his office. We gathered around his laptop that sat on his large wooden business desk and he opened it, navigating through multiple windows and installing something before finally accessing the website in question.
It took only a few minutes of searching before we found the right listing. There was my picture, from many years earlier - I was grinning at the camera dressed in my old Merlotte's uniform. My address was listed and a reward of $1.5 million if I was brought in alive. The floor underneath me began to sway and tip with vertigo and Eric grabbed onto my hand, pushing strength through the bond. I straightened my knees and tried to steady myself.
"One and a half million? That's ridiculous! Who on earth even wants me that badly? And why?" I peered closer to the computer staring hard at the listing. "How do you contact the seller who posted in the ad? Can you do that, find out who it is?"
"It's an anonymous account. I don't think I have the skills required to track an IP or any of their details, especially on the deep web."
"Send them a message," said Eric. "Tell them you have her and that you are willing to meet. We could ambush the vampire."
Bill set his jaw, shaking his head apologetically. "I can't do that. If this got somehow traced back to me…" He swallowed uneasily. "I walk a fine line in human politics. I'm hoping to run for senate someday. I'm under more scrutiny than most, being vampire. I can't do anything that could jeopardize that."
"Okay, maybe I could go to the library and do it myself?" I cursed my lack of experience with technology. I could try, but I'd honestly be stabbing in the dark. I wouldn't even know where to begin.
"I don't think you could install the necessary software on a library computer to enter the DarkNet. Perhaps if you had a home computer, I could assist you?" He closed the laptop, turning in his office chair to face us. I chewed on my lip, thinking it over. I could drive across to the mall out at Shreveport the next day and pick up a computer that would be suitable. It might eat at my savings, but at the very least I'd have a computer for checking my emails and browsing online whenever I needed.
I agreed and arranged for Bill to visit my home the following evening. Bill showed us out the door, and I let Eric walk on ahead down the path across the lawn.
"It hasn't been the same here without you, Sookie." Bill said, as we stood on the porch.
"I shouldn't expect so. If you couldn't already tell - where I go, trouble always follows. I'm sure Bon Temps was dreadfully boring in my absence," I joked, shoving my hands into my jeans' pockets. His features pulled up into a practiced smile, his white teeth gleaming under the porch light.
"I'm glad to see how life has turned out for you, Bill. Your wife seems very sweet."
"It's been an interesting experience raising a family here again." His expression turned wistful and he looked back up at the old home.
"I'm sure it brings back a lot of memories."
"It does. I hope you can find the same happiness, Sookie." I heard the unspoken dig in his words. A life like his would be something I could never hope to have if I were with Eric. I surprised myself but not at all feeling upset at the notion.
I'd never expected to have that kind of life when I was growing up anyway, not with my telepathy. Any sort of meaningful relationship with a human was simply not doable. Even when I had my one shot at a white picket fence, and part-demon family, it didn't work out. It just wasn't meant to be, and for the first time I realized that while a part of me would continue to grieve for the loss of baby Finnur, and what could have been, I was also okay with it. I would move on and could be happy with whatever life I chose.
"I was at LSU this morning," I said, moving the conversation in a different direction. "And I happened to see the hospital ward you donated in your late wife's name. That's a wonderful thing to do."
"I try to help the community where I can. The center will assist many affected people in Northern Louisiana."
"From what I've heard there is quite the drug problem here now. Do you know anything about it?"
"I don't know anymore more than the average person." His mouth pressed into a firm line, small wrinkles appearing at the corner of his lips. We finished up our conversation with polite invitations to call on one another again and we said our goodbyes. I jogged to catch up to Eric, who was loitering at the edge of Bill's garden.
"Well, that was complete bullshit," I said once I heard the front door close and latch shut behind us.
"You think he has something to do with the drug trade?"
"I wouldn't have a clue, but he knows something and he's hiding it. His tells are too obvious. He gets a constipated kind of look..." We both laughed and began walking across his driveway towards the cemetery.
"I quite enjoyed his manufactured life. Did you notice his wife is like an obedient version of you?"
"What?" I scoffed. "No, she isn't."
"Oh, yes, I'm sure he had you in mind when he picked her." Eric slung his arm over my shoulders and pulled me close to him as we walked. "She's a sweet, blonde southern belle. Very much like you, only demure and not demanding to be included in everyone's business."
"Hey!" I elbowed him in the ribs in complaint. Eric laughed and swept me off the ground bridal style. I kicked and squealed, punching him ineffectually against his pecs. "Put me down!".
Eric tightened his grip around me and took off, launching us high above the gravestones and the tree line, till we were dozens of feet in the air hovering. I cried out in shock and clung to his neck like it were a life preserver.
"It's okay, Sookie. I won't drop you and even if I do, I'd still catch you in time."
"Put me down, you know I hate heights! And don't you dare even think about dropping me as a joke, mister - or you'll be digging your own hole out in the yard to sleep in tonight."
"See? You're not demure at all. If anything, I'd say a little too mouthy for your own good." He relaxed his arms and I let out another shriek as I slipped down a few inches. Eric tightened his grasp on me, his chuckling rumbled through his chest like a car engine on idle.
"This isn't funny! Just put me down."
"Not yet, I want you to look."
I dared to glance around, digging my nails into the back of his neck. To my north, I could see the handful of bright twinkling lights from Bon Temps, and down below the gray pillars of gravestones, lit just enough by the light of the waxing moon. They dotted like ancient monuments across the small clearing in the forest. It was like a scene taken straight from A Midsummer's Night's Dream.
"It's beautiful." I breathed. "I can't believe you get to enjoy this view, or any view, whenever you want. It's incredible." The breeze whipped my hair behind me, sending ripples of goosebumps up my arms. Eric traveled forward until we were hovering over my old farmhouse and lowered us gently onto the lawn.
"That was good, but a little bit of notice next time would be nice." I flattened down my windblown hair, with a laugh.
"Where's the fun in that?" he asked, eyebrow raised, and started back up to the house.
We found Mell inside laying on the large sofa, half asleep and watching the news, Gran's old ugly afghan pulled across her.
"Why aren't you upstairs in bed?" I asked, shucking off my low-cut converses by the front door. Eric stepped past me into the kitchen and I heard the fridge open as he retrieved a bottle of blood.
"I'm not interested in sharing a bedroom wall with those two upstairs," she grumbled, eyes never leaving the screen.
I looked up at the ceiling in the direction of their room, but couldn't hear anything. I lowered my shields a fraction and was hit with a blast of Amelia's strongly broadcast thoughts. She was enjoying herself... Thoroughly. I rapidly retreated.
"Alrighty, well I hope you're not too uncomfortable on the couch tonight."
As I walked down the hall to my bedroom I heard Mell mumble that it better only be for the night or she'd have problems. Mell had been busy in my absence and had kindly moved in my nightstand, books and bed for me, although the bed and quilt still needed linen. I dressed into my pyjamas, a tank and shorts set, and after brushing my teeth I made up my bed in my favorite pastel yellow daisy sheet set.
Eric wandered in a little while later with a leather overnight bag and propped it beside the walk-in closet door. I climbed into bed as I felt mischievousness roll through from his end of the bond. I paused midway through pulling back the covers to watch him curiously. With his back still turned to me, he pulled off his T-shirt in a single fluid movement, the muscles in his back rolling as if they were an ocean wave. I quickly averted my gaze and focused on climbing into bed. I didn't need to guess at what little game he was trying to play.
I peeked back up when he bent to unzip the bag and watched as he withdrew a pair of plaid pyjama pants. At least he wasn't planning on relaxing in the nude around me. I was no prude, but I liked to consider myself a modest woman, at least most of the time, and I doubted I could control my urges around a naked Eric - who was essentially a walking, talking version of Adonis. He stood straight and shirked the jeans, his smooth, pale, and perfect behind revealed in its full glory. He quickly turned his head to flash me with a satisfied smirk.
"See something you like?"
"You're wicked! This is hardly playing fair." I threw my pillow across at him, my cheeks on fire, but he easily sidestepped the soft projectile with a chuckle and proceeded to put on his pyjama pants.
"I don't play fair. I play to win," he grinned, climbing on the bed next to me, bringing the pillow back with him.
"So, what? You think you can charm me until I can't bear it any longer and say those two magic words?" I turned to my side so my back was to him and snatched my book up off the nightstand and opened it to a random page, the crocheted bookmark falling to the floor in my fluster.
"I doubt it will work, but it will be fun trying."
I made a huffing sound and tried to focus on the words on the page, rather than the vampire in my bed. I felt his weight lift off and he returned back under the covers a second later. He reached over me and placed an iPad on my nightstand, propping it up in its red case so we could both see the screen.
"I thought you might like to watch a movie with me."
"That would be nice, thank you." I closed my book with a smile.
He had wireless internet and we were able to rent and stream a latest release. We picked a newish Nicole Kidman thriller, one about a woman who loses her memory and has to piece together her old life. I found it a lot more dramatic and a lot less sexy than when I'd had my own amnesiac come to stay. I fell asleep not long before the end, with Eric spooned up close behind me.
I awoke with a start and sat straight up in bed, confused by my surrounds. It was my old bedroom, I was back home and there were two resting vampire voids hidden in the floor space under my walk-in wardrobe. The iPad was still propped up next to me. I brought the device back to life the way I'd seen Eric do and saw the time was 7:42 am. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes as I got out of bed and rummaged around in one of my bags until I found my robe. I padded out quietly to the kitchen and set about preparing myself a coffee.
Mell's mumbled complaints at the noise traveled over from the sitting room, so I prepared her a cup of tea at the same time. I brought them out into the sitting room and placed the steaming mug of tea on the low coffee table for Mell, before curling up in the recliner with my coffee.
"Do you think Amelia needs a lift to her shop today?" I asked. I reached for Amelia's mind and discovered it completely peaceful in a dreamless sleep upstairs.
"I don't fecking know," Mell grumbled, sitting up just enough to take a sip of tea.
"I'll go check in a minute," I said, ignoring her surliness. "How are you feeling today? You can't even see where that vampire bit you now."
"I'm all recovered, but I'll feel even better when I can have my own room back. Your ancient furniture is less than comfortable to sleep on." She straightened up on the couch, rubbing her lower back. "You ought to replace it all. Although, it seems you have a thing for ancient beings and belongings."
I poked my tongue out at her and the corners of her rosy lips curled into a blink-and-you'd-miss-it smirk.
"I need to shower and get some clothes, so I'll check if Amelia needs a lift." Mell downed the rest of her tea in one go and stomped her way upstairs. I relaxed back on the couch, enjoying the peaceful morning and staring out across the front garden. It was nice to be back.
"Sookie!" Mell's alarmed cry cut through my quiet thoughts like a shot in the dark. I ditched my mug on the coffee table, brown liquid sloshing over the rim, and took the stairs two at a time. I found Mell kneeling beside Amelia in her bed, her face screwed with worry.
"She won't wake!" she had Amelia by the shoulders and shook her roughly. The frail brunette bobbed around limply at Mell's actions.
"Oh no, oh no, oh no..." The words came tumbling from my lips. I kneeled beside Mell, unintentionally bumping her out of the way to grab a hold of Amelia. I slapped at Amelia's cheek firmly with my open palm.
"She smells different," Mell said. "Like death... Like death and magic. She smelled like this last night, but this is much stronger."
"Wake up, Amelia! Wake up!" I entered her mind forcefully, prodding her sharply from within to rouse her. Inside it was empty, cool, and blank. Just like the dozen patients I had sat with in the hospital. A sob escaped my lips as I lay Amelia gently back into the bed.
"We need to call an ambulance. She's comatose."