A/N: I just wanted to thank you all for your support; I love reading all the positive reviews and PM's. You guys are the best! I love you all! :) And you know, every time I feel like I'm having a hard time keeping Eric in character, I listen to a song by Eminem followed immediately with something by Johnny Cash. Random but I thought I'd share that, LOL. :)

Recap: Eric and Sookie make up, but her anxiety doesn't go away.

As I lay curled up in Eric's arms on his leather sofa, I went through different reasons for why I still felt panicked. My mind came back to only one thing: Eric is in danger, and I don't know what to do to keep him safe. Any attempt I make to help probably won't help much; him being a vampire gives him an advantage. In fact, the Fellowship was most likely wasting their time trying to get Eric; he's so damn pragmatic and skilled that this wasn't even a threat to him. But it was to me.

I had lost enough people in my life. Both my parents, my gran, and that's only in the physical sense. Within the past couple years, I felt like more and more people were getting dropped from my life; I lost Arlene as a friend, Jason as a close relative, and two boyfriends. Yes, in losing those boyfriends it led me to Eric, but still. That's a lot of loss for a girl like me, and I wasn't going to lose anything else if I had anything to do with it. Damn it, I'm gonna do what I can to make sure Eric is as protected as possible, whether he needs me to or not.

"Maybe you should come stay at my house," I suggested, trying to sound offhand.

Of course, Eric had felt my inner turmoil through the bond and ran a hand through my hair. "If I didn't know any better, I would say you are trying to protect me, dear one."

"Well... whatever. I think it's a good idea." Nice, Sookie, real articulate.

Vibrations rumbled through his chest as he spoke, which was a nice sensation so I pressed my head more firmly against his chest and tightened my arms around him. "Do not worry about me, Sookie. And as a matter of fact, that's a terrible idea. My house is much safer, as the Fellowship does not know it's location."

After he spoke, we both fell into a silence. I could tell Eric was deep in thought, because I felt curiosity and worry start to come across the bond. Oh, god, he's worrying too? So maybe I was wrong! Eric's worried about his safety, too, so obviously I wasn't being melodramatic. Is there more to it than I already know? Is there something he isn't telling me?

My bombarding of inner questions must have slipped through the bond because Eric rubbed my arm reassuringly. "Stop," he demanded, chuckling at what he probably thinks is ridiculous human emotion, but is really a plausible reaction to everything going on.

After another pause, Eric sat up abruptly. I unlatched myself from him, and slipped off his lap to sit facing him at his side. "What is it?" I asked.

"I believe it would be best for you to stay elsewhere. The Fellowship might believe I am with you and attack your house. This puts you in a very dangerous situation, one I am not comfortable with."

I almost snorted, but realized he was serious and rolled my eyes. "That's ridiculous, Eric, where would I go?"

He eyed me warily, then rose to his feet, pulling me up with him. "With me," he stated in an obvious tone. "Come, fix yourself, we will leave now."

"Now?" I squeaked. He pulled up his jeans and refastened them, then smoothed out his shirt. Following suit, I tugged the hem of my dress and straightened up the straps. As my panties were ripped up on the floor, I felt conscious about going back into the bar, knowing all the vampires would have more than a suspicion about what Eric and I were doing in his office.

Eric grabbed my hand and led us out the office and through the bar, straight to Pam, who was near the door. He gave her a nod and she gave a sniff. Then, she smiled, her fangs extended and offered me a wink. "As if the sounds coming from back there weren't obvious enough," she teased.

My jaw dropped. "Pam!" She just shrugged in response.

"We will go to my house, now, Pam. Please close up the bar. Hmmm...," he studied her for a minute, focusing on her black scarf. Weird. But Pam suddenly pulled it off and placed it in his hands. "Thank you, Pam," he said.

Once again I was hurrying to keep up with Eric, who was striding to his car with a purpose. When we reached it, he stopped, then turned to face me. "You must understand," he began, "That this is for the safety of both of us."

And with that, Pam's scarf was wrapped around my head, blocking my sight.

"Wait, why aren't I allowed to see where we're going?" Immediately I wanted to kick myself for sounding like I was whining.

Eric helped me into the car, buckled me in, and soon I felt us flying down the road, all in a matter of seconds. "Always remember that there are a number of things in this world that you do not know about. Yet."

Yet? A number of things I don't know about yet? Of course, I had always expected that since there were vampires, weres, and fairies, there would be other things, but having it confirmed was like a slap in the face. Especially that yet; that must mean some other type of creature-thing would make an appearance soon. I gulped out loud, and Eric chuckled.

"What does that have to do with me being visually impaired for the duration of this trip?" I huffed, crossing my arms over my chest. I sunk back into the corvette's leather interior, secretly grateful that I couldn't see. If I had been able to see the speed we were going, I would probably have a heart attack.

"Sookie, you are not the only one who can read minds. Some of the fey can do it, some vampires can, and other creatures, as well. Of course, there are some humans who have that ability, too."

Instantly I was reminded of Hunter and let out a little sigh. I hadn't told Eric about him and his abilities yet, and I wasn't sure when I would. Hunter and I both have the same handicap, and pretty soon I'd be seeing him a lot to help his dad deal with it. Eric could be understanding, but I couldn't anticipate his reaction with this.

Between trying to distract myself with work, falling back into bed with Eric, and the Fellowship's plans to force Eric to commit suicide, I hadn't even put a lot of thought into Hunter. There were so many possibilities with him; his dad could decide not to include me (doubtful), his dad could call me and ask for help (very likely), or maybe his dad will need me to take over for a little bit. Okay, now I'm definitely over-thinking this. Hunter's dad seemed determined to hold on to Hunter, and didn't seem like the type to just pass off his kid to someone when things got tough. So that last option is definitely out.

One thing is for sure, though. Eric needs to know about him, and soon. If this somehow got out to someone else- in the vampire community, mainly- it could be big trouble for Hunter and I would need Eric on my side. Well... now's a better time than any.

"Eric?" I asked softly, lifting my hand and moving it through the air to find his. He captured and cradled it.

"Yes?"

"Hadley had a son."

I could feel the tension through the bond and could tell he was trying to control his grip on my hand. "Oh?"

After taking a deep breath, I continued, "His name's Hunter. He lives about an hour out. He's so cute... and, um, he's handicapped."

Eric's grip didn't seem to be struggling anymore, and he stroked the back of my hand with his thumb. Huh. Weird reaction. Reassurance washed through the bond. "Oh, dear one, I'm so sorry. It must be hard for him to live with. And of course, if there is anything I can do to help, I will do so gladly, as he is your family."

HUH? My eyebrows furrowed, though I wasn't sure Eric could tell. "Wait, what are you talking about?"

"His handicap, of course. Is it a wheel chair?"

Well, that explains the weird reaction. Had Eric ever heard me refer to my telepathy as a handicap? Apparently not. "No, Eric. He's, um, he's like me. He's telepathic, too."

The reassurance flooded out of the bond and was replaced with a feeling I couldn't quite put a name to.