Disclaimer: All character rights belong to Charlaine Harris and Alan Ball.

A/N: I apologize for the slight delay in updating, I got sidetracked with some things in life. Thanks for being patient with me and without further ado, we finally find out who is at the door...

Chapter 21: Desperate Times, Desperate Measures

Sookie's POV

The smile that I had been wearing quickly turned into a grave frown. Standing outside wasn't exactly who I had been expecting or was hoping for. Actually, it was the last person I thought I'd ever see again. Bill stood outside my door, watching me intently. I didn't like the way he was looking at me, it made me feel awkward and strange. I really should have checked before opening the door, now I was stuck handling a situation I didn't want to be in. I had no idea why he was here or how he even made it down to Bon Temps without getting caught. I had put a lot of confidence in the queen ever since seeing first hand what she was capable of. I guess I was wrong and he wouldn't be staying out of my life anytime soon. I wanted to tell him to fuck off and slam the door in his face but the southern lady in me wouldn't allow me to. I knew he didn't deserve that kind of hospitality from me yet I couldn't get myself to do act upon it.

"Bill. What are you doing here?" I nervously looked up to meet his penetrating gaze. He looked horrible, the queen had really done a great deal of damage on him. He was paler than normal, he almost looked chalky gray. I couldn't see any visible scars but I was sure he still had the evidence written all over him from his punishment. Where his fangs should have been was now replaced with two empty holes. He no longer looked like a vampire but a broken man who had aged tremendously over the course of a few days. He was crazy to come all the way and defy Sophie Ann's orders just to come speak to me especially when he was in such an ill condition.

"Just to talk Sookie. Please just listen to what I have to say. After that, I promise you that I will never bother you again if that is what you wish of me." His eyes were begging me to say yes and I pitied him. He used to be the man of my dreams, someone who I had loved deeply. Now he looked like someone who had his whole being crushed. There was nothing comforting about him anymore. All he reminded me of was a truly dead man.

He sounded sincere enough but I didn't trust my instincts around him, they had failed me once and was bound to fail me again soon enough. Still, I didn't know what came over me. Seeing my ex-boyfriend pleading with me bought back memories of those times when I had really loved him. No matter how much I hated Bill, there was still something in me that held him close. We were never going to be the same again but I wanted some sort of closure. I had ended it with him without getting a chance to really end things.

Foolish enough and probably choosing to do the dumbest thing possible, I decided to give him this chance. "Ok, just to talk though. Let's sit outside on the porch." I might have been nuts but I wasn't crazy enough to let him back into my home. If all else failed, at least I could run back into the safety of my house if things went south. I stepped out and sat down on the porch swing, Bill followed beside me. "What do you want to discuss Bill?"

"I wanted to apologize for the pain I have caused you. Nothing I can ever say or do will ever make me forget what I have put you through. I regret not telling you from the start about the real reason I had come to Bon Temps. I had not planned for any of this to happen and as much as I wish I could take it back, what is done is done. Believe it or not Sookie, I really have always cared for you. That part was never a deception. I will never stop loving you."

"I know that you have will always love me and I admit that there is a part of me that will always want to love you too.." A smug look appeared on Bill's face as I said this, making me pity him even more. "...But it's over for us Bill. I no longer care for you like I once did. I don't think I can ever trust you again with my heart."

"Please Sookie, give me another chance to make it right. I can redeem myself. You have made my existence worth living. There will never be anyone that can replace what you have given me..." Bill's eyes were rimmed in deep red as he spoke. I was repulsed by his insistence and denial, I didn't know how to let him down easy without having to hear him beg but my heart broke for him at the same time.

"I forgive you Bill for everything you've done, I forgave you a long time ago. None of that really matters to me anymore. I have moved on from that part of my life and ready to open a new chapter. I don't want to live in hatred and anger forever. Gran had always taught me that holding grudges won't do me any good and that is the principle I am living by."

"Your grandmother was a good women and you are just like her Sookie, one of a kind. She would have been so proud of you. No one shows such sympathies to heartless monsters like us. Eric does not deserve you."

"I won't sit here and listen you tell me what I feel and what I don't feel for Eric. He deserves me just fine, sometimes I feel like I'm the one who doesn't deserve him. You need to move on with your life just as I am doing. It would be better for both of us that way."

"Tell me, is your love for Eric as pure and real as you think it is? Does it not bother you that he has killed and tortured millions in his lifetime? Does it not make you insecure that he has bedded women as many as thousands? Aren't you afraid that one day he'll get bored with you?"

His accusations pissed me off more than his pleading. I couldn't control the anger in my voice when I replied back to him. "He is the world to me Bill. You and many others may not understand my reason for it but I can assure you that what I feel for him is real. What is in the past is only the past, I cannot hate him for what he had done in a past life. I trust him now and that is all that matters. Maybe he will get bored with me one day but right now I am just thankful for the time I am spending with him. It has made me a happier person."

By the time I was finished, I was out of breath from my shouting. Bill just nodded his head and I could see that he was deep in thought. The silence made me uncomfortable and my heart was racing but I had no idea why. The frosty night bought chills up and down my spine and the darkness was startling. I heard nothing but crickets and an owl far off in the distance. I focused on the bond and hoped that Eric was making his way here. I didn't want to have to spend another extra moment alone here with Bill.

I stood up and moved towards the door, my hand already on the doorknob. "I should get inside, Eric should be here soon."

"Is it true that you have bonded yourself with him willingly?" He was looking at me strangely. I could have sworn the color of his eyes had darkened ten shades of black. His question made me nervous and I hoped that I was just overreacting to his curiosity.

"Yes, just a few nights ago. I really should go. Goodbye Bill. It was nice to see you again for one last time." I turned away from him and was about to run into the safety of my home when a cold hand gripped roughly to my wrist and yanked me backwards. I struggled desperately at whomever had their hold on me but I was too weak to fight back. I opened my mouth to scream bloody murder but it was muffled instantly.

"YOU ARE MINE!"

...and then everything went black.

Sorry for the short chapter, I didn't know what else to add to their conversation before all hell broke loose again. Bwahaha, I feel so evil for leaving you guys hanging like this.