Chapter 25

"What?" I asked, as Eric took a step closer to me in obvious concern.

"Last night, Sam and Tara found a dead body in Andy Bellefleur's car when they closed up Merlotte's," Sookie said. "It was a woman and her heart was missing."

"Who the heck is Andy Bellefleur? And what's that got to do with me? I didn't put any dead bodies in anyone's car."

"I know," Sookie said quickly. "Andy is a police detective. And after they found the body, and the rest of the police showed up, they questioned Tara and Sam, and they both told the police an unknown vampire had been in the bar that night."

"Shit," I said, with feeling. I heard Eric growl softly beside me.

"Yeah, so now Andy and Bud Dearborn, that's the Sheriff, they want to talk to you real bad." Sookie sighed. "I think you'd best just go over there and do that. I already told them you were with me after you left Merlotte's."

I glanced at Eric, and he gave me a nod. "I guess you're right. But this really sucks. Just because I'm a vampire I'm now a murder suspect?"

"I know, it's not fair," Sookie said, her voice full of sympathy. "So do you want me to call Bud and tell him you're coming over tonight?"

"Yeah, if you could do that. We'll go talk to them. Thanks, Sookie."

"You're welcome. Bye."

I clicked my phone shut and looked at Eric. "Welcome to the Land of Prejudice."

Eric snorted. "What do you expect? They're humans." He made that last word sound filthy.

Well, I didn't quite know what to say to that, but I let it go. I had other things to worry about right now than Eric's attitude towards mankind.

"We will leave at once," Eric said as we walked back to the office. He stuck his head through the doorway and called a few words in Swedish to Pam, who replied in what I thought was a confirmative manner. Not that I could understand a word they were saying. I really had to get Eric to teach me Swedish as well.

"While we're in Bon Temps we can also have a word with Jason," I said, as we walked to the car.

"Yes," Eric said, as he opened the car door for me. "Did you sense anything about him?"

I waited until Eric was seated behind the wheel. "What do you mean?"

"Did he seem completely human, or did he perhaps have something special about him like his sister?"

"Ah." I thought about that. I'd taken a look at his aura, but I hadn't noticed anything strange about it. "Aside from being a complete horndog and keeping his eyes glued on my cleavage the whole night, no, he seemed normal enough."

Eric glared at me.

I giggled. "That's all he did, trust me." And then I mumbled, "Mr Jealous."

Eric ignored me in a rather haughty way. I kept giggling. "Are you going to be like this every time a guy notices my boobs?" I finally asked. "Because generally lots of guys do."

Eric looked at me with a very satisfied smirk. "Pot. Kettle. Black."

I huffed, stared at the window, and ignored Eric's snickering. "Well, I can't help it," I said, still not looking at Eric. "It's a weird side effect of my vampy-ness."

"Aww," Eric said, his voice full of false sympathy. "So when you were still human, you had no problem with Godric fucking other women. How noble of you, my little witch."

I gnawed my teeth. "I just prefer monogamy. And so does Godric. We talked about it."

"My maker prefers monogamy?" Eric asked in astonishment. "Since when?"

"Since me," I said, and then I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Vampires are not monogamous," Eric said, and there was a certain kind of finality in his voice.

My heart clenched painfully at hearing him say this. "But we are," I said, before I could stop myself.

Eric gave me a very funny look, and I quickly got back to staring out the window. Why had I said that? It's not like Eric and I were in that kind of relationship. Maker and child, with benefits, that was us. Right? Okay, so I loved him, and he totally rocked my world in the sex department, but we'd never actually talked about it, and if the look on Eric's face was any indication, we weren't going to talk about it anytime soon, either.

"Turid," Eric said after a few moments. "You cannot expect me to be monogamous. I have not been monogamous for the last 1000 years. In fact, I don't think I've ever been monogamous, even when human."

I inhaled a deep yet completely unnecessary breath. "You do not like me with other people, and I do not like you with other people. If that's not monogamy, then please explain to me what it is, because I don't know."

Eric frowned. "It is just a side effect of our bond. It will pass."

"When?" I asked, because I thought it important to know that. So I could prepare myself for an eternity of heartbreak. Maybe at first my possessiveness had been because of our bond, but now that I loved Eric, I knew I'd be jealous regardless of the state of our bond.

"How am I supposed to know?" Eric asked, sounding truly baffled.

"Well, how long did it last with Pam?"

"I did not feel this way about Pam," Eric said, a little defensively. "We had lots of sex, but there was never an issue with having sex with others as well."

"Huh." That pulled me up short. So basically I only had Eric to myself until whatever it was in our bond that made us so possessive ran out, which could be next century or tomorrow, for all I knew. Suddenly there was a lump in my throat and I tried to swallow it away. "Will you at least tell me?"

"Tell you what?"

"When you go back to...you know...other women?"

Eric stared at the road for a while. "Will you do the same for me?"

"I won't have sex with other people. I promised Godric that."

Eric sighed. "This is ludicrous," he mumbled, but I heard him loud and clear. "Yes, I will tell you, if that is what you want," he finally said.

What I wanted was for Eric to be faithful to me forever, but hey, I was no fool. I'd just have to take what I could get for as long as I could get it. So I swallowed against that persistent lump in my throat and whispered, "Thank you."

"I do not desire others at this time," Eric said, and he sounded as though he had trouble finding the right words. "But I do not know how long that will last. I cannot make you any promises. I am not my maker."

"I know," I said, and I was oddly grateful he was at least trying to explain himself to me.

"But if my possessiveness wanes before yours does, I will not...I will make an effort to come to an understanding with you." Eric looked at me and frowned. "I know it would hurt you if I didn't, and I do not wish to cause you harm."

I smiled at him, a real smile. And then I leaned over and kissed him. Eric smiled against my lips. The lump in my throat finally disappeared and I felt a bit of relief. Eric would at least make an effort not to hurt me, and really, that was all I could ask of him.

"That makes you feel better?" Eric asked, a rather hopeful look on his face.

"Yes, it really does."

"Good." Eric shifted in his seat to sit in a more relaxed position. "I'm glad."

"Me too." And this time, I reached over to put my hand in Eric's. He gave my hand a gentle squeeze and held it the rest of the way.

Because of Eric's mad driving skills, it only took little over half an hour to get to Bon Temps. We located the police department in the centre of town, and Eric parked the car in a handicapped zone right in front of the station. I decided not to comment. I figured it was Eric's way of quietly rebelling against the police's attitude towards vampires.

Inside the station we were greeted by a young, blonde human. She sat behind the counter and gave me a very brief glance before she stared at Eric. I sniffed the air; if she started smelling of fear I needed to know before any accidents happened. But she didn't smell of fear at all. Instead, I smelled a few hints of arousal. I quickly took a step closer to Eric, hoping the girl would get the hint.

"Good evening," I said pleasantly. "We're here to talk to Sheriff Dearborn."

The girl didn't hear a word I said. She just kept staring at Eric, who was looking down at her with an amused smile.

"Excuse me," I said, a little louder. This time the girl looked at me, but before she could say anything Sheriff Dearborn stepped out of one of the offices.

"Is either one of you the vampire who was at Merlotte's last night?" Sheriff Dearborn asked, looking us both up and down. He was an elderly gentleman, and very much looked like most people would imagine a small town Sheriff to look.

I raised my hand. "That would be me."

"Right. If you could just step in here for a few moments," Sheriff Dearborn said, gesturing at his office. "Sir, you can wait over there." And now he gestured at some chairs opposite the counter.

"I am not leaving her side," Eric said, his voice flat.

"Are you a lawyer or something?" Sheriff Dearborn asked with distaste.

"He's my boyfriend," I said, before Eric could reply. Best to keep things as simple as possible. No need to get into vampire terminology.

"Then he can wait out here," Sheriff Dearborn said.

Eric narrowed his eyes. "Unless you are placing her under arrest, you cannot keep me from my girlfriend's side."

Something warm curled inside my belly at hearing Eric calling me his girlfriend, even though I knew it was just for show.

"Fine." Sheriff Dearborn turned around and stalked back inside his office. We followed him inside, to find another man already present. He looked like he could stand to lose a few pounds and he reeked of alcohol. Lots and lots of alcohol.

"This is Andy Bellefleur," Sheriff Dearborn said as he waved us to some chairs across from the desk. We all sat down, except for Andy.

"Detective Bellefleur," Andy said, glaring at Sheriff Dearborn. "Detective."

Sheriff Dearborn ignored him and looked at me. "Now if you could show me some ID, please?"

I took out my wallet from my purse and handed over my driver's license.

"You from Dallas, Texas, Ms Black?" Sheriff Dearborn asked me as he studied my driver's license.

"Previously. I only just moved to Shreveport last week. I haven't had time yet to get a new driver's license," I said, as politely as possible. I hadn't even thought about all the mundane things I still had to take care of, I realized. Being a newly made vampire kept me plenty busy.

Sheriff Dearborn handed me back my driver's license. "Do you know why you're here?"

I nodded. "Because you found a woman's dead body with her heart missing in Andy's car. But I don't have anything to do with that."

"Ha!" Andy slammed both his hands on the table as he leaned closer to me. "And how would you know that poor woman's heart is missing, unless you cut it out yourself!"

I gaped at him, just as I felt Eric going rigid in his chair beside me. "I know about that poor woman because Sookie told me," I said slowly.

"Sookie Stackhouse?" Andy turned towards Bud Dearborn with a triumphant smile on his face. "See? I knew them Stackhouses had something to do with this."

"Andy," Sheriff Dearborn said in a very tired voice. "Sit down." Then he looked at me. "Why were you at Merlotte's last night?"

"I came to visit Sookie."

"Why?"

I blinked. "Because she's my friend. After she was finished working we went over to her place and talked for a while longer. After that I went home."

"And did you see anything suspicious in the parking lot when you left Merlotte's?" Sheriff Dearborn asked, and for the first time I realized they might not just want to talk to me as a suspect, but also because I was a potential witness.

I frowned and thought back to the night before. Had I heard or seen or smelled something out of the ordinary? "No," I said, shaking my head. "But I wasn't paying much attention at the time. I was exchanging a few text messages with Eric right before I left the parking lot."

"Eric?"

I pointed at Eric. "Eric Northman. My boyfriend."

"Ah." Sheriff Dearborn nodded at Eric, who nodded right back. "Are you all friends with that vampire Bill Compton?"

I didn't know how to reply to that. I wouldn't call him a friend exactly, but how to explain that to the cops? Thankfully, Eric answered instead. "Bill Compton is an acquaintance of ours, yes."

"That's how you know Sookie?" Sheriff Dearborn asked, looking at me.

I nodded. "Yes."

"All right," Sheriff Dearborn said. "Thanks for coming down here on such short notice. You can go now."

"That's bullshit!" Andy yelled, gesturing wildly at Eric and me. "Bud, these here are vampires. They did this, you know that!"

With vampire speed Eric pulled his cell phone from his pocket and started punching in some numbers.

"Hey now," Andy said, giving Eric a dubious look. "What are you doing?"

"Calling my lawyer," Eric said with his sweetest smile as he held his phone to his ear. "To tell him I intent to sue this entire department for slander."

"Andy, sit down!" Sheriff Dearborn rose from his seat. "That won't be necessary, Mr Northman. You're both free to go. Your girlfriend is not a suspect at this time."

Eric glared at Sheriff Dearborn for a few moments, but then he shut his phone and stuffed it back in his pocket.

"Goodbye," I said politely, and grabbed Eric's hand as we left the office. We didn't say a word until we were both seated in the car.

"Wow," I said, as Eric turned the ignition. "That was just weird."

Eric grinned and pulled out of the handicapped zone. "It actually went better than I expected."

"Yeah, I guess. At least the Sheriff seemed to genuinely want to talk to me." I was feeling very relieved about that. It was nice to know not all cops were as prejudiced as Detective Andy. "Oh, I think we'll find Jason at Merlotte's."

"We'll go there next," Eric said, and looked at me with a quirked eyebrow. "You called me your boyfriend."

"I didn't want to get into the whole maker-child thing with the cops," I said without thinking.

"Ah." Eric looked back to the road ahead. "Is that the only reason?"

"Huh?" I was completely confused by Eric's response. He thought there was more than one reason? He wanted there to be more than one reason?"

"You call Godric your boyfriend," Eric said softly. "Yet he is not your maker."

I smiled, and then I frowned. Was I reading Eric's signals right? If I wasn't, I was putting myself up for some major embarrassment. I thought hard about how to respond without making myself any more vulnerable than I already was in these matters of the heart.

"Did you like it when I called you my boyfriend?" I asked tactfully.

Eric gave me an odd look. "Did you like it when I called you my girlfriend?"

Bastard. But I closed my eyes and decided to take the plunge. "Yes, I did."

There came no reply, so I slowly opened my eyes and looked at Eric. He sat there, staring at the road, with a tiny little smile playing around his lips.

"You didn't answer my question," I said.

"I do not think anyone has ever referred to me as a boyfriend before," Eric said, his smile growing a bit wider. "But it was not unpleasant."

Well. I'd just have to take that as a 'yes'. "Good," I said, just a bit cheekily.

"Quite," Eric replied, trying to sound indifferent.

"Indeed." I looked at him with a sly smile, and Eric started chuckling. But before we could continue our teasing, we reached the parking lot of Merlotte's. Eric parked the car near the back, and as we got out, Eric sniffed the air over and over again. For a moment, I wondered what he was doing, and then it dawned at me he was trying to find out what had happened here the night before. So I inhaled deeply as well, but I couldn't smell anything other than humans. Lots and lots of humans.

We looked at each other, shrugged, and walked towards the door hand in hand.

Merlotte's was packed. It appeared most town folks were eager to come and see for themselves what had happened here, if the few words of random conversation I picked up were any indication. There were plenty of waitresses, but I couldn't see Sookie among them. Nor could I smell her. Good. That would make this a lot easier. Eric and I stood near the entrance for a moment until I spotted Jason standing near the pool table, Hoyt at his side. I tugged on Eric's hand and we strolled over to them.

"Hey you," Jason greeted me with his easy smile. And then he spotted Eric and he looked up. And up. "This your boyfriend?"

"Yes," I said, biting back a giggle. Eric squeezed my hand just a bit too hard to be comfortable, but I ignored his little jab. "This is Eric." I nodded towards the two humans. "Eric, this is Jason, and that's Hoyt."

The men exchanged a few nods, and I smiled at Jason. "Can we talk to you for a moment, Jason? Outside?"

Jason gave me a shifty look and took a step back. Oh no. Now there was a guilty expression if I ever saw one. Some of the people around us were staring at us, and I didn't want to make a scene. So I looked Jason in the eye and pushed a tiny bit of power into his mind. Not a full glamour by any means, but just a little suggestion it was all right to come talk to us.

"It will just take a moment, I promise," I told Jason with my sweetest smile. Jason nodded and put down his beer bottle. Without another word, Eric and I turned around and left the bar, Jason at our heels. Eric led us to the back of the parking lot, well away from any humans entering or leaving the bar.

"So, Jason," I said, hoping Eric would let me take the lead here. I didn't think the situation called for any of Eric' interrogation techniques. "Tell us about Eddie, the vampire you kidnapped."

"What?" Jason's face paled dramatically. "I haven't kidnapped no vampire."

One look at his aura, and I knew he was lying. I glanced at Eric, and his expression was like a thundercloud; dark and potentially deadly.

"We know you were involved," I said softly, hoping Eric would be able to control himself. "Please just tell us what happened."

Jason rubbed both his hands down his face. "It wasn't my idea, I swear. Amy cooked it all up. I kinda liked Eddie. He wasn't bad for a vampire. Or a fag."

I blinked and Eric growled softly, but Jason just rattled on.

"We kept him in our basement, tied to a chair with some silver. I talked to him a few times, and I even got him some True Blood," Jason said, as though that would excuse his behaviour. "And I wanted to let him go, but Amy...well, she...she killed him."

"Crap," I said, just as Eric's fangs clicked out.

"I didn't mean for any of that to happen, I swear!" Jason said with a pleading look. "I ain't doing V no more. Amy, she's dead now, and I don't want anything to do with any of it anymore."

I believed him, but still. In the eyes of vampire law, he was an accomplice to murder, and he was most certainly guilty of kidnapping. Eric took a step closer to Jason, and one look at his expression told me Jason would soon be lying in pieces if I didn't do anything. But what could I do against a vampire of Eric's age and strength? Not to mention he was my maker; one command and I'd have to obey him, whether I liked it or not.

But there was one way to diffuse aggression in a vampire, and I had to try it, because I couldn't just let Eric murder Jason.

"Jason, go," I said urgently, and then I used vampire speed to drop to my knees and rip open Eric's pants. I sucked his cock inside my mouth as I heard the gravel crunch as Jason ran back inside the bar.

Eric growled and his body tensed, as though he wasn't sure whether to give chase. I sucked harder, and Eric's flaccid penis came to life inside my mouth, hardening in just a few moments. Eric placed his hand on my head and guided me up and down his growing erection. I sucked him as hard and as deep as I could, not finding any pleasure in it, but knowing it was the only way to keep Eric from doing something very stupid.

After a few minutes, just when I thought Eric might come, Eric pulled away from me, yanked me to my feet, and slammed me against a nearby rusty pick-up truck. Still growling, he reached beneath my dress and ripped my panties off, and then he entered me in a single thrust.

I groaned, but it wasn't from pleasure. I wasn't in any state of arousal, and Eric was rather big, so it hurt when he pounded inside me. But I didn't say anything. Instead I wrapped my legs around his waist and let Eric do what he had to do. Eric snarled and bit down on my throat savagely, sucking my blood as he kept thrusting and thrusting until finally he stilled and came inside me with another growl.

I stayed still while Eric lapped at my neck. The wound had closed already and Eric was just licking away the remaining blood. I stared at the sky and told myself over and over again that this was part of being a vampire. Blood and sex and aggression were all so closely connected. It had been either letting Eric fuck me like this or letting Eric rip Jason to pieces. I had made the right choice, or so I told myself.

"Did I hurt you?" Eric asked, as he pulled his head away from my neck to look at me, his brow furrowed with concern.

"It's okay," I told him with a weak smile. "It's better than you ripping Jason to pieces."

"It's not," Eric said, his voice hardening. "I would much rather kill some useless human than hurt you."

I didn't know what to say to that, so I looked back up at the sky. Eric pulled out of me, and I couldn't help a little yelp from escaping my lips. Eric dropped to his knees and buried his head under my dress.

"I made you bleed," Eric said as I heard him inhale.

"I heal quickly now," I said, hoping to offer him some reassurance. I didn't want Eric to feel badly about this. It had been my choice. Eric pressed his face against my folds and licked my clit. "Eric, you don't have to do that," I said, just wanting to get the hell out of here.

"Let me make you feel good," Eric whispered. "Please."

I was so surprised by Eric saying 'please' that I didn't protest. I leaned back against the car as Eric licked and sucked at my clit in a way he probably knew would have me coming in no time. My arousal grew quickly, and I panted and bucked my hips as I found my release. But Eric didn't stop. He kept using his tongue, dragging it up and down my wet sex, and he sucked my now swollen clit over and over again, and I came again, now with a little cry as I trembled on my feet.

And still Eric didn't stop, and I keened at the pleasure that bordered on pain, but not in any bad way, not as before. My body rocked against Eric's face without me even knowing it, asking him for more and more. Eric licked and sucked and growled as my climax hit me again, now morphing quickly in yet another orgasm that drew out my pleasure until I was crying out Eric's name, my hands pushing his head between my legs, holding his mouth and tongue in place until my body was utterly spent.

Eric reappeared from under my dress and looked up at me with a grin, his mouth and chin looking shiny from my fluids. "Now do you feel good?"

"Yeah," I said with a dreamy smile, and I started giggling. Eric got to his feet and pulled me in his arms. He kissed me deeply and I tasted myself on his lips and tongue. He held me closely for a while, as I licked his face clean of my own fluids. We broke apart eventually, and Eric gave me one last kiss as he caressed my cheek. I sighed at the obvious concern in this gesture, and we held hands as we walked back to Eric's car.

We didn't say much on our drive back to Fangtasia, but it wasn't uncomfortable. I was pleased to realize that whatever kind of trouble Eric and I got into on a personal level, we always managed to find a quick solution that was acceptable to us both. I also realized that I needed to take my new dress to the dry cleaners. Sitting on it without my panties on, after what had happened, was definitely going to leave some stains. That thought made me giggle, and Eric gave me a curious look but didn't comment.

I didn't ask him what he planned to do about Jason. I didn't think he'd kill the poor guy, but knowing Eric, he might just try to blackmail him or collect on a few favours in the future. That was Eric's job as a vampire Sheriff, after all, and I didn't want to get involved in that any more than I already was.

Eric and I went straight to his office when we arrived at Fangtasia, and Pam joined us a minute later.

"Pam," Eric said as he sat behind his desk, looking through some papers. "Do you have some spare panties for Turid? She's had a little...accident."

I glared at him while Pam sniffed the air delicately and gave me a knowing smile. She zipped out of the office and returned a moment later holding out a pair of white, lacy panties to me. "Keep some spare underwear in your purse from now on," she said with a devilish smile. "It makes life as a vampire so much easier. Trust me."

I accepted the panties, and then wondered if I should go to the bathroom or not to put them on. Both Eric and Pam were looking at me expectantly. Oh, what the hell. I was wearing a dress, after all. So I slipped the panties on, careful not to snag them with my heels, without flashing them.

"So when do I get to play with her?" Pam asked, glancing at Eric.

"Hey, standing right here," I said indignantly. They ignored me.

"I don't think you're her type, Pam," Eric said, and he sounded quite pleased about that.

"Hm." Pam looked me over. "Perhaps it's time then that she learned the pleasures that only another female can give her."

I snorted. "I already know those pleasures. I've had a girlfriend, thank you very much."

Both Eric and Pam looked at me with renewed interest.

"But Eric's right," I added quickly. "You're not my type, Pam."

"Yet," Pam said, and with one last dazzling smile she sauntered out of the office, her heels clicking daintily all the way back to the bar. I stared after her as Eric chuckled quietly. I sat down on the couch as Eric opened a few more envelopes, my thoughts not focussing on any one particular thing. After a few minutes, Eric rose from his seat and curiously, he grabbed a large roll of garbage bags from the shelves that lined the wall.

"Now we clean up the basement," he said, as I got to my feet. His expression was rather sombre, and I wondered what could be so bad down there, except for a smelly Lafayette. "Remember, my beautiful child, this is a lesson, and I expect obedience."

"All right," I said hesitantly, and I followed him to the basement door. As soon as Eric opened it, a rush of odours assaulted my nose. It smelled like blood and death and decay.

"Come," Eric said firmly, and descended the stairs. I followed closely behind, but as soon as we rounded the corner in the stairs, I froze in place.

There were pieces. Blood, so much blood, and pieces.

Before Eric could stop me, I bolted right back up the stairs.