Eric Northman and Nora Gainsborough were lead before the Authority. Eric refrained from showing his disgust, when he noticed that Bill Compton now had a seat at the table. Roman stood up and faced the two 'prisoners'.
"Nora, it's very disappointing to see that your loyalties, clearly, have become divided."
Nora said nothing. But she did swallow convulsively. Roman looked at Eric, then nodded to an assistant, who played the video for the room. Bill watched Eric very carefully. If he looked surprised to see Tara alive, it certainly did not register on his face, something Roman noticed.
"You don't look especially surprised, Mr. Northman. You were the one that put out the word, that Were assassins had killed your progeny. Ms. Gainsborough here, confirmed it. I was at the memorial service, if you recall, as was Mr. Compton. Then this interesting video comes along."
"Where did this come from, if I may ask?" Eric asked.
"You may not, actually," Roman replied, "just know that we have confirmed the authenticity, in case you were going to try and claim that this was a doctored video in some way. Now, where do you think Ms. Thornton got off to, after she left this store? And even more interesting, why did she feel the need to steal that assorted box of guns?"
"I have no idea, Chancellor," Eric responded, "but I am afraid that my sister and myself were deceived. We were informed of an impending attack on my progeny. We rushed to the place where this was supposed to take place, only to find that we were too late. I suppose it is possible that the Were assassins or the Pelts, mistakenly thought..."
Roman sighed loudly, interrupting!
"Mr. Northman, Mr. and Mrs. Pelt are now serving time in an Authority Penitentiary. For the murder of one vampire, Tara Thornton. We could find none of the assassins. We assumed the Pelts disposed of them to keep them quiet. But now I have another theory: I think Ms. Gainsborough and yourself, killed the assassins BEFORE they could get to Ms. Thornton. I think Ms. Thornton, in her numerous attempts to escape your sexually threatening attentions, used a ring that allows a person to travel to other realities to escape. This ring is one I searched for and suspected that it was within your midst, Mr. Northman."
Neither Eric or Nora said anything. Roman continued his tirade.
"Either confirm or deny it! Mr. Northman? Ms. Gainsborough?"
Nora glanced at Eric, then spoke.
"I was with Eric when we killed the Were assassins. But that does not mean that the Pelt's themselves could not have disposed of Tara Thornton."
"The Pelts," Bill interrupted, "are very influential in the Were community. They would not have done such a deed with their own hands."
"Then maybe they hired someone else." Nora retorted.
"You're reaching." Bill replied sarcastically. He then looked at Eric and spoke.
"And you. I think every conversation or dealing with you, that I have had concerning Tara Thornton, in some part had to do with your putting your hands on her unwanted. Why just tonight I caught you trying to rape Sookie Stackhouse!"
A few of the Authority members snorted! Roman eyed Eric.
"You tried to rape a fairy?" he asked with disgust.
Eric was sick of this crap!
"First of all, I resent being referred to as some deviant, rapist vampire. The women I am with enjoy being with me. And Tara Thornton is one of them. We were involved, sexually and she enjoyed it. So much so that when I made it clear to her, that I enjoyed the attentions of other women, she had a shit fit, used that ring and left this reality. Oh and Bill: Sookie and I were just having a misunderstanding. That is all."
Roman folded his arms.
"So you do admit that you knew where that ring was, this whole time?"
Nora looked at Eric fearfully! Eric answered.
"Salome Agrippa had the ring and planted it on Tara Thornton the last time she was here. I did not find out she had it until she left this reality. She disappeared right in front of me." Eric lied.
"Alright, then why did you not come to us when this occurred?" Bill argued. "And why did you try and make it seem as if the Pelts had murdered Tara?"
"I have no answers for you, 'your highness'." Eric said sarcastically.
"Well until you do, Ms. Gainsborough and yourself will be enjoying our hospitality in detention cells."
Nora said nothing as she was grabbed by guards and lead from the room. Eric now looked at Roman.
"I want a trial!"
The other Authority members looked at one another. Bill looked at Eric with some surprise. A vampire took a very big chance when they picked a 'trial'. Because a guilty verdict not only resulted in the 'True Death' of the defendant, but of everyone in the family line!
That would mean that both Pam and Tara would die along with Eric.
"A trial? Alright Mr. Northman, I will grant you a trial," Roman said, "and you know what? I'll tell you outright what you have to prove to the court: that Tara Thornton willingly fucked you and that she left this reality for the reasons you said. Hell...really in order to prove that, you'd either have to get her back here to say so... or find proof that she was fucking another version of you, in another reality."
The other Authority members snickered! Bill smiled and spoke.
"And I think we all know the chances that that would be happening, are nil to none." Bill said.
Roman motioned for the guards to take Eric away. Eric went calmly but in his head, he was already lining up witnesses for his defense. Once he left the room, Roman approached Bill.
"We need to find out where Tara went after she left the gun store. When the traveler returns, they usually end up in the spot they were in before they left."
Bill nodded, then left the meeting room. He would find some footage of Tara's whereabouts, probably from a different store camera on that street.
1583- LaFayette was scarfing down the meal that one of Eric's men had put before him. Eric had just left Tara, who had fallen into an exhausted slumber after their sensuous lovemaking session. And of that Eric was glad of. Only because he wanted to question this 'LaFayette' person himself.
Lafayette was about to drink some tea, when Eric entered the room. He put the cup down, stood up and bowed royally.
"Your grace." LaFayette murmured. Eric motioned for him to rise and dismissed his man. The two of them were alone.
"My wife insisted that you be freed. She said you were a relative of hers?" Eric asked.
Lafayette gave him a confused look.
"Well, I suppose we WERE going to be related, indirectly. I was sent over from Edgingland, by King Franklin Edgington. I was to see that Lady Tarayan was safely delivered into his hands."
"So you work for my cousin? You are not part of the Thorngrove army?"
LaFayette shook his head.
"This was all a surprise to me."
"Really?" Eric asked sarcastically. He then peered at him closely.
"I know you, don't I? I had seen you at court before the usurper invaded?"
Lafayette swallowed noisily, then confessed.
"I was the cup bearer."
"The CUP BEARER?! And now you work closely with the prince?" Eric asked, appalled. He looked LaFayette up and down!
"Yes. KING Franklin really liked the way I poured drinks," LaFayette confided, "and one thing lead to another..."
Eric frowned.
"I don't understand that. What do you mean 'one thing lead to another'?"
"I mean we began talking. And his majesty just didn't know who he could trust. But he found me indeed trustworthy so I was moved up from cup bearer to secretary. Your Highness asked me to make sure that all the arrangements were in order to honor his pact with Earl Thorngrove."
Eric smiled coldly.
"So it must've been quite a shock when you were mistaken for a one of the troops and thrown into chains?" he asked sarcastically. "So you have no relationship with my wife at all, do you?"
"I only met Lady Tarayan once." LaFayette admitted.
Eric said nothing to that. Clearly, while this man was a relation in Tarayan's other world, he was not here. Eric called for his man again, and when he entered, he ordered him to return LaFayette to the hold!
"Your grace,..." LaFayette stuttered.
"You should've remembered my proper title before you turned traitor!" Eric snapped. "Now get out of my sight!"
LaFayette was dragged from the room. A moment later, another man entered. Eric looked at him.
"Bring the other one up from the hold. The one called 'Sam Merlotte'."
"And should I have a meal brought in for him?"
"No." Eric said curtly.
Sam Merlotte had smelled food on LaFayette when he had been returned to the hold, but he could see he was being offered none!
And he suspected he knew why.
"What is your relationship to my wife, Lady Tarayan?" Eric asked calmly. "Are you with Thorngrove's troops?"
"No." Sam admitted.
"If you weren't of his army, then why were you captured? You were on the ship going to Edgingland, with the troops."
Sam looked away. Eric walked over and backhanded him so hard, that he fell out of his chair!
"You will answer me, damn you! Who are you? I already know that that traitor I brought up here, was from my native land. Have you ever been familiar with my wife?"
"No!" Sam cried out, pulling himself back up into his chair. Eric looked him over.
"First of all, I did not say you could get up off of the floor. But I will allow it-this time. Now I want you to tell me what your relationship was to my wife, Lady Tarayan, to yourself. Are you a servant of hers?"
"Of her father's." Sam said in a tight voice. Eric noticed the hesitancy in his tone and pressed on.
"How long have you been in the Earl's service?"
"Since I was a lad." Sam replied.
"How old?"
"Five."
Eric frowned.
"Your parents pressed you into service early?"
Sam looked Eric straight in the eye.
"I don't remember my parents, sir. I was found in a boat. The Earl took me in."
Eric folded his arms, slightly more interested in what this fool had to say, than before.
"Your parents abandoned you? You don't remember them at all? Or even how you got into the boat?"
"No." Sam replied. "But I have known Lady Tarayan from the time I was found at five years of age."
"So you essentially grew up with her?" Eric asked calmly.
"Yes." Sam replied.
"Why were you on the ship with the troops? If you are such a family friend of the Thorngroves, why were you not on the ship that carried my wife?"
"First of all, I cannot believe you forced Lady Tarayan into a false marriage!"
Eric smirked!
"Tell me, 'man who's parents put him in a boat and left him', why is my marriage to Lady Tarayan 'false'? It's been consummated."
Sam began breathing hard, before he turned in a full fledged wolf and leapt at Eric! Eric was shocked, but moved around a table in time to escape the clutches of the beast! Damn the Gods! Tarayan had mentioned that this Merlotte was a shifter, but nothing else in her reality, seemed to be true in his! So why was this man a shifter here AND in Tarayan's other world?
It didn't matter! Alcide and a few men heard the snarls and came running! Alcide was carrying one of the guns Tara had brought to this reality, and he fired it at the beast!
Sam yiped, then leapt at the men! They moved out of the way as Sam ran from the cabin and disappeared someplace on the ship.
Meanwhile, the gunshot awoke Tara! What the hell was going on now? She slowly got up out of bed and looked around. Where was Eric?
She heard a thumping sound near the door. Tara put on some kind of robe thing, then eased over and slowly opened it.
A fucking wolf was out there! And it was bleeding! Ordinarily, Tara would've freaked but there was something about him that made her unafraid. She backed back as the animal limped in, then morphed into a naked Sam!
"Lady Tarayan...I beg of you..." he moaned.
"Sam!" Tara cried out, and knelt down to cradle him in her arms...just as the door was flung open and Eric and Alcide appeared. Alcide frowned and looked at Eric, who's lips were pursed in a tight line. His wife was giving comfort to the beast and his head was resting on her bosom!