A/N: Thank you all for your incredible responses to the last few chapters, I am truly honored by your kind words and support.

It took me a while to shake off the emotional hangover, but I'm up and running again, with a few handicaps that I'll explain after you read this chapter.

o-o-o

Chapter 25

Detour

S~

His mouth was on my breast, his tongue cool, lips soft and fangs sharp; and although he allowed his fangs to have contact with my breast, they never pierced or scratched my skin.

He moved slowly down my body, lingering over the fading bruises over my ribs, kissing and licking away the memories of my pain and fear. His soft hair tickled and his long fingers worked wonders on my breasts and snuck under me to caress the sensitive skin of my lower back. I arched reflexively in response and he hummed with pleasure.

His hands made their way to the elastic of my sleep shorts and stilled, his eyes seeking permission from mine. I nodded and raised my hips a little to allow passage of the material beneath my body. He slid off the edge of the bed and gently moved me with him until my legs were draped over his shoulders. He nuzzled my inner thigh with his cheek and then his nose, and for the first time, Eric's eyes lost their focus on mine. I watched with nervous anticipation as his pupils dilated and he struck at me in a sexual frenzy. Somehow he refrained from biting me, but he was overcome with passion and so was I. He ushered me to orgasm after orgasm, never breaking to allow me to recover and soon I was trembling and gasping with pleasure. I tried to gain his attention by pulling on his hair, but he was lost in my scent and in our reunion.

A wave of dizziness rolled through my head and suddenly I was aware of a disturbance in the room, or maybe just in my mind, I couldn't tell which. I heard a high-pitched noise and then they were there, male and female. One familiar, one not, and my awareness of the sensations Eric was delivering to my body was muted. I was standing together with the two intruders in the cottage, facing away from the bed, and I was dressed in my sleep shorts and top with the hotel robe draped over my shoulders. I groped for the belt to tie the robe, but my hands found none.

I glanced behind me and to my amazement, saw Eric and I; he was on the far side of the bed, still lost in crazed rapture between my legs. I was writhing on the bed, greedily absorbing each sensation, my hands running through his hair, along his face and over my own breasts. We were beautiful together. I looked upon our forms for a long moment, probably too long given the uncertainty of the current situation, but I had a hard time tearing my eyes from the stunning sight of the two of us together this way.

When I finally managed to look away, I tensed for battle, knowing any weak effort I could possibly make right now would be useless against most supes, especially these two. I stared, wide-eyed at the two individuals, the female dressed in black armor, and the male in muted grey that glittered occasionally with blue and white sparkles. I blinked a few times as I wondered what in the world could possibly be happening…and how?

Clovache removed her helmet and smiled at me quickly before extending her right hand to me. I cautiously returned the gesture and we shook hands. Her companion was a huge male. I had never seen a male Britlingen before, but I had always been curious as to what they would be like. If I had thought the female Britlingens were impressive, and I most certainly did, they were nothing compared to the males. This one reminded me of one of the GI Joe or He-Man figurines Jason had played with as a kid.

He too removed his helmet, revealing short, dark brown hair, a chiseled face and hard large brown eyes. He stared at me for a full ten seconds, concern softening his eyes, and then he dropped to one knee and bowed his head, "Serafina," he said reverently. My eyes popped open and I took a shaky step back, whoa, what in the world?

Clovache hit him on the shoulder with her gloved hand and said with an exasperated voice, "She is not Serafina. I told you, Topec. She is Sookie Stackhouse, a sera fae. Stand up, you make her uncomfortable."

He stared at me for a long moment before standing to his considerable height of almost seven feet.

Clovache looked back at me and frowned as she took in my bruised face and obvious weakness. "We are too late. What has happened to you?" She looked over my shoulder to see Eric and I in the bed together and frowned more deeply.

The male, I guess his name was Topec, tensed when he saw Eric, "What is this, Clovache?" he hissed, his eyes bright and body ready to spring into action.

I held up my hands, trying to diffuse some of the tension in the room.

"Vampire," Clovache answered.

Topec's eyes widened and flipped between Eric, Clovache and myself…both of me. "This is a vampire?" he said with interest and began to step forward toward the bed.

"No," I said firmly, moving closer to him, although I didn't have a clue what I could do if he decided he wanted to hurt Eric.

"I want to look, I have never seen this troublesome being our women protect and fight in this world," he said, examining Eric from a distance.

"No, stay back." I snapped and then tried again more gently, "Stay away from him," I instructed. My concern for the danger inherent in this strange situation erased any potential for embarrassment at having two people staring at us while we were sharing this intimate act of love.

"Never mind Topec," Clovache said, placing a hand lightly on his chest. "Sookie, are you ready to go?"

Huh? I looked at Clovache in confusion, "What do you mean 'go'?"

She gave me an irritated look, "You've been identified by the supernatural world, and your secret is out so we're here to train you to defend yourself. We must leave now," she answered in a clipped tone.

I wasn't just hit by a brick; the whole truckload fell on me when I realized what she was saying. Oh my God, it was the Britlingens my makua and Pele had alluded to. They were my ancestors who would train me and they were the ones who had helped me fake my death and break my bond with Eric. Pain shot through my heart at the thought of our lost bond, but I had to push it away so I could focus. I thought back to that night to see if I could find some clue that would identify the Britlingens, but I could find nothing.

"You were the ones who helped me that night?" I shivered as I thought about the invisible hand that had clamped over my mouth and nose, suffocating me, but I had to shake it off, I had more immediate problems.

"Yes, Britanya and I answered the demon's summons and came to your aid," she said with a tight smile. "We delayed intervening further because you were breaking ties with the supernatural world and you needed to raise your son. Now it is time for you to learn."

"Clovache," I said shaking my head. I could hear the pleading tone in my voice, "I can't leave now…I just…" I turned to look back at Eric. My heart ached at the sight of him; we had been through so much and I hadn't been able to explain anything to him yet. I couldn't go before I had the chance to tell him why I was leaving again. That would be unforgivable. Plus I needed more time with him, for myself.

"This is the vampire we freed you from is it not? You can leave him, your blood tie is broken," Clovache stated as though she were confused at my hesitation.

"You must come now before he wakes and injures you further. He has spilled your blood," Topec said with absolute disgust and anger, "he must not be allowed to do so again."

"He didn't…he wouldn't hurt me," I defended Eric; he would never hurt me now that he knew it was me.

"None of this matters" Clovache said to both of us, the portal will open in a few minutes, this is your only chance."

"Why? Why should I go with you, I can already defend myself," I argued lamely.

Clovache raised an eyebrow at me and swept a hand at my bruises, "You are in error if you think you've learned all you need to know," she said seriously. "Are you aware that your actions called the aquae and caelum fairies right to you in California? They traced you by following your powers and your scent. You must learn to control your reactions, exploit your abilities and hide your scent or they will end you and your vampire lover." My breath flew out of me when she said this.

"Why is there debate?" Topec asked incredulously, "Every member of our bloodline from the Serafina to you has been trained by us. We are given one of your years to train you and then you must return here. This is the way of it. There is no debate. You will come."

A year? The thought tore at me, thinking about Eric being without me for another year. I was sure he would wait, but could we tolerate being apart after all that we had been through? Maybe after we had taken the time to talk, but not now, not without explaining what had happened. We both needed answers and we both needed time.

"And if I refuse to go with you?" I asked.

"There has been only one sera fae who refused our assistance, just over 100 of your years ago. He was killed by the caelum fairies very quickly. He was a danger to himself and others and was rightfully destroyed for that reason, as you will be if you remain untrained."

"Why?" I asked, why was I such a target yet again by the fairies.

"You are too powerful and too dangerous, especially without the right training," Clovache said bluntly.

I thought back to the debacle in Oakland, I was too dangerous, too powerful and I had not yet learned how to control my powers. Hadn't I proven that even I didn't trust myself as I fought to control my powers to keep from hurting Eric. I turned back to look at him again, would I invariably hurt him when I lost control or by being a target and get him killed as he tried to protect me? I thought the possibility was pretty high that this would happen. I felt my shoulders slump. I needed to go.

"I want time to talk this out with him. Can you please come back tomorrow night?" I asked, knowing the answer already.

Topec shook his head angrily; "You cannot be around vampires until you can mask your scent. If he tasted your blood, he would not be able to stop, it is much more potent than that of any other fairy. It does not inebriate them, but the power within it calls to the vampire and when they sense that power, they won't resist you. Serafina told us that many of her kind have been killed by vampires."

"That's not true, he tasted my blood and controlled himself. He's stronger than other vampires and he loves me," I said stubbornly.

"He loves your blood, he loves the life you exude, and he loves your power, but he does not love you," Topec said harshly.

"No," I said flatly, sickened by his words. "I will not be going with you, thank you for your offer."

Clovache gave Topec a withering look and turned to me, "Sookie, I know of you. I know of your courage. You helped us to complete our mission of protecting the King of Kentucky. Ignore Topec, he knows nothing of humans and vampires. In our world, sharing even one drop of blood with another is unacceptable."

Topec growled, "It is against our laws and despicable to draw the blood of a sera fae, we are your protectors and your family through Serafina."

His expression told me that I had insulted him, but he has insulted me, so I didn't feel bad in the least.

Clovache held out her hand to me, but I pulled my hands away from her. "We must leave when the portal opens and you must come with us," Clovache answered firmly.

"No, I'll take the risk, I won't leave without talking with him," I said stubbornly.

"Then you will die and you will take him and your son with you," Clovache said, looking sad.

Topec growled and I was hit by a wave of visions that showed Eric and I having a fight in a dimly lit room, during which I lost control and suddenly I was sobbing over a pile of his ashes. The next memory was similar but was in a busy bar and involved Pam. The final vision showed Eric and Pam being killed in battle with the fairies as they tried to protect Hunter and I. I was unable to protect any of us. The visions faded and I looked at Clovache beseechingly.

"Our men have the ability to see potential outcomes for the future. They are not set in stone, but most of your possible pathways end this way. You must be trained. You must come with us," she explained.

"We will allow you to finish…this and then you will come with us," Topec stated, waving a hand at the bed, and then he faded into the background.

Clovache looked at me seriously, "You will return to him soon. This is the only way you will be able to keep him."

I looked back at Eric. When would things with him ever be easy? When would we get some peace? When would I stop hurting him?

I nodded slightly and was immediately thrown back into my body and was once again being ravished by Eric. This time, when I pulled on his hair, he responded by growling and then he led me through to another amazing orgasm before he slowly shook off the haze of lust and magic that had descended on the both of us.

I was panting, when he crawled back up my body that was now trembling from pleasure rather than pain. He paused and looked at me. I had never seen need and desire more clearly etched on a face before and I guided him to me, to the part of me that would welcome his body and make it one with mine again.

I'll never forget the look of relief and focused passion that crossed his face at that moment. He pressed himself into me, but only a little, and then he stopped. I desperately needed him and I tried to pull him closer, but he resisted and made the most passionate and careful love with me that I had ever experienced. The intensity of this action was incredible, the sensations doubled. I could see and touch so much of him and I felt absolutely treasured when he cradled my head in his hands and kissed my forehead as we made love. This most intimate gesture weakened me further. He had never done this before and I was shaken to the core with the abject love he was showing me.

I had never been treated so gently before, and his tender touch, followed by my astounding orgasm shattered all my defenses. I fought it, trying to hold myself together, but each touch, every gaze weakened by defenses. What would happen when my walls fell? Would I cease to be the woman I had fought so hard to create when I left my life behind? Would I fall back into old routines? The thought terrified me, but the love in my heart snaked through the cracks in the wall surrounding it and shattered any remaining defenses I had left, and I broke. For the first time, I was completely at his mercy and as my body clutched around him, my heart was ripped bare and I wailed for all that I had lost, the price we'd had to pay for our choices and for my intense fear of losing him all over again.

Every ounce of pain and grief I had suffered and caused these past fifteen years and some from before that time poured through my body and was released in the form of uncontrollable sobs. There was nothing I could do to stop it, so I urged a concerned Eric to continue and he held me even tighter as he finally made our joining complete and we made love, treasuring each other; each moment, and each touch. We made love with our bodies, eyes and our hearts. I was finally whole and I sobbed even harder, knowing that I would be leaving him again. The only thing that held me even remotely together was that I knew this would be for a finite period of time and then we would be back together again.

I didn't deserve him, but I wanted him desperately.

I hoped I would have time to talk with him after, but a voice in the back of my mind told me that I would not. Thoughts ran through my mind, things I would want to tell Eric and Hunter, and I knew that as I thought them, the words were being transcribed into notes and the letters were secured with a wax seal stamped with a red flame on it. My seal…the seal of my bloodline, the sera fae.

All of this happened in the tiniest corner of my mind so that I never lost focus on Eric and the thoughts only enriched the intensity of our lovemaking.

Eric and I reached completion together and I treasured the sounds of his release. We held each other for longer than we ever had before. I was afraid to let him go, knowing what would happen when I did. Finally, he rolled us over and tucked me into his side with my head on his shoulder. I pulled myself together, released my tight grip on him, and kissed his warm chest.

He hummed with pleasure and met my gaze. I ran my fingers through his mussed hair, brushing it back from his face as I had longed to do for so many years and I whispered, "I love you Eric." I took a breath to say more, but I blinked and I was standing under the bright sun next to Clovache and Topec in a world I had never seen before.

o-o-o-o

365 nights later.

E~

'Where is she?' I texted and pressed send.

'No clue. Obsess much?'

I ground my teeth together. "She is due back tonight. I am waiting.'

'Good 4 u.'

I glared at the screen. That little shit. If I had any clue where he was, I'd wring his neck. He had been a source of both constant irritation and amazingly enough, entertainment since before he was released from the safe room in Hana. He was my only lifeline to Sookie, I knew she would contact him first when she returned from wherever the fuck she had been for the last year, and so I endured his ceaseless jabs.

Another text came through, 'Did u decide?'

'Yes. I'm following your suggestion in a different venue. She has one chance and then I act. No more evasions.'

'Good luck w that.'

I growled quietly at his response; hopefully I wouldn't have to use Hunter's suggestions at all. Hopefully Sookie would be willing to talk this time and be done with her pattern of running away. I wouldn't tolerate it any more and Hunter was still upset with her from when she'd locked him in the safe room and did everything she could to throw her life away to protect him. It was the fact that she did this all against his will that upset him so much. She had known that he'd wanted to fight by her side and had denied him the chance by making the choice for him.

Actually, I understood her choice. I would have done the same thing to Pam, and had basically done so when I went to Hana alone and tried to send her back to Louisiana. The only difference was that Pam had found a loophole to allow her to come to Hana to help me, and Hunter couldn't find a way out of the safe room to help Sookie.

I chuckled as I thought of Hunter admitting that in his rage and anxiety, he had accessed the fuse box trying to find a way to trigger the door to open and instead, had knocked out all the power to the lights. He had come creeping out of the room at 2:00 in the morning, shielding his eyes from the sliver of moonlight. Luckily for him and his companions, the power to the refrigerator and other essential items was maintained. I had come to see that this type of rash behavior was a bit of a trademark for him and in many ways he reminded me of my Pamela. Sookie and I had both certainly had our hands full raising our 'children'.

Thankfully he took his safety seriously and so he had been out of my hair more or less for the last year, except for his frequent texting to myself and Pam. Pam thought he was a riot and had Miriam working on a men's line of clothing to fit his build. I enjoyed watching Miriam pull her hair trying to work with a client she had never seen before and who appeared to be going through a growth spurt. She had become lazy working with vampires who never altered.

Hunter had served as a form of comic relief for me, but now I was ready for her return, hoping to welcome her into my arms so I could have her back and get the answers I so desperately needed. She had deserted me again, leaving only a note behind and the declaration of her love echoing in the empty room.

I had gone ballistic when I stopped looking for her long enough to read her note, and realized that she had once again made a choice that would take her from my side. My body was still warm from hers and I was covered in her scent, but she was gone.

Tonight, she should return. It had been a full year and I was ready for her. Pam was handling all of my meetings this evening and tomorrow night so that I could give her my full attention. On the third night from now, Freyda would be coming to prepare our joint interest propositions and plans that we would be presenting in one week at the conference being held in Memphis. I hoped that Sookie would agree to attend it with me, even if she simply stayed at my house rather than going to the events with me. I just wanted her near me. My need for her had grown even stronger in the twelve months since I had found her.

Her note rankled me still, her words frequently forming a loop in my head when I had a moment of down time, but one small part gave me hope. She had said she wanted to be stronger so she could stand by my side. By my side.

This is what she said she wanted, but would she be able to put up with it? My life was not easy and hers would be tricky to balance. She was prone to running when things became difficult…running physically and emotionally. This was the reason that, after long debate with Hunter, I had decided to prepare for the possibility that I might need to try the flippant suggestion he had given to me moments after being released from his imprisonment in the safe room.

I drummed my fingers on the arm of my chair…waiting…waiting. Instinctively I tried to feel for our bond, but of course it was not there. I took a deep breath to search for her by scent, but found nothing that led me to her.

I waited all night and the next night, but she did not return to me.

S~

I bowed deeply to my Britlingen instructors, Matak, Brynum, Topec, Clovache and Batanya. Each of them had been instrumental in providing me with historical and practical knowledge and skills. These skills, along with the personal restraint and control they helped me learn, would allow me to finally be safe and helpful at Eric's side. Brynum narrowed his eyes at me when he heard these thoughts from me. He did not believe that I had mastered discipline yet and he believed that my feelings for Eric were at the root of my poor emotional control.

I agreed with him, but instead of a weakness, I hoped my love for Eric would be a strength as Pele had suggested when she told me to embrace love in my life.

I had never lost my focus on my love. Through all the endless training sessions and meetings, I thought of Eric and Hunter all the time. I knew somehow that Hunter was fine, I could almost feel his existence within me, not like a bond, but a definitive knowledge of sorts. So I didn't worry about him. Instead, all of my available focus was on Eric and on our future together. The Britlingens had never accepted that I needed him in my life and warned me time and time again that sera fae could not live side by side with vampires. I disagreed. We would make our relationship work this time, I was sure of it.

I turned to bow and give my thanks to the people of Britlin who had gathered here to see me off. They were literally my family, and I would miss most of them, even Topec had grown on me with his gruff ways and soft heart.

The high-pitched squeal alerted me that my portal was opening. It would take me back to the exact spot I left from, so I just hoped that no one was using the bed Eric and I had shared during our few incredible hours together. I felt the portal encircle me and then I was standing in a construction site on the Hotel Hana property where the cottage had been located. It was still day here, so I looked around quickly to make sure no one could see me, wondering what had happened to the cottage.

I was alone, so I closed my eyes and directed all my focus and attention on Eric. I pictured every detail of his body, the frequency of his thoughts, his scent, the feel of his skin as it touched mine, his energy and the innate force he had that drew me to him. I felt it work; I located him and could feel his magical life force calling to me. I willed myself to be at his side and felt each cell tingle as I moved from one space to another to finally be one with him, to be his partner in this life.

As I materialized, I hit a soft wall and was pushed away from my intended target. I could smell and taste the magic. Eric had barred his room against the fae and me along with them.

I heard him yelling before I had even opened my eyes. I prepared to defend myself, but realized quickly that I was not the focus of his anger.

I was in a sitting room, from the look of the heavy furniture and deep splashes of color, I knew it was Eric's sitting room.

He was in his bedroom with the door slightly ajar, "I will not tolerate this from my wife any longer," he seethed.

A relaxed female voice answered him, "Eric darling, you know how I adore you…"

I stopped listening...oh my God, how could I have been stupid enough to forget that Eric was married? I had been so focused on our wonderful night together and my desire to get back to that moment that I had forgotten all the changes that had occurred in Eric's life. He was married, married to the Queen of Oklahoma and he was having an argument with her in their bedroom chamber. How had I forgotten about her?

I had to get out of here. I had to leave before they noticed me; I was so embarrassed and devastated. I had returned for my lover but had forgotten that he wasn't mine to keep after all. He was…hers.

The argument must have reached some conclusion because a tall slim woman I didn't know opened the bedroom door. She was looking back toward the bedroom but said as the door opened, "Oh yum, what is that delicious scent?" and her eyes found me, still frozen in place by my horror and lack of a back up plan. She was a true beauty with her striking green eyes, curly dark brown hair and delicate features. My heart twisted and my stomach sank. Leave it to Eric's wife to make me feel like an ugly cow. Of course I was the one intruding in her sitting room. I had to leave, but where would I go? My brain just wouldn't work.

Eric and Pam came crashing through the bedroom door, pushing the Queen aside, "Sookie," I thought I heard Eric growl, but he stood at his Queen's elbow, hands clenched, fangs out and glowered at me with intense anger that reminded me so much of the nights he hurt me that I felt myself pale and my knees almost buckled. I took a step back, quickly looking away from his hurtful glare. I had enough sense to inhibit the release of my pheromones, although the damage had already been done; the room was full of my scent already.

Pam smiled, but I was so upset I couldn't look directly at her either. Instead I focused on the Queen. I was sure that I would have to deal with her in the future so I forced my Britlingen training to kick in so I could control myself enough to show respect where it was due.

I stood tall and said directly to the Queen, "Please forgive me Your Majesty," and I nodded deeply to her. She raised one eyebrow at me in a gesture so like Eric's that I felt tears begin to pool in my eyes. I quickly included Eric in my nod, he was a King too, and then I turned away to hide my tears. But as I turned, one slid traitorously down my cheek. I quickly brushed it aside and took a step toward the door and focused all my attention on getting out of here. I just wanted to be home, to go home…

"Don't even think about it," Pam said firmly, appearing in front of me, blocking my access to the door, but I didn't need a door. I couldn't see her expression through the pooled tears in my eyes, but I heard her growl "No Sookie!" as I disappeared.

o-o-o

EPOV

"Damn it!" I yelled. She was gone again! I was furious with her for running away yet again without a word or hardly a glance for me. I had waited for her to return for an entire year and three days…waited, planned, craved, needed. I was going to find her, and when I did, I would make sure she wouldn't run away again. I couldn't wait to get my hands on her.

I was distracted from my fury by Pam's insolence, "Why did you just stand there glaring daggers at her? Why did you let her leave without saying anything? You looked like you wanted to kill her!" she demanded.

I growled at her, I had been too shocked and overtaken with emotions to react once I saw her. Her arrival in my private sitting room told me that she must have traveled by magic and I could feel the intensity of her magical potency cascading off her. She was magnificent.

I hadn't taken time to really look at her when I found her in Hawaii, I was seeing her through different eyes at first and then when I could see her correctly, she was weak and injured. But tonight…tonight she had been simply radiant, her skin and eyes glowed brightly. She was even more beautifully tanned than I had remembered, and her scent…my mouth watered at the thought of tasting her, it was better than ever and more compelling. She wouldn't be able to hide for long. My chest tightened as I thought of the dangers waiting for her.

I heard Freyda giggle, and turned on her in fury, "What could possibly be funny in this situation?" I asked Freyda through my clenched teeth.

She smiled up at me, "You, Eric. I'm laughing because you have certainly met your match. I can see why Pam likes her so much." She gave me her flirty little nod as she walked to the door, "Good luck finding her Eric and when you do, tell her I apologize for being in her husband's bedroom when she came to find you. She certainly didn't look like she was expecting to find me here." She shook her head as she walked out and closed the door behind her.

Pam turned to me, "Does she think you married Freyda after all?"

I ground my teeth together even tighter, realizing that there was no reason to believe otherwise and nodded, "If she didn't before, she believes so now." Why couldn't things ever be easy with Sookie?

"Do you want me to put out an alert with the Weres in the area to keep a lookout for someone fitting her description? They can contact you when she's spotted."

I nodded again, and Pam left to complete her task. I had two guesses as to where Sookie had teleported to…she could teleport…a fairy trait. Fuck. This would make things more difficult. I would explore both locations, but first, I had some last minute details to address.

I pulled my phone from my pocket and sent a text.

'She's back. Follow this link and enter your pass code. Timeline is still the same with activation TBD'.

'Shit. That sucks'.

'I will be making modifications to existing framework. Will send details as the work progresses'.

'Why?'

'She can teleport'.

'NFW!'

I only knew what that meant from Miriam. I ignored Hunter's annoying response and called my private contractors.

I had passed my tolerance limit with Sookie running from me. I was putting my foot down. We would have our talk even if she hated me for it.

0-0-0-0

A/N: Okay, so I know that there may be a collective 'Huh?' going on out there. Let me explain.

I had this all planned out differently when I set the plot to this story. My plans hit the skids when the last few chapters took on lives of their own. I had no clue how badly I would want to stop the story at the last chapter for Eric's benefit, but Sookie just wasn't ready. She will be soon (with help from Eric and the Britlingens), but she's not now. Plus there is much more to explain and explore.

My outline and rough draft for this chapter went into the shredder when I wouldn't stand seeing Eric in pain anymore. I also decided to delay providing you all with details about Eric's reaction, Hunter's time in the safe room and Sookie's year in Britlin. I'll be dolling these pieces out bit by bit so you can create the big picture as you read. My objective in doing this was to get these two back together as soon as I could. So if you're confused and feel that there are missing pieces to the puzzle, you are right where I want you to be. Sookie will be explaining the whole 'sera fae' thing in a few chapters.

Thanks for hanging in there with me and for your reviews and alerts.

I will be posting the next chapter soon. I cut this chapter in half to get it to you quickly and because I couldn't find a better place to end it.