A/N: Things seem to be getting more complicated.
Chapter 29
I
Seren had left Eric's room right after sunrise. She had paused a moment to look at his sleeping form. Her eyes took him in and she had to admit that it was a sight worth pausing to fully appreciate it. She had always admitted that he was attractive, even before the infusion of his blood. She wondered how he could slumber so peacefully with her in the room. He had to know that she was his potential enemy. He had to know that she was well aware of the fact that killing him would end his influence over her. Did he know her so well that he felt that she would never resort to that measure unless she had no other options? Was he so sure that her feelings for him would prevent her from harming him? He had no doubt been snooping around enough in her head to realize that she did have feelings for him. Even Seren wasn't sure exactly what those feelings were. But, there he was sleeping like a baby when all Seren had to do was drive a stake through his cold, dead heart and be free of him.
Why had she never done that with Russell? Because he always slept with a werewolf guard outside the room who would not let anyone in, not even her. And if the commotion of a struggle outside his room didn't wake him up, she believed that he was so old and powerful that he would be able to sense danger even in his slumbers. And if she were to fail, he would exact a terrible revenge on her. So terrible that Seren feared to even imagine it.
Seren rubbed at her wrist and looked down at the puncture marks. Eric's marks. Since they were on the wrist, he had not healed them last night. She shivered as her fingertips trailed over them. That time had been different than the others. She remembered running her hand over his silky hair as he closed his eyes and drank from her. She had given to him freely and his attitude had been different. He had been so trusting and almost caring. Or maybe, she was just imagining it. She turned her eyes from him and left the room, making sure the door locked behind her. She didn't want to share his bed any more than was necessary. That was just setting her up for one of those erotic dreams. She slipped into her old room and fell upon her bed. She was tired and she wondered how she was going to get Sookie out of here. Before, she fell asleep, she thought that maybe she should worry about getting herself out of here.
She awoke after a few hours of sleep and dressed and went into the kitchen. As she examined the refrigerator and cupboards, she discovered that kitchen was woefully understocked. After she had left the mansion, there was no need to keep human food on hand, she thought. Well, unless she wanted to starve, she should make a grocery run into town. Besides, the walls of the mansion were closing in on her. There were so many painful memories in this place.
She took one of the cars and drove off. The werewolves would of course report her actions, but they had instructions to not interfere with her. But, instead of the road into town, she found her way onto another road. She knew that she should stop and turn around. That she wouldn't find anything but heartache on this road, but she couldn't stop herself. She had not allowed herself the time to grieve. That time had arrived and would not be ignored. So, she controlled her emotions and kept driving. She found the turn off and parked the car. From there, she hiked into the woods. She stepped out into the clearing and thought that it was just a beautiful as ever. The grass was just as green. The sun was just as bright. The little stream gurgled just the way it had before. Everything was the same, except for her. In this beautiful place, she had kissed her first boy. And in this beautiful place, she had fallen for that same boy with the mischievous eyes. She fell to her knees and wondered where Mason was. She wondered if he had gotten over how she had hurt him. She wondered if he had forgotten her by now and if he was seeing another girl. She sat down and drew her knees close. She was alone, now. There was no one here to witness her weakness. So, Seren allowed herself to cry for her broken heart with only the grass and trees to bear silent witness.
Except she wasn't alone. He watched her from a hidden vantage point. He had been observing her for a while. He had been curious when he saw his sister make contact with her. It was obvious that she was part Fae. But, she was alone, without a fairy to watch over her. Except, he thought, they didn't exactly watch over the hybrids. They had a much more sinister job. So, the fact that this girl had escaped their notice was very curious to him. She was a mystery and in these troubled times a mystery was a potentially dangerous entity. The fact that she had extremely close ties to vampires also intrigued him. And scared him, he admitted with a shiver. At one time, vampires were their gravest enemy. Yet, now, they fought amongst themselves. He watched her cry and wondered at the cause of her sorrow. It was a sad fact that the Fae imparted no great gift by bestowing their powers onto humans. And he assumed that her Fae heritage was a direct cause of the girl's misery. Once their fairy traits began to manifest, they became outcasts among the humans who now began to fear them.
He rose and slowly approached the girl. He needed to talk to her to gain the answers to his questions. The girl's hearing was extremely acute and she detected his presence well before he got too close. She lifted a tear-stained face to gaze at him and then slowly got to her feet. She backed into the tree trunk and prepared to defend herself. The girl had courage, he thought.
"Please, don't be afraid," he said. "I don't mean you any harm."
"How do you know that I won't be the one to harm you?" she asked, bravely.
Claude smiled at her boldness. She certainly deserved better than to become a tool to be used by others of his kind.
"I guess that I don't," he said.
"What...what are you?" she asked.
"A fairy," he replied.
Seren looked at him in confusion. He didn't look like the other fairies that she had seen. He was tall and wore somewhat dirty and bedraggled clothes. He wasn't exactly ugly because he had vividly bright blue eyes. But, thought Seren, he was the ugly duckling of the fairy world.
"You don't look like the other fairies that I have seen," she replied.
"That's because I'm not using glamour to alter my appearance," he said.
He could see the cogs turning in the girl's mind and she asked, "You mean that all fairies look like you?"
"Yes," he said. "My name is Claude. Claudine is my sister."
"Your sister did something to me," said Seren.
Claude examined the girl closely. He could sense her growing power. For some reason, his sister had ignited the change or speeded the process up. Why would Claudine to that? She should have kidnapped the girl and delivered her to Mab. Claude began to detect something very different about the girl. Something that shouldn't be possible.
"You aren't human, are you?" he asked.
"No," she replied. "I'm a shifter and part-fairy."
Claude found the answer to his question. He had never seen a fairy mate with anything else but a human. A shifter-fairy hybrid was a forbidden oddity. But, he knew of one case in which a fairy had chosen to follow her heart and defy her kind. Claude gazed upon the result of that union of genes and wondered if he should be thrilled or frightened. Because of who and what she was, this girl was in danger. He smiled because, though, his sister might be on the wrong side, she had chosen to help this outcast fairy hybrid. Claude was an outcast himself and there were many others like him. There was a war in the Fae world. Whether this little outcast liked it or not, she would have a role to play in that conflict. The fact that she was mostly in the company of vampires protected her better than any fairy could. No fairy was crazy enough to start a fight with a vampire. But, he could show her how to defend herself using those budding powers.
"I can help you understand and control these new powers," said Claude.
"Why would you help me?" asked Seren.
"You are right to be suspicious of fairies," said Claude. "Most of my kind would seek to enslave you or destroy you as something too dangerous."
Claude gave her a genuine smile and said, "I would not wish that fate on anyone."
"Are all hybrids in danger from the Fae?" asked Seren.
"Yes," replied Claude.
Seren stared at him and wondered if he could be trusted. She always remembered Professor's Tetweiler's warnings, ever since she had started to hear people's thoughts. Yet, she was part-fairy herself and this Claude was showing himself in his true guise and telling her these secrets.
As she was lost in her thoughts, Claude asked her, "Why were you crying?"
Evidently, the Fae, besides being untrustworthy kidnappers, didn't know that it wasn't polite to pry into someone's personal business, thought Seren.
"That's a sad story for another time," replied Seren. "Can you really help me?"
"We can help each other," replied Claude.
"Then, show me everything," said Seren.
II
As Seren waited for everyone to arise and come down after sunset, she was surprised to see Franklin arrive right on the dot after the sun went down. He was looking for her and gave her a curious smirk.
"Come on, Seren," he said. "I've got a surprise for you."
"But, I think that I should stay," said Seren.
"Nonsense, this won't take long," he said. "And I promise it's something really good. My birthday present for you."
At that time, Russell and Eric came out and looked down from the landing. Seren gazed up at them for a moment and then took Franklin's arm and left the mansion with him.
Russell turned to Eric and said, "They are an odd couple. I don't understand the attraction."
Russell turned away, but he added, "I would watch my back if I were you. Franklin is her pet."
Franklin drove away and Seren chose this time to bring up another topic.
"How are things with Lexie?" she asked.
Seren had come across a girl who was just as weird as Franklin. She was a frequent flyer at Fangtasia and one of the more committed fangbangers. The girl had seen Franklin come to Fangtasia to see her and she wanted to meet him. Seren had told her about Franklin and didn't sugar-coat it, but the crazy girl wanted to meet him anyway.
"Oh, it's great," said Franklin. "I never have to worry about scaring her. Well, not too much anyways."
"Remember, the rules," said Seren. "Play nice with her, okay?"
"Seren, you know me," said Franklin. "I can play nice. I promised, didn't I?"
"I have her number," said Seren. "I can check up on you."
Franklin soon pulled into the driveway of a cute little bungalow style home. There were colorful flowers in the planting beds and the lawn was meticulous groomed. Seren had never been here before and she was curious as to what Franklin was up to. Franklin led the way to the front door and knocked on it. It was immediately answered by an older lady with kind eyes who was wearing a frilly apron that Seren didn't think anyone wore these days.
"There you are," she said. "Everyone is all here."
"What's going on?" asked Seren.
Franklin turned and winked and then held the door open for her. Inside, she found her mother and father. She rushed to hug them and found herself starting to cry. She quickly blinked back the tears.
"I missed you so much," she said. "I always spend by birthday with you, so it's so good to see you now."
Her mother clasped her face in her hands and said, "That's not why we are here, Sweetheart."
"But, I don't understand," said Seren.
Her mother looked to Franklin and for a moment she allowed her hatred to show. But, she covered it up.
"Franklin brought us here because Mrs. Brown can break the bond that Russell has over me," said her mother.
"But, how?" asked Seren.
She turned to look as Mrs. Brown who looked like she should be baking cookies and doing crochet.
"Are you a witch?" she asked her.
"Oh, don't be so shocked," said Mrs. Brown with a chuckle. "I'm just a regular grandmother when I'm not buzzing around town on my broom."
She led them into the living room and motioned for them to have a seat. She lit some candles and incense and then turned to her guests.
"Now, we can begin," she said. "It's quite quick and painless."
Mrs. Brown had been telling the truth. In no time at all the ceremony was over. It was just a simple spell and it was over in a matter minutes. A look of relief washed over her mother's face and she began to cry. Seren watched as her father took her in his arms and rocked her.
"You can't imagine the guilt that I have borne all these years," her mother said. "Knowing that I was the thing that kept you trapped with that terrible vampire."
"I never blamed you," said Seren. "I would have done anything to keep both of you safe."
"But, now, you can come with us," said her father. "We can disappear."
"I can't," said Seren. "I am bound by the same tether to another vampire."
"But, Mrs. Brown can break that bond as well," said her mother.
"No, that's not possible," said Seren.
Seren knew that Russell wouldn't notice that the link to her mother was broken until he had some reason to check his senses for her. Russell was too occupied with other things and he had a multitude of werewolves that also shared his blood that he had to filter through. No, it was safe to break that bond. But, Eric was another matter. She was sure that he kept track of her with whatever senses that his blood gave him. It certainly felt as if he was in her head all the time. If she broke the bond with him, he would know the instant that it happened. And he would come to the last place that he had felt her presence. In a matter of minutes he would be here on Mrs. Brown's doorstep and he wouldn't be in a very good mood.
Seren stood up and pulled her parents to the door. She hugged them and tried to keep from crying.
"You must leave, now," said Seren. "Get as far away from Jackson as you can and tell no one where you are going."
"Baby, we can't leave you alone," cried her mother. "This wasn't what was supposed to happen."
Her mother began sobbing and Seren felt herself losing her careful control. Her own tears began falling and she wiped them quickly away. She hugged her mother and breathed in her scent. She could still smell her rose petal scented hand cream.
"If you stay here, Russell will just find you again and use you to control me," said Seren. "You must go before he notices that the link is broken."
Seren had to push them out the door and almost force them into their car. She stood in the driveway and watched her family disappear. She wiped her eyes and felt Franklin's presence.
"Franklin, thank you," she said. "That was the best gift ever."
"You know that you will probably have to kill him," said Franklin. "I can help you."
She was sure that Franklin was talking about Eric. Why was everyone offering to kill Eric for her? Maybe, they were all right, but Seren wasn't ready to take that drastic step, yet.
"Maybe, you're right," replied Seren. "But, there is another vampire that I have my eye on for possible elimination."
"Seren, you tricky girl," said Franklin. "Just say the word."
III
Franklin dropped her off at the mansion and disappeared off to somewhere. Maybe, Lexie was waiting for him. Seren stepped back into the mansion. There had been another reason why she had not broken the bond with Eric. She could escape easily enough by flying away. But, Russell would seek revenge against her for her desertion and for what he would consider betrayal. And if he couldn't use her parents, he would use the only other person that he knew she cared about. There was still one person that she had to protect. One person who if he came to harm, would destroy her completely.
She entered the study and found everyone was there. It all looked like a social gathering except for the vampire guards at the exit and the look of fear on Bill and Sookie's faces. But, Russell was one for observing the social niceties, until he decided to rip off someone's head, that is.
Russell noticed her arrival and he patted the spot next to him. Seren came forward and took a seat in between Russell and Talbot.
Russell patted her knee and said, "There's my girl. I didn't forget about your birthday, but I had to wait to give you this."
He passed a jewelry box to her and Seren opened it to find a diamond bracelet inside. She pulled it out of the box and Talbot looked at it with a trace of jealousy which he covered quickly up. Russell placed it around her wrist and it caught the light and brilliantly sparkled. Russell never scrimped on gifts, thought Seren. That was one thing he and Eric had in common.
"Thank you, Your Majesty," said Seren.
"Now, Pumpkin, I've been waiting to ask you this question," said Russell. "What should we do with Mr. Compton and Sookie?"
Seren glanced around the room. While everyone, except for Eric and Talbot, might think that Russell was having a bit of fun with her, she knew that he was genuinely asking her counsel. He was putting her on the spot and he expected her to answer as his protege would.
"I fail to see how Sookie's talent is useful to you, Majesty, since she cannot read vampire minds," replied Seren. "However, she is already bound to Eric. I would counsel you to leave her in his care."
"And Mr. Compton?" asked Russell.
Seren turned her eyes and gazed at Bill coldly, "Let his maker have him."
"No!" cried Sookie.
Sookie looked to Seren and said, "I can't believe that I ever thought you were my friend."
"I am acting as your friend," replied Seren. "You are so blindly in love with Bill that you can't see him for what he is, even when the evidence of his lies are shown to you. Do you want to stay here? Or, do you want to go home? You would be wise to choose to go with Eric and stay under his protection."
"For once, I agree with Seren," said Lorena. "I will take William."
"I will never allow you to have him," said Sookie.
Lorena dropped her fangs and said, "Oh, please, just give me a good reason to end your pathetic little human life. Without that sanctimonious little prick Godric to save you, I will rip you open and wear your ribcage as a hat."
Eric bared his fangs at Lorena at that comment and she took a step backwards.
Bill held Sookie down and said, "Over my dead body."
Russell watched the scene in thought and said, "Mr. Compton, do you still deny that Sophie-Anne sent you to procure Miss Stackhouse?"
"Of course, Your Majesty," replied Bill. "Maybe, you are using werewolves to gather your intelligence."
"Ouch," said Talbot, with a little smile.
Russell returned the smile and said, "Lorena, interrogate Mr. Compton and find out the truth."
"No!" screamed Sookie.
"But, Your Majesty," began Lorena.
"I am your king!" yelled Russell. "You will obey me!"
Lorena fearfully bowed and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."
Bill, in a move that surprised everyone, jumped up and shattered the antique table next to him. Wielding the chair leg, he staked the vampire guard who had approached him to remove him from the study. The vampire disintegrated in an explosion of blood and gore. Sookie and Talbot screamed. Bill moved in an instant and jumped on Russell. As he was bringing down the stake, Russell simply shrugged him off. The force of that simple movement thrust Bill up into the air where he crashed into the ceiling. He broke open a huge hole and fell in a heap of dust and debris. Russell stood laughing with his fangs out.
"Are you serious?" laughed Russell. "I am almost three thousand years old."
Sookie made a move to Bill's side, but Eric moved to block her path. Sookie kept trying to dart around Eric and he finally took her arm and held her. Seren stayed carefully out of the way. She had to hand it to Bill. That had been a brave move. Of course, it was also totally stupid and had made Russell angry, even if he was laughing at the moment.
The other guards grabbed Bill and dragged him from the study. Lorena meekly followed with her head still bowed. Call her a crazy, psycho bitch, thought Seren, but she did love Bill in her twisted way. Of course, she would still do Russell's bidding and torture him.
"No! Bill!" cried Sookie. "Please, Eric, save him."
Eric only smiled and held her for Russell who came over to have a closer look at her. Talbot chose that moment to have an outburst.
"Do you care nothing about our home?" he demanded.
"Talbot, not now," said Russell.
"When!" yelled Talbot.
Talbot uttered Greek insults under his breath and stormed out of the study. Russell watched him go and closed his eyes. He then turned his attention back to Eric and Sookie.
"If you want to save Bill," said Russell. "Tell me what you are."
"I don't know," sobbed Sookie. "I can hear people's thoughts. Humans, shifters, and weres, but not vampires."
Russell moved close to her and sniffed her which caused Sookie to shy away from him.
"You've been awfully quiet," said Russell to Eric.
"As I've already said, telepathy is the only power that I have seen Sookie demonstrate," replied Eric.
"Still even that power wouldn't make Sophie-Anne go through all the trouble of acquiring her," said Russell.
"Sophie-Anne wasn't the brightest of vampires," said Seren. "Who knows why she really wanted Sookie?"
"Seren, I'm surprised that you are willing to have a potential rival in your mate's kingdom," said Russell.
"Did I somehow miss the memo that said vampires were monogamous?" replied Seren. "Isn't a rival that I can control a better choice for me?"
"Seren, you always were the ultimate pragmatist," replied Russell.
"If I may be so bold, just why is it so important to find out what Sookie's abilities are?" asked Eric.
"She could prove useful in my plans," replied Russell.
"What plans?" asked Seren.
Russell nodded to his guards and they began to remove Sookie from the study. She turned back and pleaded for Bill's life. Russell watched her leave. Bill had already sealed his fate with that move to attack Russell, thought Seren. Forgiveness was just not a word that one used to describe Russell Edgington.
Russell moved to the settee and sat down. He took out an expensive cigar from a case on the side table. He clipped off the end and lighted it. He sat there and blew a cloud of smoke out. He then turned his attention back to Eric and Seren.
"For too long vampires have remained hidden in the shadows. It's time for us to take control away from these humans who seem hell-bent on destroying this world," said Russell. "Do you remember how the air used to smell. How humans used to taste?"
"I remember," said Eric. "But, The Authority would never sanction such a move."
"F*ck The Authority," said Russell. "Who gave them the power to control us?"
Seren flashed her eyes to Eric and then said, "But, you are advocating open warfare. You have no hope of winning in such a confrontation."
Russell smiled and said, "My student was always so cautious. No, Seren, I haven't flipped my wig. I have plans that are already in motion. There will come a time when The Authority's stranglehold on us will be gone."
Seren stifled a shiver as she imagined Russell ruling in place of The Authority.
"Now, I need to go repair the state of my marriage," said Russell.
Both Seren and Eric watched Russell depart and their eyes met.
"Things just got a lot more complicated," said Eric.
"You're the one who plotted to get into the inner circle," said Seren with a little smile. "You'll get no sympathy from me."
"At least I can always depend on your cold, brutal honesty," said Eric.
"I told you that you would come to appreciate me one of these days," said Seren.
