Chapter 9

Pam looked surprised. "Hadley's cousin? That's a hell of a coincidence."

Eric thought for a moment or two. "Not necessarily. Hadley smells very good, and smelled even better when she was human. Not as delectable as you, Sookie, but I'm sure that it would have attracted the attention of the queen. Andre's gift is an enhanced sense of smell. He likely scented her somewhere in the city and then procured her for Sophie-Anne."

He looked carefully at Sookie. "Unless your maker is Andre? Wybert? Sigebert? Waldo?"

Sookie sat stone-faced through his list, and then sighed. "I can't confirm or deny anything. I won't react or give it away. I can't. I have no control over it at all. My face is just gonna keep doing whatever it was that it was doing. Reading off a list of everyone you know is just going to waste our time."

There was a bit of an edge to her voice, and Eric decided to let it go for now. But he was pleased that she still had that little bit of anger to draw on, at least. And especially that she'd stood up to him.

"Does your cousin know that you're a telepath?"

Sookie shrugged. "Well, sure. We didn't really talk about it, but everyone in the family knew. I couldn't really hide it when I was younger. I would always ask about things I shouldn't know before I learned to try to stay out of people's heads and keep my mouth shut."

Eric nodded. "Then we definitely need to keep your identity hidden for the time being. Sophie-Anne can't know about your telepathy. And I think that it would be best if you keep out of sight. We can keep your recovery under wraps, and your description out of Hadley's ear. I want to keep the queen at bay for as long as we can. I told her that Ludwig estimated that your recovery would take months." He turned to his child, smirked, and gave a bit of a shrug. "Sorry, Pam."

He didn't look remotely sorry for indefinitely extending her house arrest, and she gave him a dirty look. But then she reconsidered, and gave him a smug smile of her own. "Yes. It's too bad. I guess you'll be staying with Chow for quite some time." It was his turn to scowl.

Sookie looked at Pam. "I can stay here alone. You deserve a break. It's ok."

Pam shook her head. "It's too dangerous, Sookie. If your maker shows up, you'll have no choice but to go with him if one of us isn't here to stop him."

Sookie figured that she'd have no choice regardless, but kept her mouth shut.

Eric pretended to think for a moment. "I can stay for a bit one night soon. If that's alright with Sookie, of course."

Pam was almost impressed with how innocent he sounded. Of course, he was right to keep Sookie hidden and away from the queen, no matter how well this played into his hands.

Sookie nodded warily. "I guess that might be ok…"

Eric's smile was only a touch too big. Pam was sure that only someone who knew him as well as she did would notice.

Eric slapped his thighs with his hands and stood up. "Excellent! It's getting late. I should leave you to your rests. Pam, will you walk with me out to the car?"

Pam had wondered why he'd parked out front instead of in the garage. She followed him outside while Sookie went downstairs to the bedroom to get ready for bed.

Out by the Corvette, Eric's mood seemed to shift, and he became strangely quiet and contemplative. He leaned against the car and looked up at the sky. "It is a beautiful night."

Pam gave him a strange look. "Yes…"

"She looks much better. Healed, or very close to it. I guess the doctor was right. Conservative, if anything."

Pam nodded. "Yes. She's very beautiful."

She was anxious to hear what he would say, but he just made a noncommittal noise and changed the subject.

"The queen was far more interested in Sookie's mother than Sookie herself. I don't think she's invested in finding out her identity. As far as Sophie-Anne is concerned, Sookie is just another victim brought in from another state. She has no idea that Sookie provided all of the blood herself. Until word gets out that she's a telepath, it shouldn't be difficult to keep Sookie out of the queen's crosshairs."

"Good."

Eric nodded. "Hadley gave no indication that any of it meant anything to her. The only one who gave me pause was Andre, but you know how he is."

"Yes. Andre always looks suspicious." Pam resisted the urge to shudder.

"He always is. It's why he's so dangerous. And effective."

"So we keep her here."

Eric sighed. "For now. Eventually, once her maker is finally dead, we can be less careful and get her established in the area. At some point, Hadley will see her or hear about her and put two and two together, but at least we have plenty of time until then to put a plan into place."

"Yes, we can't hide her forever. And not just because I want to get laid."

He laughed softly, but then turned serious. He looked at her. "You will be careful."

"Of course."

"Her maker will call her or come. I don't think it will be so soon after her mother's capture, but you need to be ready. If he calls, keep her in silver. If he arrives, keep him occupied. End him if you must. Either way, call me immediately. I can be here in five minutes, at most."

"I know the plan, Eric. We'll be fine."

He put his arm around her shoulders and drew her to him. He kissed the top of her head. It was the second time he'd done it recently - the last time had been just after they'd removed Sookie from her room, presumably because Sookie might hurt her on the drive back to Fangtasia. Even if she had been weak, unarmed, and maybe thirty-five pounds. But he'd never doubted Pam's strength and ability. She was an excellent fighter. She was his second. His right hand. The one he trusted most to fight beside him in battle. Pam looked up at him, puzzled. He shrugged. "Makers should not harm their children."

Pam knew how he'd been treated by his maker. And she'd heard enough stories from others to know how lucky she was, no matter how much he drove her crazy sometimes. Besides, she would never want him to lose his zest for life, such as it was. He just wouldn't be Eric without it. And she loved and respected him deeply, just as he was. Her nod was nearly a bow.

He got into his car, but didn't pull away yet. "Take care of her, too."

Pam nodded again. "I will."

Another noncommittal noise. "Dr. Ludwig called while I was on my way back from New Orleans. She will be here again tomorrow night. So will I."

He pushed in the clutch and shifted into first, but before he could leave, she said, "Don't hurt her, Eric."

He paused and looked at her before he drove away.

The next evening, Eric arrived early, shortly after sunset. He was using the excuse of having work to do, so he went straight to his office and turned on the computer. He left the door open. He could have done his work at Pam's or Fangtasia, of course, but he wanted Sookie to acclimate to his presence. He was anxious for her to trust him. He wanted to move back home sooner than later. And, now that she was physically healed, he was eager to start the chase.

Pam stood in the doorway with her hands on her hips. "Just couldn't stay away?"

He glanced up at her and then back to the monitor. "There were things here that I needed access to."

Pam snorted. "Oh. Things. I'm sure she's been called worse."

He looked up at her again with a hint of a smile, and she returned it.

"Would you like for me to heat you up some blood?"

"Yes. Thank you."

"I'll send Sookie in with it in a minute or two." She winked at him and left. There was no use in trying to dissuade him. It was pointless to even try. And, of course, he had no desire to hurt Sookie, whether or not that was the final outcome. He would make sure that they both had a very good time for as long as it lasted. The best Pam could do was press him to let Sookie down easy. And then, if necessary, Pam would help her pick up the pieces. And maybe getting to finally experience happiness, at least for a little while, would be worth the heartache at the end.

A few minutes later, Sookie walked in carrying a full glass. Her hair was loose down her back, full and wavy and almost exactly the same colour as his. She was wearing jeans and a t-shirt that accentuated her curves. She looked more human than vampire, despite her pale complexion, but she looked very healthy. Her skin even looked slightly pink. Just the barest hint of blush. And she was beautiful. She was softer than she'd been the night before. Rounder. Still a little thinner than his ideal, but not society's. And her breasts were spectacular. He wanted her even more.

She set the glass down on the desk and looked at him, but her gaze still rested somewhere near his Adam's apple. He picked up his blood and took a sip.

"Thank you, Sookie. You're looking very well. Pam's clothes?"

Sookie smiled a little. Pulling on a pair of jeans had made her feel ridiculously good. And normal. "Yes, they're Pam's. Unfortunately, they won't fit for long. I'm a lot curvier than Pam is. I still have another ten or fifteen pounds until I'm back to where I was when I was turned. I'm guessing by tomorrow night or the next."

Ten or fifteen pounds would be just about perfect. "You will need a whole new wardrobe."

She looked uncomfortable. "Y'all are already doing too much."

"Sookie?" She finally looked up and met his eyes. "It all belongs to you. Her houses. Her cars. Her money. Her belongings. It is substantial. We can't make it official yet, but I will make it happen. You bled for it. It's yours."

She didn't know what to say. "How?"

He shrugged. "It will be arranged."

She swallowed. "How much?"

He gave her a half smile. "Millions, Sookie."

She was frozen. She couldn't even look away. A single bloody tear ran down her cheek. He hated to do it, but he took pity on her and broke eye contact. She was obviously overwhelmed by the news. He leaned back in his chair and stretched, and then laced his fingers behind his head. He looked at her again, but she was looking down, a matching tear track running down the other side. Her blood smelled delicious. "It is a shock, I'm sure."

She gave a half shrug. "I had nothing. For years. Not even clothes or a place to sit that wasn't the floor or an embalming table. Nothing to do and nobody to talk to. Shut up in a room for a whole lot of it. No way to get clean, and I felt so dirty. I was so dirty. Every day, she showed up. She drained me. She tortured me. She bit me and berated me and beat me with silver chains. She said and did and thought so many terrible things. All for houses and cars and millions of dollars. And for him. And she hated me for it. For all of it. While she had everything and I had nothing."

She was captivating. He felt terrible for her, of course, but he was glad that she was looking away. He certainly couldn't have. He'd expected her to be either thrilled or furious or both. But she was heartbroken.

She took a deep, shaky breath. "Part of me wants to tell you to burn it all. Just the thought of it makes me feel sick. But no. It's blood money, but it was my blood. It's mine." At least until her maker took it from her. But hopefully she would be able to do a lot of good with it before then.

She met his eyes again and nodded. "I wear a size eight."