A/N: Sorry for the delay, I was planning to post sooner but got sick and lost a few days that I was planning to use to edit. All the comments, bookmarks and follows that I got in the meantime was honestly amazing though - so much more than I was expecting. So thank you!
To make up for it I've posted the last two chapters. I hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: Charlaine Harris and Alan Ball own it all, except any and all mistakes which are mine (I don't have a beta!).
Previously:
"Malcolm, you will report to Clancy and he will prepare your accommodation for tonight and until the hearing. Diane, you will report nightly until the hearing, as will your nestmate. He was intercepted on his way here. Now go. I will finish here."
"Yes, Sheriff" they repeated. Then suddenly they were gone. And I was alone with the sheriff, well almost alone. Lafayette and Dawn were still in the house but right now they were about as useful as a pair of tits on a bull. It was up to me to make sure nothing happened to us.
I leaned into his void as he slowly turned to face me.
Here goes nothing.
The tall, blond vampire studied me for a moment. I stayed my course, silent and staring. Sinking into the cool depths of his mind, I focused on my breathing. He lowered slightly, catching my gaze. "What is your name?"
Be quiet. I hesitated, keeping my face slack. I couldn't feel the familiar scratching on my mind. He was testing me. Seeing if I would answer when I was meant to be glamoured to stay quiet. Or maybe if I was actually glamoured I would answer? I kept my face blank and stayed silent. Hoping it was the right course. The corner of his mouth curled upwards.
"Human, what is your name?" He repeated. The scratching was back.
For a brief moment I considered giving him a fake name, but that didn't seem wise. I had a feeling my best chance of pulling this off was to tell the truth and shame the devil. Not that he looked prone to shame. "Sookie Stackhouse." I kept my voice vague and flat like Dawn and Laf's had been.
"Sookie Stackhouse." He rolled the name around his mouth.
"What brings you to Shreveport this evening, Miss Stackhouse?" No scratching, so I didn't answer. I was starting to get the hang of this. It was just like playing Simon Says in school. He stood there, waiting for me to respond. I had the niggling feeling that he knew I was faking it. I considered telling him that I wasn't glamoured. But then what? From what I gleaned of this evening, the main thing he cared about was keeping vampires' existence hush hush. His preference seemed to be that witnesses were hypnotised into forgetting, but he clearly didn't care too much if they were killed. I thought with a pang of the old woman who had lived here. He hadn't cared at all that she was dead. No. Telling this sheriff character that I couldn't be glamoured was a death sentence. I was sure of it.
He repeated his question, scratching at my mind this time. "I was just out with my friends," I answered. "We wanted to go to a bar."
He paused, considering my answer. "What are you?"
"I'm a waitress," I answered before I had a chance to think about what I should say, or why he would ask.
He merely raised an eyebrow, before taking two long strides and disappearing into the living room. I followed his void, feeling it pause in front of Dawn.
Her mind felt fuzzy like static, or swirling fog. I could actually feel his mind pushing in and taking hold. The swirling fog cleared a little. I strained to listen, trying to figure out what he was saying to her, but I couldn't hear from the next room. Then I did something I hadn't really tried before. I guess the best way to describe it is that I 'tuned in' to Dawn. I tried to hitch a ride on her thoughts. And weirdly, it was kind of working. He had asked what her name was.
"Dawn Green."
"What are the names of your companions?"
"Sookie Stackhouse and Lafayette Reynolds." His blue eyes met mine. No. Dawn's. His eyes met Dawn's. Damn, she was a clear broadcaster. Or maybe it's just that I was actually trying to listen in for once.
"Are you close to Sookie and Lafayette?"
"Not really," she drawled. "I just work with them. Lafayette's alright. Sookie's a bit strange." I bristled internally. Sure, I knew half the town felt that way but it's different hearing someone say it aloud—even if she was hypnotised.
"Strange how?" He glanced toward the bedroom where I stood.
"People say she's crazy, and they avoid her," she drawled. I held my breath, wondering what else she might say, as I felt her mind cast about for her impression of me. "But I think she's just a bit dumb. I feel sorry for her." As much as I wanted to slap Dawn right now, I thanked my lucky stars she was the one being asked these questions. She was a fairly sceptical person and never gave much credit to the rumours I could read minds. If he'd asked Lafayette who knows what he would've said. Dawn didn't know me from a bar of soap. Lafayette on the other hand I'd known most of my life. The sheriff's face remained impassive.
"Where do you all work?"
"Merlotte's Bar and Grill."
"Bon Temps," he said quietly. I shivered, I didn't like that he knew where I lived. "Is Sookie close to the owner of that establishment?"
"Sam? Naw, he's just her boss." Dawn thought vaguely about the fact that Sam probably wanted it to be more than that, from the way she'd caught him looking at me. Eww. I hoped she was fooling herself.
"Tell me about the people Miss Stackhouse is close to." His voice was cold and calm.
"She lives with her grandma. She has a brother called Jason." Dawn paused, fishing around for more about me. "Her best friend is Tara Thornton."
He stared, waiting for more apparently. When he realised he wasn't going to get it he asked his next question, "How were you planning to get home this evening?"
"Sookie said she'd drive us."
He looked over towards the bedroom, where Lafayette and I were. I realised with a start that I'd been holding my breath, I let it out. How good was his hearing? I tuned back into Dawn. He had moved quite close to her, his hand was at her neck. Was he checking her pulse? She didn't have a thought in her head about what he was doing so I had no help from her.
"Dawn, I want you to remember this number." He recited a string of digits. "Keep a close eye on Miss Stackhouse. If she says anything to you about tonight that is strange, or is inconsistent with what you remember you will call that number. If you hear that she has said anything unusual to anyone else about tonight, or about monsters or vampires, you will call that number. If you notice she is behaving out of the ordinary in any way you will call that number. If you hear someone else comment that she is behaving oddly you will call that number."
Cheese and rice. Did this mean I was actually getting out of here tonight? I pushed the thought out of my mind. This wasn't over yet. And all it would take was one mistake for this to fall apart.
The sheriff was still talking to Dawn in a calm, cool voice. "You will not remember me after tonight. You had an enjoyable night with Lafayette and Sookie. You had a lot to drink and do not remember all of the night. You spoke to some patrons at the bar, nothing unusual occurred." Her mind began rearranging itself around his orders, it felt like paper being folded into origami. The bones were the same but the final product was new. He gave her a once over before adding, "Wash off the blood and put your clothes back on."
He zipped back into the bedroom and over to Lafayette. I probably should have tried to follow what he was saying but my mind was still reeling. Did this mean I was actually getting out of this alive? Did my pretending to be hypnotised actually work? I wanted to cry, or laugh. Both, ideally. Lafayette began moving around the room, picking up his clothes. I guess he was done. My turn. I swallowed. The sheriff turned to me and stared at me for a long moment.
He moved to stand before me. He was standing so close I could lean forward a few inches and I'd be resting my head on his chest. He raised his hand, slowly bringing it to my neck. As before, the moment his skin touched mine his void expanded and swallowed me whole. It felt incredibly soothing, despite everything. I focused on the cool depth of his mind. His thumb rubbed at the base of my neck, right where my wound was, I felt a tingling feeling blossom outwards from his touch. My pulse must have been racing. Could he feel that? I tried to keep my breathing steady, focusing on his cool, encompassing void. His hand shifted, angling my face up towards his as our eyes met once more. The set of his mouth shifted ever so slightly, and he seemed to come to some conclusion.
"Miss Stackhouse." A shiver ran down my spine all the way to my toes. The itching sensation returned, so strong it was almost painful. I squeezed that little cat, the porcelain ear pressing painfully into my hand. The sheriff paused for a moment. "You will not remember me after tonight. You had an enjoyable night with Lafayette and Dawn. You spoke to some patrons at the bar, nothing unusual occurred." He looked at my forehead for a moment before meeting my eyes once more. "During the evening you fell and hit your head."
He paused at the end, holding my gaze. "It is time to leave. Gather your belongings. Take your friends home." The prickling reached a crescendo on his final words. I didn't move for a moment, weighing up what to do next. He watched me expectantly.
That couldn't be it. It was too easy.
I felt frozen. Half of me wanted to run out the door, and the other half knew that I wasn't free yet, only one step closer to it.
I steadied my voice. "Lafayette, Dawn. I need to take you both home." I tried to ignore the blond vampire standing a few feet away from me. My voice sounded strange, hollow. Dawn and Lafayette's minds started to clear, only slightly, but it was something. I walked into the living room and scanned the room, spotting my purse on the sideboard. I grabbed it, slipping the little porcelain cat inside of it as I hooked it over my shoulder. I started towards the front door which was wide open, hoping my friends would follow me.
I spotted my little car parked neatly on the curb and quickened my step a little. It was taking all my self-control not to break into a run. I reached the car and froze. Keys. Where were the keys? My hand shook as I felt around in my little bag. I pushed down my panic. I was almost out of here, I just needed to get in this damn car then I'd be okay. I fought back a sob as I tugged at the car door in frustration. To my surprise it swung right open. The keys were dangling in the ignition. I guess vampires don't care if my car gets stolen. Thank god for small mercies.
Before long, I was in the car and buckling up. I could still feel the cold void of the sheriff's mind inside the house. It felt as though he hadn't moved. Somehow that was almost creepier than if he was standing on the lawn and watching us. Dawn and Lafayette hopped in, and before they'd even done up their seatbelts I pulled away from the curb and started driving. I had to stop myself from flooring it.
I didn't really recognise where we were, so I just started driving towards traffic lights in the distance until businesses started appearing. Eventually I saw a sign for the Museum and I headed towards that, knowing I could find my way home from there. Pretty soon we were on a road I recognised and headed back towards Bon Temps. I focused on my driving, not really letting myself think about the events of the night. Lafayette and Dawn were silent. After ten minutes or so of driving I thought I felt something. Please, no. I reached out, straining my mental net. There! I was sure it was a void. I felt sick.
I watched the road and counted to ten. It was above us, moving steadily along with the car. It felt fairly high above us. Could they turn into bats like in Dracula? A feeling of dread washed over me. Slowly. Creeping up from my toes. I concentrated on the road. There was nothing to do but stick to the plan. I mean, it had attacked us yet.
After a long, tense hour, I was driving through the outskirts of Bon Temps. "Bye Sookie, thanks for the ride hun."
"See you later Dawn," I called out as she got out of the car. The void was still there, hovering above the car. I watched her nervously as she made her way to her porch, giving me a final wave as she closed the door behind her. I sighed in relief.
I dropped off Lafayette next, who also made it through the door. I pulled out from the curb, wondering who exactly was following me and what they had in store for me. Some instinct told me it was the sheriff. Diane and Malcolm didn't seem to have the patience for whatever this was. I hated that I was taking the vampire, the sheriff probably, home to Gran. But, I reminded myself, the sheriff already knew all about me anyway.
I pulled up near by my backdoor, the porch light was still on and it cast long shadows over the yard. I steeled myself and took a couple of deep breaths. I hadn't been killed yet, and lord knows there had been ample opportunity to do so. I held my keys between my fingers and made a fist around them.
At this point I didn't have a choice but to double down. I needed to be convincing. I started humming the first song that came to mind—9 to 5 by Dolly Parton, lord help me. I didn't trust myself to sing the lyrics, I was sure my voice would shake too much for that. So I got out of the car, making sure I was doing everything as if I'd had a normal night out with friends. It took everything I had not to look up at the void I could feel hovering above me, not to break into a run. I took the steps going up to the back porch two at a time and slipped through the back door, closing and locking it behind me. I paused for a moment, holding my breath. I felt sure something was going to happen. But no, all I could hear were the crickets in the night. Somewhere towards the trees a frog croaked. The void moved slowly toward the house. I fought the urge to peer up and catch a look at whoever it was.
"Sookie dear, is that you?" Gran's voice came from the living room.
I steadied my voice. "You didn't need to wait up Gran," I said. I rearranged my hair around my neck, hoping the bite was covered.
"Are you alright Sookie?" She appeared at the doorway. She was wearing her summer nightgown and slippers, her face was a mask of concern. "What happened?"
I had an almost irresistible urge to tell her everything. To tell her all about my night: about all of it, the vampires, Dawn being fed from, the cold silence of their minds, the void outside even now. The void circled the house. It was just behind Gran, maybe a few feet away from the outer wall of the house. It was like being splashed with cold water. I gave her a tight smile, keeping my voice steady, "I'm fine Gran, Dawn and I just lost track of time."
"Lost track of…" she trailed off, apparently lost for words. "Sookie Stackhouse, I'll have you know I had a call from Tara Thornton. She was worried sick about you, said you never met her in Shreveport. And you're telling me that you forgot about your best friend because you lost track of time? I was this close to calling the sheriff missy." I tensed at her last words before realising she meant Bud Dearborn.
It was too much. My nerves were fried. This night, somehow , was still not over. I could feel Gran riling up for a big one, she had quite the temper on her when it got going, and I just couldn't take it. "Gran!" I yelled, cutting off her tirade. She looked at me, shocked. I almost never yelled, well not at her anyway. I took a deep breath. "I'm real sorry I worried you. I'm just tired. Can we talk about this in the morning please?"
Gran gave me a stern look, before her gaze softened slightly. She nodded. "I'm sorry I yelled honey, I was just worried about you."
I gave a small nod. "I'll call Tara in the morning and apologise." I said quietly.
I took the stairs two at a time, desperate to get into my own room. Once I was finally inside I paused, at a loss at what to do. I cast out my mental net again. I could still feel him, he was over toward the woods. The sheriff, I was sure now. Malcolm or Diane would have snatched me before I'd gotten inside. What was he waiting for?
I hovered uncertainly in my doorway for a moment before coming to a decision. Damned if I was going to sit here waiting for him. It was a warm night, but quiet now, where had the crickets gone? Normally I would leave the window open to try and get a breeze through my room, but not tonight. I walked quickly to the open window, shutting it and closing the curtain. Some small part of me relaxed with that extra barrier in place. It helped, for all the good it would do, it helped.
I looked around my room, feeling slightly safer. Well, if I was going to die tonight I may as well get one last shower in.
I had a piping hot shower, using my favourite lavender soap, brushed my hair and brushed my teeth. I was careful not to look in the mirror or at my neck. I got into my favourite Mickey Mouse sleep t-shirt. I reached out for Gran. She was asleep now, her mind a flickering candle of dreams in the dark. I considered getting a knife from the kitchen, but if I was honest, I really didn't want to leave my room. I just wanted this to be over. I ended up grabbing my old high school softball bat from my wardrobe and tucking it under my pillow. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing.
I'd been reaching out with my disability every few minutes, like a nervous twitch. I couldn't help myself. The void was still there. I turned out the lights and crawled into bed. Tina, my cat, padded into the room and leapt onto my bed. I gratefully pet her. All the while, my thoughts were fixated on the void at the edge of the woods. Still there. I looked at the glowing numbers of my clock radio. It was almost 1:30 am.
The next few hours I lay in bed waiting for something, anything, to happen. Every now and then I'd start to doze off, before starling myself awake as my mind relaxed and I felt the void hovering at the edge of the woods. Eventually I felt the void move farther away. I sat up, grabbing for my softball bat, my heart thumping. But it was moving away, slowly at first, then too quickly to follow. Suddenly it was gone. I lay in bed, gripping my bat. After about an hour, light started to creep around the edge of my curtain. The void still hadn't returned. I rolled over, curled in on myself and cried myself to sleep.
