Author's Note - See, I didn't forget this little gem. Huge thanks to all of you who have been patient, it means a lot to me. This story started because I was watching TB, for the hundredth time, and once again found myself getting utterly annoyed with Sookie. She bugs me on so many different levels. But I don't want this story to be a complete smear campaign.
The first thing she noticed was the smell. All hospitals had the same stench. Chemical. Sterile. With the undertone of blood and desperation. A smell she had hoped to never have to experience again, like ever. But as soon as her eyes cracked open, Evie knew exactly what she'd find.
"Hell no." With a groan, Evie rubbed at her eyes and tried to sit up. But the IVs in her arms, and tangle of wires attached to different parts of her body made it nearly impossible. Then the memory as to why she was here flooding into her scrambled head, and panic weighed down on her chest.
"Whoa!" Tara's startled voice came from the other side of the bed. "Girl, you need to calm the fuck down."
"Gran -."
"Yeah, I know you're worried about her, but you're not doing yourself any favors trying to get out of bed." With a steady hand on her chest, Tara pressed her back onto the narrow bed. "Right now, you need to worry about your stupid white ass. Your Gran is gonna be just fine, you know she's strong. Has to be, what with raising you three."
"She's, okay?" It was the only words that really registered. The only words that really mattered. Though Tara seemed calm, and reassuring, Evie couldn't help but remember the blood.
So. Much. Blood.
"I said that didn't I?" Only when she was sure that Evie wasn't going to be a good girl and stay put, Tara returned to the chair. "Sookie came by a little while ago. Your Gran is out of surgery, needed lots of blood, but is now resting."
"I don't understand." Evie fought against the fear inside her chest. Memories were now invading her head. Rene? How could someone so evil fool everyone? There hadn't been a day over the summer that she hadn't served him lunch when he came round with the rest of the road crew. She'd listened to Arleen go on, and on, and freaking on, over how wonderful Rene was. How had they'd missed their mark?
How could she and Sookie been fooled?
"You and me both girl." Tara muttered. "Sheriff Bud had Rene put on the nut ward after he came to."
"He's here?" The very thought made her skin crawl. Having Rene so close to her, to her Gran, made her sick to her stomach.
"Where else was he going to be?" Tara huffed. "After what that vampire did to him."
"Are you seriously going to defend Rene?" Twisting her head to glare over at her sister's friend, Evie felt her hands clench into fists. "If it wasn't for Eric, I probably would be dead right now. My Gran too!"
"Don't take that tone with me Everly Lynne." Sitting forward, Tara pinned her with a hard glare. "Of course, I'm not defending that sick piece of shit. Rene deserved what he got. What I want to know, is why your dumb ass was with a vampire in the first place? Didn't you learn from your sister's mistake?"
"First of all, I am not dating Eric Northman." Evie sputtered. "Second, well I actually don't have a second. But I'm lucky Eric was there. If not, I doubt we'd be having this argument."
"Yeah." Tara frowned. "Maybe."
"So now that we've got that cleared up, why am I here?" Looking around the small space, with only curtains for walls, she turned her attention back to Tara's angry glare. "What?"
"I know my cousin gives you shit to help." Leaning forward, Tara lowered her voice. "So, this exact thing didn't happen again."
Closing her eyes, Evie tried to form an explanation. "I would have been fine."
She had followed Layfette's directions. She'd been hyper aware of following his directions because she was not going to piss off her supplier.
"Girl, you passed out. Hit your hard assed head, and nearly had a seizer." Tara interrupted. "That is about as far away from fine as you can get."
"There were too many people there." Weak. It was probably the weakest explanation in the history of like ever, but it was all that she had. Opening her eyes, she looked over at Tara. "It just . . . it just became too much. Sookie was freaking out, Andy was – well he was just Andy, then Bud was losing his shit. The rage pouring off Eric -."
"What did you just say?" Bolting up in her seat, Tara leaned forward, her eyes shooting to the entrance of her cubicle before continuing. "Are you telling me . . . Evie I know you ain't normal, but that shit right there is off the reservation. Sookie can't hear their thoughts, are you saying you can-."
"No." Shaking her head, Evie blinked a few times. "I didn't feel anything off him, he just – well he looked pissed off."
"I swear to God, you two girls are going to give me a heart attack one day." Tara muttered, while crossing her arms over her chest.
"Where's Sookie?" Evie sighed.
"Went home to clean up the mess." Leaning back in the chair, Tara sighed. "I offered to help, but she wanted me to stay and keep an eye on your crazy ass. She's being particularly uptight. Nearly chewed Arleen's head off last night when she showed up."
Wincing, Evie chewed on her lower lip. "I totally forgot about that."
Poor Arleen. Would that poor woman ever catch a break?
"Yeah." Rolling her eyes, Tara shook her head. "The scene between those two drama queens was one for the books. I'm honestly shocked security didn't kick them both out."
She really didn't need the run down on that, already knowing exactly how it went. Sookie would've been all tears and self-righteous indignation. While Arleen wailed like a banshee, begging for forgiveness. It would've been an epic showdown between the two most obnoxious women in the parish. But still, Evie felt a little bad for the redhead, the poor woman had the worst taste in men.
"So, when do I get sprung from here?"
A half snort came from Tara. "Girl, you aint getting out of here anytime soon."
"I fainted." Evie felt a moment of panic. Dear lord, not again. They couldn't keep her here. Not because she passed out. She should've left that morning for Shreveport. Missing school wasn't an option.
"For one thing, you hit your head pretty hard when you passed out." Tara stared at her forehead, making Evie move her hand and touch a bandage on the side of her head. How in the world had she missed that?
"Bud and Andy just let me fall?"
"Yeah, real southern gentlemen they are." Her tone was sour. "Heard it was a real mess. Rene was coming to, at the same time you were passing out. That blonde vampire was all over that piece of shit like white on rice. Then Sook came rushing in, and well – you can image the scene she made. Long story short, you've got a concussion and are stuck here for at least a day. They want to run a few more tests. Guess they want to make sure you don't got brain damage or something."
"Nope." Shaking her head, Evie went to pull at one of the sticky tabs. "That's not happening."
"What're you doing?"
"I'm not staying here." The very thought of staying made her want to vomit.
"Hey now." Swatting at her hands, Tara gave her a menacing glare. A look she'd perfected over the years, but no longer really made Evie squirm like it once had. "I get you hate hospitals, and I don't blame you none. But I swear to all that's holly if you don't get your shit under control, I'll have them knock your ass out. Test me. See if I'm lying."
"There's nothing wrong with me."
"Oh, there's plenty wrong with you Stackhouse." Tara snapped. "But seeing you're the most normal outta the bunch, I'm gonna just sit here making sure you behave yourself."
"I'm not a child."
"Well maybe if you stopped acting like one, laid back and just let these overpriced quacks take care of ya, I won't have to treat you like a child." Definitely in Mama Tara mode, Evie considered her chances of escape and immediately gave up.
"Fine."
"That's what I thought." With a sharp nod, Tara settled back. "And if your real nice I'll even letcha have the little gift my stupid ass cousin brought by."
Well, thank God for small miracles. It wouldn't take long before the tension from outside of the privacy curtains, started to bleed into her small, confined space. "He's a freaking saint."
"He's no such thing." Shaking her head, Tara pulled a baggy out of her front pocket. "But at least these will help keep you from passing out again."
The day dragged on, to the point where Evie was considering gnawing off her own arm to make an escape. The only thing that broke up the monotony was when Lafayette stopped by for a quick visit, and when the nurse stopped by with food trays. Sure, the food was gross, but the pudding cup made up for it.
Jello might be from the devil, but pudding was a gift from the gods.
Another high point was when Bud and Andy showed up to ask her some questions. Tara had shot out of the chair and chewed them out for their ignorance. Evie had seen Tara wound up before, had seen the girl make grown men cry, but she'd never seen officer's trip over one another to get away from Tara's wrath.
Anytime a nurse ventured in, Evie grilled them for information on her Gran. At first, they were hesitant to part with any information, apparently uneasy of her own confinement. But when she finally snapped and threatened the stunned nurse, she got regular updates.
As of an hour ago, Gran had awoken. She hadn't stayed lucent for very long but had enough sense to demand answers. It wasn't until Evie heard the update, that she allowed herself to relax. Well, relax as much as she could, knowing that psycho was only a few floors up from where she was laying.
It wasn't until visiting hours were almost over, that her sister came trotting through the privacy curtain. Her light blonde hair was secured in a high ponytail, swinging behind her with ever step she took. Meaning Sookie was on a mission tonight.
"Why were you with Eric Northman last night?" The words were out of her mouth, before flinging her purse onto the foot of the bed.
"Nice to see you too Sookie." Gritting her teeth, Evie sent a scathing glare toward her sister. She would like to say she hadn't seen this coming. But she had, and apparently Tara had too, because she quickly stood.
"Well, that's my sign to go home." Turning her gaze toward Evie, Tara flashed her a toothy grin. "Call me if you need a ride home tomorrow. And you." Stopping in front of Sookie, Tara placed her hands on her hips. "Do I need to remind you that you're surrounded by sick people, who don't need you screeching like a banshee?"
"Don't take that tone with me Tara Thornton." Sookie scoffed, but Evie could see Tara's words had taken the wind out of her sails. The two best friends stood glaring at one another, until Sookie heaved a sigh. "Fine."
"Fine." Tara tossed back, still not moving.
"Cheese and rice, Tara. I said fine." Sookie growled.
Shrugging her slender shoulders, before leaning over and snatching her purse off the floor. "I swear your family makes mine look normal." With that, Tara moved around Sookie and left without another word.
Leaving the two sisters glaring at one another. It was Sookie who broke first.
"How's your head?"
Okay, so apparently Sookie did remember why she was currently trapped in a hospital bed. "Feels like when you hit me with a rake when I was eight." Was she being a little bitter? Perhaps. But nothing pissed her off more, than Sookie's holier than thou attitude. The girl could be all kinds of wrong, and still point the finger at someone else.
"You stole my book report." Sookie's eyes flared in defiance.
Fine. She was a little thief when she was younger. At least she outgrew that bad habit.
"And to answer your original question, Eric does what Eric wants." It wasn't much of an answer, but it was the only one she had. There was no telling that man, vampire, whatever no when he got it in his head that he wanted to do something. What she sure as hell wasn't going to say, was how she was Eric's little spy. A horrible spy, but for the time being, indentured to follow his rules.
"He's horrible." Sookie took the seat Tara vacated. "Bill said –."
"Stop." Balling the sheets into her fists, Evie shot Sookie a disgusted glare. "For the love of God, do not start spouting your Bill love at me."
"Don't say the G word to me Everly Lynne." Sookie snapped. "Are you dating him?"
"Who?" Blinking in confusion, Evie sure as hell hoped her sister was talking about Eric, and not her ex-beau.
"Eric." Sookie muttered darkly.
"Sookie." Forcing herself to swallow down the insult she really wanted to say, Evie sighed. "I'm not dating anyone. Eric promised Gran he'd get me home safe."
Wringing her hands together, Sookie sat up straight. "So, you invited him into the house."
"Yes." Still seeing that Sookie wanted to fight, she killed her sister's urge. "He must've heard something, I dunno, you said vampires had good hearing."
"Yeah."
"Then well, you saw the rest." She didn't want to talk about what happened. Didn't want to dissect the entire night like her sister wanted. It was in Sookie's eyes. That need to go over every little detail until she could fully comprehend why the night ended like it had.
"I could just strangle Rene, or whoever he really is." Sookie nearly vibrated in anger. "Did you hear that instead of putting that psycho in jail like he deserves, Sherriff Dearborne had him admitted, here."
"Yeah." Licking at her dry lips, Evie fidgeted. "Can't say sleep is going to come easy tonight. How's Gran doing?" That really was the only question she'd wanted to ask when Sookie arrived. But seeing how they barely managed normal on a good day, things could've gone much worse.
Looking like she was going to break down, Sookie sucked in a deep breath. "It was touch and go at first. She lost a lot of blood then went into shock. But she pulled through. The doctor said she'll probably be in the ICU for a few days, but if she keeps improving, they're going to move her into a private room."
"Where's Jason?" She wouldn't lie. Jason not coming to see her stung just a little. But with the way he'd been acting over the summer, she shouldn't be shocked. There was also the fact that he'd been totally out of it the night before. He may not even know what had happened.
It seemed their brother was also a sore subject with her sister as well. "That freaking jackass. He hasn't returned any off my messages."
"So, he doesn't know what happened?" Irritation set in, and Evie wanted to smack her brother upside the head. First, last night he'd shown up jacked up on V, proving he once again had strayed so far off the path. To be fair, Jason had always been a little bit of a mess. But this last summer he really was going for gold.
"What did you tell your friends?" Now that the fire in Sookie's eyes had diminished, she sat back and got comfortable.
"Nothing." When she hadn't been worried about her Gran, she'd been mulling over how she was going to explain the previous night. How did one describe walking in to find a serial killer in her kitchen, nearly killing her Gran in a homicidal rage due to her 'vampire' connections?
Or that once again, she'd been in the company of Eric Northman.
"Do you honestly think you can keep this quiet?" Sookie huffed at the notion. "There's been news vans surrounding the house like vultures over a bloody carcass."
Both girls winced at the inappropriate description. Especially seeing how the bloody body had been the woman who had raised them.
For a second Evie's heart stuttered. "Please tell me you haven't been talking to reporters?"
"Of course not!" Sookie snapped.
"This is a nightmare." Running her fingers through her hair, Evie tried to scramble for a reasonable explanation to get her out of this mess.
"I don't see why your panties are in a twist. I'd think it'd be a relief being able to tell those sorority sisters of yours that Jason was cleared of murdering those girls."
Christ, she hadn't even been able to share her summertime woes with Thea. It would've been social suicide to spill her family drama to those blood thirsty bitches of DZ. Not that she put stock in her social standing. But there was something to be said about not having to spend the rest of the year under a microscope. She found life was much simpler when she flew under the radar.
Oh, poor sweet delusional Sookie. Sometimes Evie had to wonder if her sister's naivety was all just an act. After years of being bullied at school, and the curse of hearing everyone's thoughts, her sister had to know that people generally sucked.
Sighing, Evie picked at the thin blanket. "They don't know."
Sookie blinked a few times. "Excuse me?"
"Sook." Bracing herself for round two of Sookie's hysterics, Evie felt a flare of her sister's annoyance. "Why would I ever share that?"
Snapping her jaw shut, Sookie appeared to contemplate her words. "Guess I can't blame you for there. So, what're you gonna do when this gets out? Because from where I stand, this isn't something you can keep hidden."
"That's the question of the century." Frowning, Evie leaned her head back and sighed. "Thea will be pissed, but will eventually understand . . . I hope. The others? It's gonna be a blood bath."
"But why?" This time she could feel confusion rolling off Sookie in waves. "Isn't that the point of having a huge sisterhood? Having people there in your corner?"
"Oh Sook." Evie shook her head, feeling almost bad for what she was about to say. "The sisterhood is an elaborate smoke screen. Do you seriously think a group of females that large are about friendship bracelets and charity brunches?"
"But you said -."
Knowing exactly what her sister was about to say, Evie interrupted her. "Of course, I told you and Gran it was great. Joining a sorority was all the two of you would talk about. You didn't get to go to college, and I felt like I needed to see at least one of your dreams came true. When I realized it wasn't exactly what you thought it was, I didn't have the heart to tell you."
Several emotions moved over her face. "If its that bad, why not quit?"
"There's some good times." Evie frowned, trying to find a way to explain herself, without sounding like she had a serious case of Stockholm syndrome. "To be honest, it's just like high school, but on steroids."
"Well that just plain sucks." Sookie frowned. "I hated high school."
"Yeah." Evie agreed. "But there are some nice girls there, we're just outnumbered by a large group of backstabbing bitches. Plus being a DZ makes Gran happy."
"Because the rest of us a screw ups." Sookie frowned.
"Don't put words in my mouth." Giving her sister a pointed look, one that said she wasn't going to touch that comment with a ten foot pole.
"Why?" Sookie asked. "It's true. Heavens only knows where Hadley is, if she's even still alive. Jason is a walking bingo card of problems, and I sure as heck didn't make it easy on her. You're the only one of us who didn't make Gran look bad."
Oh goodie, they were not to the part where Sookie threw herself a pity party. "We both know Gran doesn't think that. She loves us all, even Hadley."
Shrugging, Sookie didn't look convinced, but thankfully didn't look like she wanted to talk about it any further. After a minute of blessed silence, Sookie started to squirm. That was never a good sign. Usually, it meant she'd done something incredibly stupid, and was trying to find a way to explain herself. If her movements hadn't sold her out, the wave of nervous unease radiating off her told Evie that her sister had once again done something incredibly stupid.
"I'm thinking about getting back together with Bill." Her words were rushed, and Evie felt her stomach lurch. Besides not liking the weirdo, because dear sweet baby Jesus she hated that POS, it put her right back under Eric's thumb. She may owe that Viking asshat for last night, but it didn't really take away the fact that he was blackmailing her.
"Sook, don't take this the wrong way, but what the hell?" Sookie did in fact take it the wrong way, as she sat up straight, like she had a broom wedged up her backside.
"Not that I need to explain myself to you." Sucking in a deep breath, Sookie leveled a hard glare in Evie's direction. "But Bill showed up just after you passed out. Everything was such a horrible mess, and he just . . ." Frowning, her sister gave an apologetic shrug. "He helped me, and then we talked."
"And the rest is history." Evie muttered.
"Don't take that tone with me." Her sister snapped defensively. "I am perfectly capable of deciding who I will and wont date, thank you very much."
Her sister seriously could be the world biggest pain in the keister. "What about Sam?"
"What about him?" Seriously looking confused, Sookie nose scrunched up.
"He thinks you two went on a date last night." Her sister had to know just how much that meant to their boss, who incidentally was also their friend. "Don't you think maybe this may rub him the wrong way?"
At least Sookie had the decency to look guilty. "I just don't have the same feelings for him as I do for Bill."
Darn freaking emotions. She really couldn't argue with chemistry. Either you had it, or you didn't. It was too freaking bad that the nice guys never seemed to have it. The world would probably be a better place if they did.
But did she have to have 'it' with crusty Bill?
"Did you at least talk to Sam?" Feeling suddenly exhausted, Evie felt the need to fight drain out of her. "So, he doesn't get whiplash over your actions."
"It was one effing date." Sookie muttered. Meaning that her sister hadn't done the proper thing and let Sam down easy. "Barely that. And he knows Bill and I have a past."
A past? Was she for real?
"Its on you Sook, not me." Deciding she was done with this conversation, and with her sister's squirrelly behavior, Evie closed her eyes.
"I brought you a change of clothes, your phone and charger." Sookie sighed. "Thought you wouldn't want to wear . . ."
A dress drenched in Gran's blood? Sookie might be a vapid bitch at times, but she still came through in a pinch.
Still not opening her eyes, hoping her sister would take the clue, Evie sighed. "Thanks Sook."
"I'm gonna check in on Gran, then pop home." Hearing her sister stand, Evie listened to her retreat. "I'll come by tomorrow. They said you should be fine to come home in the afternoon."
Ωβπ
"This place smells of death." Lush painted lips frowned, as Pam scowled at her surroundings. "And not in a good way."
Eric couldn't agree more, the smell was intense, and burned his nose. But he wasn't there for the ambiance, or a quick meal. No self-respecting vampire made a habit of haunting the halls of local hospitals. Not when the building housed people who were at deaths door. There might be a few edible snacks to be found, but they were grossly outnumbered by those who's blood was saturated with disease or manmade chemicals.
Simply put, it was too much work for a meal.
"Remind me again why you insisted on this?" Pam's expression may be a mask of disinterest, but her eyes sparkled in irritation. "I'm missing a very delectable playdate with a perky little Cuban I met."
"Pam." Shoving his hands into the front pockets of his jean, Eric sent a smirk at her. "Perky people annoy you."
"I'm not talking about her personality." Pam flashed him her own special smirk. "Since we're on the topic of annoying perky people, I would've thought you would've been over this fascination you have with Sookie Stackhouse."
"This isn't about Sookie." His tone was dry and frowned when Pam rolled her eyes. "And I do not have a fascination."
"Please." Pam drawled. "Lie to yourself all you want. But ever since Bill brought that blonde ray of sunshine to Fangtasia you've been acting . . . oddly."
"I've been acting oddly, because I know the Queen has something to do with Compton's return." Tired of this conversation, and having to explain himself, Eric ground his back teeth. Several times he'd tried to make Pam see that Bill's reappearance in Bon Temps after centuries of absence wasn't coincidence. Or how he just happened to stumble across a telepath.
It was beyond frustrating. Pam knew the Queen was in trouble. Financially, politically, mentally.
Sophie Anne wasn't the type of woman who was going to take being dethroned without a fight. A long, bloody fight, where she would sacrifice every pawn at her disposal. And until he could make Pam understand they were just merely pawns to Sophie Anne; she would continue to assume his interest in Sookie Stackhouse was selfish.
Would he like to be able to have claim over the girl? Yes. For one it would piss Bill off, which was always something he enjoyed. But to have a telepath at their disposal while trudging through a political minefield? It could mean the difference between life or death.
But to use the human to relieve an itch? Maybe, once. She did have such a pretty package. But a package without much depth. As far as he'd seen, Sookie Stackhouse held no qualities that would keep him interested in her for any length of time. What he was interested in, was her telepathy, and how he could use it to his advantage.
He was also beginning to suspect that the younger Stackhouse possessed an ability as well. After last night's fiasco, he'd witnessed a change in her. She'd been understandably upset over her Mormor, but she'd been impressively composed under the stressful situation. Had quickly jumped to action, by taking care of the older woman. She'd kept her head when she'd insisted, he kept the murder alive. A decision he didn't support, but her words held enough merit to stay his hand.
Everly's composer slowly unraveled after Sookie's emotional arrival. It worsened when the humans came rushing in. She seemed to fold in on herself, with every question lobbed her way. The more frustrated the officers became at her inability to answer them, the worse she became. Until finally something snapped, and she fell to the kitchen floor in an ungraceful heap.
After hitting her head on a nearby chair.
He would've been able to stop the fall, as he'd done several times in the past few weeks, if that human hadn't come to at the same time. It was the same moment Bill Fucking Compton had come barreling into the room, the shifter snapping at his heels. It felt as though the universe had decided to give him the finger.
Moving his gaze over the occupants inside the waiting area, Eric couldn't locate his Day Man Bobby. He'd instructed him to situate himself near Everly and keep an eye on her. The only time he was to intervene was if Rene Lenier, or more accurately Drew Marshall, somehow managed to escape.
"Find Bobby." He would be having a chat with his employee. "I hope he has a reasonable explanation as to why he's not where he's supposed to be."
"He's on that new tea cleanse diet." Pam sighed.
"Tea cleanse?" Confused, Eric turned back to face Pam.
"He's got a new neighbor." Pam smirked, as though her words explained why his employee wasn't where he was supposed to be.
"That tells me nothing."
"Eric, I know it's been some time, but imagine drinking a special tea, that's only use is to cleanse the body." Her lips twitched. "Ginger's been complaining about the state of the men's bathroom over the last week."
Her words had the desired impact. Eric frowned and pinched his nose. He was surrounded by imbeciles. "How do I make you all see we're teetering here? The queen is either going to pull her shit together, or she'll predictably make things worse. She'll use every vampire in Louisiana as fodder before letting Nan Flanagan and her unholy alliance at the AVL dethrone her."
"The AVL is a joke." Folding her arms over her chest, Pam narrowed her eyes in his direction.
"Make no mistake, they are gaining ground." It was becoming clear they hadn't taken the threat of the American Vampire League had on their existence.
Before the great revelation they'd been made to believe that the AVL existence was purely for public relations. But as time went on, they seemed to have overstepped their jurisdiction. In the last year alone, they had replaced two queens and four kings. Each territory had suffered unbelievable losses, and he refused to allow Sophie Anne or Nan the satisfaction of upturning his very comfortable existence.
But to ensure that, he needed leverage. And as inconceivable as it was, it seemed his best bet stemmed from the Stackhouse family. Which meant he needed to keep them safe. Having a psycho murderer a few floors up, was the opposite of safe.
Bobby's task was simple. Keep an eye on Everly, report back any safety concerns. He had a ware staked outside of Adele Stackhouse's room, and two shifters patrolling the hallways. They all owed him, and after finding out they were protecting humans as payment had been more than willing to assist. But if Bobby wasn't at his post, that mean no one was watching Everly.
"Find Bobby." Turning to head toward the elevator, he paused when Pam called out.
"Who's replacing Bobby?"
Sending her a smirk over his shoulder, her face fell into an unreadable mask.
Entering the small box, he pushed the button for Adele's floor, the doors nearly closed before hearing Pam's irritated mutter. "Fuck my life."
Tadah! Hope you all enjoyed! Let me know what you think!