"Bill laughed like a madman. "Compton control you're fucking self and answer my fucking question." Victor bellowed.
"Remember when I told you I was being set up… you should have believed me." Victor looked around the warehouse, although the lights were off, with his sight he could see everything perfectly.
"Who set you up?" It was a stupid question, and he knew it.
"Northman, and we all know it," Shinji grumbled still fighting a fruitless fight to free himself from the silver chains.
"Why?" Victor whispered.
"Sophie-Anne," Bill muttered chuckling to himself. Maybe he really had lost his mind as he continued to laugh.
"All this for that whore of a queen. Give me a break." Victor sneered.
"She was Northman's childe." With those words, the warehouse descended into complete silence. Even Bill had stopped laughing.
"Yes, I would go to war for the true death of my childe." Shinji stopped all attempts to free himself.
"The telepath, his sudden and utter devotion… it was all a plan to avenge his childe." Victor was struggling to understand how it had come to pass. How was it that no one knew about Northman and his connection to Sophie-Anne? Most people thought he just tolerated her. She seemed to deal with him a lot less than any of her other sheriffs. They were barely cordial with each other. As the thoughts filtered through his mind, he realized it was all a ruse. Years of watching Northman hadn't revealed his connection to Sophie-Anne, they had hidden it well. He knew he shouldn't have trusted the Viking, he knew he should have stuck to his initial thoughts of him. He had let recent events fool him, then again that was the whole point. Still, it hurt to realize just how easily they had been played. If he and Felipe truly trusted each other, this would not have possible in the first place.
…
Sebastian was in the best of moods. He did nothing but talk about his turning, even in a public setting. Sookie couldn't get a word in, and it suited her just fine. "I don't know… if I was ever going to get turned, I prefer a man to do it." Sookie said absentmindedly.
"Yeah, truth be told, I don't care who turns me as long as I get turned. I'm told all I would want to do is feed and fuck initially, and I certainly would have preferred a woman." Sebastian admitted.
"I'm right there with you. From what Eric tells me after your turning you won't care as long it's not been forced on you." Sookie said with a shrug.
"I don't care already." He joked. Sookie chuckled and then stood abruptly.
"Let's get back before they sent a search party for us." Seeing the look on her face, he knew not to question her. The minute they made it out of the café Sookie pulled out her phone. "Eric, there are three Weres currently following us. They plan to take Sebastian, Eric I think this was part of Victor's plan. I saw him briefly in their minds. But I can't get a clear reading, as they are Weres. We are coming back, but in case we don't make it. We walked past the bank, and they have cameras so that…" She stopped short when a hand grabbed her. She was tossed in the van with Sebastian who was promptly blindfolded.
Alcide smiled at Sookie as she sighed in relief. Any number of things could have gone wrong, and she was very relieved it had all gone to plan. Of course, the Weres that were following them had been hired anonymously and even if they were caught they had no real information. They were a perfect distraction from the real threat. Felipe would focus his effort on finding them. Of course, the information he discovers will lead him to Arkansas. Sookie really did like Sebastian and hated to put him in this position, but was a necessary evil.
"We have a job to do, and we are doing it." Alcide started to explain things to Sebastian. "We have absolutely no desire to hurt you as long as you cooperate. Do you understand?" Sebastian nodded vigorously.
"Good, this is not about you, you are a necessary pawn to get to de Castro." Sebastian pretty much knew that was the case. Surprisingly, his only concern was if de Castro met his true death he wouldn't get turned. He was beginning to think this would never happen for him. Every time he was close to getting turned something got in the way. Yep, it was never going to happen as far as he was concerned.
…
Eric due to his age was awake before Felipe. He chuckled when he listened to Sookie's voicemail. It was a picture of Sebastian cuffed to a chair. He didn't look in any way hurt or distressed. Eric deleted the picture and got ready for his evening. Felipe he knew would be getting the same picture. He checked his bond with Sookie, and it was muted. Therefore he knew she was now at the warehouse. Felipe would not be able to feel Sebastian as well. The ward around the warehouse was working perfectly. With the sun still up he stayed in his chamber getting ready for the performance of his existence.
The minute the sunset he was out of his room looking as though he was on the warpath. He saw Felipe headed his way. "They've been taken." He bellowed.
"I feared as much." Felipe deflated in a way Eric didn't think a vampire was capable of.
"Sookie managed to leave me a message before they were taken. They were after Sebastian, and it appears this was part of Victor's plan. I believe the Weres hired didn't know he had met his true death." Eric grumbled.
"Even dead he still manages to be a thorn in my side," Felipe growled.
"I have already called my day man to look into it. Sookie purposefully walked past a bank knowing it had surveillance. With any luck, we will have footage of the kidnappers by tomorrow evening.
Eric's phone rang then. "Mustapha, what do you have?"
"We've managed to get footage from the café and a couple of other establishments. They were here for about an hour, and then Miss Stackhouse froze and looked up at three men. She immediately stood, and Sebastian stood to leave with her, he seemed to understand something was wrong. She called you as she headed back to the palace, but just as they walked past an alley they were grabbed, and the three Weres followed. That was the last sighting we have of them. I am calling in a favor that will hopefully allow me to view traffic footage. There is a camera facing that front of that alley if we can see the car or van leaving I'm hoping we can follow it to its final destination."
"Excellent, keep in touch." Eric hung up with a sigh.
"That sounds promising," Felipe said. "My biggest concern is if these Weres discovered Victor is no more... what will happen to Sebastian and Miss Stackhouse?"
"Good question." Eric looked away with a smirk. Tomorrow night Mustapha will inform them that the Van was followed until the Arkansas border.
...
Back at the warehouse, Victor could see the fear on Compton's face when Northman's progeny walked in followed by a blonde male. "Bill, tonight you get a reprieve. Eric has given carte blanche on these fools... well, all except for Victor." Pam looked at Victor then with a smirk. "He is to be left for Eric.
"Pam, think about what you are doing... you are not going to get away with it," Victor said grasping at straws.
"Oh come on, surely you can do better than that," Sookie said as she walked into the warehouse.
"Miss Stackhouse, this is..."
"You grasping at straws. Let's look at the facts. You have no maker or children, there is no one out there that can still feel a bond with you. As far as Felipe is concerned, you are dead by his hand or rather his say so. So tell me exactly how we are going to get caught. Hell, you didn't know good old William here was still with us." Victor knew he was going to meet his true death and nothing short of a miracle would save him.
"Miss Stackhouse, please..." He wasn't beyond begging.
"You are pathetic," Shinji growled. "Die with honor, I only wish I could have died in combat. Stop begging and ask the Viking for the opportunity to die in battle as I will do the same."
Sookie wasn't paying attention to any of them, as she focused on Bill. "Tell me Bill why did you kill Hadley?" Sookie hands lit up as she asked the question.
"What... you..." Victor started.
"Do yourself a favor and shut up," Jason warned. "You don't want that near you. Ask Willy here, he will tell you all about it."
"Bill, I asked you a question."
"They would have taken her from me. One whiff of her blood and I would have lost her."
"So you decided to kill her instead. Why not turn her, she was desperate to be turned so why not do that." The look on Bill's face answered her question.
"That was your plan." Pam surmised correctly. "But somehow you managed to fuck that up as well. You truly are useless." She sneered.
"So useless I got Sophie-Anne and her entire court killed." It was the wrong thing to say, and he knew that the minute the words left his mouth. He saw Sookie about to flick a finger. "NO, NO, NO. Please no."
"Too late." Sookie sang just Bill felt the heat working its way through his already mangled body.
Victor's eyes widen as Bill screamed in abject agony. "What did you do to him?"
"I could always show you." Before he could utter a word against that suggestion, she had already flicked a finger.
"He was to be left for Eric... didn't I tell you that?" Pam deadpanned.
"No, you didn't," Sookie said with a feigned wide-eyed look.
"Oops, must have slipped my mind." She muttered in a bored tone.
"Can we end this lot and get out of here... there is only so much of their shouting I can take."
"Jason grabbed a silver stake with relish. "I wish to die in combat," Shinji shouted.
"I want a Ferrari, but that ain't happening either," Jason snarked before plunging the stake into Shinji. Within seconds the others were a pile of goo that was quickly becoming ash.
"Now let's go home, I miss grans cooking and my bed." Sookie yawned.
"Is Sebastian with Alcide?" Jason asked.
"Yep, he is quite the cooperative captive. I think the idea of not getting turned has him more bumped out than the kidnapping."
"I'd be happy to turn him after all this is over." Thalia piped up. It was easy to forget she was there sometimes. She had the ability to blend into her background until she wanted you to know she was there.
"That will make him very happy." Sookie smiled, she really liked Sebastian and it would have been a shame to lose him.
