Has someone taken your faith?

Its real, the pain you feel

The life, the love you'd die to heal

The hope that starts the broken hearts

You trust, you must

Confess

Is someone getting the best, the best, the best, the best of you? – Foo Fighters

Thalia POV

Someone is going to die, possibly several someones. I am on the way to Fangtasia to continue to review the states' defenses when I get a call from Pam telling me that Sookie has been kidnapped. At first I have nothing to say as I am in a state of disbelief. With all of our discussions and planning, this is not something that we planned for. In retrospect, this is something that should have been high on our priority list.

As I start to come back to myself, the shock of the news wearing off, I have about a thousand questions for my vampire friend but unfortunately for all of us, she has very few answers.

Few as in like none.

I immediately turn around and start heading to the airport as I make a call to Alcide to see if he could send reinforcements there as well. I make another call to Felicia to do the same and she informs me that Karin has already called her. It's good to know that we are all on the same page. I start to make one more call but hang up before the call can go through. I hadn't wanted to make either of the phone calls tonight with this horrible news but this last phone call is one that needs to be made yet it is the one I am currently most dreading.

I will need to tell Jason his sister has been kidnapped; hopefully we will have her back and can be laughing at the story when I do.

I continue to drive to the airport trying to ignore the burning feeling behind my eyes. I haven't felt the burning in centuries, not since the last time I have dealt with loss. It's something that I never have dealt with well, which is why I have spent the last few centuries working on my reputation and trying to keep everyone at arms length, several arms lengths.

This little human managed to work her way in and I have to believe she didn't get me to drop most of my shields just for me to lose her. We will get her back. There is no other solution for this.

I stop the car a little north of where Pam told me to meet them, opting to go the rest of the way on foot. So much is still unknown and vampires are much quieter on their feet than a car is. The element of surprise could be the different here and I will do whatever I need to do to tip the scales in our favor.

I know that is something that we definitely need to do, especially seeing what I do when I make my way to where Pam and Eric are. By the look of their embrace, I am worried for a second that we are already too late. But I manage to take a big, unneeded breath of relief as I hear Pam whisper, "She's all right. We will get her back," over and over in the ear of her maker.

So their embrace does not mean the worst. A tightening in my chest, one that I didn't realize had crept in, relaxes. Only slightly, however. We still have many questions and not enough answers.

I make my way over to them, all the while sensing our surroundings. I am both happy and angry that we are alone here; it would be simpler if whoever is responsible for this was known now. Not to mention I suddenly feel the need to fight things, something, anything at this point. But there is nothing to fight except the wind.

So many questions go unasked as I slowly walk towards Pam and Eric, my eyes burning more and more as I get closer. It's not until both of them reach out an arm and take me into their hold that the burning starts to decrease.

I think it has something to do with the tears pouring down my face.

Pam POV

Thalia's been here for…well I'm not entirely sure how long Thalia has been here for. I am focusing on the feelings that I am getting from Eric, feelings that I never even thought he would have for me to not want to feel them. He feels like he is shutting down and it is the worst feeling in the world.

The three of us stand there for what could be minutes or hours. I'm not sure. I am thinking through hundreds of scenarios now, all of which require me to leave Eric and to go out to the tarmac, to all the tarmacs, and see if I can determine which plane took off with Sookie in it, if one did at all. I am starting to worry that getting her to the airport knowing Eric would sense her here was sending us on a wild goose chase.

I don't even want to imagine what we will be finding at the end of the chase if that is the case.

I hear footsteps approaching us and I don't panic. Thalia is immediately on the defense though and I know my friend is just looking for something, someone to fight. Hopefully, she will have one before the night is through. Eric doesn't even offer any reaction and I am choosing to believe that is because he can sense that the newcomer is Karin. I don't even want to consider any other reasons he would have no reaction to Karin's approach.

"Her scent is strong from one of the takeoff areas," Karin says softly as she makes it to us. I look up at her. I should have known she wouldn't have listened to me and would go right down to investigate all that she could.

A lot is said in her statement. Her strong scent means that she was still living when she got into the plane. That is the most important thing to focus on at the moment. I know Eric hears it and understands what it means when I feel a bit of hope from him dash through the bond. I know where Eric's thoughts went as soon as he realized Sookie had been kidnapped. I know how his thoughts escalated when he couldn't feel her anymore. I know all of this because it's exactly what I felt too. And I know it absolutely sucked for me. I have been to all different parts of the world and have learned many languages in my two hundred plus years and yet I do not have any words that could accurately describe what I am feeling.

And I know that it must be magnified for Eric.

"Blood," Eric says with his eyes closed. We all understand what he is asking with that first word he has spoken since he told me that he could no longer feel my friend.

"None fresh," Karin replies. She would know. Neither of us inherited Eric's ability to fly but we each have other skills. Karin has a great sense of smell so she would be able to determine if the blood in the air was freshly spilling or was simply a remnant of a wound.

Octavia steps out from behind Karin. For a second I am hopeful that Amelia would also be present but then when she doesn't appear I realize it is probably better that she remain with Tray. He should have someone with him when he wakes up. Because as I have to think that I will get my friend back, I also have to think that Tray will wake up and be all right, be better than all right.

Eric looks to her and doesn't even have to voice a question to the witch. I am not even sure which question he would voice to her but luckily she starts to immediately explain that she went to the tarmacs with Karin and there was magic used near one of the take off areas, the same spot where Karin recognized Sookie's scent.

"Knowing where the plane took off from will make it easier for us to track it," I say, feeling confident for the first time in this situation.

"One step ahead of you," Karin tells me as she hands me a piece of paper with information of the plane in question on it. Or at least she tries to hand it to me but Eric grabs it from her hand before mine can get to it. I would complain but Eric seems to be coming back to himself and I want to make sure he continues to. He immediately gets on his phone and has Felicia tracking the plane.

"Can you tell what kind of magic," Eric asks, his eyes closed again. Immediately, I know what answer he is looking for here; it's the same one that I am looking for. Eric said that he can no longer feel her and I am hoping that Octavia will have a magical reason for this.

I refuse to believe that there is any other reason that my maker cannot feel his bonded and pledged, cannot feel my friend.

Octavia gives Eric a look and I'm not sure how to take it. There's sympathy in her eyes but she doesn't look like she's expecting to destroy my maker with her news, which leaves me feeling hopeful.

"There's a concealing spell down there. It's a stationary spell more to the actual spot than any cargo, in this case most likely Sookie, they may have been moving. Whatever they did there, they didn't want anyone to know about."

"Could it be concealing another spell?" Eric asks.

"That is a possibility. In that case I would be able to sense that something was hidden but would not be able to determine what other spell was cast. Well, at least not without undoing the one for the concealment." She pauses before asking, "What kind of spell are you asking about?" sensing that he is after something specific.

"I cannot feel Sookie anymore," Eric says softly and I hear the gasp from the others who did not know that. "I never felt the pain I have heard described if a bonded died," he explains barely able to get the last word out. Thalia's tears start again when hearing Eric's words. I am not far behind her; both worry for my friend and heartbreak of hearing my maker's voice break again. A tear drops down Octavia's face and even Karin's eyes are looking more red than usual.

Eric continues to explain, "I could feel her fine. She was steady but was probably unconscious. I knew she was around here; I could sense her location. I had a minute of panic from her. And then she was just gone."

There is silence for a few seconds while we all take that in. It is hopeful that Eric didn't feel any pain; every report of a bonded dying causes tremendous pain, both physical and emotional. The fact that Eric didn't feel this is the first promising thing we have heard all night. "Months ago, I would have said there is no such spell. The magic between two beings that share a bond is similar to the magic of a maker and their child. It can't really be stifled from outside sources and severing that bond causes a magic backlash that could affect both parties. But in researching cures for your amnesia, I did come across a number of spells that could do as you described."

He nods and the hope I feel from him increases. "Would it hurt Sookie if one were casted."

She hesitates before saying, "There are a few that would but there are more that would not."

Eric nods at that and suddenly the clearing is filled with more people, both vampires and Weres alike. Thalia explains that she asked for reinforcements, not knowing what the situation would be. "Perfect," Eric says finally starting to sound like himself again. I know what it will take for him to be completely himself again and I am going to make damn sure he gets it.

He immediately starts barking out orders, giving everyone jobs. Vampires, including Thalia and Karin, were sent into the actual airport to try and find out info about the flight, using glamour if necessary. Felicia would be doing what she could through computers and though she happens to be our best hacker, she may run into some problems.

Who would have thought I might actually miss Bill Compton at some point, or his computer skills at the very least?

The Weres will be patrolling the grounds, searching for any evidence or clues that perhaps they did not get on a plane. We can't ignore that the airport could be a ruse; though there is every possibility Sookie was taken away by plane, there is also the possibility that whoever took her just wants us to think that is what happened.

Eric and I start to head down to the takeoff area to make sure nothing was missed when I ask him softly, "Did you call the Queen?"

He shakes his head. "I will before dawn if we do not have her back by then." As much as I hope we will have her back by then, hell have her back in the next few minutes, we both know that is getting more and more unlikely by the minute. We will have to ensure there are plans in place during the day to continue to investigate. "Has anyone called Jason?" Eric asks.

I shake my head in response. "Thalia wanted to be the one to do it but she was hoping to get more information before doing so.

"He should know before dawn as well."

"I'm sure she will not go to rest without calling him." I know that. I am also sure that she will wait to call him until she is alone, or at least back at Eric's. I will not be surprised if we all rest there during the day.

My phone rings just as we make it to the tarmac. It's Felicia and I immediately ask if she found anything. Before she can answer, Eric has ripped the phone out of my hand and has repeated the question. He's just lucky I can still hear her. "I found the plane and have tracked its course. It dropped off of radar about fifteen minutes after takeoff with no warning," she starts to explain.

"Crash," Eric says, his voice sounding like there is something heavy in his throat.

"Doesn't seem like it. It was decreasing altitude in a controlled descent. I think it landed safely somewhere."

"Where?" Eric asks wrapping his arm around me while Felicia tells him the area she last tracked the plane. He hangs up and before I can say anything, we are in the air, a different destination in mind.

Sookie POV

I wake up slowly. I am conscious for a few minutes before my eyes open and in those few minutes my memory of what happened comes back to me. It's really not much and what I can remember is certainly not good. Knocks to the head rarely are.

I remember waking up as we were getting onto a plane. I didn't respond too well to that. They must not have responded well to my response; I remember fighting as I was getting on the plane but have no recollection of any of the plane ride, assuming there actually was one.

I open my eyes and take in my surroundings. I am in an empty room with no windows and one door. It's literally empty with me being the only thing in it that I can see anyway. I would not be surprised if there was something in here that allowed them to see me. Rarely is the prisoner left alone with no supervision.

That's when it hits me. Prisoner. I am a prisoner! I had been doing all right so far, feeling anger about my situation more than anything else. But now that anger is becoming fright, becoming panic. That is something that I have to avoid. A decision made when you are scared is not necessarily the best possible decision. I work to calm myself so I can make smart decisions. Hopefully, I am given the opportunity to do so.

Once calm, I lift my arm and gingerly feel around my head. I am not surprised to find my hair caked and matted with blood on both sides. One wound would account for when I was first taken and the second is most likely the reason that I cannot recall the flight.

It had been Eric that caused my anger. I felt his pain, his own anger through the bond. Thinking back, it was just starting to get dark when I started punching and kicking at my kidnappers as they forced me onto the plane. Eric must have woke up and realized I was not there, probably realized what has happened.

That's when a lot of different emotion starts to fill me. Sadness. Loss. Despair.

I had been trying not to think of Eric, knowing that when I allow myself to finally think of him, I won't be able to think of much else, knowing these feelings would be what took my focus. I have to fight them back though. I have to think clearly and not make decisions based on these emotions. I need a way to find a ways out of here and get back to him and my family as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, all I have right now are the clothes that I am wearing and I am thanking the Lord that I am indeed still wearing them.

So I utilize what I do have, which is my mouth and start to scream. There are many things I could be screaming at the moment but I instead just scream hoping to get someone's attention. I succeed when after only a few seconds the door is slammed open and I am met with the snarly mind of a Were. I have just enough time to think it is interesting that I couldn't 'hear' him with the door closed before he asks me to stop screaming. He may not have said it quite so nicely.

I responded by asking if he could let me go. I may not have asked quite so nicely either. It did earn me a laugh though, which beats the blow to the head I was almost expecting as that seems to be the punishment of choice around here. It did get him to look at me appraisingly, which may have been what I was going for. I didn't want him to rush back out of the room, especially since that for whatever reason my telepathy doesn't seem to sense anyone who is not in this room.

It's a staring contest for a minute as I am trying to fish through his mind for anything useful but of course I am coming up short. I manage to get through his snarly mind, hanging around Tray and Alcide had helped a lot with that, but there was nothing there that could help me because this guy knew very little. There were simply phone conversations. There was this one voice that arranged everything, which was simply get the girl and leave the vampire.

"Don't bother," the Were says as he must start to understand what I am trying to do. Though not exactly the best kept secret it doesn't bode well for me that whoever is responsible for this knows about my telepathy.

That just leaves me wondering what else they know about me.

"Nothing I know will help you," he adds as starts to make his way back to the door. Now my curiosity for just who exactly is behind this is growing. "Don't worry. The sun just set. We will both be meeting him soon," the Were tells me before leaving the room, closing me in by myself once again.

Well, that tells me that it is a vampire, which I had just managed to pull from his head. I never saw the vampire in his mind; just heard a voice I can't even be sure is the actual mastermind's. The voice was male, that I am sure of. That doesn't necessarily help me though as a female, like Sophie-Anne if she got tired of our arrangement, easily just could have gotten a male to make the phone calls. Something tells me this is not Sophie-Anne though. Aside from the fact that I just don't think the female vampire would do it, call it intuition, she would not want to make Eric angry, especially with everything else going on.

Which brings my thoughts to de Castro. He would be the obvious choice, especially with his little threat filled visit. Something just doesn't seem right though in my head thinking about that. Both Eric and Sophie-Anne would have an issue with him kidnapping me; it would greatly affect his proposal to Sophie-Anne.

Unless he was set to attack. Suddenly, I am much more worried for my little family.

The door opens back up and right away my brain picks up on the void that tells me I am about to come face to face with a vampire. I can't help but squeeze back into the corner as the male vampire enters the room. Eric can command a room; he enters it and it's like you can feel his authority and power when he does so.

I can do that with this vampire and though I have been worried ever since I saw that leg before I was hit on the head, I now become scared. This vampire is the most powerful I have felt, which tells me he most likely is the oldest I've met.

There is something familiar about him as he starts to slink toward me; there really is no other way to describe his movement. He looks so familiar, yet I know that I have never met this vampire before. I would have never forgotten the look in his eyes if I had; it's almost like pure evil is looking back at me.

Suddenly he grins and I know why this vampire seems so familiar. I also know that I am right in thinking that even with the familiarity, I have never met this vampire. I have never been in a room with him before.

But I had been at Fangtasia with vampires that were sent to rattle Eric; vampires that look almost exactly like the one standing right in front of me.

Hello dear readers. I do hope you've enjoyed this chapter as we get a big clue to just who is with Sookie at the moment. Remember to breathe lovely readers. We haven't heard from Eric in this chapter but he will be back in the next one. I had attempted to write from his perspective for this chapter but it got a bit too angsty. I know - who would of thought I would shy away from angst. So we will be hearing from him in the next one.

As always, thanks so much reading and thanks to those taking the time to leave your thoughts. I love reading them. Thanks to all my guest reviewers for this chapter. If you would really like me to answer your questions feel free to sign in and then I can respond.

Till the next chapter!

Jackie69 – Hope the week wasn't too long for you. We did get some ideas for what could be preventing Eric from feeling Sookie. Time will tell if they are correct. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave your thoughts. I appreciate it.