It only took a moment for him to react. He sat up so swiftly, Eva would have lost her balance if she hadn't been used to vampires' quick movements.

"Evangeline?" Eric glanced at the open window and then back at her, sinking slightly into the coffin, trying to avoid the beam of sunlight that was hitting him. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to get your attention."

"By burning me in my sleep?" Eric reached to lower the lid of his coffin, but she leaned against the edge, preventing it from closing. "What the hell's the matter with you?"

"Eva? Eric? I heard the disturbance." Bill peered around the doorway. "Is everything all right?" He glanced at the open window. "Why is the window open?"

"Evangeline thought it would be entertaining to watch me burn."

Bill glanced at her curiously.

"Stop fussing, the sun is dying. It won't hurt you anymore."

Eric rested against the back of the coffin and stared hard at her. "What's this about?"

"I met Lafayette today."

Eric sunk a little lower in his coffin and avoided eye contact. "Oh?"

"Is there something you want to tell me?"

"There was a situation, and I took care of it." He finally stood and climbed out of the coffin. "I am the sheriff of this area. It is my duty to keep order."

"You call what you did keeping order? You tortured him nearly to death!" Eva glanced at Bill who was still hovering in the doorway. "I'd hate to think you had any part in this, but I think I can trust you weren't in the loop." He shook his head. "Eric, what could you possibly have been thinking?"

"He was exploiting vampires to sell their blood!"

"Which is different from what you do with humans every night, how?"

He frowned. "I don't know what you mean."

"You prostitute humans' blood at your club!"

"They don't do anything they aren't willing to do."

"Neither was the vampire who gave his blood to Lafayette. It was a business arrangement. He wasn't stealing it."

"Call it whatever you like, but whatever deal they had established was wrong. Vampires should have more self-respect than that…"

"Whereas humans shouldn't be judged for letting vampires bite them?"

"That's not what I meant."

"You know what your problem is, Eric? You have a superiority complex. You always have. Just because you're immortal, you think you're somehow better than humans. Being dead doesn't make you better than us. In fact as far as I can tell, it just makes you more of a bastard."

"He had to be punished…"

"Confronting him and explaining how he has done wrong is one thing, but locking him up, torturing him, feeding on him, getting him shot, and then forcing him to drink from you?" She shook her head. "You disgust me."

"I can't let people get away with things like that…"

"Lafayette wasn't hurting anyone and you know it. He was just running a business, a business that you actually told him to take up again! What the hell is that about anyway?"

"You wouldn't understand."

"If this is who you are now, I'm not sure I want to understand."

"What does that mean?"

"I don't know yet…" she turned away from him and picked up his shirt from where he had dropped it that morning before sleeping. "I think you should just go."

"Go?"

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm not really all that happy with you right now."

"So you want me to leave."

"You may not take it very seriously, but what you did to Lafayette, and who knows how many others that I don't know about is something I can't ignore." She held out the shirt to him. "I'm sorry."

He took the shirt, headed towards the door, and left without another word.

"Do you think I was too hard on him?" Eva asked Bill once they were alone.

"When Sookie found that Eric was keeping Lafayette locked up, she was very angry. She got him free by agreeing to work for Eric if he ever requires her services. I'm not happy with the arrangement, but he doesn't much care what I think."

"He always has been a little stubborn."

"Eva, why are you wearing that?"

She looked down at her shirt. "Oh. I got a job."

"At Merlotte's?"

"Yea, Sookie helped me."

Bill frowned.

"What's wrong? I thought you'd be glad I was getting to know Sookie."

"I don't like the idea of you working at Sam's place. That place doesn't have the best past record."

"Sookie works there though."

"And I wish she wouldn't, but Sam is a good friend of hers, and she likes her job."

"I think I might like it too," Eva told him. "Besides I need something to do while the two of you sleep all day."

"You should be in school."

"I'm going to look into taking some classes at the college. I only have a semester left before I earn my degree."

"I thought you had at least three."

"I took some independent courses in Europe."

"Good. I'm glad you haven't abandoned your studies completely."

"I made a promise to Noah, remember?"

"I remember."

"Are you going to see Sookie tonight?"

"After her shift."

"Good, you should." Eva yawned. "I think I might turn in a little early tonight."

"You're tired?"

"I am," she confirmed. "I was working with Sookie all day."

Bill eyed her carefully. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel great," she laughed. "Just tired."

"You know what I mean Eva. How do you feel? Unless you found someone you could trust in Europe, it's been over a year." Bill put his hand against her neck gently. "I can sense the weakness in you. It's more than just being tired today. You're exhausted. Maybe we should…"

"No." Eva pulled away from his touch. "I'm not doing that anymore."

"Eva, it keeps you strong. It protects you."

"I can take care of myself."

"If Eric were here he would be on my side in this."

"Well Eric isn't here, is he?" She headed towards the door. "I don't need it."

"It's not about need, Eva. It's about making sure you have as much protection as possible. If anything were to happen to you…"

"Things have changed Bill. Isn't that what you and Eric keep telling me? Things aren't the way they used to be." She walked away from him.

"Eva, don't be angry with me. You know I only want to protect you."

"I'm not angry. I'm just tired, and I'm going to bed. Make sure you wake me up before dawn so I can say goodnight."

"She's right of course. I have changed. Years ago I would never have tolerated someone like me."

"Eric, you're being absurd," Pam crooned to him as she massaged his head gently with her eager fingers. "Just because this little girl suddenly flies back into town after abandoning you, you're ready to completely change your life? You are our sheriff. People respect you."

"No, people fear me. It's not the same thing." He pulled away from her and stood from the couch on which he had been lying. "I don't even respect me, and I know she doesn't."

"What she thinks of you is irrelevant. She's just a baby. She's never understood the sort of responsibility you face. She's an arrogant, self-obsessed, human bitch…"

Eric clamped his hand around her throat before she could get out another word. "Evangeline is a hundred times the woman you could ever be if you lived for the rest of eternity. If she's concerned about something I have done, she has good reason to be, and I would do well to listen to her." His fangs emerged and he put his face near enough to hers so that she felt the tip of his fangs grazing against her cheek as he growled. "And you would do well to speak better of your superiors."

When he released her, Pam tried to laugh away his threat, but she had never seen him in such a fiery mood.

"I'm going out." He pulled on his jacket and headed towards the door.

"Let me come with you."

"No." Eric spoke so sharply, Pam took a step back. "You stay here."

"Fine." She tried to sound as sharp as he did, but her voice wavered slightly.

Eric left swiftly, headed straight for Merlotte's. When he arrived, he took a few moments to compose himself—straighten his jacket and run a hand through his mussed hair—before entering

Sookie saw him the moment he entered. "She's not here."

Eric glanced at her and lifted an eyebrow. "I'm not here for Evangeline."

"Well you sure as hell better not be here for me right now. I don't have the time."

"I'm here to see Lafayette."

"Lafayette doesn't want to see you," Sookie snapped. "I couldn't imagine why not."

"Sookie, I need to see Lafayette. Is he in the back?"

She turned away from him, refusing to answer, and returned to her tables. Eric took her silence as a confirmation and headed into the back in search of Lafayette. He found him in the kitchen, busily flipping burgers. Though his back was to the door, when Eric entered, every muscle in Lafayette's body visibly tensed, and he momentarily stopped what he was doing.

"It's going to burn," Eric warned.

Lafayette attended to the burgers, removing them from the stove before they were burned, and then he turned slowly towards Eric. "Can I help you with something?"

"Don't be frightened," Eric spoke gently, "I'm not here to hurt you."

"You'll forgive me if I don't believe you."

"Your frustration is understandable," Eric admitted, "but I truly have come here in peace—for peace actually. Is there somewhere we can go to speak alone?"

"I'm not likely to go anywhere alone with you."

"It is important," Eric pleaded.

Lafayette hesitated for another moment and then called for someone else to cover him for a moment before leading Eric out the back door. "All right, talk."

"I am here to ask for your forgiveness," Eric began immediately.

Lafayette laughed, but Eric stared at him calmly. "You fucking with me pretty boy?"

"No. I am quite serious." He looked down at the ground. "I am not good at this. I don't like admitting my faults, but under the circumstances, I realize it has become necessary to offer my apologies."

"To me?"

"Taking you like I did, and torturing you in that way was wrong."

"Come again?"

"Being the Sheriff of this town, I sometimes become a little too consumed in my own superiority to recognize when I have taken my authority too far. It was disrespectful of me to treat you like I did."

"Yea, no shit."

"I still believe that it was wrong for you to make deals with vampires so you could sell their blood, but if they were okay with it, then I cannot put the blame on you entirely. My actions against you were rash and too intense. I overreacted, and I am sorry. Furthermore, I should not have forced you to drink from me."

"You said it was the only way for my leg to heal."

"That is very possibly true, but I again acted rashly. I wanted power over you and I didn't care how it may have adversely affected you."

"You're serious about this, aren't you?"

"I am."

"Okay…"

"Also, I do not expect you to continue selling V for me. It was inconsiderate of me to ask you, and I know that it could be dangerous for you to continue. If you choose to you can sell the remainder of your supply, obviously keeping all the profits for yourself."

"Yea, I don't think I'll be doing that."

"One last thing…" Eric had to force himself to finish. "There are side effects to drinking my blood, which you may have noticed…"

"The dreams."

"Among other things," Eric nodded. "As I have said, I wanted influence over you, but it was not my place to assume that sort of power. If you would like for me to sever the connection I will. If, however, you would like to keep the connection intact, I can promise you protection. I will always be able to sense you, and if the time comes that you find yourself in trouble, you can count on me for help. I will not abuse the connection in any other way, but you will have to tolerate some of the dreams and…attraction."

Lafayette cleared his throat and looked away. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"It's natural, Lafayette. You shouldn't feel ashamed for the thoughts you may have of me. It is to be expected. The choice is yours, and I will respect whatever choice you make. You have my word."

"I don't get you."

"How do you mean?"

"One second you're keeping me chained up in a basement, starving me and feeding on me, and the next you're offering me your protection…"

"Let's just say, I have recently been reminded that just because I am not human, I do not have to be an animal."

"Eva talked to you, didn't she?"

Eric was quiet.

"What sort of pull has that girl got over you?"

"Evangeline and I have a long history together. While she was gone, it was easy to forget how to respect humans, since she was one of the few that I ever truly have respected."

"Well then I'm glad she's back."

"So am I."

"I still don't think I can trust you," Lafayette decided. "You put me through a lot of fucked up shit."

"It is perfectly understandable. Though if you knew the reasons behind my intense reaction, and my asking you to continue selling V, you may feel differently." He put his hands into his pocket and lifted his chin, signally an end to the conversation. "I will give you time to think it over, and then you can let me know what you have decided." He vanished into the night, leaving Lafayette confused, distressed, and completely unable to focus on his work.

After work he tried to go home to sleep away his confusion, but after a few hours of pointless tossing and turning, he gave up and headed to the one person he could think of to talk to about everything.