Dead Broke

Chapter 3

I was up at a little after ten, since I didn't need to be at the bar until five. Mops had slipped out of the slightly open door sometime during the night, and Eric had pulled the blankets up around my shoulders to keep me warm. The house was eerily quiet and I knew Amelia had left as well. I didn't like the quietude. I got up and walked out to the kitchen, trying to make as much noise as I could. Eric had left a small note by my bed which I grabbed on my way to the kitchen. Amelia had left one on the table, along with a gallon of milk. I poured myself a bowl of cereal and started brewing coffee. I sat down at the table and opened Amelia's note first.

Sookie—I'm gonna miss you, girl! I'll call you when I get there so you don't have to worry! I bought some milk and eggs and coffee. Don't forget about the casserole! Have fun with the Viking, and don't work too hard! Oh yeah, bought cat food too. XOXO, Amelia.

I smiled and spooned a mouthful of cereal into my mouth. Good ol' Amelia. I was going to miss her so much this month. Mops nuzzled my ankle as if to agree. We were on our own now. I set my leftover milk on the floor. Then I unfolded the other note.

My lover, I hope that all goes well at the bar this evening. I will be waiting for you tonight barring any unforeseen tragedy. Please reconsider Bill's invitation. I like knowing he can look out for you when I cannot be with you. I will retrieve you from the bar or send someone in my place. Don't work too hard. E.

I muttered a little at the part about Bill, and I smiled a little at the part about Eric waiting for me at the bar. No matter what frustration that night would bring, having Eric to look forward to would make it all worthwhile. I bent down to pick up the empty milk bowl from the floor, and as I carried it to the sink, the phone rang. I padded over to it, picking it up on the second ring.

"Sookie, it's Sam." I frowned. Another double shift? I hoped not. I really needed to go to the bank and deposit the fifty Amelia had left for the washer. "Look, I don't know how to put this exactly, but I'm taking you off the schedule tonight. You're calling in sick."

"What the hell are you talking about Sam Merlotte?!" I yelled into the phone.

"Sookie, you looked like death last night after that double. I don't know what you were reading from some of those guys, but it took a toll on you. I saw it with my own eyes. I know I promised you extra hours, but I'm cutting you tonight. Holly is taking your shift. I'll see you Wednesday for the lunch. Take it easy." He hung up before I could say anything else.

I stared at the phone in horror. I couldn't believe it. Sam had cut my hours, just like that. That was a whole premium night shift that I wasn't getting! I wanted to scream out loud. I wanted to punch someone. I picked up a cheap glass vase from the sideboard table. With every ounce of strength I had in me, I threw the thing. It shattered into a million teeny tiny pieces when it slammed into the opposite wall. This was like the worst week of my life, and it was only Tuesday!

"God DAMNIT!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

I sat down on the floor as though my legs had just given way beneath me. Mops gave me a wide berth. What is it about cats? They always know when to comfort you, when to whine at you, and when to stay the hell out of your way. I sat on that floor, in that spot, in a sort of coma. I didn't move. I didn't cry. I just sat. The phone rang four times before I registered the sound. I picked it up. It was dark outside. I had to pee.

"This is Sookie," I said into the receiver. Who else would it be?

"Miss Stackhouse, this is Victor. I am calling for the King of Louisiana." I blinked a moment. Okay…

"Oh," was all I said.

"The King would like to hire you as an attendant for a meeting in Las Vegas this weekend. He apologizes for the short notice, but hopes that the financial compensation will be enough to cancel any prior commitments. The event is very high profile, and only the heads of state have been asked to attend." That meant Eric wasn't coming. Oh boy. "Your name is known throughout the vampire community, Miss Stackhouse, and the King wishes to have you as his date for the weekend. You will not be asked to use your gift as there will be very few humans at the event. He asks only that you take care of his belongings during travel, and that you attend a series of evening gatherings with him. What you do during your days is entirely up to you."

So, this would be Sookie Stackhouse, arm candy. Okay, so it didn't offer any kind of opportunity for social betterment or vacation sex with my Viking. Screw it, I needed the money. I'm sure Eric already knew anyway. Maybe that's what his meeting was about in the first place! Although he hadn't mentioned anything about it. Damnit, I wasn't his! I needed the money and I needed to earn it on my own!

"The King is prepared to offer you $15,000 for the weekend, Miss Stackhouse. He will provide you with a car and driver during your daytime leisure hours. Anything you do outside of the hotel will be covered by the King's account. The King would also like to stipulate that he is not interested in any personal liaisons."

That meant he didn't want me to be his whore. He better not! I wasn't some slut for hire.

"Finally, the King would like to say that you need not answer now, but he would like to hear from you by Thursday about your commitment to the event. I will call you on the evening of the third to arrange a schedule with you should you decide to accept the King's offer."

As I was nodding into the phone, my front door burst open. Eric strode in all blazes and hellfire. His bright blue eyes shone and his hair flew wildly around his face. I blinked. The line went silent. Victor had hung up.

"There's a meeting in Vegas!" Eric growled at me. I sort of stared at him. I had temporarily forgotten my bladder while I was on the phone. Now I really had to go. I didn't say a word.

"There's some high profile meeting in Las Vegas and I haven't even been invited! Something about royalty only, blah blah blah. I'm the wealthiest sheriff in the state! I can't believe this!" He was flashing fangs now. He sounded like a snot-nosed kid who had been told he couldn't go to the park until he cleaned his room. On the other hand, he looked like a monster who could break me in half with his bare hands.

I set the phone down on the hook and stared at him. He fumed at me. I reminded myself never to tell Eric he couldn't do something.

"I have to pee." I said. It was Eric's turn to blink. I turned on my heel and walked down the hall to the bathroom. By the time I got there, I didn't have to pee anymore. I walked back to the living room. I stood in front of him awkwardly. My front door was open. The porch was sagging.

"Who was that on the phone?" Eric asked me. I looked at the phone. Then I looked back at the porch. I remembered the washer-dryer, the car still parked at the top of the driveway. I remembered screaming at Bill. "Why is there broken glass on the floor? Sookie?" I remembered Sam cutting my hours. I had to pee again.

"I'm going to Vegas." I blurted. I thought about covering my mouth but there was no way out of this now. Eric seemed to grow taller, burlier, scarier. I wondered if vampires could breathe fire. "That was Victor on the phone. The King wants to pay me to be his arm candy. I don't even have to use my gift. I just have to stand there and look pretty. He wants to pay me $15,000 to stay there for a weekend. I won't be his whore or anything. Just arm candy. I need the money. My car, the washer-dryer, the porch is sagging, and Sam cut my hours because I couldn't control my brain at the bar last night!"

"Absolutely not!" Eric roared like an animal. For a second, I was reminded of Quinn.

"I'm not asking your permission!" I yelled back at him. Oh boy. This was so not going to end well.

"You are bonded to me, Sookie! He has no right to go over my head like this! You are mine!"

"The HELL I am!" I screamed. My voice broke. "You've never ONCE claimed that! Not ONCE! And I don't even want it! I'm bonded to you but I'm not your damn pet, Eric Northman! I'm an independent, 21st century working woman! I am not some charity case! I don't do your bidding, and I'm not taking your money either! This is a job, a real job! And I'm going!"

Eric turned on his heel and stomped back out the door, slamming it behind him. I hoped he had the courtesy to float over my sagging porch. If it caved in, I wasn't going to dig him out.

I really had to pee.

I worked the day shift on Wednesday, but during my lunch break, I steered myself into Sam's office and slammed the door behind me. Admittedly, I was still angry from the night before. I had fumed for hours about Eric's fit of possessiveness, despite a complete lack of such behavior before that night. I didn't know exactly what the bond we shared entailed, but I did know that the possessive "mine" thing had to be said outright, preferably in front of other vampires. Bill used to say that a lot. Vampires didn't seem to know off hand that a human belonged to someone, but once they knew it, they always knew it.

I narrowed my eyes at Sam. He sighed.

"I'm sorry, Sookie," he said, as if that was enough. Boy was he messing with the wrong girl.

"I'm going away for the weekend. I got a better job. It just came up. Maybe if I knew I had guaranteed work here, I'd stay, but seeing as how you can just find a replacement for me at the last second, I guess you can consider me out sick." And before he could get a word in, I was out the door. I worked the rest of my shift ignoring him.

On Thursday, just after sundown, my phone rang. I pounced on it before it rang twice.

"I'll take the job." I said matter-of-factly.

"Excellent. We will send you a driver on Friday morning. Have a good flight, Miss Stackhouse."