Chapter 6

I

Pam stood looking into the window of The Saffron Veil. She had already checked out Payton's home and found it locked and deserted. Payton's car was also gone and, perhaps, the little witch had left town. Wherever she had gone, she wasn't holed up and hiding in her store. The annoying human was probably smart enough to realize that an angry Eric Northman was indeed something to run away from. Which meant that she could be anywhere. She could even have left the state by now, since she had more than enough of a head start. The only other place left was to take a look at that inbred clan of werepanthers. How Eric could even have found someone attractive who was related to those cats was beyond Pam. Yet, Eric had mentioned that he was sure that the girl wasn't actually related to them. Pam checked her watch. She had wasted enough time here already and Bon Temps was at least twenty miles away. In a blur, Pam disappeared.

Pam stopped in the middle of Hotshot and surveyed her surroundings. Even if the girl was on the run, would she really hide out here? It just appeared to be a collection of ramshackle shacks that appeared to be made of of plywood and corrugated tin sheets that were held together by barb wire. Yards were full of dirt instead of grass and discarded toys and garbage lay everywhere. Pam felt depressed just being there. Pam saw a few men standing around an open barrel that had a fire burning in it and headed in their direction. Coming closer, she saw that the one in the middle was Calvin Norris the leader of this dying clan. For dying they were, thought Pam. There weren't enough of their kind left and they had begun to breed close relatives together. But, that would only last for so long. Too few genetic variations led to weaker and more vulnerable offspring. They only had a couple of generations left at best, thought Pam. Perhaps, they were aware of this fact and that's why they had wanted the girl.

Too bad, thought Pam, Eric had dibs on that little witch and Pam didn't think that there would be anything left for these felines to fight over when he was done with her.

Calvin Norris turned his eyes to her and spat in the flames, "What do you want here, dead woman?"

"I'm looking for that little witch," replied Pam.

"Ain't seen her since she escaped out of here," said Calvin. He smiled evilly and added, "She ain't so easy to control. I could have told you that, vampire."

"Are you telling me the truth?" asked Pam. "I could just rip out one of your brother-cousin's throats just to make sure."

"Why would I protect her?" asked Calvin. "She ain't one of us."

Pam stared at him and debated following through on her threat just to make sure that he was telling her the truth. But, why would they protect her? It didn't make any sense to her.

"Now, why don't you turn that fine dead ass around and hit the road," said Calvin. "Give your boss my regards and tell him that he has his hands full if he plans on trying to make that girl his pet."

Pam turned and stalked off. She got to the edge of the shacks and was going to shift into vampire speed when she heard a hiss to the side of her. She turned her eyes and saw a younger man hiding in the shadows. He had very short-cropped hair and had a stocky built. There were enough similarities in his features to make him closely related to Calvin Norris, thought Pam. She put her hand on her hip and raised an eyebrow.

"You might check out Merlott's," he said.

"Why are you helping me?" asked Pam.

"Let's just say that I have a score to settle with her, too," he said.

"If you're sending me on a wild goose chase, I'll personally come back here and rip your balls out by going through your throat," said Pam.

Felton paled slightly and Pam gave him a little smirk. "See you later, kitty cat."

In a flash, she disappeared and Felton glanced around to make sure that no one had seen that interaction. Seeing that he was alone, he slunk away into the shadows.

II

Eric sat at his desk in his office. He didn't feel like being outside in the bar and taking his position on display. There were too many stimuli out there. Too many things that stimulated the desire for both blood and sex. It was better just to stay in here, he told himself. Since, he was already gripped by a kind of sexual arousal that never seemed to dissipate. He felt a constant gnawing that he tried his best to ignore. Because, what choice did he have? He could not satisfy it. And trying to give himself some relief only led to frustration and anger. Of course, he had tried. This evening in the shower as he was getting ready, the sensations of water flowing over him had felt like a lover's caress. He had taken matters into his own hand, so to speak. Now, he knew what he was doing. Usually, he didn't have to resort to stroking his own self, but if anyone knew how to get a rise out of him, it was surely himself. But, nothing happened, except that it had inflamed his desire for sexual gratification and made matters worse.

It was then that there was a knock on the door. Not waiting for an answer, Yvetta slinked inside. This was all he needed, thought Eric. He passed his eyes over her and appraised her. At one time he had literally banged her for six hours straight. But, even then there had been something lacking in the encounter which was why he probably kept at it so long. And since, then, she was well on her way to losing her appeal. Been there and done way too much of that, he thought. At least, Payton's spell was an excuse to avoid her. Not that he needed excuses, of course. His eyes narrowed. Maybe, it was time to give her her walking papers. She wasn't even that great of a dancer, anyway, he thought.

"I didn't summon you," said Eric.

"I thought that you could use some company," simpered Yvetta.

She sidled up to his desk and perched her bottom on it and gave him her best sultry look. Eric gave her an unemotional look back.

"Vampires don't need company," he said.

He turned his attention a list of invoices and ignored her. Even she was smart enough to take a hint, he thought. When he felt her hand move up his leg and cup him, he let out a sigh of frustration. As she began to caress him and stroke him through his jeans, he grabbed her hand and shoved it off.

"That will be all," he said.

"What's the matter with you?" she hissed.

"I don't have to explain anything to you," replied Eric. "But, since you can't take a hint, I'll spell it out for you in terms that perhaps your limited English can understand. I'm not in the mood for your mind-numbing attempts at conversation or your uninspired sexual humping."

Eric turned a baleful glance on her and she finally showed enough sense to move away from him. She retreated to the door.

"You big knob-head," she hissed.

She stalked out and flung the door closed, but someone entering the office put out his hand and kept it from banging closed. Eric raised his eyes and looked at Bill Compton. Great, he thought, could this evening get any worse? Bill was dressed in a fine, tailored suit. His man-bangs had been styled to the side and off his forehead.

Bill's eyes followed Yvetta's retreating figure and he gave Eric a little smile, "Girlfriend problems?"

"What do you want?" asked Eric.

"Is that any way to talk to Queen Sophie-Anne's new minister of affairs?" asked Bill.

"Enjoy your moment of power," said Eric. "We all know that your real job is wiping her ass."

"That may be true, but you and all the other sheriffs wipe mine," replied Bill.

"I'm sure that you aren't here because you enjoy my company," said Eric. "Can you get to the point or do you want me to play twenty questions?"

"The point is that there is a coven in town," said Bill.

"A coven of wiccans," sneered Eric. "Oh, scary."

"I want you to investigate," replied Bill.

"You or Sophie-Anne?" asked Eric.

"It's all the same to you," replied Bill.

"They're wiccans," said Eric. "I don't understand why you are getting your panties in a bunch."

"I've heard disturbing rumors about their leader," said Bill.

"Such as?" asked Eric.

"That she's dabbling in the dark arts," said Bill. "Necromancy. I don't need to instill upon you how potentially dangerous to us that is."

"You do not," replied Eric. "Just what are you telling me to do about them?"

"I want them shut down and disbanded," said Bill.

"Does the AVL approve of this action?" asked Eric.

"I run this kingdom, for the Queen, of course," replied Bill. "I don't need their permission to deal with a threat to our kind."

"Whatever you say, your royal minister," said Eric. "I'll send Pam tomorrow evening."

"You will handle it yourself," replied Bill.

Eric stared at Bill who turned to leave. But, Eric asked him one more question.

"Does the Queen have any clue at all as to your true intentions?"

"The Queen is too busy playing with her pets and scratching off lottery tickets to notice anything except what a loyal subject I am," said Bill.

Eric watched him go and looked at his watch. It was late and if Pam had not returned by now that meant that she hadn't found that annoying little witch. He had other matters to worry about besides his nonfunctioning plumbing. Although that was near and dear to him, he thought angrily. He concentrated and called Pam with his mind. They had things to discuss.

III

Pam arrived at Merlott's and found Lafayette outside having a smoke break. He was wearing stylish jeans and a black top that had a design of Chinese dragons on it. She moved silently behind him.

"Those things will be the death of you," said Pam, almost into his ear.

Lafayette almost jumped out of his skin. He dropped the cigar and whirled around with his hand at his throat. His eyes were wide with alarm.

"What...what are you doing here?" he gasped.

"I'm here to see you, of course," said Pam. "It's too bad that I couldn't convince Eric to let me keep you as a pet. I could have had so much fun with you."

Lafayette doubted that he would have had very much fun. She was one ruthless bitch even if she did like to wear a lot of pink. He took in her outfit. She was wearing a tight pink sweater with little mother of pearl buttons down the front. She also wore a skirt that hugged her curves and strappy pink pumps were on her feet.

"What do you want?" asked Lafayette.

"I'm looking for Payton," replied Pam. "You remember her, don't you? I heard that she came in here recently."

"I ain't seen her," said Lafayette.

He tried to move around Pam, but she easily intercepted him. She began to walk towards him and Lafayette backed up.

"Why do I get the feeling that you are lying to me?" asked Pam.

Lafayette had backed up into a tree and in a flash Pam pinned him there with her hand against his throat. He whimpered as Pam began to choke him.

"That little witch is f*cking with my maker," hissed Pam. "Nobody does that and gets away with it."

"Chill out, shit," cried Lafayette.

"So, do you know where she is or not?" asked Pam. "Because, I can take all night to soften you up until you decide to tell me the truth."

"She's at Jason Stackhouse's place," gasped Lafayette.

Pam let go and Lafayette fell into a bout of coughing as he tried to breathe through his damaged throat. Pam watched him and said, "See, how easy that was?"

"However, I think you still deserve to be taught a lesson for trying to lie to me, since that is the same thing as lying to Eric. You do remember that you answer to Eric Northman, don't you?" asked Pam. "Maybe, you need a return visit back to our dungeon to refresh your memory."

"No, please, I'm sorry," begged Lafayette.

Pam took a step towards him and stopped as a breeze ruffled her hair. She closed her eyes and shook as if from a chill. Lafayette was sure that he could hear Eric's voice on that breeze and he quivered in his own shoes. Damn these crazy-ass vampires, he thought. Do they have some kind of telepathy, now?

Pam opened her eyes and smiled, "Saved by the bell. I'll be seeing you around, Cupcake."

She moved away in a blur and Lafayette thought, 'not if I see you first'.

IV

"Mommie, I'm hungry," came a voice from the hallway.

Millie turned to see her daughter standing in the shadows. She was wearing a little pink robe over pink pajamas. She clutched a little stuffed dog in one hand and the other was trying to wipe the sleep out of her eyes. The little girl opened her eyes to see her mother underneath a man on the couch. A frightened look came into the girl's eyes and she tentatively took a step back.

"Jeez, Millie, can't you control that brat?" he complained.

"Get off me," hissed Millie. "And that brat is my daughter."

The man sat up and Millie stood up and rearranged her clothes. The little girl stared between her mother and clutched her toy tighter.

"Come on, Baby," said Millie.

Millie held out her hand and the little girl ran to her and took it. Millie took her into the kitchen and sat her at the table and ran her hand down the girls sandy blonde locks.

"How about a nice cup of hot chocolate and a cookie?" asked her mother.

The little girl nodded solemnly and Millie turned around to light a burner and get out the ingredients for the hot chocolate.

They were living in a little trailer and almost everything seemed to be within arm's reach. The kitchen was old and needed updating, but it was clean and tidy.

"Why are you awake, anyway?" asked the man from the doorway.

The little girl turned her eyes to the man. He seemed as tall as a giant to her and almost as scary. He had dark hair and was wearing a plaid shirt and blue jeans. She bit her lip and looked away. He made her afraid and she wished that he wasn't her mommie's friend.

"Have you gotten her checked out by someone?" the man asked. "She seems like she's slow or something."

"Will you watch what you are saying around her?" demanded Millie. "There is nothing wrong with her, do you hear me?"

The little girl looked down and Millie saw a tear drop on the kitchen table. She flashed the man an angry glance and knelt before the little girl. She lifted her head and ran her hands down the little girl's cheeks.

"There isn't anything wrong with you, Payton," said Millie. "You're the most perfect little girl that a mother could ever hope for."

Her mother wiped away a tear and kissed her on the forehead, "You know that I love you more than anything in this world, right?"

Payton nodded and Millie gave her another kiss on the cheek. She stood up and gave the man another dirty look as she resumed making the hot chocolate.

"But, why did you wake up, Payton?" asked her mother.

"I had a bad dream," said Payton.

Payton got out of her chair and walked to her mother and attached herself to her mother's leg.

"I saw the monster again," she said.

Millie froze for a few seconds and said, "It's just a dream, sweetheart."

Millie ruffled Payton's hair and turned away to the table to pour out the hot chocolate. Payton looked up at the stove and in curiosity reached up onto the top. She wasn't tall enough to see what she was doing and she plunged her hand into the still blazing gas burner. In an instant, her sleeve caught on fire and she gave a startled cry.

"Jesus," cried the man.

He rushed over and pulled Payton away from the stove and took a wash towel and patted out the flames. Payton was crying and the man tried to shush her.

"Easy now," he said.

"Oh my God, Payton," cried Millie. "It's mommie's fault, Baby."

As Payton sniffed, her mother took her into her arms. The man gingerly began to unwrap the towel to check the damage. But, his eyes stared in disbelief when he saw that Payton's skin was unblemished. Her robe sleeve was a tattered mess and black with ashes. The man turned Payton's arm over and looked back at Millie.

"Maybe, just the cloth caught on fire," said Millie.

"She put her hand directly into the flames," said the man. "She should be covered in burns."

"Obviously, you are mistaken," said Millie.

"I know what I saw," he said.

He got a frightened look in his eyes and he moved away from Payton. "There is something that is not right about her. And I think that you know what it is."

"Are you crazy?" demanded Millie.

"Is she some kind of demon or something?" the man asked in fear.

"That's it," hissed Millie. "Take your superstitious and uneducated ass out of here. Nobody talks that way about my little girl."

Payton began to cry and Millie hugged her. "Fine," said the man. "The sex isn't worth putting up with your craziness and that freaky kid of yours."

He stormed out of the trailer and Millie hugged Payton until she stopped crying.

"Are you alright, now?" asked Millie.

Payton nodded, but a forlorn look came into her eyes. "What does freaky mean?"

"Never you mind," said Millie. "He doesn't know anything. You listen to your mother, okay?"

"I'm sorry, Mommie," said Payton.

"You're special, Payton, just the way you are," said Millie.

There was a long silence and Payton turned her almond shaped eyes to her mother, "That's what the monster says."

With a start, Payton woke up. There was someone knocking on the front door. She wondered who could be knocking on the door this late at night. She threw off the blanket and got up. She stumbled through the darkened room and bumped her knee against a table as she tried to make her way through the unfamiliar maze of Jason's living room. She flipped on the lights next to the front door and opened the door. She saw a red-headed vampire standing outside. She was young looking and pretty. Although, when the vampire's eyes took her in, her face formed into an unattractive frown.

"That's Hoyt's tee shirt," she said. "Are you in there screwing him?"

"What?" asked Payton, trying to think clearly.

"We are broken up for like one day and he's already banging some slut," hissed the vampire.

"Now, wait a minute," retorted Payton. "Just who are you calling a slut?"

"Jess?" came a sleepy voice from behind Payton.

Hoyt appeared beside Payton and he was wearing just flannel pajama bottoms. He ran his hand through his hair and stared at Jessica.

"I see how it is," hissed Jessica. "I came all the way over here to apologize and I can see that I shouldn't have even wasted my time. Sorry to interrupt. I'll just let you get back to your skank."

"What are you talking about?" demanded Hoyt.

"I am not a skank, either," said Payton.

"There is enough noise going on out here to raise the dead," said Jason. "What the hell is going on?"

"Oh, are you with Jason?" asked Jessica.

"She is just a friend sleeping on the couch," replied Jason. "Or, trying to. What is with the two of you? Go take your lover's quarrel outside."

Jessica looked embarrassed and said to Payton, "I'm sorry. I guess that I'm just jealous."

"Apology accepted," said Payton.

Hoyt disappeared for a moment and pulled on a tee shirt and jeans and then went outside Jessica. Jason stumbled back off to bed and Payton returned to the couch.

"What's got into you, Jess?" asked Hoyt. "I've never seen you that way."

"I...I was jealous," replied Jessica.

"You never acted like that around Summer," said Hoyt.

"I never saw Summer wearing one of your tee shirts and spending the night at your place," replied Jessica.

Hoyt stared at her and gave a little smile. "Does this mean that you still have feelings for me?"

"Of course, I do," said Jessica. "It's just that things are complicated."

"I'll simply things," said Hoyt. "I love you. You love me. That's all there is to it."

"There's a little more to things than that," replied Jessica.

"No, there's not," said Hoyt. "Not for me, anyway."

He leaned in and kissed Jessica. "I know what I want."

Jessica looked down and said, "You're so sweet and good and the truth is that I'm not good enough for you. I'll break your heart, Hoyt Fortenberry. I just know that I will."

Hoyt lifted her chin and kissed her lips, "You let me worry about my heart."

Jessica took him into her arms and Hoyt continued to kiss her under the moonlight.

Payton pulled the blanket back over her. But, her mind was occupied with her dream. She was sure that it was one of her memories. She now realized that one of the reasons that her mother had moved so much was to protect her. To keep her oddness from being detected. Her fingers trailed over her necklace and she could feel the outline of the dragons. She had invoked the dragon's spell on Eric Northman because it was a powerful magic spell and she wanted it to stick. The words had been taught to her by her mother and by her mother before her. And so on and so on. But, was there something else at work here? The dragon was a powerful symbol of magic and knowledge. To her ancestors, the dragon had the gift of vision, wisdom and prophecy. With her family's gift, was it any wonder that the dragon became their sigil? There was one place that Payton might find some answers. When her grandmother had passed on, the family farm had been sold. Most of her grandmother's things had been given away. But, grandmother's personal items, such as her books, had been stored away. The family that bought the farm had lent a shed to them and kept the things there. Maybe, it might be worth a trip there to find out if there was a clue as to what was going on with her.

But, what about that vampire? Payton rolled over and tried to get comfortable. She thought, what about him? Didn't he make his own bed? Let him lie in it a while. The spell wouldn't do anything but damage his pride. There were other forces afoot in this world besides that of an arrogant vampire with a limp dick.

A/N: I'm sort of blending some elements of season 3 and season 4 together. I gave Bill the job as being the Queen's second-in-command vampire and he's like her executive assistant who runs everything. I think this makes sense to have him already in place in her court, so that if she is eliminated then he is a logical choice to replace her. I get the feeling that he loves lording over Eric.

Go, Pam. She was on a mission, lol.

I'm just ignoring the character of Sookie. I think that she doesn't exist in this alternate universe of my creation.