Our mole at HBO reveals that at least one writer on the team tried to stay more faithful to the spirit of the books. Unfortunately few of her scenes made it into the final scripts. Some of them were saved from the shredder and have now been leaked to the Fandom. These scenes take place on the night after Bill's kidnap.

(Disclaimer: The characters really belong to Alan Ball, of course. The whole story is a spoiler for Season 3)

Rueben tried to look nonchalant as he swaggered into Fangtasia. A pissed Eric was a very dangerous Eric, as he well knew, but on the other hand his own skills were second to none and the Sheriff did need him.

He was prepared for Eric to pounce as soon as he entered the back office. The Sheriff pinned him up against the wall, squeezing his throat so tightly he could barely speak.

He managed to croak out how he had tracked Compton and his human to the Maison de Paris within thirty minutes of receiving Eric's orders, but by the time he arrived the local Deputy was already outside interviewing Ms Stackhouse.

He had been able to sneak inside, but the scene was already too contaminated to be of much use. What was unmistakeable, though, was the foul smell of Were.

Eric scowled in disgust. The creatures were scum, but even a vampire as young as Compton should have been able to fight them off. There was no way they were local. The Bossier City pack wouldn't dare pull a stunt like this in his territory. He had heard rumours of a new, wild, pack which had settled in Jackson. Dismissing Rueben, he scrolled down the contacts list on his cell, searching for Hervaux. The Were owed him and it was time to call in the favour.

He just wasn't sure exactly what to ask for. He knew Mississippi had a new King. Russell Edgington had arrived in the state just a few years ago. He had no connections, and no-one knew anything about him. The previous King, a former Choctaw chief named Red Shoes, had reigned for over two hundred and fifty years. He had survived an assassination in his human life, but had not been able to escape the true death. It should have been a major scandal, but somehow it was hushed up, and within weeks Russell had been proclaimed as the new king. Eric had never met him, but he had heard plenty of rumours.

The new man was said to be ruthless and ambitious. A poor state like Mississippi would not hold him for long, and Louisiana was bound to be in his sights. One of the more persistent tales doing the rounds was that he had proposed marriage to Queen Sophie-Anne on at least three occasions, only to be rebuffed.

He was certainly powerful enough to be behind the kidnapping, but why on earth would he want Bill Compton? Besides, no self-respecting vampire would rely on wolves to do his dirty work. An ancient memory flashed into Eric's mind, but he dismissed it. It just wasn't possible, not here in Louisiana.

Pam opened the door without knocking, as usual. "Are you coming out front tonight, Eric? Your public is waiting." She was at her most sarcastic.

"My public can go fuck themselves; I have urgent business to attend to."

Pam rolled her eyes in disgust. "An errand, and you're not sending me. It must be important."

He set off for Bon Temps, considering his next move. This was a task he had to tackle himself if he wanted to avoid another fuckup. He would call on Jessica first, he decided. As Bill's progeny she should be able to sense if he were still alive.

The young vampire stumbled back in shock as she opened the door of the old plantation house to find Eric standing there. He sniffed the air as he stepped inside. There was something dead in the house, something human and dead.

"What have you been up to, my dear?" he asked coolly.

"Nothing, it's just a dead possum under the house."

He gave a look which made it clear he knew she was lying but said nothing more. He surveyed the scene around him with undisguised disgust. How long was it since Compton had moved in here? Two or three months at least, but the place was still as shabby and run-down as the day he had returned. Did he have no pride at all?

"I need to know if you can still feel your maker."

"What do you mean?"

"Can you sense him, does he still exist?"

Jessica stared at him, uncomprehending. Eric resisted the temptation to roll his eyes. Did that idiot Compton teach her nothing?

"You should be able to feel a connection to your maker. It is stronger when he is near, and can be very weak when he is far away, but it is only broken if he meets the final death." He struggled to think of the words to describe it in English. He had lost his own connection just a few weeks ago when Godric had met the sun. "It's like a hum, in the blood." It sounded lame, but it was the best he could do. He watched her carefully, waiting for a reaction.

Jessica considered thoughtfully. "I guess I do feel something. It's weaker now, but still there. I had the weirdest feeling last night though – I felt really sick, like the time we snuck into the Minister's office at church and drank his cheap sherry."

"Did you get any impression of a place or a person?"

"Yes, I did. It was that clearing in the woods, off Highway 2."

"Right, I'm going to get Sookie, and we'll drive there. Bill must have been trying to send you a message. Don't go anywhere, I'll be back shortly." With that, he set off across the cemetery to Sookie's house.

Sookie was on the phone to Isabel when she heard the knock at the door.

She had called the Texas vampire because there was really no-one else she could think of to talk to. Isabel had at least been sympathetic, which was more than anyone else had offered her so far. Unfortunately she had no positive suggestions on what to do next. Her best advice was to rely on Eric. His duty as Sheriff was to protect the vampire in his area. The one thing Isabel did agree with was that Lorena was almost certainly involved.

Putting the phone down with a sigh, she opened the door.

"What do you want? Have you found out something about Bill?"

"Good evening, Eric. How are you? Won't you please come in?" he replied, taking a sarcasm lesson from Pam. He held up an envelope, which had Sookie's name scrawled on it in a thick old-fashioned hand. "I've brought your check."

She was tempted to just snatch it out of his hand and slam the door in his face, but however angry and upset she was, she could never be that rude, even to Eric.

"Please come in," she said, grudgingly.

"I don't have anything definite to tell you, but there is a possible lead."

"It doesn't sound as if you are taking this very seriously," Sookie grumbled.

"I can assure you that I am." It wasn't entirely true, but it wasn't a lie either, it lay just in that grey area between the two. If he could find Bill and get him back, he would do so. It was important to his own reputation and power that he could protect the vampire living in his area. But if it took a little time, and gave him a chance to get to know Sookie better, that could only be a good thing.

More importantly, he wanted her to get to know him. She still thought of him as a violent, manipulative monster, which was, admittedly, part of his character. It wasn't the whole truth though.

"You could have put my check in the mail," Sookie said, instantly regretting how ungrateful she sounded. Her eyes widened as she opened the envelope. "This is too much, Eric. We agreed ten thousand dollars."

"Think of it as a bonus. What you did was much more that anyone could have asked. Your life was in danger, I haven't forgotten that. And what you did for Godric…" his voice tailed off, reminding Sookie of the very different side of Eric she had seen that night on the roof of the Hotel Carmilla. "I wanted to thank you then, but you checked out so suddenly."

"Yes, Bill was keen to get back to Bon Temps as soon as possible; he thought we would be safer here."

Safer from what, Eric wondered. He glanced at the couch and Sookie, remembering her manners, motioned to him to sit down. She took her Gran's favourite old armchair. He leant towards her, resting his elbows on his knees, just a little closer than she was comfortable with.

"I mean what I say, Sookie, I can never truly repay you for the kindness you showed Godric at the end."

"I wish he hadn't done it," she said quietly, "I would have liked the chance to get to know him better. He seemed to be a very special person."

"He was. In my thousand years, I have never met another like him, and I doubt whether I will again."

They both sat in silence for several minutes, acutely aware of the tension building between them. Sookie resisted the urge to reach out and offer him comfort. Eric, for his part, clenched and unclenched his fists, fighting his desire to pull her into his arms and run his fingers through her golden hair.

"So what is this lead you mentioned?" Sookie finally broke the silence.

"We need to pick up Jessica. I believe Bill sent her a message, and she may at least to be able to track down where he was taken."

"I've already asked her," Sookie said dismissively. "She promised to tell me if she heard from him."

"This isn't a normal human message. A vampire and their maker have a blood connection. She didn't realise this until tonight. Just one of the things Bill has omitted to teach her, it appears."

"Right, what are we waiting for?" Sookie jumped to her feet and grabbed a purse.

At that moment Eric's cellphone rang.

"What?" he barked.

Sookie watched as frustration then anger played across his face, followed by an expression she didn't recognise. On anyone else she would have said it was fear, but that couldn't be right. The Eric she knew wasn't scared of anyone or anything.

"I am sorry," he said, sounding sorry, as he ended the call. "I have an urgent summons back to Fangtasia. You and Jessica will have to go alone. She knows what to do. Just tell her to follow her instincts and don't take any risks."

"Shall we come to Fangtasia if we find anything?"

"Yes, but call first, just to make sure we have some privacy."

He disappeared into the night without a further word. Sookie ran to her car and clattered off down her rutted driveway. Jessica was waiting for her on the porch as she approached Bill's house. Sookie knew the place she described. It was on the edge of the State Wildlife area, just outside Sarepeta.

Her heart was thumping as they found the BMW upside down in the ditch.

"Don't worry, Sookie," Jessica comforted her as they searched the car, finding no trace of the missing vampire. "I know he's still alive. Eric explained it to me. We better go tell him what we've found."

Eric was sitting in his office when Sookie's call came through. He had been there for the better part of two hours, trying to work out how to respond to the Magister's visit. The timing couldn't have been worse. He had wanted to devote as much time as he could to Sookie, but if the Magister found out the truth about the V dealing he and Pam would both face their final death. He had no intention of letting that happen.

"You have visitors." Pam was clearly not impressed at the distraction from the business in hand.

He couldn't help a quick glance in the mirror as he swaggered out to the bar. It was unnecessary of course; he didn't think of himself as a vain man, he just accepted the attention of women as his due. He had certainly never seen the need to make an effort. He thought about Bill Compton, with his hopelessly old-fashioned hairstyle, and terrible taste in clothes. The younger vampire provided Pam with hours of harmless pleasure; bitching about his lack of style, his run-down house, and his pathetic attempts a mainstreaming. In spite of it all, he was the one who Sookie Stackhouse had chosen.

He didn't have time to ponder further on that thought, as Sookie rushed into the bar, her eyes glowing with excitement. "I think we've found something, show him Jessica."

The young vampire held out her phone to show the strange symbol they'd found on the neck of the dead Were. Eric stared at it, narrowing his eyes, but showing no other emotion, despite the turmoil inside. He had been following this sign for so many centuries and now it appeared that the secret could be within his reach. Would he finally be able to atone for that moment of weakness that had cost the lives of his human family? He needed time to think.

"I don't recognise it," he said coldly, feeling just the slightest pang of guilt as the light went out of Sookie's eyes. She grabbed Jessica's hand and turned to leave.

"Wait. Pam, take Jessica to the office, I'm sure you can entertain each other."

Pam scowled at him; Jessica was so not her type.

He leant across the table towards Sookie, waiting until the door slammed behind the two women before he spoke. "It is obvious that werewolves are involved in this somehow, and that puts you in danger. Until we know why they have taken Bill, I have to assume that you are at risk as well. Promise me you will be careful."

"Why would you care about my safety, Eric? You didn't care when you sent me off to the Fellowship of the Sun."

He winced; her barbed comment was fully justified. "I have told you that I am sorry for putting your life in danger. I realise now just how valuable you are."

"Valuable as long as you want to use my telepathy, you mean." Sookie snapped, feeling her anger rising. She had been so sure that finding Bill's car, and the dead kidnapper in it, would provide them with a positive lead.

Eric gave an unnecessary sigh. This wasn't going well. He'd had fantasies about this moment, the time when Sookie realised that she needed him, and had come to him for help. If only he were able to tell her the truth, perhaps she would trust him.

"I understand your anger and frustration. All I ask is that you trust me, I am your friend Sookie, not your enemy."

Sookie regarded him thoughtfully. She was a good judge of human character. No-one could hide their lies from her after all, so she found it easy to read their faces. Vampires were different though. Eric looked sincere, but she just wasn't convinced that she could really trust him as he asked.

She still hadn't responded when a waft of 'Obsession' heralded the return of Pam and Jessica from the ladies room.

"Sookie, you need to take me home, it'll soon be dawn. " Jessica said reluctantly. She liked spending time with Pam and Eric; they were so much more sophisticated than her maker. She was sure they didn't sleep in the dirt under the floorboards either.

"You take Jessica home," Eric ordered Pam.

As they left, he reached across the table to take Sookie's small hands in his big ones. He was acutely aware of her fragility; he could have crushed them without a second thought.

"I have a lot to think about. If you agree I will call on you tomorrow, we can discuss our next moves."

"You have a lot to think about," Sookie shot back angrily, "it's not your boyfriend that's missing."

He shook his head; she really had no idea of what he was going through. Even Pam knew nothing about his ten century long search for revenge - that was something he had shared only with his maker, Godric.

"Would you like me to drive you home?" he asked her.

She hesitated. She wasn't sure she wanted to spend too much more time with him tonight, and besides he was certain to laugh at her car. On the other hand she was mentally and physically exhausted. Highway 71 wasn't the safest of roads, and she didn't really want to her life to end in the dark Louisiana woods. She gave a reluctant nod.

Sure enough, Eric did laugh at her car. He tried to control himself, not wanting to upset her, but he just couldn't help it. "Is Bill happy for you to drive around in this rust-bucket?" he sneered.

"It's none of Bill's business. It's my car and it's the best I can afford. Besides, it's always been reliable. If you don't want to drive me home, just say so," she snapped unable to keep the bitterness out of her voice. Bill was happy to drive around in his top of the range BMW, but he'd never considered helping her out, even with a loan for a new car. She didn't want to be a kept woman, but it would have been nice of him to offer, if only to give her the chance of turning him down.

Looking suitably chastened, he was at the passenger door in an instant, holding it open for her to get in. She couldn't help but smile, such old-fashioned manners reminded her of her grandfather, and were rarely seen nowadays.

Eric was silent on the journey back to Bon Temps. The Magister's visit had shaken him more than he cared to admit. Sophie-Anne was such a pathetic actress, even a child would have been able to tell that she was lying. The best he could hope was that they had bought some time, but it was a crisis he could do without.

Enormous thanks to everyone who encouraged me to continue with this story – thanks for the reviews and alerts. I did genuinely want to check it out before continuing. I'm sorry it's taken so long to post the second chapter – busy with 'I Write the Songs' contest entries; also my first ever attempt at being a beta – please send waves of love to Drumbjo who had to suffer my extreme pedantry! Plus, back in that pesky real world, a job application to do. I'll try to update the rest of this story more regularly.

I should really have included a warning for the gratuitous Bill-bashing as well!