A/N: This story is always evolving in my mind, but it is now taking a turn into AU. We are starting into season two of the series. But, nothing is ever set in stone. I don't want to follow that story unless I can come up with my own interpretation and ideas. And if you know how something is going to turn out, it isn't that much fun to read either. This is a long chapter due to more groundwork being laid.

Chapter Eight

After the events of that night with Randall, Darcie spent several days away from Fangtasia. A part of her wondered what became of Randall and another part of her didn't care what judgement Eric dealt out to him. Many times she found herself going over what happened inside of Randall's mind. And although, she had thought that she would be haunted by Randall's demented pursuit of her, she found that her thoughts had instead dwelt on the vision of the ballroom. She wished that she knew what it had meant or even if it meant anything at all. It had been such a beautiful and powerful image. Had it been just a romantic fantasy on her part? Or had some essence of the vampire been able to connect with her mind? His mind should not be anything but a void to her. But, was it? All she knew was that somehow she had found her way out of Randall's mind with his help. He had kept her in this world by the touch of his hand.

While she was away, she had also attended to personal matters. She had found a nice home located outside of Shreveport in a quiet area. It wasn't overly extravagant, but it should still be large enough that she wouldn't have to deal with Mr. Turner's complaints about having to rough it among the savages. It was also large enough that she would have some separation from Mr. Turner's quarters. It was out of the question to even think about asking him to get his own place. The time was drawing near when she would have to send for him. The prospect gave her mixed emotions. He was a link to her grandmother and gave her comfort, even if he was sometimes difficult. And, he just wasn't a servant because she knew that he genuinely cared for her. She did not think that he and the vampires were going to get along. However, in a fight, she just might put her money on Mr. Turner, she thought with a chuckle.

She had spent her time with Sookie during the daytime when she wasn't at work. Since Bill and Merlott's seemed to occupy her nights. She felt that once she moved to Shreveport that Sookie would be so content with the ordinary life she was living, except for dating Bill, that she would no longer question her and Eric's relationship. Already, Darcie could detect a lower stress level in that Eric was not much of a concern in her life. Of course, if Sookie really wanted to lead a ordinary life she needed to ditch that vampire boyfriend. Maybe Darcie was prejudiced, but she was sure that Bill had been the one to reveal her abilities to Eric. But, vampire politics were weird, she thought, maybe he had to report to Eric since he was his superior. All she knew was that she had a distrust of him. Jason had somehow found religion and was much more boring as a result. Darcie missed his naughty ways, but she was sure that eventually he would give up trying to be something that he was not. Sookie had told her that Lafayette had just disappeared and not even Tara had a clue as to where he was. For a little town, Bon Temps certainly had it's share of murders and disappearances.

Sookie had wanted Darcie to come along with her and Bill for an evening out. It was sort of a farewell event since Darcie would soon be moving to Shreveport. Sookie had already asked Tara to move in with her and Darcie thought it would be nice for her to have some companionship when she moved away. They were in Darcie's car when they arrived at Bill's home. Sookie knocked and came inside.

"Hello?" called out Sookie.

Jessica appeared from another room and said, "I just saw my parents on T.V."

"Oh, no, I'm sorry," said Sookie.

"I finally get why they never wanted me to watch it in the first place. It's horrible," said Jessica.

"Um, where's Bill?" asked Sookie.

"I don't know. He said that he had some errands to do and that I couldn't come. And I hate it here. I hate it so much," said Jessica, upset.

As Darcie watched, Jessica and Sookie moved to a couch.

"I think I miss them," said Jessica.

"Your parents?" asked Sookie.

"And my little sister," said Jessica. "I was always totally horrible to her. I was such a brat."

Darcie watched as blood began leaking from Jessica's eyes. It was rather disturbing, she thought.

"Gross, what's wrong with me?" asked Jessica.

"Sweetie, vampires don't cry regular tears. So, when you cry, you're going to cry blood from now on,"said Sookie.

"Why do you know that and I don't? Don't you think I should know this about myself?" demanded Jessica.

"Bill should have probably of told you," said Sookie.

"Jeez, you think?" said Jessica. "He doesn't tell me anything. It's like I'm some burden to him."

Sookie handed Jessica a tissue and said, "Look, I don't know if it helps at all, but Darcie and I understand what you are feeling."

"No, you don't," said Jessica.

"I'm not saying that it's the same but both of us recently lost our grandmothers and since we also lost our parents when we were kids, our grandmothers were everything to us," said Sookie.

"But, grandparents are supposed to die and you two are still alive. I'm the one that is dead," said Jessica.

"You still feel loss the same way," said Darcie, standing in the doorway. "Just because we expected our grandmothers to die before us, doesn't mean that it still didn't hurt."

Jessica wiped at her tears again and said, "What do you do to make it not hurt so much?"

"Sometimes, I go and sit in her room for a spell," said Sookie.

Darcie didn't want to say what she did, for she had a room in her mind that she went to. It was a study and shelves made up up the walls. The shelves contained books. Not the books like today, though. These books were old and the bindings were made of leather. Just holding one of these weighty books in your hands gave you the feeling that they contained something precious. She would come into this room and run her finger down the the line of books, until she found just the one she wanted. She would pull it out, her fingers caressing it, and then she would move to a comfortable, old chair that sat by the window of the room. There, she would crack the book open and inside she would find a memory of her life that she had filed away. She had saved all the memories, not just the happy ones, for Darcie felt everything had been worth saving. And even in the saddest of memories, there was still a piece of hope or a kernel of wisdom that was there. You just had to look for it.

She opened one book and slipped into it's pages. The rain was falling down and it's cold, relentless drops could be heard coming down on the black umbrellas that everyone held above their heads. Except, she didn't have an umbrella. Her grandmother held one above both of their heads. Yet, she remembered standing there wishing that the rain would fall down on her. For maybe, it had the power to wash away the sadness that gripped her heart with it's cold fingers. She remembered looking down at her feet and seeing little rivulets of dirty, brown water. Her eyes followed the brown trail back to a mound on which a green carpet-like cover had been thrown over it in an attempt to conceal it's wrongness. Before this mound was a yawning hole in the ground. Darcie had stared at this hole thinking that it wasn't right. That they didn't belong in that place, not in the wet, cold ground. Her grandmother had gripped her hand then and Darcie looked up into her kind, gray eyes.

"You're right, Darcie," she had said to her. "They don't belong there. But, that isn't where they really are."

"Where are they, then?" Darcie had asked.

Her grandmother had reached down and touched Darcie's heart and then her forehead, gently trailing her fingers down and petting her hair.

"They are there, Darcie, forever in your heart and within the memories that you can hold inside that amazing mind that was my son's legacy to you. You are in pain now, but someday, those memories will comfort you like a warm blanket that you can wrap yourself in and keep the cold away."

Darcie had gazed into her grandmother's eyes, so like her father's, and let her grandmother pull her into an embrace as they watched the coffins being lowered into the ground. Twin coffins, for just as they had been inseparable in life, they had also been in death. This shouldn't have given Darcie comfort, but somehow it did. Her mother and father were still together, gone so far away that she could no longer sense them. Yet, they had left something of themselves behind for her.

"We still have each other, Darcie," her grandmother had whispered. "I'll take care of you."

Darcie had gripped her hand, holding onto this lifeline, as her parents were lowered and enclosed in their earthly tomb. Darcie got up and placed that book back on the shelf.

She ran her finger down the line of books again. She paused at a book. Here was a book that contained the memory of how she, as a young child, would sneak into her parents bedroom in the morning sometimes and with a shriek jump on the bed and frighten them out of their wits. They should have been angry with her, but they would only laugh and her father would grab her and tickle her without mercy as a punishment. She moved her finger onward. Here was a book that contained the memory of Darcie coming into the one of her grandmother's favorite rooms and finding her fast asleep in the chair, a now cold cup of tea on the table next to her chair. Mrs. Peale had also been fast asleep, her lithe body curled up on her grandmother's lap. Mrs. Peale had been found out by the driveway one day. She had been hit by a car and was mewling in pain. The groundskeeper had been afraid to touch her since he thought that the cat would lash out in fear, even to one trying to help her. But, her grandmother had strode up unafraid and picked her up. Darcie thought that her grandmother had probably used her power to calm the cat. A short trip to the vet had determined that the cat suffered from a broken leg and numerous cuts. The unkempt stray was christened Mrs. Peale and her unfortunate accident had turned out to be the luckiest day in her life. For, she became her grandmother's constant companion and lived out her days in comfort and love.

Darcie stared at all the shelves, lined with book upon book. So, many memories here, each quietly waiting their turn for Darcie to choose them. Darcie realized that she had spent too much time here, daydreaming. With a sigh, she went to the door and closed it softly behind her.

She returned back to the somewhat alarming scene of Jessica asking Sookie for a favor.

"Please, maybe you could drive me to my parent's house," said Jessica.

"Jessica, we can't do that," said Sookie.

"Please, I'll just sit in the car, I swear. All I'm asking is just to sit across the street and catch a glimpse of them through the window. Just so I could say goodbye," said Jessica.

"I'm sorry, but we just can't. But, if you explained it to Bill the same way that you just explained it to me, I'm sure that Bill would take you," said Sookie.

"Are you really sure about that?" asked Jessica. "Because I don't believe that he would."

Jessica began to cry again and Sookie looked at her and Darcie could tell she was wavering.

"Okay," said Sookie.

"Really?" said Jessica, excitedly.

"Sookie, may I speak with you a minute," said Darcie.

Darcie pulled her away from Jessica.

"Are you sure about this?" asked Darcie. "Bill is not going to be happy and he won't appreciate what he will see as our interference."

"Darcie, the girl is in pain, look at her," said Sookie.

"She is not exactly a girl," said Darcie. "She is a vampire."

"Gosh, you are starting to sound like Bill," said Sookie. "Or, maybe Eric."

Darcie frowned and said, "Maybe they are right. I don't want to be cruel here, but she is Bill's child, now."

"We'll just drive by there and be back here before Bill even knows that we are gone," said Sookie. "You know how much she is hurting."

So, Darcie had reluctantly driven them to the address that Jessica had given them. She parked the car across the street and Jessica stared out the backseat window at the house.

"My daddy won't be home, but my momma and sister should be," said Jessica.

Sookie turned and looked back at Jessica.

"Jessica, I'm so sorry," Sookie said with tears in her eyes.

"Why are you crying?" asked Jessica.

"Because I did this to you," said Sookie. "If Bill had not killed a vampire because of me, this wouldn't have happened to you. I never meant for anyone else to be hurt."

"I don't blame you, Sookie," said Jessica.

Just then a child appeared in the window.

"There's my sister," said Jessica.

And in a flash of movement, Jessica was out of the car and racing up the sidewalk to the door.

"Jessica! Jessica get back in the car. You promised!" yelled Sookie as she took off after her.

Darcie sat in the car and watched the train wreck unfold. For, the door opened and Jessica's human mother stood in the doorway. She hugged Jessica and drew her inside with Sookie trailing along behind. Darcie fished through Sookie's purse and found her cell phone. She scrolled through her address book and dialed a number.

"Sookie?" said Bill.

"No, this is Darcie. We have a problem. Right now, Jessica and Sookie are talking with Jessica's human family," said Darcie.

Darcie gave the address and hung up. She didn't get out of the car since Jessica was beyond her ability to remove from the home and she was certain that Bill was the only person that she would obey. A short time after Sookie and Jessica had gone inside, a car pulled into the driveway and Darcie saw a man rush for the door. No doubt, Jessica's father, she thought.

It wasn't too long until Bill showed up using some vampire power of travel. He must has sensed some danger because he almost broke down the door and waited for someone inside to invite him in. Darcie's eyes checked out the neighboring houses. All they needed was for a curious neighbor to call the police. A very short time later, Sookie appeared and walked back to the car. Her face was streaked with tears and she was visibly upset.

"Are you alright?" asked Darcie.
"It was terrible," said Sookie. "And Bill is so angry with me."

Darcie took her hand and said, "He'll get over it. Your heart was in the right place."

Finally, Bill came out with Jessica and they got into the car. Darcie put the car in drive and drove off and headed back to Bon Temps. Jessica was weeping in the backseat and Bill sat there silently. But, Darcie could detect the rage that was percolating underneath the surface of that tight-lipped visage. What a great evening this turned out to be, thought Darcie. Moving to Shreveport was looking better and better all the time. This was why she was single, she thought.

Somewhere along a deserted stretch of the highway, Sookie tried to apologize to Bill. And that was when everything bubbled over and the cramped space of Darcie's car became filled with unrepressed emotions and hostility.

"I'm sorry. She promised she was just going to look in the window. I know that I made a mistake, but they are her family," said Sookie.

"She is a vampire. She doesn't have a family anymore," said Bill.

"I'm a monster and I'm going to be alone forever because of you. I hate you," shrieked Jessica at Bill.

"Be quiet," said Bill back to her.

"Eat shit," retorted Jessica.

"I said to be quiet," yelled Bill.

Bill now turned his anger on Sookie.

"You undermined my authority as her maker. You risked those people's safety and your own. If I had not glamoured them within an inch of their sanity, all our lives would have been shattered," said Bill.

"I know, I'm sorry," said Sookie.

"You keep saying that and I'm expected to what? Forget this ever happened?" said Bill.

"What else would you like me to say," said Sookie. "I knew it was wrong to take her and I should have said no, but all I could think about was Gran and what I'd give to see her again."

"That does not give you the license to behave like an irresponsible child," said Bill. "She is a loaded gun, Sookie. Not a doll for you to dress up and play with."

Darcie had enough. If they wanted to continue this fight when they got back to Bon Temps, then that was their business.

"Shut up, everyone!" yelled Darcie. "This is my car and just be quiet."

"Stop the car, just stop the car," cried Sookie.

"Sookie, I can't stop the car here," said Darcie.

"Do it, right now," said Sookie. "I'm not riding another minute in this car with him."

"You are staying in the car, Bill can get out," said Darcie.

"I'm not leaving Jessica alone with you two," said Bill.

"Fine, both you and Jessica can get out," said Darcie.

"What the hell did I do?" said Jessica.

"Nothing," said Darcie. "You just have a shitty maker."

"You are just as much to blame as Sookie, maybe more since you drove them there," said Bill. "Perhaps, you should be more concerned with keeping Eric happy."

That comment had been the last straw. She had learned very quickly that vampires considered humans as property. To any and all vampires, she would be seen as a possession of Eric's. And she would be without that little escape clause. But, she didn't need to be reminded of that here in her own car. Those vampires were getting out, right now. Darcie slammed on the brakes and the car skidded into the shoulder.

Darcie gave in to her anger, even though she knew it was wrong.

"Maybe if you spent some time with your child and explained things to her, like for instance, why she can't go back home, tonight would not have happened." said Darcie. "Don't try to blame us for your own shortcomings. Now, I want you to get out of my car, this instant."

But, Sookie with a sob opened her door and got out of the car

"Sookie, get back in the car," Darcie yelled after her.

Darcie turned off the engine and sat there a few seconds, trying to regain her composure. The one person that she wanted to stay in the car had gotten out leaving her alone with Bill and Jessica. She was so mad that if it would have been possible for her to use her powers on Bill, she would have sent him to a very unpleasant spot, indeed.

"Are you going to go after her?" asked Darcie, when she felt that her voice was calm enough to not betray her.

"She will come back," said Bill. "When she calms down, she will come back."

"She wants you to go after her," said Jessica.

"We are in the middle of nowhere," said Darcie.

Bill seemed ready to reply when he just moved out of the car and down the road in a flash. Darcie sensing that something was wrong, started the car and drove slowly down the highway, looking for Bill and Sookie.

The headlights found them. Sookie was on the ground and Bill was cradling her in his arms. Darcie and Jessica ran out of the car.

As Darcie approached, she could see that Sookie had been clawed by something because her jacket was shredded and bloody. She moaned and cried out in pain as Bill attempted to move her. Darcie rushed to kneel beside her.

"What happened?" she said.

"She's been attacked by something," replied Bill.

"Sookie, what was it?" asked Bill.

Barely able to talk, Sookie managed to get out, "Bull, human."

Before Darcie's shocked eyes, Bill brought out his fangs and bit into his own wrist. He put the bloody wrist to Sookie's lips and she began to drink it. But, almost immediately, she started convulsing and foaming at the mouth.

"Ooh, gross," said Jessica.

"We need to get her to Fangtasia," said Bill.

"Not a hospital?" said Darcie.

"It was something supernatural, a hospital won't know what to do," said Bill.

He picked up Sookie who cried out and carried her to the car and placed her in the backseat.

"I can drive faster than you," he said.

Darcie handed him the keys and got in the backseat with Sookie.

Bill turned the car around and floored it.

When Bill pulled into Fangtasia's parking lot with a loud screeching of the brakes, Darcie was fearful that Sookie was going to die.

"Bill, she has gotten much worse," said Darcie as Bill leaned in and took Sookie out of her arms.

Bill carried her with Darcie and Jessica right beside him.

"Eric!" yelled Bill.

Eric came out and looked at the sight before him with relative calm. His eyes took in the sight of Bill cradling a limp and lifeless Sookie in his arms who was flanked on either side by Jessica and Darcie. He briefly turned his eyes to Darcie and her eyes gazed back at him. Her eyes were wide with fear and he knew if she was so scared then the situation was serious.

"It's Sookie," said Bill. "She's been attacked."

Bill carefully laid Sookie down on a couch seat on her stomach and Eric stared at the mess that was her back.

"She needs a doctor, now," said Bill.

Darcie stepped to Eric and only lightly touched his sleeve. She quickly removed her hand, since she had learned that they didn't like to be touched. At least, unless they initiated the contact.

When he turned his eyes to her, Darcie said, "Please, help her. I think, I think she may be dying"

He stared into her eyes for a second and then turned and called to Pam.

"Pam, call Dr Ludwig and tell her it's an emergency," said Eric.

When Eric turned back around, he saw that Darcie had moved to Sookie and was kneeling beside her and holding her hand, but her eyes glanced up to his for a moment before once again moving back to Sookie.

The doctor arrived and her appearance was a surprise to Darcie. She wondered if she was human because she almost looked like some kind of dwarf or gnome. She walked up to Sookie and began to cut away her shirt so she could see the wounds. Once it was off, Darcie thought that it looked like Sookie had been savaged by some sort of animal. As she examined the wounds with a finger, Sookie came around.

"What kind of doctor are you?" asked Sookie.

"The healing kind," said Dr. Ludwig.

"Am I dying?" asked Sookie.
"Yes," said Dr. Ludwig.

If that news hadn't made Darcie's knees go weak, she might have commented the doctor's lack of bedside manner.

"No, she cannot die. You will save her," said Bill.

"Back off, vampire, let me do my job," said Dr. Ludwig.

"Well, we don't have a lot of choices, she's been poisoned," said Dr. Ludwig. "There must have been some sort of poison on those claws. There are certain animals like the Komodo dragon who's mouths are teeming with bacteria. Once they bite an animal, they will wait and follow it, sometime for days, until the toxins render it helpless and then they will finish it off, devouring it alive."

"I was scratched by some kind of Komodo dragon?" weakly asked Sookie.

"No, but the poison is similar, but way more efficient. I can't know more without further testing and we don't have that kind of time."

"Give us some privacy," said Dr. Ludwig.

"Do you want me to stay?" asked Darcie.

"No, you'll just get in the way," said Dr. Ludwig.

"But, I can keep her still and take away her pain," said Darcie.

Dr. Ludwig stared at her and said, "What are you?"

Darcie noticed that Dr. Ludwig wasn't the only one waiting for a reply.

"I'm just her cousin," said Darcie. "But, I can help."

"Okay, everyone else out," she said.

Eric and Bill left, but Eric turned to see Darcie kneel down so that she could look into Sookie's eyes and take both of Sookie's hands in hers. He turned back and left with Bill.

"Okay, I'm going to be cleaning out the wounds, keep her quiet and still," said Dr. Ludwig.

Darcie caressed Sookie and when Sookie opened her eyes, she smiled at her.

She then used her influence to comfort Sookie and take her to a place where the pain of what was happening to her could not touch her.

Sookie woke up to find herself lying on the couch, but everyone was gone. She was still wearing the same clothes, except they weren't bloody and torn. She sat up and that's when she heard a voice calling her.

"Sookie, come outside. I'm waiting for you," came a voice.

"Darcie?" said Sookie.

"Yes, that's right," said Darcie. "Don't be afraid."

Sookie got up and walked to the front door. When she pushed it open, bright sunlight greeted her eyes. It was so bright that she had to blink her eyes several times to adjust to it. When she again opened them, she saw that Fangtasia opened up a landscape of sand dunes. She stepped outside and her feet sank into the sand.

"Take off your shoes," said Darcie who stepped into view.

Darcie was wearing a swim suit with a wrap around the waist and a hat to shield her face from the sun.

"But, I'm not dressed for the beach," said Sookie.

"Sure, you are," said Darcie. "Look."

Sookie looked down to see herself in a polka dot bikini with a sheer cover up over it. Sookie's hands touched the fabric and a look of confusion passed over her face. She knelt down and ran her fingers through the sand.

"It all feels so real," said Sookie with wonder. "But, it can't be."

"Reality is over-rated, Cousin," said Darcie with a grin. "Just enjoy it."

Darcie reached out and took Sookie's hand, saying, "You haven't seen the best part."

Darcie led Sookie over a little sand dune and there before them was a beautiful white sand beach. The ocean was a turquoise blue and it stretched out to the horizon. The waves beat rhythmically on the beach and the sound was so soothing.

"Isn't it beautiful, Sookie?" said Darcie. "Don't you just want to lie in the sun and listen to waves all day?"

"Yes," said Sookie, dreamily.

Darcie led her to an airy cabana. It was all in white and sheer white panels of fabric undulated gracefully in the breeze. There were two white lounge chairs set out and waiting for them. Darcie gently helped Sookie into a chair. From a table between the chairs, Darcie picked up a frozen drink and handed it to Sookie. Sookie sipped it through a straw with a contented sigh.

"Pina Colada," said Sookie. "How did you know that's one of my favorites?"

"I just have a knack about things like that," said Darcie with a smile.

Darcie took a seat in the other lounge chair and they looked out onto the ocean together.

Sookie sighed and said, "You know there is just one thing that might make this better."

"Sookie, you are a wicked girl," said Darcie with a grin. "But, your wish is my command."

Suddenly, a handsome young man with brown hair and deep brown eyes appeared. He was wearing crisp, white pants and a polo type shirt that could not conceal the fact that he had taut and defined muscles underneath it.

He stepped up to Sookie and said, "Did you request a massage?"

He held out his hand and Sookie took it with a giggle and the two of them walked over to a massge table that Sookie had not noticed when she had first entered the cabana. He helped her lie down on her stomach and began the serious business of massaging those tense muscles of Sookie's.

Darcie watched them and sipped on her own drink, digging her toes into the warm sand. Sookie let out another contented sigh as the young man's hands worked their magic. If Sookie wasn't here she would be in the grips of terrible pain right now. Darcie was still keeping an eye on what was going on there. Soon, she would have to take her back.

Bill and Eric had come back into the room, to see Darcie gently caressing Sookie who laid peacefully as Dr. Ludwig examined and probed the wounds. She dug out come sort of nail from one of the scratches and was examining it. She then got ready to pour something contained in a blue bottle over the scratches.

"This is going to burn and she will struggle, hold her still," she said to Darcie.

Bill moved forward to help, but Darcie said, "I have her, it's okay."

Dr. Ludwig poured the fluid into the wounds and it seemed to bubble, but Sookie remained completely still and didn't even flinch. That done Dr. Ludwig began patting Sookie's back and finally finishing her cleaning.

"She won't reject vampire blood now," said Dr. Ludwig.

She looked to Darcie curiously and watched her.

Back inside the vision, Darcie said to Sookie, "Sookie, you have to go back. Bill is waiting for you."

"Is he still mad at me?" said Sookie.

"No, he's very sorry that this happened to you," said Darcie. "Come on, let's walk back."

Together, they walked over the dune and back to Fangtasia. Darcie stopped Sookie before she went inside. And when Sookie turned back to look at her, Darcie stared into her eyes.

"I'm sorry to take away this lovely vision, but you will not remember any of this, okay?" said Darcie.

"What happened then?" asked Sookie, confused.

"You simply passed out and didn't feel any pain," said Darcie.

"Okay," said Sookie who turned and then stopped. She looked back at Darcie.

"I've never seen anything like this. The things that you can do. Even though, I know that you would never harm me, you are capable of that, aren't you?" asked Sookie. "Just as easily, you could create a world of nightmares and pain."

"I can do many things, Sookie," said Darcie. "That's why I need you, to help keep me from losing my way."

Darcie gave Sookie a smile and said, "Come on, they are all waiting for us."

"Am I alive?" asked Sookie, as she opened her eyes and found herself lying on the couch.

"Very much so," said Darcie, with a smile.

Darcie got up and stared evenly at Dr. Ludwig who returned the gaze and studied her for several moments. The doctor turned and began to walk for the door.

"I'll expect my payment by the end of the week," she called out.

"It's always a pleasure doing business with you, Dr. Ludwig," said Eric.

Dr. Ludwig shouted an expletive as she walked out he door.

"Clearly the pleasure is one-sided," said Bill.

Bill bit into his wrist and handed it to Sookie who fed from him.

Darcie watched the scene with a mixture of curiosity and revulsion.

"Why is he doing that?" asked Darcie.

"Because vampire blood can heal many things," said Eric.

"You mean that will heal her scratches?" asked Darcie.

"Yes," said Eric. "What did you do to Sookie?"

"Nothing, I just calmed her with my presence," said Darcie.

Darcie was an amazing liar. She was among the best he had ever seen. Of course, she wasn't trying so hard anymore since she was aware that he was on to her. But, she was not going to admit anything, out of principle, perhaps.

"Careful," said Eric to Bill. "You'll overcook her."

Bill stopped and Sookie looked at him dreamily and fell asleep.

"I don't want to move her," said Bill.

"Of course not," said Eric. "Darcie will stay with her and watch over her."

"I'm not leaving," said Bill.

"Do you object to her own cousin, Bill?" asked Eric. "She can be awake during the daytime in case Sookie needs something."

"If you can give us a ride," said Darcie. "Bill and Jessica can take my car."

"Certainly, Darcie," said Eric.

Bill looked uncomfortable and said, "Thanks for saving Sookie."

"I didn't do it for you," said Eric.

Bill and Jessica left. Darcie fetched some blankets from where Eric said they were and covered up Sookie with one.

She clutched the other one and stared at him. Eric looked at her pretty face still twinged with pain and concern. She was slightly younger than Sookie in years, but not in experiences, he felt. It was lucky for him that her family was such a source of ammunition for him to use against her. For, Darcie on her own was a force to be reckoned with. She had virtually no weaknesses of her own and that mind of hers was as clever as he had ever seen, except for his, of course. But, now her family that as so precious to her had managed to trap her deeper within his grasp. He almost felt a little regret at not defeating her on his own merits. For, he had two rather impressive things to hold over her now. One, Lafayette, who was currently resident of his dungeon, had told him that he thought that Jason was responsible for the disappearance and probable murder of a vampire. And two, she was in debt to him for saving Sookie's life. Eric had his own problems and this entrapment could not have come at a better time. He needed her and he needed to make sure that she couldn't decide to quit on him.

"Thank you for saving Sookie's life," said Darcie.

He could hear the gratitude in her voice and also the fear. For, she knew, as well as he, that there was always a price to be paid for everything.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Darcie," he said. "There are things we must discuss."