Chapter 11

I fell asleep in the backseat after we dropped Lafayette off. He refused any further help and insisted he'd be okay. I was exhausted from the previous night, and after the relief of getting Lafayette home, I couldn't resist closing my eyes for just a couple minutes…

At some point, I drifted back into consciousness, and heard the hushed voices of my companions in the front seats. I kept my eyes closed and feigned sleep, listening in to their private conversation.

"Sookie," Bill whispered. "Most of us, vampire, human, or otherwise, are capable of both good and evil. Often simultaneously."

"You can't expect me to believe that Eric's capable of anything good," Sookie interjected. "Not after how he tortured Lafayette. Or how he's already trying to manipulate Lissa." I froze at the sound of my name.

"I have had worse sheriffs," he told her.

"I don't understand how you can defend him."

"He saved your life."

"I can still hate him."

"I hate that he may be putting you in harm's way once again. And now the girl. All for his own selfish reasons. And I hate that he has shown you the barbarousness that we call justice." There was silence for a moment before Bill spoke again. "If I could glamour it away for you, I would."

"I'm glad you can't," Sookie admitted. "I'm sick of things sneaking up on me. Rene and whatever the hell that was that attacked me last night. If I'm never gonna be safe, I'd rather know what to be afraid of."

"Well, after last night, I hope that that doesn't include me."

Sookie considered this. "I know there's darkness in you. I know there is. And it scares the life out of me. But you're right. There's goodness in you too. And when I look in your eyes, that's what I see."

Silence followed, and I digested everything I had heard. Sookie was right, Eric was a monster, but why was I having these feelings for him? Could there be goodness in someone so cruel? I didn't get to think on it much more because my tired mind pulled me back into sleep.

I was woken by Sookie gently shaking me awake.

"Lissa? Lissa, sweetie, we're home."

"Home?" I yawned.

"Well, we had to stop at Bill's real quick. Do you wanna come in or wait in the car a spell?"

"No, no, I'm good, I'll come in," I said as I climbed out of the car.

Bill must've gotten something out of the trunk because he shut it before returning to Sookie's side. In his hands, he held several shopping bags. He handed one to her.

"I picked up a few things for Jessica," he told her. "I have never bought women's clothing for anyone before, but I'm hoping what I decided on will suffice."

Sookie smiled as we made our way up to the door. "See I knew it. Underneath that tough vampire exterior, you're nothing but a big softie."

"Don't tell anybody," he joked as Sookie paused to pull a pink sweater out of the bag.

"Wow, that's a lot of pink, Bill," I teased. Bill looked even more nervous after I said that, so I added, "I'm sure Jessica will love it."

He shook his head. "Yes, well, I remember when ladies' clothing stores sold petticoats." Sookie and I laughed.

"Heh, that's just weird," she said.

"Actually, I kind of miss them at times. They left something to the imagination. Unfastening them required a certain skill."

Sookie gave him a seductive smile. "I think there's a Halloween store around here that might still have some."

"You are such a tease," Bill grinned and went in for a kiss.

Okay, this was uncomfortable. I cleared my throat loudly. When they didn't pull away, I murmured, "I'll just be inside…"

I used Bill's key that he had left in the lock before he got… distracted, and headed in, hoping to find Jessica so I didn't feel as awkward. She wasn't hard to find.

Jessica straddled a young man on the couch, her yellow sundress riding up her body to expose her long, pale legs. Her lips crushed into her partner's, and he groaned as his hands roamed her body freely. I shrieked at the sight and turned the opposite direction, shielding my eyes.

Bill must've heard my shriek because he broke away from Sookie and was beside me in a flash. I heard the click of his fangs when he saw the scene before us, and he was pulling Jessica off the boy before I could blink. He threw her across the room and she fell to the floor with a thud.

"I wasn't doing anything," Jessica snarled, fangs out. "I wasn't gonna bite him, I swear." The shirtless boy stood up from the couch.

"It's okay," he tried to say, but Bill pushed him roughly back onto the couch.

"Bill, don't," Sookie pleaded from beside me. I hadn't even realized she had been there. Bill only growled.

"I'm so sorry, vampire Bill," the boy tried again. "I-I know how this must look."

"Get out of my house," ordered the vampire.

"Bill, do not hurt him," Sookie warned as the boy got up.

"I-I-I swear," he said, "I wouldn't let it go any further."

"I said, get out of my house!" Bill roared.

"It's my house too," Jessica objected.

"Jessica, upstairs!"

"Okay, let's all just try to calm down," I intervened, tossing the boy his shirt.

"That's a really good idea," he nodded to me.

Bill took several more steps closer to Jessica's friend. "Are you gonna leave, or am I gonna have to throw you out through a window that is closed?" At this point, I backed down cautiously and decided to stay out of this.

"Bill, that is just rude," Sookie scolded.

"Sookie, I've got this."

"I'm going. I'm going," the boy promised as he finished buttoning his shirt and started towards the door. "I wasn't gonna do nothing."

"It's not her that I'm protecting, son," stated Bill. Jessica's mouth fell open in disbelief and embarrassment. She made eye contact with the boy and whimpered.

He made his way to the door, but paused for a minute to tell Jessica, "I don't believe him for a minute." The redheaded vampire smiled as the door shut behind him. Bill turned to her, face filled with anger.

"We established there was to be no hunting in this house," he seethed.

"Um, Sookie?" I said quietly. "I think I'm just gonna start walking home." I felt totally out of place here and it was obvious the three of them needed to have a heart-to-heart… privately.

"Are you sure?" she asked. "I can go with you."

"No, no," I insisted. "I'll be fine; it looks like you have a lot to talk about, anyways." I quickly went out the door before she could say anything else.

I took a deep breath and sighed in relief to be out of that house. I had no place being a part of whatever heated conversation was about to happen in there. I walked down the porch steps and started into the graveyard.

As I walked, I thought about everything I had gotten myself into. Four days I had been in Bon Temps, and already at least three people knew about my secret, two of them vampires. I moved in with a girl I just met and now I was going on a trip to find some missing vampire I didn't even know. This was absolute craziness.

A certain headstone caught my eye and I stopped to look at it.

WILLIAM COMPTON

BELOVED HUSBAND

FATHER AND BRAVE SOLDIER

1835 – 1865

Compton… Wasn't Bill's last name Compton? Was this his grave? It made sense; back then, no one knew vampires existed, so what else was his family supposed to think when he disappeared? I wondered if his coffin was actually empty.

Just then I heard a rustle from behind me. I spun around quickly, but I couldn't see anybody.

"Hello?" I called out nervously. I could feel someone's eyes on me. "Sookie?" No, it wasn't Sookie; she wouldn't sneak up on me like that. I thought hard on who could be following me and lurking through the woods.

"Eric?" I asked. It was a long shot, but I wouldn't put it past him to be the stalker type.

But I was wrong, it wasn't him. Out of the darkness stepped a young, handsome man with dark skin. He looked familiar; I thought I had seen him hanging around Tara at the bar.

"Oh," I sighed in relief. "It's just you. Tara's friend, right?" He didn't respond, only continued to walk closer to me. I started to get nervous again. "Are you visiting someone here?" I asked. Maybe he knew someone that was buried here. But again he didn't respond.

I squinted at him as he drew nearer. He was close enough now that I could see his eyes, and I was startled when I saw pits of blackness. The guy I remember briefly seeing at the bar definitely did not have these eyes. I froze in fear.

He suddenly grabbed onto my upper arm and I was thrown into a vision.

It was complete emptiness and everything was black as the man's eyes. I couldn't see anything.

"Lo Lo Bromios. Lo Lo Dendrties. Lo Lo Eleutherious. Lo Lo Bacchus. Lo Lo Bromios. Lo Lo Dendrties. Lo Lo Eleutherious. Lo Lo Bacchus. Lo Lo Bromios. Lo Lo Dendrties. Lo Lo Eleutherious. Lo Lo Bacchus." The chant repeated over and over again into the dark, empty space.

I tried desperately to pull myself out of the vision, but I was only pulled deeper into the darkness. The chanting faded away, and I was left in silence.

Author's Note: Okay, I have a question for you guys. Does anyone know where I can watch True Blood episodes for free (LEGALLY, please!)? I've been watching them on my Xfinity TV Go app because I have a Comcast subscription, but I just noticed today they have taken a bunch of episodes down. I'm really upset about this because I need to watch the episodes so I can get the right plot, dialogue, references, etc. for this fanfiction. Right now, I'm using a free trial of the HBO NOW app, but there's no way that after 7 days I'm paying $14.99 a month for it, I mean considering that my Netflix and Hulu subscriptions combined cost about the same amount as that one app per month, no thank you. Anyone have any ideas? I'd really appreciate your suggestions!