Sookie's POV:
"What are you doing here?" I exclaim.
"You were in trouble," he replies.
It is dark but I can still see him clearly with the moon shining down on us. For a minute or two I do nothing but gaze into his gorgeous blue eyes feeling stunned. Then I realize what had just happened and that my hands are still planted firmly on his chest. I quickly move away from him.
"How did you find me? Did you know those men? Are you going to hurt me? Did someone hire you to look for me?" I blurt all my questions out one after another.
He just smiles at me. It is one of the most incredible smiles I have ever seen. I get tingles inside my stomach but I brush it aside and try to keep myself focused.
"Are you alright?" he asks me. I just nod back. "No one has sent me to look for you and I am not going to hurt you. I will explain how I am here, but first I will walk you back to your home so that you may sit down to calm your nerves."
"Okay," I gulp. We walk the rest of the way back to the house in silence. Once in awhile I would glance up at him and he would glance back. Soon we reach Anna's large red and white house. All the lights are off inside so I assume that she must be asleep. I walk up the steps and sit down on the porch swing.
"Would you like to sit down?" I ask him.
"Thank you," he says and comes to sit beside me.
"We don't have any True Blood inside, so I'm sorry I can't offer you anything," I tell him.
"That's alright Sookie," he says smiling at me again. I smile back at him nervously. "I shall tell you how I came to be here," he says.
Marius' POV: Flashback in New York Over Two Months Ago
After a long flight, I descend down to the balcony of my son's penthouse apartment. I punch in the code to the balcony door of Marten's office. Through our bond, he is aware that I am here but continues his task in the other room. I can hear him speaking to someone in the living room.
I lean back into a chair listening to my son converse in the other room with a distressed sounding vampire.
"Of course, this will be kept confidential," Marten says continuing to speak to the male vampire. "How long has she disappeared?"
"She has been missing for four days already. She was supposed to board a connecting flight to Louisiana from the airport but she never did. I have spoken to her friend and forced her to tell me where she went. She said that she got on a bus using money she withdrew from a bank account. I found out that she purchased a ticket to Toronto and from there the trail ends," the other vampire says.
"That country is enormous," Marten says. "It will be a difficult task to find her."
"But you will give me aid?" he asks.
"Yes I shall look into it myself," Marten replies.
"This information must only be disclosed to a few. If more find out that she is alone out there, then she will be in even more danger," he says irately.
"Like I said," my son says calmly, "I will look into it myself. If I need help then I will turn to someone I can trust, and there are only a few individuals of that nature on the entire planet."
I get up from my chair after losing interest in their conversation and go outside to look out at the city. A few minutes later I can hear Marten in his office. He briefly stops at his desk and then comes outside to join me.
"Father, I am pleased to see you," he says to me.
I turn around to face him. "It is good to see you too my son. I am glad that you are well," I pat his arm. "Who was the vampire that you were speaking to?"
"That was Eric Northman," he says.
"He seems troubled over someone," I say.
"Yes, his bonded human disappeared several days ago. He wants me to help him find her. He didn't mention why she ran away from him. I suspect it has to do with his new wife."
I look back out at the city feeling indifferent again.
"It must have been a long journey for you father. We should feed. I will go downstairs and come back with an assortment of donors for us," he says.
"Do what you must," I reply. He then goes back inside. I stand there staring at the city for a few more minutes then I go back in as well. As I walk into the room I see something on Marten's computer that catches my eye.
I look at the screen and see the beautiful blonde woman that peaked my interest several months ago. I continue to stare at the picture until Marten returns.
"I have brought the donors. They are waiting across the hall in the..." he says but I cut him off.
"Why do you have a picture of this woman?" I ask him.
He comes to stand beside me and looks at the screen. "She is Northman's bonded human. Her name is Sookie Stackhouse."
I focus on her picture again for a moment then I close his laptop. "Do not look for her," I tell him. "When Northman contacts you and asks you about the status of your search, tell him that you have come up empty handed."
"Yes father," he says in a respective manner. "May I ask why?"
I ignore his question and start to walk towards the balcony again. "I am leaving now. I will not be contacting you for another several months." I shoot up into the sky before he can say anything else.
Sookie's POV:
"I have been searching for you ever since. I had heard that there were two bounty hunters looking for a blonde human woman. I followed them here," he says.
I stare blankly at a potted plant in front of me. "You didn't see him," I ask quietly.
"No, but the tone in his voice was full of concern for you," he answers knowing that I am talking about Eric.
I think about Eric briefly and decide to change the subject, "I didn't know that Marten was your child. He mentioned you once to me in Las Vegas. From what I could grasp he loves you a lot."
"Yes I love him dearly as well. I was quite fortunate to have found him and to share with him all that I have. He is the best part of me," his voice deep with emotion.
"Do you know if there will be others after me soon?" I ask him.
"No, I have scanned the surrounding area. They were the only ones who were searching for you. But there will be more coming, probably within the next couple of days. Whoever they were working for will come because they will not be reporting in."
"Oh," I say hopelessly. If they were Eric's men, then that means he and his bitch wife will probably be coming here soon. I am so fucked.
"You will have to leave. It is not safe to stay here anymore unprotected," he tells me.
My mind starts racing again of where I should go. I could return to the states, but where? I only have a few thousand dollars left. Soon that will be gone and I will have no choice but to return home where Eric will find and take me back. Who knows how angry he is with me for running away. I don't think he would hurt me but he could punish me. I start fidgeting in my seat.
"I could take you somewhere," he says. "Somewhere where you will be safe."
I look at him surprised. He wants to help me? I can't help but think to myself about what the catch is going to be. What does he want in return?
"Why do you want to help me?" I ask.
He is silent for a moment. "Because I think that you are worth protecting."
"You don't even know me," I say. "It's safe to say that I have a lot of more baggage than most people."
"Yes, it is true that I do not know you very well, but I would like to get to know you better."
I stand up. "Well if you want to use me for my telepathic abilities then you are wasting your time," I say crossly.
He just looks up at me and smiles. "That was something I did not know about you. Now we are starting to get to know each other. Is there anything you would like to know about me?"
I can't help but smile back but I wipe it away. "How did that vampire who was holding me catch fire?"
"Because I set him on fire with my mind."
I stand there staring with my mouth open. "You can do that?" I finally ask.
"There are many things that I can do," he responds.
I gulp. I start to think again about whether or not I should go with him. There is no doubt that he is dangerous, but my gut tells me that he would never hurt me. If he wanted me to go with him he could just simply take me, but he is asking me.
"I need a little bit of time to think about your offer."
He stands up as well. "Very well, I knew that you would say that. Think about it during the day. I will return here tonight to hear your answer."
He starts to walk down the steps.
"Wait!" I say loudly. He turns around. "Are you sure that there is no one else out there right now out to get me?"
He chuckles. "No, you will be safe tonight. I will watch over this house and you until dawn."
"Thanks I guess. Even if it is a little bit creepy to know that you will be out there watching me," I mumble.
He just laughs. "Good night Sookie," he says and then disappears.
I head inside and go to my bedroom. I get myself ready for bed and fall asleep quickly for once thinking about someone else other than Eric.
When I wake up in the morning the first thing that pops in my mind is Marius' offer. I think about it during breakfast, at work, and during dinner.
"Is there something wrong Adele? You seem so preoccupied with something," Anna asks me from across the table in the dining room.
I smile at her. "I've been thinking about whether or not I should go home."
"Oh my, that is a big decision that you must make. No wonder you seemed so distracted today," she says.
I twirl the mashed potatoes around my plate and continue thinking. If I go with him, I know that I have a better chance at not being found. Even though I barely know him, I know that he would never hurt me intentionally. I'm also running out of options. I don't have enough money to settle down in a new area. I also know that if I remain here in Canmore with Anna much longer than I could be putting her in danger. My mind turns to the memory of how my grandmother died. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if Anna got hurt because of me. Then there is the other problem of running off with a virtual stranger. Could I do something like that? Leave with someone I have known for only a few hours?
It's finally dark outside as Anna and I sit in the family room doing our cross stitching. I look out the window knowing he was probably out there right now.
"I'm going to go sit outside for a few minutes, I'll be right back," I tell her.
She smiles at me looking away from her work and nods.
I step outside onto the porch and look around.
"Good evening Sookie," someone says behind me.
I yelp and spin around really fast.
He chuckles quietly, "Forgive me for startling you."
"That's alright, just don't do that to me again," I sigh.
"Have you made your decision?" he asks.
"Yes I have. But first I need to know that you aren't going to use me for my telepathy. And I also need to know that you don't want me for you know..."my voice trails off as I start to blush.
He laughs again. "Sookie, I have the most honourable intentions. I will not touch you unless you ask me to. As for your telepathy, that is something that I do not require the use of."
I breathe in deeply preparing to give him my answer. "Okay I will go with you."
"Perfect," he says.
"I need to pack my stuff. It won't take very long because I don't have much."
"Invite me inside," he says suddenly.
"Why?" I ask.
"Because I will glamour the old woman into forgetting about you and to tell her to be wary of strangers from now on."
"That's smart," I reply.
I invite him inside and introduce him to Anna. Then I excuse myself to pack my things in my room. Five minutes later I am done and I go out to the foyer. I look into the living room and see him kneeling in front of her whispering into her ear. She is staring blankly at the wall. When he sees me, he gets up and walks towards me. He takes my bag from my hand and leads me out the door.
"What did you say to her?"
"Just what I had mentioned earlier. I also told her to sell her business and move away to be near her sister in the east. She does not have very much time on this earth."
I look up at him as we walk, "She is dying? How do you know that?"
"I can sense the life force leaving her body," he says looking intensely into my eyes.
I don't know how to respond so I say nothing.
We walk for about twenty minutes until we reach a dark green SUV.
"This is your car?" I ask.
"Yes for now. I got this three days ago because I wanted you to be comfortable." He goes to the back and opens the trunk. In it there are boxes of what looks to be food and other supplies.
"Wait a minute, you mean you got all of this three days ago for me? You knew that I would go with you?" I say astounded.
He throws my bag in the trunk as well and closes it. "Yes this is all for you. I don't normally drive when I travel. To be honest I did not know if you would come with me, but I wanted to be prepared if you did."
I say nothing again. He opens the passenger door for me and soon we drive off.
He doesn't tell me where we are heading and I don't ask, but we take the highway that leads to the mountains. After three hours of driving, he turns off onto a dirt road. A half hour later I drift off to sleep.
"Sookie you must wake," he whispers to me.
I slowly open my eyes and look ahead. It is pitch black outside. "Are we there?" I ask him.
"Not yet, I will need to fly with you the rest of the way." He gets out of the car and goes to the back. He opens the trunk and takes out a few of the stuff. He then comes to my door, opens it and I get out. He has my bag and some other items on his back.
"Wrap this around you," he says holding up a blanket. I take it from him and wrap it around my body.
"I will need to hold you," he says. I nod and he sweeps me up into his arms. I gasp feeling intensely aware of the sudden close contact. "Try not to look down. I will fly at a moderate speed."
He takes flight and I close my eyes. I wrap my arms around his neck. We fly for about ten minutes until I get become curious. I open my eyes to look around and also to look downwards. We are very high up.
"Eeek!" I shriek, holding onto him even more tighter. I bury my face against his neck, unintentionally breathing in his wonderful scent but somehow it soothes me.
"I take it your bonded never took you out flying?" he says amused.
"No he didn't. I was always afraid of heights ever since the time we pummelled from high up in a hotel to the ground in a coffin," I mumble. He chuckles again and I can feel the vibration in his chest. I absentmindedly twirl a few stands of his dark wavy hair between my fingers.
We fly in the air for about two hours until he lands on the ground. "You can open your eyes," he tells me as he sets me down onto my feet.
I blink a few times and look around me. It is still dark and there is a dark structure in front of me. He opens the door and asks me to come inside. Suddenly he lights up a couple of candles using his power. I look around the simple one room cabin.
"Is this where you live?" I ask him.
"Yes and no. This is one of the many structures that I have built for myself in different parts of the world. I built this one about sixty years ago. I haven't been here in over twenty four years," he says as he puts down my bag and the other parcels.
"Where abouts are we?"
"Somewhere between Alberta and British Columbia," he responds. "We are completely inaccessible. Stay here I will back in a few minutes. I am going to scan the area." In a flash he is gone. I stand and continue to look around the room.
There is a wood stove in one corner of the log cabin. There is also a fireplace and a queen sized bed along the wall. There is also a brown leather couch and a rug made of bear skin on the floor in the centre. On one side of the room there is a large bathtub and some cupboards. There is no kitchen or bathroom facilities which does not surprise me but there is a wooden table and chairs that look to have been hand-made. On the walls there is one tiny window, a couple of tapestries, shelves full of books and hand-drawn maps. There are also a few sketches of a lake and other wild animals.
"We are alone except for a few animals around us," he says standing by the doorway with a large container full of water in his arms.
"Did you draw those?" I ask him pointing to the maps and drawings.
"Yes, drawing is one of the few things that pleases me."
He picks up one of the plastic parcels and rips it open. Inside of it there are some sheets, pillow and a comforter. He drops it on the bed.
"I will be back in a few hours. I am going to hide the vehicle and bring up the rest of the supplies. There is some food in that one package," pointing to the floor, "and you now have some fresh lake water in the barrel."
He vanishes from the room, leaving me standing there alone. I go to the door and look around outside. It is still very dark, with the moon being covered by clouds. I close the door and light up a few more candles that I find from one of the cupboards. I tidy up by dusting and wiping the surfaces using a wet rag. I also make the bed. Once I am done I sit by one of the candles to read a book I found from the wall shelf.
A while later he comes back carrying the rest of the supplies. He puts them all on the floor.
"I have brought you some supplies and more food. You can use the coleman stove to cook your food. I also brought you some pots, pans, dishes and cutlery. As you can see I do not have any indoor washroom facilities but you can use that large basin by the bathtub. There is a hot springs nearby that I will show you tomorrow where you can bathe during the daytime. You can also use the bathtub if you wish; I can heat up water for you."
"Thank you," I say genuinely. "All of this stuff you have brought me is amazing. This cabin is wonderful."
"There is no need to thank me," he says smiling. "I am glad that you feel comfortable here. I was not sure how you would react when you found out that my home does not have modern facilities."
I laugh a little. "You thought I wouldn't be able to 'rough it' without an indoor bathroom and electricity?"
He laughs too, "Yes."
We sit down and talk a little bit about the surrounding area. He tells me not to go too far during the day because I could get lost or run into wildlife. He also tells me about the lake and says that he will show me it one of these nights. By the time we finish talking it is starting to lighter outside.
He looks through the small window, "It is almost dawn and I must rest soon."
"Are you going to sleep in here?" I ask him. I look at the only bed in the cabin and wonder if I'll be sharing it with him or sleeping on the couch.
Almost knowing what I'm thinking, he smiles at me, "I will be resting underground. I have an underground lair nearby."
"Oh," I say, my face turning a little red.
"You must be very tired. I will leave you so that you may sleep," he says.
"Okay," I answer, "Goodnight Marius," I tell him as he opens the door.
"Goodnight Sookie."
He leaves me alone in the cabin. I take my nightgown from my bag and put it on. I climb into bed, pulling the covers over me and I fall asleep thinking about what tomorrow could bring.
A/N: Don't worry I haven't forgotten about Eric! LOL His POV will be the next chapter.