A/N: Okay, for those of you that missed my 'review' for the last chapter – if you are confused about who Preston Pardloe is – quick recap: Preston Pardloe is a Charlaine Harris character, not an original. He appears in the Sookieverse short story 'Gift Wrap' in the Wolfsbane and Mistletoe anthology, which takes place after book #8. So, don't keep frantically searching back through other chapters of my stories to figure it out. I understand the incredible Boadicea has started a thread in the Sookieverse forum here (click on forums up at the top of the main SVM fanfic page) called 'Left For Dead – 101,' where she and others are sharing a lot of their insight/research/questions on the story (which both humbles and astounds me). If you can't/don't want to buy the book, I'm sure people there can give you a synopsis. Sorry for those of you who were confused!

Believe it or not, we're moving into the home stretch here (I'm going to guesstimate 5-6 more chapters, but don't hold me to that). As such, these chapters will probably take me a bit longer. One can't write an epic like Left For Dead, only to deflate it with a weak ending. In other words, please be patient about updates – and yes, there will be cliffhangers. I'll churn them out as quickly as I can, but not at the expense of quality. Lots of dialogue, revelation, and answers this chapter! As always, thank you for reading and reviewing!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or stories from The Southern Vampire series. I can only hope that Ms. Harris does not mind me taking them out to play with.

___________________________________________________________________________________

The scent was faint, much more than it should be, but Eric had caught it in the instant before the door slammed open. Bill must never have been in close proximity to this Giacomo... Preston... whatever, or he would have known. This was no human his bonded was betrothed to. He was fae.

Eric moved instantly in front of Sookie, who was crouched between the bed and the wall, blocking Preston's path. His fingers clawed as he took up the protective stance, his fangs bared in a predatory grin. It had been years since Eric had a good battle, and this one would be particularly sweet. Luckily the fae scent was faint enough that he was not falling into a blind rage, and his mind began calculating all the variables of his surroundings. He growled viciously at the fae he now assumed to be an agent of Niall. They would pay. They would all pay.

Preston's eyes focused on Eric as he blocked his line of sight to Sookie, as if just now registering his presence. Eric balanced on the edge of a mental knife, every nerve and sense heightened, waiting for the slightest flinch of his adversary. Their eyes were locked, Eric's glaring with menace and the rage of the warrior within, daring the fae to attack.

But he did not.

Though he remained in a defensive posture, relief washed over Preston's face as recognition took hold. "Northman," he said with a heavy sigh. "Thank the gods."

Eric's eyes narrowed, his body remaining at the ready. "Who are you?" he hissed.

Preston slowly raised his hands up chest level in a surrendering type gesture, "Calm down, Northman. This isn't what you think it is."

"Well then you better talk, and fast," Eric growled, not backing down, and he felt his bonded stirring behind him. "Sookie, stay there," he commanded.

"She isn't Sookie, Northman," the fae stated.

Eric leered menacingly at Preston, his voice low and dangerous. "Do not think to toy with me, fairy. You may have trapped my bonded somehow, but she is in there, fighting to be free of you." He grinned then, "I shall enjoy feeding you your bowels for what you have done."

"Northman, listen to me, dammit!" Preston spat as he backed up a step, sensing Eric was about to lunge for his throat. He dodged just in time, popping himself to the other side of the room. "I don't have the kind of power to do this, you know that!"

Eric growled, resetting his stance, ready to spring at him again. His instinct and bloodlust were gaining foothold, but his higher reasoning held him back for a moment. It was true. Eric knew the fae, though he may be powerful, couldn't possibly have blocked the bond. "Who?" he demanded.

"Apate," Preston said with pure conviction in his voice, his eyes now leveled at Eric, telling him that was all the information he would get until he stood down.

It was unnecessary. The name Apate was enough to give Eric pause, the pieces shuffling in his brain once more. He flicked furiously through the information vaults of his mind.

Apate. Daemon of deceit. One of the personified ills released from Pandora's Box. Daughter of Nyx... half sister to Phthonus.

"Go on," Eric said, his voice still harsh, but folding his arms across his chest for the moment.

Preston visibly relaxed a bit, though kept a cautious eye upon him. Sookie emerged slowly from the corner, and Eric pulled her against his side with a warning glare to the fae. The bond had gone silent.

"I would never harm her," Preston said with a tired sigh, shaking his head. "Everything I've done has been to shield her from Niall."

Eric cocked a brow, waiting for further explanation. He was not remotely convinced he shouldn't just kill this fae, much less of any noble or honorable intentions. He would, however, still himself long enough to gain any pertinent information.

Preston cast an apologetic glance toward Sookie, which illicited another guttural growl from Eric. The fae's eyes flicked angrily back to the Viking's, "You aren't the only one who has lost someone, Northman. That may be Sookie's body, but the consciousness inside it is not."

Eric sneered, "You expect me to believe that 'Bella' is some other random mind stuck inside Sookie's body? You are going to have to do better than that."

"There's nothing random about it at all," Preston snapped. "And her name isn't Bella."

Eric's patience was quickly growing thin. "So, you are trying to tell me the girl at my side is not Bella nor Sookie. Who the hell is she, then?" he snarled.

Preston's eyes softened as they fell back upon Sookie's trembling form. She had been eerily quiet through all of this, perhaps overwhelmed... perhaps afraid. Eric tightened his grip on her, attempting to reassure her that he would allow no harm to befall her.

Preston sighed heavily, leaning his weight back against the chest of drawers behind him. "The story is a long one, Northman, and time is running short. You will undoubtedly have many more questions once I answer that one, but if we're to free Sookie, we must act quickly. You are going to have to trust me."

Eric certainly did not trust this fae, but something in the gravity of Preston's tone struck a nerve. It was heavy, tired... it sounded how Avel had looked... and how Eric had felt. Avel had disguised himself as Preston for a reason... it was a message to Eric, but he was lacking context. Was it a warning or merely an indication of an important player?

He glanced down at his bonded. "Bella?"

Her gaze drifted up to meet his, and though her body trembled, he did not see fear in her eyes. "Has he ever harmed you?" Eric asked her gently.

"No," she replied, shaking her head for emphasis.

He turned to face her more fully, placing his hands softly on her shoulders. "Then why did you cower from him? You can tell me the truth, I promise he will not lay a finger on you."

She swallowed, glancing nervously over to Preston. Eric promptly took hold of her chin, turning her gaze back to him, trying to silently reassure her with his eyes. Her voice was soft, but unwavering. "I did the one thing he always told me not to, and I was afraid of how angry he would be... and that he might kill you."

"What thing?" Eric arched a questioning brow.

She bit at her lower lip for a moment, and then took a deep breath. "Someone is hunting me... I don't know who. The night that Giacomo and I met, he found me unconscious in an alleyway. I had no idea how I got there. He told me he'd been sent to protect me... keep me safe, and he has been ever since. He made me promise I wouldn't associate with anyone outside of those we knew and trusted. That's why I said in the car that I shouldn't be there... and why I was afraid when he found me here with you. I broke my promise to him."

Preston cut her off, his voice gentle. "It's alright, Bella. I know why you did." He paused, turning his eyes back to Eric. "Satisfied?" he asked.

Eric leveled a cutting glare back at the fae, "Hardly, but you will have bought yourself a temporary reprieve if you answer my questions."

"Make it quick. It is only a matter of time till Apate tracks her down now," Preston replied, agitation showing in his voice.

"Fine," Eric nodded, turning himself back to the fae and cutting right to the heart of things. "If this is not Sookie, then where is she?"

"Inside the bond. She unwittingly released herself into it after you left the crossroads. The daemon was unable to render her unconscious in time to stop it. Her body became merely an empty shell."

Preston stated all this quite simply, and with much conviction. In thinking over the sensations he'd felt from the bond, this did seem a logical explanation to Eric. Sookie had been on the verge of a virtual explosion in those final moments, fighting to contain the energy within her. If she was still conscious, she would have undoubtedly let go of her struggle the moment Avel sent him back to the mortal realm. She had sacrificed herself... but the bond had kept her safe... and given her time.

"How is it you know this?" Eric continued, the edge in his voice beginning to subside.

Preston folded his arms across his chest. "There is no time for details, but suffice it to say, Sookie and I have met before. I found myself... quite taken with her," he said, ignoring Eric's glare. "When I became aware of Niall and Apate's plans, I felt compelled to intervene. I followed the daemon out of the ether and back to the crossroads when he came searching for the prince."

"No one is allowed in the crossroads who is not favored or touched," Eric said in a pondering tone.

Preston nodded. "It was not my first time there. I have been there many times..." he trailed off for a few moments, a wistful shadow crossing his face, then shook his head clear. "We knew Apate and Niall would not stop hunting for Sookie, and until such time as the merge could complete to guarantee her safety, we were forced into more extreme measures."

Uncrossing his arms, the fae emitted another tired sigh, his gaze once again settling on Sookie. "We had to place another consciousness inside Sookie's body. It allowed her to remain safely hidden within the bond, and provided a target for Apate. Once Avel safely transferred the other consciousness into her, she was sent back to the mortal world, and was immediately sensed by Niall. He couldn't bring her to hide in the ether, because the fae blood in Sookie isn't strong enough. So, I managed to convince Niall to let me hide her and stay with her--"

"You would have needed a consciousness that knew Sookie enough to fool Niall, not that he knew her that well, but enough that someone unfamiliar with her could never pull it off," Eric interrupted.

Preston nodded, "Yes, and the one inside her did... though now she does not even know herself. Obviously, if Sookie's mind were still in tact, she would fight with everything in her to get back to you. Niall knew this, and so Apate robbed her of her identity... and Bella was born."

So many pieces... so much that had seemed random... now tied up in one perfect package. It all fit, every single part, just as Eric had known it must. He had only one question remaining, but he feared he already knew the answer.

"The consciousness inside Sookie... the one that now knows herself only as Bella... who is she?"

"She is my love," Preston said quietly. "And she is your sister."

TBC