Chapter 17 - Nowhere and Everywhere

"Holy shit, Sookie!" Jason says. "How…I mean, shit."

I nod at the phone looking over at Eric. "I know it is all kinds of weird."

"Sookie, weird doesn't cover it." He says. I had just finished telling him about we have learned and more specifically about Hadley. "This is fifty kinds of crazy. She really doesn't know who she is? I mean, she isn't faking it or anything?"

"I don't think, Jason. I mean, I did get a sense at one point that she knew who I was. But then she slipped right back into her delusion."

"Sookie, she really thinks she's you?" He asks. "Why would she? I mean after all these years. It isn't like she couldn't have known who she was and who you were. I can't believe we all didn't recognize her."

"Jason, we were little when we last saw her. I didn't see the resemblances until I saw the picture of her with Linda. She is very good at the impersonation stuff."

"Sookie, it sounds like she's a chameleon. What did the doctor say?"

I sigh and move over the bed where Eric has been sitting and listening to the conversation. "Not much. There are laws and right now she's the ward of the state. He did say she's delusional and it stems back to something in her youth. But that's all he said."

"Isn't there anything we can do?" He asks. "I mean, I know she's knee deep in all this shit that Bill did. But she is family. Maybe we can do something. I don't know, go to court and become her guardians or something. That way we can help with her treatment. They did say this is treatable, right?"

I smile. Because this is the exact same thing I was thinking about. Jason loves with his whole heart. Even with all the trouble, he sees that Hadley needs her family. Even if she doesn't know who that family is.

"I talked to Laf when we hit town. He's going to talk to Hadley's attorney." I say.

"How did she get an attorney?" He asks.

"Good question. I don't know. Laf is going to try and find out. But she wasn't very forthcoming with the information."

"Sook," he says softly. "You be careful. I got a really bad feeling about that. I mean, Hadley gets caught impersonating you. Bill is in the hospital from some kind of car wreck. You said the hospital got shot up and now Hadley has some fine lawyer?"

He isn't saying anything that I didn't say to myself. All of this just doesn't make sense. I sigh. "I know. I think it may have been Victor or Remy, well whatever. I think he was trying to get to Hadley but didn't get a chance."

"Are the cops looking for him?" He asks.

"Yeah, but he hasn't been back to his house or office. No one has seen him for some time. I don't know, Jason. If this guy has been with Hadley for years, he's good at making himself disappear. I don't know if they'll ever find him."

Eric pulls me into him and rests my head on his chest. This day has been most trying.

"You…Sookie, God, I hate not being there." He says softly.

"Jas, Crystal and the girls need you there. I've got Eric with me. He'll make sure I'm alright. I promise."

He sighs again. "I know." He is silent for a moment.

"Jason?" I ask. "Are you still there?"

"Sookie, how…how did Hadley look?"

I am silent for a moment. "It was scary, Jason. She looked, sounded and behaved like me. I mean, she didn't really look like me but," I pause. "It was like looking in a very weird mirror. It was me, but not me."

He is quiet for a moment and then speaks. "You think it would help if she saw me?" He asks.

"I…I don't know. But we aren't going to think about that. You need to stay with Crystal. I am going to try and see her again before we leave. I'll ask the doctor then. He wasn't too keen on me seeing her. I'm really not sure if I helped or hurt the situation. Bu then again, the doctor isn't talking so how the hell should I know."

"Okay, Sookie," he says. "Call me when you get anymore news and please, please whatever you do, stay close to Eric. He'll keep you safe. I would rather you get the hell out of dodge down there. But I know you. You will do what you got to do."

"Thanks, Jason." I say to him.

"I…I'm glad you got Gran's letter. At least that is good news." He says.

I sniffle back. "Yeah, it is."

"Okay, call me after you hear from the DA or get any more information on Hadley. I love you."

I tell him I love him and we hang up.

"You okay, baby?" Eric asks me as he pulls me closer to him.

I nod into his chest. "Yeah, I guess." I say. "It's a lot to take in."

"I know, but I was so proud of you." He kisses the top of my head.

I look up into his beautiful blue eyes. "Even though you didn't want me to see Hadley."

"Sookie, it wasn't that I didn't want you to see her. It was just…."

"Just what?" I ask.

"It was just…Sookie, she is so unstable. I was afraid of you getting hurt."

"But the guards…"

He puts a finger to my mouth to stop me. "That isn't the only hurt I was thinking about. Sookie, she is delusional. She is in a lot of pain for some reason and I know you. I'm sure seeing her like that was no picnic."

He's right. I did pain me to see Hadley like that. Okay, a little creepy too. But it was really sad. Something happened to my cousin. Okay, a lot of things happen to my cousin. What they could have been to have her close herself away that way.

"I'm not sure if Hadley is in there anymore." I say softly.

He pulls me closer still. "It may take years for her to find herself again. When they do, she's going to be one scared little girl."

I nod again. "I know."

***0***

Bill's POV

I hear the door open and look over to see who it is. Not that I care, really. The only people that have visited are the doctors and nurses. Hell, my own parents haven't shown up. Carter told them to stay away and they are. Hell, like rats abandoning a ship. That is exactly what I am, a sinking ship. If I could only get out of here and handle things, it would be better. But no one seems to think that's possible. I can't walk, I can't manage a wheel chair, so here I sit. Waiting for the lifeboat that I know damn well will never come.

I watch the door swing wide as Leslie Houke walks through the door. He puts on his used car salesman smile and looks at me. "How are we feeling, Mr. Compton?" He asks.

I huff. "How the fuck do you think I feel?" I growl at him. "The ride over here was insane. I think the ambulance driver hit every goddamn pot hole from here to the state line. The nurses are unsympathetic and the doctor that has been assigned to me won't give me a straight answer about anything."

"Well, I will have a talk to the doctor to see what I can do." He says to me. "As for the nurses, well, I'm sorry about that." He shrugs.

I wave him off with my good hand. "Doesn't matter. Do you have any news for me?" I ask him.

He sits down and takes a few times out of his briefcase.

"The DA's office wants to make a deal." He says.

I smirk. "Of course they do. They have nothing that will hold up in court and they think they can get me to plea out."

"Oh, I assure you, Bill," he says. "They have plenty to convict you. The only thing that would save you is if Ms. Stackhouse admitted to knowing you were taking money out of her account." He says.

I smile. "I can get Sookie to say that." Of course I could. She is mine, after all.

He shakes his head. "I'm afraid not," he says. "There is a restraining order on you. You can't come within a hundred feet of her. Besides, her attorney is the one that brought the information to light."

"What are you talking about? I'm her attorney." I say to him.

Shaking his head, he tells me what happened at the firm and the restraining orders against me and my whole family.

I'm silent for a few minutes. "How..How could my father just allow them to take files?" I ask.

He shrugs. "They had the warrants. There was nothing he could have done. But regardless, if Ms. Stackhouse would testify that she gave you the money. There is a little situation that won't be overlooked."

I wait for him to continue. "Bill, my sources around town say that a woman went into the bank and tried to impersonate Ms. Stackhouse. You know anything about that?" He asks.

"What happened?" I ask him.

He shrugs again. I'm really starting to hate that. "All I know is someone went into the bank and tried to withdraw her money. Somehow, they knew it wasn't the real Ms. Stackhouse and she was taken down to the precinct. Is there anything you need to tell me? Because the ADA will be here any moment and if I know her, she will use this information to give us a longer plea."

I shake my head. "If they have this woman than we can argue that I had nothing to do with the situation. They have been stealing from Sookie not…"

He shakes his own head. "I don't think so. If my source is right, she's already implicated you."

Lorena, that stupid bitch. She played me again. Fuck is she trouble.

"What else do you know?" I ask him.

He opens a file folder and reads it. "No, that's it. My little birdie didn't know anymore."

I nod. Well at least it isn't as bad as it seems.

I'm about to ask another question when there is a knock at the door. Houke gets up to let them in. As the door opens, I see the ADA standing there with a smile on her face. One that reminds me of the Cheshire cat from Alice in Wonderland.

She walks in and stands at the foot of the bed. "Good afternoon, Mr. Compton. You in the mood to let's make a deal?"

I lean back on my pillow and sigh. Yes, definitely a sinking ship. Well what do you do when a ship is sinking? You grasp at anything to stay afloat. Up, I'm not going down without a fight.

***0***

EPOV

I wanted to keep Sookie in the room all night. Hell, if I'm honest, I wanted to wrap us in a bubble and hide us away. She has been through so much and I just want her to have time to regroup. But in true Sookie, the Sookie I know form, she isn't willing to do that.

"We have to meet up with Laf and Amelia." She says with a sigh.

"Don't you want to get some rest?" I ask her. "You have had a hard morning and I know you barely slept last night."

"I know. But we still have things to do. Laf said Ana was going to come by after she met with Bill and I want to know if she found out anything about Hadley."

"Honey," I say. She turns around and looks at me. "I know you feel, I don't know, responsible for Hadley. But right now you have a lot on your plate. Maybe it would be best to let the attorneys handle her while we get the rest sorted out."

"I understand what you're saying. I agree to a point. But there is just something about all this. I mean, when did she get a lawyer. How did she get a lawyer? It isn't like she is lucid enough to call one. I've never seen the Hampton woman before. She doesn't work for Bill's firm. Not that I would expect him to get her an attorney, but still."

She touches the side of my face. "I know what she did. Or rather, what they think she's done. I know what she's done to me. But I can't help it. The person who did all those things wasn't Hadley. I don't remember much, but I do remember her being sad all the time."

"Sookie, wasn't she mean to you?" I ask her.

She shrugs. "Looking at it with these eyes," she points to herself. "Maybe it was a cry for help. Regardless, she's family. Gran is probably rolling in her grave and fretting right now. If she was here, she would demand to be in charge of Hadley's care. You can believe that. She would be so angry with herself for not looking hard enough for her after we thought she ran from foster care."

I'm not going to get her to change her mind, that I'm sure of. I nod. "Okay, but please don't you have a lot going on with this Bill stuff. You take first priority." I touch her nose.

She smiles. "I've got you to remind me of that, now don't I?" She kisses me softly and we climb out of the bed to get cleaned up.

Twenty minutes later, we are descending the stairs to the parlor. My mother wanted Sookie and I to stay at the apartment they keep in the city. Sookie and I decided that it would be best for us to stay in a hotel. That is until the Governor called and offered Sookie his home. He and his wife wouldn't be coming in until tomorrow but that wasn't a big deal. The house was what I would consider a mini mansion. I would guess that there are so many rooms that if we did not wish to see anyone, we wouldn't.

I had been to the Governor's Mansion in Baton Rouge several times over the year. The only reason the Gala is being hosted in New Orleans this year is because of renovations that are going on at the Mansion. I had bid on the project but my expertise lies more with the building than in the renovating. A more experienced firm got the project, which I'm rather happy about. If I had gotten the bid, I would have been in Baton Rouge and wouldn't have met Sookie. They say everything happens for a reason. I'm beginning to believe that.

When we reach the parlor, we find Amelia and Lafayette both typing away at their computers. When we enter, they both look up.

"Anything?" Sookie asks.

"Ana hasn't called yet. I did find out a few things about Hampton though." He says.

We both sit down.

"Sookie," Lafayette says. "Have you met all of Bill's friends?"

She shakes her head. "I wouldn't know. But I don't think he had many. I mean, he didn't go over to someone's house and watch a game or anything." The thought of Compton palling around with anyone is a real foreign concept for me. "I mean, we would go to dinner from time to time with a colleague. But that was it."

Laf nods. "Did you ever meet Victor?" He asks her.

"Once or twice. He didn't come around very much on account him and Lorena, well Hadley were divorced."

"Okay, well…." He pauses and then continues. "Jocelynn Hampton works for a firm that Victor used to work for. Well worked for up until two years ago." He says.

"But he doesn't work there now?" I ask him.

Laf shakes his head. "No, but doesn't mean anything. Jocelynn is doing this Pro Bono." He says.

"But when did she find out about this case?" I ask him.

He shakes his head. "I don't know. I did contact her to discuss having you and Jason become Hadley's guardians. You did talk to him?"

Sookie nods. "Yeah, he feels the same way I do."

"Good, but it may not do any good. Jocelynn stated that because you are directly involved with the case, it wouldn't be advantageous for her client if you were her guardian." He huffs. "I can smell the stank of that woman from here. There is a reason she doesn't want you or Jason near here. I know that she didn't even want you to see her again. But I told her that unless she gets a restraining order of if the doctor advises against it, she can't keep you away."

"Do you think she'll do that?" Sookie asks.

He shrugs. "I don't know. We need to know who hired her and we ain't getting that information from her."

"Sookie," Amelia says. "I think we may need help in all of this." She says. "Maybe we should hire a private investigator?"

Sookie looks at all of us. "I…I thought that Ana was taking care of everything?" She asks.

"She is taking care of the legal stuff. But Sookie, she has to go by it legally." Laf says with an eye to me. I understand what he's says.

"Sookie," Amelia calls to her again. "Hon, we need to know who has been posting that stuff on line about you and Eric." She says.

Sookie sighs and looks at me. "What do you think?" She asks.

"It wouldn't hurt. Ana has a lot on her plate right now. Finding out who is funding Hadley's defense will not be priority unless it is effecting the trial."

"Sookie, I'm not sure that Ana and Frank will even be able to prosecute her." Laf says. "Clearly she is not aware of her actions nor can she legally be held responsible. All they will need is a taped interview with her to know that she is not all there."

"That's an understatement." Sookie huffs. "Okay, but I want someone you all trust. I don't want just anyone sneaking around."

Amelia smiles. "Don't worry, Sookie. We'll take care of it."

She nods. "Okay, what should we do?"

We decide since there is nothing we can do until we hear from Ana, we'll get out and enjoy the city.

Taking Sookie's hand, we walk out into the sun to enjoy the day.

****0****

Ana's POV

"You're serious?" I ask the man lying in the bed.

"I am very serious, MsMason. Those are my demands. If they are met, then I will meet with you and the DA and we can discuss a plea. Until then, I'm saying nothing."

"Mr. Compton, I can't agree to this. It is out of my authority to guarantee this."

He smirks at me. "Well, I would suggest you make the appropriate phone calls and make it happen. Otherwise, I will take my chances with the courts."

I turn to look at Houck. "You can't honestly think that you could win?" I ask him.

"No," Compton answers for him. "But while I'm in court, Sookie, my family, that damn foundation, Lorena and even Victor will either be dragged through the mud or left to deal with a whole lot of shit. I'm not going down alone. I'll bring everyone down with me if I have to."

"Mr. Compton," I say softly. "The only one that is in the wrong here is you." I say to him. "I assure you we have enough evidence."

He laughs. The son of a bitch actually laughs. "You think I give a rat's ass about your evidence?"

"Well, then what about your family? You really want them to suffer through this?" I ask him.

He waves his good hand around. "You really think they care? They aren't here, are they? I can't afford to worry about them now. Look bottom line," he says and sighs. I'm not sure if the sigh is just a sigh or in pain. "This is what I want. In turn, I'll meet with you and the DA. I'm telling you, you make this good, you'll be getting a lot bigger fish to fry than me." He smiles again.

I shake my head as I put my papers back into my briefcase. "I'll try, but I can't make any promises." I say to him.

"Make this happen, Ms. Mason. If you do, you might actually be the next DA." He says to me.

"You think the information you have is that good?" I ask him.

He smirks. "I'm sure you can judge for yourself."

I look from him back to Houke. "I will call you when I have some news."

"You do that Ana." He says.

I get up and walk out before I say another thing. Houke walks out behind me. As soon as the door closes, I turn toward Leslie. "You know what he's talking about?" I ask.

He shakes his head. "I can honestly say I haven't a clue. Not a minute before you showed up, I told him about Ms. Ball trying to get the money out of the bank."

"What do you know?" I ask him.

"Only that she was brought in for questioning. What else is there to know?"

I look him up and down. "If or when that information becomes pertinent to our case, I'll let you know."

"You know you can't withhold evidence. Fuck, Ana, I know I'm not one of the fine upstanding attorneys from uptown. But even I know that."

I shake my head. "It isn't evidence." I say to him.

"Then where is Ms. Ball?" He asks. "Are you planning on trying them together or separately?"

I smile again. He knows nothing. "Why would we be doing either?"

"Ana don't screw with me. Just tell me what he's looking at."

"I'm not sure we have a deal," I motion for the door. "Does he honestly think I'm going to be able to pull this off?"

"I don't think what he's asking is unreasonable." He says.

I blink at him. "Are you serious? He is asking to meet with her. He wants time alone. That means a violation of a restraining order." I say to him.

"Not if she agrees to this. Come now, Ana. It is every person's right to face his accuser. There is no way for him to come to the courtroom. All he's asking is….."

"He wants to try to manipulate her again. I'm not going to let that happen. If she comes, she's coming with an entourage. He won't be alone with her." I raise an eyebrow to him.

He sighs. "I know that and you know that. I'm not sure my client knows that."

"Make him know it, Houke. I'm not letting him get his claws into that girl again." I say and turn to walk down the hall.

"Call us to set up a time, Ms. Mason." He says to my back. I don't respond.

How the fuck am I going to pull this one off.

***0***

Victor's POV

"It's just a flesh wound." She says to me as she tapes up my shoulder. I wince. It might be a flesh wound but it fucking hurts.

"Never mind that. What did you find out?" I ask her.

She sighs. "You aren't going to like it." She says.

"Just fucking tell me." I yell at her.

"You don't have to yell at me." She whines.

Spinning around, I pull her by the hair. She winces again. "Tell…me…what…you…found…out." I say to her slowly so she understands every word.

"She…she's nuts Victor." She says.

I growl. "What?"

"She's been moved to a facility outside the city. Shit, I thought she was playing but she's not. The…the…" she pauses again.

"WHAT!" I scream at her.

"Victor, do you know who she is?" She asks.

"Of course I know who she is." I say. "Her name is Rena we met…."

She shakes her head. "Her name is Hadley Moffit." She says. I release her hair. I look down to see the file she's holding.

"Who the fuck is Hadley Moffit?" I ask as I take the file.

"Hadley Moffit is Sookie Stackhouse's cousin." She says.

I look at the papers in front of me when her words come out of her mouth. I slowly look up. "What?" I ask.

She nods. "She is really nuts."

I look back at the file and read a few of the notes.

"I…I don't understand." I say.

She shrugs. "She is being observed and is under psychiatric care. But Victor, she…"

I look at her as she sighs. "She really thinks she's Sookie Stackhouse."

Well fuck my life.

I pick up my phone. I haven't been checking messages and I know that I need to do that before I change phones. Now, I'm sure that I'll need to get the hell out of dodge. If Lorena or Rena, hell Hadley is this fucked up, there is no telling what she told the cops. Shit, I can't be here for much longer.

The third message stops me short.

Beep

"I know what you did. Prepare yourself. I'm coming for a visit."

Beep

"What's wrong?" She asks.

I shake my head. I really need to get out of here now.

***0***

SPOV

Our weekend has been really nice. Okay, maybe not all nice. But it was nice. Ana had called late in the evening on Friday and said that she needed to speak with me first thing Monday. We had offered to meet up with her Saturday morning, but she that there were a few things she had to do before our meeting.

I had tried to go back to see Hadley Saturday morning. But the doctor said it wasn't a good time. When I went up on Sunday, they were trying her on some medication. Evidently Hadley was in a manic state all day Saturday and barely slept. When I saw her, she wasn't lucid and didn't ever respond to me being in the room. The doctor assured me that she wasn't being harmed in anyway and everything was being documented and made available to her attorney.

I didn't want to get into it with him that I really didn't trust her attorney. For all I knew, he was working for the same person that hired Ms. Hampton. So I kept my thoughts to myself. I did tell him that we would be leaving in a few days and that I would like to be kept in the loop with her condition.

He was surprised at my request but agreed to call me. I did mention having Jason come. He agreed that now may not be the right time. They were still uncertain what caused her manic state and was not ruling out seeing me.

Amelia hadn't said a word about the private detective but I'm sure she's working on it. Amelia is one that doesn't let things just lie around. I'm sure she took the bull by the horns and has someone on it already.

Saturday night, we spent having a casual dinner with Niall and some of his associates. It was light and nice.

Sunday, Pam surprised us by showing up early. We were supposed to meet Abby for brunch so it was perfect. Niall suggested that Laf and Eric join him for a round of golf. So it ended up being just us ladies. If the media wanted a picture that would have been it. We got more than several head turns when we walked into the Brennan's. If the high society didn't know I was in town before, they would know then.

Sunday night, was spent was dinner at the Northman's apartment. Which turned out not to be an apartment but a two story condo on the canal. It was breathtaking. Pam and Amelia joined Eric, Abby and I. But Eric's father still hadn't made an appearance. No one had asked about him so I left it alone.

***0***

Ana had asked us to meet her in her office first thing. It was a good thing too, because we were meeting the board at ten and I really didn't want to be late. Amelia and Pam decided to take off early and Lafayette was going to stay around just in case I needed him. I appreciated it as I'm sure Eric did.

As we walked in, I could tell that Ana was anxious. Frank just looked pissed.

"Sookie," Frank says. "Thank you for coming in this morning. There are a few things we would like to discuss with you."

I nod and take a seat on the couch. Eric follows me and takes my hand in his.

In all the time that we've spent with both of these people, I've never seen them look so out of place. Like they aren't comfortable in their own skins.

"What's going on?" I ask.

"Sookie," Frank begins. "Ana had a meeting with Compton on Friday."

I nod. I knew this already. She was confident that he was going to take the plea.

"Well," Frank looks to Ana and then back at me. "Sookie, there is more going on than just what's happening to you." He says. "It is my duty to make sure I give equal consideration to all issues that are brought before and thus make sometimes difficult decisions."

My heart sinks into my stomach. "Yo…your…what?" I can't think. I get a very strange feeling that they are going to drop the charges.

"Sookie," Ana says. "Compton is willing to take the plea. He also has information regarding a very large drug racket that we've been trying to shut down for years."

"How the hell would Bill know about a drug ring?" I ask them.

"We are not at liberty to discuss that matter and I'm sure you can appreciate that." Frank says.

"Well, if Bill is going to accept the plea, why are we here?" Lafayette says.

Ana looks from him to me. "Bill will accept the plea agreement. He will allocute and give us the information he has. But he had one request."

I don't like the sound of this. "What?" I ask softly.

Ana looks at Frank who sighs. "Compton wants to see you."

I'm about to say something when Eric and Lafayette both jump up. "NO FUCKING WAY!"