A/N: For all you American's out there Happy Independence Day. If you're British...well...just enjoy the story anayway. LOL...If you're not amused please don't be offended. I'm not often as funny as I think I am. :D

Chapter 16

Finish Line

When night came, Angus arrived and he had a lyre in hand. Sookie tried to take it from him, but he hissed and clutched it to his chest. This was getting old. He had proven to be unstable, unreliable, disloyal, and a complete prick. I had no idea why we hadn't killed him yet. I was ready to beat the shit out of him until he gave us what we needed.

"No," Sookie said, pulling my arm. "He isn't dangerous unless you steal from him."

I raised my hands and stepped back. Nothing could be done the easy way it seemed. Sookie gave Angus three more gold coins. We followed him past the main traffic area of the beach, under the docks, and into a ravine that somehow connected the ocean, the sand, and the world above.

"Haur ye ur," the Goblin said, holding out his hand. "Pay me."

Sookie gave him the finger. "I'm not about to buy a knock off, you double-crossing little shit." She hissed. "Let him test the lyre or you can eat cubic zirconium for dinner, and have me kick your ass for breakfast."

Angus let out peeling, cackling laughter. He didn't seem annoyed that his ruse hadn't been easily believed. It was more as if he was pleased with himself for trying it. The golden lyre that he had kept so close to his chest vanished, a worn wooden one took its place, and he offered it to me.

This was an instrument with which I had no experience. It didn't matter. Despite my lack of knowledge, it sang to my touch. In my mind were the chords of a guitar, but as I plucked at the strings of the lyre, it came out as something smoother, softer.

Sookie didn't pay Angus until he made the gateway appear. He dragged his furry green fingers across thin air. It was clear when he reached something solid. He took a hand full of sand and blew it into the night and then she saw a door. He knocked and it opened to reveal a gateway that had risen from the ocean floor. It was almost intangible. It was like glass in the fog, like ice in the rain. The only thing that set it apart was the way the path stood uninfluenced by the rolling tides. I didn't have to tell Sookie that moonlight was burning. We quickly ascended the platform. The last thing we saw was Angus on the ground, dumping all the coins over himself and rolling in them. That just wasn't worth commenting on.

We walked on, and I felt the sights and sounds of the world diminishing one footstep at a time. Looking down, I saw the ocean. Above us was the starry night sky. We were in the middle. Regardless of its frail, evanescent appearance, the walkway was sturdy. As we traveled, the path was fading behind us. We walked on knowing there was no going back. I'd been moving at full speed to battle the coming sunrise. The longer I walked down the path, the more my senses and superhuman abilities dimmed. I'd been slowing considerably and was now moving at little more than human speed. I couldn't even see as far as I normally could.

It was just me, walking the deserted and magical path. Sookie was in my arms and she had been there for at least an hour, fast asleep. I couldn't gauge how far we had traveled or how much longer we had to go. I knew we were close when the translucent terrain began forming bleeding out and resembling a dirt road. I could have been walking the English countryside several centuries ago. Shrubs began sprouting, there were moss covered rocks, and willow trees began to line the path.

"Never has a child of the night crossed my bridge," a voice called. It sounded as though it was reverberating through every leaf and stone around me. This had to be none other than Fossegrimen. "I wonder if you will bring joy to my ears or if I will eat you up."

Fucking Angus! He hadn't said what would happen if we had failed to play a ballad and we had been too desperate to ask.

"Is there anything in particular you wish to hear?" I asked calmly.

In response, a spectral figure appeared before me. He wasn't a ghost. While his form was clear, frail but it was also appeared solid, much like the ground had been.

"You are beautiful," he said, bringing his face close to mine. I knew it was meant to make me squirm, but I didn't flinch. "It pleases me and so you may play what you wish."

I would be fool to see it as a pass, more as if he was setting me up to fail. Not only would I have to play exceptionally well, I had to choose a song that he liked. Having no information on him, I had no idea how to go about that. It didn't matter, the instrument I had couldn't fail. It instilled me with all the confidence I needed.

Sookie was still asleep, and I did my best not to jolt her as I settled down to the floor. Her head was tucked in the crook of my neck and her sleeping form was sprawled across my lap. As gently as I could I eased Sookie off me. Ever so slightly, she whimpered from the loss of contact. I murmured to her and rubbed the mark on her back. Her tense posture eased at my touch, but I thought she was much too tired to wake in her usual fashion.

I watched Sookie as she settled. I looked ahead to where the ethereal figure was seated awaiting his ballad. Then I blotted out everything else but the strum of the strings and me. There was no audience. I closed my eyes and played. I played The Sound Of Silence. It wasn't a particular favorite or anything, but it had been popular during its time and was easy to recall. I opened my eyes and found Fossegrimen with his legs crossed and gaping at me. There was a far off contemplative expression on his face. It was like someone tasting something new to see how it appealed to his or her palate. I knew if he didn't like it, the next thing he would taste was me.

"That rendition was enchanting; sad, sweet, and hopeful. It so clearly illustrates that to live is to suffer," he said, "but the instrument is not yours, and so the talent is not your own. I know 'The Lyre of Orpheus' when I hear it."

I didn't let it show, but in my head I was thinking, fuck me.

"However," he said, moving closer. "You are so very beautiful." He reached his hand out to caress my face. It was like having a cool breeze settle on that side of my face. "Make me feel what you feel when she is with you," he said, glancing down at the sleeping woman next to me. "I want to feel it."

He was a fucking ghost, and I had no idea how I was supposed to make him feel otherwise. Already I knew I would have to do it. I repressed a sigh.

"How do I do that?" I asked.

"Kiss me," he said, coming to kneel in front of me. "Kiss me, make it true, and I will let you pass."

I kept Sookie where she was and if she minded this, then she could come up with a better solution. Experimentally, I raised my hand to his face to see if he was solid and he was. The texture was smooth like marble and soft as a cloud. He leaned into my touch. I've seen many things, but it seemed that since I met this woman, my list of impossible was shrinking at an alarming rate.

There were many things I'd done during my long existence. Locking lips with a ghostlike being with my lover lying beside us was definitely a new one. Then again, how much more bizarre was it than being mated, branded and meeting a Goblin that was like 'Oscar The Grouch' with a crack addiction.

I'd had male lovers, but that had been by choice. This was nothing like that. I found that it didn't matter. There was nothing on my mind but saving my mate. The way to it came to mind was because it was what she needed. The face and the foreign feel vanished. I was just seeing Sookie. I no longer had to repress the urge to taste her lips had this been her. I leaned in and I brushed my lips against his as he stood utterly still. He was clearly waiting to feel something that was probably not going to happen, at least not without his cooperation.

I pulled away and tucked a strand of light hair behind his ear. "When I kiss her, she kisses me," I said. "That's what makes me feel like I do, knowing she wants me like I want her."

He seemed to have to consider my words. Then he nodded. "I will do as you do."

I nodded. "That should work."

I tried again and this time he moved with me. He moaned and the deeper our kiss became, the more solid he became. Like the road, his translucent appearance fell away. Jet-black hair, one green eye, and one brown eye looked back at me. His build was slim and his skin was tawny. He was in white drawstring pants, his chest and feet were bare. I pulled away slowly.

He was smiling and looking himself over. "I enjoyed that," he said. Then he looked over my head in the direction in which I'd just come. "If you will oblige me again, I will deny entry to those that are on my bridge in pursuit of you now."

The next time I saw that little shit, I was going to rip his ears off. If someone had managed to trace our steps to this precise location, it was because Angus had sold us out for the shiniest piece of gold or silver he had been offered. I knew I should have killed him. I looked down at Sookie and the peaceful sleep she was enjoying. Nothing would grieve me more than to wake her. Therefore, I kissed him again. He just better not be expecting me to call him in the morning.

Satisfied, Fossegrimen lifted Sookie off the ground with a flourish of his hand and mine were open to receive her. She didn't stir and I was grateful. Then he waved me past that was when I saw the Sin Eaters walking up the bridge. There were twelve of them. Preston wasn't in the lineup. It made me wonder if Sookie had reached him or if he was still recovering. The only one I did recognize was the burly one whose teeth I'd rearranged. By the look on his face, he recognized me. I smiled. He had come so close, but was yet so far.

"Handsome child of the night, go left," Fossegrimen said, waving at me. He pointed at the Sin Eaters, "Go right."

"We have a ballad for serenading you," one of the fairies said, "Any of your choosing."

"Go right," Fossegrimen repeated, "Or go back."

The threat was obvious because there was no back. I didn't take the time to see how it ended. I took the turn hastily, and by my third footfall, I was in the one place I wanted to be. By the placement of the moon, only an hour had passed since first dark in California. In fact, I'd gained more hours in the night, not lost them. Ten more minutes and I would have us in a whole other world. I was grateful Sookie was asleep. She didn't see me make out with a ghost. She didn't see the danger that had come so close. Mostly I was glad she had stayed asleep because I knew she needed it.

Kahoolawe was the smallest of the eight islands of Hawaii. The deserted island was more of a reserve. Officially, the population was zero because there was no fresh water. It was where Americ was located. Americ was named for its two main inhabitants, my maker, Godric and his witchy wife, Amelia.

The most basic skill any witch possessed was to ward homes from danger. Amelia had taken it to a completely new level. She had her home so well protected that over time it became a world within this world. It was undetectable to all the senses, physical or spiritual. It wasn't just their haven, it was their paradise. There was no danger or intrusion from the outside world. If Sookie was safe no other place in the world, she would be safe here.

If anyone were watching my movements, it would appear as though I was dancing through the cratered path that circled an inactive volcano. In reality, the steps were the only ways to have a doorbell appear. Even if she had been able to handle the five-mile hike, Sookie wouldn't have been able to walk the path. It was engineered to be clear to four people and she wasn't one of them. If she tried, she would be walking around in circles until she gave up or until she died from fatigue.

When I stepped on the last rock, the platform rose. I bit my finger and traced the symbol that was etched into the marble. Suddenly the air shimmered and a door appeared. The air wasn't acerbic. The darkness of the land wasn't dense. It was the middle of the day but my skin didn't burn. It was a stark contradiction. Behind me, there was nothing but barren wasteland. Yet, directly in front of me lay a completely new world that was bursting with color.

This was how Americ always looked. The sights and sounds of spring were in the air. Hawaiian Flora's of every color were in a full bloom. A light breeze blew the pleasant mix of flowers in my face. It was always spring here, the flowers were always in bloom, and sun wasn't lethal to her vampire. I could hear the river in the distance rushing over the falls. There was nothing but rolling hills, green grass, and meadows that were overflowing with trees bearing fruit and songbirds perched up high.

I saw the double doors of the white castle open. I didn't have to, but I never saw as Godric moved from that door and stood before me. Looking at him from the human viewpoint, there was no way he would pass for two thousand years old. He had been younger than I had when he had been turned. Once I'd asked him but he didn't know exactly. Eighteen was his guess. He looked younger with his close cut dark hair, boyish looks, and slight frame. He smiled at me and looked at the sleeping woman in my arms. He shook his head.

"There better be a good reason for this," he said, shaking his head. "Otherwise Lia might turn you into something quite foul."

"I'm thinking newt or toad," his wife said, from a distance. Even from the distance, I could see her peeved expression and hear the fury in her tone. "Bringing a stranger here, have you lost your mind?"

"If you wake her up with your harping, I'll torch your broomstick," I replied.

Did she really have a broomstick? I thought so, though I've never seen it. I only assumed because it pissed her off. Both of them knew that I would never bring someone here if I didn't trust them. They couldn't help but worry because my record of accomplishment wasn't great.

The last woman I found love with had massacred half a village, and I took the blame just so she could leave me. I understood their worry. This was different. This was a place not even my ex-wife knew of. If not for the mating marks, I never would have brought Sookie here.

It was confusing. I was caught between extreme drowsiness and feeling refreshed. I fought it. There was nothing wrong with me. It was a great idea on Amelia's part. Godric got to enjoy what it was like to walk under the sun, no matter how fake it was. Like Amelia, he would sleep when the moon rose, although it was really backward. Here in Americ, day was night and night was day. Therefore, while the sun was setting here, it was rising in the real world. The effects weren't as strong, but the lethargy was there. It was just too soon for my body to adjust.

While my mate rested, I told my maker and his wife the very long and confusing tale of how I came to be here. When I was finished speaking my audience was wearing the same dumbfounded expression.

"So…let me get this straight," Amelia said. "The Fae have been orchestrating a plan to take over the universe and they created these not really human but not really Fae hybrids called Sin Eaters. And you unknowingly mated with one, who us like Queen Sin Eater?"

"God Killer," I corrected sipping a blood. "The Pythoness says, she has hell in one eye and heaven in the other. The fairies we ran into confirmed it but they explained that Niall needs her blood to force the gateways open on the next solar eclipse."

Godric walked behind me and moved my shirt to the side as to get a better look at the mating mark. He poked it and sniffed at it. "She did this to you but it does not cause you pain, it ties her life to yours?"

I shook my head. "The marks are involuntary. They appear on powerful Sin Eaters to insure that only they can breed amongst each other."

He frowned in confusion. "She chose you because…?"

She chose me to scratch an itch and I obliged her gladly but she would have never looked back if not for the marks and I thought I would have. I felt like my presence was forced on her and she didn't really want it. Then again, I too felt forced. I shrugged my instant annoyance away because I had no idea why I was irritated.

"She said, she didn't want to mate, she didn't want a child."

They both blinked at as if I just grew a second head. "You knocked up a God Killer?" Amelia with a shake of her head.

I didn't have the energy to remind her that I've been dead for centuries. They should know that the child obviously isn't mine.

"Your life is tied to hers?" Godric asked. That was all he cared about but he need not worry.

"No," I said rubbing my shoulder. "The marks let us know how to care and provide for one another."

I still believed it had some sway over my emotion but I didn't voice that point of contention to Godric.

"The red portion harms us for harming each other. The green one will glow in the presence of danger and will not allow us to part while the threat persists. Blue is 'Lovers' Eternal'."

That was why we couldn't have sex, for fear of triggering that aspect of the mark.

"It hasn't shown its self." I concluded, and I hoped like hell it never would.

Amelia prepared something for Sookie to eat but I insisted on bringing it up to her. The last thing I needed was for her to attack Amelia, no matter how much she deserved it.

As I was entering the room, I saw Sookie begin to whimper in her sleep, I saw her body tense. I wasn't close to her, and by the time I could get there she had already sprung awake, like coils that were wound too tightly. More and more, I found myself wanting to ask her why. I wanted to know what haunted her so much. I shook the thought aside. It didn't matter. We would go our separate ways soon enough.

"Dinner," I said, when I saw the cold look in her eyes fade. "Amelia cooked so I'm sure it tastes as bad as it smells."

Sookie tilted her head to the side. At the same time, I heard Amelia make a noise of irritation. "Stay out of my head," she barked.

Sookie turned red and she looked contrite. "Sorry," she yelled back. "Force of habit."

"It's okay," she yelled back.

You would have thought they were the best of friends. Amelia let the invasion go and that was it. The first time we met, I confused her for a teenage boy. She thought me to be a particularly large Amazonian. Over a century later and we were still calling each other names.

Amelia was somewhat human, but she was immortal, though not vampire or a deity. From what Godric had told me she sustained her life by taking the time others had left. She was selective in those she stole from. Her targets weren't those who were simply unfortunate or young. She took the life force of people that the world could do without.

Sookie gave me a questioning look. It was then that I realized that though I had told her where we were going, I never told her with whom we would be staying. She had easily trusted me with her safety and asked no questions. I simply hadn't wanted to talk about anything deeper than what we faced.

"That is Amelia," I explained. "She is the wife of my maker, Godric. You will meet them later."

Sookie's stomach rumbled and I had the tray on her lap before she could reach for it. The more time I spent around her, the less control I had over shows of affection or acts of thoughtfulness. It was odd that our movements seemed coordinated. It went beyond wanting to make sure she was within arm's reach so I could feel that she was safe. It was a stronger pull that tied blood bound couples. It was beyond electric. There was a constant back and forth like satellites, relaying information. We revolved around each other.

When Sookie moved beyond my radar, I moved to compensate without thinking about it. It was so strong that I took notice even when I wasn't in the same room. It wasn't an overwhelming compulsion or strong emotional upheavals as with blood bonds. That unwanted peculiarity was another thing to add to the list of growing pains. I pushed it away.

I had done what I finally set out to do. Sookie would be safe for the duration of her pregnancy. When her child was born, we would go our separate ways. How that would affect the fate of the world, I did not know. Truth be told, I didn't want to think of it. I could disengage from her now, the recent past, and the dark future. While we were here, I could take the space I so desperately needed.

Sookie ate and looked around the room curiously. The home looked like a medieval castle from the outside, but the inside was more like southern plantation home. I had a room here and so did Pam, but I abandoned it for something bigger. It was closer to the main house than I liked, but I couldn't stand having Sookie sleep away from me. If I could help it I would.

"Are you alright now?" I asked her, after she had inhaled her meal.

She nodded with a bright smile that was so her. I went to her and kissed her nose. "I need to sleep," I told her.

She frowned and looked outside. "When night falls here, it's dawn in the real world. When the sun rises here, it's dark out, and so we get to enjoy a semblance of the sun."

"Where is here?" she asked. "Where are we?"

"Americ," I told her, caressing her face. "Nothing and no one from the outside world can touch you here. You are safe now."