Chapter Twelve:

"I'm glad to find you're not gallivanting around town." Eric mused as he came walking into the living room just after the sun had set.

Mackenzie gazed up at the vampire and offered a small smile. "What were you expecting? Some rebel wild child?"

"Well it has been nearly four years." He smirked.

Rolling her eyes, Mackenzie flipped to the next page in her book. Nothing ever changed, Eric thought to himself. She may have aged, she may look deathly sick and have bruises littering her body, but nothing would ever stray Mackenzie from her love of books.

"Speaking of which, we do need to cover some ground rules." Eric's smirk faltered as he crossed the room and sat in the chair opposite of her.

Mackenzie raised an eyebrow but didn't look up from her book. "I know your rules, Eric."

"Things are a bit different now."

Sighing, Mackenzie set her book aside as she turned her attention towards the vampire. From how she sat, Eric was able to see just how skinny Mackenzie had gotten. It was taking all of his will not to demand answers from her. But Pam was right; she needed to come to them. Even if it killed him to wait.

In the meantime, however, Eric had planned on doing a little digging. If there was someone in New York with the audacity to lay a hand on his Mackenzie, then he would find out about it.

"Well…"

Eric shook his head as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "If it were up to me, I wouldn't let you leave this house at all."

"But it is up to you." Mackenzie pointed out.

"But, I understand that you're eighteen now and I can't keep you locked up in the house all the time." It had taken a long discussion with Pam to come to this decision. He really would have been happy to just keep her in the house and completely out of sight while she was here. But Pam reminded him that she was a young adult now, and not having even a hint of freedom wouldn't be fair. He wasn't in the business of being fair. But as he wanted the truth from Mackenzie concerning the bruises, maybe making her happy was the way to go.

Not that he was happy about it.

"I do, however, ask that you are home before dark. I may not be able to stop the dangers during the day, but I can certainly shield you from them at night." Eric sent her a pointed look. "I suppose we could make…arrangements if you do require to go out after dark without Pam or I with you."

"Okay."

"Now I don't want to hear you complaining Mackenzie. I'm being nice here, and you know very well I'm never nice. But you're an adult now and…" realization dawned and Eric's rant halted immediately. "Did you just say okay?"

Mackenzie smiled in amusement. "Yes."

Eric narrowed his eyes suspiciously. He had never gotten her to agree to anything so quickly before. "What are you planning?"

Mackenzie snorted. "I just said I wasn't a wild child." She shook her head and picked her book back up. "I accept your rules, is that so hard to believe?"

"You've always fought me so tooth and nail over everything." He still wasn't sure he believed her. Something had changed about her since he had first sent her off to school. And whatever it was, it had led to those bruises. He was worried she would get caught up in whatever she had there, here.

"I'm not playing you, if that's what you're saying. I get the rules. I understand the rules. You really have nothing to worry about Eric." Mackenzie assured him. She didn't exactly have the strength or will to fight Eric or battle the creepy crawlies lurking in the shadows. She had barely walked around campus after dark while away at school unless she had at least Cassie or other schoolmates with her. She wasn't stupid. He and Pam had practically beaten the reality of vampires and their true natures into her head.

"Fine, but if you…"

"Jesus, Eric!" she let out a puff of air in annoyance. "I'm not going to sneak out to some raging party and get drunk and high! So stop worrying!"

Eric frowned. "Well now you have me worried."

"Oh my god." Mackenzie grunted, catching Eric's gaze. "You raised me right, Eric. I'm not some stupid bimbo who has absolutely no common sense."

You raised me right.

Eric had to fight away the smile at that comment.

"I'll be home before dark, though I doubt I'll leave much anyways." She shrugged, lifting her book. "There's still a corner in the library I haven't read yet."

"Careful, Mackenzie, or soon you'll have read every book in existence." He rolled his eyes, but let himself relax. He knew in his gut that Mackenzie was a good kid.

"I figure I'm close."

He snickered before reaching into his pocket and protruding a key ring. "One other thing."

Mackenzie's nose scrunched up, staring down at her book longingly before glancing back up at him. Her head tilted to the side in curiosity as she caught sight of the key. "What's that?"

He jingled the key before tossing it to her. "That, Mackenzie, is a key."

"Well obviously." She stared at the key in her hand, trying to place what it could open. "But what's it for?"

"Your new car."

Her mouth dropped open, her eyes growing wide as she stared at him as if he had two heads. "I'm sorry, what?"

"You heard me." His smirk returned at her reaction.

"My new car? You bought me a car?" she couldn't believe he, Eric friggin Northman, had bought her a car! This from a man who had made it seem for years that he hadn't given a crap about her. If he really didn't care about her, if he really didn't want her here, he wouldn't have gone to all this trouble, would he?

"You're eighteen now." Eric shrugged. "You'll need a way to get around during the day. I assume you can drive, correct?"

Mackenzie nodded, flabbergasted that he had done this for her. "There was a class at school and Cassie's mom took Cas and I to take the test."

"Just try not to put a dent in it." He advised. "It was expensive."

Her eyes shone. "You really bought me a car?"

"No, I'm giving you a key to nowhere." He rolled his eyes. "Yes, Mackenzie, I bought you a car. It's sitting in the garage as we speak, as long as my day man brought it as I discussed."

He expected her to jump off the couch and dash outside to play with her new toy. But instead, and to his concern, she slowly rose off the couch, having to steady herself once standing. He watched her closely as she moved, noticing the small winces emitting from the girl. Her hand moved to her stomach for only a brief minute before it quickly fell back to her side, almost as if she didn't want him to know something was wrong.

And Eric didn't like that at all.

He wanted to question her. He wanted to demand that she tell him what was wrong. He couldn't take just watching her like this. It was hard to watch. But he knew if he pushed her for information the wrong way, he would lose his chance to know for certain what was wrong.

He just wasn't sure how patient he could be.

"Do I even want to ask why you're here?"

Eric smirked as his orbs zeroed in on the blonde waitress. Her hands were planted firmly on her hips, her lips forming a thin line in disapproval. As he sniffed the air, the sweet scent he remembered filled his nose, causing him to lick his lips. He would love nothing more than to taste Sookie Stackhouse once and for all.

"Eric?" Sookie pulled him out of his thoughts, wary of the hungry look in his eyes. She eyed the booths, but frowned when she realized Bill wasn't there yet. In fact, Merlotte's was nearly dead, which was a surprise for the time of night it was. Even Arlene had taken off early to spend the evening with her kids, while Sam was tucked away in the back working on the books. Lafayette was locked away in the kitchen, music blaring as he concocted next week's special, and Tara had called in sick for tonight's bartending shift.

In essence, she was completely alone with Eric Northman.

How fucked she was just didn't seem to cover it.

"What do you want?" Sookie sighed heavily, her shoulders slumping. She might not have known Eric for long, but she knew him well enough to know this wasn't just a casual meeting. He had come all the way here to Merlotte's for a reason. She just hoped this time, it wouldn't end up in another near death situation.

She was really getting tired of those.

"I'm in need of your assistance." Eric answered vaguely, stepping further into Merlotte's with a scrutinizing glare. Merlotte's was a disgusting little bar that he felt dirty just stepping into. He'd have to shower and redress before taking his usual spot on his throne at Fangtasia. Or else Pam would never let him hear the end of it.

"What for this time?" Sookie narrowed her eyes. She really didn't like where this was going.

"I need information." Eric turned back towards her. "Concerning a human."

"Okay?" she raised an eyebrow. "Can't you just glamour them? I still don't know why you didn't glamour Ginger into telling you about Longshadow."

"Longshadow had already glamoured her, you know that." Eric shrugged. "And I…I cannot glamour her."

"So it's a her then?" Sookie tilted her head to the side, crossing her arms. She would be lying if she said she wasn't intrigued. Not that she liked Eric in any way, or cared about his doings. But there was something about this arrogant ass that caused her curiosity to spike in a way that Bill never did. "Is she like me? Is that why you can't glamour her?"

Eric grit his teeth. He didn't want to get into details. He couldn't. For one, he didn't need humans or vampires to think of him as anything less than the ruthless ruler that he was. They didn't need to know his heart melted for only one individual, and they certainly didn't need to know it was for a human child. But it was also Mackenzie's safety that caused his secrecy. Now more than ever they needed to beware Mackenzie's family. He had kept close tabs on them since they had moved to Dallas to help start the Fellowship of the Sun with the Newlin family. Now with the growth of the anti-church group, Mackenzie was in far greater danger than she ever was before. He couldn't let anyone know she was here, or that she was even alive.

"She's no one of importance." Eric lied. "I'll pay you of course for your services."

"Well I would hope so. And you never answered my question. Why can't you glamour her?" Sookie pressed.

"It doesn't concern you."

"If you want me to work for you, then yeah, it does concern me." Sookie stood her ground. She was tired of being used by not only vampires, but people in general for the curse she had been born with. Just because she was able to hear people's thoughts, didn't mean she wanted to.

Eric's eyes narrowed. "I cannot glamour her because I made a promise that I would not."

"A promise to who?"

"Curiosity killed the cat, Miss Stackhouse." He was tired of these games. "You will assist me, even if I must go through your pathetic boyfriend."

"Just because you're Bill's sheriff, doesn't mean that you can tell me what to do."

Eric strode forward, closing the gap between them. Sookie gulped as her neck craned up to keep their eyes locked, though by the lustful gaze, she wasn't so sure she wanted to stare into those endless blue pits.

"You will do exactly as I tell you to, Miss Stackhouse." Sookie's back was pressed against the bar as his body ever so slightly brushed against hers. He leaned downward until his nose ran along the curve of her bare neck, struggling with his own desires, his own hunger, not to sneak a taste right then and there. She smelt so fucking good.

"You can't bully me." Her voice wavered however, and he knew she would do anything that he asked. He just wasn't sure whether she was intimidated, or aroused. He could smell both fear and something else in the air. That something coming from her lower region.

Smirking, Eric straightened, taking a step back. "I don't need to. You've already decided to assist me."

She didn't say otherwise, choosing to remain silent as she looked away from him, a pink blush flushing her cheeks.

"Good then, glad we sorted that out." He adjusted his leather jacket, turning to leave.

"I'm not going to Fangtasia." Sookie quickly blurted out before Eric could leave. She shuddered as she remembered the last time she had been there. Being covered in Long Shadow's blood and guts wasn't exactly a memory she enjoyed having.

Eric stopped in the doorway, thinking for a moment before gazing at the blonde telepath over his shoulder. "No, I believe it would be best to do this here."

"When?" Sookie wrapped her arms around herself, feeling a chill in the air despite the fact that it was summer in Louisiana. "And what about this girl do you even want to know? It's not like I can read your thoughts, Eric; you need to give me something to go on."

Eric sighed, but knew she was correct. She would never know what to search for if he didn't give her an idea. "I need to know what she's hiding from me."

"If she's smart, probably everything." Sookie muttered to herself while shaking her head.

"I need to know what's wrong with her." Eric explained further. "I need to know why she's…you'll understand in two nights."

Sookie cursed the fact that Eric somehow knew her work schedule. She was hoping she could just avoid him and hope he would leave her alone. But Eric Northman knew everything about everyone. And unfortunately, he seemed to have taken an interest in her.

"Oh and don't bring Bill. We wouldn't want William to spoil all the fun, now would we?" Eric sent Sookie one last smirk before suddenly, he was gone.

Sookie glared at the swinging door. While she hated Eric with every fiber in her being, she couldn't help but be intrigued as to who this girl was and why Eric wanted to know what she was hiding from him. Who was she? And what was she doing around Eric, anyways? She had to be important, despite what Eric insisted, or else he wouldn't be going to such lengths to know what was wrong with her.

What Sookie really couldn't understand, however, was why she felt a twinge of jealousy towards this mystery woman.

"Fucking vampires."

"Why are we going out to dinner?" Mackenzie stood in the front hallway a few nights later with her arm crossed and her eyebrows raised. "Last time I checked, you're vampires; you don't actually eat."

"We eat people." Pam smirked widely, winking at the blonde teen.

Her nose scrunched up in disgust. "Yeah, thanks for that visual."

"No problem, kiddo." Pam snickered before flipping her hair over her shoulder.

"But seriously, why are we going out?" all Mackenzie wanted to do was stay curled up in her bed and finish her novel. All while trying not to vomit every five minutes. Not that she had very much left in her stomach. She had woken up, thinking it would be a good day, wolfing down a hearty breakfast, only to empty her stomach an hour later. And it hadn't stopped. At one point, she had just set up camp in the bathroom, knowing the moment she got comfortable elsewhere, she would just be right back in there. It was getting exhausting.

"Because we are." Eric answered, walking towards them down the hallway from his office. "Stop asking so many questions."

"No." she stood her ground stubbornly. She couldn't understand why tonight of all nights Eric was insisting on some grand family dinner. Not that it was so grand, considering they were going to Merlotte's. She had looked the place up on the internet and was surprised Eric would be caught dead in a small town redneck bar like that. "I'm not even hungry; I don't want to go."

"Well you're going, end of story." Eric frowned as he eyed her closely. She still looked as sickly as she had the other day. She looked like death was creeping up on her, and he didn't like it one bit. He had tried, nonchalantly, to try and get her to tell him what was wrong, but she had become an expert at avoiding his questions. "Are you wearing that? It's Louisiana; you're going to bake."

Mackenzie shrugged, tugging at her zip up sweater's sleeves. She was careful not to let any of her bruises show. She didn't want him or Pam to get suspicious. She should have just told them, she knew that. But she was scared. Not only because she wasn't sure whether they would even care or not, but because the moment she admitted that she had cancer, that she was dying, then it would become all too real.

"I'm fine like this."

Eric and Pam shared a worried look before Eric sighed and shook his head. "Fine. Hurry up, I told Sookie we'd be there by 9."

"Who's Sookie?" Mackenzie tilted her head to the side, her eyes narrowing.

"Just a friend. Are we finished with the questions?"

"I'm not going." Mackenzie shook her head. "I'm not hungry."

"You've barely eaten a thing since you've come home." Eric frowned. "You need to eat, Mackenzie."

"I have been."

"No you haven't. I may be a vampire, but I'm not blind." He scowled. "We're going, Mackenzie. Don't make me drag you to the car, because I will."

She just stood there, daring to stare him right in the eye as if challenging him. She may not be his by blood, but she had taken on one too many of his personality traits. She was too stubborn, too clever for her own good. Any normal girl would be overjoyed to spend time with her family after not seeing them for years. But not Mackenzie. She knew something was up, he could smell her suspicions.

"I'm not going to tell you again." He tried to intimidate her, moving to stand in front of her, towering over her small, frail form that looked as if it were going to break right before his eyes.

But no matter how sick Mackenzie felt, no matter how weak the bones in her body were, she stood there, not backing down.

Eric was impressed, but that didn't mean he was about to lose to an eighteen-year-old child. Eric Northman didn't fucking lose.

Without warning, he just simply swept Mackenzie off of her feet and over his shoulder. She let out a squeal, her arms and legs flailing as she tried to squirm out of his grasps. He tried to ignore how light and bony she was as he carried her out of the house and over to the car.

"Let me down you ass!" She screeched.

"I asked you nicely; you should have listened."

"I hate you!"

"Aw, I love you too sweetheart." He mocked, yanking open the back door to his more conservative mustang, setting her down in the back seat as gently as possible. She was so fragile looking he was afraid to hurt her.

Mackenzie just glared daggers at him as he smirked down at her before slamming the door shut. She let out a scream of frustration, kicking at the front seat angrily.

"If you ruin the interior, you'll be grounded until you're 70." Eric warned as he and Pam climbed into the car.

"You're an asshole." She hissed, crossing her arms over her chest as she glared at the back of his head, wishing she could just set the vampire on fire.

Eric however, just smirked at the girl through the rear view mirror. "Better buckle up, sweetheart."

"Stop calling me sweetheart!"