Chapter Twenty:

Mackenzie crept down the stairs the next afternoon, her eyes darting in every direction in search of her supposed new bodyguard. Alcide, Eric said his name was; a man that was well equipped to protect her from whatever she needed protection from. He gave her no other detail. He only bid her goodnight before trekking down to wherever he slept during the day.

She wondered what he would be like. What did bodyguards typically look like? Would he be dressed in black, like those she saw in presidential drama shows? Or would he be clad in leather, with his hair slicked back and an Italian accent? She couldn't even begin to imagine what he would be like, but she was certain she was not expecting what she found sitting in the kitchen drinking a cup of coffee.

Mackenzie was frozen in the doorway as she stared wide-eyed at the handsome man that looked like he had just come off the farm. His arms were huge and covered in a plaid shirt that she swore was two sizes two small. His hair was black and wavy, tucked behind his ears. What she could see of his face was sharp and rough, a hint of stubble on his jaw. The jeans clinging to his hips and steel toed boots were the last things she expected the bodyguard Eric had hired to protect her to be wearing.

But there he was.

"You must be Mackenzie," a deep voice caught her by surprise.

Blinking rapidly, a blush rising on her cheeks, Mackenzie nodded and squeaked out a hello.

A frown crossed the man's face as he took her in, his eyebrows furrowing. "I wasn't expecting you to be so young. What's a kid doing around fangers?"

The question surprised her more than his appearance. "I'm sorry, what?"

"You've got to be what, 16? 17?"

"18 actually," she crossed her arms defensively. "I'm an adult, thank you very much."

"Barely," he snorted with a shake of his head, downing the rest of his coffee before standing and moving towards the sink. He cleaned up after himself at least, Mackenzie noted. "You're just not what I was expecting."

"Well neither are you," she shot back. "Aren't bodyguards supposed to be, you know, more bodyguardish?"

Alcide let out a bark of a laugh. "And what exactly is a bodyguard supposed to look like?"

"Well, you know," her face flushed a deep red. "Less normal, obviously."

He chuckled. "Well the same can be said about a fangbanger."

Mackenzie's mouth dropped open in shock as her eyes widened. "Excuse me? A-a fangbanger? You think I'm a…are you kidding me?"

"Well, aren't you?" he raised an eyebrow as he leaned against the island counter.

She shook her head wildly, unable to believe that someone would ever believe her to be a fangbanger. The mere thought disgusted her. She didn't even want to think about the fact that Alcide implied that she was Eric's fangbanger. It made her shudder.

"Seriously?" he looked confused. "Are you sure?"

She choked on her words. "I think I would know!"

Alcide held his hands up in defense. "Okay then. Sorry. I didn't know."

Her face was as red as a tomato. "You really don't know who I am?"

"No clue, sorry," Alcide shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest. "Eric just told me to keep an eye on you. Made it known he would rip my throat out of I didn't. Wasn't really in the position to ask a lot of questions."

Her eyes narrowed, expecting him to be lying. But as she stared at him, Mackenzie realized that he was telling the truth. "Oh."

"So?" he pressed.

Mackenzie bit her bottom lip as she ran a hand through her tangled bed head. She wasn't sure if she should tell this stranger, knowing that Eric must have not told him for a reason. But at the same time, Eric must obviously trust him if he left him as her bodyguard.

"Eric raised me," she replied honestly.

It was almost amusing when his eyes nearly bugged out of his head. "What?"

She suppressed a laugh as she nodded and crossed the kitchen to the fridge. "Not so much a fangbanger."

"Apparently not," Alcide blinked, this new piece of information unbelievable to him. "Shit, you aren't kidding, are you?"

"Nope," she shook her head as she grabbed the left over pizza from the previous night. "Surprised?"

"You're telling me that Eric Northman raised a human girl; I'm just a little surprised."

"It seems to get that reaction a lot," Mackenzie remembered when she told Sookie the exact same thing. It was understandable, she knew; Eric wasn't exactly known for his compassion. Especially towards humans.

"Well then," he ran his fingers through his thick hair. "That's unexpected."

She couldn't help but chuckle as she took a bite of the slice of pizza, only for her nose to crinkle in disgust. Tossing the leftovers, she glanced through the fridge and cupboards for something to quench her craving of something juicy and greasy. She had always been fond of greasy food whenever she had a good day. Cassie would go to great lengths to find the best burgers in the state just for the two to drive out to during those days.

Cassie.

She had nearly forgotten about her best friend with everything happening. She hadn't checked in and she knew the red head was likely worried sick. She made a mental note to have a lengthy conversation explaining whatever she could with her; just as soon as she found something decent to eat.

"You look lost," Alcide mused, watching her closely.

"There's nothing to eat," Mackenzie pouted. She wasn't usually so picky. She had eaten at the school cafeteria day and night for three years before getting sick. But whenever she had an appetite, whenever she actually had a rare good day, she would crave certain foods with ferocity.

"Northman's day man came by this morning with food," Alcide mentioned.

"Day man?" Mackenzie raised an eyebrow before shaking her head and turning towards her bodyguard. "Well he must have forgotten the greasy burger while he was hanging out with the produce," she stuck her head back into the fridge and blanched. She would give anything to have a nice juicy burger at that moment. She wanted to find the sketchiest dive and order the biggest cheeseburger possible. It was all she was craving, all she could think about.

"Alcide…" she closed the fridge door and twisted around to face the man, plastering a sweet smile on her lips. "What instructions did Eric give you exactly?"

"No," Alcide shook his head, knowing exactly what she was about to ask. "Not at all. I am not letting you out of this house. Eric would kill me."

"But he's not here right now. In fact, he won't be awake for hours," Mackenzie pointed out. "He doesn't need to know. We'll be back before anyone even realizes we left."

"No."

"But there's nothing to eat!" she exclaimed in exasperation.

"Are you sure you're an adult?" he countered in return.

"I just want a greasy burger. Please?" she pleaded with him. "Pretty please?"

"Not going to happen," he refused. "And don't even try it with that look. Eric will kill me if he even suspects that I let you out of this house."

"But you're my bodyguard. You're supposed to guard me wherever I go. Usually this requires me to actually go somewhere," Mackenzie was persistent. She wanted that burger, and she was prepared to do anything to get it. It may very well be the last burger she ever had. There was nothing that was going to come between her and that damn burger.

Alcide snorted. "Not a chance, kid."

"I'm not a kid! And why not? Give me one good reason."

"That vampire that raised you will have both of our heads."

"Okay, so that's a very good reason. But he doesn't have to know," Mackenzie shrugged. "What he doesn't know won't hurt him. I've excellent at lying to him."

"And what if he glamours it out of you? Or me?" Alcide raised an eyebrow. "It's too big of a risk. Find something to eat here."

"Eric wouldn't glamour me."

"Are you sure about that? He's a fanger; they enjoy raping human's minds," Alcide grunted with venom.

Mackenzie frowned. "Eric wouldn't do something like that to me."

"How do you know he hasn't?"

"Believe me, there's been plenty of times he could have glamoured me and avoided the epic arguments that we have. But he hasn't. He wouldn't glamour me. And before you say it, because I just know you're thinking it, Eric wouldn't hurt me. Maybe you don't think that could possibly be true because he's a vampire, but it is. He raised me since I was four. He hasn't always been the greatest guardian in the world, but he still raised me. I could have been sent off to some orphanage or put into the system but he didn't let that happen. I trust him with my life, or at least what I have left of it." She let out a hefty breath after her rant, her cheeks flushing red as her frustration grew.

Alcide simply stared at her in shock. He hadn't been expecting such an outburst for a tiny little thing. He was about to agree to disagree when her last comment struck him. "What do you mean what's left of your life? You're only 18, kid; you have awhile to go."

Realizing her mistake, Mackenzie turned back towards the fridge and pretended to be interested in its contents.

"Mackenzie?" Alcide's eyebrows furrowed. "What's the real reason Eric hired me?"

"I don't know," she replied honestly. "Eric and Godric have been cryptic about it all."

He accepted her response but continued to prod for answers. "Why would you say something like that? Why would you say what's left of your life? What did you mean by that?"

Mackenzie sighed as she closed the door once again. She rested her forehead on the stainless steel as she searched for an excuse. But she found none.

"I'm dying."

Silence.

Not even a peep sounded from her bodyguard, causing her to slowly turn around and risk his reaction.

"I have leukemia," she continued, wringing her hands nervously in front of her. "I found out about seven months ago."

"But there's…there's treatments," Alcide barely managed out. He was speechless. He knew the second she stepped into the kitchen that something was off about her. She smelt different; she smelled exactly like her mother had before she had died. She was far too skinny, her bones protruding in a sickening manner. Her cheeks were sunken in and she was as a pale as a ghost. He should have known she was sick, but she was only just a kid. She was barely an adult. How could someone so young be dying?

"I've tried everything," she shrugged sadly. "Nothing worked."

"How long?"

"The last time I was at the doctor before coming home from school, he thought six months, maybe a year at the most. I didn't think I had that much time though. Then when I collapsed, I think I sort of just knew that death was on my doorstep."

Alcide dropped his gaze to his hands, finding it difficult to accept such horrifying news.

"Sorry, I don't mean to be a downer," her face fell. "I didn't mean to blurt it out. I could probably ask Eric to glamour it out of you so you don't have to remember."

"No," he shook his head, swallowing hard as she looked back up at her. "It's fine. I'm glad I know."

She forced a smile. "Does this change how you feel about going out for that burger?"

He gazed at her long and hard. She had been an arrogant, annoying teenaged girl only minutes ago. But now stood before him a girl desperate for what could possibly be her last meal. It struck him hard, remembering the small cravings his mother had on her good days.

"We can't be long. And he can't know."

Her eyes lit up. "Really?"

"Can't really say no to you after you tell me something like that," he admitted as he stood and eyed her carefully. "Are you feeling well enough to…"

"I feel great," she nodded excitedly. "This is great! I know just the place."

A/N: So it's been extremely long since I've updated this. Oops. Life got the better of me. College was a bit crazy there for a bit, and I just lost a lot of inspiration and drive to write at all. But as always, summer and another True Blood season brings out the best in me. Hope y'all haven't abandoned me yet!