Chapter Thirteen:

Henley groaned as the sun began shining through the window curtains. She just wanted to sleep the day away; she had no intention of waking up anytime soon. But the single sound caused Moony to move beside her, his tongue quickly catching her cheek as he began licking her awake.

"Go away, Moony," she grumbled, turning over. She had already been on the edge of the bed, however, and only managed to tumble onto the ground with a loud thud.

Pouting, Henley rubbed at her sore back as her eyes finally cracked open. She glared at the dog who was cheerfully wagging his tail, hopping off the bed and making his way to the door. A whine sounded and she had a good feeling she wouldn't be getting back to sleep anytime soon. Sighing, Henley forced herself to her feet, her hand immediately rising to her neck. The skin still ached, the bruises painful to touch, but swallowing had become easier, as had talking. She was relieved she could at least find one victory, even if it was the tiniest one.

"All right, all right," she rolled her eyes at the whimpering dog. "Give me a…Godric?"

She rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she glanced around the room. The ghost was nowhere to be found.

"Godric?" she called again, thinking he might just be in the bathroom, though he had no use for it. Maybe he was outside, keeping watch. But as she peeked through the window, she found nothing but her parked car.

Godric had left.

Henley tried not to let herself be upset as she grabbed her jacket and Moony's leash, hooking it to the dog's collar. She tried to be angry that he had suddenly disappeared despite his promise not to. But her mood seemed stuck in disappointment.

Where had he gone?

The quick walk around the motel did nothing to her mood, and in fact, she only felt crabby as she returned to the room, locking the door behind her. Godric had promised he wouldn't leave, that he would ensure he was there in case Jackson attacked. But he wasn't there. He wasn't there at all.

"He's just a stupid ghost," she scolded herself. She shouldn't have been upset. Saved her life or not, he was still just a ghost. That was it.

But not even Henley truly believed that.

Trying to distract herself, Henley slipped into the shower, thankful for the hot stream of water that was helping to alleviate the stress in her muscles. But once again, after the deed was done, she only slipped back into her somber mood.

Why the hell wasn't Godric there?

The anger was starting to form as she dried herself off, wrapping the towel around her form as she headed into the room to change. Moony was happily chomping away at his food as she searched for a pair of jeans and a loose t-shirt.

Who did Godric think he was to just break his promise the moment she was asleep and at her most vulnerable?

"Fucking ghost," she muttered to herself, letting the towel drop to the ground as she reached for her jeans.

"That's very rude, Henley."

The girl screeched as she twisted, wide eyed at the sight of Godric suddenly standing in the motel room. His gaze immediately swept over her naked form and she squeaked in embarrassment. He never looked away, however, as she quickly grabbed the towel to cover herself.

"Godric!" she glared at him.

"My apologies," Godric blinked, offering her privacy as he turned his head to the side. Her lips pursed together as she wrapped her arms around herself, her eyes narrowing.

He was getting into the habit of showing up whenever she was naked.

"Where the hell did you go?" her annoyance was quickly overpowered by her growing anger. "You said you weren't going to leave. You said you…"

The vampire sighed as he risked a glance at the furious red head. "I was barely gone an hour."

"But you promised!"

He saw the turmoil beneath her rage and his face fell. He had only tried to find whatever he could to answer her many questions. She had been safe, he had assured it the entire time. But he saw how fragile she really was beneath that mask of hers. She was afraid. She was absolutely petrified.

"I'm sorry," his form disappeared, but before she even realized he was gone, he was appearing directly before her. He raised his hand, taking advantage of the fact that he could now touch her, and gently caressed the side of her neck. He was careful of her bruises, careful of hurting her, but his fingers remained even as she flinched out of habit. Catching her gaze, he refused to let her look away. "I'm truly sorry, Henley. If I thought there was any possibility that you would be in danger, I wouldn't have left. I swear that to you."

Her bottom lip quivered ever so slightly before her mask fell back into place. She nodded, tightening the hold she had on her towel. She wanted to step away and out of his touch, but she found that her feet wouldn't move. The caress of his fingers, gentle and slow, was almost hypnotizing, calming her nerves and anxiety. She would never be truly relaxed, not with Jackson and all of the other questions she had, but being there with Godric released the tension in her shoulders. She trusted that he could protect her, even if he was just only a ghost. It was a trust she shouldn't have, but she did.

"Do these still hurt?" he gingerly touched the darkest bruise, frowning when the tiniest cry sounded from her lips. "If I had been alive, he would not have left that house breathing."

Henley shuddered at the promise. She believed him completely.

"I will not let him near you again," he vowed. "Never again."

"You just don't want me to die or else you won't have anyone to help you," she regretted it the moment the words were blurted out.

Hurt passed across his orbs before he took a step back, his hand falling back to his side. "Is that what you believe? That the only reason I appeared last night was because of my own selfish reasons?"

She bowed and shook her head. She didn't believe it. She didn't believe it at all. But she also didn't understand how he suddenly knew she was in trouble. She didn't understand how with a single touch from the ghost – who shouldn't have been able to touch her in the first place – was able to jolt her awake and out of the clutches of death himself. She didn't understand anything at all.

"How did any of this happen?" she asked softly, her hands beginning to shake. She hated feeling so vulnerable. She hated appearing weak. She had dealt with ghosts her entire life, and suddenly she couldn't handle this?

"I don't know," he repeated the same thing he had told her the night before. He had found nothing helpful in his search, nothing that could help him. All he knew was what Jackson was. He didn't even understand his sudden hatred for him and his desire to harm Henley. And Godric hated it. He hated not knowing what was happening around him. He was more than two thousand years old. He had survived for so many centuries. He should have been able to predict this, to understand what was happening. But he didn't understand anything at all.

He felt utterly useless.

"We'll figure it out," he wasn't sure if he was talking more to himself or to her. Either way, the promise seemed to help. "Let me try and ease your mind. What's your deepest concern?"

"Besides the psychopath intent on killing me?" Henley raised an eyebrow. "I think you know what my biggest concern is. You were just doing it."

"I have no answers concerning why I can suddenly touch you. It would only be a waste of time to worry yourself over it."

"But…" she wanted to point out to him that he was a ghost, that there was no possible way for him to be touching her. But his hardened expression stopped her. He really was just as clueless as she was. There would be no point in racking their brains over something they would never be able to figure out. All they could hope was that, in time, it would all come together.

Or at least, Henley hoped so.

"Okay, so then Willa," Henley chewed on her bottom lip. "What do we do about her? Why was she able to hear you? What if she…"

"You have far too many questions," Godric chuckled.

"You asked," she reminded him.

"I know, but I cannot answer them all. I don't know, Henley. I truly don't. All I can do is speculate," it was all he could offer her.

She waved for him to continue. She would gladly take speculation right now.

"It's happened before, with Eric," he began, beginning to pace the length of the room. Her clothes forgotten, Henley sat on the edge of the bed and watched Godric closely. "In his darker moments, when he needed guidance the most, he was able to see me, hear from me even."

"What?" her eyebrows furrowed. Was that even possible? "But…"

"I thought perhaps he was just delirious. He had been in the sun burning; I assumed it was just a coincidence," he explained with a frown.

"But now Willa can hear you."

"Exactly," Godric sighed. "I just cannot explain why."

"Do you think it's because of your blood? I mean he's your progeny, right? And she is his? What if it's because its your blood in their veins?" Henley offered.

His frown deepened. "There's no way to be certain."

"There's no way to really be certain about anything, Godric. Hell, maybe I'm just imagining the fact that I can see and talk to ghosts. Who knows? But really, it's all we've got," she shrugged. "Question is, will she tell Eric? And if she does, what happens then? Sorry to say, but it sort of ruins the whole slow and steady approach I was planning on taking."

"I don't believe it would be Eric she would tell," Godric remembered Pam and her interest with Henley. "I believe it will be Pam who will be the interested party."

"Who?"

It was doing them no good worrying about what may or may not happen. Especially when Henley was still naked and only wrapped in a towel. At that thought, Godric sent a secret glance in her direction, Henley oblivious to his stare as she chewed on her fingernails. He appreciated the way her still wet tendrils of red locks fell down her back, framing her curves. In his time, long before he had become a vampire, curves on a woman had been desired. The women of today now did whatever they could to be as thin as they possibly could be. He still quite enjoyed the curves of a woman years well into his undead existence.

"Earth to Godric," Henley raised an eyebrow at the vampire who was staring at her with a strange expression on his face. Her cheeks were flamed a dark shade of red as she shifted uncomfortably on her bed. As his stare continued, she had a feeling the vampire knew exactly what he was doing, despite his clueless nature half the time. Damn ghost. "Well I'm just going to go get dress now…"

"I truly don't see the need."

Her jaw dropped open as she froze halfway to her feet. Had he really just uttered those words? They must have been a surprise to Godric just as much as they were to her, as he quickly looked away, muttering about a place down the street that she should be safe to eat at.

Embarrassed, Henley grabbed her clothes and scurried into the bathroom, thankful only when a door rested between them.

"I'm not lying, Pam," Willa watched her sister's reaction as she spilled where she had suddenly ran off to the previous night. "I know what I saw."

Pam didn't doubt her, however. What she had discovered about the human was intriguing, and she hadn't even had a single name to go off of. Now everything was just getting more interesting by the second.

"I want you to tell me everything that you saw, and heard, again," Pam ordered. "And then you're going to show me exactly where this girl is. It's time we had a little chat."

Willa hesitated. She still wasn't sure if telling Pam was the right idea. But after dodging her questions after returning to Fangtasia, and the strange girl still on her mind even as she woke the next night, Willa knew she had to spill. She couldn't go to Eric though; he never would believe her. Even if he did, he had been so distraught since Nora's death that he wouldn't allow himself to. The pain would have been too brutal. No, the only one she could turn to was Pam, even if the older vampire had turned her cheek only last night.

"Well?" Pam raised an eyebrow in annoyance. "Cat got your tongue?"

"You're not going to hurt her, are you?" Willa chewed on her bottom lip. She didn't want anyone to get hurt because of her. She hadn't killed anyone, not really, not since leaving the vamp camp so long ago. She didn't want to cause anyone pain, and tried her hardest to lean towards Tru Blood as much as she possibly could. She could be sending this girl to her deathbed, and she knew she would never forgive herself for it.

Pam rolled her eyes. The young vampire still held too strongly onto her humanity. It made her sick. "No, princess, I'm not going to hurt her. Not much, anyways."

"Pam…"

"Just tell me everything again."

Willa sighed but nodded, beginning her story for a second time. She just hoped she would be able to stop Pam before she harmed the girl too much.

"You need to stop," Godric rubbed the bridge of his nose as Henley's persistent tapping of her feet began to drive him insane. He couldn't get headaches, he hadn't even when he was a vampire, but he was certain this impossible girl was starting to give him one now.

The moment the sun had set, Henley had been on edge. The day had gone smoothly with no sight of Jackson anywhere. She was absolutely safe, at least for now. But the minute the sun was no longer high in the sky, she began to worry. What if Willa had told someone? What if she had told Eric or this Pam? What would happen? Would they come looking? She may have moved to a hotel, but this Willa had been able to find her easily before. Who was to say she couldn't find her again?

"Calm down, Henley."

"I am calm," she insisted, staring at the TV, begging herself to become interested in whatever she had flipped on. But she couldn't. Her worry wouldn't leave her the hell alone.

"You are anything but calm," Godric rolled his eyes. "You're giving me a headache. Stop."

"You can't have a headache," she shot back.

"Well I also shouldn't be able to touch you," he pointed out, sighing heavily. "Stop, Henley."

"Well sorry if I'm not all calm, cool and collected like you are. I'm sorry it's not your life on the line," Henley grumbled, shooting him a glare.

He was no longer settled on the other bed, however, and was now standing directly before her. She jumped at how close he was, the habit of wanting to move away growing. He refused to move, however, even as her legs began bouncing up and down due to her nerves.

"Calm. Down."

She thought about scrambling across the bed, but knew he'd just follow. "I can't."

"Nothing is going to happen. Calm down."

Henley rolled her eyes. Easy for him to say. "You don't have a psychopath trying to kill you and vampires that likely will want to as well."

"They will not harm you, not if they believe you truly are speaking with me," he tried to assure her, reaching a hand out.

She moved away from him, taking her chances as she climbed across the bed and to the other side. "But they might not believe that I can. They might just eat me and ask questions later."

"You're being irrational."

"They're vampires, Godric; I'm being completely rational!" her hands were starting to shake as the anxiety consumed her.

It felt like an elephant was sitting on her chest, her head growing dizzy as she overthought everything. All she could think about were the worst-case scenarios. She still expected Jackson to come bursting through the door to force the poisoned soup down her throat. How could she not think that way? The moment she let herself think any other way would be the moment everything went to hell. She needed to be ready. She needed to be on her toes.

"You're being paranoid," he crossed his arms over his chest. "And stubborn. And unreasonable."

"Welcome to the wonderful world of knowing an actual human being, Godric," she spat. "We tend to have unreasonable thoughts."

He rolled his eyes and that only rubbed Henley the wrong way.

"You can go at any time if I'm annoying you."

"I did leave, if I remember correctly. You were furious and yelled," he reminded.

"Well you promised not to go!" she threw her hands up in the air. He was driving her insane.

"You're impossible."

"I was almost murdered yesterday; I think I'm allowed to be a tiny bit impossible!"

"And now you're fine."

"I'm anything but fine!" she could feel her dissolve fading away, the mask she had put in place to keep her emotions at bay failing her. "Why are you being so impossible?"

"If you would simply just talk to me…"

Henley was fuming. "Are you kidding me?" her hand began searching for the closest thing to throw at the idiotic ghost before she decided throwing the bedside table was perfectly okay. Settling for the typical bible that every hotel room provided, she threw it at the asshole. "You are an idiot, you know that. An actual idiot!"

Godric raised an eyebrow as the bible fell right through his transparent form and to the ground, not even tickling him. Henley groaned in frustration, finding no satisfaction in the fact.

Maybe if she threw something else.

She grabbed any item within her reach, not caring if it were shoes, a pen, or even a pad of paper. She threw every and any object at the stupid vampire, growing more and more annoyed as each one just piled on the floor, not harming him in any ways.

"Why the hell can't you be solid for two fucking seconds!"

He had been amused for a moment as she had her tantrum, almost smirking at the irony of it all. It had only been last night that she had insisted he was the one acting like a child. And now here she was, doing the exact same thing. But after the last shoe was thrown at his form, his patience started to waver. Her voice was rising and would draw attention to the room if she didn't stop this attitude. Jackson could be anywhere. Willa or Pam could be searching for her. If she truly worried about her life, she needed to close her mouth and calm down.

"Henley," Godric stepped forward, his eyes beginning to narrow as her hands inched towards the lamp. She was becoming ridiculous now. He had humoured her, knowing she needed to let her emotions out somehow, but now she was acting childish and likely straining herself. "Do not event think about it."

Henley was breathing heavily as she stood completely still. The screeching was hurting her throat, though she refused to admit it. She was acting like a child and she didn't care. She deserved a moment of acting childish after everything that had happened.

She still wanted to throw the bedside table at him, though.

"Enough, Henley. It's time for you to calm down."

"I'll calm down when you stop acting like an idiotic asshole and go back to being the sweet Ghost in Shining Armour you were last night," she grumbled with a glare.

His eyebrows shot up into his hairline. "Ghost in Shining Armour?"

She blushed when she realized what she had said. "Uh…"

A cheeky grin spread across his lips. "What exactly is a Ghost in Shining Armour?"

Just like that, their argument had ceased to exist. Henley's hand dropped away from the lamp before she wrapped her arms around herself, glaring darkly at the vampire for the little chuckles.

"Shut up," she mumbled.

"Oh no, please do tell. I would love to understand what exactly it entails to be a Ghost in Shining Armour," he was teasing her now. Despite her glares, he could see the anger beginning to leave her, the calm starting to settle in. If all he had to do was tease her to calm her down, he would have done so ten minutes ago. "If you calm down, perhaps I can be this Ghost in…"

"Stop saying it, please!" she groaned in embarrassment. It was enough to hear it from his lips once, but for him to repeatedly say it? She wasn't going to die because of Jackson or even the vampires; she was going to die from sheer embarrassment.

Godric couldn't help but laugh. "That shade of red suits you, little one. I do believe that delectable dress of yours would match."

Her cheeks grew a darker shade of red and she quickly looked away. "I'll still throw the lamp at you."

"No you won't," he shook his head knowingly.

"I hate you."

"No you don't."

"Yes I…"Henley was contemplating throwing another shoe at him, but was interrupted by a loud knock at the door. Her eyes grew wide as she threw Godric a glance. He was frowning, staring at the door with worry etched all over his face. She went to speak, but he appeared before her, laying his hand over her lips to stop her. She hated that she shuddered at his touch, but didn't let herself worry about it as she focused on the door.

"I would hate to have to break the door down."

"No one's here," Pam wasn't impressed that Willa had brought her to an empty house. As she sniffed the air, she was certain no human had even spent the night. "If you're playing some game to spare the girl…"

"I swear I don't know where she is," Willa snapped back with a sour look on her face. She was growing tired of Pam and being pushed around by the older vampire. She wasn't her maker, after all. "She was here last night."

"Well she isn't anymore," Pam frowned, tapping her foot impatiently. She could call in a favour and have the girl's car tracked. But it would take too long. She needed to find this strange human now.

"Maybe I can…" Willa moved to the end of the driveway, hoping to catch a whiff of the girl. It took a long moment, and she nearly gave up, but finally she caught onto her scent. Her orbs brightened as she shot Pam a grin. "Found it."

Pam was impressed. She considered herself a good tracker, one of the best in the south even. But not even she had been very good when she had only been a few months old. Perhaps Willa did have a use after all.

"Well hurry it up, princess, before I get bored."

Godric stood completely still as he reached through the bond he knew should no longer exist and was surprised when he found his own blood standing on the other side of the door. It wasn't Willa, however, at least not alone.

Pam.

He cursed under his breath in his native tongue before shooting the frightened Henley a glance. She had moved closer to him, not fighting his hand on her mouth to quiet her like he had expected her too.

"Maybe I was wrong," Willa's voice travelled through the door. "Maybe they aren't…"

"Oh no, she's here," Pam's curious voice followed. "I can smell her. Come out come out wherever you are."

Henley gulped, her eyes as wide as saucers. There was nowhere for her to run or hide. Even if she could escape the room, these were vampires; they'd catch her in an instant. She was stuck.

Godric could feel her panic. He didn't understand how, but it was there, sweeping through him as if it were his own. Glancing one last time at the door, he focused on the girl before him. His other hand rose to cup her cheek in an attempt to calm her. Her fear would only make things worst.

"I need you to calm down," his voice lowered to a whisper. "I need you to be calm for me."

The fear was evident in her orbs and Godric found that it caused him to ache, knowing that she was frightened. He wanted to shelter her, despite how persistent he had been the last few weeks. They had driven each other insane, but now all he wished was for her safety.

"I understand you're scared," his thumb stroked the length of her jaw comfortingly. "But I need you to do this for me. They will not harm you, Henley. I wouldn't allow it even if it was their intention."

"But..." the word was muffled by his hand. He may have been able to ward off Jackson, but he was still only a ghost.

"Do you trust me?"

Godric had done nothing but torment her since she had nearly stumbled right through him weeks ago. He had hijacked her life and refused to leave her alone. She shouldn't have trusted him. She shouldn't be relying on him at all. And yet she did whole-heartedly.

He tried not to smile when she nodded. He offered one last caress before dropping his hands and stepping away.

"Trust me," he nodded encouragingly at the door.

Henley's heart was pounding as she inched towards the door. She didn't want to open it. She didn't want to face the vampires that were just as dangerous as Jackson in her mind. Godric may have been sure they weren't there for her blood, but Henley didn't completely believe him. After what occurred last night, how could anyone think any of this was possible or sane? She still didn't believe what had happened. How were these vampires supposed to make any sense out of it if she couldn't?

"Trust me," Godric repeated, his hand on the small of her back. She once shied way from his and any ghosts' touch, but now she welcomed it. "You are the most remarkable being I have ever come across. You've faced ghosts for seventeen years; you can do this."

"No I can't," she whispered, her breathing growing rapid. "I-I can't. What if…"

"You would be dead by now if they had any intention of harming you," Godric assured, pressing her forward. "You're safe. They aren't Jackson."

"You can't be sure."

Godric sighed as he stepped closer, lowering his lips to her ear as his hand found hers to squeeze. "Trust me, little one."

She tried to hide the shudder that swept through her body, but Godric could feel the effect his touch had on her. He didn't understand it, didn't comprehend how this had happened. But the warmth his cold, transparent form felt as he laid his hand against her, it was better than anything he had ever felt before.

"Can you do that, little one? Can you trust me?" she shouldn't have felt his breath on her neck, or his hand tightening around hers, but she felt absolutely everything. "You have a strength that I have never witnessed before. I admire you, Henley. I admire the years of suffering you've survived. You can do this."

She reached the door and yanked it open before Godric's words started to fade. She was met with a blonde vampire she vaguely remembered from her trips to Fangtasia, Willa standing hesitantly behind her. She shot a quick glance at Godric, searching for his encouragement, his comfort. When she found it, she inhaled sharply before turning her attention back to the vampires.

"Hi," she greeted weakly, clutching onto Godric's hand as if her life depended on it.

It just might.

Pam licked her lips, her eyebrow rising at the human girl before her. She was at least delectable looking, despite her strange behaviour. "Well aren't you an interesting little thing."

All Henley could feel was dread. No matter what happened now, she just knew she was doomed.

A/N: Happy Near Year everyone! My gift to you to kick off the new year. Hope you enjoy it!