Thanks for the reviews, follows and messages. It's going to get a little intense now. Eric is part of the political structure. He doesn't trust anyone. Sookie is still obviously a mark. There was some question about whether Bertrand and the Authority were in on the plot to take Sookie. That question will be answered in Chapter 9. In fact, a lot will happen in this chapter so stay tuned. This story is my next focus now that 'The Dead of Winter' is done.

I own none of the characters in this fan fiction. They are based on the Sookie Stackhouse series. This story is located somewhere between "Dead as a Doornail" and "All Together Dead". It takes parts from the whole series, but there is a twist I promise. I was devastated when the author did away with the blood bond and ultimately ended the relationship which I think defined the series. This is very Team Eric / Sookie.

Chapter 9

Last time:

"Pam and I have an errand to run in Area 2 tonight. I should only be gone a couple of hours lover." I leaned over and kissed her softly on the head, trying to soften the news. I felt her relax. She forced a smile and then said "okay". She still wasn't happy but she understood.

Eric's POV

Eric sat on the stool in the kitchen looking at Sookie. He'd never been so attached to a human before. Inside, he feared they were in worse danger than he originally thought. The decisions being made by the council didn't seem normal to him. They were completely straying from protocol with the Sheriff situation in Area 2.

Suddenly he noticed that Sookie was concentrating on the bond. He knew she could feel the foreboding coming from him so he blocked it out of his mind.

"Eric, is there something wrong? We're partners. You have to tell me." She said in a worried voice.

"Sookie, you know I can't lie to you and I will tell you. It just has to wait until later when I'm home." I said it in the softest voice I could.

She nodded, not happy, but she understood that there were other things in play right now. Her ability to adjust to situations made me happy. In the beginning she had been somewhat difficult when it came to knowing what was going on, but for the last year or so, she really had stopped fighting so much and she knew that I would tell her anything important in a reasonable amount of time.

Pam and Sookie both looked at me. "Okay" I started. "Pam, we should go." Before he could finish the sentence the doorbell rang. "That will be Alcide. I walked to the door to grant him entry and walked him towards the back of the house to the kitchen where Sookie was sitting. "Sookie," He bent down and touched his forehead to mine, "I love you and I'll be home before you know it. Rest if you can." I kissed her deeply and nodded to Pam.

It was a couple of hours drive to Alexandria so we didn't bother with the car. We flew. Pam had developed the ability to fly over the past couple of decades. It made travel much easier when we could both fly.

We dropped down right outside the bar in Alexandria where Franco was based. I walked in and everyone in the place turned to look at me. I could hear whispers spread throughout the bar, as if I couldn't hear them anyways. Pam walked behind me. Franco sat at table at the back of the dreary bar. It wasn't much; just a wooden bar with stools and a couple of booths in the back, next to an old and flickering jukebox. Franco studied me from the moment I entered. I had decided on the way here to replace him with his next in command. I figured with Franco out and being held for trial, there was no way the interim Sheriff would dare make the same mistakes, especially if she had any plans to raise up through the Vampire ranks. His second in command was Sheila. There was quite the dossier on her in the files I had been sent and while she had probably been privy to Franco's activities her record was cleans. She was quite beautiful. She had long black hair and ivory skin and was of Asian descent. She sat across from him the booth.

"Your Majesty" he offered as I approached. Sheila immediately vacated the booth and stood on the other side.

I lowered my eyes to study her for a moment. She seemed to be unaware of what was going on. In fact, everyone looked quite surprised. Pam stood while I slid down the bench. "Franco, I'm here to remove you and take you to the Magistrate for questioning and a trial."

He looked at me with an air of disgust. "So I see you are part of the 'structure' now." He sighed, shaking his head and stared at the wall.

"Do you intend to cooperate?"

"Well" he began "Not cooperating will not get me far will it?" I nodded and looked directly at Sheila. "Do you know how to run Area 2?" She nodded. "Good you are in charge until further notice. And note that I will not accept any discrepancies when it comes to running this area, nor violation any vampire laws, intentional or not." She nodded that she understood.

"Yes your Majesty." She did a slight curtsy and lowered her eyes.

Franco walked out the door. "So…" raising his hands. "Where are we going?" I grabbed him by the collar and took off towards Fangtasia. I would lock him in the dungeon and then call the Magistrate to retrieve him.

Once Franco was securely chained in the dungeon, I chatted with Pam about some business and was headed home again to see Sookie. It was nearly 2am. She was probably already asleep; however, I knew she would want me to wake her.

Roman's POV

The phone rang somewhere in Virginia. He looked down at the number. Clicking the button, he said, "Vito. Roman."

"…And the blood type?" He paused. "Very good. No. Don't do anything until you hear from us?"

Clicking the phone off, he threw the phone on the desk.

Eric's POV

When I returned home Alcide was sitting in a recliner watching television while a very tired Sookie was fast asleep on the sofa. I nodded at him as I headed straight towards the sofa to put my bonded to bed. As I picked her up and carried her through the house, she left out a soft sigh and snuggled into my chest. I pulled her closer.

As I put her in bed, she stirred, somewhere between awake and asleep. "Eric. How did it go?"

"Hi lover." I leaned down and place a small kiss on her lips. "It went fine. No problems."

"Eric you promised you would tell me what was going on." Her voice was barely audible as she was struggling to stay awake.

I quickly shed my clothes and climbed into bed. Once situation, I pulled her close. "I will lover I promise. Tomorrow. Get some sleep."

"Promise?"

I don't know why she did that still. It was the little girl in her probably. I couldn't lie to her because of the bond, which she knew. She would always need a little extra reassurance given the betrayal that she had experienced in her life I supposed. "Yes lover, I promise." She fell right back asleep. I sat there and held her close, watching her chest rise and fall.

Sookie's POV

Squinting I rolled over to look at the clock on the nightstand. 9:00am. Whew it was early. I preferred to sleep a little later so I can have more time with Eric at night. I thought about school. I was really excited about doing something new. I never really thought I would be able to go to school. I did read a lot but it would be nice to apply the reading to something. No time like the present Sookie. I jumped out the bed and headed to the shower. I told Sam I'd be in today, so I wanted to be ready to walk out the door when I needed to. Which reminds me…

I texted Alcide. 'Are you taking me to work today?'

My phone dinged back immediately. 'Yes. What time do you want to leave?'

'How does 2pm sound?'

Ding. 'That sounds fine. See you then.'

Once I got out of the shower, I went downstairs to the kitchen where the laptop was still sitting from yesterday and decided to apply to the school. It was a fairly lengthy process and ended up taking a little longer than I had allotted in my head, so I ended up rushing through lunch and was just finishing as I heard the knock at the door.

I opened the door and there stood Alcide, smiling back at me with that charming smile of his. "Ready?"

"Yes. Just let me grab my purse and leave Eric a note." I ran back inside, grabbed my purse, and left a note, just telling him I would call later and be back around 11pm.

Merlotte's was pretty dead when Alcide and I walked in. He followed me back to Sam's office so I could put my purse in the desk. As I walked in with Alcide behind me, Sam eyed him. "Sookie he's really not allowed back here."

"I know Sam, but after the other night, Eric wants me to be careful. I'm sorry."

"Okay", he turned around and went back to his receipts.

The night was pretty normal for Merlotte's. The usual run of people in for beer and food, around 9pm I looked over at the door and Eric was standing there watching me. Uggh. I hated when he did that. Sam and Eric really only barely accepted each other's existence. I dropped the onion rings at the table and headed towards him.

"Hi Eric." I leaned up and kissed him. He kissed me back but he was obviously intent on something. His eyes were searching the room. I looked at the bar and Sam looked very stiff and defensive, so I told Eric to follow me outside.

"Eric what's wrong?"

His beautiful blue eyes, which were kind of stormy at the moment, looked down at me. "The authority has requested my presence at their main headquarters, and they've asked that I bring you along."

"I can't leave right now, but my shift is almost over. I work until 11."

"Sookie."

"Eric. I get it but I have to finish my shift. I won't be here that much longer; it's only another hour or so."

"Fine. I'll never understand your loyalty to this dump. I'll wait at the bar." Yay. I thought, that should make Sam super happy. Eric walked in. His presence was kind of hard to ignore so the entire place was looking at him. He sat down at a stool and ordered a True Blood. After a few minutes, the whispers and thoughts about him subsided and things went on as normal.

I finished my last table around 10:30 and cleaned up. Erick was still sitting at the bar, straight as a board; his eyes glued to my every move. He had sent Alcide home about an hour ago. I walked up and smiled at Sam, "Here's my last check Sam."

I glanced over at Eric. "I need to change and grab my purse. You comin? Sam rolled his eyes.

We walked into the office. I pulled off my shirt and grabbed a tank top out of my bag and pulled it over my head. "So what do they want?"

"I don't know Sookie. Something doesn't feel right. I didn't tell you before but the Authority had me remove a sheriff from Area 2 and they did it outside normal protocol. Their excuse was bullshit. Now the very next night, they are requesting our appearance. I don't trust it totally."

"Well maybe we shouldn't go. I mean do we have to?"

"Yes unfortunately we do." His frame towered over me.

"Ok, how are we getting there?"

"We are flying." Upon hearing that I grabbed a jacket, when Eric said flying, it usually did not mean we were going to be enclosed in a plane. I grabbed my purse and headed out the door. Eric followed and we were on our way.

When we arrived at the Authority an hour or so later, it was located in an abandoned warehouse complex. Effective, I thought as I tilted my head to the side. Who would come to an abandoned warehouse in the middle of the night by themselves? He walked towards an old door, as we got inside the old building; he walked straight to the elevator.

We got in and he pressed the basement button. The elevator went further down than a normal basement though; it was several stories below the surface. There was a camera in the elevator and I assumed that it was so they had time to assess a risk.

Eric stepped out first and then grabbed my hand and pulled me close. There was a round reception desk in the middle of the room. It was very modern and very posh. The receptionist, also a vampire, was very pretty with brown hair tucked up into a tight bun, with secretary's glasses and blue eyes. She was dressed exceedingly well. I looked down at my shorts and tank top. I often felt very underdressed around vampires. They tend to dress extremely well. Eric feeling my nervousness squeezed my hand. "Hello. I'm Eric Northman. I'm here to see…"

"Mr. Northman have a seat, Roman will be right with you. Oh and can you please give me your phones."

"Thank you we'll stand."

Eric did not like to be caught off guard especially when it came to me. I could see him studying the room for anything out of the ordinary. I didn't interrupt him. I knew if anything happened, him having a plan was always a good thing. I stood quietly by him. A few minutes passed when Roman, or that's who I guessed he was, entered the lobby.

"Mr. Northman. Welcome. Miss Stackhouse, nice to make your acquaintance. I'm Roman." He took my hand and raised it to his lips. It was polite though, not particularly creepy. "Please join me in my office."

As we walked into the equally posh office, Roman offered Eric a seat. Eric stood for a minute studying the lay of the land. A beautiful woman entered. She ha d a long dark hair cut into a long bob and blue eyes. She seemed nice, but slightly, scary in a, 'I'm secretly a psycho way'.

"Miss Stackhouse would you like to go with Rose to have coffee or a beverage?" And there it was. Vampires had old world values, women were not often included in business dealings, and it was very annoying. They did have a lot more women in leadership positions, but there was a certain line in the sand that I had noticed since I had been with Eric. Eric began to voice his disagreement, but I placed my hand on his arm and told him it was okay.

Eric's POV

I wasn't comfortable with this turn of events. Sookie was too trusting. While I knew there was nothing I could do really, I still didn't like it. I took a seat at the end of the table as Sookie departed with Rose. I could hear Rose making polite chit chat as they left the room.

I leveled my gaze at Roman. "So if Sookie didn't need to be here, why did you have me bring her along?"

"Well Mr. Northman. I wanted to meet her. We'll get to that later. Right now, I need to get a vial of blood from you. It's standard procedure for a new King when he takes office."

I studied him; my mind on active alert.

We sat there discussing the charges against the Sheriff and I expressed my dissatisfaction that it wasn't handled according to protocol. That's when I felt the bond go dead. I recognized it immediately because it was the same as when Bertrand took her.

I stood up in a threatening manner and bared my fangs at Roman. He smiled at me. "Northman there is no need to get upset. Sookie is fine."

"Where is she Roman? She is my bonded and she is MINE."

"Well, actually, you are the King of Louisiana. Technically you are the property of the Authority as is everything and everyone that is yours."

I threatened him again. In my mind, I knew I had no way to beat him, especially with the other guards filling the room. He was 500 years my senior, but I would still be a difficult opponent for him and I knew I was a better fighter. I was willing to take my chances.

"Northman. Miss Stackhouse will be fine. You have my word. She will be better than ever in fact. You will have her back safe and sound in a couple of days. You will still be the King of Louisiana, you are actually under contract for at least ten years and Sookie will still be your bonded. For now, please be our guest." I growled, feeling my rage at the bottom of my throat as the guards started to grab my arm. I yanked it away from them, not taking my eyes off Roman.

The guards took me through the same door Sookie had gone through with Rose. So they did know about Bertrand. Fuckers. The thing that was bothering me though, is if they did know about Bertrand, why didn't they get what they wanted when he had Sookie? Then the realization dawned on him…Unless they hadn't gotten what they wanted. And the biggest question of all…what the fuck did they want?"

They showed me to a very comfortable guest room with a locked door of course. I went to touch the knob, as I suspected it was made out of silver as was the rest of the door. I concentrated on the bond. Fuck. Nothing. Pam would notice something when I didn't respond to her check-in at closing. It was a ritual that we had for years, but she'd have no idea where to look and idea that the fucking authority was to blame.

The next two days were excruciating. I couldn't feel anything in the bond. I had no idea what they were even doing to her. When the guards came to my door to retrieve me, I was filled with dread. I swear, no matter what I fucking do, I will kill Roman for this.

They showed me into Roman's office, where he sat like the smug son-of-bitch he is. He smiled as he told me to sit. As I did a guard flanked either side of me. I snorted my indignation, like I couldn't take out a couple of fucking guards.

A man came in carrying Sookie and laid her on a coach. As unhappy as I was about another man touching my bonded, I was elated to see her and she looked beautiful.

Roman looked at me for a few minutes before starting. "So Northman, we know that Sookie is a fairy. We drained her."

I started to stand up, steeling myself for the fight that was about to ensue.

Roman continued, "She's perfectly fine. She was given your blood. You have the choice to complete the ritual and turn her, or you can let her die. It's up to you, but if I were you, I'd go for plan a."

I dumbfounded by what he just said. He fucking turned Sookie? The realization washed over me like a ton of lead weights. I wasn't ready to lose her. I had to finish the ritual. Would she blame me? If she was miserable, I would kill her if she wanted but I had to know and I had to say goodbye if that was the choice.

"Fine. I'll finish the ritual." I rose to follow the guards. "Roman. I will kill you for this someday. Maybe not now, maybe not even in ten years, but someday when you are least expecting it, I will rip your fucking heart out for this."

With that I strode out the door flanked by armed guards and a guard carrying Sookie. We stopped briefly at the desk to collect our phones and they escorted me upstairs and laid Sookie on the ground. I kneeled beside my bonded and stroked her beautiful hair. I had failed her. It was the one thing she had asked and tomorrow she would wake up as a vampire. I took stock of the area, they had dug a hole, but there was no fucking way I would go to rest with them knowing my location, so I gathered her in my arms and headed off to the wooded area behind the complex at vamp speed.

I concentrated and called Pam. A few seconds later, she appeared. "Master." Her face dropped when she saw Sookie on the ground. It was the most emotion I had ever seen on her face. "Master? Are we going to war?"

"No Pam, not yet. First I'm going to finish the ritual." Pam nodded. I could tell that she was truly sad. She knew this is the last thing that Sookie wanted.

We dug a hole and Pam helped me put Sookie's lifeless body in first. I jumped down and pulled my beloved into my arms. Pam covered us until there was complete darkness.