Spellbound
I apologize for the delay but work caught up with me and has pushed me further behind on my story. I'll do my best to get the next chapter posted as soon as I possibly can. I have to do the editing. I hope that I can get it done by Wednesday of next week. I hope that you all enjoy and thank you for sticking with me during this story. Y'all are wonderful.
And to the reviewer that asked about 'Killer', I will begin on that story as soon as I'm done with this one.
The story idea is mine but these amazing characters belong to Ms. Harris.
Meanwhile back at the Northman Compound:
Sookie sat on the floor with Amelia. She took the girl into her arms and held her and that's when she saw it. Amelia knew. She held the girl closer to her as she kissed the top of her head. She began to rock with Amelia. She stroked Amelia's hair as the girl whimpered about the things that she'd heard … about the things that they'd done to her.
"It didn't matter if I would cry," she whispered and she settled deeper into Sookie's arms. "They didn't care. They kept taking me against my will … my body, my blood, and my soul. They told me that I wasn't deserving of the sweetness that flows through my veins. He told me that I was going to be the salvation of the vampire world. He said that in time I would understand why this had to be done. And he did nothing to help me. He did nothing to help any of us and he knew," she said as she stared into space. "I thought that they would have helped me but they didn't; the other humans that were there. They didn't try to help any of us. This one time, Cecilia begged him to let her go home but he ignored her."
Sookie kissed Amelia's head and told her to shush. "You don't have to talk about this," she told her; though she knew that the girl needed to keep talking. "You don't have to keep reliving this, Amelia. You're safe now. No one's going to hurt you anymore. We are going to keep you safe."
Amelia shook her head no. "No," she said as she looked up at Sookie. "They told me that I was only good for when they needed me. After what I've seen, after what I've heard, no one's going to keep me safe. In this world, I'm all alone. I don't have anybody." She wrapped her arms around Sookie and rested her head on the princess' shoulder.
Sookie frowned as she looked at the top of the girl's head. She needed the girl to what she meant. She needed to hear her say it. "How are you alone, Amelia? Why wouldn't my husband and I keep you safe? Why wouldn't anyone keep you safe?" She'd hoped that the girl would say it. She needed for Amelia to say what she means.
Amelia squeezed her eyes closed and shook her head frantically. "I can't say it," she whispered. "I can't say it because I can't believe it."
Sitting taller and her grip tightening on the girl, Sookie asked, "What else do you know?"
Amelia looked up at Sookie with wide eyes. She saw that her gazed was fixed on her but knew that the troubled girl was not seeing her. Her face grew paler in only seconds. The girl began to tremble uncontrollably. Tears rolled down into the sunken hollows of her cheeks. Sookie could see it. She knew what was coming. She knew that after tonight, the girl would be fine. It was going to take time but she was going to be fine.
"Marco, I need you," Sookie called out.
The Were popped from around the corner and came into the room. He didn't need to be told of what to do. He lifted the girl into his arms and placed her onto the bed as gently as he could. He pulled the covers up over her and stared down at her catatonic face. He then reached down and brushed a strand of hair from her face.
As he reached down to help Sookie stand, he asked, "Is she going to be okay?"
Sookie nodded as she stood. "Yes," she said. "In due time, she will be fine. Thank you. You may go now."
Marco moved away from Amelia but almost reluctantly. It was as if he was afraid to leave her alone. He could sense that she was damaged and it was going to take a lot to get the girl back to where she used to be. He'd seen this kind of pain. He'd known this kind of pain.
"You can stay outside of the door while I talk with her," Sookie said to him.
She could see that Marco was worried for the girl. She could understand it. He has always been the protective type. He was raised by his mother and his three older sisters. Their father died in a car accident when Marco was sixteen and he became the man of the house. When she'd lost her husband, his mom was devastated. It took years for her to get back to the way that she used to be. Her husband was the only man she'd ever known. They were to die together but fate had other plans. So, Marco did what he had to do. He was the protector of the women in his house; especially his mother. He's always taken on the role as the protector and he always would. That's what men do. That's what Weres are trained to do. And that's what he's always done.
"If you need me for anything," he said as he headed out of the room. "I will be right outside of this door."
Just as the words left his mouth, Sookie said, "Wait," she called out.
He stopped and turned to face her. "Yeah?" he answered.
Sookie walked to where he was and stopped in front of him. She said, "In a few moments, I will have you do something for me that will be beneficial to Amelia's wellbeing. It may cause her pain but it has to be done. The pain that she will suffer through will be unavoidable. In order for her to heal, what you will have to do will be necessary."
His brow furrowed as he looked at Sookie. If it meant that the girl was going to be safe, he was more than willing to do what's necessary. He nodded at her statement. "Whatever you need for me to do, I will do."
She said, "I will talk with her about her life … about the things that she used to love to do. We will talk about what she's gone through. She has something to tell me and you will listen and you will know what you are to do when you hear what she says. Regardless of whether or not you feel that it should be done, it has to be done. There's no way around it. If she is to make it past tonight, this has to happen." She reached out and placed her hand on his arm. "I have faith in you, Marco."
"As you should," he replied. "I can and will do this." He never left the room. He stood behind Sookie's chair and waited.
She turned away from him and went back to Amelia's side. She pulled the chair closer to the bed and sat down. She took Amelia's hand into hers and smiled at her. She leaned close and kissed Amelia's face. It was a loving touch, gentle and understanding. She wanted the girl to see that she isn't alone. She wanted her to see that she is safe and that she will be protected.
Closing her eyes and going into the girl's mind, Sookie stole a memory. A memory that she felt would make Amelia smile. A memory that would give her hope. One that would at least make her smile ... or so she'd hoped.
"You used to be a happy person," she whispered. "You used laugh and smile, even when you'd be upset or things didn't go quite the way you'd planned. You found joy in everything, the smallest things and I promise you, you will find it again. Do you remember that time you and Bridget sat in the park and looked up at the clouds and played that game?" Sookie began snapping her fingers and asked, "What was it called? You two were trying to guess the shapes of the clouds or something like that?"
Amelia's face remained empty.
"Bridget said that the cloud looked like a cotton ball and you laughed," Sookie said. "You told her that they all look like cotton balls. You told her that she was supposed to find different shapes such as hearts and faces. She then pointed one out and said that it looked like a marshmallow. You laughed and laughed. That day was a good day though it was the anniversary of your mom's death. You let nothing get you down. You lived for joy," Sookie told her.
Sookie saw a tear fall from the corner of the girl's eye. She remembered.
"The families don't blame you, Amelia," Sookie told her. "They know that you had nothing to do with this. You're just as much a victim as they were. Don't blame yourself because you lived." She scooted to the edge of her seat. "Do you realize that by being with Bill, you gave us what we needed to find your friends? Without you, we never would've known where to look. We never would've known which people to question. You were the driving force behind all of this. Can see you it? Can you see how you've made it possible for those girls to finally go home? They're no longer lost and it's all because of you."
Amelia rolled her head to the right and looked at Sookie. She shook her head no as tears fell from the corners of her eyes. "If not for me, Bill never would've found them. They never would've found them. He never would've found them."
"That's not true," Sookie replied. "Bill had a history of doing what he'd done. He was procuring young women for other important vampires long before you came into this world. So, he would've found without you."
She squeezed her eyes closed. Sookie could feel the reluctance of relief rolling off of the girl. Though the thought of Bill finding them without her help was no better, just knowing that she's not completely to blame has eased a little of her guilt.
"How could I have been so stupid?" she asked as she opened her eyes. "I was so lost in him that I didn't see him for what he was."
Sookie chuckled. "You weren't stupid. You were in love," she answered. "Love makes us blind to the most obvious things. I so loved my grandfather that I believed him to be the most wonderful being in the world. I never believed that he would do anything to hurt me." She looked up at the ceiling and sighed before looking at Amelia. "I was wrong. My grandfather never had my best interests at heart. It was always all about him and what he wanted. He didn't care that I love my husband. He just cared that his granddaughter could never fall in love with a vampire. And it wasn't possible that the vampire could love his granddaughter; the faery princess. He was going to do whatever he could to tear us apart. And it almost worked," she added.
Amelia's tears slowly began to fade away as she looked at Sookie.
"But my grandmother made it possible for me to see what my grandfather truly is," Sookie continued. "She gave up everything so that I could stay with my husband, my Eric."
Whispering, Amelia asked, "What did you do about your grandfather?"
"I've banished him from my life," she said. "I can no longer go to my homeland. I love him no more. If my grandfather's plan had worked, my husband would be my enemy and probably dead because I would have wanted vengeance for what he'd done to me, for what I believed to be his betrayal. If not for my grandmother, I never would've known of the lies and underhanded ways of my grandfather. My most beloved husband would be dead at my hands."
"But he's your grandfather," Amelia said. "You're supposed to be there for family. And family is supposed to be there for you." She paused and then said, "Maybe not." She looked up at the ceiling and waited.
"Sometimes, my dear girl, family is your worst enemy." Sookie then sighed and said, "I know what you went through. I know the pain that you and your friends were subjected to. Bridget showed me as much as she could show me. If I'd known where you and your friends were, I would've come for you all. You wouldn't have had to suffer so. You would've had me and my husband to help you … to save you. I can smell the pain on you, in you. It's festering and it's growing."
Nodding, Amelia said, "It hurts."
"I know," Sookie said. "And for awhile, it will but you can ease your pain. I can help you. You have two choices. You can give it to me or you can confront it. By giving it to me, you'll forget that it ever happened. You'll live your life as if the past few months and your friends never existed. You'll forget what was done to you and the others. You'll wake up in your bed and in your apartment alone. No memories of Bridget or Cecelia, not one memory of the others; they will have never existed in your new world. You will forget about him and the others. Your world will be brand new."
Marco had heard of the gifts of the princess but he never knew exactly what she could do. Giving someone a new life? New memories? He never imagined. He looked on mesmerized at the words she'd spoken.
Amelia looked at Sookie with a frown on her face. "I can't do that. They were my friends. They were a part of my life. I could never wipe them out of my memories. That's all that I have left of them. I could … I could never do that," she said. She placed her hand to her chest and shook her head no. "Why should their families have to suffer through their pain alone? I can't do that to them or to their families. What type of person would that make me? I have to live with this. They are mine and I will carry them with me forever. I love them. I can't do that," she whispered as she cried. She squeezed her eyes closed as she cried for her friends and their families.
Sookie smiled as she listened to the strength in Amelia's voice. It filled her with pride to hear that she girl was not going to take the easy way out. She was going to own her past and she was going to keep it. She was going to grow from it. She was going to make it.
Marco was surprised by the princess and the mere human that was lying in her bed; the human that appeared to be stronger than some Weres he's met in his life. The princess was right. The girl is going to be fine. She is going to make it.
"So, you want to confront it?" Sookie asked. "You have to be sure of what you're asking of me because once we do this, there is no going back. You will have to live with the consequences; whatever they may be. Can you do that?"
Without hesitation, Amelia said, "Yes. I have no choice."
Sookie glanced at Marco over her shoulder and nodded at him. With that, the Were knew what to do. He knew where to go. He knew what to say. Seconds later, he was gone.
Standing from her chair, Sookie offered Amelia her hand. "Come," she said. "We have to get you prepared. You have to look your best for what's about to happen."
Amelia lay there and looked up at the Princess of the Fae and she knew. She knew that Sookie and her vampire husband were going to make sure that she was safe. They were going to make sure that she was going to get through this. She wasn't going to harbor guilt for her part in the killing of her friends forever. She wasn't going to take the blame for what Bill Compton has done. She's not going to blame every vampire that she meets for the devious and hate-filled actions of their brothers and sisters. She's going to get better and she's going to make more friends, new friends. She's going to live her life just as she'd always planned. She's always been a fighter and she's going to always be a fighter. It's going to take some time but she's going to make it. She's going to be fine.
Having read the girl's thoughts, Sookie smiled brightly at the girl.
She took the princess's hand and gripped it tightly. "I can live with the consequences."
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
When Sookie came downstairs, Copley was sitting on the brown leather couch waiting for her. He wasn't alone. Marco and Kellan were sitting on either side of him. Donnelly and Thalia were sitting on the couch that she would soon be occupying. Two servants were standing on either side of the door. The fear that was on his face was there for all to see. He feared that the vampire wasn't finished with him.
When Sookie entered the room, everyone stood including Copley. She gave each of her guards a slight nod. Once she was seated, they returned their seats. Copley was the last one to sit down.
"Good evening, Mr. Carmichael," Sookie said. "I'm glad that you could come to our home. I hope that it is to your liking?"
Copley nodded as he looked around. "It's most exquisite. The art in here is simply outstanding. Is that an original Renoir?" he asked as he pointed to the masterpiece that was hanging over the fireplace.
Smiling, she said, "It is. It is one of my husband's most favorite pieces. The artist painted it especially for him. It's a painting of the North Sea. It's quite beautiful. A sense of calm comes over you when you admire it, does it not?"
Copley nodded. He was about to get up but Marco put a death grip on his shoulder. "There is no need in your getting up," he warned. "You can see the picture from here."
Copley nodded his head as he silently agreed with the Were. He closed his eyes and began inhaling slowly. He was trying to decrease his heart rate. He didn't want to die of a heart attack in the home of a vampire and a faery princess.
"Would you like something to drink?" Sookie asked. "We have scotch, vodka, whiskey; whichever you prefer, Mr. Carmichael, we have."
"Whiskey would be great," he croaked out.
Sookie looked at the male servant and asked, "Would please pour Mr. Carmichael a drink, Lawrence?"
"Yes, ma'am," he answered.
He did as his mistress ordered. He poured the man a glass of whiskey and handed to him.
"Thank you," Copley replied.
Lawrence nodded at the man and returned to his post.
After taking a sip of his drink, Copley looked at Sookie and said, "This is absolutely delicious." And he meant it. He'd never had whiskey so smooth and so clean in all of his life.
"My husband," she said. "He doesn't drink alcohol but he doesn't believe in buying the cheap stuff." Clearing her throat, she said, "I know that you are wondering why you are here, Mr. Carmichael and I'm not going to make you wait any longer. We have some information on your daughter."
Copley slowly lowered the drink from his mouth. His hands were trembling so much that Marco took the glass from him. He looked down at the floor before he looked up at Sookie. Gathering his nerve, he asked, "Is she alive? Is my Amelia alive?"
A grim look appeared on Sookie's face.
Copley dropped to his knees and he screamed out in pain. With his head drooped and his heart broken, he cried for the daughter that he believed to be dead. He'd never see her face again. He'd never hear her laugh. He'd never hear her tell him that she loves him. The word daddy will never pass her lips again.
"My baby," he cried. "My dear, sweet Amelia is gone."
"You loved her?" Sookie asked.
Copley nodded. "Very much," he said. "She was all that I had."
"And you were all that she had," Sookie reminded him.
He nodded. "Now, I'm all alone."
"Fucking prick," Marco mumbled.
Sookie looked at him and shook her head. "He doesn't care," she said. She then went to where Copley was kneeled on the floor and stood over him. "Her days in captivity were harsh, Mr. Carmichael. She was raped, beaten, and tortured for days on end. Experiments were done on her that she will never forget and your only concern is that you are all alone."
Copley nodded as he said, "She is no more but I am still here and I am alone. I have no one. Tyrese has quit and has left me. He said that he knows now what type of man that I am. He said that for me to do what I've done for my savior; which he said is the almighty dollar, I should pay with my life. He said that if I never see 'Miss. Amelia' again, it would be my just punishment."
Crying harder, Copley said, "I never wanted anything to happen to her. I didn't know that she would be made to pay for my sins. I didn't know that André would go after her. We were supposed to be working as a team and he stole her from me."
Thalia snorted. "Liar," she said. "André stole nothing. You gave your daughter to him when you got into his bed. When dealing with André Paul, there's always a price to pay and your daughter has paid yours."
"No," Copley said. "That's not true."
"It is," she spat at him. "You let your daughter carry your sins because you were too much of a coward to carry your own. Your life should've been forfeit when they took her. It should've been forfeited at your very hands."
Suddenly, Copley was standing and no longer crying. The vampire, the Were, and the faeries were standing as well; watching his every move as he paced throughout the room. "You will never understand. None of you will ever understand. I did what I had to do. I did this for her. This business venture was supposed to make it so she'd never have to work a single day in her life. This was for her," he growled as he rested his hands against the mantle of the fireplace and looked up at the Renoir. "If she were here, she would understand. She knows that everything that I've ever done has been for her. In time, she would've understood."
Marco looked at Sookie as he played Amelia's earlier statement over in his mind.
He said that in time I would understand why this had to be done.
The entire time the girl had been held captive, she knew what her father had done to her. She knew that he played a part in her kidnapping. She knew.
Sookie looked at him and nodded.
"My daughter would've known that this was done for her," Copley said.
From the doorway, Amelia said, "This was never for me."
Copley dropped his hands from the mantle and stood upright. The supes in the room looked to the doorway and stared at the fragile human. As they watched her, they returned to their seats on the couch, including the Princess of the Fae.
Copley slowly turned around and looked at his daughter; the daughter that he believed to be dead. Silent tears fell from his eyes. "My sweet Amelia," he whispered. "You're alive." He looked at Sookie and said, "You told me that she was dead."
Sookie shook her head and said, "I told you no such thing. That was your assumption."
With his arms opened wide, Copley took a step forward and when he did, Amelia took a step back. Copley frowned. It appeared that he didn't understand his daughter's apprehension so he took another step forward. She took another step back.
"Amelia?" Copley questioned.
She only stared at him.
"Are you afraid of me?" he asked her; surprise filled his voice.
"I don't know you," she whispered.
Dropping his arms as his side, he said, "I'm your father."
She shook her head no. "My daddy was a good man. My daddy would've never let the things that happened to me happen. He would've protected me with his life. He would've saved me and my friends."
Copley began shaking his head. "I didn't know that they had you," he said.
"Liar," she whispered. "You're a liar, daddy."
"I would never lie to you," he said as he began to take another step forward.
"Don't come near me," she whimpered.
Marco growled at Copley; warning him to remain where he was. And Copley did just that.
Tears fell from Copley's eyes as he stared at his daughter.
"You knew that he had me, daddy," she said.
"I didn't," he said.
"Don't lie to me!" she yelled. "I heard YOU!"
Copley's mouth slammed shut.
"I heard you," she whispered. "You told him that he could keep for no longer than week. You said that they couldn't do to me what they'd done to the others. You told him that if it was my blood that they'd use, our percentage in the company would be more than the original sixty percent. You knew," she said. "My daddy knew and did nothing to help me."
Copley said nothing. He did nothing but stare at his daughter.
"Cecelia saw you and she begged for you to help her escape," Amelia said. "I heard her. She cried for you when you left her cell. She kept telling you that you knew her but you ignored her. You turned your back on her and you left her there. She told you that she wanted to go home." Taking a step toward her daddy, she asked, "Do you remember what you said to her?"
Still, Copley said nothing.
"I do," Amelia replied. "You said 'This is home now, girl.' That's what you said to her. That's what you said to all of us." Looking out at nothing in particular, she said, "They killed her that night, you know. I heard her screaming. I still hear her screaming. I can hear all of them. I hear them in my sleep. I hear them in every waking moment. And it's because of you," she said as she finally looked at him.
"I'm sorry," Copley said.
Amelia smiled. "You're sorry that you were caught." Shaking her head, she said, "They had families, daddy. They are never going to see them again because of you but you knew that already. That's what you wanted. That's what you needed. You couldn't have us getting out alive because your secret would be known. We were all supposed to die there; including me."
"No, no," Copley replied. "I never wanted you to die. That was never part of the plan. You were never supposed to be suffer. Never would I have wanted that for you. You have to believe me, Amelia."
"I don't," she said.
"Look," Copley began. "Come home with me and we can talk things over. We can talk in private and I know that I can make you understand. If you just give me a chance to explain things to you, you will forgive me and you will love me again. You will want to return home. I know that once we talk things over, things will go back to the way they were. We just need to talk." He walked towards her and offered her his hand. "Please, let's go home."
Sighing, Amelia said, "My home is no longer with you, Copley. You are a stranger to me. I never want to see you again."
Copley's eyes had widened. "Amelia, no," he whispered. "We're family. You're all that I have."
She shook her head no. "You have no one," she replied. She looked at Sookie and said, "I'm tired. I would like to go back to my room. Is that okay?"
"Yes," Sookie answered.
"Sookie?" Amelia said.
"Yes?" she answered.
"I feel okay," she said. "I'm going to be okay." She placed her hand to her heart and sighed. The images of her friends were going through her mind. "In time, I'll be okay."
"Yes, you will be," Sookie reassured her. "You will be."
Kellan stood up from his seat and said to Sookie, "I will take her to her room, your majesty. Should I return?"
Sookie shook her head no. "Make sure that she is in bed and keep her room guarded."
"Yes, ma'am," he replied.
"Thank you," Sookie said to him as he bowed to her. She watched the faery as he led the girl from the room.
"Amelia!" Copley called.
The girl looked up at Kellan and smiled. "Thank you."
"You are most welcome," he said as they faded from view.
"Amelia! Amelia!" Copley yelled. He began walking towards the door but Thalia blurred to the door and Marco pulled him by his arm; throwing him on the couch.
"You will not leave this room," Marco warned him. "You will never harm that girl again."
"No harm will come to him," Sookie said as she walked to where Copley stood. "We need him for the meeting. He has to be kept guarded. Thalia," Sookie said.
"Yes, Mistress," she said.
"He's thinking of killing himself as soon as he gets the chance. Glamor any notions that he may have of suicide from his mind," she said. "He'll be of no benefit to us dead. Afterwards, do with him as you wish."
"Yes, Mistress," Thalia replied.
"How's Sophie Ann?" Sookie asked.
"She's suffering and still being a child," Thalia said. "She's as alive as any vampire is but she will be available when needed."
Looking at Copley, Sookie said, "Take him away."
Thalia grabbed Copley by the back of his shirt and dragged him from the room. The servants followed her; evil and sadistic smiles were on their faces.
When they were alone in the room, Marco looked at Sookie and said, "You're an amazing woman. I can see why Mr. Northman is so jealous of you. If I you don't mind, may I ask you a question?"
"Sure," she said as she smiled.
"Are there anymore at home like you?"
Sookie filled the living room with laughter. "You're fired."
Marco winked at her and laughed. "You fired me last week."
"But you keep coming back," she retorted.
The fae and the Were left the room laughing and in good spirits. Tonight was a good night.
The next chapter will take us back to Eric and Claudette.