Chapter 34

After a relatively normal breakfast with Claudine, during which she evaded all my questions until I simply stopped asking any, she headed back to Monroe to make it to Dillard's for her afternoon shift. Amelia was nowhere to be seen either so I guessed she was working at Merlotte's. I noticed that in my absence, my compulsively clean roommate must had been so busy covering for me at that she hadn't had time to keep things in good order at the house.

I was almost grateful for that, because it gave me some mindless tasks to take care of while I thought up a strategy to help find Sam. I really didn't want to go charging into the unknown without some kind of plan. All this housework also gave me the opportunity to reflect on everything that had happened in the past week.

I quickly realized that there were a still a lot of things I had to figure out.

Perhaps most importantly was what would happen to Eric and me when he officially became King. Would he stay in Shreveport? Would we still be a couple? I honestly didn't know.

I also remembered that I had planned to have dinner with Niall upon my return and decided that sooner was definitely better than later for our meeting. We had a lot to discuss about my past and all the many things that had been kept secret from me. There was even more to discuss about my future.

And then there was Bill. His behaviour had been so conflicting at times that I had no idea what to make of him. I knew he cared about me but beyond that, his motivations were anyone's guess.

I wondered how Preston was doing.

All of these thoughts ran through my head as I washed dishes, hung laundry on the line, and swept up the back porch. The house was looking better already.

As I continued doing the mundane chores which kept my big old farmhouse in decent shape, another realization dawned on me: hadn't I called Ginger at Fangtasia and been met with her fear over an unknown vampire in Eric's office? There had been so much happening lately that it had completely slipped my mind.

I had better head over to Merlotte's and talk to her I thought and while I'm there I'll see if I can come up with any leads on Sam.

I still hadn't heard from Calvin Norris or Alcide, but then, my cellphone was in Hawaii and they probably didn't know I was home yet. I resolved to call them just as soon as I spoke to Amelia and Ginger at the bar.

Just another day in the life of Sookie Stackhouse.

0o0o0o0

After a quick shower to freshen up I was ready to head out the door. Just as I closed and locked it behind me, I heard the sound of tires crunching gravel as an unfamiliar truck came up the driveway. Squinting my eyes against the sun for a better view, I was able to make out a large bald man in the driver's seat.

Quinn.

I decided I had a moment or two before he got to the end of the driveway and out of the car. If I strained I might be able to hear his thoughts and determine whether or not he was a threat. Weres and Shifters were a little harder to read but it was by no means impossible. I had done it in the past and figured that with the recent infusions of Eric's blood, which had allowed me to strengthen both my shields and allowed me to hear vampires more frequently, Quinn shouldn't be too hard at this distance.

He was an open book.

…she'll know that I had no choice. He had Frannie. I wouldn't have hurt the shifter unless there was no way around it.

It was enough to let me know I was in no danger. It was also enough to put Quinn permanently on my shit list.

By now he had come to a stop and was headed towards me, tail between his legs. Ha.

"Sookie listen" he started to say, his hands up in a gesture of contrition "with Felipe out of the way I let Sam go."

"Where is he, Quinn?" I demanded.

"Back at his trailer-

"Then get off my property" I said "before I call the police."

"Hey, babe, he's fine" Quinn said, slowly coming closer "I just want to talk. Explain myself."

"I have nothing to say to you ever again. Sam is my friend. I don't listen to people who hurt my friends." I said firmly, arms crossed.

"You're going to have to talk to me eventually. When I received word from my boss that Felipe was finally dead, he mentioned a coronation. EEE are handling the whole thing. And unless you and the fanger are no longer involved, which would be good news for everyone, I expect you'll be there." Quinn said smugly.

"Get. Off. My. Property" I repeated, enunciating every word "you could have done anything, Quinn, anything else to get your sister out of trouble. This I can't and won't forgive."

"I still don't know where she is" Quinn said miserably "when I knew Felipe and his retinue were finished there was no point in holding Sam. But I still haven't found Frannie. I came here to ask you for help."

You've got to be kidding me I thought after everything he wants my help?

"I'm truly sorry about your sister but you're going to have to find someone else to look for her. I'm done." I said, and maybe I was being a bad Christian but I hoped that God would forgive me for putting my foot down.

Quinn actually had the nerve to look hurt. He didn't appear to be going anywhere any time soon either. So I decided to just get in the car and go to Merlotte's anyway.

I left him standing on my gravel driveway in a cloud of dust.

0o0o0o0

The first thing I did when I pulled up to the bar was head to Sam's trailer. I wanted to see for myself if he was okay.

I knocked but there was no answer so I turned the doorknob and was surprised to find it unlocked.

"Sam" I called out "if you're in there, I'm coming in."

"Sookie?" he asked, sounding a bit disoriented "what are you doing here? I thought you were gone away with Eric?"

I stepped inside to see him lying on the sofa in a pair of old cut-offs. He looked ragged and exhausted. He could barely lift his head to look at me.

"I'm back" I said "but let's talk about you. Are you hurt? What happened?"

"I'll be okay" he replied "just a bad few days is all."

"Is there anything I can get you? Do you want a glass of water? Or I could run over to the bar for some sweet tea" I said.

"That's real nice of you but I'm fine" he said.

"Don't you play tough with me Sam Merlotte" I warned gently "I know about Quinn. You had me worried half to death. Calvin and Alcide's packs have been looking for you."

"Why'd you go getting them involved? I could have handled it" he protested shakily.

"I know you could have" I said, because I believed it, mostly "but you've got friends here Sam, and you would have done the same for me."

He didn't comment.

"I'm going to go on and let you get some sleep. But I expect you to tell me what happened when you get your strength back" I said, heading towards the trailer door. "I'll tell everyone you're alright."

"Thanks, Sookie" Sam said quietly.

"Any time" I replied.

0o0o0o0

When I stepped into Merlotte's I was relieved to see it running smoothly in spite of Sam's and my absence. That's not to say that I thought I was irreplaceable, but having Terry in charge of the bar made me a little uneasy. He was a sweet guy but his tendency to slip into a mood due to his PTSD made him slightly unreliable. At least when Sam or I was around it seemed to happen somewhat less often. And I'm not ashamed to say I had a knack for the other responsibilities around Merlotte's that only Sam usually took care of.

In any case, Amelia appeared to have done a great job in my place and I was glad.

I hoped that when I spoke to Ginger I would get some good news on that front as well. I was more than a little worried that my failure to inform Eric about the mysterious vamp at Fangtasia would have some bad repercussions.

"Sookie" I heard Terry say in relief as I approached the bar "I'm real glad you're here. There's orders to fill and I wasn't sure what else needed doin' out back" he finished, drying some beer glasses.

"Thanks Terry" I said "you did a fine job. Sam should be in tomorrow and he will take care of it. I know he'll be pleased with how you looked after things while he was gone. I'm just here to speak to some of the waitresses."

"Oh, right" Terry said, a little flushed from the compliment. "Amelia's working today and Holly. That Ginger's supposed to come in for the dinner rush."

I smiled and thanked him again before heading out back to catch up with Amelia. I'd have to call Ginger when I got home.

"Sookie!" she exclaimed as soon as she saw me "what are you doing coming in?" she said, hugging me.

"I was here to get some leads on Sam but it turns out he's back and okay, thank goodness. He should be in tomorrow. Amelia, I can't thank you enough for pulling such long hours here at the bar this week" I said sincerely "and for doing that spell at Sam's trailer" I added.

"So he's not hurt? Do you know what happened?" She asked, interested.

"I don't know the whole story but I'll tell you when I find out" I promised "for now, I'm just glad he's safe."

"Me too" she said, and then looked at me straight in the eye and said "so how are you? Are you okay, Sookie? Is there anything I can do?"

"I'll be fine" I assured her.

"Honest!" I said when she narrowed her eyes.

"Well go on and get out of here then. I'm busy and you're not on the schedule until tomorrow." Amelia said, shooing me away.

"I owe you one" I called out to her over my shoulder as I left.

"More than one" she sang back.

0o0o0o0

When I got back to the house I took my time heading up the driveway. If for some reason Quinn was waiting for me to come home, I was going to consider just turning right back around. Thankfully I didn't have to worry about it because I was all alone at the farmhouse.

The first thing I did when I got inside was to quickly call Alcide and Calvin and thank them for looking for Sam and to tell them he was alright. After promising to explain everything as soon as I could, we said our goodbyes. I decided when things settled down a little I would bake them some pecan pies to show my gratitude.

The next thing on my list was to get in touch with Ginger. I realized I didn't have her number without my cell phone, and I knew she wouldn't be at Fangtasia, so I tried the old-fashioned thing: a phonebook. Sure enough, there it was.

I looked at the clock to make sure it wasn't too early for a call; if she was still keeping vampire hours she might be sleeping in like I liked to do. But then again, since she was working at Merlotte's in a couple of hours I figured it was probably safe.

I dialled her number and let a few rings go through. When she didn't answer I hung up. I found it a bit strange that she wasn't home but for all I knew she was getting groceries at the Grabbit-Kwik. I'd just have to go over to the bar again when her shift started.

My last call, until the sun went down at least, was to Niall. I had memorised his number, which was a good thing because I doubted that Faery would be searchable through 411.

"Sookie Stackhouse for Niall Brigant" I said to the operator automatically.

"Hold please" she intoned indifferently.

"You've arrived safely in Bon Temps, I hear" my great-grandfather's voice sounded through the phone at once.

"I have" I agreed "I was hoping you were free soon for our dinner." I felt like getting right to the point.

"Of course my dear" he said "is tonight too soon?"

"Not at all" I said "will I cook or would you like to go out?" I asked, looking around the kitchen frantically to take inventory. If I was cooking, I'd have to hustle to the store and then clean up the house a little more, change into something more suitable for dinner and actually prepare the meal. It didn't leave me with much time, if any. Especially if I was stopping by Merlotte's to speak to Ginger before her shift.

"That's up to you child. I would, however, prefer privacy for this conversation" he said.

That had pretty much settled it. I agreed to cook dinner and we set it for 7 o'clock. He told me to expect another guest for dessert. I agreed graciously of course but I wasn't entirely sure I could handle another surprise.

TBC

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