Authors note: You didn't think I would really let everything go smoothly, did you? Where's the fun in that? Buckle up, it's about to be a wild ride! Also, I kept Nan alive for this story as you can see. I feel like there was so much more potential for her.
Chapter Four
Eric was busy interrogating another witch in the French Quarter when his phone began to buzz in his pocket. He pulled it out as he looked at the witch he currently had up against the wall by his throat.
"This better be important. I'm busy." He answered with annoyance.
"Sir I just wanted to let you know that Miss Stackhouse made it in the air just fine and she will be landing in about ten hours."
The man that Eric was still choking began to gasp for air. Eric released some pressure as the guy began to cough. "I'm sorry, what?"
"You asked me to call you and let you know when Miss Stackhouse was leaving?" The man asked anxiously.
"I know I did but why the hell is she leaving already?" Eric huffed and he began to choke the man again.
"Um, Sir. I um. I could ask around?" The man mumbled nervously.
"You know what, it's fine. I will deal with it." He hung up and looked at the man turning blue. He let go of him as the man fell to the ground and coughed violently. "You're of no use to me." Eric looked back at his phone and all the missed calls from Sookie. She didn't leave a voice mail either. He stormed out of the bookstore. He took off into the night sky. He needed to deal with the problem at Fangtasia.
Sookie sat on the personal jet. She couldn't relax. She just knew something bad was happening and the fact that Eric was avoiding her calls made this so much worse. She was sure he was made aware of her sudden flight. She tried to get a normal flight back but there wasn't anything for a week. She decided to use the resources that presented themselves. Eric had a personal jet and she was going to use it.
She was surprised though not to get a call or a message from him, asking why she was coming back so soon. Fear began to take her over as she remembered how chaotic it got last time. Maybe something awful was happening. She tried to think of who she could call and get a straight answer from. She immediately thought of Arlene's boyfriend Keith. He was a vampire and if there was something otherworldly taking place then he would tell her, no questions asked.
She quickly dialed his number as they finished the last safety checks of the plane. She knew with the time difference it would be tricky but it was nearly midnight in Italy so it would be about six pm in the evening in Louisiana. Maybe he was an early riser?
He picked up on the third ring. It sounded like complete chaos in the background and Sookie felt her chest tighten.
"Coby leave your sister alone and Mikey, are you pooping in the corner? Go on the potty." Keith called out with frustration.
Sookie relaxed a bit and smiled. He was really trying his hardest to be a good dad to Arlene's kids. They were always so happy together and he actually calmed Arlene's personality down by quite a lot. She smiled more and blushed when he was around. Sookie knew that feeling all too well. She felt it with Eric. Even now she was flushing as she thought of him. She was tempted to believe that it was just a vampire magnetism thing happening, but this was different than with Bill. It was more intense, more exciting, and more passionate but it was also more dangerous.
"Keith, hey it's Sookie. I know you're busy and all."
"No, I'm good. Totally fine." He picked up three-year-old Mikey and brought him into the bathroom. "What's up."
"Yeah um. I was just checking to see if everything was alright, and it seems to be just fine."
"Ew Poop is on you!" Mikey laughed as Keith looked down at his arm and the poop stuck to it.
"I'm gonna be sick." He began to dry heave.
"I'm going to let you go for now."
"Yeah, ok. Later Sookie." He hung up and she felt somewhat relieved. The world wasn't falling apart. He would have noticed but then why was Eric avoiding her call and threatening Lafayette? What the hell did he want with bringing back someone from the dead?
Her mind began to race with ideas. She had way too much time on her hands. Maybe he was thinking of Godrick and wanting to somehow bring him back but then he knew that Godrick wanted to die. Would he really try to bring him back into a world that he didn't want to be in? Then she thought of his sister Nora. Sookie didn't like her one bit when she was alive. She was pretty sure that Eric was fucking her and she hated to think about it especially since it was his sister for all intents and purposes. What the heck was Eric planning?
Nothing good ever came from attempting to bring anyone back from the dead. That much she did know. The plane began to move down the runway. Well, she had hours to overthink and analyze everything!
Eric got back to Fangtasia, but he immediately noticed that he was not alone. His place was surrounded by vampire police vans. Nan Flanagan walked up to him. He knew shit had officially hit the fan.
"You. Me. Now." She was pissed as she pointed across the parking lot and away from prying ears.
"Is there any point in me explaining my side?"
"No." Nan sighed heavily and then stopped walking. "You're the official spokesperson for True Blood, you do know what that means right?" She was barely containing her anger and then she closed in the distance to him. "What the fuck were you thinking, Eric!"
"Hey, all I did was hold him here until you all showed up." He smirked. "I knew you would want to handle this your way." He looked up as Pam walked out. She had an apologetic worried look on her face. He waved her over.
"You silvered him, excessively." Nan rolled her eyes as Pam joined them.
"We couldn't risk it until we knew what he was. I mean it's not every day one of us just comes back to life."
"Then why did we have to get an anonymous call about it." Nan raised her eyebrows. "You weren't holding him captive, were you?'
"I was the one that called. Eric was um, he was going to go see you personally, but I thought it would be so much better just to call. I mean why waste an entire trip there when it could be a phone call."
"You know me and technology. I hate it. I don't even know how to text back properly." He added.
Nan looked between the two of them. "Well, we will know soon enough after Bill is looked after. He's rambling now and in pain because of the silver."
"Bill was always a rambling fool." Eric forced a smile.
They all looked up as Bill was taken out on a stretcher. He was still carrying on.
"Aren't you even the least bit curious as to how he was able to come back? I mean surely you would be more concerned about that."
"Well of course we are. This doesn't happen, often." She swallowed hard. "Keep your noses out of trouble. The last thing we need is the humans catching wind of this and then we will have a proper shit storm." She walked away from them as all the vans began to leave.
"I'm sorry, Eric." Pam whispered.
He stormed past her and into his trashed club. "Fuck! This place is a goddamn wreck, again." He picked up a few chairs that were lying sideways on the floor.
"I was worried." Pam followed him inside.
"I don't want to hear it." He was pissed.
"I was worried about us. This wasn't our problem, Eric. Let the vampire authority figure out what to do with him."
"You betrayed my trust." He faced her and she stiffened. "After everything we have been through."
"I did this because of everything we have been through." She touched his arm softly.
"Maybe it's because I released you and now you just don't care." He shrugged her hand off his arm as he walked towards his office.
"You know that didn't change anything for me."
He stopped at the doorway and looked at her. "No, it changed a lot of things." He stepped into his office and shut the door. He knew that in about eight hours Sookie would be landing. He was worried that she left early. He had no idea why. He felt insecure for the first time in his life. They had left things on very good terms but then he left. Was she rethinking and regretting what happened? "Fuck!" He yelled as he shoved his desk across the small room. He leaned on a chair and tried to think. He could only imagine her reaction when she heard that Bill was alive or maybe she would never know.
He did come back from the dead and the authority wouldn't just let him go on his way. Hell, they could keep him, experiment on him for years. He began to relax. Maybe Sookie would never find out. He would have to make sure she didn't. The only issue he had was that her flight wouldn't be arriving till the morning and he would be fast asleep. So, he wouldn't be able to greet her until sundown but then again the only ones who knew about Bill were the authority and Pam. They would all be fast asleep too. He would have time to figure this out.
Part of him was sure that regardless if Bill was back that she would stay with him. Sure, she would feel something small in regard to him, she was always the emotional one. At the end of the day though she would be his. They became one again in every possible sense of the word. "Fuck." He huffed. This felt like Deja Vu all over again.
"The other Eric is still here."
"Uh-huh."
Can't you see him in my eyes?" He touched her face softly.
"Yes." She smiled sweetly at him.
"Then what's the problem?"
"Bill." She sighed. "When you were about to kill him. I couldn't bear to think of a world without him in it. I think it was how I was able to stop you." She took his hand into his. "I love you. I don't want to lie to you, but I can't help it. I love him too."
"Fucking Bill." He groaned as he took a seat. He refused to lose Sookie again. He wouldn't.
Sookie fell asleep halfway through her flight. Her mind was still on Eric.
The stewardess tapped her lightly as her eyes slowly opened. She quickly sat up and looked around in confusion.
"I'm sorry to wake you Miss Stackhouse but we're landing shortly."
Sookie rubbed her face and looked at her phone. She had slept for hours. It was nearly eight am. Her vacation was officially over after two days. If truth be told she was surprised that it even lasted that long. She never did have good luck when it came to relaxing. Hell, this was her first vacation in forever.
Everything seemed to be running normally back in Bon Temps. Her first visit was back home. She wasn't ready for everyone to know she was back but that would end quickly as she interrupted Jason eating her leftovers in the kitchen.
"Sook. What are you doing back?" He shoved a cold hot dog into his mouth.
"What can I say, I am a glutton for punishment." She sighed. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at home with Bridgette?"
He had begun dating Bridgette, Hoyt's ex shortly after Jessica's quickie wedding. It seemed like he was actually going to settle down too. They had moved in together and she had never seen him happier.
"Ugh. She has got crazy mood swings and her food cravings are driving me nuts." He grabbed out a plate of cooked hamburgers and put one in the microwave.
"Food cravings?"
"Oh shit. I wasn't supposed to say that." He sighed.
"Oh my god, Jason. Is she pregnant?" She couldn't believe this.
"Surprise." He laughed nervously.
"Oh my god, you are going to be a dad?" She blinked in shock and then ran over and hugged him as he stood there awkwardly.
"Don't tell her that you know. She is all like superstitious and wants us to wait a few more months."
Sookie pulled back from him and smiled big. "Mums the word." She hugged him again. "Are you excited or scared?"
"Both." He laughed anxiously. "I've never changed a diaper in my life and I have no idea how to do CPR." He looked panicked as he quickly took a seat. "Oh, shit Sook. What the hell am I going to do? I'm not ready to be a dad."
Sookie smiled sweetly and sat across from him. "Do you love her?"
"I think I do." He swallowed hard. Sookie never thought she would see the day that Jason loved someone more than himself.
"Then you will make a great dad. Gram would be so happy." She couldn't help the tears in her eyes. It was during moments like this that she was reminded of how they only had each other for these milestones. Everyone else was gone.
"Don't you start crying." He stood up and grabbed his burger from the microwave.
"I'm not crying." She wiped her eyes and smiled.
'Why are you back anyway. Weren't you like doing some soul searching or some shit."
"I was just getting some peace and quiet."
"Yeah well, I am glad your back. I really need someone to keep me from fucking this up."
"You are going to be fine." She touched his hand. "Let's just keep it to ourselves that I am back, ok?"
"Yeah, it's probably for the best. Arlene's going nuts with running the bar, but she has a surprising knack for barking out orders to everyone. It's like she was meant to run a business." He smirked. "The other day though, the new chick Beatrice."
"It's Bonnie but go on." Sookie rolled her eyes.
"Yeah ok, whatever. She um dyed her hair red, and Arlene lost it. It was pretty fucking hilarious." He laughed and then his eyes got wide. "Holy shit Sook. I haven't even thought about sleeping with the new chick." His eyes got wide. "I might really be in love."
"I think you are." She smiled and then her phone vibrated. She looked down and saw a text message from Eric.
Can we talk?
She looked at the time. It was still so early; he should be sleeping but he was awake and texting her.
"Everything, ok?" Jason looked concerned.
She turned off her phone. "Yeah, everything is fine." She would deal with Eric later. "I think I'm gonna lay down a bit."
"Ok, I'll finish these burgers off."
"And then go home, Jason, and bring her some flowers. Oh, and ice cream and maybe pickles."
"I'm gonna have to write this down."
Sookie made her way to the bedroom. She was exhausted. She contemplated writing Eric back but thought against it. She wanted to find out what he was up to. She knew he wouldn't tell her. Some things would never change about him. There was one person who knew him better than most. Pam. Sookie and Pam had a rocky relationship, but at the end of the day, Pam was brutally honest. A trait that Sookie admired about her. She would find out one way or another what he was up to.
She decided on a quick nap before reaching out to Pam. There was still quite sometime before sundown.
Eric on the other hand was in the middle of an actual dream. They didn't come often but when they did, it was always about her.
He made his way through Sookie's house. He could hear her laughing and her voice carried throughout. He followed it until he got to her bedroom door, but the sounds were no longer of laughter but something else entirely. Moans of pleasure filled his ears as he swung the door open violently.
"Oh, Bill! Don't stop!" She moaned loudly.
"No!" He yelled and then he shot up in his casket so hard that he slammed his head against it. "Fuck." He pushed it open as Pam did the same.
"What the hell Eric! I need my beauty rest." She huffed with annoyance.
He ignored her as he got up and she sighed dramatically.
"We still have an hour before sundown."
"I have things to do." He walked across the room. He needed to see Sookie and ensure that she never found out about Bill.
"Fine, whatever but keep it down." She laid back and closed her eyes once more.
Meanwhile, at the Vampire Authority Headquarters in Virginia, alarms were going off as officers ran around with high-powered guns. The remnants of vampires that met the true death were all over the ground and walls.
Nan was getting ready early for an interview with a local news station. Her phone began to ring, and she answered it in a hurry. "I'm about to go on the air in five minutes. This better be important."
The man on the other end of the line spoke with an anxious tone. "We have a problem."
"I don't like to hear that Tom, what's going on?"
"It's like a massacre here. I don't even know where to start."
"Where's Bill?" She tensed.
"Gone. I think he took everyone out along the way."
"How is that possible? He was locked away."
The guard looked at the door that was ripped completely off the hinges. "Yeah, well the door is torn in half."
"God damn it!" Nan yelled as the makeup woman jumped back and looked at her. "Get everyone on this, now. He couldn't have gotten far. I need to do damage control." She stood up and began to pace. "Find him!" She hung up and then immediately dialed Eric but it went straight to voice mail. "Fuck! Someone get me a goddamn car, right now!"
"But your interview." The anxious woman stood with a brush in one hand and makeup in another.
"Shit." Nan tapped her foot repeatedly. "It's fine. Let's just hurry this up. I have somewhere I need to be."
Eric stood outside Sookie's home. He could sense her inside but she had revoked his invitation a while ago. He walked up to the door as his phone rang, it was Nan. He put it on silent and shoved it back in his pocket.
He knocked twice and waited.
Sookie stood in the kitchen and sipped her tea. She was waiting for Pam to text her back but nothing yet then she heard a knock. She knew it was him even before she saw him. She swallowed hard and opened the door. It was like he got better looking every time she saw him. She immediately thought about their wild sex-capades.
"You left Italy early." He ached to touch her.
"Jason was having issues." She lied as she forced a smile. She needed to stop thinking about Eric naked. She could barely concentrate.
"Can I come in?"
Before she could answer, her phone began to ring. She saw it was Arlene and she sighed.
"Hang on." She looked at a frustrated Eric and then answered. "Hey Arlene, what's going on?"
"Oh, thank god you answered Sookie. The new girl quit on me, and I am losing my mind." She was frantic and on the verge of tears. Sookie was just about to tell her that she was still away on vacation but then Arlene spoke. "Jason came by for lunch and said you were back in town. I need you, Sookie."
She sighed heavily and looked at Eric who was becoming impatient standing outside the door. She was going to kill Jason! She should have known better than to trust him to keep his mouth shut.
"I um. I will be right there." She sighed.
"Oh, thank you!" Arlene cheered happily. "Hurry though, it's a mad house in here." She hung up and Sookie looked back at Eric.
"Everything ok?"
"Yeah but now I have to head to work, thanks to Jason." She huffed.
"Well, if I could just come in for a second."
"Let me just grab my bag." She walked away from the door and he huffed anxiously. His phone was buzzing constantly in his pocket. He was close to crushing it in his hands. He missed the days of payphones. The days when someone couldn't just make a call from anywhere and get anyone at any time.
There was a sound of a loud crash behind him and when he turned, he saw Bill laying on the ground. "What the fuck!" He rushed over to him. He was covered in blood and had multiple gunshot wounds covering his body. They were slowly healing.
"Eric." He gasped weakly. "Help me."
Before Eric could say anything, Sookie came walking outside. "You know I swear sometimes I feel like my cat hides the keys so I won't leave." She laughed and then her eyes got wide. "Bill?"