~ Words are symbols for sight, sounds, smell, touch, and taste. Spirit and human combined to express what God has thought and we have experienced. — 12/1/04
The characters of the Southern Vampire Mysteries belong to Miss Charlaine Harris. No infringement on my part is intended. The characters on True Blood belong to Mr. Alan Ball. No infringement on my part is intended.
I have no BETA, editor, or other such charming person. All mistakes are my own.
This story is rated M
My Angel’s Kiss — Chapter 9, Epilogue
Breakfast finished up and the kitchen was put to rights and folks went to work. Eric, Sookie, Emmy, and Samuel walked the gardens. Went through the barns and inspected the on-going soap production, waiting for some quiet, alone, adult talking time.
Everywhere they went it was a parade; goats and dogs trotting along behind and sometimes in front expressing their opinions. The dogs had to sniff everything and the goats had to taste everything and the parade was greeted with enthusiasm as they passed by the soap-making kitchen.
Then it was time for lunch. After they ate, Emmy was dropped off with the other kiddos and Sookie, Eric, and Samuel sat down in the living room.
“What did you learn?” Eric asked her.
“That maybe Hadley had a boyfriend. And maybe it was Sam Merlotte. They were a thing when she was still jailbait according to Arlene. He had an apartment over by the mall. Long Pine Apartments. Gated community. He moved her in when she turned eighteen. Arlene saw them coming out once. So maybe they hooked back up. Apparently they thought they could kill me and take Emmy. Just that quick.”
“That could work,” Samuel nodded.
“And most important,” Eric said, “you are both Adele’s grand daughters. So she could have in fact become the goddess of this coven.”
“So did he open the Hell-Mouth?” Samuel asked.
“Maybe,” Sookie shrugged. “I have no idea how you even begin to do something like that. And why did only one thing come slithering out and Hell did not empty it bowels onto the Earth?
Someone made a beer run,” Sookie said. “And obviously he was on a mission. Eat the barkeep and grab a keg.”
“But that was where the party was going to be held, so it was known in advance that the Hell-Mouth would open there,” Eric said. “We need to talk to Cedric. He tracks this kind of supernatural happening.”
It had been a very good All Saint’s Day. Over dinner, both Cedric and Ian agreed that they had never slept so well or had such sweet dreams as they did under the angel’s kiss bed.
Eric had merely arched an eyebrow at both of them as they expanded on the blessed air they had bathed in and the sweet aroma of the wood soap that Miss Sookie washed her floors with.
But there were things Eric wanted to know so the Irish was going to have to get the compliments out of his system. He was being sweet and charming to Sookie and Emmy and that worked for Eric. Let the leprechaun magic float on the air and if it helped to woo Sookie, so much the better. But marry one of his daughters…it was going to take more than some sweet words and a pot of gold!
“Cedric,” Sookie asked as she helped herself to a piece of pumpkin pie. “You know anything about Hell Mouth’s? Because I have been trying to understand this all day.”
“What you have,” he began, “is that someone evil had to die on that spot. And the only way he could come slitherin’ out of the bowels of Hell was to carry back to Hell the one that murdered him. So the barkeep had a corrupt, murdin’ soul and was deservin’ of his fate.”
“So,” she put some whipped cream on top of her pie. “So,” she had a bite, “so if Sam did the inviting, he would have had to know that was the spot that the murder took place. So he was someplace watching while the act was committed.”
“Yes,” Cedric nodded. “He very well could have stopped off and sprinkled blood there earlier in the day, just to make them hungry for darkfall and Jason and Hadley.”
“So Sam set this whole thing up to what?” she asked.
“Best guess,” Cedric sniffed the pumpkin latte Lafayette was drinking and looked wistful. “That should be him on the videos closin’ the Hell Mouth. That he was the Slayer.”
“That would explain his fascination with the special-ops group he keeps touting,” she nodded. “He could show the Supernatural world that you did not need a committee of special charged whatevers, just him to close a Hell Mouth.”
“It could play out that way,” Ian nodded in agreement. “So how do we find him?”
“He used to have an apartment in Shreveport. With a little sniffing about,” Eric grinned, “we could see if he still does.”
“You know,” Cedric sniffled and looked woeful, “he would not be expectin’ anything as powerful as a vampire to come breakin’ and enterin’ during the day. That somehow seems unfair,” he sniffled again. “Maybe to keep things even and fair, maybe you should go in the evenin’, when a serial Were…” he paused and looked at Emmy and continued, “such as himself would expect big-bad company.”
Ian sniffled a bit himself and wiped at his eyes as well.
Pamela popped in. “Clearly what is needed here is Brother Samuel. I have seen him blow through all manner of spells. The very best ones were when we were tomb raiding in the Valley of the Kings. Those Egyptian priests, what posers,” she rolled her eyes and made a gagging sound.
Emmy giggled and reached for Pam.
“All finished with my pie, Auntie Pam,” she grinned. “May we please go dance with the goats?”
“You bet,” she nodded. “I found muck boots just like yours. Let’s go put them on and out we will go!”
“Boys night out?” Sookie asked as she added more whipped cream. “I am of the opinion that the Northman Triad works no matter if we are together or apart.”
“We are linked,” Eric nodded and smiled. “Samuel, you feel up to an outing?”
Batting his eye lashes, he smiled and said, “Well, I do believe so. But we should perhaps take the Irish and the English with us. Just in case Merlotte has layered his apartment with another Hell Mouth. Cedric can talk us through it while God blasts it with His lightning. And of course, Eric, you can take a shotgun with rock salt because I know just how much you like blasting anything,” he laughed.
“Someone can borrow mine,” Lafayette said.
“And mine,” Sookie nodded.
“Pamela will be staying here, I think with Emmy,” Eric said. “So that makes three and I have one. Well, most excellent, we can all blast salt into his walls if we need too.”
Ian and Cedric both grinned.
Eric glared at them. “What…you think you have been invited to go hunting with your future father-in-law? Get over yourselves,” he hissed as he squinted his eyes and silver sparks shot out.
“We are going out to politely ask Pamela if we might borrow her fire arm. Please excuse us,” Ian said and they both stood and bowed deeply. From the kitchen you could hear them both laughing and singing as they made their way to the barn.
“Probably they are waltzing as well,” Eric said as he focused on the wall, doing his best to see through it.
“Well then,” Sookie smiled, “you boys set things to right. I will clean the kitchen so you can prepare.”
“I’ll help,” Eric said standing and removing things. “They will need to sweet talk Pam. Eventually she will give in, but it is not going to be right away. We have plenty of time.”
Lafayette carried his plate over to the sink, looked at Samuel, who also excused himself and they both headed into the living room.
Sookie thought that her kitchen was big enough to accommodate two people. She and Gran had always been able to freely move around and not bump into each other.
That did not seem to be the case tonight. Eric was always standing behind her and putting things away that were up high. While he rinsed dishes at the sink, the side of his body would brush up against hers as she loaded them into the dishwasher, their hands touching ever so lightly.
When Sookie washed her hands and started to dry them with a dish towel, Eric took it from her and dried them for her.
“You are making me crazy,” she said as she took the dish towel from him and hung it back on its hook.
“Is that good or bad?” he asked.
“It just is,” she replied softy as she ran her hand down his face.
Eric picked her up and put her on the counter top.
Leaning down to her, they were eye-to-eye and then his mouth touched hers, softly and gently while he pushed his pelvis forward and with his hands on her butt, pulled her toward him. When she made contact with his pelvis, a low, long wail came from her. Eric put his mouth on hers to cover the sound and he held her as she pushed against him. It did not take long, his tongue echoing what she was doing with her pelvis before she shuddered in his arms.
Holding her next to him, her put his head on top of hers as her ragged breathing evened out.
Raising her face, he kissed her lightly on the lips. “I have missed you,” he said so softly that she could barely hear him. “The way you smell, that look on your face when you are thinking about something. The way your hands would hold me after I made love to you. Strong hands, with strength and power radiating out from them. And yet so soft to the touch.”
Sookie nodded. “I know.”
“As much as I hate to say it,” his voice cracked in sorrow, “this way really was for the best.” “I know,” Sookie sighed. “I know. We had to be safe. And this really was for the best. But I did miss you,” she nodded and felt the tears form.
“Onward to the future,” Eric kissed her again. This time not so sweet and with fire burning through him that he shared with her!
Breaking off the kiss, Sookie smiled at him and shook her head no. “There is a part of me that wants you in my bed, always. There is another part that says I am coming off a five-year heartbreak. That there is nothing to gain by rushing into this.”
“Carefully we shall go then,” he pulled back from her and kissed her on the nose.
“Thank you,” she grinned at him. “Because I was ready to yank your pants down and welcome King Eric back into my life.”
Laughing, she jumped down and was out the door and headed to the barn, with Eric in pursuit.
“I can hear your Mommy and Daddy,” Pam said as they continued dancing and singing with the goats.
Emmy grinned. “He is a good daddy. And he loves my mommy. I shall have a brother and sisters,” she said with a sure nod of her head.
Ian and Cedric were dancing with them and were grinning like wolves! Big toothy smiles! “Daughters!” they both wiggled their eyebrows.
Pam looked from one to the other and rolled her eyes. “Miss Emmy, I think it is time to go inside. They came asking a boon and I believe we have made these two dance long enough. We will need you to bless the rock salt.”
“Okay,” she nodded as they put the goats to bed and closed the door and started for the house.
Sookie and Eric were still playing chase around a tree out in the pecan grove. He lunged for her and when he fell, shrieking, she took off for the house.
“I did that on purpose,” Eric called out. “Just so I could chase you.
Great view from back here,” he laughed. “Just the best. I love the way your ass wiggles and bounces.”
“What?” she looked over her shoulder. “My ass does not wiggle but is solid and…”
Eric had moved to in front of her and with her next step she was in his arms and his mouth was devouring hers.
Vamp speed they were in the hayloft and Eric was down in the hay with Sookie on top of him.”
“Oh sweet and beautiful lady of my heart,” he brought her hand to his mouth for a kiss. “Tonight I am off to fight a war. Perhaps,” his sad smile reached all the way to his eyes. “Perhaps I shall not return. Would you send this warrior to his grave without one last ride of triumph?”
“Semper Fi,” she wiggled her eyebrows at him as she pulled down his pants.
Eric reached up and pulled hers off, buttons flying everywhere. When she had been divested of all her clothes, she leaned down and kissed his mouth, softly and tenderly while she slid onto him.
“Short, hot and nasty,” she moaned as he grabbed her ass and slid his middle finger in her anus. His tongue dictated what the rest of his body did to her! When she arched her back and slammed into him, he roared in pleasure as he thrust up to meet her passion and pulled her down to him for a kiss as he released himself into her welcoming womb.
Offering him her neck, Eric grew hard again, and as he suckled life’s sweetest nectar, he came, again, with Sookie screaming his name.
“I have some work clothes,” Sookie sighed, “in the office.”
“I’ll get them and be right back,” he kissed her as he pulled up his jeans.
When Eric returned, she pulled on the denim jeans and work shirt. Gathering up her clothes, Eric floated them back down to Mother Earth.
“It is past Emmy’s bedtime,” she shook her head.
“We’ll get her tucked in and then we’ll go,” Eric said as he put his arm around her and they headed for the house. When they went in, Pam was reading the Three Billy Goats Gruff and everyone was acting out the parts.
“I am going to go shower,” Sookie said as they came in.
“Auntie Pam already gave me a shower. So we are reading!” Emmy said clapping her hands.
“Most excellent,” Sookie smiled.
“Daddy you going to read me a story?” she asked.
“Of course,” Eric smiled at her as he sat down. “Let me pick one out,” as he wistfully watched Sookie walk away.
“Mommy is just in the bathroom Daddy,” Emmy got up and gave him a kiss. “Do not look so sad.”
Grinning, Eric sat her in her lap. “Continue on,” he said to Pamela as he tickled Emmy on the bottom of her feet and the biggest Billy Goat Gruff of all came calling on the troll!
“And the biggest Billy Goat Gruff of all came calling on the troll,” Eric snickered as they stood outside the luxury apartments in Shreveport.
“Yes,” Cedric smiled. “That boy’o Merlotte is part troll. Did not put it all together until I heard the story. His kind is a bit far from home. But their wrong doin’ ways follow them where ever they go. Yes, him matin’ with humans and eating’ their energy stream. He did not care how old they were. Anything is better than to be dippin’ your wick inside a female troll who would eat your brains while you were still alive if you tried to suckle her power. Egads and puking me guts out while a female troll licks it up with her…” he paused. “Well you know, her nether regions if she truly has some.”
“So what are we looking to find when we enter?” Eric asked.
“I am of a mind he is not a very big troll. Somewhere along the way an ancestor mated with a shifter human. His warlock is not tall, either. Now was his Alligator persona. So probably of the shorty trolls.
Since he used to bring a human female here, all should be human sized. He would fucking hate that but you must be true to the skin you are wearin’.”
“So we what?” Ian asked. “If this is his nest we just salt it down?”
“Yes,” Cedric nodded. “But we have to find the troll nest. Then he will go a little nuts, wherever he is and you know the Supernatural community. They will rat him out in a heart-beat if his yellin’ and sceamin’ does not bring us a runnin’ first.”
“This is definitely the smell of the warlock,” Eric nodded his head. “Not a strong smell so he is not at home.”
“Up stairs we go and look in the windows,” Samuel grinned. “The last time we played Peeping Tom was in Paris.”
“Would love to forget that one,” Eric growled. “Still makes me want to puke.
Oh look, there is an alarm on this window. Samuel. Time to work your electronic magic!”
Once they were inside all four opened their salt bags and went to work sprinkling one of God’s greatest earthly gifts.
Samuel shook his head. “He really is a poser. Look at this. Right, like he took this photo of the sun coming up over the Pyramids. Good thing Pamela is not here. She would torch the place just to make an example out of him.”
“Oh-h-h-h,” Ian sounded very pleased as he knocked on walls. “Hollow,” he grinned. “Feeds over to the next apartment. Well, let’s see how this troll lives.”
“Find the mechanism,” Cedric warned. “He could have it spelled to vanish or some such if there are unlawful intruders. Then he could just continue on someplace else.”
“Good thought,” Eric said as he moved the objects on the wall. When the door slid open, they walked through.
“What is that stench?” Ian said wiping at his eyes.
“Dried troll dung,” Cedric responded. “They keep the shit of their ancestors, literally.”
“That is just wrong,” Samuel replied as he took out a handful of salt and beginning spreading it around the room. “It appears that he tans human hides to make the coverings for crudely made chairs.”
“Yes, no wood working expertise, what…so…ever…” Eric snarled. “This furniture is small…even for a six-foot human.”
“Shorty trolls,” Cedric nodded. “They do take the brunt of the jokes in Eire.”
“Well let him take the brunt of our wrath,” Eric grinned as they all tossed the salt into every corner and crevice.
“Don’t forget the ceiling,” Samuel said. “We will know if it is spelled if it sticks.”
“Sure enough,” Ian said in wonderment as he watched the ceiling resemble a snow-covered field.
“Down stairs we go. Let us go fuck with the human side of Sam Merlotte and see what that gains us.”
Daryl the Wizard was having a moment as he sat in with a coven, explaining how he was shot by the poser Shreveport Slayer to keep him from closing the portal.
They all clucked their tongues and made hand signs for the evil eye as he continued his sad tale of woe and how his many and varied talents had been wasted on All Hallow’s Eve.
“Now here we are on All Saint’s Day,” he shook his head and made a face. “Whose idea was that? There are no Saints that walk this earth. Or humans worth their salt-t-t…salt….salt…” the word stuttered, repeatedly as he tried to finish his sentence.
“Oh no…no…no…no…” he cried and stood up shrieking. “Someone has salt…salt…” the word continued on until he was up and dancing a jig.
“Salt,” he screamed, “Salt we piss and salt in the briny sea.
I have set the spell
and someone wishes me to hell
For my nest is clean and I have uttered my death and so I shall take my leave!”
“What the fuck!” Zeela stood and pointed at the troll-looking-human that was peering back at them beneath the hood.
“Whirl around,” Sam laughed in glee and stood and twirled on his knees.
“You are here and I am there and tomorrow we shall neither be here or there.
So dance a bit and jig a bit and watch the moon and stars,
For I am a troll a hungry troll and while you spin a kabob you ar…..”
“Ladies,” Eric and his boys had vamped in. “Please, allow me to dispose of this for you,” Eric smiled as he picked Sam up by the scruff of the neck, his legs, arms and feet flaying around.
“Thank you Sheriff,” they one and all bowed their heads in gratitude.
“Miracle child,” Eric chuckled. “So, one of you wanted to give birth to a troll. Just keep that in mind the next time someone makes you an offer that is just too fucking good to be true. You know that new-born trolls try to eat their mother. With a human to suckle from, I think they could probably succeed.
Oh…and please note, any of you bring your nasty-assed ways to Bon Temps. You will be turned into a toad.” Bowing, Eric slammed Sam against one of the sacrificial rocks in the henge. Hearing bones crunch, smiling he and his fellow vampires were gone.
As they approached Sookie’s land, the merry band slowed down. “Yes Sam,” Eric grinned. “There really is a miracle child. That would be Sookie’s and mine Miss Emmy. And our daughter is bona-fide. Get ready to be a toad.”
“What?” Sam’s eyes got round and then Eric stepped over the property line.
And then Sam’s eyes were always round as Eric tossed the toad to the ground.
“Oh,” Pam said as she was vamp speed out. “What was that squish?”
“That squish was Sam Merlotte, shorty troll,” Eric grinned. “Cedric will be the one to tell this story. After all, he has the Irish accent and it just sounds so much sexier coming from him.
A year has passed and it is late Oktober. A deep and abiding and beautiful Fall has arrived in the South.
I am a manufacturer of goaty-goat soap so I can give jobs to my community. I am a witch when I want needful things. (In truth, Gran and I, I don’t think you would call us witches. We would just think on ourselves as guardians of the earth.
I will say a blessing if one is needed. I just call that being a good neighbor.)
But that needful things list is extensive. Rain once a week so there is water for the lawn. Keeping the crows off the roof. The mice out of the house. Roses that don’t get mites, no to bag worms (yes seriously), and for some reason the finches pick the petals from the roses and line their nests. (We need those petals for making soap!) Keeping the milk fresh past the expiration date.
We need for the goats to be healthy, the lavender to grow big and strong, the rosemary to always stand guard and the pecan grove to produce, produce produce! See needful things.
I am known in my community and in the supernatural world as well. I am a telepath. I do telepath work occasionally because I live with the vampire Sheriff of Area Five. He handles those bookings and guarantees my safety if I agree to the job. So that is a great big yes to the question. I know Eric Northman, Bad-Ass Vampire, The Viking…the Big Stud with the Tight Ass and Daddy to our Daughter. So that means I have known him in the Biblical sense! You betcha! Every night and multiple times during the day if we are sneaky enough.
So. Yes. Your world can turn on a dime.
Mine did…
Yes we still make soap and gather for breakfast outside under the porch on nice days. Potlucks are the go to words on any given day and Poppi-La La still reigns supreme in the kitchen and the barns.
In the fall, we now offer Halloween hay rides…Ian and Cedric are the vampire wagon drivers, complete in Victorian dress. The crowds love these two, especially when Cedric starts telling his stories. And his ghost stories can scare the pee-wadding out of you.
And because they are tied into Eric and Eric is part of the Northman Triad, well, those boyos can be out and about on partly cloudy days. Along with Missy Pam who manages their asses.
We have school kiddos that wander through our pumpkin patch and pick one to go home with them to decorate their yard and adults that drink Lafayette’s special apple cider…it gets rave reviews!
I also wear Eric’s rings and his last name. My husband is very fond of saying it just looks damn…fucking…good on me. Of course, he only says that when we are alone, together. And that is getting to be more and more difficult as the twins continue to grow and take up valuable real estate in my tummy. The Ides Of March cannot get here fast enough!”
We welcome one and all to the old farmstead. Hey, come on out and pick up a few pecans and smell the rosemary! But if you come on our land with your nasty-assed ways and meaning to do us harm we will turn you into a toad…just sayin’.
Sookie, lover, you dropped the g….
…just saying.
There are the sounds of long, passionate kissing with deep guttural moaning. Clothes are straightened and there is the noise of someone beating their chest and a Tarzan yell fills the air!
Thanks, Eric. You can always get my tongue untwisted!
Just saying!
So you good folks, come this way and spend Halloween with us. We have ghost stories that will put the curl in your hair or take it out. Just saying!
Dear Readers,
Happy Halloween!
My big push today was to get my Halloween story finished. So here tis! Please pardon the mistakes…I know they must be numerous.
If you are kind enough to leave a review, I will do my best to say thanks, today. Please note that starting tomorrow, if all goes well I am out of the loop for the next six weeks and have no idea when I would be able to respond with a thank you note.
I am having knee replacement surgery tomorrow morning. It will be a heavy drugs and then physical therapy until the new joint and I are in cahoots! Six weeks and maybe a bit more or a bit less.
I appreciate all good thoughts and prayers. A lit candle is gladly appreciated as from the smallest light comes the greatest things!
The characters of the Southern Vampire Mysteries belong to Miss Charlaine Harris. No infringement on my part is intended. The characters on True Blood belong to Mr. Alan Ball. No infringement on my part is intended.
I have no BETA, editor, or other such charming person. All mistakes are my own.
This story is rated M
My Angel’s Kiss — Chapter 8
“Where the hell is this party supposed to be?” Ian asked.
“Old warehouse district,” Pam replied as she pulled in and parked and looked around. “The art and upscale tavern side. The directions said to go two blocks past Art or Art Not and we did that and it is the second building on the left hand side. Just look at that very large, angry-looking abandoned warehouse. Looks like part of the roof has caved in,” she said as she opened the car door. “Oh and bats just came flying out. I am taking that as a sign. A sign of what, I am not for real sure because there is clearly no door on this side. I am going to take a look-see.”
“This is not right,” Cedric spoke up. “Stay in the car. This is not right.”
“What’s up?” Ian asked as he turned to look in the back seat at his friend.
“Don’t you feel it?” he asked. “And smell it? Hell Mouth!”
Pam did not say anything but she did hurriedly close the van door. Cedric might be a poser, but when it came to spooks and things that went bump in the night, nothing got past the Irish.
“Look,” he pointed with his finger, “there goes Foster and Grant, looking a bit confused and lost themselves. They are good boys, call them over,” Cedric said, an unnatural hurry to his voice.
Pam rolled down her window. “Hover,” she called out, “and then to us.”
“What’s up?” Grant asked as they both took a step up off the ground and flew over.
“Looking for a party?” Pamela asked.
“Well yes,” Foster replied. “We are. It should be right here.”
“And yet it is not,” Pam added for them. “And our Irish lad in the back seat, his eyes have rolled up into the back of his head. He keeps repeating something is not right and his mutterings are of the unnatural bent. I keep hearing Hell Mouth. Get in if you want and let’s watch.
Cedric,” she turned to the back, “what are you reading?” she asked.
“Evil,” he stuck out his tongue and tasted the air. “Pure evil. Hell Mouth evil!”
“Yes,” Grant shivered. “My Scottish ass is twitchin’. This place is giving me the creep-a-willies!”
Pam nodded in agreement. “Cedric, give me your very best guess where the door is to this party,” she said as she watched the dark.
“There is not a door on the building, no opening for one,” Ian whispered. “Unless we are on the wrong block.”
“Yes,” Cedric crossed himself. “There is a door. Do you not hear it? A murder most foul was committed here. The hellion wants his revenge. To drag his murderer back into the abyss with him! Listen to the chatter! They are a’watin’ its sacrifice before it will open. The wrong-doer is close, time is short and revenge is wanted.” Cedric looked thoughtful. “Have you a bagged blood?” he asked.
“You sure you want to do this?” Grant asked.
“Unless you approach it, the evil has only come for the one that murdered him. You step through and you are alivin’ in Hell.”
“I have never see a Hell Mouth,” Pamela looked thoughtful. “Yes, cooler in the back,” she said as she watched Cedric retrieve one and then opening the door, leaned out and heaved it toward the derelict building.
“What the fuck!” Pam hissed as a portal opened and all kinds of nasties made a grab for the blood, screeching and hollering and screaming in such anguish that it trembled in your bones! In the scuffle, a small hideous mouth with two arms grabbed it and shoved it in.
You could still see the doorway pulsing, a glow around it that was now soft and welcoming.
“Shit,” Grant whispered. “We woke it up. It has set a trap.” Cedric laughed and replied. “On All Hallow’s it is always lookin’ for evil. It is here, ‘awaitin…”
“Wait one, there is a truck headed this way,” Foster said leaning out the window.
With the music blasting, it still did not drown out the screams of a woman who wanted hot, nasty sex!”
“As I live and no longer breathe,” Pam hissed as the truck approached. “That is Jason Stackhouse. Man whore extraordinaire! That would be the ghost of Hadley Savoy sitting next to him, his cousin and cursing like a banshee.”
“Would you look at that,” Ian whistled. “Those things that are staring out of that doorway, they almost looked human. Smiling and waving and oh, flashing a pair of tits! There goes the truck driving right on it. And just what the fuck was that in a hard hat that waved them through?”
“Demon,” Cedric hissed out and crossed himself.
All the others did the same.
“It is All Hallow’s Eve,” Ian voice was low and steady. “The unseemly do walk and those from Hell do roam.”
Pam had a moment…”Just who did we get the invitation from?” she asked, looking around the car.
“You know,” Grant began, his voice faltered as he watched the door open again and something slithered out. “Just heard…what the fuck was that?”
“Looked like a perverted version of a water horse,” Grant answered. “My grandmother spoke of them. Actually claims she saw Nessie.”
They watched it enter a bar. There was screaming as patrons came running out.
“Well, here it comes back,” Cedric said. “And what does it have in its mouth? Is that a beer keg?”
“Looks like,” they all muttered as the magical door opened and there was a lot of cheering and snarling and then closed.
“What are you doing Mistress Pamela?” Cedric asked as she got out and popped open her trunk.
“Since Miss Emmy has been born and I know that there are evil witches that want her, I carry rock salt and a shot-gun in the trunk of my car. I am going to empty several barrels of salt into where those doors just opened.”
“Good plan,” they all nodded their heads while she loaded the gun and got up on the roof of the van. They all joined her and together they pieced together just exactly where the door had opened.
Then, hovering in the air she approached. “Ka-blam!” the shotgun roared as she fired both barrels at once.
There were shrieks and there was a light show of multiple colors going on behind the outline of the portal and then it all just got smaller and winked out.
Vamp speed she was back to the van. “Do you think they will be back?” she asked.
“At midnight starts All Saints Day,” Cedric crossed himself. “If they do cross back over, it will not be for another year. I have had enough for one night. I am headin’ on back to the farmhouse! Singing with the goats and then slipping under Miss Sookie’s bed and tellin’ the Da’vid and his royal dumb ass brother they can just kiss my scared and shakin’ ass! My granny told lots o’ tales about Hell Mouths. I actually saw her close one. Did not think I would witness that, again. Tonight and for many nights to come I am a’sleepin’ under the bed of the angel’s kiss.”
“Good plan,” Ian nodded and they both took off into the night.
Grant and Foster looked at Pamela. “Was that really a Hell Mouth?”
“Possibly,” she steadied her nerves.
“Who blessed the salt?” Foster asked, his voice shaking.
“An angel’s kiss,” she replied.
“Truly?” Foster whispered. “Cedric was not foolin’?”
“Not fooling and truly,” Pam replied.
“Give Eric our regards and thank him for the money,” they both bowed their heads to her and disappeared into the night.
“I am beginning to understand about Lafayette staying home on Halloween,” she nodded to herself. “It is just fucking dangerous out here. I am hauling my ass on back to the farmhouse.”
Getting out of her van, she went over to where she had fired the salt. There was the distinct smell of sulfur. And ozone. It smelled like a direct hit lightning strike. There were some scorch marks on the pavement and…and…what was that smell? “Car exhaust?” she sniffed again.
Taking out her lipstick, she drew a heart on the pavement. “X marks the spot,” she nodded to herself and getting back in her van, headed towards Bon Temps.
As she passed a local bar, she could see where the beer keg had come from. There were people in Halloween costumes outside, throwing up and crying in fear.
“Ghosts and goblins!” was being shrieked as phones were out and they were all comparing what they had just experienced.
“Yes,” she rolled down her window as she drove by, listening to the approaching sirens, “there is the distinct smell of sulfur. No wonder they are retching.” Rolling her window back up she did not want to get embroiled with the police. Time to be someplace else. Fuck driving to Bon Temps. Flying was faster! Parking her car in the garage at her penthouse, she took to the air.
Eric and Samuel were waiting for her on the swing when she landed..
“Ian and Cedric and hiding under Sookie’s bed,” Eric began. “They said the safest place to be was with the angel’s kiss. What was the aftermath?”
Pamela explained what she witnessed.
“I have been carrying that rock salt in the back of my car since Miss Emmy was two. She said a little bless this Jesus prayer and kissed it. I have used it from time-to-time, but mostly for grins. This shit tonight was not funny.”
“And Jason and Hadley are locked in there with them…” Samuel’s voice trailed off.
Pam only nodded and then crossed herself. It was noted by both males. So, Pam had taken a hit of the scares! Must have been the real thing. They said nothing and moved on.
“Who sent out the invitation?” Eric asked. “How did you hear about it?”
Pam shrugged. “The pick-a-party web site,” she said and shrugged, again. “Sometimes you get lucky and the party is a hummer…other times a bust. But you have to be a Supe to access the site and you know how word spreads. This is not for humans unless they are very special…and just how did Jason know about it?”
Samuel was checking YouTube. “Videos are up and running. Someone opened a hell-mouth and a slime beast crawled out and got a kegger…this one says. Slithered in, ate the barkeep who would not part with it without a fight. The wee man…says so right here, the wee man barkeep kept shouting something about a deposit on the keg.”
“I know that to be true,” Pam nodded. “Those kegs are not free. I would not part with one either without a deposit.”
Eric had a moment. There were times his child left him speechless. Then he had another moment. His child was sleeping in with her mother and she left him speechless as well.
“I marked the spot with my lipstick. The area is crawling with the police. I thought maybe tomorrow night we could venture back that way. Emmy will be up before the sun rises. I am going to have her bless my shotgun as well. For now, I am going out to the barn and sit with the goats and think on things.”
Eric looked over at Samuel as Pam walked out the door.
“She has come a long way,” Samuel smiled, joy in his eyes. Then his focus was on his brother. “I am giving 50/50 odds that Miss Sookie welcomes you back in her bed.”
Eric became quiet. “I am doing the best I can.”
“I know that,” Samuel smiled at him and took his hand. “I also know that walking away from Sookie, this was the safest thing for you to do and that it was not easy.
I prayed for guidance my brother. With the rising of each new dark I sorrowed and I prayed. I could not let you greet the sun without knowing about this wonderful life that you had created. And this woman who was the mother of your child.
But you do not know fully what you did to Sookie. What you did to Emmy.” Samuel handed Eric the memory stick. “Watch Sookie’s tummy while you are in the mall. Watch this through to the end. You need to understand just what a fine person she is.”
Samuel kissed Eric on the forehead and walked out into the night. Eric opened his laptop and stared at the small device in his hand. “Own it, you stupid fucker!” he said as he activated the stick and it all came crashing back around him.
“You need a friend?” Sookie asked as she came in and sat down next to him. “Let’s watch it together,” she said moving his hands off the keyboard.
“No,” he whispered.
“Yes,” she nodded. “Let’s have done with this part of our lives.”
“I love you,” he whispered and she laid her forehead against his.
“I know,” she whispered back. “And I love you. But relationships are built on trust and faith and understanding and forgiveness and caring…and…” she pulled back from him. “And respect. I understand about your pride and ego, Eric. I do. But clearly, you did not respect me. I do not know if you do now.”
Eric hit play and together they sat and watched as a young woman had her heart ripped out of her by a vampire who mocked her and embarrassed her and insulted her when he offered to make her his whore. All he could say as they sat and watched was, “I am so very sorry,” as his voiced choked up more than once.
When it ended Sookie wore a sad smile. “I was so happy and hopeful and scared. Up until that night, I thought this would work, somehow.
After seeing you, I doubted just about everything except for Emmy and Lafayette.
Eric, you can make someone believe in everything but you can also make them believe in nothing.”
“Do you want me to leave?” his voice was strangled.
“No,” she shook her head. “But you have to understand my life changed that night. Up until that time, I was always hopeful. Even…” she paused, “even when my Uncle would abuse me. I was hopeful every time I told someone that they would believe me. And finally my Gran did and the abuse stopped.
But after that night in the mall, it was like all the hope in my balloon had been let out into the stratosphere. That I would never be able to reclaim it. When Emmy was born, I had hope for her….but not much for myself. It has been a long haul to put my self-esteem back into place. Emmy helps with that, as well. She believes in me. One-hundred percent. At times I cannot fathom it. And I want to be for her one-hundred percent. And at times I do not know how to do that. But I will not let anyone take that from me. Not again.”
“Will you ever be able to forgive me?” he asked.
Sookie’s hand stroked his. “Eric, I forgave you a long time ago. My problem is that I cannot seem to forgive myself for letting you have that type of control over me.”
“What do you want me to do?” he asked, as he brought her hands to his lips and kissed them.
Shrugging she laughed. “I cannot tell you how to live your life. But I would like to know the person your grandmother knew. The one that trusted you with the entire line of your clan’s magic.”
“Oh,” he laughed. “You really don’t want to know him. I was an arrogant ass hole with my ego out of control even then. That part of me has not changed. But Grandmother, she put me through my humbling paces before she died and she turned the magic over. I lived with her in her hut for the last three months of her life and I had a menstruation cycle all three months. I cared for her. Carried her wherever she wanted to go. I became her primary caregiver, running all the other women off.”
“You sat with her during her Never Time?” Sookie asked.
“Yes,” he nodded. “Once a month, I now realize it was regulated to her menses, she slipped away and I stood guard. She said nothing when she returned. She would just sit and stare at me as I sharpened my weapons and cooked our meal.”
“What Eric do you want me to know?” she asked.
“How about the one that is scared that I will never see that trust and faith in your eyes again and the Eric that is lonely and will not go back to being without you and Emmy.”
“Will you come and lie down in bed with us?” she asked. “I know you have news. I can feel it humming through you. After you tell me, if it is not yet dawn, will you just hold me?”
“I would be honored,” his hands brushed the hair back from her face.
Taking out his phone he opened it. “There is video if you want to see the slime monster snake its way through the streets.”
“What?” she drew back from him.
“Let me begin, at the beginning,” Eric said with a wiggle of his eyebrows. “Pam and the boys went into Shreveport to attend this party…”
“Miss Sookie,” Ian and Cedric were there vamp speed from under the bed, sitting on the floor in front of her. “It is dangerous in the tellin’ and I suspect the one who was not in attendance,” Cedric glowered at him, “could not do as good as a job as the lad of the Irish lilt.”
Sookie sat with her mouth open most of the time and shaking her head in disbelief. “And Jason drove right in? Without a by-your-leave?”
“Indeed he did Miss Sookie,” Cedric nodded vigorously. “Show her the videos on YouTube,” he nudged Ian.
“Okay…” she said under her breath as she watched. “What is that that…slimy great big…wormy kind of thing?”
“Demon, we think,” Ian nodded.
“Or a cross transfer vapor hatchling of some sort from the underworld,” Cedric nodded. “That is why me and my boyo here scurried home to hide under the bed of a four-year old angel’s kiss.”
“Then,” Ian elbowed his friend, “then Miss Pam closed the Hell Mouth with a shotgun and rock salt blessed by Miss Emmy when she was just the wee age of two and a bit, I believe Pamela said.”
“I marked the spot with my lipstick,” Pam said as she stuck her head in the front door. “Thought for those not faint-of-heart we could go back tomorrow night.”
“Plenty here faint-of-heart,” Cedric replied. “Sleepin’ under the angel’s kiss’s bed I am.”
“Sleeping sounds like a good idea. I need my sleep,” Sookie said as she stood and all the males stood with her.
Eric eyed them all and then said as he extended to her his hand, “Dance with me?” he asked as he bowed.
“I would be honored,” she smiled in return and humming a 3/3 time tune, Eric waltzed them back to the bedroom. Closing the door, the others did not take the hint.
“If you were serious about keeping us out,” Cedric said as they scurried in and under. “You would be a’lockin’ the door.” Jostling for space under the bed the room finally became quiet and Sookie was asleep.
There was the rustle of bed covers and Eric felt Emmy climbing across the bed. Sookie stirred and sat up as her baby climbed over her.
“Daddy,” she said as she lay on his chest, her eyes concentrating on his.
“Yes my angel’s kiss?” he smiled at her.
“Are you strong?” she asked.
“Well yes,” he replied, “and perhaps not. It depends on what you need done?”
“Are you strong enough not to hurt my Mommy?” she asked.
“Emmy,” he said her name, tears in his voice. “I want to be that strong.”
“Six, seven, eight, nine,” she counted, “walk in the sun and you will be fine,” she said and clapped her hands.
“Mommy, now you say it,” she smiled at her mother who was sitting up in bed. “Six, seven, eight, nine,” Sookie counted, “walk in the sun and you will be fine,” and then she clapped her hands.
“Now you Daddy,” Emmy urged.
“I cannot,” Eric was sobbing. “I do not deserve such a gift, Emmy. I often am and can be a horrible monster.”
“Eric,” Sookie took his hand. “We trust you. We will say it with you.
“Six, seven, eight, nine,” everyone in the room said, “walk in the sun and you will be fine!”
There was a soft sigh that stirred the curtains in the house and you could feel the burden of aloneness lift from the air.
Samuel was crying as he stood at the bedroom door.
Eric had earned his girls trust and respect. His brother had found his way.
It was All Saint’s Day. He could walk on his God’s holy days. The Northman Triad had now become mobile. Things for the bad guys were just going to go to Were shit. Samuel grinned. “A grand show it will be,” he said as he closed the door and went to sit on the front porch and wait for the sun to rise.
Daryl stood at a distance and watched the police cars with lights flashing and the videos on YouTube playing on the big screens in all the bars and in the outside bar areas. He hated technology!
“Where the hell is Stackhouse? He was supposed to bring me Sookie and the child. That was the plan. It was a good plan. He would bring me the females and I would rid him of the…” he began to weep! “Fuck it Hadley! Just what the fuck, woman! You were to rule by my side and be my goddess. Fuck it all, anyway,” he sobbed. “What am I to do now with that spell that would fool others into thinking you were Sookie? I spent a lot of money on that spell and it only works on blood relatives. And Sophie-Anne would pay me vast amounts of money for Sookie and her brat and…and…where is my Hell Mouth?” he whined. “This is so not fair. It was not a big Hell Mouth, just a very small one. After all, only Bruno died there. It was a Hell Mouth that I would have easily closed and all the fucking Supernaturals would just fucking bow down and worship me! So not fair, I want to be a YouTube star! And where the hell is Sophie-Anne, that lying bitch! She was going to meet me here and watch me do the deed and just back that truck up full of money into my portable vault.
Fuck! I can provide grand entertainment!” he snarled at a group that had just come out of a bar. Raising his arms over his head, he growled at them and screamed!
“Monster!” several squealed and ran.
“Monster! Where!” he screamed and jumped backwards, pulling his gun. Landing on the curb he tumbled backwards onto the street. As he pulled the trigger, the bullets went straight up into the air. And bullets can come down just as fast as they go up…fuck…!
The crowd scattered! Running as fast as they could screaming “Gun!” and “Monster!”
“Fuck!” he screamed as one hot piece of metal fell back to earth and tore through his arm and then his leg! “Help me, I’ve been shot!”
There was no one around. Taking out his cell phone he screamed in pain when he saw his damaged screen! “Fuck,” he whimpered as he dialed 911. “I’ve been shot,” he sobbed. “I am dying! Please, I think a monster shot me. Please send help!”
Eric held Emmy and Sookie the rest of the dark. He was so pleased that Sookie had invited him under the covers with them!
“Day walking,” he chuckled silently. “Well we will see. But for right now, Northman, you are indeed blessed. You need nothing more.”
Oh my….the early morning hours of All Saint’s Day were indeed, busy! Pamela had spent the night out in the barn with the goats and watching YouTube. One video after another as they came on-line.
“Tiny Hovering Blonde A Real Slayer!” the lead-line said.
“Ought-oh,” she whistled as she saw the back-side of herself take aim with the shotgun and the Hell-Mouth closed.
“Well just fuck,” she grinned as she watched the comments grow. “Looks like I am a real-life hero!
How about that!” she said to the nanny goat Baby Houdini. “You are in the presence of a real live hero!”
The horizontal, rectangular blue eyes stared back at her and “Bla-a-a,” was replied softly as Baby Houdini shifted and put her head in Pam’s lap. “See,” she smiled and showed Baby Houdini the screen, “everyone thinks so.”
“Well just damn,” she sighed. “For a slayer at least my ass does not look that bad.”
Hearing the main door open, all the goats got up and went for a look-see. Oh-h-h-h, it was Brother Samuel! He always opened the sweet feed door if you asked nicely enough.
“Good morning,” Pamela called out as he opened the stall door where the treats were kept and there was a small stampede. “What are you doing?” she asked.
“I am giving them some sweet feed. Maybe a few dried apple and peach rings thrown in as well.
According to YouTube, there is a new slayer in town,” Samuel chuckled as he tossed feed to the goats. “A real life Hell Mouth closer that can defy gravity.”
Pam grinned. “If I had known they were going to get footage of my ass, I would have worn that cute little white vintage Chanel number.”
“The one you bought in Paris?” Samuel asked. “With the diamond buttons?”
“That is the one,” she smiled.
“I just came out to give you a heads up,” Samuel said. “Emmy has turned Eric into a daywalker.”
Pam took a breath and then let it out. “She really is all that,” she said under her breath.
“She really is,” Samuel smiled. “No one is defining that as of yet. Apparently she and her father came to some type of understanding early this morning. I think Miss Emmy reads from her daddy that he is in for the long haul. That he loves her and her mother and is not going to go down without a fight to protect what is his.”
“You think something bad is coming?” she asked.
“I think something bad is already here,” he replied. “And Emmy has upped the odds for the good guys.”
“So…?” she took a handful of corn out of Samuel’s bucket and tossed it.
“Starts this morning. I suspect he will be out here to meet and greet during the day. Folks are going to want to meet Emmy’s daddy. Take their measure of him. I do not think Eric is going to disappoint them.”
Lafayette was up and fixing breakfast when Samuel walked back in from the barn.
“You need some help?” he asked.
“Could use some,” he smiled. “You know we always have a big breakfast to greet Emmy’s new birth year. Just happens to fall on All Saint’s Day, Day Walker. Everyone brings somethin’. You got a new special for us this year?”
Samuel looked very smug. “I can make a pumpkin crumble bread pudding if you have any left over bread ends.”
Lafayette arched an eyebrow at him. “Question is Brother Samuel, can you be makin’ enough cause Poppi-La La can eat a whole pan by himself. Help yourself to the fridge and I will get started on the vanilla sauce”.
“Lafayette,” Samuel said in a much quieter tone, “Emmy turned her father into a day walker.”
Nodding his head he smiled. “I wondered if she could. I am guessin’ we are glad that she did.”
“Have you seen the Hell-Mouth videos?” he asked.
“Lordy no,” he gasped. “They on the good and righteous YouTube?”
“Yes. I’ll stir you watch. You are going to need to be up to speed. And the slayer with the shot-gun, that is Pam.”
“Oh,” he nodded. “Lookee here, we went right to that. Lordy,” he said as he sat down and tried to drink his coffee as he watched. “That Miss Emmy’s rock salt Pam is usin’?”
“Indeed,” Samuel replied.
“Lordy,” Lafayette whispered. “That monster is carryin’ a keg!”
“How are you feeling?” Sookie asked, whispering in Eric’s ear.
“Good,” he nodded as he brushed the hair from her face. “I know it is still early.”
“Yes,” Sookie nodded, “the sun is not yet on the horizon.”
“Tis a fact, Mrs.,” the all heard the Irish lilt. “I am not so much feelin’ the effects either.”
Eric leaned over the side of the bed and lifted the bed skirt. “You two stay under there. I mean it.”
“Just call him Bossy Pants,” Sookie said as she leaned over and peered under the bed as well.
“Thank you Miss Sookie,” Ian smiled at her. “God knows I have called him much worse. But Bossy Pants is an accurate description for ladies’ ears.”
“I smell food,” she inhaled deeply and turned toward the door. “Lafayette always does a big spread for Emmy to start her new birth year. And Samuel always does a special recipe. Eric, if you would like to stay here with your daughter, I am going to do some official tasting. After all, we are having a crowd of people. And I guess it will be your coming out party as well. You got an answer for these good folks when they say you look like Eric Northman the vampire.”
“Well yes,” he batted his eyelashes. “I get that a lot. But I am much better looking.”
Grinning at him she kissed him on the nose. Then became serious. “Sun up is in thirty minutes,” she said softly. “How do you want to do this?”
“With my family,” was all he said.
“I am honored,” she replied. “I will be right back.”
Sookie showed up in the kitchen and helped herself to a piece of bacon. “I got the good words from Brother Samuel,” Lafayette said. “How do you want to do this?”
“Eric said he wanted to watch the sun rise with his family. That includes you. So in about twenty minutes meet us out on the front porch.
Samuel,” she turned to him, “anything special? What did you do the first day you greeted the sun as vampire?”
Those soft green eyes turned to her and he gave her a very small, gentle smile. “After I was turned, I thought I was an abomination to my God. It was the first day of Feast of the Unleavened Bread. In the pre-dawn hours I sat weeping under a date tree, counting the shooting stars as those souls raced toward Heaven. I was ready to greet the sun. And as the sun rose, I could hear the earth waking up! The sunlight as it broke through the clouds sang a sweet song. Like a thousand stringed instruments until the sun broke over the horizon,” his voice was far and distant “and the colors of the earth became more. The heavens shouted for joy and I could see the paintbrush strokes where the angels had wept and used their tears for paint.
When I did not burn, I realized,” he wiped away the tears, “That this was the day the Lord had made and I was to rejoice and be glad in it,” he added softly.
“Is it always like that?” Lafayette asked.
“Yes,” Samuel smiled. “I live for my Father’s holy days,” he replied, his voice humbled. “And for those days that are not yet.”
“What can we do for Eric?” she asked.
“Just love him,” Samuel answered.
Emmy stuck her head in the kitchen. “I am going to go with Daddy out to the porch,” she smiled. “We will see you there.”
It was a bit chilly that first November morning. All Saint’s Day and the good people of earth had chased those of the crude and vulgar ways of evil back into the pit. Some had accomplished that with a shotgun and rock salt!
Eric was holding Emmy as they faced the East. There was a rosy glow pushing up through the dark as Sookie stood by his side and his arm went around her. “I love you,” she said, looking up at him.
His arm tightened around her. “With all that I am,” he replied bending his head to lightly kiss her lips. “I love you and if my life ends now, I could not be any happier than to stand here with my family.”
Samuel and Lafayette came out. Samuel stood on the other side of Eric and Lafayette next to Sookie.
As the colors slowly stretched out across the trees, Eric began to cry. “There are thousands of stringed instruments,” he sobbed as the dark was pushed and the sky began to be tinged with blue, yellow streaks of sunlight racing towards him and gently caressed his face as his tears fell. There was a clear, pure, sweet note that sounded like a French horn that said rest well to the dark and welcomed the life-giving glory to the day. When the sun cleared the trees, he said, “The last time I saw the sun, I was on my funeral pyre. My friends in attendance. Waiting for me to die. I treasured the color of the leaves and the blue sky that I could see through the trees. A white cloud that would pass by, cooling my body from the sun and the fever that raged within me. I thought with the passing of the day, I would take the colored bridge to Valhalla and sit at the table with my forefathers. There has never been anything more beautiful than the Northern lights that dance in the sky. I have never seen the sky more beautiful.
Until now,” he said softly.
“I love you Daddy,” Emmy whispered and licked the tears from his face.
Smiling at her, he kissed her on the nose. “You and your Mommy make my life complete. Thank you Emmy for your gift of love.”
Emmy patted his cheek. “Mommy says life is never a mistake. That only a wasted life is a mistake.”
“Your mother is a very wise woman,” he smiled at her.
They all heard the cars pull into the employee parking lot.
“Got to gets this goin’,” Lafayette said. As he started to step away Eric hugged him. “Thank you, Lafayette,” he said. “With all my heart, thank you.”
Nodding, Lafayette smiled at him and headed for the kitchen.
“Come Miss Emmy,” Samuel held out his arms and took her. “Let us go greet the goats.”
“I need my muck boots, Uncle Samuel,” she laughed. “They are in the laundry room.”
“Well then, let us head that way,” he grinned and spun them around before they went in the door.
Eric took Sookie’s hand and together they sat down on the porch swing. “What scared me the most about you,” he said, “was that when I looked at you, I could hear and see the sunrise every time you smiled. The first time I saw you,” he smiled sheepishly, “all I could think about was how to get in your pants and keep that smile all to myself.”
“And now?” she smiled at him and kissed him on the nose.
“I still want to get in your pants,” he grinned and then became very solemn. “And I only want to see you smile. Please, I do not want to see tears, especially ones that I may have caused you to cry from my selfish ways.”
Sookie watched him as the sun reflected off his hair. He was so serious. In his eyes lurked a thousand years of life and also a small boy, wishing to please. “There was another part to your ring,” he said softly as he drew it off her finger and out of his pocket came a small black velvet box. Opening it he removed the ring guards that were inside. Eternity rings. Each one was fashioned in platinum with diamonds circling it. Eric slipped one onto her finger, then the garnet band and then the other eternity band and then gently kissed her finger where they rested. “I was so scared Sookie that you would leave me. That you would want me. That you would weep and say that we were star-crossed lovers that were never meant to be. But all I have ever wanted was you. Only you.”
Eric held her hand up and the sunlight danced across scattered millions of points of light upon her.
“Will you marry me?” he asked, his voice trembling. “Will you be my place of sanctuary?”
“Yes,” she nodded, “if you will be mine. And you have seen what all I come with.”
“You come with life, Sookie, and live is never a mistake. Only a wasted one. And I am tired of wasting mine.”
When the folks walked over from the barn for breakfast, they found Eric with Sookie in his arms, as they twirled in the bright morning sunshine.
Emmy laughed. “That Daddy is going to marry my Mommy,” she giggled.
“Indeed he is,” Samuel smiled along with her.
“I am going to get a baby brother and some sisters,” she laughed, her curls dancing all over her head.
“Indeed,” Samuel grinned. “Let us go see what your Poppi-La la is doing in the kitchen. Let us help him finish up so breakfast can be served.”
“I need to put my boots in the laundry room,” she said with a sure nod of her head.
“We are on our way,” Samuel set her down on the ground and they danced their way to the back door.
Breakfast was a chatty affair. Eric smiled and shook hands while Emmy introduced him to all who came in the door. Once the novelty of Eric slowed down, the talk turned to the Shreveport Slayer and Jason driving his truck into that Hell-mouth.
“Just a real shame about Hadley,” Arlene shook her head as she talked to Sookie off at the side of the living room. “You know, if only Sam Merlotte had married her and not Remy Savoy. Maybe her life would have turned out different.”
“What?” Sookie leaned into Arlene. “Hadley dated Sam?”
“Oh yes,” Arlene nodded. “Big time. He would take her out-of-town to someplace nice for dinner. You always knew when he had a date with Hadley because he actually shaved and put on slacks and a button down shirt.”
“Really?” Sookie made a face. “How did I miss that?”
“Sookie, that was when your Aunt Lydia was dying of cancer. You and your gran spent a lot of time with her because Hadley was nowhere to be seen. That is because she was havin’ her way with Sam.
Yes,” she nodded. “He rented an apartment for her in Shreveport. I saw him once pulling out of Long Pine Luxury Apartments. They were at a stoplight and she had her tongue down his throat. He did not look like he was objecting.”
“You mean the nice ones over by the mall?” Sookie sounded shocked. “The gated community?”
“Those are the ones,” she raised both eyebrows. “I just figured that is where he kept her.”
“I had no idea,” Sookie was flabbergasted.
“I think that was the idea. No one was supposed to know. She had just graduated high school. She was legal, but only by a couple of months. Which means she probably was jail bait when they started.”
“Holy shit,” Sookie whispered to her.
“Exactly,” Arlene nodded. “Now, who made that pumpkin crumble bread puddin’?”
“Samuel,” she said pointing to him. “He is Eric’s brother.”
“Brothers…” she regarded the tall handsome blond and the short handsome brunet. “Well, I have seen stranger,” Arlene nodded. “But I do see the family resemblance. I wondered who Miss Emmy got her curls from? Knew it had to be her daddy’s side of the family.
You know,” she paused, “Eric looks familiar. Oh, I know, he kinda looks like that Swedish actor. You know, the one that played in Tarzan. Only your Eric is by-far better lookin’.
And girl, you certainly did a good job of keepin’ him under wraps. You just waitin’ for him to be done with the Marines, huh?”
“Yes,” Sookie smiled. “Yes, I was just waiting. We are all glad he is home safe and sound.”
“Is he going to be workin’ the farm?” she asked.
“Yes, I think he and Mr. Hyett will get along just fine. In another life before the Marines, he used to build sailboats.”
“That a fact,” Arlene smiled. “Well just how nice is that.”
“Yes,” Sookie grinned. “It is very nice. He did some farming also with his parents and raised goats.”
“That man is made-to-order,” she grinned.
“I think so,” she smiled.
“Now, Sookie…” she leaned in closer. “Those ring guards…?” she wiggled her eyebrows and smiled like the Cheshire Cat.
“Yes,” the lady-of-the-house said sounding pleased. “Hey was that me?” she thought to herself. Sounding happy and pleased? Arlene was so happy for her, you could see the tears sparkling in her eyes!
“Those are someday going to be my wedding bands. No date yet but he wants me to wear them and so I am. May not be for a while…you know…live together for a bit, maybe a year, and see how it all shakes out so don’t be making any plans.”
“Oh girl!” she hugged her. “Congratulations! I am so happy for you!”
“Thanks,” Sookie grinned, “I am happy for me too! And Emmy is thrilled to have her daddy home with her. I guess she told the entire town that last night.” And then Sookie had a moment. She was happy for herself! Looking down at her left hand, the grin on her face got bigger! Looking over at Eric, he was watching her and had the sweetest smile on his face. Arlene hugged her again and left to talk to Eddy. Walking over to her, Eric put his arm around her and said loud enough for only her to hear. “I am so pleased that you are pleased.
I love you,” he said bringing her hand up for a kiss.
“I love you,” she lightly kissed him on the lips. “And I have news.”
The characters of the Southern Vampire Mysteries belong to Miss Charlaine Harris. No infringement on my part is intended. The characters on True Blood belong to Mr. Alan Ball. No infringement on my part is intended.
I have no BETA, editor, or other such charming person. All mistakes are my own.
This story is rated M
My Angel’s Kiss — Chapter 7
Dawn was still a couple of hours off. Not that she cared. She was the Vampire Queen of Louisiana. Others trembled in fear and even the sun held back its deadly rays when she stormed with her might and majesty! And at this moment, she was storming! She had drained three and ripped the hearts of out two vampires! Her loyal subjects were all cowering, Compton was prostrate before her, whimpering, pleading with her to just let them know what was needed!
“I want my Sheriffs here with the new dark,” she snarled. “No one goes to their day rest until you have confirmation. And I want Northman, here. Get his ass home! Start right now,” she screamed as she picked up her throne and threw it across the room!
When Eric’s phone chimed he checked the caller. “New Orleans,” his eyes were slits. “And so it starts,” he glared as he answered in a low, deadly controlled voice, “Northman.”
“Sheriff,” he heard Compton’s voice and Eric rolled his eyes. “Our Queen requires your presence with the New Dark. It is strongly suggested that you be in attendance.”
“Or what?” Eric’s laughter was deadly. “Rest assured Billy Boy, I will kill you first and then whoever else thinks to threaten me.”
“Look, you suicidal maniac,” his voice went up an octave. “Do not include me in your mad scheme of self-destruction. Some of us have enough money put aside to live a long and prosperous life. Do no Were shit on the rest of us.”
“Say the magic word,” Eric said softly.
“Please, Sheriff,” Bill said, sobbing. “Please. She has destroyed one-third of her staff she was in such a rage this dark. Please…please be in attendance. She has threatened the rest of us.”
“I will think on it,” he replied and hung-up his phone.
“What are you going to do?” Pam asked.
“Hear what she has to say,” Eric replied. “And if she asks for children, that will be her exit out. Besides, SA is not known for her patience. In five, four, three, two, one…”
His phone chimed, again. “The bitch does not disappoint. Conference call,” he said as he settled into a chair and motioned the others to the front of him.
“Listen up you fuckers,” SA snarled. “You are my sheriffs for a reason. I personally picked you to stand by my side and you have gained and profited much from it.”
“Profited what?” Eric asked. “Money? I think not, my area is the highest taxed in the state of Louisiana. And you certainly did not pick me. Area Five was mine before the United States became a country.”
“Eric,” she stomped her foot, “can you just play along and be on my side for I don’t know, say ten fucking seconds?” she screeched.
“Probably not but go ahead,” he replied as he rolled his eyes.
And so she began. “The Grand Wizard of Bethany Fields Daryl Strummer speaks of a miracle child. He says he has not yet been born. I believe the child has. Have you heard rumors of such a child? And if so, I want to hear about them.”
“What for?” Eric asked, an edge in his voice. “We do not prey on children in the New World. I can think of no reason a child has business being at your court. A child has no business being anywhere around you. Any one in my area even jokes about taking a child, they are fucking tortured for days. By me, personally.”
“Eric,” her voice was soft and low. “Honestly,” S A looked sad and downcast. “I wish this so that my name might be attached to this miracle child and I will grow in stature and be known for my mercy and loving kindness.”
Eric could see the faces of the other four Sheriffs on his screen as they sat there in stunned silence. Their mouths’ open in disbelief.
“Mercy and loving kindness are not what you are known for,” Eric replied. “And if you think draining this child will cure you of your Sino-Aids, you are badly mistaken.”
“What?” she screamed. “You fucker! Who told you those lies about me? Was it Leonard? You know what a piece of Were shit he is.”
“Yes,” Eric said nodding his head, concentrating on the faces of the other four Sheriffs. “Makes perfectly good sense now, does it not, sheriffs. Her odd behaviors. Drinking from only specific humans. Spellers and Chanters that have been seen coming and going out of her mansion. Even consulting with ghosts. Sino-Aids. And she is looking for a magical cure.”
“You fucking piece of Were shit!” she screamed at Eric. “Your days are numbered Northman!” she screeched.
“Daddy,” a little tiny voice said. “Who is that?”
“That my darling Miss Emmy, is the Fucking Wicked Bitch of the South. She is evil,” Eric’s voice was low and serious, “and not nice at all.”
“Do you want me to turn her into a toad?” Emmy asked, her voice and face very serious, her tone matching that of her daddy’s as Blackie stood by her side.
“She will eventually be this way,” Eric reached over and tickled Emmy under the chin. “She has her IT experts tracking my signal.
Do not worry my Queen,” Eric bowed his head at the monitor and laughed. “I will leave the line open until you show up.
Sheriffs of the Kingdom of Louisiana,” Eric bowed his head, “I wish you a good day’s rest,” and Eric clicked off.
“We are going to have us some new toads,” Emmy nodded with surety.
“Oh yes, my darling,” Eric kissed her on the nose. “We are.”
Those in the Throne Room began backing away. Even Compton was more afraid of the Sino-Aids then he was of her!
“Stop it!” she was screaming again. “Stop it! It was all lies. You know Northman. You know he is lower than Were shit! I am not dying!” her voice pierced their eardrums as they all bowed themselves out and fled like bats before the lightning made its first strike!
Foster and Grant were back in a dark corner being ignored and unobtrusive. They were supposed to be sleeping tonight downstairs in a crypt…but no longer. They would go to ground. Taking a step back farther into the shadows they knew this could not be contained. The Bitch Queen was dying. The deadly Sino-Aids!
So be it…there would be those who thought they had enough money and power to put things in motion and own Louisiana before they went to their rest. Northman would hold Area Five but the rest of Louisiana was going to be mired in supernatural blood. Hopefully not theirs. They ran a small but useful consulting firm and would poll humans and Supes alike and would sell their information to whoever needed it.
They had been hired by HRM SA to ask nonchalantly about a child. In the New World, children were strictly off-limits. They had been cautious about taking the job and were paid upfront.
In actuality they were spies for Northman who was most interested in anything of the unsavory type that landed at their door.
In sign language in ancient Gaelic Grant asked, “Did you hear the little girl call Eric, Daddy?”
“Yes,” Foster signed back. “What the fuck do you think that means?” he asked.
“One, Eric has a liability. Two, he is into role-playing with his bloodbag. Three, he just likes to fuck with the world in general.
You know, he did that back in the 1700’s. Said he was going to side with the British when he was supplying arms and money to General Washington. He made a fortune on the bets that were placed on the outcome of the war. We did not do so very badly ourselves acting as his surrogates for placing his bets.”
Grant took another intensive look around the room. “He is going to want all the details.”
“Let us fade away,” Foster placed his hand on Grant’s arm and melted more into the shadows. When they pushed through the exit the alarm sounded but they were gone before the Were guards could respond.
Eric picked Emmy up and stood her on his lap. “My darling daughter,” he kissed her on the cheek, “you should be sleeping all tucked in next to your mommy.”
“I know,” she grinned at him and kissed him back. “But I heard that woman who was not nice to you so I came to see. Someone not nice hurt my mommy,” she said, her voice serious. “She was not going to hurt my daddy,” she nodded her head and stared Eric in the eyes. “She will be a toad.”
“Thank you,” he rubbed his nose against hers. “By the end of the day, I think there will be many new toads in your mother’s gardens.”
Emmy smiled and gave Eric a loud, smacking-happy kiss!
“Now,” he picked her up and stood. “As much as I would love to have you here with me, you, my dearest, you must go back to bed and sleep. The goats will be up shortly and will wonder why you are a sleepy head and why you do not get your rest. And Blackie is up as well. Look at those sad eyes. He would like to seek his bed.”
“Okay Daddy,” she grinned as she put her arms around his neck and off to the bedroom they went.
When Eric came back in and sat down, Ian was staring at him.
“Speak!” The Viking said.
“Is there anyway, do you think,” the King of British Isle asked on bended knee, “that we could day walk and so that we might be blessed to see the toad making?”
Eric sat back into his chair. “I…I just don’t think so…but then, nor do I know. For now…” Eric shrugged, “I think we all need to be light tight. But we can set up surveillance cameras so that we might watch it at our leisure. Besides, HRM does not have much time before sunrise. She can make a few phone calls and have herself and her warriors positioned when the sun goes down.”
“Good thought,” Samuel nodded in agreement. “Yes, she would want to be here to watch you be destroyed.”
“Indeed,” Eric grinned. “We have a couple of more hours until sunup, what other mischief can we possible get into?”
“Not much,” they heard Sookie’s voice and all rose as she entered the room. “If there is going to be madness and mayhem, let’s get it over with. Emmy’s birthday is in a couple of days. She wants to go trick-or-treating in town.
I am going to make coffee and take a cup out to check on the goats.”
“Oh,” they all smiled. “We can help. We were all farmers at one time.”
Sookie gazed at them through her blurry eyes. “I am not hooking up with Eric so you other two can have wives.”
When she started for the kitchen, Ian elbowed Cedric and they both wiggled their eyebrows.
“You two are not,” Eric hissed, “marrying my daughters. Samuel is…” he paused, “the exception…” he glared at his brother and then his unhappy focus was on the other two.
“So there is going to be hooking up,” Ian and Cedric both grinned with their fangs down.
Eric smiled. “I am working on that! I think Emmy needs baby brothers and sisters.”
Before Eric slid under the bed, his phone chimed.
“Nicely done,” Foster chuckled when he heard Eric’s voice say, “Northman.”
“It has been an ugly old dark at the residence. She has all manner of unsavory types lingering about, looking for work.”
“Get me their names,” Eric responded.
“They are on their way,” Foster hit send.
“Thank you,” Eric growled as he read through the list. “I thought Finkel met the true death.”
“Apparently just a rumor he started,” Foster grinned.
“Well then, if you see him before me, give him my regards. And if you end him, gladly I will pay you any outrageous amount you ask.”
“So he was the one that betrayed you in Paris,” Foster was sadly shaking his head. “You know, Grant and I always thought so.”
“Well,” Eric grinned, “be good fellows and do this deed for me and you can retire.”
“Oh Eric,” he could hear Grant in the background, “consider it done.”
Vampires went to ground and humans went about their daily business. The Northman Triad had, indeed, spelled the land…and then some…any bullet that was fired onto the land just sorta went poof! Into nothingness! And as an added bonus the magic followed the route of the bullet and apparently you did not have to be standing on the land if you intended to do them evil! Your ill intent got you into the land of the green butted, eating bugs and sometimes squished by cars toad world. And since it was almost the end of October, bugs were getting a bit difficult to come by.
Mr. Hyett called the Sheriff’s department when he came back from town with a load of lumber.
“Sheriff, we have a Davis & Davis plumbing truck sitting out here smashed into a tree off Hummingbird Lane. I do not see any hurt bodies.”
“We’ll be right out,” Andy replied and he and Kendra finished their lunch, grabbed their keys and were gone.
When Andy and Kendra drove up, they saw Sookie and Emmy outside herding what looked to be a dozen toads out to the lavender garden.
Andy explained the situation about the truck.
“Have you heard or seen anything?’ he asked. “There was no blood and we can’t find any footprints leading away.”
“Toads,” Emmy nodded. “They were not nice,” she said nodding her head, curls going everywhere.
“Eric, Emmy and I,” Sookie began as she pushed them along with her rake, “we spelled the land. If anyone wants to hurt us, they turn into a toad. Emmy’s idea and her spell, as well. We just agreed with her. We are now the Northman Triad.”
The little girl smiled up at the Sheriff and his deputy, her cheeks dimpling. “We did. Those bad people hurt my Mommy. I heard one say she wanted to hurt my Daddy. No,” she shook her head. “They are toads.”
“So,” Sookie pushed one toad back into the herd who wanted to get in with the goats in the pasture, “if you find what looks to be abandoned vehicles crashed into a tree in these parts…” she nodded her head. “And you know, no one is hurt. No bodies, no blood. Chances are good they are toads.”
“Yes,” Emmy nodded as well. “Toads. These are pretty,” she dimpled again and she bent down to pick one up and admire it.
“I have not seen a white one with green spots,” Kendra commented.
“I looked them up,” Sookie smiled at the two adults who were staring back with round eyes. “You are correct. They are not local. Eric knew them when he lived in Europe. So Emmy knows them also, apparently.”
“Toads,” Kendra and Andy said together.
“We’ll get a tow truck out here,” Andy nodded, “and…and call the number painted on the truck. Chances are good it was stolen.”
“Thanks,” Sookie smiled at him and held out her hand to shake his and then his deputy’s. “We appreciate that. I would walk you back to your car but we just hoed up the lavender field, I think that will be the easiest place for these toads to hibernate.”
“Who the hell would believe us?” Kendra asked as they started back to their cruiser. “Even with the Supernaturals out, I mean it Sheriff, who would believe us?”
“I like my job,” Andy smiled when he saw Arlene at a distance and waved. “How about you?”
“Love it,” she waved at Arlene as well.
“Then we need to do our job. We have got us an abandoned truck, Deputy. Call in a wrecker and I will call in the license plate. It is time for us to earn the money that the fine folks of Renard Parish pay us with their tax dollars.”
“Roger that,” she replied as she took out her phone and went to work.
There was much blood-letting anticipation from those that were hiding from the light and waiting for the dastardly deed to be committed during the dark.
There were five vampires sitting around a monitor inside the Stackhouse farmhouse, waiting for the show to begin. The Mommy of the house and her daughter were tucked safely into bed, the dogs behind the closed-door with them.
“They are inbound,” Eric grinned. “Let us walk the perimeter. Entice them in.”
“Most excellent,” Pam said standing and shaking out her skirts. “You think the pumps are a bit much?” she asked, raising her hemline.
“No,” Ian shook his head. “Good color match to the hat.”
“Thanks,” Pam smiled. “Let me grab my bag and umbrella and I am ready to go.”
Sophie-Anne stood on top of Compton as she watched the vampires stroll through the graveyard.
“What is up with the tails and top hats?” she said as she hopped down off Bill and started toward the graveyard. “And is that Northman’s bitch of a child in that Victorian get up?
Are they…is she throwing rose petals while that small vampire reads poetry? Seriously?”
“They are headed back toward the farmhouse, my Queen,” Bill hissed. “Whenever you are ready?”
“I am going to lead the charge,” she smiled. Well, not really. Her momma had not raised a fool. But when she said it, she believed it!
The Victorian Five settled on the front porch and talked polite pleasantries that include reviews about Shelly and Keats. They could feel the wind of the incoming vampires as it rustled the leaves. And then night became still and the leaves once more held the secrets of the stars and disrupting the quiet was the singing of the toads.
The four noticed that Eric was not sitting with them and grinned as they went to find him.
“Eric, olly olly oxen free,” Cedric called out.
“Over here,” they heard him and headed in the direction of the cemetery.
“Oh look,” Pamela grinned, “Eric you have caught two somethings. How very clever of you, my maker. What are you going to do?”
“Did you bring the net?” he asked.
“Have it here,” she grinned.
“Perfect,” he smiled. “Now HRM SA, please watch closely as I toss Compton onto the Stackhouse land. Say hello to being green, Bill,” he smiled as he walked to the line and dropped Billy over.
“Yes,” Eric’s smile got bigger as HRM tried to shriek and beg for mercy! “Your eyes did not deceive you. He just turned into a toad. And not just any toad. But the kind I knew as a child. Yes,” he turned Sophie-Anne to face him, his fangs down, sparks spitting from his eyes. “There really is a miracle child and she is my daughter. Born to a human mother and she inherited all of my women’s clan magic.” Eric started laughing. “And you wanted her!” he roared his displeasure.
“Eric please,” Samuel whispered. “Your girls are sleeping.”
“Thank you my brother,” he bowed his head to Samuel. “How thoughtless of me.
Now, since you have Sino-Aids, we cannot just turn you into the wild. I have no idea what that would do to the environment. So Pamela is going to net you and I believe she has some type of habitat for you all set up. You will live out your life as a toad and when you die, she will take her favorite flame-thrower to the area and destroy anything that is left of you. Of course, if the Sino-Aids is found in your frog blood, and she is going to take a sample, you are going to be dead, immediately, still followed on by a flame thrower.”
Eric had his hand around her neck, ready to snap it. “I would love to have the pleasure of ending you for what you wanted to do to my daughter. And I would do it slowly. But I did promise Pamela that you were hers.
And toads can live for quite some time. Easily ten to twelve years and in some cases, up to forty. I do so hope the Sino-Aids does not carry over to toad. I see bugs in your future.”
Eric stepped across the property line and in his hand was a toad of his homeland. Pam held out the net, he dropped it in and they all headed back to the house.
Eric’s phone rang, “Grant,” he smiled into his phone. “Who was in attendance with us this new dark?”
“Well,” the vampire smiled at the camera. “I believe what was left of the old ones that were looking for you found you…or at least that is what we are hearing through the screams of Where the fuck are they? Those screams would be coming from Sophie-Anne’s maker along with her sisters that were all in attendance this very fine evening with SA in New Orleans. Solidarity and all that. Of course, they did not follow her into war because they wanted Sophie-Anne to have all the glory.” Everyone snickered.
“I hear from most excellent sources that what remains of the old regime that you pissed off has gone into hiding. Something about toads and witches and warlocks is all we can make out from discretely listening at a safe distance.”
“Good job and I thank you,” Eric smiled. “The money is in your accounts. Enjoy the rest of this dark.”
For the next several days there was an influx of toads. Folks would see one and toss it out of harms way before they went back to their task.
When Emmy’s birthday landed, her daddy and her Uncles were up with her for the celebratory birthday breakfast. Her Poppi-La La make her a pumpkin pie and after she blew out her candles she got to have a piece of that with her breakfast!
“What was your birthday wish,” they all asked. She grinned and replied as she ate her pie, “I want baby brothers and sisters,” she clapped her hands in joy. “Daddy is here and he can give Mommy his biology!”
Sookie looked cross-eyed and Eric said nothing and kept his face in n.e.u.t.r.a.l. He had not come this far by blowing it while beating his chest and yelling “Babies!” at the top of his lungs.
“Right Mommy?” she was still clapping her hands as she smiled at Sookie. “That is my birthday wish!”
“You are my Birthday Baby,” she hugged her and said nothing else. “Let’s get ready for the your birthday day!” she said with gusto! “Poppi-La La is going to make ice cream for your birthday lunch. Let’s finish our breakfast so he can have the kitchen.”
As the sun began to creep up, vampires went to bed and one little girl who was now four went out to have the goats sing happy birthday to her!
“How many times did Emmy clap her times after saying she wished for baby brothers and sisters?” Samuel was grinning as he lay beneath the bed next to Eric.
“There were five distinct claps,” Eric’s smile covered his face.
“Make it count, me boyo,” Cedric said as he and Ian crawled under the bed with them. “You be nice to Miss Sookie and you make your biology count! We want wives and children and we are countin’ on King Eric to be charmin’ and sweet talkin’ to our Miss Sookie. We have seen you in action and you are just pitiful!”
“About time,” King Eric muttered, moving around in Eric’s pants and trying to peek out. “Have I heard a thank you for Miss Emmy or a job well done or how about a job exceptionally miraculously done?” he shouted with gusto.
“Sun…is…up,” Eric grunted.
“Yes, good thing for you that you have me. Because without King Eric, you big oaf, you would just be a big, ugly girl!”
Emmy and the dogs went dashing outside when she heard the other children arrive.
Sookie was helping Lafayette load the dishwasher.
“Baby brothers and sisters, m-m-m-m hm-m-m-m. And just how many times did she clap her hands?” he asked, looking over at her.
“Five,” Sookie said as she stood up and reached for the silverware to go in. “Five.
Those children,” she said softly, “does not have to be with Eric.”
“Did you actually say that out loud?” Lafayette hooted with glee. When he got no snarky comeback he sighed. “Baby girl,” he put his hands on her shoulders and kissed her on the forehead. “You live your life the best way you see fit. You knows I am right here. And if you want to move on, we can revoke his snappy assed invitation.”
“It is easy to believe in him,” she said quietly. “Easy to love him. To want to be with him. That is what makes it hurt so desperately…” she began to cry quietly as Lafayette took her in his arms and whispered,
“It is going to be all right, Sookie,” as he stroked her back. “You and our Angel’s kiss, you are going to know love and have what your heart desires. You are going to be just fine.”
Samuel said nothing as he took Eric’s hand and listened to his brother sob.
It had been a grand birthday day! Emmy was under the bed, talking to her Daddy as the sun went down. “And I got a kitty for my birthday!” she said in joy. “It had a big bow around its neck and Mommy helped me take it off and we have been playing chase!
See,” and Eric felt the little flea butt being placed on his chest.
”I see,” he replied. “And did the birthday fairy leave this for you?”
“No-o-o-o,” she put kissed all over his face. “Mommy read me the card and it was from my Daddy!” she giggled. “We are having an early supper so we can go trick-or-treating. My Poppi-La La says it is ready. So you wash up and we’ll be in the kitchen!”
Emmy scooted out and he handed her the kitten. Holding up the bed skirt, he watched the ribbon being drug along on the floor and the kitten pouncing on it as Emmy walked along and then her feet disappeared from sight and the four vampires were up and moving.
“Pamela said she was bringing in bagged blood if anyone is interested,” Eric said as he stripped off and headed for the shower.
“That works,” they all chimed back as they went to their respective bathing places and thought about tonight.
When they came into the kitchen, Emmy proudly displayed the gifts she had received and she passed out her thank-you kisses.
At five-forty five, she went to change into her Glenda the Good Witch costume.
“Mommy,” Emmy turned to watch her mother apply her green makeup. “It is my birthday. May I have another birthday wish?” she asked softly.
“Of course,” Sookie knelt down and smiled at her.
“May I have a Daddy for my birthday?” she asked. “One I can tell people about?”
“Yes,” Sookie smiled at her as she held back the tears. “Of course you can.”
When they met back in the living room, Emmy smiled at Eric and raised her arms to be picked up.
“What is it my angel’s kiss?” he asked.
“Mommy said I could have a Daddy for my birthday. One I could talk about. Are you ready to be my Daddy?” she asked.
“Yes,” Eric smiled at her as he hugged her. “Yes,” he felt the tears as she wrapped herself around him. “Yes I am.”
It was a short drive into town and the five vampires walked in their Victorian dress with her as she went house-to-house.
Eric carried her up the steps of one house and Sookie, dressed as the Wicked Witch, waited at the bottom. “Trick-or-Treat Grandma Honeywell,” the birthday baby called out at the door. The door opened and there stood a little old woman dressed as a skeleton with her basket of candy.
“Trick-or-treat Miss Emmy,” she called back as she opened the screen door. “Why who is this fine young man here with you?”
“This is my Daddy,” she grinned. “He could not stay with my Mommy when he went to war so he gave my Mommy his biology so she could have me.”
“Indeed he did,” she eyed Eric. “Marine, I would like to thank you for your service to our country. But,” she shook her bony finger at him, “you make an honest woman out of our Sookie and you give your daughter your last name!”
“Yes ma’am,” he nodded at her.
“I asked the birthday fairy for baby brothers and sisters. My Daddy is here now,” Emmy nodded her head. “He can share his biology with my Mommy so I can have my birthday wish!” she clapped her hands.
“That is a fine birthday wish,” Grandma Honeywell nodded in agreement.
Sookie was blushing beneath her Wicked Witch of the West makeup. Eric was doing his best to keep a straight face while all he wanted to do was beat his hands on his chest and yell like Tarzan as he drug a willing Sookie off to bed!
“Thank you,” Emmy said politely as Mrs. Honeywell dropped candy in her pumpkin.
And so went trick-or-treating. Emmy introduced her daddy at every stop and she told them about her birthday wish and the adult at the door played back the same message or a variation of that theme of doing what was right by your family.
“Thank you for your service, Marine, and you make an honest woman of our Sookie!” Or, “Are you gettin’ out and settlin’ down?” Eric always responded that yes, he had served his country and now it was time to take care of his family.
By the time eight o’clock had rolled around and tricks or treats was declared officially over, they all loaded back into the cars, Eric feeling very smug. Well yes, everyone knew Emmy’s daddy! He was that tall, good-looking blond Marine! Semper Fi!
When they reached the house, Emmy kissed Ian, Cedric and her Auntie Pam good-bye.
There was apparently a party in Shreveport and Pamela had gotten invites. Ian, Cedric and Auntie Pam were headed for the big city!
When they went in the farmhouse, Lafayette was inside watching NCIS re-runs.
“How did it go?” he asked Emmy. “Looks like you gots quite the haul!”
“This popcorn ball is for you,” she smiled at him. “Mrs. Lloyd said it was your favorite. Thank you for watching Kitty,” she put her candy pumpkin down and picked up her cat.
“Bless her heart,” Lafayette took the popcorn ball from her. “And I appreciate you delivering it to me. And Kitty is very good company. Now,” he eyed the dogs who looked sad, “So is Brownie and Blackie but Kitty can fit in your lap.”
Emmy’s grin got bigger.
“Now were there spooks about?”
“We did see one spook, my Poppi-La La. She was in a truck with a man whore, Mommy said, heading out-of-town.”
“Lordy,” he replied. “That is why I do not go outs and abouts on Halloween. I can not have them chattin’ me up and wantin’ my candy. Now, do you have a Baby Ruth in there?”
“I do,” she giggled as she took it out. “I asked for one just for you. Miss Arlene said she knew it was your favorite.”
“Bless her heart,” Lafayette batted his eyelashes at the little girl who giggled in joy. “Now, I am thinkin’ it is time for birthday babies to be gettin’ to bed.”
“Me and Mommy are going to take a shower to wash off all the make up!”
“That sounds just fine. Saved you some hot water to be bathin’ with.”
“Come on sweet girl,” Sookie took her hand. “Time to get ready for bed.”
“Daddy will you wash my hair?” she asked.
“Of course Emmy,” Eric grinned at her and followed them back to the bedroom
Samuel watched them leave.
“What’s up?” Lafayette asked as the small vampire sat down. “If you did not own all the money in the would I would say you just inherited all the money in the world.”
“Watch this,” Samuel wiggled his eyebrows as he hit play. “This was our first stop on our trick-or-treating extravaganza.”
“Grandma Honeywell,” Lafayette nodded as the sequence began. “She has worn that costume since I was small. Oh-h-h-h,” he chuckled. “So Emmy has got her a Daddy.”
“That happened at every house we stopped at,” Samuel said most pleased.
“And at Arlene’s?” he asked.
“Hers was the absolute best,” Samuel chuckled as he found the video and hit play.
The look on Arlene’s face was priceless! Her mouth formed into a big 0….and it was almost as round and big as her eyes! She just kept repeating, “…and you are Emmy’s daddy…! Sookie, this is Emmy’s daddy! And you are Emmy’s daddy!”
“Good stuff,” Lafayette said as Eric came back out and joined the group.
“Emmy’s daddy,” Lafayette nodded. “Should be all over town by now.”
“That was my plan,” Eric grinned as he reappeared.
“So, his Poppi-La La wants to know. You stayin? I mean through the good and the bad and the cha cha lovin’ uglies? Miss Sooks, when she was pregnant, she would weep over nothin’. One mornin’ it was because we were out of chocolate Cheerios.
And we work hard around here. We have too. Just because you is a day sleeper, there are things to be done at night as well.”
“I can contribute, whatever needs to be done.”
“Okay then,” Lafayette nodded. “The rest of this is between you and her. You hurt her and it is between you and me.”
“I understand,” Eric nodded.
“Good. Then I guess you will do.
Brother Samuel, I thank you for the night’s entertainment.”
“Pleasure,” the old vampire grinned as he watched the young black man take his candy and head upstairs.
“You going after Merlotte?” Samuel asked.
“Oh yes,” Eric grinned. “Louisiana will settle out and I have the feeling he is the one that wants to pick up the reins of power.”
“Really?” Samuel replied.
“I got a text from Grant and Foster. There is going to be a meeting of whatever is left of the Louisiana supernatural community. The date is not yet set. It appears that no outside vampire kingdom is willing to take on the magic of the witches of Louisiana. Apparently they think Daryl can turn the living and the undead into toads.”
The characters of the Southern Vampire Mysteries belong to Miss Charlaine Harris. No infringement on my part is intended. The characters on True Blood belong to Mr. Alan Ball. No infringement on my part is intended.
I have no BETA, editor, or other such charming person. All mistakes are my own.
This story is rated M
My Angel’s Kiss — Chapter 6
Andy and Kendra were busy doing damage control. They had removed the bullet from Sookie’s house but the front porch was still taped off. Would be for the next couple of days as well as the spot out in the woods where apparently Hadley had fired the shot and tried to kill her cousin. So it was quiet for the time being out at the old Stackhouse farm and they left it that way and went back into town.
Not so quiet at the police station.
The entire town had stopped by to listen to Hadley scream and moan about her wrong doings as Jason sat there and yelled and screamed about how he was never going to get laid again with a ghost sobbing and yelling non-stop all the names of the local men she had sexed up and how she wished she had killed Sookie instead of just wounding her. Then she would scream about how she could never do drugs again and Andy had finally called for a preacher who came in, surveyed the situation, said let her do her penitence with the screaming and then walked out.
After they had finally extracted a complete confession, it was sunrise and Andy said, “I have had all the screamin’ and moanin’ and clankin’ of chains I can stand! And just where the fuck are the chains that are bein’ clanked?
Jason, take your ass out of here and take your family member with you!”
“But Andy,” he was crying, “please, get her off me!”
“No,” Andy replied. “Now get out before I throw you out!”
And that had been his morning. Two pots of coffee, a case of the caffeine buzz, someone had brought in some heart healthy muffins that tasted like sawdust and a comin’ on migraine later, the town was still lookin’ in their police station windows!
“I am going to go sleep in the back,” Kendra said as she got up. “Wake me if you need me,” she said to no one as she walked out.
“Listen up day shift,” Andy said as he stood. “Sleep sounds like a real fine idea. I am going to set up the cot in my office and sleep. I need five hours, or at least until noon, which ever comes first. We have everything we need from the Stackhouse farm. Sookie has been questioned and patched up. She has had a night of things as well.
So do not be taking your happy asses out there and be waking her up. I have heard from Arlene and it is business as usual in the soap making business. They are all doing open carry and will shoot-to-kill anyone they do not know. Just keep that in mind.
And whatever you do, do not let Jason and Hadley back in here. Her voice made my ears bleed when she was alive. Now that she is dead, well…” he shook his head. “Her screeching has deteriorated parts of my brain and sucked the marrow from my bones, probably some calcium as well. If the locals want to know what is going on, send them to Jason’s. I am sure he and Hadley would love the company. And if there is any regard for your Sheriff, whoever brought in those nasty-assed muffins, do not do so again!”
It was quiet at the farmhouse.
Lafayette had set his alarm and was up and moving. He had slept for a couple of hours and he would sleep a few more later today.
But for now, he was headed out to the barn, calling out good morning and thanks for coming in to all that he saw.
“What gives?” he asked Arlene when he found her putting away the milking machines.
“Well, Jason took himself and the screamin’, murderin’ Hadley Savoy into the police station where she confessed to tryin’ to kill Sookie. Apparently everythin’ out of her mouth comes out in a scream or a sob. Real annoyin’ accordin’ to those that saw her.
She has attached herself to Jason and he is cryin’ and boohin’ right along with her.
I guess the entire town stopped by while those two were there to complain about their neighbor’s barkin’ dog or someone callin’ them and hangin’ up.
Some did not even pretend to have a reason. They just came to watch the show. And from what I am hearin’ it was spook-tac-u-lar!”
“Oh ha ha, Red,” Lafayette grinned. “Good one.”
“Thanks Lafayette,” she smiled then she was back to business. “Andy called for the preacher and he said just to let her suffer through it. This was her atonement and it would take as long as it takes.”
“Well just fine then. I am fixin’ to break the fast. Anyone who is hungry, send them on. I won first place in the Shake Your Booty in the Kitchen contest. So I am cookin’ and showin’ off my trophy.
Let me make coffee. I see the goats are milked. I will cook and we’ll talk and plan the day.”
“Speakin’ of cookin’,” she arched an eyebrow, “You are forewarned. Apparently the new bakery has some heart healthy muffins. If you like sawdust, it is okay and will scrape clean the sides of your colon as it moves on out. Myrtle said it was like passin’ a tree. You know, the evergreen kind.
So if you want a donut, go to the Grab N’ Go. They been fryin’ donuts since 1933.”
“Probably the same oil,” they both said together and high-fived.
“Mommy,” Sookie heard in her ear, “my Poppi-La La is cooking breakfast.”
“Okay sweet girl,” she opened her eyes and smiled. “Let’s go potty and see about some food.”
Little feet hit the floor and then she was under the bed. “Good morning Daddy.”
“Good morning my angel’s kiss,” she heard Eric say as she giggled and there were loud smacking sounds from both her and Eric.
“Good morning my Uncle Samuel.”
“Good morning my angel’s kiss,” was Samuel’s reply and there were loud smacking sounds of kissing from him as well.
Out came Emmy and she carefully adjusted the bed skirt. “Come on Mommy!”
Sookie was a little amazed that she could see in the pitch-black room.
And then Sookie had a moment.
“Baby girl, have you always been able to see the in dark?”
“Yes,” Sookie saw her nod her head.
There was snickering from under the bed. “Vampire,” they both laughed.
“Both of you just hush and go back to your day rest,” Sookie replied. “We are going to have breakfast. Don’t you get the bleeds and mess up my floors.”
“Yes ma’am,” they both replied along with more laughter.
“Vampires,” she said with a long shuddering sigh. “Oh, bacon!” she smiled as she headed for the bathroom and breakfast.
Sookie and Emmy were made much of at breakfast as Lafayette fussed about how they should be having their victuals in bed!
“We got this,” Arlene said to her more than once. “You and that sweet baby go rest.”
When both girls yawned, Lafayette escorted them both back to bed. “Sleep,” he said as he kissed each on the forehead.
When he went back into the kitchen, it was being cleaned up.
“You go get some rest,” Arlene said to him. “You sure enough look like you are runnin’ on empty as well.
We have got this Lafayette. Goats are good. Fields are good. We are good. Just as soon as that police tape comes down off the front door, Mr. Hyett is fixing the doorjamb and painting. I am bleaching the blood off. So we are waiting on Andy for that.”
Lafayette did not say anything, just nodded his head.
“What weighs on you?” Arlene asked.
“You think I should go into town and speak with Hadley?”
“Don’t you bring her screamin’ ass out here,” Arlene’s voice went up an octave and shook her finger at him. “That no good little dope smokin’ lyin’ whore can just live with Jason. I heard she was screamin’ a list a mile long who she has done under the bleachers and in the woods and in the back of respectable folks pick-up trucks while they were in the Piggly Wiggly. She is just what that lazy ass man whore needs.”
“Well all right,” Lafayette nodded. “I am goin’ back to beddy-bye.”
“I’ll be in to fix lunch. You sleep.”
“Thanks, “ he smiled and nodded his head. “Thanks.”
“No,” she started to tear up. “Thank you. You and Sookie make all this possible. We all know that, Sugar. Terry and I are having a house built. Our own home! Never thought that would happen while I was alive. Never did think that was possible,” she said wiping at her eyes. “Same for all of us. You and Sookie see the good. Not the if only.”
“Been there myself, you know that Red. Miss Sooks as well.”
“You go on now,” she hugged him. “We have this.”
Bad news traveled fast.
Very fast.
Apparently Hadley had not got the job done to the big bad’s satisfaction. And apparently they knew she would fuck it up, because there was a Plan B in place and ready to go.
Later that morning Sookie heard gunfire and sat up in bed! Tossing Emmy under the bed and telling her and the dogs and the vampires to stay, she went to see what was going on.
Lafayette was running down the stairs yelling “What the fuck?” at the top of his lungs, going for a shotgun!
“Sookie, it’s me!” Arlene yelled coming in as Sookie and Lafayette both made the kitchen at the same time.
“I am goin’ out,” Lafayette said as he rushed past Arlene and once outside, started cursing at the top of his lungs.
“Had a pack of wolves come on the land. Probably Were,” she shrugged. “But they didn’t shift back so who is to say?
But they are all dead. As in really and finally dead. There is blood and guts and wolf brain bits everywhere,” she nodded as she opened the fridge door. “What do you want for lunch?”
“Talk to me Arlene,” Sookie eyed her, “or I am going out there myself.”
Arlene turned and faced Sookie. “Well, we all got the word about you being shot and how Ghost Hadley confessed to doing it. But apparently she had an accomplice who drove her all over Hell’s Half Acre after the fact and before she got so scared she died from fright.
Well, small town, you know how we are, word passes and it was a very good show at the police station early this morning with her and Jason.
So we all came prepared,” she said patting the holster on her hip. “Not only bullets but salt and the Word of God with hallelujahs and thank you Jesus thrown in for good measure. So when the goats all started with their panic call and came running to the humans, well, we looked and sure enough, wolves were descending upon us. And then they were not,” she smiled as she patted her holster, again.
“We called the game warden. He is on his way out. Don’t you worry none. We have this.” Then Arlene was back toward the fridge. “I have a hankering for fried bologna,” she said opening the refrigerator door. “What do you think about friend bologna sandwiches for lunch?”
“Sounds good,” Sookie replied. “And some kind of soup. Just grab one out of the freezer and add chicken bullion to it. I am going to shower.”
“That’s a favorite, can’t go wrong,” Sookie said as she showed her where Lafayette’s concentrate was in the freezer. “I shoved her under the bed with the dogs and told them all to stay there. We’ll be in for lunch in a bit.”
“Yes, under the bed with her Daddy and her Uncle Samuel. I wonder what that conversation is going to be like?” she mused as she walked back into her bedroom and lifted the bed skirt. “Dogs and kiddo come on out. You other two just continue to abide.”
“Mommy are our goaty-goats okay?” And you could hear the worry in her little voice.
“Yes my sweet girl, they are fine. There were some big bad wolves looking to have a goaty-goat snack. They should have stayed home,” she kissed her baby girl on the nose.
“Sookie,” she heard Eric draw out her name as he passed her Emmy, “tell me.”
“Well,” she said sitting down on the floor with Emmy in her lap. “Some wolves tried to make a run on the goats. They are now dead and the crew has called the game warden.
Now, sweet girl,” Sookie kissed her. “Mommy is hungry for lunch. How about you?”
“Yes, please,” she said as she got up and started for the bathroom.
“After you eat,” and you could hear the agitation in Eric’s voice. “You come back to bed and rest. I mean it.”
“Bossy Pants,” Sookie said as she stood and then she was not. Eric had her by the ankle and had pulled her under the bed.
“I mean it,” he said as he looked into her eyes.
“Oaky, but you are still a Bossy Pants,” she said as she tried to scoot back out. “You have to let me go. I have things I have to do.”
“I am never going to let you go,” he responded. “Go see to yourself and our daughter.”
As she scooted away and when the two vampires heard the water running, Eric said, “Samuel, how does news travel that fast?”
“You think she is being watched?” he asked.
“There is something,” Eric responded. “We need to find out who this mystery man is and how he is getting his information. He had this planned. Had the pack of Weres ready to go. The wolves could rush the goats, humans would jump in to save them and then they could kill the humans. What they had not counted on were the humans having guns. Nasty surprise.”
“And the Weres would have come in the house to finish what Hadley had not,” Samuel said softly.
Eric growled deep in his throat.
Samuel continued on. “I don’t think it is one of their employees feeding him the information.”
“I don’t either,” Eric replied. “Who ever this is wants her dead. And perhaps Emmy as well.” Growls of anger came from both. “So let’s find out just who it is.”
Sookie and Emmy had lunch at the picnic table out from the kitchen with the crew and watched the hawks and vultures overhead circling the dead wolves that were well out of sight. After lunch was picked up, the game warden truck came driving in pulling the trailer. My Hyett and Lafayette and the rest of the crew got up and went to give testimony.
“You rest,” Arlene said. “Back inside now, both of you, scoot.”
“Bossy Pants,” Sookie eyed her.
“Yes I am,” Arlene said proudly. “Now get!”
Sookie and Emmy read, they napped, they talked about how pleased Eric was to receive the cards.
“Daddy liked them all,” Emmy said with a sure nod of her head. “He likes glitter, too!
We never made a birthday card for Uncle Samuel or Auntie Pam,” Emmy said after they read the story Birthday Surprise!
“You are right,” Sookie replied as they picked out the next book. “We need to do that.”
From below the bed came a sniffle and a “Thank you,” from Samuel.
“Go back to sleep down there,” Sookie growled. “I mean it.”
“Yes Samuel,” Eric chuckled. “You must do as Bossy Pants says.”
“Don’t make me come down there,” she growled even louder.
Eric laughed and then in a much more sedate voice he said, “Miss Stackhouse, you are invited any time.”
They took another little nap and even in her sleep Sookie could tell that the shadows were lengthening. She could feel the heat leaving the earth and the leaves had turned another shade of color today, while she had slept.
When the sun went down, the vampires came out. Multiples. None of them were happy as they had all heard the gunfire. The two royals out front really were not happy at all. They had showered out in the barn and now were in the kitchen, grumping about not being in the loop.
“We heard the gunfire and it was not until after lunch Miss Sookie came by to tell us things were just fine,” Ian harrumphed.
“I know,” Sookie nodded. “But the crime scene tape was everywhere and Arlene was watching me like a hawk! I just could not waltz my way out there and start talking to the air with everyone about!”
“We understand that, but still we worried,” Cedric sniffled a little.
“What is up with you two?” Sookie asked.
“The Da’vid has said he has asked your permission for Miss Emmy’s hand when she is old enough and would consent to be his bride.
Well,” Cedric was weeping, “we would do whatever it takes for to such a fine wife for ourselves, me boyo and me.
Miss Sookie, you must maintain your good health and Eric…well” Cedric rolled his eyes, “if you someday you would welcome his charms once again…”
“What?” Eric countered. “Samuel and my daughter? No and no and no!” his voice got progressive louder.
“Emmy may marry whoever she likes,” Sookie replied, her voice even and her eyes glaring. “You have no say in this.”
“I have plenty of say in this,” Eric responded.
“No,” Sookie shook her head. “Samuel is a good and honorable being. Emmy drinks blood. Samuel understands who she is in her core being.”
“I am her father,” he began, taking a step closer to her.
“You are her biology,” Sookie countered. “Samuel has been here for her and myself all along. You blocked my number.”
Ouch….fucking…Were…shit… back the fuck up, Northman. “Sookie,” he began patiently, “if you would only have had some of my blood when I invited you, all this would be a moot point.”
“Oh-h-h,” she glared at him. “I wondered when this was going to be all my fault! Oh yes, drink my blood so I can know how you are feeling!” she hissed. “You can always ask me how I am feeling. I have no problem telling you! Why don’t you ask me now?
Because I am getting pissed off all over again! The only reason you would have believed me was if you could read my emotions! My word was not good enough for you! Well fuck you!” she hissed.
Eric bowed his head. “May we start this conversation all over, again?” he asked.
Taking a deep breath, she felt Emmy take her hand. “Yes,” she nodded.
Emmy was looking from one to the other and took Eric’s hand.
“I am a fucking rat bastard. I know that. I think we all know that. Even Emmy. I am going to do better.
I am eternally grateful to Samuel for seeing to my family.”
“To your daughter,” Sookie corrected him.
Fucking…Were…shit…swallow that and take your licks! “I am eternally grateful to Samuel for seeing to my daughter,” he said bowing his head to him.
“And I know it is no excuse. But I have never offered my blood to a female before. And you refused me. My ego took a serious blow. I know that is on me,” he continued on. “But still, I was angry that you would not drink.”
“And you wondered if it was because I was seeing someone else and so you what, timed it so I would find you doing the nasty on top of your desk?”
It would get him nowhere lying to her. “Pam heard you pull in. That was all the time I need.
And then, when you were pregnant, it only proved what I thought.”
“Yes,” she smiled at him. “That you are a fucking rat bastard.”
“I think that sums it up nicely,” Eric replied.
“Well, I certainly have your blood in me now, so you must know how I am feeling.”
“Yes,” Eric replied, his voice low. “Betrayed. And you do not ever want Emmy to feel what I put you through. So you would trust her to Samuel. A good and wise decision,” he said as he turned and walked out of the kitchen and out into the yard..
“Have your dinner,” Samuel said gently. “We will stand watch while you eat.”
Lafayette was quiet while they cooked. Sookie, who was generally known for being a chatterbox had nothing to say.
When dinner was ready and the table was set, Emmy said, “I am going to get Daddy and Uncle Samuel.”
Sookie only nodded her head in agreement.
During dinner, Eric had his cards out and was proudly showing them off as Emmy sat beside him, eating her chicken and showing her Poppi-La La how she and Mommy had made them.
“I know that’s right with the hands, pure artistic magic!” Lafayette nodded more than once. “Has got them magic hands hangin’ on my mirror.”
“Uncle Samuel,” she directed her gaze at him. “You still have yours?”
“Of course, our angel’s kiss,” he smiled at her as he took an envelope out of his pocket and from the envelope came the Valentine’s card they had made for him.
“See,” he smiled sweetly at Eric. “We who believe have the fruits of our labors.”
Eric merely raised an eyebrow as he cut up Emmy’s chicken. The fruit of his labor was going to get his invitation revoked if he did not go forward carefully.
“So,” Sookie looked out over the vampire crowd, ready to get on with her life and have her questions answered. Maybe fall in love…maybe…
“Just how important is it that Eric offered me his blood?”
Samuel cleared his throat. “That is what scared Pam the most. That he cared that much about you. That type of devotion is sacred and lethal.”
“Mommy, you let me drink your blood,” Emmy said as she concentrated on forking a green pea.
A shock ran through her! “My angel’s kiss,” she whispered, “can you tell what I am feeling?” she asked.
“Mm-m-h-h-h,” she grinned at her. “You feel like a warm lovey when I get cold,” and leaning over kissed Sookie.
Sookie stood up. “Please excuse me. Finish you dinner sweet girl. I’ll be back in a bit.”
Going back to her bedroom, she closed the door, when in the bathroom, she closed the door and sat down on the stool. Laying her head in her lap, she cried for all the hurt and wonder she had experienced since her child had come into her life.
Her tears were wetting her pants’ legs when Eric came in and picked her up and carried her back to bed.
“How can I feel like a warm lovey?” she gasped as she bawled. “I am always worried about being a good Mommy. Us finding our way. Her being accepted. I know what it was like to be the child that no one wanted to be play with,” she was sobbing. “Then to be an adult that no one wanted to know. I don’t want that for her and I don’t want her to read that from me. I don’t want her to know that I am so scared and always wondering if I am doing what is right for her? How can I possibly be a warm lovey?”
“The blood does not lie,” Eric said, raising her face and wiping away her tears. “You are perfect for her. And she is perfect for you.
Sh-h-h-h now,” he wrapped his arms around her. “She loves you and you love her and that is all that matters and that is what she reads from you. Your love, Sookie, just your love.”
Wrapping her arms around Eric she pushed in against him and let the quiet take her.
“Fucking Were shit,” Sookie blew out a lot of air and leaned deeper into Eric. “And now someone wants me dead,” she shuddered. “And maybe my baby.
They cannot know about you being her father. So just what the fuck is going on? Hadley trying to kill me! And someone was driving her around to make all this happen! She does not inherit. She does not even come close. It all goes to Emmy and Samuel stands as her guardian. On what side of the moon does this make sense?”
“Well, it does to someone,” Eric answered as he laid his head on top of hers.
There was a little tiny knock at the door and then it opened. “Mommy,” she smiled and came skipping in. “My Poppi-La La made pumpkin cake! It’s still warm! We are having it with pumpkin ice cream! Mm-m-m, come and have some!”
“You bet I will,” Sookie smiled at her and scooped her up.
“Daddy,” Sookie said looking at him. “Are you going to come and sit with us?”
“Yes,” he nodded solemnly. “I am.”
Eric put his arm around Sookie and together they walked to the kitchen.
“Smells wonderful, Lafayette,” Sookie said as she came in and breathed deeply.
“Gots just the thang! Come on and sit down. We are pre-celebratin’ the little missy’s day of birth! On to four-ish! With pre-cake and ice of the cream!”
With full tummies and full on-darkness, Emmy asked the question, “Can we go check on the goaty-goats. It is their bedtime and I have not seen them all day!”
“Of course we can,” Sookie said and felt the unease start to rise up.
“S’okay Mommy,” Emmy giggled. “Daddy is here now and we can be safe.”
“How do we do that our angel’s kiss?” she asked.
“If you are mean, you are green,” she replied and then clapped her hands, once.
“Mommy, now you say it.”
“If you are mean, you are green,” Sookie said and clapped her hands together.
Then Emmy pointed to Eric.
“If you are mean, you are green,” Eric said, his voice set and serious as he clapped his hands.
“Okay,” she smiled as she hopped down. “No one can hurt us now. Daddy is here to help us. Let’s go kiss the babies night-night!”
“What happens to mean?” Eric asked.
“They are going to be a toad,” Emmy replied matter-of-factly. “They can eat bugs in Mommy’s garden and be useful and not be mean anymore.”
Pam smiled. “I guess all those rhyming books we read to her have paid off.”
“Auntie Pam and Uncle Samuel always bring me rhyming books,” Emmy smiled. “Them and the three little pigs, they are my favorites!”
Eric shrugged. “Works for me, we are the Northman Three, Goats need to go to bed and not sleep in a tree!”
“Daddy,” Emmy giggled, “you are so funny.”
“Emmy,” Eric tickled her ribs, “those baby goats wear pajamas. Now that is funny.”
“No Daddy,” she giggled and smiled at him. “That is so cute!”
“I am going to take the first watch,” Pam said as she headed out the door. “I will start out in the barn. There is just something about those baby goats in pj’s. Warms my cold, dead heart,” she stole a kiss from Emmy.
“I’ll be in and out as the evening progresses.”
Goats were tucked in, Emmy had her blood and was sleeping on Eric’s shoulder and the adults were sitting in the living room.
“Hadley was working with someone. So, who wants you dead?” Eric asked looking at Sookie. “And why?”
“I just don’t know. I told you, Emmy inherits and Samuel is her legal guardian. He has set all of that in place.”
Eric knew better but could not help himself as he looked over at Samuel and said, “My daughter is taken care of?”
“Of course Eric,” Samuel smiled at him. “And her mother as well.”
“Thank you,” was all he said as he closed his eyes and tried to envision his future without his Emmy and his Sookie. It frightened him!
Pam walked in at that time. “I have been listening at the windows,” she said. “I know…shocker…!” she rolled her eyes at Cedric. “So if Sookie is dead, what happens to Emmy in the interim? Before Samuel gets here.”
“She stays with Lafayette and if he is not available, she stays with Arlene,” Sookie said thoughtfully, “until Samuel gets here. The entire crew knows that and it is in writing and they all have a copy. They also know how to contact Samuel if something does happen to me. All that information is on a clipboard hanging in the office out in the barn.” Sookie looked from one face to another. “This is not a secret.”
“Just fine then,” Lafayette said, “but what happens if the daddy comes forward and wants her?”
“What?” Sookie stared at him, disbelief in her voice.
“Miss Sooks, you have never said who her daddy is. Just some Marine you hooked up with at the mall. Any one could come waltzing in here and claim to be her daddy.
It would not matter what you had in your will. The court would take a long and serious hard look at whoever came forward claiming paternity. And Jesus himself knows if there is enough money involved, you will be able to find someone so that the blood tests can be manipulated.”
“You think someone would fake being her father? Lafayette, we are not talking that much money.”
“Lordy woman,” he rolled his eyes. “That cell tower makes you three thousand a month. That is thirty-six thousand more a year then most folks make. Plus the soap makin’ biz. You could continue on with that but cut everyone’s wages to minimum and get rid of health insurance. Sell off some goats to a meat packin’ house and you could be sittin’ pretty on your own front porch and never have to leave the yard.”
“That’s what Sam wanted to do,” she said thoughtfully. “Use the goats to make jerky.”
Raising an eyebrow Eric chuckled, “And just what do you think Miss Emmy would have to say about that?”
“No thinking about that?” Sookie’s voice held a hint of humor. “She would have turned him into a toad.”
“Really?” Ian’s voice held a hint of humor. “Witches and toads and such. That is such a cliché and it being so close to Halloween.”
Everyone but Ian and Cedric were laughing.
“Oh yes,” Sookie and Lafayette both nodded and told them about the Were in the front garden.
The two royals both looked shocked.
“She is not a cliché,” Eric nodded as he kissed Emmy on the forehead. He watched with delight as she smiled and snuggled back in.
“My daughter inherited my grandmother’s magic,” Eric said as he stroked her back. “Grandmother could not turn anyone into a toad. Or at least, not that the village talked about. Of course, no one ever gossiped about her. Maybe that was because she could turn them into a toad,” he said thoughtfully and shrugged. “And Emmy seems to think now that I am here, the three of us together can do things.”
Samuel nodded. “The first time I talked to Sookie, I told her what I knew of your magic. That your grandmother had been a powerful mage and wise woman and carried your women’s clan magic.
That is has been percolating in you for the past thousand years, growing stronger until it found a Northman daughter to once more reside inside of.
That Emmy can turn someone into a toad, I think she now has her Tribal Triad with her, whatever that means. And with the two of you linked into her, I believe she could turn an entire army into toads.”
Eric and Sookie both nodded. Pam did as well. Ian and Cedric said nothing as Cedric silently crossed himself and muttered some type of prayer.
“Obviously,” Samuel bowed his head to Sookie “there is something in Sookie that Emmy recognizes as her magic. Eric, Sookie does have your hair color. She may very well be a relative and is the reason why this Triad works. Perhaps,” Samuel shrugged, “perhaps that is what your Grandmother was doing in her Never Time. Looking for two more like her so that she could protect what was hers.
Or not,” he added matter-of-fact. “Who is to say? Perhaps maybe someday Emmy will be able to tell us. But until she can, those ten minutes she is down, she is vulnerable, as well.”
“I can speak for myself,” Samuel’s voice was very serious, “I will be here to help stand guard until we find who it is that tried to kill Sookie.”
They all nodded in agreement.
The Royals were all on board! This small, wonderful Miss Sookie was now theirs to have and to hold and maybe someday, if Eric pulled his head out of his ass, a couple more daughters. Ian and Cedric continued to dream!
“This Sam Merlotte, do we know for a fact that he is dead?” Cedric asked.
“No,” Sookie added quietly. “We do not. We do know that he is a shifter. And after the cougar attack, he was never seen again.”
“Any idea at all if he was a skin-walker?” Cedric asked. “They generally do not advertise that fact but I have known one. Creepy bastard and Irish to his red roots. That was what gave him away. As funny as it sounds, the roots of his hair did not shift with him.”
Samuel was perplexed. “Everything I have heard about them is that they can maybe do it once or twice before it kills them.”
“This is truth,” Cedric agreed. “Not with Angus though, the lad was born to it. He kept skin suits hangin’ mightly in his cellar closet. Cool and damp keeps the skins soft and pliable.”
“What?” they were all wide-eyed and looking at Cedric.
“I found them after I had split him down the middle with me sword. This six-foot three fella just falls away and leaves this wee fellow. Angus O’Dell, or at least that was the name of the suit he was a’wearin’ at the time. I would not be knowin’ if it was his real name or not.”
“Sam’s hair was light brown with some gray,” Sookie said. “So what, if he wants to blend in, we need to look at folks who have some variation of light brown with gray?”
“Might be a good place to start,” Eric was thoughtful. “Did Sam have a regular night away from the club?” he asked.
“Thursday night,” she replied. “He bowled in Shreveport or went night fishing with his buddies or whatever…but he always took Thursday night off.”
“So who only came in on Thursday nights?” Ian asked.
“Wow…” Sookie looked at Lafayette.
“Let’s work though the list. His La La Fineness says we need us a pencil and a piece of paper. Or Miss Emmy’s white board out of the dining room. I’ll be right back.”
When it was set up, Lafayette and Sookie went to work on who were not regulars. From that list, who they only saw once in a while. From that they went on to who was a regular on Thursday night.
“Alligator Jackson,” they both nodded when only five names were left.
“And he lives where?” Eric asked.
“Out in the bayou,” Lafayette said. “Don’t know where. Don’t know for sure anyone does.”
“But he does stand about Sam’s height and his hair color is white with a little brown mixed in. Not for real sure about his age. I always thought of him as an older man. But,” she shrugged, “maybe not. Always looked scruffy, like Sam…” her voice trailed off.
“He always ordered the red beans and rice,” Lafayette added. “Cheapest thing on the menu. Fillin’ though and tasty.”
“Yes, he would sit for hours and eat his dinner, watching everything going on around him and everyone. I always just thought of him being lonely and wanting the company. Maybe it was Sam and he was spying on us.”
“Now there is a mo’ fo’n’ creepy thought,” Lafayette made a face and said, “that is just some nasty business.”
“So who was the cougar after the goats?” Ian asked.
“Sam had a brother, met him once,” Sookie replied. “I guess he could be a shifter, also. That would certainly give Sam an alibi. He could be seen while he sends his brother in to do the dirty work.”
“But why would Merlotte continue to hide?” Pam asked.
“Maybe he and his brother took turns being Sam. Let’s say Sam has a persona that he has to wear all the time. Another job, so to speak. One where he has more to gain then being Sam Merlotte,” Samuel mused out loud. “So now he is somewhat locked in. And remember, your Gran was the goddess of her coven. Whoever she was having sex with she would consider her equal. So let’s say Sam is more than shifter. He is a shifter plus. Can work some magic.”
“The warlock Daryl,” Sookie said. “You know, I have never seen him without his robe on and his hood was always up. Now there is a freeloading man whore if I ever saw one. All the sex and loose change and folding money he can stand.”
“Now there is an interesting thought,” Ian laughed, lightly. “He draws his power from others. Every time he has sex, he is a bit more. Uses it to multiple-shift and then has to have sex, again. The older the Wicca, the more power she has that he can syphon off and if he were careful enough, she would not miss. Plus she pays him. He’s getting power and money. Maybe not much but twenty bucks given to you for having a good time is still twenty bucks.
And if Sookie is dead, he can easily shift to a Marine and claim Emmy as his, hoping for a windfall.”
“So, who can watch at Merlotte’s on Thursday night?” Eric asked, death in his eyes.
“It is going to have to be someone he does not know,” Lafayette said. “I have not been back in there since I started here. So if this is Sam, I think he would be highly suspicious of me because that is not where I go to hang out when I get a night off.”
Pamela chuckled. “I am the best in the biz. Do me a sketch of Alligator Jackson and I will be sitting out in the trees watching for him.”
“Old panel truck, with wood rails on the side. Used to be navy blue, I think,” Sookie replied.
“Sounds right,” Lafayette added. “I helped him jump-start it one night.”
Pam smiled, somewhat nastily. “I’ll take a photo and send it along. If it is this Alligator Jackson, I will track him back to his lair.”
“It has been a day,” Sookie said standing up. “Eric, give me Emmy and we are going to bed.”
“I’ll carry her,” he said as he stood. “Perhaps you would enjoy a cup of hot cocoa before you retire.”
“I don’t know. I think now that things are talked out, I could sleep.”
“Of course,” he responded, “but I would still enjoy tucking her in.”
“That’s fine,” Sookie eyed him. “I know she would enjoy that.”
As they walked away, Sookie said, not looking over her shoulder, “you five had better not be smirking.”
Turning her head, there were very serious faces staring back at her. “Good,” she muttered and disappeared into the back of the house.
“The problem here, you see,” Samuel addressed his class, “is that she loves him and he loves her. But Eric seriously fucked this up.”
“I helped with that,” Pam responded.
“That being said, Child, Eric has to take the responsibility that he fucked this up. He is going to have to unfuck it. Now at one point, I would have given you odds that he could not unfuck himself from this. Sookie is just as stubborn as he is. However, Miss Emmy is what is going to make this or break it. I’d give him a fifty-fifty chance at this point.
His reference to Sookie that if only she would have drunk his blood.” Samuel rolled his eyes. “Eric, when he thinks he is right, does not know when to shut up. Sookie was not amused and Emmy was watching him closely. Remember, she took her mother’s hand. Then she took Eric’s, but I think that was so she could have a link into him to see what he was doing.”
“But Emmy adores him,” Ian said, looking toward the hall that led back to the bedroom.
“Yes, Emmy does adore him. He is a part of her magic, a part of her. However, if he were to hurt her mother, or her Poppi-La La, or her dogs or her goats, he would be a toad. I don’t think she would blink an eye. She is like Eric in regards to protecting what is mine.
If you are perceived as threatening their loved ones…Eric will kill you, she will turn you into a toad. He is going to have to prove to her that he is trustworthy when it comes to her mother. He broke Sookie’s heart. He may have walked in the door, but that does not mean he has walked back into Sookie’s life. She is tough and she is driven. And like Lafayette, good with a shotgun.”
“That’s good,” Ian was processing all the information. “She may have to be. Because Eric has pissed off everyone in the Old World.” Ian was slowly shaking his head. “And I do mean those that I thought were unflappable.
Eric just took that as a challenge to poke that bear until they woke from their slumber. There are those left standing after Eric’s rousts and border crossings that will come looking for him. There may not be many, but those that are left have the desire and the ability to raise an army.”
“I think,” Samuel smiled, “that if they come here, they will be toads.”
The old farmhouse fell into a new routine. Emmy was up early so she could chat with her daddy and her Uncle Samuel. During the day, she would peek under the bed and blow kisses and report in about what was new and lovely in her world.
Sookie was cordial to Eric. They smiled at each other and laughed about the antics of their daughter and what she found charming and beautiful. There were new photos and videos to share with Eric every day when he rose and Emmy was right there to describe in detail how her day had gone.
Thursday rolled around and Pam founded herself perched out side in a tree watching folks come and go out of Merlotte’s. Taking photos of elderly looking gentleman until a text message finally came back saying, “Yes, Alligator Jackson.”
Oh so patiently and with much discretion she spied from afar until he left at ten.
“He needs to change the oil in that truck,” she muttered. “The smell alone, I could track him for miles.”
Then she had a moment. “That is, of course, his plan,” she grinned.
“Anyone with a nose could follow him to his door. Get the drift of where he was going and then be lazy and let him go inside while he shifts and runs out the back. Shifters are dumber than Were shit,” she grinned as she watched the older man park the truck on the dirt drive in front of the old, run down fishing cabin that sat on the edge of the water.
It smelled of dead fish and brackish scum. Pam took another long, lingering sniff and could smell the burning barrel and the garlic that was planted around in the back garden. What she could not smell was Alligator Jackson. Small whiffs, but this man certainly did not live here.
The lights came on, went off and the back door opened and closed as an owl took flight into the night.
Shooting straight up into the air, she would do her recon at ten thousand feet. Her eyesight was exceptional as well. Silently she tracked the bird to Baton Rouge to a house that was a far cry from the shanty by the water.
It was located in the upscale Garden District and then some.
“I own a house in this area and there is a reason it is called the Garden District. The lawns are perfect and the homes are sumptuous!”
The owl landed on the second floor balcony. “Eye bleach needed,” Pamela made a gagging sound. “There stands a nude Sam Merlotte that just shifted to the warlock Daryl.”
The doors opened and he was greeted by an older woman that he swept up into his arms. “Damn, shifter shithead, I can hear her moaning your name before you got the door closed.
I think I will pop on home for a few. The night is still young and would you look at that…” her voice trailed off. “There are Weres that are beginning to arrive and guard the perimeter!
No to the popping….I think I will just settle in and wait because those outlaws look like the same Were shits that guard Sophie-Anne.”
Forty-five minutes later a stretch limo pulled up out front. Pam’s heart froze in glee when Compton stepped out, looked around the area and then helped HRM Sophie-Anne out of the car. Together they went up the grand curving staircase in front of the old mansion. Compton rang the doorbell. When it was opened, he was told to wait outside and HRM stepped in.
Home was two blocks over. “I can stand out here and miss everything or I can zip home and try to listen in and still miss everything. No decision there,” vamp speed she was gone. “I will at least be able to tell Eric I tried.”
Pamela was on the neighbor’s roof a couple of houses down. Things had just settled in. Sophie-Anne had fed from what the hostess had to offer while Daryl chanted over the happy toothsome about blessings, super moons and “Were shit,” Pamela crossed her eyes in disgust. Sounded like HRM was still grunting through the feeding portion before she got off.
The chairs that they were sitting in were leather. Pam could hear it creak when the bloodbag was sent away and the hostess helped SA to dress.
“Daryl,” HRM whined, “you promised me the miracle child. I have untold wealth and part of it was going to you. Now I am going to layer you in Were shit. I want the baby!”
“Sophie-Anne, the child has not yet been conceived. This is still a work in progress.”
“Daryl,” her voice was low and deadly. “I am running out of time. I have Sino-Aids. I have had more than one magicker tell me I need this miracle child if I am going to survive. And I am going to survive,” she hissed. “I have a legion of soothsayers that tell me the child has already been born. What say you to this?”
“Yes, the signs do point to the ground being fertile and the child being a possibility. But I have not yet impregnated the correct female.”
“Does it have to be you?” she hissed.
“Well of course,” he countered with iron in his voice.
“I am slipping closer each new sunrise into the abyss,” her voice was softer. “The nightmares are eating at my brain. I cannot rest. Before I rise with each new dark, I see my brains becoming liquid and draining from my eyes, ears, out my nose while I try shove it all back into my mouth. I am so frantic I scrape the palms of my hands on my fangs. I shit out my intestines and my blood boils beneath my skin. I am horrified that this shall come to pass. So find me a child so that I might live!”
“The baby is not yet,” Daryl said again.
“Fine,” she hissed, “then I shall just have to find my own. If you cannot help me, there will be no future cash-out. I hope you have a retirement plan, something more than fucking old women,” she hissed.
“I’ll cast for a child,” was all he was able to say before she stormed out, shattering the front doors as her entourage fell into step behind her.
“Fucking Were shit!” Pamela hissed as she took off, heading for Bon Temps.
When Pam arrived at the farmhouse, it was three. It was quiet and peaceful and everything seemed to be in good order.
“Excellent,” she noted as she landed. “Get your green toad on. New Orleans is going to be in for a nasty shock if they come here. It won’t be death by my hands,” she sighed as she approached the door. “Well, I guess it won’t be death at all. Hm-m-m, can toads have Sino-Aids….I just might have to step on HRM Knee-Deep to keep her from infecting others.”
Pam knocked and when Ian answered the door he said, “It must be good news. I have not seen you smile like that since you burned out Walthers & Sons.”
“This,” she became dead pan, “is even better. Where is Eric?”
“Holding Emmy while she sleeps,” he answered.
“Most excellent. I will be able to take him from his newest favorite thing and perhaps start a war at the same time.”
Knocking quietly, Pam heard her maker tell Sookie to go back to sleep. When he opened the door, clearly Emmy had played with his hair before she fell asleep. His locks were bedecked in bows and ribbons.
“This is going to take a few minutes,” she said as she nodded toward the bed.
“I’ll be right out,” he replied as he closed the door.
“That’s interesting,” she noted. “Just what the fuck does he think he is going to do that I have not seen before?”
When Eric came out, Sookie was with him and he was carrying Emmy. She was swaddled in a blanket sleeping on her daddy’s shoulder.
“Start,” he said as the small family sat down on the sofa.
So start she did…
Sookie just kept repeating with disgust in her voice, “Sam wanted this baby so he could give it to Sophie-Anne…”
Pam thought she saw fire coming out of Eric’s eyes. The cold silver kind that would melt you on the spot!
“So now he is looking for a child,” Samuel added when she had finished. “Any child…” his voice trailed off as he looked over at Emmy and his fangs popped down.
“Kill Sookie,” Eric drawled in a deadly voice, “claim Emmy and hand her over to HRM…they are all going to die. Just as soon as I put Emmy down and get my sword…”
“No,” Sookie shook her head. “Let them come to us. We could use a few more toads for the garden. We’ll just herd them in that direction and let them hibernate for the winter. Come spring, either they had toadie sense and made it or not.”
“That would be for the best,” Samuel nodded. “Miss Emmy has done a fine job of rhyming and setting up a supernatural perimeter. I say let them come.”
“Not nearly as satisfying as ripping their heads off,” Eric muttered.
“That is very true my brother,” Samuel nodded. “But I think it will be most amusing to watch.”
Brother Samuel and I are both deeply humbled for you granting us the privilege of winning 3rd Place in the “Who the hell are you?” category in the You Want Blood Awards!
Many thanks to all those who work to sponsor the contest!
From our hearts to yours! Thank you for your kindness!
As always, thanks for reading (and for believing in Brother Samuel),
The characters of the Southern Vampire Mysteries belong to Miss Charlaine Harris. No infringement on my part is intended. The characters on True Blood belong to Mr. Alan Ball. No infringement on my part is intended.
I have no BETA, editor, or other such charming person. All mistakes are my own.
This story is rated M
My Angel’s Kiss — Chapter 5
When the last rays of the sun dipped below the horizon, there was a knock at the door.
Sookie peeked out the kitchen window and there stood Eric. “How does he do that?” she asked herself as she admired the first of the dark. “And he has flowers, not a petal out-of-place.”
“Who is it?” Emmy asked.
“It is the fucking rat bastard,” Sookie said to her daughter. “We are going to have our dinner. I will invite him in to sit with us.”
Emmy nodded as she stopped stirring the fruit salad. Hopping down off her stool, she went with her mommy and watched as she answered the front door.
“Thank you for seeing me,” Eric bowed his head. “I am here to apologize.”
“Please come in,” Sookie nodded. “We were getting ready to have supper. The things you sent over were lovely and much appreciated. Not necessary, but Emmy and I are thrilled to have them.”
“I brought flowers,” he began his act of contrition by handing them to her. “Such a small gesture for the atrocities that I committed in your home. I had no right,” Eric got down on both knees, “to come into your place of sanctuary and act the way I did. To yell at you and your dogs. They are good boys and have done a much better…” his voice faltered. “And they have done a much better job of being here for you and protecting you then I could ever have done. I am so sorry Sookie,” he said taking her hand and kissing it. “Truly. I am grateful for Samuel for being a good and righteous soul and knowing the truth when he hears it. I cannot hear the truth when it…” the tears started. They pooled in the corner of his eyes. “When it literally speaks to me.
I have missed out on so much,” he sobbed, “and left you to face your fears. I do not know how you have stood so tall and brave. To watch Emmy…grow cold…” he wiped at his eyes. “I am so sorry. I do not deserve to be a part of her life, your life. I would be honored if you would allow me time to sit and visit with you and feel blessed. And not so cold and alone.
Emmy,” he looked over at her, a dog on either side, standing guard. “I had no right to think I could keep your good boys from protecting your mommy. I was angry at your mother and I had no right to be angry at her, either. I have just been angry…” his voice trailed off, “and unhappy.”
Walking toward him, the little girl placed a hand on his cheek. “Thank you for the sparkles,” she said as she kissed him on the nose. “But if you hurt my Mommy, or doggies or goaty-goats, I will turn you into a toad.”
“I know,” he nodded. “Your Mommy told me. And rightly so. I would deserve far worse for hurting those that you love and cherish.”
Emmy nodded and stared into his eyes. Then her eyes took in everything about his face. The bloody streaks, the soft color of his eyes. Her hands went to his hair and she gently stroked it.
Eric took her tiny little hands and brought them to his lips for a kiss.
“We are fixing supper,” she continued to watch him. “Mommy said you could sit with us. I am making the fruit salad. Mommy said you left all that food for us. Thank you,” she bowed her head and pulled out the sides of her sparkle dress and curtsied. “I like the strawberries with the chocolate. And the blueberries,” she grinned. “We had those in pancakes. And real maple syrup!” her eyes got big. “Mm-m-m-m,” she nodded.
“All very good,” Sookie smiled at her daughter and then spared a very little smile for the fucking rat bastard who was doing his best to worm his way into their lives. “You two have got the fruit salad. Cut up lots of apples because we are having pork chops, tonight. Eric if you want to wash your face, you can use the kitchen sink and dry off with paper towels.”
Emmy explained the ins and outs of sniffing apples for ripeness as they went through the basket of fruit.
“Emmy, show the fucking rat bastard where the knives are and the paring knife we us for apples. He is going to need a cutting board. Please get one out for him.”
Eric did not make a face or respond with a sniffle or a tear at hearing his rat bastard name. He was here to take his licks and be of use. “Did you go out to the barn today?” he asked making pleasant conversation with Emmy.
“I did,” she grinned. “I wore my new muck boots! The goaty-goats danced with me! I had to leave them in the laundry room. Not supposed to track up Mommy’s floors.” “Yes,” Eric smiled. “She is most particular about her floors. Does she still nap on them?” he asked innocently.
Sookie turned and looked at him, shock on her face, her fork raised in mid-air. Blushing, she went back to turning the meat.
“Sometimes,” Emmy nodded. “We read stories in front of the fire and sometimes we take a little nap.”
“Excellent. Clean floors make that possible,” Eric said. “Now, the apples are chopped. What goes in next?”
Through dinner Eric’s girls, he often thought that to himself, entertained him with stories about their day and how there were going to be two mules coming to live with them.
“Yes,” Emmy nodded and smiled as she had a bite of green beans. “Their house is built all snug and tight and the plow came this afternoon for them to pull. Mr. Joey is going to come and work here.”
“Well, if your Mommy hired him, I am sure he is a mule and plow expert.
Is he also going to drive the tractor?” Eric asked.
“No,” Sookie said. “We all took a vote and decided that we did not like the tractor out there sputtering and billowing exhaust all over our gardens. We have enough work to keep Mr. Hyett going full-time so we are hiring one more person. We have been talking about plowing with mules for a while. Just never found the right person to make that happen.
So we have been putting Joey through the business. He has leaned to make soap and how to run things in the buildings. He was raised Amish, left for his year of seeing the English world, fell in love with a Goth girl and they got married. Since she is not of his faith, and likes to wear her black in very creative combinations, she is not really welcome on the family farm in Ohio.”
“What does she do?” he asked.
“Getting ready to give birth to twins,” Sookie grinned. “And she also does a little pre-school teaching in our Care Center and helps the elderly folks with stretches. She is a Yogi and I have never seen Mrs. Hunter so spry.”
“You do good things here,” he said as he cut Emmy’s meat. “Take care of your people.”
“Yes,” she nodded. “But Samuel makes all this possible. He takes our little bits of money and turns them into bigger bits of money.”
“If I might ask,” Eric put more fruit on Emmy’s plate. “Why are you still shopping at the thrift store?”
“Because I was raised poor,” she began with a smile. “Gran would take us there and we would find what we needed. And then as I got older, I found that with what money I made, I hated paying retail for anything. Plus, I had nowhere big to go, so shopping there saved me money. Then I would do jobs for you and we saved every dime of that for emergencies and I found suits and what I needed to wear, there. Again at a fraction of the cost.
Right now, we have enough capital in the bank that if something were to happen, we could pay everyone’s salary for a year. And that gives me comfort knowing that until they found another job, they would be provided for. Because your life can turn on a dime and no one is promised, tomorrow. Because I am responsible now for these folks and I am not spending money on things I do not need.”
He started to say something and she placed her hand on his arm.
“Eric, the folks we hire, nobody else wants. Not really. They are too old, or handicapped or don’t have enough education. Or come with so much baggage that working a regular shift anywhere is impossible for them. I understand that. I also understand what it is like to have a child with special needs.”
“I get cold,” Emmy nodded. “Mommy stops what she is doing to cuddle me.”
“She is an exceptional Mommy,” Eric picked Emmy up out of her booster seat. “Now, are we ready to clean the kitchen? I have a very big desire to see the goats before they go to bed.”
Sookie eyed him and arched an eyebrow as she stood up from the table.
“Being a Viking was more than traveling the world in your longboat. And that was fun,” he rubbed his nose against Emmy’s. “But I was also a farmer and could plow and I raised goats.”
“What?” Sookie took a step back. “You were a farmer?”
“Well yes,” he nodded. “I can also build a log cabin, we Swedes invented that, and I am an accomplished Boatwright.”
“So you know something about carpentry?” Sookie choked back a smirk.
“I certainly do and whoever works on your barns knows what he is about.
I can wash if you will dry,” he said to Sookie,in the same breath, not wanting to lose the moment.
“Please don’t do this,” she said quietly.
Eric raised her chin and gently stroked her lips with his thumb. “Pam apologized to me for manipulating our relationship. But it was not her fault. It was mine. I allowed her to do it. I am by far too comfortable when I am around you Sookie. That is very dangerous. Vampires are not to get comfortable. And being with you makes me happy and I don’t deserve to be happy. Being with you and Emmy…” his voice trailed off. “Whatever it takes just for small moments of your time, I will do.”
Sookie only looked at him and finally nodded her head.
Emmy was intently watching the exchange as her parents cleaned the kitchen. They did not say much but they were kind and helpful to each other. So maybe the fucking rat bastard could be a daddy after all.
And so she watched…and made a decision…
…Daddy putting things on that way up high top shelf for her Mommy. He did not need the step stool! Mommy admiring the flowers that Daddy brought and said how pretty they were!
She was being a good helper by putting away the cutting board. When the kitchen was clean and the floor swept, they all went to the laundry room and she got her muck boots. Daddy and Mommy both said she looked like she was wearing shooting stars on her feet! Together they walked out to the goat barn. Her Mommy holding one of her hands, her Daddy the other.
When they went in they greeted with a small stampede! Goats going everywhere!
“I have a surprise,” Eric smiled at Emmy and tweaked her on the nose. From his inside jacket pocket came a small package. Eric handed it to Emmy and with delight, he watched her as she unwrapped it.
“Jammies for the babies,” she laughed. “New jammies! Mommy lookitlookitlookit! Daddy brought the baby goaty-goats new jammies! Daddy will you help me please to put them on?”
“Daddy,” Eric breathed out and kneeled, melting into the ground and wrapped himself around his knees as he sobbed. His little girl wrapped herself around him and then kissing him, she patted his face. Eric looked into those almond-shaped eyes that were so like his own. “I have been looking for you,” she whispered in his ear and then licked blood from his face. “Sometimes I would find you but I could not see you. And I would try and try and try.”
Emmy stroked his hair and then rubbed her nose against his. “You were not here but my Uncle Samuel was and I liked his curls. So my hair is not like yours, but my Uncle Samuel’s. I would have liked to have had hair like yours,” she said as she followed the curve of his head. “I think I would have liked it very much.”
Sookie went over to the sink and got a clean hand towel. Wetting it, she knelt down beside Eric and began to wash what was left of the blood from his face. Those impossible blue eyes staring back at her. “You are welcome in our home and in our lives. Do not make promises you will not keep. Do not say things you do not mean. If you have nothing nice to say to us, say nothing at all, because if you hurt Emmy or me,” she said smiling at him. “I am turning you into a toad. Fair warning, Eric,” she said.
“Fair warning,” he echoed as he took her hand, raised it to his lips and kissed it.”
“Bed time for goaty-goats,” Emmy sang. “Daddy brought new jammies! Who wants some?”
Eric dressed the goats, just to prove he knew a thing or two about them and watched them dance about with Emmy.
“She could do this all night and day,” Sookie shook her head. “Bed time for baby girls and goaty-goats!” she smiled and rubbed several nannies between the horns one last time.
“Daddy,” Sookie addressed Eric, “if you would be so kind to round-up the babies. It is bed time.”
Sookie did her best not to laugh as Eric chased baby goats up walls and under nanny goats. They enjoyed the game of chase, singing their goat songs with Emmy who was singing and clapping in glee right along with them!
When the last one had been divested of their pajamas he placed Emmy on top of his shoulders and they walked back to the house.
“Bath time, story time, then bedtime,” Sookie reached up high and tweaked Emmy on the nose.
It was ten before Emmy closed her eyes, with Eric’s head resting on her back. When she got warm, he sat up. “Thank you,” he said. “I mean that. For tonight, thank you. And for…everything. She is so wonderful and incredible. Just like her mother,” he added and stood.
“It was fun,” she smiled at him as she got up to walk him to the door. ”I am glad Emmy got to know this side of you. The side that I got to know. Thank you for giving her that.”
Eric didn’t say anything, just nodded. “You two saved my life,” he looked in her eyes and she could see the truth that he spoke. “I was on the path to self-destruction. I was ready to greet the sun and Samuel said whenever I did that to let him know. He would go with me and together we would walk the path to meet his God. That is the only thing that has kept me from doing so. Samuel does so much good. I could not take him from this world.”
Sookie nodded. “You went to see him after Emmy was born. Samuel has been, I think, prepping you and us for this minute. When she would meet you.”
“Well then, I will have to thank him as well.”
“You should,” Sookie grinned at him.
Eric hesitated. “I hate myself but I have to ask because…because I do not understand how I misread…” He stopped. “Fuck Northman, just say it,” he said out loud. “Sookie,” his voice was low and sincere, “that night you were in your Gran’s truck, after the Wicca meeting. You smelled strongly of another man.”
“Eric, I have nothing,” she sighed. “Alcide hugged me but I broke that off. I told Gran I was going to wait in the truck. I got in, it was cold, I put on her jacket.”
“Fuck Northman!” he hissed. “Of course. She fucked some guy wearing that jacket. You two…your pheromones would have been close enough I would have read the two of you as one. I am a fucking flaming asshole!”
“Would not have made any difference,” she sighed. “I was so pissed off at you…so angry…so fucking angry…I was so young and so foolish. I like to think I am a bit older and wiser. That is why I put that toad warning out there.”
A small grin tugged at the corners of her lips. “Just be polite to me and be here for Emmy and you will do just fine,” she gave him a full smile.
“You seeing someone?” he asked.
Sookie laughed out loud. “I learned my lesson about men. And then Emmy came along and Lafayette is the only male I see on a regular basis. Besides,” she grinned, “who could possibly compete with you?”
“So,” he wanted to push the question so badly he could taste it. “Has there been anyone else?” screamed in his mind and his ego roared! He had been and was still her only one!
Instead in a very sedate voice he said, “I would love to see you tomorrow night. But I will be late. Probably around eight. Fangtasia burned and Pam sent me a text saying we will need to meet with the insurance adjuster at around six-thirty. I know eight is Emmy’s bedtime. But I will be here in time to read her a story and hear about her day.”
“That should be just fine,” Sookie smiled at him. “Until then.”
“Until then,” he smiled at her and picking up both hands he kissed one and then the other. “Good night.”
I still have a list of needful things and that list is extensive. Rain once a week so there is water for the lawn. Keeping the crows off the roof. The mice out of the house. Roses that don’t get mites, bag worms (yes seriously), and for some reason the finches pick the petals from the roses and line their nests. (We need those petals for making soap!) Keeping the milk fresh past the expiration date. We need our goats to be healthy, the lavender to grow big and strong, the rosemary to always stand guard and the pecan grove to produce, produce produce!
And I have always wanted Emmy to know her Daddy.
That fucking Eric! In my heart I have waited a lifetime to hear my baby call him Daddy. I don’t know if I should yell, scream, or just sit down and bawl! See needful things.
There are also some not so needful things on my list. Right now my body is raging! Emotions! Not so needful things! Nor and I repeat NOR do I need my body to react to him like a teenager whose hormones are running so amuck, if you would cut them and if they would to bleed on a just up out-of-the-ground corn plant, you would be able to shuck the corn from it at the end of the day and have it for dinner! I do not need a…a…stress reliever in the form of that fucking rat bastard! No! No! and once again, NO! shouted at the top of my lungs! Because if it is one thing the fucking rat bastard knows how to do and that is to well…release stress…after he has worked you over and made you scream…well yes…then comes the great big, toe curling, release…damn I remember those nights all to vividly. And those memories…man, I sure don’t need them whenever he comes around.
No one, and I know this for a fact, no one is promised tomorrow. Your world can turn on a dime…mine did.
Emmy was up the next morning, pushing one of her mommy’s eyes open.
“Mommy, you in there?” she asked.
“M-m-m-m,” she answered. “What ‘cha thinking baby girl?”
“I like having a Daddy. Can I tell my friends I have a Daddy?”
“Emmy, my darling daughter. We have to talk. About serious things. Secret things.”
“Secret?” she said sitting down and wrapping her lovey around her. “You mean like me drinking blood?”
“Yes. You drink my blood because your Daddy drinks blood. Do you know your Daddy is a vampire?”
Sitting quietly, she thought about that. “I know he is different. Like me. Am I a vampire?”
“Emmy, you are my baby girl. You are human, like me. And you have fangs like your Daddy. And you can fly like him and you certainly have his temper.”
Emmy nodded. “Yes. He would not have hurt my doggies but he kept them from protecting you.”
“You know that?” Sookie asked.
“Yes,” she nodded.
“Well okay then. Since he is a vampire and I am a human, our biology should not mix. Vampire and human can marry, but they can’t have babies. Their biology will not allow this.”
“But you had me,” she responded.
“Yes,” Sookie nodded. “You are very special. And if people were to know that about you, they would take you from me so they could study your biology.”
“I would turn them into a toad,” she said with a sure nod of her head.
“And baby, you have my permission to do that if anyone does try to take you from me.”
“But my Poppi-La La knows,” she said.
“Yes, he loves you very much.
And your Uncle Samuel knows along with your Auntie Pam. They are vampire also. But those are all the people who know. We trust them and we love them and they would do anything to keep you safe.
Now, there may come a time when you can tell people about your Daddy. But until then, it needs to be a secret.”
“Okay,” she nodded.
“And let’s not do any flying,” she smiled at her, “around folks.”
“Okay. I’m hungry, is it time for breakfast?”
“You bet. I need to pee. How about you?”
“Yes,” she nodded.
“I’ll use the one in the hall, you use this one with your step stool. Wash up and we’ll have breakfast.”
Everyone got two days off a week and that included Sookie and Lafayette. Today was an off day. No need to be in the barn. No need to do anything. So it was a lazy day.
Robby stopped by and picked up the plants that Eric had purchased.
They walked with him out into the gardens and showed him where they needed to go.
They talked about what Emmy wanted to do for her birthday.
“Can we go trick-or-treating in town?” she asked.
“Well yes,” Sookie nodded. “Anything else?”
“Can we have birthday cake and ice cream with our friends out in the barn?”
“Yes,” Sookie nodded.
“Will Daddy be here?”
“We will check with him. Now, he is going to be late coming tonight because he has to take care of some business. So he will finish that up and then be here in time for a story before your bedtime.
What else would you like?” Sookie picked her up and spun her around.
“A baby brother or sister,” Emmy smiled at her. “Daddy is here now. He could share his biology with you and we could have a baby!”
“Oh, Emmy…” Sookie set her down on the ground and squatted down by her. “I just don’t know about that. Maybe your Daddy does not want to have another child with me.”
“Can we ask him?”
“Sweet girl, there is so much to having a child. Just so much,” she sighed. “Right now, I have you and I love you very much. And your Daddy loves you. And for right now, I think that is enough.”
“Okay,” Emmy nodded.
“Thanks,” Sookie hugged her close. “Now,” she stood up, “what else do we need to get done, today?”
“Can I make Daddy a card?” she asked.
“Well yes,” Sookie smiled. “What a nice idea. Let’s get out the crafting supplies.”
It was a very good day. Emmy drew scenes of the farm and one of herself on a card that said, “I love you, Daddy!” that her Mommy helped her to write. There were hearts and hand turkeys and other things that Emmy saw everyday that she put worked onto the card.
When there was no space left on the front, she turned it over and decorated the back.
Around five, they sat back from the kitchen table and smiled at each other. They had made Eric a Halloween card, a Christmas card and a birthday card for him! They were starting on the Valentine’s Day card next. Sookie had out the red glitter and Emmy was busy with the red marker.
“We will take a break for dinner and then finish with the glitter,” Sookie kissed her on the nose.
“Sookie,” Arlene stuck her head in the front door and called out. “Dark is coming on. The barn is spanky clean and I am goin’ home.”
“Thanks Arlene,” she said getting up and sticking her head out of the kitchen.
“Well, I am gonna’ get. There is a Abbott & Costello movie marathon at the drive-in tonight. Starts in thirty minutes. Terry has the kids ready to go and I gotta haul ass.”
“Be careful out there,” Sookie smiled at her and waved.
“Will do,” she called.
“Let’s eat and finish up,” Sookie smiled. “When Daddy gets here, we will be ready for him.”
The Valentine’s card was a fancy thing! They had glued and then glittered Emmy’s hands and she put handprints all over the piece of paper.
They both declared it beautiful!
“We will let these dry and we will put things away. Then we’ll check the barn. Before you know it, your daddy will be here,” Sookie kissed her on the nose.
“Now, up to the sink and off with the glitter!”
Looking around the kitchen, they had cards hung up everywhere to dry! Looked like wash day! Sookie had hung a piece of twine from one cabinet door to another with love filled cards attached with clothespins.
“It sparkles in the kitchen, Mommy,” Emmy said proudly.
“Yes it does. Now lets round-up the dogs and go check the goaty-goats. Then we’ll have a story or two and Daddy will be here to read you one as well.”
Staring down at her little girl, Sookie knew that her life was blessed. In a way that she could not comprehend or perceive. All she had ever wanted was a family of her own. And Emmy made that possible for her and she would be forever grateful.
As they walked out to the barn, she admired the stars in the sky and offered up a prayer of gratitude.
Telling the goats goodnight, they securely closed all the doors behind them and walked back to the house, with the dogs stopping to sniff everything along the way.
“Want to sit and swing for a while?” Sookie asked.
“Yes,” Emmy nodded her head. “I like that swing. I like it when we swing and it is raining.”
“Me too,” Sookie grinned at her as they climbed the last step. They crossed the porch and Sookie started to lift Emmy up when both dogs sniffed the wind and growled. That caused Sookie to turn out toward the yard to see what had caught their attention.
There was a crack and she felt a searing pain go through her as she fell to the porch floor, blood covering her hands where she had grabbed at the pain to pull it out of her body!
“Mommy,” Emmy was down next to her, “Mommy,” and Sookie could hear the panic in her voice while the dogs whined, circling around her.
“Sweet baby, get inside with the dogs,” Sookie said to her as she tried to sit up. “I need my phone…I can’t remember where I left my phone…”
“Mommy,” the little girl bawled when she saw the blood covering the front of Sookie’s body.
“Dadd-e-e-e-e-e! Dadd-e-e-e-e! Dadde-e-e-e!” was screamed in anguish out into the universe as she began to wail. “Mommy, I won’t leave you, Mommy,” she was crying, “Dadde-e-e-e-e-e!”
Eric was in a meeting with the suits that wanted to talk about fire damage and the no longer standing Fangtasia.
“Dadd-e-e-e-e-e!” was screamed with heart breaking anguish and panic through his soul.
“Emmy!” he roared and pushing through walls and whatever got in his way, he was gone.
“Fuck off!” Pamela said to those at the table and she was gone as well.
“Mommy,” she was sobbing, “Mommy,” she had her hands on top of Sookie’s.”
“Emmy, baby, they can see you. Go inside. Take the dogs with you,” she was able to gasp out. “I…I need my phone….can you find mommy’s phone?” “Daddy,” she was sobbing and looking out into the night and Sookie could feel it! Eric was incoming and what flowed out from him was indeed, what she had witnessed in Emmy last night. Berserker rage!
“They hurt Mommy,” Sookie heard her say as she began to lose consciousness.
“Emmy, come and stand in front of Daddy. Do it now. Mommy is going to be just fine,” he said as he opened a vein in his wrist. “Sookie, lover, I need you to drink,” he said putting his wrist to her mouth. Scooping her up so that she was in front of his body he said, “Emmy, I need you to go inside and turn off the lights. I am right behind you. You boys, go with Emmy!” he said to the dogs who crowded up around her.
“Daddy,” she was still sobbing but nodding in understanding.
“Stay in front of me. Good, Mommy is drinking and she is going to be just fine. Good. The lights are out I want you to get down on the floor.
Pamela,” he said as he felt her come in. “Sookie has been shot! Carry Emmy to the bedroom and then find them warm blankets…” was all that he said as he fought to contain the rage that carried him in its wake!
“Emmy, we are going to go back to the bedroom. Auntie Pam is going to carry you. I have Mommy.”
“Okay,” she sobbed as she looked over at him and wrapped her arms around Pam.
Eric got his family on the bed and Pam was gone.
“Mommy is fine,” Sookie smiled over at Emmy who was still crying. Reaching for Sookie, the little girl climbed into her arms.
“You need to get out of those clothes and into the shower,” Eric said. “A bath is just what everyone needs. I will start the water then come and get my girls.”
Sookie just looked at him with grateful eyes. When she began to cry in earnest, Eric grabbed another blanket and wrapped them up together. Holding them in his arms, he knew when they both began to feel better.
“I am going to adjust the water to the right temperature,” he said gently as he eased away. “Good boys,” he called to the dogs that had been whining. “Up,” he said. “See for yourself, they are fine. Stand guard, I will just be in the bathroom a moment.”
Kissing both, he went to the tub and turned on the water.
Pam appeared back in the bedroom.
“What?” he asked as she joined him in the bathroom.
“I followed the trajectory of the bullet. The smell of gunpowder is still strong in the air. I could see where they had stood to take the shot. But there was no human smell. I could track it no farther. There was, however, the distinct smell of magic.”
“I am giving my girls a bath. Sit with them for a moment while I run the water and call Samuel.”
As Eric was walking into the bathroom, he punched the one on his speed dial.
“My brother,” Samuel began.
“Sookie has been shot,” was all Eric said.
“I am on my way,” Samuel replied as he pocketed his phone.
Samuel turned to Ian and Cedric. “We are getting off, here.
Clifford, have the pilot take us down to twenty thousand feet. We are getting out.”
“Bathing water is ready,” he smiled as a claw appeared and he removed the clothes from Sookie and then Emmy and tossing them to the floor. Picking both up, he carried them to the bathroom and undressing, got into the shower with them. “A little shampoo,” he kissed both on the nose, “a little…oh look, goaty-goat soap for washing and we will cuddle on the bed and talk about our day. Now close your eyes and let Daddy work his magic.”
Eric shampooed Emmy first and then Sookie. What he could see and they could not was that the tub floor was red. At some point he was going to howl with rage at what had been done to them, but not right now. No, now he was going to correct what he could and eventually he would slowly and carefully torture who had done this.
When the water was clear on the tub bottom, he turned off the stream. Drying everyone off, when they entered the bedroom. Pam had removed all the bloody things and there was clean bedding.
Getting everyone into jammies and in bed, he went over to Sookie’s dresser and opening a drawer, took out one of her oversized night shirts and slipped it on. With a blower dryer and a brush he gently worked through their hair. Putting the things back, Sookie and Emmy both watched him as he came back over and put a knee on the bed to lean in. “I am going outside for just a bit.”
“No Daddy, please,” Emmy started to sob, again. “Stay here with us,” she pleaded.
“My angel’s kiss,” he kissed her on the cheek. “I will not be gone long. Someone has used magic to block them from your Auntie Pam. There is no smell of human. Or of anything.”
Emmy looked over at her Auntie and Pam nodded yes.
“I am just going to try to unlock their spell,” he smiled at her.
“We can do that,” Emmy nodded and wiped her eyes, dry. “We can do that.”
Eric, Sookie and Pam both mumbled something to the effects of “Oh shit!” under their breath.
“Daddy, you are here with me and Mommy. We can do this.”
“Most good,” Eric nodded and he and Emmy began to rub their hands together at the same time.
Emmy smiled. “You are just like me.”
“Yes,” Eric grinned at her. “Now, can you rub them really fast?”
“Yes,” she nodded. “Mommy, you rub them too.”
“Me?” Sookie asked as she struggled to sit up.
“Stay down,” Eric said gently, “and just raise your hands a bit and let us all rub our hands together.”
“Just like this,” Emmy smiled. “You feel it?” Emmy asked.
“Yes,” Eric nodded as his eyes went into a squint. “It does.”
“I sing this song,” Emmy said and then clapped her hands, “be gone.”
“Now you Mommy.”
“I sing this song,” Sookie stopped rubbing them and then clapped. “Be gone.”
“I sing this song,” Eric said, and when he clapped his hands, thunder shook the house, “be gone.”
Pam grinned, “I’ll be back. I am going to text Lafayette. He needs to know. What do you want me to tell him?”
“Shelter in place,” Eric responded. His voice serious.
“Will do,” she bowed her head and was gone.
“Emmy, Daddy needs his phone. Auntie Pam left it on the dresser. I am going to get up and go get it. Are you fine with that?”
“You’ll come right back?” she asked.
“Right back,” he smiled at her.
Emmy and Sookie watched him as he walked over to get his phone and watched him until he was back on the bed.
“Sookie, we have to notify the police.”
“And say what?” she asked. “That I was shot. That you healed me with your blood.” Shaking her head no, Eric took her hands in his.
“Please tell me what happened?” he said gently.
Sookie took a deep breath and then blew it slowly out. “We had come back from the barn. We were going to sit out on the porch swing for a bit. The dogs started to growl and I turned to see what they were fussing about.
I think I heard the crack of the rifle being fired, but I am not sure now.”
“If you had not turned,” Eric held her eyes, “the bullet would have hit your heart. You would be…” he let that thought trail off and his grip tightened on her hands.
“We will bandage your arm. Tell the Sheriff you were grazed. The bullet is lodged in your doorframe. Let them work the forensics. That way we can tell your employees to beware.”
“Okay,” she nodded. “Okay.”
There was a knock at the door.
“That is your Uncle Samuel,” he kissed both his girls on the nose. “I’ll be right back. Are we good with that?”
“Yes,” Emmy nodded and wiped at her eyes. “I love my Uncle Samuel.”
“I’ll be right back my angel’s kiss,” he grinned at her and kissing her forehead, he left them on the bed.
When Eric and Samuel walked into the bedroom, Eric was wearing what looked to be his own clothes.
“You always carry extra for him?” Sookie asked.
“Always,” Samuel smiled. “Now, how are you doing?”
“Better,” she offered him a small smile. “Eric gave me some of his blood and then he put us all in the shower and when we came out the…the…” the words faltered.
“Pamela put fresh bedding on. Most excellent,” Samuel finished for her. “Now, I have brought two friends, along. Ian and Cedric. They are good lads have helped Eric get into as much trouble as they have helped him get out of it. They are following Pam’s trail.”
“Okay,” she nodded. “Okay,” she looked at Eric. “Call the Sheriff. I will only speak to Andy and Kendra. They can keep a secret. They might as well know. Everything.”
The two police officers sat and listened. The man who sat across from them that was tenderly holding Emmy next to him while she slept and had his arm around Sookie was one of the most well-known and notorious vampires to walk the night. The Sheriff of Area Five! No fucking kidding! Andy had never met him but he was grateful for him. Because of Northman’s reputation he did not have to deal with supernatural shit like other parts of the country.
“We will work the crime scene,” Andy nodded. “We’ll walk the path of the bullet. Extract the bullet and put up the tape and then wait and see what happens.
Are we,” Andy paused. “Are we going to ever know who did this?” he asked.
“I am going to know,” Eric said, his voice low and full of purpose.
Andy nodded. There sat one vampire you had better not cross and someone had. “You call Lafayette and let him call the work roster and we’ll get on this.”
“Thank you,” Eric nodded. “That is very much appreciated. If there are no more questions, Sookie needs to rest.”
“Of course,” Andy nodded.
Eric shook hands with them and walked them to the door. Gathering up Sookie and Emmy, he walked with them off to bed.
“Fucking Were shit,” Andy mumbled.
“No kidding,” Kendra replied as they walked back to the cruiser. “I hope whoever did this is repenting before The Throne and sees fit to come to us and give themselves up, otherwise they are going to be servicing those in Hell before another day passes.”
“Naw,” Andy shivered. “He is going to torture them for days before that happens and make them wish for Hell.”
Popping open the trunk, they took out the work lights. “Post and Revere are on that way out. We will work the house, we are sending them out into the woods.”
Lafayette was staring at his phone like it had bit him! “What do you mean I am to shelter in place,” he kept hissing at it. “I am his La La Fineness! Poppi-La La to that angel’s kiss that watched her momma get shot!” he was now shouting! “Shelter in place,” he yelled for the last time. “I think not!”
Jesus had Lafayette by the arm. “Hey,” his voice was gentle, “we are both drunk. We cannot drive.”
“Fuck that shit!” Lafayette said. “We are hiring a limo and driver. They can just tow my car as well. I am done waitin’ around.”
The limo driver along with the tow truck driver quoted Lafayette a price to take his unhappy ass from Dallas to Bon Temps.
“You just make this shit happen,” he hissed. “I have got to get home. No speedin’ but push it when you can! But you get us there in record time and I see a thousand dollar tip in your future. Both of you!”
Pam, Ian and Cedric were back at three. Samuel opened the door for them. When they walked in, Eric came into the living room and sat and watched as they settled in.
“Tell me…” was all he said.
Ian began. “Tracked the human to their car. Then we tracked their car to a meeting place in the state park where they changed cars. Pam ran the tire tread though her database and we picked up the truck headed north into Arkansas.
Then,” Pam grinned, “they switched out, again. This time into a sport utility headed East toward Mississippi.
Then,” the grin covered her face, “they switched out again and came west, back into Area Five. More specifically, Bon Temps. Do you know a woman by the name of Hadley Savoy?”
Eric blinked. “Sookie’s cousin.”
“She fired the shot. She reeks of gunpowder. She is presently bunking in with Jason Stackhouse. And interestingly enough, he is not the male that was with her. Does not mean he was not associated with it, but Jason was not who drove her.”
“Does she still live?” Eric asked.
“Well, not exactly,” Pam replied.
“What?” he asked looking from one to the other. “Is she is alive or dead?”
“Well, not exactly,” Cedric said and crossed himself. “Sure enough, Pamela did want to do the deed and what a fine death it was, her nasty assed Hadley gaspin’ and chokin’ and cryin’ out her last. But Pamela just started walkin’ toward her with her fangs down and she up and died of fright, we think.”
“Yes, fright,” Pam and Ian nodded in agreement. “We think.”
“But,” Cedric crossed himself, “Hadley went to ghost, her spirit cryin’ and grievin’ and shoutin’ somethin’ about wantin’ another chance. At what, we were not for sure and not stayin’ to find out. She went screamin’ into Jason Stackhouse’s home and he started screamin’ and when we left they were still a screamin’.”
“What we know about Hadley is that she was a blood bag for HRM SA,” Pam said softly.
“No one knows about Sookie and I,” Eric replied. “So why would SA send her after Sookie?”
“I don’t know that she did,” Pam said. “I am just stating a fact. Plenty of breathers out there who must be jealous of Sookie. Her cousin for one.”
“Does her cousin have a boyfriend?”
“Maybe?” Pam shrugged. “We are working that.”
“Most excellent,” he smiled at Pamela. “Thank you child. And thank you, King of Eire and King of British Isle. What brings you here?”
“Samuel,” Ian replied. “We were on our way to Los Angeles with him when he got the phone call from you.”
“Well then,” Eric sat up straighter. “Let me tell you what has brought you here this fine old dark.”
Everything Eric would say, Ian would look at The Da’vid to confirm. Samuel would just nod his head yes.
“Can we see them?” Cedric kept on whispering. “Please Eric, me boyo, can we see them? Your sweet Sookie and the darling Miss Emmy? The angel’s kiss?”
Eric would shake his head no and continue on with his story.
Cedric kept pleading silently for a look-see. “And she has Samuel’s curls? Please Eric!”
Before Eric could finish with his telling, there was a ruckus out in the yard! And a lot of cussing coming, it sounded like, from a black, gay male!
“Lafayette is home,” Samuel grinned as he shook his finger at Eric. “And you are in so much trouble,” he said in a sing-song voice.
“Where are my girls?” he called out, opening the front door. “I am gone for one mo’ fo’n weekend and Miss Sooks gets shot while my angel’s kiss watches her momma bleed!
Northman!” he hissed when he saw Eric sitting there. “Of course it would be when you would brings your war-mongering, heart breakin’ fine cha-cha shakin’ Viking ass around here that it all goes to Were shit! Blood just follows vampires around. Just as day follows night and Were shit does stink!” he was now shouting.
Leaning in and down, he got in Eric’s face. “If I think for one moment you has brought this apoplectic shit down on our house, I will raise up all the dead to curse your steps for the rest of your days,” he hissed.
Eric said nothing, just watched as Lafayette right himself.
“Brother Samuel,” he said, “good evenin’ and welcome to our home. Now who are these two other mother fucker’s?” he said, pointing to Ian and Cedric with his head. “And can you vouch for them or are they part of his blood-lettin’ cha-cha chasing horde?”
“They are Eric’s friends and mine as well,” Samuel stood and hugged Lafayette. “I am glad you are home. There is much to be done. Please, go and check on Sookie and Emmy. Ian and Cedric want nothing more than to just look at them. A small peek if you do not mind.”
“Well, I do mind,” he said, his eyes glaring at the two newcomers. “But since you vouch for them Brother Samuel, you all,” he twirled his finger at them, “not one sound. You wake my angel’s kiss or her momma, I will toss your skanky asses out into the sun.”
Ian and Cedric both nodded, vigorously.
Lafayette went back into the bedroom and quietly opened the door. The light from the hallway spilled in and he could see his girls resting. Smiling and with a big sigh he closed the door and walked back into the living room. “So now tell me,” he looked at the five vampires, “Just what the fuck happened!”
Lafayette kept playing Hadley’s death over and over. “And the skank got so scared at seeing Missy Pam all vamped up she just dropped over dead?”
“Well, I was describing what I was going to do to her,” Pam smiled.
“And she is now haunting Jason?”
“Oh yes,” Ian, Cedric and Pam all nodded. “Screaming her discontent. Jason screaming his.”
“But she started out spelled?” he looked at Eric.
“Yes,” he nodded. “But Emmy, Sookie and I did a spell to break the magic so we could have her human bona fides and we would be able to track her.”
“So you, in essence, you drop kicked that skank’s human back into place? Or unmasked her human? Is that right?”
“Yes,” Eric nodded.
“I wonder if that explains her going to instant ghost?” Lafayette mused. “When she was unmasked, you saw her ass for the screaming banshee that she really is. Humph! His La La Fineness says.
Comin’ on five-ish! I has got to start callin’ folks. Tell them Sookie has been shot and to stay home. I’ll do the milkin’.”
Ian and Cedric both stood up. “We were farmers,” Ian said. “We can help.”
“Good,” he nodded. “Let’s get out to the barn. Get this done and then you all can…” he shrugged. “Go to ground under the front porch.”
Within ten minutes they were back.
“What’s up?” Samuel asked as they came back in the door.
“The crew is here and fired up,” Lafayette replied. “Askin’ about Sookie and Emmy. Getting the work done and I do believe Arlene is doing open carry, today. Never saw a woman so pissed off and riled up!
Apparently Jason took his blubbering self to the police station. Hadley followed him. She was boohooin’ ‘bout how she tried to kill Sookie and missed and now had to wander the earth with Jason as her sidekick. Somethin’ about him being’ the first family that she saw and that was her curse.
Arlene said Andy was not for real sure if a statement from a ghost would stand up in court.
Anyway, our crew is out there throwing salt around and sayin’ blessin’s and callin’ on the blood of Jesus! I think they has got this. I am goin’ to bed.”
“Poppi-La La” a little voice called out and then ran to him!
Lafayette turned around and with silent tears picked her up and hugged her.
“There is my brave girl,” he wept as he wrapped his arms around her. “You was there with your momma. Your Poppi-La la is just so happy you were not hurt,” he sobbed.
Emmy nodded. “Mommy was hurt so I called for my Daddy,” she nodded wisely. “Mommy wanted her phone but she did not know where it was. But I knew where my Daddy was. I knew he would come to us,” she nodded, “because he is a good Daddy. Just like Billy Goat. He got me and Mommy and took us inside and he healed Mommy. And we took a shower and put on clean jammies and Daddy snuggled with us until we went to sleep.”
“Daddy,” Lafayette smiled at her.
“Yes, he is like me and I am like him and Mommy is like both of us.”
“Well, that is very fine and good,” Lafayette kissed her. “Now, you hungry?”
“I have this Lafayette,” Eric said and smiled.
Emmy reached for him. “My Daddy will fix me something, my Poppi-La La. Don’t you worry.
And oh-h-h, Daddy, we have surprises for you!”
“You do?” he sounded pleased. “In the kitchen?”
“Yes,” she giggled and patted him on the check.
“Poppi-La La,” Eric smiled at him. A genuine smile. “Thank you for taking care of my family. I will need you to see to them during the day. Please, get some rest,” Eric said extending his hand.
Lafayette took it and they shook.
“Thank you,” Eric said again. “I cannot say that enough.”
“You just be true,” Lafayetee eyed him. “Cause I got cha-cha’n chasin’ relatives in the cemetery just looking for someone to haunt.”
Eric nodded his head yes.“Thank you,” he mouthed to Lafayette, one last time. Lafayette nodded and headed up stairs.
Giving his daughter a kiss, he smiled at her and said, “Let’s find you something to eat.”
Eric and Emmy led the way to the kitchen. There were squeals of delight from the little girl as Emmy clapped her hands. “See Daddy, we made these for you!”
Eric carefully took down the cards with his daughter’s help. She explained each picture and how she had used her hands to make many of the designs.
Eric was so pleased and proud that all he could do was grin!
Samuel took out the peanut butter and bread and strawberry jelly and made her a sandwich and poured her a glass of milk.
“See what you missed out on,” Samuel eyed him as they all admired the cards as they passed from Eric’s hands.
Pam was sitting next to Eric. Watching this small wonder explain about making turkey hands.
Cedric was muttering in ancient Gaelic about how a dumb-ass cha cha’n Viking did not deserve a family.
Pam had to grin, discretely. Cha cha’n was said in English. Must not have a direct translation in ancient Gaelic.
“Oh come on,” Eric eyed him. “You would not have believed her either.”
Cedric made a face and then rolled his eyes at Eric. “I want a family so badly, I ache in me bones…me boyo! I would believe every word the lass said.
You and your conqueror the world Viking ego! Thrustin’ your chest out and sailin’ off into the sun, not knowin’ if you were gona’ be swallowed by the sea monsters or not!
We Irish stayed home and drank and let the conquerors come to us. Like any decent civilized folk does and we believe what our women folk tell us!
My father always said I looked like Michael, our distiller. But Father said Michael made damn fine whiskey and I was the apple of me old father’s eye. His favorite son and male child I was.”
Eric was chuckling was all the other men were nodding their heads in agreement.
“Good words,” Ian said. “And you were his favorite son and now that you mention it, you do look like Michael,” he laughed out loud.
Pam had sat and not said much. Eric was still in kill mode as he held Emmy while the baby girl ate. There was still someone else out there. Someone who could cast spells! Good ones! And was no amateur. She honestly did not think it was Daryl the warlock. He was a lot of talk and was all for getting paid for servicing the older women in the covens. A man whore, absolutely. But did not have the smarts for this? There was a talented someone! Somewhere!
“Why so serious?” he asked Pam.
Emmy had her snack and was now asleep on his shoulder.
“Eric, you thought Sookie was seeing Emmy’s father. Why did you think that?”
“Because I am a stubborn, dumber than Were shit ass,” he replied.
“My maker, there is some one else out there plotting this; someone with considerable skill.”
“You are right, of course, child.
After Sookie and I,” he hesitated. “After we broke up, at the Wicca gathering, when Sookie was out in the truck she reeked of another man. Turns out she had on her gran’s coat.”
“So,” Pam was thoughtful, “this man was having sex with her gran. She was the goddess of her coven. He would have been her equal.”
“I see your point,” Eric nodded.
Sookie walked in and all the men stood up.
“Please,” she smiled, “sit down. I am just here for Emmy.”
“You should not be up,” Eric said coming toward her. Sweeping her up in his arms, he walked out with them to the bedroom. “Lafayette is back and pissed off and resting.
The crew is coming in to work. They are all carrying weapons, I believe. They have salted the perimeter and have said fuck you to evil and I know I heard more that one hallelujah out in the barn area, already.
Pam shall be leaving shortly, Ian and Cedric are going to ground under the front porch. Samuel and I are sleeping under your bed today.
Now,” Eric tucked them both back in. “Sleep.”
“Thank you for being so thoughtful toward us,” she said.
“I am the one that is thankful,” his voice was soft and gentle. “And I will be right here if you should need me.
But I need to tell you what we have found out so far,” he said as he got into the bed beside her. “The Sheriff will be here sometime this morning, but the crew already knows about what has happened here and in town at the police station. Along with most of the town. Here is the official story.”
“Okay,” she nodded as Eric pulled her and Emmy in closer and told her about Hadley and how she was now residing with Jason.
The characters of the Southern Vampire Mysteries belong to Miss Charlaine Harris. No infringement on my part is intended. The characters on True Blood belong to Mr. Alan Ball. No infringement on my part is intended.
I have no BETA, editor, or other such charming person. All mistakes are my own.
This story is rated M
My Angel’s Kiss — Chapter 4
The to-do date rolled around. Sookie got Emmy dressed first and then took the dry cleaner’s bag off the dress. The last time she had been dressed in a sparkle dress was when Eric took her out dancing one night after a job in Kansas City. The view from the roof and been star-filled and the city echoed the lights in the river as the riverboats passed by. After that night, she had not had an occasion to wear another. Slipping on the dress, Emmy’s eyes got round.
“Oh-h-h-h Mommy,” Emmy’s voice was excited. “You are so beautiful.”
“Thank you sweet girl,” Sookie winked at her. “I thank you for the compliment.
Now, let’s talk about beautiful!” she kissed Emmy. “You are the heart of my heart, sweet baby girl,” Sookie picked her up and swung her around. “From your sparkle shoes to your soft, soft jacket! You are beautiful. You are my angel’s kiss.”
Emmy was admiring her feet. “I think the goaty-goats will like my new tenny runners!” she clapped her hands. “They are good for the barn and sparkle for our friends.”
“Yes, the goats will enjoy them,” Sookie grinned at her as she looked over the shoes she had brought home for herself. “H-m-m-m,” she held up the black pair, then the red pair.
“I like the boots,” Emmy said with a sure nod of her head.
“Me too,” Sookie grinned. “Just give them a reminder of why we are there. Witchy boots to go! And they have your Poppi-La La’s seal of approval. They are Stuart Weitzman’s. Your Poppi-La La was crying tears of joy when I brought them home.”
“What’s that?” Emmy asked.
Sookie shrugged. “A brand of shoe is all I know. Now, my angel’s kiss is ready to go. Mommy is putting her shoes on and she is ready to go. We’ll grab your backpack and we are off to Shreveport!
For the last fucking time for this bullshit,” Sookie said under her breath as she picked up her daughter, grabbed her bag and they were out the door.
Emmy was quiet until they got on the major highway to Shreveport. “This is where that fucking rat bastard used to work?”
“Yes,” Sookie nodded. “But Auntie Pam assures me he is out-of-town, out of the country, even. Not that it matters,” Sookie said looking at Emmy in the rear view mirror. “You are my daughter. My angel’s kiss.”
“Okay,” she nodded.
“Now, you will be staying with Auntie Pam in her office. She will lock the door so that no one will bother you. Your Auntie Pam and,” she paused. “And that fucking rat bastard, these are the only two people in this whole wide world that has a key to that door. So you will be safe and not be bothered by anyone. And I will be gone for just a little bit. Twenty minutes. We have talked about how long that is. We timed breakfast the other morning and that is how long it took us to eat, remember? And that is how long I will be gone.”
“Okay,” she nodded. “I brought my books. I will do a picture walk for Auntie Pam. She likes the story about the three little pigs. Me too!”
Skookie knocked on the back door of Fangtasia. “One last fucking time,” she smiled to herself. “Seriously you fucking door. You think memories of me being here will make me cry. Piece of metal Were shit,” she smiled to herself. “I got the very best part of Northman! My baby is with me and you can just kiss my ass.”
When the door opened, Pam nodded and smiled as she reached for Emmy. “I have been listening. They are about to start with the voting. You are just in time. Walk out and do your thing. I brought books and I am locking us in.”
“Me too, Auntie Pam! I got books!” Emmy smiled and kissed Pamela on the cheek. “Love you Mommy!”
“Love you my angel’s kiss,” Sookie snagged one more kiss then walked down the hall and out into the bar.
“Brought the three little piggys Auntie Pam,” Emmy giggled.
“My favorite,” Pam smiled. “Love those tennis shoes,” Pam said as they went to her office. “And that jacket!”
“My skirt is all sparkly,” Emmy laughed. “And it can twirl!”
“Cannot wait,” Pam grinned as she unlocked her door, closed it, and they were inside going through Emmy’s backpack.
Pam heard the key in the door. Which was interesting, Emmy did as well. Well shit. Samuel had planned this down to the very last-minute. You had to love him, whether you wanted to or not.
Part owner of the bar and her maker stepped into the room. “Child,” he said to her and then his eyes rested on Emmy, “and Child,” he smiled. “If I had realized times were so desperate that we were taking in children,” Eric raised his eyebrows, “I would have returned sooner.”
“My Maker,” Pamela bowed her head. “You grace me with your presence.”
“Hello fucking rat bastard,” Emmy said looking up from her backpack as she pulled out a book.
“What?” Eric kneeled down to Emmy’s eye level. “What did you just call me?”
“Fucking rat bastard,” she replied very matter of fact. “Those are very naughty words,” she stressed, “and I can only use them when I am talking about you.”
“Do you know who I am?” he asked, putting heat in his voice.
“Yes,” she nodded and looked at him like maybe he did not know who he was. “You are Eric Northman.”
Eric was a bit surprised at her confidence and fuck-you attitude! “And how do you know that?” he continued on in a conversational tone.
“Because my mommy said there were only two people in the whole wide world,” she indicated just how big that was by stretching out her hands as far as they would go, “that have a key to that door and that is my Auntie Pam and Eric Northman, that fucking rat bastard that is my biology.”
Eric turned his gaze on Pamela and mouthed, displeasure in his eyes. “Auntie Pam.”
Sitting down on the floor in front of the little potty mouth, he bowed at the waist. “Well, you have me at a disadvantage. You know me, but I do not know you. Have you a name?”
“Yes,” she nodded meeting him stare for stare. “Emmy,” she offered proudly. “Emmy Stackhouse.”
“Well Emmy Stackhouse, I admire your curls. And your sparkles. I do not believe that I have ever seen a pair of tennis shoes with sparkles. Why even the pig on your shirt has sparkles on her beret.”
“Thank you,” she responded, with a tiny bow of her head. “I like sparkles,” and there was a hint of a smile with dimples in her cheeks. “We go to the thrift store and I pick out whatever I want. We do not pay retail for anything,” Emmy nodded her head, her face now serious. “That is where I found my shirt,” she said proudly. “The little piglet, her name is Olivia,” she smiled as she pointed to her. “She is traveling and making memories. That is the Eiffel Tower behind her and the Leaning Tower. And Big Ben. Mommy says when I get big I can go to all those places. We look in the World Books and we go to the library and check out books. Mommy reads and I look at the pretty pictures. I am going to learn to read,” she said proudly. “And count. I can count to ten,” she held up both hands. “This many is ten. And I am going to be this many,” she held up four fingers.
The little girl grinned. So, she was proud of being four. “Just wait until you are proud of being a 1,000,” he thought. Eric chuckled as he got the accounting of the small breather’s life. “The polite thing to do,” he smiled at her. “Is now to say something nice about me.”
That brought a whole different set of reactions. She was carefully scrutinizing him. Her eyes, he was sure, doing her own inventory. But her facial features were impossible to read.
“I asked my mommy once if you were nice,” did her eyes just shift color? “She said you were probably as nice as you knew how to be.”
Eric digested that. Sookie had not painted for her child a portrait of a daddy that was a monster. Just a daddy that was as nice as he knew how to be. Well, time to tell the little one the truth about the whore that wanted his money. “Child, your mommy has lied to you. I am not your father, or your poppa or your daddy.”
“I know,” she nodded her head slowly, her curls following her every movement. “You are just my biology. I have seen daddies. They help the mommies with the babies and sometimes drive the car and he pays for things. My Poppi-La La does that,” and he could see her face lite up! Were her eyes glowing now? “And he cooks when Mommy is tired and he reads me stories when she has to work.
You are just the sperm that helped to make me.” Her pronouncement of him was clean, clear and clinical. “Billy Goat gives his sperm to the nanny goats so there can be baby goats. Mommy says that is biology,” she nodded her head. “But Billy Goat, he protects his nannies and his babies. He stays right there with them and will defend them to his death. That is because they are his and he wants them to be safe,” she nodded again.
“You did not want us,” she said shaking her head side to side. “So you are just biology,” she said with a sure nod of her head.
There was a knock at the door.
“Mommy,” Emmy smiled and went with Pam to the door. When it opened Sookie reached for her baby and hugged her up tight. “Thanks for doing this. This is the last time. No more Wicca, Wiccan, broom riders, Hell Mouth wanna bes! Call them what you will. I have resigned, told them to take my name off the rolls and to get on with their lives because I was getting on with mine.
Now, my angel’s kiss where is your backpack?” she asked and then looking over to the chair, Eric still sat on the floor.
“Interesting conversation I was having with your daughter,” he grinned as he slid up in one fluid motion. “She’s a little young, but say in another twenty years…”
“Don’t you dare,” Sookie sat Emmy down and was toe-to-toe with Eric, her anger raging and her hands twisted up in his t-shirt. “Whatever filthy thoughts you have in your head you keep them to yourself,” she spit out. “Or I will stake you where you stand!” Shoving back from him, she picked up Emmy’s backpack and shoving her books inside, Sookie stepped back over to her daughter and picked her up.
Emmy was watching Eric intently. “Mommy, is he nice?” she asked.
“He is as nice as he knows how to be,” Sookie replied.
“Thanks Pam,” she said as she walked out the door and down the hall.
There was no mistaking what the breeze that just passed her meant.
“Allow me,” Eric said as he opened the back door for her. “It is dangerous for a female out here by herself. Allow me to escort you to your car.”
“Dangerous is right,” she replied as she started walking. “Who is going to protect me from you?”
“You still were my ring,” he said.
“It is my ring,” she replied.
“Still trying to pass yourself of as respectable,” he grinned.
“Bon Temps has never considered me respectable,” she replied.
“Motherhood agrees with you Sookie,” he smiled. “And in that dress, your curves are well, voluptuous.”
“Fuck off,” she said as she hit the remote on her Jeep.
“Okay sweet girl, in you go. We are going home,” she smiled at Emmy as she buckled her into her car seat.
“Goodnight Miss Emmy,” he leaned down and smiled at her.
“Goodnight fucking rat bastard,” she replied and waved as Sookie closed the car door.
Eric grinned as he watched them drive away. The Jeep was about four years old. Everything about it said used and maintained. And they raised goats. Now that was interesting.
“Fucking rat bastard,” he grinned. “What a mouth on that child. Just like her mother. Well my life just got a bit more appealing.”
As he opened the back door, he had the clear visual of Sookie standing there in the mall. He had called her baby a fucking rat bastard.
“That explains it,” he said as he shook that off.
Opening Pam’s office door he closed it and grinned. “Give Miss Emmy another twenty years and she can certainly fuck this rat bastard.”
Pam was on her feet and had pushed him to the floor. “You are a sick, degenerate, lower than Were shit incestuous fucker!” she hissed. “Get out of my office and take your sorry ass back to where ever you have been for the past four years!” she yelled.
“Child,” he shook his head. “Clearly…”
“I will do my best to stake you Eric,” tears were rolling down her cheeks. “I mean it. You will have to kill me! My father liked his girls,” she sneered. “I will kill you before I let you touch her! Now get out!” she yelled as she stormed past him and was out the door.
When he heard the back door slam shut, he sat up. Going to his office, he turned on the monitor out front. So the Wicca were back and now discussing who should be the next goddess.
The warlock…what was his name…oh yes, Daryl was standing on the stage. “Clearly, Stackhouse has no interest in this position. And she was never tested and trained for it, so that is for the best. Now does anyone know anything about her daughter?
Filbert, you were going to speak to Jason Stackhouse. Has he noticed anything unusual about his niece?”
“He could not say. Says he stopped having anything to do with his whore of a sister when he found out she was pregnant. Will have nothing to do with the child she spawned out of holy wedlock. His words, not mine. Let that be stated for the record. I do not believe in holy wedlock. And the child was born on Halloween, but this is just a coincidence and does not declare the child to be anything more than the day she was birthed. I wanted that stated for the record.”
“Noted,” Daryl nodded. “Have we been able to trace the child’s father?” he asked.
“No,” Ripley stood. “When asked, Stackhouse said that he was a Marine that she ran into at the mall. He wanted one last romp before he shipped out and she was feeling patriotic. There has never been any other mention of the father.”
“What about her employees?”
“They say the child has the ways of Adele. She likes working in the earth and adores animals. Says a blessing along with Stackhouse in the name of Jesus,” he rolled his eyes. “She is not exceptional in any way.”
“So the child does not need to be proclaimed and confiscated? Not worthy of training?” Daryl asked. “Yea or nay,” he said.
“Nay,” was shouted.
“The Nay’s have it. The child Stackhouse is not worthy and her birthdate only means that she was blessed to be born on such a day. If she truly were the goddess, her birth would have been on an equinox. Moving on.
We need to vote for the goddess for the Glorious Dead’s coven. And we are still believing in the miracle child,” he stressed. “The castings that we have all been doing says the time is right and the ground is fertile. So we need a goddess for the coven and a vessel for the miracle child.”
Eric laughed out loud. “Nothing exceptional about the child? Are we talking about Emmy Stackhouse? For a…” Eric took a moment and did the math. Then did the math, again…“Born on Halloween. Then she will be four.” “
This many,” he saw her cheeks dimple when she held up four fingers.
He had never had what Pamela called a moment. Was this what it felt like? He was still seeing Sookie that February. He had not smelled another male until the night of the Wicca gathering. “Odd,” he mused and settled back within himself. Sookie was not one to offer herself to anyone. It had taken him five years. That she had fucked some guy she met at the mall? Not even if he bought her dinner first.
This could explain Pamela’s reaction. Incest. Her father had been famous for it. The math was right, he got lost in that thought then backed away from it.
“Really,” he grinned, “get ahold of yourself. She walked in on me feeding and she went out and found her own good time. That is understandable,” he said as he put his feet up on his desk and stared at the ceiling. “Except Sookie would not do that,” his brain rationalized. “And what color were Emmy’s eyes? Blue or silver?
Not possible,” he sat up, shaking off the feeling of something major that he had missed. “She found a breather with blue eyes. A close match to mine, but that was all, close.”
His eyes went back to the monitor. Wicca…gag…
No way was he cleaning up their Were shit.
“I am done here,” he grinned. “Time to close up shop.” There was an electrical box that they kept in question for just such an emergency. It was in the basement behind old bar equipment left over from an earlier time. Something that could be easily overlooked and explained. Going downstairs he shorted out the wires and a fire stated. Back up stairs he went and out in the hall he pulled the fire alarm.
He watched as the bar keeps helped with the evacuation, getting everyone safely out while the smoke began to billow up.
When he heard the sirens. Fucking perfect! Out came his phone and he sent a text message to Pam: Child I have taken care of the problem of selling Fangtasia.
Taking to the air, he followed the road that Sookie would have to travel to get home. When he spotted her car, he called.
When the phone in her car rang, she hit the talk button.
“Who is it Mommy?” Emmy said leaning forward.
“Hello Miss Emmy,” Eric said with a smile in his voice. “Sookie, I would like to apologize to you for the things I said. Face-to-face. If you do not feel comfortable with me driving you the rest of the way home, I can just follow you there. And I also have a few questions and observations about the Wicca meeting tonight. Perhaps something you should know.”
“Meet us at the house,” she said and clicked off.
“That fucking rat bastard,” Emmy giggled, “maybe he wants to be a daddy after all.”
“Don’t be counting on that, baby girl. The fucking rat bastard wants something. To be a daddy is not on his list.”
Eric was waiting for them when they pulled into the driveway. He opened Sookie’s door and then opened Emmy’s.
“I’ll get her,” Sookie eyed him as she pushed past him to take out her girl.
“Now you are here for a reason?” she said as she started walking toward the house.
“Yes, I am sorry for what I said earlier. That was inappropriate. I would never do such a thing to your daughter. And I did take a certain about of delight in making you angry. I wish I could say I was sorry for that but I am not. No one breathes fire and brimstone like you. I have missed that.”
Sookie walked up the porch steps and set Emmy down when she got to the door. “So you have missed making me angry. Anything else?” she asked.
“Yes, about the Wicca,” he nodded and looked at Emmy.
“What?” she asked, frowning at him.
“Do they confiscate children that are gifted, to train them?” his voice was low and serious.
“What?” her voice went up. “They said that?”
“If you will invite me in, I will give it to you verbatim.”
“Come on in,” she said, unlocking the door
Eric stood there looking at her. “You know it takes a bit more than that.”
“I never revoked your invitation,” she replied. “It was on my to-do list but I never got around to it. Maybe I will after you leave.
Now, I need about twenty minutes to get her ready for bed.”
“Fine,” he nodded.
Emmy looked up at him. “We always tell the goaty-goats goodnight. Mommy said it is so very late for me to go out to the barn now. Would you do that for me, please?” she asked.
Eric bent down and looked at her. Yes, his color of blue for her eyes, but that silver…and he felt a shiver go through him!
“What do I need to do?”
“Just make sure they are safe and all the doors are closed. One night a big cat tried to get in and eat them!” she said with wide eyes. “My Poppi-La La was there waiting on him with a shotgun. So Mr. Hyett built new, stronger doors.”
“I see,” Eric said. “Then yes, gladly I will check on the goats. Rest well this evening,” he said with a bow of his head.
“And to you as well,” she grinned and taking Sookie’s hand, they headed toward the bedroom.
The dogs regarded him as he passed back out the door. “You want to go with me?” he asked.
The smaller of the dog got up and trotted out, the bigger dog lay down in front of the screen. “Good boys,” Eric grinned. “Come small dog, let us go a walkabout.”
Eric’s only intention was to stick his head in the door and make sure all was secure and then leave. But as he got closer, he could see just what had happened. And he was impressed. The goats’ stalls were clean. Hayloft was well-organized. The milking shed was spotless. The milking equipment still smelling of the disinfectant that was used to clean them as they hung neatly on the walls so that the air could circulate around them.
The field surrounding the pasture was laid out like a garden. It reminded him of one of the gardens at Versailles. Orderly path ways and neatly pruned rosemary into topiaries. There were beds of lavender interspersed with the roses and in one section, they had espalier fruit trees. The last time he had seen fruit trees trained to grow along a fence had been in a garden in Paris.
Hovering in the air, he could see a well thought out and laid plan.
Very neat and very orderly. Just like Sookie…
Heading back to the house, he knocked on the screen and she walked out of the back of the house. Opening the door, she let him and the dog back in.
“You two go for one final run,” she said to the dogs. “Getting close to bedtime. Go on now.”
Wagging their tales they took off.
Sookie had changed to jeans and a t-shirt. “Come on and sit down,” she said nodding to a chair. “Tell me,” she said as she took her place across from him.
As he told her what had been discussed after she had left, she became agitated. And the more he said, the more agitated she became. Getting up, she walked over to the door and called the dogs. When they came in and settled down, she looked a bit easier.
“So,” he asked her, “do the Wicca take children from the families to train?”
“Shit,” she muttered as she sat back down, the ease gone from her, her body rigged. “Not for centuries, or so the old legends say.” Her hands were in her lap and Eric thought if she squeezed them any tighter she would break them.
When he talked about what they said about Emmy she said, “Good,” she breathed out. “They think Emma is not exceptional. Good.”
“But she is exceptional,” Eric smiled at her. “The small amount of time I spent with her, who would not think so. She is verbal, articulate, and makes inferences and can carry on a conversation with an adult. I can see why Pamela would be charmed by her.”
“Mommy,” they both heard her voice and turned in that direction. “Are the goaty-goats just fine?” she asked.
“Sweet baby,” Sookie stood up and went to get her. “They are just fine.”
Eric nodded to confirm that. “Yes, I checked on them. The small dog accompanied me. We can both vouchsafe that the goats are in for the night.”
“That is Brownie,” she smiled at the dog and he came over to have his ears scratched and get one more hug.
“Thank you,” she said politely. “I could not sleep. One night a big cat wanted to eat them,” she shivered. “So Mommy had Mr. Hyett make new doors.”
“I saw those,” Eric nodded. “Very sturdy, very strong. Metal casings. Sure to keep out all villains.”
Sookie snickered. “Did not keep you out.”
Eric arched an eyebrow at her.
“Back to bed,” Sookie said and herded Emmy in that direction.
Eric grinned despite himself. There were photos over in the stairwell. He headed that way, out of curiosity and perhaps he was also just a little smitten with Miss Emmy.
Some one had done a cross-stitch with…with…he stopped before he got to the framed piece.
“Embla Adele Lafayette Stackhouse,” he read out loud. “You fucking bitch,” he growled. “You named her after my grandmother…!” he hissed under his breath. “I told you what she meant to me!”
When Sookie came back out Eric was there, standing in front of her. “You named her after my grandmother!” His voice was incensed! “How dare you?”
“She is her grandmother, also,” Sookie replied, looking up at him.
“Do you know what Embla means?” his voice got louder. “Of course you do not because the scholars today do not know. It means Wisest of the Clan,” his voice had gotten angrier and louder. “That woman’s name is sacred just as her life was sacred. And you have defiled it by using it on your ill begotten bastard!” he was now shouting.
“Do not,” she yelled back, “come into my home and use that language about my baby.”
“Yes, your baby! Not my baby,” his voice became a menacing low growl.
The dogs were now beside Sookie growling and barking and snapping at Eric!
Sookie grabbed them by the collars.
“Good boys….” he took a step closer and laughed. “Stay,” he pushed his will at them and with another thought he pushed them back against a wall, their collars being torn out of Sookie’s hands.
Both dogs were whining! Crying out! He laughed as he watched them try to come to Sookie’s aide.
“Don’t you hurt my mommy or my doggies you fucking rat bastard!” a little voice cried out and Emmy was there, hovering in the air, face-to-face with him, her fangs down and her claws out with a broom in her hands!
Like a darting hummingbird, she was everywhere, delivering blows to him with the handle until it finally broke! With a mighty shove he was on the floor and Emmy was hovering above him, the broken handle, sharp and deadly, raised above her head, ready to plunge it into his heart!
“Emmy no,” Sookie cried out and wrapped her arms around her daughter. “Emmy no,” Sookie held her and felt her daughter trembling with rage in her arms! “Baby no. He is a fucking rat bastard but he is your biology,” she said weeping. “You cannot carry that burden of ending him!”
Emmy dropped the broom and nodding her head yes she shifted in Sookie’s arms and was face-to-face with her mommy. “I won’t let him hurt you,” she said shaking her head. “Or my doggies.
Come,” she said to Blackie and Brownie and they moved away from the wall and crowded around Sookie’s legs!
“I know sweet girl,” Sookie sobbed as she held her close. “I know. But I can’t let you hurt him either. Not over this.”
Emmy nodded and then turned to look at Eric. “You hurt my Mommy or my doggies or my goaty-goats and I will turn you into a toad,” she nodded her head. “So not dead, but you will be a toad.
Is that okay Mommy?” she asked, her face earnest as she addressed her mother.
“A toad will do,” Sookie smiled at her and let out a big sigh. “Okay, bedtime, one more time,” Sookie stroked her cheek.
“May I have some blood?” she asked.
“Of course, baby. Let me get a warm lovey.”
Eric was processing everything as fast as he could! Which was not fast enough! He had been tossed around like a leaf caught in a tornado! And she had released his force of will from the dogs!
“She’s my daughter…” came out in a strangled response.
“No,” Sookie shook her head, “you fucking rat bastard! She is your biology. She is my daughter,” she said as she glared at him.
Eric had back crawled himself against a wall during the onslaught! He had never seen anyone move so fast! He could feel the anger she had been pushing at him, debilitating him! Berserker rage distilled in its most pure form! There were stories about how the old ones could just take your life with their wrath!
“Down please,” Emmy said as she slid down Sookie’s body. “You stay,” she said pointing her finger at Eric and squinting at him.
Eric could see the silver flames dancing in her eyes as he tried to move and found he could not.
“What you did to my doggies was not nice. They protect my Mommy,” she said, shaking her finger at him.
“Blackie, Brownie,” she motioned with her hand, “come.”
The dogs trotted over.
Emmy was now standing in front of him. “You like doggies?” she asked him. Her tone had lessened. The four-year old was back…maybe.
“Yes,” he found he could move his mouth. Well of course, he had spared the dogs their language, she had done the same for him.
“Do you trust him?” she asked her dogs?
“O-o,” came back the reply. She nodded sagely and then turned her eyes on Eric for another look. Like maybe, whatever answer they had given her, maybe she did not believe. “Well,” she nodded to herself. Scratching the dogs on the head she continued on, “If you will give him a kiss, he can get up,” she said looking one from dog to the other. “If not,” she scratched both dogs behind the ears, “he stays.”
“O-oo-o,” both dogs said and trotted over and licked Eric on the face.
“My sweet girl,” Sookie picked her up and hugged her, “bedtime.”
Eric was shaking. Every part of him as he followed them into the bedroom and watched as the dogs lay down at the side of the bed. Sookie took a blanket from a metal box. He could feel the heat coming from it as she put the lid back on. Into the bed they both went and…and…
…was Emmy drinking blood?
Then Emmy went white!
Eric panicked! He was on the bed, opening a vein when Sookie shook her head no. “Put your ear on her back and listen,” was all she said as she pulled the blanket tighter around the little girl. Doing that, quieting his mind, he listened. He could hear her body functioning. Despite the fact that she looked dead!
“Ten minutes,” Sookie said to him. “She is down for ten minutes then back to us.”
Eric merely nodded as he kept his ear tuned to his daughter’s back. With a sigh of relief, he felt the warmth return to her and her color come flooding back in.
Sookie tucked her in and kissed her on the nose as she watched her angel’s kiss, sleep.
“She started when she was three months old, on the 15th of March. Beware the Ides of March,” she shuddered, remembering. “I nursed her, burped on my shoulder and she sniffed and found a vein in my neck. Had a couple of sips and licked the wounds. I burped her again and this happened. I was bawling my eyes out, doing mouth-to-mouth and dialed 911. By the time they got here, she was back to human normal. We all had a small chuckle at me having new mommy jitters. So I called Samuel and he came and listened to her, just like you did and said she was still alive.”
“My Samuel?” Eric asked.
“Yes,” she nodded. “Pamela re-introduced us. He had no explanation, either. Just that it must be the vampire part of her nature.
He stayed with us a month and slept under the bed. In case I needed him he said to just wake him. He left us a pint of his blood in the freezer, you know, just in case Emmy…” the tears started to run down her cheeks. “Now that you are here, have you any type of explanation for this?”
“Maybe,” he said rubbing the little girl’s back. “My grandmother experienced what she called Never Time. All I know about that is that she had her own set of guards. Their job was to watch over her body while she was in Never Time. It did not last very long. I stood guard over her the last three months of her life and saw her do this. Emmy…” he nodded. “This was a part of who Grandmother was.”
“Good to know,” Sookie nodded. “I will take whatever knowledge I can get.”
“Sookie,” he looked at her. “Grandmother was born on the Ides of March.”
Letting go of a small, strangled laugh, she replied, “That just fucking figures.”
“And Grandmother, her eyes were not grey, they were silver. I only knew her when her hair was white. But her eyelashes and eyebrows were strawberry blonde. They kept their true color until she died.”
Eric pulled on a little curl and watched it bounce back into place. “Her hair is most unusual. Samuel is the only person I know who has curls like this.”
Laughing a bit, Sookie nodded her head. “Her magic, or whatever it is that you passed to her. I think it has been looking for you. Until Samuel came to stay with us, she was bald. And I think that was because Lafayette is bald and she felt his love for her. But…he was bald…
Then Samuel came and she was fascinated with his hair. Then her hair started to grow and it grew in curly, like his.”
Her eyes searched his. “There are times when she just stops and stares off into space. It looks like she is listening, with her head tilted to one side,” Sookie shrugged. “The most recent was when we were in the Thrift Store last week. She was…searching…maybe…I don’t know.”
“Which shop?” he asked.
“The Purple Heart in Shreveport. We were both excited about finding our clothes for the Wicca to-do and she just stopped and stared at a fixed point.”
“The one on Admiral Street?” he asked.
“Yes,” she nodded.
“I was resting in a warehouse not far from there. I woke mid morning, feeling like I was being watched.”
Sookie just shrugged. “Very possible…”
“Well this certainly explains what I have been experiencing. This big cat that she spoke of.” “Yes,” Sookie nodded remembering. “We could hear it screaming, trying to claw its way into the barn.”
A small grin covered Eric’s face. “I heard one at the club. I asked Pam if one of the patron’s was getting a bit too excited. She said no.
You were safe?” he asked.
“We were inside the house, Lafayette was outside in the barn waiting with a shotgun.”
Eric raised an eyebrow. “How could you know?”
“Sam Merlotte was by earlier, acting squirrelly. He brought flowers and smiled a lot. Which was weird because Sam does not default to a smile. He wanted to be business partners. I could sell the jerky he made out of my goats to the same folks I sold the soap, too. Split the profit 80/20. Twenty percent to me.”
“Low life shifter,” Eric growled. The dogs raised their heads and looked around, sniffing the air and then looked at Eric. Each one growled a bit just to keep up!
Eric shook his head no and the dogs lay back down.
“Lafayette killed the cougar and Sam has not been seen since. Then there was the time a Were came to the door and tried to shake me down for protection money to keep the farm from burning. I dismissed him from his hard-on for seven days and told him I would turn him into a toad.
Emmy watched all this and said he was not nice. So later that afternoon, she was talking to this toad in the garden and told him he would come back to life on the night of a full moon. She even rhymed a little spell.
So next full moon Lafayette and I are out in the flower bed with shotguns and this naked Were appears out of no where, bawling and crying and wailing and carrying on.
Miss Emmy is the real deal,” she said looking at Eric. “So we have been figuring this out as we go. Just what her magic is and how it works.
I tried to call you once, but you had blocked my number.
I tried talking to Pam about it but she said you had put her under a silence geas to even speak about me.
So when Samuel showed up, we talked and he told me what he knew of your grandmother’s women’s line of clan magic.
He was thrilled about Emmy and sad that you were such a fucking rat bastard. My words, not his. He said that all was just for the best. You would not be convinced and had to learn things for yourself the hard way.”
“You could have just shown me Emmy in her full vampire mode,” Eric replied, matter-of-fact.
“First time I have seen that,” Sookie said and felt the shudder take her as the tears began to fall.
Eric got onto the bed next to her and held her while she cried.
“I am glad you wore my ring,” he said softly and she felt her heart tear into pieces while she cried.
“I have been so lost and so alone for so long,” she sobbed. “And so scared! Scared that she would not wake up! Wondering how I would go on if she did not.
Wishing to talk to you, hoping you had answers! Thank God for Samuel!” she said, fighting back the tears and what it was like to be next to him.
“Don’t you dare walk back into my life with your words and ways,” she managed to get out.
Picking up her hand he brought it to his lips and placed gentle kisses there. “I am here,” he whispered. “And I am sorry. I cannot say that enough.”
“Until you get bored and want something different,” she got out. “You got bored with me and wanted something different. That was obvious. Please go,” she sobbed. “Please. I am so tired. And weary to death of mind games. Please, just go.”
Eric kissed her lightly on the forehead. He did the same thing to his daughter…to…his…daughter…
“Rest,” he said inhaling deeply of the fragrance that was Sookie’s hair. “I will see you with the new dark. Be safe until then.”
Sookie listened to him as he walked through the house. The door opened and closed. Managing a smile, she did shake her head when she heard him give the command for the front door to lock and she heard the dead bolt click into place.
Closing her eyes, she dreamed. Of a place covered in snow. Looking out of the log cabin door, she could see a vast expanse of water. The ocean; she smiled as she watched the waves churn the ice that had formed and toss it onto the shore. “Home,” something breathed in her and she felt her worries slip away.
For several minutes Eric sat on the roof of the barn and cried. For what was, for what might have been and especially for what was going to be.
Wiping his eyes, he heard the goats chewing their cud below him. “I might have started out as a raiding marauder, but I was also a farmer. It just so happens I am very fond of goats. Time to check in with Pam.”
Pamela had been up to her undead ass in phone calls all night! The bar had burned down! Well fucking good-bye to that Were shit and hello to…to…she had no ready answer for that.
There were no casualties except for the building. Everyone, including HRM Sophie Anne wanted to know what the fuck was going on! “Welcome to my undead fucking life,” she hissed.
Pamela was sitting out on the balcony of her penthouse in downtown Shreveport when she felt her maker coming in at a high rate of speed.
When he landed, he walked up to her and knelt down in front of her. Looking in her eyes he said, “My daughter purchases her clothing from a thrift shop. Wearing others cast offs. Have you anything to say about that?”
Pamela gave him the finger!
Eric began again.
“Hello child,” he smiled at her. “The geas is lifted. You are now allowed to talk about Sookie Stackhouse and Emmy Northman.”
Pamela started laughing and laughed until bloody tears ran down her cheeks. “Emmy Northman!” she hooted. “You fucking rat bastard,” she finally got herself under control. “You have had a night. Found a daughter. Burned down the club. So that takes care of selling it and having to clean up after the witches. I do so hope you have not exacted the same amount of damage on the Stackhouse farm. Many thanks to Samuel for believing me when I told him, other wise your daughter would be living just above the poverty level while you whore and war your bagged blood ways and perfect ass across the Old Empire. Just what did Emmy do to convince you?”
“I witnessed her in the full throes of vampire with the Berserker Rage. She would have staked me if Sookie had not stopped her and then she pinned me in place with her will. Just to make her point,” Eric said evenly. Perhaps smiling with a great deal of pride.
Pam raised an eyebrow at him. “Really? She does spells. She is bona fide. But that’s new…” she mused.
“That is what Sookie said. It was very impressive and also very frightening. I may have shit myself,” he chuckled. “She is mine all right!”
“What did you do to piss her off?” she asked, rolling her eyes. “I know that list is long and extensive, so pick one.”
“Sookie and I were having a shouting contest. The dogs were growling. I was laughing somewhat loudly because Sookie could not hold on to them so with my force of will I told them to stay and then shoved them back against a wall, leaving Sookie standing there by herself.
And just that fast, Emmy was hovering at eye level with me, spitting blue and silver sparks out of her eyes and her fangs I am sure was dripping some type of venom my grandmother would have cooked up. Actually, one or two of the silver sparks I think caught me on the throat. Burned me a little.”
Pam chuckled. “You are one lucky fucking rat bastard. They tell you about the Were that came to the door?”
“Oh yes,” Eric smiled. “My daughter is bona fide. In all areas, I believe. Now, I need to go from fucking rat bastard to Father, or Poppa or Daddy. Mm-m-m, Daddy. She calls Sookie, Mommy. I can be Daddy. What can I do to help her make that transition?”
Pam just stared at him and then spoke. “I am glad you found some type of satisfaction rampaging across the Old Empire. I did not have that type of outlet. I need to say this. I did to Samuel and…and…
…you two were so happy together,” she began to sob. “I had never known you to be happy. I was so scared. For you, me and even her. Because I knew what they would do to her if New Orleans found out. My gawd, Eric, you told her about your grandmother!”
“I know child,” he kissed her on the forehead. “I am sorry for leaving you here while I stormed my way across the Old Empire. There are going to be those who will come looking for me.”
Pam sniffled and then dried her eyes. “Will you let me kill them?” she asked, dabbing at her eyes.
“Of course,” he leaned in and kissed her on the forehead.
“Well,” she said righting herself and taking out her phone. “My baby sister loves baby goats in pajamas. See,” she hit play and the video popped to life of baby goats in pj’s scampering around Emmy while she danced right along with them.
“You have the link?” Eric asked.
“I am so hurt,” her lower lip started to quiver.
“You want to kill HQ in New Orleans?” he wiggled his eyebrows.
“You trust me to do that?” she started to weep, again. “That skank HRM who has been calling me every fifteen minutes,” she groused as her phone rang, again, and Pam gave it the finger. “I would get to end her?”
Eric nodded and placed his hand over his heart and said, “Rightly so. With all that I am, she is yours.”
“I’ll send you the link,” she grinned.
Eric smiled as he watched his child sing a dirty little sea chant as she answered the phone. “Fangtasia where all your fucking undead dreams come true. So fuck off and meet the true death you whore. How may I direct your call? Push one if you want to speak to the bar. Push two if you want to speak to the bouncer. Push three to go fuck yourself then eat Were shit and die. Please leave your message after the beep. Beep,” she said and grinned as she disconnected. “My maker, the link for baby goat pajamas is coming your way.”
Just before sunrise, Eric face timed with Samuel. “Thank you,” was all he could say over and over as he cried, the bloody tears covering his face and his shirt.
“I love you Eric,” Samuel said and placed his hand against the screen. “Get some rest. I will give you the new dark times two, but the next night I will be in residence with the family. What is left of the Old World is gearing up for war. You apparently pissed everyone off and your name is cursed in every language known on the continent.”
Sookie woke before the alarm went off. Getting up, she went to the bathroom and when she came back out, Emmy was up and headed toward the kitchen.
As she walked down the hall, it became evident that Emmy really was all that or Eric had come back and brought a nursery of plants, flowers and that looked like a bag of sweet feed and a couple of bags of extra expensive dog food along with what looked like dinosaur bones daintily wrapped.
“It’s all pretty Mommy,” her little darling ow’ed and aw’ed as she stopped to sniff and admire!
“The fucking rat bastard was here and left presents,” she smiled as she picked her baby up. “So,” she said, “what did you think of him?”
“He is like me,” she nodded sagely. “I like that. And I am like him and I like that. But if he tries to hurt you or my doggies or goaty-goats, I will turn him into a toad.”
Sookie smiled and nodded. “A good plan. But I think he is going to be back with the new dark and apologize to everyone for the way he acted. Let’s give the dogs their bones and send them outside to enjoy them.”
Emmy nodded. “Can we have pancakes for breakfast? Mm-m-m-m, I smell blueberries!”
“The rat bastard left a crate in the kitchen. We can have blueberries with every meal.”
While they ate, Sookie looked around her. The rat bastard had remembered everything about her. That she like pansies. And purple carnations. That blueberries were her favorite fruit. There was a gallon jug of maple syrup and dozens of chocolate dipped strawberries!
Sookie continued to sip her coffee while Emmy went through boxes with her name on it. There were sparkle shirts and skirts and hats and dresses and even a pair of muck boots for the barn that had enough rhinestones on them to be seen from the space station!
“I hope those are rhinestones,” she said as she took a closer look at the stones that were set and not just glued on. “Not like I would know a real diamond if I saw one.”
Off came the Emmy’s jammies and on went a sparkle dress and on went the muck boots!
“Let’s go show the goaty-goats,” the baby girl laughed and clapped her hands together as she went out the door with her twirling and spinning in the sunshine! There went a comet, streaking across the yard!
“Let’s go,” Sookie grinned as she picked up her coffee mug and snagged a chocolate covered strawberry. “I am going to have to rebuke his invitation,” she said as she had a bite and maybe moaned a little as the flavors danced across her tongue! “But not at this moment. Emmy is out the door and headed that way. The goats are going to be admiring her before I get there! Gotta get going!”
The characters of the Southern Vampire Mysteries belong to Miss Charlaine Harris. No infringement on my part is intended. The characters on True Blood belong to Mr. Alan Ball. No infringement on my part is intended.
I have no BETA, editor, or other such charming person. All mistakes are my own.
This story is rated M
My Angel’s Kiss — Chapter 3
Saturday morning at the farmers’ market, Sookie and Lafayette did a brisk business.
“Damn,” Lafayette remarked. “Shoulds maybe be done and back headed for home by noonish.”
“That sounds good,” she smiled as she rubbed her tummy. “Emmy and I are ready for some food and a nap. And a potty. Lafayette…” she smiled at him.
“Go,” he pushed her away with his hands. “Embla Adele Lafayette looks like she is crossin’ her legs. I gots this. Shew! And use those nice ones in the fairgrounds main buildin’.”
“Thanks,” she called out as she hurried away.
“Mr. Reynolds,” Lafayette turned around to see a striking white-headed woman with a beautiful wooden cane standing in front of their table. “I am Mrs. Peoples. I am the business representative for the Jaqua’ard Hotel in New Orleans. Your soap had been brought to our attention and we have been giving it away to our top-flight guests. The results have been very positive. They do so like it as a parting gift. We also have plans to sell it in our gift shop. We would like to purchase all that you make.”
I don’t own the company,” he replied, pulling out his lawyer persona. “Sookie Stackhouse does. The amount varies from week to week, depending on how the goats are producing.”
“I understand,” she nodded. “I read your brochure. All things raw things that go into the soap come off the Stackhouse farm.”
“That is correct,” he nodded. “The milk, rose petals, rosemary, lavender and sunflowers. Obviously we purchase the olive oil and the lye.
Are you going to want it in a certain type of packaging?”
“Oh no, we will do the gift wrapping in our own branded paper. If you prefer to ship it to us in your pans, we will return them to you the same day the soap arrives.”
“Have you a price point in mind?” he asked.
“No,” she smiled and winked at him. “I was told by my boss to make this happen. You should cost it all out to include taxes. I believe it is customary to then to triple that amount. As badly as the marketing group wants this, I think you could safely push that to five times the amount. Like I said, it tested very well. Here is my card. If you would please, I would like the rest of what you have. We have clients leaving tomorrow and they have asked about this. I believe this should cover it,” she smiled at him as she handed him five one hundred-dollar bills.
“Yes ma’am,” he said pocketing her card and then went to work providing for the lady her purchases.
Lafayette handed her the cellophane bag filled with soap. Reading the card she smiled. “The Angel’s Kiss: Soap by Emmy Adele Lafayette. Modern yet old-fashioned. I like it,” she smiled at him and taking her purchase walked off.
When she was out of sight, Lafayette took the card out of his pocket and read it. He began taking down their stand as he thought about the ramifications of what had just happened. “Fuck,” he fought back the tears. “We really are gonna be all right. Hallelujah and thank you Jesus,” he shouted to the sky! All those around him smiled and applauded as he continued, smiling, his soul getting ready to burst!
“What’s going on?” Sookie asked when she returned and saw their place was vacant. “We been kicked out?”
“Sold out,” Lafayette smiled. “Get in the truck. I got news. Of the best sort.”
“Okay Lafayette, you are crying and you are scaring me. What is going on?”
“Where do you want to go for lunch?” he asked pulling the five one hundred-dollar bills out of his pocket and handing them to her.
“Ah-h-h,” she looked at the money and then at him. “I guess we could afford the Golden Corral today,” she yelled and waved the money around.
“Oh, this is not the good news, no ma’am not even close,” he was still crying as he handed her Mrs. Peoples business card and began to explain.
Over lunch, Lafayette kept shaking his head, no. “No Sookie, we need a business plan. We have to cost this out from the goats’ food to our labor. When we are just farm hands, a smaller amount, but when we are soap chefs, that is skilled labor. Plus shipping and handling, times five whatever our bottom line is.”
“I am going to cry in my soft serve ice cream and get my bread pudding soggy,” she sniffled.
“You just go ahead, his La La Fineness is gonn’a do the same. Now, once that is done, I will call Mrs. Peoples and we shall chat and she will send us a contract. How much milk we got in the freezer in the shed?” he asked.
“It’s full,” she replied. “Gallons. I don’t know exactly.”
“Close enough,” he nodded. “Today we are making soap. As soon as we get that contract, we are shipping. If this is the real deal, I am quitting Merlotte’s and I am gonna be fulltime Poppi-La La. So just adjusts.”
“I can do that,” she smiled and then the tears began to run down her face.
They made soap that Saturday afternoon. That night, they did their spread sheet and business plan.
“Sunday is a day of rest,” Sookie said at nine. “I am going to bed. I will be up to eat and take care of morning business. You, sir, are to do whatever.”
July, August and September slipped away. With the first of October, Sookie started once a week baby appointments. Emmy was due on Halloween. Sookie was beginning to think that just might happen. Not that it mattered. She had insurance, now. So did Lafayette. The old farm truck had received a major overhaul. She was pretty sure they could make it to the moon and back if they had too.
They had tried out the baby seat in the front between them. That worked just fine. They were ready.
“Lafayette,” Sookie said on the 5th of October. “We keep having this conversation. Let’s advertise for someone to come in and help you during the first month, at least. If the baby is more than I thought, she or he can work the first three months. That takes us up to the New Year.”
“Maybe,” he said. “We gonna give them insurance?”
“Yes,” she nodded pulling out their plans until the first of January. “I can certainly live on a thousand a month. Easy. Way past easy. No way in hell are we touching our capital. I mean it.”
“We are partners, correct?” he said in his lawyer’s voice.
“Yes, of course,” she made a face at him.
“Then we split our money between us evenly.”
“I am not taking any of your salary,” she said, steel in her voice.
“You don’t scare me with that momma voice,” he chuckled. “We will hire someone else and we will split our monies down the middle. You give me half of yours and I will give you half of mine. There is not one way of having ice water in hell around this.”
“Fine,” she said resigned.
“Goods,” he kissed her on the nose. “Looks like the baby has dropped. Miss Emmy is preparing for her grand entrance!”
At 0330, the bewitching hour, on the 31st of October, Embla Adele Lafayette Stackhouse was born. She was 7 lbs and 3 ozs.
“All good and Godly signs,” Lafayette cried when he cut the cord. “That baby girl was born on all of God’s magic numbers!”
Carol Sue Hoover was hired to take Sookie’s place in the soap making business. Because she had two in grade school, she came in as soon as the boys went to school.
“Miss Carol Sue,” Lafayette addressed her on the second week. “You knows you got dental and glasses with your insurance?”
“Yes,” she nodded as she had her soup for lunch.
“Woman, La La is not one to mind his own business. You go get those broken teeth fixed. And you take Ron and Ray to get their eyes checked. Saw them the other day trying to see the goat I was talkin’ about. They need glasses. Go. You go today after you pick them up from school and get this started. We will cover the deductible for the dentist and the eye doc. Make this happen.”
“Yes sir,” and Lafayette thought he saw the ghost of a smile. Yes, she had a few rotted teeth. And a few broken ones as well. Her husband had been a mean bastard that was killed in a bar fight.
“Miss Sooks and I,” he thought as he watched the woman eat her soup, “we can live just fine on what we are makin’. That baby is gonna take more than three months. She is gonna take a lifetime.
Miss Carol Sue will just be workin’ her very own job right here.”
When Lafayette went in for dinner, Sookie was stirring a pot on the stove. “Making some pumpkin soup to go with the pork roast. What do you think?” she offered him a taste. “Does it need a hint more of cinnamon?”
“Nope,” Lafayette shook his head. “Is delicious. Now where is that angel’s kiss?”
“In her crib. She is sleeping and don’t you…” and it was too late as Lafayette was through the kitchen door and was back with her sleeping on his shoulder. “I’ll just sits and rub her back and you just continue on with your cookin’.”
“How is Carol working out?” she asked.
“Good. I sent her home today with the message to get her teeth fixed and those boys some glasses. Her too if she needs them. Told her we would pay the deductible.”
“She still eating soup?” Sookie asked.
“Yes, thinks that is all she can chew. But that is about to be fixed. And his La La fineness has made an Executive Partner decision. She is staying and you are well….whenever…we live and eat just fine off our money.”
“We do,” Sookie nodded. “Even have a little left over so you can take a weekend off and go somewhere.”
“Hm-m-m,” was all he said as he nuzzled Emmy.
“What color do you think her hair is going to be?” she asked.
“You mean besides being bald like me,” he chuckled. “She looks good bald. Just like her Poppi-La La, don’t you my little angel’s kiss.”
“Oh, she is beautiful,” Sookie agreed. “But babies do grow hair…eventually. You think her eyelashes and eyebrows are strawberry blonde?”
“Yes, not a redhead. Not a blonde. More than a blonde. Strawberry blonde, Momma Sookie, I think that is gonna’ be it.”
There was a knock on the front door.
“I’ll go get it,” he said.
Sookie heard, “Come on in here and bring those boys. We are gettin’ ready for dinner. Come on in and sit yourself down.”
“Hi Carol Sue,” Sookie stepped out of the kitchen. “You are just in time for dinner. Come on in,” she smiled and went over to greet her.
“That is so kind,” the small woman smiled with her mouth closed. “It is just that I went by the dentist and the eye doc. This is how much the deductible is gonna be. I just wanted to okay it first,” she said, handing the papers to Lafayette. “We got this,” he said handing the papers to Sookie who set them aside. “Now you boys come on in and wash up. Dinner is served.”
There were some days Sookie could not believe when Lafayette showed up and it was dinnertime. “The day just slipped away,” she smiled at him as he took the baby. “Good thing I did crock pot chicken bake. She was gurgling this afternoon and I just gurgled right along with her,” Sookie smiled as she kissed Emmy on her feet.
“M-m-m-m hm-m-m-m, I see my baby girl is wearing Stuart Weitzman’s today,” he grinned at her and she blew bubbles at him. “Never too young to start them out in the very best!”
Thanksgiving slipped into place and Carol Sue and the boys came for turkey and all the fixings. They had Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off. Lafayette had cooked with all the fixings. When she left, he sent her home with a complete turkey dinner and pay for the three days she had not worked. “We get paid holidays when we can,” was all he said to her when he handed her the check. “The business is doing just fine. Gonna be picking up a bit for the Christmas season. So, come back on Monday prepared to work. If you know someone who needs a job and who can keep your hours, or earlier ones if they gots no littles in school, we’ll talk.”
“Thank you,” was all she was able to get out as she hugged him. Hugging her back, he helped her to load the food and the boys into her truck. Waving them off, he looked around and sat down on the front porch.
Sookie stuck her head out. “You need a minute?” she asked.
“I told Carol with Christmas comin’ on, we were probably gonna need another person to help out. Maybe run a shift and a half.”
“Sounds good,” Sookie nodded.
“I know her momma is in a bad way. Lost her job at the motel. Not old enough to draw her Social Security.”
“Okay…”
“Sookie, we are usin’ all the milk we get. Weekends puts us a bit ahead, but…”
“But not enough to give her full-time employment.”
Lafayette nodded.
“Okay, so this is why we have capital. Right? Maybe it is time we build onto the goat shed and buy a few more Nannies. And maybe a Billy. But a few more milkers for sure, to start. That would give us enough to take on another employee.”
“Let’s work that,” he said nodding. “But not tonight. Today we is eatin’n and restin’ and nappin.”
“Sounds good,” she replied as she watched Emmy sleep. “Sounds very good.”
Carol started coming out on weekends, giving those week hours to her momma. Her boys loved being out on the farm. Sookie would hear her truck pull in and she would smile and continue nursing Emmy.
Mr. Hyett was an older man closer to forty than he was to thirty, who was a carpenter by trade, long retired. He had lost an arm but still knew his way around a saw and how to calculate angles. Carol’s boys, Ron and Ray were enchanted as they helped Mr. Hyett build the add-on for the new goats and do other fixer-upper chores.
“Smart boys,” he would say as they would hold the tape measure and sound out the numbers. “Really smart boys. Proud to say I know you!”
On those mornings, at around eight, Lafayette would have breakfast ready and he would go out and ring the bell. The boys would come running, with their glasses on their noses and a smile on their face.
Carol was smiling a lot more herself now that her teeth were fixed and her mouth no longer hurt.
Mr. Hyett was a good man. A little lost from time to time since he could no longer earn a living at what he had loved.
Sookie watched her extended family over breakfast. They could hire a part-time fix-it man and his two young helpers. If the Christmas season was really busy… “No,” she told herself. “We cannot get ahead of ourselves. And we cannot hire every stray that crosses our door.”
Well she was almost right about that. Later that week a large ugly dog appeared and settled on the front porch. He and his buddy, a smaller and uglier dog waged their tails and greeted her with rolling over on their tummies.
“Stop it,” she said as she scratched their bellies. “You two look a bit on the thin side. Wait here and I’ll get you something to eat.”
And that was all it took. They looked at her adoringly and Sookie sighed and put them out food and on the payroll.
Brownie and Blackie ruled the yard. Their job was to escort who ever was up, out to the barn. They could herd goats and chickens. They walked the stalls with you and had chased foxes away from the chicken yard. Not that Sookie had ever been scared living out in the country, but she felt comfortable knowing that B&B would call out the alarm.
And when Ron and Ray came out with their momma, there was the happy sound of dogs and boys coming from all over the yard.
“We need dog houses built?” Lafayette asked.
“Don’t know that we can move them off the front porch”, she replied. “We’ll see how it goes. I wonder if they are house broken?”
Lafayette said nothing, just lifted his eyebrow. “They stay out of my kitchen.”
“Got that,” she nodded as she took Emmy from him and went to work on the business plan for January.
Christmas came calling! Sookie, Lafayette, Emmy, Carol and her two boys and her momma Francy; Mr. Hyett and Blackie and Brownie had their pictures taken in Santa elf costumes. They had a Christmas party and everyone got a gift certificate and a holiday bonus check!
The dogs got beds in front of the fireplace. They were enchanted with Emmy and she was enchanted with them!
On the fifth of January there was a knock on the front door. She could hear the man talking to the dogs as he waited.
When she opened the door the dogs came in and sat down beside her.
“Good morning,” he began, “I am Griffin Styles and I work for FarFlung Communications,” he said handing her his card. “Miss Stackhouse, we pulled the plat maps for the county and your land is prime location for a cell tower we would like to build.”
“Saw the truck,” Lafayette said as he came up the porch steps. “Miss Sooks, we gettin’ cable?”
“This is my business partner, Lafayette Reynolds.
Not cable, a cell tower,” she said looking at Lafayette. “This is Mr. Styles of FarFlung Communications.”
“Yes ma’am. If I might explain. I have brought a contract with me.”
“Contract?” she asked.
“We would like to build a cell tower and rent the land from you.”
“You mean you would pay me?” she sound a bit shocked and yet pleased.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Come on in,” Sookie said. “Lafayette is my lawyer. You talk to him and I will listen. We are gonna need your bona fides.”
The meeting lasted an hour. It was all straightforward. They had the area picked out. They would not cut down any trees. Sign here, here, and here.
When he left, Sookie sat staring at the contract.
“Three thousand dollars a month!” Sookie was still in shock. “And more as their network expands just for having that ugly tower on the back forty.”
“You know what we could do with that three thousand Miss Sookie,” Lafayette grinned.
“We could farm it until all that money is gone,” she grinned.
“Yes ma’am. Plant maybe an acre of sunflowers. Grow more rosemary and lavender. Once we get up and runnin’, we are gonna need someone to manage that.”
“You think Mr. Hyett is lookin’ to farm?” she laughed.
Lafayette smiled. “Well, let us just say he is lookin’ and Miss Carol is lookin’ right back. If he is gonna’ take on those two boys and maybe have one of his own, he is gonna’ need full-time employment.”
On the night of the 20th of January, Lafayette’s phone pinged. Incoming was all it said.
Lafayette waited out in the goat barn.
“Nice,” Pam nodded as she looked around. “Improvements. Good investment on your money,” she said, her voice bored.
“What?” Lafayette glared at her.
“Save it,” she said as she picked up a baby goat. “You have money and now you need a financial planner. Sell the lady of the house on that idea,” her voice took on a slight tone of command. “Tell her you know just the guy.”
“And do I?” Lafayette glared at her.
“Oh yes,” she smiled. Then her voice became silky and a bit cold. “You can tell her whatever you like but he is a vampire. A very old vampire and Eric’s brother. He believes Emmy is Eric’s daughter. Always has. It is his hotel chain that uses your soap and his telecommunications company that has built that cell tower. He wants to help you invest for the long-term. Lafayette, you need to go back to Tulane and Sookie needs to be independently wealthy. So just get over yourself and make this happen.”
“How do I know he is just not one of your good time rip off artists?”
“Because,” a voice said behind him, “my God and your God, Lafayette, would not allow for this.
Good evening,” he bowed his head. “I am Samuel Da’vid. In vampire circles, I am a myth, a legend, a thing that goes bump in the night. Silly vampires,” he grinned.
“I can assure you I am most real. I saw Moses walk with God’s strength across the Red Sea as Pharaoh’s army drowned in their pride and arrogance. I know money markets and Eric, my brother who is well…let us just say rash…correction…foolish for listening to his child about the affairs of his heart. And his ego is the stuff of legends and his pride does go before his fall. Baby Emmy is living proof.”
“Brother Samuel,” Pam bowed her head. “I thought I was going to do the preliminary meet and greet for you?”
“Yes,” he nodded. “But when you represent me, you do not do it with rudeness and contempt. Behave yourself or you are excused.”
Nodding her head, she took a step back and Samuel stepped in.
“Pam played for me the recordings of the night Sookie saw Eric in the mall. What he said to her was unforgivable. Someday he will realize his mistake.”
“You got time right now?” Lafayette asked. “Miss Sooks, she is rocking the baby. You can explain all this to her.”
Pam nodded. “I have to…”
“Make the introduction,” Samuel said. “Part of you penitence, child of my brother.”
“She is not going to let me in the house.”
“Perhaps not you,” Samuel replied. “But I have met her once before, albeit, briefly. Eric spoke nicely of me and I was my charming self.
Please,” he smiled at Lafayette, “may we proceed?”
“Aw-w-w-w,” Lafayette looked from one to the other. “You know, we don’t talk about Emmy’s bona fides. Supes have got uncanny hearing. I know you must have somthin’ in place.”
“The cell tower,” Samuel replied. “It gives off a white noise effect. It was noticed by many and my top engineer commented it was intentionally done so that the structure does not disturb any natural habitat. We may be metal and ugly but we are environmentally friendly.”
“There is some shit I just don’t wants to know,” Lafayette said. “This way.”
“Sookie,” Lafayette called out when he entered the door. “We have company.”
“Who is it?” she asked as she got up and started toward that way.
“Oh,” was all she said when she saw Pam.
“Good evening Miss Stackhouse,” Pamela said, bowing her head, “I would like to introduce you to Samuel Da’vid.”
Samuel stepped up and into the light of the door.
“Miss Stackhouse,” he said with a smile and bowed his head.
“Mr. Da’vid,” she smiled at him. “Good evening. A pleasure to see you again.”
“Sookie,” Lafayette said taking the baby, “the story is interesting. He is our kind benefactor. Owns the hotels we sell to. Also the cell tower in the lower forty. He wants to help us invest.
He also saw Moses partin’ the Red Sea and he is Northman’s brother. He believes Eric is our Emmy’s daddy.”
Nodding in agreement, the small vampire smiled.
“Samuel please come in,” she smiled in return.
“I’ll guard the house,” was all Pamela said as she began to depart.
“Would you like to see the baby?” Sookie asked.
“Thank you, yes please,” a much humbler Pamela replied as she came in the door.
The questions started the moment Pam entered. “What shade of blue are her eyes?” she asked as she stared at the baby intently and Emmy stared back. “They…they are the same shade as Eric’s but have silver flecks in them. Or are they silver with blue flecks?”
“We think about fifty-fifty,” Sookie replied as she kissed the baby on the head.
“And her hair is…strawberry blonde? judging from her eyebrows and eyelashes because that baby is bald,” Pam sounded a little shocked.
“Yes,” Sookie nodded, “right now she takes after her Poppi-La La. Hard to say who she is going to take after as she grows.”
“Please pardon my lack of manners,I thank you for you kindness,” Sookie addressed Samuel. “You have made all this possible for us. Please, won’t you sit down?”
Samuel sighed. “Thank you,” he said, taking a seat and indicating for Pamela to do likewise next to him. “My brother is many things. Stubborn is one of things on that list. Sadly, once he has made up his mind…” Samuel shook his head. “Of course, then his pride and ego rear their ugly heads that is when I am normally left just shaking mine.”
“I would love to ask you about Moses,” Sookie smiled. “But maybe some other time. I know folks pay a lot of money for your time. You would probably like to get started.”
Emmy sat in Sookie’s lap as Sookie explained about their soap making business . The baby watched everything going on around her. She would smile and laugh and windmill her hands and feet around. Her eyes would from time-to-time settle on Pam but clearly Samuel held her interest.
“May I see your books?” Samuel asked after Sookie had finished.
“Of course,” she nodded. “They are not very impressive. I enter everything into a ledger. Here Lafayette,” she stood up and started to pass the baby to him. But instead, Emmy held out her arms toward Samuel and jabbered away, smiling the entire time.
“May I?” he asked timidly and with a great deal of respect.
Sookie stared at him for long minutes while Emmy continued to babble and coo at Samuel. “Yes,” she nodded and handed the baby to him. “We can sit at the dining room table. That is my office.”
While they talked, Emmy played with Samuel’s hair the entire time, until she finally fell asleep on his shoulder.
“She was fascinated by your hair,” Sookie grinned as she leaned over and kissed her on the nose. “How do you get it to curl like that?”
“It is natural. And because I am so old, this type of curly had not yet been breed out of the human gene pool.”
“Well, it is lovely,” she smiled at him. “You want me to take her?” she asked.
“No, please,” and Samuel held her that much closer. “Do…do you mind?’ he asked.
“No, I trust you with her. It’s just that she is getting to be a solid little lump.”
Samuel chuckled. “She is fine. Now, let us talk finances.”
Samuel laid out investment ventures. “You have to have money to make money is my mantra,” he repeated several times during his briefing.
When he had finished, Sookie closed her eyes, took a breath and said. “Samuel, I appreciate what you have done for us. I do, truly. But Mr. Hyett needs a prosthetic arm. You know, one that will work with him. Until I get can get enough money together for that, we are thinking about a little tiny backhoe so he can clean out the stalls and he can take that out to the pecans trees and other places so we can use it for fertilizer. Maybe a little tiny tractor. He can plow and put in maybe a half-acre of sunflowers and other things we put in our soap.
I am the first one to tell you, I would just much rather bury our money in the back yard. That way I know where it is and I don’t worry about a bank closing its doors.”
During Sookie’s briefing, Pam had sat there at times, with her mouth open as she talked about her staff.
“Sookie,” she finally could not contain herself any longer, “this is not about providing for every poor breather in the county. This is about taking care of you and the baby.”
“Child,” Samuel turned his attention to her. “You are excused.”
“Thank you Sookie for allowing me into your home,” Pam said as she stood. “Goodnight,” she bowed her head and she was gone.
Samuel smiled at Lafayette. “We need to get you off of her payroll.”
Lafayette shrugged. “I don’t mind her bullshit,” he whispered. “Sorry angel’s kiss for saying such a bad word around you,” he smiled at the baby. “But I agree with Miss Sookie. My momma is in a nice place. I know a male nurse there. He sees to it that she does okay. I only have to pay Pam in information. If I had money to pay for Momma, I would still pay Pamela in information and use that money to go back into the business. When my momma was herself, she would tell me La La with privilege comes responsibility. I have a chance to do some good. I am going to take it.”
Samuel regarded the two adults who had lived a life of having little but with great responsibilities. “I understand that. So here is what I am thinking; you two are going to start your employees slow and easy. A very small 401K….if they put in ten dollars out of every paycheck, we will match it with ten dollars. So at the end of the year they would have two hundred and forty dollars. Which, at that time, they could use for Christmas money or, they could continue to let it build interest. You would encourage them to let this build as a retirement fund, but…” Samuel shrugged. “I understand. Sometimes it is difficult to see the future.
Thank you,” he smiled at Sookie and kissed the baby on top of the head. “This evening has been most delightful. If you need anything, anything at all, please call me,” he said handing her his card.
“Peterson’s Investments,” she said reading it out loud.
“Yes,” he grinned. “My father’s name in Ancient Hebrew is a derivative of Peter. So, Peter’s son. Actually, that was Eric’s idea.”
“He is capable of having them,” she smiled.
“Miss Sookie, would you object if I were to take a photo with Emmy?” he asked politely.
“Of course not. Hand me your phone and show me which button to push. Okay, now turn your body just a bit toward me and you look at Emmy and wa-la,” she grinned showing it to him. “What do you think?”
“Thank you,” the smile covered his face as he handed the baby back to her. “Rest well this evening.”
Sookie walked him to the door. Down the steps Samuel went and found Pamela waiting for him. “I could not hear anything you said,” and there was a bit of awe in her voice.
“Of course not,” Samuel regarded her. “My engineers are the best in the business.”
“The baby, she is a beautiful little thing,” Pam admitted. She had come prepared to hate all of them. Now, maybe not. “I was out visiting with the goats. There are a couple of babies that wear little goat pajamas. Oddly, I am strangely attracted to them.”
“Baby goats are cute,” Samuel replied as they walked off. “Most baby things are cute. Except for snakes and scorpions. I kill both with equal abandon.”
“Myself as well,” Pam nodded and vamp speed they were gone.
Sookie talked up investing with her people. “Peterson’s Investment Group,” she said. “I know ten dollars out of your paycheck is a chunk of change. But we will match that for a year if you leave it in place. Next January will start the new fiscal year. That way, if you want Christmas money, you will have some.
You know me. I am not going anywhere. This is not mandatory, just an option.
Moving on. I talked with Mrs. Peoples. They like the soap. So much so, they are going to start offering it in their hotels in London, Paris, Rome and Tokyo. If you know someone who needs a job, you know what needs to be done and can tell them. We do whatever needs to be done to make all this happen.”
By the end of the first week in February, Mr. Hyett was working full-time. The very small backhoe did indeed clean the stalls.
And Lafayette had hired another full-time employee. Sookie was staring at the employment paperwork. “Seriously?” she looked up at Lafayette from the dining room table.
“Yes,” he nodded. “We both know Arlene is a hard worker. She grew up on a farm. Hell, she can even milk a goat by hand. She showed me. Apparently she used to milk cows. Knows all about the milking machines. Knows how to sanitize and everythin’. She is all good with working the manure into the flower beds, willin’ to do whatever it takes to get her forty hours in.
Sooks, she needs the health insurance. Mikey has developed asthma. They can’t afford the meds, let alone the E.R. visits when he can’t breathe.”
“Lordy,” she wiped at her eyes, “yes, of course.”
“Good, cause she is out there right now,” he smiled at her. “Done signed her up on the family plan. I told her you would put that in place, today.”
“Yes,” she nodded, “I’ll call. As a matter of fact, I’ll do it right now.”
At the end of the day there was a knock at the door.
“Come on in,” Sookie called out, burping Emmy as she went. “Arlene, hey it is good to see you.”
Sookie and the baby were both wrapped in a hug as Arlene bawled. “It’s okay,” Sookie kept repeating. “It is gonna be okay.”
“Oh Sookie,” she drew back, her mascara running down her cheeks. “You just don’t know how much I appreciate this.”
“Come to my office,” she laughed as she went back to the dining room table. “Here is your temporary insurance card. I printed this one out. You will be getting the real thing in the mail. Now, I talked with them. You call and talk with them. But you can get your scripts filled and you can also get a breathing machine and the meds to go in it to use at home. And one to take to school as well. There is no co-pay. This is all-inclusive. So anyone asks you for money, you just have them call the insurance company. It is all here in this packet that Brilliant Life sent me.”
“Thank you Sookie,” she started crying again.
“It’s gonna be okay,” she said hugging her. “Now, you may want to use the bathroom to fix your makeup?”
“Don’t care,” she hiccupped. “I’m gonna cry all the way home. Get those scripts and go get them filled. And I can get one of those breathin’ machines?”
“Yes, a nebulizer. It’s all in there.”
“Thanks,” she sniffled. “My gosh she’s grown. It does not take long. Looks like she is gonna be a strawberry blonde.”
“Yes,” Sookie nodded, “I have been told by her Poppi-La La that eyebrows and lashes do not lie.”
The old farmstead was a busy place. There were always people coming and going. There was no time clock, they policed themselves, with Lafayette keeping a careful eye on all. Once a day, Sookie went out and watched the soap making process, or the curing or working in the gardens. If it was a nice day, Emmy was in her Snugglie helping her mother with chores.
A drying shed had gone up and plants were left there to cure and become useful ingredients in the ongoing soap making process.
By the end of February, Emmy had a full head of hair. It was strawberry blonde and there were thousands of pencil size ringlets all over her head.
“M-m-m-m,” Lafayette said as he took a selfie with the baby. “Takes after her Uncle Samuel.”
“Sure does look like it,” Sookie chuckled as she took her back, wrinkled her nose and went to change her diaper.
The first of March, Sookie had a gentleman caller. When she answered the door, there stood Sam Merlotte. Blackie and Brownie sat on either side of her. Their noses pressed to the screen, low rumbles in their throats.
“Why Sam,” she regarded him. “What a surprise. I have not seen you since before Emmy was born.”
“I know,” he nodded as he stood there with flowers in his hand. “And I apologize for that. I just did not know if the baby’s father was coming back or not. So I just stayed away. The little one is what, four months old now?”
“Yes,” she nodded.
“You look good Sookie,” he smiled at her. “Being a momma sits well with you.”
“Yes, it does,” she eyed him. “Sam, I just gotta say, what are you doing here? I am surprised and then some. Last time I was in Merlotte’s you told me that you did not serve unwed mothers. Gave your establishment a bad name. People might think you were running a whore house.”
“Sookie, come on, give cut me some slack,” he whined a bit. “I only said that because Pastor Shubert was sitting there. He brings the entire congregation in the second Sunday of every month for pie and coffee after church.”
“Well good,” she smiled at him. “Now I have had a day and it is almost eight. I just got the baby down and now it is my turn. Thank you for stopping by, but whatever you are selling, I am not having any part of it.”
“Look,” he leaned into the screen door and the dogs now had a distinct growl. “Just because you no longer drop the g’s at the end of your words does not make you a college graduate. And maybe you are running a nice little business here, but you can’t afford to keep this up. You pay these people way too much money. You must be hemorrhaging in the red, about to go under. Now, I thought I would offer to let you sell to your suppliers my wild turkey jerky. And when we would need more meat we could slaughter one or two of your goats and use their meat as well. I was thinking something like an 80/20 split. I would get the eighty percent because I would be making it.”
“You are a cheap-assed, righteous bastard,” Sookie glared at him. “And no,” she said, most seriously as she closed the door and went to get ready for bed. “Slaughter my goats!” she growled, “I’ll turn him into a toad and fry his legs for dinner! Cheap-assed bastard!”
Lafayette was coming back from the barn when he saw Sam coming down from the steps.
“Hey Lafayette,” Sam called out. “Long time no see. Sure do miss you in the kitchen. Just want you to know your job is still there if you ever want it back.”
“Thanks,” Lafayette nodded.
“I mean that,” Sam smiled at him. “How long do you think you will still be working here?”
“Until they carry me out feet first,” came his reply.
“Oh come on,” Sam laughed. “You make soap and sell soap. I have seen you at the markets and fairs. And you are offering your employees heath insurance? Whose credit card are you putting that on?”
“Mine,” Lafayette smiled at him. “I get miles that way.”
“Wow, well okay,” Sam replied. “Now I am going to a real job. Anytime you want one, let me know.”
“I’ll be sure and not do that,” Lafayette replied as he watched Merlotte walk off.
Going in the house, Lafayette eyed Sookie who was ready for bed and rocking the baby.
“What the fuck?” he mouthed.
“He wanted to slaughter the goats so he could make jerky and we could sell it to our buyers. 80/20!”
“Do I need to start sleepin’ out in the barn?” he asked.
“No, the dogs will give warning if something is not right. And I am here to tell you, Sam is not right.”
Lafayette started laughing. “He always wanted to ask you out. But you worked for him. Then you were pregnant and did not work for him. I think he is taking the maybe we can partner up and then we can partner up approach. As in ride’m you nasty cowboy.”
“Maybe but I told you about him not serving me at Merlotte’s. No room for an unwed mother in his squeaky clean place. Would not want anyone to think it was a whore house.”
“What?” Lafayette drew back. “No-o-o-o you did not tell me that! I would have kicked his ass!”
“Yes,” she rolled her eyes. “Pastor Shubert was there and he was doing his best to impress. After all, his good church folks come in one Sunday a month, eat pie, drink gallons of coffee make a huge mess and do not tip.”
“Bless their nasty asses. His La La Fineness says God knows who all those cheap bastards are and they will be bussing tables in Hell when they are not beggin’ for ice water.”
“I love you Poppi-Lala,” she grinned. “Now the little missy and I are going to bed. See you in the morning.”
Lafayette, being no one’s fool, grabbed a shotgun, a blanket and a pillow, took Brownie and left Blackie inside to guard the house and headed out to the barn.
At around one, the goats started getting restless and they all moved to Lafayette and the dog.
All the hairs on the back of Brownie’s neck were standing up. Lafayette pumped the shotgun. “Come on in cocksucker,” he grinned, “and meet your maker.
There was the cry of a big cat at the door and Lafayette could hear its claws, working through the wood. “Just come on,” he said as he took aim at where he thought the cat was going to come through.
With another scream and throwing its body against the door, the wood gave way and yellow startled eyes stared into the double barrels.
Lafayette could have sworn he heard, “Oh fucking Were shit!” before he pulled the trigger. But he could not swear to it. His ears were filled with the boom of one barrel, then the next.
“Lafayette!” he heard Sookie calling frantically from the porch. “Lafayette,” she yelled louder.
“You little goats just behave yourselves, La La is reloading then going outside.
“Ma-a-a-a-a,” was called out as the herd was up and moving with their shepherd.
“Wait one,” he said to the goats as he got to the door and pulled the dead animal out-of-the-way.
“Ma-a-a-a-a-a-a-a—a!” was called in reply as the cougar was now something to stand on!
“Are you okay?” she asked when he approached and then saw all his four hoofed friends. “What happened?”
“Not sayin’ for sure, but I think the cougar I just killed that broke into the barn was Merlotte. I am pretty sure I heard the cat say Oh fucking Were shit! And lookin’ mighty and mightily surprised that I was there waitin’ on him.”
“You want to tell me what he said after I went to bed?”
“Not right now. Now I hear Emmy. You get yourself inside. I will take care of this. I needs to get these goats back to bed…or maybe not,” they both watched as they climbed up on the porch and settled in, chewing their cud. “Hell, they can just sleeps out here and we’ll leave the dogs to take care of business. What do you think?”
“Good plan. Blackie come on out. You are on goat patrol tonight.”
It was the first of February and Eric was in his office at Fangtasia, looking at new cars on-line. The new BMW caught his eyes but he liked the low, throaty rumble of the Vette.
Pam stuck her head in. “Didn’t you just get a new Vette?” she asked, knowing it was a dumb-ass question but Eric had stopped riding her about asking dump-ass questions. She was worried about him.
“Yes, but I saw a metallic black that I like better. Plus, the new model is out,” he said off-handedly. “How is the crowd, tonight? I thought I heard a big cat scream.”
Pam shook her head. “No, nothing like that going on. The Furry Fandom is tomorrow tonight.”
“Well then, that was just odd,” the screen continued to hold Eric’s concentration.
“Eric,” she began carefully, “you know if you buy that car, Sophie-Anne will come sniffing around wondering where the money is coming from.”
“That could be fun,” was all he said.
Closing the door, she walked down the hall to her office. Closing her door she leaned against it. “Please Eric,” she whispered. “Do not greet the sun and leave me here all alone.”
Mr. Hyett got an early morning phone call. He was there before dawn to survey the damage. “Lesson learned,” he nodded. “We want something a little more on the metal side. No easy meals for the big predators.”
At a more decent hour, Lafayette called the Game and Wildlife Department and explained what had happened. Lafayette said yes, he knew it was a very big fine but that cat had no business trying to eat their business. “I heard it screamin’,” he said “I heard our goats screamin’ and I came runnin!”
Arnold Dill was the game warden the state sent out that day. “Plenty of game out in the woods,” he whistled as he saw the damaged door. “It has been a mild winter. I cannot imagine why he would come into civilization. But man, he wanted in. Good thing he did not make a run at the house. Your front door is probably not as sturdy as this barn door. Could be that he was rabid. Or just had a taste for corn feed instead of gamey.
Whatever his reasonin’, he won’t be doing that again,” he said as photographed the evidence and then he bagged the body. “He would have made short order of your goats. Could have taken out your entire herd in a matter of minutes.”
Sookie came out with the baby as the game warden was getting ready to leave. “You want a cup of coffee to go?” she asked. “Folks have shown up for work and Arlene just made another pot.”
“Thanks I would appreciate that,” he smiled at her.
“Just go to the kitchen door and give a shout out. They’ll get you fixed up.”
Game Warden Dill was welcomed at the kitchen and made much of. There was a redhead who seemed to be running things. “We just finished up breakfast,” she said to him as she poured him a to-go cup. “You want me to fry you up an egg and make you a sandwich?”
“Well…” he began.
“Not a problem,” she said with surety. “Carol, we need two more pieces of toast and another slice of cheese. Let’s get this hard-working man of the state back on the road and righting wrongs.”
With they kitchen put to rights, they headed toward the barn.
“Damn!” Arlene said when they saw the door. “We would have all been out of a job!”
“Thank you Jesus,” was mumbled by one-and-all as they went in and began the day.
Several days passed and it became apparent that it was most odd at Merlotte’s. Sam’s truck was there. His bed had indeed been slept in. But there was no sign of him anywhere. That was buzzing through the town and his employees just continued on, carefully counting the till at the close of each day and each person getting paid at the end of their shift. They did not know what had happened, they were just praying it was not going to happen to them!
The rest of the money was deposited into Merlotte’s Bar & Grill bank account. Big Al, the burger cook, was actually on that account. “Business as usual,” was all he would say at the beginning of each workday and there was no Sam.
When Sam had not returned in a month, the staff took a vote and voted to keep themselves open. They all felt a bit more comfortable to be paid once every two weeks. They hired a bookkeeper and went on with their lives. Big Al could access the account and pay taxes and bills. Maybe they could become employee owned, at least until Sam showed back up!
March had come in like a lion.
And the as the weeks slipped by, they were getting much-needed rain and every thing was green.
Sookie was fixing the salad for dinner while Lafayette grilled chicken. During lunch today was the hot topic of Merlotte’s employees. Big Al had come over and wanted some pointers on running the business. Sookie and Lafayette had been happy to sit down with him and talk.
“Dead Weres shift back,” Sookie said as she brought Lafayette more marinade. “I thought shifters would as well.”
“Miss Sookie, I think maybe that big cat was Sam. But this here is your family’s land. Your women folk have been casting spells on it since they took up residence. I have seen not a spook, one. This land is blessed,” he said nodding his head.
“Well, just fine then. After dinner, I am taking Emmy and we are going out to hoe weeds in the rosemary bed for a bit before bedtime.”
While she did weed control, the chicken smelled delicious! When her tummy started to rumble, she put her hoe in the shed and came to the house.
“Beware the Ides of March,” Lafayette joked as he took the baby so Sookie could eat. “I am goin’ to see Jesus tonight and visit a spell with my momma. You gonna be okay?”
“Yes,” Sookie I smiled. “I got this momma thing going on an Emmy is helping me out. You know how loud she gets when it’s time to eat.”
“That angel’s kiss does have a good pair of lungs,” he grinned. “Be back tomorrow. If somethin’ comes up, call me,” he pointed to himself. “Now, one more kiss and I am out the door.”
Lafayette had fixed her supper. She had eaten and the two of them had kept her company. When she finished, he cleaned the kitchen. All she had to do was take the baby from him, go sit in the rocker and nurse her.
Her life was perfect, as she stole little kisses off Emmy’s nose!
Oops! What was that? Emmy was a bit fussy. Time for the almighty burp! When Sookie picked her up and put her over her shoulder things most odd happened!
“Ouch,” she said casting her eyes toward her daughter. Her baby girl had latched onto her neck…and…and… “Emmy,” her voice trembled, “baby, are you drinking Mommy’s blood?”
Sookie broke the suction when she put her index finger into her daughter’s mouth and could feel…could feel…a little tiny fang!
There was still some daylight and her baby was not smoking or doing anything else odd. After a couple of seconds, she stopped and licked Sookie’s tiny wounds and burped, again.
When Sookie lifted her away, Emmy was licking her lips. If there had been a trace of blood, there, it was now gone.
“Well, okay,” she put the baby in her lap and stuck her finger into her mouth. Nothing happened. Emmy just coo’d at her and windmilled her hands and feet and smiled.
“Okay,” Sookie shook a bit as she carried her over to the window, carefully watching for any signs of vampire burning.
“Wow, wow…well, we normally sit outside after dinner. Gran and I always did. We will listen for the whippoorwills and then bed time shall be upon us.”
Sitting outside was a non event. The dogs lazed by their feet and would occasionally get up and go sniff at something and then come back by and lick the baby, which caused her to laugh and then the dogs would lay back down.
“Okay, my sweet baby girl,” she smiled at her. “Bedtime. One more feeding then sleepy time land.”
Emmy nursed well and had a little more blood. With a full tummy she closed her eyes and went to sleep…
Then it all went to an ungodly nightmare!
Sookie had her snuggled next to her when her baby went cold! “Emmy!” she said sitting up and pulling her daughter up to her. “Baby,” she started to cry, her little darling was white and did not appear to be breathing. “Emmy!” she wailed as she grabbed for the phone and dialed 911, explaining her situation and giving the baby small puffs of air, but Sookie did not see her chest move.
She was holding her baby and crying, doing her best to breathe for her when she heard the sirens wailing in the background. Picking her up, she ran to the door and then odd just continued to happen. When Andy came bounding up to the door, her daughter was just fine.
Sookie was shaking so badly that she passed the baby to Andy. “She was white and cold and not breathing,” she kept repeating as she cried nonstop.
“Here now,” Kendra wrapped a blanket around the shocked new mom. “Sookie, she looks just fine. I know new momma’s get the jitters about their first one. Now you said you were dozing,” Kendra wrapped the blanket tighter around her.
“Emmy do anything unusual? Throw up, stiffen up, you know, anything at all odd today? Eyes roll to the back of her head? She bump her head on anything?”
“No,” she managed to get out as she remembered the tiny fangs in her neck. “I mean our routine is not remarkable. We mostly live on the floor these days. Maybe the dogs brought in a tick but I did not see one when she had her bath before dinner. After dinner I nurse her, we sit out on the porch swing until bed time then I nurse her again and she goes to sleep until her ten o’clock feeding.”
“We can go the hospital in Shreveport, they are the closest Peds ward. But this sweet girl looks just fine. Look at those rosy pink cheeks.”
At that moment, Emmy woke and smiled at Kendra and turned her head when she heard Sookie’s voice.
“Thank you,” she was still shaking a bit. “New momma jitters suck,” she laughed as she brushed back the tears and held out her arms to take her daughter.
“If it happens again, call us,” Andy said.
“I will. I won’t be sleeping at all tonight,” she laughed, her voice still on edge. “Lafayette took the night off. I am calling his happy ass home.”
The dogs watched as the police car left. “You two were a fine great big help,” she said. “I would think you would do something heroic and sound the alarm if your baby was dying.”
They both gave her a doleful look, came over and licked Emmy and then laid back down.
“Huh?” she said as she watched the dogs go back to sleep.
Picking up her phone, she fired off a text. Please come home. I need you.
The next thing she did was to take out the business card she had been given by Samuel. Punching in his number a very business like voice picked up and said “Peterson’s Investments. How may I direct your call?”
Sookie felt a damn of emotion inside of her break! Cry was all she was able to do! There was silence and she heard Samuel say, “I will be right there.”
Lafayette and Samuel both arrived at the same time. Sookie told her story, about the fangs, blood, and the death like state.
Samuel took the baby from Sookie and kissed her on the nose. “What did the dogs do?” he asked as he rubbed his nose against hers.
“What?” she regarded him.
“The dogs, did they react?”
Sookie looked at the two on the floor who were watching and hoping for snacks.
“Nothing,” she answered. “Just, you know…and I even scolded them after Kendra and Andy left. You know, they should have sounded a warning.”
Samuel smiled. “There was obviously no warning to sound. After I was turned, I still had my dog,” he smiled. “I could not let him go and he did not want to leave. But every morning, just before I would go to my day rest he would start to whine and pace around me and he would put his head in my lap.”
“He knew,” Lafayette said.
“Yes,” Samuel nodded. “He never adjusted to me dying every morning. He could sense that there were changes taking place inside of me.
Our Miss Emmy, her father is after all, a vampire. That is in her blood. I would say that it has surfaced. I’ll be here Sookie, every evening until we get this figured out.”
“Thanks,” she let go of another wall of emotion and the tears started again.
“I’ll sit with her, Sookie,” Lafayette took her. “You get some sleep. When I gets tired, Mr. Samuel can take over.”
Samuel sat with the baby from midnight until daylight. In truth, he did not want to let her go, then. “I’ll be here before you fall asleep,” he smiled at her as she smiled in her sleep. Taking her into Sookie, Sookie sat up in bed. “Thanks,” she said taking the baby.
“I’ll see you at sundown,” he bowed his head, slid under her bed and Sookie and Emmy greeted the day.
The sun went down and no change.
Emmy was cooing and talking and looking around.
“Okay,” Lafayette said. “I have put some of her lovies in the dryer. We will have a warm one just in case she goes vampire on us, again.”
Emmy was down on the floor with Lafayette playing when she started to fuss.
“She is all yours, Mommy,” Lafayette grinned and handed her back.
While the baby nursed they talked about everyday things. Both the men could sense it. Sookie was starting to tense up.
“It’s fine,” Samuel reassured her when Sookie put her up on her shoulder to burp her.
Samuel watched Emmy closely as Sookie rubbed her back and then the baby latched onto Sookie’s neck.
“Drinking blood,” he said as he looked over at Lafayette and then watched with wonder when the tiny tongue licked the two pin-pricks and was burped again.
Sure enough, right as she went to sleep, Sookie gasped, “She is getting cold!”
Lafayette was there with a blanket! Swaddling her in warmth!
“I can hear her heart beat,” Samuel said, his ear on her little back. “And feel her lungs inflating.”
“Lafayette, another warm blanket, please,” she whispered. “I think I need one.”
Lafayette draped it around her shoulders. Sookie snuggled her close while Samuel monitored Emmy’s movements.
“I don’t know if the blanket helps or not,” she was crying again, “but I feel better, knowing that she is getting some warmth.”
Samuel kept his ear on Emmy’s back as they both listened to Sookie’s quiet sobs.
“Ten minutes,” Lafayette brushed back his own tears as he hit the stopwatch button. “And no reaction from those mangy hounds on the floor,” he said arching an eyebrow at them.
“Woof?” came back as they both looked at him, got up, went over to the window, came back, licked the baby and then lay back down.
“Whenever you are ready to retire,” Samuel smiled at them. “Just let me know. I will work until then and then I shall take the baby!”
For the next month the wealthiest man in the world slept under Sookie’s bed. Into the house came small heating units where blanket lovies were always at the ready. Into the freezer went a bag of the oldest vampire blood in the world, just in case.
The evenings were spent watching Emmy as she nursed, burped, had some blood and if she went immediately to sleep, for ten minutes, to the untrained eye, appeared to be dead.
Emmy continued to grow and thrive while the adults speculated about what had happened.
“Has to be the vampire,” they all pushed around that thought and voiced it out loud. One night Samuel said, “Or maybe it is some part of Eric’s magic. Or a combination of the two.”
Samuel said nothing else, just gave a sad smile. Eric was a subject they did not discuss. Most days Eric’s pride dictated his life. And he believed Sookie had walked away from him for a breather!
Sookie patted him on the hand. “Thank you for all that you do. With your blood in the freezer if anything happens, she will be just fine.
But I am taking a stand and she is going to be just fine. There will just be this different way of resting.”
The two men grinned and nodded their heads.
“She will never be able to do a sleep over,” Sookie sighed. “Which I guess is okay because I was never able to do one either. Tara Mae would always come here. Miss her,” Sookie smiled at Lafayette and patted his hand.
The first of May Samuel smiled at them, kissed all of them and said, “I have enjoyed very much my visit. But now I have to go. Eric is warring in the Old World and the face of the Old Empire has changed so much that there are monetary adjustments that must be done in person. Gold is a little difficult to pass through the bandwidth,” he added, rolling his eyes. “The old ones do not trust banks.” He grinned at Sookie. “So their wealth lazes about buried.”
Laughing, she hugged him and he took the baby from her. “Do not ever hesitate to call,” his voice was sincere as he smiled at them and kissed Emmy on the nose. Holding her close to him, he sang a Psalm over her. When he finished, he lovingly handed her back. With a bow of his head he was gone.
I still have a needful things list and it has every thing to do with my life, now.
And everyday I rejoice! I have a baby daughter that is beyond anything I could ever have imagined. Along with a life I could not have dreamed.
Including Lafayette and myself, we have twenty full-time employees.
The old kitchen shanty where we started out is now an air-conditioned building with a vent that sucks up all the bad stuff and pushes it through charcoal filters and out goes clean air. A paved parking lot. A picnic area and a covered porch to sit out and eat your meal when it rains.
We have a care facility. It provides both for babies and elderly parents that cannot be left alone.
Everyone still works their forty hours a week. They tell Lafayette what they need that week ‘cause if you got kids, you can make plans and if you listen closely, you can hear God laughing out loud.
My daughter is a joy to watch! Emmy does have a way with animals. From the very beginning. Those that wanted to socialize with her came running. Those that did not went slithering away. Because so much of what we do can be outside, she learned from a very early age what to be weary of. I always checked for snakes before we did any weeding, me always on the look-out!
So she watched for movement in the grass as well. It was the height of summer and she was two and a half. We were up on the porch and she was intently watching something going across the yard. “What is it baby?” I asked her.
“Snake,” she said, a very intent look on her face. “Bad snake. Not like blackie snake who eats the nasty rats out by the barn.”
“Glad he is gone,” I tried to see what she was watching.
“I told him to leave or I would cut his head off,” she brought her right hand down on top of her left in a slicing motion. “Just like my Mommy does with the hoe!”
When she looked up at me, her smile melted my heart.
“I love you,” I whispered to her as I hugged her close.
“Love you Mommy,” my baby girl giggled and hand-in-hand we were off the porch and headed to the flower patch.
The days were pleasant and the years passed. And babies grew. That was the ordained plan and the plan was worked. Sookie worried about Lafayette and from time-to-time would push him about going back to school.
He would just look at her and shake his head.
“You see our Emmy?” he would throw up his hands! “It is gonna take a male puttin’ the fear of Jesus in those panty robbin’ no goods boys. I will be right heres with a shotgun when they come around here thinkin’ they can take our angel’s kiss to the movies. I think not,” he replied, as he scooped up the soon to be three-year old. “You,” he placed a kiss on her nose, “are stayin’ right here with me and your momma!”
“And those goaty-goats,” she grinned. “And Blackie and Brownie!” she clapped her hands in joy.
“That is right your Poppi-La La says. Those goaty-goats would be lost without you,” he rubbed his nose against hers. “Now I hear them callin’! Time for their sweet feed and corn and some fresh water.
Mr. Hyett said he got all those big rocks put out in the pasture, today. Those goaty-goats are climbin’ fools. Let’s see if they would rather climb or eat.”
It is October….fall. It is cooler temps in the South.
Emmy was a delight to watch during the spring kidding! All the baby goats were healthy and we had a small talk about where babies come from…
This spring, I was out composting the house flowerbed, down on my hands and knees. Emmy was helping me with her little shovel and she asked about her daddy. That was the first time she has ever done that.
I told her that I had sex with her daddy, like the billy goat does with the nannies. That the billy goat provides the sperm, or biology, that the nanny goat needs to make a baby.
Besides making baby goats, the billy watches over his herd and protects them.
But the biology that made her, he did not want to be with us.
It was interesting to watch her as she processed that.
“So my biology, he is not a daddy, right? ‘Cause I have seen daddies. They help the mommy and love on the baby and sometimes they pay for things.”
That is right I assured her.
“So what do I call him?” she asked.
There were a lot of different ways I could have gone with this. Lots…
Because sure as there is no ice water in hell, Eric Northman did not qualify as a daddy!
So I figured what he had called her was good enough for him. “Call him fucking rat bastard biology,” I said. “Now Emmy, fucking and bastard are very naughty words. And you are not ever to use them, but if you want to talk about the man that makes up your biology, you can call him a fucking rat bastard.”
She took all that in. “Was he nice?” she asked.
Eric would probably eat Were shit if anyone thought of him as nice. “I think he was as nice as he knew how to be,” I replied.
“Did you love him?” she asked, her little hands on my cheeks, as she laid her forehead against mine. “Yes,” I answered her truthfully. “I did. And a part of me is thankful for him because he gave me you.”
She went over to the porch steps and sat down and just stared out into space. Thinking on things, I guess as I put compost down in the flowerbeds and thought about my life.
Then came summer and we had another first. One evening a Were came to the door.
“Nice place,” he smiled at me through the screen “Be a real shame if lightning were to strike and burn down your home and outbuildings. I can see to it that does not happen,” he smirked.
I guess I am not getting any wiser as I get older but I am getting older and snarkier.
“What?” I snarled at him. “You threatening me? Have you any idea who I am?” I smiled at him as I picked up the broom I keep just inside the door. “I am the goddess for this local coven. May you be impotent for the next seven days. You come back and apologize when you want to see your hard-on, again.”
“You bitch,” he growled.
“I am done being nice. As you walk away, turn into a toad,” I said with authority and closed the door.
“He was not nice,” Emmy said as she looked out the window, a dog on either side of her.
“No my angel’s kiss,” I picked her up and hugged her to me, “he was not.” Mentally I made a note to myself to warn the others. Beware of Weres!
Later that day we were weeding out in the flowerbed.
“Hello toad,” she smiled. “Lots of bugs here for you to eat. Do a good job! 1,2,3,4,5,” my baby counted, “full moon and you are alive.”
Which I thought was odd. That sounded a whole lot like a spell! A small kiddo version, but a spell nonetheless.
That evening, when Emmy was asleep, I told Lafayette about what had happened. “When the next full moon rises, I want us out in the garden with a shotgun. If that toad turns back to Were, we are going to deal with him.”
Sure enough, the next full moon we were both standing in front of the house with loaded shotguns. When the moon cleared the horizon, there was a naked Were in my flowerbed.
He was screaming bloody murder and when he saw us, he started bawling. “I am sorry,” he was on his knees apologizing, “so sorry. Please, I just want to go home. I won’t ever come back. I am so sorry. Please don’t spell me again!” he was howling and sniveling and blubbering all over himself.
“Get,” I said to him, using my shotgun as a pointer.
“Yes ma’am,” he was still boohooing as he took off running.
“We has got us a bona fide,” was all Lafayette said as he watched the Were run, Lafayette nodding his head the entire time to a universal truth.
We had us a bona fide. The Wicca community would go ape shit! There was no way in hell they were going to find out.
“This has got to be Eric’s side of the family,” I mused as the Were finally disappeared from my sight. “My women, we did not do anything like this.”
“Does not matter,” Lafayette smiled. “Emmy has the gift. We has gots to nurture it and temper her gifts. I likes Weres that are toads. But her momma and her daddy both have a temper. Gots to work on that side of her.”
And so my baby grew. And we talked about privilege and how with it comes responsibility. Around the house and out in the fields and in our little soap facility, there were plenty of opportunities to teach that. And teach them I did. We were never going to hide who and what she was. Neither was I going to advertise it.
Those that worked on the farm knew Emmy had “her ways” and they loved that! As soon as Emmy could talk, there would be an adult asking her about something. Emmy would either shake her head no or nod yes, sending all those curls dancing across her head like a dandelion! “Good to see that Adele lives on in her grand baby,” and they would smile and thank her for her blessing or the small gift she brought them of the first flower to open up that morning.
We had celebrated Emmy’s third birthday in grand style! We all wore costumes and had cake and ice cream and that night we went into town and went Trick-or-Treating!
The first of November was a Saturday and we were having a birthday follow-on breakfast with the staff as well. Everyone had brought their favorite breakfast things and we had cooked about ten pounds of bacon and Lafayette make his famous stuffed French toast.
For three years and nine months, I have not seen my brother, Jason Stackhouse. He has not called, he has not dropped by to see the baby.
So here comes this truck with the music blasting, putting the hens off of laying, pulling into our driveway. I was just grateful that he had not pulled into the employee parking lot. I did not want to spoil anyone’s breakfast by the blast of foul language that was getting ready to be set loose into the atmosphere! I walked over to where he had pulled in. He was heading for the front door.
“Jason,” I called out.
“I heard you all was hiring,” he said with a serious face as he started toward me. “On days that Mac cannot be at the road site he leaves me in charge. So I have experience supervising the road crew. I could easily supervise your soap makin’ crew.”
“We are not hiring,” I replied. “All our positions are filled. We are thinking about buying two mules to replace the tractor we use to plow with. Can you walk behind two mules and plow?” I asked.
“Do what?” he looked at me like I had lost my mind. “I am a supervisor. I am qualified for a supervisor position. That is just some easy money and I am long past due.”
“Not hiring,” I said again.
“Not hiring,” he mocked me. “Listen to you, talkin’ like you are someone special! You think you are somebody. And if you are using Gran’s soap makin’ recipe, part of that money is mine.”
Taking out my phone I dialed 911. “This is not an emergency,” I started out by saying. “But this is Sookie Stackhouse and I have a trespasser on my property. I would like for someone to come and remove him.”
“Fuck you Sookie,” he yelled and walked toward his truck, kicking at the rocks that went flying though the air and hit his truck. “Fucking shit!” he bellowed and he climbed in and peeled out, leaving what tread was left on his tires in our driveway.”
“Kendra, this is Sookie, again. Looks like my trespasser has left.”
“You want to register a complaint?” she asked.
I looked at the black marks he had left on my cement drive. That had been a milestone when we had that poured! Why the fuck not!
“Yes,” I nodded. “It was Jason. He came out making demands.”
“He threaten you?” Kendra asked.
“No,” I shook my head to emphasize my point.
“It will go in the log,” Kenda replied. “He gives you any more problems, you just call. A couple of nights in the drunk tank just might do the trick.”
“He been drinking?” I asked.
“Past couple of years. Fortunately, we find him sleeping it off in the back of his truck.”
“Well, good to know. Thanks,” I replied and hung up.
Jason was still the all about me asshole he had always been. Good to know. We were having breakfast with pumpkin donuts and I was hoping he had crossed my path for the last time.
The third year of my baby’s life passed. I have not seen Jason. There was a rumor he was living with some bartender that worked in Monroe. No wonder he was a drunk…
Welcome to the month of October and I love being a mommy! Everything about it! My baby is three going on four at the end of this month and she is the light of my life. I mean that. She is the most special and spectacular thing that graces my each and every day!
I might come from a long line of witches but I just think on myself as a guardian of the earth and will say a blessing if one is needed.( I just call that being a good neighbor.) My baby is more…a lot more.
There is still a list of needful things and that list is extensive. Rain once a week so there is water for the lawn. Keeping the crows off the roof. The mice out of the house. Roses that don’t get mites, bag worms (yes seriously), and for some reason the finches pick the petals from the roses and line their nests. (We need those petals for making soap!) Keeping the milk fresh past the expiration date. We need our goats to be healthy, the lavender to grow big and strong, the rosemary to always stand guard and the pecan grove to produce, produce produce! See needful things.
There are also some not so needful things on my list. My community and the supernatural world are giving me grief. The local Wicca have been talking to the state-wide Wicca. The local coven wants a goddess and I am not it. I am Mommy. That is all the title I want.
But no…once again, someone has called for a meeting and it is required to take a vote and all must be represented. Apparently something big is coming and all the covens must be complete so Louisiana can have its own special ops group for closing Hell- Mouths!
Really?…please! Take a vote…just leave me out of this.
But no, since I am the one to be replaced, they want me there so I can abdicate or some such nonsense.
The meeting is to be held at Fangtasia! Fuck…me…running! These dumber than Were shit Wicca have no idea that they are being photographed and put on Pam’s MOST WANTED posters. It it scares me to think about where she posts them!
So, if I can end this once and for all….ta-da! Bring it!
I have a plan! And maybe, just maybe, I can put this nonsense to rest. After the night of the twenty-tooth, please Wicca your ass off and leave me and mine the fuck alone!
I have sent a couple of text messages to Pam. I am looking for a temporary spot for Emmy. With a temporary someone to watch her for twenty-minutes while I say fuck off and cast my vote.
Pam fired back that Eric is not only out-of-state, but out of country as well. Perfect. Pam consents to watching my baby in her office.
These assholes can have twenty minutes of my time. And that is it.
My speech is as follows: “Hi, I am Sookie. I am not a goddess. I do not care who is. Fuck off!”
I am setting a timer and when it goes off I am collecting my baby and hauling ass on home. Because I know what is important!
Wow…all things in retrospect!
Gawd, I really was that young and that naïve and I can admit it. C.h.i.l.d.i.s.h. Yes! Right! Mrs. Eric Northman! What a hoot! I really laugh at myself about that now.
I now know I fell so hard because it was my first time and my first love was with a guy who knew what women liked and wanted to hear. And he liked getting his way so he would promise you the world.
But you know what. Your world can turn on a dime.
Mine did…
Yes…funny how you can grow up over night. So it took me almost four years and nine months to get to this point and time but guess what. This is now me, laughing. Fuck off world!
Eric was sitting with Pamela in a small French bistro and not laughing. “You want to sell your part of the club?”
“Yes,” she nodded. “You are never there and I am tired of being the bad ass. It is a look I can carry and wear it well, but I am bored. Maybe it is time to move to British Isle and put some excitement in his life.
I have been talking to Samuel. He thinks now would be a good time to sell. And no, he does not wish to buy out my share.”
Eric nodded. “I’ll talk with Samuel.”
“Thank you,” Pam said standing and bowed. “I have to get back to my very small and insignificant undead life. I have a fucking bar to run.”
Eric watched Pam walk out. Thankfully, she did not snarl at anyone as she left the building.
Cedric, the King of Eire came in and sat down. “I waited for the bitch-on-wheels to leave. I did not care to once more listen to her ride me about burning down her house.”
Eric grinned. “That is a good story.
On a more serious note, she wants to sell her half of the bar and move in with Ian.”
Cedric hooted with glee! “Better him than me!”
“Well,” Eric gave him a very small, tight grin. “I won’t be here next week for the Were battle. It appears I have business to attend in the New World. I will be back once all this is settled. It normally takes thirty days to close on real estate. If we sell to another vampire that could stretch it out a bit. But I am finished in Louisiana.”
“Bold words, sir,” Cedric regarded him. “Have you told your Queen yet?”
Eric laughed. “I am hoping she is smart enough to figure that out.”
“What about Area Five?” Cedric’s voice was low and serious.
Eric shrugged. “I feel like going renegade for a while.”
“Drop by,” Cedric grinned. “Molly has been asking about you,” he said with a nudge and a wink.
Standing, Eric gave his friend a crisp, two-fingered salute and was out the door with his phone out, calling for a plane. Time to haul his ass back to the New World. If HRM SA gave him any Were shit, that would be the last thing she did.
Sookie and Emmy were discussing what to wear to the formal to-do, Sookie had taken to calling it. “Let’s go to the thrift store and cruise the aisles,” Sookie grinned at her girl. “I bet they have something there for both of us.
Now, at this to-do, Mommy has to go out and talk for about twenty minutes. You will be with your Auntie Pam, tucked into her office. So think about what you want to take to work on.”
“Okay,” Emmy nodded excitedly. “I hope they have sparkle dresses!”
Sookie had been coming to this Purple Heart Thrift Store with her gran since she was little. It had been a mainstay during her life. Gran always bought her new under ware and socks, but everything else could be washed. And sometimes even dry cleaned!
She now had a little bit of money, but now that she owned her own business, she was even more frugal than she had been growing up. Her employees were always on her mind.
This is where she came for her clothes. She didn’t need designer anything for tossing hay to the goats or cleaning out stalls, making soap or down on her hands-and knees planting.
Emmy did get new things. But her baby loved coming here and they always went down the aisle that was her size. Emmy admiring the sparkle clothes and if Sookie could adjust them to fit, into the basket they went.
“Oh Mommy,” Emmy squealed with delight when Sookie tried on the black dress. “It sparkles all over! Let’s get that one!”
Sookie smiled at her daughter. “Love those shoes you found. And your sparkle skirt and that lovely soft jacket will keep you extra special warm.”
“I like my shirt,” she said with pride holding it up. “Miss Pig sparkles like me!”
“Let Mommy change they we’ll go pay out. You want to go someplace for lunch while we are in Shreveport?”
Emmy got a puzzled look on her face and carefully considered her surroundings.
“Emmy…” Sookie softly said.
Those blue and silver eyes settled back on her.
“Can we go home and eat. I would like some mac-n’-cheese. Like my Poppi-La La fixes it. Then,” she whispered, “Mommy could I have some blood?”
“Of course baby,” she smiled at her and hugged her close. “Let’s go pay out, go home and eat.”
In a warehouse, a couple of blocks away, Eric woke from his day rest. Carefully, he looked around the room, expecting to see someone standing there, watching him sleep. Closing his eyes he listened for the slightest sound. It was quiet, but something had caused him to wake. He did not feel threatened, but from now on, he was going to be cautious!
During lunch, Sookie said to Lafayette, “We are going to need a warm blanket.” That was their code. Emmy was going to be drinking blood and then she would be wrapped up and kept warm until she came back to them.
“I just put extra ones in the warming units this morning,” Lafayette picked up the dirties. “You two girlies go ahead. Poppi-La La is king of this here kitchen.
They were lying on the bed when Lafayette came in, Sookie holding her daughter. “It was the oddest thing, today,” as she played with the curls of her sleeping baby. “She looked around the thrift store and then asked if we could come home and have your mac-n’-cheese and could she have some blood.”
“You think something in the thrift store triggered it?” he asked.
“Something did,” she replied as Emmy’ color returned and she shifted around and got comfortable and went into a human sleep pattern.
“That is the first time she has ever asked for blood during the day,” Sookie kissed her on the top of the head. “And this child is having a nap,” Sookie looked cross-eyed. “Odd,” she shook her head.
“We will be keeping our eyes and ears extra sharp and focused,” Lafayette said as he stroked the little girl’s back.
Sookie nodded in agreement.
“You ever tried callin’ Northman?” he asked gently.
“Once,” she replied. “I got a notification back that I had been blocked.”
“So no help on that front. Mighty grateful we have Brother Samuel and in dire straits, Pamela.”
All Sookie could do was nod her head in agreement. “You get Pamela past her vampire bullshit and she is not all bad,” Sookie offered up a smalls smile. “She likes reading with Emmy and then she just sits out in the barn with the goats.”
Lafayette sensed her mood. Northman. He had worked a real heart-braking number on her. “So, what did you buy today?”
“Look in the bags,” Sookie grinned. “Emmy will model her things for you later. I have to adjust that skirt but her shoes are the cutest!”
“Speakin’ of?” Lafayette arched an eyebrow.
“Yes,” Sookie grinned. “I am carrying the Wicca theme! I am wearing the Stuart Weitzman boots. Just to give them hope that maybe I am embracing my inner…whatever!” she rolled her eyes.
Lafayette took out her dress. “Lordy, sparkles. So you meet the Emmy seal of approval.”
“Yes,” Sookie grinned. “And I got a pair of red shoes and black shoes. Just in case.”
“His La La Fineness is admiring these newest. But this dress will look killer with those Weitzman witchy boots. Now, I’ll get these things to the cleaners. You rest a bit. Marla is here and needin’ more hours. She will hoe the lavender for you.”