The Sookie Stackhouse Companion (33 page)
Read The Sookie Stackhouse Companion Online
Authors: Charlaine Harris
THURSDAY, MAY 25.
Sookie is awakened by someone knocking and finds Sam at her door, ready to head to Splendide, the antique shop in Shreveport. Sam is dismayed at the mess left in Sookie’s kitchen from Pam and Eric’s fight, but Sookie tells him she expects Eric will replace any damaged items. They straighten up, and then Sam shares donuts with Dermot while Sookie showers. As Sookie and Sam get into his truck to head to Shreveport, he comments on how well Dermot treats Sookie. Sam tells her that he has researched fairies in the library of information kept by shifters about supes and that a familial connection would not deter a fairy from pursuing a possible relationship. Sookie assures him that she doesn’t think of Dermot that way, and that they regard themselves as family only. The conversation shifts when they both admit that they believe that the arsonist was a twoey. Although Sam doesn’t think that it was a hate crime targeted at shifters and their supporters, he does feel that there is hatred involved. The question is whose.
Sookie is awakened by someone knocking and finds Sam at her door, ready to head to Splendide, the antique shop in Shreveport. Sam is dismayed at the mess left in Sookie’s kitchen from Pam and Eric’s fight, but Sookie tells him she expects Eric will replace any damaged items. They straighten up, and then Sam shares donuts with Dermot while Sookie showers. As Sookie and Sam get into his truck to head to Shreveport, he comments on how well Dermot treats Sookie. Sam tells her that he has researched fairies in the library of information kept by shifters about supes and that a familial connection would not deter a fairy from pursuing a possible relationship. Sookie assures him that she doesn’t think of Dermot that way, and that they regard themselves as family only. The conversation shifts when they both admit that they believe that the arsonist was a twoey. Although Sam doesn’t think that it was a hate crime targeted at shifters and their supporters, he does feel that there is hatred involved. The question is whose.
They arrive at Splendide, and Sookie pokes around while Sam picks out a gift for Jannalynn, who loves antiques. He finally selects a pair of earrings, with Sookie’s input, and then she makes an appointment for the shop owners to come to her house to appraise the items from her attic. After leaving the shop, Sam suggests that they stop for lunch. He expresses concern about his relationship with Jannalynn, worrying that they are not on the right track, and then Sookie expresses her own concern about the side effects of her proximity to her fae family. She asks Sam if he could do more research for her in the shifter library, but he suggests going right to the source and asking Claude and Dermot in person. They decide to detour to Claude’s club, Hooligans, on the way back. Remy Savoy calls while they are at the restaurant and asks Sookie if she can babysit Hunter for the weekend, but she isn’t sure of her work schedule and is unable to commit. After asking Sam about her schedule, she calls Remy back to tell him she can’t babysit, and he takes the opportunity to ask her to accompany him and Hunter to kindergarten orientation. Sookie is surprised but agrees.
Sookie and Sam are greeted at Hooligans by an elf named Bellenos and taken to Claude’s office. Dermot accompanies them. Sam cuts to the chase, bluntly asking why Sookie is feeling more and more fae. He reprimands the two fairies for not educating Sookie about her heritage and suggests that they have ulterior motives for staying with her. Instead of answering, Claude leads them farther into the club, which is filled with beings of varying degrees of fae blood. One of them welcomes her as one of their own, but Sookie declines the invitation and leaves the room, asking Claude and Dermot what is going on. Dermot tells her that he and Claude will speak with her that evening when they get home. She quietly mourns her gullibility on the way back to Bon Temps.
Sookie works the late shift again and stays up for a while after getting home to wait for Dermot and Claude, who do not come home at all.
FRIDAY, MAY 26.
Sookie works the early shift but stays an extra two hours when her replacement suffers a flat tire, and Eric is waiting for her by the time she gets to her house. He has a dress for her and tells her they are going to Vampire’s Kiss, Victor’s new dance club. Immanuel arrives to do her makeup and hair. On the way to the club, Sookie finds out from Eric that it is Victor who has forbidden Pam from turning Miriam.
Sookie works the early shift but stays an extra two hours when her replacement suffers a flat tire, and Eric is waiting for her by the time she gets to her house. He has a dress for her and tells her they are going to Vampire’s Kiss, Victor’s new dance club. Immanuel arrives to do her makeup and hair. On the way to the club, Sookie finds out from Eric that it is Victor who has forbidden Pam from turning Miriam.
Sookie and Eric arrive at Vampire’s Kiss to find that Pam has been assaulted by Victor’s minions for trying to get into the club to make certain it is safe for Eric. He is furious, as is Pam. Once inside, they see that Victor has brought Miriam there to provoke Pam. Sookie finds out that Victor is also the owner of Vic’s Redneck Roadhouse, the new bar that is drawing patrons from Merlotte’s. Victor serves Eric and Pam bottled blood along with glasses. The server “thinks” to Sookie not to allow her vamps to use the glasses, as they have been rubbed with fairy blood. Sookie sends a wave of negativity to Eric, who drinks from the bottle. Pam follows suit.
After exchanging words with Victor, Eric, Sookie, and Pam leave, taking Miriam with them. They are approached in the parking lot by two of Victor’s followers, who claim they wish to ally themselves with Eric, but he sends them away, believing they are trying to trap him. When Sookie comments on the tension between Eric and Pam, Pam blurts out that Eric has received a letter. Before she can continue, Eric grabs her throat and orders her to be silent. As he is driving at the time, Sookie is disturbed on many levels. He tells Sookie to leave it be. When they arrive at her house, Sookie does not invite the vampires in.
SATURDAY, MAY 27.
Dermot and Claude are home when Sookie wakes, and they are ready for their talk. They mention troubles at the club, and Sookie guesses that a fairy is missing and tells them about the fairy blood Victor used the night before. The two fairies are angry to have lost a female, Cait, to the vampires.
Dermot and Claude are home when Sookie wakes, and they are ready for their talk. They mention troubles at the club, and Sookie guesses that a fairy is missing and tells them about the fairy blood Victor used the night before. The two fairies are angry to have lost a female, Cait, to the vampires.
The fairies tell her that Niall was able to arrange a visit with Jason when he was a baby and realized that he lacked the “essential spark.” Niall assumed Sookie would also lack any fairy traits and didn’t attempt to contact her, but eventually he thought to ask Eric, with whom he had business dealings, to check up on her. It was Eric who informed Niall that she wasn’t a normal human. Niall first sent Claudine and then decided to meet Sookie himself. Unfortunately, it was Niall’s interest in his great-granddaughter that precipitated the fairy war and the sealing off of Faery, leaving not just the two of them but others outside. Claude and Dermot acknowledge that Sookie is gaining power from them and that the fae are all gaining power from each other. They are greater than the sum of their parts. Claude and Dermot also reveal that there is still a fairy portal in her woods. Sookie continues to question their motives, but they all finally settle down in an uneasy truce. They discuss the firebombing at Merlotte’s, and Sookie asks them to let her know if they hear any talk about it at Hooligans.
Dermot helps Sookie clean the attic and suggests that she could partition off another bedroom while still leaving an area for storage. To her shame, Sookie realizes that she did not give any consideration to Dermot and Claude having to share a bedroom. Dermot has actually been sleeping on a cot in the sitting room. They discuss what to do, and Dermot is excited at the prospect of having his own space.
The owners of Splendide, Brenda Hesterman and Donald Callaway, arrive to appraise the goods from the attic. Donald finds a secret cubby in the big desk and gives Sookie its contents, a faded letter in an old envelope and a velvet bag. She immediately recognizes the handwriting on the letter as her grandmother’s and puts it aside to read privately later. The partners buy several pieces, taking a few items with them and arranging for one of their trucks to pick up the rest.
Jack and Lily Leeds, the private investigators who questioned Sookie about Debbie Pelt’s death, come into Merlotte’s while Sookie is working that night to give her a warning about Sandra Pelt. Sandra is still obsessed with Sookie. The Leedses reveal that the attorney for Sandra’s parents’ estate, Mr. Cataliades, instructed them exactly when to arrive at Merlotte’s to speak with Sookie, and she instantly realizes that Mr. Cataliades somehow knows there is going to be trouble and sent the Leedses in as backup. Sure enough, four toughs come into the bar, high on vampire blood. Sam, who is standing behind the bar talking with Jannalynn, tries to calm the situation even as both he and Jannalynn react instinctively to the danger. Most of the patrons move away, with the exception of the Leedses, Andy Bellefleur, and Danny Prideaux. The thugs indicate that they are after “the blonde,” and weapons are drawn on both sides. There is a short struggle, resulting in one bullet wound, a few minor injuries, and several broken bones. The four thugs are subdued, the police are called, and Lily takes Jack, who took the bullet, to the hospital. Because Lily and Sookie were standing together when the comment was made about “the blonde,” the police assume Lily was the intended target, and Sookie breathes a sigh of relief.
SUNDAY, MAY 28.
Sookie wakes to an empty house. After going over the events of the previous evening, she calls Mr. Cataliades but is only able to leave a message on his machine. She then calls Amelia to ask if she can help locate Sandra Pelt, and Amelia decides to come up, bringing Bob Jessop, who is back in her life, to help out and renew the wards around the house. Sookie decides to read the letter from her grandmother, which explains, to the best of Adele’s knowledge and ability, Fintan’s involvement in her life. According to the letter, the object in the velvet bag is a cluviel dor, a gift from Fintan delivered to Adele by a stranger whom Sookie recognizes from the description: Mr. Cataliades. A fairy gift, the cluviel dor holds a powerful spell that will work only one time. Sookie feels an attachment to the object and gains pleasure in holding it. Worried about its potential, she hides it in her makeup drawer.
Sookie wakes to an empty house. After going over the events of the previous evening, she calls Mr. Cataliades but is only able to leave a message on his machine. She then calls Amelia to ask if she can help locate Sandra Pelt, and Amelia decides to come up, bringing Bob Jessop, who is back in her life, to help out and renew the wards around the house. Sookie decides to read the letter from her grandmother, which explains, to the best of Adele’s knowledge and ability, Fintan’s involvement in her life. According to the letter, the object in the velvet bag is a cluviel dor, a gift from Fintan delivered to Adele by a stranger whom Sookie recognizes from the description: Mr. Cataliades. A fairy gift, the cluviel dor holds a powerful spell that will work only one time. Sookie feels an attachment to the object and gains pleasure in holding it. Worried about its potential, she hides it in her makeup drawer.
MONDAY, MAY 29.
Andy, who is in Merlotte’s with Bud for lunch, tells Sookie that he and his wife, Halleigh, are expecting a girl, whom they will name Caroline Compton Bellefleur, and that his sister, Portia, is pregnant as well. He shyly asks if Sookie will tell Bill, who is his great-great-great-grandfather, the good news. After Andy leaves to take Halleigh a milkshake, Sandra Pelt storms into the bar and screams at Sookie. Sandra admits her attempts to harm Sookie and asks what it will take to kill her. Sam passes the wooden bat he keeps behind the bar to Terry Bellefleur, who hits Sandra as she pulls a gun on Sookie. Terry freaks out, and Sookie comforts him as he mumbles about the shining man and the blond man who told him to keep watch over Sookie and keep her safe. The EMTs give Terry a shot to calm him, and she and Sam take him to Sam’s trailer to sleep off the effects. Terry whispers that the men promised to protect his dog and make his dreams stop.
Andy, who is in Merlotte’s with Bud for lunch, tells Sookie that he and his wife, Halleigh, are expecting a girl, whom they will name Caroline Compton Bellefleur, and that his sister, Portia, is pregnant as well. He shyly asks if Sookie will tell Bill, who is his great-great-great-grandfather, the good news. After Andy leaves to take Halleigh a milkshake, Sandra Pelt storms into the bar and screams at Sookie. Sandra admits her attempts to harm Sookie and asks what it will take to kill her. Sam passes the wooden bat he keeps behind the bar to Terry Bellefleur, who hits Sandra as she pulls a gun on Sookie. Terry freaks out, and Sookie comforts him as he mumbles about the shining man and the blond man who told him to keep watch over Sookie and keep her safe. The EMTs give Terry a shot to calm him, and she and Sam take him to Sam’s trailer to sleep off the effects. Terry whispers that the men promised to protect his dog and make his dreams stop.
Having again felt Sookie’s fear through their bond, Eric is waiting for her outside Merlotte’s. They go to her house to talk about the blood bond, their marriage, and their future. Eric is amazed when Sookie tells him that she doesn’t want to be a vampire. Amelia and Bob arrive, interrupting the discussion, and Eric soon leaves. Tired from their drive, Amelia and Bob turn in. Sookie hears a quiet knock at the back door and opens it to find Bill, who asks her to come outside to talk with him. Thanks to the blood of his “sibling,” Judith, he is healed from the silver poisoning he suffered while rescuing Sookie from the fae, but he explains that he had not contacted Judith himself because she had previously been somewhat obsessed with him. Once she arrived, he hoped to love her and that a relationship with her would free him from Sookie, but he still doesn’t have feelings for Judith. Having followed him to listen in, Judith overhears his words and, with great dignity, announces that she will leave and will get over her attachment to Bill. When Bud Dearborn calls with the news that Sandra has escaped from the hospital where she was taken for treatment, Bill tells Sookie that he will guard her house that night.
TUESDAY, MAY 30.
Sookie works half of the early shift so that she can attend Hunter’s kindergarten introduction with Hunter and Remy in Red Ditch. She and Hunter both get a reading from one of the prospective teachers, and Sookie advises Remy to make sure Hunter is not assigned to that classroom. They stop at Dairy Queen afterward for Blizzards and run into Erin, Remy’s new girlfriend, who joins them. Sookie ask Erin to sit with Hunter for a moment and takes Remy outside to offer the money from Hadley’s estate for Hunter, but Remy turns her down. He prefers to provide for the child Hadley left behind himself.
Sookie works half of the early shift so that she can attend Hunter’s kindergarten introduction with Hunter and Remy in Red Ditch. She and Hunter both get a reading from one of the prospective teachers, and Sookie advises Remy to make sure Hunter is not assigned to that classroom. They stop at Dairy Queen afterward for Blizzards and run into Erin, Remy’s new girlfriend, who joins them. Sookie ask Erin to sit with Hunter for a moment and takes Remy outside to offer the money from Hadley’s estate for Hunter, but Remy turns her down. He prefers to provide for the child Hadley left behind himself.
Sookie arrives home to find Amelia and Bob renewing the wards around her property. Sookie wanders off to find the fairy portal, which she locates in a clearing less than a quarter mile from her house. Over dinner Amelia tells Sookie that she knows how to break the blood bond, and the trio performs the ceremony at sunset. Eric calls almost immediately, concerned that Sookie has suddenly been cut off from him. He is furious that Sookie has intentionally severed the link, and he ultimately hangs up on her.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 31.
Sookie goes to work but is so distracted that Sam sends her home early. She asks Bob and Amelia to go to the movies, certain Eric will come by. He arrives after sundown. They reaffirm their love for each other and have passionate monkey sex on the front porch swing. Afterward, they discuss the situation concerning Pam and Miriam, and the vampire politics currently affecting them all. Sookie suggests that they contact the waiter who warned her about the drinks. Sookie and Eric drive over to Vampire’s Kiss. While they wait in the lot for the bar’s closing, Eric tells Sookie that he has hired a lone-wolf Were to replace Bobby as his daytime guy. When the waiter, Colton, leaves the bar, they follow him to his trailer and identify themselves. They meet his girlfriend, Audrina Loomis, and find out that Victor killed Colton’s mother. They make plans to meet again the next night at Sookie’s place to plot the death of Victor.
Sookie goes to work but is so distracted that Sam sends her home early. She asks Bob and Amelia to go to the movies, certain Eric will come by. He arrives after sundown. They reaffirm their love for each other and have passionate monkey sex on the front porch swing. Afterward, they discuss the situation concerning Pam and Miriam, and the vampire politics currently affecting them all. Sookie suggests that they contact the waiter who warned her about the drinks. Sookie and Eric drive over to Vampire’s Kiss. While they wait in the lot for the bar’s closing, Eric tells Sookie that he has hired a lone-wolf Were to replace Bobby as his daytime guy. When the waiter, Colton, leaves the bar, they follow him to his trailer and identify themselves. They meet his girlfriend, Audrina Loomis, and find out that Victor killed Colton’s mother. They make plans to meet again the next night at Sookie’s place to plot the death of Victor.
Exhausted, Sookie spends the night at Eric’s, alone in an upstairs bedroom.
THURSDAY, JUNE 1.
Sookie leaves bright and early to drive back to her house. She finds Alcide half-naked and asleep in her bed; having heard from Amelia that she broke the blood bond, he came to Sookie’s house to try to reignite their chemistry. Sookie is offended and sends him away. Mustapha Khan, Eric’s new day guy, arrives with a friend to pick up Eric’s car. After they leave, Sookie chastises Amelia and Claude, who let Alcide in, for interfering in her life. Sookie tells everyone to get out of her house. When the others have departed, she finds Dermot sitting on the back steps. Knowing Claude was the real instigator of the two fae, she allows Dermot to stay. She gives him some money and lets him take her car to Home Depot to get more supplies to refinish the attic area.
Sookie leaves bright and early to drive back to her house. She finds Alcide half-naked and asleep in her bed; having heard from Amelia that she broke the blood bond, he came to Sookie’s house to try to reignite their chemistry. Sookie is offended and sends him away. Mustapha Khan, Eric’s new day guy, arrives with a friend to pick up Eric’s car. After they leave, Sookie chastises Amelia and Claude, who let Alcide in, for interfering in her life. Sookie tells everyone to get out of her house. When the others have departed, she finds Dermot sitting on the back steps. Knowing Claude was the real instigator of the two fae, she allows Dermot to stay. She gives him some money and lets him take her car to Home Depot to get more supplies to refinish the attic area.
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