Wicked NOT Dead Chapter 22

                                                          

                                          

WICKED NOT DEAD : CHAPTER 22 

Rebecca 

" Jesus Fucking Christ" Alcide came though the back door like a hurricane and Rebecca cringed as he banged things around in the kitchen and spewed several more curse filled half sentences long before his shadow passed by and then returned to the library door. His eyes met hers first and then softened momentarily, he have her the slightest of smiles and took a deep breath. He was about to explain what all the fuss was about when he noticed that she wasn't alone in the room. 

" Well hey there Sookie, I didn't know you were here. Sorry bout all that in the kitchen. Been a hard day" he ran his hand through his hair and looked contrite. There was no need for the apology Sookie had seen and heard far worse hell she'd perpetrated far worse herself bit it was still nice that he offered one up. 

" No problem Alcide you two need a minute?" Sookie pushed her chair back but Alcide put his hand out to stop her " No it's nothing that can't wait, you two have been waiting a long time to get into those books, I'll just go upstairs and get cleaned up." he gave Sookie a grin and then turned back to her " You need me to do anything to help with dinner?"

She wanted to ask what kind of damage she was going to find in the kitchen but thought the better of it. There was no guilt in his mind over anything broken so she figured it was best to just let it go. " Nope, nothing everything is well underway and should be ready in an hour or less. Sookie will be joining us." She smile at her friend to reassure her that despite her boyfriends current mood she was welcome and wanted there. They had just started going through all of the books and journals her family had on the Fae and she had promised Sookie her full attention for the entire evening. 

" Well you give me a call if you need anything or when it is ready whatever comes first." He gave her a wink and gave Sookie another smile and a nod and then disappeared from view. 

" He sure is tense" Sookie kept her gaze at the opened door. The feeling was palpable and the reminents of it whiffed through the room towards them. Rebecca sighed " He's been that way ever since we returned from New Orleans. No matter what he is doing, how focused he is on other things he is always waiting for the other shoe to drop." 

September had fallen away and now it was Mid-October Malcom hadn't made his move, in fact he seemed to have backed off completely. Whatever his plan was for them it had taken a backseat to getting the housing development he had stared with Alcide's father off the ground. Alcide was in the presence of the man he despised most, who was holding his and Rebecca's future captive every single day of the week and for Alcide that was maddening. 

" Honestly Rebecca I don't know how he hasn't gone off the depend, with everything that man knows and how he is always in Alcide's face I doubt I'd have shown as much restraint" She had told Sookie everything a few days after returning from New Orleans. She had told William and Sam the whole truth as well. Being Sups they could be of help to those in Bon Temps that might need it. They deserved to know what knowing her could cost them. She had left it to Sookie to clue in her brother, Tara and the others on whatever parts of the truth she thought fit. Sookie had decided to keep them relatively ignorant the less details they knew the better it was for them, at least in theory. Rebecca asked Mason to put some discreet vampire protection around them at night and Buzz had sent a few wolves up to keep an eye on things during the day. Rebecca didn't think they were in any danger but it was better to be safe than sorry. 

" I worry about him loosing his shit every day, it is ripping away at his insides, he barely sleeps, spends a lot of time wolfing out in the woods at night. The weight is so heavy on him, he tries to be personable with me but I know it is a strain at times. He wants so badly for this to be over with, patience is not a virtue he possesses under normal circumstances, this situation is life or death and he'd prefer to just kill Malcom now and get it over with." 

" Wouldn't that just be easiest, just wait until he is off somewhere on his own do him in and then have Mason and the others glamour anyone he might have told your story to?" 

" We could but the question is would we be able to get to everyone in time. We have people positioning themselves around every person we know Malcom had a relationship with. I want this to be over in one swoop, I don't want this hanging over my or my families heads forever. There are laws Sookie and I broke a lot of them, if the word gets out there will always be someone who will want to make me pay for what I did and imagine what would happen if they in acted their revenge only to find later that I can not die. Then I have to go into hiding, people like me will be hunted, studied, tortured to figure out what makes us tick. We are immortals without being Vampire, all of the perks and none of the drawbacks, that is something that many human and sup alike would love to get their hands on. I don't want to end up a science experiment, I don't want anyone else to find out they are like me by being made to die. I also don't want anyone else to get hurt by my past, so we sit and we wait and we try to be as normal as possible. We cook dinner and we help friends learn about their backgrounds and we try to find ways to calm down our frenzied men folk." she let out a short laugh and then handed Sookie the book that she had been looking through, " here is a passage about my Great Aunt wrote about her dealings with the Fae, why don't you have a look while I go check on dinner." Sookie grabbed the book up and immediately started to read, the entry was quite long and spoke of her Great Aunt Imogen's dealings with a Fae Prince named Naill and his sons. Some of the dealings were rather personal in nature and would shed a bit of light on how it was Sookie ended up with Fae blood. She was fully absorbed in reading the text before Rebecca left the room. As she made her way the short distance in to the kitchen she couldn't help but let her mind wonder to the man upstairs. She could hear the shower running and she could hear his mind turning, though he was trying hard to turn it off, calm himself down and be able to come down for dinner in a better mood. The last few weeks the only thing that really got his mind off Malcom and their situation was when they were in the throws on intimacy. Alcide couldn't get enough when it came to sex and so she had been throwing herself at him whenever possible, not that she minded the distraction at all herself but she hated that the only moments he had any peace was when they were making love. She rarely got a half hour after they had finished before his mood shifted and his thoughts started to wonder, he spent far to much time in the dark places in his mind, many times he blocked her out, she could only feel the tension but not know exactly what it was that was causing it. She couldn't blame him for keeping her out he didn't want her to worry, didn't want to make it any harder on her, didn't want her to know what he was planning. She knew that despite all their promises to go through this together Alcide would still try and find a way to keep her out of the fray and she was going to do everything she could not to let him take the brunt of her mistakes on his shoulders. She had gotten sick for the first time that morning, terribly gut wrenchingly sick. It had taken all she had to wait until after Alcide had left the house and now sitting in the kitchen checking on the chicken in the oven she felt her stomach turn again. No one knew about the pregnancy. She'd kept that to herself and when asked directly by her Aunt and her Mother she had lied. If they had talked to Alcide she had not seen it in his head but she would not be at all surprised. But no matter the talk Rebecca wasn't speaking it aloud. There was to much at stake at the moment. Both with the possibility that her family would keep her from helping end the mess she had started and with her previous inability to carry a baby to term. It was real but that didn't mean it would stick and Rebecca wasn't going to jinx it. There was nothing anyone could say or do that would make her put the thought out into the universe. She kept it to herself and in quiet moments she let herself dream of another child. A boy, she knew without a doubt. This time she was going to have a son. Alcide's son. She looked up at the heavens and sent love to Sage and hopes for understanding from Christian. She knew they would both be happy for her but there was a part of her that couldn't help but feel guilty. She wasn't replacing what she had lost but she was moving on. It was time but there was still a sadness there that caught her heart. Once satisfied that everything was going right in the kitchen she walked back towards the library she stopped short when she heard something hit the floor upstairs.  " Sookie I'm going to pop upstairs for a minute and see if there is anything that needs to be secured before Alcide decides to toss it across the room." Sookie looked from the ceiling to her face and gave her a nod. " I won't be long." she gave her friend a smile and then headed toward the stairs.  She heard the sound of the chair scrapping against the hardwood and then Sookie was in the door frame. " Um Rebecca are you going up there to?" Rebecca nodded but didn't turn she just kept walking to the stairs " You sure you don't want me to leave and come back?" 

" Why would I want you to do that?" she turned on the steps with a mischievous smile on her face. 

"Would it help if I promised to be really quiet? Sookie blushed slightly and then straightened herself against he door frame. She was no prude " You gotta do what you gotta do. I'll keep an eye on dinner. " 

She opened the doors to her bedroom and took a look around. There didn't seem to be anything out of place, nothing shattered on the floor but Alcide was spread across the bed, she guessed he'd plopped down hard and it had made the headboard shake. " Is anything in danger of being irreparably broken in here?" she closed the door and stood against it. 

 " No I know better than to start tossing your stuff around. You didn't need to come up here, I'm all right." he was wrapped in a towel, slightly wet his arm draped across his eyes. 

" Alcide." his arm came away and he turned to look at her. He let her into his head and she saw his day unfold and without saying a word he conveyed all of the emotions he had felt, the anger and the resignation, the complete lack of control he felt over the situation and the numerous times he had imagined snapping the mans neck during the hour meeting they'd had that afternoon. She walked over to the bed and crawled onto it laying down next to him letting her hand caress his forehead, running her fingers through his hair. She sent out a soothing vibe and listened as his breathing slowed, his body relaxed and mind focus on her face. " No matter what happens Alcide, moments like this is all that matters. You and me and what we feel for each other is real and no one will ever take that away from us. In this life or in the next, our minds, our bodies, our spirits belong to one another. We are connected. We are forever. No one can break us. I love you, I will fight for you. I will die for you. " He took her by the shoulders the last declaration was something he didn't want to hear. Even if it were true. 

" I will come back for you." she leaned down and kissed him lightly. " Believe in me, Believe in yourself, Believe in those around us, those who will stand with us, those who will help us through this. It will be okay, you have to believe Alcide. You have to believe and you have to be patient." She kissed him again and this time he kissed her back. The moment went from there and when it ended she laid in the crook of his arm and they talked softy for a few moments before getting up and dressing. Sookie was waiting. They were halfway down the stairs when Alcide pulled her hand and brought her to a stop. 

" Rebecca, if anything happens " she closed her eyes and braced herself for what was coming next. " Look at me Becca" she took a deep breath and opened her eyes. " If anything happens you need to believe I'll come back to you to." He squeezed her hand tight and didn't let her move until she nodded her response. If anything happened she had to believe that, fore the alternative would break her. Alcide would be like her, he would be immortal. There was no other choice. Not that she was all that keen on testing the fates on that one. 

They found Sookie in the kitchen, dinner on the table, the pitcher of tea in her hand. " Thank you Sookie, everything looks fantastic." They sat, they ate, the made small talk. Alcide listened as the girls talked about what they had read in the journals so far. Rebecca answered endless questions and the focus didn't leave Sookie or her quest for understanding the Fae side of herself for the remainder of the evening. Alcide walked Sookie to her car and they both watched until the taillights turned the corner and Rebecca waited on the top stair until she saw the blur in the woods go after Sookie's car knowing that she would make it safely into her home that night and that she would be looked after until dawn. There would be more waiting tomorrow. 

             

October twenty-29th two days until All Hallows Eve, the night children would dress up and go looking for treats while perpetrating a few tricks in the process, the night adults might find themselves dressed up as well, as sexy witches and glamouring vampires their pursuits leading to tricks and treats of a different kind. It was also the night the veil between the earthbound and the spirits would be at it's weakest. Back on the homestead in Tennessee her coven prepared for the rites and ceremonies of the night. Rebecca's newly energized powers wished she was there to engage in them but instead she found herself sitting in Alcide's apartment in Shreveport. She was a bundle of nerves and being relegated to Alcide's place during the day wasn't doing anything to help that. Two days before Mason had been forced to leave, three of his men had disappeared at their job outside New Orleans. He'd had little success finding them up to this point and he was frustrated on two fronts. They all knew it was likely the work of Malcom, a way to distract Mason and keep him from Rebecca's side and it had worked but they didn't have much of a choice. Two of the men, were Mason's progeny and he was compelled to find them, dead or alive. Rebecca was hoping for alive because if there were dead, there was going to be a massacre. The calm that had settled over Mason as he had prepared himself to take his leave had scared Rebecca more than any outburst of anger would have. Mason was on a mission, he was being inconvenienced, torn in two and taken from his most important responsibility, her. But he also had a duty to his sons and the other men on his crew. They trusted him and had often been asked to lay their lives on the line in his name. He simply could not ignore this affront and so she waited in Shreveport, wards surround the apartment, Werewolves lying in wait in various parts of the building. She could have stayed in Belle Vita, but Alcide hadn't wanted to let her out of his sight. The only way he would go about his normal routine was for her to be here during the day and while there had been a cavalcade of people coming in and out of the apartment the last two days at the moment she was alone. Outside the sun was dropping in the sky and soon she would be in Alcide's truck heading back to Belle Vita. William and those who Mason left to watch over them would be waiting on the perimeter of the house. The wolves Buzz had charged to protect her would be waiting in the woods. Alcide's pack mates were on high alert here in Shreveport. The phone beside her rang, Alcide's landline. Certainly not him, he always called her on her cell. She picked it up and a lump caught her throat as she read the number on the caller id. Lawrence Malcom's name flashed across the screen and she jumped out of her skin as the phone rang again. She steadied her self, took a deep breath and answered the phone. " Hello?"

" Good Evening, is this Ms Keane I am speaking to? Why of course it is who else would be in Alcide's apartment but his lady friend." she could see his slimy face through the phone, image what thoughts were going through his mind. He was pure slim and she felt disgusting just talking to him. 

" What can I do for you Mr Malcom?" 

" Why I was hoping to speak to Alcide." 

" Well I am afraid he isn't here at the moment" 

" Oh but he will be, I'd say he'll be opening his front door at any second." The key clicked in the door and Rebecca jumped slightly as Alcide opened the door. He took one look on her face and went white. It wasn't as surprise that Malcom was watching them, but to know almost to the second one's moves was unnerving. She put her hand over the receiver but didn't have to say anything. Alcide knew who it was, he charged towards her and took the phone from her hand. " This is Alcide." The conversation was one sided. Alcide didn't say a word but with each minute that passed his face became more twisted, his hands clinched, his nostrils flared, his eyes became filled with rage. " I'll be there." was the only thing he said before hanging up the phone and tossing it across the room. It hit the wall and fell in a thud on the floor of the kitchen, spinning over and over on the linoleum before coming to a stop the antenna pointed in their direction. Alcide sat down beside her she kept her eye on the phone. " He's rolled the dice?" 

" Yes, he's called a meeting. He's openly challenged my Father. Turns out the Mother Fucker has been skimming money out of the developments accounts for the last month. Malcom says he has proof, apparently my Father isn't doing much to dispute it. Don't think he can when you've been caught red handed. Lawrence set him up I got no doubt. Putting that kind of cash in my Dad's face it was inevitable." 

" Lawrence may have set this up as a pack grievance but you know that it is all a smoke screen. He's been setting this all up so he has an legitimate excuse to come after you." she moved closer to him but didn't touch him. 

" We've been planning for this since New Orleans. Your Mother told us he would make a play for me first. He wants you to hurt and coming after me is the swiftest way to get those results" " You and Mason" she sent feelers out to see if she could reach him. All she got was silence. He would be awake by now, if not above ground lying it wait for the first moment the sun fell completely from the sky. " I can't reach him" this was worrisome and then the chill ran up her spin, never a good sign. 

" There is nothing he could do here anyway Rebecca, he can't go in there with me, ain't no way. He'd cause everyone to jump out of their skin the moment they got a whiff of him. No vamps Rebecca, they won't do nothing but make it worse."

" I know, I know but I'd feel better having him here, to be nearby, to be with me while I waited." She would be far enough away to stay out of the fray, but close enough to come running if she were needed. The spell to cloak herself was on the tip of her tongue. She'd practiced it dozens of times. They would not know she was there. Alcide was looking at her intently, he was trying to form an argument in his head, one to keep her from coming with him. They had had it several times before and in the end she had promised no vampires and he had promised to not leave her behind. She has promised to not insert herself, if he'd promised not to try to get himself killed. He started to speak but then thought the better of it. There was no time to rehash this again and there was a chance he would piss her off and she'd go back on the promises she made. He reached into his pocket for his cell phone " Get your stuff together, we need to get moving." he typed out a text while she gathered her belongings. He made two quick calls presumably to Crawfish and Max. When he opened to apartment door Alcide took a protective stance as they exited the building the other wolves melted out of the woodwork and several other cars sprang to life as Alcide's did. They drove in silence further into town, she'd expected they would be meeting out in the woods but that didn't seem very likely now. Maybe at the company warehouse, the construction site. She was about to ask Alcide where they were headed when he made a sharp right turn. The other cars behind them continued down the road. Rebecca had been lost in her own thoughts and hadn't noticed at first where they were pulling up to. The neon of Fangtasia's sign caught her eye and then the headlights of Alcide's truck hit Pam's figure in the parking lot. People mulled around behind them, many of them staring at Pam, she ignored them all her hands on her latex clad hips her eyes squarely on Rebecca. The truck came to a stop a few feet away from Pam and Rebecca took a quick look at Alcide, his hands gripped the steering wheel his eyes shifted back and forth but didn't make contact with hers, he gave Pam a nod and she headed toward the car door. Rebecca put her hand up as Pam put her hand on the door handle, she asked for fire to come to her " If you open that door Pam I'll turn your ass into into ash." 

" What are you doing Alcide?" she kept her voice quiet but stern. She didn't want to let her emotions to get the best of her. She didn't want his to boil over either. He turned to face her. 

" I'm keeping you safe. I ain't chancing it Becca. You know I how much I love you. How it tore me up that night in the woods, the days after. I know I promised you but I'm not gonna see you die again. Not tonight. Pam is going to take you back to Belle Vita. Mason, Buzz and I discussed it. If you were here in Shreveport when the shit hit the fan I was to get you to Pam. 

" Son of a bitch." They had all conspired against her. She shouldn't have expected anything less. It was touching they cared so much but it still pissed her off. " I can handle myself Alcide, I hate being pushed aside, to feel I have no use. You don't have to do this alone. You gave me your word." 

" Don't make this any harder than need be Becca, yeah I know I am an ass for having a contingency plan even though you have told me countless times these last weeks to plan for every eventuality but you and I both know this isn't just about the promises I made. Can't very well expect me to keep 'em when you didn't put all your cards on the table. This isn't just about you Becca, you got my kid growing inside you." He stopped and reached for her searching her face for some confirmation. She gave him none. " You can try to deny it all you want but I know. Your Mother has seen it, Mason has all but confirmed it and damn it Becca I'm a fucking werewolf don't you think I would sniff out any change in your body chemistry? Not to mention the fact you started puking up your guts two weeks ago. I know you're superstitious and you're worried you won't be able to carry the baby to term and I know you don't want to be left out of this fight but damn it I'm gonna do everything I can to save you both. Cause if I don't come back" she sucked in her breath and a sob escaped, she was barely hanging on now, here he was laying out her truth, saying it all out loud and she was trembling but she couldn't bare for him to keep going. She grabbed him by the collar and shook him. " You will not say that, you will come back to me" He took her hands in his" Becca, stop it, and listen to me." she stopped and caught his eye. " If I don't come back Becca, you have something to focus on, don't you dare fall into that dark place, you stay here, you fight and you have that baby." He'd wished for the baby as a way to keep her going, she would have a piece of him after he was gone and she would never let his child want for anything. As much as she hated it she would do what he wanted. She would let him go. Alone. " No matter what I will take care of your son, Alcide." He pulled her to him and kissed the top of her head. " Well hell a boy? You sure?" she nodded and felt his lips spread into a smile. No matter what he'd have been happy but he couldn't help but be excited about a son. He pulled back but held her face in his hands. " I love you Rebecca." he kissed her and she pressed herself against him, trying desperately to hold on to him, to will him to let her come with him. " I love you to." she cried into his shoulder as he started to pull away. She sat up and moved to the end of the seat. Pam opened the door and she got out.  She took a few steps back and Pam's hand met her shoulder, she kept it there protectively, Rebecca didn't mind she hoped it would be there to catch her if she lost her shit once Alcide drove off into the night. When the truck sprang to life and started to move forward she jumped in front of it and it jerked to a halt.  Alcide hit the steering wheel and shook his head at her " What the fuck Becca? he sent into her head. She went to the drivers side door and jumped onto the step and pulled herself halfway inside, like first night she kissed him. " You come back to me no matter what Alcide. No matter what. You hear me?" If he didn't make it she wanted to be able to bury him, to have a place to go to grieve him, a place to take their son and if he died but was like her, if he came back he wanted her face to be the first he would see. 

" I promise Becca, I'll come back to you." He gestured for Pam and she came up and Rebecca let her take hold of her and pull her backward. Alcide shifted the truck back into drive and did a u-turn around them. He watched her from the side mirror until he turned out of the lot and then as he drove past them he kept his head straight ahead. He didn't want to see her if she fell apart, or if she called out to him. He wasn't sure if he had the strength to not come back for her. She waited until he was out of sight before she gave in and let the sadness engulf her. Strong arms held her tightly and she had hoped they would and while she knew Pam wouldn't be thrilled with the emotion she didn't say anything, she remained silent as Rebecca cried and let the knowledge that she had seen Alcide alive for the last time washed over her.

Pam?" Eric's voice rang out from behind them, she felt Pam stiffen, the tears in her eyes dried up and she went mute. It was bad enough for Pam to have seen it she wouldn't give that to Eric to. She wiped her eyes and squared her shoulders. Pam was sure that Eric was going to forbid her from leaving. She was going to have to defy her maker. She wasn't sure Rebecca was worth it but she also knew she wasn't going to let some fucking Were kill her either. Plus Elva had pretty much promised Pam a true death if anything happened to her. Either way Pam was half way into the ground she hated being fucked no matter what. She turned and put a smile on her face. Rebecca followed suit but didn't bother with the smile. " Eric. somethings come up. I need to take the night off, I've got Marla to watch the door" Marla was a tall extremely skinny brunette who clearly enjoyed working her vampire charms on the human patronage of Fangtasia. They both waited for Eric to protest but he just stood there staring at both of them. His gaze on Pam told her not to say anything else, to not push her luck. When his gaze fell on her it held questions. Eric wanted to know what it was about her that kept people captivated, would make one risk their lives. Would make Pam risk pissing him off? Her strength? Her beauty? Her power? Her odd could not quite place it scent? All of that played into it he figured and since he possessed many of those same attributes himself and had been using them to his advantage for centuries he could find enough respect for those same qualities in her, even if she was just a lowly human. He felt her pull, he wanted to know what was going on around her, she thought he may very well know much of it already, and he wanted to insure that whatever went down in his territory he had a fang in the pulse of it. He may be made to answer questions later and it would be best if he knew the answers through first hand knowledge. " We'll take my car." Pam's shoulders de-tensed and together they walked with purpose through the lot and around the back of the club, Rebecca climbed into the back of the car wanting to put a bit of distance between her and the Viking. He was trying to eat away at her with his gaze but she was not in the mood to engage him. He found her attempts to ignore him both amusing and irksome but he said nothing to her. Eric drove fast, calmly asking Pam questions. She answered them with quick curt yet satisfying replies. When they pulled up to Belle Vita Bill, Sookie and Sam were waiting for them. She sensed others just on the outskirts of view. She sent feelers out again or Mason, she'd been alternating between Alcide and Mason the whole way back home. With Alcide she felt a closed off determination, bitter anger and a touch of sadness. With Mason she felt nothing and this frightened her far more. At least she knew Alcide was still alive. She got out of the car and faced her friends. 

" Malcom has made his move, Alcide has gone to meet the pack. His Father stole money to feed his gambling problem from the accounts Malcom set up for the new development. He is using that fraud as a way to make a play for the pack. Malcom has enough power in the pack to call for his removal and there will be a face off. Undoubtedly Alcide will end up in the fray. Malcom wants him dead. He will resort to whatever it takes to meet that end." She swallowed back the lump in her throat, the time for tears had passed.

" Rebecca, are you all right?" William asked for the top step glaring at Eric and Pam who had exited the car and were standing behind her. " I am fine William. Mason I am not so sure about. Could you please see if any of others in the woods have heard anything?" William hesitated. He didn't want to leave her here with Pam and Eric. " Please William." he felt her concern and was gone in a blur. 

" Sookie, Sam it is good of you to be here." Sookie waited at the top of the stairs with a hug and Sam put his hand on her shoulder blade. " I thought you were going with him?" Sookie whispered into her ear. " Alcide had other ideas." she whispered back. 

" How bout we take this inside." Sam looked around nervously to many sups hanging around the grounds for his liking. Rebecca gave him a slight smile and moved toward the door. Everyone entered except Eric who waited with an arched brow just outside the doorway. Sookie got Rebecca's attention and motioned back to the door. " You may come in Eric." 

They settled in the living room. Sookie busied herself in the kitchen gathering up snacks and drinks that went virtually untouched but which the presence of was still appreciated. Eric stood by the window and watched the woods. Pam stood by the fireplace filing her nails and looking bored. Sam kept one eye on each of them. Sookie kept her eye on Rebecca. Rebecca kept her mind focused on Alcide and Mason. The two most important people in her life were in danger. The more time passed in silence the worse she felt. Her gut started to churn and she felt uncontrollably sick. She ran from the room making it to the bathroom underneath the stairs just in time. The wrenching over took her and anything she had consumed within the last twenty four hours came back up, bile came next and then when there was nothing left she dry heaved over the bowl until her eyes watered and her legs gave way. She slid onto the floor and stayed there. When she'd run in she'd had no time to turn on the light, she'd just let the glow from the nightlight plugged in by the sink guide her and the faint glow caught her attention and gave her something to focus on. What good were her powers if they told her nothing? What good was she doing here, waiting like a potential victim in this house surrounded by Werewolves and Vampires? Why wasn't she out there doing something? If not with Alcide confronting Malcom then out looking for Mason? She felt a flutter from within and she had her answer. She put her hand on her belly and leaned back against the wall. She called on air to cool the room, she called on earth for calming vibes and she sat quietly until the nausea passed and her mind got right. She wouldn't do anything to harm the child growing inside her. She would not go looking for trouble but she would be ready, with a clear mind if it came her way. If she were smart enough, cautious enough, prepared enough she would be able to defend herself without anyone touching her. She just had to be focused and ready. She stood, splashed some cold water on her face and opened the door. She could hear voices in the living room. Sookie was arguing with Pam, " I just don't get why she didn't insist on going with him. I'd have found a way to be there even if I had to fight the two of you off to do it." 

" I'd have liked to have seen you try sweetheart," she could see Pam's red lipped smirk in her minds eye " Rebecca is doing what Alcide wants and as much as I hate the idea of doing anything for a man, in this case it's the right thing. No sense in both of them ending up dead." 

" Okay then why aren't you there then? William? All of those sups out in the woods? Why are we all here and Alcide is walking into a deathtrap all on his own." 

" Oh yes a bunch of Vampires and strange Were's walking into the middle of a pack dispute sounds like a brilliant idea. Way to needlessly risk all of our lives Sookie." Sookie must have given Pam one hell of a look." What, do you think you can take several dozen sups out with your finger sparklers before one of them rips your head off? I know your spunky blondie but I didn't think you had delusions of grander. You'd only end up dead and in the way." 

" Well at least I'd have done something. This sitting here waiting is cowardly. We should be out there doing something." 

" ENOUGH" Eric's voice rang out and filled the room. "Enough." he said again as he turned from the window giving both women a look that shut both of their mouths tightly. Rebecca slid into the room but kept herself pressed against the wall. Eric caught her entrance with a side glance, he gave her a slight smirk " Sookie, Alcide is your friend and everyone is well aware that you will compulsively risk your life in order to save someone you have feeling for. But if there was one thing that would keep you from risking your life for someone else what would it be?" Eric knew, she looked at Pam who shook her head. She had said nothing. Eric had figured it out on his own. "As a woman Sookie what would make this situation, us sitting here doing nothing while others die, acceptable?" His gaze went from Sookie's face to hers and back again, it was then Sookie realized she had returned. She looked embarrassed and confused. A bit angry that Eric seemed to know something she didn't know. Realization was all over Sam's face and Pam looked smug and slightly grossed out by the idea. " Rebecca is with child, Sookie." 

" She's what?" Sookie found Rebecca's face and got confirmation. " Why didn't you tell me?" she asked hurt running through her words. 

" I didn't tell anyone, I didn't admit it to Alcide until an hour ago. It is early, it wasn't planned at least not by me. Alcide played the baby against me. He planned the whole thing. For all my ability to read people, I got played by the man I love. He conspired with Mason, with Pam and my Uncle to insure that I wouldn't be anywhere near that fight tonight. He wanted me to have a part of him no matter what happened. I have no control over what is happening to him right now but I do have control over what happens with our child. Knowingly putting myself in harms way would hurt Alcide in a way his own death couldn't. My life, the life of our child right or wrong means more to him. So while I hate the fact that I am here and not there even more than you do, this is where I need to be. I am here safe, waiting for him to come back to me. One way or another….." A wave of pain hit her then and she saw flashes of Alcide in her mind. The confrontation, the challenge, the fight. No mention of her or the real reasons Lawrence was there. He taunted Alcide with looks and smirks and snide comments. It was only when Alcide tried to defend his father that her name was mentioned. As a distraction, one that kept Alcide from seeing what was going on around him. One that made him just a copable in his Father's theft. One that had used her charms to get him to turn his back on his pack. He lusted after a human who consorted with Vampires and this made him weak and unsuitable to take control of the pack from his Father. The men in his crew stood beside him, defended her. Crawfish explained her linage, Max spoke of her generosity, they all said she was nothing less but a friend to the pack. Those who stood by Alcide or his Father agreed, those who sided with Malcom were unconvinced. The air around them was stifling and as the heat in the room crept higher and higher so did the angst, eyes began to glow, breathing became heavy and once Malcom laid the challenge down in front of the whole pack there was no going back. The two men took their places in the middle of the circle, the others surrounded them. The fight ensues, it is bloody from the beginning, the smell of which insights the others ,soon Were's are shedding their human skins, pack are fighting pack. Alcide remains in human form fighting with his crew, it is mayhem. Malcom gets the upper hand on Jackson, has him on the ground is bashing his head in with his fists. Alcide belts the Were he is grappling with in his face with a sharp right hook, pushes past him and rushes Malcom grabbing him by the back of the neck tossing him across the ring. Malcom livid, wild, half wolf regains his legs and charges Alcide. Alcide has placed himself in front of his Father's to still body, he waits and watches Malcom's face locking himself into position. From the side of the ring something is tossed in Malcom's direction. Alcide sees but doesn't realize what it is until Malcom is on top of him, one hand goes for Alcide's throat snapping his head back. Alcide grabs the hand and wrenches it from his neck as the other slips behind him. He moves forward trying to knock Malcom off balance but that move just gives Malcom the clearing he needs to hit his mark.  Alcide feels the steel of the knife's tip slip into the flesh of his back, he feels the blade as it moves through the layers of flesh and the extra twist of the wrist Lawrence gives it just as it finds it's way into his heart. Rebecca sees Alcide's eyes go wide, she sees him toss Malcom off sending the man sailing across the room. She watches as Alcide tries to stay upright, refusing to fall until he starts to cough, his lips turning crimson, blood splattering on the floor below him. He staggers backward and falls to his knees. Crawfish and Max make it to his side, they try to prop him up. He catches the eye of his enemy, the triumphant look on his face, he feels one last rush of adrenaline coarse through his veins, he wants to wipe the look from the mans face. But his heart is weak, he can't find his legs, he can't get stand, there is nothing else he can do. He is dying. He falls to his side and as his heart stops his eyes close and his last thought is of Rebecca's face. 

Rebecca can here herself screaming, the walls of her living room shake from the vibrations coming off of her body, the people in the room surrounding her. William rushing in from outside. but she is still outside her skin, she is still in Alcide's head. She is pleading with him to stay alive but he is no longer there, he can't answer her. Everything goes black and the connection is lost, she sees the shimmer of the cord between them flicker, and then go dark as well. He is gone. She hears them calling to her and she falls back into her own mind, and finds herself on the floor, Sookie at her side, the others hovering over her, William calling to her, all of them looking for an explanation. She looked at each of them, her gaze steely, resigned. She held out her hand to William and he helped her to her feet. " Alcide will be returning soon." She walked to the front door and tossed it open and walked to the top step. " Any word on Mason?" 

 " No"  came William's reply from behind her. " Do you feel anything from him?" She shook her head. Nothing but blackness surrounded her. But she knew Mason was not dead, she'd have felt it but she also knew he had not just shut himself off from her. He had to be incapacitated. " William, go now and tell everyone in those woods to leave, they are to go now and find Mason. I don't want any arguments, they are to do as I ask. They are not to come back until he has been found." William came forward and stood next to her. " Mason gave them direct orders not to leave the grounds, they will not leave. They are here for your protection." She turned her face upward " They no longer need to worry about protecting me, they need to be more worried about protecting themselves and others FROM me at this point. I want to know where Mason is, I want him found. There is nothing they can do here that I can not do myself. If I could I would go and I would find him myself but Alcide will be here within moments and I can not leave. Do not let my calm demeanor fool you, inside a fire burns out of control and there will be no squelching it until I know the fate of both of them. Send them to bring Mason back to me. Please William, go now." In the distance came the rumbling of tires on the gravel of the drive, a truck had turned onto the road to Belle Vita and was traveling at a high rate of speed in their direction. William took one last look at Rebecca and then Eric who nodded and then was once again gone. Pam and Eric took positions next to her, Sookie and Sam one each side of them. " What do you want us to do when they get here Rebecca?" Alcide may be returning but none of them had much hope that it was alive. 

" I want you to be open minded and prepared for anything." Headlights came into view and she could see it was Crawfish's truck. There were three men holding on in the back of the cab. Max wasn't among them. The truck came to a halt a few feet from the stairs, Crawfish got out, blood covered his clothes and he eyed the two Vamps standing above him wearily. The men in the back of the truck had the same look on their face but all of them were ready to fight if need be. She knew Eric and Pam were far to old and controlled to let the smell of blood get to them easily but she sent feelers out to each sup around her making sure they knew there was to be no fighting. She walked quickly to the truck and hopped inside before Crawfish had the chance to pull the bed door down. Alcide's three pack mates stayed in their places, watching over their fallen comrade but none of them made any efforts to keep Rebecca away from his body, which was lying on the bed floor covered in a white drop cloth. " Thank you for bringing him back to me." she met each of their eyes and as she did they each hopped off the back giving her all of the space they could. " Before he went in, he insisted on it, he said that if that mother fucker got him we were to make sure that we got him back here. Max stayed behind with the others so we could get Alcide out. "God damn it Rebecca, he stabbed him in the back. Nothing we could do." The words caught in Crawfish's throat, he felt he'd let both of them down. He worried what was going to happen to Rebeca now that Alcide was gone. He was afraid for her. " I know Red, I saw it. Malcom will pay for what he has done." Rebecca gently pulled back the sheet back slowly taking in each feature of Alcide's face. His hair was matted to his head,filled with sweat and dirt, his eyes were shut the right one slightly swollen, discolored. Dried blood was caked on the sides of his nostrils, his lips were stained as well, a trail of red ran down each side of his mouth and down under his chin. Another drop cloth had been put down before his body it was sticky and wet from the blood that had come from the wound on his back. Out of the corner of her eye she caught sight of the blade in the far back corner of the bed. The handle of it gleamed in the light of the moon, it was made of silver. Just a piece of folklore but the irony of it wasn't lost on her. She pulled the covering back further exposing his upper body, his right hand placed over hisheart. she covered it with hers and then bent closer stroking his forehead with the thumb of her other hand. She put her lips to his and then whispered into them " I am sorry my love, I am sorry it came to this, I am sorry he is a cheating piece of shit and I promise you that he will pay for what he has done to you. I will kill him myself." she stopped and waited, for any sign of life. Alcide remained still. The first time she died she'd returned within an hour but it could take longer for Alcide. But the longer it took the less likely he was going to return, the longer it took the more uneasy those around her became. Soon the natural instinct to remove her from his side would set in, there would be talk of whether to to take him to mortuary, to have a proper funeral or to bury him nearby. What would bring the least amount of questions? No if Alcide was going to return it needed to be soon. " Are you in there Alcide? Can you hear me? You need to make your way back. You have to fight. " She laid her head on his chest, waiting to hear the flicker of his heart beat, the expanding of his lungs as he gasped for air to fill them. But she heard nothing at least not from Alcide. She heard Sookie, crying softly, she could hear Sam whispering to her that it was going to be alright. She could hear the low growls that escaped with each breath the Were's surrounding the truck took. They were anxious to get back, there pack was in trouble, many were injured, dead, possibly still fighting. They thought there was nothing they could do here. They were right. " Crawfish, it's time to remove him from the truck." Her friend was standing at the end his eyes sad but resigned. " Yes Ms. Rebecca."  two of the men climbed back into the bed and picked up the top corners of the drop cloth Crawfish and the other Were took the bottom corners and slowly pulled them toward him. They walked a few feet into the grass and then lowered his body to the ground. " I will take care of things from here. I promise he will be buried according to custom. You have done your job, you have fulfilled Alcide's final wish. Now return to your pack, help the other wounded, avenge the dead. I doubt that Lawrence Malcom will be there when you return, but if he is I would appreciate if you don't kill him. That is something I wish to do myself." They looked surprised by her request but none of them said anything to refuse it. Crawfish gave her a quick one armed hug and told her he'd be back as soon as he could. Then the four men got back into the truck and sped off the way they came. Once they were gone William was at her side, she moved away from him " No William, no." He wanted to know where she wanted the grave prepared. She couldn't let to much time pass if she wanted their help. She wasn't ready to give up, there had been to many signs that he would return, she couldn't believe that they would be wrong. She wasn't ready to let him go. " Sookie, can you please go into the house and get the candles on the desk in the library"  It was time to ask for a little help. " Rebecca he's gone. It's to late. What good is magic now?" Sookie sent to her.

" Trust me Sookie!" Sookie slid out from under Sam's arm and went back inside, she returned a few moments later with the candles. She brought them to her and they all watched as Rebecca, went through the ritual of opening the circle. Once all of the elements were with her she sat down in the middle, taking Alcide's head into her lap and quiet began to chant. She prayed to the Goddess she asked her to help Alcide to find his way back to his body. It was not his time she told her their connection was to strong to be severed. The wind picked up around her, and the sky above filled with dark clouds and thunder started to clap over the waters of the lake in the woods behind the house. The others stood just outside, mostly afraid she'd gone mad but all enraptured in the scene unfolding in front of them. " Alcide, I know you can hear me. I know you are somewhere above me trying to find your way back, listen to the sound of my voice, follow it. Come back Alcide. Come back. Our time in this life is not over. You come back and see your child be born, watch him grow up." The rain started to fall as she became more desperate. Was it possible her prayers couldn't be answered? Was he really gone? She closed her eyes and focused every ounce of power and energy into her core. She lifted her arms above her head, and once she felt the surge of power reach her fingertips she yelled into the wind and rain " You will come back to me you son of a bitch" and then brought her hands down onto his chest. Lightening struck the ground inside the circle, causing the candles to flare and rise into the night sky. Spent she fell forward, her lips to his ear one last time she asked him to return " Return to me." and since she couldn't cry she made the rain fall harder and since she didn't have the energy to let the rage inside her escape she made the wind whip wilder one by one the candles went out and as the last bit of hope left Rebecca's body Alcide's chest rose up, breath caught in his throat and his pierced heart began to beat. He had returned to her. 

                                                                                                                 

ALCIDE 

     He heard her calling to him and he tried to respond. Everything around him was white and he had no sense of what direction to take. The sound of her voice seemed to be coming from everywhere and each time he took steps in one direction it seemed to be louder in the other. He felt dizzy and light and he was not in control of his body. He could remember the his last moments, he could feel the cold steel piercing his skin, he could feel it digging into his heart and the way it felt when the blood begin to rush out. He felt every moment of his death, he hated himself for not seeing it coming, he'd been distracted by the sight of his father lying broken on the ground. He'd thought Malcom would want to prolong the fight, would want a chance to beat the shit out of him first but he'd been wrong. It is what he had wanted to do to make Malcom suffer but no,he'd gone right for the kill. Alcide felt something wet hit his arm, he'd thought it would be blood, he'd lost so much of it, felt it come rushing out of him but when he looked down he saw a spot on his arm cleared of red and when he moved his arm it ran down his arm and a the water now turned crimson hit the floor with a splash. One by one he was hit by the raindrops falling from the white around him, Rebecca's voice returned, more urgent, filled with pain, desperation and anger. From behind him it seemed her voice was louder and so he turned and found a hole starting to grown in the white wall, the night sky began to shine through, stars, and clouds and then he saw the glowing cord that bound him to Rebecca slowly coming toward him. He waited until it reached him, until he felt it flow through him and pull him from the inside and once he was sure it was safely refastened he followed it. He was moving in what he thought was a quick pace but apparently it wasn't fast enough. He felt a rush of hot air, a blast of cold rain and the cord was yanked and he was falling, he saw a flash of Rebecca holding his body leaned over him, devastated that she wasn't able to bring him back, that the odds hadn't been in their favor. He crashed back into his skin. His chest was heavy, like someone had placed a ten ton weight on top of it, he was trying hard to make his lungs expand but nothing inside would work, not unless his heart started to beat, a shock ran through him and like an engine that hadn't been started in a long time he felt his heart kick back in protest but his return could not be denied and after another jump of electricity ran through his veins the hole in his heart healed over and it started to beat. His first breaths came out stuttered, his throat was filled with blood and he struggled not to choke, it tried to go up while the air tried to go down. He felt Rebecca spring to life and her remarkably strong arms pull him upward and on his side, blood sputtered out of his mouth and he wretched repeatedly. He tried to opened his eyes but couldn't manage to raise them above slits, he saw the ground around him was soaked with water, he could hear Rebecca's voice telling him to take shallow breaths, felt a cloth come to his face, gently wiping away the blood. There were others there but he couldn't make out who they were, the only voice that came out clear was Rebecca's and she was now barking out orders, he heard feet hitting the wood of the porch and then return within moments. He felt himself being lifted onto what had to be a gurney and he couldn't help but think " Why the hell does Rebecca have gurney in the house?" but the amusement he found in that simple, very human pondering was lost when sharp searing pain ran through his back. 

" Be careful he's in a lot of pain and he's lost a shit load of blood." Rebecca's voice even clearer and when he tried to opened his eyes again he felt a hand cover them. Quickly his mind was filled with her image, she was right above him, she as soaking wet, rain trickled down like streams on the strands of her hair. She smiled and her green glowing eyes seemed to wink at him. He felt her other hand cover his as he tried once again to open his eyes. He was incredibly tired, he didn't want to sleep, he wanted to stay awake, no matter the pain. He feared if he didn't he would find himself surrounded by white again. But no matter how hard he tried he could not force his eyes open. He blinked a few times and he heard himself cringe and whimper with each step those who carried him took up the stairs, he felt the energy that surrounded Belle Vita as he entered the front door. "Alcide?" Rebecca was now in his head. " Alcide listen to me, your body is far more broken that you know" she sent him images of what had happened after he'd taken his last breath. Of the fight that had gone on around him after he had fallen, of what it had taken to get him out of there, what had been done to him by Malcom and those who were loyal to him as he laid in a heap on the ground. Cracked ribs, bruised organs, blows to his face, to his head, to his arms and legs. " You need to stay still, you need to stop fighting your bodies desire to sleep,we are going to take care of you. It will be far easier for us to do if you are not awake."  She tried to show him what she was going to have to do, but he shook his head. He wouldn't go, he didn't care what was going to happen. He couldn't risk it. He'd been damned sure waiting within those white walls that he wasn't coming back, that he was sitting there waiting for either the sky to open up or the bottom to fall out and a set of stairs leading to either heaven or hell to appear and he would stand their looking at them knowing he'd fucked up and praying that wherever he ended up he'd still be able to see her, to know she was alright. " You are a stubborn mother fucker Alcide Herveaux. I will not be asking you for forgiveness for this later." He saw the image of the needle in her hand, felt the prick of it on his skin and before he could form a angry response everything went black. 

                                                                                                                                        

Rebecca 

They worked quickly, Rebecca barking out orders to everyone in the room all of them to dazed by what they had just seen to ask any questions, to question any command. Even Eric did as he was asked but his gaze stayed upon her no matter where she was in the room. She felt something in him shift toward her, he now no longer regarded her as human, he'd never had much regard for her as a witch, she was not supernatural enough to garner any actual respect for it but now he was sure that she was far more than that and that the Were lying on the table in the library was far more than anyone could imagine as well. If there was one thing every vampire in that room knew it was when someone was dead. Alcide had been dead, it could have been magic that brought him back but he had dismissed that for he knew enough about Witches to know that even if they had the power to bring people back they rarely did, if their magic was pure, white and they were true followers of the Goddess they didn't swing the balance of nature in such a way. There would be consequences often far greater than the potential joys of having their loved ones back with them. No Rebecca might have called on the Goddess for guidance, the elements for assistance but Alcide had come back to his body, been brought back to life by something other than magical means. Eric had been around a long time, longer than anyone in this room and he'd heard rumors but he'd never actually been in the presence of an immortal who didn't have the same needs and limitations as himself. He was sure that he was now in the presence of two such people and for the first time in centuries Eric found himself in awe and jealous. Very very jealous. They would be young and beautiful, strong and powerful forever and walk this earth no matter the time of day, eat and drink and live their lives fully. She met his gaze as she returned from the alter room, she would have to talk to him, to figure out what if any ill intentions he may have with his newly realized information and she sent to him her acknowledgement of such but for now Alcide was her priority. The boys had set his broken bones so that they could heal easier, Sookie was working on wiping his nearly naked body clean, Sam was coming in and out of the room with new clean buckets of hot water from the kitchen. Rebecca gave his arm a graze as he passed her and he flung his hair back from his eyes and gave her a smile. Rebecca pestle in hand began rubbing a healing salve on the cut above his eye. She could see that Sookie's hand was shaking slightly and so she reached out and covered her friends with her own and gave it a gentle squeeze. " It's going to be okay, he will be okay. We are all going to be okay" Sookie took a deep breath and a met Rebecca's gaze. She nodded and with new more fortified resolve continued the task of getting her friend cleaned up. 

" He is going to need blood. The vampires looked at each other and then at her. Her gaze was squarely on Pam. Once again she was the lesser of the evils. The boys looked to her as well. 

 Pam shook her head and looked at them all with disdain. "Oh no.! I'm not a fucking blood bank for the supernatural in need." Eric raised an eyebrow at her and she rolled her eyes and glared at Rebecca, " Fine." her fangs extended and she bit into her wrist and placed it to Alcide's lips. " I hope you know that eventually I expect some kind of compensation for this type of shit." she muttered some more about how things like this was why she'd kept her distance from witches and winced when Alcide became lucid enough to really clamp onto her wrist and drink deeply. Once he'd taken all Pam could give him and he was a clean as they could get him, his wounds slathered with with healing ointments Rebecca asked them to help move him upstairs. He'd be far more comfortable on the bed than on the hard wood of the table. He was transferred back onto the gurney and each Sup took an end carrying him up the stairs. She and Sookie followed with supplies. Once the had him resting comfortably they dispersed, Sookie and Sam went into the bathroom to get cleaned up. William at Rebecca's request returned to his quest to find out any information on Mason. Pam and Eric went downstairs, into the living room and conversed in hushed voices. Rebecca resisted the urge to listen in, instead concentrating her abilities on talking quietly into Alcide's mind and sending out feelers out for Mason. Every once in a while she would get a pulse of energy that she couldn't quite latch onto,  it had his signature but wasn't strong and she couldn't grab hold of it long enough to get any information. Her gut instincts were telling her he had met fowl play more than likely at the hands of Malcom, possibly being held captive because if he were free to be at her side there is no where else he would be. She sat down on the edge of the bed and took Alcide's hand. 

" You scared the living hell out of me do you know that?" she brought his hand to her lips, " But you came back to me, you kept your promise." She held his hand to her cheek and watched his face, his eyes worked behind the lids, the swelling had already dissipated the cut above his eye was already healing. Having regenerative abilities would serve him well, he would heal much quicker than she did. Sookie and Sam came back into the room both looking a little worse for wear but neither of them had any urge to leave. Sam brought a chair over to the other side of the bed for Sookie to sit in, he in turn took a place on the couch. He rested his head on the back and closed his eyes. She turned to look at them both, she had told them what she was, they had seemed to accept it easily but having seen a resurrection for themselves they couldn't help be a bit shaken. They wondered if she'd brought him back, used her magic, they wondered if Alcide was more zombie than an immortal being. " I asked the Goddess to help me, to help guild him home if it wasn't his time, it wasn't and so he came back. He is like me, an immortal. No zombification required." Sam's lips turned up into a grin, Sookie tried in vain to hold back a giggle. Their lives were to impossible and just when they'd thought they'd seen it all something came along to disprove it. " I thought you were loosing your shit" said Sam his eyes opened focused on her face. " You were whipping that rain and wind into a frenzy, I was a bit afraid you were gonna take us down with you." 

" Nah, you were in no danger, I knew exactly what I was doing." She pressed her lips together " Nope no worries AT ALL" she rolled her eyes heavenward and turned back to Alcide. " He is going to be sleeping for a while, do you two want to get cleaned up a bit better, get something to eat or maybe some sleep?

" I'm to wound up to sleep" Sookie answered but some clean clothes and something to eat sound good." She looked at Sam who nodded his agreement. 

" Sookie take something from my closet, use the master. Sam there should be some things that will fit you in the trunk by the window in the first spare bedroom. You can get cleaned up in the bathroom there to." 

" You sure you're gonna be okay in here alone?" Sam asked standing up and stretching his legs.

" I'll be fine. I don't want to leave him but there is no sense in all of us sitting around grimy and hungry. You to go if I need you I will be sure to call." Sookie disappeared into her closet and Sam made his way out of the room, she listened to the sound of his boots hitting the floor of the landing and the door to the spare room opening. She picked up the phone on the nightstand and hit one, she could hear the phone downstairs in the living room ring, heard the voices of the two vampires stop and then the sound of Pam's voice coming across the other end. " If you two wish to get cleaned up there are showers in the basement. There is blood down there as well. If it is okay with Eric I would appreciate if you would please stay for a while. He is welcomed to as well, if he wishes." 

" We'll be staying" Pam replied and put the phone down. Pam was still obligated by her promise to watch over her, Eric was curious to see what would happen next. She heard the pair walk through the house and through the kitchen. The door to the basement clicking open and clicking shut. She sent out feelers to William who had returned to his home and was making phone calls. He had an entire list of those who worked for Mason and was contacting them all, pressing them for information, moving them forward, making sure they were covering all ground. He'd been in contact with Buzz who had sent some members of his pack out to the construction sight, everything looked to clean, to pristine. It had been sanitized but the Were's were sure outsiders had been there, they were now following what scent their noses could find. She put out feelers of her own, trying to find her connection to Mason but she was disappointed yet again by nothing but the sound of silence. Alcide turned slightly and moaned, she reached onto the nightstand for the prepared dose of tranquilizer. It was enough to put down several average humans or one large Were. She gave him the shot and almost immediately he fell back into a seemingly peaceful sleep. She wanted to crawl up next to him, listen to the sound of his heartbeat, feel the rise and fall of his chest but she didn't want to risk hurting him. Instead she checked his wounds, cringed at the sight of the bruises, resigned herself to the fact that the sheets on the bed would have to be burned. The door to the bathroom opened and Sookie stepped out looking fresh and clean and much more relaxed than she did when she'd gone in. " I'll head down get something quick and then come back up and stay with him so you can get cleaned up. Do you want me to bring anything back up for you to eat?" 

" No I don't think I can eat right now, my stomach is in one large knot but thank you for the offer" She gave a side smile to her friend who nodded and made her way out of the room. A few minutes later she heard Sam on the landing and the sound of his footsteps as he made his way downstairs. She climbed onto the bed and let her head hit the pillow. She was covered in blood and dirt and her insides felt like mush, she was exhausted, the magic within her sputtered, so much of it had been used and there were gapping holes in the connections and threads that ran through her, her batteries were almost dead. She closed her eyes and tried to relax, Alcide was beside her, his body healing but she wondered about his mind. He would be in a fog and feel disconnected. She had for a several weeks after she'd returned. Not quite in control and unlike her there was another nature Alcide had to worry about. She wished her great grandfather was here, he could do so much to help Alcide through this time. But there as no way any of her family could be here now, they needed to stay away. Part of her heart ached for Mason, the more time passed the more sure she was he was being held against his will and considering what Malcom and his cronies had done to Alcide she hated the idea of what was being done to him. She wondered why she couldn't feel him, his pain? It was possible he was keeping it from her, not wanting her to know, not wanting her to find him because he knew she would come after him. He would rather die than lead her into a trap. Malcom could use him all he wanted but Mason would never ever deliver her to him. He'd welcome a the true death with open arms before that happened. She felt someone come into the room and opened her eyes to find Eric standing just inside the door. She sat up and met his gaze. There were so many questions running through the minds within these walls. Alcide was silent and still and she was unlikely to feel the need to sleep any time soon so she might as well handle as many now as she could. 

" Do I thank you for your assistance tonight Eric or do I sit back and await for your payback demands?" she leaned back against the headboard and waited. 

" There will be no demands." he looked smug, aloof, self satisfied. It was a look that both drew you in and infuriated you. Typical Eric. 

" For now at least?" she replied. His gaze grew wider the blue in his eyes sparked in the light coming from the landing. 

" I knew you were unlike anyone else I had ever made the acquaintance of, well there may have been one other like you, a very long time ago but I could never prove it but you are the real deal. I'd read about your accident, I saw the wreckage, read of your remarkable survival. Your family did quite a bit to cover it all up, I had to work very hard to find the original statements, the original reports, medical records. That of course made me suspicious but watching the Were come back to life tonight gave me all the proof I needed. You are quite possibly the most important person I've met in all of my centuries of existence. I know that I could benefit greatly from our acquaintance and while you and I may never agree on much, or even like each other I have no intention of telling anyone about you. Just as I have never outed another Supernatural being against their will. It may seem unlikely but I do live by a code of ethics, I, my interests and my progeny will always come first but I've lived long enough to know the benefits others can offer, what power and prestige the proper alliances can bring. Being firmly within the good graces of you and your family would be most beneficial. I have no intentions of making you an enemy Rebecca." 

She laughed, " Oh well the that is good to hear, I was afraid you were going to sell me out to the highest bidder and then spend the rest of your life gloating inwardly. I mean it would be quite the coup would it not?" There would always be an interlining doubt that flowed between the two of them. Eric could not be fully trusted but she'd seen enough of his mind at the moment and knew that for now what he said was the truth. He found her to be far more valuable as a ally than an enemy. He had enough enemies in this world, his indifference and out and out hatred for the majority of the others that shared his space made him an easy target. Having a connection with Rebecca, no matter how uneasy that connection may be it would be useful. She stood and went to stand in front of him. His height gave him an advantage over her, she was tempted to levitate to meet his eye but figured he could just do the same, trying to one up a vampire who could fly in that way would be futile. 

" You are a powerful woman, from a powerful family. A family that consists of Immortals, Witches, Vampires and Werewolves. Your parents found a way to bring Sups together something few others have been able to do. I may not agree with the idea, I might even find it distasteful but I can clearly see it's merits." 

" You know there is a reason we haven't met before now right Eric? That you have never crossed paths with anyone from my family? Why Pamela never mentioned my Aunt to you? In general we don't go looking for trouble and you Eric Northman are trouble. That being said you did help me tonight, without question and you have extended your hand in an offer of friendship and I will take it. I need friends at this moment as well and sometimes it is good to have friends who don't mind getting their hands dirty. I unlike most of my family know the value of that sort of friend and I am not afraid to have them in my life." She extended her hand and after a second Eric took it. " Besides you know what it is like to have lives in your hands right? I mean being a vampire you can easily end anyone you want at any time and that has given you a great edge over most you have come in contact with. You do however have your limitations, I am not trying to stab at a sore spot I am just stating the obvious and I am sure you realize that I have none of those limitations." Eric's face hardened just slightly but he didn't respond, he just gave her hand a hard squeeze sealing their alliance. She needn't say another word. He knew that his world would end should he ever do anything to hurt her or anyone she loved. As long as he was nothing but slightly annoying to her though she would willingly deal with him. He was the sheriff of her district and Pam's sire those two reasons gave her enough pause. They were still standing hand in hand when Sookie and Sam came back into the room. They took in the scene for a moment before moving further into the room. Eric with another slight nod backed out of the room. Sookie sat a tray of food down on the coffee table and after Sam was sure Eric had made his way back down the stairs turned to Rebecca. 

" We brought you some food, Sookie said you weren't hungry but we both think you should at least try to eat something. If not for you then for the baby" his eyes moved down to her stomach. 

" You should get cleaned up to, we'll sit with Alcide while you do. You're gonna scare him back into unconsciousness if he wakes up and sees you looking like that" Sookie pushed her toward the bathroom and after one last look toward Alcide she went in to get cleaned up. She turned the water in the shower on then stripped off her ruined clothes and climbed into the steaming hot water and watched the dirt and the blood go down the drain, it would all come off and when she was finished she would be outwardly clean, but this night had added yet more scars to her insides, she hoped that they weren't deep enough to effect the child growing inside of her. She was tired and felt her magic was weakened but she didn't feel the baby was in any danger, in fact she felt that all of the magic that remained inside her had pooled around her womb and was sheltering the child growing within her from everything that was going on around it's mother. She was thankful and felt soothed by that feeling. Once she'd gotten all of the muck off of her she quickly dried off and engulfed herself in a robe and walked purposefully toward the plate of food Sookie had brought in. She saw the look of relief on both her and Sam's faces, they were both thankful not to have to knock down any further refusals on her part. They sat in silence for a while each of them lost in their own thoughts, Sam on the brink of passing out, it was getting closer and closer to dawn and Rebecca had one more thing she needed to take care of before the Vampires had to go to ground.  

" Would you two excuse me for a moment, I need to go and speak to Pam" Sookie nodded from her chair and Sam did the same beside her without opening his eyes. She walked into her closet and quickly dressed, she didn't feel comfortable heading into even her own den with two vampires roaming around in it in nothing but a robe. She found Pam in the Library sitting behind her desk her face in profile, the room was dark except for the lamp that sat on the shelf behind her. Eric was not in the room but she could feel him nearby. Rebecca closed the door, he could come in if he wanted to and he could surely hear them but she'd prefer that they be alone. Rebecca didn't bother to turn on any more lights, her eyes hurt and Pam could see just fine with out it." Are you sitting here pouting, silently fuming and plotting revenge for being put upon?" Pam had given her blood to help her and now Alcide, she'd risked the ire of her maker, risked angering her Aunt, it was a no win situation. Should she go to far and choose to disobey Eric she'd die, if she didn't do as her Aunt asked and anything happened to Rebecca she'd surely end up the same way. " I'm sorry you have been put in this position Pamela but if it is any consolation to you Eric and I have come to an agreement." The look Pam shot her stopped her from saying anything else. " You think I give a shit about any understanding you may or may not have with my maker? Do you think that that means you can come to me, to him, whenever for whatever you want? He may see the value in you Rebecca but that doesn't mean we want to get tangled up in you and your families fucking dramas. You have no idea how much I wish I’d never met you or your family. People run from vampires but you and your kind are far more deadly and the fucking irony in that is you can get everyone around you killed and you no matter how much blood is shed, how many bones are broken, how many true deaths are had will still be standing when the dust clears." She had every right to be angry, to be slightly scared but more than anything she was jealous, jealous and sad. She hadn't been trusted with the secret and no matter how foolish that would seem to anyone else in the know about what Rebecca and Alcide were Pamela thought she had earned the right to be read in on the entire truth of things. 

Rebecca walked into the alter room and retrieved a small vial from a fridge tucked inside a cabinet. She poured it's contents into a goblet and ran her hand around the glass, the fire within warming it's contents. There was nothing she could say to Pam to change what had and what might happen. There was no way she could take away the pressures of her maker or her Aunt. Even if she asked Elva to not press Pam into doing anything further for her ,her Aunt would simply tell her the matter was between her and Pam. There was more to their story, pieces to their past she wasn't privy to and none of it no matter what it was was her business. She walked over to where Pam sat and put the goblet in front of her. Pam turned sniffed the air and looked at he eyes went wide, her pupils blackened the color surrounding them. " Blood for Blood Pam, it's the best I can offer." Pam picked the goblet up but hesitated as it reached her lips. She knew all to well that Rebecca's blood was poison but this small token was clean, given freely and kept should an emergency ever arise, tonight seemed like a good time to use it. Rebecca shook her head and smirked. " Yes Pam I'm just that evil, you tell me off and I hand you a glass filled with tainted blood. That is something my old friend if you could you would do." She turned and walked quickly out of the room. As she strolled across the foyer she heard Pam moan and whisper "Fuck me". Rebecca stopped on the landing her hand on the railing and looked around her, the house was quiet, Pam had been satiated at least for the moment. Eric was lurking in the shadows, Mason was still missing. She wanted this all to be over, done, finished and there was no doubt in her mind that after tonight the stakes were even higher and that the desire she had to finish this herself was even greater. Malcom would pay and it would be at her hand and no one would stand in her way.