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| Wicked NOT Dead Chapter 23 |
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| Rebecca |
Rebecca knew she was dreaming, that the quaint perfect picture that she'd surrounded herself with was not real but her reality at this time was far from pretty and even in sleep she'd found it nearly impossible to escape it as of late and so she didn't mind being lost in this dream at all. She was sitting in her field the one near the commune, her face turned to the sun a small boy lying in the crook of the arm of his father both of them asleep beside her. She was enjoying the moment watching them both so peaceful, so content, so whole, so real. She heard rustling in the tall grass behind her and turned towards it, she wasn't expecting anyone to join them and the foot fall told her the being approaching walked of four legs not two. She looked to Alcide who was still sound asleep, she hated to wake him things had been so hard for so long and now that they were in a good place she hated the idea of changing the mood for any reason. Whatever it was would surely move past and even it did come into the clearing she could surely handle it herself. Beside her the pages of her book started to flap about in a new found breeze, she grabbed it before her place could be lost and pushing her bookmark firmly into the spin closed it and looked again to the sky. From out of nowhere dark clouds started moving in with the wind. No she thought there was no call for rain today, only fresh, clean, crisp skies it was why the picked this day to venture out and the idea of rain was quite vexing. Could it be coming from something within her? No she thought she was calm, happy and felt none of the inner turmoil that would cause her hold on the elements to change the space around her. No none of what was happening around her was of her making, she started to close her eyes to speak to the elements surrounding her to find out where the darkness was coming from when she heard a growl, a wolf stood at the edge of the clearing, his eyes focused on her, the white fur along his arched back standing on end, she reached into his mind, read his intentions, heard it's voice. No it couldn't be??? Her head whipped down to the blanket, Alcide was no longer there, her son was no longer there. She was sitting in the clearing alone, the wolf approached slowly, purposefully, a full snarl now crossed it's muzzle. Rebecca reached in to it's mind trying to sooth, to calm but the wolf kept advancing. He stopped at the edge of the blanket, the hunger in his eyes increased, his pray firmly in his sights, no where to run, the only thing left to do was to strike and land the blow to kill. She didn't want to hurt him, but he was giving her no choice. She raised her hand, was about to strike a blow of her own when the wolf sprung toward her, she heard herself scream, she heard the wolf let out a pain filled yelp and then everything went black.
Rebecca's eyes flew open, the space around her just as dark as the dream she'd just awoken from. She could feel sweat beading across her neck, down to the palm of her back. Her hands were gripping the sheets, they ached from the harshness of the hold she had on them. She stared upward willing her eyes to focus. She had no idea when she'd fallen asleep or how long she'd been so, the last thing she remembered was sitting on the bed next to Alcide talking with Sookie and Sam. From beside her she felt movement and then from the darkness a sound that stopped her heart. A low growl filled the room, she turned to her right to find Alcide crouched on the bed beside her. He was still human but his brown eyes were amber in color and were filled with a predatory rage, his mouth was curled upward his canines bared. He lunged at Rebecca as she tried to rise and pinned her to the bed. His face inched closer and closer and she tried in vain to break free, every time she moved he dug his legs harder into the sides of her body, she felt she was being crushed, felt her bones creek from the pressure. She thought of their son and she stopped moving, Alcide was somewhere in-between his two natures, he could kill her at any moment and take their child's life as well. He wasn't responsible for what he was doing, the drugs, the confusion from the resurrection were disorienting him, he felt threatened. He was doing what he thought he had to do to protect himself. She tried again to reach him but he just shook her out of his mind, he bent his head into her neck and breathed in deeply, the scent of her seeming to stop him momentarily, a confused look moved across his face but his grip on her didn't lessen one bit. Rebecca send feelers out through the house, she found four minds, two of which could not help her for despite the fact her room was pitch black the light of day still shown beyond it's walls. Pam and Eric couldn't get through the house to help her without charring themselves in the process. Sam and Sookie however were across the hall in the guest rooms and were alert in moments, she heard the doors to the rooms open, heard the pounding of their fast approach on the landing outside. The door swung open and Sam came running in Sookie a step behind him, Alcide turned and snarled at them, his hand made it's way to Rebecca's throat. He gave the two intruders a look to tell them she was his and they were to come no closer. Sam put his hand out to stop Sookie from advancing any further. Rebecca gasped and started to choke but immediately threw her now free hand around the one Alcide had wrapped around her throat, she sent fire through his wrist. Feeling the heat moving up his arm Alcide turned his attention to her long enough for Sam to advance and grab for him. Alcide let out a noise half human, half wolf as the fire ran through his wrist and pain from the vice grip Sam had on his barely healed shoulder. Alcide turned his anger toward Sam and the two grappled for good footing, Alcides torso now twisted toward a new enemy but his legs still held Rebecca in place. Rebecca saw a flicker of light and turned to Sookie, her palm was aglow, she was concentrating on keeping it in control, not wanting to hurt Alcide but not not wanting him to hurt her or Sam either. Sookie caught her gaze and she nodded " Let it go" she sent to her and then the flash came and hit Alcide squarely in the chest, stunning him, loosening his grip on both her and Sam and sending him flying off the bed and toward the coffee table. Rebecca sat up and flipped herself toward Alcide, her palm out she stopped him in mid-air. Air held him in place keeping him from smashing the table and the ground. " Sam" she screamed bringing him back to attention and he slid across the bed and grabbed hold of the now unconscious Alcide. Rebecca helped Sam guide him back to the bed and only let air go when he was safely back down. It was then Rebecca jumped off the bed herself and stepped backward and let the shudder run through her, Sookie took her by the shoulders and held her. Sam stood in front of her, checking her out from top to bottom. She let him and only winced slightly when his hand gently touched her neck. Sookie held her until the shaking stopped and Sam stood in front just to the side of them both just in case, watching Alcide wearily. Once she was able to breath normally again and enough time seemed to pass to make questions okay Sam turned to look at her " What the hell was that?"
"He's in the in-between. Somewhere between this world and the afterlife. He's confused and disoriented. I shouldn't have slept in here with him alone. The night I died and came back I was fine but Mason told me I went mad in the hospital, they kept me sedated for several days. I suppose the madness didn't leave me completely, not for several months, not until Alexander died. It was only then that my life really came back into focus."
"I sure as fuck hope that don't happen with him Rebecca, you can't be alone with him if he's going to go all wolf shit crazy on you. He wouldn't be taking his anger out on those who killed his loved ones he'd be killing his loved ones himself." Sam ran one hand through his hair he looked scared, for her. " What if we hadn't been here Rebecca?" She reached out and grabbed his other hand from it's place on his hip, reached up and clasped her other hand around one Sookie's still on her shoulder. " But by the grace of the Goddess you were here and I can keep this from happening again, I can spell him and keep him grounded until he's okay and he will be okay. I just didn't think he'd wake up, the drugs we'd given him should have kept him down far longer than he was, his strength is already returning, his injuries almost healed. He's alive and thanks to you both he won't have any regrets to live with once he's awake and aware." They stood there for a while longer and then silently left the room the three of them making their way down the stairs and into the kitchen. Sookie and Rebecca talked to each other in their heads while Sam moved around the kitchen making them all something to eat. When he sat plates down in front of them they both smiled up at him and once he sat down everyone dug in readily. As Rebecca ate she reached out for Mason at first there was nothing, but then out of the blackness she found him. A pain seared through her hands and feet. She dropped her fork, the sound of it hitting the plate causing Sookie and Sam who'd been lost in their own thoughts to whip their heads in her direction. She saw a flash of Mason lying in a dark space his hands and feet shackled with silver he was covered in blood, some of it dried and some of it was dripping out of his nose and ears. He opened his eyes and looked outward, she knew he was looking at her in the blackness but he didn't reach out and say anything to her, he just shook his head slightly and begged her with his eyes to not come after him. Light filled the space and he cringed and drew back and he looked toward where the light came from and a look of defiance filled his face and then the connection went dark. She let out the breath she was holding, it came stammered out of her and she fought back the urge to wail. He'd been able to show her he was still alive and make demands without saying a thing.
" Rebecca?" Sookie said quietly. " Are you okay?"
She looked from one friend to the other nodding, " Yes I'm fine Mason was able to let me know he was still alive, he's being held captive and not in good shape. They have him chained and he's been beaten and forced to stay awake so he has the bleeds."
" Any ideas where?" Sam asked.
" No he didn't give me anything that would help find him, he doesn't want me to come looking for him. In fact if I did I believe he would be infuriated with me." What little appetite she had was now gone, she pushed the plate away and stood up, sorrow and fatigue hit her in a rush and she stumbled backward. Sam sprang up from his chair and caught her, placing her firmly back in her chair. " Thank you, Sam." Sookie pushed her plate back in front of her and handed her her glass of water.
" No excuses and no fighting with us, you're gonna eat everything on that plate and when your done you're going to lie down" she paused and then added " and not in the bedroom with Alcide either." She started to protest, she needed to help Alcide, she needed to make calls, see if there was any new information about Mason from Buzz or Bill. But she stopped herself, she'd promised Alcide she would never cast a spell on him or for him without his knowledge she couldn't make an exception even with this if she expected him to trust her and if there was anything at all to tell about Mason or Malcom's whereabouts her phone would have rung. She nodded her head and picked up her fork and took an extra big bite to emphasize she was going to do as she was asked.
When they were finished Sam stayed in the kitchen to clean up and she and Sookie went into the living room. She laid down on the couch and Sookie sunk into the big chair and after a few minutes of staring out the window, at the phone through the living room door at the stairs she said " All of this quiet is to much you know? After everything that happened last night I didn't expect things to be so calm but so tense at the same time. I hate waiting around doing nothing while someone else gets to decide when to drop the other shoe. It's infuriating!"
" Malcom is having to much fun fucking with my head, he thinks Alcide is dead, that I am devastated and he knows that making me wait to find out Mason's fate will only intensify my misery. He wants me to suffer. He also wants me to react, to act out, to do something stupid or impulsive to give him the upper hand. If this were five years ago, I'd have given him what he wanted, damn any and all consequences. I'd have gone after him with everything I had and let the chips fall where they may. I didn't care about anything but getting revenge and in the end Alexander lost his life, that was one casualty to many and there are many more at risk this time. I won't have any of your blood on my hands, I can't risk any of you getting hurt."
" Especially not my kid" They both turned their heads to the sound of the voice, Alcide was standing in the doorway. He looked rumpled and worried but surprisingly whole. Sookie looked from Alcide to Rebecca and back again, her posture was defensive but Rebecca knew there was no need, there was no threatening vibe coming off of Alcide at that moment. He was disgusted with himself, afraid he’d hurt her and trying to mask what remained of the physical pain he was in. “ Becca?” He took two steps toward her and then stopped. She stood and went to him stopping within an inch of his body and put one hand over his heart and reaching down with her other to clasp it into one of his. She looked into his eyes and smiled, tears filled her eyes “ You came back to me” she sent to him and his body shuddered and his tension went with it. He squeezed her hand and she melted into him. His other arm came around her back and he held onto her tightly, breathing her in “ I told you I would”
“ Not without scaring the shit out of me first!” She pushed into him and he let out a small grunt.
“ Well it ain’t exactly easy to get your body and mind to cooperate when it’s been sliced and diced and kicked to shit.” He kissed the top of her head and gave Sookie a slight smile. “ Thank you for not giving up on me, I kept hearing your voice but it took me a while to really hear it, to focus and get a fix on it so I could follow it and I was almost there when I felt this shock go through me and I was rushing back into my body.”
“ She shocked your ass with a bolt of lightning, we thought she was nuts and that you were dead.” Sookie babbled on from behind, both of them listened with silent amusement as she told her point of view on the events of the night before. Rebecca rested her head on Alcide’s chest and closed her eyes, she was so very tired, her body ached, her mind was running wildly from one scenario to another, one potential problem to another, every other potential heartache. Alcide’s already hurried heart skipped a beat inside his chest and while she knew Sookie’s graphic detailed description was saving her from having to find a way to convey it all herself she also didn’t want him getting to worked up and upset. They had eternity to rehash his death and rebirth but right now she wanted to let go of the thoughts of almost loosing him, even though the thoughts were false they still sent a shudder through her.
“ Sookie, I got to thank you and Sam for looking after me, and after Becca.” Sam had come silently into the room, staying behind them leaning against a table on the wall near the entrance to the room. Rebecca knew he was on alert, just in case Alcide went all wolf on them again. She couldn’t blame him and frankly she was glad to have someone else on alert for her mind had to many other things to focus on. “ I guess I have a debt to pay to Bill, Pam and Eric to. I am grateful to all of you.” Some of that gratitude would be hard for him to swallow for a long time to come but he believed in giving credit where credit was due and he knew that without the five of them helping her take care of him and taking care of her as well he’d be in far worse shape than he currently was. “ I was half out of it but I heard enough from earlier to know you can spell me, to keep my from doing what I did to you earlier again?” She nodded. “ Well then lets get to it, I don’t want to be in that place again, being totally out of control, not able to reel myself in, to know I was hurting you and couldn’t stop, “ he paused, shook his head and cleared his throat. “ I’d never be able to live with myself.” She lead Alcide over to the couch and motioned for him to sit down. “ You wait here, I am going to go gather what I need to make the potion and cast the spell.”
“Sookie can you go into the kitchen and get Alcide something to eat and a big glass of tea with no ice?” She looked to Sam who gave her the look that said he would be staying right there keeping an eye on things. She grabbed Alcide’s chin and lifted his head to look at her. “ Everything is going to be okay, I am okay, you are alive and I am alive and we are not going to dwell on what happened in that bedroom earlier. Do you hear me Alcide?” He blinked twice, sighed inwardly and then nodded his head in agreement. When she stared at him long and hard enough for him to break down and give her a slight smile she let his chin go and backed off.” I’ll be back in a couple of minutes. I promise it won’t hurt. ” She followed Sookie out of the living room and moved quickly down the hall through the library and into the alter room. She gathered her ingredients and put them in the mortal and pestle. The potion and spell would calm Alcide’s second nature and help him keep the wolf within under control until he was fully back within himself. It would keep all of the anger and ferocity from manifesting itself at the wrong time. He would still be able to shift at will but the wolf inside would not be able to overtake his human form. Once everything was blended she put her hand over the mortar and conjured the spell. When she returned to the living room Sam was in the same spot as she had left him. Sookie was sitting next to Alcide on the couch watching as he scarfed down the food in front of him. She sat on the edge of of the coffee table and motioned for Alcide’s glass, it slid towards her leaving a wet streak of condensation in it’s wake. Sookie snickered and shook her head, Alcide paused and lifted one eyebrow.” What? This is hardly showing off.” She poured the contents of the bowl into his glass and gave the glass a good swirl with her mind. “ Now drink the whole thing and don’t be a baby if it tastes like shit” Alcide swallowed the entire glass of tea in two big gulps, letting out a jeez that tasted like ass gak at the end. “ Whenever you feel yourself getting out of control a little switch will flip inside your head and body that allows you to pull your wolf self back in. As that uncontrollable feeling starts to fade the spell will to. It’s a variation of what i have been taking to keep the fire inside me from boiling over. You will be fine now.” She knew what was going through his head, the confusion that came with what he was trying to deal with. She wished she’d been strong enough to do this for herself back then, perhaps she wouldn’t be in this predicament if she had. “ You finish your dinner and then we are going back upstairs. I am going to run you a hot bath so can soak the rest of the sore away. Most of his wounds were healed over but she still wanted to get a good look at all of him to make sure there was nothing that still needed some magical assistance to finish healing. “You know you just want to get me naked” He sent to her with another arched brow and her favorite smirk. She shook her head and was about to respond when the phone rang behind her making her jump and jerk her head towards the sound. Sam got to the phone quickly and answered it. “ Keane residence.” he listened to the person on the other line for a second and then sent her “ It’s your Uncle Buzz” Do you want to talk to her yourself Buzz? No? He continued to listen for several minutes, Rebecca wanted to grab the phone but she stayed put, Alcide’s hand was grasped around her wrist and he was speaking to her in her head. “ Keep calm, let Sam get it if he wanted to speak to you he’d have had Sam hand you the phone.” She stayed put and watched the rise and fall of Sam’s expression.
“ Okay no I got it. I’ll rely the message. Yeah she’s good, one tough chick.” Sam smiled “ yeah you’re probably right about that. Alcide is up and awake. Looks like shit but he’s alive. No worries Buzz we got it under control here.” another pause, another smile” Yeah well I’ll look forward to that.” Sam nodded a couple more times said his farewells and put the phone down. “He says that the mess at the warehouse has been cleaned up, they’ve caught up to all but a few of the pack that sided with Malcom, Crawfish and a couple of Alcide’s crew just caught up with one that they think will lead them to Malcom and Mason. They know he hasn’t gotten far but Buzz and your Aunt think he must be being added by a witch, every locator spell they try to cast is blocked. Elva is livid and Buzz fears for who ever the witch is, she is surely going to feel the wrath of your Aunt when she or they are found.”
She could imagine how angry her Aunt was, she was already upset that she wasn’t here in Bon Temps. She had instructed them that under no circumstances were they to come here. Buzz being here was bad enough, but her battle with him and been lost and in letting him come he has reinforced her desire for the rest of them to stay away. The more reinforcements she brought in the more Malcom would have known he was right the more enraged and desperate for revenge he would have become. They could do much without the fear of being hurt exactly where they were. “Whomever it is may be helping under duress. It’s highly likely they are being forced into helping or have no idea what they have gotten themselves into. I can’t imagine any Witch in her right mind with all the information in front of her would choose to go against my family. Did he say anything else?”
Sam shook his head“ No just that he would call again when he had more information, if they got anything out of the Were about Mason’s location and that when this was all over he wanted to buy us all a round of drinks at Marlotte’s. He said he couldn’t wait to get all the way back to New Orleans for some hard liquor”
“ I think we could all use a good shot or two” Sookie said smiling at Sam who nodded and ran his hand though his hair. From the back of the house they heard the two doors open. Somehow the day had drained away without them seeming to notice. William, Eric and Pam were standing in front of them in seconds. They all surveyed the room and the humans in it.
“ William, Eric, Pam did you all sleep well?” They all looked at her like she was nuts and then looked at one another but only Eric replied to her question. “ Pam and I slept quite well. I can’t speak for Bill.” The two shared a look of disdain but gratefully William didn’t bother to respond.
“ I spoke to your Uncle, he has updated me with all he knows. The wolves that remained last night have been taking turns resting at Sookie’s but they all returned to the woods at nightfall. Jessica is in town, from what she has told me everything is business as usual. She Jesus and Lafayette are at Marlotte’s if they keeping an eye on one another. I don’t think Malcom intends on bringing anyone else into this.
“ He is focusing on those he knows will hurt me most. Going after the people in town would not thrill me but killing Alcide, torturing Mason well that will do far more damage in a shorter amount of time. If he was going to go after anyone else here it would be someone in this room. But he is far more likely to try and get at my family first. I am sure that is what he plans to do once he has ridden himself of me.”
A course of protests rang through the room, nothing was going to happen to her was the general consensus though Eric’s reply of "If he kills you I will find great pleasure in bleeding him dry myself" was by far her favorite.
“ Rebecca I have made arrangements for Pam and Eric to feed, if you don’t mind we will take our leave.” She appreciated William seeing to such matters and taking it outside of her home. She knew that they would not be far away, no chance they would leave and would return within seconds of her request.
“ Yes of course, please go. Happy drinking.” Pam spoke to her silently about calling Elva, Eric continued to look at her as if she were a prized cow and William surveying the room, those in it and the woods beyond the windows. They left as quickly as they came and once they had Rebecca stood “ Sam, Sookie, there is some very good scotch in the library help yourself to some. Alcide and I are going upstairs to get him cleaned up.”
There were no protests as she made her way though the room and she stood in the doorway waiting for but a second before Alcide stood to join her. They needed a moment alone and no one was going to keep her from that. They walked up the stairs in silence side by side touching slightly here and there and she felt the sparks running though her, stronger then ever before. They were bound before but now they had forever in front of them. When they got to the top of the staircase and turned on the landing toward their bedroom Alcide stopped. “ When Malcom drove that knife into my back the first thing I thought of wasn’t that I was going to die because I was damned sure that I was going to come back. No my last thought was of what his family had done to you and how the actions of others could make your snap and loose all sense. A part of me didn’t really understand all of that, not completely anyway, but in that moment when that coward stabbed me in the back and then he and his kids kicked and beat at my dying body I got it all. I have always had that sense of rage, that desire for revenge when it was called for and yet I have passed judgement on others when they have done the same thing. His family killed your husband, your child and you lost your mind with grief and that madness over took you, made you do things you might never have done otherwise and going into what I knew was a fight to the death I knew that I would do whatever I had to do to protect you. I had finally found a connection to someone that was worth killing for, worth dying to protect. I felt shame that I let Malcom surprise me with that knife, I’d swore that I wouldn’t go looking to die but I didn’t keep my mind on that, I just wanted to destroy him and because of that I was blindsided by the fact I was fighting with a man that had no problem fighting dirty. I doubt any opponent he faced would get a fair fight. I can understand his rage Rebecca, I can understand his desire for revenge because if I were him I’d feel it to. I do feel it for what he has done to my family, what he has put us all through. But the difference between us is he is a man with no honor, he isn’t doing this to avenge his family, he is doing this to feed his ego, his quest for power, for control, to feel he has won, that he is stronger and more powerful than anyone or anything else. He feels superior to us all but he deep inside he knows he isn’t any of those things, he will never be better than the Vampires and Witches he wishes to rid the world of and that fact has pulled him deep into his own brand of madness and for that more than anything else he has to die.”
There were monsters in this world but most of them weren’t the ones people pointed at or stood up and accused. Most people had no idea what a real monster was and while she knew that many would look upon her, who and what she was and what she had done and consider her a monster, and maybe they would be right to do so, she knew that there were others far worse than she could ever be. Lawrence Malcom was a the kind of monster that lived in both worlds,awake or asleep he would always be there. Until he wasn’t and it would be up to her to stop him. “ I know all the reasons why I wasn’t there and I do not blame you for wanting to try and take care of Malcom on your own but you have to know now that you are no more capable of killing him on your own than I am. In fact Alcide at the moment you are far less likely to be able to do it and while the idea of each of us protecting one another is a noble one if we keep doing it, if we keep shutting each other out and trying to take matters into our own hands we are just going to end up with the same results.”
“ Do you think we are capable of doing that?” she asked. She knew that as long as she was pregnant he would never agree to let her do anything dangerous and a day after having him laying dead in her arms she was unlikely to let him go head first into the fray either. He didn’t reply and she knew that his thoughts were the same as hers. She sighed and shook her head. “ Highly Unlikely” she said. They were undoubtedly doomed to repeat the same mistakes. “ But we have forever to try and get it right.” She moved forward and walked though the bedroom and into the bathroom where she sat on the edge of the tub and turned the water on full blast letting it heat up between her fingers. Alcide stripped down and climbed in behind her turning on the jets once he’d gotten himself situated. She turned and looked him over, running her eyes over every inch of his body, the bruises had faded, the cuts and gashes were healed, slight red marks on his dark skin were all that was left to show they had been there. He had been watching her watching him but suddenly he leaned all the way back and closed his eyes. Her gaze was making him uncomfortable and inappropriate thoughts had started to run though his head. Her mouth turned upward and she bit her bottom lip. She supposed that those urges wouldn’t be suppressed just because you had been killed and come back from the dead and while she knew it was probably best to not encourage them it was tempting to. Her desire to be near him was just as strong. She shook off her own pleasurable thoughts and moved down to the middle step of the tub, she rested one hand on the rim and laid her head on it while she let her fingers of her other hand run through the water in the tub. She made the water swirl in circles and sent fire into the water heating it even more. No natural water heater could get water hot enough for a Were.
“ That’s good” Alcide mumbled though veiled eyes. She reached across the tub watching the droplets roll across her skin and fall into the water below. She picked up a sponge and squirted some “manly soap” into it. She ran the sponge across his exposed knee and waited. Alcide lifted one of his legs out of the water and propped his foot on the her end of the tub. She started with his toes, resisting the urge to do this little piggy and worked her way up his leg taking long firm strokes. When she finished one leg she tapped it and it fell back into the water and was replaced by the other. She pushed herself forward on the step until she was in line with his chest and took to that task taking extra time to run a corner of the sponge across the well defined lines of his abs, when she got to his navel his hand came down and clasped hers. “ Better take care of the rest myself” She looked to him, his eyes were now open, wide and a bit of her smirk lined his mouth. She moved forward pushing her torso toward him but her hand downward and found his lips just as her hand found it's way between his legs. She kissed him firmly but with emotion, hoping it could convey in some small way how much she felt for him, she touched him to remind him that he was indeed very much alive, well and able bodied. His arms found there way around her and she gasped into his mouth at his touch and the feel of the water soaking though the fabric of her shirt. She threw her free arm around his neck and pressed herself to him, Her skin sizzled and her mind raced but her lips kept moving over his, when his tongue pressed through and found hers she moaned and gathered the hair at the nap of his neck in between her fingers. The water underneath Alcide started to shake and he pulled back from her embrace as his orgasm ran though him, their eyes locked and she tightened her grip on his hair refusing to let him move backward. Instead she pulled him back to her and held him there. His head moved down to her shoulder his lips pressed against the flesh of her neck, his canines extended and poked at but did not pierce her flesh. He whispered her name over and over, the feeling of his breath on her skin sending shivers though her she closed her eyes and held onto him so grateful that he was there, that their time together was not over, that he was hers. “ I love you” she said into his ear “forever and ever and ever”. She’d have stayed like that forever if it weren’t for the sound of her cell ringing in the bedroom. It didn’t dawn on her at first but when the second ring reverberated though the room she pushed back and jumped up. “ It’s Mason’s ring, It’s Mason’s ring” she said frantically running from the room and fumbled along the dresser until she found the phone under a towel that had been discarded there the night before. “ Hello, Mason??” From the other side she heard nothing at first after a moment she made out the sound of faint labored breathing. “ Mason, I know you can hear me. Please tell me where you are. Please let me help you.”
“Whatever he says do not come after me” She heard his voice, weak and raspy in her head. Malcom apparently still knew nothing of her connection to Mason but the only message he was sending to her was to stay away. She tried to probe into their connection but he blocked her from seeing anything that could help her locate him. He’d decided he would die rather than give Malcom the satisfaction of his capture being what brought Rebecca to him. The voice that spoke next made her skin crawl, it would be stuck in her head long after she had killed him, she would probably never forget it and at that moment she’d do anything to never hear it again in the context of her current reality.
“ Rebecca Anna Keane Benoit Sullivan such a long name, prestigious to in the Sup communities. You’re Dad and Husband Were’s, your father being one of the most powerful pack leaders of the last few generations, your Mother a supreme witch both of you coming from a long line of powerful witchcraft. How they must be proud of their daughter, their wife? Even though you renounced all that and have been living amongst lowly humans these last few years. Though I guess two of them are no longer here to shower you with adoration or show you their displeasure at your choices now are they?? And now you’ve lost a new love and soon from the looks of it you will loose an old one. I took great pleasure watching Alcide die, knowing that it would rip you up inside, expose weaknesses and to think I still have another killer card to play. You’re friend Mason has been taking quite the beating, the chains I’ve put him in have slowed him down some but I’m pretty sure if I gave him an inch he’d rip my throat out.” She heard the sound of chains rattling in the background and then Mason sucking in his breath and then letting out a angry hiss and he struggled against the chains, desperate for any opening any chance to get his hands around Malcom’s throat, to drain him of every ounce of his blood.“ Yeah he definitely wants to kill me” Malcom chuckled. “ I’m assuming you’d like the chance to get your protector back am I right Rebecca? Yeah I am sure you do and I am going to give you that chance, seems the sporting thing to do. I know your Uncle and the rest of Alcide’s pack is looking for me it would be best for Mason if they didn’t, so tell them to stand down. Be ready the next time this phone rings I’ll be ready to end this.” He hung up the phone but not before she caught his mind say “ end you”
She let her hand fall to her side, clutching the phone inside it, she wouldn’t be putting it down for a moment until the next call came. She turned to find Alcide standing in the bathroom doorway questions lined into his brow.
“ Mason is still alive, Malcom thinks you are dead and he wants me to call off Buzz and Crawfish and the rest. If they succeed in finding him he’ll kill Mason. I have to keep this line clear he said he would call here again and that I should be ready when he does. ”
“ We’ll be ready” She nodded and watched as Alcide hurried to dress, “ I’ll go downstairs and get the calls started. Buzz isn’t going to be happy”
“ No but he will do it, he won’t want to risk Mason’s life. I need a minute.” She willed Alcide to go, to leave her and after a long pause of uncertainty he nodded and walked out of the room.
Once she was sure Alcide was down stairs she walked across the room and into the closet, Emmy and Saffy were sitting in on their perches, she gives her head a pop to the right and both cats hop down and head to the shelving unit in the middle of the room on the left side. She reaches behind the dress hanging from a hook between two cases and presses one of the decorative buttons that circled the outline of the hook. The case opened outward revealing another room behind it. She stepped inside, yet another new feature to the house, a panic room. If there were any strictly humans in her home right now she’d probably be sticking them in here but for now she sat the girls up some food and water and spent a few minutes checking to make sure that everything that needed to be in there was, she would have to lock down the alter room when she went downstairs to. “ I am sorry girls but this is the safest place you two to be for the moment.” they both looked at her wearily but didn’t make any attempt to follow her out of the room when she exited. They were protected by magic but still, she wanted at least on precious thing in her life to be safe and right now protecting her familiars was the best she could do. If anything happened to her Mason or Elva would retrieve them and make sure they were well cared for. She walked back out into the bedroom and standing in the middle of the room she took a long last look, her sanctuary, the home she’d always longed for. If she had known a few months ago what she knew now, what coming here would mean, what it would cost her, would she have done it? She supposed she would have, her regrets sadly were many, but this was her Grandparents home, their personal piece of heaven on earth. It deserved to be restored and loved the way it should have always been. Beside she thought as she made her way down the stairs, there was always the chance that her past would have caught up with her regardless, at least here she’d found a touchstone, a fortress for which to find the strength within to fight. This place had brought her to her other half, to good friends, brought her back to her family, to the magic inside her. No there was no way she would take it back from ruins to renewal, she was just as born again as this house and like it she had weathered many storms and they would stand tall together for a very long time. She found everyone in the kitchen Alcide talking to someone on the phone, it couldn’t have been Buzz or Crawfish neither of them would have given Alcide guff and there was only one other person Alcide would be talking to, she put her hand out and motioned for him to give her the phone, he handed it over gladly exhaling loudly and rolling his eyes. A look of “ women” passed between him and Sam.
“ Elva” she said into the phone and then pulled it aways slightly as her Aunt was ranting loudly in Spanish. “ Elva STOP IT” the other end went silent. “ “Listen to me there is nothing left to go rounds about, everything has been said, we all know our place, what needs to be done. You will squelch that fire inside you, find a better purpose for it. Stand in the present but be prepared to bask in our tomorrow. We are Benoit’s, Keane’s we know glory and we have been blessed by the Goddess’s hand. I know that I have failed you and our coven and for that I will need to make amends and pray that in time I will be welcomed fully back into the fold of their arms. I have no fear that I will persevere, I feel surrounded by the good will of those who have come before us and they will keep me. Do not fear for before the sunrises on tomorrow I will have ended this and we will be free. I love you, be safe.” She hit the end button on the phone before her Aunt could respond. Three sets of eyes were focused on her, Sookie’s mouth was partially open and it shut quickly when Rebecca’s gaze caught hers. “ Some people you can’t give a moment of breath to or they will be wound into a whirlwind of non stop chatter.” She smiled at them all “ Thank you three for being here with me. I am grateful. Now if you’d excuse me for a moment I have something I need to take care of.” She moved through the room without looking back and walked purposefully into the library and through it into the alter room, she stood in front of her alter and with a flick of her finger tips brought a candle to life. “ I pray for the protection of those who I call friend, those I call family, those who I call beloved. I ask that the sins of my past not fall at the feet of those in my present and I ask for the strength to see this journey though. I ask for forgiveness for my acts of madness and for what must still be done” She put the candle of black onto the candle of red and lit it. “ My path be winding, my path be long, my path holds two sides one of right and one of wrong. My path be blessed, my path be light, my path will lead me to the way that is right.” She closed her eyes and said a silent blessing for everyone she knew and one by one the candles in the alter room came to life, one for every head and hand of those she held dear. “ Time passed she wasn’t sure how long but after a while she felt Alcide slip into the room and stand still in the corner, watching her, watching the candles, feeling the electricity in the room rise, she could feel him feeding off of it, letting it wash over him willingly. Finally when she raised her head from her prayers and her body relaxed he spoke. “ You have the hum of the earth inside you, the very life force of our world beats in your heart, runs through the blood in your veins. You are a walking, talking miracle. How is it that I am connected to you?” the cord between them vibrated with Alcide’s emotion and as she moved toward him it grew thicker, brighter. “ I am nothing but a woman, blessed with a gift, one that I have tried to break free of, one I have taken for granted but one that is as a part of me as this hand, “ she cupped her right palm onto his cheek, “ this heart” she reached for his left hand and brought it to her chest. “ this soul” she sent waves of emotion into Alcide, love, admiration, passion, gratitude, respect, acceptance. “ I am just as lucky to have you, we are our own people but together we are something more than whole.” He wrapped her up in his arms and held her close. Outside she could hear her Grandfathers’ clock start chime the hour, her heart skipped a beat with each chime, right before the final chime, the one that would signal midnight, the witching hour. She pulled back from Alcide and gave him a sweet smile. “ I hate to break away from this lovely moment but I can’t wait any longer, nature has been calling for a while now” she laughed an untangled herself and once they were both out of the room she called on fire to have care with the candles still alight throughout the room and shut the door. Silently she moved her lips though the spell to keep it closed from anyone but her “ You won’t be able to enter until this is over and I release the spell, I hope you understand”
“ Don’t want family secrets falling into the wrong hands, I get it.” He followed her out of the room only to run into Sookie in the hall. “ You heading the same place I am heading? “She sent Sookie a picture of a toilet and her friend nodded, You take this one and I’ll run upstairs.” She moved quickly noticing that the Vampires had returned. They were standing just outside the opened front door, Pam on one side of Eric, William on the other. They were looking out into the night but Eric had turned his attention to her, she gave him a slight nod as she passed by and she felt his eyes following her up the stairs and down the landing only removing themselves from her retreating back when she was out of sight. She closed the bedroom doors just as the phone in pocket started to vibrate, she put up a wall around her before answering it, no prying sup ears” Hello?” she kept her tone even, no trace of emotion.
“ Rebecca, he held the c’s between his teeth giving them a hard edge that made her cringe “ Do you remember the first night I saw you?” Malcom let out a soft chuckle and she almost gagged. She knew exactly what night it was. “Well I am there and I am waiting. Come alone, no wolves, no vamps, don’t bring any of your new friends with you or I’ll have to kill Mason before you get the chance to say goodbye” He hung up. The first night he saw her had been the night he’d trespassed through her land, Alcide chasing him through it, the night he’d ended up seeing her with Jason. The thought that Malcom had seen her to made her sick but it also filled her with rage. She did what she came upstairs to do and while washing her hands she looked at her reflection in the mirror above the sink. What she was about to do could not show on her face, she could not send out any signals and she couldn’t show her hand in any way. She had to seem worried, slightly agitated and unsure not as if she knew what was coming next, even though she did and was ready to face it. As she made her way back down the stairs she saw that everyone had made their way onto the porch, they were talking in a low voices amongst themselves. Something about the woods being eerily quiet, something about things being not quite right. Rebecca stepped outside and went to the front of the porch. “ All is still, all is right, nothing amiss in this black night.” She turned and smiled at her friends and returned an intense look in Eric’s direction.
“ Something feels off Rebecca, the woods are to quiet no sign of your uncle’s pack.” William looked at her questioningly. How could she not feel the same things as the rest of them. He knew something wasn’t right. He wanted to go out to investigate and could feel his body start to hum but she squashed his desire to dash off with a hand to his arm.
“ They are out there, they are watching but they are now cloaked with magic.” she sent reassuring vibes through the people in front of her, using her abilities to control the mood to convince them she was telling the truth when in fact the wolves were not in woods, they had pulled back right before midnight at Buzz’s direction and her insistence, the words she had spoken to Elva would have set everything in motion, quickly quietly her plan would have been put into place. Malcom needed an opening and she wanted to be sure he was given one. She had predicted he would come to her, that his pompousness would lead him to believe he could fight her anywhere but that the greatest victory would to be to do it in her own back yard. He thought it was all his free will, his desire but most of the moves he made were dictated by a power greater than he could imagine. He thought he was in control but he was wrong. “ A spell was triggered when any outsider came to close to the grounds. Malcom must have sent someone here to check things out. The wolves can see them but not vice versa, the wards around the house put up a veil as well. I do not sense that whomever it was came closer than the main road though, a scout who was to afraid to do his job it seems or maybe just another way for that fucker to mess with us. He needs to get on with it already. I am tired of waiting.” Alcide put his hand on her shoulder and she let out a long exaggerated breath. “ Sorry my emotions all all over the place, not every day you have do deal with a werewolf with a vendetta, who’s holding your best friend hostage after trying to kill the man you love and is now making you squirm and driving you mad with the wait for him to make his next move.”
“ Well I suppose we should get used to it,” She looked at Sam who had a goofy grin on his face” I mean this will be over soon enough but we’ll have 9 mouths of pregnancy hormones to deal with right?” Rebecca shook her head but smiled and everyone relaxed a little at the joke. She took that moment as her cue to exit. “ Okay Smart guy I’ll give you that one but I’ll be keeping a tab for all of you on the pregnancy jokes you will only get so many before I’ll probably bite your head off,” She moved into the house “ I’ll be right back going to get me some water’ Alcide turned to go with her but she shushed him back. “ I’ll be okay be right back and when he still didn’t seem sure he wanted to let her go on her own she came forward and pulled herself up to give him a kiss on the cheek and a slap on the behind. “ No worries big fella, we’re good for now” and with a wink she pranced away down the hall and into the kitchen walking through it as lightly as possible her feet barely touching the tiles of the floor. The backdoor opened and closed without a sound and she moved through it and down the back steps. In her mind she repeated the same phrase over and over “ Close the circle, close the circle, close the circle and she could feel the protective seal she’d put around the grounds of Belle Vita start to move inward. From inside the house she heard Alcide call her name, she read the realization in his mind but kept her feet moving forward and her focus on her incantation. She heard the back door swing open and the sound of foot steps hitting steps, “ Rebecca” Alcide screamed her name and this time those in the front of it took notice and within seconds everyone was in the grass behind her. Close the circle, close the circle, close the circle and just before Alcide’s strong hands could reach out and grab her she felt herself move through the force of the field and heard Alcide curse as his attempt to grab her was thwarted and his weight hit the field and knocked him backward. “REBECCA” he screamed it into her head and this time she stopped and turned. She focused first on the three blurry shapes running to and fro throwing their bodies into the protective field, looking for any weakness and then her eyes met Sam’s and Sookie’s her face registering hurt, his understanding and then finally she made herself look at Alcide. Her chin trembled slightly and she blinked her eyes quickly forcing back the tears. He was furious, frightened, betrayed. Had they not just talked about this he sent to her, how could she do this to him, go at this alone. She took a few steps forward and put her hand up, the electricity of her fingertips touching the field sent sparks into the air. She waited, hoped his hand would meet hers but he just stood there looking at her defiantly, he wouldn’t give her that comfort. “ Forgive me” she whispered but his face didn’t soften, his stance remained rigid and when his eyes broke from hers and he took a few steps backward she turned and walked toward the woods. She could sense Mason now his aura called to her and she was drawn to it, her feet propelled her forward and though her heart stopped beating for a split second when the howl cried out in agony behind her she didn’t turn back.
“ Rebecca, you came. I was beginning to think you weren’t going to show and I was started to get pissed off but my friend here tells me you were just making sure your friends up in the house couldn’t follow you.” A tall blond figure came oozed out of the woods, a carbon copy of the vamp she had killed at Merlotte’s. Malcom turned to the vampire beside him and then back at her “ Rebecca Keane let me introduce you to Wilem, I believe you are acquainted with his brother Maarten. Wilem and his recently departed brother were passing through these parts looking for a women who’d been traveling with the vampire that killed their maker. Seems they weren’t quite convinced she hadn’t had anything to do with his death no matter how much the vampire that had staked him had professed she hadn’t known nothing of what he’d planned. They knew that their maker had found her quite intriguing and had planned on making her his. They had been away when their maker was killed and when they returned they were vexed to hear that the women was gone, they’d spent some time trying to track her down. One night in the woods here we came across one another, at first we were a bit confrontational with one another but after Maarten disappeared we got to talking and realized we might be looking for the same person and why not team up and pool our resources. Wilem here was able to worm his way into the good graces of a vampire women in New Orleans. One with a bit of a chip on her shoulder, one with ties to your friend Mason here. She was more than willing to give us a hand, spying on your Aunt and passing information along to us. She was quite helpful while she thought you were the only intended target. Seems you have a way of pissing people off Rebecca, something about you makes people want to kill you. But by the time she realized we intended to use her to get our hands on Mason it was to late. “ Wilem reached back into the darkness and with a cry and a hiss he dragged Silvia out into the moonlight. She to was chained and she was opening weeping. “ He came reluctantly, he probably knew what was coming but she was his progeny and he didn’t want to believe she would betray him. Or maybe he hoped that he could make a deal with me to spare you. But honestly there was nothing he could say that would have made me walk away. The thought of killing you is just to tantalizing.”
“ I am glad that plotting my murder has given your life meaning Mr. Malcom,, I like knowing that I have left my mark on people. Of course to hear you tell it it’s often in a negative connotation. But “ she shrugged” What can you do?? Can’t please everyone now can you?” She smiled sweetly. “ So what’s next? I am sure you want to savor the moment, I mean really relish in the fact that you have me here, alone although I’m sure you know far from defenseless.” she called on wind and it whipped around her sending the branches of the trees around them snapping back and forth, Malcom made a move toward Mason and Wilem grabbed Silvia’s chains pulling them hard sending her screams out into the night. She released wind “ Oh my bad “ she took a step back putting her hands up and out in front of her, the wolves in both forms took a step forward “ I guess I’m probably not supposed to use my powers. I mean if I do you will probably hurt Mason some more and I don’t want that. I apologize how foolish of me” Malcom’s face registered loathing, Wilem’s fangs were extended. Rebecca turned her smile to him “ You can kill her if you want, I assure you her life is over one way or another before this night is.” Silvia didn’t even look up, she just collapsed further into herself and continued to cry.
“ You think you are above it all don’t you girl? You and your family hovering over the rest of us as if you were gods? Thinking you are better than all of us? You’re coven with their pact with vampires, you’re father trying to bring all sups together as if we could be one big happy co-existing family. Wolves being forced to share the same space with vampires and witches and shifters. It’s disgusting, degrading to my kind. My lineage may not be as long or as prestigious as your’s girl but we sure as hell have no need to lower ourselves consorting with the likes of you and yours. You’re father was a race traitor and your mother sold her soul to the Vampire devils. You’re family is tainted girl and you, you have my families blood on your hands and I fully intend to get satisfaction for their deaths.” He rushed her then his anger propelling him forward and when he reached her his hand came flying out from his side and smacked her solidly across her cheek. Her head jerked to the side but she brought it back just as quickly and stared back at her assailant, he was breathing heavily his eyes ablaze he wanted to do more but he was forcing himself to hold back. She replanted her feet and pulled her shoulders back, the coppery taste of her blood filled her mouth, she had bitten her tongue, she waited a moment and then spit the contents out onto the ground in between them rolling her tongue across her teeth sending pain rushing through her body, it served as a reminder she was alive and to keep herself in control.
“ Good you can take a punch, I hated to think you’d be an easy kill” Behind them chains rattled as Malcom stirred in his bonds a wave of his pain went through her and the strength of it threatened to buckle her, she steeled herself and though she could feel Mason’s gaze was now upon her she didn’t take her eyes off of Malcom. He gave a nod and four bodies made their way under the tree.
“ Do you want a confession Malcom, do you want me to attest to my sins, bare my soul, lay all of my bad deeds at your feet? Where would you like me to start? How about my offenses to Silvia here? I was more bonded to her maker than she was and no matter how much she tried she could never break that, no matter how good my family was to her, no matter what Mason gave her it was never enough. I made him less of a vampire, I forced him to suppress his most basic of instincts and I had the audacity to assert my my own authority and not bow down to him or anyone else and for that she despised me enough to get into bed with the likes of you. Who’s next? How about Wilem, he looks as though he’s chomping at the bit for answers and I am more than willing to provide them. First of the vampire that killed your sire, Alexander was my lover but he didn’t lie for me. He killed your sire because he wanted to take me away from him and Alex had no intention of letting that happen no matter the consequences. It cost him his life and I suppose that while I was not directly involved with your sire's demise I am guilty by association, by the love that he had for me and by the word and bond Alex had with my family to protect me no matter what. As for your brother, I gave him fair warning, I gave him options, an opportunity to leave without any repercussions but he refused and since he was threatening my life and the life of a dear friend he died for it. Wilem’s face was twisted into a menacing snarl, his fangs were almost vibrating their desire to sink themselves into her flesh was so great. He came towards her in a blur but was stopped mere inches from reaching her by a stake being slammed into his heart. He stopped came into focus his eyes growing wide with realization and he turned looked at Malcom with disdain and then dissolved into a flow of blood and goo onto the ground between them.
She shook her head and gazed down at the puddle that used to be Wilem“ Sadly he did not see that coming, even eternity can’t fix stupid” she grinned widely knowing that she looked mad and not giving one shit about it. Malcom still holding the stake at the ready slowly put it to his side “ I told the son of a bitch not to try and touch you, you were mine. They all knew that. From above the sound of an owl echoed through the air around them. Rebecca looked up into the trees searching for the maker and found a pair of yellow eyes staring back at her from a few feet above Malcom in the big oak. The owl was almost as black as the night and it turned it’s head from side to side and then back to face her. Her grin got even wider. “ Mr. Malcom do you know what today is?
“ What the fuck does that matter woman?” when she continued to look at him as if she were waiting for a proper answer he smirked and said “ The day you die?” She threw her head back and laughed. “ Perhaps Mr Malcom Perhaps but no that’s not what I was referring to. You see today is All Hallow’s Eve, All Souls Day, Samhain or as most know it Halloween. It has been celebrated for centuries in many cultures, as a celebration for the end of the harvest, for the coming of winter, a day to remembrance for the souls that have crossed. The night of the year where the veil between the living and the dead is at it’s thinnest. Does the holiday have any meaning to you Mr Malcom?
The man shook his head but remained silent looking at her as if she’d lost her fucking mind. “ Not a God Damned thing Ms. Keane not until now. She took in the thoughts that went through his head each one of them more digesting than the next. He planned on having a very nice Halloween filled with lots of tricks and treats. Her being the barer of every single one of them. “Now now Mr Malcom those thoughts are very very impure you really shouldn’t be thinking such things, you never know who might be running around in your head, you might never know who they might tell and how those people would react if they heard what you wanted to do to me.”
From behind Malcom came a yelp and he took his eyes off of her and turned slightly, a blond wolf that had been there moments before was now gone. From beside Mason came another rustling of bush, another wolf gone.
“What the hell?” He pushed the stake into the back of his jeans and pulled out a gun in it’s stead. “ I told you no magic woman.” He turned to the men holding onto Mason’s chains and just as one of them started to pull a force blew him backward into the tree knocking him unconscious. The other three dropped their chains and took several steps back into the clearing away from the woods.
“ I am not doing a thing Mr Malcom, I am standing her doing exactly as you told me.” More rustling, More of Malcom’s men disappeared into the darkness of the wood. He marched toward her and put the gun to her forehead. His mind told her he knew that all of his grand plans were going to shit, that with each men that passed his chances of finishing what he started the way he intended grew less likely and his desire to make sure she died intensified. Malcom cocked the gun and Rebecca closed her eyes but the smile never left her face and just as his finger pushed backward to fire the round into her brain a growl came up from behind her killer.
Rebecca opened her eyes and the smile that framed her face turned from one of madness to one of shear joy. Malcom was frozen in place not sure what the hell had come up behind him. “ Mr Malcom I would like to introduce you to my Father, August Benoit. Daddy this is Mr. Lawrence Malcom the man that wants to kill me. I believe you knew his Father and a couple of his half brothers.” The gun came out of Malcom’s hand and fell to the ground below with a clang. August Benoit in all his ghostly wonder now had the man by the throat, his wolf nails digging deeply into the mans neck. Rebecca took a few steps back and surveyed the scene around her, family members, friends and one dearly departed husband surrounded her. Christian was the only one who was not occupied with a enemy so it was he who after looking at her with eyes filled with love walked over to the Oak and started to free Mason from his bonds. She turned her attentions back to Malcom. “ I know you like to think me a liar so I want to make sure that you and I are clear on something. I promised you that I wouldn’t bring any of my new friends or my Uncle and his pack. I kept that promise. But you sir never said anything about old friends and family.” She walked over and stood in front of the man who moments ago held a gun to her head, who had been torturing her for the last few months who had killed the man she loved. He had no idea that she would have come back, that he did come back, that any of what was transpiring now. Now his intentions had been to annihilate all that she held dear. “ I know what your plans were for me had this whole evening gone as you had envisioned and I know that my death would have been slow and agonizing and you would have taken great pleasure in watching me cling to life. I also know that you wouldn’t have stopped once I was dead. That you would have gone after my family, it wouldn’t have ended with me. I am going to do for you what you wouldn’t have done for me. I am going to kill you fairly quickly. But first I want to let you know that anyone in this world that you may have spoken to, any one that holds the same vendetta against my family because of your venom has been taken care of. They have either been spelled or glamoured into forgetting everything you have told them or they are dead. Also rest assured that any information they had was taken from them before their memories or lives were taken. Well with the obvious exception of those who are here right now but I assure you they will be taken care of soon just as you will. You desire to be remembered as a force to be reckoned with will die with you. No one will remember you, no one will mourn you, no one will remember you ever existed. I can tell by the furrowing of your brow that that upsets you, that that is probably the absolute worst of outcomes as you spent far to much of your life being cast aside, left behind, seemingly forgotten to know that your death will bring more of the same must break your itty bitty blackened heart. Malcom struggled in her father’s arms realizing now he has nothing left to loose and might as well give getting at her one last go but he’s quickly pulled back and held in place, this time not only by the strength of her father’s bulk but by the roots that have wrapped themselves around his feet. “ I am going to give you one thing before you go, throw you a bone, as a Werewolf I am sure you can appreciate that” Her Dad clears his throat in protest but doesn’t say anything as she winks at him. “ Most of the charges you leveled against me I am guilty of. After your Father and brothers killed my Father, my husband and my daughter I went after them. One by one in various places around this great country of ours I ended them where they stood. I was mad with grief and with a need for vengeance, something I am sure considering your actions the last few months you can totally understand. I have very little remorse even now for what I did. I am sorry for the consequences my family and friends have had to bare because of my actions but I can not say I am not happy those men are no longer here. Your family’s blood line is tainted with an all consuming hate for everyone who is not exactly like you. Perhaps I should’t have made myself judge and jury and one day I may very well have to pay for taking their lives in my hands but I will deal with that if and when the day comes. But I can assure you know matter who may stand in judgement of me they would NOT have made my family or friends pay my penance. If you had come just for me maybe things would have ended up differently for you but no you had to get greedy. She placed her hands on each side of Malcom’s head, sending pictures into his brain. The details of the deaths of her family at his families hands, the deaths she inflicted upon them in return, the images that now flooded her brain coming from Mason, the torture, the pain and lastly his fight with Alcide and the knowledge that despite his best efforts he had failed at taking him away from her. “ He’s alive you cowardice son of a bitch.” and with that she moved further into his head and found the symbolic switch that made his brain tick and shut it off. His face went from startled to blank in the blink of an eye and all life left him. Her father held up the lifeless shell of the man until she gave the nod and then let him fall to the ground. He grabbed her up into his arms and held her tightly, she returned the strength of of his embrace and left a deep sobbing breath go into his chest. “ You’ve done good girl!” he whispered into her ear and then pulled back examining her.
“ Thank you Dad, you will never know how happy I am that you were able to come.” A sharp pain ran through her and caught her breath and her head whipped around to find Mason’s legs had been freed and Christian was working on his right arm. Her father ran to Mason’s side and took the weight of his left side onto himself while Christian finished freeing his remaining arm and was down on the ground before it started to fall. Both men put the vampire down slowly. Mason was in a lot of pain, but having the silver off had already eased that enormously. “ Mason” she whispered as she ran her hand across his face, sending calming comforting vibes through her fingertips. “ You know that him having you, doing this to you was more likely to do me in that that gun right? You have really got to stop trying to do every damned thing by yourself. You will not get martyrdom in my name old friend” He looked at her with half of one eye, the other was still completely swollen shut and sent a string of curse words into her head. She laughed and took his open hand and then as carefully as possible she moved forward into him and kissed his cheek. “ yeah yeah I love you to.”
“ Anna honey we ain’t got much time” She looked over to her Dad who was looking up into the tree the black owl still sitting there watching, this time it’s eyes were glued on her father. She turned to Christian and grabbed him up, revealing in the feel of his arms once again around her. She kissed him and thanked him and let their moment of togetherness wash over her, fill her up. “ Come on we need to hurry” he said. She let him pull her up and take her out of the clearing and down the trail a while into the woods, off to the side she heard footsteps and then two figures emerged from the brush. Her Grandfather and her daughter. She sucked in her breath, she hadn’t expected this. This hadn’t been a part of the plan but there he was. Her daughter ran to her and she bent down to grab her up in her arms, holding onto her tightly, breathing in her scent, kissing her cheeks, her forehead, the tip of her nose. She remembering how wonderful she felt being this beautiful, talented, smart girls Mother. “ Hello Momma” Sage whispered “ I’ve missed you.”
“ Oh my dearest baby girl I have missed you to, I am so glad you got to come to see me.” She reached out and touched her Grandfather’s cheek,Etienne smiled, took her hand and kissed it. “ Rebecca” Christian called from behind them. “ they can’t hold it any longer. We have to go.” She hugged her daughter once again and then turned toward her husband. “ Sage sweetheart you have to go with your Dad now.” She expected a fight, in the old days that is what she would have gotten but on this night Sage unwrapped herself from her Mother and turned her body towards her Dad so he could take her up in his arms. She had known her time would be brief, Christian had explained it all to her, it wasn’t easy but she knew she couldn’t stay and that holding on any more would just hurt their hearts more. “ I love you both so very much” and she smiled at them as tears ran down her face. She touched Christians arm and then placed one last kiss on her daughters cheek. “ You two be safe, take care of one another, of Grandpa”
“ You take care of you Rebecca, be happy.” Christian smiled and then Sage chimed in “ and take care of my baby brother to!!” She giggled and Christian shook his head at his silly girl and then they were gone. She took several deep breaths and found her center before turning to her Grandfather “ I wasn’t expecting you but what a lovely sight you are.” She embraced him
“ Dearest Granddaughter, how could I stay away. A chance to see so many loved ones who have crossed over and to do what I could to protect the ones who remain earthbound with me. There was no other choice. “ they made their way back down the trail arm in arm. Her father was still holding on but almost everyone else was gone, their faces still etched in her mind but her chance to speak to any of them now gone. She thanked them all silently. Malcom still lay in the center of her circle but the rest of the men who were with him were no where to be seen. Her Uncle came into the clearing, a pair of loose fitting shorts hanging off his hips and gave her a nod “ All taken care of.” He nodded at August “ You take care brother!”
“ Dearest Granddaughter, how could I stay away. A chance to see so many loved ones who have crossed over and to do what I could to protect the ones who remain earthbound with me. There was no other choice. “ they made their way back down the trail arm in arm. Her father was still holding on but almost everyone else was gone, their faces still etched in her mind but her chance to speak to any of them now gone. She thanked them all silently. Malcom still lay in the center of her circle but the rest of the men who were with him were no where to be seen. Her Uncle came into the clearing, a pair of loose fitting shorts hanging off his hips and gave her a nod “ All taken care of.” He nodded at August “ You take care brother!”
“ Ain’t got no worries in the afterlife man, it’s all smooth sailing.” He turned to his father and they quickly embraced a look passed between them that conveyed many things, he then winked at her, nodded at Buzz and with one last look into the trees and at the black owl who's eyes met his it's eyes blinking slowly he faded away.
The black owl let out a screech and then descended into the clearing, landing at the north point of her circle, three more owls revealed themselves and landed in their places of south, east and west. One by one they transformed back into their human selves. Buzz and Etienne scurried around handing her Mother, Her Aunts Elva and Selene and her cousin Patrice black robes. “ Thank you gentlemen!” they covered themselves up as Buzz took hold of the back of Malcom’s shirt and one swift movement threw his body over his shoulder. “ Well everything seemed to go just as planned ladies, good job. Now if you don’t mind I got a bunch of bodies to dispose of.” All of the ladies turned and watched as he moved through the clearing, Buzz was not one for a lot of small talk when there was still work to be done. Noticing Silvia still lying on the ground at the edge of the clearing he turned and looked back at them and asked “ What about her?” Mason’s voice rang out from his place by the tree “ Leave her to me” Buzz looked to her and she nodded. As her maker it was his right to decide her fate. Silvia knew there was no use in running, that Mason would find her no matter where she went, no matter how many miles she put between them all he had to do was call her to him so she had remained there watching the events unfold, her eyes dark and empty. She was now looking toward Mason slowly she stood and made her way over to where he lay as she started to crouch down next to him, whimpering and whispering apologies and pleas for mercy, Mason reached out and grabbed her by the neck and brought her to him, his fangs extended and he sank them into her. For a moment she struggled like a rat caught in the grips of a python, her arms flailing in the air, her nails clawing into the bark of the tree behind her, her feet kicking and digging into the ground beneath her. But Mason’s grip just tightened and the more her drank from her the weaker she became. He didn’t stop until her body went completely limp in his grasp and then he let her go, she fell motionless into him and his eyes now wide open gazed upon her, his arms went to cradle her bringing her to his chest where he held her. No matter what she had done she was still his progeny, he had made her immortal and it hurt him to have to take that immortality from her. But there was no forgiveness for what she had done, she had betrayed him, dishonored their pact with the coven and showing her any mercy would only weaken his hold over the others. No Mason had no choice but he took little pleasure in what he had to do. He placed her gently onto the ground and then finding Malcom’s stake laying near his feet picked it up and plunged it into Silvia’s heart. Rebecca went to him then holding out her hand, Mason took hold of it and she helped pull him to his feet, and when after taking a single step forward and almost teetering over she said “ Lean on me dear friend, I am far stronger than I appear.” His mouth opened slightly prepared to put forward a protest but he closed it quickly and sent his thoughts into her head instead “ Yes dearest girl, it is quite clear that you are.” He placed his arm around her shoulder and together they walked toward her family. “ Temperance, Elva, Selene, Patrice” he gave each of them a nod of appreciation. “ It was ever so kind of you all to come to my aid tonight, I do apologize for all the trouble I’ve caused.” Rebecca knew she was the butt of the remark but she refrained from retaliation. Instead she repeated the sentiment. “ Yes thank you, for everything. I know that without the faith of my family all of this could have been far worse. I am grateful that you were willing to hear me, to believe in my plan.” There had been no phones, no e-mails no traceable communication it had all been conveyed from one mind to the other, nothing spoken aloud.
“ Rebecca my daughter, you can be a terrible pain in the ass but you are also one magnificent witch. We have been graced with many blessings, the Goddess has been good to this family and in the dark of this night, with the moon of the blessed day of Samhain hanging in the sky we once again find ourselves safe. I am grateful for that blessing most of all.” There were many other words that needed to be spoken, conversations to be had but they would wait for another night. “ Now lets get Mason back to the house, he looks like shit.” Elva took Mason’s other arm and placed it over her shoulders and together they walked slowly up the path back to Belle Vita. With each step they took her heartbeat quickened and by the time they rounded the last bend that lead into the clearing of the back of the house it was ready to burst it’s way out of her chest. Her mind was a tissy of thoughts, of fears. What and who if anything or anyone she would find waiting for her. As they broke through the last of the underbrush she let out a deep ragged breath of relief, her friends were exactly where she had left them and Alcide was standing in front of them all. His eyes quickly locking on her. Sookie and Sam looked relieve, Eric and Pam slightly bored, slightly impressed. She watched as a look of recognition crawled across William's face as he saw Etienne, most would have thought they were seeing a ghost but William knew all to well that his old friend was real. She released the protection spell from around the house and as soon as it evaporated into the night Alcide started to run towards her.
William and Eric made it to her first and they took Mason from her and Elva freeing her to be enveloped in Alcide’s arms. “ Are you okay?” he pulled back, his eyes held a million questions, he took her in quickly, grabbing at her shirt, staring at the blood on her clothes.
“ She’s fine son, none of the blood is hers.” Her Mother called from behind them.
“You must be Alcide? As strapping a young buck as Elva said you were.” She extended her hand “ I’m Temperance Benoit Keane. Rebecca’s Mother. I’d have liked to have finally met your acquaintance under different circumstances. Perhaps before you knocked my daughter up.” She looked at Alcide pointedly, her hand was still empty.
“ She’s fine son, none of the blood is hers.” Her Mother called from behind them.
“You must be Alcide? As strapping a young buck as Elva said you were.” She extended her hand “ I’m Temperance Benoit Keane. Rebecca’s Mother. I’d have liked to have finally met your acquaintance under different circumstances. Perhaps before you knocked my daughter up.” She looked at Alcide pointedly, her hand was still empty.
“ Take her hand Alcide” she sent to him and quickly he thrust his hand into her Mother’s. “ Humm nice solid grip, strong werewolf stock. You have a nice aura, good vibes. I suppose that you will do. Welcome to the family Alcide Herveaux you see that you take damned good care of my daughter. Keep her out of trouble if you can manage it.” she turned her gaze to Rebecca, “ I know that’s a tall order, but you look like you’re up to the challenge. Now lets give these two a few moments alone. Mr Compton, Mr Northman can you help Mason inside. Ms.De Beaufort would you please retrieve some blood from the basement." Her Grandfather stood silently gazing upon his old home, the splendor of it still catching his breath. He sent a thousand thanks to Rebecca and then as William and Eric started to move towards the house so did he, patting his old friend on the shoulder as their strides met and matched up. " Miss Stackhouse, Mr Merlotte could you please help us ladies get ourselves settled into Belle Vita. Some clothing? Perhaps a bite to eat. Casting can be quite exhausting" No one seemed at all surprised that her mother knew all of their names, nor that she went about barking orders at them. They all did as they were asked and she continued to talk at all of them as they made their way back into the house leaving her and Alcide standing there together, alone. Around them the woods started coming back to life, the crickets began to chirp, the mice began to scurry, a breeze picked up and rustled through branches of the trees,moved through the water of the lake making it ripple. She listened to the questions in Alcide’s head. She answered each and every one of them. “ So it’s over, really over?” he finally asked aloud.
“ Yes.” she replied. It seemed like such a short answer to such a complicated situation but it was the truth. Lawrence Malcom was gone, any threat he posed to her, to him, to their loved ones died with him. “ Alcide, I am sorry that I” He stopped her from saying anything else by placing his lips onto hers and kissing her with an intensity that makes her knees give out but with Alcide’s arms around her she stays upright and steady and she knows that this is how it will always be when she is with him that somehow no matter how far she falls into him she will always remain on solid ground.
“ Yes.” she replied. It seemed like such a short answer to such a complicated situation but it was the truth. Lawrence Malcom was gone, any threat he posed to her, to him, to their loved ones died with him. “ Alcide, I am sorry that I” He stopped her from saying anything else by placing his lips onto hers and kissing her with an intensity that makes her knees give out but with Alcide’s arms around her she stays upright and steady and she knows that this is how it will always be when she is with him that somehow no matter how far she falls into him she will always remain on solid ground.
“ You are forgiven” he says when he finally pulls his lips away and as he smooths the flyways the wind is whipping around her face and caresses her cheeks with his thumbs he looks deeply into her eyes “ And you are loved. You are so very loved.” She smiles up at him and grabs his hands and lifts herself up to kiss him again. A thrill runs through her and throws her head back and howls into the night. For the first time in years she is truly free, free to start again, free to be happy, free to give and receive love, free of her demons, her secrets, her fears. She knows she has been blessed, that while she had been immortal for five years and had had eternity stretched out before her she had been merely existing. Her life had not been a living one. She had been dead inside but now she was awake and alive and ready to bask in all of the wonders her world had to offer.
“ Shall we start our forever Mr. Herveaux?” He shook his head but the crooked grin she loved so much had already started to form in the corners of his mouth. He extended his arm and she placed her hand in the crook. “Ms Keane, I thought you’d never ask.” and together they walked back to Belle Vita and forward into their future.
“ Shall we start our forever Mr. Herveaux?” He shook his head but the crooked grin she loved so much had already started to form in the corners of his mouth. He extended his arm and she placed her hand in the crook. “Ms Keane, I thought you’d never ask.” and together they walked back to Belle Vita and forward into their future.
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| THE END |
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| FOR NOW |
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