Lifting the Veil: Chapter Six

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Chapter Six

“Someone out there knows of our bloodline.”

The words repeated continually in Sookie’s head as she walked through the deserted corridors of The Authority’s headquarters. The sun had risen hours ago, claiming all the vampires for the day and leaving Sookie alone with her thoughts.

As she trekked through the familiar halls, Sookie went over all they had discussed and knew thus far, which admittedly wasn’t much. Of all, she was most certain was the fact that someone knew of her bloodline, and they were being targeted.

But why? She asked herself. What is it they hope to achieve? How was it they discovered the bloodline existed?

That was the question she didn’t have an answer for, making it all the more mysterious.

Unlike some of the other bloodlines, Sookie’s wasn’t widely known. They didn’t advertise or brag. No one rode the coattails of their bloodline. Most weren’t even aware of who shared their blood. They were exclusive, elite. They were the direct descendants of Lilith, the mother of the whole Vampire race.

This was a claim no other line could allege.

While the Vampire Bible asserted all vampires were the Children of Lilith, the truth was a little more removed. The truth was, there were only two vampires who could claim to be the Children of Lilith.

The Children were Sookie and her vampire brother Warlow.

Sookie knew that for a fact. In the beginning, Lilith had made more children, many more, but she had soon realized her actions had dire consequences. She had turned those who were unworthy, those who were unworthy of the gift bestowed upon them by their Maker. Although it had deeply hurt her, Lilith had hunted her own undeserving children and sent them to their final deaths. Once she had done so, she then tracked down her children’s progenies and sent them to meet their makers. She had taken out generations of her bloodline, leaving only those whom she deemed worthy of her gift of immortality.

Her culling completed, she had called Sookie to her to impart her wisdom. She told her most beloved daughter that the blood was most sacred, and she must only turn those who called to her. Their revered blood was not to be given freely as it something to treasure. To do anything else would weaken them and their line. To become a Maker was a privilege, not a right.

It was a lesson Sookie had taken to heart and imparted upon her own Children.

“Somehow I knew this until I spent all those years as a human, forgetting all of it, and begged Pam to turn Tara,” Sookie grumbled. “If only I’d remembered then what I know now…”

Without realizing it, Sookie found herself turning into the passageway where the holding cells were housed. Her feet seemed to have a mind of their own as she walked closer toward the large door that led to the cells.

Entering the security code, Sookie waited for the lock to disarm before pushing the door open to step inside. She “heard” three voids in the area and let a small smile break out on her face as she realized just who and what were the prisoners.

The sounds of her footsteps against the stone floor were the only ones to be heard as she made her way down the small corridor. “They really should have the highest security here,” she said, as she stopped outside the first cell and peered inside. “Anyone could just walk right in.”

“Anyone just did.”

“Ouch! That hurt,” Sookie mocked, pouting and crossing her arms over her chest as she stared at a bemused-looking Eric.

Eric shook his head as he rose from the small cot he had been lying on and stepped closer to the cell bars. After she had left the interrogation room earlier that evening, Eric had thought of nothing but her. Despite all the pain, Eric couldn’t deny he still loved her. It had been mere days since she rejected him and had broken his heart. Love simply didn’t disappear that quickly; especially when it came to Sookie Stackhouse, and Eric knew it never would.

“What are you doing here?” he asked finally.

“Honestly? I don’t know,” Sookie admitted with a sigh. “I was just walking around and my feet led me here. I just…” she trailed off, struggling to put what she was feeling into words. “This whole thing’s crazy, you know? The veil lifting, me remembering, and Russell’s return. It’s just fucked up…” I’m fucked up, she finished silently.

Sookie ran a hand through her hair as she let out an unneeded breath. The strain of the last several hours was beginning to show. It was remarkable, the way she had held it together for so long. Remembering thousands of years worth of memories, and discovering your bloodline was being targeted might have sent any other vampire on a killing spree.

“You know what else is fucked up? I haven’t eaten in almost twenty-eight years. I’m so fucking hungry.”

Eric grinned while he listened to her rant, her words amusing him more than he could say. For a brief moment, everything around them disappeared and she was just Sookie again. She wasn’t the daughter of the mother of the Vampire race nor the eldest vampire alive. She was just Sookie, his Sookie.

Only she’s not yours, not anymore, he reminded himself. She would never be just Sookie again. She was so much more now, more than him. In the food chain, she stood atop them all.

“Stop it!” Sookie chided, drawing him from his thoughts. She may not have been able to read Eric’s mind; yet she could read him, and she had a good idea where his mind had just gone. “I‘m her, she’s me. There’s just more of me now.”

“I thought you couldn’t read our minds,” Eric replied coolly as he arched a brow.

“I can’t. You’ve just got that look on your face,” Sookie said. “The same one I had after you remembered, and we really shouldn’t be speaking of that here,” she added, as she caught sight of a camera in the corner.

“It is not as if I’m going anywhere,” Eric snorted, tapping a finger to the silver bars of the cell. He let out a hiss as the silver burned him, and he brought his hand to his lips, sucking his finger into his mouth.

Sookie whimpered as she watched Eric suck on his finger, her mind conjuring up images of him sucking on other things. “So not the time,” she mumbled to herself as she took a step backward.

Eric smirked as he heard her mumbled words. He had a good idea where her mind had gone. It was the same place his mind revisited numerous times over the last night. His few nights with Sookie were some of his happiest times in his undead existence. She had touched him in ways no other ever had and it was more than sexual with them; it was more than just sex. He had truly made love to her. He had loved her; he was in love with her.

Sookie let out a huff as she eyed the cell door. It was the exact same as the cell Tara was in; although Sookie realized Eric and Tara’s cells didn’t have the same security code. “Fucking technology,” she groused as she raised her hand and ran it lightly over the silver bars. A sizzling sound filled the room, and Sookie pulled her hand back quickly as whiffs of smoke curled round her burned fingers. “Fuck!” she cursed, “I forgot how much pain silver caused!”

“You have been silvered before?” Eric asked curiously. While almost every vampire knew of Sookie, or Eve as she was more widely known, few vampires actually knew her. All the information and gossip regarding her was that purportedly she was the birth daughter of Lilith as well as having started the war with the Fae over four-thousand years ago, massacring the ruling Prince’s tribe.

“More times than I care to remember,” Sookie replied with a shrug. “It’s been quite a while.”

“How long?”

“Since I was last silvered? A hundred and twenty-two years,” Sookie answered without even having to think. Seeing Eric arch a brow at her quick answer, Sookie laughed softly, “Let’s just say being silvered led me to a great discovery,” she told him before jerking her head towards the surveillance camera. “Now’s not the time to talk of that.”

Eric nodded in reply, understanding her point. Privacy wasn’t something anyone had inside The Authority’s headquarters. Surveillance cameras were hidden throughout the compound, even in the private quarters of The Authority Chancellors.

“I really hate this place,” Sookie sighed as she took a step back and cast her eyes over the area. “It’s so sterile and cold.”

“I think that is the whole point,” Eric said, his eyes following her every movement. “It is a cell block after all. It is not supposed to be warm and comfortable.”

“It should be. It might make prisoners far more terrified then,” Sookie replied with a grin. “It really fucks with their minds.” Spying a pair of gloves on a table a few feet away, Sookie let out a cry of pleasure as she picked them up and slipped them over her burnt fingers.

“I will have to try that,” Eric said thoughtfully before shaking his head at the absurdity of their conversation. He couldn’t believe he was basically discussing torture techniques with Sookie. As far as he was concerned, it was just more proof that she was no longer his Sookie anymore. The Sookie he knew would have been disgusted at the mere thought of torturing anyone. She would have stomped out after calling him a monster!

“Stop that!” Sookie ordered as she moved toward the cell. She gave Eric a sad smile as she wrapped a hand around one of the silver bars on the cell door, and pulled on it hard. Sparks flew into the air as the electronic lock on the cell was broken, and wisps of smoke curled around Sookie’s hand.

Eric’s eyes widened in surprise as he saw Sookie force open the cell door. “I can’t,” he reluctantly admitted.

Stepping back, Sookie invited Eric out of the cell with a wave of her hand. “I can keep telling you I’m her, but until you see it for yourself, you won’t really believe me,” she said, backing up further.

Eric took a second to stare at her before stepping out of the cell. Despite everything going through his head, Eric realized he wanted to believe Sookie. He wanted her to be right. He wanted her to still be his Sookie. “We’ll see.”

Sookie nodded in reply before turning on her heel and heading in the opposite direction from which she entered. She paused as she reached the cell next to Eric’s and shook her head as she saw Bill lying dead to the world on the small cot.

“How the hell hasn’t he met the true death by now?” Sookie snorted. “A death warrant was issued for him; he was dragged before the Authority, interrogated, tortured, and he lays there without a care, dead to the world.” Seeing the lack of blood the bleeds would have caused, she shook her head as she added, “He didn’t even attempt to resist the rising sun. He truly is an idiot. When you’re in enemy hands you don’t rest unless you absolutely must.”

Eric grinned as he listened to Sookie rant about Bill. It was very clear to him now that whatever feelings she may have had for the Civil War vampire were firmly in the past. She seemed to have nothing but disdain for Bill now.

Eric was sure Bill would neither like nor accept it, but, from the looks of it, he wouldn’t have a choice. Whatever hold the younger vampire had over Sookie was gone, and for the first time since Sookie had rejected him, Eric felt happy.

“The Authority is our enemy?” Eric asked.

“What do you think?” Sookie countered.

Eric nodded, but said nothing. There was no argument he could have made that Sookie would have believed.

“Fucking idiot,” Sookie mumbled, as she moved away from the cell toward the one at the farthest end of the block. Stopping in front of it, she let out a sigh before turning to face Eric and beckoned him forward.

“There’s something you need to see.”

A frown creased Eric’s brow as he closed the gap between them, wondering what she had to show him. His eyes widened in shock as he stopped in front of the cell and peered inside, his gaze falling on the dead-for-the-day Tara.

“What…” Eric began before trailing off as his nose picked up the unmistakable scent of his child. “Pam?” he growled, looking to Sookie for confirmation.

“Yeah,” Sookie sighed. “It’s a long story and here ain’t the place to tell it,” she added as she reached for Eric’s hand without even thinking. “Let’s go find some blood, and I’ll fill you in.”

Eric felt a shiver run down his spine as he felt Sookie’s hand in his. He couldn’t deny even to himself that having her small hand nestled in his much larger one felt as if it belonged there. Eric shook off those feelings before they could take hold of him. Now wasn’t the time to be thinking of such things. There may not ever be a time. She may have felt the same to him, but she wasn’t, and he needed that reminder.

She was no longer his little fairy. She was now the oldest living vampire on the planet.

Despite reminding himself of all that, Eric didn’t pull his hand away from hers. He cast the resting baby vampire a quick look before allowing Sookie to lead him out of the cell area. He had many questions, and he knew Sookie was the only person who could give him the answers.

At the top of the list was the reason why his child’s progeny was currently locked in an Authority holding cell…

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