The Road Not Taken: Chapter Two

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Chapter Two

It was several nights later when Finn finally arrived. Sookie had been monitoring their bond ever since she first felt his pain, sending him comfort and gently beckoning him home. The closer he came to her, the more concerned she grew; his pain was not diminishing in the slightest. Her child was drowning in his pain and Sookie feared for him, she feared what he might do. It was her fear that had her making sure Roman wouldn’t be there once Finn arrived.

Her eldest child’s attitude hadn’t improved a fraction from the time when he heard Finn was coming, and the last thing she wanted was for Roman to open his mouth to Finn spewing his usual jealous bullshit. Given the way Finn was feeling, Sookie didn’t doubt for a second that he would attack his brother if he did that very thing. Roman had been far from pleased once he realized Sookie didn’t want him there when Finn arrived, but Sookie refused to budge on the matter. She threatened Roman with a Maker’s command if he didn’t do as she asked.

Sookie knew she fostered some of the blame for Roman’s behavior. She should have nipped it in the bud centuries ago, but Finn and Roman rarely interacted so instead of doing the right thing and put a stop to it, she had done the easy thing and ignored it. Sookie was well aware that a large part of Roman’s jealousy was due to the deeper emotions she felt toward Finn. She had never been in love with the roguish vampire, but the feelings she had for him were more profound than the customary Maker/Child ones. Sookie held a physical attraction for Finn and she had from the moment she first set eyes on him nine hundred and twenty-two years earlier.

Flashback

Galicia, Spain 1062

A soft smile spread across Sookie’s face while she strolled slowly down the cobbled street. The moon was high in the night sky lighting her path and allowing her to see all the people who tried hiding in the shadows. Not that she needed the moon’s aid, she could see just fine without it’s glow, just as she could hear the heartbeats, smell the scents, and hear the sick and twisted desires of all of those who hid in the shadows. Those who were out that night had dark intentions in mind; they saw her walking alone and believed her to be easy prey. Their thoughts amused Sookie; they had no idea she was the true danger on those streets that night. She was the monster who waited in the dark. 

As she walked aimlessly down the street, Sookie thought about what had brought her to Galicia. For the last several turning of the seasons Sookie had felt a pulling sensation deep down inside of her, a feeling she had only ever felt twice before, but never with the same intensity. Something, or rather someone, was drawing her to this city and she was eager to meet him or her. 

Mercy, she is pretty. She will keep me warm this night…

Sookie hid a smirk when the voice popped into her head. She could see everything the man planned to do to her, just how he planned to use her to keep him warm. I am afraid you shall be disappointed; I will not be keeping you warm. Your blood, however, will warm me this evening, she thought. Sookie hummed a soft tune while she continued down the street, luring her would-be attacker into a false sense of security. She knew she had drawn the attention of many of the people milling around, but she did not care. If she desired, she could kill every single person on the street with ease, she was halfway tempted to do just that.

It had been a long time since she just gave in to the urges of the predator lurking inside her. She no longer killed for sport or for nourishment if she could help it. At her age, she had more than enough restraint just to feed from the humans who crossed her path. There was no honor in killing the defenseless or innocent.  Sookie was well aware that not every vampire thought the way she did. A faction existed out there that believed humans were nothing more than food. The faction in question was a small one, but it was growing larger by the decade.  

Just as she passed a darkened alleyway, Sookie felt a man step out of the shadows and reach for her. She let the man put his hand over her mouth and drag her into the alley away from the prying eyes of the humans on the street. Sookie felt as the disgust welled up inside of her while she listened to the humans continue on their way as if they hadn’t heard a thing. Not one of them would come to her aid, and she began to rethink her decision of resisting her urges to rip them all apart. There was no honor on those streets that night.  

The ancient blonde vampire feigned fear when her want-to-be rapist pushed her up against the wall, pinning her there while he tried to yank up her dress. As she listened to all his sick thoughts, Sookie couldn’t help but wonder why she preferred men as lovers. She had certainly had fun over the years taking women to her bed, her female lovers pleased her well, and she had yet to have a woman attempt to force herself on her… 

Well, no, that wasn’t quite true. There was that woman in Rome last millennia who attempted to force her attentions upon me. She was a horrid woman… Am I really thinking about this now? This cretin is attempting to rape me… 

Sookie let out a sigh of frustration; she really needed to stop her mind wandering in situations such as this. One night it would cause her all kinds of problems. “Will you please stop rutting against me like that?” She asked while she reached between them and grabbed the man’s hand that was between her legs. She smiled wickedly as she wrapped her small hand around his wrist and snapped it backward. Sookie delighted in the cry of pain that wrenched from her would-be rapist’s lips when she shattered his wrist.

The dirty-looking man stumbled backward clutching his shattered wrist in his other hand. His eyes were as wide as saucers while he stared at the small, blonde woman who had strength she shouldn’t have. Men were stronger than women were; it was the way of the land. The blonde beauty shouldn’t have been able to harm him in any way.

Sookie rolled her eyes while she listened to his thoughts. Not only was he a rapist, he was also sexist. She would enjoy killing him. She was only sorry she didn’t have time to draw it out and make it last. “I am much, much stronger than you,” Sookie said, replying to his unspoken thoughts. She did love using her telepathy to fuck with people. It amused her to no end. “In fact, I am the strongest person in the world… That is the way of my land!” Taking a step forward, Sookie backed him up further, like a lion stalking her prey. “You chose the wrong woman to attack, Ralph. It was very foolish of you…”

“How do you know my name?” Ralph said, a look of absolute terror shining in his eyes. There was something wrong with the woman before him. She was nothing like the women who usually walked the streets at night. He had taken his pleasure in a number of them over the years, and not once had one of them fought back. The blonde was an abnormal. He had heard whispers about those like her, but he believed they all lived far away where the Vikings dwelled. 

“That is not important,” Sookie replied dismissively. She might enjoy using her telepathy to fuck with people, but she sure as hell wouldn’t tell them about it. That was a secret trusted to only a select few, only those of her blood. “What is important is that you will atone for your sins here tonight… with your life…” Sookie let her fangs slip down into place, and then bared them. She could almost taste his blood on her lips and could barely wait. It had been several nights since she last fed, and while she could go much longer if necessary, she preferred to feed regularly on the chance she was ever in the position where she was unable. As she toyed with her prey, Sookie felt another presence in the alley. Whoever it was had concealed himself or herself further down, but not from her. She could hear them, smell them, and more importantly… she could sense them. She was being pulled in their direction. 

Ralph felt all the blood drain from his face when he saw Sookie’s fangs. He swore he saw his life flash before his eyes when he gazed upon what he was sure was his death. He whispered a prayer over and over pleading for mercy to anyone who would listen. In his own twisted mind he considered himself a good man, and didn’t believe he deserved he die for doing something natural.

Sookie wrinkled her nose when the scent of urine reached her.  She hated when they did that. It always ruined her meal when her prey wet himself or herself. She disliked Ralph more and more by the minute. “There is no mercy for you here tonight, Ralph,” Sookie said. “Only death!”

“No! Demon!” Ralph shouted, trying desperately to scramble away. He didn’t want to die. He was a good man and good men didn’t die. 

“She’s not a demon…”

A smile curled Sookie’s lips when the voice reached her ears. It was rough, yet commanding. She felt a thrum of energy go through her, and she knew without even having to set eyes on the speaker that this was the person she had been seeking. She had found her new child… and unless she was completely mistaken he knew what she was.

“That is a matter of opinion,” Sookie said, canting her head to the side and searching out her future child in the darkness. “There are some who would say I am the child of Satan himself…” It was a false accusation; Lucifer was most definitely not her father although, if the choice could have been hers, she might have chosen him over her actual one. At least Lucifer was honest about his hatred and he, unlike her father, had never betrayed her. 

“Opinions are colored by personal feelings, they’re baseless and easily swayed,” he replied when he stepped out of the shadows and into Sookie’s full view. “Facts are the basis on which I make my claim… You are no demon.” 

Sookie swore that if she still breathed her breath would have been caught in her throat right there. In all her years walking the Earth she had never seen a more handsome man, and considering she spent many centuries at war with the Fae, that was saying something. His dark hair, green eyes, and strong jaw covered in light stubble caused a tingling sensation in her belly. She felt the pull of attraction as well as the pull of a Maker to the man. She had never felt that before with her other children. She had lay with both Roman and Ana after she turned them as was the way of most Maker/Child relationships, but that physical attraction had never really lasted. Sookie had felt an attraction to Ana’s child Nero, but that was mainly due to the very fact that she had eyes; Nero was gorgeous! However, all paled in comparison to the pull she felt to the man before her.

“Tell me then, Sir, if I am not a demon as you say, then what am I?” Sookie inquired, wondering if he truly knew what she was or if he just dismissed the existence of demons. 

“She’s a demon!” Ralph cried foolishly convinced of the fact. Only a demon would have the strength and abilities she showed. She was a servant of evil sent to corrupt the righteous!

“Do be quiet,” Sookie chided, treating Ralph like a misbehaving child. She grabbed his non-broken wrist and pulled him back when she noticed him trying to scurry away. Not only is he a sexist and a rapist, it seems he is also stupid. 

“There are many things you might be,” he said, moving closer to her. “You’re undoubtedly the most beautiful woman I’ve ever set eyes upon. Your beauty must be a gift from the Gods themselves. You have grace and charm, and a strength that makes the likes of Ralph here look like a child in comparison…” He had been on the other end of the alley when he had seen the disgusting man snatch the woman off the street and drag her into the alley. He had been preparing to step in and save the pretty young woman when he noticed she didn’t need saving. He might not have been what respectable people called a good man. He lived a marauders life, he was a rogue, thief, killer, and a liar, but the one thing he wasn’t was a rapist. He had more honor than that.  

Stopping beside her, he ran his eyes over her taking in every last detail, determined to commit her face to memory. He could see her fangs peeking out behind her lips, and rather than being scared he was entranced. “I have heard many a tale whispered about a creature that only comes out at night,” he continued, his voice rough yet inexplicably holding a soft quality. “Legend has it; the creature walks beneath the twinkling night sky, never in the daylight, and it wears the face of innocence to lure in poor, unsuspecting souls so it can steal them away. Nightwalker is the name given to it by those who tell the tale…”

Sookie smiled at his story, it was a story she had heard before. Fables about her kind were beginning to spread across the world, but to many they were just that, fables. Despite being a superstitious lot, humans didn’t put much stock in the tales about the creatures who walked under the night sky. “Nightwalker… Is that what you believe me to be?” She wanted to know if he would accept what was before him, or dismiss it and pretend he wasn’t seeing the things he was.

“I’m sure you have another name for it,” he replied with a grin. “Regardless of the name, my eyes see what they see, and right now they’re seeing you have fangs…” As he spoke his eyes were drawn to her fangs, they fascinated him. He hadn’t spent a lot of time thinking about the tales he had heard, but he also hadn’t dismissed them as simple fables. He knew there was more to the world than his own little corner. 

Lifting his hand, he spread out his fingers and stroked his middle one over Sookie’s fangs before he was even aware of his actions. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but he didn’t expect her fangs to feel just like her other teeth. They were smooth, cold, and… Sharp, he hissed silently when he cut the pad of his finger on the point of her fang. 

Sookie purred at his touch. He had no way of knowing a vampire’s fangs were an erogenous zone. She could feel herself moisten with desire and she swore if he didn’t stop soon she would cum right there. A pleasure-filled moan spilled from her lips when she felt a drop of his blood hit her tongue, and she shuddered lightly as a small release swept over her. “What is your name?” 

“Finn Cassidy…”

“Well, Finn Cassidy, the name you are looking for is vampire,” Sookie replied her voice husky and filled with desire. “And this vampire is hungry…” she didn’t give him a chance to reply before she spun around and slammed Ralph against the wall powerfully. There was nothing gentle about the way she bit him, tearing into his throat, and drinking deeply. The man had earned his death by putting his hands on her and attempting to rape her. She would show him no mercy, as she held none for him in her heart. She could feel Finn’s eyes upon her as she fed and she wondered what his reaction might be. Would he be disgusted by what she was and was doing? Would he run? Would he stay? Sookie wasn’t sure. Whatever he did would not change the outcome, she was drawn to him, and he would be her child. Sookie hoped he would stay and accept what she was and what he would eventually be. For once in her existence, she wanted one of her children to see what she was before she turned them. She wanted them to want it as she had wanted it millennia earlier. She wanted them to choose the life of a vampire. 

Finn would be lying if he said he wasn’t scared by what he witnessed. The small, blonde woman was tearing out a man’s throat, and by the sounds she was making she was enjoying every second of it. However, as scared as he was, he was equally captivated, not to mention incredibly turned on, the bulge in his pants attested to that. He was rooted to the spot unable to look away and not really wanting to. He knew his life had just changed, for the better or worse was still to be decided, but he was ready for that change.

Sookie let out a satisfied purr while she took the last drop of Ralph’s blood and dropped his lifeless body to the ground. As one hunger was sated another rose up inside her; she licked her lips while she turned her full gaze to the aroused-looking Finn. “A vampire’s fangs are incredibly sensitive, stroking them is very pleasurable,” she schooled while she took a step to the left and backed up against the opposite wall. Sookie could detect the faint scent of his fear, but it was nothing compared to the scent of his arousal. She arched a brow while she cast her eyes over him, a smirk curling her blood-stained lips when she noticed his impressive bulge. “You are not scared.”

“Should I be?” Finn questioned; his tone hoarse. Whatever fear he had been feeling had been washed away in his arousal. He wanted her; he wanted to be inside her.

“Not of me. Never of me,” Sookie replied truthfully. She could be the scariest thing in the world, bring terror to all those who were foolish enough to cross her, but she never wanted one of her children to fear her, or one who would be her child. “I have no desire to hurt you…” 

“What do you desire?” Finn asked, moving closer. He knew what he desired and unless he was completely wrong, she desired the same thing. There was something incredibly erotic about a strong woman who not only knew what she wanted, but went after it.

“I desire to fuck you,” Sookie replied bluntly. She saw no point in denying it. She wanted to fuck him, she wanted him to fuck her, she just wanted to fuck. “Do you want to fuck me?” 

“Yes,” Finn answered simply. He wanted that more than he wanted his next breath, and considering what she was, he knew she was more than capable of taking that breath from him.

“Then… Fuck me!” Sookie partially invited, and partially demanded.

Never one to be told twice, Finn was before Sookie in a single step and crashing his lips to hers. He could taste the blood of her last meal on her lips and instead of feeling sickened by the taste; he found that he strangely liked it. There was something primal about the whole taste and feel. He swept his tongue into her mouth, tangling it with his hers while his hands reached for her dress and hitched up the skirt.

Sookie grinned against Finn’s lips, his touch was setting her afire and she craved more. She loved it when her partners were rough with her. She loved it hard, and from the feel of the way Finn was touching her she was about to get a nice, rough, and hard fuck. Despite her age and strength, most of the people she took to her bed treated her as if she was a delicate little flower. Even Roman treated her as if she was made of spun glass, easily breakable, when they were together which was not often anymore, that part of their relationship had fizzled out a long time ago, and they only came together out of familiarity these days. Finn’s touch, however, was anything but gentle, he saw her for what she was and knew she wouldn’t break if he held her too firmly.

The need to breathe forced Finn to break the kiss and he sucked in a breath before moving his lips to the smooth flesh of Sookie’s throat. He nipped and sucked on her skin creating marks that disappeared as quickly as they appeared. It was strange not to feel a pulse that signaled her life force, and it did give him pause, but before he could think of it too much he pushed it from his mind. Pulling up her dress further, Finn slid his hand between her parted thighs and explored the paradise he found there. He couldn’t hold back the groan when her felt how wet and ready she was. She was dripping over his fingers and he wished he had the time to drop to his knees and taste what he was sure was the sweetest pussy in the world. 

“As I told you, our fangs are especially sensitive,” Sookie said, her voice taking on a humorous quality at his groan. “Stroking my fangs turns me on more than rubbing my clit…” As she spoke she slipped her hand between them and made short work of opening his pants. She smirked at the hiss of pleasure she drew from him when she wrapped her small, cool hand around his rigid length. The feel of him in her hand suitably impressed Sookie, he didn’t have the biggest cock she had ever touched, but he was definitely packing enough that she would feel a nice stretch when he entered her. “Fuck me, Finn?” She demanded, removing her hand from his pants. She was in no mood for teasing touches or delayed gratification.  

Pulling his hand from between her legs, Finn grabbed hold of one of her legs and hitched it over his hip. The force of his grip would have caused bruises on a normal woman, but the beauty before him was anything but normal, she was extraordinary. The fabric of Sookie’s dress flounced between them and Finn wished he could rip the dress from her and feast his eyes on the body that he was sure was made for sin. Reaching a hand between them again, Finn freed his aching cock from the confines of his pants, and pressed the head against the opening of her cool, wet pussy. The coolness threw him a bit, he had been with his far share of women over his years, but none had every felt the way she did. It was different, yet good. As he stood poised to enter her, Finn knew everything was about to change, and he welcomed it. In one hard thrust, he entered her completely, driving himself deeply into her welcoming body. 

A cry of absolute pleasure tumbled from Sookie’s lips when she felt Finn’s cock stretch her. The roughness of his entry made her pleasure feel so much better. That was what she craved. She didn’t want gentle caresses or soft embraces, she wanted to be fucked and fucked hard. Lifting her other leg, Sookie wrapped it around Finn’s waist while her hands moved to his shoulders. She moved her hips in time with his meeting his thrusts and giving everything he gave back.  

Finn grit his teeth at the feeling of her tight cunt surrounding his cock. He was convinced he had found paradise between her legs, she felt that good. Moving his right hand up her body, he cupped her breast over the thin material of her dress, squeezing it firmly. Something told him she didn’t want soft and sweet caresses, she wanted firm, rough touches. She wanted to be fucked like the strong woman she was, and not the soft, delicate woman she looked like. Finn buried his face between the crook of Sookie’s neck, sucking and nipping at her flawless flesh while he snapped his hips and drove his cock into her tight pussy harder. 

“Yes!” Sookie cried, uncaring that anyone heard her. Let them all hear her, let them hear her as she claimed her future child. She wanted them to all hear the pleasure they gave each other. Sookie dug her fingers into Finn’s shoulders, clutching at him as she squeezed her pussy around his hard length. “Fuck me harder!” She demanded, loving the feel of his cock pounding her. The ancient blonde vampire was happy she felt the pull to Finn as she would be tempted to turn him due to how well he fucked her.

Hearing her demand, Finn pressed her against the wall harder, the rough stone of the building scratching and causing her skin to break, and increased the force of his thrusts. “Fuck!” He hissed, her dripping cunt was sucking him in, and he wondered how much longer he could last.  

Sookie could feel coils of tension tighten in her stomach, her earlier mini release had done nothing to temper her desire, and she knew she wouldn’t last much longer. Sliding one of her hands over Finn’s muscular shoulders, Sookie stroked her fingers over his neck before moving her hand to his dishevelled-looking hair and tangling her fingers in the brown tufts, tugging on them sharply. She angled his head to the side while she lowered her own, running her tongue over his salty-tasting skin. She sucked on his neck, drawing his blood to the surface and preparing him for her bite. She sunk her fangs into his neck slowly, piercing his skin, and causing blood to start trickling. With her fangs buried in his flesh, Sookie closed her lips around the wound, pulling his blood into her mouth and letting it flow down her throat. 

Never before in his life had Finn experienced something that felt so good. There had been a sharp prick when she bit him, but the pain had soon melded into something much more pleasurable. After watching Sookie kill Ralph by draining him, Finn was sure he should have been frightened. He should have been terrified to feel her fangs in his neck, he knew how dangerous she could be; he had witnessed it only moments before, but there wasn’t a single ounce of fear inside him. If anything, he felt the complete opposite, he felt fearless. Finn swore that every time she pulled on the wound he felt it in his cock. It was the most exquisite pleasure he had ever felt, and he couldn’t hold back any longer. He tightened his grip on her body, his rough dirty nails digging into her smooth skin while he drove into her fiercely a few more times.

Sookie drew one last pull on the wound, taking another mouthful of his blood before retracting her fangs and healing the bite mark with a sweep of her tongue. The taste of his blood in her mouth as well as the feel of his cock stretching her pussy was too much for Sookie and she came with a hoarse cry. She shuddered in ecstasy when she felt Finn spill his warm seed inside her. 

Finn jerked his hips, riding out his release before sagging forward, using the wall to hold himself upright. He sucked in deep breaths, trying to calm his pounding heart, and gain a modicum of control over his body again. 

“Mmm,” Sookie moaned, small sparks of pleasure still shooting through her, and prolonging her high. She felt good, she felt fucked, and yet still strangely empty. Unhooking her legs from around Finn’s waist, Sookie slid down his body until her feet were on the ground. A pleasurable smile curled his lips as she stepped to the side, and straightened her rumpled-looking appearance. “I must admit my night has turned out much better than anticipated.”

“As has mine,” Finn replied, chuckling as he tucked himself back in his pants and turned around. Leaning back against the wall, he let his eyes fall over the beautiful blonde again, taking in every inch of her. “Still, I find there is one thing that eludes me this night.”                                                                              

“Now what might that be?” Sookie inquired although she already knew, she had seen what he wanted in his head.

“Your name,” Finn replied. “Do you have a name?”

“I have many,” Sookie answered truthfully. She had been alive for thousands of years, and dead much longer. She had many names, but only a few meant something. “Some call me My Lady, others call me Mistress, and then there are those who call me Eve. You, however, may call me Sookie…”

OoOoO

Finn had been the only vampire Sookie had a relationship with before he was turned. Following the night they first met, Sookie had spent almost two months getting to know the young man who would be her child before she turned him. She had come to care a great deal for him before the Maker/Child bond had been made. Finn had a love for life that revived her own. The relationship they developed before Sookie had taken his life and gifted him with a new one had only strengthened their bond.

It was that bond that caused the jealousy in Roman. Despite being Sookie’s first child, he would never have the same kind of relationship she had with Finn. The passion between them never burnt as bright or was as consuming. The physical relationship between Sookie and Roman lasted barely thirty years before it had morphed into friendship. They had still come together over the millennia, but it lacked any real passion. It was always more out of comfort rather than desire, and it had been almost a two hundred and seventy years since they last fucked.

In contrast, the physical relationship between Sookie and Finn had lasted well over eight hundred years. The passion between the two never diminished, it only increased in intensity. They might not have spent the full eight hundred years together, going their separate ways numerous times, but the second they were back together the heat would rise up between them again, and before long they would be ripping off each other’s clothes. Not even Finn becoming a Maker himself had tempered that desire. The first time they had seen each other after Finn had turned Elizabeth had shown that. They had barely been in each other’s presence for ten minutes before Finn had Sookie bent over a table and was fucking her hard from behind. That had been the last time they had seen each other. Once they had satiated their desires and Sookie had met and gotten to know her new grandchild, they had gone their separate ways again. As much as Sookie had wanted to spend more time with her beloved child, she knew her presence would only cause trouble. It would have been hard for Finn to teach Elizabeth all she needed to know and be the Maker Sookie always knew he could be if he spent most of his time with his head buried between his Maker’s thighs.

1947… Sookie recalled. That was the last time she had seen Finn. She had spent several months with Finn and Elizabeth getting to know the woman who called to her child. The ancient vampire had found Finn’s child to be quite charming. Elizabeth was sweet and innocent in a way that Sookie would never be although that didn’t mean Elizabeth, or Betsy as she liked to be called, couldn’t get down and dirty when she chose. The night before Sookie left them the three of them had enjoyed a night out on the town. Europe had still been recovering from the war, but the three of them had found some trouble to get into. That night had been the first and last time the three of them fell into bed together. It had been quite the goodbye!

Thirty-seven years, Sookie thought. It had been thirty-seven years since she last saw Finn. They had certainly gone longer without seeing each other in the past, but for some strange reason it felt longer this time. It wasn’t until she felt him getting closer that she realized how much she had actually missed him. She missed all her children, even Roman whom she had seen just hours earlier. Why do I miss them all so much now? She asked herself. I have gone decades… centuries without seeing them. I didn’t see Roman for over three hundred years after he turned Godric… 

Sookie shook her head, banishing her thoughts. She didn’t have time to worry about questions she could ask and answer later. The only thing she had time for at that moment was Finn and his pain. She wanted to take on all his suffering for him. She hated to feel any of her children hurting although she could certainly do without feeling Roman’s sour emotions. If he didn’t stop with his tantrum soon, Sookie swore she would block their bond. If he wanted to behave like a child she would treat him like one. 

Checking her watch for what felt like the hundredth time that night, Sookie let out a sigh when she realized barely any time had passed. Time meant little to her on a normal night, but that night it was dragging, taunting her. Each second that passed was another second Finn wasn’t there with her. Part of her was tempted to leave and go to him. It would be easy for her to find him, but something deep inside her told her to stay where she was. Whatever had happened, whatever had caused Finn so much pain wasn’t something that others needed to witness. His pain was private; it wasn’t for the prying eyes of nosy humans or vampires. It was one of the reasons she had been blocking his pain from his siblings.

Roman, Ana, and Molly had felt Finn’s pain through Sookie. His suffering had been so sharp that it had ricocheted off her and spread through the bonds she shared with her other children. Once she realized what was happening, Sookie had pulled the pain back, and blocked the feeling away from Roman, Ana, and Molly although she would never block it from herself. As long as one of her children hurt, she would hurt with them. She would block her pain, but never theirs.

The clock had just struck midnight when Sookie finally felt Finn draw near. She had made sure the building was empty of everyone but her. Sookie had even cleared out the guards, something Roman had been against, but she had been adamant that no one else needed to be inside the building. The guards could patrol the outside, but that was her only concession.

Sookie had the urge to start pacing her room while she waited for her child. She couldn’t remember a time when she had been more on edge. It was only seconds later when Finn appeared. Sookie could not help the gasp of surprise that escaped her lips when she took in his disheveled appearance. His hair stuck up in every direction, dirt darkened his skin and clothes, and his usual mischief-filled eyes were lacking their sparkle, and were rimmed red. It looked as if he hadn’t fed in weeks; something Sookie knew couldn’t be true. In short, he looked like hell.

“Finn,” Sookie whispered, taking a step forward and opening her arms in invitation. She felt tears well up in her eyes when Finn crossed the short distance between them, dropped to his knees in front of her, and wrapped his arms around her waist. Her arms went around him in an instant; one of her hands went to his cradle his head and held him to her. Blood tears trickled down her cheek when she felt him bury his face against her stomach and sob. No words were spoken between them, as none was needed. Sookie didn’t need him to say a thing; she didn’t need an explanation, for in that minute she knew. She knew what had happened. She knew what he had lost… Elizabeth…

His child had met the True Death.

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