Dead and Gone

being a burden. I worried, of course, but there was no helping it. I had to stay away. In those days, in small villages, any stranger was instantly noticed, and if I ventured anywhere close to where I’d lived, I’d be recognized and hunted. They would know what I was, or at least know I was . . . wrong.”
    “Where did you and Appius go?”
    “We went to the biggest cities we could find, which were few enough then. We traveled all the time, parallel to the roads so we could prey on travelers.”
    I shuddered. It was painful to imagine Eric, so flamboyant and quick-witted, skulking through the woods in search of easy blood. It was awful to think of the unfortunates he’d ambushed.
    “There were not so many people,” he said. “Villagers would miss their neighbors immediately. We had to keep moving. Young vampires are so hungry; at first, I killed even when I didn’t mean to.”
    I took a deep breath. This was what vampires did; when they were young, they killed. There had been no substitute for fresh blood then. It was kill, or die. “Was he good to you? Appius Livius Ocella?” How much worse could you have it than to be the constant companion of the man who had murdered you?
    “He taught me all he knew. He had been in the legions, and he was a fighter, as I was, so we had that in common. He liked men, of course, and that took some getting used to. I had never done that. But when you’re a new vampire, anything sexual seems exciting, so even that I enjoyed . . . eventually.”
    “You had to comply,” I said.
    “Oh, he was much stronger . . . though I was a bigger man than him—taller, longer arms. He had been vampire for so many centuries, he’d lost count. And of course, he was my sire. I had to obey.” Eric shrugged.
    “Is that a mystical thing or a made-up rule?” I asked, curiosity finally getting the better of me.
    “It’s both,” Eric said. “It’s a compulsion. It’s impossible to resist, even when you want to . . . even when you’re desperate to get away.” His white face was closed and brooding.
    I couldn’t imagine Eric doing something he didn’t want to do, being in a subservient position. Of course, he had a boss now; he wasn’t autonomous. But he didn’t have to bow and scrape, and he made most of his own decisions.
    “I can’t imagine it,” I said.
    “I wouldn’t want you to.” His mouth pulled down at one corner, a wry expression. Just when I began to ponder the irony of that, since he’d perhaps married me vampire-style without asking me, Eric changed the subject, slamming shut the door on his past. “The world has changed a great deal since I was human. The past hundred years have been especially exciting. And now the Weres are out, and all the other two-natured. Who knows? Maybe the witches or the fae will step forward next.” He smiled at me, though it was a little stiff.
    His idea gave me a happy fantasy of seeing my great-grandfather Niall every day. I’d only learned of his existence a few months before, and we hadn’t spent much time together, but learning I had a living ancestor had been very important to me. I had so few blood kin. “That would be wonderful,” I said wistfully.
    “My lover, it will never happen,” Eric said. “The creatures that make up the fae are the most secret of all the supernatural beings. There are not many remaining in this country. In fact, there are not so many remaining in the world. The number of their females, and the fertility of those females, is dropping every year. Your great-grandfather is one of the few survivors with royal blood. He would never condescend to treat with humans.”
    “He talks to me,” I said, because I wasn’t sure what “treat” meant.
    “You share his blood.” Eric waved his free hand. “If you didn’t, you would never have seen him.”
    Well, no, Niall wasn’t going to stop in at Merlotte’s for a brew and a chicken basket and shake hands all around. I looked at Eric unhappily. “I wish he’d help Jason out,” I said, “and I never thought I’d say that. Niall doesn’t seem to like Jason at all, but Jason’s going to be in a lot of trouble about Crystal’s death.”
    “Sookie, if you’re asking for my thoughts, I have no idea why Crystal was killed.” And he really didn’t care much. At least with Eric, you could tell where you stood.
    In the background the KDED DJ said, “Next, Thom Yorke’s ‘And It Rained All Night.’” While Eric and I had been having our