Dead to the World

drink?” In genuine horror, Tara squeezed my hand. “That Rohypnol? But Alcide looked like such a nice guy!”
    “Forget it,” I said, trying to sound gentler. “It doesn’t really have anything to do with Jason, after all.”
    Her face still troubled, Tara pressed my hand again.
    All of a sudden, I was certain I didn’t believe her. Tara knew vampires could remove memory, and she was pretending Franklin Mott had erased hers. I thought Tara remembered quite well what had happened at Club Dead, but she was pretending she didn’t to protect herself. If she had to do that to survive, that was okay. I took a deep breath.
    “Are you still dating Franklin?” I asked, to start a different conversation.
    “He got me this car.”
    I was a little shocked and more than a little dismayed, but I hoped I was not the kind to point fingers.
    “It’s a wonderful car. You don’t know any witches, do you?” I asked, trying to change the subject before Tara could read my misgivings. I was sure she would laugh at me for asking her such a question, but it was a good diversion. I wouldn’t hurt her for the world.
    Finding a witch would be a great help. I was sure Jason’s abduction—and I swore to myself it was an abduction, it was not a murder—was linked to the witches’ curse on Eric. It was just too much coincidence otherwise. On the other hand, I had certainly experienced the twists and turns of a bunch of coincidences in the past few months. There, I knew I’d find a third hand.
    “Sure I do,” Tara said, smiling proudly. “Now there I can help you. That is, if a Wiccan will do?”
    I had so many expressions I wasn’t sure my face could fit them all in. Shock, fear, grief, and worry were tumbling around in my brain. When the spinning stopped, we would see which one was at the top.
    “You’re a witch?” I said weakly.
    “Oh, gosh, no, not me. I’m a Catholic. But I have some friends who are Wiccan. Some of them are witches.”
    “Oh, really?” I didn’t think I’d ever heard the word Wiccan before, though maybe I’d read it in a mystery or romance novel. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what that means,” I said, my voice humble.
    “Holly can explain it better than I can,” Tara said.
    “Holly. The Holly who works with me?”
    “Sure. Or you could go to Danielle, though she’s not going to be as willing to talk. Holly and Danielle are in the same coven.”
    I was so shocked by now I might as well get even more stunned. “Coven,” I repeated.
    “You know, a group of pagans who worship together.”
    “I thought a coven had to be witches?”
    “I guess not—but they have to, you know, be non-Christian. I mean, Wicca is a religion.”
    “Okay,” I said. “Okay. Do you think Holly would talk to me about this?”
    “I don’t know why not.” Tara went back to her car to get her cell phone, and paced back and forth between our vehicles while she talked to Holly. I appreciated a little respite to allow me to get back on my mental feet, so to speak. To be polite I got out of my car and spoke to the woman in red, who’d been very patient.
    “I’m sorry to meet you on such a bad day,” I said. “I’m Sookie Stackhouse.”
    “I’m Claudine,” she said, with a beautiful smile. Her teeth were Hollywood white. Her skin had an odd quality; it looked glossy and thin, reminding me of the skin of a plum; like if you bit her, sweet juice would gush out. “I’m here because of all the activity.”
    “Oh?” I said, taken aback.
    “Sure. You have vampires, and Weres, and lots of other stuff all tangled up here in Bon Temps—to say nothing of several important and powerful crossroads. I was drawn to all the possibilities.”
    “Uh-huh,” I said uncertainly. “So, do you plan on just observing all this, or what?”
    “Oh, no. Just observing is not my way.” She laughed. “You’re quite the wild card, aren’t you?”
    “Holly’s up,” Tara said, snapping her phone shut and smiling because it was hard not to with Claudine around. I realized I was smiling from ear to ear, not my usual tense grin but an expression of sunny happiness. “She says come on over.”
    “Are you coming with me?” I didn’t know what to think of Tara’s companion.
    “Sorry, Claudine’s helping me today at the shop,” Tara said. “We’re having a New Year’s sale on our old inventory, and people are doing some heavy shopping. Want me to put something aside for you? I’ve got a few really pretty party