The Sookie Stackhouse Companion

Sookie to Eric for help. Dr. Ludwig, a supe herself, is called in, and after cleaning Sookie’s wounds with her tongue, the doctor instructs the vampires to drain Sookie’s poisoned blood and replace it with transfusions of real and synthetic blood. Sookie passes out and wakes to find Pam watching over her. After cleaning up, Sookie waits in Eric’s office with Bill until Eric, Pam, and the new bartender, Chow, finish closing the bar. Eric informs them that he is sending Bill and Sookie to Dallas so that she can use her “gift” to help the vampire leader of Area Six solve a problem. Sookie has no choice but to consent, per her agreement with Eric. She brings the conversation to a stop when she asks why a maenad is in the woods, and the vampires explain that maenads feed off the violence associated with alcohol and, therefore, are very interested in bars. They expect tribute from those who profit from drink.
    THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23. Sam agrees, albeit reluctantly, to give Sookie the time off to go to Dallas. He initially reacts with laughter when she solemnly warns that there is a maenad roaming the woods, but he quickly sobers when Sookie shows him her scars. He gently kisses her back, and then he kisses her more deeply on the lips. She briefly responds to his warmth but then pulls away, and they try to resume their conversation. Portia comes into the bar with a request from Andy for Sookie to “listen” for information because he is a suspect in the death. Sookie agrees, but for the sake of her friend Lafayette, not for the Bellefleurs.
    FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24. Arriving at the airport in Dallas, Sookie heads to the cargo plane Bill traveled on, waiting for his casket to be unloaded. She is accosted by a man dressed as a Catholic priest who attempts to pull her away with him; however, just then Bill’s coffin appears, and the lid opens as Bill wakes. The “priest” runs as Bill rushes to Sookie’s side, and they consider the meaning of the incident as they make their way to the Silent Shore Hotel, where Sookie is startled and delighted to realize that the hotel bellboy, Barry, is also a telepath, although very unschooled. They are met at the hotel by Dallas vampire Isabel Beaumont, who waits while they check in and freshen up before taking them to the home of the sheriff of Area Six, Stan Davis. Stan tells them that one of his nest mates, Farrell, is missing, and Stan wants him found. He brings in humans known to have been in the vampire bar where Farrell was last seen. By reading their memories, Sookie is able to tell that Farrell entered a bathroom with another vampire. She also realizes that the “priest” from the airport was in the bar as well. Bill steps away to use a computer and returns with the identity of the second vampire based on the description Sookie elicited. Stan is appalled to realize that Farrell was probably kidnapped by Godric, aka Godfrey, an ancient vampire who has become a renouncer and plans to meet the sun in a ceremony arranged by the anti-vampire Fellowship of the Sun.
    Sookie asks how the “priest” could have known that she would be at the airport and suggests, in writing, that Stan’s house is bugged. She locates the bug under the table, and the vampires drop it into a bowl of water after acting out a little scenario for the listener’s benefit. Isabel’s human companion, Hugo Ayres, offers to escort Sookie to the Fellowship to gather information.
    Stan, angry about the bug, asks if there are any strangers visiting the house, and Isabel brings in Leif, actually Eric, who came to Dallas to watch over Bill and Sookie. Leif/Eric denies planting the bug, and Sookie points out that the bug had to have been there for a few days in order for the listener to know when she and Bill would be flying in. Isabel takes Sookie and Bill back to their hotel, where they attempt a little romance but are interrupted by Eric.
    SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 25. Sookie is watching the news while waiting for the front desk to procure her clothing that will serve as an appropriate disguise during her visit to the Fellowship. She is dismayed to see a segment on the execution-style death of Bethany Rogers, whose mind Sookie read the evening before and whose body was later found in a Dumpster behind the Silent Shore. Pushing aside her tears, she gets ready for her assignment by donning a wig and frumpy clothes and meets Hugo in the lobby. They come up with a cover story as they drive to the Fellowship,