ERIC: “Bill, are you in Bon Temps?”

BILL: “No, I’m with Selah in Clarice.”

ERIC: “I need information from your database.”

BILL: “I have my laptop. Give me a few minutes.”

ERIC: “Look up Charles Twining.”

BILL: “Charles? Didn’t you . . . ?”

ERIC: “Now, Bill.”

BILL: “Charles Twining. His sire was . . . Eric, his sire is dead, but he is pledged to Hot Rain.”

ERIC : “Goddammit!”

BILL : “How could you have sent him to Sookie without checking him out?”

ERIC : “I did. I called Russell. He thought Charles had been at his home. Fucking idiot!”

BILL : “You or Russell?”

ERIC : “I’m sending Bubba to Merlotte’s to warn Sookie.”

BILL : “I’ll return to Merlotte’s immediately.”

ERIC : “No. She just needs to stay clear of Charles until I deal with Hot Rain. Killing Charles after Long Shadow’s death would not go well for either of us. I’m calling his ruler now to advise them that he has gone against the ruling and sought revenge.”

“One Word Answer”

“One Word Answer”

Timeline

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2005. Sookie is out in her yard at midnight raking up bush clippings with Bubba when a black limousine pulls into her drive. Bubba immediately vanishes into the woods, and Sookie can only hope that he has left to find Bill, her nearest neighbor, as she faces the large man who emerges from the limo. From his brain pattern Sookie can tell that the man is some sort of supernatural creature. The stranger, Mr. Cataliades, informs her that she is the beneficiary of a legacy from her cousin Hadley, who had not only become a vampire—and personal favorite of Sophie-Anne Leclerq, Queen of Louisiana—but met her final death a month prior. Mr. Cataliades summons his driver, a vampire named Waldo, from the car at Sookie’s request. Bubba returns with Bill, who joins Sookie in questioning Mr. Cataliades and Waldo as to the circumstances of Hadley’s death. Waldo claims that he witnessed Hadley’s murder at the hands of members of the Fellowship of the Sun, but Sookie soon suspects him of doing the deed himself, an accusation confirmed by Mr. Cataliades. He reveals that Sophie-Anne has realized Waldo’s duplicity and sent him on the trip to Bon Temps so that Sookie can stake him. She refuses, telling him she will send Waldo back to the queen instead. Heartbroken that his queen knows of his betrayal, certain her torture will make him wish for death, Waldo attacks Sookie, knowing that Bill and Bubba will stop him and put an end to his existence. As Waldo flakes away in Sookie’s yard, the queen herself steps from the limo. She questions Sookie as to the events of the night, wondering if Sookie set it all up to play out just as it did. Sookie carefully responds with enigmatic one-word answers, and the queen and Mr. Cataliades are soon on their way back to New Orleans.

The Secret Dialogues of Bill and Eric