At work at Merlotte’s on the night the shifters come out live on TV, Sookie also sees action in the bar as Sam and Tray Dawson both shift in front of the patrons. Sookie is happy that it seems to go well, but Sam gets the news that his stepfather shot his mother when she shifted in front of him. Sam immediately heads out for Texas, leaving Sookie in charge of the bar. A few days later, Eric’s daytime guy, Bobby Burnham, brings her a wrapped package and tells her to present it to Eric in front of Victor Madden, King Felipe de Castro’s second-in-command. Doing so, she finds that she has inadvertently married Eric by vampire law, a strategy that Eric swears is for her own protection. She leaves Fangtasia angry at herself and Eric. The next morning she is visited by two FBI agents who want to discover exactly how she and her unidentified companion (Barry) helped save people at the summit. When Sookie is called to Merlotte’s by a report of a body in the parking lot, the agents follow, and they find that Crystal Norris Stackhouse has been crucified behind the bar. While the police and the FBI investigate the crime scene, Sookie heads back to Fangtasia at dark to speak with Eric, and he tells her about his past. Merlotte’s is allowed to open the next day, and Niall comes to visit, letting Sookie know that there is trouble among the fairies and that she should be careful. Mr. Cataliades also sends Diantha with a warning that fairies are indeed moving about in this world. Sookie calls Claude to get more information. She meets Claude and Claudine for lunch, and they explain Niall’s family tree, his position as the fairy prince, and the issues with his nephew Breandan, who despises humans, especially the offspring that have come from human and fairy couplings. Breandan wants to close off Faery so there will be no further contact with humanity. After Sookie returns home, she is attacked by a fairy in her yard but is able to kill him. Quinn arrives to speak with her and is accosted by Bill, sent by Eric, who has banned Quinn from Area Five. Sookie is injured during their brawl and is given blood by Eric when he arrives. They rekindle their relationship, spending the night together.