CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

✧✧✧✧✧

          DAKOTA HAD NO IDEA HOW JASON ACCUMULATED ALL THESE WEAPONS IN HIS SHED, BUT SOMEHOW SHE WASN'T SURPRISED AS SHE WATCHED HIM LOAD THEM INTO THE BACK OF HIS TRUCK. He had put on gloves, a black beanie and a bandolier around his upper body while Dakota had only slid on one of his hoodies.

The drive to Merlotte's wasn't more than fifteen minutes from his home and evening was quickly approaching as the sun disappeared behind the horizon.

"Can I have the chainsaw?" asked Jason, excitedly.

Dakota peered at him with a grimace, furrowing her brows before asking, "What are you going to do with that? Cut off everyone's arms when they cross us?"

Jason shrugged nonchalantly. "If I have too."

The blonde pulled a face as her cousin parked his truck a little to the side of the bar and grill. They hopped out, seeing the lights were on inside, various questionable noises coming from within the building. It was busy tonight, even though Sookie had said the bar had been closed for a few days now.

"Let see," mumbled Jason, eyes raking over his weapon stash in the back. He even brought explosives and Dakota thought that might be a bit excessive. He stuffed a gun in his belt, a knife in his boot and held a staple gun in his left hand before handing her the shotgun. "Do you know how to use one these?"

"Yes," she nodded. "Lafayette taught me a few years ago."

"Why would he teach you how to shoot?"

"It's a scary world out there." she shrugged.

They went around the back, Jason in front holding onto his chainsaw and staple gun tightly. The door stood ajar and they shared a glance before sneaking inside Merlotte's. There was music playing, and cheers coming from the front. Terry Bellefleur walked at the end of the hall, chugging a bottle of something but he didn't notice the two of them enter.

The kitchen was on their left and Dakota peered inside, spotting Jane bodehouse, eyes like the devil as she knocked on the freezer. "Sam? Do you know anybody named Peanut Burch?" she cackled to herself. "I wish I could remember. I know there is something I was supposed to do."

"What in the world." breathed Dakota, wondering what kind of creature could control an entire town all by themselves.

Jane had left and they entered the kitchen, looking over the wall to see what on earth everyone was doing. 'Oh, mama.' came from Jason as their eyes widened. Half of the town was there, most were butt naked, touching each other with every inch of skin they could manage. It was one big orgy and she gagged at the sight.

They were doing it on the bar top, pool tables and even on the floor, it was horrid. Arlene was dry humping Terry, giggling like a dumb schoolgirl as she did so.

"Come on," he tapped her arm before walking around the wall with Dakota in tow. The people around them didn't notice them, or even if they did, decided not to acknowledge them. "All right!" called Jason, but no one even looked his way. "This party is over!"

"It's like we don't even exist." she muttered, but then Jason turned on the chainsaw, the loud mechanic noise filling the bar and grill and all black eyes turned to face them. "Nevermind.

They didn't attack like she thought they would, instead they all laughed, continuing whatever it was they were doing. "What the hell is wrong with you people?" Jason barked, shaking his head as he rushed over to the bar, cutting the radio in half with the saw, getting the machine stuck in the bar top.

"Jason!" Dakota scolded, knowing Sam was going to be livid.

"What the hell, man!" said Hoyt's neighbour, but that was the only reaction he got.

The eldest Stackhouse stormed toward Terry, pulling on his shirt before clocking him in the face. Dakota gasped, eyes wide in horror. As Arlene was about to rush to his aid, Jason grabbed the woman and held her to him, holding the nail gun to her head.

"Jason, what the hell!" Dakota shrieked. "These are our friends!"

"Ambush!" screamed Terry, while Arlene laughed her ass off. The crowd surrounded them, anger evident on their faces. "Ambush!"

"Nobody needs to get hurt!" Dakota tried, worry etched in her voice as they got closer. She really didn't want to harm anyone, these were their friends and neigbours.

"Yeah!" screamed a women to her left. "Nail her!"

"Yes, please!" Arlene cheered, not even trying to get out of Jason's grip.

"Wait, hold on!" Terry said, still on the floor. "Don't hurt my special lady."

"Do it!" Arlene demand, smirking down at Terry. "I need a haircut anyway, baby."

"I will do it! Don't try me!" Jason threatened, but he could actually never harm Arlene.

Terry pushed himself off the floor, standing a good feet taller than either one of them. "Time out!" he ordered. "Time the fuck out." they fell silent. "All right, Stackhouse. Name your demands."

Jason's lips twitched into a smile. "Okay, here is what's gonna happen. Ya'll go and leave, every last one of you. Leave us alone and then you can have her back."

Terry nodded, considering it. "All right. The order is to retreat. Immediately. When I give an order, you fucking follow it! Now get on outta here." He ushered the half naked people outside, much to their dismay because they were pissed at the man. "We will un fuck this situation at a later date. Move it! Out, out, out!"

Dakota watched as they left the bar one by one, annoyed looks on their faces. Terry was the last one, standing near the door as he stared them down.

"All right, Stackhouse. Are you gonna hand her over?"

"Keep moving," he ordered, pulling Arlene along as he walked toward the door. "the faster you walk the quicker you'll get her."

When Terry was out the door he pushed the redhead at him and slammed the door shut, locking it behind him quickly. Terry glared at him through the glass and they watched them disappear from their sights.

"Well," Dakota muttered. "that went well."

Jason heaved a sigh, agreeing with her before locking all the doors in the bar. Shit, Sam was in the freezer and Dakota rushed to the kitchen, Jason in tow and she put the shotgun down on the kitchen table.

"Sam?" Dakota began, knocking on the freezer door. "You in there? They're gone you can come out.

"Look, I got rid of all them saucer-eyed motherfuckers." added Jason.

"Bullshit!"

"I swear on my gran's grave."

Slowly, the door opened after a moment and a flashlight flashed their faces. Dakota shielded her eyes with a hand in front of her face.

"Andy?" Dakota asked. "What are you doing in there?"

"Let me see your eyes." he demanded, glaring at the two of them.

Jason nodded quickly leaning closer to show his eyes, Dakota doing the same as best as she could with the light shining in her face. Andy lowered the flashlight and pushed at the door, opening it completely as he stepped out.

Sam stepped out after him, goosebumps on his skin from the cold. Dakota smiled at him, pulling him into a tight hug which he eagerly returned, wanting to get warmer. "I'm so glad you're back." he smiled, planting a kiss on top of her head.

"Me too," she smiled. "i'm gone a few days and the whole town's gone to shit."

"Yeah," he rubbed the back of his neck. "it's a mess. I don't think they're gonna let up till they get me."

"How the hell did you get them out?" demanded Andy, turning to Jason.

"I threatened to shoot a bunch of nails through Arlene's brain." he explained. "But guys, come here. If we're gonna get out of here we gonna even need a bigger divergence."

Glass shattered inside the bar and they turned on their heels, seeing a brick had flown through the window, breaking it in a million pieces. The started crawling over each other, trying to get back inside, not caring that the glass was cutting their skin.

"There he is!" Terry yelled. "That's Sam Merlotte."

"I think we need to get out of here, right now." Dakota said, pulling on her cousin's arm as she pulled him toward the back exit.

That door burst open, revealing more towns people, weapons in their hands. They were surrounded, having nowhere to go as they got closer and closer. Terry pushed through the crowd, holding a gun of his own.

"Sam Merlotte," he began, lighting a cigarette. "there is no escaping, Sam Merlotte. The god who comes always gets what he comes for. And as for you, Jason Stackhouse. Not cool."

"Gos is going to eat you, Jason." said someone, eyeing him hungry. "Come to think of it, I always wondered what human flesh tasted like."

"Guys," Sam whispered. "you guys save yourselves."

"No, we'll get you out of here." Dakota shook her head.

"Then what?" he faced her, his back toward the crowd. "She's not gonna let up. Ever. No, I am ending this." he began to slowly walk backwards and she reached out to grab him but Jason held her back. "Maybe this'll all stop with me."

He reached the crowd and he quickly disappeared within, getting carried away. "Sam!" Dakota shrieked, eyes wide, but he was already gone.

✧✧✧✧✧

IT WAS A RISKY AND IDIOTIC PLAN, BUT IT WAS ALL DAKOTA COULD COME UP WITH IN A STATE OF URGENCY. The mob had Sam on the hood of a car, spread out like a dead pig. Andy and her prepared Jason for their plan, pulling off his shirt and weapons as he put a gas mask on his face.

"And this will work?" questioned Andy, as they were trying to hide behind Jason's truck.

"We gotta try," said Dakota as she peered around the vehicle. "they want to see a god, let's give them a god."

The three of them shared one last glance before they each lit a flare, it sizzled to life and various sparks of red flew around their faces. Dakota was the first to throw hers toward the crowd and their boisterous laughter simmered down. Jason and Andy were next, and when her cousin threw his he jumped onto the roof of his truck, gaining their attention.

"Silence!" he demanded, raising his arms above his head. "It is me, the god who comes! I have come, and now I am here."

"You're the god who comes?"

Andy, who was shining a flashlight from behind him glanced through the crowd, seeing Sam hold up two fingers behind his head. "Shit, horns." he muttered and Dakota quickly ducked down to look for sticks. The parking lot was crawling in them, much to their advantage and she held them up, tall enough to rise above Jason's head.

"Sam Merlotte," he continued, and the crowd of town's people had their full attention on him. "you are my offering! People, your work here is done. Go home!"

"Really?" frowned Jane.

"Oh, yes!" nodded Jason. "He is the best offering ever. You will all have great weather and ... good crops! Now leave!"

"Bullshit," called Terry. "a god has horns."

Dakota furrowed her brows, glancing up to see the sticks had drifted too far to the right for them to see his so called horns and she quickly moved them back. Gasps escaped the crowd, they watched him in awe.

"Is that really god?"

Sam jumped from the hood of the car, playing along as he walked toward them. He had pieces of robe hanging from his wrists from where they had held him down and he had a cut on his cheek. "Lord, smite me."

"What's he saying I can't hear inside this thing." Jason turned to Andy who only shrugged his shoulders.

"Just pretend to kill him!" argued Dakota, sending him a quick glare before he turned back to the crowd. This plan better work or the four of them were in big trouble. If this Maryann was the same creature that had almost killed her a week ago, they were gonna wish they were dead.

"Smite me, oh lord!" Sam called, turning his back to the three of them.

Jason cursed under his breath, raising his arms above his head and looking up at the night sky. "I smite thee, Sam Merlotte! Die!"

Sam suddenly shrieked in pain, limbs moving in an unnatural way and before Dakota had time to blink, he had completely disappeared. His clothes fell into a heap on the soil and the crowd gasped loudly. Andy shone his flashlight to where Sam had stood. Dakota's eyes widened, utterly confused.

"The fuck just happened?"

"I got no fucking idea."

Terry picked up Sam's pants with a stick while the rest of them whooped and cheered loudly, dancing around in circles as if their lives depended on it. They really were a dumb group of people while being possessed like this, like some young school children that still believed in fairytales.

"Tell your leader I am very pleased with my offering." said Jason. "You're all blessed. Now go home."

"Squad! Report to Maryann for debriefing!" said Terry as they made their way toward the woods. They disappeared behind the trees and Jason took off the mask, jumping back down toward the ground.

"What the hell happened to Sam?" Dakota had no explanation for his disappearance at all.

"I don't know, Kota." Jason frowned, glancing around to see any sign of the bar owner.

"Hi," said Sam, coming from inside the bar with a towel wrapped around his waist seeing as his clothes were gone. "I'll explain later, okay?"

✧✧✧✧✧

"SERIOUSLY?" ASKED DAKOTA WITH HER WIDE. "YOU CAN BECOME ANY ANIMAL ANYTIME?"

Andy was trying to take the chainsaw out of the bar top and Jason was collecting beer bottles while she and Sam wiped down the tables of Merlotte's. The bar had never been this messy and damaged before and she was sure it was going to cost a fortune to repair everything.

"Yes," he nodded, shrugging. "as long as i've imprinted on it."

"Why have you never told me this before?" she asked. "That is so cool!"

"Yeah, well." began Andy. "As cool as that may be, we still got a maenad we gotta deal with before it takes our whole town out."

Maryann was a maenad, an ancient creature who worshipped the god Dionysus. Daphne had told him a few days prior before she was brutally murdered, apparently she was the woman's right hand. That's why she was so strong and why Bill couldn't heal her when she was attacked in the woods.

"Listen, you can't deal with it." said Sam. "All right, your best bet's to leave while you still can."

"Shouldn't we think about getting the law involved?" asked Jason, coming to their side as shattered more empty bottles of beer into the trash bag.

"I am involved." Andy protested, though he didn't seem to be doing so good with that cast on his arm.

"Well, I mean sheriff Dearborne, Kenya, that other guy the squirrely one."

"Sheriff stations was wide open and empty. They ain't gonna help."

Jason sighed, putting the trash bag down. "Then we've gotta be the law. Guys, i've read a book about this. This is Armageddon. This is the oral History of the zombie war. We need weapons, and lots of them."

"You have like an entire weapon store in your truck." Dakota stated, hand on her hip.

"No, we need even more."

"Listen, I hate to break it to you but guns aren't gonna do jack shit to Maryann." interjected Sam, getting their attention as he continued, "And you can't shoot anybody else. All right, these are our friends, this is our town."

"Well, sometimes you need to destroy somethin' to save it." said Jason. "That's in the bible. Or the constitution."

"Is she in there?"

Dakota turned to face the window just in time to see Lisa and Coby, Arlene's children, jump away from the glass, rushing into the direction of the forest. Sun light shone through the trees and they disappeared from her sight. Dakota dropped her rag and went out the door, ignoring the calls for her name.

"Coby? Lisa?" she tried, walking toward their general direction. "You don't need to be afraid. It's me, auntie Kota!"

It took a minute but their heads popped from behind the bushes one by one and she sighed in relief when the two children rushed into her awaiting arms. They were dirty, covered in mud and she hugged them closely, rubbing their backs.

"Is our mama here?" asked Coby, looking up at the woman.

"No sweetie, not right now." she shared, bending her knees to crouch before them.

"Will you help us hide?" asked Lisa, eyes filled with uncertainty as she peered around the overgrown area.

"Of course," Dakota nodded, taking a stick from the girls hair.

"And make us lunch?" asked Coby, his stomach grumbling.

"We haven't eaten since the day before yesterday." Lisa explained, holding onto the woman's arm nervously.

"Oh," Dakota frowned, heart aching for the two children. "come with me. Let's get you cleaned up and i'll ask Sam to make you a plate of everything."

Dakota guided the two children into the bar and glanced around, seeing her cousin and Andy were no longer there. Sam stood at the bar, shaking his head before noticing them come in. "Hey Coby, Lisa."

"Where are Jason and Andy?"

"They've gone to the station. I tried to stop them."

Dakota rolled her eyes as she led the kids to the bar and told them to take a seat. Sam took another look at them and asked if they wanted fries, which they happily agreed to and went to make them a plate each.

"What's wrong with our mama?" asked Lisa, letting Dakota wipe her face clean from the dirt.

"I'm not sure," she muttered. "I think she's a bit sick, is all."

"Is she blind?"

"She might be, sometimes." said Sam, coming back from the kitchen to place a plate before each of them. Coby quickly stuffed his face with whatever could fit into his mouth and the woman frowned. "not always."

"Is she gonna die?" Lisa hadn't touched her plate, just kept her gaze on the two adults before her.

"No, not anytime soon." Dakota reassured her with a gentle smile.

Sam continued to clean the bar, wiping the top with bleach to get rid of the putrid smell inside. Dakota dropped the cloth she used to clean their faces with and rested her head in the palm of her hand as Sam asked, "Has she been sick in front of you a lot?"

"She doesn't seem sick." said Lisa with a small shrug, taking a sip from her soda.

"She seems crazy." added Coby, pulling a face as he scrunched up his nose.

Lisa nodded in agreement and grimaced, "She's always kissing Terry and doing other gross stuff when her eyes get weird."

"Can we get her a doctor?" wondered Coby, large eyes turning to Dakota.

"Or someone who can make her like she used to be?" added Lisa.

"Like a vampire! I bet a vampire would know what to do." Coby grinned, eagerly.

"Where is vampire Bill?" asked Lisa. "He's nice."

"Are there other vampires?"

Dakota let out a breath, turning her gaze toward Sam who shook his head repeatedly. Sam didn't like vampires in general and the blond viking she was referring to was the worst out of all of them. The blonde send the two children a smile and said, "Are you up for a road trip?"

She had to face him sooner rather than later.