CHAPTER NINE

✧✧✧✧✧

         IT WAS STRANGE TO SEE FANGTASIA FREE OF DESPERATE HUMANS AND BLOOD HUNGRY, HORNY VAMPIRES. The space seemed much larger without the sea of bodies and loud music blasting through the speakers. It smelled much cleaner too, not like the scent of sweat and alcohol like last time she had been there. The woman was pretty sure last time some of the benches had some questionable stains on them, and they also had been scrubbed clean.

Dakota was still a bit winded by the choice of transport as she sat at one of the tables in the middle of the bar. Dakota knew vampires were fast, but she had no idea Eric had the ability to fly through the sky. It seemed so surreal, and she wasn't sure if she believed it still, even though she had seen Shreveport from a hundred feet in the air only moments ago. The blond had tried not to throw up when they landed, and Eric had put her to her feet carefully. He had given her a cocky grin as he led her inside the club.

Pamela sat on a bar stool, looking a little less like a dominatrix and more like a businesswoman. The tall vampire wore a light pink sweater and a pair of expensive looking grey pants. Pam had her arms crossed as she looked at the blond, amused. Longshadow was also there, behind the bar, arms resting on the bar top.

Eric still hadn't told her what the favour was, and she watched him pace back and forth before her, having some sort of argument with himself. This must be a big problem if he was so angry about it. Dakota sipped at her coke uncomfortably.

"Longshadow, get Bruce." Eric sighed, nodding at the vampire.

He did as he was told, disappeared behind a door on his left. Dakota let her eyes wander around the bar once more, finding new things she hadn't noticed every time she did so.

"Pam, Longshadow and I are partners in this club." Eric began, his eyes finding her dark ones. "And we recently noticed that sixty-thousand dollars has gone missing from our books."

"Someone's stealing your money?"

"It seems that way." he nodded. "A lot of money."

Longshadow came back through the door with an older gentleman who looked as if he was about to piss himself. Dakota straightened up, frowning. He wore glasses that nearly fell off his nose and Longshadow pushed him into the chair opposite of her.

"Bruce here," Eric patted the man on his shoulder and Bruce squeezed his eyes shut in fear. "is our accountant. Perhaps you can start by listening to him."

"He's not saying anything." Dakota frowned.

"Don't be coy." Eric tsked. "Like I said. It is humbling enough to turn to a human for assistance. We know what you and your cousin can do."

"Why didn't you get her then?"

"Because I want you."

Dakota shut her mouth, flustered. Eric didn't tear his eyes from her face, focus solely on her. The blond nodded her head slightly and turned towards the whimpering accountant. "Can't you glamour him?"

"Now, don't you think we tried everything?" Pam drawled as she came to stand beside her maker.

"What will happen when I find out who did it?" Dakota asked.

"We'll turn over the person to the police and let the authorities handle it from there." Longshadow said, but there was no sincerity in his voice whatsoever.

"Am I supposed to believe that? What? You're a hundred years old and still a terrible liar." she scoffed and turned away from him. "Look, I don't want to see any blood spilled, so if you agree to hand them over to the police, I will do this for you."

"Deal," Eric agreed without a doubt to which Pam raised a brow.

Dakota blew out a breath and looked at Bruce again. The woman let her walls come crumbling down as she focussed on the terrified man before her. Eric noticed the slight furrow of her brow and wondered if she could actually hear his thoughts or if she was just psychic.

Holy shit, what's this crazy bitch doing? Why did I agree to work for vampires? Goddamn it, I knew it was a bad idea. I've been nothing but straight with these fuckers. Gotta be an idiot to steal from them. Jesus Christ, I was the one who reported it.

"Bruce, it's okay." Dakota smiled, touching his arm gently. "Take a deep breath. Did you steal their money?"

"No, no. You gotta believe me. I didn't do it. I swear to-"

"Shh," Dakota shook her head. "Do you know who did?"

"No," he cried. No, I wish. I would turn that fucker in so fast. Who was it? Couldn't have been Ginger. She's too fucking dumb. Although she's hot as shit, I'd fuck her if I could.

"He's telling the truth." Dakota leaned back in her chair. "It's not him."

"You trust the skinny human to clear the fat one?" Longshadow scoffed.

Eric let out a sigh and turned to him. "Bring the next one in."

In total, Dakota listened to seven human's thoughts and none of them had anything to do with stealing the sixty thousand from the vampires and it had given her a massive headache. They were all terrified, rightly so. Dakota was sure they would be killed if she had not made Eric turn them over to the police.

"This is the last of the humans." Pam said, holding onto the elbow of a frail blond woman. She had shoulder length hair, red lipstick and a skimpy outfit, a cigarette dangled from between her fingers.

"Mm, yummy." she grinned, as Pam put her in the chair.

"Ginger," Eric peered down at her. "This woman has some questions for you. Now be a good girl and answer them, will you."

"Aye, aye, master." she batted her eyelashes at him.

Dakota grimaced and turned to the woman and gave her a comforting smile. "Ginger, someone's been stealing money from the bar."

"Really? Huh." Don't look at me, you fucking bitch. I didn't do nothing. I'll beat the shit out of you if you say I did. It wasn't me that took it. It wasn't fucking me.

"She didn't do it." Dakota said as she looked up at the Viking. "But she knows who did."

"What?" Ginger sneered. "Fuck you." Shit. How'd she know? I didn't tell anyone, I swear. Fuck, he's gonna kill me.

"Who? Who's gonna kill you?"

Eric and Pam shared a glance, utterly confused how this human could hear every thought in Ginger's head. They hadn't come across anyone who was able to this this and they had been around for a very long time.

"Ginger, honey, what's his name?" There was nothing, absolutely nothing inside her mind. "I – it's blank. Like her memory's been erased."

"I don't know anything, I swear." Ginger said, shaking her head rapidly.

"She's been glamoured." Pam sighed, looking up at her maker.

"It's a vampire." Dakota said. "A vampire stole your money."

Ginger's eyes widened as she looked around Dakota. The woman frowned and turned in her chair to see Longshadow glaring at her from behind the bar. He lunged forwards and pushed her down onto the table. Someone screamed, she thought it was Ginger, but it had come from her own mouth.

The vampire groped her so hard she was sure she'd have bruises on her shoulders, and she felt the pinch from his fangs as they sunk into her neck. Dakota pushed at him with all her might, more angry than afraid. The room lit up suddenly, and Longshadow was blasted off her. It was as if she had been drenched in cold thick water, but when she opened her eyes, she noticed it was blood, dark red and sticky. It was everywhere, in her hair, on her skin and soaked into her uniform.

Longshadow was no more, his clothes a messy heap of gore on the floor before her. He had exploded and all Dakota could do was stare at it.

Behind her, Ginger threw up onto the floor before screaming, shrill sound ringing through Fangtasia. Eric and Pam hadn't moved from their spot beside the table, both staring intently at her, jaws clenched.

"Am I going to get in trouble for this?"

✧✧✧✧✧

BLOOD WAS VERY STICKY AND DESPITE HAVING TRIED TO WASH HER HAIR IN THE SINK IN ONE OF THE BATHROOM'S IN FANGTASIA, THE RED TINT WOULDN'T LEAVE HER BLONDE LOCKS. She needed actual shampoo to properly was her hair. Dakota had managed to scrub most of her skin clean, but she felt gross and probably smelled like iron and death.

The sink was stained red, and she grimaced. Dakota glanced at herself in the mirror and almost burst into tears when she saw the fang marks on her neck, red and raw. They hurt, a lot and she hoped they wouldn't scar. A sigh escaped her, she had just killed a vampire and she didn't even know how. It was like in Merlotte's when Malcom tried to sink his teeth in her, she had been so overwhelmed with emotions it just happened.

Dakota didn't know what it was, she had been different in people's eyes all her life. Listening to their thoughts often got her in difficult situations because sometimes she didn't know if a person said something out loud or if their thoughts were just very invasive on her mind. But this? Shooting light from her hands, this was something that was going to make her even more of an outsider.

The door opened and she peered up at Pam through the mirror. The tall vampire didn't even look remotely angry as she studied the blood-stained girl before her. Pam held out her hand, "Put this on."

Dakota turned around and looked at the materials in her pale hands. It was a tight latex dress, and she shook her head. "Thank you, really, but I am fine. I think I'm just going to head home."

"You're not going anywhere." announced Pam, blue eyes a bit darker as she stared at the woman. "Eric wants to talk to you."

"Is he going to kill me?"

"He might," Pam smirked. "but not tonight. What you need to do is get rid of these blood-soaked clothes and change." Pamela glanced at her breasts and down her now red v neck Merlotte's shirt. "There's vampire in your cleavage."

Dakota watched as Pam took a step toward her, eyes not leaving her own and brought her fingers to her skin, reaching down her shirt and taking out a piece that once belonged to Longshadow. Dakota took a deep breath, getting nauseous of the decaying smell that wafted from herself.

"Thank you."

"I can see why Eric is so interested in you."

The blond furrowed her brows but the two of them were interrupted when Ginger entered the bathroom, smile on her face. "Hello, Pam. Oh, who's your new friend?"

"Ginger, Dakota. Dakota, Ginger." Pam was annoyed to have been interrupted.

"Nice to meet you, Dakota." Ginger smiled, cheerfully.

"Right," nodded Dakota as she looked at the glamoured employee. "Nice to meet you, too."

"Oh, you don't have to be scared." the woman smiled. "They're really very nice here."

Dakota let out a forced laugh and disappeared into one of the bathroom stalls with the dress in her hands. She shimmied out of her uniform and tried to put on the short dress. It was a pain to get on, she pulled on the fabric, and it barely stretched. It was hideous and Dakota felt like she belonged in a strip club. It hugged her body uncomfortably, way too tight but when she stepped out Pam only grinned at her.

"You look like a sex doll. I like it." she observed, amused and took a hold of her elbow, pulling her back into the club.

The floors had been scrubbed clean courtesy of Ginger and after the poor woman had been glamoured. Probably so many times her brain was all mush by now and she pitied her.

Eric was typing away at his phone and glanced up, his brows shot up and he gazed at her hungrily. Dakota pulled her arms over her chest and rolled her eyes at the vampire. "I'd say you'd fit right in." He pocketed his phone and sauntered toward her, like an animal going for its prey. "Let's get you home."

Dakota didn't get a scolding like she was expecting, nor did he scream in her face and most surprisingly he didn't rip her head off for killing one of his vampires. Instead, he reached for her hair and held the blood crusted locks between his fingers with a scowl.

He exchanged words with Pam in old Swedish and then he opened the door of the club for her and waited for her to exit Fangtasia. He unlocked his blood red corvette and told her to get inside. He gripped the steering wheel tightly and took off, before she had time to put on her seatbelt.

Dakota peered at him from the corner of her eyes. He didn't seem angry, he was deep in thought as he drove down the deserted road to Bon Temps. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes tightly. There had been so much blood and the imagine of her grandmother stabbed to death shot through her brain like a knife.

Tears slipped from her eyes, and she turned her head away towards the window, watching as the trees sped by.

Eric glanced at her for a moment before facing the road. "You're not in trouble."

"I killed a vampire." she sniffed, and he pulled a face. He did not do human emotions and it made him uncomfortable. "I don't know how but I did."

"What are you?"

It was a question he had asked her before and honestly, she had no answer for him. Dakota was human, just like Sookie. The mind reading had been something she had been able to do since birth, it had always been like that. The other thing? That was new to her, and Sookie had never spoken about it so she was sure she couldn't do that.

Dakota faced him and sniffed, shaking her head softly. "I am a telepath. I can read minds. I hear people's thoughts even if I really don't want to."

He wasn't surprised, or else he wouldn't have asked her to help him find out who had been stealing his money. He decided not to comment on the way she had killed Longshadow, he figured she truly didn't know. He was more intrigued now, though. He wanted to know everything about her, and he was determined to find out.

"Are you sure I'm not in trouble?" she wondered, frowning.

"I'll deal with it." he insisted, and Dakota heard the warning in his voice, not wanting her to continue to speak on the subject.

The rest of the drive was silent and soon Eric parked in front of her house. He stopped her when she was about to get out of the vehicle and grabbed her arm and she turned in her seat. He let go of her and his fangs appeared beneath his lips. Dakota furrowed her brows, heart rate picking up. He brought his thumb to his mouth and pinched his own skin, droplet of blood leaking onto his leather seat.

He brought his thumb towards her and moved her hair away from her neck before pressing his digit to the fang marks Longshadow had left. Dakota flinched but soon the pain crept away, and he retracted his hand from her skin. She moved her hand and felt her neck, the marks had disappeared.

"Take a shower." he said, leaning over her and opening the door. "you smell of death."