I had to admit it.  I loved him.  No doubt about it.  I could say it truthfully; the words reverberated up from the deepest depths of my heart.  But, I had my limits.

“No fruit.”

“I didn’t say fruit; I said flowers, like a head wreath!”

“And no gold or silver lamé dress; I’ll look like a giant Zippo lighter.”

I lackadaisically took a sip of wine and flipped through a home decorating magazine; totally unaffected by the sight and sound of furious teeth sucking, breath huffing, and dramatic posturing.

I was on my laptop, in a Skype telecom with my brother Billy and his fiancé, Lance.  I had barely made it home in time for their call and therefore I was still in my uniform, but minus my holster and shoes.  My shirt-tail was comfortably pulled out and hanging down, completely in violation of proper uniform dress code. 

I was sitting in a sprawled out, un-ladylike position, enjoying my wine, the magazine, and up until five minutes ago, the company.

We were discussing what I was to wear at their commitment ceremony in February, and we were at a fashion impasse.  Unbeknownst to my brother and his partner, I was actually in a bit of a foul mood but was suppressing it. 

Two hours earlier, Miss Violet had pulverized the silver amulet that Liam had given me as a Christmas gift.  She had also informed me that Liam was a witch… or warlock; it’s warlock for males, right?  Whatever.  Furthermore, she told me that the amulet had some evil, black magic, juju power crap attached to it, or in it, or – whatever.

But, the fucking pièce de résistance was – Fred, my Santa alligator lawn ornament.  He was missing from the entrance deck of my house.   Some dip-shit asshole had stolen a helpless, rubber gator that never did anything to anyone.  I had fallen in love with that weirdly adorable, polyurethane, blow-up reptile.  Bastards.

In unison, Billy and his fiancé Lance bellowed at me, “Jo!”  I snapped back to reality and watched while they started doing their hard-sell pitch.  They reminded me of carnival vendors, while they hawked the virtues of exotic flowers, Swarovski crystal jewelry, and shiny clothing materials.  Apparently, if I wore that stuff, I would save mankind from some horrible fashion apocalypse and assure their reputation as uber-stylists among their friends.  

Dressed in all of that crap, and with my height, I’m going to look like a drag queen.  Whatever…

Billy’s face was aglow with excitement and he was practically shouting out all of his ideas.  His animated gestures and vibrant expressions reminded me of our mother; she would get all jazzed up and demonstrative whenever she was about to start a new craft class or creative project.  She was always filled with that same inner light and boisterous exuberance that was practically bursting out of him. 

Though we both had our mother’s coloring of brown hair and green eyes, he looked more like our father with every passing day.  Though Billy didn’t have my father’s curly hair, like me, he did have the same mannerisms and the tall, slender build.   My little brother is a real looker.  Lance is a lucky man and I’m banking on the fact that he knows it… My parents would have been proud.

“See?  It will be probably be a simple lei and matching hair wreath of orchids and we found this silk material - and it’s not lamé!  But, it has a slight sheen to it - but not gaudy.  The color of the material appears to change as it moves.  It’s simply amazing!  And you will be absolutely sen-say-tional in the simple but elegant straplessbratopandsarongskirt .  Okay?  So, I think we have that settled.  Righty then, let’s move onto the next item on my list.”

I sat up straight and glared into the laptop screen.  “Did you say ‘strapless, bra top and sarong skirt’?  I’m wearing a bra and a sarong skirt?  What am I going to be, the fucking Chiquita Banana lady?” 

I flopped back into my former position and scowled at my beloved brother. “Thought you could just slip that in there, huh, Mr. Slick?  Hell-to-the-no!   Are you out of your frigging mind?” 

In less than two seconds, Billy turned into his alter ego - a terrifying, tiara-toting hellion.   

 “That’s it!  I’ve had it!  I knew you were going to trash everything I want.  This is my day!  The most important day of my life and I knew you were going to be like this!”  Billy’s voice zoomed up an octave, and became an eardrum-piercing screech.  “I told you Lance, I told you!”

He leapt up from his couch and grabbed his laptop and started to shake it.  As the picture on my screen rolled and jerked, he continued his rant.  “I can’t belieee-vah that you are doing this to me – No!  I can believe it.  Because you’re selfish!  You refuse to do anything that you don’t want to do!  I knew you were going to be a total bitch about this.  This is one day – my frigging, magical day!  You are sooo… Lance – no, let go!  Stop it, Lance… ” 

The picture on my laptop lurched to the right, teetered a little bit and then everything was still.  I could see them clearly again; they were both back on the couch, sitting together.  I watched while Lance held Billy in a bear hug and whispered calming words into his ear.  Though Billy seemed to respond to Lance’s soothing, I could see that he was still full of venom and vinegar. 

I almost laughed out loud at the whole scene, but that would have been too cruel.  Plus, it would have caused Billy to erupt again, and truthfully, I didn’t want to further upset him.   Though, he deserves it.   I’m getting my pound of flesh now – and it still will not equal the humiliation that I will endure in two months.

 Billy had turned into a groomzilla from the moment of accepting Lance’s proposal, that was seven months ago.  His reign of terror was now at hurricane force and I knew that once I boarded that cruise ship, I would become his jail-cell bitch.  He would turn me into a virtual Barbie doll; he would re-do my hair, clothes, nails, and would probably try to wax my body from stem to stern… May the ship dock often and sweet Mother Mary, don’t let them run out of booze.

Lance was a lawyer, and a damn good one, but I think he missed his calling.  He should have become a peace negotiate for the United Nations.  He always played the peacemaker when Billy and I butted heads - which normally didn’t happen often, but now was happening weekly as the ceremony date drew closer.  Philosophically, I tried to consider this time of terror as a unifying experience for the three of us.  I affectionately dubbed it ‘chaotic bonding.’  I watched with passive admiration while he maneuvered us away from another battle of wills.

“Jo… I know you are probably exhausted after a hard day of work and you are very reactionary now.  But, you know your teasing can upset Billy when he is stressed.  He’s not getting enough sleep.  You know how he gets and we don’t want him to worry himself into a hospital bed, do we?

“It’s only going to be for a few hours, you won’t have to wear the outfit throughout the whole cruise.  Remember, you’re not just his sister… you’re his ‘best man-woman.’  You’ll be walking him down the aisle and then will stand beside him as we join all our lives together… and you know that he has his heart set on a fusion of quasi-Mexican and tropical Polynesian influences.  So, let’s all just relax, regroup, and start again.”

Lance gave Billy a comforting squeeze and then continued to disarm my defenses with the precision of a practiced adjudicator.      

“… We need you - not just your physical support - but your emotional and mental commitment… You will be his only family member present and that means everything to him.  Believe me; he only wants you to look your best.  You will look so beautiful in the gown.”

Billy quietly and quickly corrected him, “Strapless bra and sarong skirt.”

Lance quickly nodded his head and then audibly corrected himself, “Strapless bra and sarong skirt… with the purple orchids woven into your hair-”

Billy chirped up again, “A wreath – she’ll be wearing a wreath and matching lei.  But maybe ginger blossoms or perhaps plumerias; I’m not totally committed to the orchids…”

Lance slowly and emphatically nodded his head, then inhaled and exhaled slowly.  Yeah, Billy goat was starting to get to you too, huh, Mr. Patience? 

He began again, “… or wreath… with other flowers… but, not only will you be representing… the… ah…”

Shamefully, my mind had started to wander after Billy began quoting flower types.  I imagined myself on deck of the ship, lying on a lounge chair with a margarita in my hand, surrounded by a thousand or more beautiful gay men, since it was a gay cruise, who were chocked full of Hollywood gossip.  Now that’s a good vacation… laughing, drinking, gossip, massages… I could just be another girl in the crowd… no responsibilities… just letting loose… actually, I would have a lot… It took a good fifteen seconds before I realized that Lance had stopped talking. 

Both men seemed to be in suspended animation.  Their mouths were agape and the expressions on their faces were a mixture of surprise and awe.  They were looking off to my left, over my shoulder. 

What?  What are you both looking at?

I flipped my head around and found myself face level with Eric Northman’s crotch.

Now normally… I would not have considered that a bad thing.  However, at that particular moment, it was.

Uh… ohhhh….  My eyes scaled up Eric’s beautiful body.  I allowed myself a moment or two to appreciate the awe-inspiring landscape of sinewy, hard muscles on the manly, broad frame.  However, I was somewhat unnerved when I saw the expression on his handsome face. 

Eric was smiling like a used car salesman.   He bent over the back of the couch until he could see the guys and he cheerfully greeted them. “Hello there!  You must be Billy and Lance, am I correct?  I’m Eric Northman.  I’m Jo’s… um, friend… a very close friend.”  He emphasized the word ‘friend’ in a very suggestive way – which I didn’t like.

Eric walked around to the front of the couch.  He signaled that he wanted to sit beside me, but when I didn’t move, he picked up my magazine and flung it over the back of the couch, and then he grabbed the wine glass from my hand and placed it on the side table.  He proceeded to wedge his way in, beside me, gently shoving me to the side.  We were now situated so that we both were in range of my laptop’s embedded webcam. 

I remained in my stunned stupor, which was becoming a natural reaction for me since I moved to Bon Temps.

Unperturbed by my non-reaction, Eric continued on with his smarmy, polite conversation.  “So, I believe congratulations are in order on your impending commitment ceremony.  How excited you must be.  I could hear your excitement from outside, from all the way down the road.  Let me see if I remember all the details: a Valentine’s Day commitment ceremony on a cruise ship, sailing off the shores of the Riviera Maya, correct?”  While he spoke, Eric threw his right arm over my shoulders and when I tried to discretely shrug it off; he clamped down his hand and tightened his hold on me.

The guys nodded in unison, their mouths still agape and eyes unblinking.  We three looked like deer caught in headlights.  And Eric… well, he was just smiling this big, shiny smile, and acting so nice and friendly...  It was creepy.

Lance was the first one to have a cognizant thought and he politely but hesitantly spoke, “I’m afraid that you have us at a disadvantage.  Um, we haven’t met… so… so you’re a friend of Jo’s.  How do you and Jo know each other?”

Billy recovered enough to prove to everyone that he and I were related.  He inappropriately blurted out,   “Are you a vampire?”

Eric’s smile melted into an alluring, sexually stimulating smirk.  “I am vampire.”

I heard, rather than saw, Billy exhale a “Wow” and Lance inhaled sharply with an “Oh.” 

I wiped the sweat that had formed on my upper lip.  I can’t believe this is happening.  ‘Hey – Billy and Lance, meet my vampire secret lover… no, I don’t mind!  Not a problem!’  I felt like a politician who just had his nude twitter pictures broadcasted on national television.

I lamely tried to do some damage control.  I pointed to Eric and said, “Guys, Eric and I work together.  So…”  For some reason, that’s all that I could manage to say.

Eric gave me another couple of seconds to finish my sentence and when I didn’t continue, he jumped right in.  Every cell in my body was on full alert as I listened to him.  He started out fine, but then – well, I couldn’t believe my eyes and ears. 

“Yes, we met through… work… I am a sheriff for the American Vampire League here in the Louisiana district.  Jo and I have become close… very close… quite close.”  He turned and smiled at me.  He looped his arm around my waist and I swear he was going to kiss me.  I leaned away from him as far as possible, until my back bowed. 

I feel like the cat in the Pepé Le Pew cartoons.  Pepé Le Pew was an adorable, aggressively romantic, French skunk that fell in love with a cat and chased it until he literally captured it.  Then, he practically squeezed it breathless as he proclaimed his feelings.  I remember how funny it was to watch the cat struggle and squirm, trying to flee from Pepé’s clutches; but it didn’t seem so funny anymore as I tried to accomplish the same feat. 

As I discretely sought my freedom, I attempted to downplay Eric’s suggestive overtures.  “Yeah, we’re ah… friends… just friends… work colleagues.  Eric is… Eric would you… not so tight there, buddy… he’s a sheriff in Shreveport, and he was just stopping by… Boy!  I didn’t hear you knock, gee…”  I lamely tittered, “I totally forgot that you were coming over tonight to meet about... that thing.”

Billy had completely re-booted and now was bright eyed and bushy tailed, and ready to pry into my personal business.  “Stop me if I’m wrong, but… am I getting a little… something-something here?  Like a little vibe of something… that means - ‘colleagues and more?’  Right?  Am I right?  I mean… Jo doesn’t always tell us about her private life, but… aacccctually… I think she already gave us a hint about you.  She said that she was seeing someone, but she seemed-”

“BILLY!”  Fear gave me a burst of energy and I was able to propel myself out of Eric’s hold.  I then dove at the screen of the computer.  My panicked yell immediately quieted Billy and I saw him physically cower as I viciously stared back at him.  I even held up a threatening fist for emphasis.  I then employed a skill that I had perfected during my many years in law enforcement… I lied. 

“What are you talking about?… Eric and I are just friends… You know better than to just ‘assume’ something, right?  Because you will make an ‘ass’ out of ‘u’ and ‘me.’  Right?  And, you are mistaken, aren’t you?  I never talked to you about anyone – ever!  You’re confusing our conversations with some other conversation with some friend.   Aren’t you?” 

Billy got a clue right away.  His head wobbled like a Bobble Head doll.  Though he stumbled a little over some of his words, he jumped right in and tried to cover up his earlier statements.  “Okay… I mean no… you’re right Jo-Jo… I may be wrong… I’m wrong!  So wrong!  Yes, yes… yes, that’s right, I was thinking of someone else… yes!  It was… Scott!  That’s right.  He’s the one who has a new boyfr-… so… Sheriff Northman… I’m dying to ask you… not dying, I don’t want to die - not that there’s anything wrong with that… but… so, where are you from?  Were you made a vampire here in the States or somewhere else?”

Lance’s hug visibly tightened around Billy’s shoulders as he sweetly admonished him.  “Billy, that may be a very traumatic memory for Mr. Northman.  He may not want to discuss it.  I think we should go.  I believe they need some privacy.”

Eric’s steel-strong arms encircled my waist and gently pulled me back until I was again all tighty-cozy against him.  He practically purred to the guys, “Please call me Eric.”  Then, he whispered in my ear, but loud enough for them to hear.  “It’s alright, Jo.  They are your family.  I don’t think they would begrudge you a personal life.”

I stared at Eric in dumbfounded disbelief and barely managed to babble, “What?  No… no please… just…”

Eric ignored both Lance and me and went back to his conversation with Billy, “I’m from Sweden.  I was born in the Northern region… over a thousand years ago.  My father was king and I was his only son and heir.  In this day and age, I’m a business man as well as sheriff.”

Billy, bless him, cleared up any doubts that he really and truly was my flesh and blood.  Nobody does direct, insensitivity like my family.  He was chewing on his bottom lip one moment and the next, “You’re a prince.  Oh my gosh!  Are you rich?  I always heard that the older the vampire, the richer they are.   

Oh, and by the way, they say that all vampires are beautiful, but I’ve seen a lot of them on the news and they aren’t - but you are!  I mean, wow.  You are gorgeous, like model gorgeous.  You should be the poster boy for vampires.  Are you tall?  You look tall, really tall.  Which is great for Jo, she looks better with tall men, the taller the better!  Jo, you might want to re-think this whole colleagues thing!”  Billy was practically bouncing with glee and he had the audacity to wink at me.

Eric looked amused and genuinely smiled in response.  He scrunched me with another tight squeeze.  “I am… financially secure… and tall.  Jo and I have shared many experiences that have drawn us together…  But we have to be careful; in public, we are completely professional.  We prefer to keep our private life very private.  You understand don’t you?”

I mumbled, “No, no…stop,” but no one seemed to be listening.

Billy’s face burst into a bright beam of sunshine.  He held both his fists up in the air like he had just won an Olympic event.  “Oh my god, it’s true!  IT’S TRUE!  You’re seeing each other!  Oh my god – Jo, you’re dating!  I knew it!  Why the hell didn’t you just tell me flat out?”   He then turned to an underwhelmed Lance and said, “I told ya!  Didn’t I tell you?  I knew it.” 

As soon as his mouth closed my mouth exploded opened.  “No!  We are not together… just knock that crap off, it’s not funny.”  I unsuccessfully tried to shove Eric off of me.  When he wouldn’t release me, I glared at him.  “Eric is… we’re work colleagues, isn’t that right?  That is all that it is!  That’s all it’s ever going to be.”  I looked back at Billy, “He’s here for business.  We meet at night because he’s a vampire – see?  Okay?”

I lobbed a verbal bomb onto the bloody battlefield on which my dignity and pride had been butchered; one that I knew would shut down Billy, once and for all.  “Billy, I swear if you if you don’t shut up… and if you ever repeat this conversation to anyone or bring it up again… I swear… that I when I walk you down the aisle – I will wear old, cut-off jean shorts… a stained football jersey… while drinking beer from a can.”    

Billy’s horrified expression told me that my aim had been perfect and the mission to ‘Shut Up Billy’ had been completely successful.

Eric made some stupid sound of displeasure and I elbowed him in his ribs.  Eric, being his normal incorrigible self, laughed out loud and then surprised me when he released from his steel-like arm hold.  He leaned back on the couch and splayed his arms over the back of the couch.  He looked quite comfortable and right at home.  “Jooooo, loosen up… Your brother is trying to be supportive of you –”

I angrily hissed back at him, “Eric, I know what he is trying to do and I don’t need him to be supportive of a non-existent relationship.”  I leaned into the computer screen, “Guys, it’s late and I’m tired.  Let’s continue this at a later time, okay?”  I didn’t wait for a response from the guys, instead I quickly said, “Love you both, buh-bye” and then slammed shut my computer. 

Eric had repositioned himself so that he was leaning against the arm of the couch and then he stretched out and rested his legs across my lap.  I would have sworn on a stack of bibles that I saw an actual twinkle in his eyes.  He said, “You mentioned me to your family.  I’m flattered, Jo.  But, you should have handled all of that a little… actually a lot more delicately than you did.”

I dumped his legs off of me when I jumped up from the couch.  I grabbed an accent pillow and threw it at him. Of course, his vampire reflexes engaged and he caught it before it hit his face.  He looked back at me with exasperation, but I really didn’t care what he was feeling because I was fed up with his games. 

“What the fuck is wrong with you?”  My question was entirely rhetorical and he was wise to realize that.  But, for some reason, his silence fueled my anger and I jumped into a full tantrum. 

I stomped around the room, kicking and punching furniture, while ranting.  “I… I… I never… What the fuck are you doing here?  That was my family you were messing with!  My family!  Have you ever thought of calling first?  Just because you’re the landlord doesn’t allow you to just walk in at any time for no reason.  Do I turn up at your bar or house unannounced – huh, do I?  No! No I don’t!  So, don’t do it to me!”

Eric seemed to ignore me as he picked some lint off of his jacket.  He was dressed in his signature color - black.  Billy had described him perfectly when he said that Eric was as beautiful as a model.  Even the sour expression on his face did nothing to lessen his appeal. 

Apparently, he hadn’t been ignoring me.  “Actually… you have dropped by my bar unannounced.  The very first time you and I met was an unannounced visit.  You came with A.J.’s yard dog, Roman.  You both showed up unannounced and fully armed for battle.  But, no, you have never been to my house, and, if you keep up this attitude, I may never invite you over.”

It felt like all the anger and frustration that had been building up in me for six months, six highly stressful and death defying months – all culminated into this very moment.  I was beyond logic, and I really didn’t care what I said next… and I said something stupid that shouldn’t have been said. 

I glared at Eric and snidely snapped, “Why the fuck would I ever want to come over to your house?   And that’s fucking bullshit - you don’t have a house, vampires have coffins.  How fucking cozy, is there enough room in there for me?  What is it, a high-rise coffin – two stories and a loft?  Don’t hold your breath, buddy, I’ve got better things to do than visit graveyards.”

Eric slowly stood up; his body was ramrod straight.  A tiny warning flag went up for me:  ‘Eric – angry - beware.’  Well, I really don’t give a shit anymore. 

But, then I saw his eyes and a chill ran down my spine.  They were flinty-grey, vacant, and depthless… like shark eyes.  He didn’t spare me a single look as he casually walked to the front door. 

He stopped before exiting and turned to face me.   A slight but discernible sneer marred his beautiful features.  My brain stem registered the sneer and my pulse quickened.  Get ready to fight or flee, Jo.  Probably flee.  The last time he looked that way was right before he broke my metal office chair. 

“I enjoyed meeting your brother.  There’s a similarity between you both… speech patterns… facial expressions.  He amused me and was very gracious.  However, that is where you are very different from him.  Your perpetual rudeness is so… annoying.  We’ve been discreet, which is necessary, I agree.  But, your treatment of me… in front of your family… ” Eric smiled, but it contained absolutely no warmth or humor. 

“What is the expression that is used these days - ‘Fuck buddies’?  Yes… acquaintances who meet for occasional sex.  Well… now that you’ve defined it so succinctly… we need to act appropriately.  I’ll call you when I need you.”   He then left without any fanfare – no threats and no slamming of the door – just gone.

I stood rooted in place and just stared at the door for a good couple of minutes.  His departure was almost as unnerving as his unexpected arrival.  For a fleeting moment, I thought of calling him back.

I mirthlessly chuckled to myself and said aloud, “What the hell… Of course we’re only fuck buddies…  When the hell did it ever change into something?  I was never really gung-ho over it, in the first place.”

Well… that’s not true… But, hey… Wow… that’s it… it’s over.  That definitely drew a line… good... finally… No more worrying about being caught… or him appearing unannounced!

Though my head was rejoicing, my heart wasn’t.  I felt slightly nauseous.  I curled up on the couch and turned to look at the door, I guess a part of me was waiting for him to come back.  But, I knew he wasn’t.

What the fuck have I done? 

I grabbed my wine glass, downed the contents and then went to the kitchen to refill it.  I spoke aloud to the walls, hoping that somehow it would fortify my confidence.  “I did nothing wrong!  Nothing!  But what I did do had to be done.  I got rid of him!  And that’s good… it’s for the best…” 

But… he literally took a bullet for me… oh God; I’m such a bitch… He came whenever I needed him.  He…

Dammit, we were getting along so well, we were having fun… Now we’re back to square one, and I really don’t want to be on his bad side.  And the sex… was good… great...  fantastic… addicting… and shit… he made me feel safe… I can’t believe I just thought that…

“I won’t lose my job over you, Eric.”  I can’t go through the hate and ridicule again…

People aren’t always nice to someone going through misfortune, especially in a small town.  Having a mother dying of cancer, an alcoholic father, and very little money all equaled – ostracism. 

A yoke of shame was placed on my shoulders by that little town I grew up in.  I had to work twice as hard and achieve twice as much to overcome it and change their opinions of me.  In addition, I had to fight for Billy and protect him from all the different kinds of bullies in our society.  Yes, it made me stronger and gave me survivor skills that I used to survive and thrive in a male dominated career… and I won’t let it happen again.  Once a stigma is placed on you, it’s very hard to remove it.  I will not be known as a fang banger.

I won’t lose everything for a fucking man – never.  No man is worth that – ever.  Especially a player…

Why did this have to happen?    

I gulped down my glass of wine and then replenished it.  I repeated this action again.

Unfortunately or fortunately, the liquid courage from the alcohol kicked in.  I grabbed up my cell phone and sent a text to Eric.  It stated a simple truth, ‘Sorry.  Now you know why I’m alone.’

Well, that says it all, ‘I’m sorry and I’m a loser.’  Shit… I just chased after him… I am so lame… and he’ll gloat about it for awhile...  Public announcement folks - don’t drink and text…

Oh the hell with it…

I need to re-focus.  I have a warlock that I need to talk to before he leaves on holiday.

==================================================================================

I looked over at Kyle, who had been stone silent for the last twenty minutes of our drive back to the station and said, “Keep it down, deputy.  You’re so rowdy I can barely think.”

Kyle replied with a lazy smile.  “These holiday shindigs are draining.  I smiled so much my face hurts.”

“Yeah?  Well, me too.  You feeling okay?”  I looked over at him; his broad-shouldered body was slumped down in the passenger seat, with his knees propped up against the dashboard.  I was genuinely worried about his health; he had just returned to duty after being shot several weeks ago at the nursing home massacre.  It seemed too soon for him to be back.  But apparently, werewolves recovered quicker than humans, which was great for me since I was still understaffed.  He just nodded in response and went back to looking out the window.

Celebrating the holidays had become part of my job description.  A.J. wanted all the sheriffs out and about, mingling and celebrating with the public, reinstating faith in the police force.  I was ordered to attend every holiday event in my territory - from Christmas to Kwanzaa to Hanukkah.  

My checked my cell phone for messages and of course, there were none.  Of course – no fucking messages!  Why would anyone call me back…? It seems that I’m on everyone’s do-not-call list.

I hadn’t heard from Eric since our little blow up, which had been two days earlier.  Roman didn’t directly return my work or personal calls.  I received either cryptic texts or messages relayed through his staff.  But the most frustrating of all was Liam. 

I saw him several times in and around Bon Temps, but always at a distance and out of shouting range.  I had left him a ton of messages and was starting to feel like a phone stalker.  He didn’t return a single message and it had started to piss me off.  The amulet that he gave me was becoming an obsession for me; I had to know what was it protecting me from and why.

I’ll be damned if another man was going to ignore me.  I looked over at Kyle and decided to put a hold on my building anxiety attack and discretely steer the conversation towards my ulterior motive.  “Did you get enough to eat?”

“Yeah, I think I ate too much, though.  Those church ladies just don’t wanna take ‘no’ for an answer.” 

I laughed out loud.  “Yeah, I’ve been on a sugar high for the last couple of days.  I’m afraid I’m going to get Type 2 diabetes if I keep this up.”

Kyle laughed and nodded his head.  “Yeah, me too.  Roman – I mean Deputy Chief Jeffers, he says that the infected population is down, huh?  They haven’t had a sighting in like… almost a week.  Isn’t that right, Sheriff?”

Good, we’re talking. “Yep, that’s right.  Roman and his team have been steady on the hunt both night and day.  He’ll ‘get-her-done,’ as they say around here.  I’m sure of it.”

Kyle either didn’t get my joke or didn’t find it funny.  He mumbled something that sounded like, “Yes ma’am,” and then seemed to withdraw into himself.

I looked over at him and silently sighed.  I need to get to the point and now.  I hadn’t just taken Kyle to today’s event because he was on light duty due to his injury.  I wanted to get him somewhere private – like in the car - and ask him about witches.  The thought of asking Eric or Roman about the witches was completely moot; not just because I feared for Liam’s safety, but also… well, like I said before, neither towering, testosterone-infused, walking wet dream was talking  to me.

Zombies, vampires, werewolves, and witches; I wonder what the ratio of supernatural to human is in this area.  I’m starting to feel like a minority.

“Kyle, what do you know about witches in the area?”

Kyle’s face registered a flash of surprise but then resumed its normal relaxed happy-go-lucky mask.  “Oh, I guess you’re talking about the Time of Crossing on the twentieth.”

Um… not really…The ‘Time of Crossing,’ huh?… Well, we’ve got the ball rolling here…

As cool as a cucumber in a bowl of milk – one of Miss Violet’s favorite sayings - I stealthily manipulated my travel companion.  “It’s all a little confusing still.  I was hoping that you would explain it… further for me.”

Kyle scrubbed his hand over his face and then adjusted his seating position so that he was now sitting up properly.  “Well, I don’t know much.  Allz I know is that the winter solstice is happening a day early this year, on December twentieth, and that there’s going to be an um… a solar… no, a lunar eclipse on the winter solstice, which hardly ever happens.  I think the last time was in the sixteen hundreds or something...  It’s called ‘The Night of the Crossing cos… well, it’s when all the different… um, I guess I should say ‘worlds’ open up for a moment and the beings from these worlds can cross over into another world.”

Alrighty then… yeah, I’m already starting to not like the sound of this ‘Time of Crossing’ thing.

My hands tighten on the steering wheel.  I could feel the milk warming up around my cucumbers.  “Isn’t that the same thing that happens on Halloween?”

Kyle had pulled out a pack of gum and offered me a piece.  After I shook my head, he popped a piece in his mouth and casually addressed my question.  “Naw… that’s when the dead can walk among the living.  This is different… when things like demons or spirits, or other creatures… cross over.”  His voice took on a firmer tone.  “They can cross over and but they have to find a supernatural or a ‘sensitive’ human to possess so that they can stay.  They need to draw on our strength, our energy, or something like that.  Then, once they are strong enough, they can go from person to person – like from a super or sensitive to a human.” 

I didn’t realize that I had been holding my breath until I tried to talk and ended up coughing.  “So,” (cough, cough), “What are we supposed to do?”  (Cough.)

Kyle turned and looked at me.  “I don’t rightly know about… humans.  The alphas from all the dens are planning something, like a distraction of some kind.  Anyways, the betas told us not gather together, no supernaturals should be around another, cos all our energy together will attract them.  Some of the guys said they’re sending their family to holy ground.  I’m going to our family’s den; the rest of my family will go to church.  I’m the only ‘were’ in my family right now.” 

I felt my heartbeats quicken as my anxiety level rose.  I hoped he couldn’t hear the strain in my voice when I asked him, “What about the humans?”  

He shrugged and said, “Nothing. I think.  Unless you’re a sensitive – like a psychic or something like that, then you’ve gotta worry, cos they have energy that attracts the dark ones.  That’s actually what we call them… the demons or whatever things cross that over, we call them the dark ones.”

I nodded my head slowly.  It was starting to sound promising, that this wasn’t a human problem, just a super problem.  I released a quiet sigh of relief and said, “So, where do the witches come in?  We have witches around here, right?”

Kyle rested his head back against the seat’s head rest.  “I know we have witches, but I only know of the old lady down by Boyer’s Creek.  But, I know there’s more.  I’m not that high in the pack, so I’m not allowed in on all the stuff like that.”

Kyle stretched and yawned, all the food from the church Christmas social was taking its toll and he was becoming sleepy.  But, luckily for me, he continued to talk. 

“Um… witches are supposed to be able to do protection spells and stuff like that… I was kinda fuzzy minded, from the pain pills, at the last pack meeting… There was something said about the alphas working with other supers and witches to try to keep it safe for us… but I don’t remember all what was said, and they didn’t really say what they were doing.”  Kyle dryly chuckled, “I guess the rest of us were all freaked out so much that no one really asked any questions.  I sure as heck was.” 

I nodded along as he continued to speak – and indeed he did.  Some security wall must have lower inside his psyche, for whatever reason, and I was reaping the rewards.  I hide my surprise and joy because I didn’t want to alarm him.  I only spoke when necessary or to encourage him. Kyle went on to tell me more about werewolves than I could ever even imagine. 

What he had to say was fascinating.  Apparently, there are many kinds of werewolves, but the Red Moon Pack is supposedly one of the oldest, biggest, and most powerfully influential packs in North America.  It was made up of many dens of werewolves, with A.J. as the leader and Roman as the second in command. 

Interestingly enough, there were no females in the pack, only males.  A female could carry the gene and pass it onto a son, but to Kyle’s knowledge, there had never been a female werewolf in the pack.  There were other packs in the world that had female weres, but not the Red Moon Pack. 

The most intriguing thing I learned was that they were the only werewolves that he knew of that could do multiple transformations – not just a wolf or take on human shape whenever they chose, but they had the ability to turn into a giant werebeast at will.  Roman was in that form when he attacked me in my cruiser. 

The Red Moon Pack weren’t controlled by the full moon like other werewolf packs.   But, there were two exceptions to that rule – one, when the moon was red, hence their name.  This was a very rare occurrence and therefore not an issue for them, and only the younger members of the pack were forced to turn, some elders and alphas could withstand the draw of the moon.  Kyle didn’t know why. 

The second exception of when a Red Moon werewolf was helpless against the forces of nature – their first, official mating season.  During their official first mating moon, they automatically turn into the werebeasts and then they hunt down their mates.  This was not to be confused with regular sex, this was an uncontrollable push from Nature to hunt for and take a mate.  This forced transformation only happened once in their life, normally in their late twenties or early thirties.  After the first mating moon, they can control the change again.  I bet this is why Roman attacked me.  He was crazed and trying to find Twyla. 

Kyle seemed to actually gloat as he concluded his spiel on the mating ritual of his pack.  “But, the only one’s that’s to worry ‘bout the first mating moon is the girl they’re after.  The werewolf goes after the one that they want and nobody or nothin’ is gonna stop them.  We Red Moon werewolves don’t take ‘no’ for an answer…”  Kyle smiled broadly at me.

I softly scoffed back, “Well… there’s always an exception to the rule, because Roman attacked me.  Somehow I got caught in his scope’s cross hairs by mistake, because I sure as hell don’t look like Twyla - who happens to be his mate.”

For the first time during the ride, Kyle directly looked at me.  The force of his response was completely unexpected.  “No ma’am!  She ain’t his mate; she’s just his baby’s mama.  We all knew he was after you!  There’s no mistake about it, he was coming after you.  I reckon that’s why he brought you here. 

But, I understand.  He messed around with Miss Twyla and you rightly got all upset by it… and rejected him and all… you’re lucky, because a rejected werebeast will sometimes kill if he’s rejected… but I don’t think… see… he should’ve talked with you, that’s what everybody said - though not to his face.  You gotta understand that girls around here do stuff like that to get a man.  They get pregnant to hold them, but it don’t work, and it’s not working with him.” 

I was staring straight back at Kyle and the sound of highway pavement changing to roadside, rough gravel brought my attention back to driving.  I had nearly run us completely off the road.  I jerked the cruiser back onto the road and stared straight ahead. 

No… nope… Kyle, you’re wrong.  If Roman wanted me, he would have said something a long time ago.  I mean, we’ve known each other for five, no - six years… it just never was the right time or place… it wasn’t meant to be.  I’ve come to terms with that now… especially after seeing him with Twyla.

 Before I could say any of this aloud, Kyle seemed spooked and started to back-peddle out of our conversation.

“Um ma’am… Sheriff, please don’t tell anyone I just told you all of that… especially about the Deputy Chief.    If Roman, I mean Deputy Chief Jeffers, ever found out what I just told you about him, and the pack, and Miss Twyla… he would have my hide.  I like him and all, but he can be very… I’ve seen him angry and I don’t ever want him angry at me.  So, please, please ma’am.  I’m beggin’ you.  I’m the only one bringing home money.  I take care of my Maw and my little sister –”

I waved my hand to quiet him and then said. “Don’t worry.  I swear I will never repeat what you told me… No one will know about this conversation.  Don’t worry, okay.  Kyle?”  I looked over at him and saw that he truly was afraid, but he seemed to relax again.  He managed a faint smile.

We remained completely silent for the remainder of the drive back to the station.

================================================================================

December twentieth is only three days away… dammit, Liam… Well, I’m all out of patience, buddy, I know you’re leaving for holiday any day now and I have to see you before you go… I’ll even bring you one of these prized pecan pies… I sure as hell have enough of them.  

I looked at the five pecan pies that were lying around my office.  One was on my desk, two were haphazardly sitting on top of my file cabinets, and the last two were sitting in my visitor’s chair in front of my desk. 

The word got out that I loved them and I was receiving them daily.  I had frozen a few, dropped some off at the fire station, forced some on staff members and Miss Violet, but they kept coming and I was running out of options on how to unload them.  I couldn’t throw them away; my grandmother who had grown up during the Depression era would have said, “Wasting food is a sin.”

I was saved from having to make a world shattering decision on what to do with the pies by the beep of my office phone.  As I answered the call, I said a quick little prayer that it wasn’t another invitation to another Christmas event. 

“Sheriff Lautner here. “

“Hey ya der, cher!  Can yah hear me?  I’m on the road and reception is terrible down here where I’m at.”

“A.J.?  Yeah… I can hear you fine.  Um… What can I do for you, sir?”

“Funny you should ask that… see, ders something very important that’s coming down the pike; just a couple of days away.  And… it’s of a sensitive nature.  So, I need a favor.  Just a little one, but it would mean so much to me.”

For some reason, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up.  “Okay… I’ll see what I can do… I, um, I’m happy to help, if I can.  What is it that you need?”

“I’m going to be attendin’ a Christmas party at the private home of the governor of ‘Lou-see-anna’.    He’s a relative, not just kin – you know what I mean, by that, right?  He’s actually a second cousin of mine, on my mother’s side, and a real son-of-a-gun.  Like a brother.  Anyways, it would be completely unseemly if I was to show up without a lady escort.  So, you being my favorite female sheriff, you’re first on my list.  And don’t worry, cher.  This is strickly bid-ness.”

Oh, fuck a duck… another business party.    

I should have just said ‘yes’ and be done with it.  But, I wanted him to have a little taste of the bile that  had just tinged my tongue.

“Business, huh?  I guess I should pack up all of my rifles, right?  Or will I be doing a hand-to-hand combat demonstration?  By the way, I’m you’re only female sheriff, A.J., so the compliment is back-handed at best.  What would you have done if I wasn’t on staff?”

“Oh now cher, don’t be like dat.  No, no, no there ain’t goin’ to be a shooting contest.  This is high society, black tie, cher.  My barbeque was a right-of-passage, and you looked damn good while beatin’ the competition’s ass.  You were the best lookin’ gal there.”

I snorted my disbelief and distain, but either A.J. ignored me or didn’t hear me.  He probably just ignored me. 

“Oh, and by the way, you ain’t my only female sheriff any more.  I just hired me another one.  And you should pat yerself on dah back.  Cos of you, I’m willin’ to take another chance on another girl sheriff.  If she’s half as good as you, I’ll be happy.”

For just a fleeting second, I felt a pang of jealousy.  Then, embarrassed by the feeling, I felt momentary shame.  I had to admit that I was very proud of being the first, and only, woman sheriff in Bernard Parish… and most of Louisiana… and the South… and… Oh well, I’m a selfish, narcissistic bitch… blah, blah, blah… whatever. 

Wherever I’ve been, most of the time, I was always the first woman to work at the station or duty post.  It was tough, men weren’t always welcoming.  In most cases, if another woman joined the team, I was ecstatic and it was a good experience.  But every now and then, a woman-hating woman would come along and make everyone’s life a living Hell.

The best team mate I’ve ever had, male or female, was Avis.  But, she was special, even more so than Roman… she became my sister.  I loved her almost as much as I loved Billy.  God, I miss you Avis.

I refused to let A.J. know that he had created any kind of reaction in me.  I nonchalantly underplayed my response.  “Well, cool.  Glad to hear it.  Finally there will be someone else besides me with some good sense and intelligence.  I’m looking forward to meeting her.  What’s her name?”

A.J. fired back a goofy guffaw.  “Good sense and intelligence, huh?  Alrighty then, glad to know dat your little cat claws are still nice and sharp.  Her name is Yara Garcia.  That’s ‘Y-A-R-A.’  She’s from Texas.  Okay, I gotta be somewhere in just a few minutes, so I’ll be quick like a bunny.  Here’s the stats: the party’s on the twentieth, I’ll pick you up at eight, sharp.  It’s formal – but… um… wear shoes and clothes that you can run in.  Have a nice day, ’bye now.”

The next thing I heard was a click and then a dial tone. 

“SHIT!” I slammed down my receiver. “Damn!  Great, just fucking great!  The twentieth… of course it’s on the twentieth!  Of course -  the same damn day as the ‘Time of Crossing’ thing… that’s just fucking wonderful… and wear shoes and clothes that I can run in… and formal wear… just fabulous…”

Liam, you and I are going to talk tonight!

I dropped down into my Eric-chair and rested my head back against the wall.

Well… maybe the ‘Time of Crossing’ is really no big deal if the head werewolves are having a big party… That’s just the way it is around here… One thing after another… I need to adapt to this pace, because it sure as hell seems like this is becoming the norm around here… no wonder the other sheriff quit... This is like being back in the war… but worse, because I’m not sure who the enemy is… or are…  

Hells bells… I’ve been blown out of a helicopter, threatened and harassed by a vampire, attacked by a werewolf… shot at… am I leaving anything out? I guess another party with werewolves can’t be that bad…

Fuck it… bring it on…