“You think there’s anyway she’ll get off?” I asked incredulously.
“She won’t go to prison for murder. Maybe manslaughter. Of course, she’ll claim self-defense.” He shook his head and accelerated to pass a beat-up minivan that was poking along in front of us.
“Just think on it, Sook—if Luna hadn’t gone on the Collins side of the hedge to make out in private, maybe Sarah Newlin would have called someone to come get her, or managed somehow to crawl out of the house. She might even have made it into her car. Then I think Mom and I would have had a visit from the police for sure.”
But that hadn’t happened, and now Sarah Newlin would be in jail for a while anyway. That was something, a big something. “I’m not drawing any big life lesson from yesterday,” I said.
“Were you sure you were going to?”
“Well, yes.”
“We survived,” Sam said. “And my brother got married to the woman he loves. And that’s all that’s important.”
“Sam, do you really think that?” I didn’t want to pick at him, but I was genuinely curious.
My boss smiled at me. “Nah. But what would you say the moral of the day was? There was a lot of hate, there was some love. The love won out for Craig, the hate did Jim Collins in. End of story.”
Sam was right, as far as his “moral” went.
But I didn’t think it was truly the end of the story.
Life in Bon Temps
BY VICTORIA KOSKI
Dead Until Dark
Timeline
SATURDAY, JUNE 12, 2004. Sookie Stackhouse, telepath, is working the evening shift at Merlotte’s bar when a vampire comes in to order a drink. Although vampires have been “out of the coffin” for two years, Bill Compton is the first one to come to her little town of Bon Temps, and she is delighted by the new experience. Local lowlifes Mack and Denise Rattray soon move to Bill’s table, where Denise flirts with the vampire. Worried by their avid interest in Bill, Sookie “listens” and finds, to her horror, that the Rattrays have been in jail for draining vampires, a practice that involves forcibly restraining a vampire (a feat unto itself), draining its blood to sell on the black market, and leaving the vampire to die in the rising sun. When Bill leaves with the Rattrays, Sookie dithers but finally follows them to the parking lot, only to find Bill wrapped in silver chains with Denise crouched over him holding a Vacutainer and with several vials of blood already beside her. Grabbing a heavy chain from her brother Jason’s truck, Sookie manages to drive off the Drainers. She unwraps Bill, pulling him out of the way when the Rattrays attempt to run them down on the way out of the parking lot. Sookie is stunned to realize that she cannot “hear” Bill. The vampire, who is being less than gracious after being rescued by a human woman, asks if she wants the blood already taken by the Drainers, suggesting that she sell it when she assures him she does not need its medicinal properties. She is insulted but begins to laugh upon finding out that his name is the very mundane Bill, and she cheerfully leaves him. She shares the encounter with her grandmother, Adele, when she gets home from work.
SUNDAY, JUNE 13. Jason arrives at the Stackhouse home, upset after hearing that Sookie beat up the Rattrays the previous night. Sookie explains what really happened. Jason then tells Sookie and Adele that Maudette Pickens, a former classmate of Sookie’s, was found dead in her apartment that morning and that she had several vampire bites on her thighs, although that wasn’t the cause of her death. On the subject of vampires, Adele wonders how old Bill is and if he remembers the Civil War, hoping that he will speak to the Descendants of the Glorious Dead. Sookie promises to ask him.
When Sookie arrives at Merlotte’s for her shift that afternoon, Sam pulls her into the storeroom and berates her for taking on the Rattrays in the parking lot. She is close to tears but finally realizes that Sam was frightened for her. After touching him, she also perceives that her boss has feelings for her that she did not expect.
MONDAY, JUNE 14. Sookie is relieved that she and Sam are able to return to their comfortable relationship.
TUESDAY, JUNE 15. Bill returns to Merlotte’s. Sookie is once again aware that she cannot read his thoughts and feels more relaxed in his silence. While taking his order, she arranges to meet him in the parking lot after closing so she can ask the favor for her grandmother. She looks around for him after work, but when he doesn’t appear, she heads to her car to drive home. The Rattrays attack her, beating and kicking her. Although she tries to fight back, a kick to her spine does great damage. As she’s lying on the ground, she hears a dog’s growl from one direction, a snarl from another, and the screams of the Rattrays. When silence falls, the dog licks her ear, but she is unable to respond. A bloody Bill appears in front of her, picking her up to take her back into the woods. Although she is certain that she is dying, after checking her over Bill assures her that she will live. He offers his blood to speed the healing process, and as she drinks from his wrist, she begins to feel better and finally slips into sleep. She wakes in the woods sometime later to find Bill lying beside her, licking the blood from her head wounds. Feeling much better, she admits to Bill that she is a telepath and reveals that it causes her to avoid dating and relationships. She makes her request, and he agrees to meet her grandmother and to speak to the Descendants of the Glorious Dead. He also asks if he can visit Sookie at her home.
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 16. Adele gets a phone call about a tornado touching down in the vicinity of the Rattrays’ trailer, killing them both. While Gran finds the local gossip interesting, she is more excited about the idea of Bill coming to the house, and she vows to make sure it’s spotless. Sookie stops by the Rattrays’ place on her way to work and is stunned by the amount of damage Bill did to the area.
Rene Lenier—Jason’s co-worker, and ex-husband of Sookie’s fellow waitress Arlene—is in the bar and comes to Sookie’s defense when someone makes an inappropriate pass at her. Rene tells Sookie that she reminds him of his sister, Cindy.
THURSDAY, JUNE 17. Adele and Sookie spend the day cleaning in preparation for Bill’s visit. After inviting him in, they discover that the vampire is actually a local—just not a recent one. A Confederate soldier, he returned safely from the Civil War only to fall prey to a vampire. As was customary for vampires at the time, he then left the area so that he would not be recognized. Now that the vampires have revealed themselves, he’s finally come back to reclaim his ancestral home, which lies across the cemetery from Sookie’s house. Adele happily questions him about the past and about her late husband’s family, and they set a date for him to speak with the Descendants. Sookie and Bill go for a walk, and he meets her cat, Tina. Sookie is able to completely relax in Bill’s presence, and he admits that he is enjoying her company as well. She carefully asks questions about vampires, and they discover that she cannot be glamoured. She also gets Bill to levitate for her. They speak a bit about Sookie’s telepathy and how hard it has been on her, about Bill’s family before his turning, and about his difficulties in getting workers to come to his house for renovations. Sookie offers to help. She gives in to her impulses and kisses him good night when he walks her back to her door.
FRIDAY, JUNE 18. Sookie finds various contractors willing to be called at night by a vampire. Sam calls to tell her that Dawn, one of the Merlotte’s waitresses, did not show up for work, and Sookie arranges to take part of Dawn’s shift that evening. While at work, she inadvertently reads Arlene’s mind, and Arlene snaps at Sookie, bringing her almost to tears. Sam comforts her, reminding her that it’s not her fault that she can read minds, and she reveals the torment of trying to function with the thoughts of others in her head. After she confirms that she cannot read Bill’s mind, Sam invites her to read his sometime, something she has always tried to avoid doing.
She takes the list of contractors over to Bill’s after work but finds that he has company. She meets vampires Malcolm, Liam, and Diane, along with their human companions, Jerry and Janella. Bill fears for Sookie and claims her as his to prote
ct her from the other vampires. Diane disbelieves Bill’s claim, telling him he obviously needs real blood and offering him the two fangbangers. Janella is busy performing sexual acts with Liam, so Jerry willingly steps up. Bill is tempted, but before he can indulge, Sookie reads the human’s mind and discovers that he has Sino-AIDS, a virus that weakens and can even kill vampires, and that he wants to infect as many vampires as possible in revenge for his lover leaving him for a vampire. Jerry attacks Sookie, choking her, and Bill breaks Jerry’s wrist to free her. Malcolm slings the unconscious human over his shoulder, and the group leaves. Sookie is certain that Jerry will be made to suffer before his death. She is appalled at the behavior of the trio. Bill reassures her that not all vampires are the same.
SATURDAY, JUNE 19. Sookie is dragged out of bed early by a phone call from Sam. He informs her that Dawn hasn’t shown up for work again and asks if Sookie will stop by Dawn’s house and check on her because she is not answering her phone. After Sookie dresses for work, she reluctantly heads to Dawn’s duplex. There Sookie looks in the bedroom window and sees Dawn’s murdered body. Rene is across the street at his home and calls the police and Sam. JB du Rone, a friend of Sookie’s who lives next door, sees her standing outside the duplex and comes out to help. Police officers Kenya Jones and Kevin Pryor soon arrive, with Sam not far behind. Sookie is surprised that Sam has keys to the duplex until JB informs her that her boss owns the building. She also realizes that Sam is able to shut her out of his mind and picks up that he is not quite human. He apologizes for involving Sookie in this situation. Detective Andy Bellefleur comes to the scene and, after questioning Sookie and Sam, allows them to return to Merlotte’s.
Bill is waiting for Sookie in her yard when she gets off work. She informs him of Dawn’s death, and he casually lets her know that Dawn stopped by his house the previous night after the vampires and Sookie left. He also tells her that he doesn’t think he would have bothered to protect Dawn from Malcolm, Diane, and Liam had she arrived while they were still there. Sookie asks him why he protected her, and he responds that she is different—although she is not like vampires, she is also not like regular humans, a statement that sends Sookie into a violent rage. She strikes out at him, but he effortlessly controls her until her rage subsides. He continues their discussion as if nothing has happened. He tells her that while he physically could have killed the murdered women, he would not and did not. Sookie knows that Bill will be a suspect in the deaths, so she decides to have him take her to the vampire bar in Shreveport to investigate other possibilities.
MONDAY, JUNE 21. Merlotte’s is full of talk of the killings, and half the patrons suspect Bill was involved. Jason also falls under suspicion, as he had relationships with both women.
Sookie dresses carefully for the visit to the vampire bar Fangtasia. She finally chooses a bright dress that flatters her figure and her tan, but when Bill sees her, he worries that her attire will draw unwanted attention. Once at Fangtasia, Sookie is able to briefly question the bartender about Dawn, Maudette, and even Jason, asking if they’ve been in the bar. She and Bill find a booth, and she watches with distaste as human fangbangers offer themselves to Bill. He points out that she has caught the eye of the powerful vampire owner of the bar, Eric Northman, and takes her over so she can speak to him. When she shows Eric and his vampire associate Pam the pictures of Dawn and Maudette, Eric acknowledges that he has been with Dawn, and Pam admits to seeing them both at the bar. Sookie thanks them and turns to leave, but Bill remains in front of Eric and Pam, holding her beside him. When Eric asks about Sookie, Bill once again states that Sookie is his.
They return to their booth, and Sookie idly scans the bar, “hearing” that the place is about to be raided by the police. She and Bill quickly exit, and Bill gives Eric a sign to leave while Sookie looks at the bartender who answered her questions and gestures for him to get out as well. Once in the parking lot, Eric questions their obvious certainty of the impending raid, and Sookie admits that she read someone’s mind. After they flee the lot, a sexually excited Bill pulls the car over, and they have a romantic moment, which is interrupted by the police.
TUESDAY, JUNE 22–WEDNESDAY, JUNE 23. The police continue to question men from Bon Temps and the surrounding areas about Dawn. Detective Bellefleur visits Merlotte’s several times, sitting in Sookie’s section and trying to get her to react to his thoughts.
THURSDAY, JUNE 24. While eating lunch at Merlotte’s, Andy thinks an especially disturbing image at Sookie, so she pours a drink down his shirt and goes out the back door in tears. Sam is furious at Andy’s actions. When the detective attempts to apologize, Sam tells Andy to sit in another section if he ever returns. Sam later asks Sookie to accompany him to Bill’s speech to the Descendants of the Glorious Dead that evening and then go out for coffee. Sookie agrees, and they arrange for Sam to pick her up.
Bill’s speech goes well. When he is asked about a member’s great-grandfather, Bill remembers him as a friend and shares the story of his death. Afterward, Sookie and Sam go to the Crawdad Diner for coffee, and Sam suggests that he would like to be more than a friend. Sookie asks why he waited until someone else showed an interest, and they drive back to Sookie’s house in silence. Sookie enters the house and immediately senses that something is wrong. She finds her grandmother’s bloody body in the kitchen. Her screams bring Bill, who comforts her until Andy Bellefleur arrives. Sookie calls several places to find her brother, including Merlotte’s. When Sam hears that she is in trouble, he returns to her house. A distraught Jason arrives, and in his despair and anger, he first verbally assaults Sookie and then slaps her. Bill is about to attack Jason to keep him from hitting her again when Sam tackles Jason, taking him to the ground. Andy manages to calm Bill and tries to defuse the situation.
TUESDAY, JUNE 29. Sookie and Jason maintain a truce during Adele’s funeral, the largest ever held in the parish.
FRIDAY, JULY 2. While packing up her grandmother’s things, Sookie decides it would be better to move into Adele’s bedroom than lie across the hall knowing why it is empty. After that job is done, an exhausted Sookie showers and is combing out the tangles in her hair when Bill knocks on the door. Sookie allows him to comb her hair. As they talk and he soothes her with his touch, the mood between them changes, and Bill begins to make love to her. He is surprised to discover her virginity. The two begin a passionate affair.
SATURDAY, JULY 3. Jason comes into Merlotte’s for lunch and tells Sookie that the police have questioned him again about the murders. When her co-workers learn of her intensifying relationship with Bill, they all warn her away. But Sookie is happy to see Bill come into the bar. Malcolm and Diane arrive, and their behavior shocks and angers all the human patrons. The other vampires mock Bill for his devotion to Sookie as they leave for their home in Monroe. Bill waits outside for Sookie to make certain his former friends have left. Sookie follows him to his home, where they enjoy his hot tub together.
SUNDAY, JULY 4. Bill takes Sookie to the movies and out to eat—he abstains. As they lie in bed later, Bill makes a casual remark about his childhood that causes Sookie to tell him that her great-uncle sexually molested her as a child.
MONDAY, JULY 5. As she leaves Bill’s house in the morning, she is surprised to find Jason waiting for her with the news of her great-uncle Bartlett’s death during a robbery the night before. Jason’s shocked Sookie doesn’t mourn. Sookie tells her initially disbelieving brother what her uncle did to her and their aunt Linda, and how Adele protected her after she found out, kicking her brother out of their lives. It isn’t until Sookie arrives at work that day that she realizes Bill had him killed. She confronts Bill, who doesn’t deny it. Although they exchange “I love you”s for the first time, she tells him she can’t see him until she decides whether their love is worth the misery she might face by caring for him.
Sookie works hard to create a life without her grandmother and Bill. Adele’s lawyer works to wrap up her estate, and Sookie is surprised to rece
ive twenty thousand dollars from Uncle Bartlett’s estate. She donates it to a local mental health center.
THURSDAY, JULY 8. During her separation from Bill, Sookie begins to realize the amount of resentment that the human bar patrons are feeling for the Monroe vampires, who have apparently been traveling around the surrounding area and behaving very badly. She catches thoughts of a plan to burn down their house with them in it.
TUESDAY, JULY 13. Bill comes into Merlotte’s with visiting vampire Harlen Ives, who was turned when he was a teenager. When Bill and Harlen announce that they are going to Monroe to visit Malcolm, Sookie gives Bill a vague warning, uncertain of what to do and how much to say. The level of anger and frenzy grows in the bar after they leave, and she calls Bill when she gets home to let him know.
WEDNESDAY, JULY 14. Jason wakes Sookie with the news that the Monroe vampires’ house has been burned. She rushes to Monroe and sees four damaged coffins and one body bag with human remains. Unable to ascertain whether Bill was at the house, she realizes that Sam has arrived and allows him to take her home. Sam gets her to clean house the whole day to help her pass the time until the sun sets and she can find out if Bill was home and not in Monroe.
Sookie waits until dark and then heads out to the cemetery between their houses in the rain, calling Bill’s name. When Bill rises from the earth, she is overcome and falls to her knees. Sookie tells him of the death of the Monroe vampires, and he is lost for a moment in his anger and rage. Sookie deliberately changes his focus to sex, and they make love in the mud. When he comes to himself, Bill carries her to his home to bathe in his hot tub.
THURSDAY, JULY 15–SATURDAY, JULY 24. Sookie and Bill resume their relationship. They spend nighttime hours together, watching TV, going to movies, playing Scrabble, and making love. Sookie works while Bill sleeps; Bill reads, roams the woods, and does yard work at night while Sookie sleeps. They are uneasy because of the Monroe fire and the still-unsolved deaths of Maudette, Dawn, and Sookie’s grandmother.