Even as Jessica punched in the number, she knew she was going to regret it.

But desperate times called for desperate measures, and she didn't know who else to call.

At first, she'd tried calling her maker, Bill. After all, wasn't that what makers were supposed to be for? To guide and advise their progenies? To help them learn how to deal with situations like this? But when she'd called, his cell had gone straight to voicemail. Which, to be honest, was kind of a relief. Because even though she really needed help, Jessica did not want to discuss this with All-You-Need-To-Survive-Is-TruBlood-Bill.

He would definitely not approve of what she'd done.

After Bill, Jessica had thought of calling Sookie or Sam – but she'd dismissed them at once since this was a decidedly vampire problem.

That, however, left only two options. The first of which, was Eric. Even though he'd acted as her maker for the first few days after she'd been turned, he still scared her. So… that only left her with option number two:


Now, truth be told, Pam was, in some ways, more intimidating than Eric. Jessica wasn't exactly sure why that was. But she thought that it had something to do with Pam being a woman. Like, maybe she could look up to Pam in a way she couldn't Bill or Eric, like she'd wished been able to with her mother. Of course, Pam would probably rip her throat out if Jessica told her that. But Jessica couldn't help it; she didn't have anyone else.

So after taking a deep (pointless) breath, she grabbed her cell and pushed the preset button for Fangtasia. As the phone rang, Jessica bit down on her lower lip, her fangs instantly drawing blood.

"Fangtasia." Pam's voice came through the phone's ear piece, sounding as bored and put out as ever. "How may I help you?" The second part was said in such a way that it clearly meant, "Ask me anything and you will regret it."

For a fraction of a second, Jessica hesitated, her fear of Pam outweighing her fear for Hoyt. But the next thing she knew, her mouth was moving of its own accord. "Pam, it's Jessica. I need your help, now." She hadn't meant to sound so demanding, and she instantly regretted it. Pam did not take kindly to orders – unless they were from Eric, of course. So, before Pam could hang up on her, Jessica added, in a soft voice, "Please. I don't have anyone else."

At the other end of the line, Pam snorted. "Call your maker. That's what he's for."

"No, Pam. Please. I tried him before but really..." The desperation filling Jessica slipped into her voice. "I can't call Bill. He won't…. He'll…."

Even though Pam didn't respond, Jessica could practically hear her curiosity and amusement seeping through the line. When Pam finally spoke, her voice was filled with sarcasm. "What did you do?"

"I… I just…." Jessica pulled her loose red locks together into a fake ponytail at the base of her skull as she tried to think of what to say. As she did, Jessica focused on the fact that Pam hadn't said no or hung up on her, and that was the important thing. And Jessica could only hope that Pam's disdain for Bill was enough to get her to help. "Please come over. To, to my new house." Jessica had moved in with Hoyt just under two weeks ago, and she prayed that Pam remembered where they'd moved to.

The next thing Jessica knew, there was a disgruntled sigh at the other end of the phone that was quickly followed by a click and then nothingness. Pam had hung up, but again, she hadn't said no.

Holding the phone in between her pale hands, Jessica began to pace back and forth in her bedroom. With each step, her eyes roamed over everything… except the bed.

Then, finally, what seemed like years later, Jessica heard a car pull into her driveway.

As the motor came to a stop, Jessica was at the front door. And without thinking, she wrenched it open so hard that the knob came out of the wood, little splinters coming with it.

But before Jessica could register the fact that her brand new door was ruined, Pam was stepping over the threshold. There was a haughty look on her face as she surveyed the room, but Jessica ignored it. She'd visited once before, which was fortunate, because she wouldn't have been able to enter otherwise. "Well." Pam spun around on her pale pink pumps (she'd obviously changed out of her Fangtasia garb before coming over) to face Jessica. There was a wicked gleam in her eye, and Jessica steeled herself for what was to come. "What did you do this time?"

Not bothering to say hello or thank Pam from coming, Jessica dropped the door knob to the floor with a thud. "In here…." She moved towards the bedroom, her pale feet barely ghosting over the floorboards. Pam's steps followed behind her, slow clicks of high heels on wood.

Back in the bedroom, Jessica suddenly felt self-conscious about what she was wearing. It was stupid, ridiculous really, but she was embarrassed to have Pam see her barefoot, hair a mess, and wearing nothing but Hoyt's large Renard Parish Road Crew t-shirt. It was long enough to be a mini-dress on her, but the exposed flesh of her pale legs made Jessica feel self-conscious nonetheless.

And considering why she had called Pam, Jessica knew that she shouldn't have cared if she was standing there in nothing but her fangs.

But she couldn't help it. She felt exposed.

That, however, should have been unimportant when it came to Hoyt…

Sprawled out on the bed, completely naked save for the pale yellow sheet that covered his waist and the top of his left thigh, was Hoyt. He was deathly pale, and his eyes were partially open, like he couldn't control the muscles to keep them totally open or closed. But even though that bothered Jessica, the worst part was the bite marks. Running all along his neck, shoulder, and upper chest were sets of little puncture wounds. Some dark and faded while others were new and still seeping with blood.

Hoyt looked like he'd been attacked by a wild animal.

Which, Jessica realized, he had.

"Fell off the wagon I see?" Pam chuckled as she moved farther into the room. "I can see why you didn't want to call Bill."

"Please…." Jessica's eyes flicked from Hoyt to Pam. She knew that Pam was probably tickled pink by the situation, but this wasn't the time for jokes. "I… I've always been able to stop when he told me to…. But tonight…." Jessica's gaze went to the worst and freshest of the wounds. On Hoyt's neck were two jagged holes, not nearly as neat as the ones she left when she was in control. Unlike normal, these bite marks looked primal and oozed twin trails of scarlet blood down the curve of Hoyt's throat.

But as bad as the wound was, as terrible as it made Jessica feel, that was nothing compared to the fear that the lack of movement in Hoyt's chest caused in her.

He just…

He looked…



"Pam, please." Jessica's voice was filled with panicked desperation. "I don't know what to do." She stared at Pam, hoping that she would pick up on the urgency in her gaze. "He's dead!"

Pam's response, however, was not what Jessica had been expecting or hoping for.

"Who, in their right mind…" Pam spoke with her normal disdainful drawl. "Would ever think that you would make a good vampire?"

"Wh-what?" Jessica felt all of her senses flood with shocked confusion as her eyes welled up with tears. "Hoyt is dead. I don't kn-"

"Oh relax. Your little blood-bag isn't dead." Pam cast a glance over to where Hoyt lay. "Yet. Anyway."

"But look at him. He's not…." Jessica reached up and pulled her hair back into a mock ponytail again.

"Did you bother listening to his heart?" Pam stared at Jessica as if this was the most obvious thing in the world. (So obvious that it was beneath her to have to explain it.)

"Of course I list-" Jessica felt herself becoming angry. Obviously she'd listened. The first thing she'd done was place her ear to his chest to see if there was a heartbeat there, and there hadn't been. That was simply common sense.

"No." The word, so forceful, stopped Jessica cold. "Did you listen…." Pam pronounced the last word like she was talking to a small child. When Jessica didn't respond, Pam rolled her eyes in exasperation. "You are a vampire, are you not?" She looked as if she couldn't quite believe it herself.

"I…." Jessica's voice trailed off as she nodded, bloody tears sliding down her cheeks. Still upset, she didn't understand what Pam was trying to tell her.

"Then listen." Pam sounded more put out than ever.

And finally Jessica did as she was told.

Taking a deep breath to try and calm herself, Jessica thought about opening her ears up and tuning into Hoyt. As she tried to hear something, she thought about trying to listen, not like a human, but like an animal, a predator. Then, after a few seconds of straining to hear whatever it was Pam was picking up on, Jessica heard it.

Hoyt's heart.

It was weak, labored, but now Jessica could hear the struggling lub-dub as plain as day.

"He's -" The word came out as a shocked whisper.

"Alive. Yes." Pam looked down at her nails, clearly uninterested. "My work here is done."

Ignoring Pam, Jessica rushed to the bed and pulled Hoyt's limp body towards her. As soon as he was stretched over her legs, Jessica bit into her wrist and held it to his mouth. For a second, Hoyt didn't respond as Jessica's blood slipped over his lips. But after a few seconds, she felt his mouth brush over her bleeding wrist.

When Jessica looked up to thank Pam, she was gone.

Squeeka Cuomo's Notes
- This fic was written for big_scoop who wanted to see Pam help Jessica out of a sticky situation. I hope you like it!
- Quack: Thank you for always being an amazing beta and friend.
- Reviews are love.