Disclaimer:  The Forever Knight characters belong to TPTB; all others are
mine.  Permission to post at FK Fanfic and FTP sites; anyone else, please ask.

Special thanks to LizM, Tamara, and Anez for beta-reading this story for me!

This is the sequel to my story "The Heart of the Matter".  I started it many
months back, before I even cleaned up the last one.  Title comes from a song
by the same name by Sarah MacLachlan....and I don't own the rights to that
either!  :)  I had no idea what I was going to name this story until I realized
that these lyrics could kind of be applied.

Feedback, requests for story parts, are welcome, and can be sent to
lmharvey@hotmail.com 

********************

Sweet Surrender
By Lisa Harvey
c. 1999


Part One


Lacroix sat with his hands steepled in front of him before the microphone.  He
had been sitting in the broadcast booth for awhile now.  Tonight's topic was
not coming to him easily.  It had been this way all week; he was distracted and
irritable, and he knew the reason why.

Since he and Marguerite had come back from their vacation a few weeks ago,
she had been neglecting him.  At first, he was understanding.  After all, she had
not seen Nicholas and Natalie for several weeks, and she had missed them.  He
had missed them as well.  Then her son had shown up; not that he had anything
against Alejandro per se.  

But her inattention was starting to bother him.  He knew her affections could
not be faltering already.  Her love was clear to him through their link.  But his
fear of losing her love, of being abandoned, was gnawing at him.  Nicholas
hadn't seemed bothered by Natalie spending so much time with Marguerite and
Alejandro.  But why would he?  It would never even occur to him.  He had
what he wanted...his love, who, even as she learned the ways of her new life,
still searched for a cure.

***Two weeks before***

His curiosity peaked, Lacroix ventured down the stairs to the basement
cautiously.  He had learned his lesson last week when Marguerite and her
children were down there, when he'd narrowly missed being decapitated by an
air-hockey puck.  He had ducked just in time, the puck denting the wood in the
step above his head.

The three of them were seated on the couch, laughing hysterically at something
on the television.  It was one of the shows he and Marguerite did not see eye
to eye on--a cartoon.  The only aspect of the show he thought was amusing
was the way the same character died every week in a different way.  He sighed
inwardly; of course, Alejandro and Natalie would like it.  Knowing his son as
he did, he supposed Nicholas even watched it. 

He surmised that they had no intentions of going club-hopping tonight, for they
were all dressed casually.  Marguerite smiled as she got up off the couch and
approached him.  He was wearing one of the new shirts she had bought for him
while they were on vacation in Paris.  It was a deep blue, so dark it was almost
black...but not quite.  It was one of the few colors he would even consider
wearing.  After kissing him, she teased, "You look very handsome tonight,
Lucien.  Is that a new shirt?"  

He returned her smile.  "Flattery will get you everywhere, my dear.  Perhaps
you should think of some more compliments for when I come home.  You
*will* be here, won't you?" 

She fluttered her eyelashes at him as she answered, "Of course, where else
would I be?"  Lacroix thought it wiser not to reply.  After all, like Marguerite,
he didn't like to argue in front of the 'children' either.  Instead he kissed her,
and after bidding farewell to Natalie and Alejandro, left for the Raven.

She wasn't exactly waiting for him when he got home.  She had walked in only
minutes before, and was putting her jacket in the closet as he came in.  They
had gone to a movie, she explained.  She'd assured him that it was not anything
he had been interested in seeing.  He hadn't expected her to be doing nothing
but waiting for him; she was entitled to her diversions, but he found himself
agitated nonetheless.

***********************

Deciding that he was not going to get anywhere else with this broadcast,
Lacroix signed off early.  He was still sitting there, brooding, when Marguerite
walked through the door.  "Bon soir, mon amour.  Comment ca va?"  He
admired the view as she walked toward him slowly; she seemed especially
vibrant tonight.  

Marguerite sat on his lap and kissed his cheek.  He replied, "Good evening,
Marguerite.  Did you have a good time?"

She smiled.  "Yes, I did; thank you.  You don't mind that we went to another
club, do you?"

"Of course not," Lacroix said, "I understand the need for a change of scene."  

She looked relieved.  "Good.  Alejandro wanted to hunt somewhere different,
and..." 

Lacroix cut her off, "You went hunting with Alejandro?  I thought we agreed,
Marguerite, that we would go hunting together?"

She shifted uncomfortably in his lap.  "We did, and we have.  But I didn't think
that meant I couldn't go without you, Lucien."

Lacroix sighed disgustedly.  "I suppose your son doesn't kill either," he said,
making a gibe about her hunting practices.

Marguerite shot back, "Unlike *your* son, Lucien, I can kill when the situation
calls for it, and so can Alejandro.  We just choose to exercise control."  Irate,
he wanted to question Natalie's abilities as well, but he knew better than to go
down that road.  If Marguerite was protective of her son, she was ferocious
when it came to her daughter. 

She attempted to get up, but Lacroix held onto her.  He said, "I believe not
hunting without me was implied in our agreement, Marguerite."

She snorted, "Believe what you like, Lucien, it wasn't.  I'm sure you aren't
going to wait for me to go hunting, and I refuse to be restricted in my
activities.  I am not one of your children."

"No," he agreed, "we are much closer than that."  He paused to caress her
cheek gently.  "You are my lover, Marguerite, and I do not want you traipsing
all over Toronto..." 

Marguerite growled softly, "I think you are forgetting yourself, Lucien.  I will
*not* be controlled.  Not by you.  Not by anyone.  I'll do as I please." 

"And if I am displeased?"  he asked, "Does my opinion count, Marguerite?"

She glared at him angrily.  "Of course your *opinion* counts, Lucien.  But you
aren't giving me your opinion, you're giving me an order.  I lived my entire
mortal life being told what to do, and I have not lived free for 700 years only
to subject myself to that again.  Next you'll be telling me what I can wear..."  

"I don't mind the way you dress, my dear.  In fact, I rather like it.  What I do
mind are the young men who seem to follow you around like bees after honey. 
The Community knows we are together, Marguerite, and only the foolhardy
would approach you.  The mortals that frequent this club, however, do not." 

"I can handle any mortal man who approaches me, Lucien, as you are well
aware.  Don't try to get off the subject; I'm not going to let this go."

He sighed, "Fine, go hunting with your son, Marguerite, but know that I am
not happy with it."

Realizing that part of his problem stemmed from jealousy, she decided to try
and ease his 'concerns'.  Marguerite stroked the spiky hair around his ear; she
loved the feel of his hair against her fingers.  She said soothingly, "Just because
I want my independence, doesn't mean that I want to hold anything back from
you, Lucien.  Do you want to know what it was like?  I want to share it with
you."  She began to nuzzle his neck in his most sensitive spot.

Lacroix gave in to his desires and kissed her roughly.  He growled, "Go to my
old rooms, Marguerite, and I will meet you there in a few minutes.  I believe
we will be spending the day here."  Without a word, Marguerite kissed him
once more and slid off his lap.  He sat there, mesmerized by the sway of her
hips as she left the room.  

He was well aware of what Marguerite was trying to do.  He would allow her
to distract him...temporarily.  But if she continued to ignore him in this way, he
would have to take action.  In what form, he didn't know, but he wouldn't
allow this to go on.  Lacroix pushed away from the microphone, and strode
from the room.

********************

Late the next afternoon, Marguerite opened her eyes and felt Lacroix's arms
holding her close against him.  She smiled as she picked up one of his hands
and kissed it.  He moved restlessly against her back and gripped her tighter,
like a child unwilling to give up his favorite toy.  She moved so that she fitted
against him more comfortably, and mulled over the last few weeks.

His free hand moved over her body, and she sighed as it came to rest on her
hip.  Their lovemaking had been especially rough last night--not that she'd
minded.  Usually very tender with her, Marguerite sometimes had to encourage
him to be a little rougher.  He seemed different somehow, but she couldn't
place her finger on it.  Maybe it was just her reaction to their argument.

He had always been possessive of her, but he'd been obvious about it lately. 
She didn't mind his possessive streak, as long as she was allowed her freedom. 
It was amusing to see the male vampires clear a path for her when she walked
into the Raven.  When Lucien wasn't around, Miklos made sure that she was
treated with respect.  And that meant he would glare at the men who
approached her, just as Lacroix did.

Marguerite's thoughts were interrupted as she felt Lacroix wake up.  He kissed
her neck, and she turned towards him.  After kissing him, she said, "I've been
thinking, Lucien, that we haven't really spent a night alone since we've been
home."

He smiled.  "You are correct, my dear.  What do you suggest?  I am in favor of
a romantic evening with you.  A night at the opera, perhaps?"  

She frowned.  "Ugh.  How about we compromise and go to the symphony
instead?  I've heard the new violinist that you're so interested in is in town for a
few days.  I can get us tickets for tomorrow night if you'd like," she offered.

He teased, "My, my, I hadn't realized you had connections.--I think it's a
splendid idea, Marguerite.  And afterwards?"

She sat up and shrugged.  "Surprise me, Lucien.  I'll trust you to come up with
something romantic.--Do you want to share the shower with me?  I have to go
to the store for a little while.  We're expecting a shipment from Anastasia, and I
can't wait to see what she picked out this time."

++++++++++++++++++++

Later that night...

Marguerite sighed in frustration; this was taking entirely too long.  As she
crossed her legs, she caught the detective interviewing her watching with avid
interest.  The cretin had done nothing but ogle her since he had gotten here. 
He finally looked down at his notebook and asked, "I'm sorry, miss, you were
*where* this afternoon?"  She doubted he had written anything down in that
dratted book; if he had, he would've known the answer to his question.  He had
only asked it twice.

She tossed her hair back in annoyance and said, "It's *Ms.* de Louvain,
Detective, and I've already told you twice that I was at the Raven with my
boyfriend."

The leering detective's partner stopped snooping around her office to ask, "The
Raven?  What's that?"

Marguerite took a calming breath; this other man had come in only a few
minutes ago, so he really didn't know.  She answered, "It's a nightclub.  I'm
sorry, Detective...your name is?"

The detective smiled as he replied, "It's Detective Jonas, and *I'm* sorry.  I
thought Detective Roberts might have told you that I'd be joining you."

Ignoring any part of the conversation he wasn't directly involved in, Roberts
asked, "And what were you doing in a nightclub during the day?"

Marguerite shot him a dirty look before answering, "My boyfriend owns it."  

"Your boyfriend?"

Marguerite almost growled.  The man was a moron, and she couldn't
understand how he had even made it through the Academy, much less into
Homicide.  "Yes, my boyfriend...my *lover*.  Aren't you supposed to be
investigating the body outside my store, Detective Roberts, and not my
whereabouts?"  

Ever since she had pulled up and noticed the body in the alley, nothing had
been right.  When she'd first looked at the body, all she saw was black hair,
and, panicking, she immediately thought of Alejandro.  Several nights ago,
she'd had a nightmare about Alejandro being beaten and left for dead by
Marcus.  It had felt so real, almost as real as the night that it had happened. 
But they had killed Divia's psychotic eldest son, and she just wanted to forget
him.  She calmed down considerably after reaching out to him through their
link; he was still at home.

She had called the police, and they had responded quickly enough.  Natalie had
come, and was examining the body even now.  Marguerite had been
disappointed to find that her uncle and his partner wouldn't be the investigating
detectives, but she had offered the policemen that did show up the use of her
office.  She had been sitting in here ever since, answering questions over and
over, growing angrier by the minute.

She stood up, and Roberts stood up with her.  Marguerite had finally reached
her limit.  The detective opened his mouth to speak, but Marguerite caught his
eyes and stared into them.  He stood mesmerized; not too much different than
before, actually, but at least now, he would listen.  She really hated to do it this
way, but if this took much longer, Alejandro and Lucien would be here.  She
didn't want to think about what would happen then.  "Listen to me, Detective
Roberts..."

"Daisy?  Are you all right?" Nick asked anxiously from the doorway.

Marguerite tore her eyes away from the detective, who fell heavily into his
seat, disoriented.  "Oncle Nicolas, I'm so glad you're here!"  She ran into his
arms, and he hugged her tightly.

Stroking her hair, he said, "I'm sorry I couldn't get here sooner, Daisy, but we
were finishing up at a crime scene.  I got here as soon as I could.  When I
heard the call, I was so worried that something had happened to you."

Knowing that Natalie had surely told him otherwise, Marguerite looked up at
him and smiled.  "I'm okay, Uncle Nick.  I'm just glad you're here now.  I've
been answering questions for the longest time."  Nick looked at the men, and
almost lost his temper.  He could only imagine what had gone on in here,
especially after seeing his niece in the process of hypnotizing Roberts.

Eric edged past Nick.  "Hey, Knight, can I get in here too?  I want to see
who's...oh, never mind.--Are you okay, Daisy?"

Marguerite looked at her uncle's partner, and she heard his heart speed up
when she smiled at him.  "I'm fine, Eric.  These nice detectives were just about
to go do some actual investigating, I believe."  

Upon hearing Knight's voice, Roberts popped out of his chair and turned
around.  He glanced at his partner, who had stopped looking at the artwork to
gape in the direction of the doorway.  This woman was Nick Knight's niece? 
They were in some serious trouble, or at least he was, Roberts considered. 
Detective Jonas found his voice first and said, "Yes, ma'am, we were."  He
proceeded to drag his partner out the door, cautiously skirting past Knight and
D'Angelo as they left.

When they left, Eric asked, "Did they say anything stupid, Daisy?  Roberts can
be a jerk sometimes...especially around pretty women."

Marguerite could tell he was embarrassed the minute the words left his mouth. 
"They didn't, not really.  They were just annoying me, that's all.  I don't like to
repeatedly answer the same questions.  How did those two get into Homicide
anyway?"  

Nick shrugged.  "I think Roberts has an older brother in Vice, who was owed
some favors.  What was wrong with Jonas?  He's usually not too bad."

Marguerite moved to straighten the knickknacks the latter detective had
touched.  She said, "Nothing was wrong with him, but he only came into the
room a few minutes before you did.  I had to spend what felt like hours alone
with that potential rapist."  She sighed, "Lucien is going to be very upset.  I'm
so glad he didn't come with me."

Nick felt his temper rising, but not at the mention of his master.  He was angry
at the fact that Roberts had been in here alone with his niece, making her
uncomfortable.  As much as he might like Lacroix's solution, Nick had to go
through proper channels.  "I'll talk to Captain Reese as soon as we get back,
Daisy.  Roberts'll be lucky to be giving parking tickets when the Captain's done
with him."

Marguerite smiled gratefully.  "Merci, Nicolas.  I would come in and talk to the
Captain myself, but I have a shipment from Anastasia to go through, and it's
rather large."

Nick said, "Just give him a call later and let him know you're all right.  You've
made quite an impression on him, you know."

She tried to look innocent.  "Who me?  I only treat him with the respect he
deserves."

Eric laughed.  "And a box of jelly doughnuts every other week."

"There are doughnuts?  Where?"  Natalie joked as she walked through the
door.

Eric answered, "Oh, I'm sure there'll be a big box of them at the station
tomorrow night.  Should I save you one?"

Nat shook her head.  "No thanks, Eric.  I have to keep an eye on this girlish
figure, you know."  

Nick hugged Natalie and kissed the top of her head.  "I'll keep an eye on your
figure, Nat.  So, what's the story with our body in the alley?"

Nat put her medical bag on the desk.  "Well, I'd say he was just a drug addict
who had the misfortune to OD on whatever he chose to shoot himself up with
tonight.  I'll need to do a blood work-up to be sure, but his arms were full of
old track marks."

As Alejandro appeared in the doorway, the air sounded with beepers and cell
phones.  While everyone was busy, Marguerite stepped into Alejandro's arms. 
He held her tightly and asked, "What's going on, Margarita?"

Her head buried in his chest, she replied, "There was a body in the alley, and all
I saw was black hair.  I was terrified that it was you, after the nightmare I had
the other night.  I called the police after I made sure it wasn't you."

Conscious of the mortal among them, Alejandro whispered, "I felt your
agitation, querida.  What happened next?"

Marguerite groused, "I just spent what felt like eternity with the most
incompetent detective on the force.  I don't know what rock they found him
under.  All he did was leer at me and ask irrelevant questions."

He replied, "I knew I should have come here right away.  You shouldn't have
been alone with that cabron, Margarita.  If I see him..."

Marguerite pulled back and put a hand against his mouth to stop him. 
"Calmate, Alejandro!  I do not want you to do anything rash.  Uncle Nick is
going to take care of him...the mortal way," she whispered harshly.  A
stubborn look crossed Alejandro's face and Marguerite warned,
"Alejandro...portate bien."

He looked up and met Natalie's eyes.  On the phone with the coroner's office,
she didn't need to speak; her face mirrored the warning in their mother's voice. 
He sighed, "Bien, but if he bothers you again..."  Marguerite rolled her eyes in
disgust.

Nick's voice interrupted the quiet 'discussion'.  "Daisy, we have to go."  

She turned to her uncle and smiled wryly.  "So I gathered.  There's only one
reason you're *all* this popular."  

He kissed her forehead.  "I'll call here later to let you know when I talk to the
Captain." 

"Merci, Nicolas.  I don't want you to worry about me; I'll be okay.  Alejandro
was coming to help me with the inventory anyway, and Lucien will be here in a
little while."

As he followed Nick and Nat out, Eric couldn't help but wonder about
Alejandro Valera.  He had met Alejandro at several social functions, like Nick's
wedding.  After introducing him, Marguerite had explained that Alejandro was
her cousin.  Eric wasn't sure if he believed that or not, but one thing was for
sure...the pair was extremely close.   

Absently, he wondered if the relationship had bothered her boyfriend.--Now
there was another thing Eric couldn't fathom...what Marguerite saw in Lacroix. 
He knew Lacroix was one of Nick's oldest friends, but the man was so dark
and serious...where Marguerite was so carefree and full of life.  The
Nightcrawler broadcasts were interesting, but...  

Eric shook his head; it wasn't as if he had a shot with her.  Guys were
constantly tripping all over themselves to be near Marguerite and those two
friends of hers, but they never seemed to notice.  Come to think of it, even
Natalie failed to notice all the appreciative looks she received whenever she
walked into the precinct...but Knight didn't.  The guy didn't miss a thing, down
to the smallest clue on a case; Eric didn't know how it was possible.  

He was glad Nick was his partner; Nick had taught him so much in this past
year alone.  It was experience he never would have gotten with his other
partner...not that he had been a bad guy, just different than Nick.  Eric jumped
into the passenger seat of the Caddy, and decided to think about something
else.  He just about managed to fasten his seat belt as Nick put the car in gear
and sped off.  


End Part One