Not consistently stupid, but occasionally stupid. And I’ve made mistakes. You bet, I’ve made mistakes. But during the ride back to Bon Temps, with my best guy friend driving and giving me the silence I needed, I thought hard. I felt a tear trickle from each eye. I looked away and blotted my face with a tissue from my purse, not wanting Sam to offer sympathy. When I’d composed myself, I said, “I’ve been a fool.” To his credit, Sam looked startled. “What are you thinking of?” he said, so he wouldn’t say, “Which time?” “Do you think people really change, Sam?” He took a moment to line up his thoughts. “That’s a pretty big question, Sookie. People can turn themselves around to some extent, sure. Addicts can be strong enough to stop using whatever they’re addicted to. People can go to therapy and learn how to manage behavior that’s been out of control. But that’s an external . . . system. A learned management technique imposed on the natural order of things, on what the person really is—an addict.
