‘True Blood’ recap: Sookie risks everything to save Bon Temps

Using herself as bait, Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin) risks her life to save Bon Temps from a band of rogue vampires on “Fire in the Hole,” Episode 73 of HBO’s “True Blood.”

For the dangerous plan to work, vampires infected with the hepatitis V virus must capture Sookie and take her to their hiding place, where they imprison humans and slaughter them for food.

Vampire Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) would then lead a posse to save Sookie and the other captives, including Arlene Fowler Bellefleur (Carrie Preston), Holly Cleary (Lauren Bowles) and pregnant Nicole Wright (Jurnee Smollett-Bell).

Waiting nervously for the H-vamps to appear, Bill and Sookie gradually rekindle their romantic bond -- even though she’s living with werewolf Alcide Herveaux (Joe Manganiello), who wants to start a family.

“I’m afraid that I don’t love him as much as he loves me,” Sookie confesses. “I don’t know how much longer I can take it.”

Sookie’s concerns soon become irrelevant.

For just as the H-vamps pounce on Sookie, Alcide and other rescuers rush onto the scene, along with supernatural-hating vigilantes. All the H-vamps die in the firefight. And, sadly, Alcide as well.

Speaking of the vigilantes, they’re armed, dangerous and itching to kill “anyone and anything that’s different than they are,” warns Adilyn (Bailey Noble), the half-faerie daughter of Sheriff Andy Bellefleur (Chris Bauer).

Shape-shifting Mayor Sam Merlotte (Sam Trammell) and his vampire companion Matt (Brian Poth) run afoul of the lawbreakers at their roadblock.

“You tricked the fine men and women of Bon Temps into thinking they were voting for a human being, when the truth is they were voting for the devil,” insurgency leader Vince (Brett Rickaby) yells at Sam.

The mob quickly turns violent, killing Matt and forcing Sam to escape by turning into an owl.

Caught later in the roadblock are Sheriff Andy, accompanied by Deputy Jason Stackhouse (Ryan Kwanten), his vampire girlfriend Violet Mazurski (Karolina Wydra) and red-haired vamp Jessica Hamby (Deborah Ann Woll).

Vigilante Maxine Fortenberry (Dale Raoul) angrily shoots Jessica in the shoulder. It was an act of payback because Jessica once dated Maxine’s son Hoyt (Jim Parrack) and broke his heart.

Violet immediately gets payback of her own by ripping out Maxine’s heart.

Finally, vampire Pam (Kristin Bauer van Straten) is in France’s Rhone Valley, urging her maker Eric Northman (Alexander Skarsgard) to return with her to Louisiana. But Eric is dying of the H-virus and no longer has the will to fight.

“They’re working on a cure,” Pam pleads, bloody tears rolling down her cheeks. “They could have one soon!”

“For more than a thousand years the world has been my oyster,” Eric replies with a weak voice. “I’ve lost my taste for oysters, Pam. You should go.”

But Pam has one more card to play. She informs Eric that Sara Newlin (Anna Camp), who headed the concentration camp where vampires were systematically murdered last season, is still alive.

“Well, let’s go find her,” Eric declares, a spark returning to his eyes.

They better move fast, because the Japanese corporation that manufactures synthetic Tru Blood is also after Sara. She helped taint the blood substitute with the H-virus, causing a global pandemic.

So where is Sara? She’s reinventing herself at the Dutta Institute for the Unchained Spirit, practicing yoga and learning Eastern philosophy from her guru lover Sanbir (Shishir Kurup).

When Japanese mobsters show up at the institute, Sanbir refuses to reveal Sara’s whereabouts. The guru is gruesomely sliced open with a katana while Sara cowers nearby.

With vengeful vampires and deadly yakuza on her tail, looks like Sara won’t be around much longer.