1. CELEBRATIONS

“Happy Birthday,” Edward whispered. He leaned into the hollow of my throat and caressed the skin with his lips.

I turned over, away from Edward, and glared at the calendar. The date loomed out at me, mocking me. Why does my birthday still bother me, I thought. The thing that used to bother me was that every second I lived was a second older than Edward, but now that didn’t matter.

“I’ll go wake Nessie.” Edward rose from the bed, pulled on some dark green combat trousers and a navy blue t-shirt. I took in his appearance with awed eyes. I would say that there was nothing more beautiful then Edward in the morning – hair tousled, eyes bright, clothes creased in the hurry to pull them on – if I didn’t know any better. He saw my gazing and flashed me a quick smile before walking to Nessie’s room. I flipped onto my back and kneaded my forehead with the heels of my hands in anticipation of the reception I would receive when I saw the rest of the family. Although I had stopped aging over a year ago, the family still wanted to make a fuss of my birthday, especially Alice. Although I had asked, or ordered, that I wasn’t making a big deal of my birthday, Alice, Esme and Renée had completely different ideas. My mom had flown from Jacksonville on Nessie’s birthday, three days ago, with Phil. It was a surprise visit, and she was only meant to stay for two days, but when she saw how Alice and Esme organised Nessie’s party, she insisted on helping with mine.

“Bella, we have to go in a minute,” Edward called from Nessie’s room. Edward, of course, knew exactly what would be happening, but refused to tell me. I didn’t weasel it out of him because at least the dread I felt was lessened when I didn’t know all the ins and outs.

I slid out of the bed and over to the wardrobe. The wardrobe, still being Alice’s walk-in-closet, was still the biggest and most confusing room in the entire house. I had to smell a path to clothes I could wear. I picked out some black denim jeans and a deep purple polo neck. Alice would surely attempt to re-dress me when she saw me, but I was beyond caring.

I wandered down the corridor to Nessie’s room staring at the pictures on the wall. All of the original artwork that Esme had hung here, Edward and I had replaced with pictures by Nessie. It was alarming to see how, as she progresses even a week in age, her skills aged years. Although Nahuel had told me what to expect from a half-human, half-vampire child, I still could not make myself believe he was right and the feeling I had was wrong; the feeling that somehow she would be exempt from the rule, and that she would be different somehow. A hand threaded through mine and startled me. I looked up into Edwards smiling face and smiled back half-heartedly.

As we ran from our house, my stomach was full of dread. I had a clear idea of what Alice would have done, having seen Nessie’s party. When we arrived at the Cullen’s house, Alice’s preparations were painfully evident.

There were twinkling lights strung from the wooden porch columns, and lit candles floating on rose scented water in crystal bowls forming a narrow path to the door. I was staring in mute horror.

“And this,” Edward groaned, gesturing with our intertwined hands, “Is only the outside.” Edward gripped my hand tighter, like he was keeping me from fleeing, and led me towards the door.

Edward was right to warn me about the inside. The scene that met my eyes inside the house horrified me. Alice had covered every available wall space with black and white helium balloons and every available surface was swathed in lacy white cloth. There were more twinkling lights strung around the legs of Edwards’ grand piano. There were also more candles on scented water covering every lacy cloth, along with small bunches of ruby-red roses. The table nearest to the grand piano terrified me the most. The smallest table in the room, ironically, held a gigantic three-tier black and white cake. The cake its self was beautiful – each tier held a small black and white pattern of iced intertwined lines on one side. The bottom tier held a small collection of black, white and red rose petals and the top tier was iced with the words ‘Happy Birthday Bella,” in neat swirling script that looked suspiciously like Alice’s. The cake was surely a work of art, but in the circumstances, I was not able to appreciate it then.

I glared at Alice and she held her hands up, like she was confessing a crime. She may as well have been for the annoyance I felt for her. “It was not me at all! This was entirely your mom. . .” She spun her hand around the room, indicating the horrifying decorations.

I turned on my heel to face my mom. She was smiling uncertainly, obviously expecting a different reaction – a reaction a normal person would give. “Don’t you like it?” she asked, her voice breaking near the end.

I felt like saying “No, to be honest, it terrifies me,” but I thought, what am I afraid of. The main reason I had disliked birthday parties was because I didn’t want to get older, and now, I couldn’t.

“I love it, it’s just a bit of a shock,” I lied smoothly. My mom ran forwards and embraced me, flinching slightly at the sudden shock of my ice cold skin.

“And we also have presents!” My mom was nearly hysterical with excitement now. Trust my mom to be the most excited person at my birthday party. Mom skipped to the hallway and retrieved two small parcels wrapped in black and white patterned tissue paper; she had obviously gone with a black and white theme. She grabbed Phil’s hand on the way over to me and dragged him along beside her, her hand clamped over his in a similar way to Edwards hand on mine. When she was near, she thrust the larger of the two packages towards me. I ripped off the paper, eager for the event to be over, and was left holding a picture frame. It was silver metal with black and white roses intricately patterned all over. The frame held a picture of all of us together: Phil, Mom, Edward, Nessie and me. We were all smiling and laughing, no one looking directly at the camera. I felt a smile spread across my face as I stared at the frozen moment. I was sure that if I could cry, my cheeks would already be soaked. I looked up at my mom and embraced her again. “You like it?” she asked, wearing the same smile as from the picture.

“I love it,” I said. She smiled wider and handed me the next present. This parcel was wrapped in the same paper, but with a crimson metallic bow on the top. I could tell that this present was meant to be the best, and prepared myself to pretend, after all, the other present was the best she had ever given me. I unwrapped this present carefully, finally getting in the mood to celebrate. This present was a navy blue box. I stared at it for several seconds, preparing my facial expression.

“Look inside," Phil whispered. I did as I was told and lifted the lid. The box contained a small necklace chain with a locket on the end. The locket had flower patterns and vines winding over the

covers. I opened the locket to see the inside and there were two pictures already inside. One was of Charlie, Renée and me from years ago – when Charlie had a full head of hair and I had no front teeth. The other was Edward holding Nessie with his arm around my waist. I began to shiver my shoulders and choke on air – I began to cry.

“Oh Bella!” fussed Renée, breaking free from Phil to comfort me. “What’s wrong?” Edward released my hand as my mom wound her arm around my waist.

“Nothing’s wrong, everything’s right,” I choked.

Soon the presents were all handed out and my emotional outburst had been forgotten. Alice and Rosalie had, quite predictably, given me a trunk full of new clothes. Esme and Carlisle had given Edward and me another week’s vacation on Isle Esme. Edward had given me a CD of all the songs he had ever composed for me, and there were a few. We were now gathering all of Nessie’s essentials for a visit to Charlie’s. When we eventually piled into two cars twenty minutes later, Edward, Nessie and I were all in our car. Edward and I had our first argument over our car. After Edward had insisted on visiting Charlie in my “after car,” Charlie had nearly suffered a haemorrhage. The dark blue Ferrari was not the most inconspicuous of cars. Edward had insisted on getting a new car to visit Charlie in – a blue Audi Coupe. It often pained me to use the Audi at times other than visiting Charlie – although I wasn’t too interested in car models, the one hundred speed limit enforced by the Audi was restricting on leisure journeys.

When we arrived at Charlie’s, he and Sue were waiting on the doorstep. Since Charlie had been welcomed into the world of werewolves, Sue had become his almost constant companion. They were only ever apart for a few hours at a time. I smelt werewolf as soon as I left the car; probably Jacob and Seth.

“Hi dad,” I said as I stood from the car, holding Nessie on my hip.

“Bells! Ness! Edward! Great to see you all!” Charlie had his arms stretched out, ready for embraces. As I embraced him, I squeezed him gently. He then shook hands with Edward and took Nessie from my grasp. He began cooing as we all went inside. We were the first here apparently. Jacob and Seth were sprawled out on the couch and chair watching the flat screen intently.

“Hey Bella,” said Jacob, not even looking away from the TV. Seth however jumper from his chair and ran over to Edward. Edward and Seth’s friendship was stronger than ever thanks to Sue’s new role in the family.

“Hey Edward, Bella,” said Seth as he embraced Edward.

“Hey Seth,” replied Edward, smiling in surprise at Seth’s forward reaction. “Hey, how’s Leah?”

Seth hesitated. As a general rule, nobody spoke about Leah. She had since last year spiralled into a depression. I still felt guilty for my involvement in that night.

* * * * *

I glanced at Edward, irritated. How come after weeks of trying to make Nessie laugh this much, all Jacob does is pull a stupid face and she’s in hysterics. I tried to join in the laughter, but I was too sour.

The front door burst open and Leah stepped through. Her hair was a matted black mess and her clothes were dirty and ripped. She wore no shoes. I looked at her face and she was scowling, but her eyes were brimming with tears.

“What’s up Leah?” Seth asked tentatively. He was still more than a little scared of his sister.

“Am I a freak?” she asked her voice cracking.

“What do you mean?” asked Seth, leaning towards Leah slightly but not quite getting within reach of her.

“Colin. Colin and Brady. They’ve both imprinted,” she sobbed. She collapsed onto the couch and tears began to run down her cheeks.

Jacob went over to her and sat down. “It doesn’t matter. We don’t all imprint. It’s okay that you haven’t.”

She straightened up and glared at Jacob. “Everyone else has! That’s the point!” she shrieked, tears flowing down her face.

“Leah, it’ll be okay. You can, err, you can fall in love like a normal person.” Jacob laid his arm across her shoulder and patted the top of her arm comfortingly.

“I won’t! I’m a freak, aren’t I?” she wailed.

My last nerve broke. Leah was whining for no reason. “Oh Leah, shut up!” I shouted. She straightened up, shocked. “Leah, you’re free to fall in love with anyone! You’re free from the stupid rules of imprinting! You’re lucky!”

She stared at me in shock for several seconds and then dashed out of the front door. Seth and Jacob glared at me for the rest of the night.

* * * * *

“She’s okay. A little bit better than last week,” Seth said finally.

Edward nodded and went to sit on the end of the couch. Jacob’s legs were so long that he covered most of the four-seater couch. He pulled his legs further up the couch as we went to sit down.

“Hey Bella, how’s Nessie?” Jacob leaned forwards to hear the answer.

“She’s fine. She’s out front with Charlie actually,” I told him. He shot straight out of the door. When he stood to leave, I noticed from the corner of my eye that he was sat on a small parcel. I looked at the small bundle of brown paper and read the tag from my peripheral vision.

“Bella,” it said in Jacob’s untidy writing . . .

Open this when you’re alone, I’ll explain it all later. Jake x

I looked away from the piece of paper and decided to do as he said, even though it made absolutely no sense to me.

I shuffled up the couch, grabbing and hiding the parcel in my back pocket as I did so. Edward took hold of my left hand and started to trace the stones of my engagement ring with his index finger. I stared into Edwards eyes. Our eyes were now exactly the same colour – deep topaz with a hint of black. The crimson had faded within a few months and my eyes had only been deep amber for a few weeks. Charlie had let himself believe the story I made up about contacts. My mom however didn’t believe a word of my story, but had the sense to leave it alone.

Esme, Carlisle, Renée, Phil and Alice arrived in Carlisle’s black Mercedes minutes after Edward and I had. The car still stuck out on the street, even after most of the neighbours had modernised their cars. Soon we were all sat around the flat screen talking. I was sat next to Edward with Nessie on my lap. Jacob was sat beside me, entertaining Nessie by pulling stupid faces. Charlie spent most of the night knelt in front of Nessie, joining Jacob in his game.

“’Bye Charlie,” I said as I took Charlie into an awkward one armed embrace when it was time to leave.

“See you around Bella.” Charlie was smiling broadly, his eyes crinkling at the sides.

As Edward, Nessie and I were walking back to the Audi, Jacob caught up to me.

“Bella,” he breathed. “Are we still okay for tomorrow?” Jacob and Nessie had a once a week play date on a Thursday. So far, not one had been missed, but Jacob always liked to be sure.

“Yeah, be at Carlisle’s at ten.”

He smiled and kissed me on the cheek. “Right, tomorrow at ten. See you then Ness,” he cooed, bending over to speak directly to Nessie. He kissed her on the cheek and ran back into the house.

On the twenty minute journey home, Nessie fell asleep in my arms. I stared at her all the way home. When we stepped back into the house, everyone resumed their nocturnal activities; reading, writing, designing, playing. Renée and Phil looked a bit surprised at everyone’s choice of activities. They said their goodnights and went upstairs.

Edward and I walked back to our cottage carefully, trying not to wake Nessie. When she was safely tucked in her crib, I walked to the living room. As I entered the room, Edward was stood at the fireplace, staring at the painting that hung above. I had always despised that painting; it had reminded me too much of the hotel print when James was tracking me; although most of my human memories were foggy and hard to see, the time when James was tracking me was surprisingly clear. When I had looked at that painting, all I could see was a large crimson iris looking back.

“Bella,” whispered Edward as he span around to face me. His eyes were dark and his face was a forced void of emotion.

I sighed involuntarily, anticipating an argument. Edward had always made it clear when something bad was coming – his eyes going dark or his mouth twitching. “What’s the matter?” asked Edward, his previous words forgotten as his eyes filled with concern.

I shook my head and stepped forwards to hold his hands. “It’s nothing. Anyway, what were you going to say?”

He didn’t look convinced. “Well, Alice had a vision tonight of a visiting vampire.”

“Why are you telling me though? Are they a danger?” I broke my hands free and began to pace around the room.

“No, she looks quite the opposite. Alice said that, although her vision is a bit blurred, the woman is very interesting.”

“Why?”

He opened his mouth and closed it again. “I don’t know,” he mumbled finally.

“And you don’t know when she is coming either do you?”

“No. Are you sure you’re OK?”

“Yes, why?”

Edward smirked suddenly as he walked across the room and swept me off my feet to carry me into the bedroom for the night.

The shrill sound of the alarm clock forced me to break my gaze. I had been staring at the large painting that hung over Edwards pine dresser. The painting was of sea, beach and sand. I had been trying to remember if that was what Isle Esme had looked like, but I couldn’t find a clear image in my old, fuzzy human memories.

“Mom, Dad, aren’t we supposed to be at Carlisle’s in about two minutes?” Nessie asked sarcastically from her room.

“I’ll go,” mumbled Edward, pulling himself up. “I’m coming Ness.” Edward walked over to the dresser and pulled out the first things his hands touched, which were a pair of dark blue jeans and a dark grey t-shirt.

I rolled onto my back and glared at the clock. Night time was the only time Edward and I got to be together, so why did it have to be over so soon? I wrenched myself from the bed and walked to the closet. Surprisingly, Alice had not stripped me and re-dressed me in the clothes she thought appropriate yesterday, so today, I would deliberately set her off, just for something to do. I found a pair of pre-ripped blue jeans and a white stretch cotton top. I wandered over to the shoe corner and picked out some white pumps. This outfit would surely send Alice into a panic attack.

When I re-emerged from the vast closet, Edward was stood in the doorway to our bedroom, Nessie in one arm, her supplies bag in the other. We had a bag of supplies ready packed for Thursdays with Jacob. The bag had milk formula, spare clothes, her current reading book and a mobile phone. The mobile was only because Jacob would not accept a phone as a gift, so we made him carry it around on his days with Nessie.

We were at Carlisle’s with seconds to spare – literally. As we walked through the back door into the kitchen the scent of werewolf was almost overpowering. The stench of werewolf was not as potent to me as to others. I had speculated that it could be that I have spent so much time around werewolves that I have become used to it. Jacob had merely said it was because I loved him too much to let it bother me. I walked into the living room and spotted Jacob lounging on a couch. He was talking animatedly with Alice who was sat in the far corner of the room. Jacob was fascinated with Alice. When life got back to normal after all the trouble, Jacob had finally met Alice as Alice, not a secret weapon against all of his enemies. He was more than a little hostile towards her at first; mainly he had ignored her or shot her loaded glances. Now, he loved to ask her endless questions and used her to ensure that each day with Nessie ran smoothly. Alice had adapted to his endless requests. She sat as far away from him as possible and concentrated around him. The blank spot he used to be had shrank over time, and now that she was used to being around him more, he was easier to see.

“Hey Jake,” I said. He stopped talking abruptly and turned to gaze at Nessie. She giggled and waved at him.

“Nessie!” he plucked Nessie from my grasp and spun her around in circles before pulling her tight to his chest and embracing her.

“Here you go,” Edward said, holding out the supplies bag. Jacob took it and slung it over his shoulder.

“I’ll see you at four then,” Jacob said. He turned towards the door and began striding away. He was gone before I could say a final goodbye.

I turned to face Edward and stared into his eyes for several moments. I began to lean into him and he began to lean down. When our lips were an inch apart, Esme’s voice trilled from the kitchen. “Bella, can you help me with breakfast?”

I fell back into my standing position and smirked. “Yes, I’ll be a minute.” I jumped up to Edwards face and kissed him gently on the lips before slipping into the kitchen to help Esme.

The day was uneventful. Phil attempted to beat Emmett at baseball and still lost by a long shot, even though Emmett had to tone down his performance. My mom and Esme cooked pretty much all day. Jasper and Alice went hunting with Carlisle. Edward and I were due to hunt with Nessie tonight, as we went to pick her up. It would be my first hunt in four days and my throat groaned with thirst just thinking of it.

Four o’clock rolled around slowly, probably as Edward and I were watching every second tick by. We practically ran from the house and into Edwards Volvo. When we arrived at La Push, Jacob was

waiting outside his house holding Nessie. I instantly knew something was wrong. Edward was very quiet beside me, probably knowing more than I did.

“What’s wrong Jake?” I asked my voice stern. I was not going to be lied to.

“Bella, just go, Edward will explain it to you,” he replied, his eyes wide in panic. I grabbed Nessie and hastily bundled her into the car.

When we had pulled off from the house, I turned to Edward. “So, go on then, tell me.”

He hesitated. I was about to order him when he spoke. “Leah. Leah was at Billy’s. Jacob didn’t want there to be a fight, as I am sure Leah wants.”

I was quiet now. It was not as conspiratorial as I had thought. It was all due to me, and my nerves. I felt another swell of guilt for Leah. We pulled into some dense forest area and cut the engine. I could hear the faint drumming of hooves as I stepped out of the car and my thirst already felt calmer.

Hunting was one of my favourite activities. I felt like around humans I had to pretend to be something I’m not, but when I’m hunting, I can pass my mind over to my senses and truly be the creature I am. Hunting felt like the only thing I did that I was truly myself in. I also loved hunting because it was something Nessie, Edward and I could all do together. An hour later, my thirst was satisfied with three elk and a mountain lion.

We took Nessie straight to bed after we got in, skipping dinner as usual. I took this night to watch Nessie sleep. Edward watched with me, reading her thoughts. She had the most wonderful dreams: dreams about all of her family, dreams about Jacob and all of the Quileute werewolves, dreams about Edward and me.

2. BAD NEWS

The rest of the time with my mom was quite uneventful. We spent most days taking Nessie out, or staying in with Nessie, according to the weather. The week passed without incident and my mom went home as she usually did, saying I should visit more often, saying she’ll visit more often, saying that I’m too pale and don’t eat enough and saying how much Nessie has grown.

When Edward and I were back from the airport, I slipped back to our little house to open the present. The ideas of what the paper could contain had been haunting me for days. It wasn’t just the ideas that were haunting me though, I was wondering why he didn’t want Edward to know about it.

As soon as the door was shut I sprinted to the closet and dug out the small parcel. I had hidden it amongst my many pairs of shoes, hoping that Edward would not look there for anything and that the scent of paper would be masked by the sheer number of shoes. I examined the gift in hands for a few seconds before opening it – It was small and soft with three hard lumps inside and the outside of the gift was very basic; brown paper and a thin white string. I ripped away the paper and was left holding a small leather pouch. I wrenched the pouch open and tipped out the contents. It was a small bracelet made from coloured pieces of wool, woven into an intricate pattern. The pieces of wool were deep gold, pale white and reddish brown, alternating the three. I could guess the reasoning behind the colouring.

A thought still nagged at my mind. Why was Jacob going out of his way to keep this secret from Edward? Edward would think this was a lovely gift and probably congratulate Jacob on his choice. Jacob was due to spend the afternoon with Nessie at the Cullen’s house, so I could ask him all these questions myself.

Edward could tell something was on my mind when I went to wait for Jacob.

“What’s wrong?” he said. His eyes were brimming with concern and confusion. Unfortunately, I couldn’t shed any light on the situation any more than he could.

“It’s just something I have to ask Jacob,” I sighed. He opened his mouth to speak again so I took evasive action and changed the subject. “Has Alice had any more visions about that woman?”

“Yes and no. Yes, because she has had a few visions about her. No, because they are all the same. Each vision is the same scene, but each time it gets mistier and harder to see. Alice thinks that something needs to happen before she decides to visit.”

I was about to begin speculating when a familiar scent flew through the doors. Jacob was just taking the turn off from the freeway onto the Cullen’s driveway. By the time I had stood up and walked over to the door, Jacob was stood on the porch towering over me.

“Jake, can we talk for a minute? Outside? Now?” I was half pushing him from the door. He looked utterly perplexed, his eyebrows knotted together in confusion. Eventually he let me push him off the porch and nearer to the woods, so we couldn’t be heard in the house.

“What’s the matter Bells?” His tone was stern but his eyes were soft.

“Jacob, what was with all the secrecy? About the bracelet?” I stuck my wrist out to show him the bracelet, pulling back the sleeve I had worn to cover it.

He laughed. “Oh, that. Well I didn’t know what Edward would think of it, so I didn’t want to mention it.”

I was now the confused person. “About what?”

“Okay, don’t get mad.” He held his hands in front of himself as if in self defence. “This is going to sound bad. Okay, It’s a Quileute love bracelet. I still love you Bella.”

I stared mutely in horror. I was sure we were all past this, and that all this love stuff had been forgotten.

“No, no not like that,” Jacob stammered after seeing my expression. “I mean I love you the right way now. This is just to remind you that I’ll always love you.” He kissed me on the cheek and walked into the house without a glance back.

Trust Jacob to confuse a confusing situation.

I staggered back into the house and fell onto the couch next to Edward. He looked at me, a thousand questions swimming in his eyes. He caressed my cheek, a clever trick he used to make me speak. Then he noticed the bracelet and his eyes widened in shock briefly, before he composed himself. “What’s that?” he asked, mild curiosity colouring his tone.

“My Quileute ‘love bracelet.’ It was a present from Jacob.” His jaw locked in agitation momentarily but he didn’t say anything more on the subject for the rest of the night.

Jasper came back from his hunt late the next morning. I could tell something was wrong as soon as he was on the long path home. As soon as his thoughts were within reading distance, Edward stiffened infinitesimally. He walked in clutching a newspaper to his chest, a frantic look in his eyes. “Look at this,” he gasped. He threw the paper down onto the table and we all began to read.

RETURN OF THE SEATTLE MURDURER?

-

Police have no leads

Seattle, a once peaceful city, had once again been struck by murder. Last evening, the body of Lizzie Taylor, 36, was recovered in the woodland near her home. Her body had been burnt beyond visual recognition and the use of dental records for identification was necessary. Her body had been brutally treated, with most of her bones snapped. A similar case was found last week, near Jennings family store. Pete Jennings, 19, was found outside his parents store, his bones brutally crushed and his body burnt beyond recognition.

There are more than eight other missing cases in Seattle, all of whom have disappeared in the past three weeks. These missing person’s range in age, gender, occupation and religion.

But there are alarming patterns beginning to be seen. For example, all of the missing persons have disappeared at night, from places near to their homes or work. All of the people are from the same area of Seattle, each disappearance no more than four miles apart. Both bodies found have been discovered burnt and broken. And the most alarming pattern? This is reminiscent of last year’s bout of homicides.

Last year, more than forty linked homicides were left unsolved. The police suspected gang violence, but there was strong evidence that there was a killer acting alone. Many factors of this case bear strong resemblance to last year’s events.

So this begs the question, is this the return of last year’s killer, or is this someone new? Whoever this is, one thing is inescapable. Something hideous and violent is stalking Seattle once more.

I scanned through the list of names at the bottom. Caroline Sterling, Ben Smiths, Greta Styles . . . I couldn’t read on.

“What are we going to do?” Edward asked, breaking the silence that had settled over us.

“There’s only one thing we can do: go and sort them out,” said Emmett. His childish grin was especially irritating in the circumstances.

Carlisle sighed. He would have to tell them that violence was not the way to deal with newborn vampires. “When should we go?”

I turned to stare in shock at Carlisle. He was usually the voice of reason in a room full of irrationalism. “What? We can’t just kill them!”

“Bella, I don’t like this anymore than you do, but after Victoria’s newborns I’m taking no chances.” Carlisle looked so sad to be saying this. He was saying the words that went against all his principles and everything he believed in. “You three plan the journey,” he said as he pointed at Alice, Jasper and Emmett. “Edward, choose the cars with Rose. Esme, gather some clothes for everyone. Bella, can you go make arrangements for Nessie? We should go tomorrow.” He walked toward the hallway and shot up the stairs. Everyone became engrossed in their tasks and immediately forgot everyone else. I slipped upstairs to talk to Carlisle.

Carlisle was sat in his office, his head in his hands. I knocked on the door and walked over to him. “I can’t remember that last day I truly believed all I say I do. I have murdered, stole, hurt people, lied, cheated . . . I’m beginning to think it is impossible to be a good vampire.”

He didn’t appear to be speaking specifically to me, but I answered anyway as a knee-jerk reaction.“Oh, Carlisle, you are a good vampire. You are the best vampire I have met.” My reassurance was doing little to help him; it was plain on his face.

“I used to think that if you kept yourself to yourself then you could be good. But even in becoming a social recluse and forcing my family to too, I have not been able to avoid trouble. First it was Aroura. Then Srenna. Then James and Victoria and . . .” he mused in a sad voice.

“Who were Aroura and Srenna?” My question broke through the barriers I had carefully placed to stop inappropriate questions. I clamped my lips together a fraction of a second too late.

His head jerked up suddenly. His eyes looked tired, as if he was sick of telling stories. “Aroura was my first real vampire friend. When I had told her what I was – a vegetarian vampire – she had gone insane; shouting and pulling down trees and very nearly attacking me. She had run away afterwards and found several other vampires hell bent on changing my beliefs. I was forced to fight my way out, dismembering most of them, including Aroura. I still to this day don’t know if she lives.”

“And Srenna?” I pressed. I cursed myself silently; another inappropriate question I couldn’t contain.

“Srenna was my fist vampire friend with a conscience. She too tried to be a better person, not drinking human blood. But a band of vampires had found us and killed Srenna. Sometimes I wonder if it would be easier to just join the other vampires and do things normally.”

Carlisle had never expressed any wish to become a ‘normal’ vampire before. As far as I knew, his beliefs were his main reason to be. Without his beliefs, Carlisle would just not be Carlisle anymore.

“Why have I never heard these stories before?” I was intrigued. Surely Edward would have trusted me enough to tell me the full life of Carlisle.

“Because I have never told anyone before,” he confessed. I felt a mask of confusion settle over my face. “I’m not three hundred and sixty-four. I’m three hundred and seventy four. There are ten years of my life that I could rather forget, and they would be easier to forget if only I knew them.”

Carlisle’s confession had spooked and confused me. I left and practically dove into my house.

I suddenly remembered the task Carlisle had given me while I was idly staring at the phone. It was a Thursday, so I should call Nessie’s mobile. Two short rings and Jacob answered.

“Bella? What’s wrong? What’s happened?” Jacob was unused to receiving calls from us on Nessie’s mobile.

“Have you seen the newspaper today?” I tried hard to keep my voice from shaking and succeeded. Almost.

I heard rustling of paper on the other side and a few seconds of silence as he read the article. “Oh,” he whispered. “What are we going to do?”

“Were going to Seattle tomorrow, so could you look after Nessie for me please?”

“Sure! Are you sure you don’t need my help?” The last part sounded like an afterthought.

I hesitated. Jacob would be very useful if the visit should turn to a fight. But if the visit was supposed to be peaceful, then would a werewolf being present spook them? “No, we’ll be fine,” I sighed, regretting my words in the back of my mind. “Take care of Nessie for me.”

“I will, don’t worry Bells,” he promised cheerfully as he hung the phone up.

Back in the house, preparations were already underway. Esme was sorting inconspicuous city clothes into outfits. Jasper, Alice and Emmett had several maps and pieces of paper spread across the dining table. Rosalie and Edward were, presumably, in the garage. As everyone was engrossed in their tasks still, I went up to Alice’s room to sift through her clothes and find some for Nessie. Alice had been working on her own designs for Nessie for months, but kept them in a trunk in her closet so that I couldn’t use them; she thought I would spoil the outfits. I pulled out a blue and cream checked dress and a pair of black sleep trousers and a matching sleep top. I bundled it all into a black leather handbag Alice had stashed at the back of her closet and flew down the stairs.

As I opened the door, six pairs of curious eyes appraised my appearance. “I’m just dropping some clothes by Jacob for Nessie,” I explained quickly. Everyone turned away, except for Alice.

“That’s my bag!” Alice accused, glaring at my right arm where her black leather bag hung.

“I’m just borrowing it,” I retorted defensively. Actually, if she hadn’t noticed me borrowing it, may have kept it; it was one of the few of Alice’s possessions that I particularly liked.

Alice looked appeased, but I could tell she would be checking for it in her closet from the second I returned.

I fled to the Audi and threw the bag onto the passenger seat and jerked the ignition to life. I was at Jacob’s house in a matter of minutes, thanks to my complete disregard of the speed limits.

When I knocked on the door, Jacob looked genuinely surprised to see me. “Bella, what are you doing here?” he asked, pointedly looking at his watch to demonstrate the time; it was not time to take her home yet.

“I just brought some clothes for Nessie,” I explained. The trace of annoyance on his features dissolved as I said the words. I lifted the bundle from Alice’s bag and handed it to him.

“Do you want to come in or something?” he said when I hovered on the doorstep long after he said thanks. I considered it for a moment and then shook my head – I didn’t want to disturb his day with Nessie.

I saw on my drive home the woodland trail that Edward, Nessie and I took to hunt last week. I drove down it, thinking that I could spend my time productively and get myself stronger for the next day.

I didn’t quite know what to expect the following day. Last year, with Victoria’s newborns, there had been indications of their intentions and numbers. This time, we were going in blind – we had no idea how many there were, how new they were, if their intentions were devious of if they were just curious. The only vision Alice had seen recently was of the same woman, and she was wandering through dense forests, not a Seattle street.

After I had hunted, I went home. Everyone had mellowed out and was full of excitement for the following day. Emmett and Jasper were still planning the journey and arguing over strategies, but now they were dressed in Esme’s city clothing. Alice, also dressed inconspicuously, was sat by the window awaiting my return and therefore the return of her handbag. Rosalie and Esme were talking animatedly about their outfits, lounged on the white leather sofa. Edward was not in sight, but I could hear the soft melancholy notes of his latest composition drifting from the dining room, where his piano had recently been relocated to.

I sat on the bench beside him and watched his long white fingers fly across the keys, playing several notes at once. I stared at his hands until the song came to a close. His eyes flashed to mine and he instantly understood my anxiousness.

“Don’t worry Bella, things will be fine.” His words rang with sincerity. I found a small smile playing on my lips but carefully beat it back.

“It won’t all go smoothly though, will it?” His eyes questioned me silently, asking why. “Because I’m going to be there. Things always go wrong when I’m there.” I hung my head and looked at the piano keys.

He chuckled, lifting my chin to meet my eyes. “Do you really think that you could influence a situation so thoroughly?” His eyes were intense and he was searching my expression for a hint that I was beginning to believe his words.

I opened my mouth and closed it like a gormless goldfish. He had well and truly beaten me with logic, but my feeling that things would go wrong refused to be reasoned with.

We stayed with the family that night, a show of solidarity. Jasper and Emmett had decided on a route and battle tactics after hours of arguing. We were leaving at nine in the morning, hopefully to surprise them, and we would find them using Alice’s visions. A thought plagued my mind as I replayed the plan in my head. Alice had searched and searched for a vision of where they would be, and had found nothing but the same woman as before, wandering through the same dense forests. We had no guarantee of finding these vampires. I shushed my thoughts and concentrated on Edward’s words which I had made into a mantra.

It will be fine. Things will be fine. It will be fine. No matter how many times I said the words in my mind, they didn’t seem to sound any more truthful.

3. CAPTURED

Everyone watched the silent tick of the clock as the thin strand of plastic slowly beat its way towards nine. Emmett was visually agitated at having to wait; he was so excited that I began to think any more waiting would force him to explode. Everyone else was merely waiting in silence for a deed that had to be done. My stomach felt strange, as if it had wound its self into a tight knot over the hours of waiting I had endured.

As the clock struck five to nine, Emmett jumped up. Seven pairs of curious eyes flickered to his now erect figure.

“What?” he asked defensively. “Oh, come on, you’re not going to make me wait until nine are you?”

Carlisle rose suddenly, closely followed by Esme and Rose. Carlisle’s face looked strange – curiously dead. Alice and Jasper unfolded themselves from the floor and went to follow Carlisle as

he walked out of the door. Edward tugged my hand gently and the knot in my stomach became more noticeable, as if it were reacting to the significance of the gentle tug. I glanced into his eyes and an expression of shock crossed his face. I looked into the reflective window and saw my face. My eyes were dark and my mouth had turned down into an involuntary frown. I worked to straighten out my face unsuccessfully.

I followed Carlisle and the others out to the car, still being led – or dragged – by Edward. Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie, Alice and Jasper all climbed into Carlisle’s black Mercedes. Emmett walked over to the Volvo and climbed in. Edward tugged my hand and pulled me into the backseat of the car.

It was strange that after so long, Edward’s Volvo still retained my scent. It clung to the roof and was embedded in the seats. The scent wasn’t overpowering, but it was strong. It was a nice, floral scent, like lavender and cherry blossom. Edward breathed deeply and appreciatively.

The drive was short to Seattle. Maybe the ride only seemed short because I was hoping that the ride would help me better accept the monster I was about to become. Maybe the ride only seemed short as Emmett drove even faster than Edward. Whatever reason, the ride was too short and the knot in my stomach tightened painfully.

I glanced over at Edward. His eyes were wide and his face was carefully expressionless. I saw through his facade easily despite the effort he was expending to it. He was trying to keep a brave face, trying to make me hopeful and trying to make my fears seem irrational. Unfortunately, it failed to have any effect on me, other than extreme guilt; even though his life and his families were in imminent danger, he still tried to comfort me.

He seemed to suddenly notice I was staring at him, as he reached over and caressed my cheek. “Bella, you aren’t such an unlucky charm that you could make this situation a disaster. They are newborns, easily . . . dealt with.” He hesitated slightly at the end, obviously thinking of the best way to word it. I painted a small smile on my lips and he squeezed my hand hard in encouragement. He climbed of the car and began to walk around to my side. I acted quickly to perform the act Edward would think was irrational.

I plucked the locket my mother had given me from the pocket of my inconspicuous polo shirt, courtesy of Esme. I had been thinking about this for a few hours before I finally decided to wear it. I thought about my family: Charlie, Renée, Nessie, Edward . . . How could I go to this and not be with them. It pained me to face such a situation and not know if Nessie was safe. I decided to wear my locket close to my heart, so that all of my family would be there too, no matter what happened.

In my hurry to fasten the necklace, my fingers fumbled uselessly at the clasp, a cold sweat breaking out of my hands in frustration. Eventually, with no time to spare, the locket was fastened around my neck and concealed beneath my clothes. Edward pulled me out of the car with a false smile on his face, mirroring my own.

Carlisle and Jasper were already searching the surface of the map while Alice burbled directions at them. Eventually, Alice’s head jerked up and shared the vital piece of information. “Brad Dean’s warehouse,” she said, her words coming out in an excited rush. “Near the bus station.” I guess Jasper and Emmett had been right to trust Alice.

Carlisle and Jasper skimmed over the map and pointed to the same spot simultaneously. Emmett peered over at the map before taking a purposeful step forwards.

“Oh, come on, trust me! I can tell this is the way!” Emmet cried when he turned around and noticed that no one had moved.

Jasper turned to face Emmett’s route and strained into the distance. “He’s right, that is the way,” Jasper conceded, a playful tone colouring his voice that seemed out of place in the current situation. “It is the right way,” he defended as five pairs of disbelieving eyes looked at him; five pairs of eyes as Alice was looking away, pointedly refusing to take part in this debate.

“How do you know it’s the right way?” Rosalie challenged.

“Because you can see the sign in the distance.”

We all peered into the distance in unison and I saw what he meant. Bright and bold, seemingly suspended in the sky, the words ‘Brad Dean’ hung.

Emmett began to walk again, more purposefully this time as understanding became painted on every face. We all followed this time, unquestioning about Emmett’s route.

The walk was silent. The other Seattle people were chatting animatedly, buying food from the stalls and running for busses like this was just like any other day. And this was just like any other day for them. These people wouldn’t have to go home tonight with a guilty conscience. I was about to murder people, children. If they were indeed newborns, then this would be just like killing a child.

The looming sign came around far too soon and I stood staring at the building. The words I had seen from the distance now glowered from their place, hung off the big glass warehouse. I hadn’t noticed from the distance but the sign was deep red – the colour of blood.

Emmett had not stopped as I had to admire the building and instead was half walking half running through the door. The door was faded deep red, the same as the sign, but this colour had been sun bleached and faded from years of disuse, and was now closer to orange than red. The inside of the building was quite bleak. The open door let a small trickle of light into the otherwise pitch black room and threw a dim light over the floor and walls. The stone floors were dirty and dusty and encrusted with decaying leaves in every colour imaginable. The walls were made from the same stone as the floor, with small light bulbs in cages placed at odd intervals. I could tell what everyone would be thinking without looking at them because I was thinking them too; the place was empty. There was not so much as a small breath or faint murmur to indicate people being present. There wasn’t even a footprint in the dust.

Alice gasped suddenly, breaking the silence, and everyone turned to look at her. Her face was horror struck, her mouth open and her eyes wide with terror and yet strangely vacant; she was having a vision. Jasper ran to her side and clamped his hands over the tops of her arms.

“Alice? Alice! What is it?” His voice was rising in pitch with panic which was unusual for Jasper. He was normally the calmest person in a situation like this, but now he was panicking. It was unnerving.

Alice’s eyes refocused of Jasper’s face and she threw herself into an embrace. “Jasper!” she gasped, relief saturating her voice.

Suddenly Alice gasped. She broke free from a hurt looking Jasper and glared over at the corner, pointing one of her slender fingers at the sudden disturbance. In the seconds that had just passed, I had not heard the light footsteps on the stairs or the light breathing that was now issuing from the corner Alice was staring at.

The actions were so swift that I barely registered them. Rosalie and Esme stood in front of Alice, their arms out, shielding her. Carlisle fell into a crouch in front of the huddle with Jasper and Emmett flanking him. Edward fell into his hunting stance next to Emmett and in front of me. After seeing the defensive display take place, I instinctively threw a protective shield around my family.

The people in the corner didn’t hesitate after seeing our defensive preparation. They walked forwards with long strides and closed most of the distance within seconds.

Under my protective cover, I was hyper-aware of every movement. I felt Emmett sink deeper into his crouch. I felt Alice struggle slightly against the confines of Esme and Rose’s arms. I felt Edward lean out of his crouch and stare at the approaching figures. I felt Carlisle sway, as if losing his balance, and stand.

“I’m Carlisle. This is my family: Rosalie, Emmett, Jasper and Alice, Edward and Bella and Esme.” I could tell from his tone that he still fathered a small hope that there would be no need for violence.

One of the people stepped forwards. He was tall – very tall, maybe even taller that Emmett – and very muscular. As he walked, the thick bands of solid muscle on his arms tensed and relaxed with each stride. He was just as beautiful as any other vampire I had met, but he was somehow different. His features could not be compared to beauty when twisted into such a deceitful mask. His eyes were almost black with small swirls of crimson, indicating that we were right to believe that these vampires were behind the murders. He was dressed in simple city clothes: a blue long-sleeved shirt and some dark blue jeans. He looked no different to the many city-dwellers I had seen on their daily commute this morning. I had to remind myself that this was no ordinary person – I was looking at a killer.

“Carlisle, yes I know,” he murmured, obviously intending for Carlisle to hear. His face was dark and dangerous. I didn’t trust this face. “I am Arun, and this is Caroline.” He smiled darkly as he indicated the small shadow behind him.

Caroline stepped out, revealing herself, and stood next to Arun. She was very small, comically small standing next to Arun, and very thin. Her thick curtain of dark blonde hair swung over her face and she smiled sweetly. She too was dressed in city clothes: a long floral patterned shirt and thick black tights. In any other situation, I wouldn’t have believed that such an innocent looking girl could be something so devious; her smile looked non-threatening but her crimson tinged eyes stood out on her skin repulsively. Those eyes flickered uncertainly to each face, pausing on Carlisle’s kind face and Emmett’s grimace.

“Is it just you two?” Carlisle looked wary. I could tell from Edwards slight body shift that there were more.

They seemed to notice as Edward’s expression become threatening and knew they had to tell the truth. Arun grinned wider and exchanged it with Caroline. “Just one other; she is out hunting.” His expression turned mocking. “You should have let her know you were stopping by. She would have loved to meet you.”

Emmett’s grimace tightened and Jasper poorly restrained the growl issuing form his throat. Rosalie and Esme took a tiny step back towards Alice, shielding her further. Alice put up no protest now. She was concentrating hard, rubbing her temples with her fingers, trying to guess the outcome of this confrontation.

I stared at Caroline, wondering what her thoughts were. She looked surprisingly unhappy to have triggered this reaction. Her eyes tightened and she stared at Carlisle’s face again; he had still not been shaken by their responses.

She stared for several seconds and then looked up at Arun, a terrified expression on her face. His face was the mirror of hers. She began to glare at Emmett, then Jasper, then Rose. Each time she stopped glaring, she looked at Arun, the same expression on her face.

I gathered that she was attacking. I had seen the look of concentration and frustration on Jane’s face when my shield had stopped her. Obviously Caroline was trying to attack. I noticed a faint fog outside of my shield and knew that her power was weak. I began looking for holes in my shield, just in case, when I noticed something inside the shield. It was blisteringly hot inside the shield, and my chest felt like it was on fire. I would compare the pain to heartburn, but soon it changed and became more like the fire from transformation.

I felt like I was burning from the inside.

I looked nervously from face to face and paused on Edward. He hadn’t noticed the fire yet, because he wasn’t looking. I began to retract my shield from myself to warn Edward when I felt a blaze in my head. I felt myself thrashing on the floor and crying out. The pain stopped as suddenly as it had started and I reattached my shield.

Edward was at my side, crouching over my head and brushing the hair from my eyes. His concerned face drifted towards Caroline slightly and changed into a terrifying expression, filled with rage.

As I sat up, I noticed that Jasper and Carlisle had drifted forwards slightly and Emmett back towards Rose.

“What was that?” Carlisle demanded with no anger in his tone, just defensive curiosity.

Arun just looked at Caroline and nodded slightly. She restarted the attack, this time her gaze centred on my face, obviously seeing me as the weak link, the easiest target.

Edward growled and stepped in front of me, shielding me.

I saw Emmett going deeper into his crouch and shuffling forwards as Carlisle dropped his body a few inches. The fight was about to begin.

In the same second, Caroline and Arun took a small step back.

“You obviously want violence,” sighed Arun. His dark eyes still glowed playfully and I knew he was about to try a trick.

I was right.

He and Caroline lunged forwards simultaneously, each grasping at air until their searching fingers found Carlisle and Jasper. Arun grasped Jasper’s midriff and slung him over his shoulder with ease despite the violent protest Jasper was making. Caroline took Arun and Carlisle’s hands and joined them. She clutched Arun’s arm and they disappeared.

This was all done in a matter of seconds and the shock made everyone’s reactions slow.

Alice screamed and battered against Esme and Rose’s restraining arms. She flew to where Jasper had just been and collapsed to the floor, her shoulders heaving with tearless sobs for her love.

Esme stood still, stuck in the position Alice had thrown her into, staring at Alice’s back.

Emmett ran to Rose and enveloped her in a tight embrace.

Edward just reached silently for my hand and clutched it tightly between both of his, muttering to himself angrily. It sounded like “I should have known, I should have known!”

I should have been comforting him but I was just as shocked as Esme. How had this happened? How had we let Jasper and Emmett be captured?

Had Edward been wrong? Was I such a bad luck charm that I had influenced this situation? I was beginning to think that my bad luck had no limits.