Summary: AU. Set in New Moon during Spring Break. Bella doesn't go to Jacob and therefore doesn't get close with him. Instead, Bella is left defenceless when her life is threatened, leaving her forced to fight for her life alone.
1. Prologue
Sighing, I rolled out of my bed, unable to put it off for much longer. The springs creaked inside the old mattress, as I sat up, flinging my legs out from under the sheets. I was running out of ways to fill my days, not that school was out for the spring. I rubbed my palms against my closed eyes, agitated and frustrated by my current situation. Life for me now had grown beyond being simply a struggle - it was now near impossible. I was hanging on, though, clawing at what little I had left, clinging to it.
I cheated for a second, dropping my strict boundaries just to let Edward into my head again. For a moment, I imagined his face, adored him. I pictured the exact angle of his jaw line, the shape of his lips, the tip of his nose, the honey color of his eyes - my favorite of the shades. And then he was gone.
Charlie had left long ago, no doubt walking across the floorboards on his tip-toes, fishing gear in hand. I leaned against the kitchen counter, balancing my elbows against the edge as I stared out the window. My truck sat in its usual spot, waiting for me with quiet patience. Deciding that a drive might be a good way to fill in some time, I swooped up my keys and headed out the front door without so much as a glance back.
As always, the drivers' door creaked loudly, groaned, as I closed it behind me. I took some comfort in the familiar sound, and as I settled into my seat, I studied the empty space where my new stereo had sat, before I had clawed it out. I shook my head and turned my attention to the ignition. It was bad practice to ponder on things that reminded me of him. If the trail led me somewhere dangerous, I'd leave it be. That had to be my new mantra. As I followed a familiar road, I rolled down my window, letting my hair blow out it. Fresh air always seemed to do wonders for me nowadays. I briefly glanced at the rear vision mirror, out of habit, and saw an unfamiliar overly shiny black car trailing me. I swerved over, coming to the conclusion that they must be annoyed by my slow pace, and waited for them to pass. But they didn't. I raised an eyebrow, perplexed as I stared back at the car that had pulled up to stop behind me. I couldn't see the driver: the windows were tinted.
I cut the engine, silence falling in my truck, and waited some more, my eyes never leaving the mirror. When the cars' door swung open, I felt my pulse speed up. That was strange - they were probably lost or something, just needed to ask an entirely innocent question. One foot slid out of the now open door, clad den in a flat leather boot. Then another matching foot.
Fiery auburn hair flung about her face as she smiled vindictively at me, her eyes locking into mine, boring into them with such intensity that even if I hadn't know she was a vampire, I would have still screamed anyway. Victoria walked at a slow, human, pace toward me. I fumbled with the door handle, before swinging it open with a loud squeak and kicking my way out. I ran, knowing it was useless, knowing that she was on my tail, knowing that she would soon kill me. Shoving my way through the woods, I found myself cutting my arms on the sharp branches, not helping me but instead giving Victoria another advantage. Like a bright neon arrow, sending her directly to me with ease. My human body betrayed me then, as my foot caught itself amongst an array of vines littering the forest floor, sending me face first into the dirt. I shoved myself up, using my palms to balance the rest of my body. Victoria's foot stomped onto my right arm, and I lost my balance, falling back into the dirt as she pinned my arm down. I looked up at her frantically.
"What do you want?" I cried, the sob turning into a howl of pain as I felt her foot turn, crushing against my bone.
"What do you think I want, dear Bella?"
I screamed louder, in more earnest this time as I heard a sickening crack reverberate through my body. Victoria lifted her foot off me, before bending down to my level, watching me as I pulled my wounded arm against my chest and cradled it.
"I want revenge," she mouthed to me, before she smiled widely, exposing her sharp teeth: a threat and a reminder of her vampirism.
"Are you going to … bite me?" I whispered, my voice so shaky that had she been human, I was sure she wouldn't hear me.
She laughed, a bitter twisted kind of laugh: like a witch's cackle. Victoria pulled me up, hand hands taking one of my arms in each. I screeched in shock at the extent of the pain, as she clasped my injured arm a little bit tighter than the other.
"I'm going to have some fun with you, first. Then we'll see what happens."
She released me from her grip, relief flooded through me at the loss of pressure on my right arm. She turned me around, my back facing her, before she began shoving me harshly, coercing me forward.
"Get in the car," she ordered. I took the passenger seat and belted myself in, shaking so violently that it took a few moments to click it into place. I watched, confused as she headed toward my truck. Her nails scraped against the paint of the driver's door as she pondered what to do next.
She pivoted, turning back around to stare at me. The sick smile crossed her face as she walked straight past me, opening the trunk of her car. She walked back to my truck, this time ignoring me, with a canister of petrol in her hand. She poured it over the driver's seat, all in the front of the car, before pouring the remains onto the hood. Victoria placed the empty canister back into her trunk, before lighting a match, and tossing it onto the truck, making sure to keep a safe distance from it. I gasped, instinctively throwing my arm up to cover my face. But the flames did not reach me.
The sound of the small explosion rang in my ears, thumping in my head. Victoria slid into the driver's seat beside me now, closing her door behind her. We sat in silence for a moment, as Victoria smirked, admiring her work. The tires screeched as she spun the vehicle around, and zoomed off in the opposite direction. I glanced back, just before we rounded a corner, and caught one last glimpse of my truck, now bathed in flames and thick smoke.
The next chapter will be a lot longer, as this is just the prologue. Let me know what you think. (: