Chapter 1: The Discovery

"Oh, it's so good to have some private time with my girls again," Esme rejoiced, one arm around Alice' shoulders, the other around Rosalie's. Alice and Rosalie eyed each other, nodded and both smiled at Esme. This whole week had been arranged especially for her.

After they had left Forks, left her, the family had tried to stay together, but it had soon fallen apart. It started with Edward – he left only two months after the move; he couldn't stand to be around anyone at that time. Jasper soon after followed, his guilt consuming him. And where Jasper went, so did Alice. For a while, Carlisle, Esme, Emmett and Rosalie stayed together, but then Rosalie and Emmett left as well – Rosalie had been so angry that they had let a human tear their family apart and with no one to turn her anger on, she'd turned it on Carlisle, and soon Emmett took her away as well.

For two long years the family remained separated, not a single one in contact with the other. Edward was the first to come back and beg Carlisle and Esme's forgiveness for what he'd done – they had granted it immediately, off course. They tracked down Alice and Jasper not long after. The last ones to come back were Rosalie and Emmett. They all agreed that no matter what happened, they wouldn't separate again.

But it had been hard on Esme, losing all of her surrogate children; it reminded her too much of the child she had lost as a human. So for the entire time they had been gone, she had been depressed, despite Carlisle's best efforts to bring her out of it.

So the entire family, sans Esme, had devised a plan to show Esme how much they truly cared for her. First, the boys had taken her on an all week hunting trip, and simply conveying their love for her. Even Edward had gone with them, though he usually locked himself in his room for weeks at a time, moping about, missing Bella.

This week it was the girl's turn. They had chosen Seattle because there were some great art dealers in the area, and they knew how much Esme loved art. It was their third day on the trip when it happened. In hindsight, it shouldn't have been such a surprise, as close to Forks as they were.

They were walking down one of the shadier streets – the kind normal human people avoided out of fear of being robbed… or worse – when Alice first smelled the scent and paused in her tracks.

"It can't be," She whispered, but she knew it was true. She hadn't smelled that scent in over three years, and if she was smelling it now, it could only mean one thing.

"What is it, Alice?" Esme cast her concerned gaze upon the girl she thought of as a daughter. Said daughter turned haunted eyes upon her surrogate mother.

"Can't you smell her?" Alice turned her gaze back upon the streets and started to scan them for whatever it was she was looking for. Rosalie caught on to the scent then, as did Esme a few seconds later.

"No!" Rosalie growled. Esme remained quiet, but had she been human, she would have most likely been crying.

"It's her, isn't it? It's Bella?" Alice said, then everything between the 3 vampires went quiet while they listened and searched. Finally, Alice' gaze rested upon a thin, frail body about 30 feet from them. All of them, even Rosalie, were shocked by what they saw and heard. But there was no doubt about it. It was Bella.

Her hair was longer and dirty, matted with grease. She must have lost at least 30 pounds since they last saw her. Her ribs were visible. She was wearing a short, black skirt, a flaming red tank top that left little to imagination and a pair of sneakers. The outfit was finished off with a heavy coating of make-up, large silver hoop earrings and a silver beaded necklace. But the worst part was the track marks they could see running up and down her arms, and the conversation she was having with a man in one of the parked cars.

"How much for the whole package?" The sleazy man asked in a gruff tone of voice.

"250 for all the normal stuff. Kink costs extra," Bella's voice was hollow, emotionless. It was as if she was dead inside.

The vampires looked at each other in shock; they didn't need to hear more to know what this conversation was about. They knew what Bella was doing here, the kind of person she appeared to be now. Not only did it appear she'd become a drug addict, but she'd become a prostitute as well. It was unthinkable, yet it was true.

Alice didn't even stop to think what about how her family would feel about her decision, she just decided. She had to help Bella. She couldn't leave her like this. Despite everything, Bella was still her sister. Her best friend. She'd do anything for her. So she ran. She ran to Bella faster than the human eye could perceive. Less than a second later, she was standing before Bella. She called out her name.

Bella looked up, her eyes widened slightly, but then she shook her head and returned to her dealings with the man as if Alice wasn't even there. Alice pressed on.

"Bella, don't do this."

"Would you get out of here, girl. I'm trying to make a deal here," The man said, swiping a hand in Alice' direction. She resisted the urge to growl at the man. But it seemed the man had been useful after all; he'd gotten a reaction out of Bella.

Bella turned her glazed, shock filled eyes upon Alice, as if seeing her for the first time. "You can see her?" She demanded of the man, a crazed tone in her voice.

"Well o' course I can see her. I got eyes," he huffed.

Bella turned her deadened eyes upon Alice once more, giving her a good once over. She seemed to think some things over and must have decided something, because when she turned back to the man, she told him that the deal was off and to get lost. The man cursed at her, called her several horrific names (none which seemed to faze Bella) and sped off in search of another hooker to spend the night with.

"You're really here," Bella said once she turned back to Alice. Her voice was as flat as it had been every time Alice had heard her speak that night. Alice simply nodded.

"You're real?" It came out more as a question than a statement, and Alice nodded in the affirmative once more.

"Are you alone?" Bella asked, scanning the streets for others, but not seeing much through her drug induced haze.

"Esme and Rosalie are here as well. Do you want to see them?" Alice asked tentatively, holding out her hand for Bella to take. She seemed very hesitant, but eventually Alice' pleading eyes seemed to win her over. Alice frowned when she could feel the bones protruding from Bella's skin. She was so thin. Too thin.

As Rosalie and Esme had come closer when Alice had run to Bella, they didn't have to walk far, only a few steps.

"Oh Bella." Esme looked ready to sob if she had been able to. She ached for the daughter she'd had to leave behind, the daughter that appeared before her completely ruined now. Rosalie stewed in her anger over the girl, as usual, but said nothing.

Then Alice asked the question that was on everyone's mind. "Bella, sweetie, what happened to you?" But none were prepared for the anger that appeared in Bella's eyes, the first emotion she'd shown since they'd first laid eyes upon her.

"What happened?" She hissed, turning accusatory eyes upon them. "As if you don't know. You know everything, after all. But who cares, right? I was just your pet!" She sighed and looked away. "Now I'm everybody's pet," she said so quietly human ears wouldn't have been able to pick it up, but they did. The anger they'd seen moments earlier had seemingly evaporated, leaving in place that same dead, empty look from before. It was honestly terrifying.

"You're coming with us, Bella. And no arguing, you can't win against us anyway." Alice decided, and with one swift move she lifted Bella into her arms and started to run, Esme and Rosalie right on her trail. Bella didn't make a single sound in protest or otherwise.

TO BE CONTINUED