Frantic, Edward scanned the thoughts of those following dangerously close. Demetri was planning exactly how he would finish the girl once he had caught up to them. The numerous playbacks of Bella's violent end that rushed through Demetri's mind created a swell of anger in Edward. He tightened his grip on Bella's legs and pushed his body to its upmost ability as he sped through the trees. Bella squeezed her arms tighter around his neck and buried her face into the back of his neck, no doubt still fearful of the potential for injuries from rogue branches. On another day this act would have made Edward chuckle inwardly– not today.

Edward knew that the rest of his family was running for their lives too, though the cloak of night would do nothing to aid their escape. Their thoughts were jumbled and sporadic as he tried to distinguish their intended destinations to no avail. As was his quandary, so was his family's. The Volturi were too many.

Edward listened again for the loathsome thoughts of Demetri. Aro had sent his most prodigious tracker after them, and, despite his speed, Edward was losing ground. Each time he countered one of Demetri's intended plans of attack another would appear fresh in the tracker's mind. And each time Edward had to counter and change direction, Demetri decreased the distance between himself and them.

Certain that they had to be far past the Canadian border, Edward desperately tried to remember something valuable about the landscape. He'd been here before. He could tell by the smell that they were very near the place where he and Emmet used to hunt elk a few years ago. While searching through the memory for something, anything that might help him, Edward suddenly stopped. Demetri's thoughts had vanished. He was no longer connected to his family. For the first time since he had been changed, the only voice Edward heard in his head…was his own.

"What!?" Bella whispered. Edward grabbed her off of his back and spun her around so that she was directly in front of him, but his eyes were frantic, searching. He placed his finger on Bella's lips, silently warning her not to speak, while he sniffed the air. Bella's scent still had the same affect on him as the first day he'd met her in Biology. Yet now, when her life was in danger, it was all too easy to ignore the burning in his throat. The scent of salt water and sand hit his nostrils ever so slightly; they were far enough from the coast that Edward could hear the waves even less than he could smell them.

Wait for her.

Edward spun on his heels, and crouched protectively in front of Bella. He saw, for that infinitesimal moment, Demetri's mind. Her? Bella? Wait for what? Seconds seemed to last hours as Edward listened, smelled, and searched for any sign of an attack. Nothing. The silence in his head was deafening. Demetri's thoughts, everyone's thoughts, were impossibly absent. Edward had a sinking feeling that the reason for this paradox was about to reveal itself, although what for it would take he did not know. He waited for any sign of the tracker, but even Demetri's sent had vanished. How was this possible? Tracker or not, vampire or not, Edward had yet to meet any creature that could deliberately masks its own thoughts AND its sent. Something wasn't right.

After almost a full minute of anticipation, Bella leaned closer to him and begged, "Edward what's going on? Who is it?"

"Demetri." He replied, only just loud enough for Bella to understand. "I can't hear him, his thoughts I mean. They've disappeared. His smell has vanished too."

"What? How?... Is he gone?" Bella questioned.

"I don't know, not likely. Something is wrong. The voices are missing, the only one I can hear is my own." Edward shifted his position, straightened his stance slightly, and began circling around Bella slowly. The inability to hear those around him, at this most inopportune moment, was infuriating. The inability to smell them as well only compounded his anger. The wind was blowing abnormally fast and leaves all around them were spinning rapidly in cyclic groups.

Bella spoke slightly louder, "what could possib-"

Before Bella could finish her sentence, Edward had jerked her behind him and was half-crouched in front of her. The growl that emanated from his chest was full of malice and spite. A small shrouded figure appeared seemingly from nowhere in the trees. It moved gracefully, as though it weren't walking at all, but rather floating slightly above the leaves. The loathing Edward felt for this being, the utter need to stalk forward and rip the figure to shreds was surpassed only by his refusal to leave Bella unprotected and vulnerable. Edward's body shook violently with rage as the cloaked being continued forward until finally halting five yards away from them.

"Well done, Demetri." The figure congratulated the tracker, as he too revealed himself and stood to the right of the speaker. Demitri's victorious expression and smug satisfaction fueled Edward's rage. He inched closer to Bella and wrapped his left arm backward around her torso, so as to protectively shield her from the duo. The smaller figure spoke again.

"I can see that our new addition has proven her worth. As you predicted Demetri, once stripped of his gift, he," she gestured toward Edward, "truly is a disappointment."

The fury that had been building inside Edward erupted from him in a growl that had Demetri launching himself forward so as to protect his companion. The figure raised its hand in a gesture to motion him back.

"Good evening Edward."

Still crouched, glaring through the very tops of his eyes at Demetri, and shaking furiously with rage, Edward answered­­–

"Jane."

A/N: This is my first Fanfic and I would greatly appreciate any and all comments and reviews. I'm not one of those people who will flip out if you have constructive criticism so please feel free to pass any advice at all along. Hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I plan on updating rather quickly so check back soon!