Chapter 1: BPOV
My gaze swept across the meadow… our meadow. Its elegance was hard to look away from as the sun's rays licked the grass, the trees, the flowers... Yes, it was a breath-taking sight, but the only thing that it needed to complete its beauty was him. The last time I was here I was just inches away from his exquisite, glittering face. This place was now the only thing that made me know that he was never a part of my imagination, that he was real. Realizing this, I wrapped my arms around my torso and slowly sank to the ground, the imaginary hole in my chest trying to free itself of the stitches until it was wide open. Hunched over my stomach, I tried to pull more air into my lungs. I could still picture him as if he were still a part of my world, which bothered me a little. Bad because I needed to forget him like he forgot me, but good because I didn't want to forget him.
My gasping slowed and became more even as I came back into reality. I needed to get back home before Charlie noticed that I was gone for 5 hours. It took me all morning to get here and if I didn't start to head home, it would take me all afternoon as well. With a sigh, I rose up from my fetal position and brushed the dirt off my jeans and sweater. As I turned towards home, I saw something sparkle from the corner of my eye. I jerked back around to find a set of dark eyes staring right back into mine.
"Laurent!" I said, surprised. I had thought he was with the Denali coven. What was he doing here?
"Hello Bella," he greeted me, his voice thick with recognition. He still remembered me. My heart skipped a few beats. Could I keep at least one vampire as a friend? "I didn't think that I would find you out here," he gestured at the meadow.
"Hiking," I grinned. "I was just going to ask you the same question. What are you doing here? I thought you were visiting the Denali coven."
"Oh, I was. I like all of those vampires, especially Irina. I hate to be away from her, but I promised that I would be home after I did a favor for someone…"
"Really?" I asked eagerly. This was the first vampire I had come in contact with in seven months. I wanted to spend more time with him to ease the pain of missing the Cullens. "Can I do anything to help you?"
"Actually Bella," He began walking towards me. "Victoria had asked me for a favor, and it has something to do with you."
Victoria? I thought Victoria hated me because of what Edward –wince- had done to James last spring. I then realized what Victoria's favor could be: me dead. But Laurent wouldn't do that, would he? No one he truly loved had been destroyed because of me. He had no reason to hate me like Victoria did.
As a thought about this, the devious smile that spread across Laurent's face confirmed my suspicions. My body was faster than my mind. I turned and sprinted off into the woods without another glance behind me. Something hard grabbed me and my breath was sharply cut off. Before I knew it, I was over Laurent's stone shoulder, which took me the other way.
