Carlisle's POV
In the small town of Fork's there was never too much commotion. Working in the ER usually meant treating children with high fevers and teenagers with minor broken bones. It was a rare case when we saw a true emergency.
I was just finishing up some paperwork before heading home for the night when it struck me. These two scents together always spelled out trouble. I made my way through the hospital as fast as humanly possible. All the while the possibilities of what I was about to encounter spun through my head. A newborn, it must be a newborn. No one else would leave a drop; unless they meant to change this poor soul. Yes, the combined scent of a vampire and human blood was never a good combination.
I arrived in the emergency triage area just to see a young woman helping an injured man into a wheelchair. Something was out of place. The woman turned to face me, her skin perfect and pale, her eyes a ruddy amber color. She bolted out the door before I could get a word out.
"Dr. Cullen, Dr. Sully just got here, you can go ahead and go home." The nurse informed me as she began to wheel the patient to a room.
"No. I'll take this case. Let Dr. Sully get a few cups of coffee in him first." I smiled, taking the chart from the nurse.
"Why don't we get an IV started for pain while I asses his injuries, Nurse Patty."
"Yes, sir." She beamed as she left the room.
"So, Mr…."
"Klifton, Andrew's my first name."
"Mr. Klifton, can you walk me through exactly what happened to you?"
"My leg really hurts, Dr. I…"
"The nurse will be back shortly to start your IV. Sometimes the pain medication can make you drowsy, so it's necessary to get your background information now."
"Ok. Ah…well. I was hiking in the woods. It rained earlier today, and I guess I didn't realize how slippery the ground was. I fell down the side of an embankment and landed on some rocks. This is where things get fuzzy…" Nurse Patty came in and started Andrew's IV.
"You should feel a lot better in a few minutes." She instructed him.
"Ok, where was I?"
"You said things became fuzzy after you fell." I said.
"Yes, I think I might have passed out, I'm not sure. I looked up to see this woman standing at the top of the hill. I blinked and she was beside me, at least that's what it seemed like. She picked me up like a baby, and I'm no light weight. I'm pushing two hundred here, Doc. Everything seemed to speed up now, flash by. I looked at the lady and I swear she was like glowing or somethin. I thought, she's got to be the most beautiful thing in tha world. I don't know if it was the pain talkin or what. Next th…ing I know, she's settin me down out…side the hospital and walkin me in." His speech was starting to slur as the pain medication took effect.
"Alright, Andrew, I'm going to assess your injuries now. The pain meds have started working."
"Mmhhmm."
Tied above his knee was a crude tourniquet, ripped from a shirt. It smelling like her. I removed it and slipped it into a bag. Blood started flowing freely again, so I applied a medical tourniquet. The smell of the blood affected me not at all. I had separated myself from the desire for it long ago. Helping people is what drove me. Once I had made this my purpose, the draw towards human blood slowly left me.
This vampire who saved him, her eyes were not the ruby red of most who feed off of humans, but somewhere in the middle between blood red and the light honey of my family. Either she had recently begun a vegetarian diet, or she was not yet a year old and had only fed on animals. Both of these instances would make it very hard for her to abstain from indulging her instincts at the smell of human blood. I wanted to find her.
Andrew's leg was badly broken, nearly a compound fracture. Small rocks and debris had imbedded themselves into his skin during his fall. He would require surgery, two plates and eight screws to allow his femur to mend properly. Wound debriment would need to be done as well. I phoned the surgeon on staff to schedule his surgery. It was already past eight pm and the surgeon wanted to postpone the surgery until in the morning. Normally I would object and insist that it be done right away, even doing it myself if need be, but Andrew would be fine for the night. I could hear his nasally snore from down the hallway. I needed to get home.
Jasper was the best tracker we had in the family. I handed him the piece of cloth that had served as Andrew's tourniquet. His eyes dilated at the smell of human blood.
"I am sorry son. I didn't think of how the blood would have an effect on you. Can you pick up her scent?"
"It's alright, and yes, I have her scent. We begin tonight?"
"Yes." I replied.
"Alright!" Emmett chimed in.
" I'm sorry Emmett, but I think it best that just Jasper go. This vampire bolted at the sight of me, and you can be quite… intimidating."
Emmett flexed his muscles with a wry smile on his face. "I know." He gloated.
Jasper's POV
I set off immediately, starting at the hospital as Carlisle had instructed. It was easy to pick up the scent. Unfortunately the vampire had crossed the Quilleute line. I ran up and down the line trying to see if the trail crossed back onto their territory. Luckily, near the northern border I picked up her trail again.
"She's fast."I conceded, stopping momentarily. I set off again, following her scent, pleased that it was getting stronger. Up ahead there was a small pack of deer drinking at a stream. It had been quite a while since I had fed, and I knew the vampire couldn't be far ahead. There was no losing her now.
I took to the trees, as silent as death, watching my prey. Off to the north, there was a muffled sound of leaves crackling that caught my attention. A woman. No, it was her. She inched silently toward the deer; a lioness stalking her prey. Now was not the time for me to make my presence known. The primal urge to feed was not something to interrupt. I sat still and watched.
She launched herself gracefully into the air and landed on the largest deer's back, teeth seeking the animal's throat. The animal buckled under her weight and she let him fall gently to the earthen floor, not even disturbing the other deer around her. Impressive. After she was done with the first, she took down the nearest deer. This time with less poise and control. Yes, she was still young.
She wiped her mouth on her sleeve after tossing aside the dead carcass. The other deer were long gone; spooked by her sloppy second kill. There goes lunch, I thought. She began searching around her; she must have picked up my scent. I quickly shimmied myself down the tree out of view, being careful to make no noise. She had taken a few steps closer. I had no idea how to confront her. My training instructed me to use any means necessary. However I knew Carlisle wanted to make a friend and not a foe.
I took a deep breath and stepped out from behind the tree. She was standing a mere 20 yards away. She froze when she caught sight of me. Then in a split second she lowered her crouch and her eyes narrowed.
"I was hoping that we could share that pack of deer, but it looks like you scared them off." I smiled.
"Don't come any closer." She warned.
I held my hands up in the air. "Whatever you say ma' am."
"Are you following me?" She asked, accusation in her voice.
"Well, um… yes. I just want to talk to you."
"Huh, sorry, I don't buy that."
"My father was the doctor you saw in the hospital. We wanted to talk to you. We don't run into vegetarians very often."
Doubt crept into her expression. I saw her examine me more closely.
"Your eyes…."
"Yes?"
She shook her head slightly. "It has to be a trick. You are all monsters." I couldn't help but laugh.
"Excuse me for pointing this out, but wouldn't you fall into that same category too?"
"Yes, which is why I choose to be alone." Her tone changed on the last word, her voice almost cracking at the end.
"Well, you don't have to be…" But she left in a blur. "Looks like the chase is on again." I muttered to myself.
I followed her, trailing her only by fifty yards.
"Look, I'm not going to chase you all over God's creation. You don't have to be alone. If you are ever curious, we have a home in Forks off of the 1-10. You should be able to pick up our scent off the main road."
I couldn't keep chasing her; it would only drive her farther away. Carlisle would say that I gave up too soon but I had a feeling that we would see more of this girl though. She was definitely curious.
BPOV
I'm not that naive. Lily taught me better than that. Vampires are the most deceptive creatures out there. Their eyes were probably some sort of trick. Lily told me that many vampires wore contacts so that they could blend in better with humans. Still, that honey color was strange; not a color I would pick if I was trying to blend in. No, stop it Bella, you're making excuses for them. I shook my head as if to rid myself of the thought.
It sickened me to think of all of those innocent people in the hospital. A vampire trying to pass himself off as a doctor who helped people. I wonder what the patient death rate is. No wait, I don't want to know. An involuntary shiver went up my spine. I had half a mind to go back to the hospital to check on the hiker, but with who knows how many vampires casing the place, it was too dangerous.
"Lily, I wish you were here to tell me what to do!"
It had only been months since my transformation, yet it felt like years. I probably should know the exact number of days since I was changed, but after…after that, I stopped counting or caring. She saved me. She became my mother, my teacher, my sister, and my friend. I don't remember too much from the night it happened, only my own transformation. I had just gotten into bed around ten o'clock, it was a school night. Mom was downstairs watching TV. I heard the door open, but didn't think anything of it. Only moments had passed when he entered my room. Something wasn't right about him, I noticed that immediately. He seemed…off. I guess that's why it took a second for me to scream. In that same moment, he was on me, his weight crushing me against my bed. His skin was hard as stone and ice cold. Then, he bit me. Pain radiated up my arm, burning through my veins. My screams became frantic. They sounded far away, as if I was under water. The last sound I heard was a feral growl, and the weight that was pushing me down suddenly lifted. But the burning…it stayed. It spread… building in intensity. It felt like every nerve ending in my body was screaming. I tried to open my eyes, but couldn't manage to focus on anything for more than an instant. But in that one instant, I saw her. She took me from my home to the place she was staying. It was an old run-down trailer at the edge of town. As my senses began to return, I could hear the subtle constant dripping of water. I could smell the too-fruity air freshener that attempted to mask the odor of cat urine. I heard her pacing, mumbling to herself; cursing and praying in the same sentence. Slowy, my feeling in my limbs began to return, even while my torso remained on fire. My screaming has stopped, I was making a conscious effort to focus on the changes in my body. Slowly, the fire died down. Abruptly, my hearing seemed to go hay wire. Instead of the television in the background, I only heard the beat of my own heart. It was reassuring at first, it meant that I was still alive. In my semi-comatose state, I had begun to worry that I was in some sort of purgatory. Then my heart began accelerating, and rapidly. The sound deafened my ears, the burning pain had centralized and intensified in my heart. I screamed out one last time before it stopped. My heart simply stopped beating and once again I could hear the television in the background. I had heard that the last thing you lose before you die is your hearing. I didn't know that I was already dead.
It must have been several minutes before I willed my eyes to open. When I did, I was stunned. I saw everything. Every fiber in the carpet I laid on. Every imperfection in each ceiling tile and each speck of dust resting on the ceiling fan overhead. Concentrating on the sounds, I could still hear the television, but I could also pick up another heartbeat; faster than what I would consider normal. There were locusts outside chirping and possibly a small rodent, rummaging through the garbage a half mile away.
I sat up in one swift motion, my muscles moving in harmony and reacting in a split second. I'm sure I must have looked like an animated corpse in rigor mortis to Lily. She seemed wary the first time I saw her through my new eyes. I'm not sure I could have been as brave as she was. I very well could have killed her on the spot. I was much stronger and much faster than she was. She calmly and patiently explained what had happened to me. She explained my thirst, and the choice that I must make. There was no choice. I didn't want to be the monster that she described; the monster that took my mother from me and ended my life.
I must say that I was lucky it was him who found me. He didn't fit Lily's description of a vampire. Vampire's were quick-witted, cunning, evil, exceptionally intelligent and deceptive. The only term that suited the one who changed me was evil. And who ever changed him was sick. Just think of it, a mentally retarded vampire with super-human strength; his maker must have thought him a cruel, sadistic joke. If he had been a typical vampire of average intelligence, he would have known better than to fear a half-bread. Lily was half-human and half-vampire; a very rare combination. She had speed, and beauty, and was very strong, but could not hold her own against a full-fledged vampire. My special-ed vampire ran in fear at the sound of her growl, not stopping to question the sound of her heart beat or noticing the pale blue of her eyes.