Intro-starts on page 111 of New Moon
a/n: almost all of this first part is from New Moon, with a couple of tweaks here and there.
I do not own twilight or any of it's characters. All belong to the talented Stephenie Meyer.
Bella's POV
"Go Eat," I encouraged her, waving toward the fast food. I didn't like the way she looked at me. "I'll catch up in a minute."
She didn't need to be told twice. She turned quickly and half-ran, half-walked in the general direction of the restaurant.
I turned away from her, back to the men who were watching me with amused, curious eyes.
"Bella, stop this right now!"
My muscles locked into place, froze me where I stood. Because it wasn't Jessica's voice that rebuked me now. It was a furious voice, a familiar voice, a beautiful voice-- soft like velvet even though it was irate.
It was his voice--I was exceptionally careful not to think his name--and I was surprised that the sound of it did not knock me to my knees, did not curl me onto the pavement in a torture of loss. But there was no pain, none at all.
I looked around myself in shock.
"Go back to Jessica," the lovely voice ordered, still angry."You promised--nothing stupid."
I was alone. Jessica was already gone. Against the wall, the strangers watched, confused, wonder what I was doing, standing there motionless in the middle of the street.
I shook my head, trying to understand.
"Keep your promise." the voice was slipping away, as if the volume were being turned down on a radio.
I began to suspect that I was having some kind of hallucination. Triggered, no doubt, by the memory--the déjà vu, the strange familiarity of the situation.
The wise thing would be to run away from this potentially destructive--and certainly mentally unstable--development. It would be stupid to encourage hallucinations.
But his voice was fading.
I took another step forward, testing.
"Bella, turn around," He growled.
I sighed in relief. The anger was what I wanted to hear--false, fabricated evidence that he cared, a dubious gift from my subconscious.
Very few seconds had passed while I sorted all this out. My little audience watched, curious. It probably looked like I was dithering over whether or not I was going to approach them. How could they guess that I was standing there enjoying an unexpected moment of insanity?
"Hi," one of the men called, his tone both confident and a bit sarcastic. He was fair-skinned and fair-haired, and he stood with the assurance of someone who thought of himself as quite good-looking. I couldn't tell whether he was or not. I was prejudiced.
The voice in my head answered with an exquisite snarl. I smiled, and the confident man seemed to take that as encouragement.
"Can I help you with something? You look lost." He grinned and winked.
I stepped carefully over the gutter, running with water that was black in the darkness.
"No, I'm not lost."
Now that I was closer--and my eyes felt oddly in focus--I analyzed the short, dark man's face. My eyes grew wide with recognition. His only grew more confused. Clearly, he did not remember me. It had been a year, after all, and it was quite dark.
But I remembered him. I suffered a curious sensation of…what? Excitement? Anticipation? It couldn't be happiness. I couldn't be happy without him.
The voice in my head was practically screaming now. "BELLA! Turn around before he recognizes you! Or worse!"
No. I refused.
"Aren't you even afraid? What about Charlie?"
Charlie. I hadn't thought of him. Or Renée.
But what the hell? I was clearly more of a burden now, this empty shell of a person, then I would be dead.
Dead. The word sounded strangely surreal to me.
The man's voice snapped me back to reality.
"Can I buy you a drink?"
"I'm too young." I answered automatically. I realized how dumb and childish that sounded, and mentally kicked myself before adding, "But if you don't care, neither do I." I tried to sound playful, sincere. Maybe even sexy. But it came out harsh and pained. No matter what he had said, I never had and never would pull off sexy.
The short man looked uneasy."Er…"
"That's okay." The confident blonde said."Stay and hang out with us."
I almost laughed, remembering the last time I had tried to flirt with someone--Jacob Black. I wondered absently how he was. My attempts had been successful then. I'd at least gotten what I was after--information.
This time my attempts hadn't worked out so well. They weren't going to let me get completely wasted. I felt strangely disappointed, and a little angry. These were not the dangerous men I remembered. I lost interest.
"Thanks, but I can't." The men seemed befuddled as to my sudden change of mind.
"Oh, just a few minutes…"
I shook my head, and turned to rejoin Jessica. I felt a sudden tug at my arm and realized someone had grabbed me. I looked back into the face of the short man. My mouth was open in shock.
"Oh, come one, we won't bite!" They chuckled darkly in unison.
"I don't know…." I trailed off.
"Please?" The blonde spoke this time. I smiled slyly. These were most definitely the dangerous men I remembered.
"Well, I suppose…maybe I could stay for a bit." I looked down coyly, feigning shyness, as the short man towed me back to the group of men.
The voice in my head growled loudly.
"My name is Bella, by the way. Bella Swan."
I lay on the ground, broken. The four men surrounded me, all laughing. I was in pain, sure, but I hardly cared at this point.
He isn't coming back for you. I reminded myself. Not this time. My pain increased tenfold as the hole in my chest ripped wider. He wasn't going to save me. And I didn't expect him too, either.
I cried out in pain.
They seemed to enjoy that.
You asked for this. I could sense the end was coming soon.
My thoughts went out to Charlie. Renée. Angela. Even Jessica. I hoped she wouldn't blame herself. Then, painfully, I thought of them.
The Cullens.
Rosalie. Emmett. Carlisle. Esme. Jasper. Alice. And then, him.
Edward.
I saved the best for last, as my heart ripped itself to shreds. What was left of it, anyways. I fought back a tortured scream. Not because of the men, though, but rather because I was afraid I'd wake someone. I was vaguely aware that I was in the forest, but other than that, I had no idea where I was. I didn't care. But if, somehow, someone heard me and came and found me, that would be the worst possible thing that could happen. It would completely defeat the purpose of all my suffering.
No. That couldn't happen.
The men seemed to be tired of me now. With one last kick, the short man sneered, "Ciao, Bella."
Goodbye, Edward. I love you.
Then the blackness consumed me.
Short Man's POV
It was obvious she thought I didn't recognize her. I made sure to keep up that pretense. But how could I forget such a pretty face?
"My name is Bella, by the way. Bella Swan."
"Well, Bella, it's nice to meet you." I said as genuinely as I could manage. I heard Rick snickering, probably at me, and then sent him a dirty look. I couldn't have him spoil my fun by giving us away! That shut him up.
Taking her had been fun. After all, I'd waited almost a year for this! Ever since I saw her hop into that car with that idiot who spoiled my night, she'd been all I could think about.
Of course, I had to take my time with the set up. I was concerned that her little friend would come looking for her, but after spending an hour in front of the bar, there was no sign of her. Perfect.
"So, Bella, would you like to go for a walk?" I asked sincerely, shooting her a grin. She nodded naively.
"Sure…" She really had no idea what was in store for her, did she? All the better for me.
As soon as I'd heard her name, I knew exactly what I'd say before we finished her. It was perfect, almost like a comic book. "Ciao, Bella." I couldn't help but fo feel proud of myself for coming up with something so...ingenious.
Her body had been easy enough to dispose of. I could've done it myself, but having Tom, Rick and Johnny there made it go faster. We were right by the cliffs in La Push, so we just dumped her body over the edge, laughing as her mauled body flew through the air and landed in the water with a barely audible splash.
She looked like an angel.
"Ciao, Bella. Nice one." Rick congratulated me. I smiled smugly. Things couldn't have gone better if I'd planned them.
Even if her body washed up on shore, all evidence would've been washed away by then.
Or at least, I hoped it would. I'd never been able to stand watching CSI long enough to know.
"Let's go." I said abruptly, suddenly anxious.
As we drove away, I heard a wolf howl, sending shivers up my spine.
Alice's POV
I knew it was already too late. I saw Bella's decision to go with the men. Was she really that oblivious?
No. Of course not. Bella had always been a danger magnet, but this was her walking right into danger on purpose.
I saw the short fiend's decision, the last words Bella would hear in this life.
"Ciao, Bella." It sickened me.
It was worse, though, knowing there was nothing I could do to stop Bella from dying. If only we lived closer, I could at least get there in time to change her. But stupid, arrogant Edward made us go all the way to Denali. Then he took off to go hunt for Victoria.
I told him beforehand that he wouldn't be able to catch her, but Edward being Edward ignored me. Of course.
So I saw no problem in ignoring his request to not look for Bella's future. He wasn't here to stop me, so what did it matter? I figured if she were in any kind of danger, there'd be enough warning to rescue her. But of course I only considered the possibility that one of our kind was threatening her.
I seriously underestimated Bella's ability to find trouble, wherever it may be. I also hadn't counted on her going and looking for trouble. I figured she'd make good on her promise to Edward and not do anything reckless or stupid. Apparently, I'd been wrong on both accounts.
Edward was such an idiot. How could he not see how much she'd loved him? Still loved him. That she'd rather die than live without him. She'd obviously believed him when he told her he didn't love her. That was her mistake. I fail to understand how two such intelligent people could be so ignorant.
I thought of Charlie, how hard he was going to take this. Didn't Bella consider him at all? How could she be so selfish? I shook my head sadly. It just didn't make sense. Bella was one of the most selfless people I knew, vampires included.
Maybe she believed Edward would save her. Maybe she knew he still cared. I hoped that wasn't her motivation. Not that she'd be wrong about Edward's feelings for her, but he honestly believed he was doing her a favor by staying away.
How very wrong he was.
Without thinking twice, I grabbed Carlisle's keys and hopped into the Mercedes. I was thankful that everyone else was out hunting, because there was no one there to stop me. There was no hope for Bella, but Charlie would be a wreck after this. Hopefully my being there would be a comfort and not a burden.
I already knew Jasper and Rosalie would disagree with my decision to interfere. Emmett was nonbiased. Carlisle and Esme, of course, would understand and support me.
And Edward would never find out, if I could help it.
With newfound purpose I stamped the accelerator, pushing the car to it's limits.
"I'm coming, Charlie," I whispered sadly.
Charlie's POV
"She said she knew them! I figured she'd be okay!" Jessica pleaded, grasping at straws. I doubt she'd thought at all.
I could practically feel my face reddening in anger, my whole body shaking. "So, you thought she'd be safe with four drunk, middle aged men in the dead of night, at a bar, all alone?!" I fumed. It amazed me how stupid people could be sometimes.
"Well...yeah." She squeaked, not convincing either of us.
That was a rhetorical question. I thought bitterly as I muttered a string of profanities under my breath.
"Ms. Stanley, how could you be so...naïve?" I'd wanted to say "stupid", but she was only a girl, and it was my job as both the chief of police and a parent to be respectful. Even though she'd suffered a moment of severely poor judgment, which could end up costing Bella her life. NO. She's not dead yet. She can't be.
"What would you have done? Drag her to the fast food restaurant yourself?" She demanded, obviously annoyed.
"Yes, that's exactly what I would have done, if I had to. I wouldn't have left her there! I just don't understand...how you could have abandoned her!"
Jessica glowered at me, having reached her limit. "Excuse me, Chief, for trying to help Bella get out of her rut. She asked me to go to the movies with her. I wasn't exactly thrilled to be going, but God knows she's hardly even talked since Edward dumped her! I'm sorry that I tried to be a good person! So sorry. Especially now. She insisted that she go in there and talk to those guys! I didn't force her to! And she told me to leave!" I'd actually believed he up until that point. It simply didn't make sense." Plus, you didn't see how strangely she was acting that evening. It was weird..." she mumbled, clearly hoping I wouldn't hear the last bit. I did.
"Don't you ever talk about Bella that way!"
flashback
I stood, arms crossed, for what seemed like an eternity. Then I sat. when Bella gets home, she's in for so much trouble. After brooding angrily at the kitchen table for what had been at least two hours, my fury slowly turned into concern. Where was Bella? It was nearly one o'clock and she wasn't home yet.
I vaguely recalled her telling me she was going out with Jessica Stanley tonight on her way out the door. Not that I'd believed her. She never went out anymore. Not since...I shuddered. I hated thinking about them. The Cullens. About him. Of course, my pain was nothing compared to Bella's, of that I was sure. I couldn't even begin to grasp the amount of pain she endured, day in and day out. I could tell she tried to hide it from me. It hurt to watch. There I'd gone, getting distracted again. Poor, old Charlie. There was something I'd forgotten...something important...what was it? Oh, that's right. Jessica. Was it too lat to call the Stanley's? 1:23. Hmm. What if Bella hadn't even gone out with Jessica? Then I'd be bothering them for nothing.
"It's a start." I mumbled quietly, trying to stay calm. Reluctantly I stood up and walked to the phone, trying to remember how to breathe. I dialed the Stanley's number slowly, pushing each number with deliberate precision. On the off chance that Bella really had gone out with Jessica, it was possible that the movie was still running. The movies get longer and longer every year, I swear. Before long, they'll last an entire day.The phone rang once. Twice. Three times.
I'll be damned if they don't pick up. I thought angrily. On the fourth ring, I heard a groggy voice answer the phone. "Hello?" It sounded like Jessica's father. He yawned loudly.
"Mr. Stanley? This is Chief Swan. Is Jessica there?" Please say no.
"Um...Sure, but she's asleep..." was the confused reply of Mr. Stanley. Shoot. "I could go wake her up..."
"No, no. I was just wondering if she might know where Bella is. She said she was going to the movies with Jess..." I trailed off. More likely than not, Bella had lied about going to the movies with Jessica. She never used to lie, but then again, she does a lot of things now that she didn't...before.
"Oh, yes, that's right. Jessica did go to Port Angelos with Bella." the tone of his voice made me uncomfortable. "But Jess got back hours ago." The frown in his voice matched the one on my face.
"Hours?" was all I managed to choke out.
"Yeah...she seemed pretty upset about something, actually, but she said she didn't want to talk about it and went to bed."
I could tell I wasn't going to last much longer without some answers.
"Y'know, on second thought Mr. Stanley, could you go wake up Jessica please?"
End Flashback
The doorbell rang, causing me to jump out of my reverie. Both my and Jessica's head snapped up. Now who could that be? My heart screamed Bella, while my head knew better than to hope and ignored my heart.