Original characters and any mistakes are mine, anything you recognise belongs to Stephanie Meyer.

Prologue

My world is awash with green.

It's a nice change. For too long now, the only colour I have seen has been a blood red. But even this change in the colour palate of my life could not distract me for long, as my eyes stared forward unseeingly at the forest that surrounded me. Even though I could see every leaf on every tree that I passed, even though I was able to pick out the fine veins that ran through them as they rustled in the slight breeze that also swept my grey coat out majestically behind me, the beauty of this place that I had once called home failed to touch me. My mind, for so long completely numb but this morning painfully sharp, was far too concerned with other things to be worried about the living sea that surrounded me.

The rhythmic footsteps of my colleagues, far too quiet for humans to hear, reminds me of my long-absent heart beat. It is an unusual sensation, feeling the pulsing vibration rush through my body once more. Were I not so acutely aware of where I was and who surrounded me, I may have even been able to pretend that I was still alive. Not that I wished for that - not now. It was no small blessing that my heart had long since perished, otherwise it would break with what was about to pass today. Because today I would have to make a sacrifice far too great for me to make. Today I would kill those I had once called my family, all for the sake of the one that I loved. Even with the black void that filled where my soul once rested, I could not pretend that these events did not concern me. I was all too aware that I deserved death far more than those I would bestow it upon, and yet I did nothing to prevent this from occurring. I just kept marching forward, in perfect unison with those that surrounded me, closing the distance between me and a destiny that no one deserved.

I continued to watch as the scene surrounding me continued to brighten, as we approached the clearing that our targets had lead us to. It took only a few more minutes to break through the bank of trees and enter a grassy meadow, only for my eyes to meet those of who were waiting for me. My eyes only paused briefly on each set of golden eyes that stared back at me. Emmett, Rosalie, Jasper, Alice, Esme, Carlisle, Edward and Bella, none of these familiar faces held my empty gaze for long. What was there to hold on to? Even if I could appreciate the emotions that played within those topaz depths, it would not change what was about to pass. I had made my decision, long before any of these events had unfolded, and I would not change it now.

And because of that, the Cullens had to die.

1. Endings and Beginnings

I sat, staring at the computer monitor, as I read over and over again the words displayed on screen, and I felt a smile slowly creep across my face. Offers for intern places had just come out, and I had been accepted for all three that I had applied for. Now I just had to pick one.

I realised as I looked at the three very different options in front of me, that I had three very different reasons for applying for them. The first intern position was at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, the institution where I had completed most of my training. I had applied for one here basically because I was fairly sure that I would be accepted, even if nowhere else wanted me. I have enjoyed the past six years that I have spent studying here in South Australia - a place I originally picked to study at for the sole reason of getting as far away from my parents as I could - and I feel no real aversion to remaining here.

Although I love my parents, on so many levels we are complete opposites. Skysong and Heartbeat, my mother and father, always tried to raise me with the same ideals they held, but like so many other children, my whole life I have felt the need to rebel against them. The only difference was that my rebellion was not going out and getting drunk and stoned, or sleeping around, or getting piercings (all of which my parents would probably have been proud for me to do), it was running away to medical school at sixteen. My whole life has been the opposite of what they hoped. I did well at school and embraced the institution, finishing year twelve a year younger than expected, with a perfect score. Getting into medical school in South Australia had just allowed me to escape my parents much sooner than would have been possible had I been accepted to a university in Queensland, where my parents and I had lived. Whilst my parents were disappointed that I was so in cahoots with "the man", they still allowed me to go. They told me this was because they hoped that the other teenagers at uni would corrupt me, but I think it was because it gave them a chance to finally move to Nimbin, one of the last strongholds of hippies in Australia, and open their organic vegetable farm. Either way, it doesn't really matter, and I have spent the past six years studying medicine and enjoying the freedom it has afforded me.

So option A was to stay at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, to continue to with the status quo, which seemed like a perfectly reasonable option to me. It would present me with career opportunities as much as any other institution. It was a safe choice. I liked safe.

The second intern position I had been offered was at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney, one of the most prestigious hospitals in the country. Any other medical student would probably give their left foot for this post (in fact, my boyfriend, Mark, would give more than his left foot…probably his whole leg), as it presented you with the best opportunity for learning and the best opportunity for specialisation. To me, I found this post to be less interesting than the one at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. I have never been interested in climbing the greasy pole. I have never felt the need to feel better than anyone else. My whole life I have been averse to competition (to be honest, it was mostly because I always won, which I always found made people less inclined to want to deal with me), and I knew that if I took this position, that would be exactly what I would be doing - competing. I had only applied to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in the first place because Mark had wanted me to. He desperately wanted an intern position there. Mark loved the greasy pole. He lived for the thrill of competition. He was always bitterly disappointed when he came off second best, which he always did with me around. The only way he had managed to reconcile that with himself was when we had started dating. At least that way, he could say that his girlfriend was better than everyone else.

It wasn't Mark's fault that he was so competitive. His father was a world famous neurosurgeon, and his mother was the head of a neonatal intensive care unit. His whole life, he had been compared to his famous parents, and was always treated like he had to prove himself to them. As a result, he had developed a competitive streak, something that I now found quite endearing now it was no longer directed at me.

I sighed, knowing that when Mark found out that I had been offered a position at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, that there were only two possible responses he would give me.

1. He had not been offered an intern position there as well, at which point he would insist that I take the position at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, and try to convince me that it was not because he was bitterly disappointed that he hadn't been offered one.

2. He had been offered an intern position, in which case he would be overtly happy that I was doing so well, and insist I take the position without considering my other options.

If I was being honest with myself, it was the third intern offer that I found most appealing. I hadn't even told Mark that I was applying for it, knowing too well that he would only ever humour my dream, then tell me how irresponsible it would be for me to follow it, if I ever considered it seriously.

My third offer was a remote area placement in Western Australia, in a small mining town called Keyes, three hours from Broome. I loved the idea of adventure associated with such a position. I also wanted to experience medicine hands-on, in a way that hadn't been available during my studies. The medical hierarchy meant that in most hospitals, there was always at least twenty people higher up the ladder than you, waiting for the interesting cases. Out in such a remote location, with only a few other doctors aside from myself, I was much more likely to be able to do hands-on work, and that appealed to me greatly. Besides which, access to health care in remote locations was always difficult, and I loved the idea of being able to help reduce that gap in some small way, even if as a novice, I would need to learn a lot to do so. Then again, learning had never been a problem for me before.

It was just then that I heard a knock on the door of my dorm room. I looked at the clock - if it was Mark, he was early. I dragged myself away from the computer screen to greet my mystery guest, only to find Mark standing there when I opened the door.

Mark was an extremely beautiful man. His emerald green eyes looked out at me from under his pitch black hair, that always seemed to be windblown. He was tall, but not gigantic, and he had the most beautiful smile. I always felt lucky to know I was with this man. Mark was a year older than me, but then again, everyone in my cohort was at least that. I could hardly believe my luck when he had asked me out in our third year - I had been so sure he hated me before that - but sure enough, right after my eighteenth birthday, he had asked me out, and we had never looked back.

"Hello, Kaia."

"Hey, Mark."

Mark stood there, watching me with anticipation, as though I had a line to deliver that I had forgotten. I sighed.

"What is it? What have I forgotten to ask?"

That perfect smile broke out across his face.

"Nothing. I was just wondering if you'd checked your email today. Intern offers are out."

I should have known it would have been something like that.

"Yeah, I did. I got offered three positions. How about you?"

"Yeah, I got offered two, but that doesn't really matter. What were you offered?"

"I was offered a spot at the Royal Adelaide, at the Royal Prince Alfred, and a remote area spot in Western Australia…"

"Royal Prince Alfred? That's fantastic, Kaia! We can be interns together!" He grasped my arms and swung me around, completely oblivious to the other two options.

"I haven't exactly decided that I'm going to the Alfred yet, Mark. I was sort of interested in going bush for a year…"

He stopped and looked me in the eyes, like he was looking for madness or something.

"Remote area? Why?"

I shrugged, "You're only young once. Besides, I want to try something different, get some hands on experience, and the need out there is so great…"

Mark shook his head at me, "I thought we had this conversation. You were going to intern at a major hospital, specialise, then - if you still wanted to - you could locum out bush occasionally. You only get these chances once, Kaia. Don't waste them in a bout of immaturity."

"Immaturity? You think I want to do this cause I'm immature?"

"Well, it's hardly a mature decision, is it? Throwing away your future for twelve months of escapism."

"It's not escapism, it's what I want to do! What I did medicine to do. How can you be so dismissive of my dreams?"

"Kaia Snow, you are my girlfriend and I care for you. I don't want you out there roughing it in the outback and wasting your potential."

"I think I'm the one who should be worried about my potential, Mark," I insisted, "I would never tell you what to do with your life. With your dreams."

"That's because my dreams aren't silly."

"Silly? Silly, are they?"

"Oh, don't be so melodramatic," he rolled his eyes at me, like I was a rebellious child.

I could feel the anger consuming me. I hated it when he pulled this on me. Whenever I wanted to do something that he disagreed with, he pulled out the age card. He was older, ergo he was right.

"Well, I'm accepting the remote area position, Mark. Congratulations on your offer at the Alfred."

"Think about what you're doing, Kaia," he cautioned, "If you do this, well, that's the end of this relationship. If you're not going to take your future seriously, I can't see any other option. I can't be involved with someone so immature."

"Fine! Dump me," I spat, "Maybe I don't want to be with someone who doesn't nurture my dreams or respect my feelings."

"Fine! Goodbye, Kaia."

And with that, Mark turned and walked out the door, slamming it behind him.

I was so consumed with rage that I couldn't speak, and shook my head, trying to dispel the tension. Temper was hardly my best asset, and both of us had more than enough to cover for the both of us. This was hardly our first fight. I guess you could say that Mark and I had a feisty relationship. Mark would call me back in the morning, all apologies. He would tell me it was okay and he should have respected my choice more, and I would tell him that he was right and I should go to the Royal Prince Alfred. It was the more intelligent decision. Then we would kiss and make up and things would go back to the way they were before. That was how these things always went…

A week later, and Mark had still not called back. Evidently he was more mad at me than I had anticipated. I sighed. I had gotten over my anger at him that first night. My temper may be violent, but it was like a firecracker. One big explosion, then it was gone. Still, I had enough self-respect not to ring him till now. I wanted him to be the one to call and apologise.

But a week? A week was a long time. Maybe this was serious. I hated to be the one to fold first, but I rang his mobile, only for it to go to his message box. I waited ten minutes, then called again (not wanting to look stalker-ish), but there was still no answer. I waited ten minutes more and called again. Still no answer.

I was frustrated, so I decided to go visit him at home. I took the bus to his suburb, then walked the five minutes to his house. I heard music on inside, coming from his room, so I decided to enter without knocking. I had a key, and it wasn't like I hadn't entered without knocking before. So I walked up the stairs to his room and opened his door…

…and that's where I saw him, his arms wrapped around a redhead I didn't know, their clothes strewn across the floor. I desperately tried not to acknowledge what they were doing, as I turned around and ran out, slamming the door behind me.

"Kaia!"

I kept moving, refusing to look backwards. My head spun.

No, no, no, no, no…

"Kaia," Mark grabbed my arm and spun me around to look at him. I could barely see him through my tears. I slapped him, hard. He didn't even acknowledge the pain that I had hoped to inflict upon him.

"You weren't meant to see that."

"Really? And here I thought it was a surprise for my birthday!"

"Is now really the best time to be facetious?"

"Tell me, when would it be a good time?"

He sighed.

"Who is she, Mark?"

"No-one."

"She didn't look like no-one."

"She's no-one to me," he insisted, "I only just met her last night. It was a mistake."

"A mistake is an understatement."

"Don't you go judging me, Kaia Snow. This is your fault."

"My fault? How is me finding you in bed with another woman my fault?"

"Because you are the one who upset me so badly that I fell into the arms of another woman, and you are the one who has a no intimate contact policy."

"So it's my fault because I wouldn't sleep with you and because I wanted to follow my dreams?"

"Yes."

"No, Mark. This is your fault. Even if I had decided that I wanted to quit medicine, it is your duty to support me in that choice. And I only don't sleep with you because I don't like taking risks. You know what my family is like. I always told you when we married or when we got engaged, we would. You told me that was okay, that you wanted that too. Was that a lie?"

He just looked at me.

"How was the need to get laid suddenly so overwhelming? You've never talked to me about it…"

Then something clicked. Maybe he didn't talk about it because he was already getting it somewhere else.

I felt my breath come in brief gasps. The look on his face said it all.

"Get out," I growled, "I don't want to see you ever again. It's over."

"Kaia, this is my house," he didn't look concerned, only amused, like I was a child throwing a tantrum.

"Fine," I turned and stormed away, removing his key from my keychain. At the door, I turned and threw the key at him. "Goodbye, Mark."

I slammed the door and stormed away. As I walked through the front yard, I felt a wave of nausea wash over me and I threw up into the garden bed. After I was finished, I walked out of his yard and didn't stop walking. I walked all the way home. It took me over an hour. I walked up the flight of stairs to my dorm room, and switched on my computer.

I loaded up my email and sent an email to Western Australia.

Keyes, here I come.

I stared out of the window at the red earth below me. I could barely breathe with excitement, as I anticipated the adventure that awaited me when this small, cramped, Royal Flying Doctors Serve plane finally landed. I couldn't believe that the two months between me accepting the intern position in Keyes and today had gone so quickly. It seemed like almost a lifetime ago that I had uncovered Mark's extracurricular activities, ending that relationship and removing the only reason why I was hesitant about selecting this post. Mark had tried to make amends, of course. He had sent me flowers, sent me numerous text messages, and had even banged on my door a few times. I never replied - I had too much respect for myself for that. Mark had shown me the greatest disrespect during our time together, and I would never put up with being treated like that. I didn't need somebody like that in my life. I was always able to manage alone.

The only time that I have seen Mark since was at our graduation ceremony. Mark was dux of our cohort (of course), so I had no choice but to watch him as he gave his speech. It was fairly standard fare, but I still tried not to listen. Even though I was sure of my decision, it still hurt to see Mark and to hear his voice. It hurt even more to see that he looked to be doing a lot better than I had hoped he would. I was, however, able to distract myself with the excitement I felt at the coming year. What was graduation, anyway, but an ending? I was too excited about my future.

My parents were actually proud that I had decided to go remote rather than join "an institution". I guess, when you think about it, being a bush doctor is about as close to hippy as medicine gets…unless you decide to take up acupuncture or something. Pleasing my parents had almost made me wish I had decided to accept the position at the Royal Prince Alfred.

Almost.

The sun was setting, as our plane finally landed on the dirt air strip. I climbed out with my meagre possessions, and looked towards the voluptuous woman standing by a Land Rover at the side of the airstrip. She waved me over.

She was sort of short, and probably looked a lot older than she should. Her brown hair was pulled back into a loose knot, and there was kindness in her eyes. When I reached her, she scooped me into a warm hug.

"Welcome to Keyes, Kaia Snow."

I pulled myself back and smiled at this motherly woman. This must have been Ruth Cox, director of nursing at Keyes Hospital.

"It's nice to be here."

We piled my belongings into the back of her car, before setting out towards town. As we drove, she gave me the low-down on Keyes.

"Keyes had a population of approximately one thousand people, even though technically speaking, there are probably only around two hundred permanent residents. The rest of the population are contracted out at the mine, or related to the people who work at the mine. They mine aluminium here, and I'm sure you'll see your fair share of mining related injuries. They're never as careful as they should be. We have a large indigenous population out here, around three hundred people if you include the surrounding communities. They are the Warrengibie. You'll probably have to do clinics out in the communities. Don't worry, you'll get to terms with their culture soon enough. Just remember, there's men's business and women's business. Don't stray outside your territory and they'll respect you. Maybe we'll actually manage to get some pap smear screening done now that we have a female doctor.

"There's only one hospital in Keyes. It currently has two doctors and now you. Dr Greg Young and Dr Oliver Monroe. Greg's a Perth boy born and bred. He came here locuming twenty years ago and never looked back. Oliver's an Englishman. Very nice chap, very bright. Closer to your age than mine. He doesn't do indigenous clinics, but then again, he's so busy with what he does he doesn't really have time to. He's a surgeon."

As I listened to Ruth yell above the roar of the engine, I was beginning to feel like I was getting to know a bit more about her. She seemed to enjoy telling me all this stuff a bit too much - I had a feeling she was a bit of a gossip.

"They'll both be at the bonfire tonight. As will the nurses. There's three of us. One per doctor. You have no idea how glad we are to have another set of hands out here. We could hardly believe it when we got your application."

"I'm glad I got accepted," I replied honestly, "I've always been interested in rural medicine."

"Well, Keyes is about as rural as you can get," she turned from the road to smile at me.

Ruth continued to babble to me about life in Keyes, but my mind strayed elsewhere as I watched the scenery outside the window. It was beautiful out here. The land jutted out towards the ocean where it suddenly ended, falling off as cliffs. The sun was setting over the Indian Ocean, the sky a blazing red, matching the colour of the soil around us. Plants were sparse, mostly intermittent scrub. As we drove into Keyes, I instantly fell in love with it. On the outskirts of town was the mining settlement, mostly a caravan town made up of small trailers covered in air conditioners. Next to it were the houses for the miners with families, generic little houses, all matching in street after street. The other houses in Keyes were a lot more casual affair, mostly fibro, but occasionally there was an old stone cottage. In the town centre, the buildings were mostly old and made of stone. There was the town hall, a bank, the police station, a grocery shop and of course, the pub. A few streets back there was the hospital, in a style that was more befitting an earlier decade. I think you would describe it as utilitarian, but I didn't mind - I loved it.

We drove to just behind the hospital and pulled up in front of a small fibro house. It was painted an arsenic green.

"Welcome home," Ruth smiled, and got out of the car to help me with my things, "Just remember, don't put any holes in the walls."

I smiled. I had guessed as much.

Ruth helped me bring my bags inside the house and gave me a brief tour. The kitchen was small and seemed to be original, as did the bathroom, but I did like the look of the ducted air conditioning. It wasn't too hot at the moment, but then again, it was night. I'd hate to think of what this place would be like in the day, seeming shade seemed to be a myth around here. I didn't get too much of a chance to get settled in to my new home, as Ruth seemed determined to take me to my "Welcome to Keyes" barbeque. She dragged me back to her Land Rover and drove me to the footy oval, which appeared to be the only green thing in town.

Other four-wheel drives were parked in a loose circle, their boots open and music playing. People were wandering around, chatting to each other and laughing. It felt so welcoming.

As soon as we got out of the car, someone shouted, "Hey! It's Ruth and the new girl!"

Suddenly I was surrounded by admirers, all welcoming me and introducing themselves. I was fairly sure I wouldn't remember any names, and I hoped they would get repeated when I met them in the future.

There was only one face that stuck, and that was the only person not desperate to get to know me. He was sitting by the bonfire, and was pale with chocolate brown hair. I didn't know if it was the play of light, but his skin seemed to glisten with the flames, and his eyes appeared to be pitch black. He wasn't looking at me, but he did appear to be listening to something. A small smile crept across his face.

"Hey, Oliver! Aren't you going to come meet the new girl?"

He turned and smiled at the questioner, who turned out to be Doug, the local cop.

"I thought maybe she would like to be buried alive under one less body. I am going to see her at work, you know."

His voice was beautiful, with a gentle English accent. So this was Dr Monroe. No wonder Ruth had let the conversation drift to him, again and again. He was the most beautiful man I had ever seen, even when compared to Mark.

"Yeah, but tonight's her night, Oliver. After this, she's going to be too buried with work to enjoy herself. Join the party."

"How about you come help me with these sausages, Doug. I seem to remember something about this being a barbeque. I'm sure you'd like to get fed at some point."

With that, Doug said his goodbyes and went to help the remarkably handsome doctor. Other people came in his place to chat to me, but my mind was distracted. Throughout the evening, my mind strayed to Oliver Monroe again and again, and I couldn't help but wish that he would come over and annoy me.

Eventually, after everyone was fed, the night started to wind down. People were now sitting in the boots of their 4x4s, in portable deck chairs or on rugs surrounding the bonfire. I was sitting on a rug close to the fire, my arms wrapped around my knees, and I was falling asleep. Every now and then, my eyes would glance over towards Dr Monroe, and he was always in conversation with one person or another. He appeared to be very popular (honestly, with a face like that, how could he not be?). But I wasn't worries that he didn't like me. Apart from not talking to me all evening, which I put down to him trying to be a gentleman, his eyes did seem to glance at me every now and then, as if questioning. Although I doubted it, I did hope that he was as anxious to meet me as I was to meet him.

Suddenly the wind blew from behind me, throwing a shower of sparks towards Dr Monroe, and his head snapped up to look at me. Bore into me, more accurately. I had never seen anyone in my life look like that before, and my blood went cold. He looked so fierce, so angry, and he was looking at me. His easy going manner had left him, his body had gone rigid.

He held my stare for a few seconds, then was suddenly up on his feet in a movement so graceful I wasn't sure I hadn't imagined it. The next thing I knew, he had left.

What had just happened? More importantly, what had I done?

Suddenly I wasn't so sure he wanted to meet me anymore.