My eyes snapped open, Edward's face was inches from mine and I could feel the slight pressure of his fingers round my neck. My heart rate sped up as I watched his stormy green eyes as they ran over my face. I didn't dare move or blink as his fingers tightened slightly around my fragile throat.

Abruptly he sat back and from the corner of my eye I could see he was leaning back nonchalantly as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened. Sweat broke out over my body and my breathing became erratic and shallow.

'Stop panicking Bella,' his voice was soft with menace and I desperately tried to think of something to calm myself down. The green forests of home flashed through my mind but that only reminded me of his eyes, the swirling different shades that made them so unnerving.

The seat beat sign flashed on as we began to descend and I became aware of the intense pressure in my bladder. Squirming in my seat I tried not to think about the indignity of this situation and just what Edward might do if I actually wet myself.

As soon as we exited customs he dragged me over to the ladies room and pointed. I raised my eyebrow in question at how he had known. 'You've been dancing about like a dog on heat,' he said with a small quirk of his lips.

Going over to sink after to wash my hands I glanced up at my reflection. My long, slightly wavy brown hair was pulled back in a lopsided ponytail, my eyes looked like they hadn't seen sleep in forever and my pale skin looked extra sallow under the fluorescent lights. All in all I looked a mess, my clothes were wrinkled, the blue shirt I had put on this morning clung to my damp body and I desperately wanted a shower.

Looking at my watch I saw in was nearly one in the morning, which meant it was more like four here, yet the terminal was busy and as we made our way outside everything was lit up.

Edward hailed a cab and said something to the driver I didn't quite catch. Despite sleeping on the plane I still felt worn out; I never was a good flyer. The cab stopped beside a motel, it wasn't dirty or seedy but it was hardly the Hilton, not that I was expecting anything like that.

Edward paid the fare and collected our bags, he went into the small front office and organised our rooms as I lingered in the doorway not sure what to do with myself.

Catching my arm in which to anyone else might look a perfectly normal gesture he guided me to my room, but his grip was tight and there was a warning in his eyes.

Taking the key he opened the door to the room and stepped back for me to go first, the room was basic and clean. I made an inventory of everything as I walked around. A double bed, tv, bathroom with shower, small tea and coffee making area.

A soft thump made me turn and I saw Edward lying on the bed, his arms crossed behind his head.

'Is this your room?' I stuttered, and he nodded

'Well can I have the key to mine?'

'This is your room too,' he made it sound like no big deal.

'I'm not sharing a room with you!' I hated the way my voice sounded high and panicky.

'You will do as you're told,' he sounded calm but the way his jaw clenched told me I was grating on his nerves.

'Well couldn't you at least have got two single beds?'

His laughter echoed around the room as he sat up to look at me, his hair was tousled and he looked as perfect as always despite the flight and lack of sleep.

'Firstly I told you I don't really sleep. Secondly scared little virgins are really not my thing, and thirdly I doubt we will be here more than one day.' He lay back once again, my cheeks flamed red at his words as I stumbled my way into the bathroom.

I heard the tv click on in the other room and knew I was going to cry. I hated him. Anger flowed like venom through my body as I pushed my fists into my eyes to stop the traitorous tears escaping. I always cried when I was angry but why I was so angry was a mystery; I suppose it was a case of the truth hurts.

The shower beckoned me and I was glad I had brought my bag into the bathroom with me. Climbing in I adjusted the water so it flowed almost scolding hot. The spray stung my skin but I welcomed the uncomfortable heat. I washed my body and hair unable to relax thinking about the man on the other side of the door.

Climbing out I reached for a towel and felt only hard muscle, looking up I found myself touching Edward's naked torso. Wrapping the shower curtain around me I stared at him in shock.

'What the hell are you doing?' I shrieked and how the hell did he get in here?' I was pretty certain I had locked the door.

Edward just smiled lazily, my eyes involuntarily looked downward and I felt my body grow hot all over.

Lord, he was completely naked.

'I just wanted to make sure you didn't use all the hot water,' he said as he held out a towel towards me. I grabbed it and wrapped myself up before stepping out of the shower and hurrying past him with adverted eyes.

'Bella?' his voice stopped me in my tracks. 'Did you get a good look?' His mocking laughter followed me as I rushed through to the other room.

Bastard!

I quickly changed in to my nightgown, it was a prim flannel affair in tartan check, I then dived beneath the covers before he emerged and turned my back to the door. Closing my eyes I could only picture naked Edward, every lean, taut inch of him. The light smattering of hair on his chest that ran down towards ….

What the hell was wrong with me? I mean I was here to help Edward find Rose. Even if I didn't really care for her she didn't deserve what would happen to her when she was returned to Aro, but what choice did I have?

My self hatred knew no bounds as I laid there wishing things could be different. I knew it was no good thinking like that, wishing I could change the past was a useless waste of time.

Edward came back into the room, a towel slung low on his hips, he hardly looked at me as he sat on the bed picking up the remote and flicking through channels.

'Go to sleep Bella, we have a busy day tomorrow.'

'Do you ever feel bad about what you do?' I whispered. I wasn't sure why I asked the question, maybe because I was having such a hard time dealing with the fact that I was going to ruin someone's life.

'Never.' He turned his head to look at me and the hairs on the back of my neck prickled at the intensity of the look.

'This is who I am. Aro took me in when I had no one; he treated me better than anyone else had in my whole, pathetic life. Nobody forced Rose to become involved with him; she knew what she was getting into. It was her choice.'

I turned away from him knowing that sleep wasn't going to come.

A hand grasped my shoulder and I turned my head. Edward was right next to me, his face hovering just above mine. 'I know you don't want to be here, I aren't exactly happy with this situation either, but if you cause me any trouble whatsoever I won't think twice about hurting you.'

Shuddering I pulled away from him. 'I won't be any trouble, not that it's any of your business but as much as I hate working for Aro it's not just me I have to think about.'

'What do you mean?'

'Nothing,' I muttered not wanting to tell him about Jacob, about the terrible thing I had done to my friend. 'All you need to know is I won't run and I'll do whatever you need me to.'

A suggestive smirk curved his lips 'I think my needs may just scare a girl like you.'

'Ugh.' I turned my back to him once more and tried to sleep.

I remembered the time I had been working in the tiny office Aro gave me; I had only had the job a few weeks and I became distracted by the some strange sounds that almost sounded like yells of pain. I had crept out of my office and down the hallway to a room at the other end. The door was slightly ajar and through the crack I had seen Edward standing over a man who was bloodied and pleading for his life.

I had met Edward once before on my first day here, he had been striding along a corridor and I was walking the other way. The sheer beauty of the man had made me blush and look away but he had stopped in front of me and introduced himself. The way his eyes had run over me was dismissive and he soon walked on. I had never felt so insignificant and ever since that meeting he made me feel small and pathetic.

Thinking back to the scene in that room, Aro had been stood in the corner of the room demanding to know what the man had done with something, and every time he claimed not to know Edward would deliver another blow.

Edward's face was splattered with blood and his eyes were as expressionless and dead as Aro's. I was so shocked that I had gasped; Edward had raised his head and looked right at me, almost through me.

I ran then, I ran until I felt my lungs would explode, back to my office where I had sat trembling and shaking. I had never mentioned the incident and neither had Edward, even though I was sure he had seen me.

Of course what happened then was tame compared to some of the things I had witnessed since, Jane sticking her fingers into a man's eye because Aro was convinced he was cheating him.

Silent tears ran down my face, I just wondered when it would be my turn.

I must have fallen into an uneasy slumber; my dreams were jumbled and unsettling. Jacob in my arms, bleeding and unconscious. Edward's dead eyes on me as he held a gun to my head, Jane smiling happily as she reached a hand into my chest and pulled out my beating heart. My father telling me how proud he was of me when I got into Dartmouth and then the awful day a few weeks later when they came to tell me he had been shot in a burglary gone wrong.

Blinking rapidly I woke to bright morning light and a strange weight across my middle. Looking down I found myself staring at Edward's sleeping face; even in repose he looked dangerous, his brow was furrowed and his mouth was a hard, uncompromising line. His head was on my stomach and I couldn't move, I thought briefly about poking him or tugging on his hair but I just laid there not knowing what to do.

When I looked down again his eyes were open but he wasn't moving. 'I thought you didn't sleep.'

'Who's Jacob?' He looked pissed; I must have been sleep talking again.

'No one.'

He lifted himself up and locked his arms around me pulling me upwards and into his chest hard, we were face to face and he looked very angry.

'Who is he?' he hissed again.

'Someone I hurt badly, my very best friend in the whole world and I ruined his life.' I kept my eyes looking downward; when he didn't say anything I looked up and found he was watching me with an unreadable expression.

Finally he released me. 'Get dressed.' His voice was gruff and I wondered what went on in his mind, he was inscrutable, hard and terrified me more than a little.

In the bathroom I washed my face and brushed my teeth. My hair was tangled and I could do nothing but pull it back into a ponytail once more. Dressing in jeans and a long sleeved t-shirt I walked out to find Edward waiting for me wearing similar clothes, although he looked like something off a magazine cover while I looked like something the cat had dragged in.

'Are you ready?' I nodded and we headed out the door. He locked up the room and took me by the elbow, for once his grip wasn't harsh or restraining just guiding.

We walked along the street till he stopped near a small diner.

'Breakfast.'

'I'm not all that hungry,' I said quietly as he led me over to a table and gestured for me to sit down.

'You're all skin and bones Bella - you need to eat.'

A waitress came over and poured us some coffee before taking our orders, pancakes for me and eggs for Edward.

'You seem to know your way around,' I commented as I dug into my pancakes.

'I used to live here,' he said absently, concentrating on his food.

'How exactly do we go about finding Rose?'

'We have an address to check out and if that doesn't work we will go to her family, you pretend to be the concerned friend and I'm sure we'll soon find out where she is.' There was something in his words, I wasn't sure what but they made me think there was possibly another reason for us been here.

As he ate his eyes kept flicking to me, and I couldn't help but wonder what he saw when he looked at me.

'If you're finished we had better get a move on.' We exited the diner and walked along the street, everything seemed so surreal.

New York was a place I had always wanted to visit but this was no sightseeing tour. I was here with a man who thought nothing of hurting people, to bring a woman back to a man who planned to do god knows what to her.

I stared up at the bright sky, at the tall buildings that surrounded me like me a cage.

Would I ever find a way out of this?