Chapter Two
The glass door separated from the catch and swung heavy, slamming against the back of the booth just inside. Everyone stopped what they were doing and glared at me in shock. Jasper was at attention, his hand slid so easily into the small vampire's grip. She looked confused and I wanted to say something but the fear of losing Jasper gripped my vocal chords like a vice. Rather than cause a scene I backed out the way I had barreled in with my eyes trained on the floor.
Once outside I backed against the wall in the alley next to the diner. My brain swam with questions and my heart, though quite dead and still, hurt. The scent of the stranger grew stronger and I panicked until I realized Jasper was with her.
"You're dead," she said, approaching me at vampire speed in the dark side street.
I blinked, not knowing what to say. Was it a threat or an observation?
She raised her hands to either side of her head in frustration. "I saw everything; you're supposed to be dead."
Jasper and I looked at one another over her head. "Maria," he hissed.
"This really complicates things. Is Maria still alive as well?"
Jasper nodded and moved to my side. "Bella, this is Alice. She has been waiting here for me."
"Just you?"
Alice held her hand out in a completely formal gesture. "Nice to meet you."
The three of us stood around in the alley looking and feeling awkward; as awkward as vampires could be. From what I could tell, I was supposed to die by Maria's hands and Jasper was supposed to find Alice…alone.
"We need to hunt," Jasper announced, breaking the silence between us all.
Alice looked uneasy and I stared her down. "Is there a problem?"
I was never very vocal, being such an easy going human but I was suddenly very territorial when it came to Jasper. Clearly she wanted him and I would give a good fight if she attempted to take him. We ran after that, an evening meal long forgotten. I was thirsty but I had far more questions for Alice that needed to be answered. Jasper and I followed her into the woods of Philadelphia where the events of our future began to fall into place.
"Jasper, you cannot hunt humans any longer. It is detrimental to your future." Alice spoke lightly as she hopped up on a downed tree to sit.
"What do you suggest then? I will not go hungry. What about Bella?"
Alice smiled and looked down at the two of us. "I cannot see Bella in anyone's future but I see you." Her gaze landed solely on my love. "You and I were meant to be together, Jasper. I know you have been having trouble with your emotions."
She jumped from the tree, landing gracefully in front of Jasper. I hissed and did nothing to stop the growl that formed deep in my stomach. He relaxed me against my will.
"I can take us to others that will show you a new way." She reached to caress his face and he let her.
I was angry and hurt over the way the evening was turning out. Jasper was enthralled with the possibility of living another way. He wanted so badly to live without the pain and agony of his past and his victims. I could not fault him for that but how dare Alice think she had him all figured out. I was there when he was top of the army, making ash and violet out of thousands in no time at all.
It surprised me that I had recalled a human memory.
"Jasper?" I called his name as a question and he pushed Alice's hand away.
He came to me and took both my hands. "Bella has been my companion for some time now, Alice." His red eyes met mine and I saw myself then.
"He has always been mine," I answered. "I loved him when no one else did, when his actions did not mirror the man he is inside."
"Will you still show us another way?" He asked Alice without bothering to look away from me.
Alice was silent. I knew how important it was for Jasper to make his own path even if I had no desire to live among others. "Alice, if you have any compassion at all, please take us to this coven."
She agreed with a tight nod though it was clear she did not like the idea of me coming along. The questions stopped then as we were all processing just what sort of journey lay ahead of us. There was also the matter of the dinner we had skipped in the city. Jasper was beginning to show signs of being highly irritated.
"We need to hunt," I spoke with a wavering voice. Jasper looked relieved.
Alice stayed right where she was as we raced away, holding hands. We traveled toward a cluster of lights where humans were sure to live. Jasper seemed preoccupied and elsewhere, more so than usual.
"What do we do about this?" I finally questioned him.
"Alice can see the future, or certain events in the future. She told me she saw you die that night in your bedroom and you disappeared after that. She assumed you were buried and gone."
"What does any of that matter?" I spat with a slight growl. "You and I are one, Jasper. That is the way it has been since I joined you."
We did not fight often and the fact that we were disagreeing when we needed to remain united pissed me off in ways I had never experienced. When I was human, Jasper catered to me and protected me. Being a vampire had brought along a change and I would not let that tiny, annoying woman walk all over me. I wanted to protect him from her and whatever it was that she wanted to leave me behind for.
Jasper watched the street in front of use. The foot traffic was light but present. "Bella, you really need to calm down."
"How can I be calm? Tell me what it is we are searching for. If I have to travel with her then I want to know why. What is so special about the covens here?"
Jasper stood to his full height and turned until he towered over me. "Alice says that this family she has seen in her visions has golden eyes. She said they hunt and drink from animals instead of humans."
I looked at him in disbelief. How could I ever survive on an animal's blood? Furthermore, how would Jasper do such a thing? "That sounds completely ludicrous."
"We have to trust Alice."
My face contorted and I stopped running to stare at him. "Trust Alice? You cannot be serious. Jasper, you have never trusted another vampire outside of Peter."
He gave me a look that dared me to question him. "Bella, we are going with Alice and that is the end of this discussion. I do not mean to go against your wishes in any way but I believe her when she says there is a better life for us."
His sincerity touched me and so I touched his face lightly with my hands. "It means so much to you; I can see that now."
"You know better than anyone the agony I endure just for nourishment."
I had seen and felt his pain many times though mostly by accident. That was the reason we were in the Northeast in the first place. We hunted that night; we hunted and took down a human each for the last time. It was bittersweet for me because I felt like a part of Jasper would be lost. The morbid nature of his previous life would always remain with me, deep down and in my heart. After all, he was that person when I fell in love with him.
"I will do anything you need me to do, Jasper. You have my word." I stated, finishing the conversation that had begun before our hunt.
He nodded once in understanding before leaping easily up a tree to stare off into the night. Alice had been right where we left her when we returned. I admit, my insides curled in on themselves when I saw her. The way she looked at Jasper caused rage to ball tightly in my stomach and I was far too young a vampire to control that for too long.
"Run with me?" She asked.
"If you'd like."
She took off and I followed her with ease. She was so tiny and could run fast but I was younger. I passed her a few times and had to double back though she didn't ever seem to mind. Her control was impeccable.
"Have you and Jasper married?" Alice asked stopping gracefully in a clearing.
I surveyed, making sure we were far enough from Jasper to speak freely. "No we have not discussed marriage. We never discussed me turning but here I am." I tried to keep the hate for Maria clear of my emotions.
"Have you made love?"
"I thought you could see things like that."
She shook her head. "I can see into the future but it is entirely based on decisions. I was unaware that you existed until I had the vision of Jasper leaving Maria and coming north. I saw…well I saw many things but you were not present."
The tone in her voice made me feel unwelcome; like I was trespassing in her life. "What else did you see?"
"Bella, those things do not matter now."
"They do matter because it is apparent you are in love with my mate and that does not sit well with me."
Alice blinked but did not deny my accusations. "I saw him in love with me. He looked at me the way he looks at you. You are not supposed to be here. Now tell me, have you made love with Jasper?"
"He took me as his when I was human." The memories that surrounded that night were fuzzy but I could remember being terrified and thrilled all at the same time. My emotions influenced his and I almost didn't make it out alive.
"This is new for me. I have not been blind to anyone before. In my visions you do not exist." She seemed frustrated though she kept her cool.
"So…you have no idea of what will happen when we find this coven?"
She looked away. "I know what will happen when Jasper and I find the coven."
That was the problem. I was the wildcard in the situation and Alice was uncomfortable with that. There was no way to know how the new vampires would react to me.
"What do you suggest we do, Alice?"
Her face softened and she moved closer to me. "If you are who Jasper loves than I will accept that but what if he loves me one day? What will you do then?"
"How is that relevant?" The rage was back.
"Perhaps it is not relevant at all but it is a possibility." Her expression looked thoughtful. "Tell me, Bella. How did Jasper keep you alive while still hunting humans?"
"Where is your faith in the man you swear is destined for you?" I cried loudly. "You talk about him like he belongs to you yet you have doubts about his ability to exist around humans?"
Alice was taken aback at my outburst. Of course, Jasper heard the commotion and appeared but he let us continue.
"His control falters, Bella. That is his whole reasoning for finding a different way."
"Did it ever occur to you, Alice that Jasper loves me and that love kept me human?
I was met with silence and then she was gone.
Two Years Later…
"Are you sure this is where we'll find them?" I asked Alice, agitated.
"Easy, Bells." Jasper kissed the back of my hand and smiled in my direction. "Alice is doing her best."
Alice is doing her best. I'd heard that statement so many times in the past seven hundred forty one days that the sound of the words leaving anyone's mouth made my brain seize. There had been quite a bit of false hope and animosity in the time that we had spent traveling with Alice. Jasper had taken a place as peace keeper because Alice and I were not best friends. We tolerated one another to the best of our abilities.
"Wait," Alice stopped us with a flick of her wrist. "They will know we're coming. The male without a mate will know our minds."
Jasper looked at me. "It's now or never."
"Let's go."
Alice emerged in the expansive front yard first, followed by Jasper and I, who were holding hands. She was right as usual, apart from my existence that is. They were gathered as a family on the porch of their house. They eyed Alice as she crossed the damp grass, surer of herself than I'd seen since the moment I met her.
"We follow your diet. I'm Alice."
I could hear her quiet conversation with the blonde male who introduced himself as Carlisle. His mate was Esme. He also pointed out Rosalie and Emmett, both of which gave Jasper and I a smile. Edward, he was the mind reader Alice warned us about and he was also the most unhappy looking of them all.
A growl rose in Jasper's throat and I tensed. "Tell him to take his eyes off of Bella."
Carlisle turned and gave Edward a look. Edward turned his eyes to the ground with a slight snarl.
"Where are you from?" Esme asked Jasper rather than me. She sensed his need to protect me from them and handled his apprehension perfectly.
"Texas," Jasper answered with a slight drawl, "Although we met Alice along the way."
Carlisle looked around at his family, which I still found odd and then invited us in. Jasper, Alice and I exchanged a look. The moment we had been working toward had finally come.