4. Safe Place

Levi cursed under his still even breath as he frantically sprinted down the street. This Edward was faster than he had expected – Charles would have to answer to that later. At the moment, he just needed to escape his intensely angered pursuer.

Even though Levi had never meant to kill Bella, Edward still had no intention of letting him escape or live.

Charles opened his eyes slowly. The vision of two males – Edward and Levi – charging down the street at what could only be described as 'breakneck speed' faded into the back of his mind. Replacing it was a view of Bella. Smiling, Charles patiently waited for the perfect moment to reveal himself.

This did it – it was too dangerous for them to put it off any longer. One vampire after another, ever since she'd been introduced to their world…and this time, yet again, Edward hadn't been there to help, nor had anyone. Granted, Edward had eventually come…but he was almost too late. Two more minutes…maybe even one, and...She hesitated to think about it.

Unseen, Charles's eyes bore into the back of Bella's head. How he wished that his gift worked on her...

Shaking the unnecessary thoughts from his mind, he silently slipped forward, waiting for as long as he dared; much longer, and he risked Edward making a second appearance. Bringing a worried expression to his face, he half–sprinted forward toward Bella.

Bella turned around. "Charles? What are you doing here?"

He came to a sudden, smooth stop just before her. "I ran into Edward a few blocks from here. As he ran past, he asked that I make sure that you were safe." Charles paused to examine Bella. "What happened? He was in too much of a rush to tell me."

"Well...I don't really know what happened. When Edward didn't come looking for me, I went to find him. . .I don't know where he was. Someone else was there, and he almost killed me...and then Edward showed up, and he chased after him…"

Charles forced his face into the appropriate expressions as Bella explained. Keeping a comfortable distance from her, he responded. "There is a rather good chance that there are more vampires with that one that Edward is chasing. We need to get you to a safe place. Besides, you look horrible." He gestured with his arm, inviting her to take comfort in his presence.

"Well, if you're here…"

Charles didn't need to read her mind to know what logical thought was going through it. "Bella...I am a vampire...but combat isn't exactly what I excel at. Edward could knock me down even when he wasn't particularly angry. And you know that some vampires travel in groups." He watched Bella sadly. "Your best bet is for us to get to my people. You'll be as safe as possible there."

"Your people?"

Charles nodded. "Yes, my people. The coven that I live with. We've got a ranch on the outskirts of the city. You'll be safe there."

"Yeah, I get that." She looked around, and then somewhat reluctantly agreed – "Fine. . .I'll come with you for a while."

It was only a matter of minutes before Levi, in his attempt to escape, led Edward to a small ranch on Juneau's outskirts. He knew full well that Edward shouldn't be there...but the damage had been done, so all that was left for him to do was to retreat to safety amongst his fellow coven members.

They inspected the new arrival with wary and curious golden eyes. At least, some of them were golden. Some of them were much more an orange-red – newborns who had never tasted human blood, and weren't entirely happy about that.

Edward looked around at all of them.

So Charles was actually going through with it…

The moment was almost as awkward as could possibly be. Everyone in the yard simply stood, staring at each other in confusion. Of course Charles had spoken of Edward to them all, but his sudden presence was unexplainable.

Levi, being the only one who actually knew what was going on, was the first to react. He snarled at his companions to attack the intruder, then sprinted behind them and began to shove them forward. He couldn't beat Edward alone, but the group combined definitely could.

Edward – suddenly tense and alert – stepped back and moved into a defensive position. He watched them, waiting to see which of them would be the first to decide to comply with Levi's orders.

They all decided to comply – they were loyal to Charles, who apparently wouldn't care if they killed him…they seemed to think it would please him, actually…and loyal to their own, one of which they believed he had threatened. Some thought he was a threat to all of them. He couldn't fight all of them at once.

The coven spread out into a tactical semi–circle, its members slowly moving to encircle Edward. Levi served as the center of the line, rooting it with his newfound calm and authority. His grin – growing with cockiness – steadily spread across the visages of his comrades, almost as if it were a contagious disease. Suppressing his unnatural urge to play with his prey, Levi's body language clearly instructed his companions to attack intelligently.

Edward lingered in that spot for a few more moments, the futility of the situation becoming glass–clear. If he tried to single one of them out, the rest would gang up on him and tear him apart. He backed away again, turned, and ran in the opposite direction.

Levi's authority over his companions remained as they charged after their fleeing victim. However, his attempt at order utterly failed – he was a natural fighter, not a leader. Therefore, the pursuit of Edward was almost as chaotic and disorganized as possible. A snarl contorted Levi's face as that realization dawned upon him.

Edward realized, frustrated, that he couldn't go back to her now – he couldn't lead them to her. He couldn't go home either, because even with Alice and Jasper fighting alongside him, three to eleven were still almost impossible odds.

Levi nearly uprooted a tree in anger as he charged after Edward. He could hear – and occasionally glimpse – his companions crashing through the forest. However, it seemed that they couldn't hear him. Every time he called out an order in attempt to organize them, they barely moved to respond. At this rate, Edward was going to escape, and Levi knew it.

Edward was faster than them, faster than anyone. Thank the God that would someday turn his back on him for that. So he might not be able to fight them…but losing them…was possible.

Smiling warmly, Charles gently took Bella's arm and led her to his car. Before climbing in and starting the engine, he took the time to bind her wounds (more to put her at ease than in any attempt to actually help – turning her would do more good).

It didn't help her as much as she would have liked, but she decided to thank him for trying. He didn't have to.

Charles smiled warmly again at Bella's thanks. Her pause clearly indicated her slight confusion concerning what to do (which was an emotion of hers that he desired and feared simultaneously). Attempting to channel her intentions in line with his, Charles swiftly moved them into the car and started the engine with a flick of his wrist.

"We'll be there in a few minutes, milady. Please keep your senses alert; your safety cannot be assured until we reach my coterie." The warning was included in an attempt to keep Bella's mind on her 'danger', and not on the consequences of what was in store.

The car smoothly sped through the city toward the outskirts, and Charles's unique ranch. Charles made small talk along the way, attempting to keep Bella calm and distracted. Mentally, he was praying that Edward didn't accidentally appear on the side of the road – that would ruin anyone's day.

"Alice? Jasper?"

Edward came inside, having finally escaped his attackers.

Juneau was behind them, and they weaved their way through thick forest. The hillsides surrounding the city were swamped in an ocean of towering trees.

"Have you always been...?" Bella started to ask, wondering how to phrase her question.

Charles looked over at Bella – his obvious ignorance of the road in front of them strangely offput by the perfect smoothness of the ride – as he attempted to divine the meaning of her question. Though his calm face revealed little, he was seething inside. His inability to read Bella bothered him to no end. The sooner she was turned and claimed, the better. Finally, Charles coughed lightly and answered Bella's question with another question. "What do you mean, milady?" He watched her face intently – the majority of her response would be written there.

She settled for, "You've never hunted humans before?"

Charles's frustration melted away when he heard her response. "No, humans have never been a part of my diet. Not even once have I failed in my conviction. You see, I must set an infallible example for my coterie."

Explaining, or, perhaps more accurately, bragging the mission of his force was almost Charles's favorite pastime.

"Is he one of them? The one that Edward's after?"

Golden–eyed vampires were rare...and as such, they tended to band together...and if he wasn't one of the Cullens, then it was...quite possible that he was...

Charles answered without hesitation. "I don't believe that any of my family would commit an act so horrible as killing a human. However, if I find out that he is one of them...allow yourself to imagine that he will be punished severely. Breaking his oath would be an act against myself." He growled deep within his throat, giving weight to his claim.

And so she hoped, for both of their sakes, that none of them had gone against him.

The air was thick with emotional calm. Despite this fact, Alice was would–have–been–teary–eyed and huddled on the couch. Jasper's arms were around her, offering physical comfort in addition to his emotional urging.

At the sound of Edward's voice, Alice looked up at him. "Edward…where's Bella?"

Edward entered the living room and then stopped dead when he saw them like that. "You haven't heard from her?"

There was no need to panic, he reminded himself – she was probably still waiting for him. But, if she was…then why was Alice so upset?

Alice shook her head sadly. "No, we haven't heard from her…but I know that something is wrong."

Jasper comforted her quietly as he spoke. "We need to find her as soon as possible, Edward. Alice saw Bella being harmed."

The vast, wide-open valley beyond the city and forest was green, surrounded by snowcapped mountains. Bella stood nearby the car, her calm faltering within a few moments. Besides the bears and wolves that were growling and snarling loudly somewhere nearby. . .they appeared to be alone. "Where is everyone?"

Charles frowned at Bella's question. It was an excellent one, and he was clueless as to the answer. Taking her hand, he began to quickly lead her toward a large building – one of the few on the property with windows. "Let's get you inside. Then I'll find the others, and introduce you all." His eyes darted about as he rushed along, searching for even a hint of where his companions might have been.

Their scents led north, toward the forest, and their thoughts were becoming clearer. They were returning…disappointed?

Disappointed that they had lost Edward.

This should be an interesting topic of conversation.

Bella could do nothing more than to allow him to drag her along, through the front door of the house. "I am capable of walking there by myself, you do know that?"

At her rebuke, Charles released his grip on her hand. "My apologies, milady. Your safety is my first intention. I didn't sense my people about the compound, and their absence is a mystery to me. Just in case something is wrong, I would prefer to have you inside where it's easier to protect you."

Charles stepped toward a window, cautiously glancing outside. His warning was more for show than reality. He was fairly certain that nothing was actually wrong; he would know the full story within moments.

Bella flexed her hand momentarily, and then went to join him at the window. Small, distant figures were emerging swiftly from the forest, headed toward the buildings. "I'm guessing that's them now."

Charles stared through the pane of glass in silence for a short while, collecting as many explanatory thoughts as possible. Upon hearing Bella's comment, he nodded and responded, "Yes, those are my family. With them here, you'll be safer than anywhere else."

(When would he stop pounding that into her head, she wondered?)

Then, he went completely silent. He hadn't searched specifically for Levi's thoughts because of his expected absence. However, the very man that he least wanted to see had just exited the woods along with the rest of the family.

Alice composed herself enough that she could explain relatively calmly. She spoke slowly, pausing to sort through the images of her vision. "Someone attacked her...was feeding off of her...They were holding her by the arm, and there were others surrounding them, so...even if she escaped his grasp, she would be trapped...she would die anyway...They were...in a dark room with wooden furnishings. Sunlight was streaming through a nearby window. Otherwise...there was nothing..."

"That isn't much to go on, but we'll do our best," Jasper said, standing. Edward went to retrieve Hayden from upstairs.

It was incredibly dangerous, irresponsible and stupid to bring a human infant to a possible vampire fight, but they couldn't just leave him there unattended.

Alice nodded as she stood. "I'll keep working on trying to find more clues. Hopefully we get there in time to save her." She smiled involuntarily as Edward walked in, carrying an almost uncooperative Hayden in his arms. "If anything happens to Bella, the entire family will be very upset. Let us hope whoever is doing this realizes that." As she quietly voiced her warning to the world, she offered her arms to Hayden.

Edward shook his head slightly, though not disagreeing with what she had said. "Are you sure she isn't still there?" he asked in the Porsche.

Alice pulled smoothly into the street. Though she was concentrating on answering Edward's question, her lack of attention didn't seem to inhibit her ability to drive. "Well...the interior looked rather rustic. It's possible, but unlikely."

It was unlikely that Charles had come here – here, where he was, of all places – for no reason at all, unlikely that he didn't want him reading his mind, that his scent was around their house and her for no reason at all…and it was unlikely that none of this had anything to do with Bella being threatened now. Everything had been perfect until two days ago. It all made sense. For once, Edward wanted to be wrong.

"…You didn't see who was attacking her, did you?" he asked quietly and suspiciously, although part of him already knew the answer, and was wondering why he didn't just say it.

Alice turned to face Edward before responding quietly. "Like I said before, it was a male vampire. He was slightly above average in height, and he had black hair and gold eyes. I couldn't really make out anything else because of his position." She paused for a moment, exaggerating concentration on a particularly sharp turn. "You have an idea who it might be, don't you?"

An understatement if he had ever heard one. "I know exactly who it might be," Edward replied darkly. "Pull over, Alice, I'm driving."

As she brought the car to a swift but smooth stop, Alice peered at Edward expectantly. "Who is it, Edward? Who is it, why is he attacking Bella, and how do we stop him?"

Cold and delusional he may have been, but Charles was no murderer…yet Alice had seen…clear as day…

"I don't know why Charles is after her," Edward answered. "But we're going to find out." He handed Hayden off to her, got out, and went around to her door.

Using her perfect grace to good effect, Alice slipped from her seat into Edward's vacant one. Hayden's happy gurgling brought a smile to her lips, but it disappeared quickly as thoughts of Bella and her danger resurfaced. Her naturally happy nature subdued, she sat quietly, stroking the child's downy hair.

Edward's intensifying rage was directed inward. "I am an idiot." The Porsche was humming again in a flash. "I knew he'd been around her, and I knew that he was hiding something from me…and I just left her there, half–scared to death. No doubt he showed up and played on that somehow…" His shaking hands were gripping the steering wheel tight. He released it, worried it would break, and then turned into the street again.

"Coterie" = an intimate and often exclusive group of persons with a unifying common interest or purpose.

What did you think of what Charles told Bella in this chapter? Was she right to go with him?

And what of Charles's and Levi's thus far anonymous coven?