My bubble of perfection and peace didn't even last through the week. There was a vampire in town and around La Push that was playing with the pack. It would come in close and then dash to the sea. I didn't learn for another week that it was a woman. With red hair.
Mostly everyone was sitting around the table as Emily and I were finishing up dinner when Paul started on about "the fucking stupid red headed leech".
I didn't register that I'd dropped the plate I just fixed until the shatter brought me back from memories of Phoenix and being hunted... and the Cullens.
All eyes were on me as I bent down to clean up the mess I'd made. My hands shook as I grabbed the broken pieces of the plate, my breathing became shallow, and my eyes filled with tears.
Emily and Sam were suddenly both kneeling beside me as Emily took over cleaning and Sam took my hands and turned me towards him.
"What's wrong, Bella?"
He was in alpha mode, protective and alert.
"The redhead, she's, it's Victoria, Sam... She-she wants me dead because of the-the Cullens and I-I-"
"Bell-"
"They killed her mate, and, who's why, how I got hurt in Phoenix, not the Cullens. But, she wants a mate for a mate- that's what Laurent, the one with the dreadlocks, told me... She wants me d-dead, Sam, because of them..."
The tears that were building up started to fall as he pulled my head against his chest. I wasn't crying for the Cullens, but for the mess they'd left my life.
"But they don't even care about me anymore!"
Someone stormed out of the house.
"They don't care, and they're still ruining ev-everything! Why can't th-they stop?"
Sam picked me up and carried me to the couch.
"Bella you need to breathe and calm down; somebody go get Jake and take over his patrol."
"I'll go," Quil volunteered.
Emily came to sit beside me and pulled the quilt on the back of the couch over the both of us.
"Shh, Bella," she cooed.
I laid my had against her shoulder and she hugged me tight.
The door busy open and when Jake spotted me he rushed over to the couch.
"Bells what's wrong? Paul came and told me that you were having a panic attack over the vamp and needed me. What's going on?" He had his hands on my knees, keeping both of us somewhat calm with the contact.
"It's Victoria, Jake."
His hands turned to fists.
"The one that had her mate killed me for hurting you?"
Over the past few weeks I'd told him everything that happened with me and the Cullens, partly because I couldn't tell my therapist everything but mostly because I wanted to be completely honest with him.
I picked my head up off of Emily and rubbed my hands over his to smoorh his back out flat.
"She won't get to you, Bells; we won't let her."
I just nodded again as he searched my face. I didn't know what it looked like, but from his and everyone else's tense expressions, it must look like when they first left.
Jake frowned. "Bell-"
"I promise I'm okay, it's just, I thought I was done with them..."
"And you are."
Then why won't they stay out of my life? It's supposed to be as if they never existed!
"Hey, you sent Quil, so how did Paul get Jake?" Embry asked Sam.
"He must have used his common sense and knew Bella would need him."
No one said anything about how Paul looked pissed and not concerned when he left.
"Jake, please explain what's going on," Sam ordered.
As Jake answered all of Sam's questions, I tried to wrap my head the fact that I really was a danger magnet.
After he had all of the information he needed, Sam stood and stretched.
"Bella, we'll make definite plans tomorrow, but you should spend as much time on the res as possible, even nights. If Charlie doesn't feel comfortable with you at Jacob's all the time, you can spend the nights here."
"Thanks, Sam."
"Everybody head out and get some sleep, we'll have a big day ahead tomorrow figuring out how to catch this leech now that we know why she's here."
As Jake helped me up and we left, I couldn't get my thoughts off of Paul.