A/N: You know, it's just struck me (partly thanks to one of the comments from the amazing isabellsah cullen, who is solely responsible for fully half of my reviews…come on, people!) that this has, so far, been a remarkably Edward-less story. Three chapters and he hasn't appeared yet! Have you missed him? Admittedly, he's only been gone about an hour…shows how much trouble Bella can get herself into (with a little help from me) in such a short time! But don't worry…he'll be turning up soon.

Incidentally, you might want to check out a poem I wrote; titled, ever-so-imaginatively, 'Edward's Poem', it's on the site so you'll be able to find it through my bio. Wow, thought – while you're there, you can REVIEW it too! Hint hint hint. Pretty please.

Quick survey: What do you think Callie is? Should I introduce another new character? And how many of you think that Jacob should turn up sometime to complicate things?

Please REVIEW! x

Chapter 4

I can't have been out for very long, because Alice was crouched by my side when I awoke. The fingers of one hand were a coolness against my forehead, while her other hand rested on my cheek, pleasantly icy on my hot skin. My eyes fluttered open in confusion, and I took a deep breath which almost made me gag as the smell of blood filled my nose.

"Shallow breaths, Bella," Alice murmured. I noticed that she was barely breathing herself, except when she had to speak. "Carlisle will be here soon."

"Carlisle." I nodded slowly, suddenly sitting bolt upright and trying to peer around Alice. "Callie. Is she...?" I caught sight of a figure curled up on the carpet in a little ball, felt my heart leap into my throat. "She's dead."

Alice shook her head, repugnance flashing across her beautiful face. "She's alive. She was sucking blood from her own artery, for God's sake." I shuddered. "We really need Edward," Alice added disgustedly. "I don't know what she is, but I really want to know."

"Is she okay?" I asked anxiously. For some reason, even though she wanted my blood and was a potential threat to the life the Cullens had created for themselves – and, soon in the future, for me as well – Callie fascinated me. Maybe Alice was right; maybe I didn't have any sense of danger, but there was something about her that told me she was reacting in the only way she knew how and that, given a chance, she could be like...I stopped. Like the Cullens? She wasn't a vampire. I didn't think.

Callie was a bundle of contradictions which confused me. There were things that pointed very firmly towards the possibility of her being a vampire – such as the bloodlust, the strength, her speed and the chalky pallor of her skin. Her beauty and grace as well, I supposed with resignation. But then there were those other factors which, no matter how I twisted them, irrevocably denied that the girl was a vampire. No vampire slept; no vampire had a heartbeat. And vampires certainly didn't bleed, I added with another shiver.

And then there was the way she had made Alice let go of her. What had the girl said? I can make people do what I want. Why had it not worked on me?

"Why did they choose today to go hunting?" Alice heaved a sigh. "I'll go check. She's still breathing," she added reassuringly. "And her heart's stronger than it was before." I clambered shakily to my feet, one hand flat against the wall as Alice glided over to the still girl, bent down carefully.

There was a long silence.

"Well?" I demanded at last, unable to stand not knowing.

"Bella, it's..." Alice swallowed, lost for words for the first time since I had known her. I'd never believed Alice could possibly not know what to say. "Come here."

"Is it safe?" I knew how stupid that sounded as soon as the words had left my mouth, a blush rising to my cheeks as Alice laughed.

"Safe? You're in a blood-spattered room with a vampire and some creature that wants your blood and you ask if it's safe?"

"Comparatively," I shrugged, and her face sobered.

"I suppose."

I made my way as quietly as I could across the room, crouched down slightly behind Alice and trying not to breathe the sickening scent of the blood that had soaked into the girl's clothes. "What is it?"

Alice lifted Callie's arm with one small hand, skin appearing paler than ever against the gold of the girl's arm. I flinched back, seeing the sticky blood on her skin, but as Alice turned the arm over I gasped. Instead of the angry, gaping wound I had anticipated, a dark pink scar marred her wrist. Even as we watched, the edges puckered and faded. "Have you seen anything like this before, Bella?"

I didn't answer for a long moment, my mind spinning from memory to memory in an attempt to stop it settling on the one image I didn't want to see, but I was fighting a losing battle. The kitchen – dishes dripping by the sink – a knife –

"Jacob," I whispered.

Alice nodded once. "I thought so," she murmured. "Bella, she's waking up. I want you to go sit over there, and stay there." I didn't have to be told twice as Callie gave a moan, shifted slightly. Her dark eyelashes fluttered on her cheek, dark eyes suddenly snapping open. Except they weren't as dark as they had been before; instead, tawny bronze irises darted about the room, settling finally on my face. The girl groaned.

"I'm so sorry." She spoke softly, but there was a clear tremor in her lilting voice.

"Are you all right?" Alice's tone was gentle but guarded as she rocked back on her heels, keeping a careful distance between herself and Callie. I noticed that once more she was barely breathing and found myself glancing around the room. It was a mess, and I wondered with despair how I was ever going to explain this to Charlie. He might believe stitches and concussion, but a spray of blood across most of the room? Unlikely. Having said that, with me anything was possible.

Callie pushed herself into a sitting position, wincing as she leant her weight on her injured-but-healing arm. "I think I'm okay. Well, I guess you know another of the reasons I'm a freak," she added with a weak, hopeless smile.

Alice shrugged, her cherubic face managing to make a lopsided smile stunning. "A little odd," she allowed. "But from what I've seen, I doubt you're a monster."

Callie just stared at her. "Didn't you just see what I did?" she demanded. "I wanted her blood! I would have killed her!"

I finally found my voice. "But you didn't," I pointed out.

"You have no idea how much I wanted to," Callie admitted shakily.

Alice murmured something I couldn't quite hear, but I was fairly sure that it was something along the lines of, "I really do."

Callie shook her head slowly. "How can you? You've been here longer than me – you've touched her – it would drive you crazy!"

"It's taken a while," Alice told her. "You stink, you know that?"

Distracted, Callie wrinkled her pretty nose. "I really do, don't I?" Her eyes surveyed the room more slowly, the corners of her mouth turning down. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't worry," I assured her, trying not to think about how I would have to clear it up. As it was the smell was rusty in my nose, a headache beginning to simmer behind my eyes. I longed for Edward; for him to hold me, to breathe in his scent to chase away the nauseating smell of blood.

I glanced at the two girls, tension written in stance and expression, both so beautiful and so absolutely wary of the other. Pale and golden, young and ageless; despite the disparity between them, it was still somehow me who was the odd one out. This feeling was furthered when both stiffened at precisely the same moment. "My father's here," Alice informed us both calmly.

Callie's eyes, dark red-gold, widened, and I remembered how she had tried to flee before.

"Carlisle won't hurt you, Callie," I assured her.

The girl studied my face for a moment before nodding. She looked away, fixing her gaze on the front door, ever part of her body radiating wariness. I still couldn't hear the roar of a car engine through the tense silence in which we waited and I realized that maybe Carlisle would have run instead. None of us moved.

I watched the door with trepidation but still found that my breath caught in my throat when a knock echoed into the room. Callie drew her knees up to her chest at the noise, but Alice only turned her head slowly towards me. "Would you let him in please, Bella?"

I stood on shakily unsteady legs, stumbled towards the door and wrenched it open. The figure immediately in front of me wasn't Carlisle, but I didn't really have time to see before I was swept up by familiar arms against a solid chest, inhaling the scent of the boy I knew and loved better than anything else in this world. "Edward," I breathed, all worries immediately borne away on a wave of happiness. Everything was all right. Edward was here.