A/N: Happy Friday, ya'll! Thanks for reading this story and giving it some love. For those lurkers out there, don't be afraid to leave a review even if it's just a smiley face. Let's see what Bella and Edward are up to. Big thanks to the PTB beta's who whipped this chapter into shape.
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"So where are you headed next?" Edward asked, scaring the shit out of me and causing my eggs to fall off my fork and into my lap. I shot him a glare as I picked the eggs up off my lap. I was furious that he'd shown up; he was going to ruin my breakfast.
"I thought you left," I said, tossing my napkin with eggs on the table.
He gave me a shrug and ordered a coffee when the waitress came by asking if I needed anything else. I stared at him after the waitress left, and he shot me a wink.
"Gotta keep up appearances."
I rolled my eyes at him and went back to my breakfast, trying my best to forget that he was there.
"Is that any good?" he asked, wrinkling his nose as I took a bite of bacon, and I gave him another glare.
"Yes, it's fantastic. Now, would you leave me alone?"
He sat back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest, and I couldn't help but notice the way his arm muscles flexed.
"Oh, c'mon now, Swan. Don't be like that. Are you going to tell me you don't enjoy my company?" he asked.
I scowled at him and barked out a "no" in response to his question. Shoving another piece of bacon into my mouth, I demanded to know why he wouldn't leave me alone.
He gave me a smirk, rocking his chair back on two legs, and I wanted nothing more than to topple his chair and watch him fall on his ass.
"I made a promise to Alice to look out for you."
Well, that was just fucking peachy. Funny how she'd failed to mention that when we'd spoken. Knowing that he wasn't going to go away anytime soon, I decided to ignore him. I finished my breakfast, paid my tab, and headed out the door. The GTO was ready to go, so I hopped in and began driving. I didn't have any particular destination in mind this time. I figured I'd go where the road took me. If I stumbled upon a vampire or two along the way, so be it, as long as the vampire wasn't Edward. There was something about him that bugged the hell out of me, and it wasn't just the fact he was a vampire. He was arrogant and so fucking good looking.
I drove for days, stopping only when it was necessary, and I eventually found myself in South Dakota. Tired of driving, I found myself a nice little motel on the edge of a small town. I couldn't help but smile when I walked into the room and found it covered in that wonderful 1970's decor. Orange and greens clashed together in a nauseating war against the neon blue and the shit brown. This was definitely my kind of place. I set my bags down on the bed and grinned when I noticed the tiny machine next to the bed that you inserted quarters into. Good ol' magic fingers.
Grabbing Alice's laptop out of my bag, I set it up on the table and logged on. I wasn't much for technology and before Alice joined me, I'd done all my research with newspapers and by word of mouth. Once the laptop was up and running and I'd managed to connect to the motel's WiFi, I sent Jensen an email. I'd promised to stay in touch more often, even though email wasn't really my thing. I also had an email from Alice waiting for me. Opening it, I read it quickly. She apologized for not telling me about Edward's promise and asked me to be nice to him. I pecked away at the keyboard, typing back my reply. Using the phone was so much fucking easier than this email shit.
A little after noon, I'd found a couple of reports of mysterious deaths and began mapping out a route. There was still no information on Victoria's whereabouts despite the fact that all of Dad's hunter friends were on the lookout. She had to be somewhere, but America was a big fucking country. Hell, for all I knew, the bitch had left the country and was dining on Argentinians.
The ringing of my phone interrupted my planning, and I picked it up without glancing at the number.
"Yeah?"
"South Dakota? Kind of boring here," came Edward's voice, and I let out a groan. I'd thought for sure I was rid of him. I should have known better.
"Leave me alone, Edward," I growled before hanging up on his ass. I couldn't for the life of me figure out why he was following me. Sure, he'd made a promise to look out for me, but I'd been hoping he'd look out for me from afar. Didn't he have anything better to do than harass me?
"You know these flimsy motel locks aren't going to keep anyone out," he said, and I whirled around to see him standing in the doorway with the knob to the door in his hand.
"Seriously? Seriously?" I asked, staring at the crushed doorknob. "Isn't there some other human you can go bother?"
"Maybe I like bothering you."
"Yeah, well I don't like you fucking bothering me. You're interrupting my work and throwing me off my game," I growled, narrowing my eyes when he shot me a grin.
"I figured you could use some help, so I've come to help," he said, plopping his ass down on my bed and stretching out. His shirt rose up a bit, and I got a glimpse of rock hard, pale abs. It irritated me to no end that I found him attractive. That was bordering on necrophilia, and I was so not into that.
"You figured wrong."
"Really?" he asked, not sitting up. "Because I've got word of some children being killed in Alaska. There are two, possibly three vampires in the area. I know there's no way you could take them on by yourself."
"And what? You've come to volunteer your services? Why?" I demanded to know. He didn't say anything, and I got up and walked toward him.
"Answer me, Edward," I ordered, hands on my hips as I stared down at him. "Why would you help me kill other vampires? Doesn't that go against some sort of vampire code?"
He finally sat up, running his fingers through his hair, and my fingers twitched. I wondered if his hair felt as soft as it looked, but I quickly shook those thoughts from my head. Vampires were experts at seduction, and I couldn't allow myself to fall into that trap. It didn't matter if Edward was a "good" vampire. The fact remained that he was still a vampire and could easily kill me.
"The only vampire code is to not allow humans to know about us. Obviously, some of you do, and the Volturi are aware. It'll only be a matter of time before they come after you. As for helping you kill other vamps …" he trailed off with a shrug. "I draw the line at that. Normally, I don't care what other vamps do, but when children are murdered … well, that's a hard line for me. Children are innocent."
"You've never killed a child?" I asked, curious to hear his answer.
"Never," he growled. "Carlisle turned me and raised me to be vegetarian. Granted, I went on a bender for about ten years, but I hunted the filth and scum of the world. I tracked and killed murderers, rapists, and abusers. I considered myself a vigilante."
I couldn't fault him for that. He'd been trying to rid the world of monsters, not unlike what I did, and I was slowly beginning to learn that not all vampires were evil. Carlisle and his family had been kind, and I was slowly coming to the realization that Alice wasn't a monster.
"However," he continued. "I missed Carlisle, and by that time, Esme had joined him. I went back to my vegetarian way of life, and I haven't looked back."
I nodded, thinking about how hard it would be to go against your very nature. To drink the blood of animals instead of what you craved.
"If you know where these vamps are, why don't you just go get rid of them? You don't need my help," I said, getting back to the reason he was there.
"Actually, I do. Even as strong and as fast as I am, I'm not sure I could take on three of them, especially since one of them is talented," he said, looking me in the eye.
I found myself staring into his gaze, and I knew if I wasn't careful, I could find myself easily dazzled by him. I let out a low growl hearing those words. I fucking hated it when they had superpowers. It made my job that much more difficult.
"What ability?"
"From what I've learned, this woman can cause mental visual projections. In other words, she can make you see things that aren't really there or aren't happening," he told me, standing up and heading toward me. Immediately, I moved out of his way and noticed a smirk playing upon his lips. He knew he made me nervous. Sitting down at the table, he began typing away on the laptop, and seconds later a map was pulled up on the screen.
"Well, that's just fucking great. The last thing I want is some vamp fucking around with my mind. I get that enough with you," I told him with a scowl.
"Hey!" he objected. "I don't fuck around with your mind. I can't read it, remember?"
I rolled my eyes and muttered "whatever" in his direction. Ignoring me, he pointed at the map on the screen and told me the woman had last been seen in what looked like the middle of fucking nowhere. Leaning closer and trying not to inhale the wonderful smell that was Edward, I noticed he was pointing to a small dot on the map that read Healy, Alaska. It wasn't too far from Denali National Park. Racking my brain as I stared at the map, I remembered something Jensen had told me.
"Isn't there a small coven that lives near Denali?" I asked.
Edward's head whirled around to look at me, and he seemed a bit shocked. "Yes. The Denalis. They're pseudo cousins of ours. They follow the same lifestyle that we do."
"So why not just have them take care of the random vamps?"
Edward shook his head. "They tend to keep to themselves and don't get involved in matters that don't directly affect them."
"Well, all right then. So, what's the plan, Cullen? Because, I sure as fuck don't feel like becoming vamp food."
We spent the rest of the afternoon and the evening coming up with a plan of attack. All the while, he kept an eye on the local newspapers in Alaska to see if anyone else had died or gone missing. So far, it was quiet.
"I need to stock up on lighter fluid and lighters," I told him just as my stomach let out a loud grumble. "And, I need to get something to eat. I'll be back in a bit."
I left him sitting in my room watching TV, and a small part of me hoped he took off while another part of me hoped he was still there when I got back. After I'd picked up the essentials I'd need and grabbed a bucket of fried chicken, I gave Jensen a call.
"Jenks."
"It's Bella."
"How are you?"
I shrugged even though he couldn't see me. "Okay, I guess. Caught a big one, and I'm heading out to Alaska tomorrow. I just wanted to give you a heads up."
We talked for a while more, and when he asked me how I came about the case, I was honest with him. While Jensen trusted Carlisle, he didn't know Edward and was a bit worried about me traveling alone with him.
"I'll be fine, Jensen. Besides, if he tries anything, I've got enough ammo to light his ass up like a firecracker on the 4th of July. He knows that. Plus, I'm pretty sure Alice would tear his limbs off if he dared to hurt me."
Jensen let out a laugh. "Good point. Currently, Alice is the strongest of them all."
After I hung up with Jensen, I headed back to the motel and found Edward exactly where I'd left him. I wondered what it would be like to not have to move, breath, or sleep. I think it would annoy me greatly. I really, really enjoyed sleeping.
I plopped the bucket of chicken down on the table, grabbed some napkins from the bag and dug in. God, I fucking loved fried chicken. There was something about it that was incredibly comforting. Edward stared at me with a strange look before setting his gaze back on the TV.
"Hey, can you go grab me a can of Coke from the vending machine? There are some quarters on the nightstand."
Without a word, he grabbed the quarters and headed out the door. Minutes later, an ice cold Coke can was in front of me and I cracked it open, taking a long swig. Oh, yeah. That was fucking good.
"Want some?" I offered, watching a disgusted look cross his face. Shrugging at his response, I went back to eating and ignoring the faces he was making at me. Once I was done, I sat back with a satisfied sigh.
"Finished?"
"For now. I'll refrigerate the rest and eat it for breakfast before we set out," I told him, getting up and shoving the bucket into the mini-fridge that came with the room.
We'd agreed to get an early start, and it was only as I was about to get ready for bed that I realized Edward was still there.
"Uh, are you staying the night or what?" I asked a bit uncomfortable with the idea of Edward watching me while I was sleeping.
"I'm gonna go hunt. The forest nearby has plenty of deer. I'll be back at five."
I nodded, feeling relieved he wasn't spending the night yet slightly disappointed. As soon as he left, I changed into my pajamas and set the alarm for four. Unfortunately, four came way too fucking early, and I struggled to wake up. After a shower, I chowed down on some cold leftovers followed by a hot cup of coffee while I finished packing my shit. At five on the dot, there was a knock on the door. Why he bothered knocking was beyond me. It wasn't like he hadn't already taken the doorknob off.
"Ready?" he asked, pushing the door open. I gave him a nod and grabbed my stuff, carrying it out to the car and refusing his help. I wasn't some helpless damsel who couldn't carry her own bags. Once my bags were tossed in the trunk, I climbed behind the wheel and wondered whether or not he was going to run there or ride with me. When he slid into the passenger seat, I was filled with mixed emotions. I wanted him there, but at the same time, the thought of driving for days on end with him scared the fucking shit out of me. I found myself way too attracted to him, and I couldn't afford to fall. I needed to keep my head in the game and not get distracted. Distractions could get you killed, and far too many hunters had died because they'd let a pretty face lead them astray.
I turned the key, the engine roared to life, and I pulled out of the parking lot onto the two lane road that would take us to the highway. Looking over at my passenger, I knew it was going to be a long drive.
…...
"Why don't you let me drive for a bit?" Edward asked after we'd been on the road for about twelve hours. I was used to long drives, but my eyes were beginning to droop, and we needed to stop for gas anyway.
"Fine, but so help me God, if you fuck up my car, I will burn your ass," I warned as I pulled off the exit and into a gas station. I left Edward to fill up the tank while I used the bathroom and grabbed some snacks. There was something about road trips that always made me hungry. So along with some Little Debbie snack cakes, some beef jerky, and a large soda, I got back in the car. I handed the keys over to Edward, giving him another warning. I wasn't fucking kidding either. If any harm came to my baby, there would be hell to pay.
As I dug into my snack cakes, I watched as the world flew by at an impressive speed. Apparently, Edward liked to drive fast, and a quick glance at the speedometer showed he was pushing eighty-five.
"Don't push her too much," I said, and he gave me a nod to show he heard me. Finishing my snacks, I shoved my garbage into the plastic bag I kept in the car for trash and then closed my eyes for a bit of shuteye. I slept until my bladder woke me up, and I groggily asked Edward to stop at the next exit. A quick glance at the clock on the dash told me it was a little after two in the morning.
"Where are we?"
"Canada. Somewhere near British Columbia."
"How did we get past the checkpoint?" I asked, confused as to how he got us across the border without me having to show a passport.
"As far as the Canadian border patrol knew, I was the only one in the car. I may have tucked you in the back under a blanket. All they asked for was my passport," he explained as we pulled into a gas station. Hopping out, I ran inside and used the bathroom before heading back out to the car. I was still tired, but I offered to take the wheel for a while to give him a break. He raised an eyebrow at me and reminded me he didn't sleep. Like I didn't know that already. Once back on the road, I found myself lulled into sleep again.
"Coffee?" Edward asked from nearby, and I let out a moan at the thought. I had a love-hate relationship with coffee. I hated the way it tasted, but I loved the way it made me feel.
"Gimme," I said, holding out my hands, my eyes still closed.
"Don't you need to see to drink this?" he asked.
I cracked an eye open and was met with a glorious sight of Edward, a sunrise, and a large cup of coffee. For a moment, I almost forgot I was working a case.
"Thanks," I mumbled, sighing as I took a big sip of coffee.
"You're welcome. Once we arrive in Healy, we'll talk to the locals."
Many hours later, we were pulling in front of the small police station, and I grabbed my FBI badge out of my bag. I was a bit surprised to see Edward had one as well. Our talk with the chief of police went rather well, and we learned a bit of information. The bodies of the three murdered children had been found in a small park not far from the center of town. The children's bodies, like that of most vamp killings, had been drained of blood. I'd asked the chief if there had been any unusual characters in the area, and he'd given me a sigh before informing me that the town saw lots of unusual characters.
Because Healy was so close to the national park and one of the closest towns that had shops, there were lots of people coming and going. However, the chief managed to give us a rather vague description of the two women he'd questioned who had been the last ones to see one of the children alive. We were looking for a couple of dark-skinned women with foreign accents who were beyond beautiful. Last time he'd seen them, they'd been preparing to hike into Denali with a group of other hikers.
"Looks like we'll be taking a hike," Edward told me as we left the station.
"You're kidding me, right? Denali is a huge park. They could be anywhere," I told him.
He shook his head and tapped a finger against his temple. "Mind reader, remember? The chief was thinking about the last conversation he'd had with the guide. The group was heading down the main trail about six miles out of town. The women are with a group of seven, led by a local guide by the name of Bobby Eastbay. Apparently, Bobby takes groups down the same trail every year."
I'd totally forgotten about the whole mind reading thing, and that wigged me out. I wasn't being as diligent as I should be, and that could cost me my life.
"Get some rest. We'll hit the trail tomorrow," he told me as I opened the door to the motel room I was staying in. I made him get his own room because I didn't want him sitting around watching me sleep. Flopping down on my bed, I let out a sigh. I wasn't exactly looking forward to hiking in the woods in Alaska. There were fucking bears out there, and bears scared the shit out of me. Funny, I know. Vamps didn't scare me, but bears did.
A little after seven the next morning, Edward banged on my door, telling me to wake up, so we could get going. After a quick shower and a few cups of coffee, I was ready, sort of. I grabbed my backpack, shoving all manners of weapons into it, including my dad's old gun. Taking one last look around the room, I opened the door and found an impatient Edward on the other side.
"Let's go," Edward said, practically dragging me out of the room. With a scowl, I shook his arm off, climbed into my car, and began the drive to the hiking trail. I parked in the lot, grabbed my bag of gear, and let out a groan as I read the sign posted about the trail. The trail was twenty miles round trip. I fucking hated hiking, and I wasn't the most agile person in the world.
"Hop on," Edward said, and I stared at him for a moment.
"What?" I asked.
"Look, if you climb on my back, I can run the trail, and we'll catch up to them in no time."
I stood there staring at him. I knew they were fast and strong, but the idea of him carrying my gear and me was a bit unnerving.
"Come on, Swan. It's no biggie. Let's go."
Maybe it was no biggie to him, but I wasn't big on the idea of riding piggyback on a vampire. Then again, I wasn't really keen on hiking for twenty miles either. With a bit of trepidation, I climbed onto his back, and within seconds we were off. I had to close my eyes at the speed we were running because I began to get dizzy. Finally, we came to a stop, and I slid off his back and landed on shaky legs.
"All right?" he asked me quietly, and I nodded in response. "They're about a mile away. We'll go on foot and act surprised when we stumble upon them. Get your gear ready."
This wasn't my first rodeo, and I told him so. I'd had my gear ready since we'd left. My pockets were filled with everything I'd need to torch a vamp or two, and I had more in my bag. Slowly, we began making our way down the trail, and it took all I had not to bitch. If it had been Alice with me instead, I would've been bitching up a storm, but I didn't want vamp boy to think I was weak.
The closer we got, the faster Edward began to walk, and it got to the point that I almost had to run to catch up with him.
"Slow down," I hissed.
"Something's wrong," he hissed right back, and I realized he was right. We should have been able to hear the sounds of the other group, or at least, Edward should have been able to. Edward's pace picked up, and then, I was full out running trying to catch up.
What we stumbled upon had my breakfast almost coming up. I'd seen a lot of bad things, but nothing had prepared me for this. There were body parts everywhere. An arm lay near a tree, a foot next to a tent.
"Jesus," I said, barely able to get a word out. Edward looked just as sick as I felt. "Did vamps do this?"
"Yeah," he answered quietly.
"Fucking hell. In all my years hunting, I've never seen vamps tear their victims apart. Why would they do this?"
Edward ran a hand over his face. "Thrill of the kill maybe? Either way, we've got to find them and soon."
"They're probably long gone by now. God, this was the work of two. Can you imagine the destruction four or five of them could do?" I asked, shuddering at the thought.
"We need to go. Their scent is still fresh," he told me, slinging me onto his back without asking. I barely had time to wrap my arms around his shoulders before he took off. I felt horrible leaving what was left of those people out in the open, but Edward was right. We had some vamps to kill.
We'd been running for about twenty minutes, off the beaten path and deep into the woods when Edward suddenly stopped. He held a finger up to his lips, and I nodded. Something was out there. I slid off his back and got my small hand held flamethrower out of my pocket. It was a nice little piece that Jensen had rigged up for me. I had it filled and ready and none too soon. In less than a blink of the eye, I was thrown against a tree, and I felt my shoulder pop out of place.
I struggled to my feet and saw Edward on the ground writhing in pain with a female vamp standing over him, her hand on his arm. Without a second thought, I ran toward her, and just as I was about to hit the bitch with the flamethrower, a hand grabbed my arm in a bruising grip. I struggled desperately to get away, but it was no use.
"Stop, Kate! That's Carlisle's boy," a voice with a thick accent said from nearby, and I watched as the blonde vampire who was hurting Edward let go of him.
"Edward, I'm sorry about that," the man with the accent apologized. "We've been tracking some vampires throughout the area and Kate's new to our coven. She didn't realize you were family," he said as he helped Edward off the ground.
"I'd say it's okay, Eleazar, but Jesus that fucking hurt!" Edward said, rubbing a hand over his arm where this Kate had grabbed a hold of him. "Do you think you could let Bella go? She promises not to turn anyone to ash, and I need to take care of her shoulder."
I raised any eyebrow at him. I sure as hell wasn't promising anything. However, the hand holding me let me go, and I moved closer to Edward, cradling my arm. My damn shoulder hurt like a fucking bitch, but I wasn't about to whine about it.
"Don't make promises for me, Edward!" I hissed, knowing full well they could all hear me. "I'm still of a mind to flambé some vamp ass."
"My, my. You are a feisty one, aren't you?" a tall, blonde woman with a Russian accent said. I narrowed my gaze at her, not caring for her condescending attitude.
"Problem with that?" I growled.
She rolled her eyes before turning to look at Edward. There was something about her that gave me the creeps. Slowly, she ran a finger down Edward's cheek before leaning in and placing a kiss on it. Perhaps they were lovers, not that it was any of my business. Or maybe not, I thought as Edward pushed her away.
He walked over to me and told me to take a deep breath. This wasn't the first dislocated shoulder I'd had, and it probably wouldn't be the last. I told him to just do it, and in a matter of seconds he had. I was white from the pain that rolled through me, but I gritted my teeth and sucked it up.
"So, I take it Kate here isn't the one murdering people?" I asked after an uncomfortable and almost unnatural silence had settled over us. There were six of them plus Edward and myself, and I was the only one breathing. Talk about unnerving.
"Of course not!" she said, sounding affronted. Well, what the hell was I supposed to think? She tossed me, hurt Edward, and just happened to be near the murdered victims. It was a logical conclusion.
"There were some children drained in the town next to us, so we've been following up on it," the one called Eleazar said. I wondered if these were the ones Edward called the Denalis, but he'd said they didn't usually get involved in things.
"Looks like we're hunting the same people then," Edward said. I wanted to tell him to shut up. It wasn't these vamps business what we were doing.
"I'm Eleazar," the man told me, coming forward and holding out a hand for me to shake. I eyed him wearily, but I shook his hand anyway.
"Bella."
I was introduced to the rest of the coven, who all knew Edward except the new girl and her boyfriend, a nomad named Garrett. They had just joined the coven less than six months ago. Apparently this coven, who were indeed, the Denalis, lived not too far away and had been friends with Carlisle and the Cullens for years. I suppose I should have been comforted by that, but I wasn't. There was something about the strawberry blonde named Tanya that got on my nerves. Maybe it was because she looked at me like I was scum and not worthy of being in her presence.
"Well, we've got this handled," Tanya said, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "So you can go," she told me.
"Oh, yeah. You've handled it real well," I replied crossing my arms over my chest. "So well in fact that those leeches just killed a group of seven mere minutes ago, and yet, you've got nothing."
She let out a growl and was in front of me in a flash. If the bitch thought she could scare me, she was wrong. I'd dealt with worse vamps than her. Besides, I'd picked up my flamethrower earlier, and I wasn't afraid to whip that puppy out and fry her ass, friend of Edward's or not.
"Why don't you let the grownups handle this and go back to playing in the sandbox," she sneered.
I let out a laugh because her intimidation skills sucked. "Why don't you back up a step before I torch your ass?"
I brought the flamethrower out of my pocket and waved it in front of her. All I had to do was squeeze the fucking trigger and Strawberry Barbie would be ashes, and she knew it. She backed away, glaring at me and showing fang the whole time. I couldn't help but roll my eyes.
"Enough, Tanya!" Edward barked, not that I needed him to defend me. I was perfectly capable of taking care of myself. "We came here to help, but if you've got it under control, we'll go."
"The hell we will," I said. "I'm not going anywhere until those motherfuckers are dead. Maybe you don't care, but I do, and I've got a job to do." With that said, I grabbed my bag and began heading back toward the path, or at least I hoped I was heading in that direction. I heard Edward let out a sigh behind me before gently grabbing my arm.
"Bella, stop. Please. I'll help you find the vamps, but it wouldn't hurt to work with the Denalis and find out what they know."
"Fine, but if the blonde bitch gets up in my face again, I reserve the right to turn her to ashes."
A grin flashed across his face. "Deal."
...
a/n: Well? What did you think? Let me know! I love hearing from you all!
