Hi friends! Please prepare yourselves for some action this chapter. Let me know what you think of the chapter and be sure to read the Author's Note for some important information. Enjoy!
Chapter Seven
James and Victoria
During the week that permanently changed their lives, the Cullens spoke only of James and Victoria. Edward had ordered Alice to keep the two nomads under constant surveillance while the others were on guard duty. Due to the high stakes of this operation, Celeste was the only Cullen attending school for the week. Her excuse to anyone that asked was that her whole family had come down with the flu. People would offer their groans of understanding which caused her to wish the flu was her only problem. Bella came to school as well but was driven by Celeste every day just to satisfy Edward's disgusting urge to have complete control over a situation that he really had no control over.
Garrett had stayed around, too, offering an additional set of heightened senses in between the times he had to run out of Forks to pick up his next meal. Celeste wanted the idea of him sucking some poor human dry to bother more than it did. She wanted to hate Garrett for giving into his vampire instincts, but she found the notion difficult. His relaxed nature and dry wit endeared him to her.
As it happened, Celeste was walking into the lunchroom with Jamie, her eyes shifting around to make sure she could see Bella in the room. When she found her, she turned her attention back to Jamie who had been staring at her with partial annoyance for the better part of two minutes.
"What, dude?" Celeste asked, voice slightly on edge. Being on Bella's security detail was beginning to grate her nerves – if only because of the constant text updates she was required to send to her brother throughout the day.
"Seriously?" Jamie deadpanned; arms crossed over his chest which complimented the unimpressed expression on his face.
Celeste groaned, though still unapologetic, "Look, I'm sorry! I'm just stressed. Give me like a week and it will pass."
"Shark week, huh?" He asked, like her bodily functions just explained everything.
"Why is it whenever a girl's annoyed, her uterus is always blamed? It could be anything, emotions are just part of being human, you know - "
"Cel, I'm not here to talk about whatever red substance may or may not be falling out of your body at this exact moment - "
Celeste fixed him with a glare. Jamie ignored it.
"I wanted to ask you to prom." Oh, Jesus.
"Wipe that look off your face," Jamie continued, unfazed, "I don't like you like that. I just want someone fun to go with who won't sit at a table all night. You are my friend, you are fun, you fit the criteria."
"Oh, thank God. I was worried you were about to ruin our friendship. Of course, I'll go to prom with you, Jay."
"Sweet."
"Though," Celeste added thoughtfully, "If you ever grow the balls to ask someone out for real, you better work on your approach. 'Wipe that look off your face' has got to be the least enticing thing anyone has ever said to me."
Celeste had been hoping to arrive home to a semblance of normalcy as she came in from the garage. At least once this week she wanted to escape the barrage of questions that awaited her upon arrival and sneak up to the cocoon-like heaven of her bed. Alas, the sensation of rushing wind on the back of her neck meant that such notions were to be forgotten.
"Did anything seem abnormal when you dropped her off?" Edward asked hurriedly, arms crossed over his chest. Celeste was taken aback by how close his face was to hers as she turned around. His concern for Bella had far surpassed suffocating.
"No," she replied, mirroring his stance and folding her arms over her own chest. She tried in vain to shrug away from the manic energy pulsing around her – walking away from her brother to make a futile break for the stairs. He followed anyway.
Clearly, Edward had taken to ignoring whatever annoyed thoughts popped into Celeste's mind during his relentless interviews because she had stopped singing the alphabet out of courtesy more than two days prior. As she stewed, she also tuned her brother out which led him to snap his fingers in front of her face.
He might already be dead, but I'm going to murder him.
"What!?" Celeste exclaimed, stopping to stare at him.
"You weren't listening," Edward gritted out. His eyes darkened just slightly.
"Trying not to listen and actually succeeding in blocking out your voice are two very different things."
"Celeste," he growled.
"Can you just give me five minutes to myself before you corner me?" Celeste fired back.
"Although I apologize for your invaded space, I unfortunately cannot fulfill that request." His tone proved that he really felt no remorse whatsoever.
Celeste glowered at him while she pretended to think of a response.
"Did you - " Her brother began once again, albeit more forcefully than the first time.
"Why can't you just read my mind? It would be a lot quicker." Edward pinned her with extreme eyes, his fiery temper flaring its flame.
"I would if it wasn't filled with unappealing thoughts concerning the degradation of my character." Edward may have looked close to murderous, but Celeste let out a slightly unhinged giggle and a sigh.
"No, I didn't see anyone before school, at school, or after school. Yes, I made sure to lock the car doors when Bella got in and out of the car. And yes, I made sure she was safely inside before driving back home. Satisfied?"
Edward replied only with a curt nod before leaving the room entirely. From the way his jaw had been flexing, he had been trying very hard to keep a lid on whatever outburst was bound to occur within the next twenty-four hours.
Celeste's fingers twitched – notifying her of how her irritation could manifest into something visible if she did not get out of her stifling house. She huffed to herself, grabbing her wallet, keys, and phone before stomping back the way she came. As she made a move for the door handle, she felt her mom's presence ghost up behind her.
"Celeste?" Her mom questioned – a particularly worried edge to her voice. Celeste knew she would have to keep her reply brief if there was any hope of leaving the house without lashing out.
"Not now, Mom." She had not turned around and she had had to shut her eyes tight as she forced the words.
Two hours later, Celeste sat in the passenger seat of her own car as Jamie drove around Forks aimlessly. She had needed someone to listen to her angry thoughts that wouldn't interrupt her with some reference to philosophical moral code. Jamie mostly sat with his eyes ahead, letting his gaze slide over to her only when she was especially passionate. For Celeste, being around someone whose only goal was to listen proved refreshing.
"Do you want to grab milkshakes?" Jamie asked during one of her short moments of silence. His question had redirected her attention. Sugary milk beverages, though often her enemy after consumption, sounded like just the right thing to quell her tantrum. Celeste nodded vigorously.
"Oh God, yes. Please." Her mind had begun wander to what flavor of milkshake she wanted.
"Just so you know," Jamie said with effort, putting the car in reverse – in the midst of her rant, Celeste had not noticed that they had practically driven to La Push. The car jerked when Jamie shifted into drive.
Jamie cleared his throat, "Just so you know, I was getting a milkshake no matter what you said. Listening to you complain takes a lot of willpower." Celeste smacked his shoulder.
"Celeste, I'm driving!" Jamie chastised playfully.
Celeste's mood had brightened considerably once she and Jamie had purchased their shakes. They walked out of the diner laughing. Celeste almost thought the oncoming stomachache would be worth the good mood she was experiencing. Jamie raised his Styrofoam cup filled with strawberry shake and motioned for her to do the same with her chocolate one. She had to hold back a snort when his eyebrows scrunched into a weird configuration.
"A toast, Mademoiselle, to new beginnings," he said in a horrid rendition of a British accent. Celeste sarcastically tapped her cup against his.
"Are you even in French?" she asked after taking a long sip from her straw.
"Sí."
Celeste shook her head, "You're awful." They shared another laugh.
"I should get home," she said. "I'll drop you off."
She had just turned off Jamie's street when her phone started buzzing.
At first, she tried to ignore the tremors coming from the cupholder. Celeste did her best to avoid answering her phone or glancing at text messages while driving – it just was not a smart move, usually. A short stillness fell between each call attempt and Celeste found she had run out of decent reasons to avoid picking up the phone. Her family and her friend were in crisis mode for God's sake. She snatched the phone aggressively from the holder and answered on the third buzz.
"Hello?"
"Celeste?" Bella's voice gasped through the speaker, electronic panic trilling into Celeste's ear.
"Did something happen?"
"He said he's going to hurt you if I don't go to him."
"Who said? James?" Celeste asked. Her fear and anger had begun their battle with one another. She had a growing urge to pee her pants.
"He said he would kill everyone I love! I have to go!"
"That's exactly why you don't go!" Celeste yelled, eyes haphazardly watching the dark road. The line was quiet on Bella's end.
"Bella? Bella, look, what are you going to be able to do to some super-fast, super strong vampire? He will literally snap your neck and suck you dry the moment you get close." Celeste imagined that Bella flinched as she said this.
"Celeste," Bella sighed, her voice hoarse from what Celeste could only guess was holding back tears, "You shouldn't all be in danger because of me. I have to go. I couldn't – I couldn't live with myself if something happened to Edward or any of you." Celeste fought the urge to roll her eyes at the makeshift goodbye speech.
"Okay, this self-sacrificing shit is a little overdone. There's a really simple solution here – you don't go meet the murderous, rampaging vampire!"
Another silence lingered through the somewhat staticky phone call. Celeste felt her stomach drop to her tingling toes.
"I'm so sorry. Tell Edward I love him." The call ended. Celeste swore.
"That fucking idiot!"
Celeste tried to call Bella back three times but each time, the call went unanswered. She tried to call her family and even attempted to call the number attached to Garrett's burner, but no one picked up. Her anxiety had pitched to an all-time high – this was worse than when Edward almost lost it in January, this was worse than Jasper's innumerable temptations, this was worse than anything she could remember.
Celeste had never made her tires screech before that night. The noise hurt her ears. She hurled herself from the car, running to her house through the evergreen night. She almost made it to the door when Bella's huge red metal eyesore came into view. Celeste nearly toppled over from the loss of momentum. Running her hand through her hair, she took analysis of her situation. Bella was at her house – which meant…James was at her house. James was at her house. Why hadn't Bella said anything?
Maybe she hadn't been allowed.
The thought planted itself firmly in Celeste's mind. Bella had been vague during the call; it wouldn't be so far-fetched to think that maybe the call had been monitored.
Celeste kept surveying the house, wondering about her best course of action. There was no way she could take on a vampire by herself, and it was clear from the dark rooms inside her home that no one was there to help. Although, if she waited much longer, her friend would probably be dead. Celeste cursed again.
She made her way to the back of the lofty garage, sifting through the metal cabinets before her sight settled on a gallon of lighter fluid. She grabbed it, praying she wouldn't have to blow up the house before the night ended. Some rope, a crowbar, and a lighter caught her eye, so she threw those into her arms as well. Celeste wouldn't stand a chance against James unless she could figure out some way to set him on fire.
Celeste swallowed some vomit upon entering her home. She wanted her family to finish whatever they were doing and end this crazed predator. She wanted so badly to be brave, but her humanity had set her limits for her. Her best hope was some sort of distraction. Biting her lip, Celeste began to check each and every room, searching for a sign of Bella in any of them. Each empty room caused her stomach to lurch – what if he'd already killed her and stuffed her body in the wall to hide the evidence? She did try to vanish such thoughts from her conscience but found them particularly hard to shake.
The door to Celeste's room stood open, the well-kept wood floors visible from her place in the hallway. Celeste tightened her grip on the defensive items in her hands. She hesitated outside of the doorway, allowing herself the final acknowledgment that she was so entirely out of her element before courageously stalking into her bedroom.
Bella stood by herself in the middle of the room – her clothes completely unsoiled, her expression more one of confusion than terror. Huh. Unexpected.
"Celeste?" Bella exclaimed, crossing the room with flurries of questions burgeoning in her eyes.
"I cannot believe you actually came here," Celeste started with a scoff but softened her scowl when Bella cringed.
"Is – Is he here? Have you seen him?" she asked. Bella frantically shook her head.
"No. I – I haven't heard anything." Celeste nodded. The foreboding feeling in her chest told her that she had better stay on her guard.
"What did he say to you?" Celeste blurted, suddenly wanting to know exactly what kind of threats had been thrown her friend's way.
"M-Mostly what I already told you," Bella's voice had wavered, and she had tried to shove her shaking hands in her pockets before Celeste could take much notice. The young Cullen threw her friend into a sloppy side-hug in a poor attempt to calm her. This girl could die in her house tonight. She could die in her house tonight. Celeste had had dinner at Bella's house, shared jokes with Charlie in their kitchen – how could she lie to him if Bella died? How would she ever look Edward in the eye if the only woman he ever loved was murdered in front of her? These problems were bigger than one seventeen-year-old girl, and yet – Celeste was their only hope for the time being.
Below them, glass shattered. Celeste cursed. We have a front door for a reason, you piece of –
More shards hit the floor downstairs and Celeste whirled her eyes around her room – we can't jump out the window, we can't outrun him, we – her eyes found the closet. Her gaze flicked between the closet handle and Bella's face twice. All at once, Celeste's energy surged, and she forced Bella back with her forearm. The lighter fluid thunked to the ground as she reached for the smooth handle with the arm not currently manhandling her friend.
"Hey!" Bella yelped as Celeste thrust her towards a rack of pants and slammed the door just as Bella thought to run forward. Celeste pulled towards herself, trying to maintain resistance while she wrapped the thick, coarse rope around the leg of her desk and the door handle. Bella yelled and slammed on the door with her fists on the other side. Celeste finished tying off the rope just as other creeping sounds started assaulting her eardrums.
A thick, cool presence had filled the room. Fear suffocated her, winding its prickly spires around her arms and throat. Staticky splotches fizzed around the edges of her vision, waiting to blind her whenever the malicious presence chose to strike.
Celeste had never seen James before, but from the descriptions she had received, the blood-drunk, windswept man before her had to be him. His posture was casual, like he was waiting for a show to begin. His black, soulless eyes surveyed her with a sick, knowing curiosity that had Celeste wishing she had jumped from the window when she had the chance. Broken bones must be better than this.
"It's wonderful to finally make your acquaintance, Miss Cullen. Victoria and I were disappointed we hadn't received an earlier invitation." His words were spoken with twisted amusement and his arms were folded behind his back as he observed his newest human exhibit. Celeste felt a terrified burn race up the back of her throat. James smirked as her heart rate sped up and he took the chance to start slowly pacing the room from wall to wall.
"You come from quite a remarkable family. So much power…so many ways to kill. And yet, they starve themselves of their true-life source, opting to keep little human pets instead. Interesting, isn't it?" He glanced at her expectantly and she immediately located her voice to stall any violent occurrences.
"I suppose."
James's face screwed up into a smile that looked like it had been chiseled by a dagger – he was all points and corners.
"It is amazing, though, that with all their abilities, we were able sneak in here undetected." He paused, taking the moment to send Celeste a slimy wink. "Of course, that little psychic always was rather weak. I knew her long ago, from her pathetic first life. She was locked up in a hospital for her visions. I had tracked her for a while – her blood was so appetizing – but her doctor had gotten to her first, changing her before I had the chance to taste…" James cackled lazily, like he had been recalling fond memories of old pals. Her stomach boiled.
"Alice doesn't remember anything from her human life," Celeste half-whispered. She had no idea why she had said it, but she was grateful when James continued talking.
"And she still chooses to deny her nature, when she has known nothing else? Intriguing." Celeste's head and heart continued to pound. Keep him talking.
"It's not without effort," Celeste qualified, doing her best to keep him engaged in the idle chit chat. He flashed her an amused smile.
"You don't require much effort, do you, little miss Bloodless Wonder?" Celeste's eyes went wide. Only Emmett called her that. They had been listening…
"Victoria's quite fast, she can pop in and out most effectively. It's quite useful for gaining information." James began pacing again, the sadistic smirk never leaving his face.
"Edward's faster." Celeste forced out. She hated James – she would not let him verbally reduce her family to a pile of cow dung. One of his eyebrows leapt high on his head and his pacing came to a halt.
"Is that so?" A new voice purred. A lithe woman with wild, blazing red hair zoomed into view, a demonic smile painted across her lips. Victoria.
Victoria shared a lustful look with James before stalking over to Celeste like a feline ready to pounce. Celeste couldn't help it, she flinched when Victoria's ruby red eyes met her own.
"Where's your little friend, Celeste?" Victoria asked. The slithering, frosty breath hit Celeste's face and flew up her nostrils. Her eye twitched.
Celeste felt brave enough to say, "Clearly she's not the real reason you're here. Where she is doesn't matter."
Victoria's hand narrowly missed Celeste's cheek as she slammed against the closet door behind her. "That would almost be cute if she wasn't right behind the door." Both ravenous vampires began to finish advancing upon her – their expressions glittering with joyous hunger. Celeste was out of words. She hated how resigned she had become but she refused to cry or scream. Only stupid people in horror movies tried to fight monsters much stronger than themselves. She scrunched her eyes closed, feeling all her odorless blood rushing to her cheeks and forehead. There was only one thing she could do.
Edward, if you can hear me, I need help.
James and Victoria laughed, their cold fingers stroked at her hair, trailing down the sides of her face and over the visible pulse of her throat. They leaned in close, their icy midnight breath wafting down her neck. They took turns smelling her, eager to determine whether the rumors about her blood were true. Celeste felt one hand go to her throat and she held back her air. She tried to pretend that she was okay with self-sacrifice. The problem, though, was that she wasn't.
Celeste was angry. She was angry that these monsters wanted to kill her, she was pissed that her brother had to upend her whole life, and she was positively furious that some other human girl was safely locked away in the closet while she acted as some sort of shield. Mostly, Celeste was livid with herself for doing the exact thing she had vowed never to do. Celeste was the idiot of her own story – now, she may never have a chance to correct it.
The soul-consuming coldness vanished from her throat. Instead, a horrendous cracking resounded barely five feet from where she stood.
Six whirling forms had taken over the space before her, they were moving so fast that Celeste could not decipher who was who. Her parents and sisters stood in the doorway, supervising the damage from afar. That meant Garrett and her brothers were part of the swirling mess currently destroying her room. Her father sailed across the floor, opening the large glass window that led out to her balcony.
"Take them outside!" Carlisle yelled. All traces of his usual gentleness were absent. He allowed himself a worried glance in Celeste's direction. The anxiety induced numbness in her body had started to recede.
Celeste slid down to the floor, located the lighter and lighter fluid, and shoved them across the floor to Rose and Alice. They looked at the items briefly, frozen with shock, before grabbing them and jumping from the balcony.
The fight continued, Celeste thought it appeared as though James and Victoria were losing. Somehow, the six bodies entrenched in battle flew out of her room and to the ground below. The rest lasted maybe five minutes. Two long shrieks of pain punched through the night. Seconds later, a defiant orange glow cloaked over Celeste's walls, bathing them in an ember victory.
Celeste unwound the poorly knotted rope keeping Bella in her closet. From her kneeling position, she swung open the door. Bella sat on the other side with tears in her eyes but completely unharmed. She crawled out, wrapping Celeste into a fierce hug that Celeste did not know she was capable of.
"You're crazy," Bella rasped, "but that was the bravest thing I've ever seen – er, well – didn't see."
Celeste laughed, "Are you mad that I locked you in a closet?"
"Maybe a little," Bella snorted, "you're certainly a force to be reckoned with. I might have a bruise."
"At least you weren't murdered." Bella shook her head.
"Yeah. There's that."
The girls shared a laugh that only two people with similar trauma could share. They were still sitting on the floor giggling when the others reappeared. Edward swooped in on Bella, gathering her up in his arms, turning her face in his hands to check for injuries. It was, Celeste begrudgingly admitted, rather sweet – excessive – but sweet. She watched them with a soft drowsy smile, spent from the night's events.
Esme rounded on Celeste, cradling her protectively to her side. Carlisle kneeled in front, flashing his pen light in her eyes to check for reaction times and lightly examining the rest of her for any sign of damage. Esme kept running her hands through Celeste's hair, all the while resting her chin atop her daughter's head.
"I'm impressed, kid, fending off two full grown vampires for longer than thirty seconds? That's practically superhuman," said Garrett. His droll tone broke the tension and most everyone gave a chuckle. Celeste grinned up at him, she was amused by his lackadaisical stance against the wall.
"What can I say? The bad guy always likes to gloat, you just have to keep them talking." Garrett shot her a bemused quirk of his lips and a wink. Celeste rolled her eyes.
On her other side, Edward was staring at her in amazement. She knew what he wanted – she opened her mind, letting each scene from the last hour flow together, her inward thoughts and reality folding into one seamless stream of consciousness.
Edward left Bella's side to gather up Celeste. His embrace was more than a simple hug – it meant relief, love, but most importantly, it conveyed just how grateful he was.
"What," he whispered against her ear, "did I ever do to deserve a sister like you?"
The events of the night were not discussed until the following day. Edward had taken Bella home, opting to stay with her as she slept. He offered his room to Celeste, noting that her own bedroom was not in functional condition and needed repair. The rest of the Cullens cleaned throughout the night and somehow acquired new windows to replace the ones that had been destroyed by James. Celeste slept restlessly that night – though she couldn't decide whether this was due to the images replaying in her head or Edward's couch digging into her ribs.
Around two in the afternoon, Garrett, Bella, and the Cullens assembled in the living room, each taking turns expressing their various sides of the story. After piecing together every narrative, they discovered that after Celeste had left for Jamie's, James and Victoria had started running around town, playing with the holes in Alice's visions to throw everyone off. At this point, James had called Bella telling her to meet him at the Cullen residence alone. Bella had said that she felt as though she was being watched during the phone call, and although she would comply with James's request, she had called Celeste so that someone would know what had happened. Apparently, drawing Celeste back home had not been part of the original plan, but James was greedy – Celeste would have been just another human to add to his kill list. Celeste shuddered at this revelation despite being unsurprised. James had not come across as a very human vampire.
While the girls were stuck inside Celeste's bedroom, Victoria had finished her never-ending trail in the forest – her desire to see James and make a kill ultimately winning out over playing follow the leader. As the others discovered the ruse, Alice had conveniently seen James and Victoria terrorizing Celeste and Bella back at the Cullen home. From there, Celeste knew the details more intimately than she would have liked – she did not need them repeated.
Silence followed when the last person finished their tale. Everyone had to draw their own mental conclusions. The facts were messy, and the night had been the worst Celeste had ever endured but at least it was over. Thirty minutes passed before Alice flopped down next to Celeste with a twittering sigh.
"Well, now that that's over with, we must talk about your dress." Alice flashed her close-lipped, psychic smile and Celeste knew that whatever ideas she had about prom would never be approved by her sister.
She looked in her sister's amber eyes, darkened from her irrepressible thirst. She was reminded of what James had been telling her upstairs, not even twenty-four hours ago. One day, they would have to talk about it – the hospital, the visions, the doctor – but for now, Celeste would humor her sister's materialistic fancies.
"So, what color is it?" Celeste asked, not really caring about the answer but content that her feigned interest had caused Alice to emit spastic squeals of delight.
"You have a date?" Rosalie asked, fighting to hide her interest.
"Uh, yeah."
"Who?" Emmett bellowed.
"Um, Jamie."
"Is he picking you up here?" Esme asked.
"We're probably just meeting there," Celeste whirled, overwhelmed by their questions. God, she really had not kept them up to date with her life.
"I think I should meet this young man," Carlisle added.
"Uh - "
"Are the two of you…dating?" Bella queried.
"Ew! No! Jesus, it's Jamie!" Celeste exclaimed. From his corner, Garrett was stifling a laugh. In return, Celeste sent him the haughtiest glare she could fathom.
"Quiet, all of you!" Alice announced. She stood up, extending a dainty arm for Celeste to take. The mischievous glint in her caused a shiver to run down Celeste's spine.
Celeste stared at the arm like it was about swing back and hit her.
"Get up! We have shopping to do." Alice made a waving motion with her hand.
"Now?" A muscle in Alice's forehead popped. For a moment, Celeste could swear she also saw her eye muscle twitch.
"Shopping, Cellie. Shop-ping."
"But I- "
Alice swung Celeste up over her shoulder, ignoring her protests as she sauntered, nonplussed, to the door. Behind her, there were loud laughs at the sight of Alice lifting the much taller girl like she weighed less than a speck of dust. Celeste's face smacked into Alice's backside.
"Alice!" she shrieked, "Put me down!"
So, what do you think? Worth the wait or completely off the mark? I'm aware that it's rather dialogue heavy, but that worked best with this particular chapter. Please let me know how you feel with a review if you are so inclined. Since you've made it to the Author's Note, I have a very important question for all of you. Would anyone be interested in chapter previews being posted on my Twitter page? I often have at least half a chapter written before I post one on FF and I thought it might make the wait more bearable if you got to read a little something in between posts. The preview could be anywhere from 1 page of content to just short pieces of dialogue. I really could not write this story without your support, so let me know if this is something you would be interested in!
To all those that review, follow, favorite, or just read this story – thank you so much. Your kind words and support mean the world to me. And, to all you guest reviewers – I read and appreciate your words as well. I wish there was some way for me to respond to your comments, but alas, FF does not quite function that way.
As always, have a wonderful week! Follow windmilldaisies for Twitter updates.
W. D.