Shoe Searching

APOV

My meditating and aroma candles did wonders for my mood and the mental stability that I was lacking at the moment. I had to clear my mind, and that I was able to do once I was able to get some peace and quiet. Edward was still pouting and acting like a small child about my previous temper tantrum, and even though I apologized he kind of ignored me unless absolutely necessary. That was fine, Edward was like my brother, we fought like this often since the loss of our parents and he will get over it, he always dose.

I had set a few plans and mapped out a few areas in my mind that we needed to check out. Bella would be going with me and Edward would be checking out some other areas in Port Angeles as well as checking on some information that the Denali Clan may hold. He threw another hissy fit when he was told that Bella and I would be doing some investigating of our own. Of course he didn't want us to work without him, again something else he will need to get over; I had a strange feeling that I was running short on time, therefore I needed to cover as much ground as possible for that specific clock stopped ticking.

Bella and I were currently driving towards Seattle in a rental car. She was driving so not only were we not going very fast do the automobiles lack of an engine, but we were also driving the speed limit do to Bella. I kind of wished it were Edward I was traveling with.

"Bella, we won't be in Seattle until tomorrow night at the rate you are driving."

"Alice, we will be in Seattle in just a few hours."

"Few hours? Are you out of your mind? I can not be stuck in this car for a few hours!"

"Find something to occupy yourself."

"Like what Bella?"

"We can play a game."

I was about to argue but this could be interesting. Games with Bella while Edward was not around, I could only imagine the types of truths I could break from her, it's been a really long time since I had any kind of girl talk anyways. I mean…wow the possibilities of a few hour car ride just opened up for me.

"So Bella, what kind of games do you have in mind?"

"I don't know have you ever played slug bug, or maybe that license plate spotting game?"

I sank further into my seat; the possibilities just got locked in the trunk along with my fun and consequently made this car ride seem just that much longer. I rolled my eyes and let out a long drawn out breath, I could see Bella shaking her head from side to side as she not so subtly smirked in my direction…she knew what she was doing and she called me an evil little pixie.

"So Alice, if you don't want to play one of my games how about you fill me in on what exactly we are doing in Seattle."

"Ok well, there is an old factory type of shopping center; it used to transport a lot of the incoming sea food and stuff. The warehouses have been vacant for years…well at least to workers and humans. I have a pretty good feeling that some of the Volturi guards have a 'base' there. I'd like to get close enough to see who is on the other side of those walls without actually entering the buildings."

"You want to go spy on the Volturi?"

Bella's voice was laced with shock but she took a deep breath and shook it off. I could tell when she was getting into her soldier mode because she would always square her shoulders, jut out her chin and narrow her eyes. It was cute that she had to take on another side of herself in order to have the confidence to take on some of these missions.

"It won't be so bad Bella, we will park outside of the building in shadows, and I will search the futures by assuming that I will be inside the building. That will give me a pretty good idea of who is in there, and then I can search there futures to find out if there is any kind of attack on us being planned. Simple right?"

"If you say so…so where do I come in? I don't want to just be your driver; do I need to shield your mind while you are doing this?"

"I do not think that will work, if you shield me I may not be able to get a good grasp on them."

"I don't like that idea Alice."

"I know you don't, let me finish…we'll have a signal, like I will tap on your arm three times if I feel someone entering my mind unwelcome. Then you will throw up the shield and we'll haul ass out of here. I do not know who is on the other side of those walls, and I might not want to know…but this has become more of a need than a want Bella."

Bella took another one of those confidence boosters and pressed harder on the gas peddle…at this rate we would be getting to the warehouses just in time for the humans to be on restriction and in there homes. That would be the best time to listen, that way innocents did not get in the way if anything went wrong.

I turned the radio up and let the music feel my nerves as I rolled the window down and let the wind wash over my skin. After a few deep breaths and checking Bella and my future a couple of times I determined that this was not a suicide mission, but something was going to cause it to not last very long. I was not going to tell Bella though, I didn't see any immediate danger therefore there was no reason to make my already confidence challenged best friend extra reasons to worry.

Once we arrived in Seattle I directed Bella to where the old warehouses were. We parked the car behind an old dumpster service area and killed the engine to the car. Silence over took the car as both of us didn't even breath. Vampires had sensitive hearing and we didn't want to alert any possible guards that may show up that we were here. Some of the guards had special capabilities, since we didn't know the who's and what's we took the necessary precautions to keep ourselves safe while we find out what information we could in what short time I thought we had to do it in.

Bella lifted two fingers and moved them from her eyes to me and then tapped her arm slowly three times reminding me that she would be my look out and that if someone tried to enter my mind I was to tap her arm. I smiled at her and nodded my head in her direction; it was very much like Bella to take the mother approach in any of our stake outs.

As I settled in my chair and closed my eyes I took and short and silent breath then began searching, I started with how I would enter the building if I were to go inside but continuously found nothing and no one on the other side of entering. It almost made me want to jump out of the damn car and create noise just to find out who was stationed here. This was beyond frustrating for me because I was running out of options and who ever it was after me was closer than they really should be. I didn't want to have to pick up and move again, but if I didn't get anything here…that was going to have to be my next suggestion.

The room was dark, bricks lined the cement walls and I could feel the cold of the stone on my bare feet. My gaze was fixed straight ahead as I moved slowly into what I assume to be the warehouse. There air smelt of live rodents and sewage which I did not care for at all. A flicker of light caught my attention as I turned down the right hand corridor. There were faint voices in the distance so I pushed my body forward. I needed just a short glimpse of who was in this building so I could search there futures for any plans involving myself or my family. I was so close that I could almost make out the faint voices in the background when I felt myself jerk back slightly. What the fuck?

My eyes shot open to see a determined and furious look on Bella's face as she sped away into the night. I was so close that I could help feeling annoyed with her paranoia. I was so close and I now the only thing I wanted to know was why the fuck we were driving off?

"Bella, you had better have a good reason. I was so close to honing in on whoever it was in there."

"I saw someone. I do not know who it was…but I could make out a shadow…they were watching us, because I can not see what they are capable of…I took off."

"Did you at least make sure it was some stupid human?"

"Alice, I am not that stupid or that paranoid. Of course it wasn't a damn human."

"Could you at least describe what the person looked like?"

"Male, well dressed…tall, but that's about it."

"Other than the well dressed part... that could be majority of the vampire male population Bella."

"Sorry, it was hard he seemed to know what he was doing."

"Well then he might be just who I was I looking for."

"Maybe."

I turned the radio up blaring music out of the speakers so that we both could calm down. We weren't exactly shouting but I could hear it in Bella's voice that she was possibly just as frustrated as I was right now. We both didn't need to be worked up and on edge so it was better to take a time out and think. I could probably have Bella draw the outline that she saw in the shadows that way we at least had something to go off of.

I hoped that Edward might have had more luck in finding out information on who or what was coming for me. He was better at the sneaking investigative work than I was…he could hear what people were thinking from a pretty good distance, and then if he had to he would use brute force to get what he wanted. He had confidence and skill coupled with his unique ability which made him a pretty good partner to have around and a wonderful big brother. So what if he was a little moody, he was Edward and that had to be enough right?

My gasp was the only thing that I heard, my eyes moved for corner to corner but it seemed as if my head was again restricted. There was something holding my line of sight down, someone who doesn't want me to see them. I tried to speak but the words would not come out. I did everything I could to keep myself calm and try to memorize all of the little details going on around me. A pair of Milano red leather boots walked into the room with a loud clicking, the vision was hazy but I was pretty sure that those were an eight and half and there appeared to be a custom threading done on the sides. Custom was a very good sign. Another pair of silent boots walked into the room followed by a second pair of nicer men's designer shoes. "What…"

"No!! What the fuck! I almost had a voice on one of them!"

"Alice are you ok? You were zoned out for awhile…we're already home."

"Fucking holy shit Bella! I almost heard one of them speak! I was so fucking close!"

I screamed in my frustration and tugged on the sides of my hair with a growl. I had never been so close to nailing who I was looking for with it just disappearing. I didn't think it was possible for a vampire to have a headache but I am beginning to think that anything is possible because my head was killing me slowly but surely.

Bella reached over and patted me on the back like she understood my frustrations, she had a very natural caring nature to her, but it was nothing like the comforting I used to get from my mother Esme. Bella was self sacrificing and willing to lose her life if it was for the greater good, she meant a lot to Edward and myself so I reared in my want and need to snap on someone or something and stepped out of the car.

"Alice, are you coming in the house? Maybe Edward found something out."

My feet were already leading me into a separate direction towards the woods before I responded with a polite 'be right back'. I needed some time alone with Mother Nature herself. I wasn't like I was going to hear the trees and or any crap like that, I just felt a strange pull to the woods, not to feed, not to have silence or anything like that. Maybe a little feeling inside me wanted to something to take my frustration out. I would plant another tree in its place…I have got to appreciate green peace and all of that crap right?

My legs carried me farther and farther into the woods when I had finally stopped I was standing in front of a huge oak tree covered in moss and bugs from its ripe old age. I know all about respecting my elders and I wasn't really a nature spiritual kind of girl, so I ripped that damn tree limb from limb cursing out all of my frustrations as did so. I am sure if anyone had been looking I probably looked a little bit psychotic, and well to be honest with you I felt pretty fucking psychotic right about now.