Chapter Eight- An Epiphany
Bella's Point of View.

Author's Note: I am pleased to say that I finished this chapter far more quickly then I had thought I would.
Please note that this chapter is written in BELLA'S point of view. NOT Edwards. You will understand why once you have read Chapter Eight.

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I snapped the tiny cellphone shut and let out a loud sigh. He was safe. Relief pored threw my body, relaxing my tensed muscles.

For the first time since Edward has left me here only twenty five minutes ago, I gazed around the room at my surroundings. The time I had been here suddenly seemed that much longer.

I was in a small cafe, not much larger a large bedroom or a small classroom. A friendly women greeted the customers at the front counter, her eyes crinkling at the corners as she smiled at them warmly. I sat at a small, rounded table with a small lamp positioned against the wall. There were hardly enough tables for the amount of people in this compressed area. Nearly every one of those tables were filled with occupants and over a dozen people were left standing.

There was an astonishing amount of people in this small cafe, many whom looked tired from another long day's work. None of these people were anything out of the ordinary. But what caught my eye was the oddly familiar group of men sitting at the far corner of the crowded cafe, their heads bowed inwards as they spoke in hushed whispers. They seemed almost oblivious to their surroundings. There were five of them, all wearing shabby, warn clothing and dirt-stained boots. They stuck out slightly in this cafe, their work-stained outfits not blending very well to the decor of the small shop and it's inhabitants.

They looked far to familiar for me to have forgot who they were so easily. I raked my brain, searching for the memory which would tell me why their faces struck me as so familiar. I continued to stare at them, certain that I was on the edge of recollection.

It struck me like a battering ram, the force of the epiphany nearly strong enough to knock me from my seat. They were the men from the alleyway. The very men who had cornered me in Port Angeles only a year and a half ago. The memory of their determined faces sent a wave of fear crawling up my spine, my palms tingling and my body trembling in an involuntary shiver.

I had to get out of hear. My only hope was that they hadn't noticed me, yet. That they wouldn't noticed me if they hadn't.

But what about Edward? Surely he would be here soon enough that my actions would not need to be so rash. Maybe I could wait it out, knowing that if they did happen to recognize me, that they would be unable to act due to the many witnesses around us. Running might only help them.

But what if they had noticed me? If they truly wanted to harm me, they would have already found a way to do it. I had been sitting here for a good thirty minutes now and nothing had happened.

My mind was made up. I couldn't just sit here in hope that they would pass me by like just another stranger,

I rose from my seat slowly, trying to be as inconspicuous as I could manage. The worst thing I could possibly do right now is draw attention to myself.

Almost expectedly, my foot caught on the back of my chair and I stumbled forward, dragging the chair along and making a loud scraping noise against the wooden floor. I froze. I felt the heat rise to my cheeks as my head swiveled around to see who might have witnessed my act of clumsiness.

Several pares of eyes met mine. However, none of them seemed all that interested. A man clad in a navy blue suit looked up from his newspaper and coffee to flash me a skeptical look before turning his attention back to his paper and the kind women at the counter flashed me a worried glance before turning to greet the next costumer.

I saved their corner of the room for last, petrified at the thought of meeting one or more of their sets of dark, beady eyes.

Only one was staring at me, his brow turned down in mock concern. Our eyes met for only a second, his filled with curiosity. I was sure that what he saw in mine was fear.

I tore my eyes from his and focused on untangling my leg from the chair. I hoped that his sudden curiosity was only due to my show of clumsiness and not out of any sudden recognition. I grabbed my bag from my its perch on the edge of the table and turned to leave, my eyes fixed on the large red exit sign above the door.

I was nearly there when a large hand grabbed my shoulder roughly, stopping me from escaping out the door. I knew this hand did not belong to Edward. His hands were always so gentle, so careful and hesitant when he touched me. This hand was in no way gentle, his unkept nails digging into my shoulder uncomfortably.

I turned slowly, looking first at the very large, grubby hand and then to the face of the man it belonged to.

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Author's Note: Finally! Chapter eight is complete! What a relief! I hope you all enjoy Chapter Nine.
REVIEWS are always appreciated. Thank you.