A/N: As usual, super huge thanks to my prereader Erikasbuddy and beta OnePushyFox.
EPOV
"All I smell is rotten flesh and wet, dead leaves," Rosalie spat as she covered her nose with her hand and backed away from where the girl's corpse had rested.
The rest of us also ignored the bright yellow tape warning, "Police Line: Do Not Cross." We entered the squared off area, just like she had done first. It wasn't as if we could leave behind anything that could be used to identify us, like skin, hair or fingerprints.
The constant drizzle left us soaking wet, with tiny streams of cold water running down our faces. The ground below us was muddy and slick with wet foliage. The chilled air slowly produced a fog that appeared to roll in from the mountains, blanketing the ground.
"Alice," I called, summoning her closer. "See anything new?"
"Same stuff as before," she answered. "What did you get from Charlie last night?"
"No blood, but I don't think it was an animal attack. Too neat and tidy."
Rosalie shook each of her feet, flinging mud all over the place. "Are we done playing CSI yet? You've just ruined my favorite boots by making me tromp out here for nothing."
Emmett took Rosalie by the hand and wrapped a large arm around her. "Don't be such a sourpuss, babe. I get to play cop with Charlie later." She scowled as he grinned and kissed her cheek.
Jasper's thoughts shouted his displeasure about Bella choosing Emmett to guard Charlie. As far as he was concerned, he was a soldier so he was the logical choice. "You two are gonna look like a bad buddy cop movie."
Alice stared at the ground for a few seconds and doubled over in a fit of laughter. "I can't wait to see you in your new uniform, Emmett."
Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie looked to Alice, waiting for her to describe his new work clothes. Meanwhile, Alice showed the vision to me and I started laughing too.
"Let's just say," she began. "That it will hug you in all of the wrong places. And it's very brown and polyester."
The amused look Emmett had on his face quickly fell to a scowl. "Oh man, I'm gonna have to wear that in public? We've got to convince him to let me wear something better than that."
"Like being a cop is so fashionable," Rosalie ribbed.
Alice stopped snickering long enough to answer him while the rest of us continued to laugh. "That's a no go, Emmett. He won't be able to explain your presence if you're not in uniform."
Suddenly all of us sprung to high alert, sensing a figure that was rapidly approaching us in the distance. The quickly forming fog masked whether the shape was human or animal. But it closed the distance with such swiftness, there was no way this was anything but a vampire.
The blurred figure ground to an abrupt halt about two hundred yards away, noticing the five of us waiting defensively for his arrival.
It was very clearly Mike Newton, and he unquestionably was no longer human.
"Um, hey guys," Mike said uncertainly. "What are you doing out here?"
"What does it look like? We're having a tea party in the middle of the woods?" Emmett replied.
Mike prepared to run, his crimson eyes nervously darting back and forth between all of our faces. After a quick sniff of the air, he put his hands in the front pockets of his jeans. "I didn't think there was anyone else like me around here."
Calm flooded over all of us, a slight grin crossed Mike's face as Jasper's influence took over.
"Who changed you?" I asked vehemently.
"I don't know. I just woke up in the woods like this after a few days of hell." He looked absently at his feet while he spoke. "Why do I feel so relaxed now?"
"You just love being around us, that's all," Rosalie sniped as she wrung out her now dripping hair. "I'm out of here. This was a complete waste of time."
"I'll go with you, babe," Emmett said as he turned to follow Rosalie. They didn't see Mike as a threat so they had no qualms leaving us alone with him. It was still three against one, even if the one was a super strong newborn vampire.
After he watched them speed off on foot, Mike approached us asked another question. "Is your entire family like me?"
"Yes," I replied. Alice was uncharacteristically quiet, a stream of ever changing visions running through her mind like a movie playing on fast forward. It was dizzying trying to follow the possibilities and I made an effort to block her out just so I could focus.
"Did you have anything to do with the girl that was murdered last night?" I asked. Mike's mind broadcasted his thoughts loudly to me, so I had no trouble hearing them.
Shit, they're going to know I killed that girl. I didn't mean to, my hunger took over and I couldn't help myself. I certainly didn't want to bring the girl to her. She can get off her depressed ass and find her own food.
I listened passively; the emotionless expression I usually displayed was on my face and not giving my telepathy away. I couldn't get a clear picture of the woman he was referring to, but someone was counting on him to deliver sustenance. Jasper kept silent as he flooded Mike with even more relaxing feelings.
"No answer, Mike?" Jasper asked calmly. No one spoke while Mike shifted his weight nervously from foot to foot. "So it's just a coincidence that you are taking this path? The path that goes directly past where a girl was brutally murdered by a vampire last night?" Jasper locked his eyes on Mike, waiting for him to make a move.
Alice finally pulled herself out of the visions. "Michael, why did you try to take Bella away last weekend?"
"I just wanted the company of a friendly face," he replied smugly. I knew better as I listened to his thoughts.
"You injured and frightened her," I replied flatly. Jasper's influence was ramped up so high that it wouldn't let the anger show in my voice.
"I didn't mean to scare her. I'm just not used to being this strong." The tone of his voice was even, almost trance-like.
"Michael, please stay away from Bella," Alice directed. "You mustn't mingle with humans while you are so very new."
"There are other ways, you know," Jasper added. "It's not easy, but you don't have to prey on humans."
"Really?" he asked. "What am I supposed to do, it's not like I have anyone telling me how being this is supposed to go," he said as he gestured to his body with both of his hands.
In a tiny, but optimistic voice, Alice spoke as she took a few steps closer to Mike. "We could help you with everything."
Jasper and I snapped our gazes to her face at the same time, his calming influence abruptly cut off. Mike instantly became tense, ready to flee the area at the first sign of trouble.
"Can I think about it?" he asked. "I have to go now." He didn't wait for us to answer. We were left behind, silently watching his back as he ran towards town. He was on a path that would lead him straight to Bella's house. Thankfully she was safe at our home with Esme.
"Jasper," I said. "Can you pick up enough of his scent to trace it back to wherever he came from?"
"Of course I can. Hopefully all of this rain hasn't washed too much of it away." Jasper turned to Alice and swept his arm to the side with a sly smile. "Ladies first."
"We'll meet you at home, Edward," she said as they walked hand in hand deeper into the woods.
BPOV
"Hi, Dad," I said into my cell phone. Charlie didn't answer and I got his voicemail. "I'm at Edward's house. Could you please call me back? Esme has invited you out to have dinner with us."
I really wasn't sure how I would get my father to agree to Emmett tagging along with him while he worked. My father was very stubborn and would think he could protect himself from anything. How wrong he was. My experience with James proved just how helpless a human was against a vampire.
Before long, Rosalie and Emmett strolled into the house alone. I looked up from the magazine I was using to distract myself and anxiously smiled at them. "Any luck?" I asked.
"Yes and I'm soaking wet." Rosalie never broke stride while she spoke and took the stairs two at a time, disappearing around a corner on the second level. A faint trail of muddy footsteps was left behind in her wake.
"She ruined her favorite boots, didn't she?" I couldn't help the frown that spread across my face. I knew Rosalie would blame me for the destruction of her footwear, even though Alice would have another pair arrive at the house for her in short order.
"Yeah, but don't worry about it." Emmett closed the distance between us and spread a blanket over the cushions before he sat down next to me on the couch. He picked up the remote control and started flipping rapidly through the channels. Being wet didn't bother him in the least.
"Did you guys find the vampire?" I asked Emmett.
"Mmm-hmm," he responded, concentrating on finding something on television to watch. The new vamp in town must not be so important or I figured Emmett would tell me everything. I decided I would just wait for Edward.
Knowing he would be absorbed with his search, I returned to my magazine and tried to read once more. We sat side by side in companionable silence. He finally chose an old football game on ESPN Classic. Within five minutes I fell fast asleep while sitting up on the couch. The sound of whistles and cheers held no interest for me and helped lull me to sleep.
"Bella," a light female voice giggled. "Bella, wake up. You're drooling all over poor Emmett's shoulder."
I awoke with a start, flinging myself up to a sitting position. Alice, Edward, and Jasper stood just inside the doorway. The expressions on Alice and Jasper's face showed great amusement, but Edwards was one of suspicion and disapproval.
"What's going on?" I asked frantically. But then I spied a large area of drool on Emmett's half dry shirt from where my head had landed while I was sleeping. "Why didn't you just push me over the other way, Emmett?"
"I didn't want to disturb you since you were so peaceful. And I was waiting to see if you snore so I'd have some more ammunition in my 'make fun of Bella' file."
Smartass. "If you hadn't put on stupid sports, I wouldn't have dozed off." I stood up and stretched my arms above my head, which pulled my shirt up and revealed my bare stomach.
I guess that was the final straw for Edward. "Bella, stop exposing yourself to everyone," he scolded as he appeared before me and tugged my shirt down.
"What the hell, Edward?" I took a few steps away from him and straightened my blouse. "What's up with the extreme possessiveness all of a sudden?"
Before he could answer, the room was cleared of all vampires not involved in this disagreement. All I felt was a brisk breeze as Emmett whizzed by me and out the back hallway. Alice and Jasper disappeared out the front door just as quickly, slamming the door behind them as they escaped.
"I'm sorry, my love," Edward quietly said as he closed the distance and embraced me lightly.
I tensed up as he held me, not wanting to forgive him this so quickly. Plus he was wet and cold. "What happened out there that would make you act like such a jerk?"
"We found out who was watching your father last night." He rubbed my arms lightly as he spoke, trying to get back in my good graces.
"And?" I countered. Why did he always have to be so cryptic? I just wanted some straight answers for once, especially since my father was involved. I tapped my foot impatiently, still trapped in his embrace.
"It was Mike Newton, Bella." He finally sensed my unease and released my body from his grasp. "He's a vampire now and not like our coven at all."
I sat down on the couch and placed my head in my hands, hundreds of thoughts racing through my mind at once. Was Mike a vampire when he tried to make me leave my home last week? Did he want me for his next meal, not just friendly company? Why was he watching my father?
I looked up and met Edward's concerned eyes with my own. "So you mean the girl in the woods was his handiwork?"
"He didn't say it in so many words, but I got a very clear picture of what happened straight from his head."
"Oh," I said and slouched further into the couch. "So what was he doing watching my father?"
"It was pretty strange, like he wanted to make sure her body was found and cared for."
Alice spoke loudly from the front porch. "Your dad's calling, Bella. Tell him we're having meatloaf for dinner and he'll be here in a heartbeat." The ringing of my cell phone sounded as soon as she was done talking. "Is it safe for us to come in yet?"
"I better take this," I said to Edward before I stood up and went to the front door. I opened the door and answered the phone at the same time, pausing only to let Alice and Jasper walk in before I left.
"Hi, dad," I answered.
"Hi, Bells" he said. "You called me?"
"Are you coming here for lunch? Esme has made a wonderful smelling meatloaf and it has your name all over it."
"I don't know. I am awfully busy." He paused for a second. "Did you say meatloaf? You never make that and it's one of my favorites."
"So I'll see you soon?" I asked eagerly.
"Just give me fifteen minutes."
I went back into the house, where Edward was speaking quickly with Alice and Jasper. "Meatloaf was definitely the magic word. He'll be here shortly."
Alice's face lit up. "I told you he couldn't say no to free processed meat." She was so serious when she spoke. I decided that was my cue to leave the room so I wouldn't have an entire discussion about what appeal the taste of meatloaf held.
"I'll just go help Esme in the kitchen," I said, wanting to pass the time assisting where I could before Charlie arrived.
After a few minutes of setting the table in the kitchen for two, Charlie and Carlisle walked in from the mud room together.
"Look who I found out front when I got home for my dinner break," Carlisle said cheerfully. He floated across the room towards Esme, planting a kiss on her cheek when he reached her. I hoped that Edward and I could have that kind of a relationship someday.
Esme wiped her hands on a blue kitchen towel and directed her attention towards my father. "Hello, Charlie. I'm so glad you accepted our invitation."
My dad smiled warmly back at her. "Thanks for inviting me. The food smells and looks delicious."
"Please sit down," Esme motioned for both of us to be seated. She served up heaping platefuls of meatloaf, mashed sweet potatoes, and fresh baked rolls.
Charlie placed a large morsel of food in his mouth and smiled as he chewed. "This is heaven," he said. "Why don't you make this for me, Bells?"
I laughed lightly. "I'm not a big fan of squishing up all that ground up meat by hand. It grosses me out."
He looked at me strangely before he chuckled quietly. "I guess that's as good a reason as any."
We ate in comfortable silence, just like we were at home. All that was missing was the newspaper or a baseball game playing loudly in the background. Esme and Carlisle had excused themselves, with promises of returning shortly.
I could feel his presence before I saw him enter the room. Edward's intense gaze was loving, but still very possessing. Something must have rattled him when they ran across Mike earlier today.
My father noticed the direction of my gaze and turned in his seat to look. He promptly turned back to his plate to finish his meal.
"Good afternoon, Chief Swan," Edward said to my father's back.
"Edward," Charlie replied curtly with a slightly annoyed tone.
"Bella, could you show your father to the library when you're done. We have some pressing matters to discuss with our parents." Edward waited for my nod of agreement and noiselessly left the room.
"Dad," I began as I cleared the plates away, knowing this would be my only shot to help clean up around here before Esme ran back in. She was really serious about taking care of everything in her house. But I felt guilty if I didn't chip in to help, so I gathered things up as quickly as I could.
Before I could finish, Esme swooped in and took all of the dishes out of my hands. "Thank you for helping clean up the dishes, but I've got it. You two should meet Carlisle and Edward in the library.
"Okay," I said while I waited by the door for my father.
"The meal was wonderful, Esme," Charlie said. "Thank you."
"It was my pleasure, Charlie. You are always welcome in our home."
When we arrived in the library, both Edward and Carlisle stood up as we entered. Carlisle motioned for my dad to sit in a maroon high backed chair, while I sat next to Edward on the loveseat.
"So," my father said uncomfortably. He wasn't used to not being in charge of the conversation.
"Since the Quileutes have taken it upon themselves to alert you to what we are," Carlisle began. He sat down in the chair opposite Charlie and looked him in the eye. "And conveniently only after accidentally revealing that they can change into wolves. There are some things you need to know and understand to minimize the fallout from such knowledge."
Charlie shifted uncomfortably in his chair while Edward and I sat passively holding hands side by side on the plush cushions. Every time I had been in the library, I scanned the massive floor to ceiling shelves of books. Looking up and down the tall cases, I hoped to one day be asked to peruse the titles. But I didn't want to do so uninvited with so many centuries old tomes in one room.
"One of the most important things to remember is to speak of vampires to no one," Carlisle said plainly.
Charlie quickly replied. "I like being the chief of police in this town. No one wants a crazy cop on the job. If I started talking openly about vampires and werewolves to anyone, they'd get a padded room ready for me at the hospital."
"Now do you see why I never told you about them?" I said to my father.
He smirked at me and asked Carlisle a question. "Why are you and the Quileutes enemies?
"I'm sure that's an over-exaggeration on their part, Charlie," Carlisle said. "We've had a treaty with them for many years now and we peacefully coexist, albeit in segregation. Until Edward met Bella, we had no reason for our paths to cross."
The pieces of the story clicked into place for my father. "There seems to be no ill will on your part, Carlisle. I've been asked to meet with the Quileute elders tonight and I'll pass along that much."
Carlisle nodded in agreement. "This brings us to the next point of business. Has the girl you found in the woods been identified yet?"
"Lauren Mallory's dental records were compared with the victim so we could spare the parents the horror of identifying her body. They didn't match so we still don't know who the girl is."
I blew out the breath I had been holding. "That's good, right dad? Maybe Lauren is still alive and just ran off like we thought Mike Newton did?"
My father leveled his serious gaze at me. "It's hope for Lauren's family, but someone died in the woods behind our house last night."
"Speaking of Mike Newton," Edward said, breaking his silence. "He was turned into a vampire recently. We believe he killed that girl in the woods."
My father stared at Edward in disbelief. "So there's a crazed vampire preying on women in town? And you believe it's a local teenager."
"Yes, sir. We met him in the woods earlier where the body was dumped."
"Forgive me, Edward. But even if Mike confessed to you that he killed that poor girl, it won't hold up in court. It would just be hearsay."
Edward's eyes darkened as he started to grow angry. "I know he did it, Charlie," he said through clenched teeth. "I saw him kill her."
Charlie raised an eyebrow and pursed his lips together. "Are you saying you witnessed Michael Newton murder a woman and leave her body in the woods?"
Edward and Carlisle looked back and forth from Charlie to each other. They must be debating whether my father should know about Edward's gift. No one spoke for what felt like an eternity, but was probably around thirty seconds.
I couldn't sit by and watch my father get increasingly frustrated with the lack of response from the two vampires in the room. "Edward was with me most of last night, remember? How could he have watched Mike do that?"
"If I recall correctly, Bella. Your boyfriend here dropped you off and was gone for at least an hour before he arrived at our house again. It could be seen as quite the coincidence that he leaves you alone and then shows back up at our house right before the girl's body is found by Jacob."
Edward and Carlisle didn't dispute my father's accusations. I threw my hands in the air. "For Christ's sakes, why don't you just tell him already? Or I will!"
Carlisle spoke first. "This is ludicrous, Charlie. My family does not kill humans. If we have ingested human blood lately, our eyes would be red in color."
My father's eyes darted quickly back and forth between their faces. "Bella, is the eye thing true?"
"Yes it is. I've witnessed it firsthand. They're telling you the truth. Edward had nothing to do with this murder."
"Then why did Edward say he witnessed it?"
Carlisle leaned forward in his chair. "Tell him, son. It's the easiest and quickest way to make him understand."
I grabbed Edward's hand and held on firmly, giving him what support I could. Who knows how Charlie would react to the news that my boyfriend could hear every little thing inside is head.
"I'm a telepath. When we met Mike, he remembered killing the girl and I could see the images from his mind."
Charlie scoffed. "Are you kidding me? First there's boys that turn into giant wolves, next there's vampires. Now you're going to add on some kind of psychic ESP crap too?"
"You just thought that you must be crazy for letting your daughter spend so much time with us wackos." A smug smile spread across Edward's face while he waited for Charlie to react.
"Son of a bitch! I don't have time to deal with all of this. There's still a missing girl I have to find." My father stood up and started to walk out of the room. He turned around in the doorway and faced Edward and me. "You didn't happen to pluck any info on Lauren Mallory out of vampy Mike's head while you were digging around in there, did you?"
"No, sir. The only other thing I found out was that he was watching you with great interest while you were in the woods guarding the crime scene last night. And he's much more interested in Bella than he is letting on."
My father turned to leave. "Wait, don't go. I'm afraid that Mike or whoever made him will hurt you if you get too close. Please let one of the Cullen's go with you while you're working."
A flash of shock and despair filled Charlie's face before he reclaimed his normal calm demeanor. "How the hell am I going to pull that off, Bells? I can take care of myself. You don't have to worry about me."
Carlisle stood up and sided with me. "She's right, Charlie. Humans are no match for one of us. When we are reborn as a vampire, we are very strong and volatile, easy to anger. It's very hard for a newborn to control his hunger. Emmett should go with you until we are sure that he poses no threat to you or your men."
A shrill tone peeled through the air, making me jump in fright. My dad's personal cell phone was ringing, but he ignored it while he mulled over my plea for protection and Carlisle's assurance that it was necessary. He finally answered on the fifth ring, right before the call went to voicemail.
While my father continued his conversation in the hallway outside of the library, I took the opportunity to speak with Edward. "Did he believe you about the whole mind reading thing?" I asked.
"Since I quoted what he was thinking almost verbatim, he didn't have much choice did he?"
I was glad that my father wasn't skeptical, but this knowledge must not be easy for him. Charlie walked back into the room, placing his phone in his shirt pocket as he approached us. "We won't be going to the reservation tonight. Billy called and said that it's not safe right now. They have a vampire on their territory at the moment."
My stomach clenched. "They don't think it's one of the Cullen's, do they?"
"I assured him that the entire family was here with me at the moment, so they have a stranger on their land."
Carlisle strode towards the door. "We will check out what we can from our territory. It's probably best if Edward stays with you until this is resolved."
We walked through the house, saying our goodbyes as we made our way to the front door.
Charlie unlocked the doors of his police car. "You can both ride in the cruiser. Bella, you're in front."
"I can't sit in the back with Edward?" I asked, but my father was already in the car and turning his key in the ignition. The engine roared to life as Edward got in the back seat, wire mesh now separating me from the love of my life. I sighed and sat down in the passenger seat, buckling myself in for the short trip home.
When we arrived in our dark driveway, I opened Edward's door for him and started for the house. Charlie had a five foot head start, his keys in hand ready to unlock the door. The motion sensor flood light that normal clicked on when someone entered the driveway remained dark.
"I think the bulb burned out, dad," I called. I took a few more steps before catching the toe of my shoe on a rather large rock in the gravel. Edward reached out to catch me as I fell, but a different cold hand gripped my arm and hauled me upright.
I peered through the dark to discern who caught me and my breath hitched as I gasped. "Mike, what are you doing here?" He didn't let go of my arm when Edward lunged for him. I was flung along the gravel as the vampires grappled with each other.
"Don't hurt him," I screamed. I knew Mike would be much stronger than Edward since he was a newborn and drank human blood.
Charlie heard my screams and ran from the house with his gun drawn. Neither man stopped wrestling violently with each other. Deep scars formed in our yard where powerful legs dug in to gain leverage.
"Bella, back up right now," he said as he came closer, his gun aimed at my boyfriend and my former classmate.
"You can't shoot them. It won't do any good," I explained breathlessly.
He didn't listen and fired off a round towards the two figures brawling at lightning speed. The bullet ricocheted off of Mike's bicep and embedded itself in the ground a foot away from me.
"I told you not to shoot!" I screamed. "You nearly shot me!"
But Charlie wasn't listening to me; he was too busy talking to himself. "What the hell are these guys made of?"
The gunshot had created enough of a diversion so Edward could put Mike in a headlock. "Are you okay, Bella," he asked anxiously while he tightened his grip on the newborn's neck.
"I'm fine," I answered quickly.
My father was still muttering to himself while Edward grilled Mike. "I would have let you live if you would have stayed away from her. We even would have helped you learn a new way of life. But you didn't listen, did you?"
Mike struggled to loosen Edward's grip, but he couldn't gain an advantage. A loud cracking noise sounded across the yard as Edward continued to squeeze the life out of Mike.
With one last ditch effort, Mike gripped Edward's forearms tightly with each hand. Suddenly, a blinding red light blasted out from each of Mike's palms and they both fell to the ground.
"Edward!" I screamed, running towards his body resting prone on the ground. Mike's neck was riddled with tiny cracks that were knitting themselves closed as I watched.
"Don't leave me," I cried into his chest. "Dad, you have to call Carlisle. He'll know what to do."
My father searched on the ground for Edward's cell phone that had been flung out of his coat during the fight.
"Come back," I sobbed into my hands. "Don't die, Edward. I need you."
I cried on Edward's chest, willing him to sit up and embrace me. But instead I was viciously ripped from his body by a cold, cruel hand gripping my arm. I tried to fight back, but I was thrown over Mike's shoulder so fast that my father couldn't even react. It took a few short seconds for Mike to dart into the woods carrying me like a fragile sack of potatoes.
"Daddy!" I cried as my house disappeared from my view. The ride was so bumpy and jarring over Mike's shoulder. The world went black. I welcomed the dark abyss with Edward as my final thought.