Ahhh, you guys are amazing. So many reviews! It's incredible haha.

Anyways, this story is nearly over (so sad!) but enjoy this chapter!


His eyes were bright red. They eerily glowed in the darkened plane. What was left of him (two snarled legs, a battered torso, a left arm, and some of his face) was paler than any vampire I'd ever seen. His hair was dark, it reminded me of those old Mafia criminals. Although he was not in good shape, I was still terrified. With wild eyes I evaluated what I could see of my poor, sweet Edward.

All of his body seemed intact. My heart swelled when I noticed a deep gash on the back of his head that snaked down to his neck. Hearing a malevolent laugh, I looked up to see the hideous vampire looking me up and down. He was right in front of Edward, blocking me from getting anywhere near him. Standing in the small aisle, I felt so vulnerable.

Do something, Bella! My mind screamed at me. The other half of my brain was in utter despair. Edward is hurt. You are going to die, too.

"You, my lady, are very hard to track down. Would you like to know who I am?" He spat, and I watched in horror as he kicked Edward hard in the torso. A scream escaped from my mouth, but I quickly threw my hands over to muffle it. If the innocent passengers on the plane looked up right now and witnessed this, they would have to be killed. Not that I doubted he would kill them regardless.

"Does the name Riley ring a bell?" Shock rippled through my body. Riley was with Victoria when she tried to kill me. He was one of her trusted newborns.

Reaching his ghastly hand over to my face, I made myself be brave. He might kill me, but he would not get the satisfaction of scaring me. His hand was repulsive, it was missing two fingers and cut halfway off at the wrist. This didn't stop him from running his hand over my cheek. Adrenaline was coursing through my veins, and I looked over at Edward's body. Something in me caused me to strike the hideous vampire's arm, sending shooting pain up my arm. Of course, stupid Bella. He was a freaking vampire! His arm was practically made of stone!

"Oh Bella. You do not know the horrors you caused us newborns. Victoria left us to die, and I would have if your horrible family had found me." An ugly grin began to spread across his mangled face. "But no, I escaped. Your little Edward can read minds. But I can hide myself. Yes, my little power is making myself invisible! Not even his mind can find me when I try hard enough!" He disappeared for a second, and then reappeared closer to me. "Coming across you in the woods that night gave my life meaning! Riley was my cousin, and you all killed him! All of us newborns! Now you will die!" He growled.

Knocking me into a seat, I felt my whole body cringe. Gripping the locket around my neck, I braced myself for whatever he was going to do to me. His arm smashed down on my right shoulder, causing a hideous snap. Just as he was about to crash down on me again, he was suddenly thrown onto the ground. Edward's strong arms ripped his head off with a revolting tearing noise. Tears flowed out of my eyes as I suddenly realized that the only thing I cared about was okay. He was going to be fine!

"Bella, find a lighter!" Edward fiercely whispered, dismantling the rest of his body and gathering all of the discarded pieces together.

Terror filled me as I realized he could easily piece himself together in time. We needed to burn him. Frantically looking around the plane, my eyes rested on the two small children. They were both oblivious to what was happening, laughing and watching the movie their grandma had been duped into seeing. Racing up to the kids, I calmly asked them if their grandparents smoked. Nodding his head eagerly, the little boy pointed over to his sleeping grandfather.

"Poppa does!" He screeched, bouncing up in his seat.

"Don't get him in trouble!" The other child insisted, her big eyes wide. My heart went out to these innocent little children. Their matching green eyes were blazing with curiosity.

"No, I just wanted to use his, um, lighter. I forgot mine. Can you get his for me so I could borrow it? Please don't wake him up," I nervously asked, practically begging. Thank goodness the engine was so loud, or else they might have heard my frantic heart beating.

Reaching up into his grandfather's pocket and giggling madly, the little boy retrieved a florescent yellow lighter. Handing it to me, he made me promise that I wouldn't rat him out.

Turning around to head back to Edward, my stomach dropped as I realized he was nowhere to be seen. The fat woman in the back row was awake, her chubby fingers attempting to crochet a long scarf. Looking up at me and catching the desperation in my eyes, she shrugged her head back.

"He's in the bathroom, honey." Her voice croaked. Silently rejoicing that she didn't see anything, I made my way towards the bathroom door. Knocking lightly, Edward slowly opened the door a crack. Easing my way in, I suddenly felt violently ill. All color left my face as I glanced down and saw little writhing pieces of flesh in a pile. Wrapped up in bits of toilet paper, this whole scene seemed sinister to me.

"Give it here, love." Edward urgently whispered, as I passed him the lighter. The white pieces went up in smoke, each one shaking violently before turning to dust. This whole process took about fifteen minutes, each time Edward flushing the burned remains down the toilet. "Please breath, Bella. We got him, it's going to be fine." He gave me a small smile, throwing the last bits of the vampire's destroyed body out.

"Oh, Edward! Are you okay?" I cried, falling into his arms. Before burying my face into his shirt, I looked at his neck where the long scar had been. It was nearly faded already. Uncontrolled sobs wracked my body as I remembered just how close we were to dying. My nose was so stuffed that breathing became difficult.

"There's no reason to be scared anymore. You know I'll always protect you, just relax sweetheart. I'm here, sweet Bella." He murmured, his body also shaking a bit. Trying to compose myself, I leaned back out of his embrace. His golden eyes stared intently into mine, his mouth attempting a weak smile.

"I'm so in love with you, Edward. I need to be with you forever. I can't be this fragile human anymore."

"I know. Let's get off this plane, and we'll talk about it. I promise, my love." He quietly said, running the water from the small sink right behind us. Grabbing some paper towels, I began mopping up the floor. Edward went to work trying to get rid of the burning smell, obviously glad he had kept it at a bare minimum.

As we both made our way out of the bathroom, I didn't even care how it looked. Edward's hand on the small of my back felt so good on my aching body. Leading us to a new pair of seats, he took me into his embrace again. His arm wrapped tightly around my shoulders, and I winced automatically. His eyes grew large, and he gently examined my shoulder.

"It-it's broken!" He exclaimed in surprise. "You didn't say anything! Can you even feel it?!' He angrily stared at the bruised spots all up and down my arm, his mouth in a fierce scowl.

"I can feel it now…" I quietly answered, wishing he hadn't noticed. Kissing it softly, he rested his arm gently across the dull pain. Exhaustion overcame me, and it was a bit brighter in the plane when my eyes opened again.

"We're landing in fifteen minutes. Would you like me to return the lighter, or would you rather do it?" Edward's soft breath smelled so good. Reluctantly, I agreed to return it.

I felt his watchful eyes on me the entire time. Walking unsteadily back up to the front of the little plane, I handed the lighter back to the little boy. He gave me a huge toothy smile as he slid it back into his oblivious grandfather's coat pocket. Thanking him again, I returned to Edward. He had his phone open, quickly texting.

"Carlisle sent a car, would you mind the long drive to Washington? I figured you would be sick of flying by now. We'll leave from Seattle to-"

"Anything is fine, Edward," I yawned, stretching awkwardly. My shoulder ached, and tears sprang into my eyes. I needed a good shower and a long nap. A hairbrush wouldn't hurt, either.

Edward's eyes softened. "You know, I've never been prouder of you. Bruised and broken, you're still miraculously strong, my Bella."

"Attention, folks! We're about to land, please secure your seatbelts." The sun was starting to peak through the clouds in pinks and purples.

Holding tightly onto Edward's hand, I felt my heart flutter. We were safe. Once again, he had taken care of me.

Getting off the plane, I heard Edward chuckle.

"What?" I asked, suddenly a bit self conscious. How awful did I look?

"Those children. Listen."

The kids were eagerly bouncing down the terminal hallway, yanking on their elderly grandparents. The old man looked like he was still half asleep.

"And the pretty girl, she was smoking! She doesn't even look like a smoker like Poppa!" The young girl excitedly squealed. "And then we saw them come out of the bathroom, together!"


One more chapter coming, more for explanation and a better ending. Thanks so much for reading!