Author's Note: Well, here's the chapter that you've all been waiting for :) haha.
It was a Friday so I didn't have to worry about waking up early to prepare for school the next day. Thank goodness. Riley had told me to come around 9 P.M. but because I was so anxious, I came ten minutes earlier. As I sat in my parked car, I felt extremely excited yet extremely scared. I hadn't known that feeling like this was even possible until I was put into the current situation.
Should I even be here? Jacob said that if I ever got contacted by Riley, I should tell him. . . But Riley made me promise not to tell anyone.
What was I thinking? Jacob and I were technically not together anymore. I didn't have to tell him anything because it didn't matter. Our relationship had gone from strong to broken and it was both of our faults that it had become this way. It was his fault for hiding the truth from me and it was my fault for not being so understanding and running away. I needed time though. I was shocked that being with Jacob was supposed to mean so much more than just a girlfriend and boyfriend relationship. I was only in eleventh grade and I didn't know if having serious feelings about one guy was something that I could handle. Of course I never had thoughts of breaking up with Jacob previously because he and I were pretty compatible, but finding out that he had done something called 'imprinting' on me made me keep changing my mind.
To meet my brother out at night without letting my mom know, I told her that I was going to buy some snacks at the local grocery store. I didn't want to use my best friends to lie to her anymore. They had already helped me so much and I hadn't even done anything to repay them. We were friends and we were supposed to provide help for each other, but I felt as if I had crossed the line that limited favors between friends.
I recently began noticing the changes that I had experienced and I was scared about what my life had become. I was an only child now and it made me feel lonely whenever I thought about it. Over the past few weeks, I had spent so much time in La Push and with Jacob that I barely got the chance to speak with Kendall and Lena. To think of it, without those two, I was treated like a loner at Forks High. I realized that I wasn't living life the way I wanted to or used to do. What happened?
I glanced at the clock in my car and it showed that it was 8:53. I released a long sigh after making my decision. I was going to go a bit early. I grabbed my phone and car keys before getting out of my vehicle. I made sure that my car was locked, two times. Forks wasn't a bad place, but I didn't know what could happen in this small town at night. I then headed towards the area behind Carson's Sports Shop. I just hoped that meeting Riley wouldn't take too long. After all, my mom was already worried about me leaving at night and I was sure that she was waiting for me to come home.
As I got closer to my destination, it seemed to grow darker. I looked around to observe the setting. There weren't any lights behind the building, but I could still see. The only reason why was because the lights glowing in front of the businesses were slightly illuminating the gloom surrounding the region.
Okay. So there was definitely a reason why Riley wanted me to come alone and meet him behind a building where no one could see us. . . In the dark. . . Either he wanted to keep his identity safe from the public or he wanted to kill me and drain all of my blood like Edward said a newborn vampire would. I just couldn't figure out which one it was although I obviously didn't want to be murdered by my own brother. Just the thought of it gave me chills.
I knew deep down that there was a possibility that something big could go wrong tonight, but I couldn't help but persuade myself that everything was going to be alright. My brother wouldn't hurt me. How would he and how could he?
It was so quiet that I could hear the little details of different noises coming from all directions. I heard the sounds of wind blowing, plastic bags rolling around, and light objects tumbling into each other.
The end of December was already approaching, but it hadn't snowed much and it made me wonder if we weren't going to have a White Christmas this year. Receiving no snow didn't mean that it wasn't cold though. It was freezing. Standing in the same spot for a whole minute made me start shivering like a crazy person. When another minute passed, I gave up. I forced my hands into the pockets of my jacket and began jumping up and down in an attempt to make myself feel warm (if that was even possible). I probably looked like a fool, but I didn't care. It was so damn cold! Besides, who was going to see me?
I wanted to check my phone because it seemed as if time was passing too slowly, but I didn't even want to pull my bare hands out into the low temperature to grab the device. My face was practically frozen and I was barely able to move it.
A big thump was heard from behind me and I flinched before whirling around in surprise. There was a figure hidden in the shadows. I immediately reacted by raising my head up towards the sky. I hadn't heard any footsteps, which meant that the person had leaped from the top of the building. Many thoughts suddenly ran through my head. The only type of person who would be able to land onto the ground safely and perfectly without dying from that long height was an immortal being. . .
I held my breath as I waited patiently for the stranger to step into the view of light. When they finally did, I was both relieved and afraid. I didn't think I would be able to utter out a single sound because like I said, my face was almost frozen, but somehow I was able to speak.
"Riley," I called out his name and it was unfamiliar. I hadn't seen him for what felt like more than a thousand years. He was a stranger to me especially with his new physical appearance.
I saw him smirk playfully in response. He looked proud to show me his new characteristics. He also seemed pleased to know that he had scared me. Well, that wasn't normal at all. It was wicked. Was he still the same Riley Biers that I knew or had he become corrupted?
"Hey sis," he answered like it was no big deal to see me. I mean after all, the whole town thought that he was missing or dead. No big deal.
I was lying. Oh yes, it was totally a big deal!
I was one hundred percent sure that the male who stood in front of me was my brother, but it was almost hard to believe. Riley's voice hadn't always been so. . . faultless, had it? Hearing him saying two simple words was long enough for me to tell that it was smooth and velvety. It had to be a vampire trait. The next trait that was hard to miss was the bright red orbs that stared back at me with curiosity.
"Y-your e-eyes," I spluttered. It was my second time seeing real red eyes in my whole life and they scared me. "N-never mind. I-I guess I expected them to be that way. I mean, you're a vampire now. . ."
"You weren't even supposed to know that I was a vampire, but Diego had to go and ruin that." He rolled his eyes as he spoke.
"I would've figured out anyway."
He crinkled his nose in disgust. "Oh, right. You would have because of your foolish werewolf friends."
"Foolish?" I asked.
"And smelly."
I suddenly felt defensive. "They're not foolish. You don't know them so don't call them that!"
"Whatever," Riley said with a careless shrug. "The smelly part is true though. They have the stench of a dirty wet dog."
"That's because you're a vampire and that's what they smell like to you," I pointed out the obvious fact just in case he forgot that what he smelled wasn't the same for everyone.
"True," he agreed.
I watched as he suddenly sniffed the air. His eyes closed and he looked focused as if he was trying to savor a sweet smell. From my experience with Diego, I knew what it was that Riley thought smelled so satisfying.
My blood.
I was frightened of course, but we were still standing with a small distance separating us and this was making me feel a little more relaxed. . . Not that I expected that it would help in any sort of way if my brother was randomly going to attack me.
"Why didn't you come anyway? You sent your vampire friend instead. Diego."
"I wasn't ready to see you, or Mom," he mumbled for a short moment.
"By the way, I-I brought you something," I revealed with another stutter. Whenever Riley's crimson eyes looked directly at me, I felt intimidated. It was something about the color. It was just so freaky. His brown eyes that we both owned when he was a human had been so warm, now I couldn't tell if his true self was even there. His pale face, marble skin, red eyes, and bold white teeth were completely different from just two months ago. The only things that stayed the same seemed to be his height and his dark blond hair.
I quickly searched through my pockets and pulled out my brother's locket that he had accidentally dropped at Bella's house. As I handed it to him, I didn't question him about why he had been at her place. I wanted to, but I was confused. Whose side was I even supposed to be on? Wasn't Riley potentially the bad guy?
"Thanks," he said grabbing it and stuffing the item into his own pocket. "I didn't even know that I lost it."
I shook my head at him. "You should be more careful. That's important to you, isn't it? Or I guess it used to be."
He nodded. "It still is."
I wasn't sure if I believed him.
"So are you planning on sticking around with those wolves of yours?" he asked.
"Yeah, maybe. I don't know," I said trying to shrug the question off. Talking about it would just remind me of Jacob and I didn't want that. Not now anyway.
He suddenly blurred forward and the two of us only stood inches away. His action almost scared the crap out of me. Looking at me with seriousness, he firmly grasped my arms. "You can't be associated with them!"
"Why not?" I tried shaking his hand off, but his hold was too hard to break. His strength was like iron. "They're my friends."
"I don't care. If you still consider me your brother, you won't see them ever again. Okay?"
"What? Why did you even ask me the question if you were only taking one answer?" I asked and he finally let go causing me to stagger back a few steps from the sudden release.
"Because I thought you would be smart enough to pick the right one," he said with annoyance.
"Geesh, Riley. You've changed," I told him bitterly commenting on the unfriendly way he spoke towards me.
He was about to say something back, but stopped himself. Instead, he clenched his teeth in anger.
"What about you?" I continued my thoughts. "Do you still consider me as your sister?"
He looked me straight in the eyes and this made me shiver with nervous feelings. I had briefly forgotten about the winter temperature because of my brother's arrival, but now I felt it again. His eyes were creepy to look at even though I had been staring at them for most of the time we were speaking. I didn't know if I would ever get used to seeing them.
Riley answered my question. "Of course I still consider you as my sister." His expression changed into a softer look. "That's why I called you over here." In less than a second, his lips curved into another smirk and I momentarily forgot about what he had just told me. How did he do that? It was like he was acting or something as he switched back and forth from different emotions. "I have something planned for you tonight."
"A plan for tonight?" I asked.
Riley nodded with a smile and he looked excited. He closed his eyes again and stood without moving a single centimeter. This time he wasn't sniffing the air. Well, he sort of was, but he was concentrating more on listening for something. After about ten seconds, he reopened his eyes. "She's coming."
My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Who's coming?"
He didn't have time to reply to me because another figure jumped from the building beside us and landed on the ground with ease.
"So she's here," I heard a melodic voice of a female saying from the darkness.
It was a voice that I couldn't recognize.
"Hello Victoria," my brother welcomed the newcomer.
Victoria? I searched through my head trying to remember where I had heard the name from. Then it came to me. She was the vampire who was trying to get her revenge on Bella. She was the villain!
Uh oh. . .
"Riley," she said his name in return, but she barely acknowledged him as she walked towards me. She smiled at me with interest, but the look on her face still appeared evil. Her sugary looks didn't fool me. Apparently they were able to fool my brother. Why did he have to be so gullible?
"Y-you're Victoria?" I asked. Obviously she was, but I still felt the need to ask her. I just couldn't believe the reality I was in.
"Yes, I am Victoria."
"She's the one who turned me," Riley explained.
"And you're happy about it?" I asked in disbelief. From what I could see, my brother seemed to be attracted to Victoria. He seemed to care about her. Had she manipulated him into being her little slave? I wondered if it had to do with her being his maker.
"Yeah, I'm happy."
"But Riley-"
"No, you don't understand. Because of her, I feel powerful now. You see, she put me in charge."
"In charge of what?" I asked feeling horrified by being surrounded by two vampires. I wanted to get out of here as soon as possible. The only reason why I had come was to see my brother. I missed him. But I hadn't thought that he would have Victoria come too. She was someone that the Cullens were desperately trying to hunt down, yet she was standing right here before my own two eyes. She was dangerous and I didn't want to be anywhere near her.
"She put me in charge of her newborn army that she's creating," Riley answered.
"Yes, and you my dear will be my newest addition," Victoria added as she placed her fingers near my face, stroking it as she admired me like I was her prospect.
Realization quickly hit me. "No. No! I don't want to be turned." I shook my head frantically.
"You don't want to be with your brother? He's part of your family," she replied with a face showing fake sadness.
"I-I don't want to be a vampire!" I couldn't help, but think of Jacob as I yelled these words. He despised vampires. I didn't want to become something that he hated. I was still unsure of my feelings for him, but I couldn't live with being what he detested. It would ruin me emotionally and it would do the same to him.
I knew I had to try something to survive. I wasn't going to back down without a fight. That wouldn't be me. Without showing any warning, I took off, running with all of the strength I could manage. I hadn't actually realized that running away from a vampire was a stupid thing to do until I was pulled and thrown against the brick wall. As I landed onto the cold ground, I felt immense pain on my back. It was going to leave bruises for sure. I felt more pain developing, but on my hands. I looked down to see blood leaking from the cuts on my skin. When I fell, I had reacted by letting my hands drop onto the hard surface of the ground, but this was a bad thing to do. Someone had left a shattered bottle of alcohol there. The pieces of glass pierced through my skin from the strong impact.
I started feeling queasy as I saw the warm red liquid slowly dripping off my fingers.
"Oh dear. This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't run away," Victoria said with a frown.
My eyes wandered from hers to my brother's. Riley had to stop her. He had to.
I was hopeless when I saw his eyes transferring into a different color: black. I knew that this meant a vampire was getting thirsty for blood.
Uh oh.
"Hm. I guess I'll let you have a little taste," Victoria said with a malicious look.
"Riley, please don't. It's me, your sister," I tried getting my brother to realize what he was about to do. However, the dark cold look in his eyes showed me that it was already too late.
Victoria suddenly lurched forward and grabbed the back of my head with one of her hands to keep me from trying to escape. "Go ahead Riley. Have a drink."
No. No. No. This was wrong. My brother was going to drink my freakin' blood! Why the hell was this happening to me? And what about the venom? If he bit me, it would run through my system and begin the transformation immediately. I didn't want that to happen. I didn't. I wanted to live. I wanted to know what it was like to get old. I wanted to know what it was like to get sick. I wanted to feel and think that it was cold or hot. Most importantly, I wanted to be able to feel Jacob's skin and think that it was warm, and not the feeling of fire. I wanted to stay human.
Author's Note: Happy New Year! Sorry I didn't update faster! I had a busy few weeks T_T I've been practicing writing lately though and so I hope that there's some improvement in this new chapter. If not, I need to keep practicing some more! haha.
I don't know what your reactions will be like towards Riley, but I hope you enjoyed reading. I feel like after being with Victoria and becoming a vampire, he wouldn't necessarily be the same brother as before. I think the portrayal of him was alright? I think... I really hope so...
Thanks for reading and I'll try to be back soon.
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Please leave more REVIEWS! :D They make my day~
Cassie-D1: Haha a lot of your questions are inferring to what might happen in the future. He probably does still care about his family, but Victoria is very manipulative. Once again, thanks for reviewing! I really appreciate your interest in this story :)
Wikked: I didn't want to make it seem like Cecelia was already willing to get back together with Jacob in the previous chapter, but I guess the way I wrote it made it seem like that T_T I hope this new chapter sort of explained that it won't necessarily happen like that. I just wanted to make sure that I revealed that she still does care about him. Thank you for the comment though because it helped me focus on those details as I wrote this :) Please keep reviewing~
NicoleR85: Thank you so much! :) I appreciate it a lot~
Layla347 : Thank you for the review!~~
musicluver246: Thanks for the review!~~
Guest: Sorry for not updating fast enough~ It's hard balancing my college life since I'm new to it. I hope I'll be able to manage my time better soon :) Thank you for the interest in my story!
maggie: I feel so happy to know that you like this story! I don't know how I got the idea to give Riley a little sister and have her romantically involved with Jacob in a fanfic, but I'm glad I did haha. Thank you!
-PinkStar46 (Jessica)