I love you, I love you, I love you! My reviewers are the BEST! Twelve of you reviewed, and I loved reading all the guesses for the Traitor. I've definitely gotten it all figured out, and I hope it ends up as a surprise, at least the motive for it. I did see the name of the person on the Phone Traitor pop up, but I didn't say to even the people who guessed it if they were right! And I'm noticing that everyone loves Aaron. If only you all knew the guy he was actually based off of… you'd find him more annoying than amusing most of the time, but he's a good person. Always there to make you laugh.

Anyways! This chapter is the race, which I hope you all enjoy. I alone am responsible for any and all errors when it comes to cars, racing, and things mechanical, because I have yet to even own my own vehicle. I don't even own a bike! Sad, I know. But I hope you enjoy yourselves.

I pulled up in front of the house, and found my car immediately surrounded by five very excited and jealous vampires.

"Bella! It's no fair that you have all these awesome cars! Since you won't be using the Maserati, can I borrow it?" Emmett asked.

I laughed once loudly. "No."

He muttered something about stubborn car-lovers and being unfair. I rolled my eyes.

Alice was jumping up and down. "I can't wait, I can't wait!" she squealed. I laughed at her enthusiasm; it was contagious.

Rosalie was giving my car a once over. "Wow, Bells. This is amazing… how fast does it go?"

I snorted. "Like I'd tell you that, Rosalie."

"I can make it faster," she said slyly.

I raised a brow, intrigued. "Before, or after the race?"

She mimicked my expression. "Am I going to be able to borrow your cars?"

I slowly grinned. "It's possible that a negotiation could be reached."

"Then let the negotiations begin."

Jasper was smiling from where he stood. "So, Bella. How are we going to do this?" he asked.

I frowned, thinking it over. "Are Esme and Carlisle participating?"

"No," Edward said softly. "They want to referee."

I nodded. "And how many cars do you guys have for this?"

Rosalie ticked them off on her fingers. "There's the Alpina B7, Edward's Vanquish… um, I suppose we could use the Mercedes, too."

I rolled my eyes. "That means we have to team up." I muttered, mainly to myself.

Alice jumped forward and grabbed my wrist possessively. "I want to be with Bella!" she chirped. Then looked apologetically at Jasper. "Sorry, Jazzie, but Bella has an amazing car."

He laughed. "No problem Alice. I'll team up with Edward."

Rosalie sighed. "But that means I'm with Emmett!" she whined.

Emmett pouted. "What's wrong with me, babe?"

She gave him a pointed look. "You get too competitive."

"I do not!" he denied. Everyone stared at him and he shifted slightly. "Well, I might be a little competitive, but still!"

With a sigh, I continued. "The other day, after I mentioned the race, I went looking for a place to have it at. It's about an hour away, really secluded. Mainly dirt roads… but it should work."

They all agreed, and Rosalie and I headed to the garage, discussing our negotiations. We came to the agreement that she would increase the speed of my Lexus in time for tomorrow, and I'd let her drive the Maserati and Lexus any time as long as she asked and I didn't need them for anything. I also promised to tell her where I got the information on my cars from one day.

About midday on Sunday, we were ready to get racing. Esme and Carlisle were on the sidelines, ready to watch and keep track of how many laps everyone finished. I sat on the hood of my Lexus with Alice. Rosalie and Emmett were a distance away with the BMW Alpina B7, Edward and Jasper about the same distance in the other direction with the Aston Martin V12 Vanquish. It had been decided that as of the moment we reached our temporary track, no one was allowed to use their powers.

"Hey, Alice?" I said. "Remind me of the rules again?"

She sighed. "No powers, what so ever. Each member of the team has to drive an equal number of laps. Altogether, there are twelve, so each person has to drive six. You can not bring someone else in for you. You can not change cars." She looked at me. "I think that's it."

I grinned. "Perfect."

Her eyebrows rose. "Why? What are you thinking, Bella?"

I looked at her, wide-eyed and innocent. "Whatever are you talking about, Alice?"

She gave me an 'you-don't-fool-me' look and hopped down to the ground, placing her hands on her tiny hips. "Isabella Marie Swan, you have a plan," she began sternly, "and I want to know it!" she finished excitedly.

I snickered, and gestured her closer. "No one said we couldn't… well, pretty much there's no rule that says no cheating." I muttered, barely moving my lips so that none of the others would notice I'd picked up on this little detail. It was the kind of detail that you pick up on after hanging around the guys in the Volturi guard (mainly Aaron and Alec) for three years, and learned to take advantage of it.

Alice's brow furrowed. "I thought that's a given?"

I snorted. "Alice, honey. If no one says it in the rules, then it's not a rule, is it? And no one said common unwritten rules applied."

She grinned slowly. "Well. I'll go take care of Jaz and Edward, while you can take are of Emmett and Rosalie."

I saluted her. "Will do. Once you get back. We don't want to leave the car unprotected, do we?"

She giggled, and we worked out our plan of action before she skipped off. A few minutes later, I saw Edward wandering away from his car, shaking his head. I waved to him, and he came over.

"What did Alice want with Jasper?" I asked.

He looked at me. "She didn't tell you?" he asked, leaning against the hood

I shook my head. "All she said was that it was urgent, and important for the race."

He snorted, shaking his head again. "I think she wanted a good luck… kiss."

I laughed loudly. "Oh. Well, yes, that must be important for our winning." I said.

Edward gave me a look. "Who says you're going to win?"

I rolled my eyes. "Because I always win these things. I think I may have lost once, but it was debatable. Actually, I think it's still a heated argument over in Volterra."

"…Debatable?"

I looked away, actually a little embarrassed. "Yes, well…" I said uncomfortably. "See, I raced Jane once, after we had a… disagreement. We both crashed over the finish line, but everyone was afraid to say Jane lost, or that I lost, so…" I shrugged. "I say I won, Jane says she did. I have yet to find someone who tells the actual truth." I peered at him. "You might be able to figure it out, if you'd care to risk Jane's wrath."

He laughed. "What makes you so sure that it'll be her that lost?"

I shrugged. "Well, see, I've never lost, unless you want to count that time, and besides." I smirked. "She'd be docile compared to me."

Alice came skipping over to us, smiling hugely. I watched as a few moments later, Jasper appeared behind her, hair windblown, looking a bit bewildered. She stopped in front of us. "Okay. We'll win now." she said.

Edward rolled his eyes and shrugged off from the car, heading back to Jasper.

"Did it work?" I asked her quietly.

She nodded. "I loosened the wire you showed me just like you said."

I smiled. "Great. Now to try to trick Rosalie and Emmett."

I hopped down and slowly headed over to them.

"Hey, Rose!" I called when I was a short distance away. She looked up from under the hood. "Alice wants to ask you something, about outfits or whatever." I scrunched my face in distaste.

Rosalie straightened, as Emmett said, "Bella! Ready to lose?"

I snorted as Rosalie walked off, shaking her head sadly as she paused by her husband before continuing past him.

"Emmett, it's never good to be cocky.

His brow scrunched in confusion. "What about you? You're always cocky."

I shook my head. "No, Emmett, I'm not cocky. I'm assured in my abilities. I know I'll win, because I always do."

He snorted, rolling his eyes, and I smirked. "Well, Emmett, let's test your intelligence, and then we can see who knows what they're talking about here." I paused. "Ready?"

"Yeah, sure. Bring it."

I smirked. "Say silk three times."

"Silk, silk, silk." he said, confused.

"What do cows drink?"

"Milk."

I laughed. "Why don't you go ask Carlisle the same thing, and see what he says. I promise you it'll be different."

With a frown, muttering the whole thing over to himself, Emmett walked to where Carlisle and Esme stood. Moving swiftly, I taped a sharp knife just above the tire, where it would slowly rip and tear, but be invisible to the outside eye. Then, glancing around to make sure no one saw, I headed back to where Alice and Rosalie were now dressed in racing outfits. I raised a brow at them.

"Playing dress-up?" I asked.

Rosalie smirked. "You're just a party-pooper."

I rolled my eyes. "If Emmett asks you a question about silk and cows, just know that he got it completely wrong."

Alice laughed. "He said milk, didn't he?"

I snorted. "Duh. I sent him to ask Carlisle, because we all know he wouldn't have believed me if I told him it was water."

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "I better go comfort him." With a wave, she went back to her vehicle. Alice and I grinned at each other.

Soon after we were lining up at the appointed starting line.

"Alright!" Esme said, not having to raise her voice with our superb hearing. "Start your engines."

I gunned mine, keeping my foot on the break, grinning out the window at Emmett, who was to my left, with Rosalie driving; Edward and Jasper were to the right of my car, so Alice was grinning at her husband, their driver. Alice was going to drive the last middle fourth through ninth laps, while I drove now, then at the end. I'd get us a lead, hopefully, then take over at the end, where I always had the most fun.

"Go!" Esme said, just as Carlisle dropped a bright green cloth from up ahead. I released my hold on the break, and peeled ahead of them. Jasper and Rosalie quickly caught up, though, and hung to the back of my car. We made it to the first turn, and Rose slid under me to the inside, passing me up by half a car length.

"Go, Bella, go, go, go!" Alice screamed, gripping the handle bar above her door tightly and pointing out the windshield.

"Shut up, Alice! I know what I'm doing!" I was now competing against Jasper to stay in second. At the second turn, I gained a slight lead, then gently bumped against the left front of their car. It loosened a bit, and I pulled ahead to catch the drag behind Rosalie. I kept it up until the third turn, then slid under her and passed her. Alice waved cheerfully out the window at them as we pulled ahead. By turn four, we had a lead of a few car lengths.

It was in the ending straightaway of the second lap that Jasper's and Edward's car broke down, steam coming out from under the hood. Alice and I laughed loudly, giving a quick high five. We had gotten halfway around the "track" when we heard their car start up again. I screeched to a stop as I finished that third lap, opened the door, slid across the hood, and got into Alice's seat; she'd climbed across the middle of the seats. As soon as I closed the door, she was pulling away again; Rosalie and Emmett were right there with us, and Jasper must have really been pushing the Vanquish, because they were catching up pretty fast.

It was the third turn of the sixth lap when somehow, Rosalie was no longer driving, Emmett was. He punched down on the gas pedal, and I watched as the pulled ahead of us on the outside of the turn, bumping our car on the way.

"Hey!" Alice yelled, slamming her hand on the horn. I could see Emmett laughing from the driver's seat.

"We'll see who's laughing when a tire blows," I muttered darkly.

Alice frowned. "Are you sure it'll work?"

I nodded. "Alec did it to my car once. I blew up his favorite car, then busted his new video game as punishment. We reached a truce by him showing me how to do it so that the tire lasts for a while before fully popping, and I promised never to use it against him."

With a shake of her head, Alice said, "Bella, you have issues."

I shrugged. "I know."

About the eighth lap, Edward, who was now driving, passed us.

"Dammit!" Alice screeched. "Now we're last!"

I smirked. "Not for long." We were nearing the end of the ninth lap when it happened. Just past the finished line, I saw Rose and Emmett's vehicle spin out, Emmett with a panicked look on his face as he slammed the breaks. Alice wiggled between me and the seat as I maneuvered uncomfortably to get again to the driver's seat. From outside, I could see Emmett and Rose looking in shock at the blown tire. Rosalie pulled the knife from it with a look of shock, then glanced over at us. Alice and I waved cheerily.

Emmett, glaring, kicked the car's blown tire. "This is all your fault, you know that?" he told it.

I laughed and raced by them. Though it wasn't an ideal track, my car was perfect for drifting, and I began to do so around the corners. Alice didn't say anything, but I could see the unease on her face each time I did it.

By the end of the tenth lap, I was right on Edward's tail, and he was doing everything he could to keep me there. I got the drag from behind him, and pulled up so that we were racing side by side. Neither of us gained a definite lead, even by the time the eleventh lap was ending. Into the first turn of the last lap, Edward and Jasper pulled ahead slightly on the inside. Jasper leaned out the window, something in his hands.

"Alice…" I said slowly.

He dropped them, and I got a brief chance to identify the objects. Marbles. My tires hit them the next instant, and the wheels spun slightly on the odd traction. I fought to keep the car from spinning out as it became loose, then gritted my teeth as it evened out.

Edward and Jasper were going to pay for that.

I caught up to them in turn three, then bumped their back end. I glared out the front windshield and Edward glared at me in the rearview mirror. There was perfect drag and then in turn four, I slid to the outside and re-introduced my foot the pedal to the floor. We shot past them, and were barely a nose in front when we crossed the finish line.

I immediately slammed the brakes, jerking the Lexus to a stop, got out, and approached Edward.

"You could have wrecked my car!" I snapped.

He glared angrily. "Oh, and I suppose Emmett loosened the plugs in my Vanquish? While Jasper was being distracted?"

I smirked. "Not my fault you didn't notice the flaws in the rules. I did nothing wrong."

"Neither did I!" he shouted, throwing his hands in the air.

Esme came over. "Alright you two, knock it out! Now, Bella, I can see where you're coming from, and I suppose that in Volterra they're really competitive, but here that is not the way it works."

Edward smirked. "So I win." I glared daggers at him and started plotting the best revenge.

Rosalie and Emmett came over from where they had been standing with their car.

"Yeah, but, you cheated too then Edward." Rosalie pointed out. I smiled at her quickly. She met my gaze sideways. "Actually, I'm surprised none of us noticed it sooner, because you guys all get some competitive at your games, this sounds like something you'd do. But, if you're going to knock Bella out for cheating, then Edward and Jasper have to be too, which means Em and I win."

Jasper's and Edward's mouths both fell open. "No!"

Esme rolled her eyes as Carlisle came over to put his hand on her shoulder.

"Rosalie has a point. We'll put it to a vote. Who thinks that there should be disqualification for cheating?"

Emmett was the only one to raise his hand. He looked around at us all in shock.

"Alright. Then Bella and Alice are the winners." Esme said, sounding relieved to have it settled.

"Hey! No fair! I want a rematch of the rematch!" We all looked at him. "What? I didn't cheat, so it isn't fair!"

Alice rolled her eyes. "Emmett, how can you have a rematch of a rematch? It just wouldn't make sense!"

I fought the urge to smirk. "Yeah, I mean, I'd just win again."

Jasper laughed. "You play an interesting game, Bella." he told me, wrapping his arms around Alice. "What do the winners get?" he whispered into his ear.

Alice giggled. "I don't know, what do you think I should get?"

A slow smiled curved his lips. "I'm sure I can think of something suitable."

I looked away from the perfect couple, shoving quickly aside the pain that accompanied being near them. It was something I was used to, but that didn't make it easier to deal with, especially in the large dosages that was the love of Alice and Jasper.

Emmett was still pouting, arms folded across his chest. I knew he'd get over, so I didn't bother trying to make amends with him. Jasper obviously didn't care, as didn't Rose. But Edward….

I watched as Edward slid into the seat of his Vanquish and tore off without another look back. Abruptly, I felt tired and rubbed the back of my tense neck.

"He's just overly sensitive about his cars." I glanced back at Emmett, who had his arms wrapped around Rosalie from behind and was watching me, his chin on her shoulder. He seemed to have forgiven me already.

"I didn't think he'd take it so seriously." I admitted.

Rosalie tilted her head, golden locks swishing. "I think he's just… confused. I don't know, I'm not him, but he…" she stopped and shrugged. "It's Edward. His thought process rarely makes sense until after he does something and gives a reason why."

I rolled my eyes. "Great. Just what I need." And with that, I headed to the Lexus and got in, unsure where I was going, but knowing it was away from here.

Victoria's POV

I was in Las Vegas now, closer to where I would kill Isabella. But I was taking my time, planning out fully how I was going to kill her, painfully slowly. Yet even the longest I could think to drag it out before killing her that allowed me to make it away with my life wasn't long enough. It would never cover the pain of her killing James, my love, my mate.

Resisting the urge to shriek with fury, pain, and frustration, I absently chased down a meal, fed, and disposed of the body well enough that forensic scientists would be stumped as to what happened.

I wanted to head straight to Forks, Washington, and kill Bella, but I was no longer in this alone. I had to have someone on the inside to keep the heat away from me long enough to escape, and that required doing it the long way.

So now I had something to check out in California. Oh, joy.

Then I grinned. It was one step closer to my revenge. To avenging my James.

It was worth it.

APOV

I noticed from the corner of my eye as Bella went straight to our winning car, climbed in, and tore away, not once looking back. With a sigh, I pulled away from Jasper to glance around at present company. Edward was gone, as was his Vanquish, his special occasions car, more precious than his silver Volvo.

Rosalie was shaking her head. "This didn't exactly turn our how I thought it would," she siad.

Emmett nodded. "Yeah, I thought we'd win, with your amazing mechanical skills and my brilliance."

Sometimes I wondered if Emmett purposefully acted a little dense. I knew he was smart, but he sometimes took a moment with that intelligence. He just preferred using brute strength.

We all gave him a look.

"What?! I was joking about the brilliance part!"

I rolled my eyes as Jasper chuckled.

"So… what did you mean, if not the race's outcome?" he asked slowly.

I looked at Rosalie.

She turned to face her husband. "Edward's reaction was unexpected. I though they were getting closer." she added, turning back to face me.

I shrugged. "I thought so too. She was opening up, he wasn't being a dumbass as much; yet here we are, back at square one."

Jasper shook his head. "Not square one, I think. Edward just needs time to cool off. She confuses him, he doesn't ever know how to react around her, and it frustrates him. But yes, I agree. He could have made a little more effort to lighten up here."

Emmett snorted. "It wasn't even that much of a deal to all of you guys! It was mine and Bella's rematch, after all."

He had a point, I thought.

I sighed. "Yes, but Bella will close off again. She does that every time we bring up her past with the Volturi, or when she thinks she did something wrong. " I felt distressed. She seemed to beat herself up over things beyond her control, like she should have been able to prevent other people's actions and mistakes. It was unhealthy.

Esme started to say something, but it was like a bunch of fading gibberish as I was pulled into a vision, the tunnel-like encroaching of darkness pulling me away from the dirt track with my family and into something that may or may not happen.

Bella and Aaron entered the cafeteria, him casting concerned looks her way every few seconds. Bella didn't seem to notice, and simply stepped into the lunch line. Aaron sighed and followed her. Emmett waved from across the cafeteria, at our usual table, but Bella's eyes slid over him like he didn't exist. Hurt and confused, Emmett lowered his hand and returned to sitting fully.

"Bella," Edward said, stopping her in the middle of the cafeteria. She tensed as his hand closed over her forearm. "I apologize for my actions this morning, but it was for the best."

Suddenly, Aaron was there, glaring with anger. "Just leave her alone, dude. Haven't you insulted her enough?"

Edward glared. "I was only-"

"Stop trying to act all self-righteous. You barely know her, so just leave her alone." I could see the resemblance of how Emmett and Aaron acted; they both had strong older-brother instincts.

The whole lunch room was watching the scene unfold.

"It's better if she just leaves here." Edward insisted in a hiss.

Bella flinched, and it didn't escape Aaron's notice. He shoved Edward away from Bella, who looked like she was trying to hide all the emotion from those around her.

"It's fine, Aaron. Edward's right. It is better if I just left."

Aaron turned to face her in surprise. "Bella?"

Without a second word or glance, Bella turned and walked out of the cafeteria. Aaron shoved Edward one more time, hard enough to make him stumble backwards a few feet, then rushed out after her.

Everything went white, like it had been before when I'd looked for Bella's future and she was blocking me.

Everyone was gathered around me, concerned; that had been one of the longer visions I'd ever had.

Jasper, feeling my distress and unhappiness, wrapped his arms around me. "Shh, Alice. What did you see?"

"Edward… he's going to tell Bella to leave!" I cried out. Everyone looked shocked. "And she's going to listen to him!"

Jasper rubbed my back soothingly, sending waves of calm my way. I gave him a thankful look, which he returned with a loving smile that warmed me to my frozen vampire toes.

Rosalie looked murderous. "Why should she leave? Nothing's wrong with her!"

Almost all of us glanced at Rosalie in surprise.

"I didn't realize you actually liked her enough to care," I admitted.

Rosalie looked at the ground sheepishly. "Well, I was really just jealous of the cars. But since she'd not nearly as possessive of them when it comes to me as she is with all of you, then I realized that I was being stupid, and really do like her."

"Are you sure you just don't want her to leave because you want easy access to her cars?"

Rose gave Jasper an annoyed look, but then smiled slightly at his teasing.

Esme shook her head sadly. "Where's Edward?"

I shrugged. "I don't know, just driving from what I can tell," I answered, peeking into his future. "Rosalie will have to drive us in the M3 tomorrow. He's not sure if he'll be back in time."

They all nodded, and I leaned against Jasper, sad and worried. Bella had barely been with our family for a week, yet we all loved her. She belonged with us. I could feel it, even if she prevented me from seeing it with her indecision and blocking. We were all meant to be a family.

BPOV

I didn't want to go back to the Cullen's house and face them again. I was causing enough discord among them just by upsetting Edward. They were close-knit, and if one was out of wack, the other were sure to be affected. It was best I pull away now and let them be happy. I sighed miserably, but felt determination resolve. Yes, I would keep my distance without being hostile like before, and then would return to Volterra and my previous life and forget all about them. It was for the best, I repeated to myself. Before they get too attached.

I pulled up in front of the hotel, noting absently that Heidi's car was gone still, wondering how far they'd gone to hunt. In a daze, I went up to the suite and opened the door.

Aaron glanced up as I entered the living room.

"Hey, Bells." he said, surprised. "I didn't expect… to…" He stopped, concerned. "What happened?"

I shook my head. "I upset them. Especially Edward. And they're so close, Aaron, I don't want to wreck their family or anything." I sighed, dropping down next to him and curling my feet under me. Aaron wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close.

"Bella, if they can't accept you as you are, then they're not worth it." I glanced up at him and he smiled, his bright red eyes gentle. Most vampires couldn't pull off gentle and red eyes, yet Aaron always could. If he weren't like a brother, then I'd probably find him attractive, personality and looks wise. But we were firmly brother and sister.

Which was proven by what he said next. "Listen, do you want me to go beat up the guy? No one messes with my Bella's feelings and gets away unscathed."

I laughed, then sighed. "No. I'm just going to leave them be. It's not like they need someone like me hanging around with them anyways. I'd just cause them grief."

He rolled his eyes. "Bella, you are so weird. Get a life, and quite being so self sacrificing and dramatic. And some flavor in your life!"

I glanced at him. "And how do I add flavor?"

He frowned, stumped. "Huh. Um… Taco Bell? Are they always going 'Spice up your life'? So, um, since we're vampires, and can't eat human food, I guess you can have someone who just had Taco Bell. You are what you eat." he added with a chuckle.

I looked at him. "I never got that line, and it never worked. You have to be the most hilarious, weird person I've ever met, yet I can't help but love you as that crazy brother you're ashamed to admit relations to."

He laughed and tightened his hold around me. "Same to you Bells. Same to you. Only, not brother, but sister. Wait." He looked at me suspiciously. "You never had a sex change in your life, have you? You weren't originally a guy, were you? Cause then I'd have to kick your ass."

I laughed, my black mood lifting slightly. "No, I've always been a girl. Thank God," I muttered.

"What's wrong with being a guy?" he asked defensively.

"Nothing, nothing!" I laughed, looking around. "Hey, where are Cate and Heidi?" I asked, looking back at him.

He shrugged, suddenly looking a little nervous. "Um, you see, they went hunting farther south. If all three of us hunted in the same area, it'd be a little suspicious. I took a cab back up here earlier this morning. They won't be back until tomorrow or…" he paused and thought. "Tomorrow or the day after, I think. I don't know. Nobody ever tells me anything!" he whined.

I laughed. "There's a reason for that," I told him.

He stuck his tongue out at me, then grinned evilly. With a smooth movement, he threw me over his shoulder and headed to the Jacuzzi like bathtub.

"No, Aaron!" I squealed. With a grin, he threw me in and then our games of annoyance and revenge began, lasting until dawn, when we hurried to get ready for school.

My mood had cheered up considerably with Aaron, but now, no longer distracted, I felt unease churn inside me. I wasn't sure I could face the Cullens anymore, but I didn't want them to hate me. Hopefully, they'd understand. This distance between us was for the best.

There it is. This chapter refused to go the way I planned on it going, and now I think something completely different than I had planned out is going to happen. I'm going to let the story go with the way it wants to be written, besides - the characters are so stubborn, I hate arguing with them!

I will still, and always will, be willing for guesses on who the Traitor(s) is/are. Some people think there may be more than one, some think only one... it's all a matter of opinion to you guys, because I am the only one who knows! A lot of my chapters have hints at it, but as I mentioned - I don't think many people will see coming what actually happens!

So please - leave a review, they really encourage my writing to come out faster. I absolutely love getting feedback from all of you! Hope you enjoyed!