There was a lot going on in this chapter, and it was easier to take it in chunks. I resisted the urge to turn it into drabbles, but there will be more breaks than usual. I'll also be taking a bit of liberty with the tech capabilities. But hey, it's fiction, right?

Special thanks to CindyWindy for the pre-read and great ideas, and to 4mejasper and belledean from PTB. I rarely leave well enough alone. Any errors I introduced after their review are all on me.

With every mile she traveled, the sound of Bella's tires grew more faint. Eventually, she made a turn onto a major highway, and I couldn't distinguish the SUV from the other cars. She was well and truly gone.

"Edward, we're going to let you go now. Are you ready?" Carlisle asked. His voice was calm, but his mind was full of worry. He was concerned for my mental health, but he was worrying about the wrong thing. Bella was gone. Of course my emotions were out-of-control. What he needed to worry about were my actions; I felt capable of anything in that moment.

I nodded, welcoming the feel of the driveway grit grinding against my cheek.

Before Carlisle even moved, I felt it—that emotional relaxation that comes with Jasper's gift. Although it wasn't gone, the fury in my veins dulled to a manageable level. It was like someone pouring sand over a roaring campfire. The combustion was still there, but it was blanketed by something bland. In any other circumstance, I might have welcomed his assistance, but I fought it with everything I had.

"Don't you dare!" I yelled at him. "Don't you dare stand next to your mate and try to control me! I have every right to be angry about what happened here."

Jasper walked forward, speaking aloud for the benefit of the group. "Yes, you do. But you need to hear some hard truths. If helping you control yourself will make that easier, I'll have to make it up to you later."

I didn't enjoy that, so don't make me do it again, Emmett thought. But I will hold you down again if I have to. Hear them out.

"Edward, I know that your emotions are ruling right now. You're new to the feelings that accompany finding your mate. But I'm going to ask you to think logically about what just happened." Carlisle was using that doctor's voice I hated. He thought I was ill, driven to some kind of temporary insanity. Hell, maybe I was. I could only feel the semi-suppressed rage flowing though me.

"I know what just happened. You kept me from stopping her. She got away."

"Did she tell you she wanted to go with us?"

I didn't answer. He was in shrink mode, and he was lucky I didn't punch him for it. How many questions could he could ask if I cracked his jaw?

"Edward, not responding won't change the answer. Did Bella want to go with us?" As Carlisle spoke, Esme walked to Alice, putting her arm around the smaller woman. It might have looked like a maternal gesture, but it was as much for Esme's comfort as Alice's.

"No!" I admitted through clenched teeth, seeing in his head where he was going with this questioning. I hated where he was leading me, but I couldn't out-think him. There was too much chaos in my head to prevent what was coming.

"If she didn't want to go, would she have come along willingly?"

"I could have changed her mind. I just needed more time." My protest was weak, even to my ears. I hopped from head to head, trying to see if anyone agreed with my assessment, but they all seemed to understand what I was trying so hard to fight.

"She was resolute," Jasper said. "Bella was full of pain and grief, but she had no doubt about her decision. You'd have had to take her with us against her will." Even if it's done with the best intentions, prisoners rarely love their captors, he added silently.

Could I have done that? Could I have dragged her physically into the car, restrained her? My overactive imagination kicked in, and I couldn't block images of holding her while she fought me. Would I have ended up with Bella thrashing in my arms, trying to get away?

As though he could hear the whirling thoughts in my head, Carlisle spoke more firmly. "You love her as a mate, but I love you as a son. Normally, I would let you make your own decisions, but I've been where you are. You're not thinking clearly. I will risk you hating me if it means preventing a mistake that might destroy your future happiness. Bella is fighting for her freedom. If you had taken her against her will, you would be no better than the people she's hiding from."

I let my body go completely still as Carlisle's last few words echoed through my head. With the crushing realization that he was right, it felt as though the earth shifted beneath my feet. Questions rushed through my head.

Could my desperation turn my devotion into something ugly? If I had managed to stop the car, would I have come to my senses before I did something that would damage either of us beyond repair?

I had no answers. Too much had happened, and I needed time to think. Without another word, I turned and sprinted into the forest, ignoring the calls for me to stop.

Four days later I emerged from the forest path, hungry and heartbroken. I was filthy and barely covered in shredded clothes. One car remained in the driveway, and I was surprised to find the house unlocked. Jasper and Alice sat alone in the living room on a sheet-covered couch. The rest of the place was empty, and it almost felt as though they were ghosts who'd refused to leave a favorite haunt.

Without looking up from his book, he thought, Okay. Let's go.

That was it. There were no heartfelt apologies. Everything was still too raw. There was just family, helping each other through something terrible. Without another word, I climbed into backseat of the car, letting Jasper drive. It didn't matter where we went.

"That's it. We're moving," Esme said.

Everyone else was in the small living room, but I could hear her clearly from my spot upstairs.

"If we're all cooped up in this cabin a minute longer, someone is going to get hurt."

I couldn't fault her. Tensions in the northern Canadian cabin had risen steadily during our stay. We'd had to buy on shorter notice than usual, and there hadn't been a big selection of homes. No one was working, not even Carlisle, and we were getting on each other's nerves. The couples each had a small bedroom, but I was assigned something that was probably intended to be a closet. Not that I cared.

I spent my time vacillating between missing Bella so much I thought I'd go insane, and being so angry that I could destroy everything in my path. Although I was miserable to be near, I was never alone. We had decided to travel in pairs for protection, and when the hunger got too bad, someone went into the forest with me. The company helped, but I never admitted it. Each time I slaked my thirst, I ran back to my tiny bedroom and continued staring at the phone Bella had left in Rose's hands.

"It's been six months, and there's no indication that anyone is looking for us. Alice can see that Aro is concentrating on a problem in the Balkans. He's clear for her, so Bella must not be involved," Jasper said. He paused for a moment before continuing, but he didn't have to. I knew he looked for Bella periodically; there was no reason for him to act as though this was breaking news. "The police have initiated a missing person's case for Bella and Jacob. They're still wanted for questioning in the suspected arson, but no one's heard from them since the fire."

For humans, intense emotions could affect how they recalled events and even modify those recollections. I had crystal-clear memories of that fire and everything that happened afterward. There was a worn area on the floor where I'd curl up and lose myself in memories. It directly faced Bella's phone. That hunk of black plastic and electronics was the only thing I had from our time together. She wouldn't have left it behind without a reason.

I'd always believed that if I did the right thing and made logical decisions, I'd be able to solve any problem. Now, I just felt small and powerless waiting for some kind of signal. I hated every minute of it.

Once a day, I allowed Rose to make sure it was still plugged in and fully charged. The first time it vibrated was nearly a month after we arrived here. I had scrambled to answer it, sure she had given up on living alone. Bella was letting me know where she was. She wanted me to come get her.

It had been a salesman wanting to consolidate my credit card debt. I'd told myself it was a fluke. Bella would call, professing her love for me. She was as miserable without me as I was without her. The second call was from a robot voice offering to reduce my mortgage payments. After that, I'd tried to stop myself from hoping. I wasn't doing well with that.

"Okay, then. I think we're in agreement. I'm proposing we go back to Ithaca. I can start decorating again, and Carlisle can start a new practice. You all need to find something to do. Whether that's going back to school or getting jobs, it doesn't matter. All of us in one cabin for six months was too much togetherness."

When my distracted brain finally figured out what she meant, I started to protest. My misery had become comfortable, like a favorite pair of jeans, and I didn't like the prospect of change.

"Esme, I—"

With gentle determination, she interrupted, making her resolve clear. Whether you like it or not, you cannot sit there brooding anymore. It doesn't really matter what you pick. Just go out into the world and be useful. We will set up a schedule to watch Bella's phone for you, she thought, cutting short my only legitimate reason to protest. I love you too much to watch you wither like this. Her orders may have been firm, but she was filled with worry, like the rest of the family. I supposed I couldn't blame them.

Within a week, we were in the car on the way back in Ithaca. I carried Bella's phone on my lap the entire way.

Starting over in high school would have been too difficult. I felt ancient and world-weary. There was no way I'd be able to deal with the first world problems of suburban teenagers. I found a job running projectors at a old-fashioned movie theatre that hadn't converted to digital. It paid next to nothing, but it was perfect. I was away from the house, but I could sit in the dark and wallow in my misery. When I returned in the middle of the night, I'd go directly to my room.

In this house, Bella's phone had been placed in Carlisle's study, so they could all help watch it. When Esme had first proposed the change, I was going to protest. As I looked outside myself, I realized I wasn't the only one hurting. It seemed fair to let them help. I continued to cringe each time it went off, knowing it wasn't her. I made a point of trying to ignore the disappointment, but I wasn't fooling anyone, not even myself.

Each night as I pulled into the driveway after work, I felt an odd combination of relief and frustration. I head the mental acknowledgments that I was home, but no one overtly greeted me. I had been horrible to them, but I couldn't seem to help it. The happy couples around me made me crazy. Almost everyone was being patient, but somehow, that made it worse. I'd have rather fought than be the object of pity and patience. Not ready to face everyone on this particular night, I took off into the woods.

Running made the ache better, at least for a little while. If I kept moving, maybe I could wear myself out. What a gift sleep would be. To be able to have the last year go away, even for a few short hours. No matter how hard I pushed, there was no sweaty, exhausted collapse. I simply ran until I didn't recognize any landmarks.

Standing at the edge of the forest, I looked out turning in every direction. She was out there somewhere. Was she thinking about me, the way I always thought about her? I wanted to scream and hear it echo off the hillsides, to vent my rage and pain. I didn't. There would be no point.

I circled back to the house, letting the branches tear at my clothes and hair. I was less than a mile out when I heard Alice calling.

Edward, we need you home right now. Something's happening with the phone.

Knowing I'd be coming in full speed, Alice had left the front door wide open. The phone buzzed again just as I skidded to a stop in Carlisle's office. Rose and Esme were standing at the desk, looking down at the digital display. Alice was hovering over Jasper, who'd set up his laptop on the desk.

It's been going off every ten minutes for the last hour, Rose thought. She looked at her watch, mentally determining when the next one would arrive.

"What's the message?" I asked. The sounds of Emmett's Jeep and Carlisle's Mercedes coming down the driveway registered in the back of my mind. The family must have called them home when all this started.

"That's just it. It's not a message. It's a text with a webpage address," Jasper said. "When I enter it into the browser, it's the strangest page I've ever seen. There's nothing here but a set of questions. It's like this is a quiz we need to pass to get to the next level." The plain white background was interrupted by six inquiries in blocky black text. At the end of each question was an area to fill in a blank. I shouldered Alice out of the way.

"Oh, God." I was the only one who would have answers to these questions.

"You understand this?" Esme asked. She rubbed Carlisle's arm then stepped to the side as he and Emmett entered the room.

Rose gave the men a brief recap of what had happened. Mentally, I could hear Carlisle evaluating the situation, taking in all the variables and trying to remove the emotion from this situation.

I couldn't be that logical. Not now. I could only nod to Esme's question.

"What fruit did I try to get you to eat?" Jasper read. He swiveled in his chair to look up at me suspiciously. "You ate something?"

I ran my fingers through my hair. "No. I didn't eat anything. It's a long story. The answer is apple." I was too excited to elaborate. All this time, I knew Bella was still alive. There was never a doubt about that. What I hadn't known was whether or not she'd been found by Felix, or if she wanted anything to do with me ever again.

This was proof that she was still free and thinking of me. I was almost light-headed with relief.

As soon as Jasper typed the e and hit enter, the question flashed green and disappeared. The next question moved up to the top of the list. Everyone cheered as the realization took hold that this might work.

"Okay," Rose said, looking over her shoulder at me. "'What smells better than a Caramel Mocha?' Considering that almost anything smells better than coffee, I've got to hear the answer to this one."

I was so focused on the fact we were making progress toward finding Bella that I had to stop and think back to the coffee-house conversation I'd had with her. Somehow, it felt like a million years since I'd watched her blow the steam off her morning caffeine. "Mountain lion."

Jasper typed while everyone in the room agreed wholeheartedly. Again, the question flicked green and disappeared.

It made no sense to read these out loud because everyone in the room had perfect vision and could read the screen on their own. I did it anyway. I couldn't explain why, but it helped. "What will Seong-ho's nephew give you to improve your health?"

"A Vitamin."

Jasper typed, but I swore softly when the text did not change color and the question remained. He hit enter again in the way people do when computers don't behave as they expect. It didn't help.

"But I know that's the answer. Seong-ho mentioned that I was too pale and said that his sister's son could mix up some vitamin powder for me."

"Sometimes, the devil's in the details, Edward. Jasper, try it again with 'vitamin powder,'" Carlisle suggested.

He tried again with the more detailed answer, and as soon as Jasper hit enter, the question disappeared. This time, our celebration was more of a relieved murmur than a cheer.

"Three down, three to go. You're half way there," Alice said, rubbing my arm.

"How many glass orbs did we pack?" Jasper read. "Okay, the answer will be a number, so there's less opportunity for a detail problem."

"Two."

With a few more keystrokes, that question disappeared. I was so close, but what if I wasn't ready for what was coming? I must have paused too long before reading the next question, because Alice did it for me.

"What's the best kind of box to hide cash?"

"Tampon," I blurted out. It was more of a reflex than anything else.

"What?" Esme and Alice asked in unison. Any other time it would have been comical.

"Don't ask," I muttered.

That's a story I've got to hear later, Emmett thought as Jasper typed. At least he didn't comment out loud. I had to give him credit, he was getting better at preserving dignity. That question also flashed green and disappeared.

The last question looked ominous, all by itself. Those letters could decide my future. Alice looked at me, waiting for some indication that I was ready. When I nodded, she spoke.

"What was the last book I packed?"

"Pride and Prejudice," I whispered, remembering the feel of the worn leather against my fingertips. I must have made a motion of some kind, because Esme reached down and squeezed my hand.

Again, when Jasper hit enter, the question blinked green and disappeared.

The screen went black.

For an instant, I was worried we'd downloaded a virus of some kind. When the computer blinked back to life, the screen was full of neat rows of file names. Jasper scrolled from the top of the list, to the bottom and back. There were thousands of files linked, each with a complex set of numbers for a name. As he got back to the top, Alice reached over his shoulder and pointed at one file in particular.

'This one! The file she indicated had "First" in the title line. Jasper looked up at me in the same way Alice had before she read the last question. I wasn't ready to speak, so I nodded. He moved the cursor up and clicked.

A new window opened and the screen blurred momentarily before clearing. I stopped breathing as Bella's face came into view. There was a white arrow in front of her face, indicating that the video wouldn't begin until Jasper hit the enter key.

Are you ready? he asked, looking over his shoulder. Everyone in the room was focused completely on me.

"Go."

An eternity seemed to pass while the computer buffered. When the video began to move, Bella's image was fuzzy, but it was obviously her. She peered at the camera with one arm up. Whatever she adjusted worked well. The picture cleared, and her pale face came into focus. Even dirty and bedraggled, she was lovely. After so long not knowing if I'd ever see her again, the image of her face was like a punch to the gut.

"Edward. If you've received this … " Bella looked down as her voice trailed off. If I had a stronger imagination, I'd believe she couldn't look me in the eye.

Alice stepped back, pressing a shaking hand over her mouth. Jasper expanded the playback view, and Bella's face filled the frame. He adjusted the screen until it was clear and bright. Once it was set, he stood and stepped back, taking Alice into his arms. I eased myself into his empty seat, allowing the rest of the world to disappear.

"You're probably still furious. I wouldn't blame you." She pushed some unruly strands of hair off her face. It was odd to see it messy and hanging down. Bella had always been so careful with her grooming. She looked younger somehow, like a college student cramming for finals.

I reached out and touched the screen, letting my finger trace the line of her jaw.

"I know you don't agree with what I did, but I honestly thought it was for the best. That doesn't mean that I don't love you. Driving away that day was hell for me." She dropped her gaze like she was trying to pull herself together.

"I love you, too," I said softly.

Blowing out a breath, she looked back at the camera. "I've had a lot of time to think this last year. Time to think about everything that happened. You called me a coward, and I'm not going to deny it. I'm definitely a coward where you're concerned. I'm also set in my ways like a grumpy old man. I wasn't going to let you risk yourself for me, and I wasn't going to compromise."

She sniffed and tilted her head up, trying to keep the tears in her eyes from running over. "It really sucks, you know? Realizing how much you miss something once it's gone, and then figuring out that you were too bullheaded to hang onto a good thing?"

There was shifting behind me, but I tuned out their noises along with their thoughts. I only had room for Bella.

"So, here goes. You're hardly ever going to hear this kind of thing from me—I hope you're listening. I owe you an apology, but you deserve better than hearing it on a video. I'll have to save it for when I see you again."

It took everything I had not to jump up and fist pump at the certainty in her voice. We would see each other again, and I'd be getting that apology in person.

A computer on the opposite side of the room began beeping frantically. Bella muttered about crappy timing and rolled her chair backward, out of the camera's focus range.

As her fuzzy outline typed furiously, I studied what I could of the foreground. The low ceiling, warped paneled walls, and dark interior gave the impression of a building that had seen better days. Several tables had been set up around the room, covered with assorted tools, empty water bottles, and half-eaten protein bars. Several high-tech security cameras were lined up along one edge of a table like soldiers waiting to go into battle. There was a window in one wall, but the worn curtains were closed. A doorway opposite the window was dark. My heart sank knowing this picture gave me no clue as to her location.

When the beeping was silent, Bella rolled forward, coming back into focus. With practiced ease, she gathered her hair into a low ponytail and secured it with a rubber band.

Looking back into the camera, she spoke again, but this time she sounded more professional. "I had a solution that I thought would work for all of us. To make that happen, I had to know you were safe."

"Who makes sure you're safe?" I asked, drinking in the sight of her pale, haggard face. I'd missed her so much. In that instant, I knew I wasn't getting better at all. My chest still felt like there was a gaping hole in the center.

"What I needed was time to put everything in place. Thankfully, time is something I have too much of. I guess that's true for both of us, isn't it?" She smiled ruefully, and opened her mouth to speak again when there was a slam behind her. Bella jumped and swore.

When I heard the footfalls come through the computer's speakers, I knew I'd hate what was about to happen.

"Jeeze, Bella. How many more of these did you want to do today?" Jacob walked through the dark doorway, unzipping a heavy coat and shaking water in every direction.

Red fuzzed the edges of my vision, and jealousy flared through me at the idea of her being holed up somewhere alone with him.

"Dammit, Jacob! There's delicate equipment in here. Watch the water, will you?" Bella stood quickly and pulled off the worn flannel shirt she'd had over a faded, long-sleeved T. She began wiping quickly, making sure to get up all the water.

"I'm sorry, but it's colder than a witch's tit out there." He rubbed his hands together, blowing warm breath onto them.

Bella slowed her motions and gave the camera a side glance. For just a moment, I thought she was going to do something to hide the camera. Didn't she want Jacob to know she was sending me a message?

Jacob followed her vision, and his eyebrows went up. "You're recording now? It's kind of soon, don't you think? I told you, I'm willing to help. It's the least I can do after all the trouble I caused, but we're not even sure this is going to work yet."

Bella stood a little straighter, and her mouth firmed. "It's going to work. I've bet everything that matters on this, and I'm not even thinking otherwise. You got me?" This last was said with a finger pointed into Jacob's gut.

"Got it," he said, and his body stilled. For a moment, I thought he was going to say something else. Instead, he reached up and rubbed his knuckles back and forth across Bella's head. It as a brotherly gesture, and I wondered how much he fought his feelings for her, knowing she didn't reciprocate. Watching her laugh and push him away eased the furor in my gut. Even cooped up—wherever they were—she only saw him as family.

As Jacob pulled his coat back on, he said softly, "It's good to see you back in fighting form."

What did he mean? Had she been as lost without me as I'd been without her? Could our time apart have ripped at her mentally, the way it did me?

Bella only nodded and made a shooing motion, urging him out the door. Putting her hands on her hips, she blew out a long breath. Looking directly at the camera, she said, "So, yeah. Jacob's here. He's helping me put things in place. There was more to do than I could accomplish on my own and still get back to you anytime soon."

I started worrying again when she began pacing. There was no way this was going to be good.

"Here comes the part you're not going to like."

"Oh, no," Alice whispered over my shoulder.

Brace yourself, Jasper thought.

Stooping, Bella looked directly into the camera. "I'll be storing this message on a remote server, along with the rest of the files. The text with the link to the video library will be sent to you when my computer stops communicating."

The hair on the back of my neck stood on end.

"That means that if you've received this, one of two things has happened. I've managed to take care of Felix, and I'll start trying to find you. Or everything went to hell, and he's managed to take me with him."

Well, I'll be damned, Emmett thought.

My sentiments exactly.

Thanks for reading!