Chapter 27

Disclaimer: - The Jacob who lives in my mind…? He's mine! So, hands off Meyer! You can't have him! Ha ha! Don't worry though, I'll love him and take care of him and pamper him and cherish him… way better than you ever did! So you can take some comfort from that. :) I'll even keep him far, far away from prying eyes, groping hands and dirty minds! I'll treasure him and I promise you, I won't even dream of using him for any kind of profit or material gain. Cross my heart…

But; I don't expect you to just give him away for nothing – I understand how the world of give and take works – so in exchange, I give you Vlad! See…? A character for a character, isn't that a fair trade? ;)

A/N: - Trust me.

Most of you aren't going to like the ending of this chapter. But, before you come at me with guns and knives and torches and pitchforks, I'd like to remind you that I'm a diehard J/B fan and moreover, I LOVE Jake. So, just trust me.

Other than that, I'm just going to let you draw your own conclusions. :P

Dedications: - This chapter is dedicated to my husband… for his incredible patience with my obsession with all things Jake. :) It is also dedicated to Erin, my soulmate and to Wendy – they are some of the best friends I've made on FF.

Now, on to the chapter…

JPOV

The roiling mass of dread inside my gut was still very much present but now that we had an idea of Bella's whereabouts, it'd been masked behind a sense of purpose.

I was going to get Bella back dammit; even if it was the very last thing I ever did.

"So, what's the plan, Black?" The pixie's husband – Mr. 'You don't need Prozac when you have me'; questioned from the sidelines.

My startled gaze flew to his. They were actually letting me take point on this? Willingly…? Like, handing it over to me on a silver platter…? It was surprising to say the least.

Not that they had much of a choice in the matter. This was my operation; it always had been. But I'd never expected them to give in so readily. I'd thought I'd have a fight on my hands, getting the leeches to go along with it. Yet, here they were, giving in without so much as an argument. Damn!

Edward scowled; clearly displeased with this situation but, since he was the only one who was, I ignored him. I wasn't too pleased with him at the moment anyway. Between ignoring him and bashing his head in; I figured ignoring him would be the better option all around.

I thought back to Jasper's question. The plan…? The plan was very simple. Find Bella. Rescue Bella. And then, never, ever let her out of sight again so that she'd be safe and sound forever. But I didn't say any of that out loud for various reasons. One; it'd be like stating the obvious. And two; I had a feeling that Bella would have a major problem with the 'not ever letting her out of my sight' part of the equation. Not that I could blame her if she did. She's faced this kind of treatment from the leech for a long time. And I'd always chafed at the fact that he was curtailing her freedom; her independence. Yet here I was, talking about never letting her out of my sight. Oh yeah, she'd tear me a new one if she had any inkling of my sudden turn towards the middle ages.

But, there was a vast difference between being cautious and being stiflingly overprotective! And the simple fact was I would never descend to the leech's level. I wouldn't lock her away and take away her choices. I couldn't. When the time came; I'd find a middle ground… a way to deal with the situation in a manner acceptable to both of us. When the time came…

That time wasn't now. Now; we still had to find her.

The leech growled furiously. Having heard my thoughts, he was throwing a hissy fit at being classified as Bella's glorified jailer. Typical! He was such a textbook case for why turning a teenager into a vampire was never a good idea! Imagine being rebellious, pompous, overemotional and stubborn for all eternity! Yeah, that's what Edward was – a stupid, over-sentimental, broody crybaby!

That didn't go over too well with him either. He glowered; lending further credence to my thoughts.

I pretended to ignore him outwardly while snarling 'That's what you get for reading people's thoughts without their permission, fucker!' loudly in my mind. Childish though it was, I gained tremendous satisfaction from rubbing his face in his shortcomings.

Having indulged in that brief moment of juvenile immaturity, I curbed in my irritation and focused on what was important. "Is everyone okay with me taking the lead?" I questioned for the sake of clarification.

The pack members; my brother's were all eager to agree; just like I knew they would be.

The rest of the Cullen clan – including Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie and Emmett, who'd flown in from Alaska less than an hour ago (one of the wonders of living forever and having a mind reading son and a fortune teller daughter was that you apparently had a bottomless bank account which could be utilized to book a private jet at a moment's notice) – gave a slight nod telling me that they were willing to follow my instructions in this situation too.

Taking a moment to gather my thoughts, I took in the looks of fierce determination that were displayed on the faces of each and every individual around me. There was a quiet purpose in the way each one of them stood… a barely restrained violence that was a reflection of my own. I knew that each and every one of us was dying for action.

We were all gathered together in our old meeting spot – the Cullens, the pack and Bella's friends; who'd refused to be left behind – in the clearing in the woods where we'd had our practice sessions six years ago.

The sense of déjà vu was almost overwhelming. Werewolves and vampires assembled together; in an uneasy truce; clearly uncomfortable with the situation but willing to put up with each other because they were all united by a common goal – saving Bella Swan.

It was Victoria and the battle with the newborns all over again… Bella was in danger and everyone was throwing aside their personal differences in an effort to rescue her.

The pack was in full attendance; and all of them were on their best behavior… no taunting, no insults. The Cullens for their part; were behaving civilly too.

It was nothing short of a miracle… and the miracle had a name. Bella.

What was it about that girl that brought all of our protective instincts to the fore and made it possible for seemingly mortal enemies to work together with equanimity?

It wasn't just that we all loved her… although, that was a huge part of it. But what really brought us here was the sense of responsibility all of us felt towards her. She was an innocent bystander in all of this… trapped in our insanely supernatural world because we'd dragged her into it. Technically, yes… it'd been the leech's fault in the beginning. But then, we hadn't made things any easier either. If the leech had dragged her into this world; we – every single one of us present here – had kept her from leaving it. I had no doubt that if not for all of us; Bella would've been living a normal, sane, boring life with a husband and 2.5 kids right about now; not battling for her life against a psychotic, deranged undead creature! So yeah, it wasn't any wonder that all of us felt more than a little responsible for her.

"Jake?" Sam's hesitant query brought my musings to a halt. I looked around to see almost identical expressions of impatience on all of their faces.

Yes, of course… I was supposed to outline 'the plan'.

"Alright, so we know where Bella is, we know who's holding her and we know that he's – in his own words – waiting for me. So, the plan is very simple. We give him exactly what he wants; me on a platter!"

A loud chorus of curses and denials broke out, just as I knew they would. Edward and Jasper were the first to catch on to what I was saying and surprise of surprises they thought it was a good plan. The pack – Leah, Quil and Embry in particular – were predominantly vocal; and of the general consensus that Bella's disappearance had made me lose my mind completely. If I was honest with myself, they weren't too far off base. But I didn't have a death wish… at least not in the way they thought.

Unsurprisingly, a loud scuffle broke out… what with Edward actively encouraging me and my friends and brothers accusing him of trying to get rid of me. I was just grateful that they stuck to name calling and refrained from coming to actual physical blows.

"Guys." No one paid me any attention. "Guys!" I yelled a little louder; trying to placate everyone halfheartedly. Jesus, I was tired. Like, literally, bone deep tired. Bella's sudden disappearance, the intense ups and downs of emotions I'd gone through in the last couple of hours, combined with lack of sleep and hunger had all left me feeling drained. My heart ached with her absence; my head throbbed; I was exhausted. In short, I was feeling all around shitty. I was ready to have this ordeal over with. I couldn't bring myself to give a flying fuck about petty rivalries right now. I just wanted Bella back in my arms. That would be followed by a hot meal and a long bath. And then, sleep…lots of sleep; with Bella cuddled up next to me.

Edward paused in the middle of a heated argument with Paul and growled threateningly at me; having caught onto my thoughts. Yeah, he still wanted to have a pissing contest. Well, fuck that!

"Back off bloodsucker!" I snarled; sick and tired of his meddling ways. "Everyone else… just calm the fuck down!" I thundered. My normally abundant supply of patience was running rather thin.

I had unknowingly used my alpha voice and the pack fell silent as if someone had cut out their vocal cords. Thankfully, the power apparent in my voice seemed to shock the Cullens mute as well and I was rewarded with blessed, pin drop silence. "No one is getting rid of anyone! I don't plan to just give myself up if that's what all of you are thinking. What I meant to say was that, stealth should be the way to go in this matter, rather than going in for an outright attack."

Tempers simmered and banked. Everyone settled down. "Go on Jacob" Carlisle encouraged kindly in the silence.

"Listen, this vamp isn't your usual run of the mill drifter. He's old, he's smart, he's strong and he's done his homework. He's managed to get past our defenses and into La Push… god knows how many times and now, he's taken Bella right out from under our very noses. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that he has a great many advantages over us."

In a quick, concise manner, I filled them in on all the new details that'd come to light tonight – the different types of vampires existing in the world; their characteristics and differences from the ones we were already familiar with; the fact that there could be 'sorcery' involved; and finally, the fate of the Volturi. Needless to say, there was stunned silence even after I was done. The Cullens especially were extremely agitated that this bloodsucker we were dealing with, this psycho who had Bella had supposedly overthrown a three thousand year old regime of very gifted vampires; the very rulers of the vampire world.

"How… how is any of this even possible?" Carlisle demanded; the shock clearly displayed on his face for everyone to see. "Who is this 'Vladimir'? Why haven't we heard of him before? If he's as strong and as old as you say he is, surely there must be someone from our race who's heard of him! Why is it that we know so little about him? And what kind of powers does he have that he can destroy the Volturi, sneak in and out from right beneath our noses, get Bella and prevent Alice from seeing him?" He sounded agitated which was a first for Carlisle in my recollection.

"Honestly doc," I sighed "I don't know. And frankly, at this moment, it's not my main concern. I'm sorry, but that's just how it's gotta be for now. All I want to think about is getting Bella back home, safe and sound."

"Of course Jacob!" Carlisle spoke up immediately; profusely apologetic. "I'm sorry I allowed my personal feelings to get in the way."

"No, I understand your concern." I brushed his apology away. "Heck, I share your concern! If it makes you feel any better, I already have Reeve and Rafe going through all the records; looking for him. But I'm also not going to wait around for them to find something."

"Well then, you're even more of an idiot than I'd originally thought!" Edward snapped from the sideline.

"Excuse me?" I questioned in a dangerously soft voice, while all around me, growls broke out.

"You heard me, mutt! I said, you're even more of an idiot than I'd originally thought you were if you don't think that finding out everything possible about this guy before we go after him is a waste of time."

"Fuck. Off." I snarled viciously; at the absolute end of my tether as far as the leech was concerned. I stalked over to him aggressively with every intention of whooping his ass soundly but to my consternation, Dylan blocked my way.

What the fuck?

"This isn't going to help." He muttered in way of an explanation.

Edward scoffed sardonically; as if to imply that I was the one being unreasonable.

Dylan turned to face him. "Yeah, you need to back off too, Sparkles!"

Several choked laughs and gasps could be heard throughout the clearing. Despite my agitation, I had a hard time keeping a straight face too. But I don't think anyone was more surprised than Edward whose face underwent a comical change as he had an apoplectic fit – well as much of an apoplectic fit as the leech could have anyway. He looked like he'd have happily strangled Dylan at that moment. It was priceless…seeing the leech's control slip like this. I decided right then and there that Dylan could flirt with Bella as much as he wanted (harmlessly, of course) as long as he gave the leech a hard time.

But apparently Dylan wasn't done with either of us which he proved by giving both Edward and me the tongue lashing of a lifetime! "We've wasted enough time listening to your stupid bickering! I don't care how much you hate each other; your fighting isn't helping Izzy! And that's what's important. So, you need to call a truce, right now! You need to table this hostility till you get her back, dammit! Then, you can fight to your heart's content, okay?"

Both Edward and I were thoroughly speechless by the time he was done as were all the other people present here.

My respect for Bella's friend skyrocketed. So, yes, he had no sense of self preservation – this was the third time in two days that he'd confronted an angry werewolf or a vampire or both – but what he lacked in that area, he more than made up for in courage. Dylan O'Connor had balls of steel and I liked him…a lot.

Meanwhile, Jasper appeared deep in thought. "I'm afraid Edward's right." Jasper said, regretfully. My gaze snapped to him; the hint of danger in them still apparent. He raised both of his hands in a gesture of surrender. "Hey, man I'm not saying we shouldn't go. I'm just saying that Edward is right in saying that it would be beyond suicidal to just walk into this guy's lair without knowing every possible detail on him." He said apologetically.

Edward threw me a triumphant look; his very expression screaming 'I told you so'.

Goddamn the bastard to hell. How I'd like to chew off pieces of him from all over his body and burn them! That wouldn't be against the treaty, right? After all, he wouldn't die from a couple of bites…just be disfigured for all eternity.

I took a couple of deep breaths just to calm down and chose to address Jasper instead of the retard. "You're right Jasper. It could be suicidal. But the alternative is to leave Bella in the clutches of that psychopath even longer while we waste valuable time gathering info and that I'm not prepared to do!"

It was almost comical to watch the smug expression on the leech's face die.

'Take that you arrogant, conceited asshole!'

Outwardly calm, I went on. "Is it a risk to go in blind? Sure. Is it a risk I'm prepared to take? Damn right!"

"So, you want to brief us on this brilliant plan of yours?" Alice trilled, walking up beside me in a clear cut gesture of support.

Shocked as I was that she'd chosen to align herself with me against her dear beloved brother; yet again; I didn't let it distract me from my train of thought. "Well, first and foremost, we have to go on the assumption that he knows almost everything there is to know about us because let's face it; he's had months, possibly years to prepare for this. We, on the other hand are completely clueless! So, we have to use the only advantage we have at the moment."

"And that would be…?" Emmett questioned patiently.

"The element of surprise." I replied calmly. "We know this land…every nook and crevice in it. He doesn't. I say, we make him believe that he's getting what he wants; me; and when he's least prepared for it, we ambush him!" I squatted down and placed a rock on the ground. Then, I drew several 'X's around it. "This is the cave." I pointed to the rock. "Carlisle, you, Jared and Collin will form one team and you will be positioned here." I pointed out a location to the south of the cave. "Jasper, Brady, Esme and Sam will form the second team, and position themselves here." I pointed to the north. "Rosalie, Paul and Leah you will be spread out in the thicket of trees just shy of the cliffs. Emmett, Seth and Alice will be with you. All of you will stay out of sight and under the radar, so to speak. If you get too close, he'll be able to smell all of us; sense us…so we need to maintain our distance." I braced myself, because I knew that the next part of the plan was going to be met with the maximum resistance. "Once all of you are in position; and we've run a little recon around the perimeter of the lair, Edward and I will go in and he'll hand me over to Vladimir."

For a moment, there was nothing but stunned silence. And then, as expected, there were a flurry of protests, mostly from my pack.

"What?" Embry spat out.

"Absolutely not!" Sam pitched in heatedly.

"Have you lost your freaking mind?" Words of wisdom from Leah; our resident expert on all things insane. "You want to go into the lair of a very dangerous and sadistic leech with your mortal enemy… another bloodsucking leech, I might add…and one who is also in love with the same woman that you love?"

"Just hear me out…" I inserted before she could go on any further. "Edward will pretend to hand me over to Vladimir. That way, he and I both have an in. And, with Edward there, we can easily discern his thoughts and figure out how to get Bella out safely." I stated calmly. "The moment we know she's safe, I'll phase… which will be the signal for the rest of you to move in. It'll be swift and painless. They won't know what hit them."

"Brilliant plan, mighty alpha... just brilliant!" She scoffed deridingly; apparently not convinced about the merits of my scheme.

"Look, I know it's not the best or the most sophisticated of plans, but that is the reason I think it'll be successful. They won't be expecting us to just walk in there."

"Oh, come on Jacob" She exclaimed agitatedly. "How the fuck do you know Eddie boy here won't throw you under the bus when the time comes so that he can have Bella for himself?"

The leech seemed to take an exception to her insinuation. "I won't do anything of the sort!" He growled in an affronted tone. "I might want Bella, but I don't have to kill Jacob to get her."

"Get her?" Leah snarled ferociously. "She's not some piece of property; that you can just pick up and take wherever you want, asshole!"

"I know that!" Edward snapped back impatiently.

"Do you?" Leah questioned sarcastically. "Because, every single time I've seen you; you've been making all her decisions for her… forcing her into things that you want!"

"I do nothing of the sort! I love her!" The leech answered haughtily.

"Love?" Leah snorted disdainfully. "You're not in love with her Edward." She mocked. "What you are is obsessed with her!"

The fury that statement generated in Edward was unmistakable.

Leah definitely seemed to be pushing all of the leech's buttons and while I might have enjoyed the spectacle any other time, now was not the time to deal with our internal issues.

"That's enough Leah!" I warned sharply.

"Why? It's the truth isn't it?" Leah turned to me and demanded hotly. "And if you're planning to take this bastard with you into a situation where your very survival could depend on his actions; as your beta and your friend; I think I'm justified in questioning his motives, don't you think?"

"My motives?" Edward voice went silky with rage. "You dare question my motives?"

"Yes, hotshot, I do! You got a problem with that?" Leah demanded angrily.

"You're damn right I do! How dare you? I've been nothing but…" Edward began.

"Oh, oh right… how can I question your motives? After all, you've been such a bloody paragon of virtue throughout your life! Pure as the driven snow! And your intentions have always been honorable, haven't they? You're right. I'm so sorry. What the fuck was I thinking?" In my opinion, the heavy sarcasm was lost on the leech. But apparently, Leah didn't agree with me… and she had more to say. "Ever since you met Bella, you've been nothing but a manipulative, controlling prick with your own, ulterior motives…"

Alright, this was getting us nowhere! Not that the leech didn't deserve to hear every single word of her rant, but I'd prefer it be said at a time when the woman I loved wasn't in mortal danger, thank you very much!

"I said, that's enough!" I yelled loudly enough to wake up the dead. "We are not doing this!" I declared; my demeanor leaving them in no doubt at all that I'd kick both their asses if they didn't shut up right this very minute. "Not now…"

All the aggression seemed to drain out of Leah. "I know Jake… I know. I'm sorry!" She muttered shamefully apologetic. "I know my timing sucks! I know our priority is to save Bella right now and I don't know what got into me; I swear I didn't mean to cause delays. I…I just don't trust the bloodsucker and I don't want you going off with him all alone, that's all."

"Well, Jake's not going to go off all alone with him anywhere," Embry spoke up out of the blue, "because I'm going with him." Just like that, all matter-of-fact. Typical Embry.

"The hell you are!" I snapped.

"What?" Leah blurted out simultaneously. "No!" She looked horrified. "Embry, it's too risky! You're not going. I won't allow it!" The panic in her voice was obvious for everyone to see and it was sobering. This was Leah; bold, fearless, courageous! Not once since she'd phased had she pulled back from a fight. In fact, she was always the first one to jump into any sticky situation. The fact that she was so freaked out now was a testament to the strength of her feelings for Embry.

Utter silence. No one said a word. All eyes were trained on Embry; waiting for his reaction. And like me; I think everyone present was rooting for one of them (most likely Embry… because let's face it, he was the calmer, saner one of the two) to finally come to his or her senses and accept that they belonged together.

Embry's reaction; when it came was totally unexpected. He threw his head back and laughed... like really laughed… as if Leah had said something completely hilarious. Everyone stared at him in confusion – it was the last thing anyone expected from calm, shy, stoic, steady Embry – except Leah. She was definitely not confused. Nor was she amused. If anything, she was furious.

"What the hell is so funny?" She snarled.

"You are!" Embry stated; still chuckling occasionally.

Leah looked liked she would like nothing better than to punch Embry in the face right then. Instead, she settled on a growl.

Embry's face hardened into a blank mask but when he spoke it was as if he hadn't heard her at all. "You're priceless, you know that? You won't allow me? What the hell is that? What makes you think you have the right to order me around, princess?" He literally spat. I winced. Uh… wow. It felt wrong to be privy to this; we were obviously intruding on a private moment. The looks the pack members threw at me told me that they too were as uncomfortable with witnessing this argument as I was. "You lost that right the moment you told me to fuck off!" Embry continued heatedly. I couldn't figure out if he was completely oblivious to everyone's discomfort or if he just didn't give a damn. Either way, it wasn't a side of Embry any of us had seen very often.

A haunted expression crossed Leah's features. It was obvious that she hadn't expected an outburst of this magnitude from him either. "Embry…" She began hesitantly.

"Don't Leah, just don't!" Embry barked out angrily. "You should save your breath Leah, because I really don't want to hear whatever it is you have to say. Go back to Jeremy." He announced listlessly; having expended his rage. "Live your happy, supernatural free life!" He dismissed. "That's what you want isn't it?" He looked at her a few moments longer before he turned to me tiredly. "Come on man, let's get going."

She opened her mouth to argue but I beat her to the punch. "Leah, my decision is final. You can't change my mind; I'm going. But, if it helps, Embry's not going with me, so you don't need to worry, okay?" I stated decisively; hoping to stem any further arguments on the topic.

"Oh no, man; that's where you're wrong. I am going with you."Embry stated emphatically. When I turned to him in irritation; he just gave me his patented look – mule headed stubbornness barely masked by patience. (Everyone who came across Embry thought he was the perfect human being – kind, patient, understanding. As his best friend, I, of course knew better. I'd heard that perseverance was a virtue. Well, whoever said that hadn't met Embry Call…god, the man could drive anyone to insanity with his thick-headed obstinacy! Case in point, his relationship with Leah!) "Don't argue with me. You don't have the time. You need me and I'm coming." He went on… as I'd known he would.

Jesus! Stubborn though he was he was also right in this case. I didn't have the time to argue with him, not now. But later was a whole different matter altogether. In fact, later I was going to ensure that he got the ass-chewing of the century! And then, I was going to throw him and Leah into a room, lock them up and leave them there till they dealt with their problems. Or fucked each other's brains out…whichever came first! "Alright, fine! Come along if you have to, but, we have to hurry!"

He indicated that he was ready to leave immediately.

"Good. But remember, this has to be convincing, alright? Vladimir has to believe that he has me at his mercy." I added. "So, you don't engage, not unless something goes horribly wrong, you got that? Our only priority is to get Bella the hell out of there; as quickly as possible! Killing the leech; hurting him isn't the main objective…not at the expense of Bella's safety. If it happens, it's a bonus. No one argues with me about this, is that understood?"

Embry and Edward grudgingly accepted.

"What about me?" Dylan spoke up. "Where do I fit into this grand plan of yours?" He questioned.

There was no hesitation, no doubt in my mind as I gave him the answer. "You and Lisa will both be as far away from this place as you can possibly be!"

"The hell I will!" He began hotly. "She's my best friend too! I'm going with…"

"No, you're not." I interrupted emphatically. This wasn't up for discussion. There wasn't going to be a compromise on this one.

He understood the steel in my words but tried to reason with me nonetheless. "Listen Jacob, I can help you. I was in the Special Forces back home before I signed up for the Reserves and attended University. I know hand-to-hand combat. And I know my way around weapons and explosives. I'm not helpless!"

Well, well, well… the insane courage made a little more sense now. It made no difference to my decision though. "I appreciate that, Dylan. But we're not dealing with your garden variety human criminal scum here. These are vampires we're talking about…vampires! And they're extremely dangerous; often lethal; supernatural beings. And trust me, no matter how trained you are, there's no way you can handle their speed, strength or their brutality. So, yeah, I stand by my decision. You're…" I turned to Lisa – who'd been surprisingly silent throughout this entire discussion – as I spoke. "…both of you are going to have to sit this one out."

I made a split second decision; altering my previous plans a little. "Esme, would you mind taking Dylan, Lisa and Colin back to your house? They'll be safe there and Colin can communicate with us if something comes up." Yes, it would leave me a couple of people short, but it couldn't be helped. Bella would kill me if anything happened to her friends.

"Of course Jacob." Esme acknowledged instantly. I spared her a quick smile of gratitude but I couldn't say anything else as I could already see Dylan bristling at my high-handedness.

I could understand where he was coming from… knew I'd be feeling the same if I was in his position and so, I spent precious time trying to reassure him. "Dylan," I began, "You have to trust me. I know what I'm doing here. This is my job, my duty…and I'm damned good at it. I'll get Bella back; I swear to you, I'll get her back. Right now though, you have to do what I tell you to so that I can concentrate on saving her without having to worry about you or Lisa."

I could see he still wasn't too thrilled with the idea of being babysat but thankfully he conceded graciously enough. I breathed a sigh of relief and waited while Esme and Colin led them away.

As soon as they were gone I turned to the others. "Enough chit-chat. Time for some action, don't you think?"

"Hell yeah!" Emmett yelled. "About damn time…"

The sentiment seemed to be echoed by everyone in the clearing. "Alright! Edward, Embry and I will take approximately 10-12 minutes to reach the lair. We're going to coordinate our watches. It is now 7.25 am. We'll give you a five minute lead to assume your respective positions." I ordered. "Once you're in place, stay focused; stay alert. Wait for Embry or me to phase before you attack!"

Everyone conveyed their acquiescence and the next couple of minutes were spent hashing out last minute details.

"Good luck guys!" Quil called softly once we were ready to leave. Seth and Brady echoed the sentiment.

Paul and Jared walked up me and gave me a friendly fist bump. "Don't worry brother. We have your back." They reassured me before turning to hug Embry. As far as I was concerned, the reassurance was needless. I had no doubts. I trusted them implicitly. With my life; with Bella's.

"I have no desire to be Alpha ever again so don't you dare die on me, Jacob!" Sam warned me gruffly; his very persona reflecting his calm competence. I held his gaze for a couple of moments and nodded; acknowledging the sentiment behind the seemingly curt words.

Leah was the only one who was completely silent. Her face was pale and drawn; her eyes filled with dread. I'd never seen her this way. She was usually one of the calmest and the most competent person I'd ever known. But, right now, she was a basket case. And it wasn't on account of me. Clearly, her feelings for Embry ran deep… deeper maybe than even she realized. Because… I knew for a fact that if she was the one going in with me, she'd be a totally different person right now.

"Em…" I inserted gently; aiming a concerned look in Leah's direction. "Maybe it's better if you stay behind."

"And miss out on the opportunity to kick some leech ass? No way man! Where's the fun in that?" He spoke with false enthusiasm while observing the pleading look in her eyes dispassionately. His own eyes were emotionless… grim even. It was almost as if he was trying to convey a message to her with that look. "Nah, Jake… it's really better if I don't stay behind." He declared matter-of-factly; his gaze never wavering from hers.

For a fleeting instant; an expression of utter hopelessness crossed Leah's face. An imperceptible sheen of moisture filled her eyes. A moment later, it was all gone… replaced by a stoic nonchalance. Deliberately breaking eye contact from Embry, she walked up to me. "Be careful Jake." She said, giving me a hug.

Goddammit! These two were driving me insane! I felt like shaking some sense into them and I'd be willing to bet my left nut that I wasn't the only person here who felt that way! For a long time now, I'd entertained the thought of ordering them to make up already and put us all out of our misery but being a reasonable man and a fair alpha, I'd restrained the impulse. Now, I was regretting that decision. Right now, I had no choice but to let it go… but, I made up my mind to talk to both of them as soon as we got Bella back. "We will." I assured her, giving her a quick hug in the process. "Don't worry Leah; I'll take care of him."

She met my eyes briefly; giving me a small, grateful smile.

Then it was the Cullens turn; as they wished us good luck too.

Once that was done; the pack along with the Cullens scattered in their assigned directions. Soon, Edward, Embry and I were the only people left in the clearing. We kept close watch on the time, waiting impatiently for the allotted time period to elapse.

"Ready?" I questioned them as soon as the second hand passed the five minute mark.

"Ready" They assured me grimly.

We began running through the undergrowth; stealthily making our way to the cliffs and Vladimir's lair.

The reek came out of nowhere…a thousand decaying bodies; left too long in the sun and then stuffed to overflowing with sugary sweets. It overcame my senses; overwhelmed me.

Oh fuck! Fucking fuck! This was not part of the plan! Fuck!

Around me, Edward and Embry came to a screeching halt as they recognized the threat too. I met Embry's eyes. Through the years, it almost seemed like the telepathy we shared while phased transcended till it was present all the time. While we couldn't actually read each other's mind in our human states, we still knew what each of us was thinking just by looking at each other. As if in synchronization; we phased simultaneously.

I looked around wildly; trying to determine where the stench emanated from but I couldn't see anything; even through my enhanced eyesight.

This was bad… this was so bad.

"Dude, where the fuck are they?" Embry gagged; breathing through his snout.

Shit! Shit! Fucking SHIT!

"Anyone see anything?" I questioned; trying my level best to stay calm.

"No man… nothing." Embry answered disbelievingly.

How the hell had this happened? What the fuck were these creatures that they could sneak up on us, while a pack of ten werewolves and seven vampires had been completely oblivious to their arrival?

"Dammit! Edward…? Can you at least hear their thoughts? Where are they? How far away? "

"I can't hear anything!" Edward answered my unspoken question grimly.

Before I could come up with a game plan, eight other minds connected into ours simultaneously. Shit! The rest of the pack must've phased in preparation for the planned ambush. And since they hadn't expected us to be phased this soon; there was an immediate onset of confusion. Questions bombarded us from all directions. It was nothing short of chaotic.

'Is it time…?' Brady began confusedly before the stench registered.

'Jake? Embry? What the fuck…?' Paul wondered as the gravity of the situation slowly sank in.

'Oh Shit!' Jared was quicker on the uptake.

In no time, my disquiet translated itself onto my pack. The rumblings of unease quickly grew from a mere trickle into an outright flood.

'Hold on!' Leah exclaimed; urgently. 'We're on our way!'

'Yeah Jake, Em… hold on. We'll be there in a few…' Quil reiterated reassuringly.

Shit, this situation was quickly getting out of hand. I had to take charge; immediately; before everything fell spectacularly apart. 'No! Stay right where you are, all of you!' I barked out a quick order.

'But…' Sam began; clearly at a loss.

'Maybe they're right Jake… We should wait for backup! I mean, who knows how many of them are there you know…' It didn't take a genius to sense Embry's misgivings; not that he was being a sissy about it in any way. No, this was the protocol I'd drilled into them, day in and day out till they could recite it even in their sleep. 'You come by an unknown number of leeches, you wait and you call for backup. You do not get complacent or overconfident! You do not walk into an ambush! You do not go into the situation thinking that you're indestructible!' And it was a good, sound protocol that'd stood us in good stead if our years of exemplary health and safety record was anything to go by. So no, I couldn't really fault Embry for hesitating.

In fact, I was the one who was breaking all the rules! But dammit, I didn't know how many leeches were out there. Embry and I didn't have a choice here, but I wasn't going to let the rest of my pack walk into a trap!

Besides, Bella was in danger…at the mercy… whims of a madman! Now, at this point I honestly didn't care if I got hurt. But, just in case I did, I wanted the rest of the guys to be able to get her out of harm's way. For this, I needed them to be free and unhurt. I couldn't let them come here. I just couldn't! I had to make sure Bella was safe. I couldn't…I wouldn't let her safety hang in the balance by letting them risk their lives for us!

'No! No backup! We handle this ourselves!' I spoke sharply, hoping that they all got the message loud and clear. Embry chuffed in protest. 'I mean it Em… don't make me do something that we'll both regret later!' I snapped. He understood what I was saying and balked at the veiled threat of enforcement. None of them liked it when I forced them to obey me. Neither did I; which is why I rarely, if ever, issued an alpha command. But the fact that I didn't like it didn't mean I wouldn't do it if the situation called for it and they were all too aware of the fact. Sensing his reluctant surrender; I eased up a little bit. 'Look, you and I can handle this, no worries…' I reassured him confidently.

Then I addressed everyone else. 'Do not… I repeat, do not break your positions!'

Reluctantly, but left with no choice, they fell back.

'Edward, Embry… keep a look out for anything out of the ordinary... I'm going to circle the clearing, see if I can catch any of them unawares.' I outlined the plan of action.

Before I could move a nasally, whiny, girlish voice broke out of the thicket of trees surrounding us. "Well, well, well… looks like quite a welcoming committee we have here, wouldn't you say brother?"

Edward froze as if he'd been electrified. "Jane…?" He whispered in disbelief.

"You know the leech, Cullen?" I questioned wordlessly; not even bothering to mask my disgust. "Why am I not surprised?"

"Yes Jacob, I do know this particular vampire." Edward's tone… there was something off about it. He sounded grave. Almost scared…? But why? What did he have to be worried about?

Before the leech could even begin to answer the barrage of questions in my mind, there was the gentle rustle of trees and two teenagers – a girl and a boy; both in their early teens; both vampires (and not the good kind, based on their blood red eyes) – stepped into view.

Great! More teenage vamps! Didn't anyone ever think about waiting till they outgrew the dreaded teen years to turn them? I mean, seriously… who in their right minds would want to spend eternity surrounded by an overabundance of hormones and constant, never-ending drama?

I shuddered in distaste and braced myself for the inevitable theatrics.

"Hello Edward." The girl greeted emotionlessly. "How are you?"

"Jane." Edward acknowledged her presence with a courteous tilt of his head before turning towards the boy. "Alec. What are you doing here?"

"Oh nothing." The one Edward had referred to as Alec answered almost casually. "You might've heard that there was a small mishap at our home recently. We found ourselves in need of a change of scenery.

"And what better place than Forks, right?" The girl took over. "After all, your coven always seemed to be so enamored with the place." The childish enthusiasm in her voice was completely at odds with the cold malevolence in her blood red eyes.

Fuck I'd had it with the pleasantries! What was this, a fucking tea party sponsored by the Queen of England?

'Enough!' I snapped. 'Quit dicking around Edward! I'd like to know who these bloodthirsty munchkins are… and preferably in this century!'

"Forgive me…" Edward answered guardedly; without taking his eyes off the two strangers. "Jacob, meet Alec and Jane; members of the Volturi guard and Aro's prized possessions."

Volturi? What the fuck? Weren't they supposed to be all dead… er… dead'er' or whatever the vampy equivalent of destroyed was? And if they'd been destroyed weren't they supposed to be gone… for like forever? What the hell was going on?

And then, the full ramifications of our predicament sank in. Holy fucking shit! If the Volturi weren't gone; we were in an even bigger pile of shit than we'd started out in. My entire body went numb.

"Jacob Black." Jane drawled; interrupting my thoughts. "It is such a pleasure to finally meet you. Alec and I have heard a lot about you, haven't we brother?" She stepped forward confidently. "Here puppy, puppy…" She murmured; actually having the audacity to extend her hand toward me as if to pet me.

'Touch me and I'll rip your fucking hand off, leech!' I snarled viciously but it came out as a vicious growl. I looked towards Edward; hoping that he would have the sense to convey my aversion to her.

"I don't think it's a good idea to pet him, Jane. He doesn't take too kindly to it and is likely to bite your hand off." Edward spoke reluctantly; obviously not averse to the image of Jane without one of her arms.

"He understands what's happening even in this state?" She threw an obnoxiously delighted glace at Embry and me. "Oh Edward… you do seem to have the most wonderful pets." No fucking way! The bitch did not just imply we were domesticated animals who belonged to the Cullens! Oh, she was going to pay for that, I'd make sure of it! "Humans and non-humans alike" She continued, unaware of my murderous thoughts.

An arrested expression came over Edward's face then. "Human?" He questioned in a faint whisper.

"Oh, did we forget to tell you that we just saw your darling Isabella?"

Fuck! I froze instantly; forgetting to even draw a breath. Embry and Edward seemed to be similarly arrested.

She smirked at all of us; clearly enjoying our dramatic reactions. "Oops, sorry!" She giggled. Sorry my ass. She wasn't sorry at all. This was all a carefully orchestrated plan to guarantee maximum impact. "How incredibly forgetful of us!" She finished with a relish.

"Where the fuck is she, you bitch?" Edward growled; stealing the words right out of my mouth.

I chuffed in approval…for once pleased with Edward's actions.

"Oh, she's with my master." She informed carelessly. "She's fine… although, she did seem a little weak, didn't she Alec? Poor girl, probably feeling the fatigue…" The sympathy was patently false and everyone knew it. "My lord, Vladimir, wore her out. She was of course, as delightfully entertaining as always. Such a cooperative little pet, don't you think?" She pretended to question Alec while throwing a sly smirk at Edward and me as she uttered those potentially explosive sentences. It was almost like she was waiting to see how we'd react.

Oh God, oh god, oh god…

Insane though the thought drove me; I told myself to keep my cool… to ignore the implications in that statement. Bella was fine. She had to be fine. I breathed deeply and reminded myself again and again that by reacting the way I wanted to; I'd be playing right into her hands, giving her exactly what she wanted. So, I waited to see what she would do next. I waited and I watched. And I hoped that she would mess up and give me the opening that I was waiting for… an opening in which I could rip her to shreds!

Edward, unfortunately; didn't seem to share my belief in waiting and watching… or my self control.

Before I could stop him he exploded into action; ramming into her thunderously. They both flew through the air at breakneck speed and slammed into the ground several hundred feet away with a loud crash. "What have you done with her!" He snarled dangerously.

Embry and I tensed; our muscles bunched; ready to leap into the fray at a moment's notice. Before we could spring into action; three more figures stepped into our line of sight.

Oh Shit!

Pale, graceful, predatory… they were clearly vampires too. And yet, they weren't like any of the vampires I knew. There was clearly something different about them.

The reek! That's what it was. They didn't smell like death and sugar and bleach all combined together into one disgusting cocktail. Their stench didn't burn my nostrils. In fact, they didn't have a stench at all! They just smelled off… but not in any way like a vampire. The early morning sunlight didn't glint off their skin in muted sparkles either.

And that's when it occurred to me. Fuck, these were the guys Reeve and Rafe had told me about!

It took less than a microsecond for me to take in these discrepancies and convey my theories to Embry.

Meanwhile both Jane and Alec had convulsed into gales of malicious laughter. Apparently the idea of Edward holding either of them hostage for information was ridiculously amusing.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk! You don't seem to learn from your mistakes, do you Cullen?" Alec chided; his voice dripping with mock concern. "Look behind you. Even if you weren't facing us; you'd still be hopelessly outnumbered! We'd crush you in a heartbeat! Are you really willing to die for her? Why? She left you and yet you continue to care for her. Aro was obsessed with her too, you know. Demitri and Felix both wanted to possess her. Hmmm… I wonder what it is about her…" He spoke almost to himself, his tone rife with curiosity.

"Never mind that!" Jane snapped. "Let's talk about this, shall we?" She questioned; indicating the fact that Edward had her body pinned to the ground. "You attack us, knowing full well that we are far stronger, far more powerful than you'll ever be. If that's not stupidity; I don't know what is! But then, you were always a little stupid where Isabella was concerned, weren't you?" She ridiculed. "Why don't you let me go Edward and we'll forget this ever happened." She cajoled softly; swiftly switching tacks.

"Hell no!" Edward answered instantly. "I'm not letting you go until you tell me what you've done with Bella!"

She sighed; as if dealing with a wayward child. I couldn't help thinking that her reaction was disturbing; more so because in the current scenario, she was the 'child'. But this was not the time to be thinking about such things. My mind briefly jumped to the fact that neither Jane nor Alec seemed to be too worried about the stronghold Edward had on her. But before I could put too much thought into the mysteries of the vampire mind, Edward let out what could only be described as a howl of pain; clutching his head as if it were about to explode. His grip on her slacked off instantly as if he had no control over his own actions.

What? What was happening? Were they doing this? And if so, how?

There was an unearthly quality to his screams. They grated on my nerves like nails being viciously scrapped against a blackboard. My hair literally stood on end.

Alarm for his well being (yes, I was aware of the irony, thank you very much) spurred me into immediate action. I tried to make my way towards him to help; only to be blocked by Alec. I growled a warning low in my throat as I circled him; looking for an opening.

I could sense Embry just behind me; flanking me. 'Go Jake… I've got you covered. I'll keep the new arrivals at bay but I really think these two are the ones in charge here.' he muttered softly. 'Take the bastard's head off and then, let's go deal with his bitch of a sister! We can handle the rest of the troupe later.'

Hell yeah, I couldn't agree more!

I regulated my breathing… preparing myself to take a running leap straight at the leech's head.

The very next instant; I was frozen in place; blind, deaf, completely powerless. None of my senses seemed to be working. No sight. No sound. No smell. It almost felt like I'd been stuck in a void!

'Shit, shit, shit! I can't see anything! I can't SEE anything! Em?'

'Holy… oh Jesus god… Jake!'

Well, thank god… at least I could hear that! It seemed that whatever this was, it hadn't affected the pack's telepathic connection. Thank god for small mercies!

Although, judging from the sheer terror reflected in Embry's mind that was the only thing we could be thankful for at the moment!

Holy fucking shit, we were both completely screwed! All our senses had utterly deserted us. We were literally in the dark… and surrounded by leeches. We were totally fucked… on top of being screwed!

'Guys, what is going on?' To say that Quil sounded confused would be an understatement.

I thought long and hard about how to answer him. How the fuck do I describe this situation? What do I say that won't come across as insane?

Just as I was forming an appropriate response in my mind, a sickening crunch followed by a half-smothered yelp made the hair on my back stand on end. The very same instant; Embry's voice shut off from my mind. Just like that. No warning. It was almost like a switch had been flicked off.

'Em? Em?' I yelled but to no avail. Nothing. And I still couldn't see anything dammit!

'What the hell is going on Jake?' Sam sounded as close to agitated as I'd ever heard him.

'I don't know…' I had to admit to my helplessness. 'I don't fucking know!'

'Oh my God, Embry!' The panic in Leah's voice was pronounced…sharp and brittle. It took all of my willpower not to succumb to it.

'Em? Answer me, goddammit!' I tried one more time; praying that there'd been some kind of a mistake.

No answer.

Shit! Shit! Fucking shit!

'Em! Embry!' The pack called out in unison… Leah's voice the strongest of them all.

The results they got were no different from the ones I had.

Dread unfurled in the pit of my stomach. Something was wrong. Very wrong. The way Embry had just switched off… that shouldn't have happened; shouldn't have even been possible. That's not how the pack mind worked. Not to mention, the connection I had to him – a connection that'd existed since the day I'd taken over as alpha… the connection that an alpha had with each and every member of his pack; a connection that was unique for every individual member – had never seemed weaker than it did at the moment.

I don't know if that was the push I needed to snap out of it (whatever 'it' was) – the severing of the connection between Embry and me – but the next thing I knew there was a little light in all the darkness surrounding me. Light, sounds, smells…they no longer seemed just out of reach.

'Fight! Fight it Jake! I know you can do it!' Leah's voice was fierce and strong. 'Do it for us, for Embry, for Bella!'

And just like that, the darkness disappeared and the world came into focus once again.

Only… what I saw in front of me was the stuff of nightmares and it was enough to make me wish for the darkness once again!

Embry's wolf was standing next to me; twitching and convulsing; frothing at the mouth. His eyes were literally rolled up into his head and I knew… I just knew that he was in terrible pain; even though our connection was still severed somehow. And God… there was no way he should have been able to stay standing through whatever was being done to him yet somehow, he was! I couldn't even begin to explain how…except…something seemed to be holding him up. It was completely unnatural and unholy and horrifying!

'Embry!' I half whispered half yelled; my heart racing uncontrollably.

The rest of the pack was unnaturally silent; their speechlessness a true measure of their shock and horror. Leah; in particular; seemed incapable of coherent thought.

"Jacob!" Edward's sharp voice brought me out of whatever daze I'd fallen in briefly. I looked around numbly; only to see that he had risen from his fetal position on the ground and was now crouching right beside me. There was wariness in his stance as he kept a close eye on the leeches' activities.

And Embry… he was still twitching.

I snapped. I couldn't stop myself. Howling in rage, I flung myself at the bloodsucker; intending to tear off each and every bit of his body. Before I could manage to get anywhere within biting distance; a mind numbing pain pierced my skull.

'Aaaaahhhhh' I screamed; dropping to the ground like a sack of potatoes.

From behind me, I could sense Edward trying to follow my lead but he didn't get very far either. He fell to the ground beside me.

The only thing we'd achieved by our actions was getting their focus off of Embry. There was a loud thud as his body hit the ground; hard. With the leeches' attention directed towards us; whatever force had been holding him vertical had gone away and he'd fallen to the ground; limp like a ragdoll. To my immense relief, the convulsions seemed to have stopped too.

Ignoring the blinding pain in my head, I used my front paws to crawl over to him. Closer to him; I could see that he was completely out of it. Whatever hopes I'd had of Embry coming to quickly; faded. God, he was barely breathing… his chest rising shallowly with every breath. And his heart was beating unnaturally fast; even for a wolf. What was even more worrisome was the unnatural angle his body was lying in. But I would worry about all of that later. First things first, we had to get away.

Thankfully, I could sense the excruciating pain in my head slowly fading to a dull ache. My body still felt as if it'd been put through the wringer but I could at least function somewhat normally.

Automatically; almost instinctively Edward and I rose and moved into a back to back fighting formation. That way, we could cover each other and still keep a look out for sudden attacks. The irony of the situation wasn't lost on me. Edward and I had somehow gone from being at each other's throats a couple of hours ago to being each other's only chance of escape from this horrendous situation.

But I couldn't dwell on any of that. Right now, I had to find a way to help Embry… to get him out of here.

"Give it up" Jane goaded us mercilessly. "You'll never get the better of us!"

'What's happening?' I questioned Edward; choosing to ignore the bitch. 'What's wrong with Embry?'

"I don't know exactly what they did to him but medically, I can tell you it's not good. Right now, his heart is beating way too fast and there's a lot of internal bleeding. I don't know why, but he's not healing…at all. At this rate, pretty soon, his body will go into shock. Then, his organs will begin shutting down, one by one. If we don't get him out of here soon, he could actually die." He hissed out of the corner of his mouth. I couldn't believe what he was saying. It couldn't be true. It just couldn't!

"Tsk, tsk, tsk… that would be such a shame wouldn't it?" Alec sneered; having heard every word of our conversation.

'But how?' I questioned; drowning in anguish.

"Alec and Jane are very powerful Jacob." Edward went on in an urgent whisper. "They can make you feel immeasurable pain or cut you off from all your senses. That's why they were Aro's favorites. And what's worse, they're completely without a conscience, wholly evil."

'What the fuck do we do now?' I questioned; trying to keep a lid on my emotions.

"I don't know!" He admitted helplessly.

I threw an apprehensive look at Embry. Was it just my imagination or was his breathing even shallower than earlier?

'We have to get Embry out of here! I'm not going to let him die…I'm NOT!' I yelled.

"I know that!" Edward argued. "But how are we going to do that?"

A crazy plan formed in my mind.

"No, NO! Jacob, I'm not going to allow you to…" Edward protested.

'We have to. It's the only choice! You take Embry while I create a diversion.'

"I said No!" He was adamant.

"Aw, how cute!" Jane exclaimed in a saccharine sweet voice. "Edward and the puppy are making plans to help their friend! Isn't that just adorable?"

'Listen, you have to do this!' I spat impatiently; paying no attention to her sick ramblings. 'I'm not going to sit here and do nothing while my best friend dies!'

"Well, then you go!" Edward hissed angrily. "I'm not leaving till we have Bella…"

'I can't! You're faster and you have medical knowhow. You're the only one who can help Embry! Take him to Carlisle. He'll know what to do. Come on Edward! You could be his last chance.'

"But Bella…" Edward protested.

'Oh, for fuck's sake, quit your bloody posturing! I know that you're worried about Bella. I am too! But let's get one thing straight. Bella is my responsibility! I'm the one who got her into this predicament and I'm the one who has to get her out!' He hesitated; not completely convinced. 'Come on Cullen… you know I'm right. You heard and saw what Alice saw. Vladimir clearly indicated that it's me he wants! You're the one who said so. I'm the one who has to get Bella.' I paused while he assimilated my words. He still didn't appear too happy with my decision but I couldn't be worried about that right now. I had no time to coddle him. 'Besides, this isn't about you and me and our petty rivalries anymore. You wanted to help, right? You assured Leah that you'd do anything required of you. Well, this is what I need you to do right now!'

I sensed his capitulation with burgeoning determination.

'Go!' I screamed; springing into action immediately; jumping on the leech nearest to me (who just happened to be one of the newer arrivals) with my jaws snapping wildly. I didn't stop to see if Edward complied with my wishes. I didn't want to stop at all, lest Edward have second thoughts about the plan. We didn't have time for second thoughts. We had to act now!

I took a chunk out of the leech's flesh, spitting it out immediately before moving onto the next one. Their howls of pain gave me immense satisfaction. After all, I didn't particularly care what body part I took off as long as it was something that incapacitated them momentarily.

A part of me couldn't help but marvel at the differences these leeches displayed over the ones I usually encountered. They seemed more human… their bodies soft; not hard and marble like. My teeth slid through them like a knife through butter. It was sickening somehow. And the lack of venom eliminated the toxic vampy taste/feel too. But they were definitely faster, stronger and more vicious…almost feral. I had no trouble believing that these creatures; unlike the Cullens had no emotions, no souls whatsoever. Evil radiated out of them. And I could already tell that the couple of punches they got in before I managed to get in under their defenses were going to take a long, long time to heal.

With my entire focus on the battle at hand; I barely noticed Edward pulling Embry into his arms and making a run for the tree line… a blur of movement.

Yes! I'd done it!

But my moment of triumph was short lived.

"No! Let them go, you morons! We don't need them. Get him! Get the Alpha!" Jane screeched harshly.

There was a flurry of activity.

"Where are the darts?" Alec sounded equally urgent. "No, not the one's with the venom dammit! We don't want to kill him; just make sure he doesn't get away!"

Crap! Before I could so much as move six darts were embedded in my skin. Now to be honest, I barely even felt the sting… but the other effects were more difficult to ignore.

My vision went blurry… my thoughts, unfocused. My entire body felt heavy, so much so that I couldn't even raise my foot. The overwhelming urge to sleep overtook my senses.

'Oh shit! Tranquilizer darts.'

"Nighty-night Alpha…" Jane crooned.

And then I toppled to the ground like so much dead weight.

A/N: - Sooo…? (Ducks and hides in fear) Anyone want to kill me? Should I sell all my belongings and take on a new identity? Or enter the witness protection program? LOL! Let me know…

Remember… you have to trust me. The part you've all been waiting for is coming soon. Just please, be a little patient and hang in there. Just keep in mind that this section was actually supposed to be a part of the last chapter. Which is why it ends the way it did… the next chapter will be better, I promise!

Moving on, I'd like to thank my beautiful, wonderfully extraordinary soulmate, Erin for her constant, unflinching support! She's a beta-ing wizard, trust me! Unforgettable wouldn't be half the story it is without her input. Her questions, comments and suggestions constantly keep me on my toes and help me improve. And her confidence in me makes me feel that much more confident myself. She's my support system and she makes me a better writer, there's no doubt about that. Thank you so very much for being 'you' and for being my friend, honey! Love ya!

On another note… I have to say I'm kinda upset right now. So, last to last chapter, I had this little meltdown and yelled at all of you (In case you didn't know, I felt terrible about it later). But, it seemed to work and I got about 50 reviews for the chapter. Then, in the last chapter, I just tried my usual appeal for reviews and that's it. Only about 35 reviews! So, what…? Is yelling the only thing that works? Sigh. I can't begin to tell you how disappointed I am. But I'm not going to resort to those tactics again. So, all I can say is, if you like the story and my writing, please review. If not…well, there's nothing I can do about it… :(