Hello everyone!

Sorry this was late, thankfully by only two days. I had some sort of block against my writing (not writers block, because I had ideas and everything, I just couldn't write because I felt like I didn't have enough time… a little something that was left over from my crazy last week of school) until it just broke through today, actually.

Explanation of this chapter: basically, this is the chapter before Jacob is killed… but, true to my word, Bella escapes and is reunited with Edward… there's even a surprise for you all in here. Something I just know you couldn't have expected! ;)

All BPOV, this one is.

Also, I was discussing it with Bubbleybear, and there are only 4 chapters left after this one… including an epilogue. :) Then, of course, there's the sequel, LOL.

Anyways… here's this chapter. I hope you like it.

Oh, and thank you, thank you, THANK YOU to Chandrakanta! She is the best! She beta'd this baby today in something like less than two hours. It was crazy. I love her so much.

Read, review and enjoy!


I was sick of it.

Two days later, and not much had changed. I had now been away from Edward for a total of five days, and ever since Jacob had come into my room, my shield had been activated.

I hadn't slept in that time either.

Edward tried, several times, to convince me to in the beginning, but once I told him that my shield would probably weaken or deactivate altogether, leaving me vulnerable, his begging ceased. I knew he still wanted me to sleep, but at the same time, he didn't want me in any kind of danger and I was most protected when I was awake because of my shield.

I could also hear the frustration as he wished he could be there to protect me.

I remember asking, perhaps yesterday, why he didn't just come down and get me, but he told me that they were developing a plan, that as much as he wanted to be there already, they couldn't just barge in guns a blazin'.

My words, not his.

And I understood. I really did. In fact, that was what hurt the most.

Because I, too, was developing a plan to get out of here.

Only, I wasn't letting Edward in on the plan.

Bella? I heard Edward call me then and I sighed, closing my eyes as I smiled.

Edward, I replied. God, you have no idea how much I needed to hear your voice.

I could hear the ghost of his chuckling and it relaxed me even further. Yes, my love. I believe I do understand. I miss you terribly.

I swallowed and took a deep, shuddering breath. How much longer, Edward? Are you close to finalizing the plans?

I'm afraid not, sweet. But soon, I promise.

I sighed. How much longer? I can't… I can't be without you any longer, Edward. It's killing me; I need you now.

I know, he told me, and his voice sounded as if he were pleading with me. Just a little longer, my sweet, beautiful girl, and then I will be with you and we can continue on with our life. He seemed to pause, and I swore I could hear someone else… a female… Alice? Esme?

I sighed. They're calling you back, baby.

I know, he replied, sighing, too. But I don't want to leave you.

I smiled and swallowed back the lump in my throat. Every time I talk to him, it gets harder to let him leave… even though I know he needs to. Go, Edward. Go and plan so you can come get me.

For several seconds, I could hear nothing. Then, softly, he sighed. Ok, you are right. I'll be with you again soon, my love.

I smiled. I know, I whispered.

When I knew he was gone, I sighed and slumped back against the headrest of the bed.

I know.

~O~

"I will not fall asleep," I whispered to myself, my eyelids drooping. "I will not fall asleep. I cannot fall asleep… I will not—" My soft, pathetic chanting stopped when I yawned, and suddenly, I could hear Edward's voice again, and he was not pleased.

Bella, my darling, stop this! he growled. You are exhausted. You need your rest, my love.

I frowned and shook my head stubbornly. No, I told him. I can't. If I do, then my shield will fall, Edward. I can't let them in here. I have to keep myself safe. I can't… let them… in… Exhaustion once again nearly came over me and I closed my eyes. But maybe if I just…

I jumped when I heard the door handle rattle, and my eyes landed on the door as it just began to open. I whimpered and forced myself, with all the strength that I had left, to keep my shield strong. It shook still as I held it against the door, but it was strong enough for now.

See? I cried, sniffling. Even just trying to close my eyes and relax a little makes my shield drop. It's shaky at best as it is… I can't, Edward. He nearly got in here again!

Hush, sweet girl, he whispered and I let out a sob; his voice sounded so close, as if he were actually whispering the words in my ear, not just in my head. Hush…

Distract me, I whispered to him. Please, Edward… distract me.

How? he asked me. What can I do to distract you, sweet girl?

Tell me… I paused for a second. Tell me about my father. What's he doing now? Is he ok? He doesn't really know how to cook… is he eating well? I really hope he's not going to the diner.

I heard my Edward's chuckle in my ear. Charlie is perfectly fine, my dear one. He is staying with us currently, actually; Esme insisted when Alice foresaw that he was going to be eating in the diner. She knew you wouldn't be pleased, so she's taken it upon herself to cook for him: breakfast, lunch, dinner.

I smiled. Tell her thank you… and… that I miss them all. A thought occurred to me, and I couldn't help but ask Edward. Does he know that you can speak to me through our connection?

Yes, love, Edward replied, and I could hear him chuckling just a little.

I smiled indulgently. What is it?

Well, as I'm sure it is for you, whenever we speak, I go into some sort of… unconsciousness. No one can reach me, and I become unresponsive. I was just remembering the first time we spoke to one another in front of Charlie's presence… oh, my love, he was so very worried! He shouted for Carlisle to come in, and nearly had a hernia when he told him what had actually been happening.

I laughed. Oh, my god, seriously?

Yes, Edward replied. It was so funny, Bella. I never thought a human's face could turn so pale… why, he was almost as pale as I!

I giggled as I tried to imagine that. The image was just so ridiculous that my stomach hurt with the laughter it caused.

Ah, dammit, I heard Edward think.

What? I asked, instantly worried.

Nothing, darling, Edward rushed to reassure me. It's just that my presence seems to be needed once again.

I sighed sadly, though I understood. It was merely my selfish wants, needing him and his attention on me more than anything all the time. I understand, Edward. Go on…

He seemed hesitant. Are you sure?

I smiled. Yeah, I'm sure. Don't worry about me; I'll be fine as long as I stay awake.

He sighed, the sound full of worry. I love you.

My smile widened. As I love you.

And then I no longer felt his presence, so I knew he was gone.

I tried to stay calm, but the calmer I tried to be, the antsier I got. I wanted to be with Edward now, and my exhaustion was the only thing that was stopping me from being so. If I wasn't so fucking tired, I'd have already left this damned place. I knew I had the power to keep Jacob and my mother away from me; hell, if I had my shield wrapped tightly around me, I could probably walk right past them and they wouldn't be able to touch—let alone, hurt—me.

Then again, the spiteful, bitchy teenager, combined with the vengeful, scheming, and fed-up female mate within me, felt the urge for a little more of a theatrical exit than that.

I wanted something that would just rub their loss, and Edward's and my win, in their face just… just a little more.

And it was that thought right fucking then that made me come up with something perfect as a smirk appeared on my face.

Now all I need is a little time to organize myself, I thought, and I jumped off the bed to grab the bag I'd brought with me. I was quick as I turned the bag over and poured everything out. I wasn't taking the whole bag, because even if I managed to do what I hoped to in trying to access Edward's and my baser mating connections' abilities, I knew that that much weight would wear me down pretty fast. And in order for this plan of mine to work, I'd need to be able to last from the second I left this place to the second I reached Edward.

Since I had a few changes of clothes, I took off Edward's shirt—which somehow still smelled a little like him, though I deduced that was probably because I'd been swapping between wearing it and not wearing it in one-hour intervals—and then the rest of my clothes, shivering. I hadn't showered in a couple of days, and I was going to rectify that right now.

I hope this door still goes to my personal bathroom, I thought to myself as I turned the door knob. I smiled to myself as my eyes landed on the shower, toilet, and sink, the only things I missed about this fucking hell-hole.

I kept the door wide open, cautious, as always, about my shield's abilities, and opened the shower door. The room itself seemed to be pristine; there were no cobwebs or dust anywhere, so I could assume that Renée had kept it clean.

That sent a wave of something uncomfortable and unsettling through me as I realized that maybe this deal she had with Jacob and Tanya had been just another reason for her to get me back here, instead of the reason.

I shook that off for further contemplation later as I turned on first the hot water, allowing that to warm up before I turned on the cold to level the temperature to something more comfortable. I kept my hand under the water as I tested the temperature, and when I was satisfied, I gripped the glass frame of the shower as I stepped in; the one thing I hated about this room was how fucking slippery the tiles were during a shower.

I sighed as the hot water hit my skin, and I allowed myself a few minutes to just stand there and let it cascade down my body. I had missed this feeling, especially since I usually showered when I was stressed, or asked Edward to hold me and talk to me. Since I couldn't have the latter, the shower was all I had and fuck, was it working.

After those first few minutes, however, I remembered that I really needed to get a move on, so with a sigh, I dipped my head back, smiling at the feel of the extra weight of the water as it saturated my hair. I unwrapped my arms from around my waist then, and not looking, I grabbed the untouched, somewhat new-looking bottle of soap. I was going to have to wash my hair, as well, but first, I needed to get rid of the goddamn smell… I'd really been out of it the past couple days...

I made quick work of ridding myself of that bad odor smell, and I sniffed under my arms once, just to check, before I moved on to shampoo my hair. I sighed ruefully; it wasn't the strawberries I'd always loved, and that Edward loved, but it would do for now. I was a little upset when I realized that I didn't have a brush here to brush my hair once the conditioner was in, but again, I was just glad to be showering at this point.

I dried myself thoroughly when I was done, squeezing the water out of my hair just enough so it wasn't dripping down my back. I'd always hated that.

I also found, once I was dry, that the shower had woken me up some. Though I was still yawning a little, I was no longer half-asleep with my eyelids drooping every few seconds. I also felt a little stronger and much more aware, something I hadn't felt since I'd been forcibly removed from Edward's arms outside his house.

I refused to look myself in the mirror, knowing that I was hideous at the moment. I couldn't remember the last time I'd eaten or had something to drink… and I knew that the lack of sleep I was experiencing would just make that all the worse.

I snorted as I entertained the thought that I'd probably resemble something close to a zombie.

I rubbed myself down just once more with the towel before I walked quickly over to the bed, leaving the towel in the place I'd dropped it on the floor. I quickly grabbed a pair of jeans, a tank top, underwear and a bra. As I pulled the tank top on, I glanced outside, and what a surprise; it was sunny. But I knew that it probably wasn't going to be in Forks, so I grabbed a sweater and tied it tightly around my waist before I picked up Edward's shirt and threw that back on.

I looked once more through the bag for anything else I might want, but there was nothing. I took a deep breath, feeling a little jittery suddenly; to calm myself down, I grabbed my shaking left hand and fixed Edward's ring—my ring—in front of my face. I stared at it for a moment before I closed my eyes.

It's time.

Slowly but surely, I drew my shield back. Immediately, the sound of Jacob and Renée pounding on the door met my ears. I flinched, but forced myself to continue, my forehead creased as I pulled my shield back just slightly; enough for my captors to realize that something was happening, and enough for them to get ready to come inside this room.

With a trembling voice, I spoke what I hoped would be words that reached Edward and his very soul, where the mating connections that tied him to me were.

"Please, Edward," I whispered to myself, my eyes clenched closed. "Please give me your strength, your speed, your durability, and your courage." I flinched at the sound of my mother and Jacob shouting, banging on the door.

I walked over to the window and peered out down at the ground, only to gulp and close my eyes, a tremor running through my body again.

I can do this.

Determination filled me as I suppressed the nerves, and I climbed up onto the window sill. I turned to look over my shoulder and narrowed my eyes as I looked toward the door and began to peel back my shield again, this time just enough to let Jacob and Renée enter the room and watch my escape.

They did so immediately, the door flinging open and crashing into the wall loudly, but this time I did not flinch. I watched as their angry expressions morphed to shock as they looked around the room and found me. I smirked and wiggled my fingers cheekily in goodbye before I jumped out the window, simultaneously snapping my shield back to form around my body tightly.

I closed my eyes and clamped my mouth shut to conceal my scream. When I landed on the ground, I landed on my feet, completely unhurt. I frowned for a moment, blinking a few times as I looked first at my hands and then at the rest of my body.

Huh…

No injuries.

It worked, I thought giddily. It worked!

I gasped quickly and threw my shield out so that it blocked their escape from the house. I then smiled and bit my lip, looking over my shoulder, up at said, now-blocked window. Standing there were Jacob and Renée, both beating against my shield futilely and yelling angrily. I wiggled my fingers and cocked my head to the side, smirking as I waved goodbye one more time before I turned around.

I closed my eyes, and sought out Edward's and my connection, smiling when I easily found it. I then let it guide me, giving myself—my mind, my body, my instincts, everything—over to the connections, letting them pull me in the right direction, back to Forks.

~O~

The feel of the power—Edward's power—running through me as I ran at vampire speed was exhilarating.

But at the same time, it was a little scary; I'd taken Edward's strength, speed, and durability, but at what cost? Was my mate ok?

I had no idea, but I was going to find out, and hopefully, I was going to find out soon.

I was running pretty quickly, and it seemed I was nearly at the border of Arizona. My only hope was that I wouldn't tire, but with every second, I could feel Edward's power draining out of me. Pretty soon, I knew, I would be back to where I was before I'd accessed our connections.

Tired, slow, and human.

And I was worried about what would happen then. I was already resisting Edward's mental calls, and from the way he sounded—the worry, the anxiety, the fear—I knew that he knew what I'd done.

I could only hope that he wouldn't be too angry when I finally got back to him.

Another thing that seemed to be adding to my problems was my shield. Yes, I was gradually pulling it back to give myself a head start, but it was still wearing my down; each push and shove from Jacob as he tried to drain my power—which, believe you fucking me, was working—felt like a punch to my head.

And it was pissing me the fuck off.

Which, actually, was working to my favor. So, really, it was a cycle; I got tired and felt battered and bruised, then felt pissed off, which added fuel to the fire and kept me going.

I'm a weird fucking individual, I thought wryly, a smirk on my face.

I pushed on, trying to ignore Jacob as much as I could. I picked up the pace a little, but tried to moderate it, cautiously aware of how quickly I could drain myself of Edward's power and durability if I wasn't careful.

Just as I reached the border—fucking finally!—something hit me, and I started to feel a little… dazed. All of a sudden, I was completely out of control; I was starting to slow down, the beating I was getting from Jacob grew worse, and I…

I fell.

There was no way to describe whatever-the-fuck this was; one second, I was completely fine, completely in control and the next, I was on the ground, grunting in pain, which seemed to be flaring in my body.

What the ever loving fuck? I growled, which cut off as I moaned in pain.

I started to feel a little woozy, and my eyes started to close, though I fought fucking hard against it. Panic filled me, flaring in my heart, making a cold sensation spread throughout my entire body. I whimpered at the desperation I was suddenly feeling; it felt like the world was caving in on me.

And it was at that point that I heard it.

Footsteps.

I forced my eyelids back and gasped for air, looking around. I tried to lift my head, but it was so fucking painful and heavy that all I could do was give up and let my head fall back.

Suddenly, I felt someone standing over me, and my eyes flew open as I tensed. Before me, however, was a beautiful woman. She had a pale complexion, with rich, brown hair that fell in gorgeous curls, a soft jaw and features, and a slight body that matched perfectly with her height, which was somewhere close to mine.

She wasn't speaking at all, simply staring down at me with a deep concern in her eyes. It was strange, the familiarity I could see in her dark eyes; it was almost as if she knew me, though I'd never seen her before in my life.

But then again, the connection I shared with Edward—all three of them—seemed to recognize her, too. Not as a lover or a mate, but as someone that shared the same connection to her mate as Edward and I did.

And that rang a bell…

I almost thought… but no, it was impossible. She was dead, and her mate was forever a shell of his former self.

"Who are you?" I whispered.

She smiled at me, dimples appearing on her cheeks when she did so, and she kneeled down, gathering her long, black, flowing dress in her hands as she did so. "It's alright, Isabella. You are going to be fine. I promise I will not hurt you; I am not the enemy. I am here to help you, Isabella; I am here to take you back to your coven and to your mate. But first, I must know who and where they are?"

I swallowed hard and shook my head, whimpering. All I could think was Edward.

She smiled. "Little one, we do not have much time," she told me gently. "The separation from your mate has taken its toll, and soon enough, you will fall into a deep depression like my Marcus has. I need you alert for this; completely alert."

I gasped. "Did you just say… Marcus?"

She smiled, but ignored my question as she continued on. "Do you recognize me, little one? No, you don't and you really shouldn't; you may have heard of me and my mate, but you couldn't possibly be able to recognize me at first sight… my Marcus made sure that no one knew what exactly I looked like except for friends…"

"Wha—?"

She hushed me. "I was once a friend of Carlisle Cullen's. I presume you know him? I can smell him all over you… faintly…" Her eyes narrowed slightly in curiosity as she eyed me. "Although, really, it cannot be his scent…" she sniffed again, "but rather that of someone he has sired; his scent is diluted and part of another's whom I can smell all over you."

I frowned, tears welling in my eyes as I looked at her. What the fuck is she going on about?

"Calm, pet," she said, smiling down at me. "All I need is for you to nod and give me one word, can you do that?"

I swallowed and locked my jaw.

She sighed. "Isabella, I only mean to help you. I swear it. Would it…" She sighed again. "Would it ease your mind if I gave you my name? And the name of my mate's? I am sure you would know of us; you share the same connection that we do."

I looked at her for a moment before I nodded.

She smiled beautifully. "I am Didyme, child, and my mate is Marcus, Marcus of the Volturi."

I gasped and looked at her in alarm. Was she serious? There was no way… I mean, Didyme was dead!

"Ah," she said, nodding. "So you have heard of me? And my story?" She rolled her eyes and shook her head, the curls, so similar to my own, bouncing with the movement. "I am not dead, child; I have merely been in hiding for my safety. But I really do think we should speak of this later, hmm? First, we need to get you to your mate and away from here. I can smell that mutt that's been following you; he is close."

I trembled. "Hush, Isabella. Just give me one word. Where am I to take you?"

"Forks," I gasped. "Forks, Washington."

She smiled and nodded her head once. "Forks it is. Now I want you to close your eyes for me… can you do that?"

I shook my head.

"Oh, please, little one," she said. "You need your rest; that shield of yours has worn you out."

I sighed, and begrudgingly, I did so, though I tried not to fall asleep.

"That's it," Didyme whispered. "Fall asleep, little one; you will be with your mate once again shortly."

~O~

Against my wishes, I did actually fall asleep.

It was only when I was shaken slightly and Didyme's voice called my name, telling me to wake up and that we were nearly there, that I woke up.

The first thing I saw was Didyme's face as she smiled down at me. "Hello, little one. I imagine you feel a lot better now, huh?"

I looked at her for a moment before I nodded. "Uh, yeah… um, where are we?"

She chuckled. "Impatient, I see. We are just reaching Forks now, actually. I ran a little slower while you were sleeping, just a precaution."

I blinked. "Ok," I said flatly. "Um, so how—"

I gasped then, as a beautiful feeling filled my heart before spreading through my body; it was calm, serenity, happiness, sunlight, love…

It was Edward…

I gasped as I felt Edward's presence around me once again, much like I had when he'd left my house after my mother had all but forced him to leave. I knew, like I had then, that he wasn't all that close, but the queasy, hollow feeling I'd grown accustomed to over the past several days suddenly vanished and tears welled in my eyes as I finally felt the safety of Edward's presence for the first time in what felt like forever.

"Oh my god," I choked, swallowing as I grasped at my chest. I looked up at Didyme, who was smiling down at me happily, and gasped, "Please, oh please, hurry up! Run as fast as you can, please!"

She nodded, and immediately, the wind picked up around my face. I closed my eyes though, and basked in the feeling of being close to Edward; though it was not as close as I wanted, it was better than what I had felt beforehand, and I knew that, though I'd never taken Edward for granted, I would never, ever—under any circumstances—voluntarily leave him again.

'Cause seriously… what the motherfuck was I thinking?

With each second, I could feel my strength and wellbeing lift as Didyme ran through the miles of forest. Suddenly, we were flying through the air and I quickly looked down to see the river that flowed so close to the Cullen home. A million emotions flooded through me, so fast and strong, I could hardly speak as I looked back up toward the secluded Cullen house, which I could just see through the trees.

Didyme slowed as we neared the clearing and my heart pounded furiously in my chest; we were so close now, I could practically feel his touch, hear his voice… it was like he was right next to me, standing by my side and pulling me into his safe, protective arms; ones that I never wanted to leave again.

"Put me down, please," I whispered and immediately, I felt my feet touch the ground. I took a deep breath.

Edward, I thought, reaching out to him.

Bella? I heard him call back.

I smiled. Baby, come outside.

Wha… Bella, what's going on? I… I can hear the sound of your heartbeat. I could hear the hope in his voice, though he tried to push it down, for fear that it was just what he was hearing through our mental connection.

Come outside, I urged him. Please, my love.

I opened my eyes again, not bothering to hear his reply; I knew he would do as I asked.

I looked at the Cullen's front door and waited. I knew he'd come out of that door, and god, everything in me was hungry to see him… I had missed him so fucking much.

Seconds later, I saw Edward's silhouette as he gripped the door knob. His head was bent forward as he looked down and I faintly saw his shoulders move as he took a deep breath.

And then the door opened, and he stepped out into clear view.

My breath hitched and my hand flew up to my mouth as a sob ripped through my chest. The tears that I had kept at bay welled again and streaked down my face as my eyes flew over every inch of him.

Oh, Edward, I couldn't help but think and his head snapped up, his eyes not looking around as they immediately landed on me.

They widened in shock and relief, and I watched as his face crumpled as his eyes searched my body. I was shaking as I reached out for him and took a step forward, and suddenly, he was right there, in front of me.

"Edward…"

"Bella…"

And then he slowly, shakily, reached out to touch me, as if he couldn't believe I was really here. I could relate though, as I could hardly believe it myself. I whimpered, my eyes closing as his fingers softly glanced over the skin of my cheek, barely touching me.

With everything that I was feeling, each beat of my heart was almost painful as it sang out my relief; it was so loud that I barely heard it when he spoke.

"Oh, God… you're here," he whispered in awe.

"I'm here," I whimpered, my hands clenching and unclenching, needing to touch him.

But before I could blink, I was in his arms, and his lips were moving against mine. I melted into his embrace, my hands flying up to his hair as his arms tightened around my waist and he growled against my lips. I whimpered again, unable to help it, as he forced his tongue through my lips, the same neediness and desperations I was feeling obvious in his every touch as his hands caressed the skin of my back and hips, his hands grasping at my flesh, grounding both of us.

When I needed to breathe, he pulled back, only to gather me in his arms, lifting me off the ground by my ass as he wrapped my legs around his hips. He pressed his nose into my hair and breathed in deeply, and I shuddered as he breathed out, tilting my head back to press my nose against his cheek and rub it slowly and softly along his skin as I inhaled his scent, needing to feel and breathe him in again after so long.

"I love you," we both whispered and I smiled as he tightened his arms around me, unwilling to let me go.

Finally, I was home.


How was that, huh? And yeah, Didyme is alive and well. Unfortunately, that won't be discussed and explained until chapter 28 (this is chapter 26) 'cause Jacob's gotta die and Edward and Bella need to… reconnect ;)

See you on the 7th of May, though considering I'm on holidays it mightMIGHTbe only a week or two.

No promises on that one, mm'k?

See ya later, please review,

bexie25