28. LIAR

- - - LONDON WILLOUGHBY - - -

I loved my parents. Really, I did, but they were idiots. There was no way on God's green earth that I was gonna fly back to Forks and babysit Nessie while they were getting shot to pieces, or burned alive, or... whatever that horrifying thing is that Elliot did to the Brunleys.

Ick. Don't even want to think about that again.

I ran my options over and over as I sat all alone on the train from St. Petersburg to Moscow. Actually, I wasn't all alone. There was a businessman in the seat across the hall from mine that kept looking at me, staring at my legs like an iPod screen. It was a little creepy – he was, like, twice my age. At least.

Why didn't you wear your jeans, genius? You really think you're gonna sneak into a vampire fight in a skirt? Sheesh! Where's your brain, London?

Where I most wanted to be was on that helicopter to Volterra with my dad and Coraline. There was no way they were letting me anywhere near them, though, so I decided on the next best thing – I would do a little mental eavesdropping, follow the big group to the desert, and help them take out the army. It was a big enough group that I could slip at the last minute and make a difference. And of course, as an added bonus, the rest of my parental triumvirate would be there, as well as Zane.

**Sigh** Why does love have to be so complicated?

When Coraline said that about Zane not wanting me there, it sort-of blindsided me. Well, actually, that's not entirely true. I knew he wasn't committed to any official feelings for me, but I had my hopes. I didn't expect him to want me on the front line of the fight – I knew better than that. I thought that he would at least want me around, though, to be a line of communication, or to be a distraction to the bad guys, or something useful. All the other couples were together – Edward and Bella, my dad and Coraline, Jasper and Alice... but Zane didn't even want me around. He wanted me in Forks, as far out of his hair as possible. Well, I had a newsflash for him. I'm not the kind of girl who's content to sit on the sidelines.

One of the many things Zane taught me during our time on the road together was how to use my ability more effectively. Most of the time, if I was careful, I could take a quick peek in through somebody's eyes and ears without them having any idea they were being spied on. It had to be short – maybe ten seconds or less – but it worked. Of course, I actually used it on him more than anybody else, but he didn't need to know that.

He-he-he... sucker.

I leaned back in my seat on the train to Moscow, closed my eyes, and started looking in on people I knew were going to the desert. It took a few tries, but I finally found someone double-checking their plane ticket. It was a flight from Chicago to Atlanta, and based on the time it was set to land, there was a realistic chance I could make it back to the United States in time to catch up to it. I already had airfare to Washington state – Atlanta was a small detour, relatively speaking. I pulled out my cell phone, made a few calls, and got my flight out of New York changed from Seattle to Atlanta. I could figure out the rest when I got there.

The flight from Moscow to London was quick and easy, but the London airport was crazy busy – as in, wait-on-the-runway-for-almost-an-hour busy. I was so tense and nervous, it was all I could do not to break something. The lady in the seat next to me actually asked me to stop clicking my pen so she could get some sleep. That was all well and good for her, but me – I couldn't have slept if my life depended on it. For one thing, I was totally worried about my family getting turned to swiss cheese by vampire bullets, or something worse than that. And then, I had the Zane factor. I kept going through an imaginary conversation with him – me calling him out at last, him apologizing and promising to commit to the relationship that we both knew we were in. It all worked perfectly in my head. If only real life could be that coordinated.

My flight was just late enough arriving in New York that I missed my connection to Atlanta, and had to wait and hour and a half for the next available flight. I made the most of the time, and bought an ugly, but workable pair of jeans and sneakers from one of the stores in the main terminal.

It's not a fashion show, London, I reminded myself, as I zipped up the mom jeans and rolled up the legs above my bright white tennis shoes. Zane's not even going to notice what you're wearing.

Just like I was afraid of, I got to Atlanta a little too late, and missed a large shipment of vampires headed to Lima, Peru. Luckily for me, I had my own secure Mastercard, a contagious smile, and a little creativity. With the help of a slightly overweight airline clerk named Casey, I pieced together a route through Mexico City that would get me to Lima just a little over an hour behind the group. I made my connections this time, landed in Lima, and followed the group over the border into Chile. I was only a few miles away from the 15-passenger van I had been spying on when they came to a stop in the middle of nowhere, meeting up with a few other vehicles full of vampires. Apparently, I found the staging point for the attack.

I stopped my *borrowed* car a little ways out, and snuck in closer on foot. My group must have been the last to arrive – Jasper was going over a few last-minute details before everyone took off toward the bad guys. I was actually planning on listening to the mission briefing remotely and catching up with the group on the way, but I must have used one of my connections a little too long. I was so caught up with my other set of senses that I didn't even notice Zane coming over until he grabbed my arm and spun me around.

"London! What in the hell are you doing here?" He demanded in a hushed tone. His eyes were a mix of surprise and anger. I didn't like that look at all.

"I... came to help," I sputtered, caught off-guard by his demeanor. I was hoping for something a little friendlier.

"Help? My god, do you know what you've done? Alice is completely blind. She can see nothing, thanks to you. How long have you been following her?"

"Since Atlanta. Look, Zane-"

"Save it," he blurted, cutting off my attempt at getting the conversation back on the track I had imagined for it. The one where I was upset and he was explaining himself.

"You need to leave here now," he continued, staring me right in the eyes with his angry stare. "Get as far away as you can."

"I'm not leaving. I can still help you," I said with empty confidence. I may have been talking sternly, but inside, I was reeling. He didn't budge.

"Dammit, London! Do I have to put you in the car myself? Why can't you just listen to me?"

"Because, I..."

"You what?" he asked sharply, cocking his head sarcastically.

"I don't want to leave you," I said, as honestly as I could. It sounded sappy and pathetic, but it was the truth.

He grabbed me by the shoulders, moving within six inches of my face. "If you care about me at all, you'll get out of here before it's too late." He looked over his shoulder, noticing that Jasper was done giving his speech. People were starting to get into formations. "Please, for the love of god, London. Stay out of the way."

His words crushed me.

Crushed.

I couldn't even respond, I just nodded a little, and he left me standing there.

Is it true? Have I been blocking Alice's visions? Of course it's true, stupid! God! What were you thinking? 'Oh, why would Zane not even want me around?' - because you're wrecking the plan, London!

I was so mad and hurt and embarrassed, not to mention, guilty, that I didn't move. I was determined not to cry, but my eyes watered up anyway, as I watched the rest of the group take off, headed south toward a huge army of killer vampires.

What difference did you really think you were going to make, anyway, huh? I asked myself, eventually walking back to the car and sitting inside. I still didn't have the motivation to turn it on, so I just sat. You should have just listened. Zane's not even thinking about 'us,' he's just trying to stay alive. Ugh! Crap! I'm not going to cry. I'm not doing it.

I didn't. I just sat there, waiting for everyone I loved to live or die.

- - - CORALINE GRAY-WILLOUGHBY - - -

I kept looking down at the watch on my wrist, willing time to slow down just a little. I wasn't ready for this yet. Of course, that's not to say that I enjoyed being crammed in a military helicopter next to the most annoying anxious person in the entire world. I would have gladly endured Bella's fidgeting and constant worrying about Renesmee for hours – days on end, before taking one step back into Volterra. "It'll be fine," everyone told me. "We got the easy job." Yeah, well, you don't know Philippe like I do, I replied to them in my head. He's never been caught off guard before. What makes you think this time will be any different? I wasn't afraid to admit it – I was terrified of Elliot. I knew the sort of man he was before Philippe went Frankenstein's Monster on him. I didn't even want to think of how scary he was now.

So I didn't.

The one saving grace of my seat on the helicopter was that Wesley was sitting on my other side. He was trying to stay preoccupied, too, since Harriet was about to go headfirst into a land war on the other side of the world. She was originally supposed to be here with us, but Edward refused to let Bella come to Volterra without Emmett along for added muscle, and Hawkins insisted that we only had room for 8, so we traded her for Emmett.

The conversation with Wes had gone dry for a little while. I tried the usual small stuff to strike it back up.

"So, do you know where we are right now, exactly?" I asked, trying not to shout over the deafening roar of the rotary blades above us.

"We're about forty miles northeast of Volterra," he answered into my ear.

"So that's what – about twelve minutes out?"

"Give or take."

"Ugh... can't we slow down a little?"

"What's wrong? You nervous?"

"Uh, yeah. Aren't you?"

"I'm trying not to think about it."

"I just hope everything goes according to plan."

"It never does, Cor. You of all people should know that. But you don't have to sweat it – we've got a guy on the inside, right?"

"Yeah. You're right. We have a guy on the inside."

He leaned in a little closer so that he could lower his voice. "Okay, look – I know you know who it is..."

"Wesley, I told you. It's a secret."

"Oh, what – like I'm gonna tell anybody now? Just let me know who it is, so I don't accidentally kill him when I'm in there."

I thought about his request for a moment. There really wasn't any reason not to tell him. We would be landing in Volterra in a matter of minutes, and then at 2am on the dot, we were making our grand entrance. What could it hurt?

"Okay," I conceded, "but you can't tell anybody you heard it from me."

"I swear," he said, crossing an X over his heart with his finger. "Who is it?"

"Edgar."

His expression wasn't what I expected. It was confused – and a little concerned. "You don't mean Edgar Yardley, do you?"

A cold chill ran through my whole body. That was exactly who I meant.

"Yeah, Edgar Yardley. Why?"

"Why? H-he's... he's like an all-time Philippe loyalist!" Wesley blurted out. "What did you tell him? What-"

"Hey, relax. He's a good guy," I replied, trying to calm myself down in the process. "He's London's father."

"I don't care if he's Mother Teresa's father! He's a liar, and a manipulator. You can't trust him for anything. Does he know about this operation?"

"Yes, he knows about the operation, and no, he's not a liar. I would know."

"Obviously you wouldn't," he countered, his eyes growing wider with intensity by the second.

"Wesley, you of all people should know that he's on our side. He was the one who told me how to contact you when Philippe was hunting you down, and he was the one who told you to go save Grant in Havana, remember?"

"What on earth are you talking about?" He asked angrily.

"He called you – he told you that Philippe sent assassins to kill Grant."

"Cor, he never told me anything."

"So what, then – you just guessed?"

"No! Moses told me."

"Moses?"

"Yeah. He's been helping me out ever since Belgium. He was the one who helped me escape Philippe. He was the one who told me about Grant. In fact, were it not for him, I probably would have been caught by Edgar and his posse. They were waiting for me at the tree where you left that note for Grant. Moses made up a bogus story and got them off my trail."

"But... that's not possible..." I said, trying to reconcile the two wildly divergent images in my head. "I would have known if he was lying..."

"No, you wouldn't. He's a liar. Like, supernaturally so. He's a lot like Philippe, which is probably why they get along so well. He pushes thoughts, Cor. He makes people trust him."

"No. Not possible. He was my closest friend, all that time in Volterra."

"When did you meet him? Was it before or after the fight in Malmedy?"

"After."

"After you were in Philippe's custody?"

"Yes..."

"He wasn't your friend, Cor. He was spying on you. He's still spying on you. We need to turn this thing around. This mission is compromised."

I wanted to say something, but there were no words that came to my mind, only images, flashed in rapid succession. It was like that point in the movie where you realize that the psychologist was a ghost all along, and you go back through all the scenes, thinking, how did I not see that? This was that feeling, only horrifying.

I thought back to the first time I met Edgar, and he "helped" me leave a note to warn Grant. He was probably just using me to find him. And the call that I went to great lengths to make in Moscow – maybe that was just a test to see if I was still loyal to Wesley. I went back over every memory in as much detail as I could cram into a few seconds, but I couldn't find anything to contradict Wesley's accusation. We had all trusted a liar, and our lives were in danger because of it.

The commotion in the helicopter shook me out of my flashbacks. Edward had overheard us talking, and was yelling at Hawkins and Grant, trying to find out how much of our plan Edgar new about. There was apparently a group consensus that we should abort the mission, but the helicopter was still carrying us toward Volterra. Amidst the sudden panic, everyone had forgotten the obvious, until Bella interrupted, speaking to no one in general.

"Hey, what about the other group? Aren't they in danger, too?"

"Oh, my God, we have to warn them!" I blurted.

"I'm already on it," Edward said, hurriedly dialing a number on his cell phone.

"It's no use, Ed," Hawkins said grimly. "They've got Braylon with them. He's blocking all the communications in and out."

"What? Already?" Edward replied, his eyes wide in worry and surprise.

"We're inside the event window," Grant said, stepping back in from the cockpit and glancing at his watch. "He was supposed to have started the signal blockade ten minutes ago."

"Try anyway!" Bella urged.

"I have been," Edward replied shortly. "I tried Carlisle, Jasper, even Tanya. Nothing."

"Well, we can't just let them run into a trap," I said, trying to think of another way.

"There's nothing we can do," Hawkins said, his tone as flat as his expression. "They're on their own. Let's just hope they're keeping their eyes open."

There has to be another way, I kept thinking to myself, trying to will another solution into being. If only we had London here... if only we hadn't sent her away...

London would have been perfect, but it was a one-way street with her, and I was on the wrong side.

I did have a cell phone, though.

- - - LONDON WILLOUGHBY - - -

By the third time the phone rang, I was about ready to send it into orbit. The super-phone my dad made was great and all (I mean, I was seriously in the middle of nowhere, and I still had reception), but it only had one, nails-on-chalkboard ringtone, and it was driving me to the point of insanity. Actually, I wanted to answer it. I didn't look at the caller I.D., but I knew who it was. It was dad and Coraline, calling to check in on me one more time before they went off to war. I wanted to answer, but I couldn't. What was I supposed to tell them? I'm back in Forks? Coraline had the world's best B.S.-detector. I wasn't in an emotional state to be chewed out by another person I loved, so I ignored the call, and tried to think about something other than my family being burned alive.

I was supposed to be watching Renesmee in the first place, so I connected with her covertly just to check in. She was running through the forest with a wolf – probably Jacob. It looked like they were hunting. She seemed safe and happy, sort of like I was supposed to be. If only you had just done what they told you, I scolded myself, resting my head on the dirty steering wheel of my car. At least then, you'd be safe. And well fed. And blissfully naïve. But no, you couldn't do that, could you? You just had to get in the middle of everything.

The phone rang again, and this time, I looked at it.

It was Coraline.

As much as I hated it, I knew I needed to answer. I had already been selfish enough for one day. She and Grant were probably worried about me (and for good reason). Not letting them have the peace-of-mind they needed was just cruel. I heaved a huge sigh, flipped open the big, bulky phone, and pressed the answer button, my head still on the wheel.

"Hey, Coraline-"

"London! Thank God! Listen, you have to connect with Jasper, or Zane, or someone. They have to stop. They know we're coming."

My heart started to race uncontrollably. Cold beads of sweat began forming on my head and neck.

Something was wrong.

"Who knows we're – I mean, they're coming?" I asked.

"Philippe knows! It's an ambush. You have to tell them. You have to stop them."

"Oh my God! Um... okay, let me see what I can do. Stay on the line, okay?"

She didn't answer. Instead, I heard a jumble of words and some loud tone beeping.

"Coraline? Are you okay? What's going on?"

"We're not close enough," a random voice from the background said. "Coraline – drop the phone. It's time to go."

"-what – now?" she responded to the other voice. It sounded like Hawkins.

The call ended, and now, I was really worried. I connected to Coraline for a second. She was in a helicopter, but she was moving around, trying to look at something. It looked like another flying craft... and then it started shooting at her. I heard a cluster of metallic pinging sounds, as the bullets pierced the side of the vehicle.

They're being shot down. God, help us!

I disconnected from her in a panic, and searched through my mind for someone in the big group that I could warn. The adrenaline was setting in so strong that I was literally shaking, and for a minute, I couldn't concentrate. I tried Jasper, but I was too frantic to focus on him. I moved onto Zane next, but he just ignored me altogether. Stupid boy! He wouldn't even listen to what I was saying.

Finally, it dawned on me – my other dad would listen. I connected with Harvey, who came to a stop as soon as he noticed.

"London? What's going on? Are you okay?"

"No. Philippe knows you're coming. It's a trap."

"What? How?"

"I don't know. All I know is that you're running into an ambush. You have to abort the mission now!"

"Bloody hell," he half-whispered. "The first wave is almost there."

"Well, stop them. Hurry!" I shouted. I released him and ran out of the car, heading in their direction. The group had only been gone for 5 minutes, or so. I'd warn them in person, if I had to.

My legs were churning beneath me like a machine, carrying me across the rocky, moon-like soil as fast as possible. The wind was blowing against me, carrying their scent with it. I could smell it getting stronger little by little. I was catching up to them.

Slowly.

After about 3 minutes of running at a dead sprint, I heard the sounds – bright, piercing metallic sounds, accompanied by screams and shouting.

I was already too late.

God, you have to help us! I pleaded in my thoughts, as I kept sprinting full speed ahead. You know we're on the right side here. Please... help us.

The sounds got louder as I came within 2 miles of the battle. I could see the movement in the distance, but I couldn't make any faces out until I got a lot closer. When I could, it broke my heart and turned my stomach. A dozen or so of our people were strewn out across the gray rocks. Some were still moving, crawling across the ground to try and avoid the near-constant gunfire around them. Most were missing limbs, a few were too mangled to make out any identity. I slowed down as I surveyed the field, trying to keep a level head.

That was a bad idea.

While I was still a quarter-mile out, at least, I heard something buzz over my head – then, several things came in fast order. It didn't take long to figure out what was happening.

Someone was shooting at me.

I hit the ground and crawled over to take cover behind a rock cluster. Great, London! You wanted to be involved? Well, now you are.

I peeked out from behind the cluster after a few seconds, trying to find where everyone else was hiding. About 300 yards from my position, there was a group of fifteen or so, who had apparently dug a ditch to hide in. I swallowed hard, said a prayer, and took off running for it like an idiot. I could hear the bullets zipping by my body again, but no one was able to get a hit on me. Everyone in the ditch noticed me coming, and as soon as I was near, Carlisle Cullen reached out and pulled me in.

"What happened?" I asked him, short of breath, as I tried to stay low enough in the ditch to avoid being shot.

"It was an ambush. Somebody tipped them off," he said calmly. It was weird seeing someone so even-tempered in the middle of a life-or-death situation.

"Where's everyone else?"

"Jasper and most of the best fighters were at the front of the formation. They were hit by the gunfire first. Jasper and Alice are pinned down in the middle of the field. We're trying to figure out how to get to them. Zane and the group behind him are holed up about two hundred yards to our right."

"We have to get Jasper and Alice out of there. They're sitting ducks!" I said, speaking loudly enough to get my message across to more than just Carlisle.

"I know," he replied softly. "We're working on it."

"We just need to fight back. Didn't we have guns of our own?"

"Most of them were with the front line. We have one here – I believe Zane has two or three with his men."

"Well, it's time to start coordinating this thing," I said, hunching down a little further and connecting with Jasper.

"Jasper – it's London. Are you okay?" I asked aloud, drawing a little attention from the people around me. Most of them had never seen me do my thing.

"Uh... yes. I'm okay. Took a few shots to the stomach, but I'll make it."

"We're gonna get you out, okay? Just hold on."

"Forget about me," he replied. "Just get Alice. Tell me when you're coming. I'll try and draw some fire away from you, and you sneak in and pull her out."

"I'm getting you both out," I said, disconnecting and switching to my dad. He was with Zane and a few others behind a short hill.

"Dad – are you alright?"

"I'm fine, London. Where are you?"

"I'm with Carlisle. Listen, we need to get Jasper and Alice out of there. How many guns do you have?"

He checked with Zane and the others.

"We've got three. One's low on ammunition, though."

"Okay. There's one over here. Eleazar's going to take it and run from this direction. You guys come from your side, and meet in the middle. We've got a handful of others who are going to try and be a diversion over here. Go on my mark, got it?"

"London, we can handle this," Zane said aloud to my dad. I wanted to reach over there and slap him.

"Dad, tell Zane: 'you're not handling anything. I'm doing this with or without you.'"

I disconnected, explained the plan to my group, and coordinated all three parties. As soon as there was a lull in the gunfire, they took off, criss-crossing the field and firing at the bad guys, who were taking cover behind a handful of deserted, gray brick buildings. The group came back with both Jasper and Alice, though one of Zane's guys got hit pretty badly in the process. My dad, Zane, Alice and Jasper all ended back up in my ditch, and as soon as they were safely inside, they started working up a new plan.

"Listen up," Jasper began. "They think they've bested us. They're hiding behind their walls, and they expect to break our spirits and pick us off one by one. Well, we're not even close to finished." He started drawing a map of the battlefield in the dirt with his finger. "Are any of y'all familiar with Pickett's charge?"

"American Civil war – Confederate army attack on a Union position," Garrett replied. "Yeah, we know the story."

"Well, we're gonna have a little reenactment," Jasper said, drawing up battle lines.

"Jasper, you do remember the confederates were massacred there..." Carlisle said warily.

"I do," Jasper replied, looking up with a smirk. "And hopefully, so do they." He reloaded one of our guns and handed it to Zane. "How many men do you have left?"

"Six."

"Good. You take them, and circle around real wide to the left. Try to flank 'em. Lucy, Fred, Braylon, Navi – you're with Harvey. Y'all take the right flank. The rest of us are gonna wait for ya'll to get in position, and then charge straight at 'em across the field."

"In plain sight of the gunners?" Carlisle asked.

"Not entirely," Jasper answered slowly. "Benjamin here's gonna provide some strategically placed cover when the time comes. Think you can handle that, Ben?"

Benjamin nodded reluctantly. "I'll give it my best shot."

I didn't know what Ben was supposed to do, but it sounded a lot like suicide to me. I was glad that Zane and my parents weren't part of the middle group.

"We may lose a few people this way, but it's our best option," Jasper continued. "Close combat will take away their advantage. Alright – Zane, Harvey – get moving. Wait for us to get about halfway through the field, and then charge."

The two groups took off, retreating at least a mile and a half backward before curving around to either side. Jasper gave a few last instructions to the handful of people left while the others got into position.

"Believe it or not, I think we've got 'em outnumbered," he said. "All the shots are coming from ten or eleven locations." He passed out the three remaining guns. "Don't be fooled – these things'll shoot right through those walls they're hiding behind. Just look for the flashes of gunfire and shoot in that direction. And whatever you do – keep charging. No matter what." He looked Alice in the eyes, lowering and softening his tone. "No matter what."

The flanking groups were in their places a minute later. I double-checked with each leader, and then relayed the info to Jasper. It was time to strike.

He put a hand on my shoulder, as the group double-checked their weapons and got into their stances.

"London, I want you to stay here. As soon as we take out the gunners, we'll start bringing the wounded back here. Can you help put them back together?"

Of course that's what you want. "Stay out of the way, London. Don't make a mess of things. Be a good little nurse." Thanks a lot, Jasper. Nice to know you believe in me.

"I'll try," I said, with a nod. I was tired of arguing.

"Great. Alright, here goes," he said to the group. "Signal them, London."

I connected with my dad and Zane, and told them to stand by.

"They're ready, Jasper."

"Remember," he said to his team, as he poised his body to take off, "keep running. No matter what."

And they rushed across the field.