Chapter 7
Ana appeared in the middle of her living room and tensed, sniffing the air immediately for any sign of an intruder. There appeared to be none. The only out of place smell was of Jasper when he had broken in this morning. She relaxed slightly but the stress caused her to tense up again. Her mission was in danger and possibly her life as well. She did not know what her captors had wanted from her. She paced the room at an inhuman speed, indecision making her angrier. There were too many vampires to simply take on by herself but if she didn't then she would have to pack up and leave town. Her mission would be compromised and she would not get the payday she craved. This payday would allow her to live comfortably on a secluded island for the next hundred years; if she lived that long.
As she paced, her doorbell rang. Ana hissed in furry; it had to be the vampires. She raced into her kitchen and grabbed the barbecue lighter that was in a drawer. It was the only true weapon she had against a vampire. She glanced out the living room and kitchen windows as she went, not seeing any eyes peering from bushes. Finally, she braced herself against the wall beside the door, took a breath and then flung the door open.
Mike Newton stood there with his mouth hanging open as she brandished a lit barbecue lighter at him.
Ana blinked once and then relaxed her stance, smiling sheepishly at him.
"Sorry, I wasn't expecting company," Ana said.
"You skipped your last classes and I got worried," Mike replied, still staring at the lighter clutched tightly in her hand.
"Oh, yes," Ana replied, wishing she had looked at a clock. She had no idea what time it was.
"I got sick right before lunch and then decided to take the rest of the day off in case it was a bug. Didn't want to infect anyone else." Ana smiled brightly at him, wondering if she should cough at least once to make it look good. She had not been sick since the 1800's.
Mike nodded knowingly, "Oh yeah, I remember you went to the bathroom."
Ana nodded her head in reply and they just stared at each other. Ana needed him to leave so she could think.
"So, are you feeling better?" Mike finally asked into the silence.
"A little," Ana replied, "I'm just making dinner now and then having an early night."
"Will you be going to school tomorrow? I could pick you up if you don't feel like driving." Mike asked eagerly.
Ana hesitated. Would she even be going to school in the morning?
"Thanks Mike, but i'm not sure how I'll feel in the morning. Rain check?" Ana tried to be diplomatic.
Mike's face fell but he nodded.
"I guess I'll see you tomorrow then," Mike said, turning to leave.
Ana ran through several quick scenarios in her mind about what she could actually accomplish this evening. She need to do recon at Mike's house still. The vampires wouldn't attack her at a humans house, would they? They seemed to be trying to blend in.
"Wait, Mike. I'm a little behind in my classes and I was wondering if you could help me catch up? Maybe be my study buddy? I can come over later if I'm feeling better, if that's okay?" Ana tried not to sound too eager.
Mike's face lit up, "That would be great. Give me a call later. If not tonight, i'm free tomorrow as well. I don't have to work until the weekend."
Ana smiled and said she would call. She looked around the darkening street with narrowed eyes, holding the lighter up again before firmly shutting and locking the door.
Mike walked away waving, even though Ana was already inside. Once he was in his car he asked out loud, "Why are the hot chicks always nuts?"
Ana gathered her books, made a frozen pizza for dinner, took a shower and then tried to take a quick nap on her ancient sofa. Teleporting always wore her out and she needed to be on high alert tonight. Vampires didn't sleep and therefore neither could she.
At 8:00pm she called Mike and asked if she could come over, if it was not too late. He eagerly replied that his parents were still at their store and wouldn't be home till 10:00pm, so now was perfect. Ana smiled and said she was on her way. Now was the perfect time to get a tour of his house and snoop around.
Back at the Cullen residence, Carlisle was excitedly notifying his family with the results of the contents of Ana's blood.
"Your nose was spot on, Jasper," Carlisle said. "She does have vampire DNA and south american werewolf DNA mixed into her blood. I was able to cross reference Jacob's samples against hers. They are very similar. There were a few other strains I was unable to identify, unfortunately. I wish I could have taken a brain scan. Having a subject like this, that I can use human medicine and instruments on, is wonderful. I would bet there's not another like her in the world." Carlisle's eyes were lit up with his excitement. He had never been so fascinated by a creature before. He wondered if her blood could be used to heal others, or if it would taint another subject and turn it into a creature like herself. An immortal. What he would give to be able to test her blood on himself!
"What do we do with her now?" Jasper asked, eyes narrowed. Her blood was of no interest to him.
"Well, we aren't trying to harm her, just find out why she is here. This is not a town that attracts a lot of attention," Carlisle replied, wincing at the thought of their first meeting. He would not have chosen to introduce himself that way, but his family had insisted on being extra cautious.
"Whether we were her targets before or not, she knows who we are now and sees us as enemies," Carlisle continued, thinking.
"She's been pretty attached to Mike Newton at school from what I've gathered," Edward broke in. "She arrived in town either Saturday night or Sunday morning. There is a festival happening in the town square this weekend, if we can get Mike to ask her to go with him, we might be able to talk to her there, in a public place."
"It would be hard to get Mike away from her long enough to talk," Alice added. "We would have to use Bella as a distraction."
Edward hissed at her and Alice stuck her tongue out at him in response.
"It's only Tuesday night and you want to wait until Saturday afternoon to deal with this?" Jasper asked, outraged. Was no one but him worried about the danger Ana posed?
"She hasn't come anywhere near us," Esme pointed out. "We attacked her."
"Exactly!" Jasper spit out. "She may want revenge."
"We should ask Rose what she thinks," Carlisle replied. "After all, this is her kin."
"Where are Rose and Emmett anyway?" Edward asked, not being able to hear their thoughts around him.
"Rosalie went shopping in Seattle. Emmett is with her. I don't know when they will be back, Rose did not seem pleased about this new addition to her family," Esme said softly.
No one replied; everyone was surprised they hadn't realized it before. Rosalie was their family, which meant that now, in a way, Ana was too.
The rest of the week passed in a blur for them all. Anna stayed by Mike's side all throughout the school day and Rosalie did not return to town. Alice skipped school at Jasper's request but Edward was afraid to leave Bella alone so he continued going.
The one class that Edward and Bella had with Ana was English at the end of the day. They sat on opposite sides of the room from her and did not speak to her. Edward was very much displeased to find that like Bella, he could not read Ana's mind either. Bella saw no real danger from this human like girl and was worried about Mike. She wanted to know why Ana was paying so much attention to him. Edward was very much over Bella's new Mike obsession and so he took it upon himself to set their original plan in motion, although Rosalie had not given her blessing for it to happen. She would not answer their calls and all Emmett would say was that she would talk to him when she felt like it.
At lunch on Friday, Edward saw an opportunity to speak to Mike when Ana was in the washroom. He stood behind him in the lunch line and tried to strike up a casual conversation while Bella waited at their table.
"So, Mike, any plans this weekend?" Edward asked.
Mike turned around in surprise. Edward did not normally speak to him.
"Uh, yeah, no," Mike replied, confused by Edward's intense gaze.
Edward cocked his head to the side as he looked at Mike. He tried to seem friendly, "Is that a yes, or a no?"
"Ah, I have to work this weekend," Mike replied.
"Oh, so you aren't going to the festival then?" Edward asked. "I just thought that you might be taking Ana, since she's new in town."
Mike smacked himself on the head, "Oh, I forgot! The flower and garden festival! I bet she would love that. Girls like flowers."
Mike seemed depressed for a moment before brightening. "Do you think Bella would take my shift on Saturday?" He asked Edward hopefully.
Edward rocked back on his heels. "Probably not, Bella and I were planning on attending the festival together." Edward could not decide if it was safer for Bella to take Mike's shift and skip the festival or bring her as Mike's distraction.
Mike looked depressed again. "I can ask my mom, but she will probably say no."
"Ask her anyway, what does it hurt?" Edward encouraged. "And don't forget to ask Ana."
He would have Carlisle stop by Mike's parents store later to convince them to let Mike go to the festival and he didn't think for a second that Ana would say no to Mike. All he had to do now was show up with his family and tell Rose what was happening. The plan was set.
