Chapter 4

-Isabella-

Isabella had actually been enjoying herself, at least a little. The freedom of leaping through the air with her daughter, the movement and peacefulness of the forest. Something they had not done since her daughter was still a adjusting to her new life. "I'm so thankful for her, even if she deserves so much better than what I'm able to give her." Isabella thought, careful to keep her thought private.

Then she had caught a scent. It took her a second to identify it, the smell of blood and vampire. She snarled the instant she detected it, trying to find the location.

"Vampire, but with a scent like I've never smelled before." Eliza's voice confirmed in her thoughts, even as she leapt and began following the scent. It was light but getting stronger as she continued to move upwind, tracing the source. Isabella had a sinking sensation in her gut, suspecting just what it was she was smelling but needing to know.

She felt her daughter following her as she moved, felt her daughter's concern. They had traveled less than a quarter mile before she stopped again, high in a tree. Looking at the ground below she could clearly see a dead deer, but she didn't jump down, stretching her senses out to see if there were anyone close.

"I hope I'm wrong." she thought. A comment her daughter clearly heard in her own mind.

Isabella felt her daughter stop in the tree next to her and wait. After almost a minute Isabella jumped to the ground below and put her hand on the deer's neck.

"No no! Not here! Not them! Not now!" Isabella's whole body seemed to slump as she crouched. Her entire body hunched, and a whole well of emotions she hadn't allowed herself to feel in a long time flowed through her uncontrollably. She stayed crouched over the body of the animal, her entire body shaking.

It was several long minutes, Isabella's emotions ranging from rage to grief to hurt. She felt her daughter's arms wrap around her, consoling her both audibly and in thought.

She finally gathered herself together and slowly stood, Isabella could feel her daughter's concern and unspoken questions. Isabella looked at her daughter who waited for an answer she already suspected.

"I'm sorry, it's been so long." Isabella said, her voice and tone getting calmer by the moment as she regained control.

"Talk to me Mother." Eliza spoke quietly, Isabella smiled ruefully.

"It's the Cullens. They must be here. This deer was killed and drained less than an hour ago. And… it's their scent. I'm not sure which one. But it's them." Isabella replied, once more steeling herself, walling up the emotions she had let get the better of her.

Eliza didn't speak for several long seconds before responding. "Then let's leave Mother, coming here was a mistake. I didn't mean for this…" Her voice trailed off, filled with regret. Not for leaving, but for putting her Mother through this.

Isabella hesitated for several minutes. She was tempted. God knows she was tempted. To just leave this place behind, leave those people behind. But she slowly shook her head. "No… no. I'm done giving them power over me. Done letting what they did hurt me. I even made sure to hide the two times any of them paid visits to Volterra… but you have to face it sometime." She felt her anger bolstering her determination and stood a little straighter as looking at her daughter.

Isabella saw Eliza give her a careful look before replying. "I won't argue with whatever you decide. But… you say you can handle them being here. Can you handle seeing them? Can you handle them knowing you're here? "

Isabella frowned as she looked down at the deer at her feet, before raising her eyes to meet her daughter's. "Let's find out shall we?" And without another word she took off running, with a clear destination in mind. Eliza immediately followed, hot on her heels.

There was no doubt in Isabella's mind of which way to go as she and her daughter took off running through the forest. This way was much faster than leaping through the trees, though it afforded less stealth.

It wasn't until they leapt over a creek bed still full of patches of ice here and there on its surface, Isabella spoke to her daughter again, this time through their link. "Conceal us!" She ordered, a command her daughter followed without question. One of her most useful gifts, the ability to completely conceal a person, a group, or an area, to keep them from being detected; not just from being seen, but being heard or smelt as well.

Isabella slowed as she approached the house. Not quite as large as the house they now owned but far more ornate and artistic, with large floor to ceiling windows throughout. She approached the house quietly, and there she saw them.

All of them seemed to be in the living room, set up the way she remembered it, exactly as she remembered it. A near century had passed and things were almost identical, the TV and game systems seemed more modern, as did the speakers and the lights. But even those were in the same places they had been before. Everything else looked just the same.

Isabella felt a stab in her heart as she looked in at them. There was Carlisle and Esme leaning back against a wall as they watched their family, tease and play, smiles on both of their faces. She remembered the compassion they had always displayed. Esme had practically treated her like a daughter. She wondered if Esme had viewed her more like a stray cat; something to be cared for before being happy to be rid of her when the novelty wore off.

Rosalie, whose beauty Isabella still hadn't seen equaled, sat on the couch running a brush through her hair. Rosalie had never been nice to her, and had probably been happy to leave her behind.

Next to Rosalie sat Emmett. She remembered his laughter, his natural excitement for life and his eagerness to tackle any challenge, anytime, anywhere. He was the practical joker and the one always ready with a good joke. He was on the couch playing a video game clearly engrossed in whatever matchup was occurring, and beside him sat Edward.

Isabella snarled instinctively seeing his face. Seeing him smile as he bantered with Emmett. She even took one step forward, as pure hatred rose inside her, filling her vision with a crimson haze of rage. She'd rip that smile right off his face! She'd slaughter them all. Her instincts taking over as her entire body tensed up.

It was only her daughter's sudden grip on her wrist which brought her back to her senses. Her daughter didn't have to say anything, just reminding Isabella that she was there. Isabella took a deep breath as she stepped back, nodding and then she frowned. She stared for several moments at the face she had loved, that she had thought loved her in return. It looked the same as it had the last time she saw it.

She hadn't been good enough for him. She had been willing to give up her entire life to be with him, and he had crushed her heart telling her she wasn't good for him. She couldn't help the feeling of betrayal and resentment welling up inside her, however this time she managed to control it. For the first time in a long time, she let the anger course through her, until the worst of it burnt itself out.

Isabella felt some confusion as she saw Jasper sitting on the couch, his arm around a tall athletic female, in a position clearly marking them as lovers. Where was Alice and who was with Jasper? It was enough to puzzle her. She stared at the couple for several minutes, trying to fit the pieces together in.

Jasper was the catalyst for them leaving, when he'd tried to attack her at her birthday party. She got a paper cut and he'd lost his control. As Isabella saw it, the attempted attack merely provided an excuse they'd been looking for. Obviously they would have left her eventually, it just hurried the decision. They didn't want to be exposed if one of them lost it and attacked a human. So they curtailed their amusement with her life and departed. She had no idea who the dark haired female with Jasper was.

She felt her daughter tap her lightly on the arm, and point up. Isabella looked up and saw Alice leaning against the porch railing on the second story, looking out in the snow, seeing who knows what. Isabella's eyes lingered on Alice's face for several long moments, a range of emotions running unchecked through her.

She saw the girl she had once been so close with. Isabella had considered them more siblings than best friends. Images flew through Isabella's mind of Alice laughing with her, her random impulsive hugs, and even the shopping trips the girl was fond of. Isabella remembered them all. She once again felt anger rising in her. Alice had deceived her as much as Edward had, making her feel loved, telling her she was part of the family. However, when Edward abandoned her to her fate, Alice hadn't even bothered to say goodbye. Isabella had almost felt more betrayed at those actions. She wasn't even worth the consideration of a good bye from Alice. Another one happy to be rid of a pet who no longer amused them.

So they were all here, plus another one. Someone else they adopted, who they obviously felt was good enough for the Cullen family, when Isabella herself apparently never was. Isabella felt the anger welling up inside her again, the temptation rising to go in and show them just what they'd missed; to hurt them.

Once again she felt her daughter's grip on her arm, which calmed her, but then her daughter's grip became an insistent tug. Isabella turned her head only to see her daughter pointing up at where Alice had been leaning against the rail staring out at the horizon. Only now Alice was looking down at the very spot the two of them stood, with a frown of confusion on her face.

Isabella blinked in surprise; no one had ever been able to detect either her or her daughter when they were concealed before. They could have talked openly while she was cloaking and someone standing right next to them wouldn't have heard a thing. She took an experimental step left, and was relieved to note Alice's gaze remained right on the ground where they had been standing.

Still, Isabella could take a hint, she didn't want to push her luck and have the whole family alerted yet. It would wait for the right time. She turned and headed back into the forest, making sure not to give the house as much as a backward glance. Isabella felt her daughter turn and follow her after a few seconds hesitation.

Neither of them spoke a word as they ran back to their own house, though they didn't go directly there. They took a slightly circular route, making sure their scent couldn't be followed as they crossed through two streams.

Isabella stopped in front of their house; Eliza beside her. Neither of them spoke a word as Isabella looked up into the sky and Eliza watched her. Eliza was the one to break the ice.

"Let's just pack our stuff and we can go Mother. I know how hard this has been for you. I hoped…" Eliza trailed off and looked away before continuing. "I hoped coming back here might help you. But… I didn't think you'd have to deal with it all at once. " Isabella could hear the pure concern in her voice.

Isabella managed a small smile as she looked back at her daughter. So concerned for her mother's health, Isabella shook her head. She had decided she wasn't going to do any such thing. She wasn't going to just run and hide again. "No. I've seen them. They've moved on with their lives. It's obvious. It's long past time for me to do the same. It was good we saw them today though."

Isabella saw Eliza tilt her head curiously, so she grinned and murmured "If I had run into them without expecting it, I might have, acted on impulse, blowing our cover on the spot. At least now the worst of the knee jerk reaction is over"

"So what are you going to do when you see them face to face?" Eliza asked curiosity and doubt evident in her tone.

Isabella frowned as she considered. "I'm not sure. I'll put it off as long as possible, and do my best to just ignore them. They didn't want me. I have another family now, a better family. I have you."

Eliza didn't bother to hide her grin. Maybe coming here hadn't been such a bad idea after all, seeing even these glimpses of genuine emotion other than anger from her mother was exceedingly rare.

Maybe she was right," Isabella thought. "Maybe I just need to confront what parts of my past I can." She turned away from Eliza and murmured. "Well, one thing is for sure. I doubt boredom will be an issue for a while. "