School flies by the next few weeks, and I barely have time to think about anything but projects and tests. I wall myself off, keeping the living inferno stoked so no one can read me. Some of my classmate's magic has been popping up randomly, and I don't want to take any chances.

With Alice gone on the weekends, I choose to relax mostly in bed, sometimes in the quad, often in the bath. Tonight, it's the latter.

I let the warm water soak into my tense muscles as I close my eyes against the harsh light and dream of the future.

Excitement courses through me at the thought of attending different Courts, at the idea that I'll be free to choose which Court I want to live in. As the warm water bathes my tired skin, I think about where I might fit in. Who's going to accept a Court 6 citizen? Will I be looked at differently? How will they—

My thought is cut off when the phone on the floor begins to ring.

I don't recall even bringing that pesky thing in here.

"Hello?" I ask, slipping back under the water.

"Hello, Belle," a voice sings back at me.

"What do you want, Edward?" I ask impatiently. All I wanted to do was take a nice, long, relaxing bath.

"To hear you. Sometimes your pretty voice gets muffled in my head."

Jasper's words hit me suddenly. Remember that the next time he seems so charming.

I do. I remember it all. Edward above, and Jasper's mom below, and the sounds of their bodies—

"So, he told you then." It's a statement, not a question.

"He showed me," I correct.

"And did you ask to be shown, Lovely Belle?" I don't know why, but the name sends shivers down my spine.

"Absolutely not. Why would I ask to see—"

"Sounds like Jasper took advantage of your magic," Edward says sincerely. "Do not let that happen again."

"Huh?" I ask. "I don't even know how to do—"

"I need you to listen to me, okay?" he says hurriedly, his tone changing completely. Edward doesn't wait for my response before explaining. "Please remove yourself from the bath, dress quickly, and find Alice and Jasper in the quad. They're my next call."

"Why?"

He hides nothing from me. "Royce is coming for you."

"Edward, how do you know—"

"Get out of the tub, Belle."

I do as he asks and stand in the tub.

"Now please go get dressed."

With the phone pressed tightly to my ear, I ask, "can you see me?"

"I'm trying very hard not to." His voice tells me that his patience has run thin by this point.

In the room, I rummage through my drawers and find a pair of cotton shorts and a T-shirt. If Alice were here, she'd scold me for such an outfit, but the creeping fear of something dark closes in on me.

"Get the sandals next to the door and leave. Don't take the elevator. Go right at the end of the hall and take the back stairs. Meet Jasper near the bench you like to read on."

He hangs up before I can react. As I slip on the shoes and exit the door, I hear the ding of the elevator to my left. Quickly, I rush down the hall and turn right like he said.

Before climbing down the stairs, I peek around the corner and see a tall, dark figure at my door. Did I lock it? I don't remember. Please let it be locked. Please, please, please. For what reason I don't know. If Royce wants to get in, he'll get in.

The figure turns my way and under the dim hallway light, I'd recognize that face any day. Royce.

Edward was right.

Royce pivots and walks down the hall as if he can sense me… like an animal hunting it's prey. Although the gold around my ankle has disappeared, the place it used to shimmer turns to lava. Surprised, I pull myself from the wall and head to the stairs before I take off running.

I burst out into the evening air and run quickly to the spot Edward described. How had he known this is my favorite bench? Does he know I like it because it's out of the direct sunlight, but close enough to warm my body? And why is my ankle on fire? How can I feel warmth if the gold that had bonded us is no longer there?

Lost in so many thoughts, I nearly scream when Jasper grips my hand and pulls me behind him quickly.

"Where are we going?" I ask.

"I'm sorry," he tells me.

"Jasper—"

"I should have known he was a hunter."

"A what?" I ask as he pulls me through the cafeteria doors.

It's deserted after hours, but we walk through the open room to get across campus faster. Jasper called Royce a hunter. I'd only heard about them in school. Men from different Courts who prey on girls and force themselves onto them.

"Royce is hunting me?" I ask as Jasper grips my hand tighter.

Palm to palm, he shows me a memory.

Royce and Jasper in the back of the restaurant on our date.

"What's going on with you?" Jasper asks him.

"I don't know, Jasper. I feel… weird. She makes me feel weird," Royce explains quietly.

"Weird like what? She's a humble girl from Court 6. You couldn't ask for someone nicer," Jasper tells him.

"I don't know. I can't put my finger on it. There's something unusual about her. She makes my bones hurt."

"I literally have no idea what's wrong with you, but if you don't start talking, she's going to leave."

Royce looks behind him at the table where I'm sitting with Alice, and this is the moment when the shift happens.

By the time he turns around, an arrogant smile shifts into place and eyes as gray as ash look back.

"I knew then," Jasper says, ending the memory. "I knew then, and I didn't say anything."

"What does it mean?" I ask. "Why were his eyes gray, and why didn't I notice?"

"When the prey drive takes over, it consumes you. He must have seen something in you that night, at that moment, for it to take over. The gray eyes are the only way to tell. If you ever see a man with gray eyes—"

"Edward said the same thing. He told me to stay away from the men in Courts 3 and 4 with the gray eyes. He said they're trouble."

Jasper nods. "They are."

I think back to Mike with his gray eyes. Does that mean he was trouble, too? Edward only specified Courts 3 and 4… but we're in Court 5. We make it to his apartment, and I heave a loud breath of frustration. Why have they taken me to the place Jasper shares with Royce?

Alice pushes the phone into my hand. "It's for you."

Knowing exactly who it is, I decide he's the perfect person to take my irritation out on. "Why is it that I always wind up with more questions than answers when it comes to you two?" I point to Jasper as well.

Edward chuckles. "Glad to hear you're safe. To answer your other question," he says softly, "Jasper's prepared to end Royce's hunt."

"And how does that happen?" I ask, glancing to Jasper, whose eyes are glued to the door.

"I help him find Royce, and Jasper ends him."

"Ends him?" I ask. "Ends him like… like death?"

"Yes."

"No," I say softly. "No, he's just… Royce is just…" But I don't really have a word for it because I don't know what Royce is capable of. I don't know him at all.

"It's policy," Edward says softly, like he knows it'll hurt me. "Boys are told from adolescence that if they come across a gray eyed man on the hunt, we are to notify a tracker. And Jasper's—"

"What happens if he doesn't?" I ask. "What if Jasper doesn't—"

"Royce finishes the—" Edward starts but doesn't finish.

"Tell me," I demand. "Tell me what that means."

"He kills you. Among other things, but killing you is end game."

"Oh."

And then my ankle is molten heat burning up my leg.

"What is that?" I whisper, walking away from Alice and Jasper. "Why can I still feel you?"

"What do you mean?"

"On my ankle. I can feel you, but the gold band isn't there anymore."

"It's gone?" he asks, confusion bursting through the phone.

"Has been."

"Interesting."

"That seems to be what you say when you don't know the answer."

He chuckles softly. "Are you excited to see Court 3?" he asks, changing the subject.

"I'm excited to see all the Courts," I tell him, not answering him directly.

"Yes, but you've already been to Court 4. The only Courts you've not been to are 7 and 3, and to be honest, Court 3 is far superior."

"Well, that's pompous," I scoff.

"No, that's honest, Belle."

It's quiet and awkward, but I don't want to get off the phone because I'm scared.

Edward sighs softly and speaks low, saying, "I'll stay on the phone with you all night if you want, Belle, but there's nothing to fear."

There's a ball of worry in my throat and a heaviness that slumps my shoulders. My hands begin to shake as my adrenaline catches up to me.

"Nothing to fear? Someone wants to kill me… among other things," I say, using his honest words.

"I'll see him coming, and Jasper will—"

"Don't say it," I whisper. "I don't…" My voice trails off, and it's hard to speak, so I hand the phone to Alice and place my head in my hands.

Her voice goes soft as she answers in simple "yes" and "no" responses before handing the phone to Jasper.

"I thought they hate each other," I ask, stretching out on the couch, watching Jasper's emotionless face as he speaks to his ex-best friend.

Alice slips down next to me and lifts my head in her lap. Soft, feminine fingers brush my hair away from my face.

"You're my best friend," she tells me honestly. "Jasper would do anything to keep you safe."

"He'd risk himself to keep me safe just because I'm your best friend?"

"Yes," she says simply.

It doesn't add up, but it's a simple response and given the complexity of the situation, I accept and move on.

I think back to Edward and what he's done. Calling me, Jasper, and Alice to warn us that Royce is a hunter—hunting me. What would have happened if Edward hadn't been checking in or noticed. Was Edward checking in? How had he noticed? It's definitely a question for another time.

"He's kind," I whisper a few moments later.

"He is," Alice's voice is full of smile. "When I was thirteen, we were walking home from school and Jasper let me wear his hat because the sun was in my eyes."

"Jasper's nice too, but I meant Edward," I tell her honestly.

Alice sort of freezes for a second but her fingers start brushing my hair again.

"He can be," she responds. "He's very intense."

"I get that."

"Don't fall in love with him," she whispers as if the idea pains her.

I can't help but scoff. Fall in love with him? "Alice, I don't even know him."

"He's just… he's not the kind of future you want."

Her response sits like a rock in my belly until the phone is set down and Jasper's out the door.

Sitting up, Alice and I hold hands and hearts and wait with bated breaths.

Less than twenty minutes later, the phone rings.

"Edward," I say his name like a prayer.

Edward sighs in relief before he speaks. "Jasper's a tracker," he admits freely.

"What?" I ask.

"It's what I tried telling you before. His magic tracks hunters. Earlier I said we're trained as teenagers to recognize the signs of a hunter, and then we're to find a tracker. That's policy."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Jasper's new to his magic just as you are. This was his first track. He—" Edward pauses briefly before continuing. "Jasper was able to disable him briefly, but Royce got away. Jasper's on his way back, but Royce is still out there."

"Is Jasper okay?" I ask.

Edward snorts a laugh. "Jasper's fine."

"I don't know why you think this is funny," I argue, my emotions catching up to me. It's embarrassing to admit, but tears pool in my eyes.

There's stillness for a moment before saying, "I tell you a man is hunting you, a man who wants to kill you, and your first question is if Jasper is okay."

"I don't see the issue."

Edward never responds, or if he does, I miss it because Jasper walks through the door at the same moment. His eyes a wilder gold, his hair a chaotic nest of curls, and his shirt caked in red.

"Put me on speaker," Edward says, so I do.

"He got away," Jasper explains.

"Show her," Edward instructs.

"No."

"Jasper, show her."

"She doesn't need—"

"She is not a child," Edward insists bitterly. "No need to treat her as such. Belle needs to see the face of the man hunting her. She needs to see what—"

"Show me," I say, interrupting Edward. He's right; I'm not a child. He stands up for my autonomy, and I respect that about him.

Jasper huffs and offers his hand. We press our palms together, and he takes me to the place from which he just returned.

Snippets of memories he doesn't want to show me. A dark alley. The ease of which Jasper was able to find him. Blood on his hands. Royce's body slumped on its side. A dismembered arm to the right. The creak of something down the brick-lined alley grabs Jasper's attention. Royce standing and running. A long chase. Royce running into the forest toward Court 4.

"He's scared," I tell them, still in the memory. "He's hurt."

I squeeze his hand before letting go. Jasper won't meet my eyes.

"I notified the trackers from Court 4, and I've written a formal complaint to the Royals." Edward explains.

"You did?" Alice asks in surprise.

"Yes. I'm following policy," Edward defends as if he has to.

"Well, that's a first," Alice whispers sarcastically.

Everyone's silent. Alice and Jasper look from each other to me. I don't ask what the issue is because I can't fathom the response right now.

"So now what?" I ask.

"Now you stay with Jasper."

"Edward, no."

"You leave for field observations in a few days."

"And if he follows me?"

"He won't. Jasper severed his arm. He needs to heal, and that takes weeks," Edward explains easily. "Jasper, a moment in private?"

Jasper takes the phone from me and walks into another room.

"How does he know all this?" I ask Alice.

"Girls in Court 4 were taught how to wash clothes, feed our families, get stains out of cotton. Boys were taught how to hunt—people and animals," she says testily. "It's like the dark ages. Do you see why I have such issue with—" Alice stops herself. "Anyway," she rolls her eyes before continuing, "the boys were taught at an early age the signs of a hunter. Instead of the military, like the history books describe, we have trackers. Jasper's been honing his tracking skills for weeks, and I just thought he was acting weird. When there's a hunter in the area, the tracking drive takes over for the male, and he can't stop until the hunter is destroyed. It's very caveman, but that's just what happens, I guess. If Royce crosses another tracker, that tracker will try and destroy him."

"So now that Jasper's a tracker, anytime he crosses a hunter, he has to destroy it?"

Alice nods. "Hunters are very dangerous, Belle. I've heard about them killing whole families because of their prey drive. It can be devastating."

"Is Jasper in danger?"

Alice looks away, unable to answer. "He's the first tracker I know of. I don't… I'm not sure how it'll work."

"Are you scared?" I whisper, moving to sit closer, my arm slipping around her shoulder to pull her in.

"I'll be okay," she whispers, but doesn't push me away.

Jasper stays in that room for hours. I'm not sure if he's on the phone with Edward the whole time or not, but when he comes back into the living room, he looks different. Calmer. At ease, like he's able to breathe.

"The Royals have been notified, and they're on the lookout," he says. "There are three trackers in Court 4 and six in Court 3. He won't get away."

"How many in Court 5?" I ask.

"One," he swallows.

"And Court 6?" My family. What if he gets my family?

Jasper looks away. He says nothing.

"Jasper, how many in Court 6?"

"Alice, can I speak with you?" Jasper says, ignoring my question.

They disappear into the bedroom, and they don't come out again. It's so quiet I can hear the squeak of the bed when they lay down. Just for tonight, I make myself a bed on the couch, cover my ears with a pillow, and squeeze my eyes shut.

I'm in the twilight between sleep and awake when I hear it.

None.

I feel him. His voice blows in my mind like a breeze.

None what? I ask back, pulling down every block so he can hear and feel me fully.

No trackers in Court 6.

Is my family okay?

This is the first time in recorded history that there's a tracker outside of Courts 3 and 4. Never before has this happened. Jasper's the first tracker to gain his magic in Court 5. It's all very new.

Is my family okay? I ask him again nervously.

I cannot see them. It's honest, but I appreciate that. Edward doesn't lie to me. I think back to his statement before. I'm not a child. It warms my entire being.

Why?

I can't hear everyone. My magic only works on those I've spoken with before. I can hear the sarcasm in his voice.

Well, what good are you then? I joke.

Good enough to save you, he whispers back.

Thank you, Edward.

Sweet dreams, Belle.

I don't spend all night thinking about the conversation. In fact, I'm asleep before another thought can even enter my mind. It's a soft, dreamless sleep. The kind where you wake up hours later, having not moved, and wondering where you are.

Light streams in through the windows.

I'm still tired, but I need to finish a project for a literacy class. Jasper walks us back to our room, his eyes lingering on me longer than normal.

"What?" I ask.

He shakes his head.

"Tell me, Jasper."

He sighs and turns his body to me. "I apologize."

"For?"

"For not finishing it yesterday. I've created a mess. I'm embarrassed, and I'm sorry." His cheeks redden, his eyes downcast, hands shoved deep in the pockets of his khaki shorts.

"Jasper," I whisper lightly. "Please don't apologize. I should be thanking you—"

He scoffs angrily. "Thanking me? I have one job to do, and that's track. I couldn't even—"

"Hey," Alice says calmly, her tone matching my own. "It was your first track. Be easy on yourself."

Jasper nods before saying, "I don't think it's a good idea for you to go on field observations this week. With Royce out there… who knows what could happen. You'll be in every Court, spreading your scent. It could go very badly."

I shake my head. "Jasper, I appreciate that, but I will not let a man ruin my plans—"

"He's not a man," Jasper interrupts. "He's a hunter. The second he turned into a hunter, he became an animal. There's no man left. Royce will do anything to—"

"Okay," I tell him calmly. "Okay, I get it. Give me some Pepperline or something."

"Huh?"

"Pepperline. We use it in Court 6 to keep the wild beasts away," I explain. "It's a powder we sprinkle around the perimeter of our land, and it deters them from stepping inside the area."

"I've… I've never heard of that," he admits. "Maybe Edward has something."

And then Jasper sees us inside the room.

~!~

A few hours later, our stomach's growl, and we decide to take a break from schoolwork and grab some lunch. I watch intently as Jasper helps Alice in line at the cafeteria. He holds her tray even when she asks him not to. Jasper pays for her lunch, and then he pulls her chair out.

When he goes to grab napkins, I quickly ask, "has he always been so doting?"

She rolls her eyes. "It's the worst, isn't it?"

"Absolutely not, Alice. He's so caring. If you won't kiss him, do you mind if I try?" I joke. "He's the kind of guy I wouldn't mind being Soul Bonded with forever."

Alice chuckles and watches him walk back to our table. "Yeah, he's a good guy," she tells me, smiling softly. Alice's hard exterior softens when he's around, and I like seeing it. Her smile's too pretty to hide behind a phony persona.

After lunch, we decide it's best if we pack a bag to stay at Jasper's place for the weekend. We leave on Monday for Court 7, so it's only a few days. Can't hurt, right? Jasper offers the spare room, and when I ask if that was Royce's room, he shakes his head.

Royce lived down the hall in the larger of the three bedrooms, so I feel safe tossing my bag of clothes on the floor in the room. Jasper shows me the lock on the door, and I use it when he leaves.

I lay in the bed and turn to my side. It's early in the day, and I know I need to finish my project, but my eyes grow heavy, and I can't stop the sleep from taking over.

My dreams are vivid. Royce in a dark alley taunting me, laughing, as long fingernails scrape against brick. My back against the wall. His voice comes closer and closer until he's above me. I can't move, I can't speak, I can't even scream. The moment he reaches down, clawed fingers out, bright white flutters behind my eyes.

There's nothing. Royce is gone along with the terror that coursed through me.

Suddenly I'm on a balcony overlooking a cliff into the water. The marble balcony is cool against my palm as I grip the railing. The rushing sound of water below soothes my racing heart. I try to turn around, but I can't. The only thing I can see in this dream is the jagged edges of the rough mountain jutting out, the clear blue of the water below, the golden sky above. If serenity and heaven are real, it would be this place. Had the incident with Royce been real and not a dream? Had he killed me, and this is Heaven?

The sudden pounding of fists at my door pulls me from my dream, and I groan loudly as I wake. It's still light out, and my heavy eyes burn from sleep.

Definitely not Heaven, then.

"What?" I ask, ripping open the door.

"Oh, my Royals!" Alice yells in exasperation. "Do you know how long we've been knocking on your door, Belle?"

"Uhm, no? I was sleep."

"More like dead! Who sleeps that hard?" Relief softens Alice's face as she takes me in.

Jasper sort of chuckles, shaking his head behind Alice.

"No, seriously. That isn't normal. Are you okay? We really thought—" Alice stops herself, but I already know what she was going to say.

"Royce didn't take me," I tell her. "I'm okay."

Alice nods. The worry in her eyes makes my stomach burn. She hands me a phone.

"Keep this with you just in case."

"I don't have anyone's numbers," I tell her honestly. "It's useless."

"Good thing I thought about that, huh?" Alice hands me a piece of paper with a bunch of names and numbers on it.

Jasper. Alice. Mom and Dad. Edward.

These are all her family members.

"I know your parents don't have a phone," Alice says quietly. "If you ever need anything, you can call any of us, okay?"

"Alice, I can't accept this."

"You can, and you will."

I push the phone back to Alice, but she refuses it.

"For your safety," Jasper says.

Begrudgingly, I take the phone and close the door again. This time, I don't fall back to sleep. I pull out my project and get to work. If I'm stuck in this bedroom for the next few days, you better believe I'm going to busy myself.

Before this Royce mess, Alice told me all about her extensive plans the weekend before we leave for field observations. All of them had to do with Jasper and her naked. None of them had to do with me. I put on a lecture, turn it up, and try to drown out any noise that might be coming from down the hall.

I finish my project and notice the rest of the apartment is quiet. But I leave the lecture on and pick up the phone. It's smaller than the one Alice keeps in our room, but it works the same. I glance at the list of numbers.

When I call Alice, she laughs when I ask if she and Jasper are lying together yet. She tells me it's a good idea to keep the video playing all night. Disgusted but laughing, I turn the volume up even more and hang up on her.

Just before bedtime, I pull out my book and lose myself in it. Luckily, I'm able to drown out the noise from both their bedroom and the lecture, enjoying the writings of the authors we're studying in our young adult fiction course.

I must fall asleep while reading because when I wake up, the lecture has stopped. It's still in the apartment, there's no noise, and the light above me hurts my tired eyes. Quietly, I tiptoe into the bathroom to freshen up before changing, turning off the light, and slipping under the covers.

Only now I'm not tired. Now I'm wide awake.

The clock next to the bed reads just after three in the morning, and I think briefly about what I'll find in Court 6. What's Jake been up to? How are Mom and Dad? Are Mike and Jessica married? It should make me sad or nostalgic or lonely, but it doesn't. The only thing I feel sorry for is Jessica if she winds up with Mike forever.

And then I worry about myself. I told Alice I wanted to focus on myself and my studies before worrying about my One True Love, but do I trust the Royals to pick someone like Jasper for me? Someone who is as good as he is to Alice?

What if I wind up with a Royce?

A Mike?

Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I swallow my fears and remind myself that I trust the process. The Royals have a plan for me, and so far, so good.

With a crazy, impulsive thought, I pull out the phone Alice gave me, and dial a number.

It rings four times before he answers.

"To what do I owe such a delight?"

"How did you know it was me?"

I can hear his smile through his words when he says, "whose idea do you think it was to get you a phone, Belle?"

"Neither of them said anything."

Edward scoffs. "Of course, they didn't."

"Why aren't you asleep?" I ask.

"Why aren't you?" he challenges easily.

"I had a long nap earlier."

"I know."

"You do? How?"

"Your nightmare."

Silence fills the line for a moment, and he says nothing. "Edward, just how much of my everyday life can you see?"

"Every second," he says honestly, papers shuffling in the background, "if I want to."

"And do you?"

He chuckles softly. "Not usually. My life is busy enough as it is, but I often feel your… passions. It's as if your life plays like a movie next to me all day. I can see you anytime I want. You come very… easily for me."

"What's that mean?"

"I see the moments of your day when your emotions are very heightened. Fear, sadness, contentment, joy, arousal." Edward leaves off on the last one for a reason.

It's my turn to scoff. "Well then, I know for a fact that last one isn't felt very often by either of us if that's the case."

"And why is that?" he teases softly.

Ignoring his question, I instead ask, "that vision from my dream… the balcony and the cliff and the ocean… was that you?"

"And if it was?" he asks just as soft.

"Why?"

"You were having a nightmare."

"So? People have nightmares all the time."

"I feel what you feel, Belle. I do not ever want to feel the terror you inflicted on me this afternoon, so I put you in a place of calm and tranquility."

I nod in understanding. "So anytime I feel a great level of emotion, you feel it?"

"Always."

"Can I stop it?"

"Probably, but I'm sure in those moments, the last thing you're thinking of is me." Edward says it so honestly, but it's true.

"What about that night I went out with Royce? Could you feel everything then?"

He laughs, remembering. "Oh yes. I could feel every eye roll, every under the breath comment, every angry word you said to him before you walked out."

"Interesting," I say, copying his phrase. "Next time, I'll try to remember to block you out. I can't imagine how tough it is to feel everyone's—"

"You know what's worse than terror?" he interrupts. "Empathy."

"Why," I ask, taken aback.

"It's a waste of time to actively want to relate to others."

"No," I tell him honestly. "That's called being human."

"Why would you want to feel what others are going through? Trust me when I tell you, it's not fun."

Edward has a point. He lives this life all day, every day. It's not shocking when he says it, but it's puzzling. Edward's usually cool, calm, charming. Tonight, there's an unease, an annoyance in his tone. Maybe it's the time of night.

"I'm working on this Pepperline you spoke of earlier. It's a very difficult mixture to create. How did you do it so easily in Court 6?" he asks.

I shrug. "Court 6 has all the ingredients. Pine needles, soil, sand, water, and a cup of dust debris."

"Dust debris?" he questions. "This recipe has nothing of that."

"That's what we used," I tell him certainly.

Edward clears his throat before speaking next. "What are your plans tomorrow, Belle?"

"Oh, probably nothing," I tell him. It's Saturday, so there's no school. "Trying to zone out your sister and her boyfriend."

Edward laughs and asks, "would you like to take a trip with me?"

I think about it for a moment before responding honestly. "Yes."

A/N: thank you to Fran as Beta. Any other mistakes were made by me post-Betaing!

Wonder what next chapter will bring with Bella going off with Edward... hmmm...

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