Hey everyone! I didn't mean to scare anyone with my sporadic updates. I've been really busy with work lately. I'm not going anywhere… a couple people were a bit frustrated w/me, but I do want to make sure I push out quality updates… my worst nightmare is to lose the story in my rush to update! I'm so glad you like the story...So happy that you want these updates and really appreciate you for reading… anyway cheers!

Chapter 13: Choose your fighter!

I'm lying on my side in the mud, heavy wire bonded to my teeth once again. My hips are sinking, my shoulders dipping as the mud fills my ear. My sore back can no longer brace my ribs and bare the weight of my neck. I'm being pulled under like quicksand. The more I fight, the more earth grips and tightens. It's getting harder to breathe, but the warmth is what I crave.

The earth beneath me, below the surface, and born from the soil retains the heat. I groan in pleasure and discomfort. Pain never felt so good. Is this what it feels like to destroy an angel? If I had wings, I'd imagine they'd be beyond repair. And then I remember all angels are men and his skin would feel like resistant velvet, wings forever perched above the grime.

I'm up to my waist in slurry before I grow cold and the dirt breaks and crumbles away. I'm left covered in ashen clay, freezing from the inside out. My core is tremoring and contracting under the stress and weakness. The night's air is merciless.

And out of nowhere I'm plucked from the pit. I'm hung out in the cold. My left wrist held by the impalpable harnessing tendril, leaving the rest of me suspended. I have ascended from the grit. My eyes are left racing for the source. The cold is coming from within. It's concealed by my skin. The chill is beneath my skin.

Which is probably why I haven't been able to let go of Jake's sweater. Ever since he left it in my room, I haven't taken the damn thing off. It's so warm and soft, unlike anything I've ever felt. I keep the sleeves and neckline pressed to my nose. It's the closest thing I have to being tightly wrapped in his embrace. I can't bear to feel the cold anymore.

My toes flex in a frigid sweat inside my rubber ducks. I balk at the thin socks within the unforgiving boots. This is gonna be a long walk home. I shove my hands into my coat pockets and breathe in the fresh air. Is this what submission tastes like?

I can envision my truck under the brume of the bar's parking lot. So reliant, in perfect working order; a man made of steel. I never realized how insecure I would feel without him. I was warned about returning to the bar, but I have to get my truck back. Technically that's not going into the bar, right?

What does it mean to defy Jake's simple request. I play his words back and over again. Was it a warning or demand? Is there really a difference? I can feel his will run through me all the same.

I dig the toe of my boots into the pebbles and gravel surrounding the school. I'm pulled out of my thoughts when my name is slowly uttered.

"Hey, Bella. You need a ride right? Mom said you left your truck and caught a ride home over the weekend." Angela's overgrown bangs blow back with the strong gust of wind.

"Yeah, I really don't want to walk home. I stupidly left it in the bar's lot. Save my lazy bones this once, if you can spare the time." I bite my chapped lip and pull at the peeling skin.

"Oh yeah, no problem! Did something happen over the weekend? Mom said you left in a hurry. She was acting all weird too, like unusually tense." Angela searches my eyes for a moment before locking arms with me. Her soft lead to the car feels like I'm being pulled through shallow stagnant water by the fin of a koi.

"I uh- I don't know. I left in a hurry, like unexpectedly. Something came up and—-"

"She also said her 'business partner' would meet you at the pier to give you your things? I told her I could bring everything to school with me but, you know how she is. She won't really tell me what's going on around here." She unlocks the doors to her Prius, inviting me into her small fishbowl. "Are you sure everything's ok?"

"Honestly Angela, If your mom didn't say anything, I don't think you should even worry about it. I'm not exactly aware of everything that's going on anyway," My flustered response leaves me lightheaded as she drives off campus.

"Right because 'Nice, quiet girls should stay out of fast business' is what my mom always says. Whatever the fuck that means." Her bitter tone feels like a koi nipping at fingers that dipped into her freshwater pond.

Why didn't Anita have Embry or Jacob drop my car off? Or better yet, just let me catch a ride to the bar and pick it up myself. And then I realize, I'm not the one throwing feed into the pond, I'm the food itself. I'm haphazard bait. "Anita didn't mean anything by it," Is what I keep telling myself, but I'm starting to think there's something to the madness. If koi get hungry enough, siblings may eat each other.

"Yeah she says a lot of things that she doesn't mean. That's the problem," Angela says, keeping her eyes focused on the road.

"Ya' know Ange, we're not that different from each other. We were just dealt different cards, had to make different decisions. Your mom is just protecting you," and surrendering me.

"I keep telling myself that, but sometimes I think my mother has cruel intentions. And I start to think that all the hiding and secrets she's holding will only lead to one thing; all the people around her paying for her actions."

"Well the world isn't going to come crashing down anytime soon. Whether we give in to Anita's impulses or not, I don't think anything will happen today."

"I'm not trying to pry, or nag, or anything, but are you in some trouble because of my mom, Bella?" She pulls into the pier's parking, scanning up and down the deck, looking for a hint of the 'mystery business partner'. To no avail, we are alone. She puts the car in park, but leaves it running.

"No, no Ange. I don't even know what happened after I left. Whatever Anita's worried about has nothing to do with me." I hope it has nothing to do with me.

"You know you can tell me anything right? We were almost sisters once upon a time." She sits back in her seat and lets a nervous laugh expel from her tight lips. Her observant eyes land on my sweater before she asks, "Hey, where'd you get that sweater from?"

"Oh this, It's not mine. I'm just borrowing it." I'm living in it. I can't breathe without it.

"Well yeah, I knew that. That's a sacred pattern knitted into a qiviut sweater. The natives won't even sell an outsider a knit scarf with that pattern, let alone a sweater. It's like law! Nobody would dare replicate that pattern. And it's made out of the most expensive yarn, nobody in town can afford Musk Ox hair. Bella that sweater is priceless." Her fingers mindlessly rub at my sleeves. "Who did you say gave this to you." Her eyes grow big and round with wonder as she playfully asks, "Did you steal it from one of the natives at the bar?"

"I didn't. A friend is just letting me borrow it." I open my door and grab my backpack before the tsunami of questions comes pouring in.

"Oh don't hold out on me. It's someone from the bar though, right? You met a guy at the bar didn't you! Is that who you're meeting? I wanna know!" Her voice is growing louder than I've ever heard it.

"Let's talk later, Ange." I slam the car door before she can pressure me into answering.

She sticks her head outside the window while driving away, pleading, "Yeah, yeah call me. You've gotta tell me everything!"

And as the cold air washes ashore, I realize I can never tell her anything about Jacob. I can never be completely honest with her or anyone else. The darkness has become my secret.

I stare into the ocean and wait, my curls swaying with the gentle wind. The tip of my nose froze from the numb nerves. I can barely feel my face, and then all of a sudden, I feel everything at once.

"You can't be on Volturi territory with that sweater on." His soft voice is carried with the wind swirling, and tugging on my chilled bones. His boyishly sunny smile doesn't fit his disapproving, critical tone.

An army of knives has invaded my stomach. The words part from my lips before I can think, "Last time I checked this is my hometown, Forks. I go where I want. I do what I want. I wear what I want. Besides, I could say the same about your shearling jacket. One look at you, and everyone in town can tell you don't belong."

Edward snarks, "Do yourself a favor, and never wear that sweater again."

"And why would I do that?" I challenge his bravado and question his confidence. His light has already begun to dim from Jacob's residual beastly aura. Jacob's energy is woven into this sweater that surrounds me. I have a new buffer to Edward's cactus spines, but his foreign spirit still penetrates my flesh.

"It's not safe being a walking Quileute billboard." His expression softens into something that resembles concern. I can't help but think I haven't met the real him yet.

I knew I'd see you again, but I had no idea it would come to such a contemptuous start. I thought you'd be a bit more cautious. "I don't think Jacob would be happy to hear that you're threatening me. I'll be sure to tell him—"

"But you won't tell him." He stares deep into my eyes without blinking. His eyebrows turn thoughtful. "No, you won't. He doesn't know you're here. You don't trust him as much as I thought you would."

How does he know so much? I've only said three sentences. "Why would you think that? I told you before, I will do what I want. I trust Jacob completely. That doesn't mean I do everything he says." You on the other hand...

A deep frown plays at the middle of his face as the mirth falls from his tongue, "Well I'm sure if you did, I would be having this conversation with Jacob. But you came here alone, meaning..."

"You're not as scary as you think you are. There's no need for Jacob to be here." It's my turn to look him in the eye and send signals to his senses.

He steps a little closer into my space before letting me in on his inner thoughts, "Anita was right. You are a little… offbeat. Speaking of, you should let me buy you a new car." His cool breath flows into my mouth and I swear my composure runs haywire. He's so close I can see the different tones in his irises. His eyes are his weapon.

Before my lips turn blue from his stare, he adds, "That ugly truck isn't you." He pulls his hands from his coat pockets, and holds my car keys out to me in the palm of his hands.

I'd rather walk barefoot. I'd rather pull each strand of copper from my teeth one by one. I snatch the keys and search his posture for mercy, for the truth.

I ask him the question I ask every man I know, "What do you want?"

"You're the textbook honey trap. I want to get my hands sticky playing hide and seek with you, and you'll pretend to care about keeping secrets from Jacob. And before the end of this meeting, you'll forget all about playing telephone because god forbid someone shoots the messenger."

"There's no secret to keep. We haven't discussed anything in particular. I would tell him you're all talk, but you've said a bunch of nothing." I turn my back to him and look out into the violent waters. My arms dangle over the deck railing, letting the cold creep back into my sleeves.

"I doubt Jacob would believe it was that simple. How much do you know about your boyfriend's family?"

Nothing. "Enough."

"Well you should know by now, they've killed a couple of my friends passing through from Denali."

My head whips with the wind to face him in shock. Why would he tell me that?

"If you thought the treaty was to keep the Volturi in line, think again." He runs a gloved hand through his shiny hair with a satisfied smirk.

"Well I'm sure Jake and the Wolves had their reasons. They don't kill for the hell of it." I fight for reasoning and context. I talk like I really know Jacob. There has to be some explanation for this. Maybe it's not even Jake's doing, maybe it's Sam's.

"How do you not know anything about your boyfriend's people? I myself am into racketeering, but I'm not above the occasional tying of loose ends. I'm sure you know about the obvious extortion the Wolves are into, but you should be aware of the enemies that keep them up at night."

"It's really none of your business how involved I am with what Jacob does, but I don't live on the rez. Whatever you're talking about does not concern me. That's their land, and their law, not anyone else's."

"I find that hard to believe, Bella. You've lived in Forks all your life, but you act as if you don't really know about the Natives. Why are you with him if you've never been on the other side of the border?"

"I have no reason to. We stay on our side, and they keep to themselves. Why are you so concerned?"

"Because I believe we can help each other out. As long as the Blacks don't have complete ownership of the bar, then Anita has some control over the property. And as her silent investor, I can keep the Wolves from buying the last neutral piece of land we own. Anita can play both sides if she wants to but, I'm not willing to let go of any of our lucrative assets."

"Once again that does not concern me. I won't be going to Anita's anytime soon, so I can't help you with that." Move to leave the pier and head to my steel armor.

"I don't want you to go back there either. I agree with Jacob in that regard. Things can get ugly when you're driving down property value to regain control. I don't want you to worry about Anita, I just need you to get Jacob to back off and look the other way this once."

Even with my back to him, he has me captivated. I can feel his eyes watching me, calling me.

Afraid of what it would mean to give in to his summoning, I look over my shoulder asking, "And why would I do that?"

"Because I can help your father. The boats are coming in for harvest soon. I can make sure your father meets his quota. Hell, I could give him his own vessel. Fisherman income has never been steady, but if he's managing a Volturi contract, I can set him up with a salary. I'm Edward Cullen, I don't manage the docks. I own the goddamn pier. Don't you want to feel safe and secure?" He spreads his arms out wide as if he's Poseidon himself.

I'd surely stab him through the heart with his missing trident. "Aren't you and your family leaving soon?"

"I have no intentions on leaving. Once I find something that sparks my interest, I can't let go. I have a bit of a one track mind, and it just so happens my father has chosen me as his successor. I like you, Bella. Let me help you."

But why do you like me? Is this some game? Am I a hobby now?

"Well Jacob is ready to send your family off on a one way ticket. I'd rather things go back to normal. I'm not worth the trouble," and you're not worth the risk, neither is my father.

"You can tell your boyfriend this is the new normal. And I believe you are worth it. I told you before that I'm very interested."

"He was right about your family. You're disruptive. You all create a mess that Jake and his brothers have to clean up." I should have left the moment he gave me the keys.

"Now Bella, based off of what you saw in the bar, do you really believe that's what's going on?" Edward walks around to face me head on. His dangerous rhetoric is whittling away at my facade.

I shake my head back and forth in denial. This is poison, venom filling my ears. I refuse to engage in deceit. I refuse to become what this town forces you to be.

"You were there Bella. Don't let him pull the wool over your eyes. Don't let him make you pick a side. Especially when you don't know enough to make an informed decision. We have a right to be here," he beseeches me.

"No, I trust Jacob. This conversation is over." He's trying to plant a seed to kill everything in the garden. He's a fungus. If I inhale anymore of his spores, he'll infect both me and Jake.

"Ask your boyfriend about the treaty. Ask him why he doesn't want you to ever talk to me or my family." Edward hands me a card with no name, no words at all, just a phone number.

"What's this?" I blankly ask. My fingers run along the edges of the expensive cardstock.

"If you ever find yourself in a bind, get caught in your own honey trap, get tired of ugly hand- me -down sweaters, or you finally figure out that you don't belong with the Wolves, call that number. I'll always answer."

Thank you to everyone who's reading… you keep the creativity flowing. Do you like what Edward's offering? Do you think he expects her to lie to Jacob? Do you think Bella should mention this meeting to Jacob? I've got a million questions about what this chapter means to you! I'm always interested in what you think.