Author's Note:

I know it's been forever. Believe me, none of that was by my choice. I had to lay low for a while. See author's note below for more on that.

I do hope you enjoy the update and that it was worth the very long wait, for those of you who have reached out through reviews to let me know you were still waiting. I can't tell you how encouraging that was to me to see. You guys are a big part of the reason this is happening.

When I started working on this again, I actually sat down and did a complete reread of all 250,000-plus words. If you have two or three days of complete free time (ha!), that might be the best way to reorient yourself to where we are.

But for the rest of us, we pick up in the aftermath of Jacob's forced kiss on Bella when he was taking her home from Harry's funeral. Edward had finally tracked her down at the hospital and got her to tell him all about it — including how it seemed Charlie had taken Jacob's side, laughing with Jacob about Bella punching him. We ended on Edward's phone call to Charlie from the emergency room, informing him that Bella wouldn't be coming home that night and that if Charlie wouldn't defend her honor, Edward would. Click.

So here we go.

Chapter 27 - Confrontation

Bella felt like she was in a daze, probably still a little in shock, as Edward carried her out of the hospital into the swirling snow outside.

After what she had been through with Jacob that day, followed by the terror she'd felt on Jacob's behalf when she realized Edward had found her at the hospital and knew about her broken hand, to have it all suddenly be over and to be surrounded with the safety of her mate was overwhelming.

She closed her eyes, relaxing into Edward's arms. Her head found its way onto his shoulder in pure exhaustion, and he only cuddled her closer, purring deep in his chest.

"Come away with me tonight," slipped from his lips when she trustingly burrowed against him, as though he had been fighting it but could hold those words in no longer. "Please. I'll take you somewhere far away from here, somewhere safe, just you and me, where we can talk. Somewhere nobody will ever find us. I'll fix everything between us, Bella, if you'll give me one more chance. I'll make all of it up to you, I promise."

His voice was pleading, guilty, as though he still believed her to be angry from their fight the previous night. And that confused her. Hadn't he seen her panic when she wrenched open her window that morning, after locking him out all night? Hadn't he seen how desperately relieved she'd been to find him still there, waiting for her?

Despite the fact that they'd had very little time to make up before she left for Harry's funeral that morning, did he really think she might say no?

Safe in his arms, every trace of her anger and frustration with him had vanished. Despite everything that had happened between them, this was what she had wanted since the first time Jacob made her uncomfortable that day, back at the beach that morning, when he'd lunged across her in the car to pull her door shut.

Edward had her. She was safe. She didn't have to think about any of it anymore. He'd promised to take care of it, and for once, she was just going to trust him to do so. She was too tired and still reeling too hard to do anything else.

Jacob's betrayal. Charlie's. Not to mention the horror of Albert…

No. This was where she belonged. This was where she was safe. She wouldn't forget again.

Edward was her safe place. Her only safe place now.

She was going to tell him that. Lulled by the soothing rhythm of his steps as he carried her, exhaustion caught up with her. She was already starting to nod off in his careful grasp. But that wouldn't do. She was going to force her eyes open, answer his question and tell him she was just fine with that plan. With any plan, really, so long as he promised not to let go of her.

But right then, fifteen feet from Edward's car, she gasped with sudden alarm when Edward gently but abruptly set her on her feet in the deserted hospital parking lot.

That unexpected move made more sense when he immediately took a step in front of her, reaching back with a restraining hand at her waist to keep her behind him. When she obeyed his unspoken command, stopping in her tracks and staying put, his hand quickly fell to his side. His fingers twitched, then balled into fists, at the ready. A low growl was already building in his chest, replacing the purr that had been for her alone.

Something was coming, she realized. And whatever it was, he wanted his hands free to deal with it.

Just as she was starting to panic about what "it" might be, Edward spoke quietly.

"How dare you. How dare you show your face to me after what you put her through today? How dare you come near either of us?"

She peeked around him to see a very flustered, perturbed-looking Jacob approaching, and her stomach flipped over inside her. Her heart thudded faster with alarm — something that Edward clearly heard, because he immediately widened his stance and reached one hand back to briefly touch her waist again. Despite his blatant fury, his voice was gentle when he quietly murmured a few words meant only for her.

"He's not getting near you, Bella. I won't let him."

"I've been looking everywhere for you!" Jacob called to Bella, ignoring Edward and still coming closer. Edward's growl intensified the closer he got. "Why the hell did you take off by yourself like that? How could you be so stupid?"

Edward's low growl briefly crescendoed into a fierce snarl at that. Jacob stopped where he was, a few feet away, eyeing him hatefully but warily — and mentally showing him more than Bella would have liked him to see, no doubt.

The tension in Edward's frame confirmed that theory. Jacob was definitely replaying his memories of the day, whether intentionally or not she couldn't say with certainty.

She should intervene. Say something, try to prevent the situation from turning violent. But the words were stuck in her throat.

"Edward!"

That voice came from behind her, and Bella turned her head to see Carlisle swiftly approaching them from the hospital entrance, still in his white lab coat. He jogged at what appeared to be normal speed for a human, but he was covering ground more quickly than he really should have been, if the laws of physics applied.

Which, she had long ago learned, they did not.

Edward didn't bother looking back. Bella could still see her mate's face only in profile, because he never once took his steely gaze off Jacob for a second.

Carlisle passed her, coming to stand at Edward's side with a hand on his shoulder. He didn't spare Jacob a second glance. His eyes were on his son.

"We are in a public place," Carlisle addressed Edward quietly. "There will be a time and place for this confrontation, but not here, not now, and certainly not in front of Bella. I believe she's been through enough for one day."

"I'm aware of all that." Edward's voice was clipped. Controlled. Deadly. He was still staring Jacob down. "Why do you think he's still in one piece?"

Jacob scoffed. "Afraid of a little competition, leech?" He smirked, his brow furrowed in concentration as he intentionally gave Edward a graphic tour of his warped memory of the kiss, the feel of Bella's soft lips under his, the feel of her body plastered against his front as he held her there. "Or maybe you're just afraid she liked it more than she's willing to admit."

Carlisle's hand on Edward's shoulder visibly tightened. "Son…."

Edward was seething. A visible thread of tension rippled up his back, but his voice only grew even quieter, more deadly, full of gravel.

It was the most chilling sound Bella had ever heard.

"Competition. That's how you view what you did today? Just another move in some kind of game? Let me tell you something."

"Edward?" Bella found her voice, tugging on his shirt from behind, moving closer to him. "Let's just go. Please."

But Edward was intently focused on Jacob, so livid he was practically vibrating. The fact that he hadn't yet attacked was nothing short of miraculous.

He never once raised his voice. His tone stayed deep, quiet, deadly.

Furious.

"There is no competition between you and me. Bella is my mate. That bond is eternal. Unbreakable. When a thousand years have passed, ten thousand, you will be little more than a vague recollection from her human life. A flicker of memory that crosses her mind once in a decade, if that. She won't even recall your face clearly. But I will still be right by her side. Loving her more every day. Protecting her. You couldn't manage to protect her for one full day without your own selfish interests interfering and putting her in danger."

He took a step closer, ignoring both Bella's butterfly-delicate grasp on his back and Carlisle's bone-bruising grip on his shoulder. "You had to overpower her, force yourself on her to even touch her. But when I kiss her, when she grants me the privilege every day to hold her, it is because she wants me to. I will never have to do what you did today. I never would. Competition? You are nothing. Nothing."

Bella's heart seemed to stop and then restart at a frantic pace as he spoke. She had heard only one thing: Edward did still intend to change her. He did still want her, after everything. He hadn't meant what he said the night before, in her truck, about not changing her if she couldn't commit even to marry him. The fingers of her unbroken hand knotted a little more tightly into his shirt.

But in stark contrast to the relief Bella felt, Jacob had only grown angrier with each word. His breathing came harder and harder, his face contorted with hate.

"A thousand years?" Jacob all but snarled. There was no trace of his earlier smirk, his cockiness. Edward had gotten completely under his skin. "So Sam was right. You plan to kill her. You're going to make her one of you. A soulless monster." Disgust filled his voice as his gaze cut past Edward toward Bella. "And she's going to let you."

Edward put himself a little more squarely in front of Bella, but he had the advantage now and he knew it. The smirk was on his face now — just the tiniest lift of the corner of his lip, manipulating his advantage.

"You sound surprised, dog. What part of 'eternal' did I fail to make clear?"

Again, Bella's heart skipped a beat. Never had Edward sounded so….so certain about this. So full of intent.

Intent to keep her. Forever.

It made her knees weak, despite the situation.

But Jacob didn't share her reaction. He was dangerously close to phasing. Even Bella could recognize it for what it was. His handsome face was frightening, ugly in its pure hatred.

"I'll kill you first," he spat. "I'll kill you both if I have to."

That did it for Edward. One millisecond, Bella had hold of him, and the next, she held thin air. Edward was nose-to-nose with Jacob, several yards away, where he'd pushed him farther away from her as he surged forward. It had happened so fast she didn't even see it. Didn't even feel it, aside from the gust of wind that blew her hair back.

"Did you just threaten her?" Edward growled, no longer composed and in control. He had Jacob by the dress shirt he'd worn to the funeral, hands flexing and unflexing in the material with his barely-restrained thirst for violence.

For vengeance.

Bella watched in frozen terror, not daring to say another word. She didn't want to be the one to tip Jacob over the edge, nor did she want to be a distraction to Edward if that happened. She was vaguely aware of Carlisle's gentle hands, pulling her backward and farther away from what now seemed inevitable. That done, he subtly put himself between her and the terrifying scene in front of her.

Jacob furiously sneered right back at Edward. "You heard me. Better she really be dead than one of you."

That should have hurt her deeply, but Bella didn't get time to reflect on it. Because for one horrifying moment, as she watched Edward's fists clench more tightly around the material between his fingers and heard his outraged growl, she knew he was going on the attack that very moment.

But again, something seemed to hold him back. She had no idea what it could possibly be.

She had to strain her ears to hear Edward's next words. They were so low, he might have been having a discussion about the weather.

"I'm going to fucking kill you. Do you know that?"

Her eyes widened at that one. She'd never heard him speak that way before. But Edward wasn't done.

"You signed your death warrant the moment you put your hands on her. The only reason you're still breathing is that Bella is in danger right now, and she comes first. But know this: I'm coming to find you the moment I have her safe. And unless Bella herself asks otherwise of me before that time, I will kill you. Then I will forget you ever existed. Just as she will."

Edward released Jacob, pushed him back, trembling with the effort it took to restrain himself.

"Go. Get out of my sight before I change my mind."

It happened fast. One moment, Edward was walking back toward her, and Bella was stretching out her hand toward him, anticipating being back in his arms and letting him take her somewhere safe — anywhere he wanted, so long as he was there too.

The next, he froze. His body stiffened, eyes going glassy for a split second as he listened to Jacob's mind.

And then he was moving.

"Carlisle, get her out of here!" he shouted, as he lunged back toward Jacob.

Bella's eyes only barely made out what was happening when Edward hit Jacob at full speed, dragging him off into the woods edging the parking lot. She could hear an animal growl erupt from Jacob just as they disappeared, rapidly fading out of earshot.

He had phased. Jacob had lost control and phased.

And Edward had gone toward him instead of away.

Carlisle steadied her just as her legs started to collapse, and she held onto his shoulders for dear life. "What happened?" she gasped, searching his face wildly.

But Carlisle didn't know any more than she did. His eyes were toward the woods, in the direction Edward and Jacob had disappeared, his face etched with concern. "I can only assume Jacob began to phase and Edward saw it coming. He would never have left your side otherwise."

The abrupt chirp of Carlisle's ringing phone startled them both. She didn't even see the motion as he pulled it out of his pocket. One moment his hands were both on her shoulders, steadying her, and in the next instant, one hand held his phone to his ear. His eyes grew increasingly concerned as he listened.

His focus shot up toward the woods, wincing at something he could hear out there, something she couldn't. Then his full attention was on her, his phone seemingly vanishing into thin air as his hands were abruptly gripping her upper arms to draw her attention to his face.

"Listen to me. You have a choice to make, Bella. That was Alice. She is on her way here now from the meadow. I can wait here with you until she arrives, as Edward intended. But if I do that, he's likely going to kill Jacob. And the consequences will be far-reaching."

Bella hesitated, fear gripping her heart and paralyzing her. Her head shook back and forth, a silent denial of his words.

Carlisle's tone, despite the urgency of the matter, grew even more gentle. "Yes, he will. I know what Jacob did today. It wasn't my intention to eavesdrop, but certain things are unavoidable in our world. And now Jacob has threatened your life and lost control in your presence. Edward will kill him if I don't intervene immediately, but I don't dare take you with me into that situation. You have to decide. Quickly."

All the color had drained out of her face. "Go. Carlisle, go."

He reached for her unbroken hand, and when she looked down, she saw he was pressing a key into her palm. "Alice will be here in less than two minutes. Run straight to my office. Lock yourself inside with the lights off and call her from my desk phone. Stay on the line with her until she arrives. Don't open the door or even acknowledge anyone else."

She nodded frantically. "I've got it. Carlisle, please."

Before the final word was fully out of her mouth, he was gone.

And she was alone.

Since the day Edward first saw Alice's terrifying vision — and even more so since the day Albert took Bella as Edward listened helplessly over the phone from thousands of miles away — his world had been one of steely restraint and control. Months of suppressing his enraged monster, denying it the violence and vengeance it so craved for all the injustices done to his mate.

Their mate.

Killing Victoria had been cathartic, exhilarating — but over far too quickly to truly slake his lust for vengeance. But now, finally, Edward and his monster both had another viable target within arm's reach, one that deserved their wrath. Maybe not for crimes of the same severity as Albert Rowe, but ones that ignited his fury with very nearly the same passion, nonetheless.

And so when Jacob Black lost his grip on his temper, starting to phase into wolf form within a few feet of Bella after having just threatened her life — also forcing Edward to leave her side at the worst possible moment, when the snow from Alice's vision already fell around them — Edward finally lost his own grip on the leash and let the monster go.

His instincts took over. Murderous rage flooded him.

And this time, he didn't fight it.

There was nothing gentle or restrained about him when he crashed into the still-human boy with brute force and seized him, dragging him safely away from Bella and any potential witnesses who might venture into the snowy parking lot at that time of night.

Just as they reached the edge of the woods, out of sight, he savagely threw Jacob away from him, deeper into the woods, just as the mutt completed his transformation. Sharp claws swiped through the air, wolf jaws snapping as Jacob lunged at him.

Edward avoided the deadly attack easily. Jacob's mind had always been an open book. In wolf form, outraged as he was, it was even more so.

He could see every move the enraged teenager was going to make before he made it, and he could counter them just as swiftly.

Throwing punches was a tactic not usually in the vampire playbook — it was simply unnecessary — but he took great pleasure in swinging his fist backhanded across Jacob's snout and sending him flying when Jacob relaunched himself at him.

Bella might not be able to punch the manipulative bastard in the face without breaking her hand. But Edward could sure as hell do it for her.

And so he did it again. And again. With every strike, he drove them both deeper into the woods, purposely pulling Jacob ever farther from Bella.

He savored every crunch of bone he both felt and heard. Though revolting, the smell of wolf blood was one he relished.

Blood needed to be spilled for what had happened to Bella that afternoon.

And he needed to be the one spilling it.

He had every intention of killing the arrogant pup. But he'd been waiting for this for far too long.

His monster wanted to toy with its enemy first — didn't want to make it too swift.

A savage blow to the ribs. A powerful foot to the flank, one that sent the wolf spinning through midair, even deeper into the woods.

Finally, it was with lethal intent that he stood still long enough to let Jacob get close, luring him in to take a snap at Edward. Neatly sidestepping it, he allowed Jacob's momentum to carry him past him, then followed right on his flank.

It was a simple matter to get his arms around the wolf and start to squeeze. It was very, very satisfying feeling the bones start to pop out of joint and crack; hearing the dog whimper like a whipped pup.

Jacob was scared when he realized he was trapped.

Not nearly scared enough.

Not as frightened as Edward imagined Bella must have been, when Jacob did what he did…

He squeezed harder. Another bone on the right side of Jacob's body popped out of place like a snapping twig.

The boy's mind went quiet, despite his agonized howls.

A curious response, one Edward had never seen before. Perhaps the pain was too great to think clearly.

He didn't really care, at the moment, why Jacob's mind had suddenly disappeared — or what that might mean.

In his blind rage, he only wanted to keep going.

Something wasn't right.

The realization didn't hit Jasper in a blinding flash. It was slow-growing. Gradual. An uneasiness that steadily built as he marched toward Forks with Victoria's army, which Bree had agreed to help him infiltrate after Carlisle had completed his own mission of making contact with her, trying to save her from the army and recruit her to their lifestyle.

Jasper just felt...uneasy.

For one thing, the plan kept changing.

Initially, they had been told two hours until go time, which was the information he had relayed to Edward by phone earlier that night.

The march had begun a mere ten minutes later, with Riley assigning Jasper and Bree a position near the very middle of the ranks, where Jasper couldn't even risk calling or texting anyone to inform them of the change of plans.

The route changed several times as well. Any order that was given was countermanded within minutes, and new orders given. At times they were going in circles, and that had been going on for a couple hours now.

Jasper believed he knew the reason, and it made his venom boil.

Alice.

They were trying to keep her from getting a clear vision. And it was likely working.

Again, he didn't dare contact her to find out. Too many vampire ears and watchful eyes in close proximity.

Adding to his general overall feeling of uneasiness, he had briefly lost sight of his primary target, Thomas, the shield. At one point very early in the march, there had been a large outcropping of rocks directly in the path the army was taking, and the army had split around a huge boulder, with Thomas going around the right side and Jasper forced to take the other by virtue of his and Bree's place just left of center, temporarily blocking his view of Thomas.

To Jasper's relief, the shield emerged back into view on the other side of the rock mere seconds later, right as Jasper was debating breaking ranks and forfeiting his cover to get eyes on his target.

He breathed a sigh of relief. No harm done. He might have caused more harm by creating a scene. But losing sight of his target for even a few moments had made him all the more antsy — near paranoid.

The march continued toward Forks, slowly, still taking a winding, circuitous route with a frustrating amount of backtracking.

Jasper paid little attention to the leader, Riley, whose emotions and motivations were easy enough to explain, given what Edward had gleaned from their enemies' minds the day Albert and Victoria approached the cottage to dump Lacey Matthews' body as a test of their shield, Thomas.

Riley marched for vengeance for Victoria, whom he had believed to be his mate.

That part was easy. Clear. Simple.

It was Thomas, his intended target, who had Jasper perplexed.

Jasper had only come near the newborn shield once, that same day Albert dumped Lacey Matthews' body at Edward's and Bella's cottage. And Thomas had been actively shielding for most of that time, though occasionally slipping up as he struggled to hold it steady. But Jasper hadn't picked up such an evil, such a malevolence from him at the time. He hadn't picked up any kind of malice from him.

He hadn't even picked up that kind of malevolence from Thomas when Jasper first came to Seattle to take Carlisle's place in his attempts to recruit Bree to their way of life, as well as to have eyes on the shield at all times.

The shield reeked of that ugly emotion now, a mere 30 miles from Forks. Like he had been concealing it previously but wasn't even trying to hide it anymore.

The same type of cruelty Jasper had read in Albert when he and Emmett were tracking him…

No sooner had that comparison begun to register in his mind than his attention was abruptly refocused, as a loud, clear order rang out. And it was Thomas who gave it.

"Halt!"

Jasper instinctively drew to a stop, along with the rest of the army. His venom chilled.

Something was definitely wrong.

Why was Thomas giving orders now? In Albert's absence, with Victoria dead and gone, Riley was the rightful leader of the army, the one who had issued every order since they left Seattle.

Why wasn't Riley the one issuing orders, all of a sudden?

With that thought, Jasper's gaze flicked over to Riley — and their eyes met. The other vampire was already looking right at him and Bree, a knowing smirk on his face.

Jasper's uneasiness grew. From their position in the middle, he and Bree were effectively surrounded. His eyes swept across the vampires most closely surrounding himself and Bree, gauging his chances and estimating how many he might be able to take out alone — how long he and Bree could survive, how much time he could buy Alice to see what was happening and arrive with backup, if everything was about to go sideways.

But when he turned his eyes back to the shield, Thomas wasn't Thomas anymore.

Jasper was looking directly into the blood-red eyes of Albert, who now gave Jasper his full attention in return — with a smile that was chilling in its cruelty.

The real Thomas was nowhere to be found.

And Albert knew exactly who he was. Jasper and Emmett had tracked him halfway across the northern hemisphere.

Jasper's cover was blown. Had been for quite some time.

They swapped, Jasper understood immediately. Those few moments that Thomas disappeared, back at the beginning of the march — Albert had returned from Forks and was hiding on the other side of those rocks. He'd taken on Thomas's form, allowing the shield to escape Jasper's guard, with Jasper none the wiser.

But where was Thomas? A couple hours had passed since then, as the army kept changing paths and backtracking, circling, in what Jasper had believed an effort to confuse Alice's vision.

He's in Forks by now. The knowledge hit Jasper with horrible certainty. The real Thomas must already be in Forks with Edward and Bella...

And with Alice. Jasper's beloved Alice, whose powers would be rendered utterly ineffective in the presence of that shield. She would be as close to defenseless as she could be. He knew all too well how thoroughly Alice relied upon her gifts in a fight.

And Edward would never see him coming either. He wouldn't know danger was close until too late.

The plan was simple, now that Jasper could see it: Albert was going to have Thomas abduct Bella for him, the only one who could sneak up on Edward and Alice. Meanwhile, Albert's army would keep Jasper from alerting any of the family to what was going on, while Albert made his escape to rendezvous with Thomas and Bella.

The entire family relied far too much on Edward's and Alice's gifts. Jasper had thought so in the past, but he'd never done anything about it.

But Albert and Victoria had.

Those were holes in their family defenses to be addressed later. Jasper had more immediate problems at the moment.

This march — the whole damn army — it was all a swerve. A horrible diversion.

And it was one, he knew instantly, as Albert smugly issued his next order to the army, that was going to work.

"Destroy them," Albert ordered, indicating Jasper and Bree. "Burn the pieces."

And as one, the entire army, already surrounding them by virtue of their position within the center of the ranks, began closing in. Snarls filled the air.

Jasper widened his stance, never taking his eyes off Albert. "You're afraid," he said calmly, pushing out a wave of emotion in Albert's direction, bathing the entire army in it. "You know what my family will do to you if you go near Bella. You know what Edward is going to do to you, regardless. He'll hunt you to the ends of the earth."

The other vampire's triumphant smirk visibly faltered for a moment. The army hesitated as one, looking around at each other as Jasper's wave of fear hit them.

But then Albert's smirk was right back in place.

"My only regret is that I can't stay here and watch," Albert taunted cruelly as the throng around Jasper and Bree began to close in again, albeit more slowly and cautiously this time. "But I have an appointment to keep. One I've been waiting for." He licked his lips lasciviously, his form changing as he did so — until Jasper was looking right into Edward's amber eyes as Albert assumed his brother's form. "And this time, Edward's little mate and I won't be interrupted."

And with that, Albert was gone. And Jasper had no choice but to turn his attention to the waves of attacking vampires, the near-impossible task of keeping both himself and a terrified Bree alive.

Alice had her hands full, metaphorically speaking.

Not only was she running at top speed from the meadow toward the hospital to find and protect Bella, but she was also attempting to keep tabs on all of her family and their futures:

First, the Denalis and Esme, as they searched the woods surrounding the meadow for any sign of Albert or any hint of his plans — plans that the future still stubbornly insisted would come to fruition in that meadow, despite how impossible that seemed with the area surrounded.

Next, Rosalie and Emmett, who were just leaving the meadow a minute or two behind her, on their way to meet up with her once she secured Bella.

Then there was Bella herself to consider, who was finally making her clumsy, stumbling way back down the sidewalk to the hospital entrance at top speed, intent on following Carlisle's instructions to barricade herself in his office and wait for Alice there — but only after having maddeningly stood on the sidewalk for close to a minute, staring off into the woods after Edward and Carlisle in paralyzed panic.

And last but certainly not least, there was Jasper, Alice's own mate, who was undercover in Victoria's army with not only himself to look out for, but a terrified newborn vampire who looked to be barely a teenager — far more of a liability than an asset.

Further complicating matters, she was also desperately trying to keep tabs on Edward, whose future was nearly impossible to see except in brief, terrifying flashes because of his proximity to Jacob — but who was no doubt still moving progressively deeper out into the woods behind the hospital, dead set on killing the arrogant boy who, for the first time, truly presented a credible threat to his Bella.

Carlisle, at her own request, would be in hot pursuit, desperate to intercept his son before Edward could do something he might later regret….if for no other reason than the fact that Bella would regret it for him.

She could see nothing of Carlisle's future. It was completely blank.

Not to mention her constant scanning for any decision made by Albert.

It was simply too much to keep up with.

Alice pushed her speed a little faster. She was nearly there, less than a quarter of a mile from the hospital. She would be there in seconds, and then Bella, at least, would be safe.

But then Alice abruptly froze in her tracks, her body stiffening.

No.

NO.

The vision hit her hard and fast, stealing the cold breath from her frozen lungs.

A sea of vampires, newborns, closing in around Jasper.

Cold, cruel eyes.

An order to kill.

Albert.

What was Albert doing there, with the army, with Jasper? He was supposed to be in Forks, with them, pursuing Bella.

And where was Thomas, the shield, Jasper's original target?

None of that mattered as the vision continued, rocking her to her foundation when she saw the certain future:

Jasper's head, flying across a barren field.

Smoke rising toward the sky….

No, no, NO!

With a snarl, and absolutely no coherent thought, Alice instinctively changed direction, running in the general direction of her mate, toward Seattle and the approaching army, somewhere out there…

And leaving Bella at the hospital completely unprotected — with Edward believing she was with Carlisle, and Carlisle believing she was with Alice.

Concealed in the shadows just outside of scent range, not far from the vehicle he'd stolen on his way back to Forks for this very purpose, Thomas hid near the hospital, watching. Waiting for his opportunity.

He'd recently learned a new trick with his shield — how to reach out and pinpoint the location, within a certain range, of any vampire who had once been enveloped in it, something not unlike seeing familiar auras as points of light on a grid.

Locating Edward Cullen at the hospital when Thomas arrived back in Forks after swapping places with Albert earlier, therefore, had been relatively easy. And of course, where Cullen was, Bella Swan would certainly be too. Or perhaps vice versa.

So he was already watching when Edward carried Bella out of the hospital in his arms, the amber-eyed Cullen clearly on high alert and no doubt using his ability to "listen" for any trouble.

He wouldn't hear any. At least, not yet.

Thomas kept the bubble of his shield small, confined around only himself at the moment, not yet neutralizing Cullen's abilities so as not to tip him off to his presence.

He'd gained far greater control over it in recent days. Thomas could keep the circle small at will now, rather than using it like a blanket over a larger radius.

Cullen would still be able to hear every other mind around him — except Thomas's — until too late.

The deadline was getting close. In less than two minutes now, Albert and the army would be springing some kind of trap that would trigger a vision in the psychic Cullen, Alice, one that was supposed to eliminate her from the equation and result in utter chaos, pulling multiple members of the coven away from Forks and leaving Bella Swan far less protected.

He hadn't been let in on exactly what that trap was, when he'd been given his orders. Only that the plan would not be finalized and the decision made until the last possible moment. He'd kept his shield extended around himself, Riley, and Albert during that briefing, at Albert's instruction. He'd also accepted the clothing he'd been handed, identical to what Albert wore.

The final two minutes ticked down in his head as he watched his targets, fascinated. He could hear Cullen's purr all the way from where he hid, as the other vampire cuddled the human girl to his chest like the most precious treasure.

And Thomas's dead heart ached with sympathy, because he could relate.

The truth was that he wanted no part of this plan. He'd vehemently resisted, at first.

He simply had no choice if he wanted to secure a release from the army — his own release, but far more importantly, one other.

Despite the abhorrent appetite for human blood he'd awakened with after that accursed night he came across a fiery redhead named Victoria in Seattle, Thomas didn't really want to be a monster.

But the thirst….it was uncontrollable. Painful. Torturous. He saw no way around it.

Nonetheless, he retained enough of his integrity to know he didn't necessarily have to kill innocents. If there was no other way, aside from killing humans, he could at least feed on the dregs of society: child abusers, deadbeat dads, wife beaters. Men like his own human father, the utter scum of the earth, who had terrorized his mom — and had been perfectly content to let a five-year-old Thomas take the brunt of it when he would futilely attempt to protect her.

When he was still human, Thomas had once promised himself he would never be that kind of man.

That promise was deeply ingrained, so much so that he hadn't entirely forgotten it as a vampire.

So he had rebelled against Albert and Victoria in the early stages, right after their first test of his abilities, when he had been forced to help Albert and Victoria dump an innocent girl's body in the Cullen cottage to terrorize yet another innocent human girl.

He'd told them he was done — that he didn't want to be part of this plan; that he was leaving, going out on his own.

And that had ended badly. It had ended so badly, because Albert knew Thomas's one weakness all too well.

And now, he had two hours to abduct and deliver Bella Swan to Albert if he ever wanted to see his own intended mate alive again — the beautiful, tiny, curly-haired, strangely timid newborn vampire who'd awakened only a few days after his own transition and instantly stolen his heart.

Bree was everything. The sun, the moon, and the stars. The only reason Thomas had to continue existing, if that's what he was doing.

And she didn't even know it. He had yet to gather the courage to tell her of his feelings, to do more than befriend her, watch over her.

But Albert knew it. Albert had seen Thomas watching her. He'd seen him protecting her without her knowledge, keeping the other, more aggressive newborns away from her, holding them at bay by savage force when they would feed, making sure his silently beloved Bree got enough to drink…

And that bastard Albert had long since vowed to kill her if Thomas stepped one foot out of line.

And that wasn't all Albert had threatened to do to her, either…

Albert watched Bree nearly as much as Thomas did.

So Thomas watched him.

Thomas had seen what Albert was capable of, far too many times over in the past weeks. And he would do anything — anything to keep that from happening.

Even if that meant delivering an innocent human girl to a monster who intended unspeakable things, in a grassy clearing somewhere between Forks and Seattle — one the army had painstakingly landscaped to look exactly like one specific meadow just outside Forks, to confuse the psychic…

So despite his reluctance, when opportunity presented itself and the helpless human girl was left alone on the sidewalk after what sounded like a jealous confrontation with one of her other protectors, Thomas quickly moved his stolen car into position in the hospital parking lot.

And then he waited.

The Swan girl stood frozen in fear on the sidewalk for nearly a minute, alone — a perfect target, and there would never be a better chance — but it wasn't go time yet.

There was still the matter of the psychic.

Ten seconds left. Alice Cullen was nearby. Reaching out with his shield, Thomas could see her light getting closer. He was very, very careful not to envelop her in it.

Bella Swan's self-preservation instincts finally kicked in, and she broke into a slipping, sliding run along the long, icy sidewalk toward the entrance to the hospital.

Still, Thomas had to wait. He had to follow every order, down to the last detail, or it could mean Bree's life.

Five. Four. Three. Two. One.

Zero.

He didn't know what was happening with the army. He could only hope against hope that whatever it was, Albert had kept his word and Bree would be safe.

But whatever they had done, it worked. Alice Cullen's forward motion stopped — and then she turned and rapidly began moving out of his range.

Time to make everything go silent.

As soon as the psychic was clear, Thomas pushed his shield out as far as it would go, enveloping Edward Cullen out in the woods, neutralizing his mindreading capability.

Then he emerged from the shadows, running directly toward the clumsy human girl whose fear he could smell as she ran for her life.

He headed right for her.

Bella Swan.

Edward Cullen's one true mate, whose only "crime" was that her mate had run afoul of a monster like Albert Rowe.

She never saw him coming.

One moment, she was running headlong toward the hospital, barely steady on her feet in the snow and ice.

And the next, she was in the grasp of a vampire, unceremoniously dropped into the trunk of a stolen car, speeding off toward Albert's duplicate meadow — and her impending doom.

It all happened so fast — her terror so absolute — that she never even had time to scream.

"Edward! Edward!"

He heard Carlisle's voice, of course. He was pretty sure he knew exactly why his father was there, but he had no intention of stopping. Jacob deserved all he got and more.

No. It wasn't Carlisle's words that made Edward go still, abruptly dropping an agonized Jacob to the ground at his feet as he turned to stare at Carlisle.

It was the fact that that shout from Carlisle was the only voice he heard.

He could hear nothing from his father's mind.

He could still hear nothing from Jacob's.

He could hear nothing from anyone at the hospital, either, which was still well within his range.

And he hadn't even noticed.

Jacob's groans of pain changed in tone, from animalistic to human. Edward barely noticed the naked human now lying on the ground as Jacob phased back, clutching his ribs and rolling back and forth in agony.

Edward's attention was on Carlisle, whom he turned to face directly, hands at the ready at his side.

"Don't come any closer," he warned quietly. "Stay right where you are."

Confusion ghosted across Carlisle's features. "Son, it's me. Listen to my mind."

"I can't."

Carlisle's demeanor instantly shifted, his own lethal body coiling at the ready, as his eyes began to scan the woods around them.

"The shield? It can't be. He's with Jasper."

Edward's jaw was tight. "It's the only explanation. Why did you leave Bella? Where is she?"

"She's in my office, with Alice," Carlisle hasted to reassure him. "Rosalie and Emmett will be arriving shortly to join them." Carlisle's gaze dropped to Jacob on the ground. "At least allow me to help him. If the pack is aware of what you've done…"

"They are," Edward cut him off, unabashedly. "I heard them in his mind before he phased back into human form, right before everything went silent. They're on their way here now."

Carlisle's deep frustration was visible only in the subtle tightening of his mouth. "Which is exactly what you want. Damn it, Edward…"

"It's more protection for Bella," Edward held his ground stubbornly, entirely unapologetic. "Victoria's army is on the way by now. The wolves will not stand for an attack so close to home. They will help us."

"If they don't kill us all first." Carlisle sighed. "But you have a point. Sam strikes me as reasonable and fair-minded. If the pack knows what you did through Jacob's thoughts, they also know why you did it. That might buy just enough good will for a temporary truce. They won't harm Bella, regardless. And the army represents a threat to the tribe as well."

"Exactly." Edward's gaze lost its focus, his attention turned back toward the hospital. Still nothing but silence, and his fists clenched. "I don't like this. I need to get back to Bella. Will you be all right here?"

His father waved him off. "Go. Keep her safe, son."

Edward was gone in the next moment, as Carlisle's eyes turned toward the naked, writhing boy on the forest floor.

And his eyes narrowed.

Jacob's screams reverberated through the woods as Carlisle quickly set his broken bones, one after the other, with little respite…

And with even less coddling.

"I thought you were supposed to be the compassionate one," Jacob gasped, his innate sarcasm seeping through even as he writhed with pain.

But Carlisle was having none of it.

"Not today," he replied coolly. He wrenched the boy's shoulder into place without further comment, then paused, allowing Jacob's screams to die down before he spoke.

"Time and again, I have stood silent as you insulted my family. My wife. My son. We opened our home to you when Bella was first rescued. My wife offered her most generous hospitality, and received only derision in return." Carlisle's cold hands lit on Jacob's broken leg, examining and seeking out the damage beneath that required repair, as the boy flinched.

"Even that, I was willing to overlook."

Carlisle made eye contact as he got a good grip on the bone that needed setting.

"But that is my daughter you sexually assaulted today."

Whatever response a wide-eyed Jacob would have made, it was lost in a scream as Carlisle snapped the final bone back into place without pity and then stood dismissively.

"Your pack is nearly here. I trust that Sam and the others learned enough of your actions today, before you phased."

"We did."

The booming voice chimed in right on cue. As did the suppressed snarls from the far more hostile wolves surrounding the tall, dark-haired man who led them — the only one in human form.

"Sam. Welcome. I have set his broken bones," Carlisle continued calmly, turning his back on Jacob as he turned to face them. "He will heal, but the next hours will not be pleasant. I suspect that his body temperature would burn off morphine too rapidly to be of much benefit. Although I will freely admit it was a deliberate choice not to bother testing that theory."

A snarl broke loose from a gray wolf flanking Sam. Paul, Carlisle suspected, from what Edward had shared with him of his knowledge of the pack mind. But Sam held up a hand, a clear call for silence.

"Thank you for your assistance, Doctor. We will take it from here."

Yet another whine broke loose from another wolf, one Carlisle didn't recognize. He stood his ground, refused to be dismissed so easily.

"We require your assistance in return. Edward tells me you are aware of the approaching army. All of Forks and the surrounding areas are in danger, La Push included."

It was Jacob who gave a pained snort of derision then — a very human one — and received a fierce glare from Sam in return.

"The council has met, and we are in agreement. We will do what is necessary to protect our tribe. What do you propose?"

Carlisle's tone was steady. "We intercept them. Together. Before they get anywhere near my mate and family."

When Edward came crashing back out of the woods at top speed to retrieve Bella from the hospital, every one of his waking nightmares came true in quick succession as he frantically searched the grounds for Bella and Alice — who wasn't answering her phone.

His mate wasn't there.

She wasn't fucking there.

And he didn't know where she was.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Author's Note:

This is the first of three chapters leading to the resolution of the Albert arc, all written and ready to go. I will post the second one next Tuesday, and the third the Tuesday after that. That will not be the end of the story, just this particular arc within it. There is still a lot of healing and moving forward that needs to happen, hopefully one of the best parts of the whole story, and most of that is yet to be written. But I'm going to treat it almost as a multi-chapter epilogue that will happen as it happens. Right now, I just want to give some closure to this part.

I wish I could tell you all why I haven't been here for so long. A few of you who knew more about my home situation could probably guess. The rest of you deserve to know why you got left hanging. But the irony is that being too open with personal details is what ended up leading to my long forced absence in the first place, so I can't go into it. Maintaining complete anonymity is utterly imperative for me to keep being able to be here. There's probably a reason, and not a healthy one, why this story dips into themes of jealous, over-controlling partners. All I can tell you is that I didn't have a choice, and I have to do what I have to do to keep myself safe.

I haven't yet decided to chance using any of my fandom social media accounts or email again. I probably will, just to try to drum up some more readers and reviewers for this story when I start obsessing over review numbers again. Like, probably by the end of the day (ha!). But I'm a little scared to risk it, honestly. So for the time being, this is the only account I'm using that I know wasn't compromised, which is why I haven't reached out to anyone. So if anyone would be willing to help me get the word out on social media that this story is back, it would be deeply appreciated.

I hope you enjoyed the update. I'd love to know if you did. I'd just love to hear from anyone, period. This place is my happy place.