The wind thrashed against my bedroom window, the branches of a large tree knocking to get in. The only illumination in my room was my laptop screen and a small lamp. It was Sunday evening and although I was supposed to be finishing my English paper I was researching vampires.

Yes, that's what Jacob had led me to.

I'd batted my eyelashes at Jacob and made my escape the day before. I think he thought there was something in my eye, but I got away nonetheless.

As much as I didn't like him, he'd given me the word that had been on the tip of my tongue since my first day here. Edward had looked murderous.

Ever since I set foot back in this town and witnessed the Cullens for the first time, I knew there was something different about them. You're brain doesn't necessarily register why, but an instinct tells you so. They've integrated themselves so amazingly into the community that it takes an outsider to really see it for what it is.

It wasn't until Jacob suggested – for lack of a better word – that the Cullens were vampires did it really hit me what I'd been missing.

That's what Jasper thought I'd figured out in the woods and that's what Edward had shown me when he came to apologize.

Everything I found online pertained to horror movies or novels. There wasn't one solid story, it was hard to decide what's the truth and what isn't.

Even so, if vampires don't want their existence known and they're trying to integrate into society, then I highly doubt Hollywood has any idea.

Then there's the issue of Jacob. All I could find online were the drooling, flesh eating werewolves, and although Jacob is scary, I just couldn't see it.

It does say that the werewolf and vampire were natural enemies, which is one thing that makes sense. How cliché. Everybody knows that.

Once I'd kind of realized that Edward probably wanted to eat me because he was a vampire and not because he was threatening me, I'd crossed him off my list.

Why did Jacob say he could smell the Cullens at my house? They hadn't been near it that I'm aware of.

Or he was trying to throw me off his trail.

He wanted me to know what he was. He was begging me for me to know how bad the Cullens were. What a cover story.

It would have been so easy for him to drop that note in with my receipts on the kitchen table.

How didn't I see this from the beginning?

&TL&

It was Monday morning and I was about to drop another suspect into the mix with Angela. I didn't know how to tell her everything he said without telling her everything he said.

She was looking over her homework on the hood of her car when I pulled into the lot. I cleared my throat and set her favorite candy bar on top of it.

"Bella! You didn't have to."

"Oh… yes I did," I giggled, more to do with nerves than anything.

Her face suddenly turned serious. "Jesus, what is it now?"

"OK, I need to try to explain something to you that I didn't tell you about mine and Jacobs' conversation on Saturday."

I sighed long and hard trying to think of the right words. Angela's brow had furrowed, her hazel eyes narrowing. "Well, when I was talking to Jacob on Saturday everything he was saying sounded suspicious, like, we've not had a good friendship since I came here and I think he's the one sending the letters." I closed my eyes tight. "He, um, told me about some tribal legends that included the Cullens."

"Really? What did he say?"

I peeked one eye at her in confusion. She was tilting her head in interest.

"You think he could be a suspect too?" I asked.

"We want to find the person, don't we? I'm not going to rule any one out. Besides, he acted really strange around you. Suspiciously so." She tapped her finger against her chin. "Give me the bullet points."

I explained to Angela how Jacob treated me when he came to my house on my first full day. Also how he helped me put the groceries away and I confronted him about the receipts. I told her about the argument we had on the beach. I had to be careful what I said, I didn't want Jacob to sound too crazy so that she might easier swallow what Jacob said about them. I told her that his tribe had some weird decades long feud with ancestors of the Cullens and Jacob was the next generation to continue it. Also how he thought had made friends with them and didn't like me for it.

My argument felt weak without the rest of the information. I couldn't tell her Jacob was a wolf and the Cullens were vampires. I highly doubted they would want that information spread all over school. So instead I told her the tribe had some theories about the Cullens but I tried to skim past it and not make it a big deal. Just enough to let her know he was trying to give me a reason to be wary of them.

"Hmm," she started. "I can definitely see why he would be the most likely option at this point. He had something against you from the beginning. Wait, why did he think you were friends with the Cullens?"

Because he smelt them all around my house. "He didn't say. I guess he got the wrong idea or thought he saw me with them." I shrugged.

"What do we do from here? Do we ask the Cullens for help?"

I wasn't sure about that. "I've had no more letters or emails so we'll just bide our time and hope it ends now that I've cleared the air with him."

She nodded. "I like that plan."

First, I had to find a way to get the secret out of Jasper.

&TL&

How do you ask someone if they drink blood? That was what ran through my mind for most of my classes on Monday.

I was going to have to find a way to signal that I knew without making a big deal out of it. What if they decided to eat me? I hadn't even considered the thought.

After English, I was walking to my next class. My lip was almost bit off me trying to figure out how to approach the subject. I looked down the hall, trying to push past the crowds of kids when I found Jasper. He was walking towards me and when he caught my eye, making one side of his mouth crook up. I decided it was now or never.

I reached him, coming to a much more sheepish stop than I had planned.

"Hey," I mumbled.

"Hey," he returned. His large shoulders blocked the view of other kids in the hallways. It was all consuming, making my breaths come deeper as I tried to think of a reason why I couldn't just kiss him there and then.

"Do you have a minute before your next class?"

He nodded his head slowly, looking down at my mouth. "I was wondering when you'd want to talk."

My heartbeat picked up, I could feel my hands starting to shake. Does he know I know?

He gently grabbed my arm leading me towards his locker. I swallowed thickly. There was a war in my head whether to be excited by his touch or terrified.

"Wait until it gets a bit quieter around here," he whispered.

I nodded in agreement, my head slightly fizzled from the sweet scent of his breath.

His head was lowered towards mine, his lips closer than they had ever been. I could feel my chest start to rise with each breath. Panic was setting in, until it started to dwindle into soft contentment. Confusion rose inside of me, I'd never been able to control my anxiety like that before. The shock of it made it shoot back and overcome the happy feelings I'd somehow reared.

Jasper looked at me fiercely. "How are you doing that?"

I shook my head in confusion. "Doing what?"

When the halls were clear he leaned towards me. "What is it you wanted to talk about?"

"Do you know Jacob Black?" I asked and then cleared my throat as though the words scratched on the way out.

I was trying to be brave, staring into his eyes – that's how you get people to tell the truth, my Dad said – his vibrant gold eyes dimmed immediately, turning a milky black. Water prickled painfully in mine as I tried to keep them open.

He ran a hand through his hair. "Once we talk about this, there's no going back," he warned.

"For me and you or just... me?" I challenged.

"For us," he said, softly. "I'd never let anyone hurt you."

I released a breath at that. "So, do you?"

"I know of him."

He was being deliberately vague, I could see the defiance shining through his darkened eyes.

"Are you really going to make me ask it?"

He shrugged. "If I have to –"

"Shh!" I interrupted him. Voices were quickly approaching us. My inner teachers pet didn't want to get caught hanging around between bells.

"Wha –"

I pushed a finger up to his lips, not allowing how soft they were distract me. "Do you hear that?" I asked, lowering my voice. There were vicious whispers coming from somewhere. I could hear them but I couldn't see anyone around us. I looked around and noticed an air vent above the lockers. I creeped closer, the sound becoming clearer.

"How can you even hear that?" he asked, bewildered.

"Can you hear it? What are they saying?"

"Of course I can, they're next door."

The whispers were getting harsher and more furious until the man was trying to restrain himself from shouting.

"Who is that?" I asked.

Jasper's lips went into a grim line. "It's best you don't know."

Suddenly a door opened and the voices were joining us in the hall.

I gave Jasper a panicked look gripping him by the arm, basically trailing him to the closest door which just so happened to be the janitors closet. I may have thrown him inside in my haste.

I pushed the door in, tight enough for it to look closed but still open enough for me to peep through.

"What are you doing?" Jasper whispered behind me, a not so well held back laugh in his words. He was moving around behind me, clattering items.

"Shh!" I repeated.

The footsteps stopped. "Did you hear something?" one of the voices asked.

"Yes, there are 300 people in here, of course you did," the other voice said.

"Shut up. Now remember, bring the $50 or I will tell Principal Wright."

The other voice mumbled something.

"What the hell did you say? Do you want to make it $100?"

My chest thumped as the voices moved, they were just about to walk past the closet.

I gasped, my hand dropping off the door handle. I turned to Jasper in the darkness, squinting to get used to the dim light. "It's Mike Newton and Mr Berty."

Jasper didn't say anything.

"Did you know about this?"

He shrugged. "I overhear a lot. Don't worry about it."

It was all clicking into place. Mike and Mr Berty had an argument in our English class. But why?

"Don't worry myself? Mike is threatening a teacher!" I whisper-screeched. "How can I not worry? He's unstable!" I heard the voices getting louder again so I quickly shut the door leaving us in complete darkness. "This is a whole other level of fucked up."

Jasper smirked. "What level of fucked up were we on in the beginning?"

I shifted uneasily. Hearing Jasper curse made me a little weak in the knees and being in such close proximity with him was difficult enough as it was. My heartbeat was making more noise than anything, I could see my t-shirt move with the pulse.

His cologne was invading my senses; it was subtle and sexy like spices and woods.

"Don't you think this is something I should have been told considering someone's sending me notes?" I trailed off. Was the air crackling with electricity or was it just me?

I should be scared, he was waiting for me to ask the question that would confirm he was a blood drinking psychopath and here I was, the only thing running through my head was how soft his lips looked and how much I wanted to press my own on him.

What other opportunity would I have to do it?

His eyes darkened. I could see him lick his lips and it made the already tense situation ten times tenser. He reached out to grab my hand. "You don't have to be scared of me."

"No?" I asked, meaning to sound strong but achieving the opposite.

He shook his head, yanking me forward slightly until I was right in front of him.

I could feel my breathing pick up again. I'd fallen asleep last week to dreams of wondering what it would be like to have him in a room like this and now that I had him, I had no idea what to do.

"You're scared," he whispered.

Pushing a piece of my hair behind my ear, he slipped his hand to the back of my neck to hold it gently. The chill of it made me clench my teeth. He was sitting on something, making it easy for me to naturally fit between his legs.

"I don't know if I'm scared of the right things."

His icy thumb on my jawline moved across my cheek and I moved my face until his thumb was on my lips. I could feel my heart pounding, adrenaline flashing through my veins. Jasper let out a breath of air, I could dimly see his tongue dart out and lick his lips and I copied his movement, tasting his skin. It was like sweet honey.

The last bell for class went. "Shit, we're going to be late!" I shook my head. "I didn't even get any answers."

He shrugged. "Whose fault is that?"

I rolled my eyes.

&TL&

Coach Clapp had us in the gymnasium to learn theory today. Not that anyone was paying attention.

We still had to dress in our gym kit, which was completely unnecessary. Some of us were sat on the floor, and others were on the bleachers. Angela was sat beside me with Ben on her other side. Her knees were shaking. I felt bad for her even though she had tortured me about Jasper.

"Are you OK?" I whispered.

She glanced at me quickly. "Why wouldn't I be?"

I made a point of looking past her towards Ben.

"No, please, Bella. Not here. Don't say anything. I haven't said anything to Jasper."

I barked a laugh. Coach Clapp gave me a stern look. "You've said way too much to him, so don't give me that."

The look of desperation on her face stopped me from joking with her.

What I needed was a plan.

"I have something I need to tell you after class," I whispered, changing the subject.

She looked at me curiously, but I turned away to pay full attention so she couldn't ask me yet.

After 45 more minutes of tedious theory, Coach Clapp finally dismissed us. Not without telling us we had to do a 1000 word essay on everything we just learned. The collective groans rang out.

I watched Jasper jump and grab onto the pull up bar just like last week, raising himself with one arm, his large bicep flexing.

Alice jumped up after him. "You show off!" I heard her squeak.

Jasper chuckled leaning down to cover Alice's mouth with his hand as she desperately tried to turn towards the rest of the class.

I shook my head, bringing myself back to earth.

"Hey Ben!" I called.

Ben stopped putting books in his bag to listen. While I tried to ignore Angela's panicked face in the corner of my eye.

"Ang and I were thinking about meeting on Friday after school to bang this essay out in one go, if you're up for it? We're going to her house. There'll be snacks." I said in what I tried to make my most convincing voice.

I could feel her death grip on my arm.

"Um, sure, that would be great. I could do with your notes, I didn't really pay attention," he said, his face turning pink.

"Perfect!" I said. "Come over about an hour after school."

He nodded and walked away, still with a blush on his cheeks.

I fake coughed. "I think I'm going to be ill on Friday, you can entertain Ben on your own, right?"

She looked at me, half with anger, half with amusement. "I don't know whether to slap you or hug you."

"Neither, just get to work planning your date."

She rolled her eyes. "I suppose I'd better. Now, what did you want to tell me?"

My eyes widened as I remembered what I'd witnessed earlier that day.

Her nose scrunched up as she considered it. "Are you sure, Bella?"

I threw my hands in the air. "I saw it with my own eyes. Ask Jasper!"

She put her arm out in front of me stopping me in my tracks. "You failed to mention you were in the janitors closet with Jasper!"

"Um, did I?" I squirmed.

"Oh my God, you were? What the hell happened?" Her hands shook both of my shoulders.

"Oh, nothing," another voice interrupted. A very familiar voice. I felt an extra arm on my body that pulled me out of her grasp. I looked up to see Jasper wink at Angela. Her jaw was on the floor.

There was a large part of me that had nothing but hormonal thoughts that I wanted to act on, but I shoved them to the side in order to focus on what was important here and now. He wasn't going to side-track me.

He and I still had to talk.

&TL&

My dad was home already when I got back. I could smell attempt coming from the kitchen. Sue must be coming over.

I dropped my bag on the table. "Hey, dad." I grinned.

"Hey, Bells!" He glanced up from his wok. "We're having stir fry." A smug grin twitched underneath his mustache.

"How about I finish off and you can set the table?"

He nodded and let me take the reins. I added a bit more sauce and adjusted the heat.

I stared out of the kitchen window, absently smiling, thinking about my time in the janitors closet.

"Uh, oh," my dad started. "Who is he?"

I cleared my throat. "Dad, no. We're not doing this."

"Well, I don't know. You're about to meet my woman, ain't you?" He looked like he regretted asking the question.

There was a soft knock at the door.

"That'll be Sue." He ran to the hall mirror and smoothed his dark hair and mustache.

I mouth dropped open. He was like a teenager.

Sue tiptoed in looking like a little lost puppy. Charlie took her coat and the pie she had in her hands. I took the stir fry off the heat and made my way over to greet her.

I hugged her tight, wanting her to feel as welcome in my dad's home as I did.

We ate dinner and enjoyed each others company. I'd met Sue when I was a child when my dad used to take me to the reservation to go fishing with Harry and Billy. Harry had passed away and Charlie had been there for Sue when she needed him most.

At the end of the evening, I gave both of them a hug and headed upstairs to do homework. Later that night I came down for a peppermint tea and saw the two of them cuddled up on the sofa watching a movie.

No one deserved that more than Charlie.

&TL&

My phone pinged.

I blinked my eyes awake, checking the time – 1:21am.

An email notification from another strange address. Not exactly the same as the last one.

Leave $50 at this address and we'll leave you alone.