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CHAPTER THIRTY

(BPOV)

My wrists were bleeding and raw from the harsh rub of the ropes Tanya had used to bind me. I let my tears fall as the miles and miles began to separate me from my home... from Charlie... from Jacob.

Night had come yet again. We had been on the road for over a day now.

Edward had been hesitant to stop at all, but we were running on fumes and had been for miles now.

"Pull into this gas station up here. We can't drive this on empty any longer!" Tanya hissed, tossing a warning glance my way. "Our little guest here won't try anything now will you?"

I shook my head and continued to look out the window, trying to see where we were exactly. Trying to pinpoint a location.

"We're getting fuel here and that's it." Edward warned, before hurriedly leaving us and entering the busy store.

"Don't even think about trying to run-" Tanya sighed from beside me. "There's no place for you to run to... nowhere to hide. We've been on the road for hours now..."

I scoffed at her remark then, knowing that time meant nothing and earning a good slap to the face for my sarcasm.

"Something funny?" She taunted, firmly holding my face in her iron hand and forcing me to meet her golden gaze.

I shook my head in response to her, knowing the force of her hand could prove more damaging the second time around if I got mouthy again.

"Didn't think so."

She released me with a loud hiss, her eyes still on me as I turned away from her.

"You know- you and I are more alike than you may think, Isabella..."

I cringed at her implication, feeling my blood run cold as she continued speaking.

"We're both monsters. Just in different ways. You still foolishly believe your precious wolves are coming for you. Still hopeful that dear Jacob will come after you."

Her biting and taunting remarks made me dizzy as she toyed with my emotions.

"You see... Aro is a master of many things, however he has no moral compass and no soul. None of us do. He has held many captors for centuries and is skilled at using them for his own benefit. I believe your Jacob would interest him the most... his ability and his strength."

I swallowed back the bile that rose in my throat from the images that flooded into my mind with her cold remarks.

"... and if the wolves come for you... if your precious Jacob should follow us... Aro will undoubtedly claim him for his own. Force him to do unspeakable things. Hunt those he loves. That's the kind of master he is...- He will train him to be whatever he needs him for, Bella"

I was sick beyond words at this. Knowing all she said was true.

Edward then exited the store, his look fiercely agitated as he filled a spare gas can and shoved it hastily in the trunk. He was then fast to climb into the drivers seat and squeal out of the parking lot.

"You need not be so serious." Tanya laughed. "We've taken her...-"

"You need not be so arrogant-" He sharply corrected. "We've only just started this quest and the wolves will come. I'm sure of it."

"I was just telling Bella all about how Aro will use those precious pups as he see's fit."

" He'll end them, Tanya. Don't be ridiculous. All but one."

"Jacob would make a fine addition to the coven. In one way or another. I believe Aro is truly intrigued by their kind. He finds the way they work fascinating. They could serve as watch or guard even."

"Sam and Jacob are the strongest in the pack. They would be the only two worth keeping to him. I know this." Edward corrected. "Don't be foolish to underestimate them, Tanya."

"Are you doubting our exquisite skill set, Edward?"

"No, but I'm not dismissing theirs. They have the strength... the senses... and the speed."

"One bite is all it takes to end them-" She hissed to him in confident reply.

The miles continued to grow as we sped down the highway and my desperation peaked after the dusk of yet another day drew near.

Edwards eyes seemed permanently fixed on the road ahead, his concentration being that of completing his mission.

"We need to hunt." Tanya soon stated, as the darkness covered the sky above. "I am growing weak and her blood is becoming irresistible. So unless you want me to-"

"No-... We stop. We hunt. Discretely." Edward replied, taking the nearest exit and soon weaving us down unfamiliar dirt roads.

I had no idea where we were. Where he had taken me.

When the car came to a stop at the end of a long desolate road, Tonya wasted no time in exiting. Her fleeting speed making my gaze unable to focus on her for long. She was out of sight before I could blink again.

"She's hunting here? Not humans?" I asked, mortified at the very idea.

"No, she is hunting wildlife. She will return in a short time. You should eat." Edward replied, retreating to the back seat with a bag of chips in hand.

I shied away from him as he tossed them on my lap and reached around to undo the tight ropes that held me.

"Eat now! You haven't had anything in hours."

I shook my head in protest, seeing the angry red marks on my skin from the harsh restraints and moving myself further away from him. Edwards eyes became downcast as he sat down in the back with me. His expression irritated but somehow haunted at the same time.

"You weren't always - afraid of me."

I stared at him in disbelief as he shook his head to me.

"There was a time not so long ago that you wanted to be with me forever... Remember?"

"I'm not that person anymore."

His look grew fierce as he grabbed my arm and hauled me toward him. "You could be-"

"No." I bit back, unwilling to look at him.

"You can spare Jacob." He then offered, his gaze studying my face as he spoke this to me.

"I don't trust you."

"You should." He hissed. "You claim that you love him.-"

"I do."

"Then spare him this. Don't keep wishing for him to follow us. If he does, what Tanya said is right. Aro will use him and show him no mercy. He will become enslaved to him... forever."

I shook from his words and hesitantly met his gaze.

"You're going to change me... aren't you? When we get to Italy."

"Yes."

Tears stung my eyes as I pushed away from him, feeling the weight of his confession sink in through me, it's weight truly heavy like concrete.

"I will never love you, Edward. Never forgive you for this and when you change me. When I become stronger than you... I will destroy you until nothing remains but ash." I breathed to him.

"You won't have the chance, Bella. Aro has plans for you. We've prepared."

"I will loath you for eternity. End all that matters to you." I threatened.

His eyes grew dark upon hearing this, his jaw flexing and his hands now balling into fists at his sides.

"Jacob will never love you as this." He spat in further argument to me, causing tears to rapidly blur my vision.

"I know. You don't need to remind me."

He hissed a final time before getting out and slamming the door closed behind him. The silence in the car making my chest tight.

I was all alone in this hell.

My heart raced as my gaze fell on Edwards figure lingering by the headlights, his statue like form casting a shadow onto the earth below. I took a deep breath and placed my shaking hand on the door handle, as he walked slowly to the back of the car. I held my breath when I heard him pop the trunk, the feel of the cool metal now pressed firmly against my warm palm while I anxiously waited for his next move.

I knew he could catch me ... would catch me...without much effort.

I knew I was no match for him. No match for his speed and ability but who was I anymore if I didn't try?

I had to try to get away... for Jacob... for myself ...and this could be my only chance.

They were separated right now, which gave me a better chance than before.

I would never be able to outrun him.

I began searching under the seats, looking for anything to use in my advantage and coming up empty. My eyes were still fixed on Edward as he stood perfectly still outside, awaiting for Tanya's imminent return.

The moonlights glow filled the cab as the minutes wore on and my search grew more desperate. I reached down in between the seats, knowing we were in a rental car and hoping that someone had left something behind... something specific. My hands dug deep until my fingertips touched the very item I was in search of. I pulled it out, seeing the skull on the outside of the metal encasing and knowing the fire it carried within it would be my only hope to get away from him. The zippo was small enough for me to conceal in my shaking hands.

I called his name then. Knowing what I had to do.

"Edward-"

He was opening my door before I could take another breath, his gaze assessing me in question as to why I had called for him.

"You were right-" I sighed. "I- can be as I was before."

"Bella... -"

"I just need to be reminded of how much you love me. Do you still... love me, Edward?"

I watched as his eyes changed into the golden brown that I knew. The golden hue that had held mine so many times before.

"I loved you before I even knew you, Bella. How could you not know this?"

"I've missed you so much. I tried to forget you-" I sighed in return. My feet steady as I stood next to him, feeling the coolness of his granite skin seep in through my clothes.

He pulled my body to his with a firm hold then as my lips brushed his own with a moan.

"Bella-"

Edwards tongue met mine with vigor and I moved without thought. My mind filling with Jacob... his kiss... his touch... the way his russet skin molded to my own.

How desperate I was to get back to him. My fingers were quick to flip the cold metal cap away then, my thumb smoothly striking down on the Zippos wheel. The flame touched my hand and burned as I held it to hem of his shirt. I moved faster than I thought possible then, shoving away from him as the fire rapidly spread.

I stumbled backwards as I turned from him, hurriedly grabbing the spare can of gas left in the open trunk and seeing the unmistakable horror on his face when I tossed the contents of it on him. The entirety of it now saturating him, further igniting the flame I had lit and causing it to engulf him before my very eyes.

He screamed my name in anguish as I turned and ran from him, tossing the can before I crested the forests edge. The darkness all but blinding me as I ran without looking back.