~ Chapter Seven ~

Port Angeles, the small town everyone in Forks fled to on their weekend, left much to be desired. A smattering of stores lined the streets, open signs hanging from every door to welcome the people meandering around. Harleigh eyed a few restaurants before walking away and a bookstore that held new and old books that held appeal but otherwise he continued on his way.

Certainly, Harleigh could see the appeal for people born in Forks. Port Angeles held a number of stores not available in Forks. It was bigger and offered freedom from parents who couldn't be bothered travelling that far to keep an eye on their children. Yet after living in London for many years, Harleigh could see the appeal Forks offered. It was calm, it was peaceful, and the people mostly kept their curiosity to themselves.

So far, Harleigh had to magic several people away. As a newcomer, they seemed to instantly desire to welcome him to the area and Harleigh wasn't prepared to play nice with these people. He didn't know the area, he didn't know the people, and he certainly wasn't prepared to play nice when one of them could be the vampire he was looking for.

No one had ever bothered to describe Victoria, probably because Carlisle didn't want Harleigh to be left alone when danger lurked close-by. Yet Harleigh could hardly offer aid when he didn't know the situation. As desperate as they were to remove this threat, no one had bothered to discover details on Victoria's army. Harleigh needed to remedy this problem.

Without knowing the area, Harleigh had chosen to walk into Port Angeles before moving towards the warehouses. The town was the only area surrounding the warehouses that wasn't forest. If needed, Harleigh could utilize the town as an escape route; but he could only do so if he knew the back streets.

Taking vampires out into the open wasn't the smartest idea. They could attack anyone. With their strength, the entire town of Port Angeles would be dead by the following morning. The Shifters wouldn't be able to handle the situation, instead, the Volturri would need to be called in. Carlisle would want to leave with Harleigh while fighting the desire to remain and protect his family from the ruthless leaders of the vampires. Harleigh's only other escape was apparating away and hoping Victoria didn't connect him with Carlisle.

This wasn't likely. Harleigh had spent enough time around other creatures to know the scent of vampire never dulled on his form. Everyone could smell spice and vampire. Best-case scenario left Harleigh sneaking in and out without anyone noticing his presence.

Yet, the factory filled with newborns wasn't what Harleigh had expected. There was no security, nothing to keep the newborns secure. Anyone could walk by and discover the warehouse. Harleigh couldn't believe after all this time, there was nothing standing between him and the answers he sought. It was too easy.

Moving forward, Harleigh waved his hand silencing his footsteps as he neared the warehouse. He moved passed the front door and walked around the perimeter. Only four windows permitted light into the warehouse and all but one were accessible. Considering the door, Harleigh could only assume this was the only way Victoria entered or exited. Her newborns, after all, were drugged with Isabella's scent and wouldn't be able to think of a way to exit apart from where they were directed by Victoria.

The window held risks. Not only could it be the one entrance for Victoria but it could also be the location Victoria dumped the little amount of food she supplied her newborns. Harleigh knew she wasn't feeding them a lot. They needed to focus after all on the scent of Miss Swan. However, if she permitted them to feed on the odd occasion directly after she gave them the scent, they would associate the two and immediately seek out the scent upon release. If Harleigh entered, they might think he was their next meal.

Harleigh sighed, casting a time spell. He'd been gone too long. By now, Esme would have returned and noticed he was no longer in residence. She would worry but it would still take some time before she called Carlisle. He needed to hurry.

It didn't take much to stabilize the broken ladder with magic and climb to the window. Once inside, Harleigh managed to squeeze onto a small ledge and hide his scent so the newborns wouldn't discover his presence. Secure in the knowledge he wouldn't be disturbed, Harleigh surveyed the warehouse.

Newborns wandered the entire floor space of the warehouse. They zipped around, unaccustomed to decisively moving at a slower pace. Without human interaction, the newborns were purely acting on instinct; choosing a quick kill and a quick escape. They were also becoming territorial, lashing out when another vampire moved too close. Most concerning was the few who were beginning to form groups.

There were two main groups. Towards the front of the warehouse, a group of three lounged on several boxes. They held an air of calm giving Harleigh the feeling they were part of the oldest amongst the newborns. They didn't hunger or if they did, they held enough control to wait. This couldn't be said about the other group.

Towards the rear of the warehouse, a group of five vampires stood, agitated at the slightest sound. They were desperate. This group desired nothing more than to continue feeding until they had gorged themselves on every human in the vicinity. This group, while not freshly turned, were still new enough not to control their instincts.

This structure within the vampires only confirmed Harleigh's suspicion. Victoria had been creating newborns long before the first attack. She had been waiting, rearing her little army with everything she could find. It honestly surprised Harleigh no one had noticed these people were missing. Yet, he had a feeling Victoria was smart enough to span her turnings over a large area.

Counting the numbers, Harleigh sighed they were making his job difficult as they continued to move in random patterns. The only vampires not to have moved was the girl hidden in a corner and the group of three…

"What do we have here?"

Harleigh startled.

"It smells odd." One of the three muttered.

Harleigh bemoaned his situation. The group of three held more common sense than a newborn should. They weren't seasoned professionals but they were much older than any of the newborns could have been. This group was present to control the rowdy newborns while Victoria when out and obtained fresh blood.

"It doesn't smell human. There is a scent of vampire but it's heart still beats."

"The spice… I don't understand why it tastes like spice."

The three circled Harleigh on the tight ledge. While they might have been nimble, Harleigh certainly wasn't and he was well aware of what awaited him below should he fall. Yet, he remained quiet.

There was no use attempting to rationalize with these vampires. They held a loyalty to Victoria that allowed her to leave them here, babysitting these newborns, while she wandered around the countryside looking for more. Their loyalty was admirable but ultimately Harleigh knew she was just using them to further her desire to kill Isabella.

"I wonder what it will do…"

The three glanced down at the warehouse floor below. Harleigh couldn't even pause for breath before being flung to the floor.

Harleigh had enough sense to drop into a roll as he hit the floor. Certainly, he would be bruised for a few hours but the healing factor would soon kick in and he would be fine. Now, if only he could escape from his new situation.

The newborns didn't allow it.

As one, the lunged for the food their keepers had provided them. Harleigh's spells didn't help. Their instincts were to attack the bodies dumped from above and a scentless form was no different.

Teeth attached to Harleigh's arm biting down and drawing blood. The scent of fresh blood sent the newborns into frenzy. He winced at the endless onslaught of vampires rushing to get a taste before there was nothing left. Yet, as soon as the newborns had a mouthful of blood, they were desperately retreating, shaking their heads in a crude attempt to remove the taste from their mouths.

Victory was short lived. As soon as the newborns retreated from Harleigh's battered body, the three newborn keepers moved forward, curiosity alight in their eyes.

"Can't eat this one."

"They don't like this one, what do we do with it?"

As one, they smiled.

Harleigh grimaced. This wouldn't end well.

x-x-x-x-x

Three hours later and Harleigh had managed to find his final finger resting at the bottom of a dumpster on the other side of town. Having each of his limbs torn from his body was an experience Harleigh had hoped never to relive. Unfortunately, the keepers hadn't thought of an easier, modern alternative to killing Harleigh in a way that would normally result in permanent death.

At first, they had spent a few minutes debating whether Harleigh would be turned because of the variety of bites. Harleigh had spent this time falling in and out of consciousness. Even being immortal, blood loss could still knock him out for a few hours. When it became apparent the change was setting it, they had started to become annoyed. Permanent death was their solution, only in the form of dismemberment and dumping.

Their brilliant idea with the dumpsters had been purely for their enjoyment. The news, after all, would certainly take an interest in the manhunt for a killer who enjoyed dismemberment. In addition, the story would continue until they had discovered every single last piece of his body.

Harleigh scowled. Never before had he been so furious in his life. The only enjoyment he'd managed to conjure was the shock they would receive when eventually the final battle happened and they noticed he was alive and kicking. Then he would show them what true power felt like.

"Have you finished pulling yourself back together or do you need my help finding another part of your body?"

Harleigh winced as he turned, his body still trying to reattach properly.

"Hello Rosalie."

The blonde stood beside her car watching in interest as scars started to disappear from Harleigh's body. She'd been present when Carlisle had first twitched in agony. Carlisle had, of course, reassured them it wasn't worrisome. After all, the phantom feeling of being bitten by a vampire wasn't something anyone wanted to relive again. Yet, it had only turned worse.

By the end, Carlisle had been furious and in agony. His body had been covered in red lines. His family had been horrified. It hadn't taken them long to connect his bond with Harleigh and the wounds he currently sported.

"How mad is Carlisle?"

Harleigh's question pulled Rosalie's thoughts back to the present.

"Carlisle isn't nearly half as mad as the rest of the family."

"Why would they be upset?"

Rosalie sniffed. "Perhaps, when you actually see the family before you, you might recognize the love and care we all share for one another. Carlisle was injured and they blame you."

Harleigh looked up at her. "You aren't angry and you certainly don't blame me."

Stepping aside, Rosalie opened the passenger door and allowed Harleigh to gingerly sit before closing the door and moving around to the passenger seat. She started the engine and pulled away from Port Angeles before continuing their conversation.

"I can see how knowing this could place you both in danger. Normally, I assume you are both careful about being injured because something like this has never occurred before."

They had lived for many years but her family still couldn't use their common sense before jumping to anger. It didn't help that Bella had been present and Carlisle had wanted nothing more than to throw her out. She had left but only after Rosalie had lunged at her and physically dragged her out the door. Right now, she doubted anyone would enjoy her company either.

Harleigh stared out the window.

"When Carlisle left with Edward, we'd agreed to be careful. We both knew what happened when either of us was injured. He always said when Edward managed to gain control we could be a family again. We only had to wait. I suppose as time went on we grew apart and eventually began to slip. We'd forget we were connected to another person until the injury was already healing. Yet, it hurt more to realize the amount of time we'd spent apart than the actual injury."

The car fell into silence. Harleigh didn't know whether anyone would want his continued support on this matter. Certainly, he had gained information but it had a cost. Perhaps, it would be for the best if the Cullen's decided he was no longer a necessity. They could just utilize the extra force of the Shifters.

As the drove up to the house, Harleigh glanced down at his body. Around the major sockets, such as his arms and legs, there were still large angry red lines from where they had been ripped from his torso. They looked hideous. Yet, he couldn't make his body heal faster. Carlisle would be fine but Harleigh would look like a monster for at least a couple of days.

They didn't even make it to the door before Carlisle was outside and standing before Harleigh. Golden eyes took in the large red lines that spiralled over and around Harleigh's body. There wasn't an inch of skin that didn't seem to have the lines.

"Why did you go alone?" Carlisle asked as the remainder of his family joined them outside.

Harleigh glanced around and noticed Rosalie hadn't moved from behind him. Instead, she had moved closer and placed a hand on his shoulder in a show of support. Their conversation had been another bonding moment, Harleigh realized. Slowly, he was accepting the one person into his life which everyone else called cold hearted and bitchy and he was rather happy to have her near.

"You brought me here to help you with your newborn army. But I couldn't do anything with the information you had given me. I knew the only way to be a step ahead was to see the competition." Harleigh explained. "You never would have allowed any of us to go, so I went alone. I wandered around town, found the warehouse, and gathered information."

Carlisle looked ready to explode in a flurry of words. What held him back seemed to be the presence of Rosalie. They were acting like family, like siblings supporting each other, and he desperately didn't want to break the connection.

"You were injured."

Rosalie laughed, ignoring the confusing of her siblings.

"Injured is a bit of an understatement." Harleigh admitted.

Carlisle sighed and pulled Harleigh into a hug, giving Rosalie a thankful glance. At the time, he'd been too mad to even consider driving. Instead, he'd wanted nothing more than to fly out of the house and race to Harleigh's location. He hadn't had the strength and it was only after Rosalie had huffed and practically forced Carlisle to speak what he believed had happened did he finally get to relax. Rosalie had taken care of everything.

"I know we are difficult to kill but please don't do that for at least another hundred years."

Harleigh accepted and returned the embrace. When they'd been separated and hurt in the past, they couldn't easily make sure the other was truly unharmed both physically and mentally. They had needed to rely on their instincts and on how fast they healed. Now Carlisle could see Harleigh looked worse for wear. He might ache but he would heal.

"That's it?" Edward demanded. "He is the reason you were in so much pain and you're accepting that as an answer. What about Bella? You practically threw her out. I had to take her home and apologize not even knowing what had happened today."

The fury that had dimmed as Carlisle realized Harleigh was well awoke within seconds. There was no calm. Carlisle had reached the end of his limit when it came to Isabella Swan.

"Bella is not part of this family, Edward." Carlisle snapped. "She might be your singer but she is not one of us and privy to our secrets. There is a reason, even now, I have not mentioned any facts about my connection with Harleigh. It is not that I don't trust any of you, however, this connection makes our lives complicated and dangerous not only for us but for you. If the Volturri discovered what we have they would experiment and attempt to replicate it."

"What would be so terrible about that? People could live and still be immortal." Edward demanded.

Harleigh rolled his eyes. Edward was terribly determined to have a life with Bella but he didn't want to turn her. He didn't want to ruin her human quality.

"Edward, what Carlisle's father did to create a bond between us was monstrous. He may have utilized our blood within the spell but he also utilized the deaths of many people. It takes a mass sacrifice to stir magic where it's not. Carlisle's father did this through executing my family and those considered witches. It was hit and miss but eventually he killed enough to create the bond."

Harleigh's words were making the vampires ill. They'd never been told exactly how the bond was created only that they were tied together. For Carlisle's father to have done such an atrocity, it made them wonder how Carlisle hadn't turned out to be so dark. Carlisle could have killed his father but instead he'd been left alive. Carlisle had simply left.

"For your Bella, to be tied to you, you would need someone to kill a larger amount of witches than Carlisle's father. You couldn't do because you would be part of the ritual. Could you really ask someone to kill hundreds or thousands of witches so one mortal could be tied to you?"

Edward stood still. He couldn't think. All of this time, he had been determined to break apart what Carlisle and Harleigh had because of their dislike for Bella. He hadn't stopped to think how they had come to be. All he'd thought about was Bella.

Now that he knew, how could he ever consider aiding Bella in becoming like Harleigh? She'd asked one day when they were alone and he had simply agreed thinking it to be a better alternative than vampirism. But Harleigh's life was filled with pain, he could still feel pain and Carlisle could catch echoes. He couldn't put Bella through something like that. It wasn't what life was meant to be. Yet, he didn't want to turn her either…

"Why would so many more people need to be sacrificed?" Jasper enquired, as everyone remained silenced.

"Luckily, I was already a witch, the only one in the family since my grandfather. I held the power even if I only utilized it when I needed to. So he only needed the witches to create a connection on Carlisle's side of the bond. For Bella and Edward, they would both need to have a connection created." Harleigh answered.

No one was willing to speak up so Esme stepped forward. "It has been a trying day perhaps we should all go inside and relax?"

Carlisle nodded at his wife's suggestion. The family needed to discuss many things but now wasn't the time. Now they needed to gather their thoughts for a war was just around the corner and they were far from prepared.

x-x-x-x-x

The basement felt like a burial chamber. It had been several months since Carlisle had woken turned and fled the basement in a blur of motion. Harleigh had called for Carlisle yet he didn't return. His mother's desperate sobs didn't stir Carlisle's appearance either. The newly turned vampire had fled leaving everyone he loved behind.

In those several months, Harleigh had mostly been left alone. Occasionally, Carlisle's father attempted a new spell using Harleigh's blood but it never worked. The man had stolen magic to perform the blood binding magic between Harleigh and Carlisle but it had left none for him. He could no more do a spell than suddenly learn the piano. Once he'd figured out his problem however, Carlisle's father had returned to burning witches leaving Harleigh to wait as he gained power once again.

Harleigh had taken to reading as much of the books kept in the basement as possible. He wasn't going to waste time in his stay with the Cullen's. There was a treasure trove of information and he wouldn't stop until he'd read every last one. Perhaps then, he could find a way to leave this wretched place.

The turning of the door handle gave Harleigh little reason to look up. Every now and then Carlisle's mother poked her head down and sobbed. She would then leave some food for Harleigh before returning to her duties. Harleigh assumed, in her grief, she believed feeding Harleigh would also keep Carlisle alive regardless of where he was currently staying. At least this way he was also getting fed.

"Harleigh…"

Harleigh's vision was a blur before cold arms wrapped around his body pulling him into a hug. The embrace felt foreign, careful, in a way they'd never been before. Yet, the voice, though smooth and calming, still held the same affection.

"Carlisle, you have returned. Your mother will be pleased."

"No," Carlisle pulled back to look Harleigh in the eye, "my mother will not learn I have been here until after we leave."

Red eyes stared into green. Harleigh could see the pain beneath the surface. Carlisle was suffering but it wasn't because of a need.

"Why did you come back? You could have remained away, Carlisle. You could have left and lived elsewhere, been happy."

"I didn't flee because I was scared I would my family. I fled because I was scared of what I had become. There is no telling what this life will bring for me or for you. I was terrified I would harm you. Even now, I am uncertain as to how much pressure I can place on you before you hurt. But I feel every time my father harms you and all I can think about is keeping you safe."

Harleigh smiled, confused. "Do you not feel the need to feed? Carlisle the scents alone should be driving you into a frenzy so early in the turn."

Carlisle breathed in, something Harleigh hadn't realized Carlisle hadn't been focused on.

"You smell like spice, and like me. My parents scents only smell as they once did in life but tinged with a fungi that spreads. The villagers don't smell appealing either. Everything is just normal which I would assume is abnormal for a vampire."

Harleigh nodded. It wasn't natural. Their bond must have been altering the overall desires of a vampire. Carlisle would be different to other vampires as Harleigh would be different to an ordinary witch. They held a bond which even in death seemed to be untouchable.

"If you know how I can leave this place, we should go." Harleigh agreed.

Remaining here would do no good for either of them. The memories and the people would slowly suffocate them and darken their thoughts. Leaving would be the best solution.

Carlisle took Harleigh's hand and walked across the threshold of the basement into the living room. Harleigh marvelled at the fact all he had needed was to walk with a Cullen through the doorway to be free as Carlisle zipped around the basement gathering items. As sounds were being made, the Cullen's woke and ventured downstairs. Upon seeing Harleigh, the pair froze.

"Good evening," Harleigh smiled. "I do hate to be a bother but we will be leaving now."

Carlisle, carrying a bag loaded with an amount no ordinary person could lift, moved from the basement to stand by Harleigh's side. The pair gasped seeing their son for the first time. Carlisle's skin sparkled in the moonlight holding a beauty all too foreign for them to grasp. With a smile, Harleigh held Carlisle's hand and apparated away.

I love where this is going. Have I mentioned this is only Part One? Hope you enjoyed the chapter.

~MidnightEmber