There is silence for a good few minutes before Carlisle speaks, his kind face patient. "Bella," he says quietly, "that's not a good idea. Firstly, Edward will be very difficult to find. Any vampire is difficult to find if they don't want to be found. Secondly, he has the advantage of hearing your thoughts before you approach him and he's very fast Bella. Faster than any of us. Lastly, your scent… it's not a good idea to find him yourself. You may be stronger, but in the throes of bloodlust you could easily get hurt."
"Then I'll take Alice with me." I say fiercely. Alice looks at me, her golden eyes shocked.
"No." Carlisle says suddenly, before anyone can speak. "I wish for you to stay here as a guest for a while until Edward returns. We can tell you some more about the vampire world and maybe find out why you have a human scent." He looks imploringly at me. "Please stay."
I nod in agreement, even though my mind is elsewhere. Carlisle visibly relaxes and I realise he'd been worried about my reaction. "You can take Edward's room for now."
Rosalie makes an angry noise under her breath, almost like a hiss. "Is that really a good idea Carlisle? I'm sure Edward won't appreciate the smell when he gets back." She growls.
"Well our spare rooms aren't yet furnished Rosalie." He says reasonably. "She'll have to borrow Edward's room for a day until we finish furnishing them all. Esme and I will do it tonight."
"She's a vampire! She doesn't need furniture!" Rosalie growls again, refusing to let it go.
Carlisle smiles indulgently at her. "Neither do you, but it didn't stop Esme building you and Emmett a house. Now, let us leave this conversation Rosalie." He says quietly, his tone firm.
She scowls and stomps out of the room, her golden hair swinging behind her. Emmett grins apologetically at me before following her out. "I'll take Bella to Edward's room." Alice sings, before anyone else can say anything.
Carlisle looks surprised for a brief instant but then nods his assent. "That's a good idea Alice. You can answer any questions that Bella may have about the vampire world. Esme will you come with me to the dining room and plan Bella's room please?" Esme smiles at me before excitedly leaving the room. "Jasper, you're more than welcome to join us." Carlisle offers.
Jasper nods at Carlisle. "Could be fun." He smiles at Alice. I'll be with Carlisle and Esme if you want me." He says before flitting out the room after Esme.
Carlisle smiles at both me and Alice. "Look after Bella, Alice. You know where I'll be if you need anything." He says before leaving the room also.
Alice instantly turns to me, her eyebrows raised. "Follow me. Quickly." She commands, blurring out the room. I follow easily, noticing more than ever her uncanny gracefulness. We came to a halt outside a light tan door and she nods approvingly. "You're still strong which makes you fast. This is Edward's room." She says, all in the same breath.
She opens the door and I survey my surroundings, inhaling the light lilac and honey scent that filled the room. I knew instinctively that it was Edward's scent. His room faced south, with a wall-sized window like the great room below. This meant the whole back side of the house had to be glass. His view looked down on the winding Sol Duc River, across the untouched forest to the Olympic Mountain range. The mountains were much closer than I would have believed. The western wall was completely covered with shelf after shelf of CDs.
So Edward liked music. There was no bed, which I'd expected, only a wide black-leather sofa. The floor was covered with a thick golden carpet and the walls were hung with heavy fabric in a slightly darker shade. I was quite impressed with the room, and even though I'd never admit it out loud, Edward's scent made it that much better.
I sighed. Now I sounded like a stalker. "I can't imagine you fool humans when they come round if there are no beds in your rooms." I say quietly, looking for something to say to distract myself.
Alice doesn't answer as she dances over to a sophisticated looking sound-system in the corner and turns it on. She turns the volume up to full blast so the once soft music hurts my sensitive vampire hearing. She cringes too. "I know what you're planning Bella." She says suddenly and I instantly understand the need for the loud music. She didn't want the other vampires in the house to hear our conversation.
I decide to play it innocent. "What do you mean?"
She fixes me with a look that shows me she's not fooled. "I can see the future remember Bella? Downstairs I got a flash of you sneaking out the window to go and find Edward. However, I agree with Carlisle. You can't find Edward on your own, and even if you did manage to, if things went bad he could easily kill you. He's a very gifted vampire. So, instead of trying to stop you, which I totally could by the way, I'm going to take you up on your offer. I'm coming with you." She grins.
I blink in surprise as I process her words. "Seriously? You would defy Carlisle to help me curb my guilt?"
Alice's golden eyes stare into mine, unflinchingly. "I'm not doing it because of your guilt. I hate to defy Carlisle but some things are more important. This is one of them." She says softly.
"Why? Why is it so important?" I question.
Alice sighs. "Knowing the future can make life boring Bella. You need to take the long way around. Now," she says with an air of finality. "Are you going to accept my proposal or not?"
I sigh at her avoidance of the subject. "Yes I am. You'll be able to see where Edward is, won't you?" I ask.
"Yes." She agrees. "Right, let's be going."
"What? Now?" I ask in shock.
She laughs delicately. "Well actually you need to change first, but then yes."
"How are we going to escape? Jump out the window and run like hell?" I ask.
She laughs again, her voice tinkling like chimes. "For what possible reason? We could just walk out of the front door."