Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or New Moon, nor do I own any of the characters mentioned in the book. They belong to Stephenie Meyers.

Chapter 5

He stared into my tear-filled eyes and I stared right back. I didn't make a sound, but the tears continued to drip down my cheek. I was confused. Could Esme be right? Did he still care about me? But I didn't want to get my hopes up. I couldn't afford to lose him again. The pain was not worth it. Yet, I could not deny the wonderful feelings inside me from being back in his arms again. His distinct scent filled my nose and I lost all scene of logic. The only thing running through my head was the fact that he was back. I forgot about Charlie and the mysterious "accident" that he was somehow involved in.

The reason the Cullens came back.

He just stood there, holding me, until someone cleared their throat. I tried to turn my head around to see who it was, but Edward continued to stare, not moving his head a centimeter. Rosalie, looking as stunning and vicious as always, was standing at the doorway tapping her freshly manicured finger against her gold, diamond-encrusted Rolex.

"Sorry to break up your little reunion, but we need to go, like, now!" Rosalie snarled sarcastically to Edward's back, ignoring me as usual.

Edward finally tore his eyes away from me and turned to glare at Rosalie.

"Are you all packed?" Rosalie asked me, finally acknowledging my existence.

"Ummm…not exactly" I admitted quietly, my face turned the other way.

"Can you get up the stairs by yourself, or do you need me to carry you up?" He said, speaking for the first time. His voice was deeper and richer than I remembered.

"I can try" I said, praying that somehow I would be able to get up those steps.

"I don't believe you, Bella." He said slowly. "I know you too well. You can hardly make it up the steps with two sturdy legs. Besides, we need to leave soon.

I felt my cheeks turn bright red. I was so humiliated.

I thought I saw a small smile begin to form on his god-like face, but it disappeared instantly. The next thing I knew, I was flying up the steps, his cold arms holding my limp body protectively.

When we reached my bedroom, Edward set me on my sheet-less bed, took out my suitcase, and began to fill it with clothes. He was moving way too quickly for my eyes to see exactly what he packed, but I thought I saw him throw in that slinky black dress that Alice had bought me a while back. I had never worn it before, because it was way too short for my taste and the front was pretty low cut. I cringed and reached for the book on my nightstand. If Esme was wrong about his feelings towards me, than I would need something to keep my mind occupied. I had no idea how long I would be away, and I had a feeling that I wouldn't be back for a while.

"Edward?" I asked nervously. He stopped running and turned to look at me. "What about my school. Won't they get umm, well, suspicious if I just stop showing up and nobody answers the phones at home?"

"Don't worry," he said lightly. "Esme took care of it. Your 'aunt' called in and told them that she was going to take you on a vacation so your father could fly down to Alabama for his friend's wedding." He raised his eyebrow at me, and I couldn't help but grin.

"Whatever works" I responded.
He finished packing. Then he picked me up, ran downstairs, and out to the car. Rosalie followed us, locking the door behind her. Edward threw my suitcase into the back of the SUV and scooted into the car with me on his lap. Everyone was squished together, but smiling at us.

"Bella!" Alice cried, bouncing up and down in excitement on Jasper's lap. Jasper laughed lightly and smiled at me. Esme offered me a huge smile and Emmett lightly punched me in the arm. "Welcome back, Bella" he exclaimed wholeheartedly.

"It is so nice to see you again Bella," Carlisle said with genuine enthusiasm. "We all missed you very much. Especially Edward." Edward gently squeezed my shoulders and I turned around. He sat there smiling sheepishly, and I returned the smile. He pulled me to back so that my head was resting against his cold broad chest. He rubbed his face in my hair, and my heart went crazy. Alice laughed as I turned bright red.

"Unfortunately," Everyone grew silent, and Carlisle continued. "Certain, shall I call it, events, have happened since you left, and for your safety and well being, we need to make sure that we are with you constantly. At least until we figure everything out."

Personally, as much as I tried to deny it, I did not find that information unfortunate at all. I would get to be with them again. Maybe, just maybe, the problems between Edward and I would get better. But I knew that it was dangerous to get my hopes up. None-the-less, I would be able to spend a little time with him again, even if it hurt me in the long run.

"Now Bella, I think you deserve to know the truth about why we are taking you away. I'm sure you remember last spring when you had your…encounter…with James. Well, see. No, actually, I will start at the beginning. There is a group of vampires called the Voulturri family."

I gasped. A shocked look crossed Carlisle's face. "How do you… how do you know about them?" he asked.

"Edward mentioned them a few times," I said. I remembered Edward tell me many things about them. "He said that they were the most important family of your…type. He said that… that you only messed with him if you wanted to…to die"

Carlisle sigh. "This is true. They are very powerful and exceptionally dangerous. And we have, as you call it, 'messed' with them. We didn't know it at the time, but James was actually a member of the Voulturri family. We killed a member of their family and they want revenge. They want revenge on all of us Bella. Including you."

Another cliffhanger! Anyways, if you want to find out what will happen to them all, I suggest you review. I want hmm…I'll be nice…6 reviews. I won't post another chapter until I get all 6. Thank you!