A/N: I'm sorry I've kept you waiting for so long. I hardly dare admit that I could have posted this chapter last week. Please don't come after me with pitchforks! Here it is now and I hope you enjoy it. Sorry I didn't answer your reviews this time—I promise it was an exception. I'm very busy with my thesis right now and don't know when I'll be able to write and post the next chapter. I'm really not in the mood for writing when I have stared at the computer screen all day. Hope you'll understand!

Thank you so much, KayMarieXWfor being such a wonderful person and a great beta! I really wouldn't know what to do without you.

Thank you to all who reviewed and alerted to me and this story. This means so much to me, you have no idea.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: The Twilight Saga is property of Stephenie Meyer. I'm only borrowing!

32. RESOLVED, PART 2

EDWARD

Lose these shackles of pressure

Shake me out of these chains

Lead me not to temptation

Hold my hand hard

Ease my mind

Sweet Talk by The Killers

I didn't want her to go.

I was aware that I was the one who'd suggested it in the first place, but it had been a spur-of-the-moment suggestion, an idea that had been barely half-formed at the time. I certainly hadn't intended for her to go alone—and even if we went as far as Idaho, she'd still be alone. A vampire could travel a distance of several hundred miles within less than five minutes. For a human five minutes were next to nothing. For a vampire, five minutes were a small eternity. Even if we were never more a few minutes away from Bella and thus Victoria, it was possible that, if worst came to worst, we'd still come too late to fight at Bella's side. The thought was a disturbing one, and if I'd paused just a second to really think it through, I'd never have suggested sending Bella in alone.

What were you thinking? I asked myself, although I knew the answer to that question. I hadn't been thinking and that was the problem. I'd been so excited about having finally, finally discovered a way to track Victoria without alerting her to the fact that she was being hunted that I hadn't even considered what it would mean for Bella. I'd simply assumed I'd be with her to protect her. That wasn't an option. Although she'd practiced so hard in the past few days, she still wasn't able to project her shield more than two or three yards in diameter and probably wouldn't be for some time. It was almost a miracle that she'd achieved even this much in so little time, but it wouldn't be enough. If she couldn't shield me permanently and from a greater distance, I couldn't come with her and it was unlikely she'd learn to do that in the next two days. Her shield seemed to be like a muscle. Developing it took time.

Unfortunately, that was exactly what we didn't have. Alice was certain—well, she was fairly certain, but even half blind she'd been right about everything else so far—that Victoria would begin to suspect that we'd been involved in Lambert's death after all. If the situation hadn't been so dire, I would have found Victoria's paranoia amusing. Then again, it was what had kept her alive all these years. She was nothing if not careful.

I wished I knew what Bella was thinking. She'd successfully shielded me several times, but her mind still remained a mystery to me. Bella thought that was because her shield had two layers, one that she could more or less control and one that refused to be lifted away from her mind. "Maybe it's some sort of self-preservation mechanism," she'd said with a shrug. Whatever it was, it kept me out of her head, like it always had.

If only I knew what she was thinking! Was she afraid? She had to be, but she was hiding it well, even kept her emotions in check. Jasper was impressed with her self-control. Her face was unreadable as she stood gazing into the trees, her hands clasped loosely behind her back. Two more days, then she'd have to leave. I wished there was another option.

They're coming, Jacob thought suddenly. The only thing betraying his anxiety, aside from his thoughts, was the twitching tip of his tail.

"Impressive," I muttered.

"What is?" Bella asked, without looking away from the trees. Absently, she brushed a strand of dark hair that had escaped from her pony tail behind her ear.

"Sam is still too far away for me to read his mind, but Jacob can," I explained.

I wouldn't call it mind reading, exactly, Jacob replied. It's not like the pack link at all. I only hear what he wants me to hear. Seth and Embry can't hear his thoughts at all while we're communicating, which is strange since they should hear everything I think. He shrugged his massive shoulders. I can't really explain it. There have never been two alphas before Sam and me. Anyway, he just popped into my head to tell me they were leaving La Push. That's all. He's gone again. It should take them about ten minutes to get here. He snorted. I'm still surprised he agreed to come. I'm not very high up on his list of favourite people and neither is Bella.

"It was necessary to meet face-to-face if we want this to work," I replied. "Sam knows that and from what you told us, he wants Victoria dead just as badly as we do. Besides, it's probably a good idea for them familiarise themselves with out scents." I grinned wryly. "Just to avoid accidents."

Jacob snorted again. True.

The sixteen of us were standing just in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by trees. The invisible line that separated the United States from Canada ran only a few feet in front of us, but we'd decided not to cross into Washington State before we'd talked to Sam. As far as we were concerned the treaty was still in effect, but it neither included Bella nor the Denalis and we didn't want to take any chances. Although we had a common enemy, Sam probably wouldn't hesitate to kill those of us the treaty didn't cover, true to the motto that only a dead vampire was a good vampire.

Considering his past encounters with vampire, I couldn't even blame him.

"Is the entire pack coming?" Carlisle asked. Sam had given Jacob his word that none of us would be harmed as long as we didn't do anything to threaten them, and it was this qualifier that had us all on edge. Who knew what they'd consider a threat? The only reason we'd come was because we needed them and because we trusted Sam's desire to destroy the vampire who'd been harassing him for years to be greater than his general distrust of us. It remained to be seen if that was wise.

Carlisle was hiding his anxiety well. Everyone was. Only Jasper was aware of everyone's emotional state, but he wasn't doing anything about it. Fear would make us more alert, more observant. He'd only intervene if the situation warranted it, if we were in danger of being overcome by it. We'd probably win if Sam's pack attacked us, but at what cost?

He has no reason to attack you, I reminded myself. You have a common enemy. Don't be so pessimistic.

"Probably," I said in reply to Carlisle's question. "Sam didn't say though, did he?"

Jacob shook his head. No, but it's what I'd do. I'd never face thirteen vampires without every member of my pack to cover my six. Thirteen vamps and three werewolves, he added as an afterthought.

I nodded. "Understandable."

"Vamps?" Bella asked, glancing over her shoulder at Jacob. Her lips twitched.

What am I supposed to call them? Jacob rumbled. You'd rather I call them leeches? Ignoring Bella's arched eyebrows, he continued, I don't like you in my head any more than him, you know. He flicked his ears in my direction.

Seth yapped, amused. I think it's cool. Besides, you've got us and Edward in your head already anyway.

I'm trying to make a point here, Jacob replied, bristling. Is it too much to ask to respect my privacy?

"That's pretty rich coming from you, don't you think?" Bella regarded him levelly. "Considering that you never knock before you come into my bedroom. Or the bathroom. Where there's a good chance I'm naked."

Please, I've seen Leah naked hundreds of times. Nothing I haven't seen before.

Seth snickered. He was enjoying himself. Embry wisely decided to stay out of this particular conversation because he didn't want to end up on the wrong side of Bella's temper, for which we'd all developed a healthy respect in the last few days. With so much pressure on her shoulders, her supply of patience had proven to be exceedingly short. Not that any of us blamed her for that. We were all feeling the same way.

"Are you saying that I have nothing worth looking at?" Bella narrowed her eyes at him.

Do you think I'm suicidal? Jake retorted. I'm not answering that question!

"So you do think I'm unattractive?"

"If she takes a swipe at him, can I join her?" Emmett asked unexpectedly. Esme gave him a chilly look as the eagerness in his voice had been impossible to miss. She didn't know that Emmett, unusually perceptive, had made the comment solely to diffuse the tension.

You seem to be getting better at this shielding thing, Seth remarked to steer the conversation in a less dangerous direction. And at reading people's minds.

"It's becoming easier to expand the shield," Bella replied. "A little easier." If she was aware of the reason behind Seth's inquiry, she didn't let on. "It's also not as difficult to control it as it was two days ago, provided that nobody distracts me. The mind reading thing…" She gave a shrug. "That only works so well because I'm only shielding Edward at the moment and read your thoughts via him. One mind is just about everything I can handle at the moment and only because Edward works very hard to keep everything he hears tuned down to background chatter. Not that that isn't distracting enough," she added.

In the beginning, I'd found the side effect of Bella's shield intriguing, as had everyone else since it had the potential to turn her purely defensive gift into a weapon—'potential' being the operative word here. Now, however, it irritated us all to no end, especially Bella. She couldn't shield either Alice or Jasper, let alone both of them simultaneously. Their gifts were simply too overwhelming and suddenly having them usually resulted in her losing control of her shield. So she mostly worked with Jacob and his pack and with those who didn't have any gifts. I was the single exception to that rule. Despite the distracting nature of my gift, she never failed to keep her shield in place around my mind—if mine was the only mind to shield, that was. I had no idea why it worked so much better with me than with everyone else and if Bella did, she hadn't shared it with anyone.

Sam's only two minutes out, Jacob announced suddenly. His ears swivelled towards the state line although there was very little to be heard. The forest was silent except for the nervous cooing of an owl somewhere in the branches above us and the quiet rumbling of paws thudding over the ground that, dampened by several inches of snow, sounded like distant thunder.

I relayed Jacob's message to the others and they stiffened visibly. Kate and Tanya snaked their arms around Irina's waist from either side in case they needed to hold her back. Irina didn't know which wolf was responsible for Laurent's death—and we wouldn't tell her until this was over, if ever—but there was a slim chance that, despite her promise to fight with us, she'd attack them if the opportunity presented itself. Irina was aware of that and although it stung that her family didn't trust her, she didn't object. Eleazar and Carmen stepped in front the three of them, their hands intertwined as they faced the invisible line. Jasper positioned himself so that Alice was hidden behind his back. She rolled her eyes at him, but said nothing. Emmett and Carlisle moved to cover Rosalie and Esme, something that especially Rosalie detested since she could hold her own in a fight. As she and Emmett still weren't on speaking terms however, she kept her thoughts on the matter to herself and allowed herself to hope that maybe all wasn't lost, that maybe Emmett was protecting her because he cared for her. Seth and Embry, who'd been tasked with protecting our flanks, held their positions. Bella was the only one who remained unprotected and I was torn between the need to keep her safe at all costs and the fear to offend her if I assumed she couldn't take care of herself, never mind how accurate that assumption actually was. Jacob had no such scruples. He butted Bella squarely in the chest, growling lowly for emphasis, and she stumbled back and past me, taken by surprise.

She had no time to complain as Sam's pack poured out of the trees just then. We collectively held our breaths as they took up position just behind the state line, opting for a loose triangular formation, with Sam at the point. Sam was by far the largest wolf of his pack, his jet black fur allowing him to completely merge with the darkness. When we first encountered them, the pack had been only three wolves strong. Now, two generations later, there were almost five times as many. In fact, there'd been almost six times as many wolves before Jacob, Seth and Embry had created a pack of their own.

They were making a conscious effort to appear calm and collected—and as non-threatening as possible—but not all wolves were succeeding. A slim grey wolf with white fur around her eyes and muzzle was baring her teeth at us, a suppressed growl rumbling in the back of her throat. She also kept darting quick glances at Seth to make certain he had survived the company of so many vampires unscathed—a sister worrying about her baby brother. Another wolf, also greyish and with a cream-coloured chest and belly and by far the smallest, was following her lead. The second female wasn't even trying to pretend to be unconcerned by our presence. Her ears lay flat against her skull and her fur stood in edge, making her appear larger than she really was. She was the youngest and newest member of the pack and shouldn't have been here, but she'd insisted to come along as Sam had refused to leave Quil, the wolf with fur the colour of chocolate, who stood next to her, behind. Sam usually didn't allow junior members of his pack to question his decisions, but for some reason he'd made an exception this time.

His thoughts sounded weary.

Jacob tells me you can read our minds, he said, looking directly at me. Will you interpret for us?

"Of course," I replied pleasantly. "I will relay everything you say."

Sam nodded. Thank you. Is this your entire coven?

"We prefer the term 'family'," I said. "And yes, we're complete. Let me introduce Eleazar and Carmen and Tanya, Kate and Irina. They're our cousins and maintain a permanent residence at Denali."

Eleazar inclined his head and Carmen smiled. Kate and Tanya tightened their hold on Irina, just to be sure.

"My father Carlisle and my mother Esme," Carlisle mirrored Eleazar's gesture, "my sisters Rosalie and Alice and my brothers Emmett and Jasper. You already know Bella, of course."

"Hi," Bella said, half-heartedly waving at Sam.

He ignored her and so did the others, except for Quil, who curled his lips back over his teeth in a wolfish grin, delighted to see her. After a moment of consideration the small female next to him did the same. Considering how hostile she'd acted only moments before, this surprised me. She seemed to like Bella quite a bit. She just didn't wanted the rest of us anywhere near her.

Sam gave a resigned sigh.

We came to discuss the upcoming fight, but I'd like to deal with another matter first. I got the impression that Sam wanted to get this matter, as he called it, out of the way as fast as possible. It was the source of his weariness. Jake, he said, Quil wishes to join your pack.

The chocolate brown wolf wagged his tail enthusiastically.

Jacob's jaw dropped. What? he asked, certain he'd misunderstand. Sam wouldn't just let Quil walk away, would he? Then again, what choice did he have if Quil really wanted to leave?

Sam snorted. You heard me just fine. Quil no longer wants to be part of this pack and neither do Claire and Brady. They'll join yours if you let them. I don't want to give them up, but I won't stop them. I can't.

But they'd have to leave La Push! Jacob protested. Claire's only fifteen. She still goes to school! Not to mention the fact that her parents would freak if their only daughter disappeared.

"What's going on?" Bella whispered. Apparently, she wasn't listening to my thoughts anymore. Two pack minds—seventeen minds in total that I couldn't tune out as easily as my family's thoughts because of the way they were interlinked—seemed to be too much for her to handle.

"Jacob's pack is about to become larger," I explained.

Bella's eyes widened.

No, it's not, Jacob said hurriedly. I'm sorry, but I don't want that kind of responsibility. That's why I was fine with you being alpha in the first place.

That's not about what you want, Sam replied. It's about what's best for my pack—and yours. You accepted that responsibility when you left this pack. You'll just have to live with it. Quil, Claire and Brady don't want me as their leader. They want you. I can live with that. I can't force them to stay. Or to like me, for that matter. I learned that lesson with you.

It's not that I don't like you, Jacob said immediately. We just have different… points of views where vampires are concerned. That's why I left.

Sam barked a laugh. Very diplomatically put. Yes, I know why you left and I… understand your decision. I think it's for the best and there's a certain advantage of having two packs operating independently. That doesn't mean they'll have to leave La Push. It's their home as much as mine. Quil and Brady have their jobs and Claire, as you pointed out, has school. It's still your home as well, Jake. You know that, right?

Yes, Jacob replied softly. I know. Then he sighed. Well, I'm can't say that I'm thrilled—be sure to tell them that before they decide anything!—but I suppose there's nothing I can do about it, is there? Besides, it'll be nice to have Quil back.

Sam laughed again. Glad you see it that way. Responsibility, he continued then, on a much more somber note, is both a privilege and a burden. But you were born an alpha and you will figure it out. We grow with our tasks.

Jacob's answer sounded rather dubious. I hope you're right.

Four of the minds intertwined with Sam's suddenly disentangled and broke away from the shared pack link to bind themselves to Jacob's mind and then to Seth and Embry's. Just like that Jacob's pack had acquired four new members.

I frowned. Four?

Leah? Seth and Jacob exclaimed simultaneously—well, actually 'whined' was the word that came to mind. I chuckled quietly.

"What?" Bella demanded to know.

"Hush," I muttered. This was like in the soap operas Alice always watched, just much more interesting and far less predictable. I didn't want to miss anything.

Leah, as it turned out, was the slim grey wolf. Given how violently she'd reacted to our presence, I would never have expected her of all people to shift her allegiance to Jacob.

Yes, I'm happy to see you too, Jake. The sarcasm in Leah's voice was impossible to miss. It's mostly because of Claire. Can't really leave her all alone with you guys, can I? Don't worry, she added before Jacob had a chance to reply. I'll stay at La Push. I have a kid and a husband.

Claire's not the reason you left Sam's pack, Jacob said.

No, she admitted. Sam is. But don't you act surprised! You knew I'd jump at the chance to get away from him. Things are a lot better between us than they were when I first joined his pack, but it's always been difficult. Some things are hard to forget, she added quietly.

I suppose, Jacob replied dubiously. Fine, we'll find a way to make this work. We have to, don't we? He drew a deep breath. Edward, would you please introduce them to the others. We still have to discuss the plan.

"Of course," I agreed. "Everyone, Jacob's pack has four new members." The wolves in question stepped forward, the little one—Claire—keeping close to Quil's side as they approached. "Quil," I gestured at him to point him out to the others and he grumbled good-naturedly as he strode directly towards Bella, eager to say hello.

"Leah."

Huffing, she joined Seth and rubbed her head on his neck before she swiftly nipped his ear to scold him for leaving without saying goodbye.

"Brady."

He was larger than both Seth and Embry, almost as large as Jacob, in fact, and had a broad, well-muscled chest. Of all the wolves present he was also the most conspicuously coloured. His fur was almost completely white, except for a touch of silvery grey on his back, his muzzle and his legs and tail.

"And this is Claire."

The little wolf, still glued to Quil's side, eyed us uneasily.

"Claire?" Bella whispered incredulously, her eyes wide with surprise. "Really?"

Claire yelped affirmatively and, giving me a wide berth, slowly crept towards Bella, who was beaming. Reaching her, Claire briefly paused, then she rose onto her haunches and placed her paws on Bella's shoulders, pressing her forehead against Bella's. The sound that escaped her throat almost sounded like a purr. Although Claire was small for a wolf, she still topped Bella by almost four inches. The only sign that she wasn't completely at ease with being this close to a vampire was her wrinkled nose—Bella's scent made her want to sneeze. Apparently, they'd been quite close before Bella was changed, which was the reason Claire wasn't the least bit afraid of her even though she was positively terrified of the rest of us.

"I've missed you too," Bella said, laughing as she ran her fingers through the fur on Claire's neck. "When did this happen?"

Last year, Jacob replied. I didn't tell you because it was none of your business. Sam would have skinned me if I had and I'd have deserved it, too. None of us knew this would happen.

"Last year," I said. "They didn't expect Claire to phase."

Could we please discuss what we came here for now? Sam asked, somewhat exasperated. He wasn't happy about the fact that he'd lost four pack members—especially since Leah's decision to leave had come as a total surprise—but as he couldn't change it, he was determined not to let the matter get in the way tonight.

"Certainly." I nodded. "Jasper, would you please outline our plan to Sam and his pack?"

.o0-Ô-0o.

"That went better than expected."

Jasper's statement was met with general approval. The plan had been discussed at length and Sam had made several valuable contributions, which meant he'd spent quite some time thinking about it. I hadn't expected that, but I should have. Disposing of Victoria was just as important to Sam as it was to us; he simply had different reasons for hating her.

We'd also re-negotiated the treaty. Sam had refused to include the Denalis as he didn't trust them, but he'd allowed Bella, somewhat grudgingly, to come to Forks whenever she wished as long as she stayed clear of La Push. She was, as Carlisle had pointed out, part of the family and if the treaty included Alice and Jasper—which it did—then it should also include Bella. Much to his chagrin, Sam hadn't been able to argue with that logic.

"That it did," Eleazar said. He and Carmen, running just behind Alice and Jasper, brought up the rear. As we hadn't been certain we'd make it back home before sunrise—Alice had promised another sunny day—we'd only travelled half the way on foot. The spot where we'd ditched and hidden the cars was already in sight. Transportation was still going to be a problem though. Leah and Claire had returned to La Push for now, but Brady and Quil had opted to come with Jacob. One of them would have to walk—or ride in the trunk, but I doubted any of them would fit. We really should have brought the truck.

Jacob solved the dilemma by announcing that the entire pack would run back to Anchorage. Wolves, even if the wolves in question were twice as big as a normal wolf had any right to be, were much less conspicuous than vampires that lit up in the sunlight like Christmas trees. Jacob's words, not mine, but he had a point.

As Rosalie didn't want to spend any length of time alone with me—on the way down Seth and Embry had acted as buffer—she decided to ride with Bella. They were still in the process of defining their relationship, but Rosalie had accepted Bella as family, something I'd excepted to happen eventually, but certainly not so fast.

Alice was already sitting in the passenger's seat when I got into the car, her legs curled up underneath her and a glossy fashion magazine in her lap she was quickly flipping through. Obviously, she had something on her mind she wanted to share, but she was still organising her thoughts, so I was silent as I steered the car down the narrow forest road, hitting every pothole in the process because I didn't see them underneath all that snow. The Volvo, while not exactly built for off-roading, was a sturdy car and survived relatively unscathed. Bella's Porsche, on the other hand, would probably be in serious need of repair once it reached the main road.

A snowplough must have come by a short while ago because despite the fact that it was snowing again, there was hardly any of it on the main road. I floored it and chuckled softly as a memory of Bella complaining about my driving drifted into my mind. Admittedly, a human would probably think I was suicidal driving so fast in this weather—the snow was falling hard, rushing at the windshield in a way that made you think you were travelling at warp speed. A human would have had difficulty focusing on the street instead of the hypnotic flow of the snow. That didn't apply to me, so I was free to drive as fast as I cared.

Straightening up in the seat, Alice closed the magazine and stuffed it carelessly into the leather back at her feet. She was ready to talk. I didn't like where this was heading, although the topic that Alice had in mind was certainly something we'd have to talk eventually. She intended to show me the visions she'd had about the execution about our plan. As she couldn't see our futures because of the wolves involvement, the visions were solely about Bella, and that Alice had chosen to share them with me in private filled me with dread. I wasn't going to enjoy what I'd see, that was for sure, and what Alice said next only served to heighten my anxiety.

"Please remember that what I'm about to show you is only one possible futures of many. It's not set in stone and I'm sure it'll change again before Bella leaves." She turned to face me, her features carefully arranged to hide her own concern even though I saw it plainly in her mind. "I just want you to be prepared for the…" A crease appeared between her eyes as she tried to find the right word, one that wouldn't alarm me too much.

I laughed once, a bitter, raspy sound, and felt my lips twitch into the ghost of a smile. After all this time Alice should have known better than to try and sugarcoat the content of her visions for me. "You want me to be prepared for the worst?" I asked, finishing the sentence for her.

Alice grimaced. "That's not how I would have put it, but yes."

I snorted. "It doesn't really matter how you put it. I'm not going to like it anyway, am I?"

"No," Alice replied. "I suppose not." She drew a deep breath as images began filling her mind. She didn't like them, didn't want to watch them again, but she knew I'd have to see them. I steeled myself for the worst and the steering wheel groaned softly as I tightened my grip. What was the worst Alice could possibly show me? I didn't have to search long for an answer. The image that popped into my mind hadn't come from Alice; my own imagination supplied me with it.

Bella dead because we'd been too late to save her.

An icy chill rushed through my veins and wrapped itself around my dead heart, squeezing it tight until I couldn't move, couldn't breathe anymore.

No.

NO!

That mustn't happen! If Bella died because we'd failed to protect her, I'd never forgive myself. It was a possibility I hadn't allowed myself to think about it, just like I didn't allow myself to think about the possibility that Bella might not take me back. It was pure agony and the pain clouded my vision and my mind, blinding me.

"Edward!" Alice screamed shrilly.

I blinked, abruptly back in the present. My mind cleared and I yanked the steering wheel around in time to avoid crashing into the trunk of a tree. Thankfully, there was no oncoming traffic at this time of night because the car swerved into the other lane. Turning the steering wheel hard into the opposite direction, I tried to direct the car back where it belonged, but we were too fast. The Volvo spun on its axis like a top, completely out of control, and slid over the muddy street and back towards the trees. The car folded around us like scrap metal. A human would have been dead instantly. The metal pushing and groaning and snapping around us would have broken every bone in a human's body and turned most vital organs to mush. Finally, the car, or what was left of it, was still.

"What the hell, Edward?" Alice exclaimed, craning her neck to get a proper look at my face. The force of the impact had shoved my seat back towards what had been the trunk. Her expression was furious.

"Sorry," I whispered. I tore the seat belt out of the way, then snapped the folded door out of its hinges and climbed outside. Alice simply leapt through the shattered windshield, clutching her ripped bag.

"Shoot," I heard her mutter. Her cell phone hadn't survived the accident. Mine had, so I tossed it over so that she could call Carlisle and ask him to pick us up. "I'll just have to sit on Jasper's lap then," she said, more to herself than to me, as she dialled.

While she was explaining what had happened to Carlisle, I got rid of the evidence of our accident. Besides, I didn't want to hear my father's reaction. I forbade myself to think about Bella as I walked deeper into the forest, looking for a spot to bury the mangled remains of the Volvo. Alice appeared just as I replaced the spruce I'd chosen as final resting place for my car. She wasn't angry anymore.

"I probably should have waited until we were at home," she admitted contritely, leaning against a boulder as she watched me smooth out the snow around the base of the tree. The patches of sky visible between the treetops were already turning pink. The sun was about to rise. "I'm sorry about your car."

I stared at her. I couldn't have cared less about the car right now.

"You thought I was going to show you Bella dead, didn't you?" Alice asked

"Yes," I admitted quietly without looking at her.

"Well," she paused, deliberating whether she should tell me everything, and then decided I had a right to know. "I don't know yet if she'll make it out alive. I've been trying to see further ahead, but you know how unpredictable Bella's future has become, what with Jake being so integral a part of it. That doesn't mean she'll die. It just means that I have no idea what will happen as soon as we—and that includes both packs—decide to go after Bella. I only know what will happen before."

"Show me," I said, finally looking at her. She was no longer trying to hide her apprehension regarding the visions she was about to share with me.

"Okay," she said very softly and pulled the first vision to the surface of her mind.

A/N: Hopefully, you won't think I'm crazy for making Claire a werewolf. But my Claire wasn't completely canon as it was, so I decided to deviate from it some more. Please review if you liked it and also if you didn't!