I immediately left to find Carlisle. Eventually, I found him Jasper's computer room, reading an on-line report about a clinical trial of something or another. "We need to relocate," I blurted out. "Or I need to, at least."

He swiveled his chair around, alarmed. "Have you perceived a threat?"

"Not as such. It's more... personal."

"Personal?" He raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Tanya's coven."

"Hmm." He gave me a shrewd look. You're over there every night, and even Esme has come to trust them. What went wrong?

"I lost a game of chess." As I said it, I realized how ridiculous it sounded.

YOU lost a game of chess?

Good. He was taking this seriously. "Yes. Tanya's been using it as a way find weaknesses in my talent."

"And she succeeded?" Carlisle stared at me slack-jawed. I didn't think your talent HAD any weaknesses.

I snorted. "Me neither." Until now.

He sighed. First the women, now you. Edward, there is no cause for panic. You've lived without human blood for decades. You know better than any of my family that there is always a choice.

"What about Kate?" I shuddered at the thought of being paralyzed and at her mercy in some secluded place. She may be giggly and light-hearted, but she was still a succubus.

That's right. He gave me sympathetic look. I'd forgotten about that.

I wish I could!

Her talent could be problematic, he admitted. Carlisle's eyes were grave. If you feel threatened, then don't hesitate to leave, and we'll straighten things out from a safe distance. But I'm reluctant to uproot everyone without at least considering our options first. Give me a few nights to discuss it with Esme. If she doesn't have any solutions, we'll bring it before the family as a whole.

I didn't want to toss my insecurities out for public viewing, but I didn't want to be prey, either. "Thanks."

When I came home from school the next day, I could hear Tanya's thoughts as she perused the CD collection in my bedroom. What on earth was she doing there? "Esme!"

Esme's thoughts reached me from her studio. Edward, I think you need to talk to her. Even in her mind, she used her firm, motherly tone.

The door to her studio stood open, revealing Esme's little sanctuary dedicated to beauty. The room itself was a work of art, the walls painted in a lifelike forest mural. Green drapes framed the huge bay window that opened onto a wide field, and the floor was tiled in the tones of rich soil. A fountain graced one corner, and the ceiling was a pale blue. In the middle of all this, Esme stood in front of her easel, putting a few finishing touches on Tanya's portrait.

I leaned against the door jamb, remembering Alice's vision from the day she met Tanya. "Who was the one ready to do battle with them just a month ago?"

A smile flitted across Esme's face, but she didn't look up from the canvas. She's more complex than I thought, and I'm a firm believer in second chances. Go talk to her, Edward.

From her tone of voice, I knew Esme was squarely on Tanya's side in this one, and I left the room in disgust. How had she won Esme over? I reluctantly climbed the stairs, growing more angry with each step. Why didn't Esme at least make Tanya wait in the living room? By the time I stood in front of my door, I was irate.

"Do come in, Edward," Tanya called.

I pushed open the door to see her standing in the middle of the room — my room. The drapes were drawn, making the lighting intimate, and she had Smetana's "Sharka" playing in my stereo. Appropriate. Tanya's face was unreadable and her mind quiet. "Hello."

"What are you doing here?" I snarled from the doorway.

She smiled innocently. "I come here all the time."

"I meant in my bedroom."

She looked down, chagrined. "I wanted to talk to you and thought that the most sound-proofed room in the house was probably the best place. Esme tells me you're thinking about leaving."

Traitor! I tried to look indifferent. "I'm considering striking out on my own for a while."

Leaving! She twisted a ring on her pinky finger nervously. "I never meant to frighten you." She looked up suddenly to read my face.

Did she mean it? Or was this her next move? "You didn't," I lied.

She chuckled low. "Edward, I know men the way you know your piano. You're running scared. Come in here and let me lay your fears to rest."

She'd corrupted me — I was seeing innuendos everywhere. I hesitated. "I understand you just fine out here, thanks."

She half-shrugged. "If you really want your siblings to overhear us."

Emmett was the last person I wanted eavesdropping — he'd been ribbing me for weeks. I stepped inside and, shutting the door, leaned against it. "You have ten minutes."

That's not long. Time flies... She drifted a step closer to me. "I never meant to intimidate you."

"Uh-huh."

Her lips turned up in a wry smile. "Okay, so maybe I did a little bit, as one player to another. What do they call it these days? Trash talking?" Another step closer, sauntering this time. "But there's no reason to leave."

I could name three. "This is not something I'm going to discuss with you. If and when I leave is my own decision. Not even Carlisle is going to tell me yea or nay."

Knight on the board, unaware of the hand that moves him. "Edward, do you know why we hunt the way we do?"

I snorted. "The line 'what a way to go' comes to mind."

"That was in the early days, before we could abstain." Nor does it explain the male vampires.

"Not particularly interested at this point, Tanya."

She tisked. "You see, this is why I could beat you! You were so focused on mechanics that you overlooked philosophies. If you'd tried to read my strategies instead of my mind you would have had a decent chance." Another step, bringing her within arm's reach. "Take the time to understand us, and you'll see there is no need to flee."

Then it clicked. This was why Esme sided with Tanya. They both wanted me to stay. "Why don't you want me to leave?"

You'd win. She winced in irritation at her mental slip. "That and I'd lose... a friend."

I actually rolled my eyes. "A friend."

She sidled closer, crossing into my personal space. I had that hunted feeling again. "Fine," she conceded. "A chess partner. Someone who actually makes me think every now and again." Her fingers caressed my collarbone. "Someone interesting."

Despite myself, I felt a little thrill at her touch. Women — especially human women — lusted after me, but none had yet been bold enough act on those thoughts. I felt dangerously flattered. Catching her hand, I pushed it away with a smirk. "So you want me for my intellect?"

"Not just your intellect." She was close enough now that I was sandwiched between her body and the door. "Although your mind is one of the most intriguing I've ever encountered." As you've already noticed, she ran her fingers through my hair, I have a thing for necks.

"My neck can't be anywhere near as interesting as the humans on your last hunt." If I had any sense, I'd be running from the room right now.

Her lips pressed against the hollow of my throat, making me catch my breath. "I enjoy yours for different reasons." Like the reaction I get.

Putting my hands on her shoulders, I gently pushed her away, at least far enough to give me breathing space. "You have five minutes, and I still don't see any reason to stay."

She stepped in again, and this time her lips caressed my ear. "Don't you see? I love you, Edward."

I barked out a laugh. That was the biggest lie I'd heard in at least fifty years.

She trailed kisses down my neck. "You doubt me?"

Focus! "Given your track record, yes."

She rocked back, her eyes flashing in anger. "What is that supposed to mean?"

There was hurt behind the anger. It surprised me. "Tanya... you're a succubus."

"Precisely my point," she said stiffly, not budging an inch. "It was love that first gave me the strength to abstain — that same love keeps me strong."

She gave me her signature speculative look. How will he judge me? "The first man I left without killing was a monk named Thomas. Every night, I came to his bedside and woke him. Every night he adjured me, but of course, he couldn't make me leave." She smiled fondly at the memory. "When that failed, he used every argument in the book — and a few I'd never even thought of before — to try to make me leave."

"But his scent was the sweetest I'd known in three hundred years of hunting." Swallowing hard, she gave me a wry smile. "I wouldn't take him without giving him his due, of course, but there was no way he could simply talk me into walking away. He resisted for almost three weeks, until the thirst was painful, but when he finally took my body, I could not take his blood. I looked at his peaceful, sleeping face and realized that the fire in my throat was not worth the life of that brilliant man."

She smiled at my shock. "Is that not love, to put another's needs above your own, even if it hurts you? It's love that keeps me strong, Edward — two hundred years strong. I hunt the way I do out of love."

I'd never really considered their motives, beyond the payment aspect. Was this what Esme meant about complexity? I searched her eyes. "But you could never love only me."

She tilted her head in agreement. "Nor would I expect to be your only love." Her hand rested on my neck, her thumb tracing my jawline. "But that doesn't mean I don't love you." She fought a smile. And I know you love me too.

Nice try. "You know that, do you?"

"Give me some credit, Edward. The trick I used to defeat your talent would only ever work in a chess game, and only once at that."

"Speaking of which," I tried to distract her, "how did you manage it?"

You really don't know? Her eyes danced. "A lady never gives away her secrets."

"And you're a lady?" I didn't mean to say it like that.

Touché She laughed lightly. "The strategy itself was ridiculously simple. There are only six chess pieces and maybe as many words to describe their motions. I thought of four nonsense words for each piece. The hard part was drilling those words into my head deeply enough that I would think in those words. I'm afraid my sisters found me a bit tiresome last week."

"But I digress." She gave me a coy look, her hand drifting to trail fingernails across the nape my neck. "You weren't ready to skip the country because you were actually afraid of me. You were afraid of what you felt — fascinated, vulnerable, bewildered. In a word, love."

I stared at her, dumbfounded. She had me in check — I'd been outmaneuvered again. And her fingernails were sending ripples of pleasure down my back. Damn it!

"Stay, Edward." Her voice was low and sultry. "Stay and play me. You've beaten me at my own game twice. Allow me the pleasure of a rematch."

I gave her a lop-sided grin. "You really are a masochist."

Her lips twitched, fighting a smile. Takes one to know one.

She stood on her tip-toes, leaning in to kiss me, but I turned my head. Her lips touched my cheek.

I put my hands on her shoulders, easing her away again. "The next move is mine," I said firmly.

She winked at me. "I've spent a thousand years at this game, Edward. I can wait."