Epilogue

My tiny bird looked so fragile and afraid, but her fear was not for her own life-but for mine. Each time her eyes would clear of a vision, I watched the pain and grief occupy her lovely face. Alice had touched my life in such a profound way that I was prepared to do whatever was necessary to save her. I gently took her in my arms, and whispered my love into her sweet smelling hair. I told her how important she was and then apologized for the pain to come.

"I love you father," she whispered and I felt my heart double in size.

I bit her gingerly, and she barely flinched. I then pressed my cheek to the wound I had just made. The burn must have started, but she did not cry out. Her bravery made me smile. I wished that we could spend eternity together, and that is when the irony hit me. For over three centuries, I had wished for a true death. Now I wanted nothing more than to live with my sweet little bird.

The hunter is coming. The thought jerked me out of my reverie. I realized that if he killed her, my life would mean nothing once again. It was time to run. Sweeping her up in a quick motion, I swiftly made my way out into the courtyard. I leapt over the back fence without a care of who would see. Alice stared blankly at the starry sky, but she remained silent. I assured her that we would be in the water soon, and it may help the inferno blazing inside her. She did not seem to hear me and soon lost consciousness.

Over the next several hours, I ran with the current of the Leaf and then the Pearl River. I backtracked down the Big Black River until it met up with the Mississippi. At dawn, I cut across country toward the Smokey Mountains. I knew the Smokies well because they had been my hunting ground for years. I knew every hill, valley and cave for miles. They provided cover for me during the Civil War when I used to scavenge battlefields. I headed directly for a large cave with several chambers of different sizes.

"I apologize," I said softly near her ear as I found a sharp rock, "If you feel this. Be assured that it is considerably more painful for me."

Holding my breath, I cut her palm. The blood dripped strategically through the many chambers. With this done, I held the wound against my heart until the bleeding stopped. My little bird did not wake as I carried her awkwardly through a narrow passage. It led in the opposite direction of the cave's opening.

Immerging on the sand of a small creek, I again elected to follow a waterway for several miles. There was a small cave nestled behind a waterfall and that is where I made a soft bed of leaves. Time passed as I waited for her wake, but she did not.

"I hate to leave you alone," I told her regretfully, "But I must slow the beast down. Know that these last hours with you have given me the strength to face my fate. There was a reason that little girl spared me all those years ago. I was meant to save you as I could not save my Abigail. Who knows, maybe we will both make it through this and…and be a family. Your sunny outlook has rubbed off on me."

Her birdlike heartbeat quickened slightly when I kissed her forehead and told her that I loved her. After a last glance, I left at a human's pace. She mumbled what sounded like Jasper, but I could not be sure. Our time had run out so I made a zigzag pattern back to the first cave. The thought of her having pleasant dreams of her angel made me smile.

I positioned myself on a narrow ledge above the cave's mouth and did not have to wait long. Alice had warned that there were two of them, but I only saw the tracker. He was so focused on his hunt that he did not notice where I was perched. In turn, my attention was solely on him and that allowed his mate to sneak up behind me. Without warning, the fierce redhead pushed me.

"What do we have here?" he crowed as I landed at his feet, "Look at this decrepit old creature you were so worried about Victoria."

"I'm sorry James," she cowed in a childlike voice, "I only thought we should be cautious."

Ignoring her, he breathed in deeply and said, "You better have left some of that sweet blood for me if you know what's good for you grizzled relic."

"Is this how you treat your elders?" I asked and smiled, "You must have missed your father's lesson on manners."

"The Iroquois killed my mum and my pere before they could teach me any manners," James said laughingly, "My unique charm is self taught."

"I have yet to hear anything resembling charm or manners," I commented then the female pounced on me like a cat.

"He is charming," she shrieked and bit off my ear.

After three centuries, I had forgotten what it was to feel pain. Now the sharp edge of the long forgotten thing was disorienting. I cried out until I heard their laughter then my anger took hold. Silence came easily when I concentrated on rage. I tried to buck the feral female off me, but she held firm as if she had claws.

"Now answer my question," he inquired smugly, "Did you drain her?"

"I cannot hear you as I have lost my ear," I hissed through my teeth.

"Victoria," James chimed and then she bit off my other ear.

"I did not drink from her!" I burst out, "I love her."

They both laughed heartily and then he continued, "You love a human. Isn't that rich? Her blood smells fresh and young, and you are so…old."

"It's disgusting," Victoria said in jest, "And immoral really."

"She reminds me of my daughter," I defended, "And I treat her as such."

"How sweet," he said smiling, "If you treated humans as if they were prey, you would still have ears my friend."

"I am not your friend," I said flatly, "You would not understand how important she is even if I painted you a picture."

"No," James replied amused, "Tell me."

When I stayed silent, the redhead hissed in my ear, "Tell him or lose your nose."

Instead of speaking, I buried my face in the damp soil. A metallic ripping noise echoed in my ears as pain flared from my hand. She had bitten or ripped off a finger or two. I dared not look at the damage, as she would then have access to my nose. I again tried to struggle free, but she only squealed with delight.

"Are you ready to tell me now?" he asked laughingly.

"I'm not giving her my nose," I mumbled into the soil.

"I give my word that your nose is safe," James offered, "As a sign of good faith I will show you something you probably didn't know about yourself."

I felt light pressure on either side of my head that was soon followed by a strange crackling noise. The pain lessened significantly, and I brought my hand up to investigate. My ear was again attached to my skull, but I noticed immediately something was amiss. The ear that was now on the left side of my head was actually my right one. It faced backward.

"I've given you back your ears," James pronounced proudly, "Let's have a look."

I slowly raised my head and glared up at him then said, "There is something wrong with you."

"No," Victoria giggled childishly, "There is something wrong with you."

"That just proves you cannot comprehend how special she is," I said and pointed at my mutilation, "Your maturity is also absent."

"Well then enlighten me," James challenged, "Tell my why I shouldn't kill you both. What makes her so special besides her intoxicating blood?"

"It's a long tale to tell," I sighed trying to bait him, "I don't think you have the patience for it."

"I'll decide that," he snapped defensively, "Begin your tale old one."

I nodded as solemnly as I could. He took the bait, and hiding my pleasure proved difficult. I started from the beginning and used much detail. I hoped they would not notice that I was stalling. Luck was with me, as they seemed to accept my long-windedness as a symptom of my age. James seemed to be genuinely interested, as he would stop me periodically to ask questions.

"Then a few nights ago," I said nearing the end of my story, "My little bird had a vision of you killing her. I considered running with her, but she foresaw you catching us."

"Why did you bother to run?" he interrupted curious.

"Well," I began slowly, "I voiced other options. For example, I thought I could make a stand in the Willow's basement, but everything offered ended the same."

"Thank you," he said smugly, "You have made this one of my more entertaining and challenging hunts."

"I'm not finished," I said mirroring his smugness because I knew I had beaten him, "My final offer was to change her and she accepted."

I let the words hang there in the air, and he hissed, "You bit her?"

"Yes," I said lovingly, "I made her my true daughter."

His rage filled roar echoed through the valley, and he spat, "Watch the old fool and don't let him get away."

Victoria nodded as he disappeared into the cave. She began to taunt me, but I was able to ignore her. A feeling of calm came over me, and I knew Alice was going to live. It was as if she had passed a tiny bit of her gift to me through her blood. An image of a young vampire flashed into my mind and I gasped. He had golden eyes that matched his golden locks, and I knew immediately that it was her Jasper.

My little bird looked so vibrant and beautiful as she walked up to him with love in her eyes. He smiled humbly back at her and then the vision changed. I was witness to their wedding. Their family surrounded the couple as they promised to love one another forever. Somehow, I knew each of their names. Carlisle and Esme looked on with pride. Rosalie rolled her eyes as Emmett whispered something in her ear. Edward shot them both a warning glance.

Scenes of Alice flashed through my mind. I felt serene watching her love, laugh and live. Then suddenly, I was being violently shaken. The vision dissipated as if it had been smoke, but the feelings lingered. When my eyes opened, the hunter's face hovered right in front of mine. He was spitting venom on me as he screamed. Then a sobering thought brought me back to reality.

"I had planned to let you live," he said in disgust and dropped me to the ground, "But you denied me the most amazing blood I have ever smelled."

"That is not the only thing I have denied you," I said knowingly, "When I bit her I must have swallowed a little of her blood. While you were gone, I had visions of my little bird's future."

"You're just senile old man," he dismissed not understanding my point.

"No," I explained, "I'm not. If you had drained her, you too would have had the ability to see the future. Imagine the power you could have had."

"Ridiculous!" he spat out.

I knew he planned to make my death long and torturous so I said, "Well it is a blessing that I stole her away from you because you are too stupid to know what to do with that kind of power."

As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I let myself drift back to my memories of Alice. My precious little bird filled my mind in those last moments of my existence. Then the darkness fell on me like a lead weight.

"Griff," my wife Joyce whispered from the darkness, "I have been waiting for you."