Title: Crossroads
Author: Ilovejohnmayer
Chapter Title: City Love
Disclaimer: Twilight belongs to Stephanie, just as my stories belong to me!
N/B: Sorry about the delay, I had school stuff to deal with! This is my fourth Fanfic, but my first Twilight story. Takes place in New Moon time. Please, tell me if anything is wrong or off with Edward or Alice or even Bella. Thanks for all the great reviews, and thanks to askjaz for all her help!
I climb into the car, intent on catching the first flight out to Chicago. Jacob has disappeared to God-knows where, and Alice is staring off in the distance, her wide eyes blank and impassive. I feel elated, though worried at the same. It's just that, I know she's there. I can practically feel her close to me.
"Edward, wait!" I stop for a moment but then respond to Alice by telling her that, unless she'd like stay in Forks, she'd better get in the car.
"Edward, Victoria is after Bella, remember? We don't know who she has with her! Knowing Victoria, she's turned the Volturi against us. We are going to need reinforcements if we stand any chance against her."
I roll my eyes, unsympathetic. "Alice, this is one vampire we are talking about. I think the two of us can handle her, unless you doubt your abilities…"
She put her middle finger up to my face and climbs in the car.
"Just drive, asshole." I laugh loudly for the first in a long time (such a long time that my mouth actually hurts me when I do), and start the car. The laughing, mixed with the pleasure of almost having found Bella make me feel an emotion that I had been working hard to suppress. Hope.
"But Edward, really, promise me. If things get too out of hand, you will call Carlisle."
"No." I shake my head, my hands grasped firmly on the steering wheel, "I don't want to hurt anyone else because of my callous mistakes. Please, Alice, just trust me for once." She looks disbelieving, but lets it go. I just gaze vacantly out of the window, my instincts driving the car for me, and consider Alice's words.
Would Victoria really still be looking for my Bella? Would she really raise an army for one little human girl? I have to pray she won't, because Victoria will be hard enough to kill without a bunch of young ones there as well.
The flight to Chicago is uneventful, though long. Alice is no longer talking to me, because I made her lie to Jasper about what we are doing. He would want to help me, which means Emmett and Esme and everyone else would want to help too. It doesn't really matter though, her not speaking to me. I can still hear her mind, of course, but I decide to be respectful and keep my distance.
It is winter in the Windy City, which means I don't need to worry about my sparkling skin. As we step outside, I whistle to hail a cab while Alice slips on a pair of gloves.
"So, do you have some kind of plan, Edward?"
"P…plan?" I slowly stutter. She blinks her canary eyes wide.
"Yeah Edward, a plan. Detailed instructions on how the hell we're going to find Bella in a city of 2.8 MILLON people! Or were you just planning on going on Oprah and hoping she'll be in the audience?" Sarcasm is thick in her tone. I chuckle lowly and reply,
"No, I just thought we'd walk around aimlessly and sniff her out, like Wishbone or something." She is still glaring at me as the taxi pulls up. The young man gapes at Alice, amazed at her unnatural beauty. She ignores him; Alice is not one to be swayed by humans.
As we drive through the city I try to actually formulate a plan. I don't know where I'm going to find her exactly, but I do know that there are people who do. And humans are easy to extract information from, especially when you have the sufficient funds, they are in the face of danger, or you can simply see into their innermost thoughts.
"She's getting weaker Edward. And it's getting harder to pinpoint her location. She's moving around, a lot."
We set up shop in a high-class hotel and rest a little bit of time. But time means life or death for Bella, and I cannot rest until is safe in my arms.
"Come on Alice, it's time to go and look." She's lying on the bed, watching the local news.
"No rest for the undead?" I shake my head, offering my hand to help her up.
"No rest for the undead." She sighs, but gets up, and we leave.
"So, Oh Wise One, where to first?" I ponder for a moment, and then decide.
"Her apartment building." She nods, and begins to pull me down the street, already knowing where the place I desire is.
Even in the dark I can tell that this place is old and withered. The white paneling is barely hanging onto the building, and the windows are covered in soot. A 'For Sale' sits in the yard, and a middle aged man is carrying boxes outside.
"Excuse me, sir?" He peers at us suspiciously, holding his boxes tighter to his chest. As if I would want his junk. Humans and their things…
"What do ya want?" As we move closer, his scent hits me like a tidal wave. While it's no Bella, it smells delicious. He smells delicious. I turn to see Alice practically licking her lips, and nudge her to remind her.
"No humans." I whisper in a tone too low for mortal ears. We both shake out of our hunter trance and ask him if he's the owner.
"Was. Had to sell. Didn't have enough tenants, and the ones I had couldn't pay." Probably because he doubled rent.
"My brother and I are looking for one certain tenant of yours."
He smirks widely. "Yeah? Well, I don't give out info on my tenants. So there! Now, move along with your business before I call the cops."
Alice looks like she wants to strangle him, but I hold her back and gently clear my throat.
"Please, sir? Just listen to the description, this girl is very important to me. Brown hair, brown eyes, from the West Coast, young, about 18. Probably kept to herself. Please sir?"
He's not going to say anything to me, I already know this. I can see it on his face; he generally doesn't give a damn. But his mind…it's an open book for my own mind to devour.
A young woman moves boxes from an old red pickup, clearly struggling. The middle aged man helps her, hoping to learn more about his new tenant.
"So sweetheart," he says, his Midwest accent thick, "what brings you to Chicago?"
She looks uncomfortable, but answers. "Just needed a change of scenery." He nods and smiles, revealing a mouth of rotting teeth.
"So, you gonna be a famous actress or somethin'?" She shakes her head, silently scoffing.
"Not at all, if I wanted that, I'd be in New York right now. I have a job as a barista at a café, and I'd like to just make ends meet, really." They have reached her apartment.
"Maybe I could help you unpack, you know, inside…" She rolls her eyes and slams the door in his face.
"Bitch." He mumbles, shuffling downstairs, reminding himself to raise her rent when he got the chance.
"Anyways, like I was saying, I can't tell you guys nothing about my previous renters. Landlord's code." He gets into his van and starts up, honking for Alice and me to move.
Yeah, go ahead and try to run me over with this crappy vehicle you call a van. It will become spare parts, and you'll meet Jesus. I stifle laughter and pull her and her thoughts out of the way. The man curses, gives us a lovely middle finger, and drives down the streets. I can't hold it in anymore, and I burst out laughing.
"Edward, I find this whole situation less than amusing. Now, can we please go eat?" She's right, and somber thoughts of Bella enter my now guilt-filled mind. How can I stand here and laugh while she's starving on some Chicago street?
We leave Chicago for an hour or so, have dinner, and return to the hotel to retrace our steps. Alice keeps a lookout in Bella's future, while I pace, trying to imagine where she would go.
I stare out of the wide window, wishing I could see her face right now, hold her in my hands. Just the chance to embrace her once more, look into her soulful eyes, tell her how much I love her.
"Where are you, my love?" I quietly ask the night, the wind blandly blowing across my face. I breathe in deeply, and smell something I haven't smelled in a long time.
Bella's scent. It's very strong, the strongest it's been since I left her.
Alice is at my side in an instant.
"It's not her passing by, it's someone else. Someone has something that belongs to her, her stuff. The visions are being so sporadic, I don't seem to be able to control them. Either she's now selling her stuff, or she's been robbed. We need to find her Edward. Now." By the time Alice finishes this last sentence, I've already jumped from the balcony onto the frozen sidewalk, and I'm holding a gruffy, old man by the collar, pressing him against the stone wall.
"What the-"
"Shut up! Just shut up!" I yell at him. I can smell her on him, I smell my girl on him. I breathe it in deeply, a low group rising of out my chest.
Alice is suddenly by my side, but makes no move to release the old man.
"Edward…"
"Alice, he knows. I know he knows." I search his mind, leafing over every detail until I find the one I need.
I reach into his left pocket and pull out the bracelet Renee gave Bella for her sixteenth birthday.
"Where did you get this?" Alice's eyes go wide, and the old man's do as well.
"Uh…don't know? I mean, found it? Hey, hey you cops?" He stutters nervously. I press him against the wall even harder.
"Do. Not. Lie. To. Me." My body, my self is so filled with rage. I feel myself shaking; I would very much like to strangle the life out of this man.
The man, unable to breath, tries to gasp out answers. Alice grips my arm and looks me in the eye.
Don't do it Edward, he didn't take Bella away. I feel my eyes go wide with panic. This…this isn't me.
I let the man go, and he falls to the ground, coughing and sputtering.
"I didn't do it man, I didn't do it!" He tries to run away, but Alice grabs him. I try to speak, to move, but I can't. I can't believe I almost killed an innocent person. Am I just as bad as Victoria; one goal to achieve, and death for all those who stand in my way?
"Please answer the previous question. Where did you get this?"
The human looks around, as if to escape, but after deciding that that is just not possible, he informs us of how he got the stolen piece of jewelry.
"Okay, okay! I'll tell ya! I ripped it off some sick chick in Legion Park. I didn't kill her or nothing; I was gonna pawn it off or something. Finders keepers, ye?"
I stand and watch while Alice takes the jewelry back from the man and yells to him as he runs away.
"You should be ashamed of yourself, stealing from ill, defenseless young girls!" She turns to me, and gently places a hand on my shoulder.
"Edward, its okay…" I shrug it off.
"No, its not. I'm turning into a manic, and Bella is sick. Let's go." She drops the subject for the moment, and we run to Legion Park. Homeless people are set up all around, but I can smell her so well. I'm so close to her.
"Edward, over here!" I run over to where Alice is. And behind the bathrooms, on a bench, covered in tattered rags, is a sleeping, pale girl, coughing, and covered in blood. I feel my mouth drop ever so slightly, and my hand reach out to touch the one person in the whole world who makes everything right again.
"Bella?"