Bella

When we landed in JFK airport in New York, the sky was muggy and overcast, just as Alice predicted. Edward went to fetch our bags and I volunteered to go hail a taxi. As I stepped outside, into the stale air, I felt like all eyes were suddenly at me. The door attendant tipped his hat to me and five men with briefcases stopped waving their hands in the air to stare at me. I hadn't been in contact with humans since before my transformation so I blushed at all of the attention.

Several taxis went to fetch the other people standing on the sidewalk. I decided to use my looks to my advantage. I stepped onto the tip of the sidewalk and looked at an incoming taxi. It was a human in his mid twenties, staring ahead at the road. I focused on him until he turned his head my way. Once he saw me, I looked straight into his dark eyes, then smiled innocently at him. I heard his heartbeat quicken instantly. He cut across two cars to pull to a stop in front of me.

I opened the door. "Hello," I said, pleasantly.

"H-h-hello, ma'am. Where to?"

"Do you know where the Algonquin hotel is?"

"Of course ma'am."

As he punched the name into a little GPS system attached the dashboard of the car, Edward appeared with our bags. "That moving trolley could not have been slower. So sorry you had to wait, love." For this trip, Edward and I would play a newly married couple. Edward had the typical New Yorker thing down. I didn't know about me though.

"No problem, sweetie. I got us a taxi," I replied with my attempt at words dipped in honey.

I could almost hear the taxi driver's face fall. Edward loaded the suitcases into the trunk and we both climbed in.

Being married to Edward is like married to an ATM. I realized that after we had gotten into our hotel suite. He had tipped the taxi driver a fifty I think, paid for the room without asking for change, and later gave the bellhop a hundred. As I threw my clothing into a dresser, I brought the topic up. "Edward?"

"Yes, love?"

"I don't mean this in a rude way…But where the heck do you get all the money?"

Edward raised his eyebrows. Suddenly, a look of realization crossed his face as he considered how to answer. "Well, when you've worked for half of your life…"

"Oh…Oh!"

Edward smiled and as he placed his own clothing into his dresser, I heard him chuckle slightly.

We weren't supposed to meet up with Liberty until tomorrow, and the sky was still overcast, so Edward suggested I should enjoy our stay in New York while it lasted. We took pictures at the Time Square and took an extremely slow ferry to the Statue of Liberty. I had never been to New York, so I was having a lot of fun, although I had this strange feeling like everyone was watching me.

We went to Central Park and found a bench to sit on. I was completely at ease, and we just sat there for like an hour or so. I decided to have some old human fun and people watch. There was the jogger in a wooly tracksuit running with his large bulldog, the little girl feeding the pigeons while her mother in a business suit talked on a cell phone, and a bunch of elderly people making slow laps around the park.

That's when I noticed we were being watched. I turned my head a 23-degree angle to the left and immediately saw the watcher.

Naturally, the watcher wasn't looking at us now. Long, golden brown hair hung lazily down her back, and despite the cold-for-a-human weather, she wore a turquoise short-sleeve blouse, jeans, and only a light sweater. She had pale skin, the color of milk, but a slight creamy complexion was hinted. She wore a pair of designer sunglasses, so I couldn't tell if her eyes were normal and if she had any bruises under her eyes. She was absolutely gorgeous, maybe even prettier than Rosalie.

I perked my ears to try to listen to her heartbeat but heard none. Even the pigeons' hearts were louder. Watching her on a blanket on the grass, I focused my eyes to her as she poured a crimson colored liquid into the wine glass next to her. The aroma hit me quickly and I instantly knew who or what she was. "Edward," I breathed.

Edward turned to look in my direction. He sniffed the air and let out a small gasp. "Is she…drinking blood?" he asked quietly in disbelief.

"Smells like it. What is she thinking?"

"She's wondering where her husband is. Remember love, they have an illusionist too." Edward's voice was struggling to keep control and I knew he was very tempted to run up to her and attack. I placed my hand on his and squeezed gently.

Then, I saw who she was waiting for. A boy, maybe a little older than the watcher, appeared from the trees and started walking over to her. In some ways, he looked like her exact opposite. He had short, dark chocolate brown hair and a slightly darker complexion. The boy at least had a jacket, but it was tied around his waist. He didn't have a heartbeat ether, and also wore a pair of sunglasses that easily framed his face.

The boy sat down next to the watcher, and she handed him a wineglass. He sipped it contently and murmured something into her ear. I tried to listen but all I heard was, "Sorry I was late. The subway got stuck in the tunnel." Clearly, the illusionist didn't want us to notice them.

I felt Edward stiffen next to me and looked up at him. He was obviously quite peeved at the fact that they were drinking blood like that in public. "They're endangering all of the other vampires who inhabit this city," he said, crossly.

"But, if someone were to go near, Claudiena can just as easily make it seem like…red wine or fruit juice."

"Yes, but what about clothing? We put on these thick sweaters to look human and they wear thin short sleeves. I don't see why the Volturi hasn't taken them out yet." Edward paused. "Then again, Carlisle said Liberty were nearly as powerful as them. I would understand their slight hesitation…"

As he spoke quietly, I continued to watch the other vampires. The words they were supposedly saying did not match the way their mouths moved. I had never been a good lip reader so I just listened to the covered-up conversation. Then I felt a slight nudge on the back of my head.

"Make one move and you'll be transported."

I froze and felt Edward freeze too.

"Get up. Jennifer wants to speak to you," the new voice added.

We rose to our feet and I turned my head slightly to see our attackers. Two people stood behind the bench. The girl attacker was pretty, with glossy black hair and high cheekbones. The boy was equally pretty, with white blonde hair slicked back. They were both pale skinned and they were actually not wearing sunglasses, so you could see the topaz color of their irises.

I turned back to the people on the blanket and the watcher turned to smile at me. She extended her finger towards us and motioned for us to join them. I didn't move. Neither did Edward.

"What are you waiting for?" the girl attacker demanded. "Move!"