(Bella's POV)

The scent hit me like a wreaking ball. Overwhelming. Before I had the chance to react, I felt Edwards' arms wrap themselves tightly around me. Half of me hated him from stopping me, the other half, thankful that he was there to stop me from doing something I would regret. I felt myself beginning to slip again. Into my predatory mode. I growled, and thrashed against him. Begging him to let me go, let me have them. But he didn't let up. I was vaguely aware of Jasper and Emmett as they joined us, taking me from Edward. I growled louder in protest.

"What is he doing here?" I heard Edward ask. He? Who was he? I turned my head, looking for the source of their conversation, and then I found it. Oh God…Charlie's car was parked right out in front of the Cullen's house. He must be inside. Was that what I was lusting for? My own father's blood? I was disgusted with myself. But still, by body reacted. Venom pooled in my mouth, and stung my throat. I writhed and twisted, trying to escape the hold of my brothers. Thank god they were there.

"What do you think he's doing here Edward?" I heard Emmett say, exasperated. "He's looking for Bella. She's been missing for three days now, and he heard that we were back in town."

Edward had tensed up, unable to continue his façade of breathing. He shook his head slowly.

"What do we do….?" Was all he could manage. Jasper piped up.

"Carlisle is taking care of it. He assured Charlie that you didn't return home with us. That you were still over in Europe. And that none of us had seen Bella since we returned home. He seems to be believing us. But if you barge in, the whole cover will be shot to hell. You two have to leave. Now."

I screamed a bit louder now.

"Damn it, let me go!" I thrashed around again, unable to break their hold on me. "Edward! Make them let me go, I have to go. We have to leave!" They all paused, shocked at my words. I was shocked too. My desire not to harm my father was overruling my desire for human blood. I had to get away from the house. Away from this scent that clouded my thoughts, marred my judgment.

He took my hand. "Bella, you know what this means, don't you? We can't come back to Forks, not for a long, long time. Charlie and Renee…they'll think you've runaway. They might think that you died." He sounded remorseful. It made me miserable.

"I'm dead, already Edward. You're all I have left. You and this family and I'll do whatever it takes to protect you all. If I have to go live in a shack in the woods for fifty years, then I will." I could feel my senses returning to me. How? I looked back to the house. Charlie's car was gone. I sighed in relief. "We have to go."

He nodded and took me back from my brothers, holding me close, just in case I lost control again, I thought to myself.

"Okay. You and me. We'll head up to Alaska. Visit the Denali clan for awhile maybe." He turned to his brothers. "What about the rest of you? You can't just up and leave right after this."

"Yes, we know." Jasper answered. "Carlisle said we should wait. A few months at least, if not more. Let the commotion die down a bit. Then we can come up and join you. The last thing we need right now is you on a suspects list." Edward scowled. Jasper continued. "You two need to get packed. And hurry, for all we know, cops could be watching the place by now…" Edward picked me up in his arms. I began to protest but stopped myself. The three of them took off towards the house at inhuman speed, and I tucked my head into his chest. I didn't want to leave.

But I had to protect my new family, and see as how this was all my fault, I thought this was the least I could do. We were inside in a matter of seconds. Edward held me until we were with the rest of the family in the living room, he sat me on the couch in the center and took his place beside me, resting an arm around me. I leaned into him. The others all had varying expressions of concern on their faces, except Rosalie, who looked utterly contempt. Perhaps friendship would not come so easily with her after all. I felt guilty. I hadn't been a vampire three days, and I'd already managed to screw things up. I hung my head. Carlisle cleared his throat before speaking.

"So, Jasper already explained everything to you?" We nodded solemnly. "Charlie was panicked, obviously, but we had no trouble convincing him you had nothing to do with it, Edward. But I'm sure he won't remained convinced for long. He'll be back. I've already talked to Tanya. She said their extra cabin is open for you whenever you need it. I suggest you leave as soon as possible. I'm so sorry Bella. We saw this coming, but didn't really want to take the precautions for it. We were all so happy about you joining the family." He trailed off. Just then, a thought struck me, horrified me. Jacob. He knew. Would he tell Charlie? Tell him that Edward had come back? I shook my head.

"Wait…Jacob…he knows Edward came back. I told him he had, right before he…" I couldn't finish. They all seemed to understand. Edward answered me first.

"No, he won't be a problem. He ran off, right after he recovered from the fight. Headed north. Perhaps he felt remorse for practically killing you…" Edward said scowling, then continued. "He's been missing for days now, I read Charlie's mind. Actually, Jacob Black is higher on his list of suspects than I am right now."

I was a bit stunned. Charlie loved Jacob, but I guess when it came to kidnapping his daughter, the affection died. I wouldn't let myself dwell on these questions now though. There were much more important things to take care of. Edward stood and took me with him. The others began to bustle around too, spreading to different parts of the house. Alice followed us, I turned to her, question in my eyes.

"What? Like I'm really going to let you pack by yourself…Ha!" She mocked me. Edward smirked. "Besides, you don't have any cloths to pack anyway. Don't worry!" Her voice rang like a bell, as usual. "You can have some of my things. I've been looking for a reason to go shopping in Seattle anyway." She giggled.

"Right, since when do you need a reason to shop, Alice?" I laughed back at her as we continued up the stairs. Edward paused, dropping my hand.

"I'll be there in a minute, this won't take long…wish I could say the same for you…" He eyed his pixie sister anxiously. "Remember, Alice…we have to be able to carry what you pack." I could tell he wasn't joking. I frowned at the thought of trudging through snow drifts dragging along a trunk full of cloths.

"Oh, don't be so dramatic, Edward." She teased him before he headed up the next flight of stairs, leaving me and Alice alone to venture into her expansive closet.

"Here…" She handed me a rather large backpack. "Now, since you don't need to waste space with food or camping supplies…you'll have plenty of room for a wardrobe." I groaned again.

"Alice…how long with it take? To get to Alaska, I mean." She spoke from her closet, if you could call it that, it was more like a small bedroom.

"Oh, the way Edward moves…maybe a day…You'll be in Denali by nightfall." I sighed with relief. Even though the elements no longer had an effect on me, I still did not relish the idea of having to spend the night in the Alaskan wilderness.

"Ugh…Look at you. You need to shower. Now. Before you leave. What will they think if you show up looking like a wild animal…" Alice was now shoving me in the direction of her bathroom, which rivaled in size to the closet. I started to protest, but decided it wouldn't do any good.

"Don't worry about anything else. I'll pack for you, and leave some fresh cloths on the counter." She smiled and sprinted away before I could get another word in.

When I got to the bathroom, I looked in the mirror. Fully taking in my new appearance for the first time. It was true that, by vampire, or…Alice's terms, I looked horrid. My hair was a mess, and my cloths were torn in some spots, caked with blood, I couldn't tell if it was mine or the moose's. Other than that, I was stunning.

My facial structure had changed ever so slightly, but just enough to make a difference. My cheekbones were higher, skin white as snow and smooth, flawless. My hair, despite it's condition, was longer, shiny, with the same soft curl it had when I was human. I ran my fingers lightly down my jaw line. It was more ridged, strong. I looked at my eyes and almost gasped out loud. The color was vivid red, shadowed in thick lashes. I had to tear my eyes away from the mirror, the image was beginning to scare me. I knew I was essentially the same, but I looked so different. So much like him.

But I was wasting time now, there would be time later to get used to this new body. I ripped the ruined sweater from my body. Slipped my jeans and shoes off and turned on the shower. When the water was lukewarm, I stepped in and let the warmth spread over me. Alice's shower was stocked with all kinds of products. Soaps, lotions, shampoos, and conditioners. Some of the labels were in foreign languages. I grabbed one that smelled similar to my old favorite shampoo back at home quickly lathered my hair.

I scrubbed myself vigorously to clean off the thin layer of grime that had collected on my otherwise perfect skin during out short hunting trip. My new inhuman speed allowed me to finish in mire minutes. I stepped out into the bathroom, twisting the knob on the shower to turn it off. I found a towel and a pile of cloths on the counter on the opposite side of the room. I quickly dried off, tossing the towel into a hamper

I reluctantly pulled the underwear from the pile of clothing. So Alice. They were black, lacy…barely there. I sighed as I slipped them on. I was trekking through the wilderness, not trying to seduce Edward in a Parisian hotel. Not that it would take much seducing. I laughed to myself. The bra was of similar design. I also found a sweater, plain by Alice's standards. Maybe she did remember where I was going. Then another sweater to put on top of that. I wondered why the layering? It wasn't like I would get cold. I slipped on the long socks and jeans, and finished the outfit with a study pair of hiking boots. She must have bought them at the Newton's sporting goods store. I quickly pulled my damp hair into a sloppy bun and walked back out into her room to see that she had finished packing and was teetering on the edge of her bed, purely ornamental, waiting for me.

"God, you still take forever, Bella." She teased as I walked back to her.

"I'm still getting the hang of it…." I sat beside her on the bed. "So, these vampires in Denali. What are they like?" I was curious about who we would be staying with for an undetermined amount of time.

"Oh, they're great. Tanya, Kate, and Irina…they're sisters. Carlisle's known them for decades, Edward too." Alice laughed a bit as she thought to herself. "Tanya's always had a thing for Edward, but he always turns her down. It's kind of funny to see. She's not used to being rejected. Of course, most of her exploits are humans, so…" I frowned at her, sickened by the thought of any other woman ever trying to seduce Edward. Now I understood his earlier reaction to the thought of Jake touching me.

"Oh, Bella…He's never wanted Tanya. Believe me, she would have had him by now if he did." She paused, seeing no change in my expression. "He loves you Bella, you're the one he's been waiting for. He knows that." I brightened a bit and she smiled at me.

"Besides, once she meets you, she'll lay off him. She's not that rude." Alice had risen now, lifting the backpack, no doubt, loaded with cloths I could never see myself wearing. "She'll be able to sense yours and Edward's connection. Not that he won't make it obvious who he belongs to." She laughed in a sweet, high tone, then glanced back at me.

"Well, what are you waiting for? You two have a lot of ground to cover." I sprang up from the bed, following her out the door and back downstairs to the others. Edward was waiting there too, talking to Carlisle, so low, even I couldn't hear what he was saying. I wondered briefly what they were discussing. His eyes lit up when he saw me, and he was at my side in a second.

"You look lovely, Bella…" He whispered in my ear, and I was glad I couldn't blush anymore.

Alice handed him the back pack and he frowned.

"Is all this really necessary, Alice?" He groaned at her and she sneered.

"Of course it is. Bella needs variety." I held out my hand, offering to take the bag. Edward looked at me, surprised.

"I'm not going to make you carry this…here, take mine, it's considerably lighter." He handed me his pack, which was quite a bit smaller, and I slung it over my shoulder. Carlisle followed us to the back door. He spoke to me.

"Now, Bella I'm sure I don't need to tell you how dangerous this is for you. You're only a day old, and if you two happen upon some hikers or hunters…I don't know if Edward will be able to restrain you." I filched at what he was implying and nodded.

"I know. But I feel like this whole situation is all my fault. I have to go. To keep you all safe."

He smiled at me gently and placed his hand on my shoulder.

"Okay then. As long as you understand. But it's not like we're saying goodbye…" I looked around at the solemn faces. I hated to see my new family like this. "We'll all see each other again soon. The rest of us will be up in Denali before you know it." He moved to hug me, and then Edward tightly, then opened the door for us.

"We'll see you soon!" Alice chirped behind us. Then, the door was closed and we were alone. I snuck a look up at Edward. His eyes met mine.

"It'll be okay Bella, I promise. I'll keep you safe." He took my hand and we were taking off through the forest the next instant.