A/N: Twilight and its characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. All rights remain with her.

I hope this new chapter was worth the wait. It's a bit short (sorry) and long overdue (double sorry) but I wanted to publish this at least to get BBD moving again. I'm working fervently on Chapter 12 :) A big THANK YOU to DannoCH, who is my beloved beta reader. She has a fantastic DM/HG fic of her own going-so check it out if you're into HP fics.

Please leave a review and let me know if this story still has readers! Thanks and enjoy!

Chapter Eleven

Escape

Without even regarding Emily, I finished buttoning my clothes with maddeningly clumsy fingers while I slammed both feet into my untied boots. Then I broke out into a run towards the road.

Emily cried out a shocked "Where are you going?" and the sound of her running footsteps started behind me. She had no time to recover from her jog to Jacob's house and her exhaustion was apparent in her slow, lagging speed.

I can outrun her, I told myself. Emily would tire soon and I could make it to the border. I could stop the war before it started. All I had to do was run.

Except that my side cramped, a stabbing pain that was surely from exhaustion, lack of water, and loss of blood. But I kept pushing on, throwing my legs out in front of me and breathing roughly though my open mouth, not trusting my swollen nose.

"Stop!" Emily gasped. She was slowing. The dulling pain from my nose intensified into a full-blown headache that pounded between my ears. I needed to stop, to rest. But I couldn't, not when everyone I cared about was at risk only miles away.

Then I fell, tripping over my untied shoelaces and diving head first into the dirt. For a moment there was nothing but black darkness swooping over me and weight pressing against my chest, but then I felt two small hands cupped beside my face and blinding sunlight burst through as Emily shook me awake.

She was straddled over me with each knee against my side and sitting directly on my chest.

"Get off!" I bucked beneath her. There was another wild look of shock on her face as she toppled over me. Every inch of my body felt heavy and sluggish but I forced myself back up just as Emily collided with me again, wrapping her arms around my waist and tackling me to the ground.

I had a brief thought of Emmett and how much he would have enjoyed watching Emily and me roll around in the dirt. But he was no longer upholding his vigilance …he was out there risking his life for a war born from spite.

"What are you doing?" I screamed and shoved hard against her.

"Saving your life!" Emily yelled back at me, a look of incredulity on her face as I continued to fight with flailing arms.

"Well, stop!" I pushed hard into Emily's chest while attempting to gain ground with my feet. "Let go of me! I need to get to the border."

She fought to capture my arms in her hands and finally won, steadying my waving arms by pinning them to the ground.

"You won't even make it that far," she said, her voice catching on her gasping breath.

That stopped me. Bracingly, I looked back up at her and let my body fall limp.

"What do you mean?"

She sighed, hanging her head over me so that her hair fell in front of my face.

"This is the wrong time for a war. We need protection. You need protection. Now they're all gone and destroying an alliance when they need to be on guard. And…he stuck me with you."

It was clear that Emily was not speaking to me, but to herself. Something wet dripped onto my cheek and ran down my face.

"Emily?" I asked.

She shook her head, taking one arm away from me to dab her eye.

"Jacob thinks he's keeping you safe here, but leaving you unprotected was just stupid. You want to run to the border? You'll be killed in minutes. I'm surprised the two of us are even still alive. That means he doesn't know yet."

"I don't understand," I said, keeping my voice calm now to balance Emily's unease, "Who are you talking about?"

"The dark one." Emily said and tepidly slid off of me, keeping her hands on my arms but kneeling herself beside my head. "Come on, we should get inside."

She hoisted me back up by the sweater, her eye now watching the trees behind me that Jacob had escaped to. The other eye, the still one, stared blankly forward. Her words repeated in my head. The dark one. The dark one. I had heard it before…but where?

Sam. It was the first question out of his mouth when he came upon Jacob outside the house what now felt like hours ago. 'Was it the dark one?' I had been too wrapped up in the fight and Jacob's phase to catch it. What had Sam meant by that?

I scrunched my temples with my fingers. Think, Bella. What did Jacob tell Sam about the dark one?

He had said that the Cullens were the reason to defend the border, not the dark one. But why? What was this dark one? Why were they so concerned about it? Why….

My heart dropped when the answer came. You know why.

"The dark one," I started and Emily's shoulders stiffened at my voice, "is another vampire, isn't it?"

I watched her for any sign that I was wrong, praying that I was, and that Emily would just turn around laugh at my idea. But she didn't. When her gaze found it's way back to me she only nodded. Her good eye now locked on mine.

"Yes, he is. Bella, please, this is very important. Do you know him? Is he a friend of the Cullens? Do you know why he is here?"

She spoke steadily but the growing hope in her voice was clear. She thought I had answers. For some crazed reason she thought I would know anything about this dark one. She was wrong.

"No" I shook my head, "I only heard Sam ask Jacob about the dark one when we first came to the reservation. He asked if it was the dark one….but it wasn't; it was Edward we were running from."

I licked my lips anxiously, aware that our surrounding had become increasingly quiet. Just as the woods surrounding my school had been this morning. No birds, no movement, no sound. My heart's beat was starting to rise. The school woods had been hiding Emmett. What were these woods hiding now?

I pulled my attention back to Emily, who was still watching me. "Why do you call him the dark one?"

"Because he looks like us," she said, "Dark hair, dark skin—not white and sparkling. Dark eyes. Brown eyes. Not red or golden like the Cullens. Everything about him is dark. He's like a Cold One we have never known before."

"Brown eyes? Emily that's not possible. Are you sure he's a vampire?"

"Yes," she stressed, "We are sure. The pack confirmed that he carries the scent of a Cold One. He moves like one when they've chased him through the woods and…and he kills like one."

The word kill struck me hard like a kick to the stomach. My heart seemed to drop several feet in my body. Not only was there another vampire near Forks, but it was also killing. Instantly I thought of Charlie and how terribly vulnerable he seemed out there patrolling for damn super-bears in the open woods with nothing but his rifle to protect him.

Then it hit me… and I shook my head as if I could erase the realization and reality in front of me by doing so.

"The dark one is killing all those people?" I asked soberly, "And everyone thinks it's the super-bear."

Emily nodded.

"And," I breathed, again not wanting it to be true, "And Jacob's pack has been trying to catch him?"

She nodded again and the good side of her face squinted into the sun.

So, Jacob had told me the truth. Of course he had. He could never kill someone like the brutal attacks on these people, even in his wolf-form. His heart was too good for that.

'I do what I need to do to protect my tribe. And you.' Jacob's words echoed. 'Always you.'

I turned away from Emily and ran my hands over my face, which suddenly felt very cold despite the warm air. I had been so stupid, believing in a super-bear and using Jacob again and again when all he wanted was to protect me.

"No," I moaned, "Nooo. Oh, Jacob."

The woods ahead of us were still so quiet. I wanted to scream just to break their silence.

"Tell me what you know, Bella. You do know something, right? You run with vampires. You would know if this is some friend of the Cullens or an enemy that's come looking for them." She said this as a statement not a question. And I was sure she was already convinced of it, regardless whether I confirmed it for her or not.

"I don't exactly run with vampires," I said softly. That was another life of mine. Now I ran solo. "But I know this dark one is not with the Cullens. Especially if he's been attacking innocent people." Edward's speech about hunting Victoria proved that if he knew about a vampire's murders so close to Forks, he would have been here to stop them with his own hands.

"An enemy then? Someone that would go looking for the Cullens… find them gone…and then…." She trailed off.

"Then what?" I asked.

"Look," she said quietly, her voice a whisper. "Sam and Jacob believe that the dark one's after something but they can't figure out what it is. The dark one has killed around us five times but still hasn't moved on. He dodges the pack when they track him. He sets traps. The murders…he uses them as a set-up to make it look like it was an animal attack. He wants people to think it's the super-bear so they'll hunt the boys and shoot them…thinking they've just taken down that God damn bear. Once the protection is gone…the dark one can claim what he's really here for."

She paused, raising her eyebrows to me in an expectant way.

"And you know what that is?" I asked. A chill ran up my spine and I turned back to Emily. Her face looked very pale and blank, her eyes glassy.

"Yes," she breathed. "I have a theory. Jacob and Sam refuse to listen to me. But, Bella don't you see it? Avoiding Forks so he's not leading the pack straight to it? Trying to get them killed? There's only one thing around here that would interest a Cold One now that the Cullens are gone….you."

I surprised myself. Surely, fear would have been the appropriate emotion to take over me. Another vampire murdering innocent people just to get to me? But it wasn't. It was anger…and it charged through me like a storm.

"Are you serious?" I spat.

Emily's face looked shocked.

"Two people I love are trying to rip each other's throats out and you've got me here on some ridiculous notion that I can give you information on some renegade vampire that's out to get me! This is nothing but a waste of time!"

"It's not," Emily gritted her teeth, frustrated, "Bella listen to me."

"No!" I cried, and pushed Emily's reaching hands away from me. "I have nothing to do with this dark one! I didn't even know he existed until two seconds ago. But I know he is not after me. The only vampire that has ever tried to hunt me is dead. And so is his mate. You're just trying to scare me into staying here and obeying Jacob's orders. No one is after me. I need to go, excuse me." I pushed past her but she caught my sleeve in her hand.

"Jacob took Embry and Paul this morning to track a vampire scent they picked up at your house. It was his scent."

I rolled my eyes.

"That wasn't the dark one they were tracing!" I groaned, "They must have picked up Edward's scent. He was at my house last night. They followed it all the way to the meadow from there, I guess."

I went to turn but Jacob's voice filled my head for a second time. "I tried to stay away, but I found you." It must have been quite the surprise for him, thinking he was hunting another vampire for my benefit and then coming upon Edward and me together in the meadow. Another pang of guilt. Another way that I had come to hurt Jacob.

"I see," Emily said, and I realized what she was probably thinking of me in that moment. Edward at my house last night, Jacob and me in the grass in the nude. I wasn't proud of it myself but I had enough of Emily's opinions for the day.

"Look," I said, "I appreciate the concern. Maybe this dark one really is out there, but he hasn't killed in Forks. He's not after me."

"He's not killing in Forks because he's after you. Bella, just think this through. He doesn't want the pack to know what he's after. So he kills in a perimeter around you. Use your head!"

"That's exactly what I'm doing. I'm getting the hell out of here so I can stop anyone else from dying. You can stay here or come with me but I'm leaving."

It was if I hadn't spoken.

"He is after you, I know it," Emily muttered, not really to me but to herself, "And now that the pack and the Cullens are distracted with the fight, he's going to try to get you."

"Emily…you're being irrational. Look around; do you see him? Jacob wouldn't leave me if he thought I was in danger."

"Jacob doesn't know this is all because of you!" she screamed, "He's blind when it comes to you. Don't you know that? Look at him now—risking his life and those of his brothers just to keep you away from the Cullens."

"That's why I want to leave! To save his life!"

"And throw away your own?"

"If that's what it takes!" I screamed, knowing it was the truth.

Emily cried out, throwing her hands up in the air and then cupping them to her face. She was crying again, but it was different than before. This was guttural sobs from within and when she spoke again her voice cracked from the hysteria.

"Sometimes it's worse!" she bawled, "Sometimes you don't die; you get hurt so badly that you feel like you did. And you have to see the guilt in his eyes every day because he didn't protect you. Sometimes it's worse. Sam did this to me, not some stupid bear like we've been saying. We were too close… trying to….and he…he phased. I was stupid, thinking I could be that close to him when he was so new. And I wear the scars everyday but what hurts the most is seeing Sam suffer the guilt. It is crushing. If something happens to you—how will Jacob feel? Huh, Bella? Tell me that."

"Stop," I snapped, attempting Jacob's authoritative voice and getting nowhere. Emily only started tugging ferociously at me, "Stop trying to talk me out of it."

"For your own good!" She said and pulled me toward Jacob's red house. Emily was older than me, stronger. Her nails dug into the skin of my wrist in sharp biting crescents as she dragged me across the dead grass.

Again, I thought of Charlie. But this was long ago. Years back before paranormal beings were ever a part of my existence. I was just a kid, playing with Jacob's sister Rachel on my summers off. Charlie had been there, watching us, and when one of the reservation boys had gotten too rough with me, Charlie had taken me aside and instructed me on how to throw a punch. I could hear his words now, clear as crystal in my head as Emily reached the porch steps.

Now what you want to do Bells, is get a strong foothold on the ground. Your feet should be planted apart, but stable, with your back leg supporting most of your weight.

Emily pulled frantically to get me up the stairs and I stumbled into her arms, seizing her shirt to keep me from falling to the ground.

Then you curl your fist, make sure to tuck the thumb or you'll break it.

My fingers sprawled across Emily's torso, clambering to bring myself upright again.

You push off with your back leg to get the weight, swivel the torso and extend the arm. That's all there is to it. Now if that boy or anyone gives you a problem—makes you do something you don't want to do—you tuck your thumb and swing like hell.

Emily took the last step to the house as I wildly tried to gain footing. I felt my feet plant themselves to the earth and I leaned into my right leg to support me. My hand curled tightly around my thumb just as I threw it out in front of me, my fist colliding with Emily's face.

She screamed, her hand releasing me and flying to her cheek as I pulled back. She skidded over the step and went tumbling down the stairs before rolling heavily onto the ground.

"You hit me," she moaned, clutching her face in her hand, "You actually fucking hit me."

I stood frozen at the top of the stairs. Pain exploded into my fist, tingling and numbing my arm straight through the shoulder. I hadn't realized how hard I had hit her. Bluish swells were already starting to bloom on her cheek.

I looked down at her on the brown grass. The view was different from here on the porch. Higher. Taller.

"You tried to stop me," I said and jumped the stairs, my boots smacking into the dirt as I landed.

Emily cried out again but I left her behind. I had only one goal and getting there as soon as possible was key. My hand throbbed as I ran and I cradled it against my chest. My eyes were locked on the tiny shed across the lawn and I sprinted faster.

Come on. Be there. Just be there, I pleaded.

The door to the shed was open and I burst through it. And there it was…as if it had been waiting for me all along.

My bike. The shiny red motorcycle Jacob had constructed for me out of scrap metal was leaning on its kick stand in the center of the shed. Its twin, Jacob's black one, was long gone. It belonged to Quil now. But here my bike remained, looking new and powerful. By the look of it, Jacob had kept his word—he never rode again after my fall. The bike had obviously still been cared for, though, as a worn rag lay on the ground beside a can of wax polish and a half empty bottle of Gatorade. Jake was still keeping the bike in pristine condition.

I dove for the Gatorade, overwhelming thirst taking precedent over getting the hell out of there. I unscrewed the lid, ignoring the fact that the drink had a tainted stench of polish and oil. How long had it been sitting in here? It didn't matter. I poured it down my throat and it tasted divine.

When the bottle was completely drained, and my throat eased in gratitude, I tossed it to the side. Emily's voice was still crying out but seemed closer now. Was she still coming for me?

I didn't even give myself time to think. Jacob's keys were splayed on the work bench against the wall and I went right for them, jamming the shortest key into the ignition and throwing my leg over the seat.

Sorry Charlie, I thought. Didn't I swear to never ride this thing? He could add it to the list of promises I had broken today.

The engine came to life and that familiar purr rumbled beneath me. It would be just like riding with Jake, I told myself. Except that I was driving. And I needed to hold on this time.

"What's that noise? Bella?" Emily's voice called. I pushed her out of my thoughts.

Think, Bella. How the hell do you drive this thing?

My memory strained as I tried to recall Jacob during one of our afternoons in this very shed. He had been cleaning some metal part of the bike with an oily towel and thought it would be a good idea to quiz me on parts of the motorcycle.

'Clutch?' He had said. And I had grinned, pointing to the spot on the bike where I knew the clutch to be.

"Clutch." I said aloud, yanking on the same piece.

'Gas?'

"Gas." I twisted my hand and the engine growled.

'This one's important. Brakes?'

Yes, that one was very important. I grasped the brake bar with my left hand.

"Brakes."

I did another mental check of the motorcycle's key points and then leaned into the bike to lift it off the side stand, then kicked it up with my foot.

"Edward give me strength," I whispered to myself and placed my feet on the pedals as the bike took off.

Miraculously, I managed to remain atop as the bike belted out of the tiny shed and bypassed Emily, who was only feet from the door, her right cheek swollen and red. Then she was gone; I twisted my head around to see her become a lone dot in the horizon behind me. The bike hit the pavement of the road to the border and I was grateful for making it this far.

My hair was whipping about…going everywhere. Getting in my face and in my eyes. I cursed myself for not knotting it behind me.

The La Push landscape blurred past me as I rode, trees flew by and passing cars honked. My hands shook in their death grip on the handle bars as I watched the speedometer pass 70. It felt like lightning. A speed matched by my heart which was going wild in my chest.

Fix this. You can fix this. Just get to the border and find them.

If I find Edward first, I decided, I get him and Emmett the hell off Quileute land. He'll see that I'm fine and maybe the treaty can still remain intact.

And Jacob. What if I find him first? Then I tell him, I thought. I tell him I'm sorry. Never got around to saying it to the one person who needed to hear it. And I'd tell him I was stupid. So fucking naïve. Stopping one fight to start another. Making love to Jake when I knew…when I knew I wanted Edward.

I'd tell them both, I conceded. They both need to hear it.

The feeling that something was behind me crept steadily up my back, raising the hairs on my neck and sending tingling sensation through my chest. I clutched the gas a little firmer and felt the bike pick up momentum as I pushed to 80mph. The feeling did not subside. It only crawled, silent and stealthy, around me.

I stole a quick glance behind me and saw nothing but quiet road left in my wake. There was nothing, but the feeling remained. Something was following me and didn't want to be seen.

There was a bend in the road ahead, and I braced the bike to take it smoothly. To my right there was nothing but clear valley that I knew to lead to First Beach. Staying on the road was my quickest route to the border and meant I'd have to stay in plain view of whatever was stalking me.

I pulled my handles to the left, preparing to take the bend but in an instant there was a blur of black in front of me—like streaking smoke. I swerved right to avoid it, nearly toppling over in my sudden change of direction. The bike jumbled from pavement to dirt as it veered off road. Then the blur was gone.

What the hell was that? I thought, and slowed my bike to get back onto the road.

The thing that's following you. You know that. You know exactly what it is.

"No," I whispered and steered the bike around but the blur reappeared, swooshing past me and blocking the road in front of me. I turned right again to avoid hitting the darkness and it vanished once more.

It was clear that this black blur of a thing was not just following me. It was herding, keeping me off the path to the border and leading me to where it wanted to go. I hit the gas hard and the bike responded with a deafening roar as my hair flew behind me from the speed.

Alright, I thought. Let's see where you're taking me.

I drove on, never losing the prickling sensation that the black blur was behind me. My mind didn't really think of the blur as an it by the time I came upon our destination and brought the motorcycle to a halt. I knew in every bone that this was a him.

I hopped off the bike, jumping from it in time to see it crash to the ground. It would be impossible for me to lift it now and ride away. Not that I would get far.

"We meet again, pet."

The voice was smooth with the slightest French lilt. I knew that voice. Oh God, I knew that voice.

Salty air swept past me, cool and chilling on my hot skin. We were at the First Beach cliff, the highest point of the reservation. Below us, crashing waves of the ocean. He had led me here knowing I would have no way to escape. Which meant that Emily had been right.

I turned to face the voice and inevitably my own death.

"So, Laurent," I said, "You're the dark one."

A/N: Excuse any ignorance on motorcycle parts. I neither own nor ride one but I'm pretty sure they have these pieces. ;)