(Disclaimer: I am not S. Meyer, and I do not own Twilight.)

8.

And I will hold on hope
And I won't let you choke
On the noose around your neck

And I'll find strength in pain
And I will change my ways
I'll know my name as it's called again

…

Bella

…

The midday sun cast shadows over the desert brush as I followed Jasper through the desert toward the tunnels where Peter was being held. My mind ran through a constant replay of the time I'd been held there, tortured and terrorized – Maria's dark, laughing eyes; the pain of teeth dragging through my skin; and the awful vulnerability of imprisonment.

I felt sick with those memories and the anxiety of wondering if that's what was happening to Peter. A deep worry grew in me – I just couldn't imagine Peter ever losing a fight or ever giving in at all. I knew he wouldn't – he'd fight till his death. And that's what I was worried about.

I couldn't imagine it – didn't want to – but I remembered Peter's strength and resilience as he'd helped me through. My faith in him was strong.

I tried to have as much faith in Jasper's plan as I did in Peter. Granted, I'd seen Jasper's power and viciousness as he'd torn apart James in Phoenix and as he tried to take a bite out of me on my birthday.

But now, from the determination and (feeling of power) I felt projected in his wake, I suspected I hadn't yet seen what Jasper was truly capable of. Honestly, I was pretty intrigued by the notion of Jasper's true nature, after he gave up the civilized, humane veneer the Cullens adopted.

So far today, though, the ever-taciturn Jasper hadn't given me many details on his plan to bust Peter out. He'd asked me how much I knew about his gift, which wasn't much, and then explained just how much people were slaves to their emotions – every decision we make is based on our emotions, our gut feelings.

Jasper controlled emotions, and the right combination could make anyone do pretty much whatever he wanted. And, he'd said, besides that, most vampires were afraid of him on sight because of all his old battle scars.

I must have looked confused when he said this. "Weren't you afraid of me the first time you saw me as a vampire?" he'd asked.

"No." I said honestly, squinting at him through the glare of the sun. Looking at him now, though, out in the bright daylight, I tried to imagine how someone else would see him.

Flat, silvery scars littered his glimmering skin, concentrating most around his neck, and I imagined most of them continued down his arms and back. An intimidating sight, to be sure – these were marks of war, of experience, and my newborn instincts balked at the sight. I knew Jasper had a good heart, though. Even remembering how he attacked me on my nineteenth birthday, I didn't fear him now.

He must have sensed my trust in him, as he then leaked a little bit of gratitude before launching into an explanation of his plan for rescuing Peter. According to Alice, all the vampires in the area were fighting for control of Maria's old territory, and the attack on Peter had been to draw out Jasper, whose reputation in Maria's army made him the most powerful vampire in the area.

In my opinion, Jasper and I just walking in there would mean playing right into their hands. They'd obviously be waiting for us, and I really wasn't looking forward to a suicide mission. Jasper merely told me with a wry grin that he'd just have to show them who's boss.

His certainty momentarily calmed my riot of nerves, although the sickness in my stomach intensified as we neared the entrance to the tunnels. An unimpressive, dark hole in the ground, it barely stood out against the desert backdrop. I didn't remember being dragged in there the first time, after being attacked in my apartment by Maria, thank God.

As we descended into the tunnels, darkness slowly overcame us. The warm, damp air underground smelled like mildew and, well, kind of like death.

We followed a dirt path deeper into the tunnels, passing door after door, each hiding a dark room visible through rusty metal bars. In some, bodies hung from manacles on the walls, all dead humans. I could feel evil down here, coating the walls and creeping along the dark corners.

The further we walked, the more freaked out I got, until we came to an open room where a rocky path arched out over a pit. Ahead of me, Jasper walked slowly out on the path, and I followed behind him.

My nerves rose to a screaming pitch when I was tackled from behind and sent flying. I landed hard on the bottom of the pit.

Someone pulled me up by my shoulders, and around me stood a crowd of vampires. All were wild-looking types. Some Mexican, some white, all dirty, vicious-looking men. I didn't see Peter. Shit, I thought. This was not going well so far.

Another vampire came up next to me and grabbed me tightly by the arm, turning me around and pushing me back down to my knees roughly. I looked up, frightened, just in time to see Jasper leap down from the path up above. He landed bended on one knee, much more gracefully than I had, in the midst of the hostile crowd.

Unlike me, he didn't look nervous in the least. He straightened up, looking intimidating in the shadows cast by the torches flickering on the walls. He unbuttoned his flannel shirt and shrugged it off, exposing a white t-shirt underneath and even more scars marring his arms.

As Jasper flexed his arms and surveyed the vampires around the room, he projected out waves of fear, rage, and anguish, interspersed with pulses of intense shock, sending a few of the vampires to their knees in pain and confusion.

Jasper looked every bit like the warlord he must've been when he had run Maria's army.

From the group of maybe 15 vampires skulking around the pit, one muscular, dark-skinned vampire approached Jasper, strutting with exaggerated bravado. "I know who you are, and I don't think you're shit. This is my territory, pendejo."

Jasper didn't look impressed. "Fuck you." Then with a growl, he attacked.

As I watched Jasper fight, kneeling uncomfortably on the ground, I was struck by how well he fought – he must've had some serious experience. I winced as Jasper gave a last serious hit to the other vampire's jaw, sending him spinning around, down to his knees.

Jasper grasped his head from behind, then with a great wrench, twists it fully off. As the body fell, he pushed out a cocktail of fear, anguish, anxiety and shock, before tossing away the head and asking the surrounding circle of vampires, "Who's next?"

God, I almost wanted to clap.

Another fierce-looking vamp stepped up, and Jasper dispatched of him with savage efficiency, throwing him down face-first on the ground, grinding one knee into the other vampire's back before ripping one arm off with his teeth. Then he did the same to the other arm, then the neck, finally silencing the vampire's shouts of fear and begging for mercy.

Another stepped forward, and then another.

I thought the more Jasper got into the fighting, the more he let go and gave in to his inhuman, demon side, the more vicious he got. The fear and anger he projected seeped even into me, as hostility seeped throughout the room, working the room into a humid cloud.

Eventually, he's surrounded by more piles of body parts then upright vampires, and he turned to the two shaking vampires still holding me, pushing out a slap of emotional pain that caused the two to drop me and back away.

Jasper's eyes were dark when he looked down at me from amid the carnage with a nod, telling me it my turn. I turned and ran, heading for the path leading out of the pit, wanting to find Peter as soon as possible.

I rushed through the tunnels, past door after door, but all were empty. Peter could be anywhere. I had no idea where these tunnels led, where he would have been taken. As I grew more and more frantic, I forced myself to stop and stand still in the middle of the path.

I closed my eyes and concentrated on my surroundings – cataloging every sound, smell, taste on the air – but there was nothing.

I blew out a frustrated sigh, rolling my eyes and feeling inept, before attempting to concentrate again. This time, I calmed myself, slowing my breaths and reaching further inside. I thought of Peter, of the last time he'd smiled at me, and how I felt when I was around him and the strange, electric pull that always drew me toward him.

My instincts took over. I ran, faster than I'd ever imagined I would be able to, following the draw on my heart, like a compass pointing to true north. The distant banging became louder as I ran, turning corners, down the tortuous tunnels.

The sun broke through the earthen ceiling, illuminating a door up ahead, next to which a key hung from a nail on the wall. I felt like my heart should be pounding a mile a minute as I took the key. With a turn of the lock and a slight push, the door swung open.

In the shadows at the back of the room, Peter stood facing away from me, with his arms braced against the wall, shoulders tense. He turned quickly when I opened the door, his face a storm of emotions, and I saw, really saw, for the first time the array of scars marring his skin. To my vampire eyes, he looked vicious, masculine, and quite wild. His eyes were almost completely black from thirst, or maybe anger – only faint hints of red touched his irises.

But when his eyes locked on mine, a warm feeling bloomed in my heart, and a wave of tingling dizziness overcame me, starting in my chest and moving outwards, each nerve in my body flickering – but then Peter lost the desperate, unraveling look on his face as relief and wonderment took over.

"You're alive," he breathed.

I grinned with a giddy relief. "Yeah… sort of."

He stood frozen for a moment, still looking shocked, until he shook it off and strode forward and kissed me.

I reveled in the feel of his rough hands cradling my face, his soft lips on mine, and just his nearness. I reveled in the scent that was uniquely him – sandalwood, summer rain on dusty ground – which was so much richer, more complex to my new vampire senses, and I couldn't get enough. God, I'd missed him. I clutched at his waist, pulling him closer to me.

As he deepened the kiss, I pushed up on my tip-toes, wanting to get closer. Peter pushed back, maneuvering me a few steps back and pressing me against the wall. His hands wandered down my body – his touch left trails of tingles on my skin, and I hummed in delight. He smiled against my lips and with a low growl pressed his body fully against mine, fitting one knee in between my legs and pressing me against the wall.

I rested my hands against his strong chest, as he began to press wet, open-mouthed kisses down my jaw line, to my neck, and fisting a hand in my hair. With each kiss, a bolt of desire shot through me, a tangle of desire growing between my legs where he pressed against me.

In the background, my subconscious (the only part of my mind not wholly focused on Peter's amazing kiss) heard footsteps approaching, then a familiar laugh, and then the footsteps retreated. The dominant part of my mind ignored this and focused on Peter's rough, passionate kisses.

My hands wandered back up to his chest, brushing over the rough scars on his neck, and reaching up to clutch at his soft hair. I sighed out his name, enjoying the overwhelming sensation Peter's mouth on my neck, body pressing against mine, hands holding me securely against him.

I brought up my hands to cup his face, pulling his mouth back to mine. He gave me a deep, final kiss, before pulling away and resting his forehead briefly against mine, his eyes closed. After one quiet moment, he leaned back slightly, locking his eyes on mine. The look on his face was open and intense.

"You're really okay?"

"I'm really fine," I said reassuringly, rubbing a thumb across his cheekbone and over the new scars and bite marks he'd picked up. "Not so breakable anymore and a hell of a lot stronger."

He gave a relieved laugh, and finally seeing a smile on his face soothed my still jangled nerves. He kissed me once more, chastely, then looked around at the dank cell, his prison. "Want to get the fuck out of here?"

"Can we? I really hate this place." He laughed, and led the way back through the tunnels, his strong hand clasping mine firmly, past the disgusting pile of dismembered vampires ready to be burned, and out into the light.

…

A/N: Hope you all liked it! This would have been up days ago if FFN wasn't fucking up so bad. Anyway, let me know what you think! Reviews are like sunshine & rainbows to me. :-)