For the briefest of moments, Bella considered pleading to Laurent to change her rather than kill her. As much as she had wanted that just a few short months ago, just so she could spend an eternity with Edward, she knew that she wouldn't be able to handle living apart from Jacob's warmth for the rest of her existence. If they'd one day be reunited in death, so be it.

With her eyes tightly closed, Bella sucked in a breath, hoping for it to all be over quickly. What she wasn't anticipating was a cold breeze whipping past her body just as she was shoved back through the air. Bella gasped, the wind being knocked out of her as she landed hard on her back, on the grass. It took her few seconds to realize that 1, she was alive and 2, she was laying on her back lawn and that Laurent was gone.

The music from inside the house continued to play as Bella pushed herself up on her elbows, her fearful and confused eyes darting around in confusion.

What the hell just happened?

As though appearing from thin air, a hand was suddenly extended towards her, startling her.

Bella's eyes looked from the hand and then up at the face; a face that she once regarded as the most beautiful view she had ever seen. But now it incited resentment and anger within her.

Amber eyes met her brown ones as he smiled down at her.

Edward.

"Don't worry. He's gone," he assured her, looking out at the trees where Laurent had disappeared. "Alice has gone after him."

Still, Bella hesitated for another few seconds before finally taking his cold hand, flinching slightly at the touch.

As Edward pulled her to her feet, he saw her reaction to his touch and quickly scanned her body to ensure that she was okay. He watched as she rubbed her hands together and took a step away from him.

"Are you hurt? Let me help you."

Bella stared at him, hearing that velvet voice once again that she was promised she'd never hear for the rest of her life. She couldn't believe that he was here, after everything he had promised about her never seeing him again. For that reason and many more, Bella just couldn't bring herself to trust his word; not anymore. As enticing as it was to hear him, to be near him...to smell him, all she wanted to do was run to La Push and beg Sam to tell her where Jacob was. If anything, seeing Edward and being nearly killed by a vampire confirmed something within her; she loved Jacob and couldn't live her life without him.

With that revelation in mind, Bella took another step back from him as he went to move closer to ensure she was all right.

"Stay the hell away from me."

"Bella, love," he said, worry etched on his beautiful face as he held out his hand towards her. "It's okay. You're safe. I would never hurt you."

She couldn't help but scoff at the irony of his words.

Within a blink of an eye, Alice suddenly appeared at Edward's side. Bella was shocked that Alice stuck around even after she threw her out of her house a few days prior. While she had been upset with the pixie for being so persistent in convincing her to stay away from Jacob, she was glad that Alice had stuck around. There was no doubt in her mind that she would be dead if she hadn't.

"Laurent is gone."

"Gone?"

Alice nodded. "I lost his trail a few kilometres east of here. I was going to track him but I wanted to know if Bella was all right."

As both eyes looked to Bella, she felt the colour drain from her face with the meaning behind Alice's words. Laurent was still out there and was no doubt going back to report to Victoria that the Cullen's had left her unprotected. Victoria would be coming.

Bella suddenly became light headed as her stomach lurched.

"Bella?"

As Edward was about to put his hand on her shoulder, Bella suddenly turned and ran for the bushes beside the house before she puked. A wave of nausea overwhelmed her with the thought that Victoria would be coming for her. And no one around her would be safe; Charlie. He would ultimately be a casualty of her past stupidity. And then there was Jacob - he couldn't know the truth and he, like Charlie would be defenceless. Unfortunately, the law enforcement would be useless against a vampire. Nothing would stand in Victoria's way.

"Bella, love?" Edward spoke gently, his cool hand resting on her back as she leaned over, her hands on her knees. "I think it would be best if Alice and I get you out of here. I'll call the rest of the family and let them know that Victoria has made her move. They'll start searching for her while we get you into hiding."

Alice nodded in agreement "With all of us searching, it shouldn't take too long to track her down." She paused and looked at Bella sympathetically, as she had yet to respond. "I can pack your bags, if you'd like."

Finally Bella sighed and shook her head. She couldn't do this to her Dad. He had stayed by her side for months while she had endured nightmares each ight and behaved catatonically by day. Despite everything that the pair had gone through, she came to realize how much Charlie really cared for her and how much she had come to love him for everything he had done for her.

"There has to be another way. I can't just leave Forks. I can't do that to my Dad again."

Alice looked to Edward in concern before he spoke.

"Love, it isn't safe here for you. I can keep you safe."

Angry tears filled Bella's eyes as she thought of Charlie, of Jacob. She was frustrated that while her concern was on her father, Edward didn't even acknowledge that fact. She pushed herself up to stand upright.

"There are...people here...Charlie. I can't, I wont just take off on him. And I have close friends, people who I care about...that I love who are here."

"It's Jacob, isn't it?"

Bella paused and looked to Alice.

"Yeah, Alice told me," Edward said, answering her silent question.

"Listen Bella, Victoria will kill anyone who is close to you in order to get to you; Charlie...even Jacob. She'll kill them without a second thought. By leaving, you are protecting them. Victoria wont come here. She'll be searching for you and ignore them. It should only be a week or so and then you'll be able to come home."

Bella swallowed, thinking about what Edward had told her. He was right as much as she hated to admit it. She could protect them this way.

"Can you promise me that they'll be safe?" She asked, looking fiercely at Alice. If she was going to leave, she needed that assurance. "Can you see their futures? I need to know that they'll be safe if I leave."

Alice paused for a moment, looking as though she were getting a vision and then she nodded. Surprised, Edward looked into Alice's mind, seeing that while she could only verify that Charlie's future existed, Jacob's, like Bella's, had completely disappeared. But neither Alice or Edward were about to tell Bella that it could mean that he wasn't going to live for much longer, not when they were so close to getting Bella to leave Forks willingly.

Everything was going according to plan.

Bella sighed.

"Fine," she said solemnly, wiping a few betraying tears. "Just give me a few minutes."

"I can help pack," Alice said, hopefully.

"No," Bella retorted sharply. "I'll do it myself."

While a part of her was regretting being so short tempered with Alice, because after all, she did save her life, Bella was frustrated that she was once again entangled within a life that she thought she had left behind when the Cullen's left. Bella had finally moved on and was happy with her life. She had so many plans; to search out Jacob and remind him of what he had told her about Sam's gang and get him out of it, to stage an intervention if she needed to and be there for him.

As she walked into her bedroom, all those plans seemed to go down the toilet.

Bella grabbed a duffle bag and began shoving clothing into it. She wasn't entirely certain what she was grabbing. Every so often, she'd wipe away at the bitter tears that fell down her face. But she paused when she saw the framed picture of herself and Jacob as children, sitting on the beach and covered in sand, Jacob's Mom and both their fathers standing in the background with beers in hand. The small dream catcher that Jacob had given her hung over one corner of the frame. A small smile graced her face as she reached out and picked them both up. Bella ran her fingers lightly over the intricate beads along the thin weaved fibres of the dream catcher as she looked at Jacob's smiling face in the photo. He had to be no more than eight years old, the summer before Sarah Black passed away.

Gently, she placed both the frame and the dream catcher between her shirts in her bag to keep them safe before she grabbed a piece of paper off of her desk.

With her eyes clouded with tears, she quickly scribbled a note.

- Dad,

Some old friends stopped by and I'm taking a quick road trip with them into the mountains. I'll be back within a week. I'll call when i get a chance. Could you pass along my note to Jake for me? Thanks

Supper is in the fridge.

Love you!

- Bella

She grabbed a second piece of paper and wrote another similar note.

-Jake,

I'm sorry for taking off like this. But some old friends stopped by and I went for a quick road trip with them. Be back soon. I'll call you in a few days. Please pick up this time. I need to hear your voice.

I love you so much

- Your Bells

Both were short and to the point without saying too much about the situation she was thrown into. She folded them up, grabbed her bag and rushed down the stairs.

"Ready to go?" Alice asked, hopeful.

Bella nodded, holding up the notes in her hand.

"Just have to leave these for Dad and Jake," she said, tacking them to the cork board. "I don't want them worrying about me."

Alice pursed her lips while Edward approached Bella. He reached out to take the duffle bag in her hand. Instead, Bella held it back from him, insisting that she can carry it herself. Edward met Alice's gaze before she turned to Bella.

"You're going to need your passport."

"What? We're leaving the country?!"

This wasn't what Bella had in mind when she thought of leaving Forks.

"Our path will take us through Canada." Edward paused. "It's for your safety."

Bella harrumphed, passing her bag to Edward before turning to head back up the steps.

"She's changed," Edward commented softly, listening as Bella made her way upstairs.

"I told you," Alice said, moving quickly to where the notes that Bella had tacked up on the cork board. "I'm certain her association with Jacob Black has been causing her erratic and hostile behaviour. It shouldn't take long to get her back to normal after a few days in our company. She'll remember just how much she was in love with you."

"You're only giving us a week," he said, certainly not feeling as optimistic as Alice. "That's not a lot of time."

"It'll be enough. I can guarantee that she wont want to return to her...mutt."

"She doesn't know about him," Edward stated.

"No," Alice said. "And it's best that we keep it that way."

With the speed that only Edward could follow, he watched as Alice swapped out the note that Bella had left for Jacob and replaced it with one of her own.

"Alice?"

She smiled sweetly, pocketing the note Bella wrote. "Just covering our tracks just a little bit better. We don't want that dog following us."

The thumping of Bella's footsteps coming down the stairs caused Alice to go back to where she had been standing prior. Bella appeared with her purse and proclaimed that she was ready to go.

With a nod from Edward, Alice walked out the front door, while Bella and Edward followed.

"I'm hoping that I'm doing the right thing," Bella said, turning to lock the door. "I really hate leaving Charlie like this."

"We'll keep you safe," Edward reminded her, leaning protectively over Bella as she turned the key.

"We have to go now!" Alice called out, from the front passenger seat of Carlisle's Mercedes.

Without saying a word, Bella went to the back door and climbed in. She looked back at her house as Edward started up the engine and drove away, the only thing keeping her in the seat was reminding herself that it was only for a week.

Jacob ran through the forest, his mind focused solely on Bella. Images of her face, her smile, her laughter and the feeling of her hand on his skin were brought to mind. Despite the fact that he knew the rest of the phased wolves wouldn't appreciate his sudden onslaught of thoughts on Bella, Embry was happy. Jacob could sense Embry's elation to realize that Jacob was finally in a good mood for once. It wasn't a secret that Embry had missed his friend's contagious good nature. Even Jared seemed relieved to no longer have to endure hearing Jacob sulk in his head.

'Dude, I getcha,' Jared thought, sharing an image of himself holding hands with Kim. 'I'd be livid if Sam kept me from seeing Kim. But you gotta know he was doing it to protect you.'

Jacob rolled his eyes at the thought. As much as he had despised Sam before and then for a period after he had phased, he had to admit that he was a pretty decent guy. Sam had certainly helped him phase back and had given him a lot of support in dealing with his anger. As much as he hated the guy sometimes, Jacob considered him to a friend; even a brother now that they had this wolf thing in common.

'But you still can't go near her,' Embry reminded him. 'Sam has you staying in the woods.'

Jacob relayed his ideas of how he'd slink near the edge of the forest, close enough to possibly see her through the windows as she moved about. He even mused about the possibility of catching her scent in the air.

Embry chuckled in his mind.

'You're so whipped! Are you sure you haven't imprinted?!'

Just as the thought passed by, it was suddenly replaced with an urgency from Jared. It was so loud that he practically screamed it into their minds.

Leech on our land

Jacob turned from where he was running and headed in Jared's direction, seeing the vampire in his minds-eye. A olive skinned man with long black dreads on his head.

'Is it a Cullen?'

'Who the hell cares?! It's on our land. Kill it!'

Embry paused in his chase towards Jared and put his nose to the sky, howling loudly to alert Sam and Paul. A second later, he took off once again, seeing Jacob race up beside him. Seeing them coming at him from the side, Laurent shifted direction, heading towards the ocean.

'He's going to try to get away!' Jared shouted in their minds just as Paul and Sam both phased in.

Seeing in the others' mind where it was heading, Paul and Sam took off in that direction, determined to block its escape. If it was on their land, it wasn't going to leave alive.

Sensing that it was at an impasse, Laurent suddenly came to a stop and took a defensive position, glancing ahead and behind him to find that he was surrounded. He was determined to not go without a fight. Jumping out of the way as Jared darted at him, he landed on the ground just as Embry grabbed ahold of his leg from behind, dragging him towards Sam and Paul.

Laurent screamed.

With the flick of Embry's neck, he tossed it towards the pair, Sam biting it by the head while Paul took the torso, ripping it apart.

'And that's how it's done, boys,' Paul joked through their minds, spitting the Laurent's body onto the ground.

Sam rolled his eyes as he quickly phased back onto two legs, pulling a lighter from the bundle wrapped around his ankle.

"Make yourself useful and double back to see where this son of a bitch came from," Sam said to Paul. "I don't think it's a Cullen but we need to be sure."

Paul snickered before he took off running through the woods. Sam gestured to the others to phase back and help him gather the pieces with their hands. Despite it taking longer, it ensured that every piece of the vampire was collected off the forest floor. Sam flicked the lighter and tossed it into the growing pile, the pieces instantly set ablaze.

"I don't recall hearing about any of the Cullen's having dreads," Jared commented with a wince, dropping Laurent's head into the burning pile. He looked over at Jacob. "I'm sure Bella would know."

"Shut up," Jacob growled.

Jared put up his hands, meaning no offence to the comment.

"Man, I'm just saying, if we asked her, she'd know if this was a Cullen."

"We can't ask her, and you know why," Sam stated. "Now, let's drop this topic."

A sudden thunderous pounding of Paul's wolf quickly heading their way caught all of their attention. Sam looked towards the woods where he had ran and seemed to be returning from.

"Something is wrong."

Paul burst into the clearing where they stood, his wolf panting and growling before the air around him shimmered, leaving Paul on two feet. He was talking the moment his vocal cords allowed him.

"It came from the Swan's place," he gasped, fear in his eyes as he looked directly to Jacob. "But I couldn't see either Bella or Charlie."

Sam's attention was instantly on Jacob, seeing the colour drain from the young man's face. Before he could say a word, Jacob was sprinting into the woods, phasing as he moved. With a quick and worried nod, Sam and the others followed.

Images of a bleeding and dying Bella raced through Jacob's mind as he ran through the woods, darting around trees and jumping over brush. He could almost hear her screams as he envisioned her being mauled to death by the vampire they had just destroyed.

'Jake, we don't know if that's true!' Sam shouted. 'You need to focus.'

Jacob ignored him, slowing down as he approached the treeline behind her house. He phased, ignoring his nudity as he raced up to the property. Suddenly, he came to a instant halt. Sam's Alpha order that told him to stay to the forest around Bella's house held him firmly in place from going any further. With his hands clenched at his sides, Jacob panted and growled, his chest heaving as both fear and anger flowed through him as his body threatened to phase back onto all fours. The other wolves came to a stop beside him, their noses sniffing the air as the area was permeated with the scent of vampires.

"Sam, you can't hold me here!" Jacob exclaimed quietly up at the black wolf standing to his side. "Drop the order! Please."

Sam's wolf looked out at the house, seeing that it was quiet and that the only vehicle in the driveway was Bella's truck. He looked to Embry and Jared before the air around himself and Paul shimmered, leaving them standing beside Jacob at eye level.

"You've got point," Sam told him, as Jacob could feel the Alpha order no longer holding him back. "Paul and I have your back."

Jacob didn't need to be told again. He ran to the back porch, with Paul and Sam at his heels while Embry and Jared took off running through the woods to do a quick perimeter check around the property. All of them were praying that if something horrible had happened to either Bella or Charlie, that Jacob wouldn't be the one to discover it.

Stepping up onto the back porch, Jacob paused, sniffing the air and lightly touching the door. His heart was beating in his chest as his hands trembled turning the door knob to find that it was locked.

"There was more than one here," Sam commented, breathing deeply, keeping his anger in check while looking at the windows around them, anticipating a sneak attack. "The one we killed and for sure two more leeches."

Quickly, Jacob reached above the door trim and found a spare key that he knew Charlie always left for emergencies. He opened the door and nearly took a step back at the overwhelming pungeant stink that wafted through the house.

"Holy shit. That's nasty," Paul cursed, wrinkling his nose as he covered his mouth to stiffle a gag. He was determined to not throw up in front of Jacob or Sam.

Jacob took a step into the house, ignoring the urge to phase given the recent presence of a vampire inside. Slowly, he moved down the hallway, listening. The kitchen was empty as was the living room. Pausing, he looked up the stairs and with a silent nod towards Paul, the pair slowly made their way into the bedrooms. Both were empty but it was Bella's room that caused him to pause. Her drawers were partially open as was the closet.

A part of him was relieved to know that she wasn't there, but at the same time, he was still worried about where she could possibly be. Could she be hurt? Lost?

Paul put his hand on Jacob's shoulder, the first brotherly gesture he had ever gotten from him. As much as Paul teased and made Jacob's life a living hell, he really did care about him. They were in this freaky life together, whether either of them liked it or not and it was nice to have someone who could relate to the strange things that went on in their lives.

"She's around here somewhere," Paul encouraged. "We'll find her."

Sam ran up the stairs and came up behind them.

"Hey guys, we need to extend the perimeter into Forks," Sam said.

Jacob didn't move. He just stared at the bedroom.

"Sure, we'll be right down," Paul said, answering for Jacob.

Again, Paul clapped Jacob on the shoulder.

"Come on, man," he said. "Let's go. We'll find her."

Reluctantly, Jacob closed her door and followed Paul out of the house.

Edward looked in the rear view mirror to check on Bella just as they left Seattle city limits, heading east towards Spokane, Washington. He didn't know if she had fallen asleep or if she was simply not speaking. But based on how she was leaning against the window, he guessed that she was sleeping.

In the time that they had left Forks, Bella hadn't spoken much to start with. She would only speak when either Alice or Edward would ask her something and even then, it was usually just a one word answer. Edward knew that Bella was naturally quiet, but her silence worried him.

"Bella's fallen asleep," Edward told Alice beside him. She was looking down at her cell phone, frustration evident on her face.

"Have you had any luck?"

She shook her head.

"Laurent was supposed to call us hours ago after he got out of Washington. Irina hasn't heard from him either. She's worried."

"You did tell him to avoid La Push."

"Of course I did," Alice said, slightly insulted that she would neglect to tell Laurent to avoid certain area of land after he was kind enough to help them.

"Then, perhaps he's just delayed," Edward suggested as he looked out at the dark interstate ahead of them. "I would like to offer my thanks for his assistance."

A small smirk appeared on Alice's face.

"I told Laurent to scare her, not freak her out to the point that she threw up. Bringing up Victoria was genious though. He really hit it out of the ballpark with that little bit."

When Edward didn't concur, Alice looked over at him, concerned.

"What is it? Something bothering you?"

"I read his mind while he spoke with Bella. It was hard to tell that he was deceiving her. Laurent is either a very good lier or he really has been in contact recently with Victoria. And if that's true, then he certainly could have told her about our special abilities along with our plan to get Bella out of Forks."

Alice scoffed and chuckled.

"Come on, Edward. You're just being paranoid. Irina trusts him."

"Irina is a hopeless romantic," Edward countered. "She'd believe anything someone says to her as long as she has them between her legs."

Alice sighed.

"So you're really thinking that he was doing a favour to Victoria by coming to check on Bella."

"Anything's possible."

"But Laurent's declared his loyalty to the Denali coven. Irina insists that he's striving to live a peaceful lifestyle among humans."

Edward looked over at her and snorted incredulously.

"Did you see his red eyes?" He shook his head. "He's not succeeding in that endeavour."

"You are one to talk," Alice shot back. "Should I mention those rebellious years of yours?"

"I'm just saying that we can't trust him," Edward stated firmly. "This wouldn't be the first time that he's turned his back on a coven for the good of himself."

To that, Alice couldn't argue, remembering the surprise when he appeared on their doorstep last year, eager to tell them about James and his obsessive tracking nature.

Edward sighed, seeing the images of that memory in Alice's head. It wasn't an event that he wanted to experience again.

"Once I get Bella to safety, I'll head back to Washington to ensure that Victoria didn't follow us."

Alice shrugged. "And you're going to be wasting a lot of time that you could be spending with Bella, winning her back."

"If I can keep her safe from Victoria and the wolves, it'll be worth it."

A/N

Sorry for the delay. This chapter was rough for me for some reason. I went over it at least ten times, trying to make it sound right and to ensure Bella reacted how I wanted her to the situations. I hope that I succeeded.

Please review.