Emerald Eyes

Today's song is Emerald Eyes by Fight Bite.

Edward had been enjoying his solitude so immensely that he was startled when he looked down and saw how low he had gotten on gas. Deciding it would probably be a good idea for him to rejoin the others, he turned his bike around and sped south, down the highway.

As he rode further down the deserted stretch of road, Edward began to get a sinking feeling deep in his gut. He was certain he had been behind the semi when they had passed the sign advertising the Dancing Eagle Casino. He got all the way to Exit 117 before he allowed himself to come to grips with the fact somehow, on a straight highway with no traffic save for a handful of stumbling zeds, he had managed to lose not only his Bronco and a fucking semi but his dog as well. Fuck my life, he thought with a sigh as he turned back around.

The large man holding Jasper and Rosalie waited patiently for a response.

Jasper was the first to recover his senses enough to answer. "Name's Jasper Whitlock," he said while he raised his hands to show he meant no harm, "and this here is Miss Rosalie…" he trailed off before turning his head toward Rosalie, "what's your last name again darlin'?"

"Hale," Rosalie answered haughtily, "Rosalie Hale. And who might you be?"

Rather than answer her question, the large man lowered his gun and fixed her with a curious look. "Hale, Hale," he repeated. "Name sounds familiar but I'm not sure why since I can promise I would have remembered meeting you."

Rosalie harrumphed but inside she was secretly pleased. If she was honest with herself, and she typically was, she was quite pleased the man found her attractive. He certainly wasn't hard on the eyes. While trying to look disinterested, Rosalie checked him out. He was a large man with broad, muscular shoulders and at first glance quite intimidating, until she reached his face. He had dark curly brown hair, two deep dimples, sparkling brown eyes, and a disarmingly familiar smile. Actually, now that Rosalie thought about it, there was something very familiar about this man.

"What did you say your name was again?" She asked while eying him curiously.

"Didn't," he laughed amused by the woman's poorly concealed attempt to check him out, "name's Emmett Swan."

"Nice to-." Jasper was cut off by Rosalie's excited squeal.

"Swan? Emmett Swan? As in THE Emmett Swan?"

"Well I see my reputation precedes me," Emmett chuckled with an amused grin.

"Emmett Swan, from Phoenix, Arizona?" Rosalie asked excitedly.

"At your service ma'am," he replied with a bow.

"Oh my god!" Rosalie squealed. "Is she here? Where is she? I have to see her?"

Emmett's brow furrowed in confusion as Jasper watched the odd interaction as though it were an intense tennis match, his eyes bouncing from one player to the other.

"I'm sorry but I'm not really sure what you're-"

"Bella," Rosalie gasped, desperate for air, "where is Bella? I have to see her. She is here isn't she?"

Recognition dawned on Emmett's face. "Oh you're one of Bella's friends. That explains a lot," he mumbled under his breath. "Uh yeah, Bells is here. She's actually on top of the mesa recovering right now but if you guys want to follow me I'd be happy to take you to her."

Rosalie nodded enthusiastically. "Let me just hop in the car and we'll follow you up."

"Oh no I'm sorry, you can't take the cars up there."

"Why not?" Jasper asked as he surveyed the road leading up the mesa. "I'm sure they'll do fine on the incline."

"Not the problem," Emmett answered with a shake of his head, "we blew the road out in order to keep the zeds out."

"You destroyed the road?" Rosalie asked in disbelief as she peered around looking for another way up and finding none, "how do you get up and down then?"

"Stairs," Emmett jerked his thumb over his shoulder. "Sucks but it's better than being eaten alive," he explained with a shrug. "So you ready to go? We can come back for your things later when we have some of the others to help us."

"There are others?" Jasper asked as he too searched in vain for the stairs Emmett had mentioned.

The large man nodded. "Not a ton but there are quite a couple dozen of us so far with more showing up all the time. Don't worry though, there's a shit ton of room for everyone. So anyway, you ready to go?"

"Yeah let me just get Jack and Jasper why don't you grab Sammy. Grab a few of his doggy treats while you're at it."

"Oh cool," Emmett exclaimed excitedly, "you brought dogs! Sweet, I love dogs."

Rosalie shook her head as she walked back toward the Bronco, "Just one dog and one Jack."

"What the fuck is a Jack?" Emmett asked as images of car jacks and small metal toys ran through his head.

"This," Rosalie said with a soft grunt as she hefted a sleeping child from the back of the car, "is a Jack."

"Oh shit a kid. I was not expecting that."

"Is this a problem?" Rosalie asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No way." Emmett shook his head as he stepped forward to get a better look at the sleeping boy, "I love kids. I was just surprised is all. Is he yours?" He asked taking stock of Rosalie's lithe form. There was no way her body had ever carried a child.

"That's what the birth certificate says," Rosalie joked as she rubbed Jack's back.

"Got 'em," Jasper called as he shut the door of the semi.

"What's this guy's name?" Emmett asked as he allowed the large pit bull to sniff his hand before crouching down and scratching him behind the ears. "You've got an awesome dog," he commented when Sammy flipped happily for a belly rub.

"Thanks, his name is Sammy but he's not mine," Jasper replied as he concentrated on filling his backpack with a few treats for the dog.

"Oh," Emmett said looking up, "did you find him?"

"Nah. He belongs to the other guy who is traveling with us but we seem to have lost him on the way here."

"Like he died or you actually lost him?" Emmett asked. Given the goings on in recent days the words we lost him had taken on a whole new meaning.

"We actually lost the dipshit on the road here because he too busy was playing on his motorcycle to pay attention to where we were going," Rosalie replied, disgust for the lost man apparent in her voice. Probably a good thing too, she thought as she considered the shitfest that would surely ensue should Edward Cullen suddenly appear.

"Well shit, that sucks. Well we'll have to keep an eye out for him. You can see pretty far from the top of the mesa so hopefully someone will spot him."

"Hopefully," Rosalie repeated halfheartedly.

"So we ready to go then?" Emmett asked eager to show everyone what he had found during his turn at watch. Jacob as going to be so jealous that all the cool stuff kept happening during Emmett's watch shifts and Emmett couldn't wait to rub it in his face.

"Very," Rosalie sighed as she awkwardly shifted Jack from one shoulder to the other. He was no small boy. At seven he was already almost a head taller than the other boys in his class and ate like a truck driver.

Noticing Rosalie's plight, Emmett looked to Jasper to take his son but Jasper was completely oblivious. "There are a lot of stairs and it's pretty steep do you uh, do you want me to carry him?" He offered hesitantly.

Rosalie regarded him for a moment before nodding her head. Although she had never met him, she had heard about Emmett from Bella for years and couldn't help but trust him. Bella had always spoken very highly of her brother and Rosalie was inclined to trust her best friend's instincts, about most people.

Emmett placed his rifle carefully on the ground before effortlessly plucking the boy from his mother's tired arms and tucking the boy's head into this neck. "Would you mind?" he whispered nodding toward the gun.

"Oh sure," she replied before crouching down to retrieve the weapon, "oh and Emmett. Don't worry about whispering, that kid could sleep through just about anything."

"Cool. Well follow me and watch your step. We don't need another Bella."

The climb up the mesa was uneventful as Rosalie and Jasper concentrated on making it to the top in one piece. The climb wasn't a difficult one but they were so exhausted from the trials and tribulations they had suffered the past few days that they had to work to put one foot in front of the other.

On the way Emmett explained what he had meant when he said they didn't need another Bella. Apparently Bella had fallen a few days earlier and had managed to crack a few ribs and break her collar bone in the fall.

"She's okay now though," Emmett explained, "just resting since it still hurts her to move much. Nearly gave me a heart attack though. I really we were going to lose her for awhile there. Don't tell her but I kinda wish she would have stayed unconscious for a little longer, let me tell you, the quiet was amazing," he joked before they lapsed back into a comfortable silence.

When they reached the top, Rosalie immediately forgot her fatigue as her excitement over seeing Bella reached an all time high. She demanded to see her immediately and Emmett, not wanting to deny the beautiful woman, happily led the way through a wooden door and into a small but clean house.

"She's just upstairs," he said while settling Jack's still slumbering form gently on the worn couch. "Why don't you go on up? I'm sure she'll be happy to see you."

Needing no further encouragement, Rosalie swiftly bent and kissed Jack tenderly on the forehead before sprinting up the stairs. Deciding Bella must be behind the only closed door, she rapped eagerly before a muffled voice bade her enter.

"Bella?" she called as she stepped into the small room.

"Rose?" The small woman sitting on the bed gasped in surprise before clutching at her chest with the only arm not in a sling. "Oh my god, Rose," she sobbed.

"Shhh, Bella it's okay." Rosalie soothed as she rushed to her best friend's side only to have her latch onto her like a life preserver with her good hand, "I'm here don't cry," she commanded through her own tears.

"Oh my god Rose, I can't believe it's really you," Bella hiccupped as reached for a tissue to blow her freely running nose a few minutes later when the tears had finally subsided. "I thought you were- Esme said you were-"

She couldn't bring herself to finish her sentence but Rosalie knew what she meant. Bella couldn't believe she had actually survived and honestly neither could she.

"She made it here then? Esme got out?" Rosalie asked Rosalie reached as she for a tissue to wipe her own eyes. "I thought for sure she was a goner."

Bella nodded. "She thought the same about you and Jack. Shit, she swore, "I'm a terrible friend, where's Jack? Is he okay?"

"He's fine," Rosalie reassured her. "He's downstairs with your brother and Jasper fast asleep. In fact, he slept during the entire climb up here. Thank god for your brother or I never would have made it up those stairs."

"Oh. You've met Emmett then?" Bella asked a devious glint in her eye.

She had always felt Rosalie would be perfect for her brother but before now had never been able to get them in the same room. When she had met Rosalie, Emmett had been away from college and anytime he had come home for vacation she was never around. Now maybe she would have the opportunity to make two of the people she cared most about very happy.

Rosalie sighed as she recalled Emmett's immediate ease with Jack, "yeah, he's great."

"Yep," Bella replied as she happily noted that perhaps they were already on the right track, "and he's really great with kids. So who's Jasper? Is he your new boyfriend or something?"

Rosalie paused for a moment before answering Bella's question. She wasn't sure if she should mention Edward to her just yet. She knew that her friend would eventually find out but she decided to gift her with a few more moments of peace before she brought up her ex boyfriend.

"Nah, he's just a guy we picked up along the way. It's kind of a long story and I don't know much about him but he seems pretty cool. Totally not my type though," she answered with a yawn.

"Tired?" Bella asked with a smile.

"Exhausted actually," Rosalie answered between yawns. "I've been up for two days straight and haven't had a good night's rest in weeks."

"Well you're in luck," Bella replied as she swung her legs off of the bed with a grimace and stood slowly, "this is the safest place I could find. You've seen the cliffs, there's no way a zed's making it up here and just in case we have a twenty-four hour watch going. You can sleep soundly knowing you're protected. Here, lay down," she urged gesturing toward the bed.

Rosalie shook her head in protest. "No I couldn't. It's your bed and you're hurt."

Bella just waved her off and pushed her gently toward the small bed. "You can and you will. I just changed the sheets. Besides, I need to get out of here for awhile. I'm going nuts being cooped up here and I need to find someone to change the bandage on my head," she lifted her hair away from her forehead to illustrate her point. "You just get comfortable and I'll have Emmett bring Jack up to you and I'll make Alice find a place for this Jasper guy to stay. Then, when you're rested, you can catch me up on everything that's happened, no rush."

"Yeah, no rush," Rosalie agreed with a tired nod and another yawn.

As Bella hobbled out the door, Rosalie clambered sleepily into the small bed and nestled under the blankets A few minutes later she was vaguely aware of Emmett placing her son's warm body gently next to her own before she allowed herself to relax into a dreamless slumber for the first time in weeks.

Meanwhile, Edward had finally decided follow the billboards urging him to pull off on Exit 108 towards Casa Blanca to refuel. Warily, he puttered toward the casino looming before him. He wasn't thrilled to find a fairly full parking lot but noted that there didn't seem to be any zeds roaming the area as he bypassed the travel center's fully automated pumps and continued up the road to an old service station. With the power out, an automated gas station would be far more trouble than he was prepared to deal with at the moment.

Cautiously, Edward dismounted bike and settled the bike on its kickstand before moving toward the pump. He was relieved to find that the pumps were still operating and would not require him to swipe his credit card before pumping.

Remaining vigilant, Edward hastily filled his tank before swinging his leg over the bike and starting engine which refused to catch.

"Shit," he growled as he once again tried to get the engine to turn with no luck. "Crap, crap, crap," he groaned as the sounds of his engine caught the attention of several zeds who had apparently been milling around behind the service stations. "Oh this is just not good," he moaned as they began rushing toward him as quickly as their mangled limbs would allow.

"Come on baby, come on," he pleaded. "Fuck yeah!" he cheered as he finally got the engine to catch and gave the bike some gas. "Oh shit!" he shouted as he swerved just in time to avoid being ripped off the bike by a particularly ghoulish man with only half a handlebar moustache and three-fourths of his face left.

Edward swerved and dodged the large number of zeds that had begun to emerge wherever they had been hiding. As he passed by the casino he noticed the throngs of undead pressed against the glass doors fighting to break free and he said a small thank you for the loss of power. Without electricity, the automated doors were frozen shut, keeping the zeds prisoner, for now .

Not knowing where else to go, Edward decided to follow the Indian Service road to the west. He knew Rosalie and Jasper must have taken one of the exits and since he was already on the road, it seemed like the best place to start looking. If nothing else he had to get his dog back.

Rosalie woke from her nap with a start before remembering where she was. She was still tired but knew if she continued to doze, her entire internal clock would be thrown off and she would be up all night.

Rubbing her eyes sleepily, she looked around the small room for her son but found no sign of him and smiled knowing he was probably downstairs flirting with his Auntie Bella. After stretching for a few minutes, Rose managed to convince herself to get out of bed and look for her child.

"Hey Bells," Rosalie called down the stairs, "is Jack down there with you?"

"No," came the reply from across the room, "Emmett and Charlie took him for a tour. They mentioned looking for some toys so it could be awhile. I think they were even more excited than he was."

"Oh okay," she replied with a grin thinking of how excited the energetic young boy would be to spend time exploring. It wasn't often he got a chance to spend time with men and he would surely eat up the attention he was receiving, especially from his Papa Charlie. "How long was I out?"

"Little over two hours," Bella replied. "So Rose," she called from her perch on the couch where she had Sammy laying across her like a small lap dog. "Would you mind telling me why this dog seems so, very, very familiar?"

"Oh, um, well yeah. You noticed huh," she chuckled nervously. "Not really sure where to start…" Rosalie hedged looking anywhere but towards the woman on the couch.

Rosalie was normally a woman who refused to be cowed but there had always been something about Isabella Swan that brought her down a notch or two. She loved the woman like the sister she never had and although she was three years older, Bella had always been the leader of their terrible twosome.

"I usually find the beginning to be a good place," Bella replied seriously as she fixed Rosalie with her penetrating gaze. "I mean ,unless you're reading Catch-22, then it doesn't matter where you start, it will never really make much sense."

Rosalie squeezed her eyes shut tightly before letting out a deep breath and nodding her head. "Alright," she acquiesced as she plopped down on the couch and reached over to stroke Sammy's head.

Over the next hour, Rosalie caught Bella up on everything that had happened beginning with the time spent trapped in her apartment and ending with losing Edward somewhere along the road. The only details she spared were the ones related to seeing her best friend's ex in the buff, those were something she didn't think were necessary to share.

"You lost him?" Bella asked in disbelief. "Oh my god Rose, I don't think I can- I mean not after. What am I going to do?" she babbled as she began pacing the room while biting furiously at her much abused lower lip.

"Well he doesn't actually know where we are-" Rosalie offered lamely.

Bella stopped wearing a path in the floor long enough to fix the other woman with an incredulous stare. "Really Rose? You think he's not going to figure it out somehow? I mean if you remembered this place he's certainly bound to. He is the one who started the whole survival conversation in the first place. Oh my god what am I going to do?" she moaned.

Before Rosalie could answer, a happy Jack came bouncing in the front door followed closely by en equally excited looking Emmett and an exhausted looking Charlie.

"Mom! Mom!" He shouted running toward his mother. "Look what Emmy and Papa Charlie found for me!" He held up the collection of sandbox toys they had managed to dig up somewhere in the village.

"Oh wow!" she exclaimed as she leaned down to examine her sons spoils.

"Yeah and guess what? Miss Esme is here and she even letted me have a cookie for being such a big boy and taking care of you so good," he announced proudly.

"You certainly did," she replied as she pulled her entire reason for being into her arms for a hug. "Now why don't you take Sammy here outside to play so I can talk to Auntie Bella for awhile," she suggested.

Jack stuck out his bottom lip. "But I want you to play with me," he pouted as he gave his mother his best sad look.

"Jack," Rosalie scolded.

"No it's okay Rose," Bella interrupted softly as she winced, "it's actually time for me to take my pain meds and they tend to knock me out. We can talk then."

Rosalie eyed her friend doubtfully. Since finding out about Edward, Bella had begun to retreat back into herself and that was not something Rosalie wanted to see. After he left, it had taken a long time to get Bella to reenter the world of the living and she feared his presence might cause a setback.

"If you're sure…"

"I am. Besides, I'm sure we have time to figure something out. I just need some time to process is all. We'll talk later."

Without another word, Bella hobbled back toward the stairs and slowly climbed back toward her bedroom. She took her pills and settled back against the pillows with a sigh. She hadn't been lying when she told Rose it was time for her pain meds, her ribs and shoulder were beginning to throb uncomfortably, but really she just needed an escape to process. The thought that Edward could be once again reentering her life made her blood run cold. As she considered the possible fallout from his presence, she eventually slipped into a slumber only disrupted by visions of a pair of emerald eyes.

As Edward drove down the deserted stretch of winding road, he watched for any sign of a large truck but found nothing. The wind had swept a fine layer of sand across the road erasing any tracks that might have been apparent otherwise. It was only when he began to notice signs advising him that he was approaching Acoma Sky City that he began to wrack his memory for why it sounded so familiar. Something about the name brought forth a hazy memory of a conversation with friends long ago but he couldn't for the life of him figure out why they would have been talking about it.

Determined to find the answer, he pushed the old bike to go faster toward the rock formations rising above the horizon. As he drew nearer, the glint of sun reflecting off of metal drew his eye and he let out a triumphant whoop as he caught sight of the semi.

With a grin, Edward pulled up alongside the cars and cut the bike's engine. He looked around for any sign of his companions but was startled to find none. As he walked cautiously around he found no sign of a struggle or anything else for that matter. He was just about to climb back on his bike and begin searching the surrounding desert when he heard a voice calling his name.

"Edward! Edward," Jasper shouted as he jogged toward him from behind a wall of rock. "Shit man you gave us a scare," he said with a laugh as he clapped Edward on the shoulder. "Don't do that man."

"Sorry," Edward replied sheepishly. "Where are Rosalie and Jack?"

"Up top," Jasper said gesturing to the large mesa. "You're never going to believe this shit man. There is a whole ancient village up there full of survivors. It's fucking awesome man. No way are any zeds getting to us. Plus," he added with a devilish grin, "there are some really hot girls up there."

"No shit?" Edward asked. "A village huh?"

"And girls," Jasper reminded him.

Edward grimaced slightly. Girls were the last thing he needed to deal with right now. Besides, he had hardly looked at a girl in months and never like the one he had let get away.

Not noticing his friend's cool attitude toward the mention of girls, Jasper continued to prattle on as he led Edward toward the bottom of the hidden staircase. Apparently Jasper had been on his way down to check the contents of the semi when he spotted Edward's bike in the distance. He explained everything he had learned about the little stronghold in the desert and went on and on about the hot babes he had met so far.

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He's here! So obviously the next chapter will be what you've all been waiting for! I've certainly made you wait long enough. So did any of you see those pics that leaked last night? If I hadn't this story would have been updated much sooner but I couldn't stop myself from drooling over the headboard pics or the vid of Rob thrusting. Who knew backs could be so sexy? Anywho, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think and I promise I'll have Bella and Edward's reunion up ASAP! Love ya!

XOXO,

Bellarella

Also, Acoma pics at http:/www(dot)flickr(dot)com/photos/70467959N00/3063707850/ for those of you who asked!