Bella doesn't come back to school and Edward gives Mackenzie a ride home after classes get out. She sits in the front seat next to her sister's boyfriend, feeling incredibly uneasy.
"Bella and Jacob needed to work some things out." Edward tells her, but it honestly doesn't make her feel any better. He drops her off at the curb when they get there, bidding her goodnight. Charlie isn't home yet and Bella is still off with Jacob, she assumes.
Grumbling, Mackenzie comes inside and sits down on the couch. Slouching out of her jacket and cardigan, and sitting down dead-center in the middle of the couch. She tries to do her homework, she really does. But, her mind keeps wandering off to Bella on the back of Jacob's motorcycle and their figures speeding off into the distance.
With a frustrated grunt, she tosses her school work onto the table and crosses her arms, trying not to pout at the thought of Jacob with her sister. What is wrong with her? Is this jealousy? Over her own sister? Ridiculous. Sighing, Mackenzie flops onto her side on the couch, closing her eyes and forcing herself to think of something else.
All that comes is black, and darkness, and screaming. "Laurent found out about the things they could do and they killed him." "I'm doing this for us!" "I will end the Cullen Clan."
And, then there's red. Everything blood red.
Mackenzie jolts awake as her sister sits down on the small sofa adjacent to the couch she's laying on. Bella's face is worried and she's looking at Mackenzie impatiently, as if waiting for her to be fully awake. "What's up, sis?" she asks, yawning and stretching her cramped limbs.
"I think you and Jake need to spend a little less time together." Isabella tells her sternly. The younger sister pauses, hesitantly turning to the older with a look on her face as if she'd just been told her kitten was ran over, "Why?..."
"You're just spending a lot of time with him lately," Her sister tells her, "Hang out with some of your other friends once in a while." But, Mackenzie can sense that it's more than that.
Before any further argument can be made, Charlie enters from the kitchen, apparently having gotten home shortly before Bella. "You know, Edward could at least respect meal times."
"I was just with Jake." Bella informs and their father is thrown for a loop. "Oh... Good." And, then two solid knocks interrupt them. Edward, both Charlie and Mackenzie assume, looking at each other and rolling their eyes simultaneously. "We'll just give you some privacy then."
Both of them file into the kitchen, where the younger sister starts dinner and Charlie sits down to read the newspaper, as Bella answers the door. From the counter, she can't really hear any of what her sister and Edward are saying, but after a moment they both quickly rush upstairs. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see Charlie, poised to head up after them, until they head downstairs again moments later.
Bella pops into the kitchen, slipping on her jacket and telling them that she'll be going out. She doesn't stick around long enough to hear their father's protests. "I swear, you better not be as troublesome when you're 18." and Mackenzie laughs even though she senses that something is very very wrong.
She and Charlie eat dinner, leaving Bella leftovers as a courtesy, and afterwards Charlie does the dishes as she starts on the laundry. "Dad, have you seen my red sweater?" Mackenzie questions from the living room, standing over the couch with her coat in hand. She swears she'd taken it off with her jacket. "Maybe Bells put it in the hamper already!" he replies.
That night the wolf paces back and fourth at the tree-line and it's different from the last few times. She watches it for what seems like hours, she just knows she doesn't want to fall asleep again. But, when she does she dreams of red.
Red that dashes through green like fire in a forest. Red eyes that stare into her very soul and the sound of screaming. "Just don't get killed. I'm going to need numbers."
The next thing she knows the sun is in her eyes and her father is shaking her awake, "Get up," he says gruffly, "Jake's here to get you." We were going somewhere today?
From her window she sees Jacob standing with Edward and Bella in the driveway. Something about today feels like it's going to be a dreadful day.