Canada is flat.
Miles and miles of farmland stretching farther than my powerful eyes could see. Every so often I'd hit a large city, but then more endless flat land.
I ran east, far away from Anne's house and from Forks. I suppose I had subconsciously decided on New York before I realized that was where I was actually heading. New York City's percentage of overcast days was high enough that I wouldn't have to worry about the impending sunlight. The only small problem I could foresee was the distance to available animal blood. If it was too risky and too far away, I would probably have to come up with another living situation.
I ran for three days before I hit the Canadian and US border, then it was only a few hours till I hit the city.
The city blossomed over the edge of the horizon like a forest of blazing lights. I was still quite a few miles away, standing on the edge of the last forest before I hit residencies. It wouldn't be that far of a run, I decided. My feeding habits would have to change, larger meals and just a little farther apart.
The doe I caught wasn't as large as the Canadian herbivores I was used to. Everything seemed a little smaller here. Not just the animals, but the land itself. It curved in and out, making the horizon seem closer than it actually was. I caught two more deer before I was full, feeling almost disgustingly slushy with the amount of blood I had consumed.
It was dark when I entered the city, but still busy and bustling like it probably was during the day. And it was loud, too loud for my taste. I received several sidelong glances from a group of men walking past me. I narrowed my eyes and frowned, and they seemed to get the point. People pushed past each other, swirling the mix of hundreds of different scents of blood and the dirty grime of the streets into the air. It was disorienting! I wasn't used to having to process so many different smells at once. A woman tried to push past me, but ended up falling hard on my rock shoulders. She glanced up to me in anger, but stopped short by the hungry look on my face. She smelled delicious, even with the amount of blood I had already drank. As she blinked once, I took off running as fast as I could, ducking in and out of people, faster than any of them could see. Perhaps the direct center of the city was a place to avoid.
I ran down every street and every alley, memorizing the lay of the city. I was in the northern part of the city when I found it. I stopped when I came to a street lined in different colored apartments. The road was made of an older cobbled brick. The street was narrow, and definitely older, but it was perfect. It was out of the way and nearly empty. I couldn't have chosen a better place to live.
My move in day was quick. I had absolutely no furniture, so I would have to buy some. I had rented the apartment on the backside of the strip of buildings. I had my own personal alley that led to the front steps of my apartment, along with a parking spot. It was surprisingly easy to rent the small space, much easier then trying to rent a room at an inn.
Gary Steinman was a seedy old man. When I first entered the aged office on the in the north side of the city, his eyes instantly fell across my body. I could deal with that though. Probably the seedier the business dealing, the less questions asked. I refused to show my ID and signed the minimal paperwork. He wasn't a very quick witted man, and the charm I was able to work over him helped greatly. I wasn't above using what I had gotten from this new life to make it easier. I smiled a dazzling smile and laughed a lot, and he seemed very appeased and handing over the keys to one of his 'luxury apartments to such a fine young lady' as he put it (the entire time, his mouth open and staring blankly at my face).
The apartment was small, but exactly what I needed. It was on the back lot, so there were no windows, just plain blue walls and a tan carpet. A small kitchen, living room, bedroom and a bathroom – everything I needed.
I felt guilty spending Anne's money.
As I stood in the checkout line with the few essentials I needed, shampoo, soap, cleaning supplies mostly, I had a hard time handing over the credit card. I ran the items home, then went to the nearest furniture store.
I hated looking at the prices of the couches and tables. It wasn't better if I didn't, the guilt was less. I picked a dark blue plush living room set with matching decorations for the living: a beautiful floral rug and a large alluring painting. I didn't need a bed, but I hated to leave the bedroom empty, so I bought a long chaise and pillow set. At least something to make the apartment seem more like a home.
The furniture store dropped the furniture off at the opening of the alley to my apartment and sped off without a glance back. I hurriedly carried the furniture into the apartment, eager to be out of the public eye doing something so obvious strange. A girl my size should not have been able to lift these pieces by herself.
I was bringing the final piece of my new apartment when I felt them behind me.
Instincts took over as soon as their smell hit my face – they were not human. I turned and crouched, and a small growl grew in my chest. The two vampires mirrored my stance and hissed.
"What do you want?" I growled. The scars lining their arms and neck told me that they had been in many fights, which made me defensive. The only scars that lasted on vampire skin were from vampire bites. The scars told a story all their own: no vampire should have been so viciously ripped at and been able to survive. How many vampires had tried to kill them? How man vampires had they tried to kill? These scars screamed Danger!
"Not very friendly, not at all," The tall brown hair vampire said tauntingly. He crept to my side, trying to surround me. I knew nothing about fighting, but I knew not to get surrounded. I rotated to face him and growled again. If this turned into a fight, I would have no chance of fighting them off.
"She's young, she won't be much of a fight," The shorter dark male had a thick accent and was larger than his partner. The brown haired male made a grab for me faster than human eyes would have seen, but I reacted quicker than I thought and impulsively darted out of the way, kicking his retreating back. He face smashed into the brick wall of the alley, leaving a large crack.
He turned and smiled almost appreciatively. "She's fast though. And she's still strong. You can handle this one yourself. I think we should recruit her."
"She's in our grounds and she's not one of use, Julian!" the larger vampire said, growling a little. He was the more defensive of the pair while this 'Julian' appeared to be the more offensive.
"She's young, she probably doesn't know," Julian replied, relaxing out of the crouch.
The other vampire just eyed him warily, as if deciding what action to take. He looked at the crack in the brick wall and eased several paces away. "If you're going to recruit her, make it quick." He back away until he blended in with the night and was gone.
Julian turned back to me, menacingly tall and strong, but his face had at least softened to a mild humor. He reminded me in many ways of Emmett, which made my sides ache a little. "Gavril," He said, nodding over his should to where the other vampire had been. "He's a wonderful fighter, not much of a 'people-person' though, unless you count his blood lust." He laughed a short barking laugh.
"What do mean recruit me?" I asked, still in a crouch but a little less tense. If he had chosen to attack, he would have done so by now.
"Because, sugar, you just landed yourself in a full out vampire war."
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
A/N
From on extreme to the next, right? I really wanted Bella to have an adventure. This is supposed to be kind of 'coming into her own' sort of a story.
Where's Edward? Don't worry, he's coming up in a few chapters
Thank you so much for the reviews! Honestly, they made my day! I'd love to see more!