Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns all the characters!

Chapter 3

I casually checked my makeup in the rearview mirror. I told myself it was because I was going 'out on the town' – even if it was just shopping. But deep down I knew that wasn't it. I was edgy, irrationally edgy. Like the feeling you get when you wake up nervous, even before you remember final exams are today.

I drove fast; windows down a little, even on the highway. I let myself enjoy the feeling of the wind picking up strands of my hair and tossing them around. I smiled. The wind-blow look was sexy, and I had a brush in case of an emergency.

Despite my edgy feeling, I was really nervous. Not for myself, but for Bella. I wouldn't be able to stand it if she got hurt, so I hope she listened to me about the warning I had given her before I left.

Flashback

I had my purse in hand and I was mentally checking to see if I had everything I needed; Money, make-up, cell phone, brush...

I looked up as Bella came down the elegant curving staircase. She was still in her red flannel pajama pants and baggy t-shirt that she slept in every night. She smiled at me sleepily. Her hair was a complete mess with strands sticking out every which way.

I laughed at her and she glared back. I turned her around to face the large decorative mirror in the hallway. She glanced at her reflection and shrugged, not caring. I took the brush out of my purse and began brushing it. She yawned as I pulled through the tangled mess.

"Hope you get the life-changing pair of jeans today, sis." I smiled as I remembered my fake vision.

"Yeah... And I'll get you that killer outfit, too."

"Alright."

"Will you do me a favor today, Bells?" I said quickly- too quickly, I might add. Bella would know something was up... or not. She looked tired, since she was still half asleep, and her brain probably wasn't on the alert yet.

"Your wish is my command." She said, seriously. I laughed again, trying to lighten the mood a little.

"Okay, then. Will you stay here today?" I said hesitantly. I hoped she wouldn't press the issue of why I was asking this, but it was very unlikely.

"Yeah, where else would I stay?" She said sarcastically.

"No, I mean don't go out today. Just stay home for today." I pushed on, hoping the urgency in my voice would hint at out nervous I actually was to make sure she was safe.

"Okay, I won't." She said beneath a yawn. "Darn it, I had a hot date today. Oh well, I guess Orlando Bloom will have to wait for me." She added with a smile. I laughed at that.

"Oh, I'm so sorry for your loss. You'll have to tell Orly to take a rain check."

"It's okay. I'll just watch Pirates of the Carribean with my face really close to the screen... It'll be like he's there with me!" I laughed again, and she joined in. I loved my sister's sarcastic sense of humor.

"I got to go, but you'll listen to me and stay here, right?" She nodded as she headed back up to her room. I just hope that she would...

End Flashback

She would be OK. I had taken steps to make sure – likely as not, she would watch a Pirates marathon – and that was all I could do. OK, I was lying to myself again. I could go home and stalk her all day and make sure nothing happened, and she still might get in some kind of trouble... that was just Bella. She is a danger magnet, I swear. At least she was less likely to get into trouble if I was with her...

But every time my thoughts went in that direction, something deep inside me pulled. Tugging me towards Houston. I'd just have to be content that Bella would stay home if I asked her to. I edged the car faster.

I circled around my favorite strand of shops, looking for a place to park. My vision had taken place at night. It would be a shame to waste a perfectly good day of shopping and Starbucks drinking. Though I seriously doubted I would get any shopping done, I pushed down the urge to go to the alley just yet and parked the car. I rolled enough coins to get me through the day into the parking meter, and then adjusted my Chanel sun glasses. I took a deep breath and headed straight for the shoe store.

Even though I did find a killer pair of jeans, and a cute top for Bella (Which she probably would never wear, unless I forced her to), the day seemed to drag on and on, like the class period right before lunch. Finally I headed back toward my car, grabbing a hot chocolate at Starbucks instead of my usual non-fat, caramel soy latte. I was already too nervous without the caffeine.

As I approached the car, it was getting really dark. Perfect, I thought to myself. Normally, a girl my age would be terrified to be in a quiet part of the city, in the dark, but I wasn't. I made a motion to open the door, but I stopped. I popped the trunk and shoved my shopping bags in quickly. I left the car and started walking towards the alley. I was way too anxious to sit in my Porsche for the drive.

The sun had disappeared almost completely and now it was twilight. I knew that by the time I reached the alley, it would be completely dark. I walked quickly, almost running. The alley was in my sights and I was a block away. I was practically sprinting, when I stopped dead in my tracks. Two men had just rounded the corner a block ahead of me. The alleyway was behind them.

I glanced quickly behind me, judging how far away from my car I was, but still not wanting to turn around. I had to see what was in that Alley. I saw another two men round the corner behind me. Great, I thought. I probably wasn't even going to find anything in that alley anyway... Yet, here I am being herded by possible rapists.

That's exactly what they were doing: Herding me. The men behind me walked quicker since they were farther away from me Without thinking, I ran into and alley that was next to me. My heart dropped in disappointment as I stared at the dead end in front of me. I turned back, but all four men were crowding the exit already. I was a sitting duck.

If I hadn't been afraid before, I was now. They were approaching me slowly, not quite in the small alleyway yet. I backed until my hands were touching the brick wall behind me. I pleaded silently. God, let someone come... anyone: Police, firemen, random guy off the street...

My wish was granted.

Suddenly I heard an ear-splitting growl and- before I knew what was happening -the men disappeared. I ran out of the alley, trying to see what happened. All my bodily systems were telling me to run, but I couldn't stray my eyes away from the horrifying scene in front of me.

All four men were lying dead in the streets. A dark-haired woman had her mouth to one of their necks and a man was in the same position with another.

"Jesus, Jasper, were you thirsty? You took three of them!" A sickeningly sweet voice bellowed. It was high-pitched and almost sounded like a little girl's voice. I immediately recognized her as the woman who attacked Bella in my vision. She walked over oh-so gracefully to the other two.

The trio were all so pale they seemed to be glowing, and I noticed how gracefully the other woman walked up to the two. What was immediately obvious though was there remarkably, inhuman beauty. They were all perfect. I'd never seen anyone as beautiful as the girl. I couldn't clearly see the other two, since they were still crouched over my attackers, but I could see that they were just as beautiful as this girl.

The man- who I now realized was just a boy, probably my age -stood up, wiping his blood-stained mouth on the back of his hand.

"What can I say? There lust didn't help one bit..." He said in a matter-of-fact tone. I stared on I horror. I let out a slow breath, which I hadn't realized I'd been holding. The very instant I made a sound, all three heads turned my way, revealing blood-red eyes that pierced through me. Before I could even blink, the boy was in front of me.

The speed at which it must have taken to get over to me was so fast that it couldn't have been possible.

He was so close to me now we were practically touching. He reached out towards my narrow waste with both hands, but he hesitantly took a half step back, looking confused. I didn't comprehend his expression, however, because I was staring at him in awe.

Looking up at the red eyes that hovered over me, I was mesmerized. His golden hair hung messily in his face, and I was in love. I didn't know how I knew it, but there was no doubting it, either. I was in love with him, no matter what I'd just seen him do. He could be a monster, but I didn't care. And as he leaned towards me, I wasn't sure if he was going to kiss me or kill me. But I didn't care.

"It's almost as if... I don't want to kill you..." He said, more to himself than to me. I felt his breath in my ear as he whispered. It made me shiver, but more from excitement than from fright. He was as far away from me as possible, while still holding me in between his hands, which rested on my hips. He held me like he was afraid of breaking me. I relished the tingling feeling that his touch brought, afraid that he would let go of me. It was heaven—right smack in the middle of hell. (New Moon Page 491)

I thought quietly about what he said. I didn't mind if he killed me, really. At least I could die in his arms.

"Then don't." I barely even whispered the words, but I knew he could hear me.

"Hmm..." He said curiously. "You're not even afraid. How strange."

I was taken back. How did he know how I was feeling?

"How would you know that?" I voice my thoughts, surprisingly sounding confident. Unlike my sister (who's name escaped me, since I was stilling looking up into the boy's eyes), my voice didn't betray my every emotion. Thank God for that.

He laughed humorlessly, "Let's just say I have a 'gift' for that sort of thing." He smirked, almost smug. I looked at him, memorizing every curve of his perfect face. That had been the first time I'd payed attention to what his voice sounded like. It was so... beyond utterly amazing. It was smooth as velvet and every word he said etched itself in my memory.

"You're not the only one..." I said mysteriously. I didn't know why I said it, but I did. I wanted to tell him everything about myself for some reason. I couldn't answer the questions that was rattling in my head: Why was this one boy so special? Why did I want to reveal all my secrets to him?

He raised one eyebrow at my comment. Though his face was twisted in that awkward position, he was still tantalizingly gorgeous in a way that would make Abercrombie Models jealous.

"Finish her, Jasper, so we can go." Said a deeper woman's voice. It held authority and I could tell she was the leader of the small group.

"I don't know Maria... I think she might have potential. You think we should-" The boy- who I believed to be Jasper -said, getting cut off by the high-pitched voice of the other girl.

"Jasper! Finish her, or I will!" The girl seemed to be shaking with eagerness at the thought. It made me sick to my stomach watching her.

I heard a snarl emit from Jasper that didn't sound at all human... more like an animal. Still, it didn't frighten me in the least.

"Quiet Nettie! You won't touch her, she's mine!" I quietly cheered and relished over his words: She's mine. That sounded great every time I repeated the words in my head.

"Jasper, you know we only take men, she won't do us any good." Said the authoritative woman, passively and calmly. She was much more calm then the other girl.

"I think she would. She says she has a gift like mine..." I saw Maria's eyes perk up considerably when he said that. She started walking towards us slowly. I realized that Jasper still had his hands on my waste. He hastily backed away from me- but not far -as Maria approached.

"Is this true?" I nodded hastily, hoping this could somehow help me. "Well, what could possibly be your power." She sounded incredulous, though I didn't know why.

I let my annoyance spread to my face and I clenched my fists. "I can see the future, what's your power?" I said confidently. An amused smirk lighted her face and Jasper looked surprised- but still magnificent, I might add.

"Jasper can just manipulate and sense emotions; an empath. But my power? Well, you see, I'm your worst nightmare..." She trailed off ominously, and I scoffed towards her. Suddenly she disappeared. "Don't believe me?" She whispered in my ear. I could feel her behind me suddenly. I wasn't phased, though. I knew they were incredibly fast.

"I'm what you've had in your nightmares every time you see one of those pathetically incorrect scary movies of yours; I'm the predator to your prey..." The way her velvet voice flowed over the words made it seem more like beautiful poetry than something to scare me. Despite my lack of fear, I felt a chill crawl up my spine and shake my body.

I saw Jasper unconsciously move toward me, as if to comfort me, but Maria stopped him. She looked angry that I wasn't crawling in fear right now.

"You still haven't told me exactly what you are yet." I said lightly, tapping my foot impatiently against the ground. Anything they said wouldn't surprise me.

She laughed maniacally. "Let's just say that no matter what we decide to do, your blood is going to be flowing down one of our throats very, very soon." Okay, so maybe that surprised me.

I felt my eyes widen and my mouth drop considerably, and Maria took that as fear. The- what I now knew to be a vampire -grinned triumphantly at me.

"You know- if you value your insignificant life whatsoever, then you might want to conjure up some proof of your little 'gift'" This scared me slightly. I couldn't control my power, it just came to me. Luckily, I didn't have to wait. I felt a vision coming over me.

I watched it quickly take place, and then saw Maria and Jasper's faces again. They were both looking at me expectantly.

I smirked with confidence and slight fear of about what was about to proceed.

"If you value my significant life- or my awesome power, whichever is better- then you might want to turn around." Maria looked surprised and turned around quickly. I watched over her shoulder as Nettie shook with anticipation.

"H-how can you just stand there like that! She's right there!" Nettie threw herself towards me, over the two other vampires. I felt her on top of me, tackling me down effortlessly. My head knocked against the hard ground, but didn't bleed. She exposed her teeth- which were dripping with venom -and lowered her head quickly to my neck.

The last thing I heard was a crash of thunder.