A/N: I know everyone is dying to meet Bella and I promise she is coming soon. After this chapter we'll skip over some time and catch up with her.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story line, SM owns the characters I'm just having fun with them.

Edward POV
Peter didn't move for two solid days. At first I was giving him some space to hopefully bring himself back under control. He never spoke but his thoughts slowly became less panicked and more resigned. He truly thought Jasper didn't want him anymore and he didn't know how to process that. As I was looking through the room again I found a worn leather satchel tucked just under the bed. When I pulled it up Peter sat straight up and grabbed it out of my hands. He pulled out an old Confederate soldier uniform and when he unfolded the shirt a piece of paper fell out. His face fell as he read it:

Pete,
Guard my past and I'll guard yours. I hope one day you can forgive me for causing you so much pain, and I hope to see you very soon.
All my love,
Jasper

He froze for a minute as his mind went over the note trying to make sense of it and then he dove frantically back into the bag digging around for something that he couldn't find.

"My watch! He took my watch! Why would he do that?" I saw a memory of a young Peter taking a dirty pocket watch from his father's body, then a beautiful blonde woman who must have been Charlotte handing it to him with his initials now on the back. Flashes of Peter and Jasper walking together and talking while one of them holds the watch, and finally Jasper telling Peter he could use his name. This memory seemed to have the most significance for Peter because he dwelled on it the longest. I saw where his thoughts were going and had to cut him off.

"Peter, I don't think he was taking anything away from you. He still wants you to have his name, he's not telling you goodbye with this. I think he just wanted to have something of yours close to him and he left something of his here for you. He didn't know when we would come back here but he knew you would find this and he wants you to have it. I still don't know what happened or where they are but I don't think Jasper had anything to do with why they left. He loves you, anyone can see that, and wherever he is I'm sure he's waiting for you." I could see that my words didn't make a lot of difference to him but he finally nodded and then curled back up on the bed with the shirt and the uniform.

"I just need to be alone for a little while. Can you give me some space please?" he asked in a strained voice.

I was a little worried he would take off if I left him so I decided to keep him in range of my gift while I went into the forest. "I'll just be out back, call if you need me and don't take off without me ok? You know we'll need to go hunt soon right?" He just closed his eyes and nodded so I reluctantly turned and went downstairs to leave.

I climbed up in a tree to think and I began to process the hurt I felt at being completely abandoned by my family. I knew that Carlisle was angry with me but I truly thought Esme would be able to love me no matter what. I could not believe she left without a word. The more I thought about it the stranger the situation became. Jasper obviously left Peter a private message with his bag, but he didn't say anything about where they were going. He did say he hoped to see us soon, so he must have thought we would already know where they were. Carlisle must have told him they would leave word for us somewhere. So what could have happened? Something didn't add up.

I had been sitting there for a few hours when I felt a new awareness at the edge of my gift. A vampire. I quickly ran back toward the house and realized Peter didn't cover our trail coming back here, he was too distraught at the time. Just as I began to panic that the only decent fighter between us was upstairs practically comatose I realized who I was hearing.

Hello Cullens! Anyone there? Edward, can you hear me? It's Garrett! Mind if I come by?

Relief swept through me. Maybe Garrett knew something, or at least he could help me with Peter! I walked toward him to meet him away from the house. When he came into view he froze in shock. No way! Red eyes? What the hell? "Yes, Garret. I have changed to my natural diet. I assume by your surprise you have not seen my family in the last month or so?"

"No, I haven't. What's going on? Who else is here with you? I don't recognize the scent. Did you find a mate? Is that why you're not with the family?" Garrett was never short on words, I knew I had to jump in or we'd be out here the rest of the day.

"No, Peter is taken, we're just traveling together. You may not have smelled him before but you have met him and his mate several years ago. You were quite proud of the story. Your great escape from the Major of the Southern Wars?" I paused to let him connect the dots and watched his eyes get even wider.

"You mean the Captain and the Major are MATES?! How did I not see that? And what the hell are they doing way up here? Oh shit, he's not waiting somewhere to attack is he?" I almost fell over laughing when Garrett dropped to his knees and bared his neck saying, "I apologize sirs, I'll just be moving on. Not looking for trouble here."

"Garrett- stop! Jasper isn't here, and Peter isn't exactly himself right now. I was actually hoping you could help me out with him. Would you come up to the house and talk to him? Maybe you can get him up and moving again."

On the way back to the house I explained what had happened and why we were no longer with the family. Garret was furious with Carlisle and he was suspicious as well when I explained the strange disappearance of the family. I told him about Peter's memories of their escape from the south and he was shocked that the rumors he had heard were true. Then it was my turn to be shocked when Garrett asked me if they had found their "third" yet. He went on to explain about triads and what it probably meant for Peter and Jasper. I wondered if Carlisle had told Jasper all this. Since he was the one to tell Garrett I had to assume he told Jasper as well.

When we made it inside Peter didn't even react to the new vampire, which worried me more than anything else. Garrett asked me how long he had been this way and just nodded after I told him. He sat and watched Peter for several minutes before making a decision. "Captain!" he barked out in a harsh voice. Peter lifted his head at look at Garrett in confusion. "Get your ass up and stand at attention soldier!" I was shocked when Peter did exactly what he was told to do. Garrett was pleased as well, his thoughts showed he wasn't all that sure his plan would work.

With Garrett ordering him around we managed to get Peter up and his bag repacked. He kept the white dress shirt bunched up in his hand and sniffed it periodically. He reminded me of a child carrying a baby blanket with him. Sadly, his mind seemed to be on the same level. In order to get him to leave the room Garrett had to tell him that the Major was waiting and we needed to go hunt before we could meet him. After he hunted Peter's mind began to clear and depression took over. Garrett and I assured him we would not stop looking until we found the Cullens and his mate.

It took us three years of moving from city to city before we found their home in Maine. When we found it empty, the scents only days old, I thought we would lose him for good. But he just straightened up, swapped Jasper's old shirt for a new one, and said he was through looking. If Jasper didn't want him he wasn't going to force himself. We decided to stay there for a while making a dent in the local crime rate before moving on.

Alice POV
I knew I had to do something to get my family back on track. I couldn't believe my own brother would betray me and take the side of those dirty soldiers. That stupid shield was in my way and I had to find a way to keep him out of my family so I could get my visions back. I was overjoyed when I saw that Peter and Edward left Springfield and Jasper stayed behind. I had to find out what was so important about him; he had been the first face I saw when I woke up from the change. A vision of his fierce face staring at me with hard black eyes and golden curls blowing in the wind. I originally thought he was to be my mate but when he showed up with Peter I knew it was something else. Maybe he was my key to gaining power. I would mold him within the family and when the time was right I would take him to the Volturi. With my power and his they would surely give us a position of power, maybe even a throne! I just had to get his mate off his mind first.

Destroying Carlisle's note in Springfield was stupidly easy. The satisfaction I got when Jasper waited for months and then years without his mate showing up was priceless. I did have to act quickly again when I saw our future disappearing; Peter must be close. I staged a "slip" on Emmett's part by sticking a bleeding man on the side of the road where Emmett walked home from school. We had to jump up and move quickly, and I had to again hide the note from Carlisle.

Without Edward here to keep tabs on my thoughts it really was too easy to manipulate these people. I wasn't sure how long I would be able to convince them of my visions of Jasper's weakness but surely he would slip eventually right? Nobody has that much control. Either way, he felt Carlisle's doubt of him and that was enough to make him shut up and go along. Now I just had to find some way to take out his other mate, I had my eyes open watching for her.