"Make sure all the pieces are inside," Alice ordered. "We're going to bring down the building."

I nodded, the fire would cover everything. "Jacob," I called to him. He turned to face me but didn't take his arms off Bella. "Your dead. If we're going to burn the building, do you want us to carry them out?"

"You'll be okay?" he whispered to Bella who nodded. I fought jealousy; he could comfort her when I couldn't come near. He passed her to Carlisle who supported her weight and helped her walk out through the hole in the wall. Jacob phased to converse with his pack. Tanya was already coming back in through the same hole, carrying a head I recognized.

"Wait, Maria?"

She held the head out to me, turning to search for more. I smoothed the black hair away. Here she was, my creator, slain by who's hand?

Kate came to my shoulder. "I saw that one. She threw Alice through the wall. Irina chased a newborn out after them. Didn't you?" she called to Irina.

Irina looked our way and then pulled Felix toward us with her. "Yes. She was closing on Alice when a truck hit her, pinned her to the wall."

"Speaking of the Chevy," Alice said from across the room. When had she left my side? "Eleazar, Carmen, would you mind pushing it inside? We'll use the tank to start the fire."

The pair moved to comply. "Alice," I called to her, and she approached slowly, sighing.

I didn't get the chance to ask her my questions. Jacob phased and approached me. "We will inform their families. We will burn them with the building." The Quileutes, nearly all human now, began moving their fallen apart from the newborns, singing over them in their language. I could feel their grief.

"Alice?" I asked, dropping Maria's head. "Why? Why didn't you tell me? Why did you let Bella do it?"

"I asked Bella to do it," she clarified. "We needed her, Jasper. We were going to lose. Victoria was about to behead you; Carlisle was facing the same fate. Three more wolves would have fallen in the next three seconds. Tanya five after that, and then me. I knew Bella could stop that. I knew she could distract them, give us all the seconds we needed."

"What if she'd cut too deep, lost too much blood?" I asked, still in shock.

"Carlisle would have started the change and then stopped the bleeding. She would still be with us. She was fine, Jasper, just like we were, just like I told you."

"How could you? How could you risk her?" I paused for a moment, watching Embry and Quil carry Leah's broken, naked body past me. She was the third after Paul and Collin. I didn't doubt she had fallen in the place of one of the others.

"Because I didn't, she did. It was her choice. I just knew what it would be." Alice was serene. She hadn't worried about Bella's or her own choices at all. Come, you can see her now. She will be happy to see us."

I wasn't sure I was ready for this, but I followed Alice out of the building. We passed Eleazar and Carmen squeezing the crumpled wreck of Bella's truck through the hole in the wall, making it larger as they did.

Outside, Bella sat in Carlisle's lap. He stroked her hair and whispered soothingly to her. "You did it, Bella. It's all over now. They're all gone, all of them. No one is going to hurt us again. I'm so proud of you. Thank you. It's over."

She whimpered and hid behind her hair, cradling her arm against his bare chest. She was distraught, but she was strong.

"Bella?" I kept a little distance, not sure she wanted us too close right now. I was very wrong.

"Jasper!" She jumped from Carlisle, throwing herself at me. "Alice," she hissed, taking her arm from my neck and holding it out for Alice to step into. "I'm so glad you're both alright."

"You weren't supposed to be here, Bella. You told me you weren't going to come here." I held her tight enough to hear the breath whoosh from her.

She gasped, trying to refill her lungs. "I didn't want to, Jasper. I had to. I couldn't let Maria kill Alice. I couldn't let Victoria kill you." I barely registered the second sentence, still connecting the dots placed by the first one. Maria threw Alice through the wall — Bella's smashed truck.

"You drove your truck into Maria?" I asked, my voice dry and broken. I couldn't imagine Bella capable of it.

She nodded, though. "I jumped, of course. Then I stayed back while Alice did the rest."

"She was magnificent!" Alice praised. "She rolled out just before the truck hit us. And since I knew where the crash would be, I was on top of Maria before she could move. Teamwork." She stepped back to high-five Bella.

"Who knew? The wolves." They had surrounded Bella too quickly to have not known.

"Yes. We told Jacob," Alice said slowly. "He knew to stay clear of that area until he smelled blood. I needed to see. So did she."

"I was watching, Jasper," Bella tried to explain. "Alice told me that when Carlisle was down, I had to stop them. She gave me the suture kit, the gauze. She knew what I was going to do. She knew it would work."

"Why didn't you tell me?" I begged of Alice.

She shrugged. "You would have stopped her. She had to do it, Jasper. Well, she could have chosen not to. I'm really glad she didn't."

I clutched Bella too tightly again and the breath was pushed from her. I eased up. "Never again." I told both of them.

Bella smiled. "Of course not. Now I'll never have to."

Alice scowled. "I refuse to promise not withhold information for your own good." She stuck her tongue out at me. "Your safety is as important to me as mine is to you."

Jacob came to us then. "Great job, Bells. Remind me to tell you about the third wife."

"You said that before. Who the hell is the third wife?" Bella demanded.

"Okay... I can't do the story justice, though. When our tribe first discovered the cold ones, vampires, one came to our homes. The spirit chief's son, in the form of a wolf, was killed in front of his mother, the spirit chief's third wife. She distracted the vampire, by stabbing herself in the heart. The blood stole the vampire's attention long enough for the Spirit Chief to finish her."

"Whoa," Bella murmured. I felt her awe. "I-I didn't do anything like that!"

"You cut your vein open, Bella. You were bleeding heavily, for all of us. It did the same thing now that it did then. You were awesome." Jacob gave her another hug, taking her from me. "I love you. You know that," he whispered into her hair.

"I'm going to be a vampire, you know that?" she retorted.

I felt his hurt. "Why? Why do you have to do it, Bella?"

"I don't have to. I want to, Jacob. I want to be a Cullen; I want to spend forever with Alice and Jasper and Carlisle. I want to find out what this shield of mine is, and what it can do. I know you don't like what they are, but I'll still be me, Jacob."

"But you won't." He dropped his arms from her. "You'll be missing the best part of you." He put a hand on her chest, between her breasts.

"My heart might not beat, but it will love just as much, if how much I am loved is any indication. My face may change and my eyes might be a different colour, but I'll still be me."

Jacob continued to shake his head, unable to accept her arguments.

He started to walk away, between Alice and I. "You have some months." Alice whispered.

Jacob stopped looking at her, blinking.

"She won't ask Carlisle before next fall, but I doubt you'll convince her." Alice's voice was still too quiet for Bella, who was being approached by Felix and Irina.

"I can hope though." Alice nodded to him. "Thanks, short stack. Okay, boys," Jacob shouted. "Let's pack it in. Bella? You want a ride home?" Jacob pulled off his pants and tied them to his leg with a chord. Tanya took another chance to ogle the boy's attributes before he phased into a wolf. I was pretty sure the smell was the only thing saving Jacob from a night he would never forget, assuming he survived it.

"Thanks, I think you aren't going to be able to resurrect the truck." Jacob barked in laughter before crouching next to Bella, allowing her to climb onto his back. He followed his pack south.

"How mad are you with me?" Alice asked, approaching tentatively.

"Very," I growled. "I wish you'd told me. How am I supposed to plan a battle when you don't give me the key details?"

She shrugged. "You planned very well. You just forgot to use one asset."

"Bella is not an asset."

"The hell she's not. She's our greatest asset." Alice turned from me. I could feel her disbelief, her disappointment.

She was right. Bella had strengths I hadn't thought to use. I tried to cage her. I wanted to keep her caged. I hung my head.

I caught the scent of a vampire, outside the warehouse. Turning, I looked for Demitri. Alice stepped in his direction meeting him first. Felix was on her tail. He grabbed his friend into a hug.

"They didn't give you any grief?" Felix asked.

"Nah," Demitri waved a hand. "They weren't surprised. And all you did was look the other way. They can't come after you any more than them, really."

"You want to meet Tanya and Kate? They were at the Castle, but I bet you didn't meet them. I'm not going to recommend giving up humans, but these women? They might be worth it."

Demitri cocked an eyebrow, intrigued. "No. I think I'll head back. You got them all?" he asked Alice now. "They want to be sure the redhead is taken care of."

Alice led him into the warehouse, no doubt showing him Victoria's remains.

"She smells amazing, doesn't she?" Felix asked, looking in the direction Bella had gone. "No wonder you handle her so gently."

I narrowed my eyes. There was no lust in his thoughts, just a lot of thirst. "You need to feed. You should get out of the city." I said rather loudly.

Irina joined us. "Thirsty?" she asked. "I'm sure we can find something north of here." She pulled him away.

I smelled the smoke just as Alice and Demitri left the building, chuckling together. "Tell them both I do miss them. I hope they will let me know if they ever need anything."

"Alec and Jane need to get out of the Castle for longer than a week. That's what they need." Demitri moaned. "I swear, they have no idea how the world outside Volterra works."

Alice nodded. "They don't. I hope they realize that and take some time to explore on their own."

"I doubt that will ever happen. Nice to see you again, Jasper. I smelled your human friend inside but didn't see her. Alice tells me she's well."

"Yes, Bella is fine. She helped us tonight."

"Really?" Demitri was instantly intrigued. "How?"

"The blood," Alice answered. "She distracted the lot just when we were about to lose our heads."

Demitri got a thoughtful look. Then shook his head. "We would be as distracted as our foes. I'm glad it was effective for you, Alice. I would hate to come and find you among the ashes."

She smiled. "I have done a good job of evading that fate so far."

He laughed. "And I imagine you will continue to do so." He bent and hugged her to himself. "Enjoy your new life, Alice. I will see you again."

"Of course you will," she agreed. I felt the affection from each of them. "And tell Aro I will let him know if I see anything he needs to know about. I do want to prevent threats to our kind. I also want to prevent threats to myself," she said meaningfully.

Demitri laughed. "I will tell him that. He won't find it as ironic as I do. Goodbye, Carlisle."

"Goodbye, Demitri. You are sure you won't join us today? Make Aro terribly afraid of me and my tempting ways." Carlisle's eyes crinkled with his smile.

Demitri laughed even harder. "Tempting. Ha! That's rich. Thank you, no." With that he turned and rounded a corner.

"Forgive me?" Alice asked, taking my hand.

I sighed. "Forgive you for saving me from certain destruction? Thank you. I will thank Bella properly in the morning. Has she been here all day?"

Alice nodded. "I got her a hotel room. She couldn't have driven here today." She looked at me like I was nuts. The amount of snow that had fallen today, on top of the bitter cold temperatures, had shut down most of the State. Bella would have had trouble driving more than a few blocks.

"I love you." I kissed her head. "Let's go home."

"We just need to say goodbye first." Alice pulled me toward Eleazar and Carmen, Kate and Tanya. Smoke poured from the building; it would erupt in open flame soon.

"A pleasure to see you again, Alice," Tanya said, extending a hand. "We're going to head back to Denali now, as you already know." She smirked at my mate.

"Yes. You will have no trouble along the way."

Carlisle hugged Tanya. "Thank you so much for coming." He moved to hug Kate and I took Tanya into my arms, bidding them all a safe journey.

Bella was lying in my bed when we got home. "What took you so long?" she teased.

How was that? Maybe some day I'll write Alice or Bella or Jacob's view of the battle. You know they saw a lot of things Jasper didn't ;)