A/N: I heard "Start a War" by Klergy and Valerie Broussard on the Riverdale S2 Premiere the other night, and immediately this scene hit me smack in the head. Haha. So this chapter is defs inspired by this song! Ah! I can see it all now. The running montages, the hazy, red sunset timelapse… Mmm. Yes.

Enjoy, lovelies!

(PS. Hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween! Mine consisted of spending an hour doing my face up like a panther's, and then another couple following my little girls around the neighborhood while they trick-or-treated—my one year old freaked when we transferred the candy from her bucket into a bigger bag, and then would not take it back unless it had at least one piece of candy in it! LOL! xD And my three year old dressed up as a ghost and had a blast, as well. And now I get to eat all their Reese's! Yess!)

…

Eleanor kept the headlights off as we careened down the one-oh-one at top speed. Carine was in the passenger seat, body turned completely sideways so she could watch both Eleanor and me. Her ochre eyes were serious and muted in the indigo shadows of nighttime.

I sat huddled in the backseat, knees drawn to my chest. I wondered if I otherwise would have gone insane with anxiety if I hadn't known it was Archie who was with Beau. According to all logical reason, Beau was in perfectly capable hands—a psychic on one side, and one of the most vigorously trained soldiers of the Southern Rebellion on the other.

However, the half-hearted reassurance lost ground with each mile that grew between us. It was physically painful to be apart from him—my heart was torn in two, and only one half lingered in my hollow chest. The other half I'd left with Beau. It was maddening not to be able to count his heartbeats, not to be able to look into his crystal, cerulean eyes and know, beyond all reason of a doubt, that he was safe. It was like turning my back on the enemy—it felt wrong. The blackest kind of wrong.

If there had been any other way, I never would have left him. But the plan was working to our advantage. Joss was on our trail, her thoughts more akin to a hunting dog's than anything resembling a human's. As far as she was aware, Beau was with us—she had caught the scent of his dirty clothes in the pack next to me—and she assumed we'd recruited the best of our coven to flee with him: His mated mind-reader, the coven's leader, and the strongest fighter. In actuality, we did not make up security detail—we were the first diversion, the killing party.

The plan was to lead her as far north as we could—possibly up into Canada—before employing the fight strategy and taking her down. If all went according to plan, she would not get within a hundred miles of Beau, who would escape south with Archie and Jess. To ensure Joss's mate, the redheaded male, would be unable to aid her when it came time to fight—and thus, keeping the three-to-one advantage in our favor—Earnest and Royal would take Beau's truck west. The tracker would be a pile of burnt ash before he knew anything had gone wrong.

If Archie's visions held true, we would succeed—but it felt too good to be true for me. I could not shake the visceral, clawing panic inside my chest, twisting my numb, frozen insides into gnarled clusters.

Everything ached in me to go back for him—to grab him up and take him someplace where we could be alone. I had never felt more distressing discomfort in my life.

Is she following us?

Carine's mental call broke through my tragic reveries, and I felt great relief for the interruption. When I blinked and found her pale face watching me, her expression was concerned.

"Yes," I whispered.

Eleanor chuckled darkly. Her thoughts were filled with the mental image of Joss's demise. If it were up to her, neither Carine nor I would get our hands dirty. Part of it was the pride—but mostly, it was her protective instincts taking effect.

How are you doing? Carine asked silently now, her eyes still fixed on my face. The unease there overflowed and washed across the empty space toward me. I was made aware that I was not the only one separated from my mate. Both Carine and Eleanor had left their husbands alone with the menacing, panther-esque male. Their thoughts were anxious, of course, but less so. They knew Earnest and Royal could handle themselves. Such notions did not soothe me. Such notions, in Beau's case, were farther from the truth than possible.

I shook my head, unable to speak the words.

Carine reached back, laying a hand on my knee. Her thoughts formed no comprehensible pattern, but the tenderness and compassion she held in her mind for me were ostensible. Through her eyes, my face appeared drawn and riddled with anxiety. The flash in my golden eyes was bright, fierce, and slightly wild. She could see the unbridled madness it was to be away from my love, but she could also see the bloodlust—the craving for the battle that was to come.

Eleanor veered the truck sharply onto an abandoned logging road, and she switched the lights on now. The image from Archie's predicted image solidified—the lamp shine bounced and swerved wildly across the uneven avenue. Eleanor had memorized the network of logging roads and four-by-four trails, popular and unpopular, long ago. Off-roading was one way she and Royal liked to pass their copious amounts of free time, and she often brought her Jeep along on hunting trips—preferring to bump and fly over the muddy divots like some sort of crazy cave-woman. It wasn't as fast as simply running straight through the forest, but to each their own. I hadn't given much thought to the way that Eleanor perceived things for a long while.

I arched my hips off the seat and pulled the cell phone from my back pocket. I pressed '1' to speed-dial Earnest's number, and then brought the device to my ear. Joss was in hearing distance, so I kept the conversation both brief and obscure.

"Edythe?" he answered.

"Your turn."

"Now," I heard him say to Royal before the connection cut off. Royal and Earnest would drive Beau's truck as far west as it took to shake Victor off their trail. When he eventually broke off, they would return to Forks to keep an eye on Charlie until they heard word from us.

I closed my eyes, funneling my attentions off of Joss for an instant so I could find her feline-like mate. The fraction of a second it took me to glimpse the taillights in his mind was enough. My focus snapped back, like an elastic band, winding tight around Joss's thought processes.

I pressed '2' for Archie's number. It didn't ring—he'd been waiting for my call.

"Hey," he said, "Victor followed the truck."

"Yes."

"Time for us to go, then."

"Yes."

"Good luck, Edy. See you soon."

"Very soon," I assured my brother, and then snapped the tiny silver cell phone shut. Some of the compressed anxiety on my chest seemed to lift a little, when I knew that Beau would get out safely, now.

Joss had fallen back half a mile, but I could still hear her. Though I hated to listen to her mind—it was a black place, full of cruelty, sadistic instinct and the intense focus of one-track determination—it was important I keep tabs on her, to ensure she was still on our trail. She was determined to stay out of both scent and hearing range, wanting to give off the ruse that we were conveying Beau successfully away from her.

We reached the end of the trail, thick greenery on three sides of us. I twisted my hair up and out of my face, securing it with an elastic.

Wordlessly, we disembarked and took off into the forest on foot, the pack over my shoulders. The hope was that Joss would follow, believing I carried Beau on my back. Of course, this meant we would need to stop for six to seven hours in any given twenty-four hour period. This 'rest break' would be when we would make our move.

My mother and sister flanked me wordlessly in the dark forest, their thoughts stoic and focused. They did not allow their concern for our other family members to cloud their judgment, and I did my best to follow their example.

Eleanor was strategizing her technique—trying to ferret out an approach that would keep Carine as much on the sidelines as possible—and, hopefully, me as well.

"Not a chance," I muttered to her. There was no possibility that I would stand back and watch my sister finish off the wrath of my existence. This was my fight, and Eleanor had partially acknowledged this.

Now, her thoughts turned apologetic. I don't want you getting hurt, she worried.

"You've got my back," I told her, "This is my fight. It's my responsibility."

She nodded in assent. I'll back you up, she promised.

Carine was thinking through our plans fort he millionth time, attempting to plan everything down to the tiniest microbe of information. She didn't want to miss anything.

We'll lead her north, as far into the wilderness as possible, where there will be fewer witnesses… We'll set up camp, light a fire, pitch the tent… El and I will traverse off the campsite, posing a phony reconnaissance back to Forks… When Joss thinks Edythe is alone with Beau, surely she'll approach her. We'll have doubled back, of course, and then we'll jump in from behind. She won't stand a chance against the three of us.

A brief flicker of regret flashed through her thoughts. She wished it hadn't had to come to this, and she was still trying to accept the drastic measures we would undoubtedly need to take.

"She'll never stop," I barely breathed, "It's the only way."

I know. Her thoughts were resigned.

I hated to subject Carine to this sort of desecration. I glanced sideways at El, and we shared a brief silent conversation.

We'll keep her out of this as much as possible.

"Yes."

The only debatable part of the plan was what might happen if Joss attempted to engage with me alone. Lauren had said she was a matchless fighter, but I did not think she'd ever faced a mind reader. Even when acting solely on instinct—which was truly very difficult to do. Only the most highly trained and disciplined were successful; even Jessamine could not quite succeed at the endeavor—one was still required to make decisions, up to a certain point. I was confident, that at the very worst, we would be an even match. And when El came to back me up, it would be over very quickly, then.

We kept moving—pale white specters against navy blue and jade green backdrops.

…

Dawn appeared, ghostly and washed in pearl, against Vancouver's rolling mountain-view.

It had been around five o' clock a.m. when we arrived at the town of Neah Bay—the northernmost town of the Olympic Peninsula. Its town and surrounding areas was the home to the local Makah tribe, who strongly depended on fishing the local marine life for their main source of income.

We had been hoping a fisherman might be out early to ready his boat for the day, and that we could bribe him to take us across the Juan de Fuca strait, to Canada. It irritated me that we must go to these lengths to uphold our appearances—of course, it would have been much faster for us to swim. Not to mention, it would give Joss less time in the village, in case she decided she was thirsty.

However, we had a persona to uphold. Beau was supposed to be with us, of course, and even to a long-resigned nomadic vampire, it would raise her suspicions if she thought we were swimming him across.

Lady Luck was on our side when we approached the moored docks. At the other end, a gnarled old man was readying his small fishing boat for what looked like an expedition. His skin was folded and worn from sun exposure and age, his hair braided in a single platinum braid down his back. He wore a thick fisherman's sweater—the morning air around us was hazy with icy fog, which soothed me. We had enough cover for the trip across the strait in the diffuse morning light.

Now, on the other side of the strait, watching the man's small boat depart, I listened for the tracker.

Joss's mental trailing had faded in and out of my periphery for the last few hours. At first, I assumed she was merely testing her wits—testing her tracking skills, possibly. Indeed, she would be able to follow our trail, even miles behind, or maybe she had begun to feel threatened by how close she'd been following. But as the night surrendered to morning, her thoughts seemed to grow unfocused and disjointed.

I hadn't heard anything from her for over half an hour now, and I was beginning to feel uneasy. The lack of hearing made me unusually disconcerted.

The trip across in the man's compact boat had taken no more than an hour and a half. Surely she couldn't be that far behind.

Carine caught the agitation in my expression.

Is everything as it should be, Edythe?

I held up a finger in her direction, considering.

Eleanor and Carine stood very still beside me while I listened intently for Joss's quickly becoming familiar voice. There was nothing.

"Maybe…" I started to say, but trailed off.

"What is it, Edythe?" Carine prodded.

"I haven't heard her in awhile. Maybe I should swim back to the mainland while you two wait here, just so I can make sure she's still following…" I felt my brow crease.

"Do you have reason to believe she would have turned back?"

"No, but—"

"She's a tracker, Edy. It's most likely just part of her sick game. That, or she somehow figured out you can read her mind and she's probably just trying to stay out of your range."

Both of these had been possibilities I'd thought of. But the anxiety swirled inside, and I hesitated.

"We'll go with you," Carine offered. "It's not safe to leave you alone."

"No," I said, shaking my head quickly, "No, it's fine. Let's just keep going. El's probably right—she's probably just staying out of hearing range."

"I am?"

"Yes." I looked hard into her face, trying to convince myself of the fact.

Carine laid a comforting hand on my arm. "Let's set up camp a little ways into the forest, so that Beau can rest. We'll build a fire and pitch the tent. She'll show up soon, surely."

I nodded my assent, and we left the shoreline, melting into the sheltering trees as the sun began to burn away the fog.

…

The spit and crackle of the small fire we'd built was the only sound against the early morning setting.

The three of us sat huddled around the flames, not because we were cold, but because there was nothing else we could do. As we sat, each minute seeming to stretch longer and longer, I could feel my agitation beginning to swell—like a hemorrhaging brain under duress.

It had been two hours since we'd arrived on Vancouver Island, and still, I had not heard from Joss. I was beginning to regret crossing the strait before I'd clued in to her absence, but of course, I had not. The worry clawed at the back of my mind, etching gouges of horror into my consciousness—that, somehow, she'd had contact with the male; that he'd figured out where Beau had gone; that she was on her way to him, now.

Just the thought had me leaping to my feet, a fierce hiss sliding through my teeth.

What is it? Carine was alarmed.

"It's… It's nothing. I'm just…" I looked away, beginning to pace. The agitation was too much now—I could not sit still any longer. "What if she's figured it out? That Beau's not with us? What if the male gleaned some sort of information…?"

El's eyes followed my frantic pacing, back and forth in front of the small fire, elbows to knees, chin to palms.

"Here we sit, doing nothing—just waiting for her to show up, when that's not even a given!"

Try to be patient, Carine encouraged, She'll run if we chase her. The best approach is to let her come to us.

"But what if she doesn't come? What then, Carine?"

"She'll come." Eleanor was sure.

"You don't know that!" I snarled sharply at her. "You can't read her mind, you don't know the way she works! You have no idea!"

"Jesus," El murmured, holding up her hands, "I was only trying to help, Edy."

I huffed and sank down onto the ground beside her. "I know," I whispered, "I'm sorry."

She folded an arm over my shoulders and pulled me in for a short embrace. She didn't say anything, but understanding and acceptance passed through her thoughts.

"It's understandable that you would be anxious, Edythe," my mother consoled me. She reached across Eleanor's embrace to tuck an escaped strand of hair behind my ear. "The kind of love you possess for Beau—it is all-consuming, unmatchable. I see that every time you look at him. There is nothing you wouldn't do for him… This will all be over soon, and you'll be with him before you know it."

I heard the dovetailing course her thoughts had taken. The curiosity burned in her mind—there was more concern there than I had previously been aware of. Earnest was confident that we would find some sort of happy medium, some sort of compromise. Carine wasn't so sure.

Have you decided then? she eventually asked, About his fate?

I groaned and bowed my head. "If anything happens to him, I will never forgive myself."

"Nothing will," she cajoled, "We are all on his side. And whatever you decide for the remainder of his future, we'll support you in that, too."

Eleanor snorted quietly, shattering the somber mood. "Speak for yourself, Carine," she retorted, "Some of us see the inevitability of where this is heading…"

I wrenched myself from my sister's loose hold and jerked my face up to glare at her. "I will not damn Beau to a irredeemable existence," I hissed.

"Edy," she said, her eyes suddenly soft, "You'd really let him die before you let Carine turn him?"

I couldn't answer. The immediate, resounding 'no' locked halfway up my throat, and my lips parted, but no sound emitted from them. I pushed two fingers between my brows and groaned again. "No," I finally whispered, "I… I can't do that. I won't do this to him… You don't understand." My voice was barely a whisper of wind now, but I knew they both could hear me clearly, "I know what Archie's seen. I know how concrete those two options are to him, but I… I can't chance his eternal damnation for something so self-prophesizing."

"Would you do it?" she urged, "If you had to? If there was no other option?"

"No." I locked my teeth together on the word, forcing it to be true. "Not by my choice."

Eleanor shook her head, stumped. She didn't understand how I could have found the one my heart loved, only to fate him to such a tragic, early demise such as old age. She didn't share my viewpoint on what we were, what our strange half-life meant to me. Eleanor didn't comprehend the true depravity I believed to be true for us. She didn't understand Beau's purity—she didn't understand how truly, truly good he was.

He deserved every kind of divine reward he could ever be entitled to. I could not take that away from him.

I was loath to think of a future without Beau—even if everything went according to plan. If he, and my family, as well as myself, came through this intact, there would undoubtedly be more obstacles in our way. Illnesses, accidents, natural disasters… How long would I fight the inevitable? How long would I put off what was simply a matter of timing? Would I truly be able to let him go when his time came? Who was to judge when the appropriate timing was? Hadn't I already infringed on that possibility not just once but twice?—I would not allow my murderous temptation for his blood to count as some sort of sick fate.

I cannot pretend I know what you're going through, Edythe, Carine thought now, her golden eyes on the flames, reflecting their amber brightness. But what I do know is that you are as good and righteous as most of our lot come. You are a far better person than you see in yourself. I wish I could hold up a magic mirror, which could show you what I see… I have faith in you and the outcome of your relationship. I know how deeply rooted your sacrilegious beliefs run. I know the fate you see for us, or at least for yourself. I cannot argue your opinion more than I already have tried to do in the last eighty years. I respect your standpoint, as I know you respect mine.

But Beau has a choice in this, too. Ultimately, it is his life, his decision, but you are a couple now. And as many couples do, you'll have to make this decision together. It's possible… That he would be willing to pay the price, in exchange for forever with you. My teeth locked together, but she continued. You have to consider the possibility that he may choose it.

I didn't know where Beau stood on the possibility of becoming a vampire. In all reality, we'd only known each other a couple of weeks, and I hadn't been able to be fully open with him until only two days ago.

One thing I did know: I would do everything in my power to keep Beau human. I would sacrifice everything I had for the sake of his safety and his humanity—I would fight for him until his final breath. Incontestably, he would not want this life for himself, despite his severe lack of self-preservation. Surely, he would share my viewpoint on this.

Nevertheless, the conversation would never come up.

But… The word echoed through my mind, and helplessly, my thoughts carried me forward onto the next train of consideration… What if he desired this horrible damnation? What if he were willing to risk it all, for me?

I could not deny the swell of selfish pleasure that rose like the tide inside of me at the possibility. I could not deny the joy it would bring me, however irredeemable, if Beau really were to choose this life for himself. But to have my joy would mean to sacrifice everything good and pure about Beau—and I couldn't do that…

I supposed the groundless circuit of thought within my mind was answerless for now, then.

A few feet away, Carine pulled out the cell phone to call Earnest for an update. The male had stopped following them after a short amount of time, and they'd returned to Forks immediately. Royal followed the male around town, even all the way up to the airport in Port Angeles and back, while Earnest stood guard in the forest by Charlie's house. Nothing of consequence had happened, and this appeased Carine's anxieties.

…

"Ah!"

I leaped to my feet just before noon, and immediately, both Eleanor and Carine glanced up at me.

"There you are," I muttered sardonically.

It hadn't been much—just a vague flicker of her mental presence, but it had been enough. She had just arrived at the shoreline. The poignancy of her surroundings had been incredibly sharp—her focus had been narrower, somehow, focused only on the studious tasks at hand.

I never thought I would be relieved to hear her vitriol thoughts.

How close? Carine asked.

"Shoreline," I muttered, taking a couple steps in the direction her thoughts had come from, as if pulled by a string toward my enemy. Every fiber in my body ached to attack, and to attack now, but the logical side of me battered against the urge. If we wanted this to go smoothly, we had to wait for her to approach.

Her visit was uneventful. I heard her mental voice as she advanced, and we took up post, in various places around the tent, where we'd hidden the pack. I knew there were holes in our plan—the most important one the lack of a human heartbeat—but I hoped she would simply not notice this part; I hoped that she would take his scent as confirmation enough.

Sure enough, when she saw our numbers and our readiness, she did not attack. I engaged Carine in conversation about their faux rendezvous, which I knew Joss would overhear. When she'd confirmed our numbers, she retreated back the way she'd come, flush with her scent trail.

When I could no longer hear her, we packed up our gear and headed north, into Strathcona Park. It was a fairly isolated part of the forest. There were no roads or footpaths, and not very many humans came out this far.

We found an appropriate place to pitch the tent and build another fire—for the sake of keeping our human warm; of course, we didn't need it.

The night passed in the absence of confrontation. I did not hear from Joss's mind again. When the sun rose, we cooked oatmeal and coffee for the fake human we transported, and then buried the evidence. The smell of the food would linger, and when Joss crossed it, it would lend confidence to our story.

We hiked further north through the thick underbrush and foliage, leaping over various fallen trees and creeks. I felt uncomfortable traveling further away from Joss when I could not hear her thoughts and know with any certainty that she was following us—I could only hope she was.

Late in the afternoon, as the sun began to sink, we employed our final plan after finding another place to set up camp.

"We'll be back at sundown tomorrow," Carine said in normal volume, in case Joss was listening, which I doubted. I could not hear her thoughts, but it was always safer to be thorough.

Good luck. Carine squeezed my hand once, and they were off. Of course, they weren't going far, but just in case Joss was within hearing distance, we had to make it seem so.

I took up position in front of the tent, adrenaline spiking through my dry veins like a bright electric current. Lauren had said Joss was 'absolutely lethal'. Well, I would be even more so. She wouldn't be carrying out her despicable ways for much longer.

But my doubts soon got the best of me. Rain clouds coagulated on the darkening horizon. The sky turned grey, then lavender, and then gradually, a deep purple. I stood as stiff as a sentry, prepared for battle, even as the hours dragged on. Even as I heard nothing from Joss.

I had over-excited myself, catching a glimpse of her mental voice, but that had been nearly twelve hours ago now, and all at once, I deflated. I suspected she'd somehow caught onto the ruse, and she'd fled.

There was no sign of her, and eventually, I backed down from my feigned post, curling up by the extinguished fire ring.

Carine and Eleanor returned when the sky began to brighten.

No sign of her?

"None," I said lowly, staring into the dwindling embers. "I think we've lost her. I haven't heard anything since yesterday morning."

The thrill of intention flared in Eleanor's mind. Let's go after her, then! Her body leaned forward unconsciously, as she prepared to take the tracker down.

Carine contemplated for a moment, wondering if this might be part of her ploy, an attempt to fool us and reel us back in before we travelled too far 'with Beau'. The thought that Joss might have discovered Beau wasn't with us did cross her mind, but it did not hold as much conviction as the idea still held in my own thoughts.

She decided to check in with Earnest before we made any subsequent decisions.

"Darling," he greeted her, "Have you had success?" Immediately, I could sense the undertone of stress to my father's voice, and it piqued my anxiety.

"No," Carine murmured softly. She had her back turned to us, and was staring into the forest. "Edythe hasn't heard anything from Joss in almost a day… Do you have an update on the male?"

"He visited the high school Monday night, and then sojourned the Swan residence after Charlie had left for work. I didn't interfere, as Charlie was safely at the station. Neither of us have seen him since then; I believe he may have left Forks entirely."

The effect of the news was like a blow to the chest. I was sure now, that Joss had discovered the ruse we were trying to pull. I attempted to remind myself that she had no idea where Archie and Jess had taken Beau—and she would have no way of finding him. His retreated scent trail had been well disguised. He'd traded clothes with Earnest; he'd fled in a car he'd never been in before.

I tried to convince myself that, at the very worst, the two had reconvened someplace to reevaluate their plan. But I could not reason with the palpable anxiety that was beginning to consume me. My vision had taken on a blurred quality, which was unusual to vampires as our vision was unerringly without flaw. I could focus on nothing more than the desire to find the tracker and tear her to pieces.

Carine ended the call and turned back to us. There was no need to explain the phone call that had taken place; we'd overheard clearly.

"Do you think they've met up someplace?" Eleanor asked after a fraction of a second of silence.

"It's a certain prospect," Carine agreed, "I think it would be a good idea to refigure our battle plan, in case they approach us together."

"Psh," Eleanor scoffed, "Let them come. We can take them."

I didn't say a word. Unconsciously, I'd drifted approximately ten feet away, back toward the way we'd come.

Carine watched my turned back with anxiety. Underneath my shirt, she could see that my shoulders were stiff with unease.

Edythe?

I did not revolve to face them, but I turned my head slightly to the side to indicate that I was listening.

What are you thinking, daughter? What are your thoughts?

I circled to face them. I could see my face in both my mother and my sister's minds. My face was hard and stony with resolution.

"We find her trail and follow it. In the event that we don't find her, at least we'll know where she went. There is no point in continuing to run if she's abandoned the chase."

They did not argue with my decision, and we were soon on our way, travelling analogous to the trail we'd taken north, heading back south now. If Joss had abandoned her pursuit, it made sense she would have returned to Forks to meet up with her mate.

Eleanor and Carine were both anxious to return home, fearing their husbands would be unprepared for a fight the nomads may initiate.

After approximately a hundred miles, Eleanor found her trail, and lifted her hand in silence.

Bingo!

"It's a few hours old," she reported as Carine and I bounded over.

"Six or seven," I concurred, sniffing for myself.

In silent consensus, we followed the path east. I stayed a few paces ahead of them always, intent on getting to her first. As we travelled, the thrill expanded inside of me. This was my chance! We were finally going to spring upon her, and finally, finally, put a rest to this horrific quest!

"What's east of here?" Eleanor wondered as we sprinted through the forest.

"Just forest between here and the coast," Carine replied, "There's a ferry on the east side of Nanaimo. It goes to the mainland—Vancouver, I'm sure."

"She wouldn't take a ferry," Eleanor ascertained.

"No," I interjected, "But she might get on a plane. What if she flies back to Seattle, to meet up with her mate?"

I pushed my legs harder, worried now. There was no longer any need for stealth. We streaked through the damp forest without sound, posthaste.

…

It was twilight when we arrived at Nanaimo.

"She was here!" I blurted in a low voice. Joss's scent was strong leading up to the ferryboat terminal, and I was certain she'd used the ship to cross. I didn't pause to wonder why she was so intent on keeping up with the human charade. We boarded without hesitation.

The hour and forty minute crossing was excruciating, and it came as a great effort to keep my pace to that of a human as we disembarked. Great relief overcame me when we picked up Joss's trail right away again, following it to a nearby taxi stand, where it disappeared, within reason.

"Where would she have gone?" Eleanor wondered aloud. She looked up and down the street, as if she could resolve the question with simple sight.

"We need to check the airport," I decided. This was our most likely possibility, and I stepped off the curb to hail a cab. When the driver laid his eyes on the three of us—in his mind stunningly beautiful despite our rugged appearances—he skipped over three waiting crowds and pulled up in front of us.

"The airport Hilton, please," I said before he could ask where we were going.

He attempted to engage us in conversation a few times, but I was not in the mood for small talk. Carine took mercy on the man, and answered his questions politely, yet briefly.

She paid him a hefty tip when we arrived at the Hilton, where El abandoned the travel pack in a large waste bin. The gear would set off the metal detectors in the airport, and we preferred to go about our mission with as little perlustration as possible.

Sure enough, inside, we discovered Joss's scent everywhere. It was impossible to discern which way she'd went, for she'd visited every terminal, every bathroom, every possible accessible part of the airport. To me, her scent seemed slightly stronger leading toward the tarmac where the smaller airplanes were located. Had she stolen one? Surely it would not have been difficult to book a ticket. But of course, this was a game to Joss, and who knew? Maybe grand theft aircraft was a thrill for her?

Carine called Archie while Eleanor checked the departures board for the soonest subsequent flight to Seattle. I kept tabs on her mind while I listened intently to Carine's conversation.

"Carine."

"Hello, Archie," Carine greeted him, "How are things from your vantage? How is Beau doing? Is he well and safe?" She kept her eyes locked on mine as she asked these questions, knowing I would want them answered as soon as possible.

"Yes," he assured us.

Carine sighed. "Regretfully, we've lost track of Joss. Victor has fled Forks as well. We think they've planned to reconvene somewhere—possibly the male has unearthed some information he think Joss may benefit from. We assume she's stolen a small airplane and headed back to Forks to start over from scratch. Have you seen anything useful?"

"I just saw her," he said, and I hissed quietly between my teeth. "She'll be in a long room—with mirrors everywhere, a gold stripe across them. She was running a VCR in the dark, but I think this was at another place… I can't be sure, though; it was dark… She'll be in the mirror room tonight or tomorrow; it wasn't exactly clear… There's some secondary decision that remains unmade… Whatever made her take that plane… it was leading her to those rooms."

"I see," Carine murmured quietly. This discouraged her; there was not much to go off of Archie's vision. It was too vague to glean a clear plan of action. "Thank you, Archie. Edythe would like to speak to Beau. Is he available?"

"Yes," he said, and then, as Carine passed the phone to me, "Beau?"

There was a muffled sound as Beau took the cell phone, fabric rubbing against the speaker—it sounded like cotton, his shirt?—and then, his voice—his sweet, arduous, anxious, breathless voice: "Hello?"

"Beau." Immense relief washed over me, and for a minute, everything was okay—for a split second it didn't matter where Joss had gone. In this moment, my heart had inscrutably been repaired. His voice dispatched across the phone lines, and swathed the shape of my face in a warm caress.

"Oh, Edythe—where are you?"

"Outside of Vancouver." And then some of the respite lessened, and I remembered the gravity of our situation. "I'm sorry, Beau—we lost her. She seems suspicious of us—she stays just far enough away that I can't hear her. She's gone now—looks like she stole a small plane. We think she's heading back to Forks to start over."

"I know," he said, unsurprised, of course, "Archie saw that she got away."

I felt momentary irritation with my brother. It truly was not necessary to tell Beau so many details. It would only burden his already fragile mind. "You don't have to worry, though," I tried to soothe him, "You've left no trail for her to follow. You just have to stay with Archie and wait till we find her again. Archie will get a bead on her soon enough." I was confident in my brother's abilities. Surely, Joss would not stay in the long, mirrored room forever. And Archie would see when she moved.

"I'll be fine," Beau said, "Is Earnest with Charlie?"

"Yes." I relayed what Earnest had told us of Victor's actions around Forks. "Don't worry—Charlie's safe with Earnest and Royal watching."

"What do you think Victor is doing?" Was it anxiety I sensed warbling in his voice?

"Trying to pick up the trail. He's been all through the area during the night. Royal traced him up to the airport in Port Angeles, all the roads around town, the school… he's digging, Beau, but there's nothing to find."

"And you're sure Charlie's safe?"

"Yes. Earnest won't let him out of his sight. I'll be there soon. If the tracker gets anywhere near Forks, I'll have her." I'll have her. My vision shimmered at the edges, a deep ruby color, and the bloodlust zapped in my fingers. I'll have her. My fist clutched at empty air, imagining her hair twined in my fingers, forcing her to her knees in front of me, those malevolent crimson eyes finally cleared of their confidence. She would know what was coming for her, and I would read every regret, every facet of remorse in her mind as I tore her limbs from her body.

Beau gulped loudly, as if he could hear the thirst for murder in my thoughts. "Be careful," he warned me, "Stay with Carine and Eleanor."

But I was confident that, even if I did get ahead of them—which, I would admit, was a great possibility—my determination alone would be enough to take her down. She would not live another twenty-four hours. I would find her before then.

"I know what I'm doing."

"I miss you," he murmured.

My composure thawed, all thoughts of decimation and slaughter evaporating in the face of his tenderness.

"I know," I told him, "Believe me, I know. It's like you've taken half of my self away with you."

"Come and get it, then," he challenged.

I could nearly taste his scent on the back of my tongue, his sweet ambrosia, and for an instant, there was no resulting burn accompanying it. "As soon as I possibly can," I guaranteed him, "I will make this right first." Fervent determination swirled like a firestorm inside my chest. Unconsciously, I felt my body bow forward in preparation of the battle that was to come in only a few hours' time.

"I love you." His voice was soft, and once again, it domesticated the fury inside me.

"Could you believe that, despite everything I've put you through, I love you, too?"

"Yes," he said confidently, "I can."

"I'll come for you soon."

"I'll wait for you."

I ended the call unwillingly, and turned to focus on the task at hand. My resolve had been renewed with the phone call. I held Beau's words close to my heart like a shield. With his blessing and his avocation, I felt I could take on the world. I would defeat the tracker—at this point, I felt I could do it with my eyes closed and a hand tied behind my back—that was how powerful Beau made me feel.

Eleanor had rejoined us with news of a flight out of Vancouver to Seattle two hours from now. That gave us enough time to purchase tickets—seating wasn't ideal, and we didn't get to sit anywhere close to each other, but that was alright. We would be able to communicate efficiently enough through unspoken thought and my subtle, quickly spoken words. Besides, there wouldn't be much to say until we landed and were on our way back to Forks.

The interim also gave us enough ability to purchase new sets of clothing from the airport gift shop, as well as hand luggage to hold the appropriate items—our soiled clothing, passports, money, toiletries, magazines. It would look suspicious if we boarded an airplane without luggage—especially an international flight.

I spent the remaining waiting period in agonized anxiety, standing like a statue in front of the terminal windows, unbreathing, just a little too still. Carine warned me a couple of times, and I caught myself, shifting my weight, focusing on breathing evenly—but then my thoughts would begin to race once more, and the frenetic energy transferred to my body. Unlike a human under a great deal of stress, who might pace or fidget, or talk excessively, vampires under duress went unnaturally still.

Finally, El came to stand by me, knocking her elbow against me hard. The force knocked me sideways, but of course, I regained my footing quickly.

I smirked at her.

It lives, she noted in her mind.

Mercifully, the flight was on time, and we arrived at the SeaTac airport in less than three hours. We abandoned our newly-acquired possessions—aside from the essentials, such as our passports and money—in nearby trashcans and headed toward Forks on foot. It was faster this way, and the added bonus of being able to search for Joss's sent was not unnoticed.

By the time we reached the outskirts of Forks, the sense of foreboding I'd formerly abandoned had returned. We caught her sent on the southeast side of the town's borders, but it was not fresh. As we meticulously combed every street of the town, the dreadful sensation grew. Not only was there no fresh scent of Joss, but the man's trail was at least a day old as well.

This confirmed our suspicions that he had gone to Vancouver Island to meet up with his mate, and I wondered what he could have discovered that would have caused such a sudden disappearance of the two. Not for a fraction of a second did I believe she'd given up her quarry.

"I don't believe it, either," Carine murmured thoughtfully. We had gathered near Charlie's empty house so that we could discuss our next moves with Earnest and Royal.

Just then, her cell phone rang.

"Archie?" she answered.

"She's here," his panicked voice bleated over the phone, "or at least she will be soon."

I was immediately at Carine's side, holding my hand out for the phone. She passed it over wordlessly.

"Talk to me," I snapped.

"The room from before—the dark one—it cleared up just a few minutes ago. I was sketching it out when Beau woke up and he recognized it as his mother's family room. She's here in Phoenix, Edythe, she found Renee's house, and I don't know how." His voice was agonized. "I'm so sorry," he said, "I don't know what she's doing—if she's waiting for Renee, or if she's waiting for Beau. Victor must have found her address in Beau's school records or something…"

Of course. It was a clever move, I had to admit that, but the anger swirled so potently inside my head that I couldn't focus. I could not acknowledge rational reason in this moment. I could hardly speak through my clenched jaw.

"Do not let him out of your site. Not for a second! We're on our way."

"We'll meet you at the airport," he said, and then, quieter, "I'm so sorry, Edythe."

"Just watch him, Archie. Watch him like a hawk."

I knew, without a doubt, that when Beau caught wind of this new revelation, his kind, courageous and self-sacrificing nature—which I had perceived with such awe before, but now it terrified me—would overtake him, and I knew, I knew he would not hesitate to do something stupid if his mother was in danger.

Beau's life depended on Archie's watchful eye, now. I hoped he was up to the task.

…

A/N: This section was HARD for me to write! It was mostly because I had to make sure to get my facts straight, but I didn't like that it was difficult to write 'freelance', so to speak. It makes me uncomfortable looking forward—but alas, I will overcome.

Another difficulty was that, unlike Edward, Edythe has a very short amount of time to wrap her head around the inevitability of Beau's transformation. Of course, as we all know, it is quite suddenly thrust upon them all. Unlike Beau and Edythe, Bella and Edward have a plan laid out; she has her house in order, they are ready for it, and Edward especially has had time to process and adjust. Edythe nor Beau get that liberty, so I had to compact all of this down into a very short time frame (i.e. one chapter). Hope I did it justice! Let me know what you thought if you have a second! Next chapter—the climax of the whole story!