AN: Thanks again for following me and my story. It means a lot that you read what i put out there. I wanted to get more chapters over the holiday break but life got busy. I am feverishly working on my debut novel and decided to take a small break when this chapter popped into my head. I hope you all enjoy it!

Carlisle waited for Amelia to come out of the carriage. He knew she couldn't understand what was going on. He didn't even have time to explain why Julius was there. Carlisle knew she felt betrayed and angry. He couldn't blame her though. She found him before he had the chance to explain Julius's plan. She had been in there for a while but she hadn't made a move to come out. He could hear her steady heart beat inside the carriage. It had slowed some since she went in there. She was calming down, at least that is what Carlisle hoped she was doing.

"Did you do anything to harm her while she was Aro's captive?" He asked without facing Julius who was still by the tree.

"No but I did bring her in for Aro. I took her in the middle of the night while you were out. I shackled her in her cell, I brought her food. I never did any physical harm to her but I can see I mentally harmed her." Julius waited for Carlisle to react. He waited for the blows to come but they never did. Carlisle just stood there.

"She's sleeping." Carlisle finally said a few minutes later. "We should get going."

"Is that a good idea?"

"No but we can't stay here too much longer. Plus you have to report to Aro. If he suspects something happened between Amelia and me, he will probably have you take her back to him. I can't risk her. I just can't."

Carlisle jumped in front of the carriage and took his place. He grabbed the reins and the horses became slightly unsteady. No doubt they were feeling the presence of a predator nearby. "Want to ride or run?"

"I think it's best if I keep my distance until she is okay." Julius replied as he waited for Carlisle to start moving. Carlisle nodded and cued the horses to start moving.

It was going to be a long night of traveling. Carlisle was nervous about what Amelia would do or think when she woke up. He would make sure when they pass through the town that he stock up on food and hopefully before she woke up, he can stop somewhere for a few hours, let the horses rest and pretend to sleep.

The night wore on and Carlisle could sense Julius following them. He felt at ease though even though he hasn't given Julius his trust yet. If Julius was not really on their side he feared that it would be the biggest mistake of his life but if Julius was, it may just be his saving grace. Carlisle continued on in the darkness constantly thinking about his conversation with Julius. He needed to pick it apart to see if he saw any signs of lies within his story. He couldn't find it but then again, he knew vampires could lie. His whole life now was a lie. They were very convincing creatures when they had to be. Carlisle prayed he was trusting the right person in this complex situation. He looked ahead and saw the sun begin to rise. He needed to find a place to stop, let the horses rest and get the camp ready to make it appear that they had been there a while.

Carlisle had the camp set up within an hour. The light was beginning to break the horizon. He loved watching the sunrise. It reminded him of God's power. Even though he was an abomination now he still had his faith and liked to think he was still every mother's dream for their daughter. Even though Amelia didn't have close family around, he often dreamed her mother approved of him. Carlisle hoped her family would see him as a good man and get past the strange behaviors they were sure to see. His thoughts turned to his own family. He hoped his actions of trying to save Amelia from this life would make his father happy, even though his father hunted him. He closed his eyes and imagined what he would be doing right now if he was still human. He wondered if he would have found Amelia or someone as wonderful as her.

Carlisle wrapped his arm around Amelia and inhaled her scent. He felt a small urge just to taste her blood again. Although he wasn't hungry, his mouth watered at the thought. For a moment he allowed himself to remember her taste and savor how it made him feel although he knew he could never do it again. Although he had a drop of it and didn't dwell on anything but what he had done at the time, he could remember the split second the blood touched his tongue. In that split second he knew how her blood was the most delicious thing he had tasted since he was turned. It sent fire through his veins. One drop almost cost him the one thing he love. He was so amazed he was able to pull away because of the revulsion he felt after he thought how he wanted to drain her blood. Carlisle knew he had to eat more often and not let his hunger take over. She wouldn't be safe with him then.

Amelia stirred in his arms. He propped himself up and looked at her. Her hair was brushed to the side and he saw the steady pulse in the vein on the side of her neck. It was like it was teasing him. Showing him that she had something he wanted but couldn't touch without losing her. He felt his frustration grow as he was warring with himself. He got up as slow as he could so he wouldn't disturb Amelia's sleep. He needed to get away from her and clear his thoughts. She was still in deep sleep and would probably be a few hours before she actually woke up. He walked out of the carriage and leaned against the door was he closed it. He took a deep breath although he didn't need to. It was comforting for him.

"You okay?" Julius broke into his thoughts.

"Yea, just thinking how lucky I am that I have her and how easily I could mess this up."

"You want her blood." He said quietly. It wasn't a question but more of a realization on his part.

"Half of me is holding myself back. Keeping me from ripping her throat open." Carlisle said staring at the sky. The orange and yellow colors were becoming very prominent in the sky.

"So you tasted her already. Those were your fang marks on her neck. You nipped her." He said as more of the pieces fell into place. "You are the strongest vampire I know Carlisle. If it were me, she probably would have been dead by now." He said. Carlisle slammed him to the ground.

"Don't you dare think about her!" He growled through his teeth. Julius was surprised by his anger.

"I wasn't. I was just making a comparison. I did not mean to offend you Carlisle. I was not even thinking about tasting her." Julius struggled to speak. Carlisle was not allowing him to breath. Carlisle eased up and released him after a few moments. They both stood and faced each other. "I know that blood drives us. When I feed I cannot stop until I have had my fill. It was a compliment to your strength." He said brushing the dirt off himself. Carlisle stood there eyeing him the whole time.

"I apologize for my outburst." He said going to check on the horses. They were tied to the tree on the other side of the carriage. He didn't wait to see if it was accepted or not.

He didn't know how much time had passed but Carlisle still sat in the patch of grass that gave him the best view of the scenery. He found that he stopped right before a valley and he could see a town below them. The sun was up now and he kept thinking about his outburst with Julius. He knew he was in the wrong and he hoped Julius really did accept his apology. He took another deep breath and let his arms rest on his knees. His elbows met where his knees were and he hung his head. He needed to stay focused on his task and keep Amelia safe. He closed his eyes and said a prayer to a God that probably didn't even listen to him anymore. He couldn't help but turn to his faith as he was a preacher's son. He prayed for guidance but he knew that it probably wouldn't come from the God he shouldn't believe in anymore. A God that would send him into the fiery pits of hell because he was not a creature of the night, surviving on the blood of animals. Two arms wrapped around him, breaking into his thought.

"Good morning." Her soft voice made him smile. He turned to find Amelia kneeling behind him.

"Good morning. How are you feeling Love?"

"Overwhelmed. Angry. Hurt." She said as she sat beside him, facing the valley. Carlisle didn't say anything just looked at her. She didn't even bother to turn and look at him. She focused on the town in the valley. She started at the horizon. "You betrayed me by letting him come near me. I thought you were going to give me back to those…monsters." She paused and Carlisle saw her shiver. He scooted closer to her, closing the gap between them.

"You will never be in their hands again. Julius is escaping. He is going to help us. I promise you, nothing will happen to you. I would rather die a thousand deaths than to lose you to them." He saw a tear roll down her cheek. He wiped it away and she leaned into his hand.

"I was scared. That's why I ran." She said.

"You don't have to explain. I know. Your nightmares came back to face you. He said he didn't harm you though."

"No but he didn't help me escape either." She said. She finally looked him in the eye and Carlisle saw the deep-seeded fear in them. He wished he could wipe it away but he knew he was afraid of what would happen if he created a false world around him. He could drop his guard and Aro would pounce on them. "I am going to try to be friendly with him, but I do not trust him Carlisle."

"You are safe right now. I promise." He said pulling her in. He hoped that he wouldn't choke on his own words if things go wrong.

"We should go. We have probably been stopped too long. Are you rested enough to keep going? I haven't seen you sleep since we left." Amelia said as she broke the embrace.

"I slept. We can pack up and go."

Carlisle stood then helped Amelia up. He is going to have to pretend to sleep more. She already thinks he is not sleeping enough.