I finished the last of my coffee as I sat at the kitchen table, waiting for the truck to finish warming up. Charlie had already left for work so I was alone in our quiet, dark house. I picked up the note Edward had left and stared at it, my thoughts an absolute whirlwind. I just really wanted to move on, to put this relationship behind me, but whether I liked it or not the stupid note complicated that, not to mention the fact that we go to such a small school. We had to face each other eventually. I ate the other half of my chocolate donut slowly, trying to clear my mind by savoring the sweet flavor. Finished, I carried my small plate and coffee mug to the sink and overzealously scrubbed them, dried them, then put them away neatly in the cabinet. I sighed in resignation. I couldn't put it off any longer. It was time to go to school.

The drive was entirely too short and in no time I found myself parking in the student's parking lot. I shut off my truck's monstrous engine and surveyed my surroundings like the coward I was. I scanned the area for a silver Volvo and didn't find it. The forecast had promised cold heavy rain for the day, so I had figured he and Alice wouldn't skip class. I took a few cleansing breaths, grabbed my school bag and climbed out of the truck to join the bustling body of students heading to first period.

I breathed a sigh of relief when the bell rang and Edward still wasn't in his usual seat beside me in class. I tried to focus on the lesson but the idea of potentially facing Alice in lunch gave me anxiety. I had no idea how she had taken the news of our break up, if she would still be my friend. If I even wanted her to still be my friend. I could tell the news had already spread through the student body, everyone around me practically broke their necks to stare before class began. I wasn't sure exactly how much everyone knew, or how much Jess talked, but I was certainly not excited to find out. The first half of the day passed slowly and painfully, people stared a lot and I did catch mine and Edward's name in quite a few hushed whispers, which I tried to ignore. Mostly, people couldn't believe that I broke up with him, theories ranged from one of us two-timing to me being every iteration of stupid. Which I tried not to let hurt my feelings. By the time Spanish class came I felt like I'd emotionally been dragged through the mud. For such a small school people sure could be vicious, no one had the guts to actually confront me, but they sure didn't mind calling me every name under the sun as they all loudly whispered to each other literally a foot from me. After hearing yet another group of students laugh and call me a stupid whore for about the seventh time I decided I'd had enough bullshit for the day and skipped fifth period. Safe, in the solitude of my truck I cried my heart out. I didn't understand what I'd done to make so many people turn on me, why it was only me they dragged and not Edward, too. I hadn't heard one insult lobbed at him! 'Sure, he's handsome and rich but is that really all it took for them to decide he's the victim? And I thought this break up would be hard for HIM!' I couldn't help my venomous thoughts, other kids in our school broke up everyday and I couldn't remember anyone being put through the wringer like I'd just been. I didn't know how long I'd been curled up and sobbing on the cab seat, but a sudden knock on my passenger door startled me. I couldn't see who was standing there through the fog on the window. I sat up and opened the door to be greeted by Jessica, sporting some fresh bruises, tousled hair and a busted lip. She offered me a bright smile and cheerfully waved her small slip of paper at me.

I blinked away tears and asked her, "Jess, are you okay? What the hell happened?"

She climbed up into the seat beside me and closed the door as she answered, "I heard some girls talking shit earlier, so I ripped out some hair and busted a nose or two. I scored 3 days out of school for it, I came out and noticed the mad fog on your truck and figured you were in here, having a hard time." She proudly held up her suspension slip as she spoke, then she tucked it in her jacket pocket and moved closer towards me. I couldn't help but notice she still had some dried blood on her knuckles. "Pretty bad day, huh?"

The sight of her sitting there, bruised up as she was, but still absolutely beaming, wanting to comfort me, made me want to cry all over again. I was so touched by her friendship, friendship I didn't deserve. It made my heart soar to think that I had at least one ally. I pulled myself together, "Jess, I just don't understand why everyone is so angry at me over this break up, why am I the bad guy? Why do they even care anyway?" Fresh tears welled up as I spoke.

Jess sighed and wrapped her arm around my shoulders, "From what I've heard, they're all just incredibly shallow. I did talk about it, which you knew I would, but I never went into deep detail. Of everyone I talked to, I made sure they understood it was a mutual break up, regardless of what had actually happened, just the way you asked me to. The Cullens may be mysterious and they may act like they're too good to socialize with others, but that doesn't mean people don't think highly of them. I guess people here view them like local celebrities, Edward most of all. You know, I've heard you, yourself, lament that he's better than you on many, many occasions." She looked in my eyes, "And you need to know that that is major bullshit. You matter too, Bella."

I returned her gaze in disbelief, she scoffed and continued, "Really Bells, you know I am very fond of Edward, but he's not better than you, me or anyone else on this planet. Anyone who thinks otherwise is a complete dumbass. And Bells? I know for a fact you're not dumb, just occasionally an ass." She offered me a teasing smile and we giggled together.

After a moment we settled down, "Jess, I don't know how to thank you for cheering me up, or to apologize for your suspension."

"You kidding me? I got to shed some blood in a bitch fight and scored a mini vacay from school. If that don't get me my man, then I don't know what a girl's gotta do!" Fists in her sides, she puffed out her chest with a goofy grin. We fell back into hearty laughter. Afterward I asked her, "Edward and Alice never showed today, did they? Do you think it's my fault? Or was it that incident you told me about on the phone?"

She gave me a sympathetic look, "I honestly can't say either way Bells, but I can tell you that you're not his keeper. If he chose to skip, that's on him. And if he's tiffin' with his sister, that's not on you either." I thought about the note burning a hole in my back pocket. I had hoped we could be mature about this, get to graduation then go our separate ways. The note made me doubt that he and his family would just pack up and leave because of me, but when it comes to the Cullens, only Alice could predict what they would do. I had to admit, it wasn't my business anymore.

I must have looked crestfallen because then Jess tapped my shoulder, "Hey, we did a card reading for Ed last night, let's try doing a quick one for you." She said as she began to dig in her school bag.

"You brought your tarot deck to school?"

"Yeah, ' thought it'd be fun to try it out on our lunch table." She began to shuffle, chanting, "Oh, great spirits! What is in Bella Swan's future?"

"I really don't think that's how the professional's do it."

"Shh! Quiet you! It won't work!" she shuffled some more then pulled three cards and laid them on my dashboard. Each card featured beautiful, unique watercolor art. Jessica then pulled the small guide book out of her bag and began flipping pages. "Hmm…. the lovers…. The devil…. And… the Moon…. Hmm…. it says here that those are Major Arcana cards and are like super mega big to get in a reading."

I was still oogeling the cards. The lovers featured a beautiful nude couple intimately entwined together, gazing into eachothers eyes. The Moon card was a huge, gorgeous, bright moon casting a beam of light over a forest lake at night with a wolf. The Devil card was interesting to me, it had the great big bad himself towering over the lover's who were individually bound by heavy chains, both looking frightened. They were beautiful, but all three cards gave me a great feeling of dread, for a reason I couldn't name. "Well, what does it mean?"

"Well, each card has a page in this book dedicated to it. People online were saying that tarot was more of an intuition thing, whatever that means. So, Uhm… I think…" She picked up the first card and studied it. "I think the lovers are telling us that you're about to fall in love again, I feel like that person's someone who will bring much needed stability and balance to your life." She put it down and grabbed the devil card next. " I feel like this represents a specific person in your life already… someone who's going to come between you and your true love. Maybe someone who will introduce a lot of chaos." She picked up the third card and assessed it. "The book says the Moon is a bad card to get, that it represents 'illusion and deception and hidden enemies'. I feel… like… it's telling us you have some more dark times ahead." She put all three cards down.

"Uhm, Jess, I'm sorry, but that was terrible. I'm definitely not ready for love of any kind, and I really, really can not stress how much I don't like the sound of chaos, deception and hidden enemies being in my future."

"Well, let's pull one more. The tarot lady I watched online last night did. I think she called it a 'qualifier' or 'signifier' or something like that." She pulled a fourth card. "The Sun? Let's see…. Oh look Bells! It's a good card! It means happiness, contentment and success!"

"That's nice Jess, but I'm still a little concerned over here."

"Don't be! I have a good feeling about this, like you've got some struggle left to get through but when it's over you and your new boo are going to be dancing in sunshine on the other side!"

"I really hope that's not the case, Jess. I just want to move on. Alone." I watched her add the cards back to the deck and put it all away.

"Well, you are the master of your own destiny, Bells. You really need to remember that, no matter what happens. Besides, I just bought these cards. I'm not even an amature, yet. You do know that you have to be my first client when I open my own fortune telling shop though, right?"

"If I survive your reading long enough, sure." I teased her.

Jess checked the time on her cellphone, "Well, Bells, school's about to let out and I need to share the joyous news of my vacation with my parental units, so I'm going to head home. If my parents let me see the light of day, we should hang out during my exile."

I promised her that we would as she climbed down the truck and shut the door behind her. I started the truck up and drove home, listening to nothing but the boisterous sound of my truck engine and the heavy downpour of rain on my cab. When I pulled up to the house I noticed the Black's vehicle parked on the street in front of our house. I pulled into the driveway and saw both Jacob and Billy Black sitting on our porch furniture. The sight of them made my bad day seem like a million years ago.

I called out a greeting to them as I ran up to the house, they both offered me a cheerful smile and a wave. As I unlocked the door and Jacob went to grab the bags of food I spoke to them over my shoulder, "I hope you guys weren't waiting too long. You know you could have used the hidden key to let yourselves in."

"Naw, we just got here a little bit ago. We were happy to watch the rain on the porch." Jacob replied as he handed his dad a couple bags and helped wheel him into the house. "Your dad's porch swing is super comfy!"

"What time does your dad get home today, Bella?" Billy asked as his wheel chair was pulled up to the table. Jacob sat the bags of steaming food down in the center and then locked the chair in place.

"He should be home within the next hour or so, he had an early day today." I answered as I placed a can of coke in front of Jake's chair and a bottle of water in front of Billy.

"Plenty of time for the game then." He removed the cap and took a drink. Jacob began to separate the food into four piles. The smell was divine, I hadn't eaten since before school and the smell made my empty belly tie up in knots. I tried to ignore the silvery wrapped sandwiches and steaming styrofoam as I settled for my own can of coke and took a seat at the table.

"So, Jacob, how's your car coming along?" I asked as I cracked open the can. His face lit up in excitement as he answered, excitedly explaining the intricacies of his project. I didn't understand most of what he was talking about, but I happily listened and tried my best to keep up. I've never known much about cars. I couldn't even really name the major car companies. The best I could tell was that he was really close to finishing his rabbit, and I made a mental note to google what one looked like later.

"Jacob, I bought a bottle of Kentucky bourbon for Charlie, but I forgot it in the trunk. Can you go grab it before he gets home?" Billy asked.

"You're getting rid of me for a few minutes, aren't you?"

"Please just go get the bottle, and don't even think of stealing a drink. I will know."

"Sure, sure." Jacob rose from the table and headed out the front door. Anxiety started to creep up my spine. I was so not ready for this conversation. I took a swig of my soda to settle my nerves. Billy sat his bottle down and folded his hands in his lap, leaning back. "So…. you and the Cullen split."

"Uhm, yeah. I broke it off."

"Your father mentioned that, amidst other things." He gave me a sideways glance, I ducked my head to avoid his gaze. Ofcourse Charlie would confide in Billy, they were best friends. Anxiety gave way to worry as I wondered how much they'd figured out between themselves and what the consequences of that knowledge would be. "I remember the last conversation we had about this subject, you were rather… defensive. I just wanted to say that it was never my intention to tell you what to do. I was worried because you're my best friend's daughter and you've been in a dangerous situation for a long time now." I raised my head and began to defend Edward and his family, but I couldn't find the strength to protest. Memories flooded my brain of his intense glares, his velvet voice reminding me of his dire need to kill me as his fingers would graze my jugular, of his strong desire to rip out my throat and drain me of my blood. The few time's he'd come close to doing it. 'It's not his fault', I wanted to say, 'It's mine, I messed up. I always mess up. I did something stupid, I made him angry, I got too close, my stupid blood is too sweet.' A full body shiver took over as I remembered the last time. Then I remembered my birthday, the absolute anger I'd felt towards him long before it. The fact that I'd done what I did still shocked me at times. 'I suppose I've been fed up for a long time now.'

"I haven't told your father anything, but you should know that 'we' know you didn't actually fall out of that hotel window." I stared at him in shock. Billy's expression became more sympathetic as he reached over and laid a calloused hand on mine. "I watched you grow up, kid. I still see you and Jake as those tiny little munchkins running amok. So does Charlie. I never wanted to see you hurt, kid."

I looked down at his hand, tears welling up behind my eyes. "You've used that word, 'we' before. Like when you sent Jacob to my school prom last year. Who is 'we'?" It was a question I'd wanted to ask for a long time now.

Billy released my hand and leaned back in his chair. "That's… complicated. All you need to know is that if things get bad, and I know you know what I mean by 'if things get bad', come to La Push. We'll help you. In the meantime, I think you're ready for this." He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a cloth bound bundle. He handed it to me and I inspected it, the cloth didn't seem to be particularly special, just a plain purple bandana with a paisley design.

"What is it?" I asked, wondering what in the world he had on his mind. He gestured for me to open it, so I unwrapped the cloth. It looked like a giant, old shark tooth, yellowed with age. It was thick, long, curved and extremely sharp to be the tooth of any creature I could think of.

"That… came from one of my ancestors. It's the only thing that can hurt them. It won't kill one by itself, but if you stab them right it'll greatly weaken them and they won't be able to remove it on their own. It'll give you an opening for an escape, if it comes to that."

"A shark tooth?" I couldn't fathom how a vampire could actually be hurt by a shark of any kind. Much less how Billy would know so much. Or how his ancestor found such a huge fucking shark.

"Well… uh… not quite. Doesn't matter. The point is that if you're ever in danger it will help."

"Shouldn't you give this to Jacob? It's his ancestor's, right?"

"Jacob's already inherited more than he'd care to. I should have given this to you a long time ago, I'm sorry I took so long."

"I-uh, thank you, Billy. Truly." I gently rewrapped the tooth and temporarily placed it in my school bag hanging off the back of my chair. My mind went back to the note in my back pocket, to the memories that had soccer punched me in the gut earlier. Edward and I may have had our problems but I still refused to believe he would hurt me willingly, or anyone else for that matter. But that didn't mean that others of his kind wouldn't try, James didn't know me for shit and he still made it his personal life goal to hunt me down and kill me. I never wanted to go through that again.

The front door opened and Charlie walked in carrying his bottle of bourbon, with Jacob following close behind. Billy greeted him and Charlie playfully shoved his hat down further on his head, then bent and gave him a one armed hug. Charlie thanked him for the drink and Billy teased him about prying it out of Jacobs hands. Jacob laughed and passed out the food as we all migrated to the living room to eat and watch the game. We had light hearted conversation as we ate, with Billy and Jacob occasionally giving us more information about the diner. I scarfed down the bacon and chicken sub and the onion rings gratefully. While our dads conversed and focused on the game, Jacob asked me about work and school. He offered me condolences for the break up and reminded me that I was welcome to come hang out in his garage anytime after school. I thanked him and promised I would make a visit soon, then got ready to leave for my shift at the Newton's store. I said my goodbyes and thanked everyone for the food. With my purse in hand I started my truck and drove to work. The strange tooth dagger Billy gave me was safely tucked inside.

I really hated working late shifts, especially on school nights, but I loved having my weekends free. We usually didn't get too many customers late at night, other than out of towners, so most of my shift was calm and quiet. I mostly stocked shelves and mopped the floors until about an hour before my shift ended. I was really feeling the fatigue of the day as the clock on the wall slowly ticked closer and closer to one in the morning, when it was time to lock up. Manning the register in a mostly dead store, I began calculating in my mind as I listened to my portable cd player. I figured I could be home and in bed by two o'clock and get a solid four hours of sleep before I needed to shower and get ready for school. I did need to catch up on the homework assignments I'd missed, which bruised my soul to remember. I had just decided that I could probably get a good deal of it done in English tomorrow since we're watching Romeo and Juliet in class when Mike came up to my register, breaking my reverie. He started fidgeting with some of the brochures on the counter. "Hey, listen, we're about to lock up soon and I was kind of wondering… if you would, you know, walk me to my car?" He hung his head, keeping his eyes on the countertop.

I was surprised, he never asked me that before. I noticed then that his hands were trembling. "Why? Is something wrong? Did something happen?"

He looked around nervously then whispered, "Have you noticed anything…strange tonight?"

Even more taken aback, I thought back for a moment and couldn't think of anything. "No, I thought it was a pretty tame night. Are you alright?"

His tone even quieter, he answered, "When I took out the trash earlier, uh, I heard something from the woods. It… didn't sound human. Bella, I think there's something out there."

"Wait, hold on Mike. What exactly did it sound like?"

"Like, like, trees breaking. Big tree's breaking. And growling. A lot of growling. I'v heard rumors from the customers about these, like, giant weird bears that have been spotted by local hikers. Two guys the other day said a friend of theirs saw one, they wanted to get a look too."

"Mike, I doubt those 'giant weird bears' are anywhere near the store, don't bears usually avoid civilization?"

"Bella, we're a really small rural town. We're literally surrounded by woods. And we're the only ones left in the store."

"Okay, wait here. I'll go out and take a look." I pushed the player to the side and began to walk around the register to head for the backdoor when Mike grabbed my orange vest.

"What?! Are you crazy?! What if there really is something out there, it'll massacre you!"

"Well, Mike, it's late, we need to lock up for the night and I don't intend to camp out under the cash register. Doesn't your mom keep a hand gun behind her desk in the office?" His eyes bulged and he nodded.

"Okay then, I'll borrow it and go take a quick look. You can lock up and once we're both safe in our vehicles, we'll drive off."

"But, one, that doesn't sound legal, two, I doubt you have any experience with a firearm and most importantly my mother will skin us both. Forget how Charlie will react."

"'One', I don't know if it is or not but I think our safety outways the law, 'two', you're right I don't but it's better than doing nothing and walking out with no defense if you are right and something is out there and 'most importantly', I'll drop the gun off at your house before school first thing in the morning, with a heartfelt apology to your mother. If you explain what happened to her as soon as you get home she probably won't bury her foot too far in our asses."

He glanced fearfully out of the glass entrance door and nodded, "Okay, okay. I know where she keeps the key to the drawer. She keeps it loaded so try not to shoot yourself. I'll be by the back door waiting for your que."

I took my vest off and returned it under the register. I retrieved my purse, packed away my things and slung it across my body, then borrowed a mini flashlight from the display by the register while Mike went to get the drawer key. We met in Mrs. Newton's office and he gingerly handed me the handgun. It was much heavier than I expected and was bright pink and black. I clutched the handle in both hands, making sure my index finger was below the trigger, I really didn't want to lose a toe. We exchanged a nod and Mike began shutting off the lights as I headed for and then out of the back door into the cold dark.

Behind the store was the employee parking lot which was poorly lit by a few small street lights. The rain had stopped hours ago, leaving a cold, brisk wind in its wake. I slowly walked further out, past my truck and Mike's car, approaching the first few trees of the woods. I strained my ears, trying to listen for anything remotely close to what Mike had described. The night was silent. Deadly silent. Crickets weren't even chirping. I walked a few feet into the tree line, trying not to slip in the mud. I retrieved the small flashlight I'd borrowed with my right hand and turned it on, sweeping it across the forest floor. I didn't see any creature or person, but I saw the debris they had left. Giant, thick tree trunks littered the forest floor. It looked like some kind of giant beast had just had a major rampage. Whole trees laid across the ground, their roots sticking out of their bottoms. Some of them were ripped apart in halves and thirds. Some were giant splinters. I focused my flashlight on some of the broken trunks that remained standing, looking for claw marks. I didn't find any, but it looked like something took giant fistfulls out of some of the wood. I awkwardly raised the gun in my left hand, surveying the woods, sincerely hoping whatever was responsible was long gone. I looked back behind me, my view of the store was mostly blocked by the trees I had passed. I debated for a second then awkwardly began to climb over a tree trunk, then another, and another as I made my way deeper into the forest, doing my best to be mindful of the gun.

Surrounded by jet black and eerie silence I once again sweeped my small flashlight around me, when I noticed another fallen trunk a few feet deeper in, it was slightly raised off the ground. The stench of blood and death slapped me in the face. I reluctantly took a few more steps and aimed my flashlight down. Pinned under the trunk was a man with long hair and dark skin. I ran over the rest of the way and began to offer him aid when I got a better look at his face and realized he was dead. I fell backwards onto the ground, a scream threatened to rip from my throat, but my survival instincts must have kicked in. Suddenly I felt that If I made any unnecessary noise, I was just as fucked as he was. Heart racing, body frozen in panic mode, I lifted the flashlight and aimed it back at the man's pinned body. He was shirtless as far as I could tell, all over he was sporting severe purple and black bruises and what looked to be deep, angry bite marks, they oozed some sort of iridescent black liquid which had mixed with his bright red blood. One arm was pinned under the tree with him, the other spread out away from him, ending as a giant, furry paw, his big claws clung to the dirt. His eyes were gone. Just. Gone.

I clutched the gun close to my chest, wondering if it would even make a difference if whatever did this was still around. I became hyper aware of the silence around me, the only sound being my loud, heavy, panicked panting. I knew I needed to control my breathing, and be careful with my flashlight, or else I might as well scream my location at the top of my lungs. I turned the light off and closed my eyes, mentally reciting a prayer for the dead man and then for my own safety. It must have worked, my breathing seemed a bit calmer and quieter and I felt like a few more pieces of my brain finally reconnected, letting me think a little straighter. I needed to get back to the store to check on Mike, I wasn't the only one in danger right now. Then we both needed to call the police. I clumsily stood, turned the small flashlight back on but made sure to keep it mostly aimed at my feet and made my way back out of the forest. More black liquid pooled in different spots along the ground, in some areas it seemed to have been sprayed like blood splatter across trees and brush along with huge amounts of red blood. It gave off a strange sheen when my light beam was on it. I must have assumed it was some sort of mud when I first entered. I had basically walked and climbed in a straight line so I wasn't lost. I never let go of the gun, and I remained mindful of the bone dagger Billy had given me in my purse.

I made my way back to the parking lot and then to the back door. I don't know how long I had been gone but when I tapped the door to our agreed rhythm, Mike unlocked it and practically flung himself at me.

"What. took. You. so. Looonngg?!" He demanded through chattering teeth, huddled up to me and shaking. "I thought we were so dead."

Glad to see he was okay, I gently pulled him away, "Hey careful, gun, remember?" and pushed him back into the dark store. "Shhh, we need to call the police." I whispered. His eyes bulged but he obediently stayed quiet as a mouse. Once we were inside he quickly locked the door and followed me to the office, where I set the gun down and picked up the receiver of Mrs. Newton's phone. He listened in shock as I numbly reported what I'd found to the nine-one-one operator and answered her questions to the best of my ability. She wanted one of us to stay on the line and keep the office door locked until the authorities came. I handed the phone to Mike, walked over and collapsed to the ground with my back to the door. The reality of what I'd seen came over me like a tidal wave and I began to shake and sob as a million different fragments of emotion shattered inside me. The shock of finding what I had. The sympathy I felt for the dead man and what he'd gone through. That what had happened had happened practically right on top of me and Mike and we had been none the wiser. The implications of it all.

We spent the early morning hours talking with the police, answering questions and each of us making a statement as the woods behind the store was sectioned off. Charlie was busy with the crime scene so I didn't get to have much more meaningful conversation with him outside of what had happened, other than to assure him that I was okay. He made me promise I would head straight home and lock every door and window until he could get home.

Exhausted, I finally got to climb into my truck and go home as the parking lot continually filled with more and more people. I started my engine and sat back and closed my eyes as my truck warmed up. After taking a few deep breaths, I opened my eyes and realized that there was a thick, folded up paper sitting on my passenger seat. I had overlooked it in my excitement to go home. I picked it up and examined it. In elegant, red ink the note read:

Thou shalt not stir one foot to seek a foe.

Do. Not. Leave. Town. Saturday.

Fatigue and confusion flooded my sluggish brain. 'When the hell was this left here?' No one knew I had plans to leave town Saturday, I hadn't even told Charlie I was going to the book meeting yet. Fatigue and confusion transmuted into red hot anger. 'I am NOT playing this stupid head game!' I angrily crumbled up the note and stuffed it into my glove box. I decided then and there that I was done being a coward and a push over, Edward had to come back to school eventually and I planned on telling him to talk to me like a goddamn man and stop hiding behind stupid fucking notes and Shakespear quotes when he did. I carefully pulled out of the parking lot and drove home as the sun slowly began to rise.