A/N:

Hey Lovely Readers!

My apologies for this extremely late chapter. I had planned to get this chapter out a week after the last, but real life got in the way, and I wasn't able to. Sorry this story was left on a cliffhanger for so long. Unfortunately, real life kept getting in the way for the last couple of months, for several reasons, and then I ended up becoming a home-school mama, which means there's less time to work on my stories when school is in session. Since school's out for the summer I have time to give my story the attention it needs. I plan to update regularly again.

Now, let's see how Edward is doing in the forest.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

When the earth shatters, it crumbles and falls. That's how I was feeling as the app I so desperately needed would not download.

A frustrated sigh escaped my lips. I pressed install again and hoped for the best. If this didn't work I'd be searching for Bella the old-fashioned way; using landmarks, the position of the sun, and reading the clouds. Or even using the age-old techniques of which way the wind was blowing or which side the moss was growing on the tree trunks. Hmm. I hoped it wouldn't come to that.

A twig snapped in the distance and an eerie chill ran up my spine.

Seven seconds had passed since I disconnected my call with Bella. The sun was now illuminating the sky just over the tree line. A mixture of orange, pink, and a deep purple was brightening up the horizon. It would have been beautiful to focus on if I had not been riddled with anxiety. Not only was I worried about Bella, and the app I needed to use to locate her kept refusing to install, but it was also clear that I wasn't out here alone. That was something I couldn't ignore. Whoever was out here with me was putting enough space between us so I wouldn't be able to hear their thoughts. They seemed to know my talent only worked within a five-mile radius and were staying right on the edge; just close enough for me to feel their mind without actually reading it.

It's probably someone I know. I thought to myself.

It was odd that someone I knew would keep their distance from me right now, but not unusual - just like the smells, nothing was out of the ordinary as I sampled my surroundings. As I tasted the air around me, nothing seemed out of place. There were only the normal aromas of nature; dirt, mud, and leaves. Sap from the pine trees, waste, and urine from animals.

In the far-off distance, there was a smell of a wet buck. His scent was strong and unpleasant. Then again, meat eaters were more delicious than herbivores, no matter how bad their body odor was. Ugh. Luckily for this skittish buck that happened to be in the direction of the unreadable thoughts tugging at my brain, I had already fed. Otherwise - if I were desperate - he'd have become my meal. And that would be only if I hadn't fed in months since his fur stunk to high heaven.

Three things crossed my mind simultaneously.

1. This buck was a sitting duck. He seemed to remain in the same place, making himself easy prey.

2. Could the buck and the thoughts somehow be connected?

3. Was someone playing a trick on me?

With no answers to offer myself my mind returned to three weeks ago. Back at that time, I was depressed because Bella was not in my life, and wasn't as vigilant as I currently was. At the time I had been hunting alone out in this very forest. I remember I caught a deer, drained it, and buried it. Once it was in the ground a sound grabbed my attention. It was the noise of crunching leaves. It was far away, far enough that I couldn't read the mind of the person who had followed me here, and that's the way he had wanted it. He had also not wanted me to be able to trace his scent so he had disguised it with dirt and the aroma of a dead bear. Yet, I could still smell the scent of a predator. It was faint, but still there. I wasn't sure who it was, nor did I care then. I had been feeling low and welcomed death as if I should be so lucky. I plopped down on the ground, hoping I would meet my end, and all the pain of the girl that I left behind would drain from me. Seconds later I was snuck up on by a friend, not a foe.

Emmett - like the giant kid he sometimes is - tackled me, pinning me on my back. The surprise of it all made me scream like a girl. He thought it was funny and said he wouldn't utter a word of my feminine shriek to Jasper who would have teased me relentlessly into the next century. If, and only if, I played 72 hours of Roblox with him. Oh, what a joy.

I shook my head at the memory. I was not about to play three days of Be A Shark with him anytime soon. Not ever again. Once in a lifetime was enough. Plus, he had only forced me to play a video game with him to cheer me up and break me out of my melancholy state. Though it didn't really work. I was not depressed now, and was not about to be caught up with childish things; Bella needed me.

Before another second had passed my phone was in my pocket and I was running through the forest again. Ducking under a branch and crossing a river, the same as I did before. Only this time was a bit different. I was going the way I had come, trying to get to the one who wanted to sneak up on me. I was determined not to let that happen though.

I ran and so did he; his mind was getting further away from mine.

My feet carried me through a cluster of leaves and mud. The scent of a dead rodent made its way to my nostrils, but no matter how hard I tried I could not pick up the scent of who I was chasing. All I could smell was the foul scent of a male deer. That was weird. However, I didn't concentrate too much on it as I did my best to follow the unknown mind by which way it pulled at the edge of my brain. It was a different way to track someone; there was no trail to follow. No footprints or unique scents to pursue.

At one point, I was sure I was gaining on him. That is until I found myself at the edge of the forest, staring at the empty gravel road, and feeling confused.

Every which way I looked, there was nobody out there with me. No Emmett, no other vampire, and no deer. There were hoof prints in the dirt leading to the road, but nothing else. It was as if I had been chasing a ghost.

This was weird. I ran my hand through my hair.

A strange feeling I had no name for ran through me. Feeling something wasn't right, I fished my phone out of my pocket and held it in front of me. For a split second, I thought about texting Emmett, to ask if he had been out here with me, but quickly decided not to. Something told me he was nowhere around since he wasn't one to stay in the shadows for long. I pushed the power button to activate the screen and swiped at it. I wasn't sure what I planned on doing, but once my screen came to life, and the app I had been trying to download stared at me, my thoughts were on Bella; she was the only thing that mattered to me. Well, she and Anthony. I needed to be with both of them.

"I'll be there for you, sweetheart." I spoke aloud as I tapped 'install' on my screen. When I did that my phone rang and Alice's picture and name appeared on the screen.

My spiky-haired sister had annoyed me earlier, but I couldn't ignore her call. Walking further out into the open I pressed accept and held the phone to my ear. I opened my mouth to question her about her odd behavior from earlier, but she didn't let me.

"Edward, I have three reasons why I called you. So, be quiet and let me speak," Alice said instead of saying hello. Her voice was serious, all of her earlier hyperness was gone.

Something about her tone had me taking a deep breath before replying. "I will. Just tell me one thing before you begin. Who was out here with me?" It wasn't a casual query, this was something I needed to know.

I was expecting a quick response, instead, I was met with radio silence. In the background, I heard the purr of her car engine, the car radio playing rap music on low volume, and Jasper muttering something too low for me to hear. It didn't take a genius to figure out they were driving somewhere. She still didn't give me an answer, so I asked again. Actually, I demanded an explanation that she didn't seem quick to provide.

"Alice, was someone out there with him?" Jasper asked when she didn't speak.

"No?" Alice finally responded. Her unsure tone made her answer sound like a question.

"You're not sure, are you?" I asked, already knowing the answer as I walked alongside the road heading home.

"I don't see anyone out there with you." She spoke in a faraway tone that tipped me off that she was looking into the future.

"But there was someone with me?" I half asked and half demanded.

"If there was," Alice began slowly. "I didn't see. The good news is that I don't "see" anyone with you now. Or even in the near future. So…"

Her voice trailed off in a way that let me know to drop the subject. After all, she couldn't see what had passed, only what would come.

"Are you headed to where Bella is?" I wondered hopefully. Surely she had seen where Bella was.

"No. But you will be. You'll need your car and forget the app, you don't need it. I've "seen" where her mingled vehicle crashed. You'll be with her soon enough." She said then paused. "I, on the other hand…am headed…to….Walmart." She cringed on the last word.

"Why are you going there?" I asked as I began walking back home at a pace that would put the most skilled speed-walker to shame.

"Because I had a vision that I must go there instead of taking an hour and 45-minute drive to buy a tiny suit and tie. Apparently, your son will ruin good quality formal wear with an exploding diaper." Alice gagged and Jasper laughed.

"I told you he does not need fancy clothes," I said with a little too much enthusiasm.

"Yeah. Yeah, I know." She agreed, sounding bored. She already lived through this conversation and wanted to get it over with. "Anyways, there are three reasons why I called you and this is not one of them. First, I will never suggest opening up or even posting Anthony's pic on any social media site again. I've "seen" what would happen if I did and I'm sorry I suggested it. Very sorry." She spoke in a rush, every word blurring with the next.

Despite her fast-talking, I could tell she was no longer going to act as immature as she had been when we were in my room. No. Now she was her level-headed self. Thank God. It wasn't unusual for Alice's personality to fluctuate and no one - other than me - ever questioned why she did it. The rest of our family chalked it up to Alice having no memory of being a child in her human life and therefore, she felt the need to sometimes act like a little girl to the extreme. I wasn't so sure if that was correct or not. Yet, I did not have a valid explanation for her behavior. Whatever it was, I was thankful it passed quickly this time. There have been times when she carried on the annoying little girl shenanigans for days at a time, driving me crazy to no end.

"What would happen if you did?" I couldn't stop myself from asking.

"The same thing that would happen if Bella went to Forks with or without you." She exhaled, sounding heartbroken. "That's the second reason for me calling you. I've "seen" that Bella is going to explain her reasons to you about why she wanted to go to Forks. She will then convince you to go with her because you don't want her going alone. You will give in to her wishes but you –"

"Alice," I cut her off. "I'd do anything Bella asked of me. You know this." What was she getting at, I wasn't sure.

"Yeah, I know." She sounded defeated.

Jasper cleared his throat. I heard him request for Alice to put it on speakerphone. She did and I slipped back into the forest. Being covered by trees made me feel less exposed than being on the open road, even though it was empty.

"Eddie, we know you would do anything for Bella. Same for me with Alice." Jasper's tone was way too garve for my liking. "But you can't. Not this time. Not with what Alice has seen."

"And what exactly is that?" I was hoping I'd get a straight answer. One that would leave me with more answers than questions.

Alice let out a deep, sad sigh. "You die. Bella dies. Anthony dies." She replied. She sounded like she was fighting back a sob.

"What?" The word slipped through my lips like a gust of air.

"All three of you guys will die if you let Bella talk you into taking a family road trip to Forks. It's the same result if I open up a TikTok or IG account for my nephew. I can't do that, and Bella can't go back to her father. I understand why she wants to go, but she can't. Once she does her future, yours and Anthony's future as well, goes blank. I've seen it many times from different angles. There's nothing left of the three of you guys after that." She sadly explained.

The superficial feeling of being punched in the gut overtook me. My stride came to a halt and I was standing still. It took me two seconds to remember something that filled me with hope.

"He has a talent that makes yours unclear," I said about my son. "You can't see clearly if the future involves him. That's why you never had visions of Bella when she was pregnant." I reminded her.

"Ture." She agreed and quickly added, "But when the future involves him in any way when he's awake I get strange visions that involve rubber ducks and other baby items. I've also figured out a way to work around these blind spots of his and see his future….sort of. It's not very clear but I get the gist of his future at least. Which is why I'm going to…Walmart." Her voice shuttered on the last word. "I see what he needs and I'm going to go face my fears and walk into that nightmare of a store. May the Gods of the universe watch over me and help me survive this."

"Alice, don't you think you're being a bit dramatic?" I asked.

"Edward," She snapped. "No, I am not. Not with all the hours I've invested in watching YouTube and TikTok videos about today's human nature, I know what I'm up against. Get with the program, dear brother. It would do you some good to check out TikTok and become up-to-date with trends and other stuff instead of being stuck on how humans acted a century ago. There are Karens out there in the wild nowadays! Don't you know that?"

Jasper laughed but I didn't respond. I was stuck on what my sister had previously said. Not about Walmart and Karens, but about the demise of myself and my immediate family. That couldn't be right. What in the world could kill me, a vampire?

The moment I thought about asking Alice, she spoke. Like water rushing from a waterfall she explained her vision to me. She couldn't say what she couldn't see though, and that's what bothered me. She never saw what ended me, or my son, or even Bella for that matter. She only saw that Bella, Anthony, and I made it to Froks and went to the police station. Charlie was happy to see his daughter and even his sleeping grandson. However, he wasn't so thrilled to see me. Everything seemed fine until we went to his house, she said. He wasn't there yet but someone else was; there was an unknown car parked out front and we were lured into the woods behind Charlie's house. Alice choked up then, saying something happened to the three of us because we never made it back into her visions. Not ever. The only visions she had next were of our family. Everyone was mourning the loss of us. It was devastating to hear.

"Why does Bella want to see her dad so bad?" I asked, feeling dumb as I said it aloud.

"She no longer wants to be a runaway. She wants to turn herself in and make things right so she can be free to live her life. You know, stop looking over her shoulder, so to speak, and go to school like a normal teenager." Alice spelled it out for me.

"But she can't." Jasper chimed in, his voice urgent. "Not that way at least. Edward, when Bella brings this up, you need to mention there's another way; emancipation. I know someone who can help with that. You have to tell her it's not as difficult as she may assume."

"I will." I prayed my stubborn girlfriend would listen to me.

"Good," Alice said, sounding brighter and more hopeful.

"However," Jasper began. "If she does take the route of emancipation she would need a job and a place to live to prove she can take care of herself. And if you were to live with her," he pushed for dramatic effect. "You would need an actual job instead of relying on your inheritance, you collect from yourself every half-century." He chuckled.

Me getting a job seemed funny to him since I never actually worked. Unless my job in the cafeteria at the school we attended in Michigan was counted. Which I didn't think it was.

"That's not a problem, Jazz. I'll find a job. It should be easy." I spoke too quickly.

"It's a big step for you." He pointed out, trying not to laugh.

"Fascinating," Alice impatiently interrupted. "With all that out of the way that brings us back to the last thing I called to tell you about."

"Which is?" I wondered quickly as moved through the forest

"Bella's location." She said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Why didn't you start with that?" I asked with a hard edge.

"Because if I would have told you that first, you would have been in such a hurry to get to her, nothing else I would have had to say would have been heard. You would have hung up on me before I gave you the other information. You would also not have answered my calls." She grumbled. "Not only is that annoying and rude! But the outcome would not have been good for you." Her tone added the of course.

"Eddie, of course, you would be impatient and run off to Bella." Jasper laughed. "Anyway, that's why she waited to tell you where Bella is. So, she could explain the important stuff to you without you hanging up on her like an anxious kid."

"Makes sense," I said as I ran in the direction of our home. "I'm listening, Alice, where is Bella?"

"She's close to Apple Valley, Idaho. Her car is just on the outskirts of a very, very small town. I've called her a tow truck, and she'll be waiting for you in a coffee shop." Alice explained.