If there was one thing to be thankful about Stephen's complete psychological break, it was that Lettie put up little to no fight about being brought to Forks. She was relatively blank as he pulled her onto his back, this time making sure she secured her legs around him, pressing her head into his back. It wasn't until Edward was halfway back to his family that she dared say anything, and all he got in response to, well, if he's completely honest with himself, her kidnapping, was a low hum of neutral acknowledgement.

His family was in a state when he met them in the woods. Alice practically slumped against him when he arrived, her lackadaisical attitude about Edward's restraint being a nice contrast to Jasper's growls, demanding where he had been and why he was even around a bleeding body anyway. He didn't relax even as Edward reassured him that he didn't slip, that no one was suspicious of him anymore and that no more measures had to be taken to solidify their secret. Esme's good natured praise of him doing the right thing was a nice reassurance, but Emmett's constant prodding for details was less than desirable.

Edward made quick work of hiding the new companion on their move, insisting he should drive to Forks so Esme would have some of her tools while she was there. Both Jasper and Alice shot him suspicious looks at the request, but it only took a well timed pout to his Mother to get her to agree. He wasn't entirely thrilled that Emmett would be joining him, but ultimately, as long as Lettie was able to get as far away from here as possible, that was alright with him. And, he figured, it was better Emmett wasn't trapped in a metal tube of potential victims, at least for the next few weeks.

"You can sit with us, if you'd like," Edward tried, whispering under his breath and using the clattering of moving boxes to cover his voice. He was barely able to give Lettie the rundown for their road trip before he drew too much attention, so this conversation was pushing it, but he couldn't continue to look at that far off stare in her eyes. "Or, I could make a spot for you in the truck bed. It won't be as comfortable, but you'll get the perfect view, and you won't have to hear Emmett's constant monologue of boredom for the whole trip."

That, at least, had earned him a smile. She thanked him softly, and even gave his hand a squeeze as he helped her into the truck bed.

Lettie continued to be quiet for the entirety of their ride to Forks, even though Edward made sure to take several breaks so she could explore the new landscapes and towns they passed through. Her thoughts provided a constant, albeit morose, stream of distraction for him as he drove (Emmett was a maniac behind the wheel, so Edward rarely let him drive when they had to share a vehicle), and an easy way to zone out Emmett's complaints of boredom. During some long stretches of nothing but open road, Emmett would get out and run alongside the car just to have something to do, which peaked Lettie's interest into a temporary distraction. Emmett hunted until he was more than satisfied before they entered towns, which allowed Edward a moment alone with Lettie, both to check in on her and give her a little more space to walk around. Her innate curiosity often won over her sadness, but, rather than the comfortable silence they had shared before, there was an underlying tension that both knew something was going unsaid. Lettie did not bring it up, so Edward remained silent, letting her keep some peace for the time being.

Forks was similar to a lot of small towns the family had occupied over the years. A main street that housed most of the businesses, none more obviously loved than the bustling diner at the end, and enough crisscrossing back roads to get lost if you weren't familiar with suburban America. Thanks to its design built entirely around the highway, the streets seemed relatively busy, giving the town a step above sleepy, though most vehicles used Forks as a short rest before continuing on their way. Esme's truck thankfully blended in for the most part, as Edward kept to the busy roads until he couldn't.

Their home was exactly as he remembered it. When they originally bought the land, Carlisle had intended to keep most of the existing building as it was, a two story white Old South style house that had plenty of room for the three of them, but when Esme got wind of that plan, she quickly took over, tearing it down with the excuse of faulty foundation - with Carlisle's clueless nature to building design, and Edward's promise to keep her secret, there was little to stand in the way of what she wanted. She rebuilt the home in the newest upcoming trend that she had come to adore, Mid Century modern with plenty of windows, open space, and clean lines. Esme had a third story built in order to accommodate Rosalie and Emmett, then Alice and Jasper, sometime in the last 10 years just in case they needed a quick building to relocate to.

Edward could hear his family hard at work inside as they pulled up. Emmett wasted no time jumping out of the car, beelining it to Rosalie on the balcony, who let out a rare laugh of pure adoration as Emmett covered her face in kisses. Edward helped Lettie out of the truck, picking up a pile of boxes to bring inside.

"That's Rosalie," Edward whispered, mindful of the sensitive ears around him.

"She is lovely." Edward let out a scoff.

"Just wait until you meet her."

"No need to be jealous, little bro!" Emmett called from the porch, still refusing to let Rosalie go. She managed to have her features schooled into a scowl once more as she met Edward's eyes. "But you'll have to find someone else to share kisses with. Mine are permanently for my angel only."

"Quit teasing your brother, dear," Esme chastised as she sped passed him, somehow wrapping Edward in a loving hug despite the boxes hindering her movement. "I'm glad you made it alright. How was the drive?"

"It was fine. How have things been here?"

"You worry too much. We've been fine. I've already introduced myself to a few of Carlisle's colleagues, and the first grocery trip was a success. Everything is moved in, but I've left your room untouched. It's the same one."

"Thank you."

Though the outside of the building was the same, the interior had changed completely. After their trip, Carlisle and Rosalie constructed the boxes and boxes of new furniture Esme ordered, bringing their Mid Century home a little closer to the modern. Edward dropped off Esme's tools by the garage, before bringing Lettie upstairs, keeping his pace slow so she could take a look around. Her mind was spinning as she took in the space around her, eyes constantly filtering back to the huge windows. Edward bit back a smile at the thought of her face once she saw what his room looked like.

Carlisle was stepping out of his office as Edward approached, offering him a smile and a hug as he approached.

"Son," Carlisle said warmly. Lettie's thoughts were suddenly filled with images of Carlisle's easy smile, and, though he knew it was impossible, a pink aura filled her vision when she looked at him. Edward bit back a scowl.

"Carlisle. How have you been?" Their conversation was easy, no pressure to say the right thing or keep going longer than needed. It was a relationship Edward valued deeply, and conversations like this made him treasure it all the more. After catching up briefly, Carlisle let him go, citing helping Esme unload the rest of her belongings from the car.

"Your Father is very handsome," Lettie said as soon as Carlisle reached the bottom of the steps, her eyes trailed on him for as long as she could. For a moment, Edward allowed a small bubble of…something build in his chest, before he took one look at Lettie's distracted mind, and decided he much preferred this distraction over the constant loop of Stephen's frightened expression. He relaxed his face as much as he allowed, giving her a small smile, trying to make it appear teasing. Lettie's embarrassed smile in return was enough to know his message got across.

Edward's room was exactly as he remembered it. Since his room was as far as possible from Esme and Carlisle's as they could, he had this corner of the floor all to himself, a small piece of quiet (or, as much as he could with six other vampires living in the same house). The windows were floor to ceiling on the exterior wall, and the others were covered in bookshelves just as tall. Though he tried to love books as much as Carlisle had, a rather embarrassing part of their history together where Edward copied everything Carlisle did in hope of approval, the shelves have since been repurposed to hold his rather extensive music collection, only half still remained from moving houses. Bar a desk and an old leather chair, the rest of the room was bare.

Edward wasn't even given a moment to be embarrassed before his mind was filled with Lettie's awed thoughts, her feet taking her to gaze out the windows into the woods beyond.

"This is wonderful!" she exclaimed, hand hesitantly hovering over the window, her mind debating the safety of such a large piece of glass. Edward opened his mouth to respond, before snapping it shut again, acutely aware of the superhuman ears on the property. He simply gave her a smile and a nod when she turned to look at him. "Does your family-"

"Yo, Eddy!" Emmett's appearance at his door shouldn't have been as surprising as it was. "We're doing a run into town for the new furniture. Get your butt out there!"

And he knew, knew that no good would come from leaving anything laying around that he didn't want his family to notice because of course they would somehow find their way to it. It was the most infuriating part of his family, their ability to mean all too well and backfiring horribly.

Alice was innocently standing outside his room, hands clasped behind her back, when he came racing up the stairs, a smile on her face as she played out the latest fashion show she attended in her mind. With only Jasper left in the house, the other's on a hunt, her thoughts were easier to hear than normal. Alice, more than anyone in the family, knew how to hide her immediate thoughts well, a little too well. Sometimes it was simply to have her privacy, or other times it was because she was planning something she didn't want Edward to spoil ahead of time (which, to his defense, she deserved every time). This time, however, was all to clear the third reason she hid her thoughts - Alice was hiding something because she knew Edward would disapprove.

"Why are you by my room?" Edward asked suspiciously, not stopping to talk as he brushed past her into the room.

"No reason. I was just wondering if you needed some help unpacking." Edward eyed her carefully. Misdirection, another tactic for her to get what she wanted without anyone getting in the way.

"You hate unpacking my things." Edward surveyed the room carefully, eying for anything out of place. It was impossible to tell where she had been by smell alone, since she and the rest of the family had helped bring in his belongings all day.

"Edward." Lettie's voice was soft, whispering though she didn't need to as she stepped into view. Her eyes were worried, glancing at Alice. In her mind, Lettie played out the memory of Alice leaning over her jewelry box, hand hovering over the necklace.

Edward's throat tightened. No, don't panic, he thought to himself. Alice would have said something about Lettie if she had touched it. But Lettie's eyes were still worried, a reflection of his own. It was not good that Alice had seen it, not with her curiosity and love of fashion.

"Not true!" Her voice was a touch too high, but her smile didn't betray that fact. "I'm just a little worn out from moving my clothes around and I wanted to hang out with you."

"My necklace. She has it." At this, Edward whipped around, eyes narrowed at his sister. Despite their height difference, Alice didn't waver under his glare.

"Don't touch my things without permission." He held a hand out. When she opened her mouth to protest, he hardened his glare. Alice pouted, crossing her arms childishly, revealing the porcelain trinket box that was hidden behind her back. Edward nearly jumped out of his skin to snatch it from her hands.

"Not fair! You get to know all about my secrets, but you're hiding a necklace I've never seen before!" Alice, thankfully, didn't put up much of a fight to get it back. "I just wanted to know if it was anything special."

"Did you touch it?" She hesitated for a moment, but ultimately shook her head. "You have no right going through my things without permission."

"What even is it? You don't like things like that." She reached for it again, but Edward pulled it out of her grasp, teeth bared. Alice's eyes widened, finally taking a step back.

"Get out. And don't ever touch my things again."

Alice's eyes shone as venom pooled at the edges. As the first drop trickled down her cheek, Jasper appeared, a slight glare on his face. Though he usually never took sides in family conflicts, there was something about Alice's sadness that caused Jasper to take her side no matter the situation, always a noble shoulder to cry on. It wasn't the first time Edward felt annoyance at his brother's unwavering loyalty.

"What's going on?"

"None of your business."

"Edward." Though Lettie's voice wasn't a scold, Edward felt it just as deeply. She was clear in her disapproval, but honestly, Edward was ready to take the brunt of her upset if it kept both her and the family safe.

"It's alright, Jasper," Alice sniffled, grabbing his arm and pulling him away. "Come hunt with me?" WIth one final glare from the man, the two disappeared in a blur down the stairs.

"She did not touch the necklace-"

"I don't care," Edward snapped, biting his tongue a second later. He took a deep breath. Softer, he continued, "She would have, and I can't allow that. You of all people should know the consequences if she did."

He regretted it the moment the words left his mouth. In an instant, the return of Stephen's face came to the forefront of Lettie's mind, her face falling. All that progress, the momentary happiness she had begun to let herself feel again, was gone.

"I am well aware." She bowed her head formally. "Accept my apologies for my thoughtless words."

"No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought it up, not when the memory is still so fresh." His hand tingled with the need to comfort her.

Instead, the two remained in awkward silence for the rest of the night. Too proud or too scared to risk saying anything more.