Incomplete 2
Isabella Swan had always known she was an incomplete puzzle. When the last pieces finally fell into place, it was much more than she hoped for.
Bella/Zafrina
That feeling of being watched stayed with her for the duration of her run. Before this week, she ran with Jake or Leah because of the continued threat Victoria posed. On Wednesday, she got the call that Victoria had been dealt with. Bella was entirely certain; the eyes on her belonged to Edward Cullen. She knew she had to do something about him before things escalated, and knowing Edward, it would.
She'd gotten a secure lock on her window; when Charlie asked why, she'd been honest. She told him about Edward using the tree outside her window to sneak into her bedroom while asleep. It took great effort to stop Charlie from going to the Cullens; Bella was sure she had not succeeded. If Charlie ever ran into Edward, he'd hear about it with threats to boot. If Bella was honest with herself, she was hoping that would happen. Charlie had satisfied his immediate confrontation by cutting enough branches on the tree to prevent a human from climbing into her room. It didn't mean a thing to a vampire, not that a vampire needed the tree to begin with.
The Cullens were on thin ice with the Volturi and couldn't afford a public spectacle. With Charlie already at the station, she was alone for breakfast. They made it a point to have one meal together daily; they knew Bella would be gone after high school. Now more so than ever, with Bella destined to become a vampire. She was still plotting a way to keep Charlie in her life. So far, her only solution was to convince Jake to reveal his wolf to Charlie. He didn't have to know about vampires, just the existence of the supernatural world.
A knock on the front door as she made her way down the stairs nearly had her tripping. "I put that down being startled." She muttered, annoyed at herself and whoever was at the door. More than likely, Jake hoping for breakfast. To Bella's utter surprise, it was Rosalie. "What, did they think you could scare me into talking." Bella quibbled with a raised eyebrow.
"No, no one knows I'm here. Alice is hunting with Jasper, so even if she sees me, no one else will." They both knew who she was talking about.
"Come in. I'm afraid you're going to have to deal with me cooking breakfast." Bella got a large tray out; with Charlie not there, she could cheat and put her sausages and bacon in the oven. It was quick and healthier as far as she was concerned. Sometimes she wondered if Charlie needed grease like vampires required blood.
"That's fine," Rosalie murmured. She could see just how much more different Bella looked without the oversized flannel shirts that hid what was now evident. She had put on a little more weight and looked toned. "You are working out." She stated.
"Yep, run every morning, and Jake and I built an assault course in the back. I needed the distraction from..." Bella didn't finish, and Rosalie knew she would never know whatever Bella needed the distraction from.
"Well, you look great," Rosalie murmured.
Bella smirked at the vampire." Thank you." If Rosalie thought she looked great, then girl magnet status was going great.
"Emmett and Esme voted to stay, but the majority wins the vote," Rosalie whispered.
"And what do you want me to do with that information?" Bella sighed, tired.
"Don't cut them out of your life." She pleaded.
Bella was about to politely turn down her request when a thought hit. "Tonight, bring them and Carlisle over. If he can deal with my request, I will consider yours." As much as she would like to consider giving Emmett and Esme another chance, she was sure Edward would see it as an opportunity to get back into her life. She didn't hate Edward; she'd moved on and had no interest in going backward.
"Thank you." The blonde said sincerely. "I never hated you, but having met the Volturi, I hope you understand why I didn't want a human so close to my family," Rosalie uttered.
"I do." She did, but she couldn't say she regretted getting to know the Cullens. It led to her finding the answers she needed. But their abandonment of her and Edward's words when he left had been needlessly cruel.
"By the way, I like the new truck." Rosalie smiled.
Bella laughed at the comment, "So do I."
Hoping Marcus would call her in the evening when the Cullens were around. Bella scanned several more pages of her diaries and sent them to him. "That should warrant a phone call." She mumbled to herself.
With no articles to write or edit and no homework, she found herself idling around the house. If it weren't for the Cullens coming by later, she would have gone to La Push; with Victoria now out of the way, the wolves had time on their hands.
Things were off to a good start when she saw just the vampires she'd invited show up at her front door. "Come in." Esme looked as though she wanted to hug her but held back. "Thank you for inviting us; it was unexpected," Carlisle said.
"I wish it was under better circumstances. "Bella grumbled. "Edward is stalking me, and right now, he's keeping his distance, but for how long." Carlisle looked dejected; the rest looked damn right infuriated.
"For fuck's sake," Emmett murmured.
"Carlisle," Esme growled.
"He's in love with you. When he thought you were dead, he went to the Volturi to end his very existence." Carlisle pleaded.
"I understand that, but I don't love him. I wouldn't call what we had a relationship; it was him pushing incessantly for something that would never happen. I'm sorry, Carlisle, but I have no desire to have Edward in my life in any way, shape, or form. It would be in his best interest to leave me alone. I would..." The ringing of her phone could not have come at a better time.
"Marcus, hello." She smiled, greatly appreciating the vampire's timing.
"Bella, I have received the latest pages. Thank you." She could feel the vampire's exuberance on the phone.
"You know you don't have to thank me every time. I have company now, but I should be able to send you more pages later."
"My apologies; I will leave you with your guest. Bella, please call Athenadora; the glares are becoming terrifying." Bella cracked up laughing.
"I will." She ended the call still laughing, but it quickly faded when she looked up at Carlisle.
"Ask Edward what he said to me in the forest. After those words, did he really think I'd want anything to do with him? They were words said to destroy me, and had I loved him; they would have. I don't care why he did what he did. I cannot forgive him, and I won't." Bella uttered firmly.
"Edward will stay away from you," Carlisle assured her. Bella had little fate in his ability to keep his son away from her.
"Good, I'd hate to get the Volturi involved. "Bella threatened. Carlisle's horrified look gave her hope that he might just be able to keep Edward away.
"Can I ask... what is happening with you and the Volturi?" Carlisle asked.
"As much as I would like to tell you, I cannot risk Edward finding out. Maybe someday, when he longer poses a threat, I will send you the information I am sending Marcus." Bella offered. As much as it was none of their business, Carlisle was a scientist at heart and had an insatiable curiosity. With him and Marcus looking at the information, they might have more answers in the future as to why the likes of her and Athenadora were so different.
"Edward is not a threat," Bella knew Carlise truly believed that.
"With what I learned in the last week, I beg to differ." She argued. "I'm sorry, but I can't have any of you in my life right now. That will change in time, leave me your contact details, and I will get in touch in time." Without knowing everything, Bella knew it was hard for the Cullens to understand her decision. But Edward did not want Bella to become a vampire. She had no idea the lengths he would go to keep her human. His elation at Aro's decree was confirmation enough. As long as the Cullens were in the dark regarding Bella's future, so was Edward.
"He saved my life, I have not forgotten that, but I also saved him, and in that, we are even. I do not owe him anything." Carlisle nodded in understanding.
None missed the figure of Edward on the porch, eagerly waiting for their return. He rushed to the car before it came to a stop in his desperation. "She is unwilling to forgive whatever you said to her before you forced us to leave her," Esme muttered, barely meeting Edward's eyes lest her anger turned physical.
"As long as you are in the picture, she will have nothing to do with the rest of us," Emmett added, his eyes black as he glared at Edward. Carlisle saw the horror on Edward's face before he took a step back. Only his hand on Emmett's shoulder halted whatever plans he had in mind.
"I implore you to leave her alone," Carlisle whispered as he entered the house.
"But I love her." Eward pleaded as though speaking to Bella herself.
"She does not feel the same; you have to respect that, as painful as it might be." Alice cautioned as she came down the steps. Edward saw the same vision that had brought on Alice's words. Bella had the Volturi in her corner, especially with whatever secret made her just like Athenadora.
February in Rio was packed with tourists; then again, it shouldn't come as much of a surprise to anyone. It was carnival month in Rio, after all. Not that it mattered; she only stayed for two days before catching a four-hour flight to Manaus. Bella would have loved to have driven it, but it was a risk she wasn't willing to take. She missed her truck greatly. She'd spent months in that truck, driving across the states. Jacob went with her for the summer until school started again. He'd loved New York so much they'd spent five more days than intended.
As for the Cullens, they left Forks a few days after she last saw them. This time, they'd said goodbye; it was gratifying to find she hadn't particularly cared if they did or not. They left their contact info, and on occasion, she got the email from Emmett, Esme, and Rosalie.
Bella was startled awake; she looked around, trying to work out what had woken her up so abruptly. Her heart was damn near threatening to beat out of her chest. Then it hit; the emptiness in her chest had faded significantly. Despite her still frantically beating heart, she could not contain the laugh that left her.
She'd known a couple of months ago South America was the destination when she'd gone to Florida to visit Renee while Jacob headed home. A trip to the Everglades National Park had changed everything for Bella. She had been tempted to jump into the Gulf of Mexico and swim to Cuba, the closest country. She was sure her vampire resided there. She had excitedly called Marcus when she got back to Renee's. Marcus had informed her there were no known covens in Cuba; maybe a nomad or two ran through every now and again.
Bella's vampire was not a nomad; she was sure of that. The feeling of emptiness had been too consistent for her vampire to be a nomad. Marcus had agreed with her assessment. The only known coven was the Amazons, who made the Amazon rainforest their home. Unfortunately for Bella, she promised Charlie she'd visit after she saw Renee. Of course, it did not stop her from stopping in every state, taking her a month to get home. The feeling of emptiness returned with a vengeance the closer she got to Washington State. She had stopped in Lafayette and, for two days, contemplated taking a flight to Brazil, but she knew deep down this was the last time she would see Charlie in a good long while. She was determined to keep him in her life; she just had to figure out how without breaking the rules.
There was no wiping the smile off her face when the plane landed, when she went through the airport, or she drove to the hotel. Her rented villa exceeded all expectations; the pictures certainly didn't do the place justice. The back wall was mostly glass leading out onto a large patio, then the forest. Her bedroom was on the second floor with a balcony. In truth, she couldn't really enjoy her environment; she found herself wishing the day away. She had a boat tour through the Amazon; it was a four-day adventure which hopefully would give her a good idea where her mates were. Marcus had offered a couple of guards to take her into the rainforest if anything failed to materialize from the tour. Bella just had to note where the feeling of emptiness faded the most.
When the day finally arrived, her smile would not fade despite their trip starting on a rain-drenched day. The others looked positively miserable, while Bella just kept smiling. She would admit she should have paid more attention to the itinerary, as she had no idea they would leave the small ship. The idea of taking their small group further into the rainforest surprised her. She surmised the coven must be extremely careful with their feeding for people to feel safe going further into the rainforest.
It happened on the second day of the tour. It was the silence that first drew her attention. She remembered when Edward had taken her into the forest, every single animal, prey and predator alike, knew there was something far more deadly amongst them. In the Amazon rainforest, the numerous creatures knew the same thing; a far more lethal creature was close. For the first time in Isabella Swan's life, she felt alive. It was exhilarating.
While the rest of the group was engrossed in the tour, Bella's eyes searched for her vampire until she found red eyes staring back at her.
"It's surprisingly quiet," Caroline whispered. Bella had noticed their guide, Danilo, seemed uncomfortable from the get-go. He hadn't needed Caroline to realize it was far too quiet. He'd known that from the very beginning. "Let's get back to the voadeira." Bella knew it would not matter where they went. The vampire would follow. She reluctantly followed the rest back to the canoe, her eyes glued to the forest, smiling as they sped away. Danilo gave her an odd look, but she paid little attention to it.
The quiet followed them, much to Danilo's increasing agitation and Bella's elation. That night after dinner, she stood on the veranda staring out into the forest, a smile perpetually etched on her face. She'd dream about those eyes that evening in her cabin.
The next day Bella learned she could pay for a private naturalist guide. When Danilo offered to be her guide, it should have set alarm bells ringing. He hadn't taken his eyes off her since she'd seemed reluctant to leave the forest yesterday. Except, she was too engrossed in hoping to catch more of her mate; she hadn't focused on much else. Primarily Danilo's increasing suspicion of her.
She could not tell you a word, he said, her focus entirely on the trees. Despite his agitated protestation, she jumped out of the canoe, wading through the knee-length water further into the forest. Danilo reluctantly went after her, gripping her waist, determined to get her back into the canoe. Neither missed the growl that seemed to shake the trees.
"Please, Miss, I have a family." With great reluctance, Bella allowed herself to be dragged back into the canoe, her eyes never leaving the forest.
"You know what they are." He said as they went back to the ship. Bella didn't answer, her eyes following the birds fleeing from treetops as her vampire followed.
When that emptiness returned, though it wasn't as bad as she'd expected, she still hated it. While the rest of her shipmates flew home, Bella flew back to Manaus. "I'm sure as fuck not going to miss it." She grunted as Athenadora just continued to squeal at her revelation. "I want to go back." She'd been back to the villa for an hour and was tempted to hire a canoe and return.
"She will soon know where you are. No need to go searching." Bella sat up. Her villa was surrounded by the forest; it would be easy for her vampire to get to her.
"I will call you tomorrow." She mumbled, her focus entirely gone from the phone call. Marcus and Athenadora's laughter said they knew it too.
Struggling to sleep, she decided to go for a walk, more like she was hoping to run into a vampire. She didn't get far. She nearly jumped at the sight of two obvious nonnatives at her door. "Isabella Swan?"
"You know I am." She returned impassively.
"I am Agent Fredricks; this is Anderson. "They produced badges, one CIA, the other DEA. "What can I do for you, gentlemen?" She asked, leaning against the door.
"Can we come in?" It was a question asked rather politely, but no was not an option; that much she was sure of.
"It's nearly midnight, can't whatever this is wait until an appropriate time of day?"
"We wouldn't be here if this could wait." Fredricks shot back.
"Sure." She stepped back, allowing them in.
"Miss Swan, I will cut to the chase. The river system in the Amazon travels from Peru through Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Bolivia, and Brazil." She nearly rolled her eyes at the unnecessary geography lesson. She took a damn cruise to Peru through that same river system.
"I 'm aware of that. "She muttered.
"Were you also aware it is a route drug traffickers often use to evade law enforcement?" Bella finally understood the nature of this visit. Fucking Danilo. Her mate and her coven fed on the drug traffickers. Good riddance, she thought. She suddenly had to force herself not to smile when the emptiness faded.
Agent Anderson was quickly losing his body weight in sweat. Without a word, Bella stood and slid the patio door open. She pulled the curtain back, but not all the way. "Let me deal with them." She whispered under her breath. As she turned, she felt the curtains move and smiled.
Bella considered her options as she poured the agent a glass of water. She had three options; she could play dumb and have two agencies surveilling her, hoping she would lead them back to whoever was killing the drug traffickers.
Two, she could tell the truth and convey how much it would be in their best interest to live and let live. Three, she could just have her mate deal with it right now. However, she had no idea who would come asking questions about the agents.
"Certainly didn't take Danilo long to spill the beans. "She handed Anderson the glass of water. Who took it gratefully.
The agents stared at each other and back at her." So... you know what's out there?" Anderson asked.
"Are either of you married?" She asked.
"What has that got to do with..." Fredericks started.
"I'm engaged," Anderson answered, cutting Fredricks off.
With a sigh, Fredricks answered. "I'm married."
"Good," Bella whispered.
"Miss Swan..."Fredricks was quickly running out of patience.
"The human world has laws, and so do theirs. The number one law is a human can never possess knowledge of them and live. If I tell you what they are, you will unlikely make it home. No, you will not make it home. I am not threatening you; I am simply stating facts."
"Then how do you know about them, yet here you are alive?" Anderson asked.
"It is not an answer you would understand," Bella said softly.
"Maybe, a night in prison will help you find the words to..." Fredericks's words were quickly drowned out by an inhuman growl that seemed to reverberate through the room.
"I implore you not to do that." Bella uttered urgently when both agents reached for their guns." Take those out, and you become a threat. You have no idea what is out there or how to fight it. I can assure you your guns are entirely useless. And for your own sake, do not threaten me." Bella warned.
"You opened the door for them, not because it was hot in here?" Anderson accused.
"I did," Bella admitted without shame. "You have people at home waiting for you. Think about them before pursuing this any further, as it would not end well for you." Bella warned. "Is there anything else?" She asked, standing.
Both men had no idea what to think as they stared at her. From the information Danilo gave them, it was apparent Miss Swan knew what resided in the forest and had no fear of them.
"No, sorry to have disturbed you," Anderson muttered, his eyes glued to the curtain. "I will walk you out; I was headed out anyway." Bella smiled. The walk down the part to the reception area was done in silence.
"You..." Fredricks started.
"They can still hear you," Bella warned him. His tone was enough for her to know whatever he was about to say would not bode well for him. Bella walked them to their car. Fredricks turned and stared at her for a beat too long before getting into the car. Bella got the distinct feeling that he was incapable of letting this go.
She watched them drive away; a sudden gust of wind told her she was no longer alone.