Interlude: Edward
I was running faster than I ever had in my life. The few belongings I had brought with me to Brazil were long gone; left behind in my haste to return to North America. The only thing I had thought to grab was the tank top with Bella's scent.
Had it only been hours ago that the blonde vampire knocked on the tiny window of my attic? He smirked at me, pointed to a package he left on the ledge, and left. I considered ignoring him, but then at the very end of my mental range he let an image slip past his carefully guarded thoughts. Victoria.
The trail for her had gone cold some time ago, before my self-imposed isolation in Brazil. Had it been weeks or months? Time meant nothing without Bella. It was all I could do to curl up in the attic and merely exist without her. But I promised to rid the world of Victoria to keep my beloved safe, so I opened the package.
The package itself contained only two items. The first was a tank top I recognized as one Bella frequently slept in. The scent was fresh and I breathed it in as if I had been drowning without it. The second was a note, doused in Victoria's scent, with an address in San Antonio, Texas and the words "We'll be waiting for you."
At first, I didn't recognize the emotion that surged through my mind. It had been so long since I'd felt anything but deep, soul-draining depression. But now, it was panic that gave me the strength to leave my attic and start running. If Victoria had a piece of Bella's clothing, she was already too close. I had no idea when Victoria expected me to join her and Bella in San Antonio, but I knew I had to get to her as fast as possible. I didn't let thoughts of whether I might be too late slow me down.
While I ran, my brain constantly cycled through memories of Bella. Of the day we met. Of lying in the meadow with her. Of watching her and Alice doing one of those ridiculous quizzes in the magazines my sister loved so much. Of cooking with Esme. Of Emmett trying to teach her how to throw a baseball. Hundreds of thousands of moments that each meant more to me than any other moment in my nearly hundred years. And when I had gone over every moment twice, I began to pray.
At my mother's insistence, I had gone to mass in my youth. Once a year, I obliged Carlisle and attended the Christmas Eve service with him. But despite Carlisle's unwavering faith, I never had a reason to think He would hear the prayers of a demon.
But I was desperate. Maybe if God would not save Bella for my sake, he would save her for her own. And so I spent the last hour of my run pleading to God with every word, language, and supplication I could think of.
I was forced to slow down as I got further into the city and with each minute that passed, my panic doubled. It didn't help that San Antonio was apparently home to dozens of other vampires.
Finally, I drew close enough to the motel that I could pick up the thoughts of my family. I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. Somehow, Alice had seen what was happening and that she had ignored my wishes and intervened.
But as I grew closer I realized that I could not hear the beautiful heartbeat that was uniquely Bella's. Bella had been there, that much was certain. Although the scent was faded with age and nearly masked by a stench that reminded me of the old Quileute pack. And my family didn't know where she was.
The speed I was climbing the stairs with was no longer necessary. There had been a fight and now Bella was gone. I was too late. All that was left was to join my family and beg their forgiveness and do whatever I had to do to find my Bella.
A/N: Happy Holidays! Regular updates will resume next week.