After a few uneventful months, several things happened very quickly.
First, Alice had seen that they were going to have guests; two of their "cousins" from Denali, Alaska, who also followed their animal diet, were going to be stopping by on their way back from a trip overseas. They had called to inquire about a stay five minutes after Alice's announcement, and Esme was already busy preparing a room.
Second, Billy Black had called. The wolves had picked up a scent on the northernmost point of the boundary; an unfamiliar vampire had passed through, and would need to be investigated. Bella had tensed at this news, but was reassured when none of the others seemed particularly alarmed. It happened relatively often, and was always a nonissue. Still, Rosalie and Emmett were preparing to head north and sort it out.
Lastly, Jasper had decided that since a trip had to be made to Seattle on Tuesday to retrieve Carmen and Eleazar, he would make an errand to an old associate there. He was hanging up the phone when Bella and Edward walked in from a short hunting trip.
"Took your time, didn't you?" Jasper's voice sounded annoyed, but there was a tight grin on his scarred face. "If we didn't have Alice to tell us all was clear, we might've started to worry you lost control of Bella here."
Bella had a feeling he was teasing Edward, but she couldn't help but feel irritated. Sure, they had taken twice as long as the hunt needed and gone a different direction than they had said they would, but time alone was scarce, especially when everyone was waiting for her to go on a killing spree at any moment.
"Can you stop talking about me like I'm a time bomb? I've been around humans before, I can control myself, you know."
Jasper wasn't smiling anymore. He tossed a newspaper on the coffee table between them. "Can you?" His voice was like steel.
Bella didn't need to pick up the paper to read it, but she did anyway.
NO HEADWAY IN GREEN LAKE SLAYINGS
Despite tireless efforts by police, no headway has been made in the killing of five men in Green Lake Park four months ago. Their bodies were found in the parking lot near the sports complex late in the night.
"We ask if anyone has information regarding these brutal killings that they come forward immediately," Chief of Police Mark Donahue said in his statement to reporters yesterday.
When asked if an animal attack had been the cause of death, Chief Donahue said they hadn't completely ruled it out, but that animal involvement was unlikely due to the manner of death.
Very little blood was at the scene, leading police to believe that the murders occurred elsewhere before the bodies were staged in the parking lot.
Families of the young men are also issuing their own pleas to the public after so long without any new information. They are asking that-
Bella tossed the paper back on the table, not wanting to continue the story on page 17, as the story instructed. Nor did she want to see those five faces looking up from below the headline.
"If you want to know their names, they're under the pictures."
The whole house had gone silent, and Carlisle had quietly joined them in the room. t was Edward who spoke, though.
"Why are you doing this, Jasper? You, of all people?"
"Because I know my limits." Jasper's voice was still hard as he continued. "She insists she is in control, which makes her even more dangerous."
"That was…terrible, what I did that night." Bella gestured to the paper. "I was alone, and terrified, and I didn't know what I was doing or where I was going. I hadn't hunted in a while. When I caught their scent…" Bella's throat was burning again at the memory.
"We all make mistakes," Carlisle said softly.
Jasper wasn't backing down, though. "Yes, we do. But we have to admit our limits to avoid future mistakes."
"I know my limits," Bella snarled, her irritation getting the better of her. "I spent most of my life in the city, surrounded by humans-"
"Hunting them, too," Jasper interrupted. "I've been there, Bella. That's why I know. It's different, having to control yourself when you know you have free reign to kill the next time you're thirsty. It's harder when you know you have to resist for the rest of your life."
She had no response to that. He was right, she didn't know the difference. She hadn't had a chance to know the difference.
"Fine, then let me go with you when you pick up your friends from the airport. I've been with you a few months now, maybe it's time to test things out."
This took Jasper by surprise, and he looked over to where Alice had moved to stand with Carlisle. She just shrugged. Her visions couldn't help here, and Bella knew why. The only way she would know if Bella was about to kill someone was when she smelled human blood and made that decision. By then, it would most likely be too late to do anything about it.
"We should wait until someone else can come, too," Jasper responded.
"I'll go," Edward volunteered, but Carlisle was shaking his head.
"The three of us have appearances to keep up. You'll need to be in school, as will Alice. You've already missed several days due to the weather."
"I can go." Esme had drifted down from her preparations, a silk scarf tied around her caramel-colored hair.
Alice chimed in with what help she could give, her eyes slightly unfocused. "I think you'll be fine."
Jasper's gaze turned back to Bella, and his voice was a little gentler when he spoke. "I need you to be honest with us. With yourself. If you caught the scent of human blood, could you resist?"
Bella didn't answer right away. She wanted to be sure. She pictured being in the city, the overpowering aroma of a thousand humans at once, tightly crammed into a few blocks. She thought of their warmth, the smell of their perspiration, the sound of their hearts creating an erratically constant beat, the thin skin of their necks, unable to contain the pulse of their carotid arteries.
Her mouth pooled with venom in response, but she could picture it. She could picture herself resisting, running, if need be. But she didn't want to push her luck, not now when they seemed willing to trust her.
"Is there somewhere less populated in the city we could start?" She asked.
Esme nodded. "There's a consignment store in Tukwila we can go to. I've been meaning to stop there anyway."
Jasper thought about this, then looked to Carlisle. "It's your call."
Carlisle nodded, his face solemn as he said, "I trust you."
Bella wasn't sure if he was talking to her, or if he was telling Jasper and Esme he trusted them to control her. Either way, she was going to Seattle in two days.
Once the plans were set, Bella offered her help to Esme, who had undertaken more of a project in the guest bedroom than originally intended.
She was gently pulling off the crown molding with her bare hands, showing Bella how to do so without ripping the whole wall apart.
As they worked, Bella heard Esme's version of her history, adding more details that Edward had politely left out. Esme's abusive ex-husband, the tragic death of her baby, her absolute grief all were so much more real when she heard them from Esme herself.
"I'm so sorry for your loss," Bella said, trying to patch a small hole she had accidently put into the wall.
Esme just smiled. "Thank you, but I found a new family, and I have six beautiful children to call my own."
Bella smiled at her own inclusion, feeling the type of warmth that only a mother's love can give. How had she gotten so lucky as to stumble straight into the kindest family of vampires in the world?
Bella found herself counting down the minutes until Edward and Alice came home. She had apologized to Esme for setting back her project timeline by adding more work with her too-strong grip. Esme had simply waved away her apologies, and said having some company more than made up for the extra hour of work she had caused.
She had played a game of chess with Jasper and been demolished. They had exchanged war stories, then, and Bella's eyes had gone wide when she found out which coven Jasper had gotten his beginnings with.
He smiled at her reaction. "It's nice to finally get the appropriate response when I say I came from Maria's coven."
"You were with her for so long," Bella said, practicing her grip strength on the chess pieces. She wanted to be able to help Esme properly someday.
"Yes, Maria was very fond of me. In many ways." He looked her in the eye. "They can be very demanding, can't they?"
Bella realized how much she and Jasper understood each other then, and was grateful for his presence in this family. At least someone knew what it had been like, to live a life of bloodlust and violence and survival. Someone knew what it was like to be part of a coven so different from the Cullens.
They both heard the sound of an approaching car. Edward and Alice were home.
"Well, I would challenge you to a rematch, but you seem to beat me in everything."
Jasper chuckled, getting up to greet Alice and tossing one of the pieces at Bella. She managed to catch it without pulverizing it.
"You'll learn."
Edward dominated the remainder of her time before their Seattle trip, resuming his game of a thousand questions. He was lounging on her unused bed as she sorted through the clothes Alice had stocked the room with, determining which to dispose of due to damage and which were salvageable. Apparently there was some part of Alice's intuition evenshedidn't understand sometimes, as she had felt the need to accumulate an entire wardrobe in Bella's size before knowing why.
They had exhausted all questions about her past, and so he started asking things about what she wanted for the future, things she never even thought to consider.
"If you could travel anywhere in the world—which you can now, by the way—where would you like to go first?"
Bella thought about all the places she knew would be amazing to see—Paris, London, Rome, Australia, Spain, Tokyo, Egypt—the list went on and on.
"The Grand Canyon," she answered finally.
"What? But you've already been there. Youlivedin Arizona, Bella."
"So? That doesn't change the fact that it's one of the most amazing sites you will ever see. And I want to see it with these eyes now."
He had just hummed at that, and she sighed, realizing she probably wouldn't get a chance to see it again, what with the unforgiving sunlight and the proximity to a certain someone bent on revenge.
Before long, the gray light of morning was coming in through the window; Bella had joined Edward on the bed. She had been able to squeeze a few questions in of her own, but he monopolized the time yet again.
"Why do you have so many questions? Is this some kind of weird Cullen initiation or something?"
"No." He placed a single finger on the side of her head. She nearly jumped as what felt like an electric shock passed from his skin to hers. "You're just the only person for whom I don't already know all the answers. You fascinate me."
Bella felt a little disappointment at that answer. She was a science experiment.
"Must be refreshing," she managed to say in a normal voice.
Edward seemed about to say something else when Alice called him down. They were going to be late for school if they didn't leave.
"Have fun at school," Bella teased.
He gave her a dark look. "Don't worry, your time will come."
The drive to Seattle was oddly uncomfortable. Bella kept fidgeting in the back of Rosalie's beloved M3, which had been borrowed under threat of immediate decapitation if it came back any less than perfect.
Jasper was driving with Esme in the passenger seat, and both seemed annoyingly content.
"Why couldn't we just run?" Bella asked, eyeing the speedometer.
"Keeping up appearances, Bella," Jasper said as he flicked on his turn signal. "Humans typically don't run a hundred miles an hour."
"You could at least drive a little faster," she grumbled, earning a chuckle from both of her companions.
"Isn't your father the police chief? What would he think of your suggestion?"
They arrived much slower than they could have, in Bella's opinion. Jasper drove to the city where Esme's consignment store was.
The area was sparsely populated, and the small parking lot for the store only had two other cars there.
Jasper stayed with them at first, and it was hard not to compare his demeanor to Jamie's. He was working hard to appear casual, but there was a taut energy beneath his facade that Bella could easily sense as they walked through the aisles of antiques.
The older gentleman behind the register had given them a friendly wave, and another customer was browsing through the small collection of clothing in the back corner.
Bella could smell both of them easily, and couldn't help the burn in her throat. Other than that, though, she felt in control.
"Jasper, dear, we'll be fine. Go see Mr. Jenks and Bella and I will get done what we need to here. Then we can all head to the airport together."
Jasper looked at Bella. "You're good?"
Bella nodded, before adding, "I wouldn't risk it if I wasn't."
He seemed satisfied with her answer and left.
They spent a pleasant hour browsing through the store, the sound of rain on the roof oddly comforting. Bella enjoyed Esme's company more than the actual shopping, but was happy to offer her opinion when asked.
"I'll have to come back with a different car for this table." Esme brushed her hand wistfully against the wood, but Bella didn't see the appeal of the decrepit-looking dining set. The only thing older than the table might've been the store attendant, who was now snoring behind the counter. Well, him and Esme, she thought. Bella was keeping her hands to herself, though, afraid to break anything accidentally.
When Esme had placed her chosen items on hold, they made their way out of the store.
Bella could easily hear Jasper's side of the phone conversation that ensued as they stood under the awning outside. "I'm sorry, Esme, this is taking longer than anticipated."
"That's okay, we can come meet you."
Bella shook her head at that, afraid of venturing into the more populated Seattle on foot. "Can we just wait here for him?"
"Bella's right. Better not to risk it if she's uncomfortable," Jasper responded. "And it will look odd if you two are just waiting outside in the rain. I can bring the car back if you'd like and you can pick up Carmen and Eleazar, and then I can just run home when I'm through here…"
Esme looked over at Bella and smiled. "No, but thank you. I think Bella would prefer to do the running, if that's what it's coming to."
Jasper protested a little, but something else seemed to be calling his attention that they couldn't hear.
"I'm sorry again, I have to go. Call me if you need me or change your mind."
With that, the conversation ended, and Esme pulled up the hood of her coat. Bella followed suit.
"We can find Jasper, if that's easier. I don't want you to have to run in the rain on my behalf. Or we can wait inside a restaurant or something."
"Oh no, it's fine Bella. I actually prefer running myself," Esme said as she smiled, and although Bella had a hard time believing her, she didn't fight back.
They kept a human pace all the way to the edge of the neighborhood, which thankfully wasn't too far from the consignment store.
"We'll have to go around the sound, though," Esme said regretfully as they started up a quicker pace. "I don't fancy a swim today."
Bella didn't mind. She truly enjoyed running through the wilderness. It was one of the times she felt like she could totally give in to her nature.
She kept pace with Esme, and they would converse every now and then. Bella told her about her human mother, a memory that was becoming less and less painful. Maybe because Esme had such a motherly disposition. Esme told her about the shock Alice and Jasper had given the family upon their arrival. They spoke about less important things, too, and about 20 minutes in, just ran in comfortable silence.
Then everything changed.
Bella smelled it first, and if she had been a human, she was certain the shock would have given her a heart attack.
The scent was so familiar, more familiar to her than any of the Cullens.
Jamie.
Dread and terror seized her, more for Esme than for herself.
Esme had smelled it too, but did not know what it meant. She looked at Bella, processed the panic on Bella's face, and started to slow.
"Run," Bella said.
They took off then, much faster than any pace they had run to this point.
The trail was fresh, he was close by, and certainly aware of her presence, too. They hadn't exactly been quiet.
Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, so fucking stupid,Bella berated herself, pushing her legs as quickly as she could. If she strained her ears, she could hear the sound of distant pursuit.
Why had they left Jasper? Why had they decided to run home? Why hadn't they just found a nice coffee shop to sit in? Why hadn't they spent the whole day at the consignment store?
But Bella knew that none of those things, except maybe Jasper, would have stopped Jamie from getting to her once he knew she was there.
Stupid, stupid, stupid.
Esme was falling behind, unable to keep up.
Bella quickly calculated the difference it would make if she carried Esme instead. It was infinitesimal, and would rob Bella of the use of her hands.
One thing might make a difference, though.
"Esme, we need to split up."
Jamie would almost certainly follow Bella.
But what if he's not alone?Bella thought. She knew, though, that Esme stood a better chance of surviving getting caught by Xavi and Leanne alone versus getting caught by Jamie with Bella.
"No." It was the closest thing to a growl she had ever heard Esme make. "I'm not leaving you."
"It's Jamie," Bella said through gritted teeth.
Esme sucked in a breath at that. She knew they were in trouble. She just didn't realize how much. Bella knew this was different from the run with Paloma. Her ties to the Cullens were so much stronger than any she had made in Louisiana. She would never abandon Esme, no matter what. She would stay to defend her ashes, if that's what it came to.
She couldn't allow it to come to that.
"Please, Esme. I need you to run back to Seattle. Find Jasper. I don't know if I can protect you." It hurt Bella to admit that, but the sounds of pursuit were getting closer.
"I'm not leaving you, Bella!"
Bella swore loudly, but kept running, thinking through her options as quickly as possible.
With Bella having to keep pace with Esme, it wasn't long before Jamie gained ground. She could sense him, as if her very being recognized the one that had created her.
This gave Bella an idea. She extended her shield out, first feeling Esme's presence join her, then, much closer than she had calculated, the familiar pinprick that was Jamie.
She knew exactly where he was now, and exactly what he was going to do. He would go for Esme first. Take out the companion before focusing on the object.
Three, two, one…
Just as Jamie exploded out of the trees to their left, Bella launched herself at Esme, knocking her fifteen feet away and out of reach of Jamie's hands.
"Run!" She yelled again while simultaneously leaping back to her feet.
Esme was still hesitating. Jamie went on the attack again, aiming straight for Esme. Bella was quick, her battle focus snapping her to attention for the first time in a while. She jumped between him and Esme, catching his fist as it came down hard and twisting.
He grunted in pain before kicking her, but she didn't budge. Jamie flashed his wicked grin.
"Hello, love."
