A/N… This was my entry into the 2024 Eras: Reputation contest. I'd like to thank the ladies that did an amazing job with it this year. Last year, I entered, which brought us my story Oz. This year it's Love Never Dies a Natural Death.

I'm so very honored that it won Second Place for the Public Vote, Second Place for the Judges' vote, Validator's favorite (Alice's White Rabbit), and the Favorite Couple Award.

Thank you to all that voted and participated. Congrats to the other winners! I had some extremely talented competition. Go check out the other stories. You can find the Eras contest under my favorite authors on my profile.

I'll let you get to it. See me at the bottom about this story…

o—O—o

Title: Love Never Dies a Natural Death

Name: drotuno

Facebook Name: Deb drotuno Rotuno

Beta(s): JenRar

Summary: Nothing had been able to stop me. No one. Not a member of my family. Not the pleading of my victims. Especially the pleading of my victims. They would all pay. And they would all give up information before they paid that debt. I would find my revenge before I atoned.

Disclaimer: The author does not own any publicly recognizable characters herein. No copyright infringement is intended.

FFN: drotuno

o—O—o

The old cabin in Oregon creaked as I slammed the front door. The sky was about to open up into a pretty nasty storm. Not that it would stop me.

Nothing had been able to stop me. No one. Not a member of my family. Not the pleading of my victims. Especially the pleading of my victims. They would all pay. And they would all give up information before they paid that debt.

In the bathroom, I shed my ruined clothes. It was time to move on to the next place, the next keeper of the information I needed, because I wouldn't stop.

The water was cold, not that I cared. I just needed the venom and dirt and filth off me. Grains of sand and sticky venom sloughed off my skin and circled the drain in a muddy color. Somewhere in the bedroom I heard my phone ring, but I ignored it as I ducked my head under the spray.

Opening and closing my fists, I tried like hell to calm myself. I pressed those fists on the tiles in front of me, struggling with temper, bloodlust, and all-around mental chaos. The old tiles in front of me cracked and shattered, and I pulled my hands back.

My phone signaled that someone had left a message, and it was most likely my family. Maybe Alice. Probably Carlisle. Rose couldn't possibly pull herself away from just…Rose long enough to give a shit. Emmett was torn between his mate and his own opinion. She scared him, and with good reason. And Esme was heartbroken and grieving.

They all offered to help me. I didn't want it.

However, if it was Jasper, he'd have some important information for me; he was the only one who understood. Though, that may have been fueled by guilt. I wasn't sure. I hadn't been around any of them in months, so reading his thoughts on the matter wasn't possible.

Thunder rumbled outside with a flicker of lightning. I shut off the water, barely bothering to dry off before stepping into the bedroom of the cabin in which I'd been squatting. It was old, it was abandoned, and it was only temporary.

Pulling out a pair of black jeans and a black button-down shirt out of the bag I'd been carrying since Brazil, I sat heavily on the edge of a bed I wouldn't be using. I hadn't slept in well over a hundred years.

Squeezing my eyes against the onslaught of memories, I shook my head to clear it, but it didn't work. Sharing a small bed with the most beautiful of humans; the perfect feel of her small, warm hand in my cold one; the euphoric sound of my name on loving lips.

Snarling, I stood up and grabbed the rail of the bed to flip it across the room. Wood splintered, the mattress flopped to the wood floor, and the rug bunched up. A lamp shattered, and a cheap framed picture slid down the wall and fragmented. Dust flew everywhere, but I'd needed that small release. The rundown cabin may not survive the next few hours I was using it.

I stared at the destruction, hardly feeling anything. It was a mere hint of what I felt on the inside. Wrecked. Explosive. Devastated. Enraged. But more than anything, I was consumed by guilt.

This was all my fault. And I needed to rectify it.

My shoulders sagged, and I walked to the nightstand to snatch up my phone. There was more than one message. I scrolled through them. Carlisle was merely checking on me. Alice told me to stay inside the cabin until the storm was over but that I needed to hunt before I left the area. However, Jasper's message included a headline from a news website.

Two Hikers Found Mutilated by Bear Outside Denali Preserve

Sneering, I gritted my teeth. Jasper's words beneath that said what I was thinking.

Bear, my ass. Go. I have a feeling our dear, sweet cousins are being fooled.

Nodding once, I sent him a quick thank-you, leaving the rest of the messages unanswered.

o—O—o

My car spit gravel and dirt as I rounded the corner toward Eleazar's home. I skidded to a stop, noting that everyone was stepping out of their beautiful house to see me.

Most of the minds were welcoming, some held sadness and worry, but it was the last one that I needed. Fear. Lots of it. He worried as to why I was there, why I looked murderous, and why, after so many months, I was paying them a visit.

"Edward, mi niño lindo, it's good to see y—" Carmen started but gasped in shock.

I didn't bother with pleasantries; I immediately dove for the man I'd come to see. He hissed a curse and started to run, which was futile.

I tackled him from behind, rolling in the grass and coming to a stop at the base of a rather large, old oak where I slammed him hard enough for a sizable limb to break off and fall to the ground.

"Ehd—"

I sneered, gripping his throat harder, almost hard enough to crack immortal skin.

"Edward, stop!" I heard Irina plead behind me.

"Where is she, Laurent?" I snarled in his face, squeezing his throat harder. "Tell me where she is, and I may let you live. Maybe. I still owe you for terrorizing Forks while I was gone."

"I don't know!" he wheezed, but I huffed a humorless laugh.

"Seriously? You want to lie to a mind reader? The evidence is in the color of your eyes, Laurent. If you were truly on the animal diet, it would start to show by now. So when did you meet with her? Perhaps you had a quick date on the other side of the preserve. Shared a hiker or two?"

"Motherfu…" Tanya started. Her faith in my ability was unwavering, and she never really took to new people all that well, so despite Laurent's new relationship with Irina, she was instantly my ally.

She walked to me so I could see her face. "A couple of weeks ago," she answered for him. "He stayed here while the rest of us went into town. Edward, that would've been the only time he could've pulled it off."

Grinning evilly, I nodded her way. "Where was she going, Laurent?"

He didn't answer with voice, but his mind wasn't something he was used to guarding. My nostrils flared at what I saw, and I shook my head slowly.

"I'm going to kill her, Laurent. I'm going to kill everyone she associates with, everyone she's ever turned."

Not everyone.

I gripped his throat, pulling him back and slamming him hard into the trunk of the large oak, which gave an eerie crack. Leaves showered down on and around us.

"Don't even think about her!"

Laurent was just belligerent enough to offer a mocking laugh. "You left her unprotected, Cullen. That's on y—"

With a snarl, I removed his head. He was in pieces and on fire before I even registered that Irina was yelling curses at me, but her sister handled it just fine.

"He wasn't your mate. Let it go. He couldn't be trusted. Can't you see that? He was using you," Tanya told her without much emotion behind it, but she turned to face me. "Where is she?"

"Heading back to Washington," I rasped, my temper and my bloodlust barely in control.

Tanya reached for my face, and I pulled away. "You need to hunt, Edward. Do I need to take you? Make you hunt?" When I didn't answer her, she simply spun me toward the forest. "Let's go."

"I don't—"

"You will, so just go," Tanya ordered, forcing me deeper into the woods. "You think your family hasn't already called? Give me a break, Edward."

It didn't take long to sate my thirst, and I found that while my head was clearer, my rage still remained. Rage, grief, and a thirst for vengeance I couldn't seem to quench.

Tanya was waiting patiently for me just on the other side of a clearing. "Want to talk about it?"

I shook my head, raking a hand through my hair to knock leaves and grass out of it.

"We're all willing to help you, Edward. If you'd only ask…" She trailed off when I shook my head again. She sighed deeply. "Where are you going next?"

"Seattle. That redheaded b-bi…demon is creating a newborn army."

Tanya was amused at my almost slip, but she nodded that she'd heard me. "And you plan to take them all on?"

"I have to," I whispered, frowning down at the ground, but Tanya moved closer until she was standing in front of me. "I did this. I set this into motion. I…I owe her this."

"You still love her."

"I'll never stop loving her," I whispered truthfully.

Tanya studied my face, and her praise was silent. Good.

"Does she… Is she—"

"I don't know."

Tanya reached up and placed her hands flat on either side of my face. "Then I guess you'd better get your ass in gear and find out. However, I'm glad you hunted. Your family said you'd need it. Well, specifically, Alice."

I sighed at the thought of my family.

"They need you to be okay," she whispered, patting my face gently.

"I can't make that promise." I wasn't sure anything would ever be okay again.

She nodded again. "Now, do you need help? I'm not asking for your family. I'm asking my friend – my very old, very loyal friend – if he needs help."

Shoving my hands into the front pockets of my jeans, I glared at the ground. "It should be me. I… I have to make up for so damn much. If it's the last thing I do."

Tanya blinked rapidly, whispering, "Please, don't say that."

"Well, it's the truth nonetheless."

She reached out and tugged at my arm until I pulled my hand from my pocket. She grasped my hand tightly. "You know what? I won't talk you out of that. I mean, I get it. This can be a long, dark life, especially, if you walk it alone." Her voice held wisdom and sadness. "But my deepest hope is that you're still around when this is all over."

I squeezed her hand. "I can't promise that either, but I need answers, and I need rid this earth of that filth."

Tanya nodded, squeezing my hand one more time before releasing it. "Then go. But if you need us, all you have to do is call."

Smiling sadly, I hugged her. "I know. Thank you."

o—O—o

Sitting on the roof of a tall building, I gazed down at Seattle spread out before me. Humans were disappearing in random parts of the city, and some had been found mutilated and bloodless. Others simply went missing.

There was a newborn army somewhere in the mayhem down below, but they were clearly being guided by someone who knew what they were doing. Or at the very least, they'd been given strict instructions on how to keep a low profile.

I'd been following the activity for a week. And finally spotted a pattern. Every human death encircled a rundown neighborhood. Drugs, prostitution, murder, and domestic violence were an everyday occurrence in this area. I didn't give a damn about those things.

I finally found what I'd been searching for in an old grocery store that was closed up and falling into disrepair. I heard the minds of at least six immortals inside that building…and the heartbeats of three humans. Three scared humans.

Through all those minds, I caught a glimpse of a face I'd seen on the missing persons website, so I pulled my phone out of my pocket.

"911. What's your emergency?"

I changed my voice just enough not to sound like me, saying, "I think… I'm pretty sure I just saw that missing girl on the TV. Lexie Chambers. She looked kinda messed up. She was with two other people going into the old Stop and Save on Forty-Second Street. You have to hurry. She didn't look too good."

I ended the call and sat back to wait. The heartbeats were still pounding in my ears, and the minds of the immortals were impatiently waiting for the signal that they could feed. That was the mind I was waiting for, because whoever gave them permission was the immortal next on my list.

It didn't take as long as I expected for a patrol unit to slowly and quietly approach the old store. They used their spotlight on the car's frame to shine it inside the front doors. And that's when I stood up.

I leaped down from one roof to another, finally catching a glimpse of the immortal in charge.

"Leave them!" he hissed at his people. "You know where to go!"

They all fled out of the back of the building, splitting in different directions, but it was time I met Riley Biers.

I landed silently onto the ground, taking off in the direction that Riley was leading two of his people. The rest decided to find their meals elsewhere, so they disappeared deeper into the older part of the city. I didn't care about them; I needed the one who'd been left in charge. Though, they all might meet their demise eventually.

Riley led his two newborns through the streets, and in their thoughts, I saw an old, abandoned warehouse, which seemed to be a home base of sorts. It sat alone, away from humans, giving Riley a chance to let his newborns have a touch of freedom. From his mind and the minds of the young boy and girl with him, Riley would bring humans to the warehouse. He'd take the homeless, the drug addicts, the humans no one would miss. Sadly, there were plenty of those in Seattle. Most were young runaways.

As we drew closer to the warehouse, I finally caught a glimpse of the true target of my hunt. Flashes of red hair, a sadistic smile, and her manipulation of Riley came through his thoughts. He was expecting me. She'd told him I would hunt him.

I grinned evilly at that. Once they slipped through the fencing, I leaped over it, tackling Riley hard from behind. We slid over concrete and dust, coming to rest by a stack of rotting pallets.

"Oh, Riley Biers, we have a lot to discuss," I growled through gritted teeth.

"I'm not telling you anything. She said you'd come," he grunted out when my hand squeezed around his throat.

"I'm sure she did. Where is she?" I asked him softly, tilting my head a little when his two protégés behind me started to get nervous. "And call them off, because I'm really only here for you. Or…I can set this whole warehouse on fire. They'll have their chance at me when I've asked my questions." When Riley didn't do what I asked, I gripped his throat harder, lifted his head, and slammed it hard enough to crack the concrete beneath him and splinter the immortal skin of his throat. "Tell them!"

"Back down!"

I didn't bother to even glance over my shoulder. I could hear their thoughts. The boy was ready for a fight. The girl, however, had some interesting changes in loyalty. She no more wanted to be immortal than any of us at the beginning, but she really wanted away from Riley and, more specifically…Victoria. She'd only met one time the terrifying woman who told Riley what to do, and she had no desire to repeat that meeting.

Quickly, I cast a glance her way. Long, brunette hair, fearful expression, and thirsty – but she backed up to the wall of the warehouse to wait.

My eyes went back to Riley, who thought he could fight me when my attention was elsewhere, but apparently, Victoria left out an important fact about me. She told Riley I was coming for him, but she didn't tell him the most imperative thing. She left out that I could read minds.

That made me chuckle as I stopped his escape. "Oh, Riley. Victoria set you up for failure."

I gripped his neck and stood up with him, only to slam him into the cement block wall of a small outer building, and the blocks cracked and split in several places. I held him there, and despite his strength, my hate and bloodlust were too much for his inexperience. He was barely turned a year.

"Sh-She told me… Sh-she said t-to tell y-you," he wheezed through my harsh grip.

I heard the words in his mind before he barely said them aloud, but I heard them in Victoria's voice louder than in his restricted speech.

A mate for a mate.

A snarl erupted from me, and I ripped Riley from the wall and slammed him through the stack of pallets. Before he could get up, I grabbed him again, tossing him like garbage through the cement block wall, which caused us to spill into the dark warehouse.

I ripped off his left arm, tossing it behind me. "Where is she?" I growled in his face.

When he didn't answer, I removed his right arm roughly, and it, too, landed somewhere several feet away.

"Tell me where she is!"

"I don't know," he finally rasped as he writhed in pain, and now, he couldn't fight me at all. "She mentioned teaching those wretched wolves a lesson."

That answer brought me up short. "She's gone back to Forks?"

He nodded wearily, and his thoughts told me the rest. The newborn army was for the Quileute wolves and my family, if the latter were still around. The last time I'd been near the wolves, there had been four of the giant shapeshifters. Although, with all the vampire activity over the last several months, there could possibly be more. My family, however, wasn't in Washington.

Riley's thoughts landed on Victoria; he thought she'd protect him, come for him.

I sighed, shaking my head. "You were her pawn, Riley. Nothing more. You were a test, and you failed that test because she didn't give you all the necessary elements to her twisted game."

With a sharp twist, I ended Riley, using the old pallets to start a fire. The remaining young boy waited until my back was turned before charging at me full force. His thoughts betrayed him, and he was in several pieces and on the fire before he could even swing the first punch.

"You're Edward," the young girl behind me said softly.

I spun to face her. There were no malicious thoughts, no threatening undertones. She'd been told I was the enemy, but she never quite believed the stories going around.

"Yes. How many of you did she turn?" I asked her.

"Just…me, Travis," she started, gesturing to the fire. "And three more – Owen, Daniel, and Chuckie. Like that creepy-ass doll."

I cracked a smile.

"We were supposed to make three more tonight, but a cop showed up…" She trailed off meeting my gaze. "That was you?"

I nodded, sighing deeply.

"Am I next?" she asked softly, gesturing to the purple smoke billowing up into the night sky.

"You could've run; you had time," I told her, expecting anger, but it didn't come.

The fact that a newborn like her wasn't angry was intriguing. She should've been explosive, but instead, she was simply curious.

Raking a hand through my hair, I sighed again. "Do you want to be next?"

She shrugged, but her thoughts almost matched her expression. She did, but she didn't. She didn't want to be what she'd become. She didn't want to be a killer, and she certainly wanted no part of someone else's war or agenda or revenge.

As much as my own vengeance was calling to me to make my way back to Forks, Carlisle's teachings were deeply ingrained in me. I walked to the fallen wall, grabbed two of the cinder blocks, and set them down on their ends.

"Please have a seat," I told her, and we sat down. "What's your name?"

"Bree. Bree Tanner."

"There is another way to live. You can choose not to drink from humans; animal blood will suffice. It takes dedication and it's not as satisfying, but the end result is a calmer disposition and a more peaceful mind. Not…this."

I gestured around at the chaos that filled the area around us, because despite the empty warehouse yard, there were bloodstains and signs of brutality everywhere. The whole area smelled like fear, death, and now, the dwindling smoke of burning immortals.

"C-Can you teach me?"

I shook my head, standing up. "I must find Victoria, but my family can teach you. Make your way south through Oregon and into northern California. I'll have them watch for you."

"Thanks." She gazed slowly around the warehouse yard. "What about the others?"

"Tell them they're free from Riley but to leave this area. Go anywhere but here. And to keep themselves secret. I don't have time to end them all."

She smirked and nodded. "Maybe I'll just leave a note."

Grinning, I nodded, and I started to turn away and leave, but she was up and grabbing my arm.

"Victoria is evil," she told me unnecessarily. "She's manipulative and crazy."

What Bree didn't say out loud was that Victoria reminded her of her mother – moods that changed with the wind, mean, and abusive – all done with a sweet tone and heavy discipline. Extreme discipline.

I flinched at her memories, but I met her gaze. "I'm aware. Go see my family. They'll teach you. My sister Alice will see you coming."

Starting for the fence, I was just about to leap over it when Bree called my name.

"Edward, she's not alone! Be careful!"

I froze, watching memories that involved a figure in the shadows. Victoria kept someone hidden, someone she didn't want even Riley to meet. From Bree's memory, Victoria called this shadowed figure the key to sweet revenge, saying that this anonymous entity would destroy all her enemies.

My brow furrowed because I couldn't see who it could be; all of Victoria's travelling companions were gone – James in Pheonix, Laurent in Alaska, and now Riley in Seattle. But I nodded once at Bree, leaping over the fence and heading back to the place where I'd left my heart.

o—O—o

Just driving my car into Forks made me want to vomit. My hands shook as I shifted gears and took the curve so fast that my tires squealed in protest. I'd lived well over a century, and the mistakes I'd made here in this insignificant town overshadowed all the terrible deeds I'd ever done over those long, empty years. And that included my choice to hunt humans.

For a brief, beautiful moment, I'd had everything, but my fears, my need for control, and my insecurities caused me to make a terrible decision. And while the responsibility for that mistake rested heavily upon my shoulders, I wasn't the one who'd paid the ultimate price. However, I would find my revenge before I atoned.

I turned into the driveway of the Cullen home; I wasn't planning on staying here but merely used it to stash my car. Everything in this small town needed to be done on foot. I didn't even want to go inside, but I had no choice.

I'd timed my arrival to Forks in the dead of night in order to avoid being seen. I clicked the garage door remote and pulled into the empty spot, immediately closing the door down again. I squeezed the steering wheel until it gave an eerie creak, and I instantly pulled my hands away and got out of the vehicle.

Grabbing my bag, I went inside, barely giving the living space a glance. My whole damn world fell apart inside this house. But as I reached my room at the top of the stairs on the third floor, the sight inside that room caused my chest to crack wide open.

Memories upon memories flooded me. I dropped my bag, falling to my knees as again the urge to vomit came over me like a tidal wave. My room was haunted by smiles and music, kisses and teases. It held the ghosts of what could've been.

What should have been.

Still covered in the smoke, venom, and filth of Seattle, I quickly cleaned up in the bathroom, changing into clothes that had been left behind when I'd made my family pack up and leave. I was tying my sneakers when I heard it, heard a mental voice; it was one that I knew.

My head shot up and my eyes narrowed. I didn't bother to navigate the house; I simply opened the window of my old bedroom and dropped down to the overgrown lawn below to make my way closer to the river.

I heard him before I saw him. However, his large wolf form stepped slowly from the trees, teeth bared, growl rumbling, and thoughts filled with hate.

I'll kill him for what he's done.

"Not yet," I stated, shaking my head.

Jacob Black snorted, and his teeth flashed again dangerously; he was a little put out that I heard his mind, but he used it to his advantage since he couldn't actually speak.

This is all your fault!

"I know."

You should've stayed away from her, and now…

"I know!" My answer came as a snarl, and he leaped over the river to land in front of me. "You're not thinking anything I haven't accused myself of, Black."

His thoughts turned to the one person we both were missing the most. Memories of sad brown eyes, lost expressions, and finally, tentative smiles. He'd been there for her when I wasn't, and I couldn't fault him for his love for her because she was so damned easy to love.

But jealousy and anger and grief overrode all of that, and I couldn't help but ask, "Well, where were you when she was jumping off cliffs? Why was she alone? And how did Victoria get anywhere near her on your damn land?"

That last one brought him up short. His mind brought up the red hair and maniacal smile. He also remembered the search of the waters surrounding the cliffs. No body ever surfaced, not even a piece of clothing.

What do you know, Cullen? Jake sat down on his haunches, his hatred of me set aside for the moment. Something bloomed deep within him, almost hope, but fear that his hope was frivolous. How do you know Victoria was here?

I shook my head. "My sister. Alice saw it. She saw the cliffs, the jump, and then she saw Victoria pull…B-Bella from the water." My eyes stung, and I blinked rapidly. I tried very hard not to think or say that name. With the name came all the love, all the memories, and all the damned guilt.

Jake snorted. That's funny. Bella couldn't say your name either without tripping up or stuttering. When I didn't reply to that thought, he asked, Why are you here, Cullen? You left her in the woods, and you left her broken. I don't know what you did to her, because she refused to talk about it, but still…

"I'm here to kill Victoria," I replied, flinching at his thoughts of Bella.

She had tried to follow me, but I'd run like a coward, because she had more faith than I did. I was aware that Sam Uley had been the one to find her in the woods and bring her home to Charlie. He'd carried her with a surprising gentleness, and once she was in the safety of her father's arms, only then did I leave Forks at the fastest run I could manage.

Alone?

"I've killed everyone Victoria knew or changed, and I did that alone. I'll do this alone, too. I'll mind the treaty line, Jacob, but she's in the area," I told him, starting to walk away.

He mentally showed me a picture of Laurent. Dreadlock leech?

"Dead. Along with a newborn army Victoria wanted to create to come for you and your pack. They're all dead – well, except for a few that simply didn't matter." When Jake scoffed, I added, "If they cross your path, they're all yours. Only Victoria matters. She's mine to destroy. I owe that to Bella."

But you left her!

"I did. I did it to protect her, and it was an astronomical mistake." With that said, I turned away from him.

The last thought I caught was his hope that I at least found Bella's body to return to Charlie. That man deserved closure on the loss of his little girl. On that point, I agreed with Jacob.

I ran toward the coastline. I needed to start somewhere. Alice's visions had shown her that Victoria had come ashore just north of La Push. Bella was bleeding, lying limp in that demon's arms. I'd been in Brazil when I got that phone call, and I almost didn't answer it.

Rose had called, saying I could come home because "the human was dead." Her reason was that everything could go back to normal. However, Alice drove to Forks to verify what she'd seen. For a brief moment, I wanted to end my existence. Without Bella, the world instantly became darker than it had ever been for me.

Then anger took over. And I wanted Victoria's head. I needed her death before my own.

The scent of the sea was sharp in my nose as I approached. It had been too long to catch the scent of another immortal. In fact, I didn't even catch any lingering scent from the wolves, either. Rain, wind, snow…it washed away all the essences.

It wasn't quite dawn yet, so I wandered along the shore. Up ahead was a small cluster of boulders. Stepping from stone to stone, I worked my way closer. As the tide shifted, a flash of silver and white caught my eye. It was stuck in the sand against the last rock.

Kneeling down, I reached down to pick it up. And I instantly recognized it. It was Bella's ring. She always wore it on her index finger – silver, with a white, oval cat's eye stone. Gritting my teeth, I turned the ring over in my palm. I slipped it into my pocket and kept going.

A small alcove appeared in the rocks the closer I got, and the second I stepped into it, I was drowning in a scent that used to burn my throat. It was a bouquet of freesia and strawberry. Breathing deep, a low growl left me as I inhaled the scent that once called to the demon inside of me, and then eventually, it tied me to this earth.

Gazing around that small space, I continued to breathe deep the scent of Bella's blood. It was faded yet still immediately recognizable. Mixed with it was the scent of Victoria. There was a spot or two of blood along the wall of that alcove, and over in the dark corner was a small woman's jacket, brown and tattered. My nostrils flared, and I stepped from the small cave back onto the sandy beach. I gazed slowly around, looking for disturbances in the sand, and I tried to catch the scent of death, of a vampire's discarded human meal, but I found nothing.

I was far enough away from humans, deep enough in the wilder part of the woods to know that not even Charlie's search team would've come this far. The humans would've never made it in a vehicle or on foot, and a boat wouldn't have been able to dock.

In the distance, I caught the hive-mind of the pack. They were patrolling their own lands, coming up empty. Even though I'd told Jacob that I needed no help, he was convincing his pack that they could at least keep Victoria off their lands, direct her my way with just their presence and scent.

I started to run, though not at my fastest. The closer I drew to Forks, a few random thoughts started to infiltrate my mind. It was a human here and there up early for their long day. Occasionally, the pack would blip in and out of range.

I was deep in the woods just west of Forks when I caught the scent I'd been hunting since I received the phone call from Alice.

Victoria.

It was recent, and it was strong. It wound around the forest, across streams, and leaped from tree trunk to tree trunk. The scent continued in an easterly direction toward Forks, and with it, another immortal – familiar yet not.

Flashes of thoughts now grew closer. Victoria's mind was like radio static, not quite clear, not quite blocked. It was in and out. One brief flash showed me which direction I needed to take, and the scent that I was tracking confirmed it.

I knew these woods like the back of my hand. I'd lived in the area for two years before Bella ever moved in with her father. I knew that just up ahead was the meadow. Our meadow. That beautiful little clearing where I'd been able to reveal my true self, what I really was to Bella.

And now, Victoria would sully that perfect place with her presence.

As I approached the clearing, I listened with ears and mind. Someone was getting closer, which meant they'd come to a stop, and even that wasn't completely clear. My brow furrowed at that. I'd never encountered anything like it. Victoria's mind was once clear; I had been able to hear it with no problems. Something had changed.

I slowed down, stepping from the trees into the open space of the meadow. I couldn't focus on the memories, no matter how hard my heart called out. My attention was solely on the evil immortal I'd been chasing since I got that call in Brazil from my family.

Victoria was standing alone in the center with an eerie smile creeping up her face. I took a couple more steps toward my enemy, when I suddenly heard the quick-paced footsteps aiming my way. Before I could react to the fact that there was no mind attached to those steps, I was tackled from the side into the tall grasses of the meadow.

Looming over me was a small, hooded figure, and when they sat back, the hood fell away.

I wasn't sure I could wrap my mind around what I was seeing. I'd convinced myself that she was gone, but apparently, Victoria's true revenge was turning their loyalty.

Not that I deserved any.

"Bella," I barely said aloud, and her brow furrowed a little.

She looked at me as if I was a stranger, and she tilted her head in a way that was no longer human. Red, distrustful eyes glared back at me. And if I'd thought human Bella had been beautiful, I was not prepared for immortal Bella.

"You're here to kill us?" she asked me. "I have to stop you."

"You, sweetheart, have every right to end me, but Victoria must die first," I whispered back.

"She changed me," Bella said softly. "I can't just…" She trailed off, her eyes searching my face, and then glanced up to Victoria.

"I see that."

A million questions were on my tongue, but the hows, whys, and whens suddenly didn't matter. I was still unable to hear her mind, but something about her was making Victoria's thoughts not quite clear.

"Shield," I whispered, grunting when Bella reached for my throat. "Bella-love, I'm yours to end after I've taken care of Victoria."

Bella pushed off me with a newborn's temper and growl. "How do you know me?" she snarled, pacing back and forth.

My heart shattered into oblivion. Bella had come through her change into immortality with no memory of me, of us, of this place. I squeezed my eyes closed against the burning tears that would never fall. They stung at the cruelty of this life that Bella would now have to endure. I never wanted that for her, but now that she was gloriously standing before me, I wondered if she'd been fated for this life all along.

Victoria's laughter was highly amused and wicked. "This worked out better than I ever imagined," she sang in that high-pitched tone of hers. "At first, I wanted to simply drain her, leave her for you on the front doorstep of that house of yours. But she was so damned tenacious, she still turned. But she has no idea who she is," Victoria rambled, and Bella was still pacing and glancing between us.

"I'm going to kill you for ever having touched her. I ended Laurent. And Riley is a pile of ash in Seattle, along with that whole newborn army you were building. You're all alone, Victoria."

Victoria's taunting smile turned into a sneer. "I'm not alone. I have my new talented friend." She tapped her temple. "She keeps me protected."

Quickly, I glanced Bella's way, and even though she had no memory of us, even though I hadn't set eyes on her in months, I could recognize when Bella was starting to put pieces of a puzzle together. She was incredibly smart and observant before, so now, her mind would be stronger, faster, way more powerful.

"Well, she can avenge you once I've removed your head," I vowed, and before Victoria could argue, I launched myself at her.

I was barely able to tackle her, and I was convinced she had a talent for escape. We hit the grass with a rumble, and she slithered out of my arms, giving me a harsh kick before I could react.

Apparently, Bella's ability to block Victoria's thoughts was going to be a problem, but I'd rather have her nearby, because I'd lived the last few months assuming she was dead. Just knowing that she still walked this earth was enough to give me strength to go on.

I stood up, rolling my head on my shoulders as Victoria circled around me, mocking me. "I'm going to make you suffer for what you did to James," she stated with a curled lip and a growl.

A laugh escaped me before I could stop it. "I actually didn't kill James. My family did. However, his death rests upon your shoulders. You sent him alone." To copy Laurent's words, I added, "You left him unprotected."

She snarled, launching herself at me. Instead of dodging her grasp, I countered her move and slammed her down to the ground. In my peripheral vision, Bella shifted on her feet, glancing around, because the scent of the Quileute wolves was closing in. I could hear them encircling the meadow. I had no idea what she knew about the pack.

Shockingly, Jacob was following my request; he was letting me have my fight with Victoria.

"Your family is next on my list," Victoria threatened, kicking out from beneath me.

I laughed again. "Good luck with that," I mocked her.

"After I remove your head," she said with a grin, ducking when I dove for her again. "I'm gonna let you watch me tear her apart and set her on fire. Maybe I'll burn you after…"

She gestured to Bella, whose brow was furrowed in anger. Her glare flickered between Victoria and me, and not for the first time since that beautiful girl came into my life, I wished for the ability to read her mind. She looked confused and so damned frustrated. I needed to finish this monster off so I could help her remember.

Even if those memories caused her to hate me.

It was my fault she'd been turned, so it was only fair to help her with this life when it was over. If she never wanted to see me again, then I'd set her in the arms of my family and walk away.

Diving for Victoria again, I reached out for her, and she slipped through my fingers with a maniacal giggle. "Or maybe I'll kill her first, Edward."

The last thread of my temper unraveled, after all I'd done to find this crazy immortal; I couldn't let her touch Bella again. She'd done enough damage. Hell, we'd all done enough damage.

Thankfully, my speed was the key. I tackled Victoria from behind before she could reach Bella, who had shifted quickly out of the way by sheer instinct. Victoria and I were a tornado of punches, kicks, and insults as we fell into the forest, taking a few young trees with us.

We tumbled into a large pine, sending limbs, pinecones, and needles showering down on us. However, the way we landed gave her the advantage. Her arm was around my neck, her teeth at my throat.

Before I could counter her position, the ground shifted, the tree behind us was ripped from the soil – roots and all – and the weight of Victoria evaporated from my back.

Several more trees were destroyed, and I ran to follow the path. Several yards away, I found Bella with Victoria's head in her grip, and I slowed down because Bella looked at me like I was next.

"Bella, let me help y—"

"I couldn't let her kill you, but I don't… I don't know why!" She snarled that last word with so much frustration that it hurt my heart.

"I know, sweetheart. I'll explain why, but we need to—" I gestured to Victoria's head.

She huffed through her nose but nodded. "You protected me."

"Yes," I said, lifting Victoria's body.

"You know me."

Smiling, I glanced back as I led her back to the meadow. "Yes, I know you."

"But she said you'd kill me, and then she said she'd kill me."

Damn it, if I didn't want to wrap that beautiful thing up in a hug, but I wanted Victoria on fire as quickly as possible.

"Victoria wasn't…stable, and she was a master at lies and manipulation. I'm sorry she did that to you…" I trailed off, shaking my head as I dropped that demon's body onto the ground. "I'm not sorry you're still here, but I'm sorry you…" I sighed, pulling out a lighter.

Victoria's clothes caught on fire quickly, engulfing the rest of her. Bella looked to me, still holding the head by that bright-red hair, and I nodded for her to add it to the flames. She dropped it in the middle of the fire and backed away a few paces, opting to sit down with her arms around her legs.

I took a moment to truly take her in – her appearance, her demeanor, and her expressions. She had been changed for several months, and her eyes were glaringly red, which broke my heart a little. I hoped she'd be open to the animal blood diet. Her clothes were a little ragged – a lot like Victoria's. Her sneakers were falling apart, and there were smudges of dirt on her face and arms. Her beautiful dark hair was pulled back in a haphazard ponytail, knotted and dirty.

"What do you remember?" I asked.

At the same time, she said, "Tell me how you know me."

Grinning, I sat next to her, leaving some space between us. The wolves smelled the fire, and they were quickly moving back toward the reservation. However, Jacob's wolf form appeared from the shadows. His thoughts were sad that he'd lost his best friend, that she'd been turned into the "enemy."

I hope he teaches her the other diet.

With a quick glance, I nodded his way, and then he was gone.

"I don't remember much. I remember water and pain. I remember Victoria and three days of even more pain," she said softly, meeting my gaze as she seemed to be holding her knees even closer to her chest. "She scared me, but…she was all I had when I woke up."

Nodding, I glared at the flames that were consuming the last of my enemies. I'd been hunting and fighting and killing immortals for months, and my reason for doing so wasn't actually dead. My mind was a mess, and while I'd wanted to prolong Victoria's death and pain, I was now just glad she was gone.

"Do you know my name?" I asked her.

"Edward Cullen?"

"Yes. Good, sweetheart," I praised her with a small smile. "Victoria told you?"

"Yes." She inhaled deeply, closing her eyes. "But you smell…so familiar."

My eyes stung with that statement from her. She'd always loved my scent. If I hadn't been such a blind idiot, I'd have understood that we'd been mated from the beginning, no matter how tentative or dangerous it had been. Now, the draw to her was hard to resist, practically painful to put away momentarily. We were the same, we were forever, and I was hers to do with as she pleased from now until the end of time. Even if she decided she couldn't forgive me for our past.

"I have something of yours," I told Bella, reaching into my jeans pocket to get her ring.

I set it gently into her palm, keeping my focus on her face. I was hoping something tangible from her past might trigger memories. Her brows furrowed as she picked it up and turned it over in her fingers.

"This is mine."

"It is. You wore it every day…at Forks High." I leaned on the school's name, hoping it would help.

She slipped it onto her index finger, almost without thinking. And I saw right then that there was muscle memory deep within her. It might just take some time for her to remember. But that was okay. Time we had.

"My dad gave me this," she whispered, not taking her eyes off the ring. "It was my grandmother's." Her eyes widened. "My dad…"

Suddenly, she was on her feet and running, and I caught up with her easily. I wouldn't let her hurt her father, but I also couldn't let her be seen by him or any other resident of Forks.

"Bella, wait. You can't see him, love," I told her, and she came to a stop in the woods just outside her old home.

Just looking at the window I'd climbed through more times than I could count broke me a little.

"Why? He's my father…"

"He thinks you're dead, Bella," I said, pulling her back into the woods a little deeper. "And now he shouldn't see you. You're not…"

"I'm not human."

I grimaced, nodding. "They can't know about us. I'm sorry."

Her temper flared hot and fiery, and she ran deeper into the woods. She punched a tree, shattering the trunk and rounding on me.

"Why won't you leave me alone?"

"I can't." I shook my head, shoving my hands into my front pockets. "I did that once, and I…you…" I gestured to her new immortal body. "I'll never do that again, unless you send me away, and I would deserve much more than that."

My rambling made her study me with narrowed eyes. She made me shuffle my feet a little being under that much scrutiny. Even worse was where we were. We were standing in the place where I shattered her sweet heart and soul, where I told her I didn't want her, that she'd only been a distraction.

I'd been in more high schools than I could count, witnessed break-ups and heartbreak every day, and rolled my eyes at the constant rotation of love and partners and dating. However, the last time I stood in these woods, I heard what real heartbreak sounded like.

"I know this place," she whispered, turning slowly in one spot as she tucked a loose lock of hair behind her ear. She looked to me, pointing. "You weren't there. You were there." She pointed toward a space beside a fallen tree.

She froze for a moment, and shockingly, I started to catch blips of her mind. Deep, angry eyes darkened from the newborn red to hateful black. She patted her back pocket, pulling out something. She glanced down at what looked like a piece of paper, but she turned it my way.

It was the picture taken by Alice on Bella's birthday. It had obviously been in her pocket when she'd leaped from the cliff, because it was water-logged and ragged.

It was the picture I'd tucked away in the loose floorboard of her bedroom, along with the CD of the song I'd written for her. In an attempt to put away my feelings, I'd tucked those things in a place she wouldn't find them. It was a completely stupid thing to do, but I hadn't felt right stealing those things either. Not from her.

"You lied to me," she growled, but again, she didn't seem to have control of her new talent, because flashes of her memories started to escape from the mind that used to be silent.

Forks High, the cafeteria, the conversation when I told her that my love was more, because if it was the right thing, I could walk away. My vow in Pheonix that I would stay as long as it was good for her. Our summer before senior year – love, laughter, music, kisses.

Each memory was like a roundhouse punch, and I flinched with each one.

"I did, Bella. I owe you the biggest apology from the last time we stood in this place," I stated honestly.

"You lied!" she snarled, rushing to me, but instead of the hit I was expecting, she pushed that beaten-up picture into my chest. As it was, I had to take a couple steps back with the force she used. "You told me you loved me, and then you told me you didn't want me, Edward! And you did it as some sort of…of…protection?"

"Yes," I answered softly, nodding.

"Well, look how that shit fucking turned out," she snapped, her eyes narrowing on me.

Bella rarely cursed – it just wasn't a part of her everyday language – but she was really mad. It was terrifying and alluring, and it was every bit her newborn temper mixed with heartbreak and mistrust.

"And that's why you told me I could end you after Victoria?" she asked, stepping closer to me, which only served to bring her new immortal scent closer.

"Whatever you wish, my love," I conceded, inhaling deeply, because she smelled like life and love and home. "I leave my fate in your hands. I thought you were dead. That's how Ali—"

"And just where is your family, Edward? Did they have a part in this?"

I shook my head. "No, this was my fault, so it was mine to correct."

"You can't correct it now, though. Can you?"

"Victoria's dead. Laurent is dead. Most of the immortals they even talked to are dead," I told her through gritted teeth. "Everyone died because I thought they killed you, Bella. And I still have no issue with their deaths, because they took your choice away, they took your humanity away. Every-damn-thing I left to prevent happened anyway."

She dove for me with a growl, and my instinct was to get away. I did, but just barely. She used a large tree as a springboard, and this time, I let her catch me.

We landed in a soft space covered in moss. She growled down at me, bracing her hands on my chest.

"Fight me."

"No."

"Do it!" she snarled low, slapping harshly at my chest.

"I won't. If you need to kill me, Bella, I'll accept that. If you need me to go, I'll accept that, too. Whatever you decide, I will honor it. But I won't fight you, and I really hope you allow me a chance to atone for the sin committed in this spot."

She growled, pushing off me and starting to pace, and I picked myself up off the ground.

"Guess you aren't as perfect as I thought," she muttered, shooting me a withering glare.

"I was never perfect, love." I shoved my hands into the front pockets of my jeans and stared at the forest floor. "I'll never be perfect. I left to keep you safe, and it all went to hell for both of us. You'll never know how sorry I am, but I won't apologize for removing those animals from this earth."

She tsked, waving that last thing away. "Laurent decided that he'd visit Forks to kill me, but the wolves chased him off. Victoria waited until the current took me and then pulled me out of the water. She bit me to end me, but my heartbeat…" She scoffed. "What she told you was the truth. She was going to kill me, but I changed instead." She met my gaze, her eyes still narrowed and angry. "They needed to die."

"What do you remember now?"

She snorted. "Bits and pieces. You. My dad. Jake and the pack. I have no memory of Pheonix. You said…" She trailed off. "I barely remember my mother or Forks High or what happened after this place." She gestured around at the woods.

Nodding, I frowned at that.

She looked my way again, the blackness fading back to the red. "I didn't remember you at first. Victoria knew my name. She told me this evil vampire was coming for us. That he was trying to kill us. She said your name was Edward. Nothing clicked. Not until I saw you, tackled you in our meadow. Even then, I didn't understand why I couldn't let her kill you."

"Because you're my mate," I stated softly.

A slow, sad smile curled her lips. "Did you know that before or after the conversation in these woods, Edward?"

Gritting my teeth and bracing for her temper, I said, "After. I wasn't… I couldn't admit it to myself before, sweetheart."

She narrowed those red eyes dangerously again. "And you can admit it now?" When I nodded, she rushed to me. "Is it becau—"

"It's because I thought you'd died, Bella!" I told her roughly. "That's how Alice saw the vision. And I was planning to follow you, but Victoria and everyone she ever knew needed to die first."

She glared at me. "You really hurt me, Edward Cullen."

"I know. You'll never understand how sorry I am."

"I loved you. I never stopped loving you, and you threw it away," she said, and her voice cracked a little.

Swallowing around the lump in my throat, I nodded. "I know that too. My hope is that you'll let me earn that love and trust back. No matter how long it takes."

"Well, we have the time now, right?"

Grinning at her wry, sarcastic tone, I nodded. "We do." However, I sobered up quickly. "I want to help you in this new life, but I understand if you'd rather… I can take you to my family."

"They left me too, Edward."

"That's on me, sweetheart."

She nodded and swallowed thickly, but her fingers went to her throat. However, I could hear Charlie's cruiser pulling into his driveway. His thoughts were heartbreaking and filled with more grief than a man should have to endure. He worked overnights more now because he could barely sleep. He blamed himself for Bella. He didn't think she'd kill herself, but she did.

I turned to Bella. "You need to hunt. We need to get you away from here."

That newborn temper flared a little again. "I would never hurt my dad!" However, she swallowed back venom and then sagged a little in defeat. "I haven't… I didn't… I wanted your diet. Victoria wouldn't let me. I told her I wanted animal blood, but she… She made me. I couldn't control it."

My heart sank a little, but I faced her fully, finally giving in to the urge to touch her. I gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze as I made sure to look her in the eye.

"I promise to help you, and I can't judge you for any of it, my sweet Bella." I gazed around the woods, realizing we'd come full circle, but I met her gaze again. "I broke us both here." I pointed to the ground. "It seems fitting that this is the place I vow to never do it again. Please, please give me the chance to earn your trust back."

I held out my hand, and there was a small slip of that shield again. I didn't catch much, merely flashes of her struggle, of her pain. But slowly, that hand slid into mine.

o—O—o

A/N… I'm going to leave this up to you guys as to whether you'd like to see this continue. DrivingEdward, JenRar, and maplestyle want to see more.

So would you like this story to continue? Please let me know. I could see it go a couple different ways. Or it could stay in this spot with an open, hopeful ending.

I won't mark it complete until I hear from you guys. And of course, I'm still working on Oz as we speak. So I'll see you guys no matter what you're reading.

Mooches, Deb ;)