Archie dropped me off at my house in the morning. Edythe would show up later, officially back from her hiking trip. All these pretenses were starting to wear on me.
Charlie came to the door to meet me, waving to Archie as Archie drove off.
"Have a good time?" he asked.
I shrugged. "Good enough, I guess."
I left my duffel bag at the foot of the stairs, then headed for the kitchen to find something eat.
"You've got a message," Charlie called after me as he headed for the living room.
I found the phone message pad propped up conspicuously again a saucepan.
Julie called, Charlie had written. She said she feels really bad about what she said and she wants you to call her. She sounded upset.
I sighed. Apparently Edythe had been right, though I hadn't expected her to be right this soon. However, I wasn't really in the mood to talk to her just now.
I realized I wasn't hungry anymore and I turned for the stairs.
"Aren't you going to call her?" Charlie asked, leaning around the living room wall as I grabbed up my duffel again.
"Maybe later. We'll just get into a fight again if I talk to her now."
"Sometimes it's better to take care of these things right away," he suggested.
Charlie wasn't normally so interfering, but as I'd already seen, he infinitely preferred Jules to Edythe, and didn't seem afraid to take sides.
Annoyed, I grumbled something too low for him to catch, then headed on upstairs.
I'd neglected a few of my usual household chores, and I knew the laundry was probably getting downright nasty. So after I put my things away and tossed my old clothes from the overnight stay in the hamper, I decided to do the sheets while I was at it. I went to my dad's room first and pulled them off the bed, dumping them in a pile at the top of the stairs before I turned into my room to get mine.
However, as I headed straight for the bed, I paused, frowning. My eyes scanned the room, and it took me a second to realize why I had such a weird feeling.
I normally kept my room pretty clean, especially for a teenage guy—the fact my girlfriend was coming over every night gave me some additional incentive—but I was pretty sure I'd left some things laying around when I'd last been here. A gray sweatshirt over the bedpost, a T-shirt crumpled up over the arm of the rocking chair. My eyes went to the bed, and I noticed my pillow was missing. I turned around, my gaze going to the hamper in the corner. Now that I thought about it, I was pretty sure it had been stuffed high to overflowing when I'd left it, but even with the clothes from yesterday I'd just added, it was half empty.
"Huh," I muttered. Maybe when Archie had dropped by to gather my stuff, he'd done a bit of cleaning while he was here, and maybe done a load of laundry. That would be out of character, but then, maybe he'd been hoping to get on my good side so I'd forgive him for keeping me in jail. That seemed a more likely explanation than Charlie had done it.
Shrugging to myself, I tore my sheets from my bed and, snatching up Charlie's on the way, headed for the laundry closet. I checked the washer, expecting to find a load in there, but it was empty. I checked the drier too, but there was nothing there either.
Weird. I wondered if I was going crazy. But with everything in my life, maybe it was a wonder it hadn't happened sooner.
I dumped the sheets in the wash, and got the cycle started.
Still preoccupied, I turned to head back to my room to search out my missing stuff, but then the doorbell rang. That would be Edythe.
"Door," Charlie called as I flew by the living room, weird shirt-pillow mystery already forgotten.
I pulled open the door. "Hey, Edythe," I said brightly. "Come—"
I broke off as I took in the expression on her face. Her eyes were narrowed to slits, nostrils flared, lips pulled back from her teeth in a silent snarl.
Before I could say anything, Edythe looked up at me and she reached out and touched my hand.
"Give me two seconds," she breathed. "Don't move." Then, right in front of my eyes, she disappeared.
I felt the cool breath of wind on my side as she whipped past me, back into the house, moving so fast Charlie wouldn't have had a hope to see her even if his eyes hadn't been safely glued to the TV.
Before I could even begin to think about what could be going on, Edythe was back. She gripped my hand tightly, pulling me into the house, heading swiftly for the kitchen. I glanced toward my dad, but he seemed to be studiously ignoring us.
Edythe's eyes darted around the room, turning her head to look all around us as we went, as though expecting some enemy to suddenly jump out from the walls. She pulled me to the very back of the kitchen and said in my ear, so low I could barely make it out over the thumping of the washing machine, "Someone's been in here."
I stared back at her blankly. "Someone?" I muttered, trying to make my voice as low as Edythe's. "What do you mean?"
Edythe's face was paler than usual in the dull kitchen light, almost white, and I could feel the tension in her hand as she gripped mine.
"One of our kind," she whispered.
I stared back at her, and I felt the blood drain from my face. I felt my mouth form the name. "Victor."
However, Edythe shook her head. "No. Not him. It wasn't a scent I recognized."
"One of the Volturi, then," I whispered.
She nodded, though she didn't look entirely certain. "I think it must be." She glanced back toward the living room. "Judging from the freshness of the scent, this was early in the morning, when Charlie would have still been asleep. Whoever it was left him untouched—meaning it was someone with self-control, with some definite purpose in mind. I think the Volturi would have to be the most likely candidates."
I pressed a fist to my mouth, feeling suddenly, violently sick. My dad—my dad, sleeping here in this house, and a vampire looking for me had been a room away. I could have come home this morning to find him—
I felt Edythe's arm around me. I realized I was shaking. And even now, we were still far from safe.
"Let's go," Edythe said in my ear. "Now."
My gaze flickered to her, my eyes wide, my mouth open in horror. "Charlie—" I managed in a strangled whispered. "We can't just—"
Edythe hesitated, then in a moment her phone was in her hand.
"Eleanor," she said in a low voice. She spoke so low and so rapidly I couldn't make out anything else she said. Then she shut the phone with a snap and looked up at me.
"Eleanor and Jessamine are on their way," she said in an undertone. "They'll sweep the woods. Charlie will be safe."
Without waiting for my response, she gripped me by the wrist and towed me in the direction of the door.
"You're awfully quiet in there," Charlie called from the living room, sounding surly. "What's all the whispering about?"
"Charlie," Edythe said, her voice flawlessly polite as always, without a hint of tension, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to take Beau out for a bit. Don't worry, he'll be back at a reasonable time."
Charlie turned his head to eye us suspiciously. "Where—" he began, but stopped as he caught a glimpse of the panicked look in my eyes. Before he could say any more, Edythe had us through the hall and out the door.
Fear seemed to have paralyzed my vocal cords, and we'd been driving in Edythe's car for a full minute before I could speak.
"Where are we going?" I realized I was still talking in a low voice, though there was no one to hear us.
"Archie," she answered.
"You think he might have seen something?"
Edythe stared straight ahead as the car sped way too fast along the road. Her eyes were hard. "I don't know."
The Cullens, all but Jessamine and Eleanor, were already there when we arrived, waiting for us. No one moved as we entered, all silent and still as statues.
To my shock, Edythe abruptly spun on Archie.
"What happened?" she snarled.
Archie stood his ground, arms folded across his chest. "I have no idea," he said coolly. "I didn't see anything."
"How?" Edythe hissed. Her back was bent, her lips curled back from her teeth—she looked like an enraged tiger. "How did you miss that?"
"It's not an exact science, Edythe," Carine said quietly, trying to intervene.
Edythe ignored her. "That vampire was in his room," she spat. "They could have still been in there—waiting for him."
"I would have seen that."
Edythe's eyes were dark with fury. "And you can be sure of that, can you?" she whispered, voice low and accusing.
Archie stared back at Edythe, and when he answered his voice was flat. "You've already got me watching Sulpicia's decisions, watching for Victor's return, watching Beau every minute of the day—You want me to add something else? Charlie, maybe? Beau's room, the house, or maybe just the whole freaking street while I'm at it? Edythe, if I'm watching for too much at once, things are going to start slipping through the cracks."
"Well, clearly they already are," Edythe answered viciously.
"If he was in danger, I would have seen it," Archie insisted. "And if this was Sulpicia's doing, I would have seen that, too."
"If it wasn't Sulpicia, then who was it?" she demanded. "Who would have left Charlie alive?"
Archie hesitated. "I don't know."
Edythe gave a kind of contemptuous half laugh. Her eyes were blazing. Almost wild.
I put a hand on her shoulder. "Edythe," I said quietly.
Edythe turned, glaring with such ferocity I had to fight to keep from taking an automatic step back. Her face was livid, and her clenched fists shook slightly at her sides.
Then, slowly, she relaxed. The fire faded from her eyes and she took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled. Her gaze dropped.
"I'm...I'm sorry," she said. She hesitantly raised her eyes back to Archie. "Forgive me. I shouldn't be taking this out on you. After everything you've done—that was disingenuous."
Archie managed to flash a tight smile. "You're forgiven. I've always been a believer in giving more slack to crazy people."
Edythe almost smiled, though not quite. She nodded, taking a deep breath. "Okay then. Then...let's try to look at it logically."
As Edythe relaxed, so did everyone else. Archie, though his expression was back to serious now, leaned casually against the back of the couch, while Earnest took a seat nearby, and a moment later Carine went to stand near the couch just beside him. Only Royal didn't move, standing with his back to us, gazing out the glass wall. It occurred to me that it seemed strange that Jessamine would be the one to go out scouting for the intruder while Royal stayed behind. He was bigger, surely stronger—but it seemed like Edythe had specifically requested Jessamine for some reason.
Edythe pulled me over to the couch and made sure I was sitting down. She held one of my hands gently between hers.
"You're certain this wasn't Victor," Carine said quietly.
Edythe nodded. "I didn't know the scent. It had to be someone else. I'd say it had to be a member of the Volturi, except—" She glanced at Archie.
"I would have seen that," Archie said. "Sulpicia hasn't ordered anyone to do anything, at least where Beau's concerned. There's no reason the Volturi would be here to check up on Beau except to find out if he's still human, and Sulpicia gave you until at least after graduation. It wouldn't make sense for her to be sending probes out now."
Edythe considered. "Maybe someone other than Sulpicia gave the order. Jonathan, for instance—he was more than a little annoyed to find his power didn't work on Beau. Maybe he preferred to see him gone rather than a vampire who he thinks might end up working for Sulpicia alongside him."
Archie nodded. "I'd believe that, except whoever this was had no intention to hurt Beau, or Charlie—not even to wait for him. I'd have seen it otherwise."
"Archie's right," Earnest put in. "Whoever this intruder was, they clearly meant no harm."
"No harm for now," Edythe said scathingly.
I noticed Royal had unfrozen, and had turned toward the door. Edythe sighed, looking discouraged.
A moment later Eleanor emerged through the kitchen door, Jessamine not far behind her.
"Long gone," Eleanor announced. She was frowning with obvious disappointment. "Hours ago. The trail went East, then South, then disappeared on a side road. Apparently our little visitor had a car waiting."
"Unfortunate," Edythe murmured. "If only they had gone west...those dogs could have finally made themselves useful."
Jessamine looked to Carine. "I didn't recognize the scent, and neither did Eleanor. But perhaps you..." She held out something crumpled and green, and I realized it was a broken fern frond.
Carine took the plant and held it to her face for a moment, brow slightly creased. Then she sighed and let it drop.
"No," she said quietly. "I don't know this scent either. It's certainly no one I've ever met."
"Perhaps this is not an enemy," Earnest suggested. "Perhaps he or she was a stranger passing through, and was simply curious of the fact that all our scents surround that room. Our coven is very large—our visitor may have been afraid to approach us directly."
I swallowed. Another vampire—maybe not even connected to either Victor or the Volturi. It was strange to think that there could be so many vampires in the world. I wondered just how many human deaths, reported as crimes and accidents, were actually the result of vampire activity. More than I could have guessed, I imagined. And when I became one myself, I would increase the vampire population even further.
The Cullens considered the theory. However, both Edythe and Archie looked skeptical.
"I think whoever did this had to know exactly what they were doing," Archie said, shaking his head. "The timing was absolutely perfect. They were careful not to go anywhere near Beau, almost like they knew what I was watching for."
"A distant, mind-reading power?" Carine murmured, almost to herself. "Or a power that allows him or her to hide from the sight of powers such as Archie's?"
"Carine's right," Edythe said. "We can't forget that this visitor could have abilities of their own. And we also have no idea what this intruder's future intentions might be."
She looked around at all of them. "Until we know...nothing is safe. Someone will have to stay with Beau at all times."
"I have a suggestion," I put in.
Everyone turned to look at me.
I took a breath. "Right now I'm a liability. Not only does someone have to protect me, but apparently I'm also drawing them to Charlie. So...maybe we shouldn't wait until graduation. Maybe we should do it now."
There was no question what I was talking about.
"No," Edythe said quickly. She stroked my hand reassuringly, and went on, "It will be more safe now, Beau. We will be more vigilant. You and Charlie will be absolutely safe."
"It would hurt Charlie very much for you to disappear suddenly now," Carine said quietly.
"I know," I said. "But—if something were to happen to him, and because of me—"
"Nothing will happen to him," Edythe said, and she reached up to gently stroke my hair.
I opened my mouth to argue further. However, to my surprise, it was Jessamine who spoke next.
She looked right at me, with her cool, expressionless eyes, and said evenly, "For you to become a newborn now, much of our energy would necessarily go to keeping you under control. You would be a distraction, a far greater liability, when we need all our focus to be on discovering who this intruder is, and whether they pose a threat. It would not be wise to change you now."
I wanted to keep going. But I didn't have any answer to that argument, so, as the conversation returned to discussing the possibilities and what action to take next, I let Edythe continue to stroke my hand, and I didn't say any more.
It was a quiet ride home. I still felt like keeping me human was the wrong decision, but what Jessamine had said also kept going through my head. Keeping you under control. When I changed, I would be an out of control monster, and I couldn't stop the chill that went down my spine at the thought.
I guess Edythe misinterpreted my silence as anxiety over the intruder, because she said, "You and Charlie will be safe. You won't be alone for a second. When I leave this evening, there will be someone out there all the time until I get back tonight."
I grimaced. "They're all going to hate this, aren't they? Bodyguard duty. They'll go crazy with boredom."
"You're one of the family," Edythe said, reaching over to put her hand over mine. "They would do anything to keep you safe."
When we got back, Charlie gave us an odd look as we came in. "Where did you two go?" he asked, suspicious.
"Do you want an itinerary next time?" I asked sourly. Maybe it wasn't fair for me to take out my bad mood on Charlie, but I was doing it anyway.
As Edythe removed her coat and hung it on the stand, she said, "I took him down to the clinic to get a physical. Carine gave me an article on preventive health care recently, and it made me realize how important it is to try to catch things early. I was afraid if we didn't get it done today, he would try to put it off indefinitely."
"Huh," Charlie grunted. He admitted unwillingly, "That was a good idea." He eyed me over his shoulder, evidently reinterpreting the look of horror he had seen on my face as we left.
"Yeah," I said. I added with a touch of vindictiveness, "Maybe you should get a physical next, Dad."
Charlie quickly turned back to the TV. "No point at my age. If I have to go prematurely, no one will miss me. You, on the other hand, have a responsibility to take care of yourself."
"Nice, Dad."
As I headed to the kitchen to start on dinner, he called after me, "Oh, by the way, Julie called again. She wants you to call her. She sounded pretty low."
"Maybe later."
Charlie grumbled something incoherent.
While I went to work on dinner, Edythe excused herself briefly, heading up in the direction of the bathroom, though I knew she'd probably slip out the window somewhere to do some surveillance.
In the meantime, as I stuck some leftovers in the oven to heat, I found my thoughts wandering back to Jules. After the close call today, it seemed to shift things into greater perspective. Jules was my friend now, even if she would hate my guts when I became a vampire. If I cared at all, I couldn't just leave her feeling guilty, even if what she had said was how she really felt. If something happened and I died tomorrow, I didn't want to do that to her.
I decided to wait until morning, when Charlie was gone on his usual Sunday fishing trip. It would be hard to have a real conversation while keeping from letting slip something that might leave him a bit freaked out—something about werewolves or vampires, for instance. A few more hours of guilt wouldn't kill her, and I figured I should be safe for one more night.
I sighed to myself. It was times like these that I envied Jules's relationship with Bonnie. Keeping so many secrets got wearing.
When Edythe finally left for the evening, I had to wonder who it was out there, sitting in the downpour. I felt bad for them, but I was also glad to have someone there. It made me feel better, knowing Charlie and I weren't on our own.
I laid on my bed, gazing out the window, listening to the sound of the rain pounding against the roof as I waited for Edythe to return. It wasn't until she did and came to sit beside me on the bed, stroking my forehead, that I finally drifted off to sleep.
As expected, Charlie left to go fishing in the morning before I was even up, and I decided it was time to make the phone call.
"I'm going to call Jules," I said casually over breakfast, as Edythe sat in a chair nearby and watched me eat. I watched her carefully out of the corner of my eye, looking for signs of tension, but Edythe only smiled.
"I think you'll feel better when you have. You're not very good at hurting people for their own good."
I raised an eyebrow. "Is that a compliment or an insult?"
Edythe ran a finger gently along my arm, tracing a line from the inside of my elbow to the tip of my fingers and back. "A compliment, definitely."
After I finished eating, I dumped my dishes in the sink and went straight for the phone. I didn't look at the clock until after I'd dialed, and it occurred to me this might be a bit early for calls. I hoped I didn't end up waking them.
However, someone picked up on the second ring.
"Hello?" said a dull voice.
"Jules?"
"Beau!" she gasped. She was suddenly talking so fast I almost had trouble keeping up. "I'm sorry—really sorry, that was the stupidest thing to say, I didn't mean it. I was angry, but—I shouldn't have said something like that, ever. It's not true. I don't know what I was thinking, but I swear, I'll do whatever it takes to make it up to you. Tell me what you want me to do, and I'll do it. I'm so sorry, I'm such a—"
I had a feeling she would keep going like this for a while if I didn't stop her, and I cut in, "It's okay. I get it, Jules, honestly. Let's just forget it ever happened. I have a good selective memory."
"Thanks," she breathed fervently. "I'm sorry, I was such a jerk."
I chuckled a little. "Well, I'm used to that by now, so don't worry about it."
Jules laughed, suddenly energized with relief. "You know, you should come down," she said suddenly. "Let me make it up to you. I'll come pick you up right now. We can do anything you want—how about cliff diving?"
I snorted. "Now, there's a good idea."
"We won't go in the middle of a storm," she promised. "And I'll be there the whole time to jump in and save you if you almost drown."
I glanced at Edythe. Her face was calm, but I didn't have to ask to know now wasn't exactly the most appropriate time.
"Actually, Jules," I began. "There's kind of something else going on right now."
Jules immediately picked up on the tension in my voice and she said, urgently, "What is it? What's wrong?"
"Um," I began. It had suddenly occurred to me belatedly that maybe it wasn't such a good idea to tell her all the details.
I looked at Edythe again for guidance. To my surprise, she wordlessly held her hand out for the phone. I searched her face, looking for some sign of disgust-with-werewolves in her expression, but she seemed perfectly calm.
"Beau?" Jules said, sounding alarmed.
"Uh, yeah, I'm here," I said, snapping back earth. "Just—Edythe wants to talk to you. Is it okay if I put her on?"
Silence on the other end for a long minute. At last Jules said cautiously, "...Okay. This should be interesting."
I handed the phone over slowly, not taking my eyes from Edythe and praying she wouldn't say anything to set Jules off.
"Hello, Julie," said Edythe, and the politeness in her voice didn't sound forced.
I couldn't hear how Jules responded. I hoped nothing too insulting.
"Someone was here yesterday morning," Edythe explained. "Not a scent that any of us know. Has your pack come across anything recently?"
Jules answered something and Edythe nodded, unsurprised. Jules said something else and Edythe paused.
"Yes, Beau and I have talked about that since, and I am perfectly okay with that, but you can understand if, while we still have an unquantifiable danger on our hands, I mean to keep him close. I'd like to be able to keep watch myself as much as possible..."
Jules seemed to make some suggestion, and her voice rose with excited intensity, though she didn't sound angry.
"You might be right—" Edythe began, but Jules kept talking and Edythe fell silent.
At last she said, "Yes...I think I agree with you. We would be quite willing to renegotiate, so long as Samantha is amenable." After a pause, she added, "Thank you."
Jules said something else, and surprise flitted across Edythe's face. I wished I could make it out.
"Yes," she said slowly. "I was going to go, and let him stay with the others briefly."
I heard Jules's voice rise in pitch slightly, persuasively.
"I'll consider it," Edythes said at last. "Perhaps."
I heard the murmur of Jules's voice as she added something else.
"Would you?" Edythe asked. "Yes, that's a good idea. I would appreciate that, as soon as possible. And I'd like the chance to follow the trail myself...All right, ten minutes then."
A pause, then she said, "All right." She offered the phone back to me and I took it, frowning. I put the receiver to my ear.
"That sounded like a surprisingly civil conversation," I noted, my eyes still on Edythe. "Even if I heard only half of it."
"I think we just made a truce," said Jules, and she sounded in an oddly good mood considering who she had just spoken to. "Do something for me, would you, Beau? Try to convince your little bloodsucker the safest place for you would be here on the reservation. Especially those times when she's not around."
I hesitated, looking to Edythe.
"It's a good idea," Jules continued. "Then we could get Charlie down here, too. Two birds with one stone."
I realized that actually did sound like a good idea. "Okay," I said. "Get Bonnie on it, and I'll do what I can."
"Don't worry," Jules said. "We're going to rearrange some boundaries so we'll catch anyone who gets too near Forks. I'm not sure if Sam will go for it, but at least I'll make sure to keep an eye on things until she comes around."
"Keep an eye on things?" I repeated, frowning.
I could almost see Jules grin. "Don't freak out if you see a giant wolf lurking out in the woods behind your house."
I sighed. I didn't like the idea of Jules being out on her own, away from the pack, but I also doubted there would be anything I could say to deter her.
"I also told her to let you visit once in a while. I'm telling you, it's nothing to do with your safety—you'd be perfectly safe here and she knows it. It's just plain old ordinary prejudice, so don't let her push you around."
I sighed. "She's being nice to you, you know. You could try being nice, too."
Jules laughed. "This is nice for me." She added, "Okay, I'm going. I'll see you in a few."
I blinked, startled. "You're coming here? Now?"
"Sure. I'm going to get the scent so we'll know your visitor if he comes back for a round two."
"Okay..." I said uncertainly. "Just—"
"Yeah?" she asked.
"Be careful, Jules."
She laughed, and hung up.