Disclaimer: I DON'T own Twilight! It's all Stephenie Meyer's thing.

(I must take this time to appologize to all of you guys for taking so long to update. This chapter has been half done for the longest time and I'm just now getting it out to you. Hopefully the next one will be out much, MUCH quicker now that the ball is rolling again...)

Nessie

I was holding his hand in my own. His warmth was a comfort though my heart refused to be calm. Jacob was watching the screen in front of him and I was glad he was so distracted by the movie, though I'm not sure how involved in that he actually was. I unbuckled my seatbelt and curled my legs underneath myself in the spacious first class seat. I took hold of his strong upper arm and clutched onto him in the way that had become second nature. My head rested on his shoulder, as I looked at the little glowing screen.

"It'll be okay," Jacob's rich voice rumbled softly.

I tried to believe him. I fought to convince myself that it was only a precaution that we had to leave the country. I was getting tired of always living with danger hanging over us. My family constantly vigilant and the pack with a shadow over their heads. I felt somehow responsible. Since I've been born, I've put those I love in danger.

"Hey…"

I felt his fingers brush a trace of wetness from my cheek. Wonderful. I reached up to swipe tears from my lashes. He turned in his seat to shield us from the rest of the plane's inhabitants. All I could see were his dark eyes when his larger form loomed over mine. His voice was soft and as quiet as he could make it. Of course, I heard every word with perfect clarity.

"Talk to me. I'm not a mind reader like some people." He smiled to try to make me calm. I must admit, he has a natural charm that I've always been aware of. Even before my birth, though his emotions were wild and filled with terrible angst over Bella, his energy could calm me just by being near it.

"I know." I managed to smile a little for his benefit. "It's hard to explain. My dad knows how I feel but only because there's no other option. It's hard to put into words,"

"I won't let anything happen to you."

"I know." Sometimes with Jacob it was just easier to agree. "Can we just be quiet for now? I promise we can talk about things once we get there." I could feel his fingers beginning to trace the circles on my back that would inevitably cause me to pass out. I took that as a yes and leaned against him as he went back to his movie. I allowed his heat and the hand rubbing my back to work it's magic. It gave me the momentary peace needed to reflect back on that evening and replay the events locked in my mind.

**********

Five and a half hours earlier….

"Night, granddad," I said as I leaned in to kiss Charlie's cheek. He seemed a little flustered by it, but I could tell he didn't altogether mind my sweetness. He rubbed the back of his head and looked around at the rest of us, suddenly appearing exasperated.

"Come on, Bells. I said not to fuss over me. You're a guest this time around," he said in the direction of my mother who was hauling a second load of laundry down the stairs in the direction of the laundry room. Well, she wasn't exactly hauling it since it weighed absolutely nothing to her. She was actually balancing two full, stacked baskets. She stopped and looked at him, smiling.

"Well, you are so behind and I really don't mind," she said as she disappeared into the back room, her voice trailing off. Then the said a little louder to be sure he heard, "Just go to bed, dad."

"It's best just to humor her," Edward said, then turned to a whisper for only us. "It's how I keep a peaceful home."

"I heard that." My mother's trilling voice sounded clearly from the laundry room.

Jacob smirked and looked up from the TV enough to shrug at Charlie. We all laughed a bit in peaceful contentment, except for Charlie. I knew he was still unsettled by what we were, though he didn't really know for certain. We kept it that way. To him, Jacob was the only one of us technically out of the paranormal closet, but it was only because Charlie didn't want to know the truth. It wasn't exactly denial, but self preservation. If the Volturi knew that he knew about us, he would be a prime target for attack. They could use it to threaten him, as they did my mother all those years ago.

He started for the stairs up to the bedrooms. "Okay, then." I waved at him as he disappeared up the stairs. I knew it wasn't easy for him to go to bed when his household was still wide awake - and would remain that way all night long. We would just need to be quiet as corpses, and by that I mean the actual dead kind. I settled back against Jacob and his arm curled around me instinctively. I inhaled his wild scent and for the first time in days, began to feel somewhat sleepy. Pure contentment could do that. I yawned and felt Jake tighten his hold on me as he kissed my head. I smiled and felt his fingers stroke through my hair, which only made me feel more like a puddle.

"What?" I heard his voice as I felt it vibrate through his chest. My eyes opened and I looked up at him, questioning, but he was looking elsewhere. I turned my head in the direction of his gaze to see both of my parents looking down as us. They weren't blinking and had the appearance of living statues. The expression in their eyes was pretty grave. I knew at that moment that my sense of peace was an illusion and I felt the need to throw something. However, we were at Charlie's house.

Quiet as corpses.

"What are you doing?," I asked, forgetting to keep my voice down. There was no small amount of dread forming a ball in the pit of my stomach.

"Keep your voice down," Bella practically hissed, but her voice was barely audible. I sat up straight as she looked at both myself and Jacob with a frightful glare before she walked toward the front door. I turned to look at Edward but he had already left the room, and Jacob was at the screen door before I realized he was no longer beside me. What was going on?!

I was quick to follow Jake as we met up with Bella outside. She was moving quickly away from the house to the woods surrounding it. We easily kept up with her as we moved along an old path that had grown over some with time. She suddenly stopped and spun around in a single motion, putting out her hands to catch us in case we slammed into her. She paused and looked down at the path and around the woods for a moment before staring at us with those serious eyes that I found I was liking less and less.

"Damn it, Bella. Explain." Jacob was glaring right back at her, but my well trained eyes could see the glimmer of fear in those dark depths. I was certain that look matched my own.

She paused for a few seconds before we heard her silvery voice break the silence.

"I remember this place. It had significance for me once," she said, half to herself. I really wasn't liking the way things were going and reached out to take hold of Jacob's hand. He gripped it tighter than usual.

"Good significance or bad significance?" Jacob just had to ask.

"You should know," she said softly. It took Jacob a few seconds, but he seemed to remember something from their past and nodded. That was the thing with Jacob and my parents. They had a history that I wasn't a part of. Accepting these things was part of being me while avoiding drama.

"Well, if you're keeping with tradition, I'm guessing this isn't going to go well," he said wryly. I sighed.

"Why ruin another spot?," she said softly.

"Will somebody please just tell me what's going on?!" My voice rose above a whisper and Bella softly growled, her sharp mind moving out of the fog of her past to snap back to the present.

"Some of the Volturi guard are going to Oakwood to investigate the attack on the pack," she said quickly. The tiny ball of dread in my stomach suddenly exploded into an inferno of fear that stole my heart.

"What?! But…but they sent the attackers! Caius did!," I said, trying hard to keep my voice low.

"Yes. Yes, baby, we know," she said, her harsh demeanor softening some.

"This is messed up, Bella," Jacob snapped, taking hold of me as his protective nature kicked into full gear. I let myself be pulled against him, as I always have. We were two halves and at that moment, I needed him.

"Well, that is why you two are getting out of here. Tonight."

"Mom!" I began to protest, but she shot me the look that meant any protest was useless. Not even Jacob made any attempt to counter her. She looked directly at him then and I suddenly felt like the ten year old I actually was, with the adults in my life deciding my fate for me.

"You need to take her away from here," she said to him. There was urgency in her cool voice. She handed him an envelope and then pressed his hands to it, forcing him to hold onto it. "Do not open this until you get to the airport. Edward can't find out where you're going."

"Only your mother knows," I heard Edward velvety voice and turned to see him come up behind us. He had my messenger bag and a bigger bag that he handed to Jacob, who took it without asking questions. Jacob never did anything without questions.

I could feel hot tears form in my eyes. I was suddenly scared. Wanting so much to be brave, a part of me rebelled against that, having had to be brave all my life. I was suddenly tired of having to put up a front, trying to be a fearless Cullen. I took my bag from my father and wrapped my arms around him. His cold, hard embrace was comforting and I didn't want to leave it, though I knew he would force me to go as much as I might protest.

"What about you?," I sniffed. "What about the pack?"

"Yeah. What about my pack?" I heard Jake's voice and it sounded angry.

"They will remain here with Sam's pack," Edward said, over my head. I broke away from my father a little to look at Jacob as realization hit.

"So, Leah'll be in charge." I said as I saw Jacob look like he wanted to punch something or someone. He was glaring fiercely at Edward since I guessed he was the one he loved the least. The two were having a rock hard stare off.

"Jacob?!" I tried to get his attention.

"Yes?"

"What about Sam and Leah?" I could see him sigh before he forced himself to break eye contact with Edward to look at me.

"It's time that she deals with Sam," was all that he said about that situation. "If our pack is safer here with Sam's guys, I want them here for now." He reached out to take my messenger bag, but I held tightly to it. He relented and sighed. "Come on. The faster I can get you out of here, the better."

"But…but the pack! What if the guard comes here to La Push?!," I demanded. They were my best friends! Leah was a sister, the guys were brothers. They were my family and I was one of their pack. They were my business as much as Jacob's and I was afraid for their safety.

"Sam will be notified," Bella said to us. "Both packs are in the same place now, and -"

" -strength in numbers," Jake finished.

"Exactly," Edward said. "We're heading back to Oakwood to help our family."

Jacob smirked a little then. It was good to see him lighten up again, if only for a moment. "Neuter 'em, Bella."

"That's the plan," she said in response. Her shield power was the most valuable defense we had. The Volturi were more or less powerless against it. However, as optimistic as our chances seemed, she couldn't bring herself to smile. She just stared at me before I suddenly felt her cold, hard arms holding me, hugging me tight. I fought to hold back tears as I hugged her back. She quickly went to hug Jake as she told him again to keep us safe.

It was then that we could hear a cab pull up to Charlie's house, running idle as it waited for us. We were quick to make our way down the path to the road. I hated to go, but knew it was necessary. The driver was already loading my bags in the trunk as Jacob held the door for me. I found myself getting into the car as time seemed to creep to a stall. He followed me into the back seat and I just registered the door shutting as we pulled away. I watched my parents get farther away as we drove down the road. Eventually disappearing as wraiths in the night.

**********

Jacob was shutting off the screen he'd been watched when I came out of the memory. The plane softly hummed as the cabin air blew on us from above. The lights were still dim and it would be several hours before we'd land in South America.

"Try to get some sleep, Ness," he suggested, somehow knowing I still hadn't fallen asleep. I yawned. It had been days since I'd slept in his room at the cabin. I stretched and he tipped his chair back as I did the same, resting against him. I worried about Leah though I knew she could hold her own. To that, I actually held a tiny bit of concern for Sam. I felt Jake's hands begin the circles on my back and I made a tiny sound in a feeble act of protest. He would not be swayed, and the fight soon left me.

The surrender was sweet.