They joined us warily, the leader fell back allowing his comrade to move ahead in a mock display of submission. They walked in a feral, frightened manner that was familiar to me, though it had been a very long time since I'd been that wild and suspicious myself.

When they had drawn quite near they straightened into a relaxed posture mimicking our family, but I could tell they were still very suspicious. We had them greatly outnumbered. I felt Jasper slowly fill the atmosphere with calm.

"We thought we heard a game," the false leader announced. "I am Laurent. These are Victoria and James."

Carlisle introduced us casually. Laurent asked permission for their coven to join our game. Carlisle made an excuse, probably hoping that he could get them to leave before they caught Bella's scent. But Laurent progressed into a casual conversation about hunting ranges and residences.

I saw we were running out of time. We needed to hurry and get them out of here before the wind changed. Carlisle invited the three to visit our house and instructed Emmett and I to go with Edward and Bella to the Jeep.

But it was too late.

The wind changed before we had a chance to get Bella out of there.

The real leader, James, caught her scent.

Edward, don't let them know!

James snarled and lurched into a hunting crouch. Edward crouched and snarled back a fraction of a second later than he normally would have, disguising his mind-reading ability.

"What's this?" Laurent asked, he hadn't caught Bella's scent yet.

James feinted to the side and Edward responded a moment after he moved, just as he would have if he couldn't anticipate his moves.

Another tense minute passed with Carlisle trying to convince the newcomers that Bella was not a snack for the game, and with Edward glaring balefully at them and snarling ferociously whenever they moved her direction.

As they were talking I saw that the real leader, James, was making a decision. He wanted to hunt Bella regardless of what was said at this falsely cordial meeting. Laurent agreed to meet at the house. But James would not be joining him.

We split up. I ran to Bella's side in a flash and Emmett fell back slowly, watching James the whole while. The three of us walked with a very stunned Bella to the forest edge. There, Edward slung her over his back and we sprinted to the Jeep.

I hopped into the front seat while Edward instructed Emmett to buckle Bella into the back. Edward whipped the Jeep around and then we were racing down the dirt road as fast as we could without giving Bella whiplash. I glared out the window, watching for James. He was on his way. He would track our scent to the Jeep, and then follow us. But he wouldn't attack yet.

And there he was, following our path just out of sight in the trees.

I vaguely heard Edward spewing out a stream of profanity next to me.

We hit the main road and Edward floored it.

"Where are we going?" Bella asked.

I couldn't think of how to answer her, not with the hunter within hearing distance. And it wasn't like we could tell her he was there. That would just let him in on the fact that we were talented.

"Damn it, Edward, where are you taking me?" she demanded.

"We have to get you away from here - far away - now." he answered.

We continued speeding up. James was starting to fall behind, but he was still following, and he could still hear us.

"Turn around! You have to take me home!" Bella shouted and fumbled with her harness. What was she going to do? Jump out of the speeding Jeep? Edward had Emmett restrain her.

Bella and Edward started arguing about her dad calling the FBI on us. But I wasn't listening to them anymore. I watched the future. If we kept driving, as we were now, James would keep following us, waiting to see where we stopped. But if we pulled over and had just the right conversation, pretending we didn't know he could hear us, he would go away to coordinate with the female, Victoria.

"Edward, pull over."

He gave me a look that clearly said no. Then he sped up. James was probably just out of hearing range now, but still following us.

"Edward, let's just talk this through." There was a third option. Besides running away indefinitely or killing James, there was something else we could do...

"You don't understand," he roared. "He's a tracker, Alice. Did you see that? He's a tracker!"

Emmett looked up, surprised.

"Pull over, Edward." Trust me. I know what I'm doing.

He sped up more. The tracker was farther behind us now, he definitely couldn't hear us anymore.

"Do it, Edward."

"Listen to me, Alice. I saw his mind. Tracking is his passion, his obsession - and he wants her, Alice - her specifically. He begins the hunt tonight."

"He doesn't know where-"

"How long do you think it will take for him to cross her scent in town?" he interrupted me. "His plan was already set before the words were out of Laurent's mouth."

I showed him the visions that were spinning through my head. How the hunter would use Charlie to try to lure us out. Kill him even, if it was necessary.

Bella gasped and I thought for an alarming second that she'd somehow seen my vision too.

"Charlie! You can't leave him there! You can't leave him!" She thrashed uselessly against Emmett's iron grasp.

"She's right," I said, focusing on a ghastly vision of Charlie's body, cold and bloodless, lying on their living room sofa.

Edward hesitated, then started to slow down. He was still debating in his mind whether or not to stop. The hunter started to catch up with us.

"Let's just look at our options for a minute," I coaxed. There was one option, in particular, that seemed to make perfect sense all around.

He slowed a little more, then he slammed on the breaks and the car squealed to a halt on the side of the road.

"There are no options!" Edward hissed at me, reading where my thoughts were headed.

"I'm not leaving Charlie!" Bella yelled. Edward ignored her.

"We have to take her back," Emmett agreed.

"No," Edward was still resolute.

"He's no match for us, Edward. He won't be able to touch her," Emmett argued.

"He'll wait," Edward warned.

"I can wait, too." Emmett grinned.

"You didn't see - you don't understand. Once he commits to a hunt he's unshakeable. We'd have to kill him."

As Edward was speaking I was watching James approach us, coming just close enough that he could eavesdrop on our conversation. But staying far enough out that, if we were normal vampires, we wouldn't know he was there.

By the time Edward said "we'd have to kill him" I knew for certain that James could hear us. The regret in Edward's statement was clearly a lie. I was sure that Edward longed to kill him even more than I did. But he wanted James to think that we would avoid that end at all costs, to make him overconfident, less wary of us.

"That's an option." Emmett shrugged.

"And the female," Edward argued, keeping up the "running scared" facade. "She's with him. If it turns into a fight the leader-" meaning Laurent, we couldn't let James know that we knew he was the real leader. "-will go with them, too."

"There are enough of us," Emmett countered, unperturbed.

"There's another option," I offered quietly. He had to see how it made sense! And, in the long run, it was the only way things could be right. The only way our family could stay together. The only way he and Bella could be happy.

Edward glared at me fiercely, "There - is - no - other - option!" he snarled.

I stared at him passively, part of my mind was watching as James gave up listening to us and went to coordinate with the female. He'd be pretty pissed when he found out Laurent had ditched him.

It just makes sense, Edward.

His glare intensified.

And... It's what Bella wants.

His features froze while I showed him the visions. Bella asking hundreds of times, coaxing, begging, manipulating, bargaining, pleading to become a vampire so they could stay together forever.

She wants to be a part of our family, I insisted.

"Does anyone want to hear my plan?" Bella asked.

"No," Edward growled, without even giving her a chance.

I glared at him. She has a good idea, Edward. Try to be a gentleman?

"Listen. You take me back-"

"No," Edward interrupted again.

She just scowled and continued.

"You take me back. I tell my dad I want to go home to Phoenix. I pack my bags. We wait till this tracker is watching, and then we run. He'll follow us and leave Charlie alone. Charlie won't call the FBI on your family. Then you can take me any damned place you want."

"It's not a bad idea, really," Emmett conceded.

"It might work," I told Edward. "And we simply can't leave her father unprotected. You know that." The vision of Charlie's corpse flashed through my mind.

"It's too dangerous," Edward argued. "I don't want him within a hundred miles of her."

"Edward, he's not getting through us," Emmett coaxed. I didn't need to be able to read his mind to know he was hoping James would try to get through.

I focused for a moment. "I don't see him attacking. He'll try to wait for us to leave her alone."

"It won't take him long to realize that's not going to happen," Edward growled between his teeth.

"I demand that you take me home," Bella's lower lip jutted out and she looked like a three year old refusing to eat her brussels sprouts.

But Edward was wavering.

"Please?" she begged softly, and he finally decided to agree.

"You're leaving tonight, whether the tracker sees or not. You tell Charlie you can't stand another minute in Forks. Tell him whatever story works. Pack the first things your hands touch, then get in your truck. I don't care what he says to you. You have fifteen minutes. Do you hear me? Fifteen minutes from the time you cross the doorstep."

The tires squealed as he turned the Jeep around and raced back to town. We discussed logistics on the way. Edward desperately wanted to stay with Bella. But she, rightly, pointed out that James would assume she was with him, wherever he was. And Emmett would want to be wherever the action was going to happen. I offered that Jasper and I could stay with her until things calmed down.

We got to the house and Bella put on a very impressive performance for Charlie. She might have convinced me that had broken up with Edward and the reason she was leaving Forks was the wet, cloudy weather. The hunter arrived as Charlie was begging Bella to stay just long enough for her mother to return home from Florida. But Bella left anyway, of course. She and Edward rode in her decrepit truck while I followed behind in the Jeep. James trailed after at a very discreet distance.

Bella was almost as devastated as Charlie was over leaving him like this. She was crying almost uncontrollably.

When we arrived at the house Laurent was still there. He eyed us curiously when we entered.

"He's tracking us," Edward growled.

I dashed to Jasper and whispered in his ear. "You and I are going to take Bella in Carlisle's car to a hotel in Phoenix. The rest are going to stay here and hunt James. We need to go pack a few bags."

My voice was so quiet none of the others, especially Laurent, could hear what I said.

We flew up the stairs together and prepared for the trip, dressing in long pants and long-sleeved shirts as an extra precaution. I made sure to pack gloves and hats for both of us. I stuffed enough cash into the bag to keep a family of five comfortable for a year. Credit cards, IDs, passports (I'd have to forge one for Bella if it came to that.), all of these in three different names for both of us.

Finished, we rushed back down to join the others. Bella was upstairs changing into Esme's clothes, in hopes that this would confuse the scent. Rosalie was leaning against the wall with a sour expression on her face and Carlisle was out of the room, reprogramming some cell phones.

"Alice, I need to talk to you," Edward called. His eyes were wild with a mixture of fury, grief, and stern determination.

"I'll take care of her, Edward," I promised. I love her, too, you know.

His expression softened a little.

"Remember she needs to eat and drink more often than we do. Make sure you provide food and water for her at least three times a day."

"I will."

"And don't leave her alone when she's awake. Not even for a little bit. The tracker plans to try to lure her away from us. If he should find a way to contact her, she might wander off."

"Either Jasper or I will be with her every second."

"And, one more thing," He paused and his eyes grew cold and piercing. "Under no circumstances are you to talk to her about your "other options". Do you understand? If she brings it up, just say you don't remember it and have never seen it done. If she presses the issue, lie to her if you have to."

I set my jaw and glared at him. He glared back until Carlisle came back downstairs with our cell phones.

A few seconds later Esme and Bella rejoined us. Carlisle handed out the cell phones.

"Esme and Rosalie will be taking your truck, Bella," Carlisle said as he moved past her.

"Alice, Jasper - take the Mercedes. You'll need the dark tint in the south." He handed a silver cell phone to me and we nodded.

"We're taking the Jeep. Alice, will they take the bait?"

I closed my eyes to concentrate.

"He'll track you. The woman will follow the truck. We should be able to leave after that."

"Let's go," Carlisle said and started for the door.

But Edward went to Bella first. He lifted her into his arms and kissed her with very gentle passion. He lowered her back to the floor, looked into her eyes for a moment, and then left.

Bella's face was already streaked with tears. The rest of us looked away, giving her a bit of privacy while she wept silently.

Esme's phone Rang. It was time for her and Rosalie to leave. Esme touched Bella's cheek and whispered "Be safe," on her way out.

Then it was just the three of us waiting in strained silence for a few minutes.

My phone was to my ear the instant it rang.

"The female is trailing Esme. You can go." Edward's voice was strangely hollow.

I passed the info on to Bella and ran out to fetch Carlisle's car from the garage. I watched our future carefully while I drove it up the short hill, making sure that none of our new enemies would turn back and catch us.

I parked the car out front and came out of the visions in time to hear the tail end of a conversation Bella and Jasper were having.

"If anything happens to them, it will be for nothing." Bella mumbled, distraught.

"You're wrong," Jasper countered, his voice soft and strangely affectionate.

I smiled to myself. It seemed Jasper was warming up to our newest sister. Then I ran into the room, holding my arms out for Bella.

"May I?" I offered.

"You're the first one to ask permission." She half-smiled at me.

I gathered her up in my arms, ignoring the fiery burn in my throat at having her warm scent so close to my mouth, and we rushed out to the car.

The drive to Phoenix was monotonous, and slow. Slow because I had to time our arrival to be after sunset. We stopped for gas a few times and once to let Bella use the ladies' room. I sat in the back seat with her as she grew more and more tired, yet stubbornly fought sleep.

We arrived at the hotel just exactly at sunset on the following day. Bella finally passed out on the way to our room. I lay her on the bed, fully clothed, and closed the door to the bedroom on my way out.

"Anything new?" Jasper asked as I sat next to him on the couch.

"Nothing. Whenever they start to get close... It's like the female can tell, somehow." I rubbed my temples. I was giving myself a headache from concentrating so hard.

Jasper rose and moved to stand behind me. He started rubbing my neck gently, working his way up to my scalp, combing his smooth fingers through my hair, sending a steady stream of calm into me, helping me to relax.

"Thank you," I whispered, feeling the tension release.

"My pleasure."

I sighed. "The tracker won't stay with them for long. He'll eventually figure out that Bella isn't in Forks any more."

"Should we call Edward?"

"No. Not until something actually changes. Besides, they're very close. A ringing phone won't help."

I really hadn't been expecting it to take this long. My family was the largest, most talented family next to the Volturi. I hadn't seen what was going to happen - there had been a lot of decisions yet unmade on both sides - but I'd assumed we wouldn't even be in Phoenix yet before we'd get a call from Carlisle's phone, telling us to come home, that it was finished.

I continued my vigil, concentrating hard on the futures of every one of my family members, Bella included. I was watching for any change and looking for any way, no matter how slight, we could be of help.

After a few hours Jasper hesitantly caught my attention.

"Alice...?"

I pulled myself out of a very deep vision to listen to him.

"Does the tracker... Is he planning to...?" he couldn't seem to get the words out. But I knew what he was trying to ask anyway. I didn't need to be a psychic for that.

"It's hard to see that right now. The future is so...jumbled. In order to see if he's planning to kill me I'd have to see what would happen if he... If we fail now."

He nodded thoughtfully, but I wasn't sure if I'd convinced him. I hadn't exactly lied, per se. But I hadn't told him the whole truth either. I was certain that if this hunter killed Bella and made it away alive, he'd be after me next. I struggled to keep my emotions level, concentrating one minute on the tracker and the next on our family in Washington.

About an hour before Bella woke up I ordered some food and drink for her. The staff wasn't too happy about the request.

"We don't run a twenty four hour kitchen," the attendant complained.

But I was more than equipped to handle such minor setbacks. I promised a very large tip for whomever brought us the food and a meal arrived right on time.

At almost three in the morning I heard Bella start to stir. Jasper moved to the TV and turned it on to a news channel with the volume down low. We knew from experience that humans were more at ease with minor distractions in the room, like a TV or radio.

I heard the shuffle of moving fabric and the creak of bed springs as Bella got up. I decided to give her another minute before going in, no sense making it obvious that I wasn't allowed to leave her alone.

When she opened the bedroom curtains I had to keep myself from rushing in to close them. The tracker wasn't here...yet...but we were still in the south. And there were a lot of other vampires here who wouldn't be terribly happy if they knew Jasper and I were in their territory unannounced.

I waited just a moment longer then tapped on her door.

"Can I come in?"

She took a deep breath. "Sure."

I entered and looked her over. Her eyes were red and swollen. Her face a bit blotchy. Her lips dry and cracked. She was paler than usual, with circles under her eyes every bit as noticeable as mine.

"You look like you could sleep longer," I noted.

She just shook her head groggily.

I casually walked over to the curtains and closed them securely.

"We'll need to stay inside," I informed her.

"Okay," she mumbled, her voice cracking dryly.

"Thirsty?" I guessed.

She shrugged and half-smiled. "I'm okay. How about you?"

I almost laughed at that. "Nothing unmanageable. I ordered some food for you, it's in the front room. Edward reminded me that you have to eat a lot more frequently than we do."

At the mention of my brother's name her eyes lit up.

"He called?"

"No," I answered.

Her face fell.

"It was before we left."

I took her hand and led her to the living room where her food was waiting on the coffee table. Then, satisfied that she was safe and eating, I sat on the arm of the sofa, pretending to watch the news while I continued to scan the future, hoping for something to finally happen. We couldn't stay in this hotel room forever. A few months at the most.

After a few minutes Bella suddenly pushed her tray of food away. I was momentarily distracted. Was there something wrong with it? I looked down at her.

"What's wrong, Alice?" she asked, accusingly.

"Nothing's wrong." At least nothing that hadn't been wrong before.

Her eyes narrowed. "What do we do now?"

"We wait for Carlisle to call."

"And should he have called by now?"

My eyes flickered to the cell phone perched on my leather bag. I didn't answer her question.

"What does that mean?" Her voice shook as she spoke. "That he hasn't called yet?"

"It just means they don't have anything to tell us." That they haven't been able to catch the hunter. That they might not be able to. That you may be on the run from dangerous psychopath vampires your entire life.

Bella started chewing her lower lip and her forehead creased with worry.

Jasper moved in closer and helped to calm her down.

"Bella," he soothed in his warm, silky, non-threatening voice. "You have nothing to worry about. You are perfectly safe here."

"I know that," she insisted, but the crease in her forehead didn't smooth and she looked in danger of biting her lip off.

"Then why are you frightened?" Jasper asked.

"You heard what Laurent said. He said James was lethal. What if something goes wrong and they get separated? If something happens to any of them, Carlisle, Emmett...Edward..." She gulped. "If that wild female hurts Esme...How could I live with myself when it's my fault? None of you should be risking yourselves for me—"

"Bella, Bella, stop," Jasper interrupted. Bella looked like she was on her way to having hysterics.

"You're worrying about all the wrong things, Bella. Trust me on this - none of us are in any jeopardy. You are under too much strain as it is; don't add to it with wholly unnecessary worries. Listen to me. Our family is strong. Our only fear is losing you."

"But why should you—"

I touched her cheek, interrupting her.

"It's been almost a century that Edward's been alone. Now he's found you. You can't see the changes that we see, we who have been with him for so long. Do you think any of us want to look into his eyes for the next hundred years if he loses you?"

She didn't look convinced. But she didn't argue any more, either. Of course, Jasper was keeping her anxiety carefully under control.

The day wore on. Outside, the sun climbed into the sky, baking the hard dry earth, and started its descent again. But in our room, with the blinds securely shut, the only markers for the passage of time were the numbers on the small digital clock on the counter and Bella's nervous fidgeting and pacing.

Something was wrong. Something had to be wrong. It shouldn't be taking this much time. But they were so close! They would get within reach, I could see victory at hand, and then the female would make a sudden decision and they would flee. Time and time again.

Bella decided to go back into the bedroom. I followed her nonchalantly and sat next to where she lay on the bed. She eyed me suspiciously for a second but didn't comment.

After a minute she curled up, hugging her knees to her chest, with her face away from me.

"Alice?" she asked, her voice full of fear.

"Yes?"

"What do you think they're doing?"

She didn't understand my gift very well at all, if she was asking what I thought they were doing. Granted, she'd only really known me for a few days.

How could I answer without frightening her? I decided to be carefully truthful, but not exactly answer her question either.

"Carlisle wanted to lead the tracker as far north as possible, wait for him to get close, and then turn and ambush him. Esme and Rosalie were supposed to head west as long as they could keep the female behind them. If she turned around, they were to head back to Forks and keep an eye on your dad. So I imagine things are going well if they can't call. It means the tracker is close enough that they don't want him to overhear."

Of course I imagined that. I could imagine anything I wanted, even though I knew it wasn't the exact truth. But it was better to be deceptive now, if it helped Bella to stay calm.

"And Esme?"

"I think she must be back in Forks. She won't call if there's any chance the female will overhear. I expect they're all just being very careful."

In fact, Esme was in Forks, guarding Charlie with Rosalie as planned.

"Do you think they're safe, really?" she asked, her voice plaintive.

"Bella, how many times do we have to tell you that there's no danger to us?"

"Would you tell me the truth, though?"

"Yes," I promised. "I will always tell you the truth." And I meant it. Sometimes carefully woven truths, if I thought it was for her own good. But I would not lie to my sister.

I watched while the visions of her, sparkly and white with her stone arm around my waist danced behind my eyes.

"Tell me then... how do you become a vampire?"

I knew the question she would ask a moment before she asked it, of course. But I still wasn't ready with an answer.

She rolled over to look at me.

"Not a good idea, Alice," Jasper warned from the other room.

"Edward doesn't want me to tell you that," I answered her in a tone that usually ended conversations with humans.

She wasn't deterred.

"That's not fair. I think I have a right to know."

"I know."

She just watched me, waiting.

I sighed. "He'll be extremely angry."

"It's none of his business. This is between you and me. Alice, as a friend, I'm begging you."

I watched her for a moment longer, then decided that it was the right thing. She would find out eventually, anyway. Edward would yell at me. We'd fight, but he'd get over it.

She sat listening very calmly to my clinical description of the vampire transformation process. I explained about venom, how it heals and changes human flesh. She only shuddered slightly once, while I explained that the usual victim would be wishing for death during the entire process.

After I'd detailed the sort of "feeding frenzy" madness that makes creating a new vampire difficult, she asked why I couldn't remember my own transformation.

"I don't know," I answered, wistfully. "For everyone else, the pain of transformation is the sharpest memory they have of their human life. I remember nothing of being human."

We sat in silence for a long time. I was still paying attention to our family and our enemies in my peripheral vision. I didn't see any of it clearly, but I would notice if anything were to change. Like catching movement out of the corner of your eye. What I was really watching was Bella's future slowly becoming more solid as the seconds ticked by. I was certain I knew what she was thinking about.

Then something happened. The future that I had been watching in my peripheral vision suddenly warped. I leapt out of the bed before I was even sure what it meant.

"Something's changed," I announced. I moved slowly in the direction of the door, but I wasn't seeing the room around me anymore.

I felt Jasper's hands on my shoulders, guiding me back to sit on the edge of the bed.

"What do you see?" he asked, worried.

"I see a room. It's long, and there are mirrors everywhere. The floor is wooden. He's in the room and he's waiting. There's gold...a gold stripe across the mirrors."

"Where is the room?"

"I don't know." The vision was so vague. "Something is missing - another decision hasn't been made yet."

"How much time?"

"It's soon. He'll be in the mirror room today, or maybe tomorrow. It all depends. He's waiting for something."

I scanned back to see what he would be doing before the mirror room. He was in a house at night watching home movies on a television. There was a picture of Bella and her mother hanging from the wall. And the videos that the tracker would be watching featured Bella and her mother at some sort of social gathering. It seemed the tracker was planning to go to Florida, to try to track Bella down through her mother. I quickly scanned ahead, but I didn't see him abducting or harming her mother at all.

I continued speaking in the same breath. Bella wouldn't notice my moment of hesitation, but Jasper would, and he could sense my alarm as well.

"And he's in the dark now." He was certainly in the dark in this vision, but that didn't mean I couldn't see. As if a psychic needed light to read the future!

But Bella seemed to buy it.

Jasper was watching me with an expression that seemed calm and collected, but I felt his worry increasing every second.

"What is he doing?" Jasper's voice was carefully level. He knew I was keeping something from Bella, but he wasn't sure what yet.

"He's watching a TV...no, he's running a VCR, in the dark, in another place."

I could sense that he understood me. Every piece of information I omitted from my report was a bold sign. THIS is what's alarming me, Jasper. What he's watching on the VCR. And where he is.

I came out of my vision to look him in the eye. He gazed back steadily.

"Can you see where he is?" Is he staying up north?

"No, it's too dark." He's closing in.

He nodded slightly in understanding. "And the mirror room. What else is there?"

"Just the mirrors, and the gold. It's a band, around the room. And there's a black table with a big stereo, and a TV. He's touching the VCR there, but he doesn't watch the way he does in the dark room. This is the room where he waits."

As I was describing the vision more came to me, shadowy and vague still, but growing clearer.

I saw Bella's form in the mirrored room, broken and covered in blood.