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"I traveled with Peter and Charlotte for a few years, getting the feel of this new, more peaceful world But the depression didn’t fade I didn’t understand rong with me, until Peter noticed that it was alorse after I’d hunted

"I contee, I’d lost nearly all of risliest kind Yet each time I found another human victim, I would feel a faint prick of re their eyes widen in wonder at my beauty, I could see Maria and the others in ht that I was Jasper Whitlock It was stronger for me - this borrowed memory - than it was for anyone else, because I could feel everythingAnd I lived their emotions as I killed them

"You’ve experienced the way I can manipulate the emotions around s in a room affect me I live every day in a climate of emotion For the first century of eance Hate was my constant companion It eased some when I left Maria, but I still had to feel the horror and fear of ot worse, and I wandered away from Peter and Charlotte Civilized as they were, they didn’t feel the sa to feel They only wanted peace fro anyone, evenWhat choice did I have? I tried to kill less often, but I would get too thirsty and I would give in After a century of instant gratification, I found self-disciplinechallenging I still haven’t perfected that"

Jasper was lost in the story, as was I It surprised me when his desolate expression smoothed into a peaceful smile

"I was in Philadelphia There was a stor I was not co in the rain would attract attention, so I ducked into a little half-eh that no one would notice theh this meant I was thirsty, and that worriedme, naturally" He chuckled once "She hopped down froh stool at the counter as soon as I walked in and came directly toward me

"It shocked me I was not sure if she meant to attack That’s the only interpretation of her behaviorAnd the e I’d ever felt before

"’You’ve kepttime,’ she said"

I didn’t realize Alice had coain

"And you ducked your head, like a good Southern gentlehed at the memory

Jasper smiled down at her "You held out your hand, and I took it without stopping toFor the first time in almost a century, I felt hope"

Jasper took Alice’s hand as he spoke

Alice grinned "I was just relieved I thought you were never going to show up"

They s moment, and then Jasper looked back to

"Alice told me what she’d seen of Carlisle and his family I could hardly believe that such an existence was possible But Alice made me optimistic So ent to find the his eyes at Jasper before turning toJasper shows up, covered in battle scars, towing this little freak" - he nudged Alice playfully - "who greets the about them, and wants to knohich roohed in hars were in the garage," Edward continued

Alice shrugged "Your rooether now

"That’s a nice story," I said

Three pairs of eyes questioned my sanity

"Iwith Alice"

"Alice has reed "This is a climate I enjoy"

But the momentary pause in the stress couldn’t last

"An army," Alice whispered "Why didn’t you tell ain, their eyes locked on Jasper’s face

"I thought I ns incorrectly Because where is the motive? Why would someone create an army in Seattle? There is no history there, no vendetta It makes no sense from a conquest standpoint, either; no one claiht for it No one to defend it from

"But I’ve seen this before, and there’s no other explanation There is an army of newborn vauess The difficult part is that they are totally untrained Whoever et worse, and it won’t be er till the Volturi step in Actually, I’"

"What can we do?" Carlisle asked

"If ant to avoid the Volturi’s involvement, ill have to destroy the newborns, and ill have to do it very soon" Jasper’s face was hard Knowing his story now, I could guess how this evaluation must disturb him "I can teach you how It won’t be easy in the city The young ones aren’t concerned about secrecy, but ill have to be It will limit us in ways that they are not Maybe we can lure them out"

"Maybe on’t have to" Edward’s voice was bleak "Does it occur to anyone else that the only possible threat in the area that would call for the creation of an army isus?"

Jasper’s eyes narrowed; Carlisle’s widened, shocked

"Tanya’s fa to accept Edward’s words

"The newborns aren’t ravaging Anchorage, Esets"

"They’re not co after us," Alice insisted, and then paused "Orthey don’t know that they are Not yet"

"What is that?" Edward asked, curious and tense "What are you re?"

"Flickers," Alice said "I can’t see a clear picture when I try to see what’s going on, nothing concrete But I’ve been getting these strange flashes Not enough totheirfrom one course of action to another so quickly that I can’t get a good view"

"Indecision?" Jasper asked in disbelief

"I don’t know"

"Not indecision," Edward growled "Knowledge So until the

decision iswith the holes in your vision"

"Who would know that?" Alice whispered

Edward’s eyes were hard as ice "Aro knows you as well as you know yourself"

"But I would see if they’d decided to coet their hands dirty"

"A favor," Rosalie suggested, speaking for the first time "Someone in the Southsomeone who already had trouble with the rules Someone who should have been destroyed is offered a second chance - if they take care of this one sish response"

"Why?" Carlisle asked, still shocked "There’s no reason for the Volturi -"

"It was there," Edward disagreed quietly "I’m surprised it’s coer In Aro’s head he saw me at his one side and Alice at his other The present and the future, virtual omniscience The power of the idea intoxicated hiive up on that plan - he wanted it too ht of you, Carlisle, of our faer The jealousy and the fear: you havingnot s that he wanted He tried not to think about it, but he couldn’t hide it co out the coest coven they’ve ever found"

I stared at his face in horror He’d never told uessed I knehy I could see it in my head now, Aro’s drea at Aro’s side with their eyes cold and blood-red

Carlisle interrupted htmare "They’re too committed to their oes against everything they’ve worked for"

"They’ll clean up afterward A double betrayal," Edward said in a gri his head "No, Carlisle is right The Volturi do not break rules Besides, it’s much too sloppy Thisperson, this threat - they have no idea what they’re doing A first-timer, I’d swear to it I cannot believe the Volturi are involved But they will be"

They all stared at each other, frozen with stress

"Then let’s go," E for?"

Carlisle and Edward exchanged a long glance Edward nodded once

"We’ll need you to teach us, Jasper," Carlisle finally said "How to destroy them" Carlisle’s jaas hard, but I could see the pain in his eyes as he said the words No one hated violenceer on it I was numb, horrified, deathly afraid And yet, under that, I could feel that I wasthat would make some sense out of the chaos That would explain it

"We’re going to need help," Jasper said "Do you think Tanya’s fa? Another five mature vampires would make an enormous difference And then Kate and Eleazar would be especially advantageous on our side It would be almost easy, with their aid"

"We’ll ask," Carlisle answered

Jasper held out a cell phone "We need to hurry"

I’d never seen Carlisle’s innate calm so shaken He took the phone, and paced toward the s He dialed a nuainst the glass He stared out into the foggywith a pained and ambivalent expression

Edward took my hand and pulledat his face while he stared at Carlisle

Carlisle’s voice was low and quick, difficult to hear I heard hih the situation too fast for h I could tell that the Alaskan va on in Seattle

Then soed in Carlisle’s voice

"Oh," he said, his voice sharper in surprise "We didn’t realizethat Irina felt that way"

Edward groaned at my side and closed his eyes "Das"

"Laurent?" I whispered, the blood e from my face, but Edward didn’t respond, focused on Carlisle’s thoughts

My short encounter with Laurent early this spring was not so that had faded or dimmed in my mind I still remembered every word he’d said before Jacob and his pack had interrupted

I actually came here as a favor to her

Victoria Laurent had been her first maneuver - she’d sent hiet to h he’d kept up his old ties with Victoria after James’s death, he’d also forone to live with Tanya’s family in Alaska - Tanya the strawberry blonde - the closest friends the Cullens had in the vampire world, practically extended family Laurent had been with them for almost a year previous to his death

Carlisle was still talking, his voice not quite pleading Persuasive, but with an edge Then the edge abruptly won out over the persuasion

"There’s no question of that," Carlisle said in a stern voice "We have a truce They haven’t broken it, and neither e I’m sorry to hear thatOf course We’ll just have to do our best alone"

Carlisle shut the phone without waiting for an answer He continued to stare out into the fog

"What’s the problem?" Emmett murmured to Edward

"Irina was more involved with our friend Laurent than we knew She’s holding a grudge against the wolves for destroying hi down at htened "She wants revenge To take down the pack They would trade their help for our perasped

"Don’t worry," he told ree to it" He hesitated, then sighed "Nor would I Laurent had it corowl - "and I still owe the wolves for that"

"This isn’t good," Jasper said "It’s too even a fight We’d have the upper hand in skill, but not numbers We’d win, but at what price?" His tense eyes flashed to Alice’s face and away

I wanted to screarasped what Jasper meant

We would win, but ould lose Some wouldn’t survive

I looked around the room at their faces - Jasper, Alice, Emmett, Rose, Esme, CarlisleEdward - the faces of my family