 was confusing enough as it was. I 
didn't need any more of the supernatural than I already had to deal with. 

He was quiet, too, and the silence felt a little awkward. My intuition told me that I didn't 
want to hear what he was thinking. 

"How did that work out for Jared?" I asked to break the silence. 

"No drama there. It was just a girl he'd sat next to in school every day for a year and never 
looked at twice. And then, after he changed, he saw her again and never looked away. Kim 
was thrilled. She'd had a huge crush on him. She'd had his last name tacked on to the end of 
hers all over in her diary." He laughed mockingly. 

I frowned. "Did Jared tell you that? He shouldn't have." 

Jacob bit his lip. "I guess I shouldn't laugh. It was funny, though." 

"Some soul mate." 

He sighed. "Jared didn't tell us anything on purpose. I already told you this part, remember?" 

"Oh, yeah. You can hear each other's thoughts, but only when you're wolves, right?" 

"Right. Just like your bloodsucker." He glowered. 

"Edward," I corrected. 

"Sure, sure. That's how come I know so much about how Sam felt. It's not like he would 
have told us all that if he'd had a choice. Actually, that's something we all hate." The 
bitterness was abruptly harsh in his voice. "It's awful. No privacy, no secrets. Everything 
you're ashamed of, laid out for everyone to see." He shuddered. 

 

"It sounds horrible," I whispered. 

"It is sometimes helpful when we need to coordinate," he said grudgingly. "Once in a blue 
moon, when some bloodsucker crosses into our territory. Laurent was fun. And if the Cullens 
hadn't gotten in our way last Saturday . . . ugh!" he groaned. "We could have had her!" His 
fists clenched into angry balls. 

I flinched. As much as I worried about Jasper or Emmett getting hurt, it was nothing like the 
panic I felt at the idea of Jacob going up against Victoria. Emmett and Jasper were the 
closest thing to indestructible I could imagine. Jacob was still warm, still comparatively 
human. Mortal. I thought of Jacob facing Victoria, her brilliant hair blowing around her 
oddly feline face . . . and shuddered. 

Jacob looked up at me with a curious expression. "But isn't it like that for you all the time? 
Having him in your head?" 

"Oh, no. Edward's never in my head. He only wishes." 

Jacob's expression became confused. 

"He can't hear me," I explained, my voice a tiny bit smug from old habit. "I'm the only one 
like that, for him. We don't know why he can't." 

"Weird," Jacob said. 

"Yeah." The smugness faded. "It probably means there's something wrong with my brain," I 
admitted. 

"I already knew there was something wrong with your brain," Jacob muttered. 

"Thanks." 

The sun broke through the clouds suddenly, a surprise I hadn't been expecting, and I had to 
narrow my eyes against the glare off the water. Everything changed color - the waves turned 
from gray to blue, the trees from dull olive to brilliant jade, and the rainbow-hued pebbles 
glittered like jewels. 

We squinted for a moment, letting our eyes adjust. There were no sounds besides the hollow 
roar of the waves that echoed from every side of the sheltered harbor, the soft grinding of the 
stones against each other under the water's movement, and the cry of gulls high overhead. It 
was very peaceful. 

Jacob settled closer to me, so that he was leaning against my arm. He was so warm. After a 
minute of this, I shrugged out of my rain jacket. He made a little sound of contentment in the 
back of his throat, and rested his cheek on the top of my head. I could feel the sun heat my 
skin - thought it was not quite as warm as Jacob - and I wondered idly how long it would 
take me to burn. 

 

Absentmindedly, I twisted my right hand to the side, and watched the sunlight glitter subtly 
off the scar James had left there. 

"What are you thinking about?" he murmured. 

"The sun." 

"Mmm. It's nice." 

"What are you thinking about?" I asked. 

He chuckled to himself. "I was remembering that moronic movie you took me to. And Mike 
Newton puking all over everything." 

I laughed, too, surprised by how time had changed the memory. It used to be one of stress, of 
confusion. So much had changed that night. . . . And now I could laugh. It was the last night 
Jacob and I had had before he'd learned the truth about his heritage. The last human memory. 
An oddly pleasant memory now. 

"I miss that," Jacob said. "The way it used to be so easy . . . uncomplicated. I'm glad I've got 
a good memory." He sighed. 

He felt the sudden tension in my body as his words triggered a memory of my own. 

"What is it?" he asked. 

"About that good memory of yours . . ." I pulled away from him so that I could read his face. 
At the moment, it was confused. "Do you mind telling me what you were doing Monday 
morning? You were thinking something that bothered Edward." Bothered wasn't quite the 
word for it, but I wanted an answer, so I thought it was best not to start out too severely. 

Jacob's face brightened with understanding, and he laughed. "I was just thinking about you. 
Didn't like that much, did he?" 

"Me? What about me?" 

Jacob laughed, with a harder edge this time. "I was remembering the way you looked that 
night Sam found you - I've seen it in his head, and it's like I was there; that memory has 
always haunted Sam, you know. And then I remembered how you looked the first time you 
came to my place. I bet you don't even realize what a mess you were then, Bella. It was 
weeks before you started to look human again. And I remembered how you always used to 
have your arms wrapped around yourself, trying to hold yourself together. . . ." Jacob winced, 
and then shook his head. "It's hard for me to remember how sad you were, and it wasn't my 
fault. So I figured it would be harder for him. And I thought he ought to get a look at what 
he'd done." 

I smacked his shoulder. It hurt my hand. "Jacob Black, don't you ever do that again! Promise 

 

me you won't." 

"No way. I haven't had that much fun in months." 

"So help me, Jake -" 

"Oh, get a grip, Bella. When am I ever going to see him again? Don't worry about it." 

I got to my feet, and he caught my hand as I started to walk away. I tried to tug free. 

"I'm leaving, Jacob." 

"No, don't go yet," he protested, his hand tightening around mine. "I'm sorry. And . . . okay, I 
won't do it again. Promise." 

I sighed. "Thanks, Jake." 

"Come on, we'll go back to my house," he said eagerly. 

"Actually, I think I really do need to go. Angela Weber is expecting me, and I know Alice is 
worried. I don't want to upset her too much." 

"But you just got here!" 

"It feels that way," I agreed. I glared up at the sun, somehow already directly overhead. How 
had the time passed so quickly? 

His eyebrows pulled down over his eyes. "I don't know when I'll see you again," he said in a 
hurt voice. 

"I'll come back the next time he's away," I promised impulsively. 

"Away?" Jacob rolled his eyes. "That's a nice way to describe what he's doing. Disgusting 
parasites." 

"If you can't be nice, I won't come back at all!" I threatened, trying to pull my hand free. He 
refused to let go. 

"Aw, don't be mad," he said, grinning. "Knee-jerk reaction." 

"If I'm going to try to come back again, you're going to have to get something straight, 
okay?" 

He waited. 

"See," I explained. "I don't care who's a vampire and who's a werewolf. That's irrelevant. 
You are Jacob, and he is Edward, and I am Bella. And nothing else matters." 

His eyes narrowed slightly. "But I am a werewolf," he said unwillingly. "And he is a 

 

vampire," he added with obvious revulsion. 

"And I'm a Virgo!" I shouted, exasperated. 

He raised his eyebrows, measuring my expression with curious eyes. Finally, he shrugged. 

"If you can really see it that way . . ." 

"I can. I do." 

"Okay. Just Bella and Jacob. None of those freaky Virgos here." He smiled at me, the warm, 
familiar smile that I had missed so much. I felt the answering smile spread across my face. 

"I've really missed you, Jake," I admitted impulsively. 

"Me, too," his smile widened. His eyes were happy and clear, free for once of the angry 
bitterness. "More than you know. Will you come back soon?" 

"As soon as I can," I promised. 

 

6. SWITZERLAND 

AS I DROVE HOME, I WASN'T PAYING MUCH ATTENTION TO the road that 
shimmered wetly in the sun. I was thinking about the flood of information Jacob had shared 
with me, trying to sort it out, to force it all to make sense. Despite the overload, I felt lighter. 
Seeing Jacob smile, having all the secrets thrashed out . . . it didn't make things perfect, but it 
made them better. I was right to have gone. Jacob needed me. And obviously, I thought as I 
squinted into the glare, there was no danger. 

It came out of nowhere. One minute there was nothing but bright highway in my rearview 
mirror. The next minute, the sun was glinting off a silver Volvo right on my tail. 

"Aw, crap," I whimpered. 

I considered pulling over. But I was too much of a coward to face him right away. I'd been 
counting on some prep time . . . and having Charlie nearby as a buffer. At least that would 
force him to keep his voice down. 

The Volvo followed inches behind me. I kept my eyes on the road ahead. 

Chicken through and through, I drove straight to Angela's without once meeting the gaze I 
could feel burning a hole in my mirror. 

He followed me until I pulled to the curb in front of the Webers' house. He didn't stop, and I 
didn't look up as he passed. I didn't want to see the expression on his face. I ran up the short 
concrete walk to Angela's door as soon as he was out of sight. 

Ben answered the door before I could finish