Caius and I began the walk back as the light began to die between the trees and I hoped that Victoria had made the decision to prowl the woods tomorrow and not tonight. I had lost track of time, and when I had with a start realized the sun was about to set, announced that we should be heading back.

I was more concerned about Caius' reaction if he were to find out what I had agreed to hide from him over any threat that Victoria may pose. This was primarily because I had no doubts that Caius could just as easily take care of her on his own as he could with his guard, while I could draw back into the safety of the shadows and disappear.

We ran into no trouble on our trek back, and I was grateful to be back within the warmth of the house, which Esme had kept at a comfortable temperature ever since I had came to live with them.

"I have your dinner," Esme said, as I emerged into the kitchen. "Wash your hands first."

"Of course," I said, doing as she had ordered before sitting at the table. Caius had disappeared at some point, and I briefly wondered where he had gotten off to before Edward sat down beside me and answered my unspoken question.

"He's speaking with Carlisle about the Quileutes. He's still concerned about it," he said lowly, giving me a chastising look. "You shouldn't have told him."

"I didn't mean to. I wasn't thinking," I said, once I had swallowed my mouthful of food. "I forgot about the werewolf versus shape-shifter thing."

Edward hummed in response. "No harm done. I know we're asking a lot of you. Thank you for earlier."

I didn't have to guess what he was referring to - distracting Caius had given them time to talk about what to do in regards to Victoria. "No problem."

"Jasper and Alice are meeting Sam at the border now. She'll be here tomorrow," he said.

What's your excuse? I switched to conversing mentally with him - at least partially anyway - in order to keep the conversation largely private.

There was a pause, and I suspected Edward was ensuring that Caius wasn't listening in before he responded. "We're all going hunting. He won't want to come, because of our diet."

"Smart," I murmured, taking a sip of my water. Mentally I added, So I just have to keep him distracted?

"Yes."

I met Edward's topaz eyes. I hope you know I don't think we should be hiding this from Caius. It's stupid, especially if something goes wrong.

"I know," he said. "I agree with you, and so does Carlisle, but Alice wouldn't budge. She says everything will be fine."

"And Jasper couldn't talk to her?"

"You know he almost always sides with her. This is no different," Edward said. "Have you finished your history paper?"

"What?" I furrowed my brow at the sudden change of topic, before I realized that we were likely no longer having a private conversation. Confirming my thoughts, Edward nodded. "Uh, no. I was planning on getting Carlisle to help me."

"What's the paper on, love?" Caius asked smoothly, appearing in the chair beside me so suddenly that I jumped in my seat and nearly choked on my food. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

I had to take a gulp of water before I could speak again without being on the verge of coughing. "It's okay. I live with vampires, you'd think I'd be used to it. It's, um, it's about the Industrial Revolution."

"That was an interesting time. I'd be happy to help you," he said, his tone perhaps overly casual. I glanced momentarily at Edward, and his slight smirk was enough to tell me that Caius was jealous. Perhaps not jealous of Carlisle, but likely of the time Carlisle got to spend with me.

Edward stood and squeezed my shoulder before moving off. "Now you're getting it."

"Getting what?" Caius asked, as I pushed away my now-empty plate of food.

"Don't worry about it. Just Edward using his freaky mind powers," I told him. "Now, do you mind if I pick your brain for this paper? I really want to get it done."

"Not at all," he said, standing. I did the same, grabbing my plate. I rinsed it before putting it into the dishwasher. Caius offered me his arm. "Shall we?"

I giggled lightly at him and slipped my arm through his, not missing the smile that crossed his face. "We shall."

Considering Alice's visions were largely subjective, the events that transpired the following day really weren't her fault. It still managed to make a good mess of things, though.

My job in keeping Caius busy was perhaps the easiest, as the rest had to find Victoria under the guise of a quick hunting trip. I could only hope that they were successful so that we wouldn't have to worry about her anymore. It was really only by sheer luck that James had chosen Bella as his target instead of me that fateful day - the wind had shifted, and Bella's scent was potent enough and mine diluted enough through my time with the Cullens that she, rather than myself, had been chosen as his prey.

"Do the Cullens leave you alone like this often?" Caius asked curiously from where he sat at the end of the couch, content with my feet in his lap.

I offered a shrug in reply. "Occasionally. Esme doesn't like to leave me by myself so usually she'll make someone stay back with me if she doesn't herself. I don't think they mind as much this time because you're here."

He paused before asking his next question. "And you're okay with it just being us here?"

"Yeah," I said, genuinely meaning it. "I'm okay with it."

"I'm thrilled to hear it, amore. So, what are we watching?" Caius asked, nodding towards the TV.

"Well, what sort of things do you like to watch?" I asked. I didn't want to put him through a movie that he would hate.

"I don't watch television very much. Marcus watches the most out of all of us, I think he enjoys the distraction."

I leaned back thoughtfully. "Okay, well... what don't you like?"

"I suppose I'm not a huge fan of the romance genre," he decided after a moment.

I nodded. "How about action?"

"Action is good," he agreed. I put on the most recent Mission Impossible for us, as it would be easy enough to follow even though he hadn't seen the rest. About halfway through the movie I paused it to get a drink and a snack, and that was where things started to go awry.

Because Victoria changed her mind.

And Alice had been wrong.

I had just finished my long drink of water when my phone buzzed. I unlocked it with one hand as I set down my glass and saw a text from Alice. Hide, it said. Another came just as I read the first. Now.

I reacted without thinking, swiping down the lightswitch and plunging the kitchen into darkness. The shadows pulled me back to them and not a moment too soon. I was able to discern her as she appeared, even in the dark, and the wild mess of red curls was enough to tell me who it was. My heart was pounding quickly within my chest, but the fear didn't muddle my mind. Instead, it sharpened it. This was not the first time I had been trapped with a monster in the dark.

The shadows would shield me from her, of that I was sure, but I had to determine a way to alert Caius of her presence without outright revealing my position. I reached out, fully aware of the incredibly stupid decision I was about to make, and pushed the glass that I had been drinking off the counter. It shattered when it hit the ground, and I just managed to dodge as she reached for me within the darkness.

Caius had materialized at the sound, his face morphing from concerned to an animalistic fury so quickly I nearly missed it. He growled at her, a loud, imposing sound, and Victoria pounced. He caught her by the neck mid-spring and slammed her down just as Alec and Demetri appeared. She must have been gifted to evade their detection.

They sprung to action without needing direction, grabbing Victoria by the arms and holding her in place as Caius ripped her head from her shoulders. I cringed at the sight and looked away. The shadows swirled around me, as if worried, pressing me back further into the darkness even as the Cullens appeared, a range of emotions playing over their faces.

Caius waved away Demetri and Alec, who took what remained of Victoria outside to be burned to ashes. He then fixed his furious gaze upon the Cullens and I knew things were about to get incredibly messy. I let the shadows ebb away and he glanced at me only long enough to ensure I was unharmed before his eyes snapped back to the Cullens.

"Who was that?" His voice came out in a growl and was directed at no one person, but it was clear he demanded an answer.

Carlisle had a frown on his face as he let out a long breath. "That was Victoria. She has been a problem for us for quite some time."

"And you just, what? Forget to mention that?" A low growl rumbled in his chest.

"We were hoping to take care of her before she became any more of a problem," Carlisle said carefully.

Caius let out a loud snarl that nearly drowned out Carlisle's words as he stepped forward, toe-to-toe with him. "May I remind you, Carlisle, that we allow our mate to stay here provided you keep her safe. Yet you deliberately kept a threat from us that very nearly had her killed. I have half a mind to kill you all where you stand!"

Both Emmett and Jasper tensed from behind Carlisle, moving subtly into a more offensive position that shielded their mates. To his credit, Carlisle didn't flinch at Caius' threat. "We give you our deepest apologies, Caius. When Victoria ventured into Forks her decision was only to give chase to Bella. None of us could have foreseen her changing her target so quickly."

"None except for your clairvoyant. You and your family have done something unforgivable and unforgettable, Carlisle, by knowingly putting my mate in danger. Surely you don't expect to escape this unscathed," Caius said, his whole body tensed like a coiled spring.

I knew then that I had better interfere before Caius did something rash. I wedged myself between Caius and the rest of the Cullens, staring up at his snarling face. I pressed a hand to his chest. "Caius, it's okay."

I felt his muscles shift underneath my fingers as he instinctively reacted, becoming complaisant at my touch. Still he glared viciously at the Cullens. Carlisle stepped cautiously back to give us space, which was likely a wise move.

I felt the growl that rumbled in Caius' chest before he spoke. "No, it's not. Their reckless actions could have killed you."

"But you were here," I soothed. "And Alice's text saved my life, Victoria never even saw me."

His chest once again rumbled at Victoria's name. "You would not have needed saving if-"

"Caius, the Cullens would never knowingly do something to put me in danger. They are my family," I said, conscious of the fact that he was still glaring at the Cullens over my head. I grabbed his hand with my free one, and he twined his fingers through mine almost thoughtlessly. "Come with me."

"Rowan-"

"Please, Caius," I said softly.

He caved. "Alright. So as long as there are no other threats that the Cullens are hiding from us."

"There's nothing else," I said, before Carlisle could speak. I had the distinct feeling that I was the only thing keeping Caius from slaughtering the Cullens and I didn't want Carlisle to break the spell.

I led Caius to the same tumble of rocks that I had taken Marcus, and the moonlight that came from the sky above was enough to light my way as I climbed up. Caius didn't protest to this as Marcus did, but he was so close behind me that I couldn't have wobbled without him reaching out to catch me.

"You could have died," he whispered once we had settled ourselves onto the cool rock, and I could hear the agony produced within himself at the mere thought.

"Here," I said, opening my arms to him. Caius needed little more invitation to pull me to him, his arms wrapped securely around me as he nosed his face against my neck, breathing in my scent. I didn't feel threatened at the action, despite the fact that he could kill me easily if he wished. I knew that he would rather die than harm me, and his actions were to calm himself, to chase away the horror and reassure that I was safe.

"I'm okay," I said, rubbing a hand across his back in the way that Esme would do whenever I was distressed. "I'm okay."

"Did you know about tonight?" he asked, his low voice muffled.

"Yes," I conceded, tired of lying to him. "But I wanted to tell you. Alice was so certain that she would stay away."

He grumbled at Alice's name, pulling me closer in his displeasure. His words weren't quite what I expected when he finally spoke. "Did I scare you?"

"No, no, of course not. You saved me," I said. "It's okay, Caius. I trust you."

He lifted his head to meet my eyes at this, surprised. "Truly?"

"Yes," I said, and the word hovered between us for a moment. "But Caius, please, don't make me leave the Cullens yet."

He wavered, torn between his desire to keep me happy versus his desire to keep me close and safe. "Okay, I won't. I won't. But I'm increasing the guard around you. I want all the Elite Guard here, at all times. I can't have anything happening to you. I won't. I couldn't live if anything did."

To me, this seemed more than fair. "Alright."

He nodded, and instead of resuming his earlier position he lifted me onto his lap, tucked safely under his chin. "Are you okay?"

I hesitated, remembering the thoughts that had crossed my mind when I was faced with Victoria, alone in the dark. How starkly it had put me back with my father. But I had the wisdom not to tell him any of this, despite the fact that I knew I was not. "I think so."

"Okay." But his hold tightened around me and I pressed farther into his embrace, and neither of us moved again for a long time.

Edited 4/16/2021