"Chloe!?"

I stared at the girl standing in front of me, shock freezing me in place. There was no way this was my ex-best friend. Dirt covered her from head to toe; her blonde hair was tangled and her shirt appeared to be torn as if she had been physically assaulted. The fading bruises on her face were enough to convince me that she had been.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed. "I didn't know where else to go."

"No, it's okay," I reassured her as I reached out and wrapped my arm around her shoulders, leading her inside. "I'll make you some food."

"You were getting ready to go somewhere." She said quietly as I led her to the island counter, helping her sit on a stool. "I didn't mean to intrude."

"Hey," I said softly, gently squeezing her shoulder. "Just because we haven't spoken in months doesn't mean I'm going to abandon you now. Okay?"

She nodded silently, tears beginning to swell in her eyes.

"Good. I'm going to call Mom after I heat up some leftovers."

Once I had placed the heated lasagna in front of Chloe and made sure she was eating, I called Mom from the phone in the kitchen where I could keep a close eye on Chloe. Mom answered on the second ring.

"Autumn? Is everything alright?"

"Chloe's here... Mom, she doesn't look good." I said in a rush, trying not to panic. "There are fading bruises on her face, her clothes are torn and she's covered in dirt."

"I'm on my way. Don't move."

With a click, Mom hung up. I placed the phone back in the cradle just as the doorbell rang again. Chloe's eyes darted to me, sheer panic on her face.

"It's okay, that's just Jacob." I said soothingly before walking to the front door. Peeking out the curtain, I saw Jacob standing on the porch and I sighed, knowing he was going to be bummed about missing Emily's dinner.

"Wow," he said as I opened the door, "you look amazing."

"Thanks. You don't look bad yourself," I grinned as I took in the white dress shirt, black pants, and black jacket with a matching tie. "I thought this wasn't a super dressed-up event."

"So, maybe I lied a little," Jacob said sheepishly before pulling a bouquet of pink carnations out from behind her back. "For you."

"Oh, Jacob. You shouldn't have!" I happily took the flowers from him, sniffing the calming fragrance. "Ugh, this just got more complicated."

"What's wrong?" Jacob asked, his tone turning more serious. "Wait... who's here?"

"Chloe... she showed up about five minutes ago."

"Your ex-best friend from Michigan?" This time, Jacob's stance was guarded, almost protective as he stared into the house behind me.

"Yes. And Jake, I think she's been attacked. Come see for yourself."

Silently, Jacob followed me into the house, tension rolling off of him as he tried to steady his breathing. When we walked into the kitchen, Chloe looked up from her plate, her eyes wary. Both of them visibly relaxed as they subconsciously accepted there was no danger.

"You must be Jacob," Chloe said after a few seconds of silence.

"And you must be Chloe." He smiled warmly back at her, causing her to smile shyly back.

"Yeah, that's me. I'm sure you know me as the traitorous friend." She replied sadly. "I know that's what I would think of the girl who slept with her best friend's boyfriend and got pregnant with his baby."

"I'm sure there's more to the story than that," Jacob told her, glancing at me.

"We don't have to talk about it." I said, distracting myself with finding a vase for the bouquet.

Before Chloe or Jacob could say something else, Mom walked into the kitchen. She immediately noticed Chloe and rushed over to her.

"Oh, Chloe. What happened?" Mom examined her face as Chloe looked away in shame. "Autumn, get me a wet washcloth."

"That's what I wanted to talk about," Chloe directed to me as I handed Mom the washcloth. "The reason why I have bruises, and the reason I slept with Reed... he blackmailed me."

"What?" I gasped.

"The night of the party at Justin's, Reed cornered me in the kitchen. He said that he had 'proof' of me sneaking around with a football player from Lexington, and that he was going to send it to everyone at school."

"What's wrong with you seeing someone from Lexington?" Jacob asked curiously.

"It's the rival school to Ravenwood," I explained. "It's frowned upon among the Ravenwood student body to even be friends with someone from Lexington, let alone be involved romantically."

"The photos he had were... revealing, to say the least. When I told him to leave me alone, he disappeared only to return half an hour later with a drink and an apology. Stupid me, I took the drink. I didn't know he had drugged me until the next morning. I wanted to report him, but he threatened to kill me if I went to the cops. I was scared for my life, so I kept quiet... when I found out I was pregnant, I was terrified; I'm a kid myself, how was I going to raise one? Not to mention the fact that the baby was conceived under... horrible circumstances. I didn't even tell him when I found out; I called you first. I'm sorry, I should've told you sooner," Chloe whimpered.

"Don't beat yourself up," I reached for her hand. "I should've listened to you."

"Did Reed leave these bruises on you?" Mom asked, wiping the dirt off Chloe's face. She nodded.

"After I found out I was pregnant, I begged my mom and dad to let me stay home. They knew I was scared of Reed, even though I couldn't go to the police. So, they home-schooled me. I didn't leave the house for months, I didn't talk to anyone. When I had the baby, it was the middle of the night so no one saw my mom help me to the car. After the baby was born, I wanted to get her as far away from Ravenwood as possible so I begged my parents to move. It was just a matter of time before they could get things sorted out at work, plus Mom wasn't sure what to do with the bakery." Chloe stopped talking to let Mom wipe her chin and neck down.

"By the time Reed had found out about the baby, we were waiting on a call for a house five hours away. And it angered him that I didn't tell him about her. So, one night, when my parents were out of town, he broke in and attacked me. The neighbors heard me screaming and called the police. That's the last time I heard from or saw Reed. He's been gone for weeks, and the police are watching for him."

"That means he could be your anonymous stalker," Jacob looked at me, worry and anger written in his eyes.

"Go call Edward," I whispered, my voice cracking. "Tell him we're coming over in an hour, and the family needs to be there. They need to hear this."

"Got it." Jacob started for the phone in the living room before he turned around and walked back to me. He ducked down and kissed me hard, letting me know in that kiss that he was going to do whatever it takes to protect me. Without another word, he released me and walked out of the room. Mom raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything, a smile tugging at her lips.

"Now that makes sense," Chloe mumbled to herself, nodding her head like she was agreeing with something.

"What?" I questioned her.

"The way Reed acted when he came home from visiting you," she said, meeting my gaze. "He was... outraged. Going on about some guy had you brainwashed against him or something. He was jealous of Jacob."

"That's funny, seeing as he broke up with me when he found out I was moving to Forks."

"He has some nerve," Mom shook her head as she headed for the sink to rinse out the washcloth. "Anyways. Autumn, why don't you take Chloe to your room so she can get a shower and some clean clothes? She can borrow something from you for now. Okay?"

"Got it." I echoed. "Come on, Chloe. Let's go raid my closet like old times."

Chloe giggled and followed me upstairs to my bedroom, her eyes widening at the sight.

"Whoa," she gasped softly. "Talk about a room makeover."

"I had that same feeling when I first saw it." I smiled. "So, this door here is my bathroom. And these doors over here lead to the walk-in closet."

"You have a completely different wardrobe than the one back home," Chloe said in awe as she looked over the hangers. "A lot more dresses... and pinks, purples, and yellows."

"Yeah well, I was tired of wearing blue and green all the time," I joked, sitting on my bed. Chloe laughed at my expression and grabbed a couple of hangers off the rack.

"Is this okay?"

She held up a pair of faded blue jeans and a mint green babydoll top, waiting for my answer.

"That looks perfect. Okay, so... There are towels in the dark brown cabinet, and you can use my shampoo, conditioner and body wash, obviously. There are extra razors in the white cabinet above the toilet if you need to use one. And there are extra toothbrushes, hairbrushes and deodorant as well. Whatever you need, it's there."

"Thank you," she gave me a small smile before shutting the bathroom door behind her. A few seconds later, she opened the door to look at me. "Um... will you... stay here? While I'm in the shower?"

"Of course. You're safe now, Chloe. He can't hurt you here. I promise."

My words seemed to have registered with her because she nodded and closed the door again. Seconds later, I heard the water turn on in the tub before shifting into heavy raindrops as Chloe switched faucets. Releasing a breath I hadn't realized I was holding, I flopped backward onto my bed, staring at the ceiling. A million thoughts swirled around in my head and I shut my eyes, willing my mind to calm down. A shift in the air above me ruffled my awareness and I opened my eyes to find Jacob standing next to my bed, smiling at me.

"What a nice view," he teased, his eyes traveling the length of my stretched-out body.

"Pull yourself together, Black. Your hormones are showing." I rolled my eyes playfully and laughed as Jacob threw one of my throw pillows at me.

"Edward said they'll be waiting for us. And Bella is worried about you. She says you've been feeling out of it all week?" Jacob sat down next to me on the end of the bed. "Why didn't you say anything to me?"

"You've been busy dealing with Victoria and that unknown vampire. Plus, my anonymous stalker," I blew my bangs out of my face and sighed. "I didn't want to add onto the stress."

"Hey. You are not stress." Jacob said firmly. "You are my girlfriend, you're supposed to open up to me. No matter what I have going on. Okay?"

"Okay." I leaned over and kissed his cheek. "You might want to leave now."

"Why?" As soon as the words left his mouth, we both heard the water turn off. Realization hit him and he scrambled to his feet. "Right. Got it. I'll be downstairs with your mom."

Jacob bolted out of my room so fast, I couldn't help but laugh until my sides ached. Chloe peeked her head out of the bathroom, her face wrinkled in confusion.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing," I told her. "Just Jacob being Jacob."

"Is he in here?"

"No. It's okay to come out."

I got off the bed and shut the bedroom door so Chloe could get dressed. As soon as it clicked shut, she came out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around her body. She quickly got dressed into the clothes she picked out, looking more like herself with each passing minute. A twinge of guilt washed over me as I studied the girl in front of me. Chloe met my gaze in the vanity mirror and smiled before turning to face me.

"I'm not mad at you for not talking to me, you know." She said quietly. "I hurt you... I don't expect you to forgive me or even be my friend again. I just want you to know that I really am sorry. For everything."

"You'll always be my best friend, Peaches."

Chloe beamed at my use of her nickname and gave me a hug. I wrapped my arms back around her, silently grateful that she was okay. When she pulled away, there were tears in her eyes.

"Why are you crying?" I handed her a tissue from the box on the vanity.

"I'm sorry. My hormones are still all out of whack from the pregnancy," she cried, laughing from embarrassment. "I just really missed you, Leaf."

"I missed you too. Come on, we should get going."

We met Jacob downstairs and said goodbye to Mom before leaving. Jacob drove the familiar road to the Cullens as I turned to face Chloe in the backseat.

"Before we get to the Cullens, there's something you need to know. You can't tell anyone."

"Cross my heart." Chloe made an X over her chest before pretending to zip her mouth shut.

"The Cullens... they're vampires."

"Seriously?" Chloe's eyes widened. "Like Dracula?"

"Not exactly." I giggled. "They're considered vegetarians, because they drink animal blood. But I want you to be prepared because you're going to notice that they're very different. And what we're about to talk about there, you're going to need to know the whole story. So we can better protect you. Feel free to ask any questions when we're there. Carlisle is pretty good at explaining things."

"Okay. Wow, this is... crazy? No, that's not the word I wanted."

"Don't worry. I thought the same thing when Bella and I found out about Edward." I paused as Jacob parked in front of the house. "Oh, and Jacob is a werewolf."

Jacob chuckled as Chloe stared at him in surprise, walking around to open the car door for me. He slung his arm around my shoulders as we walked up the steps, Chloe trailing behind us as she took in the house. Edward and Bella were waiting outside for us, Bella pulling me into a hug when we reached the porch.

"I thought something bad happened to you when Jacob called Edward," she whispered in my ear. "It's still strange that they're getting along."

"I'm fine," I whispered back, "and I know. It's weird to me too."

Bella let me go and smiled before returning to Edward. I glanced behind me to see Chloe watching us carefully.

"Edward, Bella. This is Chloe, my friend from Michigan. Chloe, this is Edward and Bella, my friends from here."

"It's nice to meet you, Chloe." Edward smiled. "I assume Autumn told you what we are?"

"Uh, yeah." Chloe smiled back. "I have a lot of questions right now, I don't even know where to start."

"We have plenty of time," Edward chuckled. "I just want to let you know that Jasper, my brother, is the newest vampire in our family by a handful of years so he is still... anxious around humans. Please don't feel like he hates you in any way if he appears standoffish towards you."

"Got it." Chloe gave him a thumbs up.

"And Rosalie might seem like a snob but don't take it personally," I added as we followed Edward into the house and towards the living room. "It's nothing against you."

"She just hates me," Bella sighed and Edward squeezed her hand gently yet reassuringly.

"I'll explain later," I whispered to Chloe as we entered the living room; all of the Cullens turned as soon as we walked in, their expressions somewhat somber.

"Hello, Chloe," Carlisle spoke, rising from the couch. "Welcome to our home."

"Thank you for letting me come, and for letting me know your secret. I promise I won't tell anyone."

"We know." Esme beamed as she joined Carlisle. After introductions were done, Carlisle motioned for Chloe to sit down.

"Why don't you tell us everything you know, from the beginning?" He asked her, his eyes kind as he waited for her to talk.

Chloe looked at me, and I nodded. She took a deep breath to steady her nerves and told the Cullens everything she had told Jacob and I. Once she was done, Esme pulled her close, wrapping a blanket around her shoulders.

"So, we have more reason to believe that Reed is Autumn's anonymous stalker. His disappearance in Michigan lines up with the time Autumn almost was ran over and the first text came." Jacob spoke, looking at Edward. Something passed between them mentally and Edward frowned.

"I don't know if that's connected," Edward murmured out loud. "Interesting theory though."

"It's a possibility, right?" Jacob asked. Edward nodded slowly.

"Yes... I think so."

"What's a possibility?" Emmett asked, cracking his knuckles. "Someone getting a beatdown?"

"Jacob thinks that there may be a connection between Autumn's anonymous stalker and Victoria, especially if the stalker is Reed."

"I'm watching Victoria though," Alice argued. "I would've seen her with Reed."

"Not if she's not directly dealing with him..." my voice trailed off as I realized I spoke out loud. Edward looked at me as if a light bulb had been switched on.

"You may be onto something there, Autumn. We'll look into that," he nodded to Carlisle and Jacob. "In the meantime, the patrols between the pack and us will continue as normal. If we have to double the patrols, then we will. Vampire and wolf, until we get this sorted out."

The Cullens nodded in silent agreement, the air shifting into thick tension as we wondered what the next move was. Carlisle's phone rang just then, breaking the spell over the room. As Carlisle answered the phone, the rest of the Cullens dispersed to other rooms of the house, preparing for the patrols.

Chloe and I sat on the couch as Jacob stepped outside to inform Sam about the current situation. Bella bid everyone goodbye as Edward got ready to take her to the surprise he had planned. Carlisle ended his phone call, and he and Esme sat down next to Chloe, answering her questions about their lives and vampirism. As I rested my head on the arm of the couch, the sounds blended together and the world around me slowly faded to black.