Charles was facing me his eyes ablaze with anger. I knew what had caused this anger and I was alight with happiness. This anger must mean that I had succeeded. The stupid little girl that Mitchell and Zachariah had taken such a liking to must be dead. Mitchell had been punished for betraying me and Zachariah would get his soon.
“She’s not dead,” Charles spoke low, a slight smile on his face. “Your plan failed.”
Damn! How could she have survived three bullets to the chest? They were so calculated! The lung and the دل were both hit. She should have died!
“And so should آپ have.” I hated it when he answered my thoughts. It just showed how he was مزید powerful than me.
And I was weak now. I had sent the Shadow Hunters away. Damn me! Why did I have to be such a good master and allow them a دن off every week? I was too nice for my own good.
Charles snorted, again hearing my thoughts.
“Nice? آپ go around kidnapping and shooting seventeen سال old girls! You’re twisted and sadistic!”
He lifted his hand, palm up, and I was raised into the air. Another دکھائیں of his power. I looked down at him and I knew this was the end of me. But it didn’t have to be.
“Show me mercy, Charles,” I کہا to him.
“You showed my daughter no mercy when آپ shot her,” Charlie spat at me. “Why should I دکھائیں آپ any?”
“Do آپ want me to beg?”
“You could beg as much as آپ like,” Charlie shrugged. “You still won’t live.
There was no other emotion in Charles’ eyes except for the rage he felt. I didn’t expect anything else. There was no emotion involved when killing someone; آپ let your rage take over.
Charles held his other hand, palm up, in the air. A dagger appeared. Thin with a ragged edge and blue encrusted gem handle. The dagger spun in his hand and slowly floated up. Charlie flicked his hand so casually it wouldn’t have looked like he was ending someone else’s life. Mine.


That was not a dream I ever wanted to have again. I felt so weird being Loren in my dream. It was like I wasn’t even myself. I wasn’t just playing him I was him. It was creepy and quite disgusting.
It was light now. Edward wasn’t اگلے to me in my bed, even though I would have preferred that. My mother sat on the chair اگلے to my بستر and smiled when she saw I was awake.
“Hey darling,” she said, leaning over to kiss my head. “How’re آپ feeling?”
“Better,” I answered, closing my eyes. Better in the sense I was awake and not being murdered سے طرف کی my father. “How’re you?”
“I’m fine,” she said, still smiling. “I have some great news.”
“I dreamed my entire attempted murder?” I asked hopefully. I sat up, doing it slowly to keep up the pretence of being injured.
She laughed though it was an empty laugh. She obviously felt terrible for letting me almost die while she lay asleep. It wasn’t her fault as Loren had kind of put them into comas.
“Dr Cullen says آپ can go ہوم today!” She clapped her hands together joyfully.
I stared at her wide eyed.
“Go home?” I stuttered. Was I hearing right?
“He says you’re healing faster everyday. He’s such a good doctor, isn’t he? Forks is lucky to have him.”
But ہوم was at Charlie’s. And Charlie wasn’t there. So it really wasn’t ہوم unless Charlie was there.
“Aren’t آپ happy?” her smile was gone. “I thought آپ would want to go home.”
“I do,” I said, quickly. “It’s just....”
“Your father isn’t there,” she finished.
I nodded. She looked at me and tilted her head to the side. That was her thinking. Thinking of something that included me.
“No,” I said, shaking my head. “No to whatever it is you’re thinking.”
“You don’t even know what it is,” she said, disapprovingly.
آپ wanna bet? I thought. I knew what she was thinking. I didn’t like it. I may have planned to do that but I didn’t go through with it because I saw sense. My mother didn’t have an ounce of sense in her.
“I think I can guess,” I replied. “And the answer’s no.”
“Michaela,” she said, ignoring what I’d just said. “How about آپ come back with me and Darren.”
“No,” I said, flatly.
“Forks is obviously too dangerous for آپ to live. I mean, آپ were kidnapped and shot all within eight days.”
“That was a one off thing,” I said, as if she should know that. “He was trying to keep me quiet. All kidnappers do it.”
Sarah sighed.
“What is so great about Forks anywhere?” she threw her arms up, exasperated. “It’s quiet and green. Much too green. The town is so small everyone knows when آپ go to the loo, when آپ went to bed, who آپ went to بستر with. What could possibly make آپ stay?”
I smiled then. I knew why I wanted to stay in Forks.
“Trust a boy to influence your decision.” She knew what had made me smile. “Men aren’t everything.”
“I know that, mother,” I said. “Just because آپ didn’t like Forks doesn’t mean I don’t. This town might be somewhere that I plan to live. For a few years.”
“Or maybe the rest of your married life.” She pointed to the ring that never left my finger on my left hand.
I covered it up and laughed.
“I’m not getting married,” I said, snorting. “What makes آپ think that?”
“The sparkling diamond ring on the ring finger of your left hand.”
I didn’t answer and turned the other way.
“When were آپ going to tell me?” She asked me. When I didn’t reply she stood up and turned my head to face her. “Michaela?”
“When I was married thirty years with four kids and six grandchildren,” I answered, turning away again. I didn’t want to have this conversation with her.
“Michaela, you’re seventeen years old. You’re not ready for marriage.”
“You were only two years older than me when آپ and Charlie got married,” I reminded her. “How is that any different?”
“I was older and an adult,” she said, folding her arms over her chest as if she had won.
“And I’m not?” I looked up at her. “Just because I am not a legal adult doesn’t make me any less of an adult. I think I’ve been through enough to be treated like one.”
“Edward is too old for you,” she said, struggling to find a better reason.
“He is only a سال older but we were in the same year,” I countered.
“I don’t approve of him.”
“But Charlie does.” That was half true. Charlie did sort of approve of Edward, he just didn’t دکھائیں it.
“Is he letting آپ marry him?” Sarah’s mouth was half opened in shock.
“Of course,” I said. “Charlie respects the Cullens. Don’t you? I mean, Dr Cullen did save my life.”
“That is beside the point,” She said, pointing her finger at me. “Edward is-”
My door opened cutting her off. Mitchell walked in looking nothing like Carlisle had کہا last night. He stood upright and smiling. He even waved at me. Where were the broken bones, the bruises, the cuts?
“Hello, Kayla,” he said. He sounded just the same as before and his blue eyes sparkled. His eyes turned to my mother who still stood with her finger pointing at me. “Is this a bad time?”
“No,” I said. “My mother was just leaving to sign the discharge forms.”
She looked like she was going to argue but she thought better and stalked from the room. I sighed and smiled at Mitchell.
“You look good,” I said, looking him up and down. “I thought آپ were supposed to be all beaten up.”
“Jenzis heal fast,” he said, sitting down in the chair Sarah had previously occupied. “What about you?”
“I’m stuck here pretending to be recovering when I healed like three days ago.”
He nodded and then his face saddened.
“I’m sorry, Kayla,” he said, reaching out to touch my hands. “I tried to help but my father had his Jenzi soldiers to ambush me. He left me to die on the streets.”
Hmm. That’s what dream Loren ,or rather I, thought in my dream. یا near enough. Mitchell had been punished for betraying me. Strange coincidence. I had already suspected Loren had been behind it.
“Do آپ remember Zach?” Mitchell asked me. “He kept آپ in that cell but was keeping آپ محفوظ from Loren?”
“Of course,” I said. “Is he ok? He got out safe, right?”
“He did get out alright,” Mitchell nodded. “But I overheard my father discussing with some of the generals if they would be able to track Zach down. آپ don’t know where he went, do you? He didn’t say anything?”
I shook my head.
“I’m sorry, Mitchell,” I said. “He کہا nothing to me about where he would go.”
Mitchell groaned and put his face in his hands.
“This is all my fault.” His voice was muffled. “I bet Charlie’s stuck in a cell right now and Zach is probably being lynched right now. How could I be so stupid?”
I watched Mitchell beat himself up for a few moments. Zachariah was going to be tracked down to be punished, just like dream Loren had thought. This was getting weird.
“Did آپ see Charlie attack Loren?” I asked Mitchell. “Did آپ see them fight at all?”
He shook his head in his hands.
“We staked out the قلعہ so we attacked only when he had no protection. The Shadow Hunters are too powerful for us to fight on our own. We found out that they had their one دن break today. Today was the دن of attack but Loren had the soldiers ambush me. He knew we were there. I told Charlie to run, that I would fight them off and help him. But I didn’t.”
I looked towards the door and then slid off the bed. I crouched down in front of him and peeled his hands away from his face. He looked down at me and I saw his eyes were wet.
“Charlie will be fine,” I said. “He is مزید than capable of looking after himself.”
“But I left him, Kayla,” Mitchell stressed. “He’s on his own right now in that castle. I feel so ashamed.”
He tried to cover his face again but I held onto his hands.
“You were attacked and beaten to within an inch of your life,” I stressed. “I think that can excuse آپ from that.”
“Kayla!”
I turned and saw Alice standing at the foot of my bed. She was jumping up and down with excitement.
“Alice!” I said, surprised. “I didn’t hear آپ come in.”
Edward appeared اگلے to her and he was grinning. Both of them looked happier than I’d seen them in days.
“What is it?” I asked. I stood up and watched them. There version of excitement was sometimes different to mine.
“I saw Charlie!” Alice squealed.