"You knew?"

Evelyn whirled around towards the kitchen, eyes sharp as she glared at Will. "You knew he was here and you weren't going to tell me?"

Evelyn couldn't even think straight. She was so angry, so shocked, so confused... and she couldn't believe that someone who was supposed to be her friend would keep something like this from her.

"I was only trying to protect you," Will said, straightening as his sharp gaze held hers. "I didn't think he would actually be stupid enough to come back and face you after what he did."

A sudden realization made her fists clench at her sides. She was fuming. "That's why you were acting so weird earlier, wasn't it? You were afraid that he was going to get to me before you could, so you made sure that you were here first so you could have your chance with me. Oh my god, I can't even believe you right now--"

"That's not why!" Will interjected, throwing his hands up in frustration. "I literally just told you that I care about you more than probably anyone right now. I know what he did to you, Evelyn! I didn't want to see you fall back into that again."

"Do you think that I'm that stupid? I'm the one that he hurt, Will. I'm the one that's had to live with that pain for months. That doesn't just go away." She groaned, running a hand through her messy brown waves as she shook her head. "I'm not helpless and I don't need you trying to control who I see because you're afraid of how I might feel about them."

Will sighed, taking a few steps closer but stopping when she held up an exasperated hand. Instead, he lowered his voice, willing her to meet his eyes. "Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell you. And you're right, I was afraid that if you saw him you would go back to him with no questions asked. But I still don't think it's a good idea for you to let him in, Ev. I don't like this."

"Right now, I don't really care what you think," Evelyn said flatly, moving back towards the door. "But I don't think he would just show up here if it wasn't important. Something isn't right." The image of his black eyes and the bruise-colored skin beneath them flashed in her mind. She knew Jasper always kept himself fed; something must be wrong if he looked so sick right now.

"Ev--" Will started, but she ignored him. She was not partially fond of the fact that Jasper and Will would soon be in the same room, but that didn't matter very much now. She squared her shoulders and took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself for the conversations that were ahead before she opened her front door once more.

Jasper stood with his hands clasped patiently behind his back, staring at his feet before the sound of the worn wooden door creaking open pulled his attention to Evelyn's face. Of course, he had heard everything that was said just moments before, and he was confused. He did not recognize the male voice within the house, but by the way Evelyn had been speaking to him he could tell that they were close.

"What are you doing here, Jasper?" Evelyn asked, her voice and demeanor guarded as she stared stone-faced up at him. She could see the shock in his face at the way she spoke to him, but it was quickly pushed away as his face became more serious, his eyes almost frantic.

"Evelyn, I know you have no reason to listen to me right now, but I came because Alice —"

Jasper's voice immediately cut off when he began to take in the emotional auras in the room. There was the familiar essence of Evelyn that he remembered all too well; he could feel her confusion, her anger, and surprisingly, that she still cared for him underneath all of the pain and anger that he had caused her. He hated himself for being relieved, but how could he not? After what he had said and done to her, he never dreamed that the love of his life would still manage to care about him at all.

But the part that troubled him most were more feelings of confusion swirling within her... and it was not directed towards him. Though her emotions were loud, he sensed a stronger, almost all encompassing aura coming from just behind his mate. His black eyes moved reluctantly from Evelyn's face to the stranger standing behind her, his face hard and his eyes narrowed as they zeroed in on him.

As Jasper sifted through the unfamiliar vampire's emotions, he could feel the hatred radiating from him like a tidal wave. But underneath that, a fierce protectiveness towards Evelyn... and alongside it, making Jasper feel sick to his stomach, was love. Love for her, his Evelyn, his mate, and he could tell that it had been there for a while now.

His eyes flickered back to Evelyn in disbelief. Had she truly moved on so easily without him? And with another vampire, at that? He scanned her stony face, his gaze falling from her sharp green eyes to the freckled bridge of her nose, and finally down to the curve of her lips. But then he noticed the slight flush in her face and the swollen red of her lips. At first he had thought it was because she was angry, but he knew that mere anger would not have been the cause of flushed cheeks and full lips. He knew because he remembered how the delicate skin of her mouth would react the same way after they had kissed for longer than they should have all those months ago. Before he had gone and ruined everything.

Jasper glanced back at the stranger with new eyes. He seemed to already know that Jasper had come to the realization, because his mouth was twitched up into a hint of a smirk. Smugness was flowing from him like water, and Jasper knew that he was delighting in the fact that he had kissed Evelyn just moments before he had gotten there.

And just like that, Jasper forgot all about Alice's vision, his worry for Bella, and the shock of seeing Evelyn in person for the first time in months. He watched as the vampire's smirk grew larger.

Jasper saw red.

Suddenly everything was moving. Evelyn gasped in shock as Jasper brushed her aside, marching straight up to Will with his teeth bared in a terrifying snarl that made her freeze momentarily in fear. Will answered with a low, guttural growl that echoed through the house, but he did falter back a step when he got a clear look at the ferocity of the vampire in front of him along with the hundreds of scars on his arms, neck, and the exposed part of his chest that was not covered by his shirt. Will was prideful, but he was not stupid; to pick a fight with a vampire like Jasper could be life threatening. But he was going to stand his ground nevertheless.

"How dare you touch her," Jasper seethed through gritted teeth, nostrils flaring and eyes wild as he stood slightly taller than the other vampire. "How dare you try to keep her from seeing me?"

"I was protecting her from you," Will spit back. "You're the one who left her and broke her heart. What makes you think she wants to see you after what you did?"

Right away, Will knew that was the wrong thing to say. But at the moment, he didn't care. Jasper hissed, shoving Will in the chest as anger boiled wildly inside of him. "Don't talk about things that you don't understand! She doesn't need protection from you. She doesn't need anything from you."

"Are you sure about that?" Will taunted, shoving Jasper back as he prepared himself for anything the blond vampire might do next.

Evelyn knew that if she didn't do something quickly, things were going to get very ugly, very fast. The last thing she wanted was for either of them to get hurt, or for Marie's house to be completely demolished in the fight that was bound to happen if she didn't do something. She stepped around Jasper so she stood nearly between them, staring intently into his cold, black eyes and willing him to listen. "Stop! Jasper, I said stop!" she yelled, grabbing his arm as his marble-like fists clenched tightly at his sides.

Jasper looked startled at the sudden touch, his eyes momentarily softening as they fell to her fingers wrapped around his arm and then moving up her body until they rested on her face. "Jasper, you have no right to come into my house and act like you know what is and isn't good for me. You have no right to come in here and act like you care" she said, the bite in her tone clear as she glared up at him. "Not ever, and especially not after everything you put me through."

Jasper took an involuntary step back at the venom in her words. The Evelyn he had left all those months ago would have never spoken to anyone this way, much less him. But he knew that he deserved it; he had lied to her, abandoned her, and from the deep emotional scars he could feel emanating from her, he had also caused her an insurmountable amount of pain since he'd been gone. At the time, he thought that he had been protecting her, but now he realized he had caused so much damage. He had destroyed everything, and he hated himself for it.

Behind her, Will straightened, the smug smile back on his lips as he sneered. "She's right. Now, maybe it's time for you--"

"That's enough from you," Evelyn snapped, shooting him an equally poisonous glare and interrupting what was sure to be another hate-fueled insult at Jasper. "You're making everything worse right now and trying to get involved with something that doesn't concern you. I'm completely capable of speaking for myself."

Behind Evelyn, Jasper raised a cocky eyebrow at Will as if to say "I told you so." In turn, Will let out a vicious snarl that made the hairs on Evelyn's neck stand completely straight up. For her, that was the last straw.

"This is ridiculous! Taunting? Fighting? You're both acting like spoiled children for no reason! You don't even know each other!." She groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose to stop the headache that was threatening to descend on her at any moment. "I can't even look at either of you right now."

Jasper had the good sense to look ashamed of his actions so far tonight; he did not know what he had expected would happen when he saw Evelyn again, but it was certainly not this. And he was already disappointing her and he had not even been back in Forks for an hour. Will, on the other hand, was not going to let things go so quickly.

"Evelyn, are you serious? You're going to let him back in that easily?" Will exclaimed, his voice rising in disbelief. "Christ, Ev, it's like you don't even remember all of the shit he did to you."

Jasper's fists clenched again. "Do not yell at her or speak to her that way ever again," he said, his words like daggers as he glared menacingly at Will. "Or I will have no problem ripping out your throat at the first chance I get."

Will's nostrils flared as he stepped up to Jasper once more, bumping Evelyn's shoulder in the process. "I would love to see you try, cowboy. You have no idea who it is you're talking to."

Before Jasper could respond, Evelyn shoved herself between them once more, this time facing Will. "Both of you need to stop this right now," she hissed, shoving Will's chest as she felt Jasper back off behind her. Will's eyes were still narrowed on Jasper, but he stepped backward and did not say anything as Evelyn heaved a sigh of relief.

She glanced between the two vampires who were now several feet apart. They were still both glaring murderously at each other, but the tension in the room had tangibly decreased. "Okay, now that that's over," she said, her eyes settling on Jasper once more. "You said you needed to tell me something about Alice?"

At the sound of his sister's name, Jasper immediately remembered the reason he had shown up there tonight. He turned his full attention to Evelyn as he spoke, trying to find the right words. "Yes. I came to tell you that Alice, well, she had a vision about Bella--"

Oh no. "What was it? What did she see?"

Jasper's voice faltered slightly as he watched her face for her reaction. "She saw Bella jump off of a cliff."

"What?" Evelyn exclaimed, every muscle in her body suddenly tense. "Does she-- I mean, is she..."

Jasper shook his head, his eyes pained. "I don't know. Alice is at her house now to try and find out more."

She remembered the odd text message that she had gotten from her friend earlier, the abruptness of it. Charlie had said that she hadn't been answering his calls... what if that meant she didn't survive the jump?

"I have to go find her," Evelyn said, sprinting into the living room to grab her phone from the coffee table. When she came back into the entryway Jasper was waiting patiently by the front door, while Will was looking at her incredulously.

"How do you know he's telling the truth? He's probably just saying this so he can get you to leave, or take you away. Evelyn, please listen--"

"I wouldn't lie about something like this," Jasper interrupted, his voice calm as he stared at Will coolly. "I've made a lot of mistakes in my life, but the last thing I would do is force Evelyn to do something she didn't want to do. I came here to tell you what happened, and to help you find her if that's what you wish," he finished, turning to address Evelyn as he spoke.

Evelyn nodded at him once, before turning to Will. "Look, I know I hurt you and that you're upset right now, but this is serious. If you're not going to help me then I think you need to leave."

Will held her gaze in silence for a few painful moments. He glanced between her and Jasper, then scoffed as he shook his head. Without another word, he brushed past them and out the front door, presumably off into the forest somewhere where Evelyn hoped he would cool off and come back to his senses.

When he was gone she dialed Bella's phone number as she searched Marie's purse for her car keys. The end of Bella's voicemail message was playing by the time she found them, and she could feel herself shaking as she hurried past Jasper and out the front door.

She couldn't imagine anything that would make this night worse. First it was Leah and Seth's dad, then it was Will and the kiss, him and Jasper almost fighting inside the tiny foyer of her house, and now there was a possibility that her best friend might be dead. What the actual hell was happening right now?

Evelyn couldn't help but feel slightly annoyed when she started her car and looked over to see Jasper staring back at her from the passenger seat. She huffed, turning around in the seat to back out of her driveway as her hand gripped the steering wheel like she was holding on for dear life.

"Do your legs not work anymore?" She asked, sarcasm dripping from her tongue. "Or are you trying to stress me out even more?" She had hoped that he wouldn't ride in her car with her so she could have a moment to catch her breath, but of course, nothing seemed to be going her way tonight.

"I just want to make sure you're okay," he said, wishing she would look at him. "Evelyn, I--"

She shot him a death glare. "Don't. We are not doing this right now. I have nothing to say to you."

Jasper opened his mouth as if to say something, but when Evelyn reached forward and turned up the radio as loud as it could go to prevent him from speaking, he decided against it and pressed his lips into a thin line. He had never seen her this angry before; of course, he knew that there were many things happening tonight that were making her upset, but he also knew that him showing up was probably not helping anything. He carefully studied her face as they sped down neighborhood streets, Evelyn blowing through stop signs and speeding significantly to get to Bella's house faster. She was chewing her bottom lip like she always did when she was worried, her knuckles white from how hard she was gripping the wheel.

Somehow, he knew that tonight was only going to get worse.

***

Evelyn had barely even shut the car off before she threw herself out onto the driveway, sprinting up the steps and bursting through the front door. She barely registered that she had seen the living room light on in the window, and her heart was pounding wildly in her ears as she hurried into to the living room.

Within seconds of catching sight of a familiar set of chocolate brown eyes, a strangled sound escaped her lips as she threw her arms around Bella and squeezed her as tightly as she could. Bella let out a surprised gasp but soon had wrapped her own arms around Evelyn and returned the embrace.

"What the actual hell, Bella? Jasper said that you jumped off of a cliff, and I thought you were dead!" Evelyn pulled away, crossing her arms tightly over her chest. "You told me you weren't going to do these kinds of things anymore." Her voice broke as she finished speaking, and she began blinking hastily to get rid of the tears that were now threatening to fall.

"I didn't mean to make you worry, Ev. I was just cliff jumping. They do it for fun on the reservation... Jacob told me about it." Bella's eyes shifted to Jasper, who was now standing patiently behind Evelyn. "Hi, Jasper," she said awkwardly, offering him a small wave.

Jasper nodded towards her, a small, polite smile on his lips. "Hello, Bella." But his eyes had immediately moved to Evelyn once more, who he noticed was now holding her phone up to her ear and chewing her lip again as she waited for who he assumed to be Leah to answer her.

Suddenly, an excited squeal that sounded like tinkling bells erupted from the stairway. Evelyn barely had a moment to register who it was before tiny, granite-like arms had enveloped her into a bone-crushing embrace.

"Oh, I'm so happy to see you, Evelyn!" She said. "It's been so long!"

Evelyn blinked, wrapping an uncertain arm around the pixie-like vampire. She was glad to see Alice, she truly was, but she had not forgotten that Alice and the rest of the Cullens had left her without a word, too. She had lost them, too, and for Alice to be acting like nothing had happened stung more than Evelyn would like to admit.

When Alice finally pulled away, Evelyn let out a shaky breath and turned her phone off, putting it in her pocket. "Leah isn't answering," she said to no one in particular. "I hope everything is okay."

"Leah? Like Leah Clearwater?" Bella asked, turning her attention to Evelyn as they both moved to sit on the couch with Alice taking the other seat beside them.

"Yeah, she works with me at Marie's. Her dad is at the hospital right now, I'm just really worried about her. It sounded like it was not looking good for him."

Bella bit her lip, taking Evelyn's hand. "When Jacob dropped me off tonight, he told me about Harry's heart attack." By the sad look in Bella's eyes, Evelyn knew what she was going to say before she even said it. "He didn't make it, Ev. Jake said that he's gone."

"Oh." And that was all she could say, because suddenly her mind seemed to be a million different places at once. She glanced down at the phone in her hand. Of course Leah wasn't going to answer her phone, she was probably grieving with her family. All she could keep coming back to though was how her heart was breaking for Seth and Leah Clearwater.

She looked up, unintentionally meeting the concerned gaze of Jasper, who was lingering in the door way with his arms crossed loosely over his chest. They stared at each other for a few minutes, Jasper fighting the urge to walk over and sweep her into his arms, before Evelyn cleared her throat and looked away once more.

Alice leaned across Bella to squeeze Evelyn's shoulder gently, but then her face scrunched up in disgust as she took in the scent of Bella's hair and jacket. "Okay, I'm so sorry, but what is that god-awful wet dog smell?"

Bella laughed uncomfortably, shifting her attention to Alice. "Oh, well, I guess that would be me." After hastily taking her jacket off and throwing it behind the couch, she seemed to think better of her words and hurried to amend them. "Well, actually, it's Jacob."

Alice and Jasper shared a confused look before she turned back to Bella. "Jacob who?"

Bella glanced at Evelyn for a brief moment before she spoke. "Well, Jacob is... kind of a werewolf."

Alice sighed, rolling her eyes in disgust as she focused on the human girl in front of her. "Bella! Werewolves are not good company to keep!" She shared a look with Jasper before turning back to Bella. "I have never met someone more prone to life-threatening idiocy!"

"It's not like they would ever hurt me," Bella argued, though her voice was quiet. Evelyn knew that they were both thinking of Emily Young and the scars she carried because of Sam. "And I wasn't always with them by myself. Evelyn is friends with them too."

At that, Jasper went rigid. "You're what?"

A sudden voice from the corner of the room made all four of them stop talking. Evelyn was surprised to see Jacob and Embry standing in the door way just behind Jasper.

"Speak for yourself," Jacob said pointedly to Alice, clearly in reference to her earlier comment about werewolves. He turned to Bella. "I had to see that you were safe. Both of you," he added when he saw that Evelyn was perched on the couch alongside Bella.

"I thought you couldn't protect me here," Bella said, though Evelyn could tell that she was glad to see Jacob.

Jacob shrugged, sharing a look with Embry before he met Bella's confused eyes. "Guess I don't really care."

Alice stood up with an incredulous expression on her face. "Well we're not going to hurt them."

Embry glared at her, and then at Jasper. "How are we supposed to just believe that? We don't know you."

"It would be wise for you to watch how you speak to my sister, dog," Jasper said, the venom in his words clear as they fell from his lips.

Embry raised his eyebrows and stretched himself up to his full height. "Is that supposed to be a threat, leech?"

"Please, no more fighting," Evelyn pleaded, rubbing her hand over her tired face. "Tonight is not the night." She looked pointedly at Jacob and Embry, who suddenly looked embarrassed when they realized what she meant. Her attention turned to Jasper. "We've been completely safe while with them. Everything is fine," she assured. Jasper still didn't look convinced, but not wanting to further upset her, he walked across the room to stand next to Alice.

"We aren't here to hurt them," Jasper said quietly, looking from Jacob to Embry. "We never would."

Jacob scoffed. "Of course not, you're both just harmless Cullens. We're talking about the other bloodsuckers who've been trying to kill them because of you."

"We're still hunting the redhead, but we got the one with the dreads ages ago," Embry added proudly, as if to show them that they were able to do something that the Cullens weren't.

Jasper and Alice' eyes widened, and they shared concerned looks with each other.

"You didn't see that?" Jasper asked quietly, concern etched all over his face as his eyes flickered to Evelyn and back. She was watching them intently, wondering if Alice had truly been keeping an eye on them after all this time.

"No, I didn't see anything. I didn't see him, or her." She glanced at Bella and Evelyn for confirmation.

Evelyn could only nod. Across from them Embry spoke up. "It was a few weeks ago. Ol' dreads was about to kill them before we got there and took care of it."

Evelyn could feel Jasper's eyes burning into the side of her face. It took everything in her to avoid turning her head and looking into his eyes, which she knew would be wide with concern and questions. She couldn't figure out why he was acting like he still cared about her... hadn't he told her that she meant nothing to him all those months ago?

Alice frowned, her eyebrows furrowing as she shook her head in disbelief. "I didn't see any of that. I didn't see you get pulled from the water, either." She turned from Bella to the wolves, her eyes narrowed and accusing. "I can't see anything past you and your pack of mutts!"

Jacob and Embry both opened their mouths to reply, but thankfully Bella was already up to break up the fight that was going to happen between the vampires and werewolves. Evelyn was grateful; she didn't have it in her to try and compete with the temper of supernaturals anymore tonight.

After a pointed look from Bella, Alice sighed. "Alright, fine. We'll give you all a moment to talk." She turned to her brother. "Won't we, Jasper?"

Jasper was staring menacingly at the wolves, but nonetheless nodded. He gave one last worried glance back at Evelyn, who averted her eyes as soon as they met his, before letting Alice drag him towards the back door.

"Wait!" Bella suddenly cried out. "You're.. you guys are gonna come back, right? You're not going anywhere?"

Alice gave her a tight-lipped smile. "As soon as you put the dogs out."

And with that, they watched the two vampires disappear out the door and into the night.

***

Evelyn and Embry sat together on the couch, while Jacob and Bella stood in front of them having a heated discussion.

"Are there others?" Jacob asked, his eyes hard as he questioned Bella. "How many Cullens are here and how long are they staying?"

"It's just Alice and Jasper," Evelyn said, her eyes closed as she leaned back on the couch cushion. "I don't know why you're so worked up, Jake. They're not dangerous."

Jacob ignored her, instead focusing on Bella. She heard Embry chuckle beside her, and she elbowed him roughly in the ribs without opening her eyes. She grinned at the sharp breath he took after the bony part of her arm made contact with the soft tissue of his torso.

"And they can stay as long as they'd like," Bella said, adding on to Evelyn's previous statement. Evelyn heard her pick up the two mugs from the coffee table, and opened her eyes to see her walking out of the room towards the kitchen. An exasperated Jacob followed to continue arguing, leaving her and Embry alone in the living room.

Embry watched Jacob leave the room, waiting a moment before turning to Evelyn. "So... was that guy the one that dumped you?"

She chuckled at his words, though they did sting. "Yes, Jasper was the one who left me." She raised her eyebrow curiously. "Why do you ask?"

Embry shrugged, settling in deeper on the couch and putting his feet up onto the coffee table. "I don't know, I just never really put it together that you loved the bloodsuckers, too. I mean, I knew, but you were never the way Bella was. It's weird." He glanced at her. "I don't like him."

Evelyn rolled her eyes, but she offered him a smile. "Yeah, well turning into a giant wolf is pretty weird, too. And this is just a wild guess, but he probably doesn't like you, either." She sighed, throwing her head back against the couch cushion again. "I don't really know how to feel about him coming back. I didn't ever expect it to happen."

"I wish they didn't," Embry said, a scowl on his face. "It'll be so annoying to have to go back to respecting the treaty boundary again. Plus their smell is gonna be everywhere." His eyes moved towards the kitchen, where Jacob and Bella were talking. "And you have no idea how annoying it is to hear that one's thoughts about Bella 24/7. It's disgusting." Embry made a gagging sound in his throat, making Evelyn laugh. She knew all too well about Jacob and Bella's complicated relationship.

Suddenly, they heard Bella and Jacob's voices once more. "Bella, step back!" Jacob snarled, backing into the living room. In an instant Embry and Evelyn were on their feet, eyes wide as they watched Bella follow a shaking Jacob back into the living room. Bella's eyes were wide, and Evelyn could tell she was upset.

"Jacob, who was that?" She asked, ignoring his order to stay away from him as she followed him into the room.

The sound of the back door opening grabbed Evelyn's attention, and she was surprised to see the frantic look on Alice's face as she and Jasper entered the room. The latter vampire came to a stop beside Evelyn, his eyes flickering from her to Jacob as he calculated the best way to keep her out of harm's way if he were to phase in the living room.

"Bella!" Alice shrieked, grabbing her arm. "Bella, it's Edward. He thinks you're dead. Rosalie told him why I came here..." With a sad look in her eyes, Alice looked from Bella to Jacob. Suddenly, Bella was livid.

"Why didn't you let me speak to him?" she demanded.

"He didn't ask for you," Jacob snarled, his voice raising as he got even more angry.

"I don't care!" Bella screamed, not looking away from Jacob as Alice gripped her shoulders and pulled her away. Evelyn shared a worried look with Embry, and soon the wolf was up and doing the same with Jacob to try and get him to calm down.

"Bella! He's going to the Volturi. He-- he wants to die, too."

Alice's words hung in the air like smoke. The Volturi. Evelyn remembered that Jasper had once told her about them, and Will had told her that he had once been part of this mysterious group of what she could only assume to be old, powerful vampires. From her understanding, they were the unofficial rulers of the vampire world... if Edward was going to them to die, would they let him? By the fear she saw in Alice's eyes, she could only assume the worst.

***

Within moments, everyone was rushing out the front door towards the black Mercedes parked in Bella's driveway. Alice moved the quickest, flitting to the driver's side after throwing all of their hastily packed bags in the trunk. Evelyn's hands were shaking as she followed Jasper down the driveway, doing her best to ignore Jacob and Bella arguing just ahead of her.

She couldn't believe that Jacob would let Edward believe that Bella was dead. She couldn't believe that Edward would choose to try and get himself killed without talking to Charlie or Bella first... actually, she couldn't believe a lot of things that had happened that night. But as much as she was angry at him for leaving, she would never want Edward to die. Like it or not, she considered him the closest thing she had to a brother, and she would be damned if she didn't do everything she could to help save his life.

"I don't think you should come," Jasper said to her quietly when they reached the car. Before she could voice her objections, though, he continued. "Just please listen. You and Bella are both humans, and if the Volturi found out that you know about us..." He trailed off, shaking his head. "They are not forgiving, Evelyn. They would kill you without batting an eye."

"As much as I hate to say this, he's right," a voice said from behind them. Evelyn turned and was surprised to see Will coming out of the forest, coming to a stop beside them. He must have been listening in the trees nearby. "I was with them for decades, Evelyn. I saw what they did to who they believed to be enemies, or dangerous. You can't go. Please don't go."

Evelyn shook her head in disbelief. "Look, we're wasting time even talking about this. Edward's life is literally in danger right now because of him," she said, nodding towards Jacob. "And I know he would do the same for any of us. I'm going," she said with finality to both Will and Jasper, who were looking at each other with apprehension.

"Okay," Jasper finally said, turning and getting into the car. He was certainly not done trying to convince her to stay away from Volterra, but he knew now was not the time to start another argument. He would let Will do that, instead. In fact, he preferred that Will be the one to piss her off instead of him.

"Evelyn, please listen to me," Will pleaded, stepping forward and taking her hands in his. "There's so much that you don't know yet-- so much that I haven't gotten to tell you about them, and about me--"

Evelyn pulled back, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion and skepticism as she stared at him. "Why are you being so adamant about this? You've been acting strange this whole night. I don't know what's gotten into you."

Will groaned, raking his hands through his hair in desperate frustration. "I know, I know, and I'm sorry. But please, Evelyn, I am begging you. I will tell you everything if you just stay and let me explain."

Despite his best efforts, Evelyn was simply done speaking to him. "I'm going, Will. I have to help my friend. Goodnight," she told him, before slipping into the backseat where she was disappointed to see Jasper waiting for her. She buckled her seatbelt in silence, pointedly avoiding the soul-searching eyes that she knew were waiting for her acknowledgement beside her.

"Okay," Alice said in front of her, starting the car and rolling up the window that Jacob had been speaking to Bella through.

Evelyn didn't even so much as look at Will as Alice revved the engine, tearing off towards the highway to get to the airport in Port Angeles.

***

whaaaaat 2 chapters in one week, what's gotten into me?? okay but seriously wow this is the longest chapter I've ever written and I did it in like 2 days... not too sure how I feel about it cause it's def not my best but I wanted to update SO BAD cause I'm so excited to write the next couple :)) love y'all thanks for reading!! also I'd love to hear your theories about what's gonna happen next if you've got them hehe >:)