CHAPTER FIVE:
THRILL OF THE CHASE

■ ■ ■ ■ ■

VERONA HALE WAS NEVER going to forget the moment her human life fell apart. She was fifteen at the time, returning home from her best friend's house late one evening, only to find the front door hanging from its hinges. Furniture was knocked everywhere, pieces of shattered glass crunching underneath her shoes as she crept into the silent house, her heart plummeting as she took in the chaos.

Something terrible had happened and she only learned what when she entered the dining room, stumbling across her mother's body slumped across the wooden floorboards, a rope twisted around her broken neck, the skin bruised from the strangulation. Verona let out a terrified scream as she tripped over one of the broken dining chairs, landing inches away from her father's bloodied corpse, his eyes glossed over as he stared at the roof above, a knife sticking out of his chest. Her screams grew louder and she raced from her home with blood staining the hem of her dress, only to be declared delirious by the people she came across, who frowned upon her friendship with the strange girl who claimed to see the future.

And within a day, the horrifying situation only got worse.

She was hauled into custody the next morning, announced as insane by the state as rumours that she was the one to end her parents' lives spread like wildfire. No one would listen to her, no matter how much she screamed that she hadn't done what they were accusing her of, that she was innocent. She was growing up in a narrow-minded time period, and there was nothing she or anyone else could say or do that would prevent what was going to happen next.

When the state declared someone insane, they shipped them into the nearest mental asylum. Alice was sent there alongside her, having lost her mother just a week before, and after confronting her father when she learned the reasons behind her death, the sheriff came knocking on her door, ready to take her away. They both fought with everything in them to escape, but they were quick to be defeated. There was no stopping the inevitable, not then at least.

Verona would never forget what she endured in the next two years, the acts of torture she and her best friend were put through to fit society's standards of normal. She'd never forget the moment she woke up as a vampire, realising her best friend couldn't remember anything from their mortal life, nothing more than their names and faced. She was never going to forget any of it, and that was by far the most tragic part of all.

■ ■ ■ ■ ■

"AND YOU'RE SURE THAT this is where you saw her?" Carlisle asked with wariness, eyeing the trees around them.

"She's almost here," Alice nodded, her eyes glassy as they looked into the future.

Verona's shoulders tensed, her hands clenching into fists as she stared into the never-ending darkness. They'd been standing in the forest for what seemed like forever, waiting for Victoria to show her face. Alice had seen her attacking Bella that evening, and they hadn't hesitated to send the human girl to visit her mother for the weekend. Edward had chosen to accompany her, leaving his family to take care of the problem. And while they had no issue helping out, the tension that swallowed them whole was starting to grow thicker with each moment she was absent.

And then suddenly, as if sensing their thoughts...

"On your left."

Verona broke into an immediate sprint, her body a mere blur to the human eye as she ran with everything she was worth. Her family caught up to her in no time, all seven of them racing through the maze of trees as their target appeared just a yard or so in front of them. They had to catch her, it was out of the question not to.

Emmett almost reached her at one point, his golden eyes narrowed into slits as he reached forward with one of his hands, yanking at the back of her head in an attempt to capture her. But she managed to twist out of his grasp, throwing him into one of the nearby trees before she broke into a sprint again. Verona increased her speed as she heard her brother let out a pained groan, her already spiked anger beginning to grow.

And then, as if sensing they were going to catch up to her, she jumped across the river that separated their land from the reservation, a smug smirk tugging at her lips as she peered over at them. They stumbled to a stop by the edge of the river, letting out groans of annoyance. They couldn't get to her then, not without breaking the treaty, which was out of the question. Victoria started to run again, prompting for them to follow along on their side of the river, just in case she chose to jump across the treaty line. They couldn't let her slip through their fingers, not when so much was at risk when she was free.

"She'll get away," Esme cried out in despair.

"No, she won't," Jasper hissed, determined to take out the threat.

As if they heard them speaking, the wolves appeared on the other side of the river, racing after the redhead invading their land, furious snarls ripping through their gritted canines. For once in their existence, these two arch-enemies were working together, all in the name of capturing the vampire that was causing both sides immense trouble.

Verona stumbled as she was pushed to her breaking speed, letting out a shout of annoyance as the redhead jumped to their side again, dancing between them with ease. This chase was nothing more than a game to her, and it was annoying everyone to no end. They just wanted it to be over, but she wasn't giving up any time soon.

Emmett's hands lurched out to steady his adopted sister as she appeared beside him, the two of them the fastest compared to the rest of their family. If anyone was going to catch her, it would be them. And if the end result was her escaping, they were going to be letting everyone down.

Victoria glanced over her shoulder as they started to close in on her, pushing themselves closer and closer to their limit with every blurred stride they took. Her expression of amusement turned to one of fear, and she jumped across the treaty line in the hopes of escaping. Verona released an annoyed scream, slowly beginning to fall back with the others. Emmett, however, wasn't going to give up. With a yell of anger, he lurched his body across the river, only to collide with one of the snarling shifters, who refused to have one of them on their lands, even if it meant them capturing their common enemy.

Verona sighed as her brother hissed back at the shifter, turning to exchange a disappointed look with the rest of her family. Victoria had slipped away from them again, the redhead jumping from the nearby cliffs with a wicked laugh, disappearing into the churning water below. Bella was still in trouble, and if anything was to happen to her, it'd be on them.

■ ■ ■ ■ ■

"THAT WAS A STUPID thing to do, Emmett." Rosalie chastised her husband as they returned home later that evening. Fortunately for them, Carlisle had managed to ease the simmering tension with the wolves, who were furious that one of them had even dared to cross onto their land, even with their intentions being clear, and they'd walked away before anything else was able to spiral out of their control.

"I know, okay?" Emmett sighed, annoyed at his wife's constant reminder of his mistake. "Just let it go, Rose."

"No, we're talking about this." Rosalie wasn't giving up just yet, and as they continued to bicker back and forth, the rest of the family tuned out their voices. They were always arguing with each other, that was nothing new, but they never stayed mad at each other long enough for it to be a problem. There was no need to be concerned about the tension between them, not when they knew how much the two were in love with each other.

Verona was one of the last to enter the living room, quickly collapsing onto the lounge with a groan. Alice smiled at her, allowing her to rest her head on her shoulder, a cruel sense of exhaustion consuming her after the extensive amount of running she had done. It was times like these where she wished she was able to sleep, and she cursed her immortal existence for taking yet another thing pivotal part of her away. 

"Verona," Carlisle called from in the kitchen. His voice was tense, tinged with concern. Everyone froze at that, all eyes turning to him as he stepped into the living room with his mate lingering beside him. Their eyes lowered to the faded envelope that he grasped in his hands. It looked to be an ordinary letter, but the seal on the back said anything but. "This was left for you."

Verona did nothing for a moment, frozen. Everyone knew who the letter was from, and they were at a loss for words as she rose to her feet, inching toward their father with nerves blossoming inside her. Her fingers had barely grazed the front of the envelope - which seemed to weigh a thousand tonnes - and already, her heart was beginning to ache with longing for him.

The thrill of the chase she'd been consumed by only moments before was nothing more than a faded spark dampened by agony, and she had no idea what she was going to do.