After the three disappeared into the shadows, the tension in the clearing only tightened. Everyone knew what was coming next.
Edward's gaze locked onto Bella with a raw desperation shining through his usually calm exterior. "He's a tracker," he growled low. "He's already made his choice."
Panic flared across Bella's face, her confusion quickly turning to dawning understanding. "What do you mean—made his choice?" she stammered.
"He wants you," Alice said flatly. "You have to leave. Now."
No one hesitated—not even Alex. Rosalie and Emmett immediately positioned themselves between James and Bella, their postures radiating lethal intent. Jasper began circling, his eyes sharp and searching.
Carlisle's voice cut through the charged air with calm authority. "Iris, Jasper, take Bella north on foot. Edward, follow as soon as you're sure James is tracking the wrong path. Emmett, Edyth, you're with me—we'll make noise, pull him off the scent."
Esme's soft but resolute voice added, "Do what you must. We'll cover your retreat."
The plan was classic Cullen—precise, bold, and fast. But watching James's predatory smile, Alex knew they'd need more than just speed and luck.
He stepped closer, brushing Alice's arm softly. "Let me help distract them. Trust me."
Alice met his gaze and nodded once, a silent command: no time for questions, only trust.
As Edward and Jasper hurried Bella through the darkening trees, Alex felt a familiar shimmer of power rise in his chest. With a subtle flick of his will, he twisted the scent trails behind them, churning the earth and air, bending Bella's scent into spirals that forked toward the river and slipped deep into the mountains.
Rosalie's hand found his shoulder for a quick, urgent squeeze—her wordless thanks—just as Edyth and Emmett crashed loudly in the opposite direction, making sure even humans in Forks would notice.
Alex melted into the shadows, weaving soft hallucinations around the clearing: phantom shapes darting at the edges, scents of deer and distant hikers. Every trick in his considerable arsenal bent reality to confuse James.
He watched as the tracker hesitated, tilted his head, nostrils flaring, aggression tightening in his frame. Then abruptly, James shifted course, stalking straight toward the false trail Alex had laid.
For the first time that night, Alex let himself breathe. Through shifting leaves, he glimpsed Bella—terrified but running—her hand locked tightly in Iris's grasp, Jasper flickering ahead like a ghost.
Moments later, the family regrouped at the cars, adrenaline still humming beneath their skin. Alice slipped silently to Alex's side and closed her hand firmly over his. "Thank you," she whispered, voice thick with gratitude.
"You bought us time we didn't have."
Rosalie, for once stripping away her usual calm mask, showed raw relief. "You didn't have to risk it," she muttered quietly, "but you did."
Alex shrugged, nerves jangling in a way unfamiliar but strangely welcome. "You're worth it. All of you."
Behind them, Carlisle and Esme quietly began laying out their next moves. Edward paced restlessly, and Emmett let out a ragged, almost-laugh.
As the clouds finally broke and rain began to pour, Alex realized what family truly meant in this world: sacrifice, fear, and standing together when it mattered most.
He pulled Alice and Rosalie close, their warmth steady against him. "We'll get her out," he promised, voice low and sure. "And I'll be here for you. No matter what comes next."
Somewhere outside, thunder rolled—deep and endless. But for the first time since arriving, Alex found his fear wasn't for himself.
The trackers might have known how to pursue prey, but Alex was no ordinary target. His serenity signaled that any attack would meet not flesh, but ripples of energy, illusions, and barriers woven from another realm of existence.
Rosalie sensed it, too. Her stance beside him relaxed just a touch, and Alice's warm hand pressed tighter on his arm, knowing that tonight, the fortress was not just their family—but Alex himself.
The ride through night toward Phoenix was long, a crawl of tense silence punctuated only by plans spoken in whispers. Bella remained nestled between Jasper and Iris, exhaustion lining her features—the weight of threat pushing down hard.
At last, their destination emerged: a discreet hotel Alice had foreseen, its location perfect for laying low. Inside, the suite smelled faintly of clean linens and distant storms.
Bella sank onto the sofa, vulnerability unguarded in the quiet. Jasper stayed close, Iris methodically checked the locks and windows. Alice and Rosalie exchanged looks—silent promises to protect, to endure.
Alex exhaled slowly. "We'll keep you safe," he said, settling beside Bella. "No matter what comes next."
Bella looked up, hope flickering unsteady in her tired eyes. "Thank you, Alex... all of you."
The suite in Phoenix hung somewhere between sanctuary and cage. Tension hummed in the carpet, echoed by Alice's pacing and Bella's anxious silence. Jasper and Iris took turns watching the hall; Rosalie stood sentinel by the window. Alex,
meanwhile, was equal parts observer and anchor—sensing worry, but showing none.
He lounged on the arm of the couch near Bella, scrolling idly through TV channels with a faint, almost mischievous smile. For all the fear in the air, he seemed immune, as if he'd seen monsters scarier than James and found them lacking.
Bella stole glances at him, baffled by his calm. In the corner of the room, Alice pressed two trembling fingers to her temples, eyes flickering, lost in vision.
"There's a room... with mirrors. It's bright. I see flowers, and—Bella, you're crying."
The group tensed at Alice's words. Almost on cue, the hotel phone rang, its shrill cry breaking the calm like a knife.
Jasper shot Alex a questioning look, but Alex simply winked in return. He didn't move to answer, letting the drama play out as if he already knew which ending he'd allow.
It was Bella who reached for the phone, hand shaking. "Hello?" she whispered.
James's voice, smooth and poisonous, floated through. "Would you do anything for your mother, Bella? If you want her to live, come alone." Nothing about it rattled Alex—instead, he leaned back, letting Bella read the gravity on everyone else's faces but not on his.
The panic, the tears—Alex let them happen, but never let himself get pulled under. He caught Bella's eyes as she finished with the phone, offered her a lopsided grin that, somehow, held real comfort.
"It's okay," he said quietly, like this was just another problem to solve. "He'll never lay a finger on you or your mom—not unless I allow it. And frankly, Bella, I don't."
His words were casual, but something behind them told every vampire in the room they were true.
Bella tried to muster courage—her voice wavered. "But what if he—"
Alex just shook his head, utterly unphased. "James is the one who should worry about what comes next".
Alice's vision shifted—she met Alex's gaze, Rosalie snorted softly, just a hint of relief in her tone. "Nothing ever shakes you, does it?"
Alex shrugged. "I've seen wrose".
Jasper finally let his guard drop, a grin twitching at the corners of his lips as he regarded Alex. "Remind me never to bet against you."
Bella, for the first time since arriving, laughed through her stress. It wasn't full relief—but it was hope.
The hours crawled. Patrols were set, plans quietly revised. Alex laid magical protections so subtle nobody but him could feel them—mirrors that would shatter at the wrong touch, strands of time set to loop if blood was spilled, the scent and pulse of Bella and her mother hidden under cloaking spells.
When night finally swallowed Phoenix, the suite was filled with quiet tension—edges softened by trust in Alex, by the invisible line he'd drawn between his found family and harm.
Bella, curling into the couch, whispered to Alice and Rosalie, "He really means it, doesn't he?"
Alice nodded, looking at Alex with a fierce, sisterly pride.
Rosalie answered for both of them, "With Alex here, fear is wasted energy."