Prologue
Forks has been plagued with a string of murders targeting the Cullens. Rumors have spread regarding the motivations as to why they would be the target of such gruesome and vile displays of depravity. The Cullen family stood as a pillar within the Forks community, Dr. Cullen was a beloved Doctor at the Forks Hospital. His wife, Esme Cullen was a contributing member of the local church leading bible school studies for the children. Their adopted children, Alice, Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie have been survived by their brother Edward. All the children had received full-ride scholarships to Ivy League Universities with pursuits ranging from Fashion Design to Engineering. One can only imagine the monster behind the attacks and how the community will recover.
Jacob acts as chief detective on the case. Tracking the homicides that have gripped the community in fear. There has been a curfew enacted after the murders were carried out one-by-one within a month.
Alice was the first to be murdered.
She was found in the bathroom of Forks High School, she was stabbed in the heart. A cross etched into her forehead. Her body was discovered by a group of girls who noticed the blood pooling beneath the stall.
The rest of the Cullens were murdered in similar ways, all of them stabbed in the heart, a cross etched somewhere on their bodies, found in various locations. Esme was found behind the wheel of her vehicle in the church parking lot. Emmett was found with his hands bound behind his back, buried under trash bags within a local dumpster. Jasper, the park he regularly strolled alone, cruising late at night. Rosalie was found in a roadside ditch outside of the city limits of Forks. Dr. Cullen was the only victim with his heart missing entirely. He worked the late shift of the Hospital, he was last seen treating a patient before retreating to his office to finish paperwork.
Jacob believes the next target is their surviving brother Edward.
Act I: The Meeting
“Do you have any ideas of perhaps who would’ve wished to harm you and your family?”, Jacob stirred his coffee slowly.
Edward, the High School senior who should’ve been preparing for graduation. The final surviving member of the Cullen clan who has witnessed his family vanish over the course of a month. Edward, popular, talented, and an exemplary member of the community. This boy sat in front of Jacob. The boy who had his entire world robbed from him, grappling with the loss of his family and the killer who sought him out next.
Edward’s expression was indecipherable, hidden behind a mask that hid the vulnerability that was forced to the surface. He sat across from Jacob with no appetite, not even thirst.
After a pause, Edward answered, “We had a few guesses on who it would be”, his eyes narrowed as the name crossed the back of his tongue.
“Do you mind telling me? I just want to keep you safe, catch this killer, and put an end to this devastation.” Jacob straightened up in his chair. Feeling the perspiration dampen the back of his neck he anticipated the names that would be revealed.
Edward shifted in his seat uncomfortably, the name hung like weights in his stomach. Each moment he blinked he was standing in the morgue. Standing before the bodies of his beloved family enveloped in body bags, frozen in time eternally. Their pale, cold skin reflected the death that awaited him soon.
Edward swallowed hard, tensing his body as the name poured out, “Bella Swan”, he gripped his mouth as vomit rose behind the words.
The guests of the diner watched the boy run to the bathroom and then redirected their attention to Jacob.
Jacob cleared his throat and brought his coffee mug to his lips for another large gulp. He could feel it, the eventual end to this hell. The horizon of this case was within his sights now, but of all people, Bella Swan, the daughter of Chief Swan. He didn’t want to believe it. The plucky daughter of Chief Swan returned to Forks after graduating college. She grew up with Jacob, they were childhood best friends who even grew closer during High school. Their relationship was soon over, to the devastation of everyone, once she pursued college to seek out a path outside of Forks. Jacob stayed behind and dedicated himself to justice, or what he thought was justice. He wanted to help provide peace to the community, which landed him to work for the Forks Police Department.
Edward returned to the table, his chin wet, water stains covering the neckline of his shirt.
“I apologize” the boy’s voice shuddered as he scooted his chair closer to the table.
“Don’t apologize, you’ve done a lot already for me. Do you know why you believe it to be Bella Swan?” Jacob hovered his pen over his notepad.
“We didn’t entirely know how it started, or why”, Edward began to rub the top of his thighs anxiously, “Maybe it’s when she came to the hospital. My father was the one who treated her after an accident. We thought she was experiencing shock when she mumbled something about-” Edward sucked in air. His brow furrowed tightly as he recalled the details.
“Something about us being ‘monsters’” Edward’s jaw tensed.
Jacob felt goosebumps rise across his skin, a tingle migrated down his back at the words.
“Those are pretty strong feelings,” Jacob muttered, jotting down the words the boy relayed.
“Excuse me-” Edward peered closely, attempting to read the notes.
“Do you know why Miss Swan felt that way?” Jacob finished punctuating and looked back up to Edward.
“Sort of, my dad wasn’t supposed to tell us, but she said she's seen us before.” He shivered.
“Seen you before?” Jacob leaned forward, letting his weight tip the table off balance slightly.
“Yeah…I’m not sure”
Jacob took a final swig of his coffee, by this point it was stale and cold. He finished writing down his final thoughts and then abruptly stood from the table.
“Thank you, this is more than enough. I’m so sorry for your losses, I promise I’ll bring an end to this.”
The boy sat staring, his composure instantly shifting to appear undisturbed.
“I appreciate it, hopefully, my family will find peace soon.” Edward rose to shake hands with Jacob.
As Jacob left the diner, he sensed eyes tracking his every move toward his car. He could almost feel the chilling gaze of someone watching him with predatory lust. Glancing cautiously at the buildings around him, he started the engine and pulled out of the parking lot. The oppressive feeling grew stronger, enveloping him like a suffocating grip around his throat as he drove away.
ACT II: Obsession
Sleep felt like a luxury, afforded by the work that ensured a community was protected. Jacob was consumed and sleepless. He knew it was Bella Swan. Despite his desires, the former feelings invoked by hearing her name, he knew it was her. He didn’t know why.
Why would Bella Swan seek to murder the Cullens? Why did she believe them to be monsters? Had she seen them before despite Edward’s denial of ever crossing paths?
Jacob’s chest ached throughout the night.
He became a prisoner in thoughts that engulfed him in the regrets of his former love. He ruminated on how his high school sweetheart had found the depravity to commit these acts. Wondering if it was ever within his power to correct her path. Despite the undeniable reality of Bella Swan being the killer, he continued to doubt it.
Bella was down-to-earth, clumsy, and kind. She was at one point in time his entire reason for existence. Her presence always provided a foundation for Jacob throughout his life. His thoughts swirled, muddied by the memories of Bella encouraging him to stay in Forks.
Jacob himself wasn’t always interested in this line of work, in fact, he wasn’t always interested in life. It was Bella who talked him off the ledge, Bella who brought purpose to his life when it seemed to be collapsing all around him.
When she got accepted to Florida State University his world was shattered. The life they had envisioned together came to an end. They promised to attempt long distance in the beginning, but soon the pressures of college twisted Bella’s hand to end the relationship. Jacob was never sure if she truly wanted it to end, or if she was seeking an escape from him. He worried she wanted to entirely reinvent herself, rid herself of everything that represented Forks, even him.
Now here he was, closing in soon on Bella.
The operation to apprehend her for custody was coming up soon. He was entrusted with the role of lowering her guard, ensuring she would cooperate. The department had hoped that with their former relationship, he would be able to de-escalate any situation that may arise.
He had a job to do.
But before he could do his job, he needed some rest.
Jacob decided to take a walk to clear his head. Hoping that perhaps the distraction would allow him to relax and exhaust him enough. He was violating the town wide curfew, but he thought up a lie to skirt across questions if he was stopped by patrol.
He reached for his keys, pushing aside the piles of documents of evidence he had been compiling against her. Knocking over a stack that flew across his floor.
“f*ck…” he groaned, dragging his hand across his face as he bent down to pick up the papers.
Just as he finished shuffling everything back into the manilla folder he heard a knock at the door.
“Who is it?” He called out, lifting himself to his feet and setting aside the folder on his desk.
The knock came again.
He muttered curses under his breath as he reached the door, unlocking the deadbolts.
Twisting the knob, “You know there's a curfew…”, He commented to the stranger behind the door.
Just as his sleep deprived eyes began to focus he saw her standing in front of him.
“I need to come inside.” Bella urged, her hand brushing a strand of hair behind her ear anxiously. She pressed herself against the door that Jacob had now closed to a mere gap. His shoulder blocked the entrance to his house.
He struggled against her attempts to force it open “Bella, what the f*ck?” he gritted his teeth.
“I need to come inside, NOW” she shouted, peering over her shoulder into the darkness behind her.
Jacob felt a pang deep inside himself, a deep sincerity in her voice that told him to trust her. He stepped away from the door as she pressed forward. She slipped on a few papers Jacob had missed when he was cleaning up his mess. After regaining her balance Bella pushed against the door shut, scrambling through the house to close each of Jacob’s blinds. After Bella had completed her assessment she sat at the table in the kitchen.
“What are you doing in my house?” Jacob stood on guard, his back up against the wall. Eyeing the gun that was holstered lying on his desk. His heart raced to see her, the mix of emotions he had been battling and now she stood in front of him. She had changed since the last time he had seen her, perhaps that's what happens to people when they leave their hometown. He was enchanted by her beauty despite the situation. He had to remind himself that she was a killer.
“I need your help, Jake.” Bella pleaded, her eyes raw with a ring of redness.
She was covered in dirt, her hair was disheveled, and she looked like she had been fighting wild animals all night.
“Help? Bella, you’re the prime suspect in a serial killer case.” He scoffed, inching closer to his holster.
“You don’t understand. Jake, I really need your help. They’re m-”, she winced, gripping her arm, “they’re monsters Jake, I was only trying to protect the people I love”.
“By killing people? Bella, that's psychotic. That’s not protecting anyone.”
“They are monsters, Jake, you gotta believe me.” Bella noticed his body shifting towards his desk, the desperation in her voice rising. Her eyes darted towards the gun on his desk and she shrank herself smaller. Appearing more fragile and breakable with each moment that had passed.
“Why should I not take you into custody right now?”
“I can prove it-t.” She stuttered.
He stopped for a moment, feeling the pull from Bella, something deep inside of him wanted to believe her. He bit the inside of his cheek as he wrestled with what he knew was right, which was to apprehend her now and take her down to the department. But, he couldn’t, hearing her voice, seeing her, something shifted in him and he decided to hear her out.
“Alright then…go on” he sighed.
Bella began to raise her shirt, “Please, you have to believe me, I know I sound crazy”, she begged. Her shirt lifted to expose scars of bites, some old, some new, many of them in different stages of healing.
Jacob rushed towards her, collapsing to his knees as he scanned over her wounds. Tears welled up in his eyes as he saw the collection that was spread across her ivory skin. He was speechless, unable to comprehend who, or how this abuse occurred. Who decided to torture Bella in such a way?
“The Cullens did this to me.” Her voice shook as she stuck her arms out displaying the most recent bites.
Jacob grabbed her wrists, feeling a cold sting of her skin, he twisted her arms to see the unending patterns that dotted her pale skin. He felt sick to his stomach and stepped away from her.
“Bella…why did you wait until now to tell me? I would’ve helped you sooner if you just told me.” Jacob felt hot tears pour down his cheeks. The girl he grew up with, the girl he loved, now resembled a chew toy. He felt anger piercing through his chest, an inconsolable rage that caused his mind to begin planning revenge.
“I was terrified...Jake” She began to shiver uncontrollably.
Jacob reached out and pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her shivering cold body. His fingers intertwined with her hair as he kissed her forehead. His lips, spreading warmth across her skin.
“Bella, I promise I’ll keep you safe. What can I do to help?” Jacob urged, feeling the rage boil inside of him. The muscles in his arms tensed as he envisioned the justice he would enact on her behalf.
Bella pulled away from him to glance up into his eyes, “We need to kill Edward”, her voice was determined. A strength that went unnoticed before had now begun to harden behind her eyes.
Jacob nodded, “I’ll do whatever it takes.”, he closed his eyes as he gently stroked her hair. Devoting himself to protecting the ones he loved was what he lived for now. The girl from his past, his one true love, has now sought him out to protect her. No matter what it meant, he would protect her.
ACT III: Devotion
In the moonlit silence of Forks, tension hung thick in the air like a storm waiting to break. Jacob had been preparing all evening, a sense of potential regret tightening in his chest as he watched Edward from the shadows outside of the Cullen house. Jacob reached deep within himself to find some sort of resolution to carry out this final act of love. Bella was viciously tortured by them, a mere toy at the Cullen's disposal for god knows how long. In her desperate time of need, Jacob promised to step up to do whatever it meant to secure the safety of Bella.
Bella approached Jacob, she had followed behind them as they agreed. Preparing to pounce on the last Cullen when the time was ripe.
“Are you sure you can do this?” Bella noticed the flicker of doubt within Jacob’s eyes.
She sensed his weakness, his desire for justice that followed the law. Vigilante justice was not Jacob’s comfort zone. He often spoke down about those who resorted to such desperate attempts to get instant results. Justice was something that must be swift and orderly, carried out by the determined process. But here he was, despite his bad mouthing of vigilantes and street justice, he was about to embark on it.
“Yes, I’m sure.” Jacob turned to face her now. Cupping her face between his hands he gently kissed her. Letting the sweetness of her lips fill him with the courage to kill Edward Cullen. Letting her intoxicating scent fill his lungs with indescribable bliss, a peace that washed over him. Quelling a part of him that fought back against what he was about to do.
Jacob had grappled with the revelation it was this boy and his family. The boy who had sought him out to bring his killer to justice. None of this made sense, he didn’t know who to trust anymore. The boy and his family were rich beyond belief, powerful, and wielded influence over the community. But Bella, she was the earth beneath his feet, she had proven to be a voice of reason many times before. He had the growing suspicion he was manipulated to carry out a skewed punishment.
Jacob shook off the thoughts, he was here now, gripping a knife in his hand. He would know how to hide a body, and how to dispose of any evidence that would lead back to him.
Cullen made his way through his house to the upstairs bedroom. The large glass windows became reflections of the forest surrounding it now as the lights switched off. Edward had laid down to rest, alone in the family’s large mansion.
Now was the moment, Bella made the first move shifting like a shadow through the foliage until she made her way to the door. Jacob followed behind her, running through each of the steps in the plan they had outlined together. The two effortlessly entered the house, one trailing behind the other as they climbed up the stairs. Concealed in the darkness that allowed them to creep up on the sleeping boy.
There they stood, perspiration beaded on Jacob’s brow as he made his way to the boy. Bella stood in the doorway, an audience to the act Jacob was about to inflict to end her suffering. She bit her lip in anxious anticipation.
“What are you waiting for Jake?” She hissed
As Jake turned his attention to Bella the boy below him stirred. Bella shot a glare at Jacob, she was an oppressive presence that oozed bloodlust. In that moment Jacob recognized the eyes that followed him throughout town. That distinct predatory hunger that reached out to eat him.
“She has you under her spell.” The boy below him confessed.
Jacob stepped away from the bed, the fear he had been suppressing had finally breached. He dropped the knife at that moment, recoiling from the scene he had found himself in. His love, his world, his existence, was a monster.
The boy rose from the bed, pulling a lighter and pressurized can from underneath his pillow. Edward had been preparing for this night too. He stood between Bella and Jacob, aiming his only makeshift weapon towards the invincible creature that was going to eat them both.
Jacob felt his chest squeeze tight, “Wh-what about this bites all over Bella’s skin. What is that? Who did that?” He shouted out. A madness ready to swallow Jacob, his world shattering before his very eyes.
“It’s from her newborns,” Edward answered, moving closer to her. Signaling Jacob to prepare to run.
A growl shook the room, and Bella’s eyes took on a darkness that expanded her pupils to large black discs.
“You’re the last Cullen I need to slaughter” She hissed, licking her lips.
The two of them engaged in battle, Bella hurled herself towards Edward with ghostly visions of speed. Edward seemed aware of her abilities as if he had been trained to handle a monster capable of these unnatural talents. They grappled as Jacob stood aside, his eyes unable to keep up with the pace of the fight. He felt like he had just stumbled upon a world that he should have never discovered. A world where the girl he loved was a bloodthirsty parasite.
Despite Edward’s preparation, he was still no match in the end for the strength of Bella. She swiftly ended the fight with a fatal blow to his chest. Stabbing him with the knife that Jacob had dropped earlier. As she retrieved the blade, she cut her signature mark into Edward’s cheek. Her eyes rolled back as she brought the knife to her lips. Suckling the final drops of blood off of the blade.
Jacob was frozen in fear, he stood against the wall as she bent down to lap up the blood that had poured out from Edward’s chest. She fed, and fed, until she was satisfied. Bella stood up from her prey and wiped her chin of the blood that had encrusted in thin trails down her neck.
“Jacob..” She cooed, Bella approached the scared pup. Pulling him into her embrace, gently stroking his head.
“Jacob, I want you. I want you to be with me forever.” Bella brought her lips to Jacob’s, kissing him with the blood that stained her mouth.
He felt a rush fill him, the sweet scent of Bella intertwined with the taste of the boy. It soothed him, despite his fears, despite whatever may come between them. Jacob had promised he would protect the girl he loved.
He promised to love and protect Bella.
Forever.
