A Witch Thing

• 17 •

Elizabet gasped for breath as she looked up at Victoria. She smiled at took a long whiff of the blood that drove her near intoxication.

Riley walked into the room, a little smirk shot at Elizabet covered in her own blood. Victoria told him, "Go to the girl's house. Bring something back with her scent on it."

Riley nodded, "Course." He put a hand on her cheek, pulling her in for a long and passionate kiss.

Elizabet looked away, unwilling to see that. When they separated, Victoria glanced at her. She told Riley, "If you want, I'd allow you a little blow."

Riley seemed amused and interested in the offer. He kneeled in front of Elizabet, who looked back at him as best she could with her vision fading in and out. He saw one of the open wounds on her arm and pressed wrapped his hand around it, squeezing tightly.

Elizabet winced and tried not to make a sound but she could help the whimper that escaped her. He stood again, sucking his finger into his mouth as he sucked off the blood. He sighed, "Tasty."

He joined Victoria's side again. She walked over to her and took one of her arms into her hands. She bent the arm slowly and Elizabet's breath sped again. When she broke it, it gave a sickening crushing sound, Elizabet cried out at her now shattered bone.

The pain was too much too handle as she blacked out again, silent tears rushing down her face.

Victoria sighed, "She claims to be a powerful witch, but she doesn't seem to show that much." She gripped her face in a hand and moved it around so Victoria could get a better look.

She let go and sent Riley off to do his job. She was going to propose her offer when Elizabet woke again. She just wanted to get something in before, she was letting out some steam.

~

Jasper had been sent out to track the scent left behind from Riley's visit. He was the best tracker out of all of them so it was wise to send him.

They also just wanted him to do something else, rather than sitting in the room with his head buried or tending to Althea and ignoring everyone else around him.

Althea was the only thing keeping him sane.

While they waited for Bella to return, they talked. Alice was stressed, doing everything she could to watch over Elizabet and Bella. Edward paced as he spoke with Carlisle, Esme, and Rosalie.

Levi was holding Althea as he stood in the room. Celene was taking care of the kits with Freya. Mariah was talking with Eileen back at the Residence, looking through any of the grimoires they had in the large house for anything they could find. Charlie was currently with Seth, eating with them for dinner.

"Who was it? Someone we know?" Alice asked.

Edward shook his head, "Just a stranger. I didn't recognize his scent."

"A nomad passing through?" Esme questioned.

Rosalie spoke up, "A passer-by wouldn't have left Bella's father alive."

Bella chilled at the thought. Esme wrapped an arm around her just as the door burst open. Jasper entered the room, "His scent disappeared about five miles south of Bella's house."

"Someone's orchestrating this," Edward spoke as Jasper made his way to Althea. Levi handed the child over and she leaned her head on Jasper's shoulder.

"Victoria?" Bella suggested.

"I would've seen her deciding," Alice said, looking again in her mind and wincing at the scene she wasn't intent on showing Jasper.

"It has to be the Volturi," Edward said.

"I don't think it's the Volturi, either. I've been watching Aro's decisions, too."

"So we keep looking," Emmett spoke.

Carlisle added, "We also take shifts guarding Bella at her house."

Rosalie asked, "Another protection detail?"

Esme spoke, "Rosalie."

No, she's right," Bella said, "You can't protect me, watch my dad, search for the intruder and for Victoria and for Elizabet, and protect Althea. All while keep yourselves fed."

It was clear they hadn't been feeding. All the eyes around the room, save for the Levi, Althea, and Bella, were dark with hunger. Jasper's were the darkest of all of them, however, which only concerned them more.

Althea rubbed her eyes, getting sleepy from being up so long. Jasper kissed her forehead, "I'm taking her to bed."

He began leaving the room, headed down the hall to put her to bed. All eyes switched to him as he walked out of the room and he only ignored it.

They began talking again when he was down the hall and he sighed. He set Althea down to sleep, kissing her forehead one more time. She spoke in her quiet voice, "Are we gonna find Mommy yet?"

Jasper was glad he couldn't cry at that moment, or he would have started to. He told her gently, sadly, "We're still looking for her. She'll be back soon, I promise. And we don't break promises, do we, little miss?"

She shook her head and he nodded, "That's right." He sat there for a little while longer, his sorrow still lingering around him.

She frowned at him, saddened by all of those emotions swirling around him. She sat up again, putting her hands on his cheeks. He smiled at her a little.

Jasper felt some of his sorrow slip away from him, leaving his system a little lighter than before. He stared in awe and confusion.

Her eyes seemed to shimmer before she removed her hands from his face. He couldn't quite place where the sadness he had felt in his system had gone. It hadn't been replaced with something else, he felt the same, just without a bit of that sorrow from before. It wasn't lingering in the air nor did he sense it from anywhere else in the house.

He looked back at Althea and asked, "What happened?"

She sniffed, "I didn't want you to be sad, so I took it away and now you feew better."

Jasper inquired carefully, he was touched by the gesture, but still confused, "Where did you put the sadness?"

She shrugged, "I gave it to somebody ewse."

"Who?"

"The boy from the pitures. He made me feew weird, I don't wike him," Althea said, sticking her fingers in her mouth.

Jasper sighed, this time in surprise. It seemed his daughter had a gift just like he did.

But Elizabet didn't get to see it.

Some of that sorrow returned to Jasper. Althea saw it and whined, trying to reach over to get rid of it again.

Jasper pulled a little out of her reach, "No, I think that's enough. It's time for you to go to bed."

He kissed her cheek and she rolled over and laid down. He stayed with her until she fell asleep, leaving quietly when she had.