Read Online The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Stephenie Meyer
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crossing the open field to the house. They had entered the clearing from the west, the point farthest from
where we hid. They all wore long, dark cloaks with deep hoods, so at first I thought they were people. Weird people, but just
humans all the same, because none of the vampires I knew had matching Goth clothes. And none moved in a way that was so smooth
and controlled and… elegant. But then I realized that none of the humans I’d ever seen could move that way, either, and what’s
more, they couldn’t do it so quietly. The dark-cloaks skimmed across the long grass in absolute silence. So either these were
vampires, or they were something else supernatural. Ghosts, maybe. But if they were vampires, they were vampires I didn’t
know, and that meant they might very well be these enemies she was talking about. If so, we should get the hell out of Dodge
right
now
, because we didn’t have twenty other vampires on our side at the moment.
I almost took off then, but I was too afraid to draw the attention of the cloaked figures.
So I watched them move smoothly forward, noticing other things about them. How they stayed in a perfect diamond formation
that never was the slightest bit out of line no matter how the terrain changed under their feet. How the one at the point
of the diamond was much smaller than the others, and its cloak was darker, too. How they didn’t seem to be tracking their
way in—not trying to follow the path of any scent. They simply knew their way. Maybe they were invited.
They moved directly toward the house, and I felt like it might be safe to breathe again when they started silently up the
steps toward the front door. They weren’t coming straight for Diego and me, at least. When they were out of sight, we could
disappear into the sound of the next breeze through the trees, and they would never know we’d been here.
I looked at Diego and twitched my head slightly toward the way we’d come. He narrowed his eyes and held up one finger. Oh
great, he wanted to stay. I rolled my eyes at him, though I was so afraid, I was surprised I was capable of sarcasm.
We both looked back to the house. The cloaked things had let themselves in silently, but I realized that neither she nor Riley
had spoken since we’dcaught sight of the visitors. They must have heard something or known in some other way that they were in danger.
“Don’t bother,” a very clear, monotone voice commanded lazily. It was not as high-pitched as our creator’s, but it still sounded
girlish to me. “I think you know who we are, so you must know that there is no point in trying to surprise us. Or hide from
us. Or fight us. Or run.”
A deep, masculine chuckle that did not belong to Riley echoed menacingly through the house.
“Relax,” instructed the first inflectionless voice—the cloaked girl. Her voice had that distinctive ring that made me certain
she was a vampire, not a ghost or any other kind of nightmare. “We’re not here to destroy you. Yet.”
There was a moment of silence, and then some barely audible movements. A shifting of positions.
“If you are not here to kill us, then… what?” our creator asked, strained and shrill.
“We seek to know your intentions here. Specifically, if they involve… a certain local clan,” the cloaked girl explained. “We
wonder if they have anything to do with the mayhem you’ve created here.
Illegally
created.”
Diego and I frowned simultaneously. None of this made sense, but the last part was the weirdest.What could be illegal for vampires? What cop, what judge, what prison could have power over us?
“Yes,” our creator hissed. “My plans are
all
about them. But we can’t move yet. It’s tricky.” A petulant note crept into her voice at the end.
“Trust me, we know the difficulties better than you. It is remarkable that you’ve managed to keep off the radar, so to speak,
for this long. Tell me”—a hint of interest
where we hid. They all wore long, dark cloaks with deep hoods, so at first I thought they were people. Weird people, but just
humans all the same, because none of the vampires I knew had matching Goth clothes. And none moved in a way that was so smooth
and controlled and… elegant. But then I realized that none of the humans I’d ever seen could move that way, either, and what’s
more, they couldn’t do it so quietly. The dark-cloaks skimmed across the long grass in absolute silence. So either these were
vampires, or they were something else supernatural. Ghosts, maybe. But if they were vampires, they were vampires I didn’t
know, and that meant they might very well be these enemies she was talking about. If so, we should get the hell out of Dodge
right
now
, because we didn’t have twenty other vampires on our side at the moment.
I almost took off then, but I was too afraid to draw the attention of the cloaked figures.
So I watched them move smoothly forward, noticing other things about them. How they stayed in a perfect diamond formation
that never was the slightest bit out of line no matter how the terrain changed under their feet. How the one at the point
of the diamond was much smaller than the others, and its cloak was darker, too. How they didn’t seem to be tracking their
way in—not trying to follow the path of any scent. They simply knew their way. Maybe they were invited.
They moved directly toward the house, and I felt like it might be safe to breathe again when they started silently up the
steps toward the front door. They weren’t coming straight for Diego and me, at least. When they were out of sight, we could
disappear into the sound of the next breeze through the trees, and they would never know we’d been here.
I looked at Diego and twitched my head slightly toward the way we’d come. He narrowed his eyes and held up one finger. Oh
great, he wanted to stay. I rolled my eyes at him, though I was so afraid, I was surprised I was capable of sarcasm.
We both looked back to the house. The cloaked things had let themselves in silently, but I realized that neither she nor Riley
had spoken since we’dcaught sight of the visitors. They must have heard something or known in some other way that they were in danger.
“Don’t bother,” a very clear, monotone voice commanded lazily. It was not as high-pitched as our creator’s, but it still sounded
girlish to me. “I think you know who we are, so you must know that there is no point in trying to surprise us. Or hide from
us. Or fight us. Or run.”
A deep, masculine chuckle that did not belong to Riley echoed menacingly through the house.
“Relax,” instructed the first inflectionless voice—the cloaked girl. Her voice had that distinctive ring that made me certain
she was a vampire, not a ghost or any other kind of nightmare. “We’re not here to destroy you. Yet.”
There was a moment of silence, and then some barely audible movements. A shifting of positions.
“If you are not here to kill us, then… what?” our creator asked, strained and shrill.
“We seek to know your intentions here. Specifically, if they involve… a certain local clan,” the cloaked girl explained. “We
wonder if they have anything to do with the mayhem you’ve created here.
Illegally
created.”
Diego and I frowned simultaneously. None of this made sense, but the last part was the weirdest.What could be illegal for vampires? What cop, what judge, what prison could have power over us?
“Yes,” our creator hissed. “My plans are
all
about them. But we can’t move yet. It’s tricky.” A petulant note crept into her voice at the end.
“Trust me, we know the difficulties better than you. It is remarkable that you’ve managed to keep off the radar, so to speak,
for this long. Tell me”—a hint of interest
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