Bree was fucking tired. Of course, this was nothing new. She seemed to be constantly on the edge of exhaustion these days. It was hard living on the streets, but it was better than the alternative. She couldn't go home. Her father would end up killing her. At least on the streets, she had a shot at reaching adulthood.
Bree had always been a smart kid. Her teachers kept insisting that she would achieve great things if she would just apply herself. It was hard to apply yourself when most of your brainpower was forced to figure out new ways to avoid punishment. She missed the time when her mom was still alive, but nothing could bring back the dead. Even if she missed her, she had no plans on joining her.
Bree had to be smart to survive on the streets in Seattle. She quickly found the best places to lay low during the day. People would take notice of a young teenage girl alone in the middle of the week. She knew her face would eventually thin out, but she still had some fullness in her cheeks and wide doe-like eyes that betrayed her real age. There were certain shelters it was okay to go to. There were others that should be avoided at all costs. Never get into a car with a stranger. Too many girls disappeared that way. Avoid men at all costs, especially those that are older and larger. Bree stayed clear of any drugs, knowing that she needed a clean record when she reached adulthood.
There was one thing that Bree couldn't avoid. Hunger. Some days there seemed to be no food. The act of going from trash can to trash can hunting for food was humiliating. She tried to rely on donations and discarded food from grocery stores, but some days it wasn't enough. Those days piled on each other until all she could feel was hunger.
So when a nice-looking stranger offered her a warm meal at the local diner, she forgot everything she learned and agreed.
A decision that was her ultimate downfall.
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Everything was on fire. Her entire body hurt. She could feel the pain moving through her veins until it swallowed her whole. She wanted it to stop. She would do anything to make it end.
It stopped in an instant. Her prayers had been answered in the worst possible way.
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At least Bree wasn't dead. She never wanted to die. She may hate her life, but death scared her. The idea that someone would just cease to exist would keep her up at night if she could sleep. She cursed the day that she ever met Riley. Well, she cursed him inside her head. She learned quickly it was better to not draw any attention to herself. She was strong now, stronger than she had ever been in her life, but she was still one of the youngest vampires around. She would be an easy target for anyone who saw fit to take advantage of that.
It was hard in the first few days. The need for blood overwhelmed any other part of her brain. She had to feed what was provided. She felt like an animal. She now knew what she must have looked like. She had to watch as every new vampire that joined them went through that phase. Some never bothered to leave it. Those were the true savages. Those were the ones she had to avoid. She figured they had to be evil in their human lives as well. At the core, becoming a vampire didn't change someone's personality. Some just enjoyed having power. Some enjoyed killing.
A few of the most controlled vampires had taken pity on Bree. None of them asked for this life. As more vampires joined, tension grew within the group. There was competition for food. Vampires were turning on each other. Bree had always been good at denying things for herself. Growing up poor taught her that, but this was different. There was only so much time that one could deny themselves food. Bree had to act. She was incredibly grateful when the woman approached her first.
Bree suddenly found herself in a hunting party. It consisted of her, a woman named Stephanie, and a man named Diego. They were a fairly effective team. Turned out that they needed someone to help them lure victims to them. Bree fit that role perfectly. None of them enjoyed killing, but knew it had to be done. They decided to operate on the idea that if someone was willing to try to take advantage of a teenage girl, they deserved it. Bree couldn't fault their logic. It wasn't a role she enjoyed playing, but she knew she was in no real danger. She felt significantly less guilty when she believed her victims deserved it.
It was nice to have people on Bree's side. They formed a fairly unique relationship. They watched each other's back since there was safety in numbers. Diego was a well-known member of their community. Diego had a relationship with Riley. That alone made people respect him. Respect meant protection. That protection extended to Stephanie and Bree. Although not many people paid attention to Bree, this extended protection ensured that no one would attack her directly. She was content to simply be left alone. However, she did enjoy their company. It felt so long since she had had any. It reminded her of everything she lost. She missed her friends. She missed going to school. She had always wanted to go to high school. She missed her family, or what they used to be.
Diego was the first man Bree felt comfortable around since her father changed. He was kind, caring, and put together. He always seemed to have a plan. He felt confident in his relationship with people. He had no trouble approaching Riley with his latest findings in regards to the inaccuracy of vampire myths. That's why it hit her so hard when he disappeared. She didn't want to think about what happened to him. No one was allowed to leave. That meant there was only one way people left.
One thing did become clear to her after that. No one's actions could be questioned. Riley was not to be questioned. It was better to observe than to speak. Bree was small. She could hide in places people wouldn't think to check. No one really expected her to be paying attention to things around her. They all thought she was young and stupid. Even if she was caught, no one would really care. She was determined to figure out why they were all being gathered. Hopefully, knowledge would be her savior.
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Bree kept a careful eye on Riley. She didn't trust the man. She decided to trust him once and she vowed to never do it again. It was obvious that he was hiding something. There was no reason he would be turning so many people if he didn't have a plan. It was just up to Bree to figure out what it was. No one seemed to care that she spent most of her time underneath the boxes where Riley would look down at them. Why would anyone care about little weak Bree? Bree swore their ignorance would be their undoing.
Bree was lucky tonight. Riley had not come back alone. Instead, there was a red-headed woman with him.
"I'm working on it. They are almost ready." Riley sounded nervous. That was new.
"Almost isn't good enough. They need to be ready now. I already have the Volturi breathing down my neck." This other woman was obviously in charge of Riley, but she didn't have complete control. That was unexpected.
"I promised you an army, Victoria. Armies take time. We will have your revenge, my love."
Victoria, presumably, was unimpressed with his answer. "We won't if they aren't ready by the end of the month. Don't let any of them leave. Stop feeding them. We need them to be desperate."
"I understand, butis one human really worth all of this? Wouldn't it be better to just leave this all behind? It's not even like that Bella girl is the only human hanging around them."
"What?!" Victoria sounded scandalized.
Riley suddenly sounded uncertain. "Yeah, I mean, at least I assume she is if what you said is true. She didn't have the same golden eyes like them. She didn't have red eyes either."
"The audacity. The Cullens must have a death wish. Why didn't you tell me sooner!"
"I didn't know you would care. It's not like she was involved in the attack before." Riley was obviously trying to redirect blame.
"Of course I care! It's another weakness. A weakness they think no one has any knowledge of. How do you even know this?" Victoria was pacing at this point.
"I thought we've been over this. I went to school with them. She was just a freshman back then but there was something off about her. None of them fit in."
Bree held her nonexistent breath as the pacing continued above her. The woman was obviously deep in thought. Her annoyance was obvious. The footsteps suddenly stopped and Victoria whipped her head around to look at Riley. "What was the name of the one vampire you were talking about earlier? The one with a track record."
"Cox?" Riley's voice was clearly uneasy. Bree even felt herself tense at the name. Everyone was aware of Cox. He got wicked enjoyment out of his new life. It was the type of enjoyment that didn't come from being changed one night. This would have been a part of him in his human life as well.
"Yes. I want to speak to him the next time I visit."
"For what purpose?"
"I'm not here to explain every little thing to you. Just make sure everything is ready when I come back."
Bree couldn't believe that Riley didn't see Victoria was using him. She sounded as if she couldn't care less about him.
"Of course. They will be ready when you return. I promise. Then, we can be together."
Victoria only made a slight sound of acknowledgment.
Riley didn't appear to have a response to that. Victoria wasn't waiting for one. The woman left as quickly as she came. Bree now has to decide what to do with what she heard. There may not be anything she could do.
One thing was for certain though, she pitied the Cullens. They obviously made powerful enemies. Bree knew that some fights couldn't be won. Looking over the sea of vampires around her, she knew that this was going to be one of those impossible situations.
Bree couldn't help but feel some sort of kinship with the Cullens. They both were being forced to play a game they wanted no part of.
A/N: I wanted to include a short little interlude to get another point of view in the story. The other chapters have been running long so this was intended to be a bit shorter. I felt like it was important to add Bree's point of view in there.
I also wasn't in a good mood to write a lot and I wanted to post something since that usually puts me in better spirits.
If anyone has been following the figure skating stuff just remember to blame the coach and other adults and not the actual child. The coach, Eteri, has a terrible track record that you can learn more about. The skater is 15. She is still very much a child.
Thanks for reading, voting, and commenting.
Thanks Nikki!