CALLIE LAYS SPRAWLED ACROSS HER BED LATER THAT NIGHT, her glossy black hair a stark contrast against her soft lavender comforter. The house phone is pressed to her ear, and she listens to Kim talk as her eyes look up at the paintings she taped to her ceiling. There were so many that it was completely covered, no longer visible, but Callie preferred it that way. When she couldn't sleep at night, looking up at the paintings kept her mind occupied. It was better than staring up at a blank ceiling, anyway.

"I can't believe Jared actually asked you about me!" Kim squealed for the billionth time on the other end of the phone call. "Do you think he's going to ask me out?"

"Maybe," Callie offered neutrally. She really did think Jared was going to ask her friend out, but she didn't want to get Kim's hopes up just in case it didn't pan out. Although, Callie supposed it didn't really matter. Kim's hopes were always up when it came to Jared Cameron.

"And— and you said Paul was acting weird?" Kim asked curiously. "How?"

"I don't know... I mean, at first he was acting fine. But then we made eye contact and it was..." She sighed softly. "I don't know, Kimmy, it's hard to explain. The way he was looking at me, it was like..."

"Like he was really seeingyou?" Kim offered, using her description of the look Jared had given her earlier that afternoon. "It was more than just a passing glance, wasn't it? His whole demeanor changed?"

Callie blinked. "Yeah. It was strange."

"Jared was the same way. That's—" A beep interrupted their conversation, letting Calliope know someone else was trying to call the house phone. Her eyes flitted toward the alarm clock on her desk, seeing how late it was and wondering who it could be.

"Hey, someone's trying to call, I have to go," she told her friend, hurrying up and clicking over to the other phone call. "Hello?"

"Callie?" Charlie's Swan's voice was full of worry and it immediately had her sitting up. He may have been the Chief of Police, but it was unlike him to call that late at night and especially sounding the way he did.

"Yeah, it's me," she said cautiously, wondering what was going on.

"Is Bella there, by chance?" He asked breathlessly. "You and Jake didn't happen to swing by sometime this afternoon and pick her up, did you? Please tell me she's there."

"I—I'm sorry, Charlie, she isn't," Callie answered honestly. "We haven't even heard from her today... Is everything okay?"

"No... She's been gone for hours. Left her truck here, too, and I'm real worried. Hasn't been home for dinner either and that's unlike her, she would have at least called—"

"I'm sure she's okay, I mean, she's probably with her boyfriend?"

"I don't know. I'm calling this in and getting a search party going, I just have a bad feeling about this. But, uh... thanks anyway."

The moment Charlie hung up the phone,Callie scurried out of her bedroom and into the living room, where Jacob was messing with the tv antenna so he and Billy could watch something. Her uncle smiled when he saw her, and said, "Done gossiping with your friend already?" But the frown on Callie's face had his smile fading as Jacob looked over and realized something was wrong, too. "Callie? What is it?"

"It's Bella," she said,glancing over at her cousin. She knew Jacob had a massive crush on the Swan girl, however pointless Callie thought it was since Bella would probably never go for him. Nevertheless, Jacob would probably take this news the hardest. "Charlie just called, said she's missing. He's calling for a search party. I asked if she could just be with her boyfriend, but he doesn't think she is."

"The Cullens moved out of town this afternoon," Billy said, and Callie didn't even bother trying to ask how he knew that. "Callie, do me a favor and grab my shoes and jacket. Jake, grab your things, too. We'll head down to Charlie's, give him the support he needs."

Jake immediately rushed out of the room to get ready to go, but Callie glanced at her uncle as he wheeled himself over to the house phone they kept in the living room. "Who are you calling?"

"Some people who can help look for Bella," he said dismissively. Callie wondered who he was talking about but knew that now wasn't the time for twenty questions. So instead, she hurriedly put on her shoes before helping her uncle into his own.

Word traveled fast. She supposed Billy must have called the other council members, because shortly after they got to Charlie's, a few people from the res showed up as well. Harry and Sue, Old Quil, even Embry and Quil as well.  Callie stood with her two friends, hugging her cardigan tighter against her chest to try and keep warm. In her haste to leave the house, she'd forgotten to grab a jacket, but she knew that wasn't very important. What was important to her, however, was the missing Swan girl, especially with the way her cousin was worriedly pacing back and forth with each few minutes that passed without Bella's return.

Jacob may have been her cousin by blood, but he'd always been more like a brother to her than anything. They grew up practically attached at the hip as children, having bike races to see who could get to Embry's house first, or chasing each other around the muddy field behind the Black household, or pestering the twins together. As a child Callie practically worshiped the ground Jake walked on, she thought he was the coolest person ever, and even now that they were older she was still very close with him. There were nights Jake would find himself in Callie's bedroom when neither of them could sleep, the two of them staring up at the paintings on her ceiling as they talked about everything under the sun. And they always looked out for each other, no matter what.

So seeing Jake so distraught didn't sit well with Callie, and she soon grew restless at not being able to do anything but wait.

"Uncle Billy, we'll be fine," she was telling the eldest Black several minutes later when he tried to turn down her request. "We'll use a flashlight, we'll stick together—"

"Callie..."

"C'mon, Dad, please?" Jacob pleaded once he overheard what they were talking about. "You know we know the forest trails just as well as anyone else around here... And I'm getting sick of just standing here not even helping."

"Aw, Billy, let the kids go on," Harry spoke up on their behalf, making Callie smile at him in gratitude. She'd always liked the Clearwaters, they were great people and had always been nothing but kind to her. "They'll be safe, you know that." There was something about the way he said it, something about the small glance at Callie before his gaze settled onto her uncle that had the girl slightly confused. Clearly, there was some sort of underlying statement she wasn't able to read between the lines, but she decided not to give it much thought. Especially since her uncle relented and told them they could go, as long as they were back within the hour.

"Wicked," Embry breathed with a grin as Callie and Jacob grabbed flashlights, he and Quil trailing after them. It was a common occurrence for the four teenagers to find themselves in any sort of trouble together— although usually it was Embry saying or doing something stupid and the other three trying to cover it up and help him stay out of trouble. "Search party in the creepy woods? I'm so in."

"Dude, shut up," Quil sighed with a roll of his eyes, shaking his head.

"What?" He asked cluelessly as they hurried down the path through the forest. "I'm just saying, sounds like fun—"

"It's not fun," Jake snapped before storming ahead of the group. Quil lightly punched Embry's arm for his comment before jogging to catch up with him.

"Touchy," Embry muttered.

Callie sighed. "Em, you know this could potentially be pretty serious, right?" She asked her friend, shining her flashlight against the ground to look for any indication Bella could have left the trail— if she had even been on it, in the first place. "She could be really hurt, wherever she is, and Jake is worried about her."

"I know that, Cal. Just trying to lighten the mood a bit." He huffed. "Guess I'll catch up and apologize. You'll be okay?"

She laughed slightly. "We're all going to stay on the trail, and I have a flashlight so you'll still be able to see me. I think I'll be just fine."

"You sure?"

"Positive. I want to walk a little slower because I'm looking to see if there's footprints that lead off of the trail, anyway."

Embry was hesitant, but eventually shrugged and jogged to catch up with the other two since they weren't that far ahead anyway. Callie shined her light forward so that he could see better and avoid tripping over roots, and he gave her a thumbs up in thanks. She simply shook her head with a smile at her enthusiastic friend before going back to what she'd previously been doing.

Callie wasn't sure what had happened between the Cullens leaving town and Bella not coming home, but she hoped the girl was okay and could be found. She'd never been close with Bella Swan; they got along just fine, but Callie normally kept to herself whenever Bella was around just because she knew how much Jacob liked her. Either way, she hoped that they could find Bella safely.

The beams of her flashlight drifted over a sudden disruption in the brush on the forest floor to the left of the path, catching her attention. It almost looked as if someone had stumbled and slid in the mud. "Hey, guys?" Callie called out, glancing up the path where the three boys were still walking. "I think I found something!"

They didn't hear her, and she sighed, debating on whether or not she should jog closer to get their attention. However, in the end she decided against it and left the path in the direction of the track, praying she herself didn't get lost.

"Bella?" Callie spoke the girl's name at a careful volume as she walked. She wasn't sure what kind of animals roamed around the woods, but didn't want to take any chances at leading them to her. "Bella?"

A sudden snap! of a twig caused the teenage girl to stop, her eyes widening and her pulse quickening. The feeling of being watched crept over her skin, and she wanted to know what was out there but decided that maybe ignoring it was the best thing to do. Maybe whatever it was would lose interest. The only problem, though, was that whatever was following her was somewhere behind her— in the vicinity of the path she'd come from. Callie didn't want to take the chance of trying to turn back around and running into trouble, so she kept to her original course.

However, her anxiety came out to play when she kept hearing the snapping of twigs and the occasional animalistic grunt coming from whatever was following her. Callie tried to keep it under control as she started moving faster in an attempt to create some distance. Any attempt to follow the possible direction Bella might have taken went down the drain as getting away from whatever was behind her took the forefront of Callie's mind. But it seemed that the mystery creature shadowing her had no problem keeping up, and it was almost like she could feel it getting closer and closer to her. 

Callie dared to steal a glance over her shoulder, and a loud gasp escaped her throat as she finally caught a glimpse of her follower. The moonlight filtered through the leaves of the trees above them, shining down upon the largest wolf Callie had ever seen. His silver-gray fur contrasted with the darkness of the forest at that time of night, his eyes focused directly onto her. 

Due to her shock at seeing the wolf, and the fact that she was looking over her shoulder at it, Callie didn't see the large tree root in front of her. She tripped over it and lost her balance, falling down the small slope as she cried out. The sleeve of her cardigan snagged itself on a thorn bush and tore, and her hands and knees were scraped up, and she'd dropped her flashlight during the tumble; but she wasn't even concerned about any of that. The only thing on her mind at the moment was the wolf.

It approached her slowly, as if she were going to try and run again— though she knew it was futile, since it could easily catch her anyway. Callie was torn between remembering how wolves were the most sacred animal of her people and they weren't to be harmed, and wishing she had something with her for protection.

But it turned out that she didn't need to be protected from this wolf; he didn't appear like he was going to harm her. Strangely enough, once the wolf reached her, he dipped his head, nudging his nose underneath her arm and tilting it upward. Callie realized, belatedly, that it was trying to help her stand. A soft, almost silent whine came from the massive animal when she winced in pain, but she managed to stand nevertheless.

Once she was steady on her feet, the wolf backed away a little bit. For a moment it looked straight into her eyes, and there was something so familiar about it that Callie couldn't place. Then he dipped his head, and waited.

For what? Callie wondered, but she didn't really know. But she lifted a shaky hand anyway, and ever-so-gently threaded her fingers through the fur on the wolf's head.

Any trace of fear of this wolf was now completely gone, and instead Callie began to feel a sort of tranquil comfort fall over her. In her heart of hearts, she knew she was safe with this animal. She didn't know why, or how she knew it— she just did.

So when the wolf suddenly pulled away and darted off quicker than her eyes could follow, Callie's anxiety began to return. She began to move in the direction she thought the wolf ran off in, but the sound of someone approaching from her left had her turning that way.

She was expecting Jacob, Quil or Embry; but of all people, Sam Uley was the person who appeared. In his arms was an unconscious Bella, her lips purple as her teeth chattered from the cold. "Callie?" Sam said, though his eyes were scanning their surroundings, as if he was looking for something. "You came out here by yourself?"

"I... I was with Jake and our friends, but we got separated. Did you see—?" Callie clamped her mouth shut then, not finishing her question as the sudden instinct to protect the silver-gray wolf washed over her. She didn't know what Sam would do if she told him there was a massive wolf running around the woods, she didn't know if he'd try to hunt it down or if he'd tell Charlie the police should; but for a reason unknown to her, she didn't want the wolf to be hurt.

"Did I see what?" Sam asked carefully, his eyebrows furrowing as he finally glanced away from their surroundings and looked at her.

"Nothing," Callie said, shaking her head as if to dismiss any further questions about it. She glanced at Bella's unconscious form and asked, "What happened?"

"I don't know. Your uncle asked me and a few others to help search for her." Sam started walking again, and assuming he knew where he was going, Callie figured she might as well go with him. Jake and the others would have her head when they found out she willingly hung out around the estranged Sam Uley, but she supposed it was better than being lost. "I found her laying on the ground like this."

There was something in his tone that suggested he didn't want to talk, and Callie wisely took the hint. The rest of the walk through the woods was silent, until finally they reached the backyard of the Swan household. Callie shouldn't have been surprised to see that the amount of people that had gathered due to Bella's disappearance had at least doubled since she and the boys went to look around the woods themselves. It seemed like the entirety of Forks was there.

Jake was the first to see them. He, Quil and Embry had been speaking to Harry and Billy about going back to look for Callie, because they didn't know why she'd left the path and were worried about her. Although their worry had apparently been unnecessary, as not even five minutes after they returned, Callie did too.

Charlie ran up to them the moment Jake called his name and pointed. "I'll take her," he said, his entire demeanor radiating nothing but relief and gratitude as Sam passed Bella over to the father. "Thank you, Sam. Thank God."

Sam didn't say anything, only nodded curtly and backed away as Callie walked with Charlie. "She's soaking wet and freezing," she said, glancing at the pale girl in the Chief's arms. "If you want, I can help her into some dry clothes."

Charlie looked as though he could cry, he was so glad Bella had been found. "Thanks, Callie, I'd really appreciate it—" He glanced at her then, noticing the tears in her sleeves, the stray leaf stuck in her dark hair and how scraped up her hands were. "What happened to you?"

"I fell," she said simply, pulling the leaf out of her hair when she noticed it.

"Is she okay?" Jake asked as he hurried over to them. 

"She will be," Charlie answered him. "Callie's gonna help her get cleaned up."

As the Chief carried Bella up the porch stairs, Jake quickly reached out and grabbed his cousin's arm before she could follow them. "What the hell happened, Cal?" He whispered, glancing over to the side. Callie followed his gaze and realized he was looking at Sam, who was now standing with Jared and Paul; the latter of the three was, once again, staring at her, even though Sam seemed to bitching at him. "Callie." Her gaze snapped back to her worried cousin, as he grabbed her wrists and lifted them, looking at the scrapes and cuts marring her skin. "What happened?" Jake's expression darkened. "Did he hurt you?"

"What?" Callie shook her head. "Jake, no— nobody hurt me." She sighed. "I left the path because I saw some tracks, but I fell down a little hill. Sam found me after he found Bella, and I walked back with him."

"You fell. Down a hill." It was clear by his tone that he didn't quite believe her, because although Calliope Black was many things, clumsy had never really seemed to be one of them.

"Yeah, because I heard something, and I got scared, and—" Callie huffed. "Why am I getting the third degree right now? I have to go help Bella." She pulled her wrists out of Jacob's hold and hurried up the stairs, disappearing into the house.

Helping Bella get into some dry clothes was harder than Callie thought it would be. Whatever the girl had been through clearly traumatized her; she was awake, though her mind seemed to be somewhere else entirely. Callie rifled through Bella's dresser and found an old t-shirt and some sweatpants, figuring that would do, and began the difficult task of trying to coax Bella into undressing.

When she was finally finished, Bella collapsed on her bed and Callie covered her with the blanket. "Bella? Do you need anything else?" She asked quietly, only to receive no response from the girl as she rolled over, curled into herself, and closed her eyes.

Taking the hint, Callie left the room and walked downstairs, where Charlie was pacing around in the kitchen. "She's in bed now," Callie told her uncle's best friend.

"Does she seem alright to you?" He asked worriedly.

"Um, well, I think she's a little shaken, but she should be okay." Callie didn't really know what to tell him. Bella hadn't spoken to her at all upstairs, but that wasn't really unusual for the quiet Swan girl. Plus, the two of them weren't particularly close at all;