Chapter Two

Harry Clearwater

Sue, Billy, and myself had discussed Renee's visits and what we could and should tell Charlie which in all honesty wasn't much. Billy had enough on his plate with Sarah ill and the twins to care for aided by Sue and some of the other women so we decided to keep him out of it altogether. Actually that was fairly easy because Renee had never spoken to Billy or myself about her fears, only Sarah and Sue. I knew as soon as I first saw her that Renee was sensitive and it wasn't long before she picked up on the undercurrents in town. At first she thought it was her imagination but soon she was visiting the reservation and started quizzing our wives about the evil she could discern close to town.

The Cullens had been gone decades but the stench of their presence still pervaded the surrounding countryside. We had incursions occasionally, nomads who either hadn't heard of the guardian tribes or thought they might try their luck here. They either left, fleeing for their "lives", or died at the claws and teeth of the pack. Only a few wolves remained, the older men ceasing to phase once the threat was over and no new ones having the call to do so. Life on the reservation had returned to normal and many of the younger men thought the legend of the Spirit Warriors and the Cold Ones was just that, a legend. I hoped with all my heart they would grow up, live and die still thinking the same thing but there was no guarantee the Cullens wouldn't return one day. The ruin of their house in the forest was a stark reminder of their former presence in Forks. The wolf pack had destroyed the house when the Cullens left, celebrating by setting it on fire and watching until all that remained was a blackened skeleton.

When Charlie rung and asked to meet Sue and myself to discuss Renee I knew the time had come and we agreed reluctantly to drive over to his place the following evening. I don't know what he expected to hear but I was sure it wouldn't be what we were about to tell him. Old Quil and Billy's father Benjamin had cautioned us not to say too much,

"Only as much as you must, no more. Charlie Swan has enough on his plate without tales of Shape Shifters and Cold Ones."

It was going to be a difficult discussion but one we could put off no longer. When we arrived

Charlie was sitting at the kitchen table, an open can of beer in his hand, waiting. He offered us drinks which we declined and invited us to sit down.

"I've been talking to Keith Webber. He told me a few things and I'd like to hear what Renee talked to you about Sue."

"Keith Webber? What did she say to him?"

"A lot of crazy stuff and I'd like to know if she got it from you?"

"Are you accusing my wife of scaring Renee?"

"Scaring? I never mentioned scaring but it tells me you know a lot more than you ever told me. I think I deserve to know what you and Renee spoke about Sue."

"I'm sure you do Charlie but I can't tell you much. Renee said she felt uneasy in Forks, as if the place was haunted or something. I told her it was just her fancy but she refused to believe me. She said she could feel something but she swore me to secrecy. She was worried you would think she was losing her mind. She wanted to know about our legends, I think she was looking for a reason for her feelings."

"Legends? You mean the wolf pack and the Cold Ones? Surely she knew it was just a story? A tale for old men to frighten the youngsters round the camp fire?"

"Renee believed that all stories and legends were oral traditions passed down from generation to generation to keep their history alive and in the culture's memory."

"You mean she believed all that crap? So she ran away and took Bella with her to save her from the wolves and Cold Ones? She's as crazy as her mother!"

"Renee had her own beliefs Charlie, we just listened to her."

"No, you encouraged her, its not the same thing at all and now I lost her and my daughter. I used to think you were friends but not any longer, you're as crazy as Renee's mother, the whole lot of you. Just stay away from me and tell Billy the same."

We got up to leave,

"I'm sorry you feel this way Charlie. Renee was a lot more astute than any of us realised."

"Yeah? You mean she saw ghosts and ghouls and vampires walking around in Forks and ran away to keep Bella safe from them? Just get the hell out of my house."

Charlie

When they'd gone I sat down in my chair with a fresh beer but I didn't open it. I couldn't believe what I'd just heard. Either I was going crazy or the whole Quileute tribe and Renee were as crazy as loons and I wasn't sure which it was. I thought back to my own childhood in Forks. My father and Billy's had been best friends, they went hunting and shooting together and often where one was you'd find the other but my mother was another proposition altogether. She and the Blacks hadn't got on at all and she did all she could to discourage me from going to the reservation to play with Billy although she would never give her reasons. I remembered waking late one night after she had been out of town visiting and Dad had taken me with him on a fishing trip with the Blacks unbeknown to her. It was the sound of raised voices that had woken me up and I crept to the head of the stairs to listen. I'd never heard my mother raise her voice before but she was almost shouting at my dad.

"How dare you take our son to those heathens. I hope to God they didn't start telling those stupid legends and filling his head with their superstitious nonsense."

"How do you know its all nonsense.?"

"Are you trying to tell me that Forks is full of werewolves and vampires? You're as crazy as they are."

"Helen you have no idea what you are talking about and please keep your voice down you'll wake Charlie."

"Don't you try to hush me Geoffrey Swan. Don't you dare take him there again and don't you dare mention those legends. I don't want my boy growing up as stupidly superstitious as you and your buddies."

Hearing her voice approach the stairs I scurried back into my bedroom and pulled the covers over my head pretending I was asleep. I heard my door open and knew she was checking on me then after a few seconds she shut it again gently. She went into the bathroom and I heard the tub filling so she was going to soak. She always did that after an argument with my dad but thankfully they were few and far between. I got back out of bed and crept to the window looking out into the back yard which led onto the forest beyond. The moon was bright and I could see something moving at the edge of the trees. It was a huge wolf with white fangs and it was moving slowly towards the house. I wasn't sure what to do, I was supposed to be in bed asleep but before I could decide the back door opened and my dad stepped out. I wanted to shout but when I looked the wolf had gone. I'd forgotten about that until just now. I'd forgotten the next morning or I may have thought it was just a dream.

Did Renee have something? Was there something going on that I wasn't aware of? From that night I watched more carefully and listened more to the old timers and soon I was hearing tales of large wolves in the forest, wolves that no hunter could catch but lots of hunters had seen. I started spending my down time in the forest looking for signs of these wolves but although I found a few abnormally large prints I never saw one of the wolves. I had to confess I did some study about the Cold Ones, so they were vampires! Vampires in Forks? I guess it was as likely as giant wolves but did Renee believe these legends were all true? It seemed unlikely but she must have had some reason for being so scared she ran away.