Quest for the Divine Flame

Ch. 3: The Mysterious Swans

RPOV

After that scene between Bella and Edward where she put the little prissy twat in his place, I just knew she was a tough-as-nails bitch that was my kind of woman; that we were going to be good friends. When she'd said goodbye to my family, I just had to get a look inside her baby and really wanted to see her dad's garage. I slid into the passenger side of the truck and discovered the inside had been just as pimped out as the outside. The human girl gunned the engine and I smiled at the perfect rumble but I nearly jumped out my seat when Dean Martin singing Volare blared from her speakers. She reached over to her 16GB iPod Nano Touch that was plugged into the console and fiddled with it; a couple of seconds later The Stray Cats replaced Dean then we were on our way. Part of me was sad about the change of music because it reminded me of the last time my family had gone to Vegas for vacation.

"Sorry, I've got a pretty eclectic taste in music. I listen to everything except rap," Bella explained while she drove. Every few seconds, her hand drifted down to a red button on the dashboard that I assumed went to a nitrous system.

"That's okay but just out of curiosity, why don't you listen to rap," I commented back.

"Mostly because it's a bunch of crap. All of those so-called rappers are nothing but a bunch misogynistic thugs and posers. Nobody really gives a shit about hearing what's in the crib, the kind of ride the have or preaching about bustin' caps in people or treating women like they're less than human beings. Besides, Dr. Seuss is the only Master Rapper, everybody else is just a pale imitation," she replied sagely as she parked in the driveway. I looked at her for a moment then started to crack up.

There was a Police Cruiser on the other side of the two car driveway. It looked like the Chief was home. Bella led me through the front door and gave me a quick tour of the house. It was a modest two-story house that needed a little work but had the air of a true home. There were four bedrooms, three upstairs along with a bathroom and linen closet. The last bedroom was on the first floor and had been converted into a combination library/office. The living room was to the right of the front door and the dinning room/kitchen was on the left with a half wall that blocked the cooking area from being seen from the living room. There were two doors in the kitchen area; one for a pantry and the other that opened onto the enclosed porch that also a washer and dryer.

The other girl directed me onto the porch then through a door out to the garage. We heard the clang of a metal tool hitting the concrete floor and a man muttering as we entered the garage. A pair of masculine legs was sticking out from underneath a beat up 1948 Tucker Sedan. Suddenly, I wasn't sure if this had been such a good idea because the scent of his blood was more powerful than any I'd ever felt before and I had to continually swallow mouthfuls of venom. One fact flashed in my mind while I fought to keep control; I'd spent time with Bella, first at school, next in her truck and finally during the tour of her house and not once had I felt an ounce of bloodlust. In truth, there was a quality in her scent that was different than other humans. That same quality was laced through the intoxicating aroma that wafted from the girl's father.

"Dad, I brought somebody home to meet you," my host called out to the oblivious mechanic.

There was brief spout of muttering in some language that sounded like Latin just before the creeper rolled from underneath and revealed the man upon it. My body became a battle ground as I was torn between swallowing copious amounts of venom and my pussy throbbing as my arousal soaked my panties then started to trail down my legs. Now I was grateful that I listened to Alice and had worn leggings underneath my jeans because I wasn't going to be leaving a puddle behind. For a brief second, I would've sworn that Chief Swan's face distorted.

At first, he looked like a guy that was pushing 40 with grey streaks at his temples but then I was looking at a man that looked no more than 23 at most. His chocolate eyes shown with mischief and his sensuous lips twisted into a fuck me smirk. The t-shirt clung to the man's muscular torso like a second skin and I noticed his right forearm had some kind of tattoo. Admittedly, I wasn't paying attention to his body art because every last scarp of reason I possessed was fighting against instinct to rip off his clothes then fuck him into submission while I marked him.

"Hey Bells, so who's your friend," he replied as he wiped off his hands. His baritone voice made a bee line from my eardrums straight to my dripping core.

"This is Rosalie Hale, the eldest daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Cullen. I ran into her family at school; a couple of her brothers are going to be in ROTC with me. She's a total gearhead and asked me a ton of questions about my truck so I thought I'd bring her with me so she could talk to you about everything," Bella quipped then made the excuse that she needed to grab a shower then get ready for drill before she left us alone, much to my dread.

"So, Miss Rosalie, what'd you like to know," the Chief asked with an old school charm that would've given Jasper's Texas drawl a good run for its money.

"You can call me Rose, Chief Swan," I practically purred back.

"Okay, but only if you call me Charlie; I'm Chief Swan when I'm in uniform," Charlie quipped and a few more shreds of my rational thought melted away.

For an hour the god before me ate away at my self-control as we spoke Popular Mechanics, Car and Driver, and Auto Trend. I was at the breaking point when my cell phone buzzed with an incoming text. Alice and Tanya were pulling up out front. Less than a second later the doorbell rang and we both heard Bella jog downstairs to answer it.

"That would be my sisters, Alice and Tanya. Our mom is planning a special dinner before Edward and Jasper head back up to the school for Drill," I commented and Charlie looked crestfallen for a second but masked it quickly and led me back into the house.

Charlie introduced himself to my sisters and I noticed that Tanya seemed to have the same reactions to Bella that I had with her father. Unlike me, however, the strawberry-blonde seemed to understand what was going on. Her onyx eyes were taking in every inch of the human girl's tone form currently dressed in camouflage fatigue pants, combat boots and an olive drab wife-beater over a sports bra. Bella's mahogany hair was still damp from her shower and was pulled back into a tight braid. Alice deftly maneuvered us out of the Swan's house and into her 911 Turbo; I'd never been happier that the pixie was such a social butterfly since she'd joined the family.

Mercifully, the drive back to our house was over in less than ten minutes due to Alice's driving. Tanya and I were too far gone to have waited much longer. Before the car had even stopped, the two of us were out of the automobile and rushing through the house up to my room. We were both dimly aware of a confused Carlisle and Jasper but the ache in our cores needed to be dealt with more then upholding the mandates of etiquette. Clothes were shed and left a trail as we flashed down the hallway to my door. Once we were safely in my bedroom, I found myself pushed onto the bed and my companion strapping on the massive green dildo we jokingly called Godzilla.

Emmett, despite his bulky size, was a good lover but my past was always present in his mind. He knew what Royce and his lackeys had done to me and had been extremely patient when we tried to build a relationship. The overgrown teddy bear made sure our lovemaking was always gentle or playful but at times like this, I needed more. Tanya understood this and gave me what I craved so badly. The strawberry-blonde pounded into me hard and fast while she roughly manhandled me. I came repeatedly to images of Charlie Swan fucking me until I forgot my own name. After I regained composure from my last orgasm, I removed the harness from my lover's body then latched onto her clit while pumping three fingers into her soaked pussy.

"What's wrong with us," I pleaded as we lay entwined in my bed. The sex had taken the edge off but something was missing and I was more confused than ever.

"Nothing is wrong, Rose, we've found our mates," she mumbled gently into my ear as she stroked my hair. I was too stunned by the news to say anything else. Eventually, we got out of bed, dressed then made our way our father's office to let him know what was going on.

CPOV

Normally, my work at the various hospitals I was employed by actually calmed me but not today. My darling, Esme, had called me this morning just after the start of my shift and informed me of everything that had been said during the argument between Jasper and Edward. As if hearing the awful truth second hand wasn't bad enough, Emmett and sent me a video of his brothers' encounter that he had recorded with his iPhone. I thanked God that I'd been a vampire long enough to have mastered the skills of a thespian; none of my patients nor coworkers were aware of my foul mood. If the Emergency Room hadn't been busy today, I would've faked an illness then gone home.

By the time that 3 pm arrived, my rage and guilt were barely contained. Guilt because I had foolishly placed Edward on a pedestal and hadn't recognized him as the weak-willed creature he truly was; not to mention the fact that I never once questioned why such a disciplined vampire as Jasper had slipped as often as the family had been led to believe. My rage stemmed mostly from the fact that not only was the mind reader's actions a blatant slap in the face because he abused my trust but the pampered little bugger showed absolutely no remorse over what he had done. During my lunch, I'd called home and my wife explained how she had arranged for our middle and youngest sons to be in ROTC and how both of them were waiting for me to learn their punishments. It hadn't been until the drive home that I decided what said disciplinary measures would be.

Esme greeted me with a kiss when I stepped out of my Mercedes and into the garage. There was nothing salacious in that brush of lips but it affected me nonetheless. Ours had never been a passion that burned bright and hot like a comet; it smoldered below the surface and continued to build up pressure until it erupted like a volcano. The caramel haired angel led me inside the house. Our daughters were noticeably absent but all three boys waited for us in the living room. Jasper was standing in the Parade Rest position in the middle of the room blank faced while Edward lounged on one of the love seats with a bored expression; it was as if he thought he wasn't going to be punished. Emmett was standing by the mantel, arms crossed over his chest while he kept his eyes trained on the bronze haired boy.

The second the spoiled brat – not that my wife and I hadn't continued to enable his poor behavior – caught my scent he started to whine about how unfair it was that he was being forced to debase himself by being registered in the ROTC program and other crap but I silenced him with a growl. I registered Esme's arousal at the sound but kept my focus on the fool in front of me. I stalked the little prig until he stood next to Jasper. For the first time in his existence in this life, he looked scared of me. His brothers seemed impressed by my behavior and my mate was… well I was going to have to take care of that later.

"Oi… Edward, do yourself a favor and don't say another word. Nothing that comes out of your mouth is going to get you out of the trouble your in and from what we all have learned, it's high time you faced the consequences of your actions. Not only shall you remain in the ROTC, I will be cutting you off from both your personal and the family accounts. I've made arrangements for you to work as a part-time orderly at the hospital. Perhaps between the ROTC and the job you will finally learn something about discipline and responsibility. In addition, you will make financial reparations to the rest of the family for all the times we were forced to move because of your weakness. Also, if you drain another human, I'll rip out your teeth; if you slip while at the hospital I won't waste time with the teeth, I'll feed you to the furnace in the basement.

"Emmett, I want you to take your little brother hunting so he won't have any accidents during Drill this weekend," I scolded the source of my disappointment then made the request of the gentle giant. After the two of them left, I focused fully on my remaining son.

I took an unnecessary deep breath, blew it out then addressed the ex-soldier, "Jasper, let me start off by apologizing for all of the times I ever doubted you. You are the most steadfast member of the family and I should've realized that you never would slip up like that. That being said, for your punishment, since you chose to act as your younger brother's keeper then you will be his keeper until further notice. You will take him hunting a minimum of once a week as well as monitoring his emotions while the family is in public unless he is at work with me. If it feels like he is about to slip, I want you to send him enough lethargy to knock him out then get him home. Now, I want you to tell me everything that happened this morning."

Tanya and Rosalie rushed past us at vampire speed and we stared at each other in confusion.

"Rose and Tanya mated with Charlie and Bella Swan," Alice trilled happily with her soprano voice that always reminded me of silver bells. My wife was thrilled at this news but I shared a look with my battle-scarred son then the two of us adjourned to the privacy of my office.

Jasper gave me a concise report of the argument that he had with his brother and then moved on to the encounter at school with the Swan girl. He went on to provide his assessment of the girl and from the fact that she was able to knock my creampuff of a son on his arse, along with the way she seemed to appraise my family, it was obvious that she wasn't completely human. What particular flavor of not-so-human, however, remained to be seen? Rose and Tanya joined us and filled us in on the whole mating issue and then my first daughter went on to tell us about her encounter with Chief Swan. My strawberry-blonde eldest daughter remained quiet as her sister spoke but something was off about her manner. I figured it had to do with the fact after all her centuries she finally found her mate.

"Charlie told me that he bought Bella's truck off of Billy Black, maybe he knows something," Rose suggested and I nodded in agreement because I had to call the Pack anyway to let them know about things anyway. I dialed the familiar number and waited.

"Hello," a woman's voice chimed on the other end of the line and at first I thought that I called the wrong number.

"Sue? Is something wrong with Billy," I asked in a worried tone.

"Carlisle… no, he's fine. Billy and I have been dating for about a year now," Sue explained and I smiled.

Happiness welled up inside me for both of them and I couldn't wait to tell Esme. Billy had been alone ever since his wife died of cancer when his son was only two months old. Thankfully, everyone had pitched in to help him cope with his grief. Sue's husband, Harry, had been killed by a rogue vampire three years ago. Jasper and Emmett had been sent down to La Push to help dispatch the fiend.

"That's great. I need to speak to my little brother, is he there," I commented and she snorted at the little brother crack.

It had been 75 years ago, the last time we lived in Forks, when my family ran into Ephraim Black and other members of his Pack. He had been suspicious when we first made our treaty with the tribe but let us live in peace. 40 years ago, he was the last member of the Pack that still shifted when the reservation was laid siege to by Maria and about twenty newborns. The evil wench had wanted to set up a base in Washington State in an effort to take over the entire west coast. Ephraim called me for help and my family rushed to his aid. Between all of us, we managed to defeat the newborns but Maria escaped back to Mexico. During the battle, I ended up getting injured protecting the shape shifter's human son, Thomas. With his father's blessing, he adopted me and made me an honorary member of the tribe.

"Hey old man, it's about time you called," Billy told me after he was handed the phone.

"I wish this was more of a social call but something happened that you need to know about," I admitted sadly. It had been a while since we talked and I would've preferred to catch up.

"What's wrong," the other man replied in a worried tone.

"I wouldn't say its wrong but Rose and Tanya have mated with the Swans. I understand the Chief is an old friend of yours and the rest of the family met Bella at school this morning and noticed some odd things," I explained quickly and waited nervously for a response.

"Ah… I see. Yeah, Charlie is an old friend of the entire council. I've known him since he was a boy and he's always been a bit of an odd duck," Billy began then continued to tell me about all the things that he'd noticed about his friend over the years.

While he spoke, I started to compile a list of anomalies that surround the Swan family. The conversation eventually moved on to other topics and I was shocked to learn about his car accident. Billy apologized for not calling me but, thanks to the dormant wolf gene in his DNA, he made a partial recovery. He told me that he was able to walk but he had a severe limp. He needed to use a wheelchair as a smokescreen because too many people knew how bad the accident was.

"I planned on taking Esme out for dinner and dancing in Seattle; how about you and Sue join us? We'll pick you up in an hour," I offered and was pleased when he accepted.

AN: As you read above, there's not going to be any Pack/Cullen animosity in this story. The next chapter will cover Drill weekend and the first week of school so expect some Edward humiliation. Don't know when it will be up because I'm going to be working on The Cullen Job and possibly a couple of my other stories.