Disclaimer: Twilight is the property of Stephenie Meyer
This chapter is dedicated to Noble, Fadewind, M-Bianca94, Alphabloodwolf, creddie lover Cara Gracious, Patricia, Lsb123, and BellaNessieCullen
Tony
Opal! Carla yelled and went to her thrashing form.
Carla! More pressing matters! I snapped as I dodged Saskia's slashing claws and took a bite out of the one vampire who was coming to help her. First rule of first aid. Make sure there's no danger to you.
That's heartless! Dustin growled as he went into a defensive crouch in front of Opal and Carla who was sniffing at her friend.
It's practical. I said as I managed to leap onto Saskia's back and my weight forced her to stumble, but not fall.
Billy leapt at the vamp who was about to take advantage of my exposed flank.
How are we gonna help her if we're all killed? I demanded as I leapt back away from Saskia as she tried to swipe me over her shoulder. Stop taking your anger out on me and turn it on the bitch responsible for this.
You're right! Carla said firmly and with a deep growl she launched herself from her position near Opal and landed on Saskia's back as she was taking another swipe at me.
It was enough to get her to stumble forward as other wolves reached the clearing and began tackling the other vamps who were now making a run for it since their great wolf-hunting leader had been taken down so quickly, but they wouldn't get away. I tore off Saskia's head and tossed it aside and helped Billy dismantle the other vamp who'd been assisting her in the fight. The others had been holding back for some kind of signal they wouldn't get now. I let Carla and Dustin tear up Saskia.
Now I was stuck between going after the other vamps and getting Opal back.
I got this kid, you go do whatever you got planned. Hunter said.
Ok. I agreed and I phased quickly and pulled on my pants since this required going into the Res medical centre.
I picked Opal up. Carla and Dustin now back in their human form tried to get her off me.
"What are you doing?" Carla demanded.
"She's dying, but I might be able to save her. We need to get to the medi-centre and arguing is just wasting time." I snapped.
"I'll carry her." Carla said, going to snatch her from me.
"No. I can run faster than you in this form, much faster. I can keep an eye on her mind and call ahead to Portia." I said firmly, this wasn't the time to be soft.
Without waiting for any more arguments I began running. I pulled down the heat so I could run even faster. I tried to read Opal's mind but there was too much pain there. But she was still alive, that was the main thing.
Portia! Portia! I threw ahead.
Tony that you? It was Tina who answered.
Yeah. Tell Portia to get the triage ready and set up a transfusion unit. To open the back door of the medical centre. As soon as. I said urgently.
I'm moving. Tina said.
I ran on back to the Res, heading to the closest point near the medical centre to emerge from the woods since I was carrying a giant wolf. Thankfully the back door to the medical centre was open and I carried Opal inside.
"Oh my god what happened?" Portia asked, stepping forward to take Opal off me, but that was stupid, she couldn't carry her, wolves were heavy.
"Vamp bite." I said, walking over to the trolley.
"Oh no. There's nothing I can do." Portia said with all the horror of a doctor presented with a hopeless case.
"There might be." I said as I placed Opal on the trolley. "When I was doing research with Carlisle we discovered a lot of properties in dhampir blood, and more when there's a little wolf blood there too. Carlisle theorised that my blood might be an antidote to vamp venom."
"Might?" Portia asked with worry.
"Well isn't a chance better than certain death?" I demanded.
"I…I don't know. It's untested." She said looking ill.
"Well this seems like the perfect opportunity." I said. "Look, if you don't want to do this because it's against your ethics or something, just leave the equipment with me, I know how to set it up."
"I can't leave you unsupervised." Portia said with a sigh. "Ok. Up on the bed."
I got up on the bed and held my arm out for her.
"I'm not gonna be able to pierce your skin." She said flatly.
"Oh yeah." I said, and let the heat rise.
"I hope you're right about this." She said as she pulled a cart of equipment over.
"Me too Doc cause if I am, well we never have to fear vamp bites again." I replied.
"Yeah." Portia said as she prepped my arm to draw blood. "So how exactly do I do this?"
"Give me a phone and I'll get Carlisle." I said, to be on the safe side, he'd be able to explain it better than me.
Portia went out into reception and came back with a cordless phone. I dialled Carlisle's number.
"Hello?" He asked carefully because he hadn't recognised the number and this was the family line.
"Hey Grandpa, remember when we were talking about my blood being an antidote to vamp poison before? Would you like to talk Portia through how she should administer it?"
"Oh dear! Someone has been bitten?" He said aghast. "Of course I will talk her through it."
"Ok. I'm handing you over."
I handed the phone to Portia and she finished connecting a line to drain my blood into a drip bag before taking the phone from me. She got the patient board from the foot of the bed and made quick notes from Carlisle's instructions. She put the phone down by the side of the board and began moving around the surgery collecting more equipment before going over to Opal.
She had to shave one of her legs to find a vein. She inserted the needle end ready for a drip line but she came to my right side and found another vein before extracting a syringe full of my blood first. I watched as Portia made her way around to Opal and put the syringe to the needle port.
"What's going on?" Carla demanded as she came through the door.
"I'm trying to save your friend's life." Portia said firmly and injected the blood.
"What with?" Carla asked in alarm.
"An antidote." Portia said flatly, determined not to go into details.
"That…that looked like blood." Carla said in horror.
"Wouldn't think I'd bleed red would you." I said, probably due to the fact that I was loosing blood here and starting to feel a little woozy.
"What?" Carla demanded.
"Tony is a hybrid. The fact that he's got vampire venom in his system along with wolf blood could very well make his blood an antidote to vampire venom poisoning." Portia said calmly as she came over to inspect the bag attached to my arm.
"Antidote? You're putting that crap into my friend?" Carla screeched and went to snatch the bag from Portia.
"Are you crazy?" Tina demanded her hand locking around Carla's wrist. "And that crap happens to be the same stuff flowing in my veins missy."
"But…but…it's untested! She's not even sure it'll work." Carla spluttered.
"Right now I got two options." Portia said as she removed the bag from my arm and began setting it up as a drip. "I either let my patient die, which she will do since I don't have a known cure, or take my chances on something that might just work. Now you got to ask yourself, do you want your friend to die?"
Carla looked about to rage again, but she stammered into silence.
"Good. Now maybe you can help me. I need you to talk to Opal, keep her with us and reassure her that she's going to be fine. Can you do that?" Portia said in a firm voice.
Carla nodded and approached the opposite side of the bed to where Portia was standing. She placed her arm around Opal's big neck and began whispering comforts into her ear.
"While I deal with patient one, patient two could do with some blood, stat." Portia said to Tina and I was a bit hazy about what she was referring to until I felt Tina push a blood bag into my hand.
"I know it ain't warm, but it'll have to bide you until you can hunt." She said.
Without thinking I bit into it, then wished I hadn't.
"It's human." I whispered in disgust as I pulled it away. "I don't wanna drink it."
"It's bagged blood, freely given." Tina said firmly.
"But not to feed vampires." I countered.
"Actually it was. This is part of my pregnancy stash. So drink up, it'll only go to waste now the bag is torn." Tina said gently.
I didn't want to drink the human blood, but there was another lot of blood that was starting to become all too appealing. I could either drink the blood given to me or attack Carla. I drank the bagged blood instead.
I did feel better, my head wasn't swimming anymore and I actually felt like I was maybe more powerful than I had ever been before. I guess that was the shot of human blood. I tried not to feel the surge of power through me. Last thing I wanted was to know exactly how much human blood could supe me up and I ended up wanting more. And more. And more…
The thought of becoming a monster was enough to dampen any ambition I might have to let the blood go to my head. I took a breath and felt calm enough to sit up.
"How's she doing?" I asked.
"I can't attach an ECG or anything so I haven't got a good read on her." Portia said. "I think the pain's increased a little."
I went over to Opal who was still in her wolf form.
"I'll try to convince her to phase back, you can monitor her then." I said.
"She won't listen to you." Carla said sadly.
"No." I realised, but then I looked across the broad wolf shoulder into Carla's worried eyes. "But she might listen to you."
"What? But I don't think she can hear me." Carla said with a frown as her eyes darted across her friend shivering form.
"Are you sitting comfortably?" I asked, ignoring her.
"I…I guess."
"You need to be sitting comfortably sugar." Tina said softly.
"Get comfortable while I move another chair around." I said and I picked up the one against the wall next to the door and carried it around the trolley.
"Wh-what are you doing?" Carla asked in alarm.
"Well I was gonna try and jump into her mind to talk to her in there, but you're right, she won't listen to me. So instead I'm gonna take you in and you can talk her into phasing back." I explained gently as I put my chair down and sat next to her.
"Will it hurt?" She asked.
I shook my head.
"Will my mind get lost?"
"No." I assured her. "I've done this lots of times."
"With other people?"
"Yeah."
"Carla, Tony is the most skilled out of any of us to do this. He's Essie Black's son." Tina said in awe as if Mom was some kind of god among our people. "Essie, first of the vamp-wolfs, the most powerful of us all and Tony follows his mother. If any of us actually here on the Res is able to do it, then it's Tony. Dream walking is second nature to him."
"Is that what we'll be doing?" Carla asked, almost in awe.
"Yeah." I said. "Hopefully Opal's on the dreamscape."
"And if not?"
"Then I'll have to wire you directly into her brain." I explained.
"Ok." Carla said with a steeling breath.
"So you wanna do this?" I asked, just to be sure because if she changed her mind and fought against me I could get seriously drained.
"Yeah." Carla assured me.
I held out my hand and Carla took it without hesitating.
"Keep your other hand on Opal." I stated.
Carla nodded and I placed my left hand onto Opal's flank.
"Now close your eyes and just relax. I'm doing all the work, but you have to trust me completely." I said steadily.
Carla nodded and closed her eyes. I closed my own eyes and I reached out to her mind with my own, using our contact to bolster my telepathy and I managed to find her spirit self. I pulled her up out of her body.
"Can you see me?" I asked.
"What? We're…floating?" She gasped.
"At the moment, I just need to make sure I got you with me though. Before I take you into Opal's mind. So you ok?"
"Yeah." Carla replied. "This is weird, but feels almost…natural."
"Our ancestors were spirit warriors. This is what they could do." I explained.
"Could I do this on my own?" She asked in wonder.
"I…technically I don't see why you couldn't. It is a possibility, but…but…I think you'd have to really concentrate and work at it because it's a skill lost to our people."
Carla nodded.
"But I guess this isn't the time to theorise. Opal needs us." I reminded her.
"So what do I say to her?" She asked.
"Whatever you think you should do to get her to phase back." I replied.
Carla thought for a moment before she nodded her head in determination.
"Ok. Let's go."
"I think I'd better stay out here. I'll monitor you, but if I go in as well then Opal might decide not to listen to you too." I realised.
"I guess…but?"
"I'll monitor you, any signs of trouble I'll pull you straight back out. I promise." I said letting all of my sincerity show, she had to trust me one hundred percent right now.
"God. Why didn't we trust you before? You're not deceitful at all and this is taking a lot out of you to just hold us here. I got to hand it to you, you're kind…and we gave you a lot of shit you didn't deserve." Carla said, and I could feel her shame.
"I appreciate the apologies and all, but right now I need you to hurry before we lose the link." I said before her shame got the better of her.
Carla nodded.
"So what happens now?" She asked.
"Just move toward Opal, I'll provide the power you need to get into her head." I said.
Carla nodded and moved closer to Opal. I concentrated as I let Carla into Opal's mind without being dragged in myself, although I still had a good view of what was going on. It was like hell, all fire everywhere and nowhere to turn from the flames.
"What do I do?" Carla asked in alarm.
I knew she wouldn't be able to manipulate the dreamscape; she'd never been there before. I concentrated and encouraged a rain to come to put out the flames and soothe and heal Opal who was curled up in a tight round ball. There was nothing around them so I brought in a nice comfy floor for them to be on because Carla was feeling nervous about the floating in nothing. That was as much as I could do. It was all up to Carla now.
"Opal?" She said softly as she touched her friend on the shoulder.
"Carla?" Opal said through her tears as if she didn't dare to hope, then she looked up and gasped in delighted. "Carla!" She exclaimed as she flung her arms around her best friend. "Are you really here?"
"Yeah." Carla confirmed.
"But how?" Opal asked. "This is in my head, even if it is painful."
"The fangs are helping me." Carla said and moved on quickly before Opal could ask which one. "Look, you've been bitten by a leach. You know what that means?"
"That I'm poisoned and gonna die." Opal sobbed.
"That's not a guarantee now." Carla said soothingly.
"What do you mean?" Opal said, not letting herself hope.
"Doc Portia's has a hunch on a new treatment, something that might be an antidote to the vamp venom." Carla said, carefully not saying what it was.
"She has?" Opal asked excitedly.
"Yeah. She's already put it in you, and we think it might be working, but we can't be sure." Carla explained.
"Why not?" Opal asked.
"Because you're still in your wolf body so the doc can't fit the ECG and stuff to know how you're reacting."
"Oh right."
"So I came in to ask you to try and phase back." Carla said softly.
"But I'm so hot. I can't, I can't find any cool." Opal stammered.
"This isn't Quileute fire though, it's vamp attack fever. You really want to work in that heat?" Carla demanded.
"Of course I don't but…" Opal gasped.
I concentrated again and started to cool the dreamscape, making it snow. Although I made sure I kept it like magical movie snow rather than real snow. It fell lightly over the girls and Carla caught a snowflake.
"Can you draw on this cool?" She asked, handing the snowflake to Opal.
"Yeah." Opal said with a smile and she closed her eyes and everything in the world was shifting without really changing. "Does that help?"
"I'll have to go out and see." Carla said sadly.
"Ok." Opal said looking down at her feet then back up at Carla. "If this doesn't work will you come say goodbye to me. You know, if the fangs will let you."
"It won't come to that, but if it does, I don't think they'll refuse. We're all pack and family right? Maybe we should remember that sometimes." Carla said in a meaningful way and I realised that was an apology to me as well.
Opal nodded before hugging her friend again.
"See you on the other side." She said.
"You'll get through this." Carla promised and then moved out of Opal's mind and back to me.
I directed her back to her body before I floated back into mine and I sat up with a start. My hand that had been resting on fluffy wolf flank earlier was now resting on naked human hip. I pulled my hand away quickly, but when I went to drop Carla's hand she squeezed it tighter. She wanted comfort if the news wasn't good and I was suddenly her favourite person in the world.
"She's stable but unconscious." Portia said. "I'll keep her in for observation but if what Dr Cullen theorises is true, then she should be up and about tomorrow. Not up to full speed, but at least out of the hospital. Has anyone told her parents?"
"I'll do that." I said, standing up. "As acting alpha it's my job."
"I'll come with you." Tina said, looping her arm through mine. "I should have told them sooner but I wanted to make sure the rumours were true."
"Not to worry them if there wasn't anything to worry about?" I asked.
"You'd be surprised how many times it's happened." Tina commented as we left the medical centre.
"Everything is eerily quiet." I said as we crossed the Res to Opal's house.
"Yeah, well the commotion with all the howling got to people's nerves. They're all indoors awaiting news." Tina explained.
"When will we let them know what's happened?" I asked.
"They can go on wondering for a while. The pack will tell their families what happened once they get back." Tina said with a shrug.
"I guess it's the best way for them to find out, but what if they get facts wrong?" I asked.
"I already let Hunter know what's happened and he can tell the others." She replied.
"Then there's just Opal's parents that needs telling." I said with a sigh.
"Yeah." Tina agreed.
"Well here goes." I murmured as we reached their house. "I should do the talking."
"Are you sure?" Tina asked, it wasn't that she didn't think I could do it, she was just being my protective Auntie Tina who didn't want me to do anything I found uncomfortable.
"She was under my care, I should explain." I said firmly.
"Ok."
We walked up to the door and I knocked. There was a minuet where Blake and Poppy were whispering about who would call at this hour. I knocked again and they came to the conclusion that it had to be pack business because of all the howling and commotion earlier. Now they were worried because if we were knocking that meant we weren't Opal.
It was Blake who answered the door and he started to fear the worst when he saw me and Tina standing by the door.
"What happened?" He asked.
"Let's start with the most important fact." I said. "Opal is gonna be fine."
"What did you do?" He demanded.
"I didn't do anything." I protested. "We ran into trouble at the border. A vamp ambush where Opal was patrolling. She held them off well but three on one is too much for one wolf and she got injured before we got to her. But we got her to the hospital, Dr Clearwater is keeping her in overnight for observation, but she'll be up and about tomorrow."
"Wouldn't expect anything less her being a phaser and all." Blake observed. "It'd have to be something pretty awful for her not to be recovered tomorrow. And I heard stories that your granddaddy was up on his feet the next day after having all the bones in his body crushed."
"It took a little longer than that." I murmured.
"What happened?" Blake asked, realising he'd sent me off-topic.
"The vamp she came across was; well she was the head of the Volturi wolf hunters and she knew that rather than tear us apart it's much more fun to bite us and let us die in agony." I said solemnly.
"She was bit?" Poppy gasped as she appeared at the door.
"She was." I said. "Like I said, the vamps had set up an ambush where she was patrolling. Saskia bit her just as we got there. We took out Saskia and the rest of the vamps are dust now."
"But she got bit. How could our baby survive that?" Poppy demanded.
"Because Tony here is one smart cookie and did all kinds of research with Carlisle that led them to the conclusion that the blood of us wampires is like an antidote to vamp venom due to us being wolves with venom naturally inside us." Tina explained.
"If you knew this why didn't you say anything before?" Poppy countered.
"How would we know it would actually work?" I asked. "Ask someone to get bit and then test it? There really wasn't a way to know for certain until someone's life depended on it."
"You mean Opal's?" Poppy said harshly.
"Yeah. It happened to be Opal." I admitted.
"What if it didn't work?" Blake demanded.
"Then the outcome would have been the same as if they hadn't tried anything." Poppy said lowly. "It was a shot in the dark, but I'm glad they took it."
"What if you turned her into a vampire?" Blake asked in horror.
"The venom in our blood isn't potent enough, only the venom on our teeth can do that." I stated.
"Are you sure?" Blake demanded.
"Even if you drained me completely and pumped that blood into your veins you wouldn't change. But if I bit you then you would. It's to do with the balance in our blood. Of there being just the right amount of venom to keep us regenerative while not making us vampires. I could go into a lengthy lecture about this, but it requires a knowledge of masters' level bio and a lot more time than we have right now. I could ask Carlisle to send you his paper on the subject, it's very thorough." I offered.
"I'll take your word for it." Blake said, giving me a wary look. "Can we go see Opal now?"
"Yeah. Carla's sitting with her a while, she's waiting for you." I said.
"I'll take you." Tina stated.
"And I need to get back to the border, find out if things are done, be certain that all vamps have been rounded up. That there's no more sneak attacks." I said.
Are you sure you want to go out running now? You should probably rest after donating all that blood. Tina said in concern.
I got all that blood back, and I've already let Hunter running long enough tonight. I should let him rest since he'll be running tomorrow. And you should accompany the Calls to the Medical Centre. I replied.
As long as you're sure. Tina said.
Auntie Tina, you know that if you binge on blood and feel the vamp side get a little cocky it's best to run as a wolf for a while? I began. Well I just had a pint of human blood for the first time since I was a baby and well, I need to be a wolf a while to counter and I may as well protect the Res at the same time.
Yeah. Ok. You're right. Keep safe tonight. She said and hugged me.
"I will." I promised as I hugged her back before running into the forest.
I pulled off my shorts, secured them to my ankle, then phased on the fly. I felt both pack minds flow in around me.
Tony, you're back. What happened? Hunter asked.
Opal's gonna be ok. I assured him, and all the other wolves, as I ran to the northeast border where my uncle was patrolling.
Saskia didn't break the skin? Hunter asked in relief. But I could have sworn that Opal was covered in blood.
She was. I said.
What? But how? Hunter asked, he really didn't know and I had to think that Tina might not be as in charge of her telepathy at the moment as she thinks she is.
I…well Grandpa Carlisle figured out that our blood is a Quileute antidote to vampire venom. At least for the pack. I explained.
You mean that a vamp bite won't kill us? Q asked in amazement.
We got an antidote, it's a safety net, but it's not a guarantee. So don't go getting sloppy. I warned.
You really think I would Boss? Q asked in a hurt voice, but he was playing around.
I'm serious, and this is to all of you. We have a way out in an extreme emergency, but I don't want you to take it for granted. The supply is limited and can only be used in a proper emergency. It's not there because you got sloppy, but because you got unlucky.
Ok. I get it. Q stated.
Just make sure you remember. Hunter said. You taking over?
No. I'm resuming my duties for this night. I corrected. I'll need two volunteers, anyone who doesn't have to be up too early tomorrow morning.
I'm not running tomorrow and I start work same as you. Q said.
Ok. I agreed.
And I'll run too. Twain volunteered. Somebody has to keep an eye on gun-ho Q.
I don't need keeping an eye on. Q said with a growl.
Stop arguing, we should really be on our guard. I snapped. We had one invasion tonight, there might be another.
You sure you don't want a bigger team? Hunter asked.
Nah. You should all get rested, it's better you're fresh for fighting if it's needed. I replied.
We got all the vamps anyway. They're all ash now. Hunter assured me.
Yeah. I said and I tried to bury my thoughts as something suddenly occurred to me.
We need to have a meeting in the morning. Hunter said, realising I'd thought of something that I didn't want to share with the group right now. But right now I'm gonna hit the hay. Anyone else who doesn't fancy running the rest of the night I suggest you do the same.
Everyone left until there was only Billy, Dustin, Q, Twain and me left running. Everyone was subdued, even Q stopped chatting after a while and we just run on through the night in silence. It'd been too much of a close call. No one wanted to think about it, but talking didn't hide it. The more we paid attention to each other's minds the more we started to think about it. It was better to run in silence.
We split up at dawn and I ran back to the Den, phasing back and pulling on my shorts just before I stepped inside. Hunter was waiting for me, along with Tina.
"What's the problem you're worrying about?" Hunter asked as I dropped down onto a beanbag.
"We killed Saskia." I said. "More to the point, I killed Saskia. Even if she'd gone rogue, Aro will be pissed just to have a reason to hate us."
"Saskia?" Tina said with a hiss as she just recognised the name. "You're telling me the bitch responsible for killing my daddy before I even got chance to meet him was out there tonight. That she was that close and I didn't get a chance to fight her? To take her down for what she did to me?"
"She's dead Teen, she can't hurt you no more." Hunter said soothingly as he put his hand on her shoulder.
"But damn, why do I have to be pregnant now? I should have been out there tonight. I should have been the one to rip her apart." She growled.
"What's done is done." I said warily. "And at least you're not facing the firing squad now."
"What do you mean?" Tina demanded.
"I killed Saskia." I said. "Leader of the wolf hunters. I know from her thoughts that she was planning an ambush, but what if Aro sent her here on a diplomatic mission? I just killed one of Aro's own people. He won't take too kindly to that. He might ask for my head in return."
"We won't let him take you." Tina said firmly.
"I'll go instead." Hunter said with a firm nod.
"No offence Uncle Hunter, but my alpha voice against people who ain't wolves is much stronger than yours. If anyone got any hope of going into the lion's den and alpharing their way back out it's me."
"But why go at all? Aro doesn't need to know about this." Tina observed.
"It's Aro, he'll find out somehow." I said. "I think we should play up our respect for him."
"But no matter what you multiply zero with all you get is zero." Tina said.
"Mathlete and top three of my class." I said flatly. "I don't need a math lesson."
Tina scowled at me, but I decided that I wouldn't back down on this. They might have chairs and I was on a beanbag, but we were still equals here. I was as much an alpha as both of them, and I knew a little more about the whole Volturi business than they did. I had all the titbits I'd picked up from Mom and Dad's minds over the years, not to mention Aunt Marlin and Aunt Layla, there was enough for me to get a better picture. I'd even been to Volterra, something Hunter and Tina had only ever done on the dreamscape. I'd touched the minds of the Volturi, I knew the protocol they operated by and I was certain I could get us out of this peacefully.
"Look, if we don't tell Aro and he finds out some other way that we killed his head wolf hunter he'll find some way to make it a declaration of war. But if we call the Volturi, let Aro know that Saskia was on our land, refused to talk and attacked our people so we killed her out of self-defence, I'm sure he won't want retribution. Especially if we offer to send the ashes back."
"You really think he'll go for that?" Tina asked doubtfully.
"It's our only option to ensure the safety of our people." I said steadily. "We are the protectors, it's our duty to put ourselves last. Even if it means a sacrifice."
"If it comes to that I'll go." Hunter said again.
"Do you really think Aro would settle for you when he knows I'm much more powerful?" I asked. "And he knows that, he knows these things. You and Tina might have extra powers compared to the other wolves, but you know that Mom and me are in a different league entirely."
"Yeah." Hunter conceded angrily.
"And I'm not a kid anymore, it's not your job to protect me anymore than it's my job to protect you. Like I said, we are the protectors and if we have to put ourselves in harms way for the safety of everyone else then we have to do it. Whichever one of us is best for the task at that particular time. Right now it's me and…well let's just get in contact with Aro first."
"Ok." Hunter said. "But how do we go about doing that?"
"I…I'll give Marlin a ring. Ask her how she thinks we should go from here." I said.
"I'm gonna phone Medium Quill, tell him you ain't coming in today." Hunter stated.
"What? But I'm not ill." I countered.
"It's a Res emergency, it takes precedence, and you work three times as hard as anyone else there, you'll be caught up in no time." Hunter said firmly. "If what you say about Aro is right then we need to sort this out ASAP."
"Yeah." I agreed.
"Ok. You call Marlin, I'll go collect Saskia's ashes. Tina, have you got a fancy vase that could pass for an urn in your workshop?"
"I think I got something that will pass." Tina said flatly.
"Then you get on that. Tony, work on getting hold of Marlin, once we know for certain what to do we'll move on. Meet back up here in an hour?"
"Sounds good." I said.
"Yeah." Tina said with a slight glare, she wasn't too happy about giving Saskia a pretty urn to spend eternity in, but she knew it was necessary to throw the Volturi off.
"Then let's go." Hunter said.
I stood and made my way into the house. My phone was in my room. When I entered Grace was awake, sat up in bed and she was full of worry and tension.
"God, what happened last night?" She demanded.
"We got attacked, I killed a possibly still important member of the Volturi and now I got to work on covering our footsteps if that's the case." I said picking up my phone.
"What are you doing?" Grace asked fearfully as she leant against my back with her arms around my shoulders.
"I'm phoning Marlin to ask her what she thinks we should do, or at least how to get hold of the Volturi." I explained.
"Get…get hold of them? Why…why would you want to contact them?" She asked in alarm.
"Because I killed a sort of high up tonight and if I don't let Aro know myself and he finds out some other way he'll twist it into some kind of declaration of war. This is damage control."
"Oh god." Grace gasped and she slid away from me and flopped back against the headboard. "Do you have to…"
"I don't know." I said as I found Marlin's number and hit call.
"Oh god." Grace sobbed and her mind was twisted with worry that hurt me.
I had to push it away while I listened to the dial up on the other end.
"Hello Tony, you're phoning rather early." Marlin answered.
"I know, but there's an emergency here." I replied.
"What's happened?" She asked.
"We had a visit last night from Saskia." I said.
"Oh great! I thought the Volturi couldn't come near us." She said angrily.
"Hey you're right." I said. "I guess she wasn't working on Aro's orders but off her own agenda."
"You couldn't find out?" Marlin asked.
"There wasn't much time to talk. She crossed the border and got into a fight with one of my pack, I had no choice but to kill her." I stated.
"Oh. And now you want to know how to proceed?" Marlin guessed.
"Yes." I confirmed.
"Phone Aro, let him know what happened, but make sure you never imply your people were at fault. If Saskia crossed the border she was breaking his rules anyway. Whatever evidence you have to make it more clear she was there under nefarious purposes and you would not have been able to reason with her, use."
"There were other vamps there, none of them Volturi wolf hunters, just random people she'd picked up along the way." I stated.
"Then she really wasn't working on Aro's orders. That sounds sloppy to me. Especially since he's well aware how the pack works. That'll work in your favour. Aro is all for protecting former members but not when they're making trouble for him and casting the Volturi in less than a just light."
"I guess I have that going for me." I said with a sigh. "Should I offer to send her ashes back?"
"It will be seen as a sign of respect." Marlin observed. "But whatever you do, don't agree to go to Volterra. If Aro gets you there who knows what he might do to you."
"I'm gonna tell him I'll send her by any courier he thinks best, even if it costs a thousand dollars to make sure she gets there with all due respect, I won't go there." I said firmly.
"I wouldn't go throwing the money offer around, Aro might take it as a chance to be offended, even if he is not." Marlin advised.
"Ok. I'll be careful how I word it. Now how do I get in contact? Do I phone and make an appointment? E-mail them and set up a Skype date?"
"I would phone them, it is a sign that you wish to speak to them urgently. You wish to contact them quickly and not through a means that might get lost in the inbox. Although I wouldn't expect them to reply immediately."
"Ok. I'll phone them." I said.
"Would you like me to instead? I could act as your emissary." Marlin offered.
"I think it would be better if I do it myself. It'll put me on a more stable footing to stand as the leader of my people and not delegate to others who weren't even there. He'll just accuse me of hiding behind your skirts since Mom and Dad are still out of the country."
"You're right." Marlin said. "You should let Tobias and Essie know what you're doing."
"No." I said firmly. "I want them to have a carefree vacation. If things escalate then I'll let them now, but for the moment there really isn't any point. It's not like they can do anything and if I really just got to Fed-ex Saskia home then all this will blow over before Mom and Dad could even get back." I stated.
"I won't tell them until they get back." Marlin promised.
"Ok." I agreed since I knew Marlin hated keeping things from her big brother. "So do you have a number?"
Marlin gave me a number and I wrote it down on scrap paper along with what I should say to get through to the right department.
"Just remember that this number might not work anymore. If it doesn't work let me know immediately, I'll phone around a few contacts that might know." Marlin stated.
"Ok. I'll try it. Thanks Aunt Marlin." I said sincerely.
"You're welcome." She replied. "Let me know how it works out."
"As soon as I got an answer." I promised.
"Thank you."
We said goodbye and I hung up.
"What's happening now?" Grace asked in a whisper.
"I got to phone Italy." I said. "Man my bill will be high this month. The phone companies gonna love me."
"Tony, don't joke." Grace said with worry.
"I'm trying to pep myself up before I do something really scary." I said.
"Get it over with." Grace said firmly but she sat beside me and put her arm around me.
She leant her cheek against my shoulder and I felt a wave of comforting thoughts. She was here for me, she was my rock. I could do this. It was part of being alpha, looking out for my pack, having to deal in diplomacy with leaders of other covens.
I took a deep calming breath and typed in the number, it seemed so much longer with the country code and area code before finally the actual number. It took slightly longer than normal for the connection to be made and then the sound of ringing. It rang for a full minuet before it was answered, I guess that was to put off anyone who dialled this number by mistake. The line was crackly but the voice that answered was a nice sounding lady talking in Italian, welcoming me to the Volterra castle and started going through a list of their tourist attractions.
"I am a patron of the Padroni and wish to set up a meeting with them." I said in Italian.
"A moment please." The woman said and I was treated to a classical number while I was put on hold for another minuet.
"What's taking so long?" Grace whispered.
"It's all a test. If you can't be patient to sit through all this then obviously what you got to say isn't important." I explained.
The music cut off and there was a change of tone, my call had been diverted.
"Name and coven." A clipped voice said.
"Anthony Black, Quileute Pack, Washington State." I said.
There was a pause on the other end, and then derisive laughter.
"You seriously expect me to believe that a member of the Quileute tribe would just phone the Volturi so unexpectedly?" The woman demanded.
"I am Anthony Black, son of Tobias Seruvus and Essie Black the wolf child. I am one of the current alphas of the Quileute Pack. This is a very disrespectful manner and I will report this to the Brothers. And don't think you can bury my call, there are other means with which I can contact them." I said firmly.
"Very well, 'son of Essie' if you are indeed who you say you are, why do you bother the Volturi?" She asked, still sarcastic.
"I wish to set up a conference call with the Brothers as soon as they are able to." I stated.
"And why should we grant this to you?" She demanded.
"I wish to speak to them about a certain leader of the wolf hunters and why she was near our borders last night." I said firmly, I didn't want to give them the heads up that she was dead, but if she wasn't supposed to be there then it might make the Brothers speak to me sooner.
"I see. You wish to lodge a complaint."
"I wish to speak to the Brothers directly. There's some urgent news I wish to give them, and it has to be soon. Sooner than it would take for me to fly out there for instance." I said a little testily.
"I will let them know as soon as possible, we have to drop everything for such an honoured guest."
"Stop being sarcastic Gianna and just give me a straight answer." I said flatly, and I heard the slight gasp, she obviously didn't think I could guess who she most likely was.
"I can't give you an answer either way until I have informed Aro. I will do so now, have you got a number I can call you back on?"
I gave her my number.
"Make sure you stay by your phone. I will only ring once." She warned.
"Ok." I said. "I await your call." I hung up.
"Oh my god, I can't believe you were so assertive." Grace said.
"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence." I remarked.
"It's just you usually…"
"Cow away. I know, I hate confrontation if I can avoid it, but I knew I wouldn't get anywhere with Gianna if I didn't stand my ground. Know those sectaries who are good at making sure they're boss never has to deal with people?" I asked.
"Yeah." Grace agreed.
"Well imagine one of them with over eighty years of practice." I observed.
"I can see why you'd want to be firm." Grace remarked, and then she hugged me tight. "I'm proud of you."
I laughed lightly, feeling my cheeks burn.
"If you wanted any proof that you got what it takes to be a leader, well that's it right there. You're doing the best thing to ensure the safety of your people, even if you got to do something you don't like."
I smiled and kissed Grace, before looking at my phone, which was quiet.
"I just hope they agree to a meeting." I said.
"From what I've heard of Aro he won't pass up an opportunity to screw with Essie, even if it's through you." Grace said.
"Then let's just hope Aro's as petty as we've always heard." I said warily. "God I could do with a shower and maybe a nap right now."
"I could always wake you if they ring." Grace offered.
"No. I can't. I want to be alert when they do ring and having to get my brain moving when I've only just woke up isn't gonna help. I'll just wait until they call back and then when I got an appointment time for the meeting I can decide what to do then."
"Then what are you going to do?" She asked.
"Lots of coffee." I said, getting to my feet. "And something to eat."
"I'll just get dressed then join you." Grace replied.
I nodded and left the room to find Mags standing in her doorway.
"Daddy, what happened last night?" She asked softly as she clung to Mr Tiggles. "The wolves were howling and I could feel the emergency. Were you hurt?"
"No." I assured her.
"Was somebody?" She asked, reading between the lines I'd tried to hide from her.
"Opal, but she's ok now." I assured her.
"It was because she wouldn't listen to you wasn't it." Magda said. "Perhaps she'll listen in future."
"Hopefully." I said. "You want breakfast?"
Magda nodded and we walked to the kitchen in silence, but her mind was busy.
"Do you really have to go to the Volturi?" She asked.
"No. I just have to talk to them." I replied.
"Are you scared?"
"Of course I am." I admitted. "You'd be stupid not to be scared when you're talking to the Volturi. You just got to make sure that they can't see how scared you really are."
"What have you got to tell them?"
"That I had to kill one of their members last night because she crossed onto our land without permission." I explained.
"Why are the Volturi so bad?" Magda asked as she sat at the table and put Mr Tiggles on the top beside her.
"They're not really bad." I concede. "Compared to a lot of carnies they are the good guys, but Aro started to hate our family when it looked like the Cullen clan was gonna match the Volturi for numbers. Not to mention how many people in our family have powers."
"Like the ones we have?" Magda said with realisation.
"Yeah." I confirmed.
Mags nodded and as I looked at her I realised that maybe she was old enough to know about what Mom and Dad went through, especially if it stopped her from going looking for trouble with the Volturi.
"Aro will stop at nothing to get the most powerful people into his coven. Especially people like us. We can read minds without skin contact. We can project our thoughts. We can control people with the alpha voice. All of these can be honed into a perfect weapon, and that's what Aro likes his followers to be. His perfect little weapons. He would love to get his hands on us, you more so because you're still a kid and he'd hope he could make you worship him as a mentor and father so you'll do whatever he says."
"But you're my daddy, I would never think of someone else as my father." Magda said firmly.
"I know that, but he doesn't." I said softly as I thought of the best way to explain it. "Aro likes to think he's a master of persuasion, and really he kinda is. That's why you have to be careful around him, watch any promises he gets you to make, listen to exactly how he words things, and never forget that he'll play dirty to get you, even threatening your family. That's how he managed to get a hold of Grandma Essie."
"What?" Magda asked in alarm, appalled that I cold even suggest that Mom had ever been anything other than her brave, strong Grandma.
"Yeah. Grandma Essie was held there for twenty odd years." I stated.
"How?"
"When she was eighteen the Volturi found out about her. She was the first vampire-werewolf hybrid. Of course Aro wanted her. Especially when he found out she was so telepathic. He sent a group of his best guards, including the wolf hunters, to get her. Grandma could see that it wasn't going to end well, that everyone she loved would die trying to protect her, so she gave herself up. She couldn't stand the thought of Hunter growing up without a mother and father because she was too selfish to stand up for herself."
"Wow."
"She had no other choice and so they took her away to Volterra, along with Grandpa Tobias, and they spent so many years there. She had very little contact with home because the Volturi was monitoring all her mail. She had to keep Hunter secret, or so she thought. Aro knew about him, but held onto it until he could use it when Grandma threatened to leave. He used the knowledge of Hunter and Tina to not only keep Grandma there but also make her join the guard. Then they hid Grandpa away and made Grandma think he'd died, trying their hardest to break her. When she finally got Grandpa back they'd stolen his mind. It took a while to get him back, she did eventually."
"Poor them. I never knew." Mags said with a sob as she hugged Mr Tiggles into her chest.
"You know there's a happy ending right?" I said with a smile as I stroked her head.
"But there's worst before right?" She said, looking up at me, her eyes brimming with tears. "Worse even than Grandpa forgetting who he is?"
"Yeah." I said. "But you have to know so you know how bad the Volturi is."
Magda nodded.
"The worst thing to happen was when Auntie Liza and me was born. Grandma had to protect us from Aro, he could never know about us. She…she had to think we were dead or Aro would know she was lying and she couldn't deal with the hurt. She shut it all away and became the cold lady. Esther-Marie, the living statue who moved through seven years not reacting to anything. Just going through every day as a servant of Aro. She only came around when she found out that Aro knew about us. If that hadn't happened, well I think she would still be there with Grandpa even now."
"Oh no." Magda gasped.
"So just think, if the Volturi can do that to Grandma…" I began.
"I must never let them get me vulnerable. I always have to ensure I'm ten steps ahead of them, like a good chess master." She said firmly.
"Yeah." I replied.
"I hope I can do that." Magda said solemnly.
"I hope you're never in the situation that you have to." I replied.
Magda nodded, then smiled.
"Thank you Daddy for telling me all this and treating me like an adult. You could have just told me that the Volturi are bad people and I should avoid them, but I wouldn't have been able to take it completely seriously, but since you explained, it's easier to see all of the dangers and how to avoid them."
I smiled and Magda smiled back before screwing up her nose.
"I thought you were doing breakfast." She said.
"Yeah, I'm on it." I said, jumping to my feet and heading to the fridge to get out the bacon just as Grace entered the kitchen.
"Why don't you let me do that and you get on with dosing yourself up with coffee. Anyway, I don't want you to miss the call because your hands are too greasy to answer the phone." She said firmly.
"Ok." I agreed immediately since Grace was a much better cook than me anyway.
I sat back down at the table and checked my phone, there hadn't been any calls since I'd rang Volterra, I had a strong signal and the battery was almost full. It was all gonna be ok for the duration of breakfast anyway. Then I realised something.
"Where's Olwen and Keelie?" I asked.
"They went out." Mags replied. "About twenty minuets ago, not long after you came back. She took Keelie out with Uncle Hunter. I don't know where they're going, Hunter was blocking their minds and they were whispering too much to be heard. Maybe he wanted to take Keelie out of the house so she wouldn't get in the way when you were talking to the Volturi."
"Yeah." I replied, or maybe not have Olwen blow a fuse and demand to talk to the monsters who took away her mother all those millennia ago.
"When do you think they'll call back?" Mags asked, and as if by magic the phone rang.
It was a foreign number I didn't recognise so I answered it.
"Hello." I replied.
"Do I have the honour of addressing young Master…forgive me, Mister Anthony Black?" The smooth voice on the other end replied.
"Yeah." I replied.
"Well this is a treat, I thought Gianna was lying when she informed me that you had called." The voice said amused and I realised I was talking to Aro. "Now it appears you have some important news that you wish to impart, about everybody's favourite rogue wolf hunter."
"I do." I said, then took a breath to launch into the tale.
"Please, not so fast. The trouble with this mode of communication is that it relies on voice only. When you impart whatever news you have, I wish to see your face. I realise it is urgent, after all you told Gianna it could not wait until you made it to Volterra, therefore I suggest we set up a video conference. Marvellous technology don't you agree? Where two people can sit on either end of this vast globe and talk to each other face to face?"
"Yeah." I agreed. "When would you like to do it?"
"Would you be able to set up in two hours?" Aro asked.
"I can." I agreed.
"Then I expect you to be ready in two hours. I believe we will use Skype. What is your user name so we know who to look for?" Aro prompted.
I considered for a moment that I should make one up and then quickly create a new account before Aro contacted me, but he probably already had one of the watchers waiting over the keys ready to look me up. I could always make it a cold account later and transfer all the people I actually want to talk to a new account so I told him my account.
"Thank you Anthony Black, alpha of the Quileute tribe and son of the charming Esther-Marie, I look forward to our chat." And with that Aro hung up.
I looked at my phone for a long moment and then Grace put a plate in front of me.
"Eat up. Mags and me will set up the laptop and web cam in the Den for you while you have a shower and make yourself look presentable. You won't have to do the conference alone either. We'll be there with you, off camera, but we'll be there." She said firmly.
"Thanks." I said with a smile, then dug into my breakfast so I could go shower. I only had two hours to make sure everything was up and running before Aro wanted to speak to me.
An hour and a half later I entered the Den. Magda was helping Grace hang a traditional Quileute blanket up on the wall behind Tina's chair, it did look better than Hunter's tatty old thing. The blanket was to cover up the personal touches each member of the pack had added to the wall that we didn't want the Volturi to see. The camera was set up on a tripod but Grace wanted me to sit in the chair so she could centre it properly while Magda moved TV tray in front of me so that I had a good view of the screen and could still look at the camera when talking.
"Should I be in this too?" Magda asked. "Like a good daughter and lieutenant?"
"Unless it's absolutely necessary I don't want them to know what you look like." I said.
"Do you think they'll want to see her?" Grace asked.
"You never know with Aro. He probably already knows what she looks like, what the both of you look like. It's the Volturi's job to know these things." I said with horror.
"If we have to face them too, then we will." Grace said firmly as she put her arm around Mags. "We'll be right here if you need us."
"Yes." Magda said firmly as she held up Mr Tiggles as if he could defend me too.
"Just make sure you're both comfortable, it could take a while, and no matter what you hear, don't interrupt unless I signal you to." I stated.
"Why?" Grace asked, narrowing her eyes. "Are you likely to say something I won't like."
"No. But Aro is tricksy and I got to figure him out, even if it means saying stuff I don't really mean." I explained.
"But isn't the point of the video conference so he can see your face and know if you're being sincere or not?" Grace asked.
"Hopefully I can be sincere, but in the case that I can't…"
"Ok, we promise." Grace said with a sigh. "Is everything set up ok?"
I reached out for the laptop and it was an ok distance away. I checked the video feed, I was in frame and all that you could see behind me was the blanket. I checked the mike; that worked fine. I checked the connection, Grace had gone with the ether net cable so there wasn't any chance the Wi-Fi would cut out. We were good to go.
I nodded.
"We're over here." Grace said and she led Magda over to the corner where she'd set up some beanbags and cushions, making a comfortable nest for them both.
There was nothing more to do now than to log onto Skype and wait for the Volturi to get in touch.
It was exactly two hours after their call that I had a request, it was listed as Volterra Inc. I accepted it and then there was an immediate invitation for video chat. I took a deep breath and accepted that too. I got a view of the thrones, the three Volturi leaders sat in the same formation as they had been when I'd gone to Volterra that one time.
"Greetings Alpha Anthony Black, I am impressed that you answered our request so promptly." Aro said pleasantly.
"Like I said this is an emergency." I replied.
"Oh so abrupt, just like dear Essie. How is my old friend?" Aro asked with a grin and no hint of visible irony although I was certain he was doing it to try and anger me, he didn't know that I was more like Dad when it came to my temper, cheap shots like that wouldn't work.
"Oh you know Mom, free spirited as ever. Her and Dad are enjoying a, well I would say second, but this is more like their twentieth honeymoon now." I said with a chuckle. "But who can blame them? They do have a lot of time to catch up on."
"I would have thought she'd want to spend every single second with her children?" Aro said aghast.
"When we were younger maybe, but Liza and me are older now, we got to fly the nest at some point." I said, determined not to get fazed by anything he said.
"Ah yes, and so you have. How are your talented authoress wife Grace and your delightful daughter Magda?" He asked, dropping them in, but I suspected he probably knew about them anyway.
"They're doing fine." I replied with a smile. "Grace is looking forward to trying her hand at a different genre of writing and Mags is a kid, she likes what all kids like."
"Ah yes, I suppose, but they do not stay children for long." Aro said in regretful tones.
"No." I said, I wanted to hurry things along, but I was sure that if I tried that Aro would think he was getting under my skin and drag the small talk out longer.
"I hear you are a carpenter of quite some skill." Aro stated when he realised the family thing wasn't going to get to me.
"I'm adequate." I replied.
"I would say more than adequate, these benches you carved are simply superb, all the guard think so." Aro said, waving his hand and the camera was moved to sweep along one wall of the Volturi Audience Chamber where there was a bench along the wall. I'd carved that one about two weeks ago. "When I heard you were working for the Quileute furniture maker I couldn't resist placing an order." Aro said as the camera came back to frame him and the other two leaders. "I really am interested in the prosperity of my former employees and their children."
"That's very benevolent of you and I thank you for considering my talent as worth your money." I said with a bow of my head, trying for Dad's mannerisms without over shadowing my own.
"You're welcome." Aro said with a slight frown, before he pulled a solemn look onto his face. "I believe you said you had some news for me."
"Yes." I replied. "Last night Saskia breached our borders and attacked one of our guards, I was left with no choice but to kill her. Our rules are very strict about vampires crossing onto our territory, we have families to protect and we cannot make exceptions for anyone who turns up unannounced."
"You really had to kill her?" Aro coaxed.
"She was determined to kill all of my pack, it was a matter of safety, not to mention she brought a small army with her. None of which were members appointed by you, but stray vampires she picked up along the way." I replied.
"Oh dear. I had feared I was losing her fealty, she was upset that I had ordered that the Children of the Moon were to be brought in for vetting first. If Laurana can tame them then they live under the patronage of the Volturi. But if, alas, this cannot be done, then it was up to Saskia to dispose of them. She thought it was a disaster waiting to happen, to have a pack of feral dogs living and breeding so close to our home, but she is mistaken of course. It is so sad that she chose to attack you. That you had to kill her. However I thank you for letting me know."
"It was only right." I said. "I suspected she'd deserted, after all you would never dream of breaking the treaty and being so underhand as to send in the wolf hunters to take out the Quileute without Mom knowing. But I thought I should let you know anyway, you always feel for family members, even when they've gone astray."
"Yes." Aro said, raising one thin eyebrow and causing his papery forehead to crease in a disconcerting way.
"Would you like the return of her ashes?" I asked.
"You would be willing to come all the way to Italy to deliver them safely?" Aro asked, deliberately misinterpreting it to try and put me on the flat foot.
"I have duties here of course, but I would pay for the best possible courier to deliver them to you safely." I stated.
"This is not a matter of money, but of honour." Aro said, and a smile flashed over his face before he took on a concerned look. "Surely you have some inclination of how I feel. Should you experience a loss, let us pick an example at random, your delightfully dainty twin sister Elizabeth now married to young Malachite, who would have thought such a thing? But I digress. Should something occur to her while she is living so far away on that little sheep farm in Wales with a husband out working most days and her oh so human baby Addie toddling about such dangerous equipment, would you not prefer somebody to accompany her remains home as opposed to her being sent through the mail like a second hand plant pot someone hocked on e-bay?"
I had no immediate response to that, my mind was too frazzled by the thought that he knew exactly where Liza was and he was definitely hinting that he could make accidents happen. God, I was screwed…
Well I'm leaving it there
Reviews make resolutions come quicker ;)
Thank you for reading
Gemma x
