Chapter 9
Revelation
Bella's PoV
Inside the car, on our way back to the house, it was very silent. My head, however, was buzzing with thoughts and it was filled with fear. I stared out the window, afraid that if I turned away, a werewolf would come up to the car.
I kept thinking about what Edward had said. The werewolves didn't see who we were, but they definitely knew there were vampires in the area. Did they smell us? Perhaps that was the answer. Vampires do have a distinct smell to the shape-shifters. Maybe we have the same, or similar, scent to werewolves. Whatever it was, it wasn't going to change anything. Werewolves knew there were vampires in the area.
They would search for their true enemy, because that is why they exist. Werewolves are vampire exterminators, in a sense, and we are werewolf exterminators. I now knew my purpose in this world. This is one of the reasons both creatures exist. To equal the other out. Because if only one existed, that creature could take over the whole world. Their enemy is the only reason they don't have more power in the world.
A part of me wished that I had seen one of the werewolves. I had never seen a true werewolf before, and I wanted to know what they looked like. Knowledge makes you strong, and, at the moment, I felt like the weakest being in the world. Carlisle had told me what they looked like, but that didn't feel the same. Was there a difference in appearance between Jacob's pack and a true werewolf? What if Jacob came up to me in his wolf-form, and in my panic, I thought he was a werewolf and attacked him? On the other hand, what if a werewolf came, and I thought it was one of Jacob's pack and I didn't do anything?
I could imagine the dreams I would have tonight if I could sleep. Jacob visiting me then it turns out to be a werewolf. It was going to be another rough night.
A pounding noise broke me from my thoughts, and I looked over to see Edward banging his fist on the steering wheel.
"Daddy?" Nessie said, "What's wrong?"
"Edward!" I said, "Stop. You're scaring Nessie!"
"It's my fault," he said, "All my fault!"
"What is your fault?" I asked.
"I knew we shouldn't have come out so late," Edward said, "It's all because I wanted to play baseball. I'm so stupid!"
"Edward," I said, "You couldn't have possibly known!"
"You're wrong, Bella," Edward said, "Do you remember what Alice told us right before we left?"
I raised my eyebrows. What did Alice have to do with this?
"She said she had some interference with her visions," Edward said, "It wasn't because of Nessie at all! Those damn werewolves blocked her visions. Why didn't I see that before?"
"You couldn't have known," I repeated, "Look, it isn't just your fault. We didn't know that the storm would blow over."
"You don't get it," Edward said, "Do you? We were lucky, Bella. I praise the moonlight tonight. I'm happy for it."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"Werewolves don't smell as bad in their human form," Edward said, "Not even as bad as humans do to us. That is why they are hard to recognize. They knew we were in the area. No, they didn't know who we were, but they still smelled vampires in the area. If the moonlight didn't show up, we would never have known they were in the woods. They would have known who we were then."
"Because Lyle had met us before," I realized.
Edward stared at me and nodded.
"Maybe it's my fault then," I said, "If I didn't go to my father's office, I wouldn't have met Lyle. We wouldn't have gone to the party."
"It's okay, Bella," Edward said, "We were very lucky tonight."
"So what do we do?" I asked.
"I don't know," Edward said, "The only thing I know is that Carlisle and the others have to know."
"Carlisle's going to want to leave Forks," I said, "Isn't he?"
Edward didn't answer.
"I can't leave Forks right now, Edward," I said, "We promised each other we would stay. For our family and our friends. Even if your family wants to leave, my father is going to want to stay. This is his town. He will want to make sure people are safe."
"We can't leave," Edward said, "Only vampires can kill werewolves. If we leave, we condemn Forks, La Push, and every other town near here. We'll be leaving the werewolves to do what ever they please."
"Do you think we're the reason the werewolves are here?" I asked, "Because the vampires and werewolves are true enemies, does that make us easier for them to find?"
"It's possible," Edward said, "We'll see what Carlisle thinks about that."
"Well, the good news is we have the upper hand," I said, "We know who the werewolves are, and we know where they live."
"Except that we don't know how many of the Graysons are werewolves," Edward said, "You know what will happen if we kill one and it turns out to be a human?"
I gulped. The Volturi would come back. But wait…?
"Maybe that wouldn't a bad idea," I said, voicing my thoughts, "Maybe the Volturi can help us."
"No, Bella," Edward said, "No matter what happens, I won't allow the Volturi to return to Forks."
"Fine," I said, sighing, "It was just a thought."
"It's a bad thought, Bella," Edward said, "We'd have to cross the line that we vowed never to cross."
"Not even as a last resort?" I asked.
"Not even then," Edward said.
"So you'd sacrifice everything to make sure the Volturi don't come back here?" I asked.
"The Volturi would deal a harder blow than the werewolves ever could," Edward said, "I thought even you would know that."
"I know," I said, sighing, "I just don't know how this predicament is going to end."
"I doubt even Alice could foresee that future," Edward said, grimly.
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A few minutes later, we arrived at the house, and pulled into the garage. We walked into the house.
"Welcome back!" Emmett's voice boomed from the living room, "How did the hunt go?"
"How did my little runt do?" Alice asked, walking up to us.
"You can't call me a little runt anymore, Auntie Alice!" Nessie, said, giggling.
"I can't?" Alice said, gasping happily, "Does that mean…?"
"Tackled a big mommy bear," Nessie said, grinning, "Though it was too big for me. Daddy had to break her neck."
"Aw," Alice said, "I guess I have to call you my little hunter then!"
Nessie nodded.
"How did you two do?" Alice asked me and Edward.
I didn't answer.
"That bad?" Alice asked.
"Daddy got a big set of antlers!" Nessie said.
"He did!" Alice said, looking from Nessie to me and Edward, "Then why do you look so unhappy? Oh, was it not on a deer?"
"Where's Carlisle, Alice?" Edward asked.
"Still at the hospital," Alice said, "Busy night tonight. Why?"
"We encountered werewolves in the forest," Edward said, grimly.
Alice's eyes went wide.
"What?" she asked, "But I would have known --"
"I don't think you would have," Edward said, "Werewolves block my mind-reading ability. Don't you think they could mess up your foresight?"
"It's possible," Alice said.
"Did I hear someone mention werewolves?" Emmett asked.
Emmett, Jasper and Rosalie walked up to us.
"How did you know the werewolves were there?" Alice asked, "Did you see them?"
"Bella smelled them before I did," Edward said, "We wouldn't known they were there if the storm hadn't passed."
"That's right," Emmett said, "You can't smell werewolves in their human form. Lucky you got out of there, eh?"
"That's not the problem, Emmett," I said, frowning.
"What's wrong?" Rosalie said.
"They knew there were vampires in the woods," Edward said.
"They didn't see you, did they?" Jasper asked.
"No," Edward said, "They don't know who we are."
"Just what we are," I said, "And that's the problem."
Suddenly, my new cell-phone rang. Only three people knew the number. One was standing beside me. So it was either Jacob or Charlie. I took the phone out of my pocket and pressed "talk".
"Hello?" I said.
"Bella, you won't believe what just happened!" Jacob's voice said.
"Jacob?" I asked.
"Yeah," he said, "We had a bonfire party tonight. Louis Grayson came with Leah. Well, the moonlight reared its ugly head, and so did Louis."
"What?!" I asked, my eyes wide, "Louis --"
"Louis became a full-fledged werewolf!" Jacob said.
It sounded strange to hear Jacob so excited about this.
"Are you okay?" I asked, "Did anyone get hurt?"
"Just Leah's broken heart," Jacob said, "Oh, and Seth got knocked out, but he is okay."
"Where's Louis?" I asked.
"Ran off with his tail tucked between his legs," Jacob said, laughing, "But Bells, that isn't what I wanted to tell you. It turns out you were wrong about something. The Quileutes and the werewolves are true enemies as well!"
"Excuse me?" I asked.
"Yeah!" Jacob said, "It turns out that the werewolves' descendants were Native Americans, called the Remi Lunitari. Which in the common tongue is --"
"Werewolf," I said.
"Right!" Jacob said, "Well, back in the olden days before even our great-grandparents were born, the Quileutes scared the hell out of the Remi Lunitari and they tucked their tails and ran off to Europe."
My eyebrows raised. The Graysons are European.
"But they're back," Jacob said, "At least their descendants are. I think they are here because they wanted to get their revenge on my tribe!"
"So they didn't know there were vampires in the area at first," I said, in realization.
"What are you talking about?" Jacob asked.
"Edward, Nessie and I went hunting tonight," I said, "We err… sort of ran into werewolves."
"What?!" Jacob asked, "Are you okay? Is Nessie --"
"We're all fine, Jake," I said, "They didn't see us."
I heard Jacob sigh.
"Thank goodness," he said, relieved, "Wait. You said 'they didn't know vampires were here at first'. What do you mean?"
"Edward thinks," I said, "that the werewolves now know there are vampires in Forks."
"Well, this is perfect then!" Jacob said, "Right? I mean… we can totally outnumber them! They have no idea that their two true enemies are in cahoots!"
"Jacob," I said, "You can't kill them, remember?"
"You think I don't know that?!" Jacob said, "Didn't you hear me when I said I encountered a fully-fledged werewolf? He may have turned tail and ran, but he kicked our butts in the process! Louis may be a pup, but he is a strong one! We're lucky the only real injury is Leah's broken heart."
"Poor Leah," I said, "Is she okay?"
"She's better than okay!" Jacob said, laughing, "She's vowed revenge on her ex-imprint! Damn girl is a drama queen, though, I'm telling you! She's been on a rampage of emotions ever since the incident. I had to leave the house just so I could be able to talk to you. I wouldn't be able to hear anything other then her if I didn't!"
"You can't let her do anything stupid, Jacob," I said, "Revenge, grief and a broken heart are an ugly combination. Promise me you'll watch her. Don't let her go off on her own, Jake!"
"All right, all right!" Jacob said, "If I have to, I'll order her to stay put. I'm her Alpha."
"That doesn't always work, Jacob," I said, "You were able to refuse the orders of Sam, remember?"
"Fine," Jacob said, sighing, "I'll watch her."
"Good," I said, "I need to go. Things are hectic around here too."
"I'll talk to you later, Bells," Jacob said, "Say hi to Nessie for me!"
"I will," I said, "See you."
I turned off the phone.
"What was that all about?" Edward asked.
"We weren't the only one who encountered a werewolf tonight," I said, "Louis transformed at Jacob's bonfire."
"What?" Edward asked, "Is everyone okay?"
"Other than a few bruises and Leah's broken heart," I said, "Yeah."
"Edward," Emmett said, "How many werewolves do you think were in the forest tonight?"
"From the smell," Edward said, "At least three. Why?"
"You know what this means, then?" Emmett said, "If Louis was at Jacob's place, then the three werewolves you encountered were --"
"I see what you mean," Edward said, "It looks like we were right to assume there were more werewolves in the Grayson family then just Louis and his father."
"Does this mean that the whole family are werewolves?" I asked.
"The chances are high, Bella," Emmett said, "Especially if Lyle's wife was one of the wolves in the forest tonight."
"Jacob mentioned something else," I said, "He said that the werewolves are descendants of an old Native American tribe."
"The Remi Lunitari," Carlisle's voice said.
I turned around. Carlisle and Esme were standing at the front door.
"You knew?" I asked.
"I had a feeling," Carlisle said.
"But you said that the shape-shifters aren't true enemies of the werewolves," I said.
"At the time, I didn't think they were," Carlisle said, "The Remi Lunitari were thought to have died out. But it seems they were able to flourish in Europe."
"The Graysons have European accents," I said, nodding, "So the werewolves didn't come here because they discovered there were vampires in the area?"
"It seems so," Carlisle said, "The Quileutes and the Remi Lunitari have an old hatred for each other. It seems Lyle Grayson is very wise when it comes to the stories of his descendants. Very loyal too. Doesn't it seem like a one-in-a-million chance that werewolves would show up in the same place as vampires without knowing it?"
"Yeah," I said.
"It's because they came searching for the descendants of their enemies," Carlisle said, "Their other enemies I mean."
"The Quileutes" I said, "And they found them."
Carlisle nodded.
"Wait a moment," Emmett said, "Something doesn't make sense. I've heard bits and pieces of the Remi Lunitari story. The Quileute tribe was able to kill a few of the Remi Lunitari."
"The messengers weren't werewolves," Carlisle said, "Otherwise the Quileutes wouldn't have survived."
"Heh," Jasper said, shaking his head, "Just like those damn werewolves to sacrifice the weaker link. They must have known all along that the Quileutes would have killed the messengers."
"They counted on it," Carlisle said, "Quileutes are commonly known as a peaceful tribe. When they confronted the Remi Lunitari the first time, they asked them to leave, but didn't attack them. The Remi Lunitari had made a vow to leave the other tribes alone until they were attacked. The Remi Lunitari left, but the Quileutes still killed the messengers. The Quileutes won't admit it, but they started the war between the shape-shifters and the werewolves. They didn't know what the werewolves were, at first. Only that they could turn into wolves. Well, they couldn't let that continue, especially when the other tribe was much stronger than the Quileutes."
"Survival of the fittest at its best," Emmett said.
"Right," Carlisle said, nodding, "Now it seems the Remi Lunitari have finally come back to get their revenge, and to once and for all end the war that has gone on for many centuries. This war, in fact, is the longest war in the history of our world. Even if the bloodshed ceased for a long time, there was no treaty to end the war."
"The Quileutes will have no chance," I said, "They'll get slaughtered unless we do something."
"I agree," Carlisle said, "The Quileutes helped us in our time of need when we could have been slaughtered by the Volturi. Now it is time to repay that."
"This time I don't see the same outcome," Emmett said, "Revenge makes a man do things he never dreamed of. There won't be a peace treaty this time."
"There is some good news this time," Edward said, "At least our enemy doesn't outnumber us when we combine our forces with the Quileutes."
"Do you hear yourselves?!" Esme finally spoke up, "We're not dealing with ruthless Volturi this time! We're dealing with a family of werewolves! A family! The Graysons have small children, Carlisle."
"They could be werewolves, honey," Carlisle said,
"Well, I won't be a part of it, Carlisle!" Esme said, "The children didn't choose to become werewolves!"
"They are what they are," Carlisle said.
Esme shook her head and walked off out of the room. Carlisle sighed. I could tell from the expression on his face that he didn't like this any more than his wife did. I didn't like it either, but if I had to choose between my daughter, family, and friends, and the werewolves, I wouldn't even give a second to think about it. The werewolves would have to leave or die. And it didn't look like they were going to leave.
------------------------------------------ I apologize for how short this chapter is. But I got everything I needed into it. This story keeps getting better and better, doesn't it? I think so too! Feedback would be great!
Chapter Finished!
