Chapter 12

Stacking Up the Defense

I felt like those eyes were following me, but I couldn't be sure. And I couldn't be sure to whom they belonged. The normal chill that follows a sense of being watched, accompanied with standard goose-bumps and hair standing straight on the back of your neck, remained absent. In fact, I would have to say the watchful eyes were comforting, guarding. Creepy? Absolutely, but reassuring.

I didn't mention this to anyone. I thought Edward would catch it in my thoughts, seeing as how he sat across from me at the lunch table; but he didn't. Perhaps, someone else's thoughts were more interesting.

I stopped by the grocery store after school—I was feeding an army for dinner, after all. The hefty woman who checked and bagged my groceries, slid me a knowing, familiar grin, saying, "You only have a little girl living with you, who all do you feed?"

"A pack of hungry wolves." People rarely believed an honest, ridiculous answer. She was no different, as she threw back a hearty, raw, cigarette laugh, and continued to bag the food. She waved goodbye and continued to shake her head with a smile on her lips. I made the drive home without running over another vampire, barely.

As I walked into the kitchen carrying the first load of groceries, Esme and Leah stood at the island waiting to help cook. After giving me a quick hello and hug, they both finished unloading the bags from the car. The three of us slid around the kitchen comfortably, making dish, after dish, after dish. The conversation was a little more awkward but happened nonetheless.

Leah initiated it, feeling the need to thank me. "Abby, I owe you my life. Not just for last night, but for everything you have done to help me past this rough stage in my life. I know I am not through it yet, but your advice as well as your defense has been everything to me. Thank you."

"Oh, Leah, think nothing of it. I know you would do the same for me, and besides we are practically family. You're Embry's sister—for all intense and purposes—and I am marrying him. Essentially, you are my sister-in-law. Regardless of that, I would help you. Never hesitate in asking if you need anything else. Sam is a hard-headed mule, so if I need to take care of him again so you can live your life, just say the word. Besides, now you have an entire coven of vampires who would stand for you."

Leah still seemed puzzled that the Cullen family would do that for her. It was one act of kindness to let her live in their house, but it was another type of crazy to defend her in a fight. Esme spoke up, sensing that Leah didn't believe that the Cullens would stand for her.

"Honey, you have gone against your instincts to live with us, when you could have easily lived somewhere else. You chose to defend our honor by standing by your decision to live with us. That means more to us than you can ever imagine. You have been raised to believe that we are monsters, more so than the rest of society, and yet you went against the grain by entrusting us with your life and by trusting us with private matters, such as your concerns about being a genetic anomaly. We owe you at least a small sign of gratitude, and if that means defending you against Sam, or anyone else who wants to restrict your freedom, we have no qualms with standing by your side."

Just as Esme finished speaking, Embry strolled through the back door with Seth, Paul, Jared and Jacob at his heels. "We could smell the cooking from a mile away. Do you have anything we can taste test?" Embry asked, already poking his head into the oven.

"Only if you five wash up first. I know you were just running around on all fours in the forest, so don't try to tell me that your hands are clean." Esme said warmly, but brokering no argument. And the boys quickly divided and raced to the two bathrooms, but Embry, was smart, and strolled to the closest sink—in the kitchen. He finished drying his hands and was taste testing my sweet potatoes before the other four had begun lathering their hands.

He grinned after taking the first bite, his eyes rolling back in his head, his eye lids closing, as he savored the sweet potato flavor, accentuated by the cinnamon and brown sugar. "I love being smarter than the average dog."

Leah burst with a tinkle of laughter, completely complimentary to her personality and appearance as of late. Prior to the change, her laughter could not have been possible, which is why the boys still seemed puzzled as they halted at the edge of the kitchen, before cautiously strolling into the room. Jake threw me a look with a hitched eyebrow, saying where did that come from? I could only shake my head, silently telling him to leave it alone.

After the boys, everyone slowly filed into the house, vampires and werewolves alike. Once Emmett and Rosalie arrived with Amy, Seth took her upstairs; no one wanted her part of this conversation, and no one needed her to have nightmares about vampires that drank the blood of humans. Seth traveled back downstairs after he ensured that Amy sat snuggly in bed listening to music and reading a book. Bella and Edward were nearly the last to walk through the door, but I knew Edward tried to keep her preoccupied enough so that she would forget coming. She not only seemed thoroughly kissed but also resolute in attending this meeting. In the end, Sam was the last to arrive, with a guest….Billy.

I stood next to the door as Sam wheeled Billy into the house, but ignored Sam altogether. Frankly, Billy was the elder and more authoritative figure, automatically deserving my unwavering respect, and I loved the old man. Plus, Sam's pig headedness from earlier still rubbed me the wrong way.

"Billy, what a surprise? I wasn't expecting you, but Esme, Leah and I made plenty of food."

He rubbed his miniature belly, as if he had silently been wishing it could be filled. "I would love some of your grub, but you and I both know that I came here for more than your good cooking."

"Of course, but I require that everyone needs to eat before the meeting begins. We wouldn't want this to turn into an argument."

"Of course not. Lead the way, my dear." Billy gestured with a wave of his hand to the kitchen. Billy started to wheel himself, following me at the heels, so Sam left to grab his own plate of food. After the wolves were as full as possible, I began the meeting.

"So we all know why we are here. We have a vampire infestation, of the human-blood-drinking sort. What precautions do we need to take in preparation for this?"

"Wait, I thought we were talking about the red-headed vampire problem?" Paul objected, calm, but firmly confused.

"Frankly, I thought the problems were the same thing." Jake threw in his thoughts, as he sat next to Billy's left. Both Carlisle and Billy sat at the heads while I sat in the middle, but what was more curious was where Leah sat. Right in the middle, across from me.

"I know we talked about this last weekend, and decided to let it play out but I am starting to be concerned with the massacre in Seattle being so drastic. There is no way one vampire can be doing this all, right?" I proposed, swinging my head towards the Cullens.

Jasper was the first to speak up. "It's definitely more than one vampire, but at this stage it is hard to tell how many and how uncontrolled they are. Just as you said at the last meeting, we need to wait. Before we decide to actually head into Seattle, we need to know what we are up against."

"Wait, I thought Alice could see the future. Can't you see who is behind this?" Jake's mind as sharp tonight.

"Normally, yes. But there are too many unknown factors for me to focus."

"What kind of unknown factors?" Jared questioned, just as curious as Jake.

"Whoever is in Seattle, I haven't met before, so I can't focus on their decisions. The decision making is the biggest part of allowing me to see visions clearly. I am also watching for so many other people making decisions, it's harder to hone in on someone I have never met." Anyone in the room could tell Alice was disappointed in herself for not being able to do more.

"Alice, thank you for trying so hard. But who else could you be watching?" Billy spoke this time, using one of the Cullen's first names for once.

Even Alice took a moment, pausing in appreciation for Billy's recognition, but did formulate her reply. "I am watching for Victoria, to see if she has decided to come back to Forks, but her decisions are extremely sporadic. I am not sure, but I think she might know this whole in my vision, based on what Laurent told her."

"Laurent?" Billy asked, having no connection to the name.

"The vampire who tried to 'mercifully' kill Bella this winter. He and Victoria use to be in the same coven, so he held a certain amount of loyalty to her. He came across the information about Alice, and the rest of the Cullens, because he was residing with the Denali Clan up north. The Denali are longtime friends of the Cullens, so what they knew, Laurent knew, and what he knew, he told Victoria."

"Thank you, Abby. But shall we get back to the focus of this meeting? What is our plan of attack?" Sam spoke gruffly, but I understood he was trying to direct the meeting. He spent the least amount of time with the Cullens, and therefore felt uncomfortable sitting in a room with them.

So I continued the direction of the meeting, to prevent Sam from losing his marbles. "The plan is to wait. We have no knowledge about this vampire, or group of vampires, in Seattle, and Victoria is being evasive as well, correct? So the only question now is what do we do about our line of defense?" Ironically enough, I say we like I am included with the rest and can fight and defend myself against a blood thirsty vampire.

"Before, we suggested extending the defense line to the Swan and Caldwell residence, right?" Jared's memory was better than mine, because I sure as hell don't remember my house being part of the deal.

"Absolutely. These houses lie between our lands and cannot be left undefended." Jasper confirmed, agreeing with Jared.

"So it is settled that both sides will extend their security to encompass both houses?" Billy finalized.

I needed to stop this train before it flew off the tracks. "Hold the phone, there was no Caldwell in that last discussion. Victoria is after Bella, not me or Amy. And although I would appreciate the extra security, can we just ask before jumping the gun? None of you even asked Bella if she wanted this security either, before you," I directed my stare at the Cullens, "started defending her. While this is admirable, people need to agree to the defense so they can not only help, but also so they don't feel violated and lied to from the beginning. So at some point, you all better feel guilty for treating Bella like a child. Yes, she's human and therefore a little defenseless in situations like these, just as Amy and I are, but we aren't morons.

"Now," I said, addressing the entire table, "I would love the extra security. What about you, Bella? Do you think we could use a few more guard dog and bats?"

A rare smirk crept onto her face as she winked my way. "I think I could tolerate a few more animals around the house."

"Great, so you all can extend your borders, and we can all wait to see how these vampire situations play out. Agreed?" By the time I had finished my speaking, everyone looked sorely reprimanded, but nodded their heads or gave a verbal agreement of some sort.

"Fantastic. So who wants dessert?" And almost everyone perked up around the room. The ones who couldn't eat knew they were forgiven and continued to talk animatedly with the rest of the group. Sam left immediately, incapable of tolerating the smell much longer. He may be the alpha through Jacob's concession, but as of now, he seemed to not be a very good diplomat. However, the rest of the pack dove into dessert and started talking it up with the Cullens. Even Billy stayed for food and company.

Eventually, I started falling asleep on Embry's shoulder, and everyone took that as the cue to leave. I tried to reassure them that I didn't want them to leave, but they saw my exhaustion as a sign that the baby needed its rest. They left, taking the desserts with them and continuing their conversations in the front yard for who knows how long. I would not be able to tell you, because Embry carried me to bed. He whispered to me, knowing I was lucid enough to hear. "I have first patrol tonight. I'll be back in a few hours to keep you two warm."

I might have mumbled back, "Can you make sure Seth goes to his mom's tonight? He needs to spend more time there."

"Sure," I could hear the smile in his voice. "Now go to sleep sweetheart, you're sleeping for two."

"Come back to me."

"Always." He pressed a kiss to my forehead, my lips, and our baby bump. I drifted to sleep, knowing that even though he couldn't be in bed right now, he was still protecting my sister, my cousin, my uncle, me and our baby.

The red eyes stared back at me. I could not, would not look away. My instincts told me I should be scared. Hell, I should be running through the forest, clutching my stomach to protect my child. I should be screaming bloody murder. I should be calling for Embry. Or anybody, any pack member or any Cullen. They would run to my aid in a heartbeat. Did I even have a heartbeat to spare? Not against red eyes. My body knew it would be outnumbered before my blood could finish pulsing in my veins. But my heart knew that these red eyes were trustworthy. This one had never hurt me before. Why would she start now?

I could feel the desperation in these red eyes. That was the difference. There had never been this desperation before. But this desperation was not out of a fear of herself, rather out of fear of other people, for other people. A fear for me. But then these red eyes, framed by brunette hair changed. The worry and fear shifted to vicious violence and hatred. A red, curly mane shifted in front of these red eyes. Now my mind, heart, and body stood in agreement.

I began to run, over fallen trees, trying not to slip on the moss. The bite of the fresh snow froze my bare feet in a few strides. The cold crept up my legs. I dodged between the trees. I thought that maybe I could escape her, if I ran fast enough. But that just wasn't true. There was no escape in my future. There was no one to rescue me now, no matter how loud I screamed, Embry couldn't get to me fast enough, before the vengeful red eyes caught up to me.

Before I could run much further, her pace measured a few steps behind me, her hand wrapped around my hair and yanked it back. My head, my neck, and my shoulders immediately followed as my legs were still running forward. I ended up on the ground, being pulled my hair, my body thrashing in the mud and moss as my arms tried to claw at the hand grasping my head. My body curled, trying to protect the baby still inside me. She dragged me to an opening in the midst of all the trees. She dropped her grip on my head once I was in the center of the small clearing. I backed away from my attacker as much as I could, until I bumped into another pair of ice, granite legs. I looked up to the unfamiliar, red eyes matching the stone cold legs. Then my eyes jumped to another pair of eyes, and another, and another, until they landed on the red eyes and fiery hair. She snarled towards me and said to the other vampires, "finish her."

Before she could finish enunciating "her," they were on me, clawing at any limb they could find. I was crying and pleading as they sank their teeth into my flesh, sliding through muscle and grinding against bone, but I didn't let out a piercing scream until one of them bit into my stomach, and I could feel my baby kicking and clawing against intrusion, already changing into a wolf as he phased inside of me. But as the teeth and claws fought for dominance I sat up with a scream.

I opened my eyes to find myself in my room, on my bed, drenched in sweat, clutching my stomach. My erratic breathing started to calm as Embry slid through the window. My mind and body relaxed a bit knowing it had all been a dream and that Embry was here. He crawled into bed, wrapping his arms around me, lifting me into his lap.

He whispered in my ear, his hands rubbing calming circles on my back, "What happened?"

"Victoria, she was chasing me, and I was running from her in the forest. It was winter though. Dead middle of winter. She caught me, dragged me to a group of newborns, and then they attacked me. I called for you but there wasn't enough time for you to run to me. There were so many of them. And then one of them bit into my belly, and our baby shifted into a wolf while he was still inside me. He tried to use his claws to fight of the vampire from inside, and then I woke up."

He rubbed my shoulders, kissing my ear. "Firstly, I would run so fast, I'd be there before you could say 'bloodsucker.' Secondly, I am not going to leave your side and be out of running distance from you, unless you order me away. Not even then would I leave you defenseless."

"You're right, I know you are. But it's still nerve racking to think that Victoria and the newborns are all so close. And us with a baby on the way. It's not exactly the safest world to bring a baby into."

My hands rested on my barely there baby bump. He was awake and kicking, clearly shaken from what had been bothering me. I rubbed my belly, trying to reassure him. Embry continued his rubbing, trying his hardest to calm me down. "It may not be the safest time to have a baby, but you have an entire army of people ready to protect her, or him. You don't think blondie would tear apart anyone who tried to lay a hand on our child?"

"You're totally right. But that doesn't make my dream any less frightening."

He kissed my temple, leaning back onto the pillows, and taking me with him. We snuggled into the bed, into positions we could fall asleep in. "I'm here now, to chase away all of the bad dreams. Now you're only allowed to think of me and you, naked on a beach in the Caribbean."

My eyes drifted close, but I mumbled back, "Somewhere cold would be better, so you and I wouldn't overheat while we were having hot, honeymoon sex."

"Okay, somewhere cold, with lots of snow, and I can make you some hot chocolate. Now, go to sleep and dream of us."

"Always."


I know it's been a long time, but the next chapter is going to have some more action, and that chapter will be posted by Sunday. Especially if you post a comment telling me what you think? What gender do you think the baby really is? Are the red eye vampires going to attack soon? Is there going to be drama with a Volturi showing up at the wedding? More to come soon! And a Happy New Year!