Chapter Twenty One

Maria

I'd lost my best commander and I was furious, striking out left and right, killing most of the latest batch of newborns that Nathan had brought in. They weren't a patch on those my Major would have presented to me, half were so old or so young they would never survive against Pedro's army or Carlos.

"What are these? Did you scour the geriatric wards Nathan? The kindergartens? What use are they?"

He hunched up at my verbal attack where my Major would have stood tall and justified himself. He knew I was unhappy with his behaviour ever since he allowed Peter and Charlotte to escape and that's why he left. I was convinced he was aware that I was seriously considering his future but that wasn't why he went. He would have faced death like the warrior he was, no there had to be something else. Something that drew him away from me, after all I would never have actually killed him, he was far too valuable for that. No, he may have been usurped from my bed, although Nathan was no better, but he would always be valuable as a commander. Finding him wouldn't be easy and would take precious time, time I no longer had. No, I needed another way of bringing him back to me, before my enemies launched their joint assault. I needed bait, but who?

Peter

I started north but then stopped, I could hardly go running to the Major like a child who lost its toy, this was my problem and I would sort it out. I blamed Alice as much as anyone, she hated me and would find it really amusing to break up my relationship with her friend. I knew the first time I saw her that she was trouble. Charlotte had met her at Beth's, another friend I didn't particularly like. Alice was cool, sophisticated, and charming, at least according to the two women. I thought she was haughty and rude but I was in a minority of one. I turned back, I was a man, I could apologise, be magnanimous and forgive Charlotte her minor breakdown. That's all it would take, then she and I would start over as far from the Anaconda as possible. As I drove I wondered how the Major was getting on in Forks, I couldn't see him settling down to a quiet, animal blood fed life, it just wasn't him. He needed the adrenaline rush as much as I did, more possibly because in all fairness I'd been pretty much a fluffy kitten since setting up home with Charlotte. Whether that was a good thing or a bad thing I didn't know but it suited me.

Charlotte

I left Alice's before she got back and drove aimlessly realising after a couple of days what a bitch I'd been. I was jealous but that wasn't The Majors fault it was Peters, I should have explained to him how much I valued our privacy but what I shouldn't have done was to burn down the house. When I was a girl I had anger management issues which had stood me in good stead when I became a vampire. I could let go, allow the angry monster inside to have her way and since we left Maria I had felt the pressure building up a little at a time. On occasion I would even start an argument with Peter just for the release it gave me but I'd let it get to such a pitch that when The Major arrived I couldn't control it any longer and now look what it led to! I would find Peter but without my cell phone I didn't know how. Thinking about where he might go I decided the site of the old house was a good bet so I headed back there hoping I wasn't too late and that he would accept my apology.. If my father were alive now hew would be shaking his head,

"I told you that temper would get you in trouble one day Missy. Now look what you've done."

Maria

I took Nathan to one side trying very hard to keep my temper in check, I needed him fit and well …...for now.

"Listen to me. I need you to do something very important and if you mess it up then I will find you and when I do you'll think The Majors punishment was a mere slap on the wrist."

"Yes Maria. What is it?"

"I want you to cross the border with three well-trained newborns, ones you can trust, and bring me back the Whitlocks. I've just been given the information I've been looking for, their home address. Convenient of them to live in one place rather than as nomads. You fetch them back here alive, do you understand?"

"Yes, Peter and Charlotte back here."

I looked at him measuring his skill,

"Better take six newborns with you and try to bring them home again, I need the numbers. Now go"

I watched as he rounded up his pick of soldiers, actually he made a pretty good job of choosing them, four of the six I would have chosen but the other two were acceptable. Now I had the job of overseeing the training while he was gone, not ideal but I needed my bait and they were the best there were available."

As I watched the last batch of newborns killed one by one I knew two things, Nathan was a useless commander, he needed the guidance of a better tactician and I needed The Major back if I were to win the war over my adversaries who were even now moving closer to my territory. An act of passive aggression, a warning shot over my bows. For now all I could do was hold the line and hope they weren't too eager or too well informed about my forces. I would send a couple of scouting parties out to make a noise and remind them this was my land but no more. I couldn't afford to lose any soldiers of my own.

I thought about the new Captain I had promoted, over the head of Nathan's choice, she was coming along miraculously quickly, a strange newborn if ever there was one and I decided it was time she went on her first raiding party, not too far from home but just far enough that they wouldn't be on alert, I needed newborns and plenty of them.

"Renee"

She was at my side immediately, almost as if she could read my mind, she was very intuitive,

"I want you to take a raiding party, we need more new blood in the ranks."

"Can I pick my own party?"

"Certainly, why not. I want you back within a week and please, no repeat of Nathan's raid."

"Nathan is an idiot, I'm not Maria"

As she ran off calling out the names of those she had picked I smiled, she reminded me of myself, self assured and arrogant, she would go far if she survived the battles ahead. With luck she would bring me back a good number of men and women. Children were OK if they were old enough but that idiot Nathan had brought me children of seven. I knew the Volturi wouldn't tolerate the creation of immortal children whatever the reason and I'd had them killed straight away. Thinking about it Nathan was actually becoming a liability without The Major to keep him in his place so Renee might be in line for a promotion if she carried out her task to my satisfaction, time would tell.