Disclaimer: All the Twilight stuff belongs to Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement is intended. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

~oooOooo~

Chapter 37 Revelations

"Any sign of them?" I asked as he returned to the hotel.

"No, nothing yet. The new guy was out test riding the bike and Dale and Martin were tinkering with it and running times. They said something about making sure the leathers for 'her' arrived, so it looks like she is coming for the award," he said while sneering.

I had stayed away, of course, busying myself by settling us into yet another hotel waiting for a way to track her, a phone call where she was mentioned, a letter or slip of paper that would tell us where Cullen had her hidden. If I could just do it myself, check on things . . . but then his sister would see and she would alert them.

"Thank God for that," I snapped at him, "after all your bungling we at least get a trail to go on and another shot at her."

"Good thing she is coming to pick up the trophy and bike. That new guy, James, is really good. They sure don't need her back as a rider," he allowed.

James . . . I hated it that the new guy had that name, that I had to hear it and be reminded. My heart still hurt every time. I had to stay under the radar if I wanted my chance at her and I was determined I would have her. I had waited over a year already to have vengeance and justice for my James. I shook it off, it didn't matter, nothing mattered but that I get to her and she died. He had to feel what I was feeling now, he had to loose his mate like I did and know that pain. It was actually just as well that so many mistakes had been made, that Riley had bungled the job in Forks. They had more time together now, more time for him to be even closer to her, love her even more . . . if that were even possible. Once a vampire mates, the feeling never goes away, I should know. But the feelings could intensify, as they usually did in the first few years. I hoped they were, I hoped they were incredibly happy and that his love for her grew daily. Anything to make it hurt even more when I killed her. He needed to feel the same pain I felt, the loss of a mate and the hurt that would be there for the rest of his existence.

"Are they planning on her racing, or just picking up her bike?" I asked him.

"Victoria, I told you they don't know yet. They ordered new leathers for her in case and I think that Dale is going to try and talk her into it, but Jacob is pretty sure that Edward will never allow her to get back on and race a bike, not after that accident," Riley smugly retorted, "I still don't know how the hell she ever survived that! The wheelie bar took just enough stress to wait till she was almost at full speed before it snapped, just like we planned. I actually cut that just right, they never saw it at all when they inspected the bike before the race."

"Yea, well don't pat yourself on the back too much, you sure as hell had no aim when you set the wheel on that car at the restaurant," I glowered at him.

"I set that steering just right and you know it. They were all sitting there when I released it, who knew they would pick that moment to finish eating and get up from the table. My aim was perfect, their table was completely smashed. That car missed them by seconds!" he defended himself, "And how was I to know that wasn't the right girl? She was sitting at the table with them and she had long brown hair just like you described. He carried her out of there first, carried her out and put her on that street bench. It sure seemed like that was her to me, why else would he tend to her first, carry her out in his arms to make sure she was safe first. She was bleeding everywhere and he didn't drain her, I thought for sure it was her."

"Well now you know. You saw what she looks like, right, you saw the girl he left with?" I asked.

"Yes, yes, yes . . . I saw him holding on to her when they left, she had her arms around him. It had to be her. I know what she looks like now, Victoria."

He walked over to me and put his arms around me. I did my very best not to cringe, but it was still hard. I missed my James so very much and it was so hard to keep this one on a string, to keep him willing to do what needed to be done for me. I would do it though, I would do it for James. I needed to avenge his death, to make that Cullen boy feel what I was feeling, to make him hurt and mourn the loss of his mate forever.

I wish Laurent were here, he would not have failed to get her that night in Forks. Of course, he knew what she looked like from the time we first met her in the baseball field. How I wished we had just kept going that day and not stopped. James was so insistent once he got something on his mind, it was so easy to challenge him. If he had never caught that glare from Edward we would still be together, tracking and hunting and having our games . . . mmmn, how I missed our games. I never met anyone like my James. He could satisfy me completely. Sex with Riley would just never be the same, even though he was a younger man than James had been when he had been turned. James had just had a way about him, a self assuredness . . . smugness if you will, that led him to excel at everything he did.

Laurent had been avenged, of course. After all, he had gone to Forks to check on the girl for me. We had no idea about the werewolves. There was no way for me to be sure which one of them was responsible for killing him, or how many of them participated in hunting him, so I decided that taking out the tribal chief would be some degree of justice. I could still remember that dogs eyes as I threw him against the wall. Too bad the others drove up and I could not watch him die. It wouldn't have been long, he died shortly after they got him to the hospital. Pity, I would have loved to have watched.

If Riley had just stayed and tracked her after the accident, after he ran that car into the restaurant, but he had been so sure he got her . . . drained her himself. By the time the paper reported the death and we figured out that he had gotten that Stanley girl by mistake, Cullen had left Forks and taken her with him. Why he didn't think something was amiss when Edward left the restaurant with his arm around a girl, I have no idea. We hung around her house listening to that idiot of a police chief long enough to hear that his daughter was driving home with her husband and two of his siblings. So now we waited. She was coming to pick up her award and that bike they were giving her. I would not miss this time!

~oooOooo~

Jacob POV

"Everything unpacked?"

"Yep, Dale, everything is down in the pits where it's supposed to be. Second string bike is headed to the garage just so we can tinker with it, just in case it's needed," I told him.

"I sent the tickets and fliers out a couple of weeks ago, have you heard anything from Bella about when she and her family will get here? Do you know if they received everything alright?" Dale asked.

"She said they would be here the day before the race, so that's what I am counting on, but I'm not exactly sure how many of them are coming. Edward will be with her at the very least, I don't think she even goes to the bathroom without him."

"Good, good. Still think there is no chance we can talk her into riding for us?" Dale asked for the twentieth time this week.

"I don't think there is a snowballs chance in hell that her husband will allow it," I exasperatedly told him again, "You have no idea how protective he is of her since that last accident and to tell you the truth, I'm not sure she would risk it again anyway."

"Well. I can hope can't I," Dale grumbled, "Just think of the publicity if she did ride. You just can't even buy publicity like that, Jake. I know our team is on top right now, but it takes effort and skill to stay on top, so I'm always thinking of extra things we can do to get the name out there."

"Sure sure, you're right I know. I just don't think that Bella will be up for helping out with publicity," I told him, "Hey, Martin's calling you, Dale. I hear him down at the truck."

Dale turned to go and see what our chief mechanic wanted and I was thrilled that he was distracted from annoying me about Bella. I finished locking up the carry all and equipment that had not been needed in the pits and headed off to the garage to run some tests on the bikes like we had planned. We had arrived a few days early just for that reason and I didn't like distractions that took away my focus from making the needed adjustments on the engines. The new rider, James, was burning up the track. He was really good and I had no idea why Dale would want Bella to ride instead. Maybe the publicity of her riding would outweigh the fact that James would probably win the race, who knew with Dale. He had his own ideas of what was good for the team but it was, after all, his team.

We had done well in races since Bellas accident last June. Well, except for that first meet in Pennsylvania right after her accident. We had only had the second string bike and a new replacement rider that none of us really liked. Dale had hired James just after that and ever since we had won - Ohio, Kansas City, Sturgis. The last race in San Antonio, James had pulled it out with only hundredths of a seconds to spare, but he won none the less.

He was a cocky, really full of himself. I had gone out with him one night just after the first venue or two and I made a comment to him that he sure was an egotistical bastard. I'll never forget how he answered me. "Jacob, to be egotistical, you have to have an overinflated view of ones own abilities. I know exactly how good I am, therefore I am not egotistical at all!" James had said to me with a completely straight face.

Except for that last race there had been no contest, no competition really. Maybe that was why Dale wanted so badly for Bella to ride. Our place in first was assured, we had the trophy for the year and Bellas' appearance on the bike in a race would add a tremendous amount of publicity whether she won the race or not.

I thought about the last conversation I had had with Bella. I phoned her about once a week, just to keep up. I really missed her, but she sounded so amazingly happy. In face, she sounded better and more ecstatic each week as time passed. I was happy for her, she had the man she really wanted and I would still be her best friend. I could do that. He wasn't so bad, really, and he seemed to be good to her, taking care of her that was for sure and I couldn't wait to see the car he had gotten her, an R8 . . . at least he had excellent taste in cars.

"Bella! How are you, Chika?" I asked thru the receiver of the phone in my travel trailer. All this talk had made me need to hear her voice.

"I'm great, Jake! We just went on a tour of Elvis Presley's house, Graceland, in Memphis and it was amazing. Did you know he had not just one, but two private planes?"

"No, I didn't know that, but it figures, right."

"He had Harleys, too. You should see them, Jake. The paint jobs alone are amazing and all the chrome that has ever been made on them, customized ones as well as stock. Apparently he was an avid rider as well as a martial artist and . . . "

I cut her off, "Okay, okay, okay, Bells. I get the idea, you are having a great time on your road trip. I get that. The question is, when do I get to see you? Are you coming to Rockingham to pick up your award and the surprise they have for you?"

"We all are, Jake. Esme said that the tickets arrived in the mail last week. My Dad may even fly down, though I'm not sure now, after the deaths and all at the restaurant," she said.

I wasn't sure that I had heard her right, "What deaths, Bella?"

"Oh, Jake. I forgot that you're still being stubborn and not talking to anyone at the reservation. You know Sam Uley and Sue Clearwater confronted Edward and I on the street in Forks and demanded to know how to reach you. I refused to give them your number, I really just didn't tell them that I had it, but I told them I would tell you to call and that I would see you at Christmas, well Sue will see you as well, but anyway, Sam was pretty intent that he had to talk to you. Something about tribal business, he made it sound really important."

"Yea, I bet he did, Bells," I said as I went to the fridge to grab a beer. All of a sudden I had lost my appetite for dinner.

"Jake, you never told me that you would be the next chief. Apparently there are a lot of loose ends that they need you to fix in order for the tribe to move on and Jake, shouldn't you at least do that for them . . . for Billy?"

She struck a note with me, she always knew how to get through to me when she wanted to but she was trying to distract me this time.

"Bella. What accident? What deaths at a restaurant are you talking about?" I insisted.

"Edward and I and Alice, Jasper, Jessica, Mike, Angela and Eric were all out having pizza in town at the pizza parlor. We had just gotten up from the table in front of the window when a car crashed through the window and smashed everything where we had been sitting. Jessica and a guy that I didn't know were killed and lots of people including Mike Newton were injured."

"I hadn't heard anything about it, Bells. You weren't hurt though, right?" I asked anxiously.

"No, we had all gotten up to leave just moments before and Jessica and Mike had lingered at the table. Edward carried Jess outside and went back in to help them lift the car off of someone but apparently she had lost too much blood and she died right there. Dad still hasn't figured out anything other than the fact that the old guy driving the car had a heart attack. He wasn't a local, just a stranger passing through town for some reason."

"Maybe that was all there was to it, you know. Not every accident is caused by sabotage like yours was on the bike."

"True," she said and then went quiet.

Damn it, I had done it again. I knew better than to bring up her accident unless we had information on who had cut that bar and caused it. Nothing had turned up even still. The police had investigated and ruled it attempted murder. The press had a field day and Dale had hired a security team to guard the bikes 24/7. There had been no second attempts at tampering, but there were also no clues as to who had done it in the first place. No clues at all. It was as if someone had just breezed in, cut the bar and left without ever having been seen. No one had even seen a stranger around the pits the night before or the day of the race. The police had even questioned Dale to see if he had done it to gain publicity, but even I knew he would never do such a thing - and I sure as hell hadn't done it, they decided that right quick, although that one officer had questioned me because he found out that my girl had married another man as soon as she had woken up in the hospital. That had led to some uncomfortable questions.

"Bells, don't get all quiet and thoughtful on me, I just meant that maybe the car running into the building really was just an accident. You never really liked that girl Jessica anyway, did you?" I asked knowing that my attitude would immediately take her mind off the bike and make her mad at me.

"Jake, how could you bring that up. No, I didn't exactly like her, but that didn't mean that I wanted anything bad to happen to her!" she fumed.

Bingo. She was irate, just like I thought, forgetting any discussion about the sabotaged bike. I could just envision her quickly standing up and stomping her little foot on the ground.

"Sure, sure. When did you say you would be here, I miss you. I was hoping we could spend some time together while you get here," I added in my sweetest voice.

"We'll be there the day before the race, Jake, probably mid day or before. I would love to spend time with you, we all would. I'll see you then, okay? Love you, Jake," she said.

"Alright Bells, see you soon. Be safe."

I got off the phone smugly, knowing I had stopped her from questioning me about Tribal business and what Sam Uley wanted with me. I was just not ready to face the fact that I was expected, lineage wise, to be the next chief of the Quilette Tribe. I was only a kid for crying out loud. Funny that I cry kid when I don't want to do something but grownup when it was something I wanted, like my new job and life working with Dale. Whatever, I had a beer and I was turning in for the night. I had work to do in the morning, and a race to prepare for.

~oooOooo~

BPOV

We had only been home a few days, but it seemed like only hours. I had missed my cozy new home and I had really missed being with my husband in our own bed. The entire family was excited about the trip, going to Rockingham to watch the races and to see me get my award. If the truth be known, I was pretty excited as well.

Edward and I had just come up to say hi and hang out with our family for the afternoon. We had pretty much stayed in our room the last day or two and thought we should at least be a little social. Carlisle had taken a few days off, starting today and we weren't leaving for the race till in the morning.

"So, Sis, you're a big time famous Harley rider now, huh!" Emmett's voice boomed from the living room.

"Yep, that's me. A career drag racing Harley Davidson motorcycles is surely in my future, brother," I answered.

Edward scowled even though he knew I was joking. It was one of those moments when I wished Jasper had been there and not out hunting with Alice so that he could calm Edward down.

"Emmett!" Rose smacked him hard as she got up off the sofa to come to the kitchen and see us.

"Pay no attention to the big kid in there, Bella," Rosalie said as she entered the kitchen and hopped up on the counter, "He's just trying to get a rise out of Edward."

She stared at me for a long moment, then added, "But I would really like to get a close look at one of those bikes if you think you could arrange it."

"I think I can get Jake to help us with that, Rose. We can go down to the pits for the first couple of races if you would like to, I''m almost certain Dale wouldn't mind. He would do anything right about now to get me back on one of the bikes. Jake says he asks about it all the time, trying to figure out how he can tempt me," I said with a smile.

Edward sat stone still. A smile was the last expression that crossed his face. His face was unreadable really, and he offered not a word. He just stared at me. Esme broke the uncomfortable silence by greeting Carlisle as he came downstairs and into the kitchen.

"So, here sits the worlds only known sleeping vampire," Carlisle said as he entered the room and put his hand on Edwards shoulder, "It doesn't seem to have adversely effected you in any way. Are you still feeling rested after wards or has it happened again?"

Edward shook his head as if to shake off an unwanted thought and answered his father, "It's happened three or four times now, Dad. Always after we have a particularly intense lovemaking session."

I quietly turned crimson. Edward noticed immediately and came to life, pulling me to stand between his knees as he sat on the kitchen stool and holding my face to his chest whispering, "It's okay, sweetheart. He has to know all the details to figure out if everything is alright. We could talk in private in his office, but remember - vampire hearing - everyone would know what was said regardless."

I looked up at his eyes and said, "True, I know that's true, Edward. But somehow even the illusion of privacy is nice sometimes."

"Well, at any rate, I have heard back from some of my contacts and none of them ever heard of a vampire sleeping except one and none of them thought anything of it. They seem to all think it is just the influence of something around you. I couldn't, of course, tell them that you were that close to a human, for obvious reasons."

"Carlisle, the reasons aren't so obvious to me. Would it be an embarrassment or something?" I queried, "Is being near a human and not having them for dinner an embarrassment in some way?"

"No, no, no, my dear. Nothing like that," Esme answered for him, "It's just that the Volturi might hear of it and we wouldn't want them to know that we had broken the rule."

"Rule?" I asked.

"Well, law actually," Esme corrected.

"Bella, remember the painting that Edward showed you in my office, the one in the 1600's with me in it as well?" Carlisle asked.

"Yes, the ruling class I think you said, I remember the name Volturi now. What has that got to do with anything?" I asked, turning in Edwards arms to lean my back against his chest so that I could face his parents.

"Well, sweetheart, the number one rule, or law, in the vampire world is to keep the secret. Humans are not allowed to know of us . . . and live," Edward spoke softly into my ear, "The Volturi execute the law, so for them to know could get us all into trouble with them."

"Vampires have laws?" I asked astounded.

"Only the one that's regularly enforced," Carlisle stated reverently, "But they are quite serious about it. The entire family would be punished, not just Edward. So, you can see now why I didn't mention that point. I would never be embarrassed by you, Bella. You are a daughter to me now just as surely as Edward is my son, but the Volturi would not see it that way."

"Oh, Edward! Maybe you should just go ahead and change me and not wait for Christmas. I don't want there to be a problem for your family because of me," I said, admittedly rather panicked.

"So, you've decided then," Esme and Carlisle said almost in unison.

They looked so happy, so very elated that this decision had been made. I hadn't known, of course, that there was any problem . . . that any laws had been broken in the vampire world. I knew that they thought it would be too hared for Edward to just let me grow old and die with him beside me and I knew they thought that they would loose him as soon as I passed away. He would find a way to follow me. Neither of us could possibly live without the other anymore.

"Yes, Bella made her decision," Edward announced softly, "She wants to be immortal . . . and I have agreed to change her after Christmas."

~oooOooo~