Chapter Thirty Five

Annie

I had promised to watch the children while Rachel went to the pictures with her husband but at the last minute she changed her mind, not feeling too well herself. It meant the slight chance I had to speak to the children if they awoke was gone but it couldn't be helped. Instead I went along, I usually avoided the cinema but I had been told Titanic was a great movie, one of the classics so I thought I should at least give it a try. Atiqtalaaq's wife accompanied me which was nice of her. Ruth was such a charming young girl although I often wondered what she saw in him. I glanced around before the lights went down and was surprised not to see any of the Quileutes as there was little enough entertainment for the younger people but then it was an old film so they had probably already seen it.

It wasn't until about halfway through that I realized I hadn't seen our own young men here either and some always put in an appearance with girlfriends or wives. Turning to Ruth I whispered my question,

"Was there something planned for the boys this evening?"

She looked at me slightly shocked,

"I thought you knew Annie, my husband sent most of them to accompany the Quileutes back to Forks. They have orders to wait for his agreement to attack as soon as they report on the situation there."

"So, he's spoken to Johnny then? He never told me."

She shook her head,

"Not as far as I know, he made the decision himself but there's nothing wrong in that surely? After all while Johnny is away he is in command."

Not to start a war I thought but I didn't say anything, just picked up my coat ready to leave.

"The children are going tomorrow too, did he tell you that? Our friends in Florida have agreed to take the girl."

"He's splitting the children up? Surely not, you can see how close they are, that would be a crime."

"Actually I think keeping them together is a bigger crime, don't forget what he is. She'll be far better off away from his evil influence."

I shook my head sorry to hear her spouting off the things her husband must have told her.

"He's a child Ruth. Admittedly his father was one of our enemy but that's not his fault. Where are they taking him?"

"I'm not sure. Atiqtalaaq said something about sending him overseas. There's a guardian tribe in Greenland who live isolated from the world and I think they offered to keep him with them. At least if he grows up like his leech sire he won't become a danger to humans or a threat to us."

"And if he doesn't?"

"I'm not sure they are willing to take that chance."

"And what about the Police Chief? Does your husband have something planned for him too?"

She frowned,

"I don't know why you are so concerned about him Annie, he's a leech lover after all. Who knows, he might even help them find blood, guide them to hikers and the like. As police chief it would be easy enough, he must know about those who go hiking or hunting in the mountains. That information would be valuable to the leeches."

I sighed heavily. She had been totally indoctrinated by her husband.

"Ruth, the leeches he has contact with don't hunt humans so I don't think that argument holds any water. I have to go."

She offered to go with me but I'd had enough of her silly idea's, well his really although they came from her mouth.

Once outside I stood looking around, I had the strangest feeling that something was wrong although the place looked peaceful enough. Rachel's cabin was in darkness but then she was probably in bed and I'd seen her husband in the cinema with his friends. My cabin was in darkness too and that struck me as odd because the guard should be on duty and why would he extinguish the lights? I shuffled over to the cabin and turned the lights on, the guard was missing from his post but the cellar door was closed and locked. Somehow though the place felt empty and I went through to the sitting room looking for the spare key but it was gone, Atiqtalaaq's orders no doubt. I went back outside worried now and decided to knock Rachel up and check on the children but as I drew closer I could see their bedroom window was slightly open and pushed it up further to look inside. The children's beds were empty, they were gone and so, I feared, was Charlie Swan!

As I went towards Atiqtalaaq's cabin he came out and stopped surprised as he saw me.

"I thought you were at the cinema Annie. Are you feeling unwell too?"

"I was but then I discovered you had sent some of our men with the Quileutes to start a war."

He laughed,

"A war? Hardly. The leeches need to be taught a lesson, that humans are out of bounds, especially children and young women. We can be in and out before anyone else knows we were there. With our young men the wolves will have no problem taking the Cullens out of the picture."

"You are a bigger fool than I thought if you believe that. The Cullens have The Major with them, I assume you have heard of him?"

He frowned at my sarcastic tone but I couldn't help myself, he was such an idiot!

"I've heard children's tales of the big bad Major but I'm not afraid and neither are the Quileutes."

I shook my head sadly, he really didn't have the faintest idea, he was so ignorant and arrogant that he was in fact dangerous.

"You may not be aware but the children are missing and I strongly suspect the Police Chief has escaped too, the guard you left is missing."

At this information he went still, the smile fading to be replaced by anxiety,

"Missing? That's impossible, where would they go? Come on."

He hurried over to my cabin and I followed in his wake coming to a halt as he fished the spare key from his pocket unlocking the cellar door. He put the light and on we could see the guard laying at the foot of the stairs just beginning to stir. Atiqtalaaq cursed and went running out changing shape as he did so and I knew he would call the remaining guardians to him. I could only hope that included the ones accompanying the Quileutes.

If they had left, escaped, then they had some kind of transport. The children wouldn't survive out here overnight on the ice and that meant they had stolen a vehicle, either that or they were still here somewhere hiding but the boy must know that the young men here were like the Quileutes, not exactly human and might suspect they could track like the wolves.

I hurried over to the transport shed to find the door open and banging in the wind. The board was full with the exception of the snow Trac keys, so they had taken that and made a run for it. I wondered how big a head start they had and if they had somewhere to head. Was it possible the boy knew the whereabouts of the Denali leeches? If so they could conceivably already be there and that would mean big trouble for our tribe. Once again I wished Johnny was home to take over before Atiqtalaaq started a war with the leeches which would result in death for many on both sides and the possible annihilation of one or the other.

Deciding there was nothing I could do out on the ice tonight I went back to my cabin only to see the screen of my computer flashing, I had a message. I hit play as I took off my coat and heard with relief the sound of my sons voice. Johnny was headed home but he wouldn't be back in Denali until late tomorrow morning at the earliest. I just hoped he would be in time, there was no point in worrying him as there was little he could do from the cabin of an aircraft. In the meantime I would make sure if the children and Chief Swan were recaptured they would not be allowed to leave before he arrived whatever Atiqtalaaq might say to the contrary. I also hoped to persuade him to hold off on ordering the guardians into Forks to attack.