Chapter 33 Outtake: Where the fuck do I live?
Charlie's POV
I was kind of tired as I made my way home from work tonight. Living in a small town meant that there was hardly ever a big case to work on, just smaller ones, like petty theft, speeding, underage drinking... That was the one that pissed me off. And it pissed me off today because I had been forced to spend the day buried under a mountain of paperwork after busting up a party thrown by that moron Newton kid. Stupid fool let the kids who work in his parents' shop come and drink, and now I had to deal with it. I knew Mr. Newton had big plans for Mike to take over the business, but if that kid didn't quit fucking off, he'd never make anything of himself. And to think I once thought Bella should date him. I shook my head and shuddered at the thought – at least Bella had enough sense to choose a good man.
I smiled, remembering that my daughter and her new husband would be waiting for me at home when I arrived. I hadn't seen her since they left for their honeymoon the night of her wedding, and I had missed her so much. It's funny how someone you barely even know can be the complete focus of your life. That's how Bella was for me. We'd spent so little time together, but she meant everything to me. I was so excited to see her tonight.
When I walked through my front door, I called out to Sue and Bella as I hung up my gun belt and jacket.
"In here, Charlie," called back the lovely alto of my fiancee. I still felt a little surprised sometimes, when I thought of her as my fiancee. I had been alone for so long – ever since Renee ran out with a baby Bella and broke my heart. I felt so good to be in love again.
I walked into the living room from the entranceway, meeting Carlisle at the doorway. I could never quite get over how young my son-in-law looked. He was quickly closing in on forty years old – just a few years younger than I was myself, actually – yet he looked like he was fresh out of college.
I looked him over as he shook my hand in greeting. Not one hair out of place – never was. He looked just the same as he had the day I met him, and every day since. As my eyes crossed over his face, I realized I was wrong. While he still looked mostly the same, a close observer could see the change. And being the police officer that I was, I saw it right away. It was his eyes – those odd golden eyes. They sparkled in a way they never had before, betraying a happiness even greater than what I had seen the day he married my baby girl.
"Good evening, Charlie," he said.
"Hello, Carlisle," I replied. "Nice trip?" I was still trying to figure him out as we spoke.
"Yes, sir. Thank you." Who was he kidding, calling me sir? I wasn't more than five years his senior. I appreciated his good manners, though. I always had.
"Certainly you aren't calling me 'sir', Carlisle?" I teased, slapping him on the shoulder. Man, he must work out. That's the hardest block of muscle I've ever felt. Well, at least he can protect my baby. "I'm not that old."
"Of course not, Charlie," Carlisle replied. His voice was softer than usual, and I could hear the nerves that colored the tone of his voice. He was hiding something. But what?
"Where's Bella?" I asked, excited, but suspicious.
"I'm right here, Dad," came the sweet voice of my daughter from behind him. Carlisle, who I'd noticed the last time we were together very rarely took his eyes off of my girl, turned toward her voice. And that's when I saw her.
"Bella?" I asked, confused. Confused as to why my daughter, who had only been married a few months, had a large, swollen belly.
"Hi Dad," she said, her cheeks flushing red. Then, as if to confirm my suspicions, she placed one hand over her belly. "Surprise, Grandpa."
"Gr..gr...Grandpa? But... You just... How?"
I felt my body react to her words, and I wasn't sure my legs could support my weight any longer. Carlisle suggested I sit, and I immediately complied. I was so surprised, and not quite sure what to make of things. I turned to look at Sue, who squeezed my hand and smiled. My mind was spinning so fast that I could barely keep up, trying to sort out all the information that I had: my baby was pregnant. Too pregnant. I could hear Carlisle's voice faintly behind me, but didn't register the words. I saw red. He promised me. He promised to respect my little girl! Where the fuck is my gun?
"Carlisle, my daughter has been pregnant for quite some time," I said firmly. I was pissed. Livid even. Not only had he broken his promise and taken advantage of my daughter, but he hadn't even had the courtesy to tell me for months! "Why in the hell have you not told me before now?"
"Charlie," he began, his voice much too calm. That pissed me off even more. "We have only known about the pregnancy for a little over a month."
Bull shit. The cop in me answered even before the dad. This was Dr. Carlisle Cullen I was talking to. He was the most respected surgeon this town had ever seen. He didn't think I was stupid enough to believe that a highly qualified doctor such as himself couldn't recognize the symptoms of pregnancy?
"Now, Carlisle, surely you don't expect me to believe that! You are a doctor for god's sake! Don't tell me you thought Bella was just gaining a little weight around her middle!" I was yelling by now.
"No, Charlie, I am not telling you that at all. I..."
I interrupted him before he could continue. I was done with listening to bull shit tonight. "I'll tell you what you did! You defiled my daughter before you married her and then tried to hide it! You promised me, Carlisle Cullen!" I roared, my hands curling into fists. I knew Bella would get mad if I punched him, but it was a really hard urge to fight.
"Dad!" Bella cried out. Her face was red with embarrassment, and I felt bad for her. I supposed she didn't want me to know what she had done any more than I wanted to know it.
Suddenly, my fury dissipated, and was replaced with an odd sense of calm. How the fuck did that happen?
"Charlie, please, I'm begging you to let me explain. I promise to tell you the truth, all of it."
For some reason, I couldn't grab a hold of the rage that had been consuming me, and the desire to fight with him had passed by. Despite a lingering sense of foreboding, I nodded my head, allowing him to continue.
"Charlie, there is much to explain, so I am going to ask you to please listen to me. The reason that I have only known of Bella's pregnancy for a short time, despite the fact that it appears to have progressed significantly, is that she has in fact only been pregnant for about three months." I opened my mouth to object, but he held up his hand to silence me. "Charlie, Bella's pregnancy is not typical. It has progressed rapidly, about twice the usual rate for a human pregnancy."
I caught that last word, but it didn't make sense. "Human?" I choked out, confused as to its usage.
"Yes, Charlie, human. Something I am not."
Well fuck me. With the speaking of that sentence, Carlisle had brought forth a memory that I had so wanted to forget – the day I saw my soon-to-be-stepson walking naked in the backyard only seconds after he appeared out of thin air in the exact spot that a wolf had been standing. I never asked, never even mentioned that day to anyone. Why would I? I liked my job, and I don't think the town was interested in having an insane police chief. But now, it seemed like insanity wasn't my problem. Weird ass shit was my problem.
"Are you a wolf?" I asked calmly, trying to ready myself for the answer. I heard Sue gasp beside me. I wondered if she knew about Seth. Carlisle looked pretty damn surprised himself. No one answered. I was not in the damn mood for silence. I wanted answers. Now.
"Well? Are you? A wolf? You know, like Seth," I said matter-of-factly.
Sue choked. "How do you know about that, Charlie?" Alright, well at least that answers one question. She does know. Had Harry known?
I explained to her about the morning I had seen him change. I told her about how I added up all of the clues – the howling, the sightings of giants bears (yeah, wolf Seth was fucking huge), the behavior of all the boys on the rez. Come to think of it, I suddenly remembered the old legends that I had heard from Harry and Billy so many times, always thinking of them as the stories that they were, when really they were true all along.
But Carlisle is very white. He is not a Quiluete. I think he's British, actually. I shook my head, trying to make my mind catch up.
"How long have you known?" Sue asked.
"A little over a year," I answered her.
"And you didn't say anything?"
"I figured if anyone wanted me to know, they'd tell me," I said with a shrug. "But that's all beside the point." I turned back to Carlisle, hoping that he could help me make sense of all of this nonsense. "So, you're a wolf?"
"No, Charlie. Only the Quiluetes are wolves. My family and I are vampires."
I think only one second passed, but it could have been a year as my mind suddenly understood. The hardness, the cold hands, the pale skin...the way they all looked alike yet weren't supposed to be related... The Quiluete legends...
I laughed, the kind of laugh that sounds a little bit crazy. Probably because this moment was nothing but crazy. It took me a minute to calm down enough to speak. "Where the fuck do I live?"
"Forks, Washington, Charlie. It's apparently the center of the supernatural world," Alice replied. Hearing her sweet little soprano, I suddenly remembered that the adorable little pixie was acually a blood sucking creature of the night, and I started laughing all over again. God, I bet police chiefs in other towns don't have to deal with this crazy shit.
Suddenly, I had a lot of questions. I looked at my son-in-law. "Carlisle, how is it that you are a vampire and my daughter is alive?" It was a good question, I thought. A damn good one. I was a good investigator.
"We only drink from animals, Charlie. And we would never harm Bella."
I supposed that was a good answer. It calmed me down at least. The only...ate?...animals. I guessed that was okay. I ate animals too, after all. Maybe we could even share meals?
"So how does this all work?" I asked, ready for more details. Carlisle explained about how a person becomes a vampire, as well as how one died. That, however, brought up several questions. If only another vampire or a wolf could kill them, how did Edward and Esme die? I wasn't sure I wanted the answer to that question.
"So how old are all of you?"
They took turns answering. I have to say, I was a bit shocked to hear that my 23 year old daughter's older husband was a hell of a lot older than I had originally thought.
"Wow. And to think I thought you were too old for my daughter. Whole new ballgame now, huh son?" I said with a smirk.
"I'm sorry I wasn't honest with you before, Charlie. You must understand, there are rules in our world. We have something like a royal family who enforces these rules. All the rules boil down to one, really, which is that humans are not to find out about our existence. I'm risking my life by telling you this tonight."
I have to admit, that little confession was worrisome. I knew that Carlisle was being honest, and if I was too, I would have to admit that the idea of anyone hurting my son-in-law made me ill. And then I thought of something even worse.
"What about Bella?" I asked.
"They already know that Bella knows. Those days that Bella disappeared with Alice? She was in Italy, where they live, rescuing Edward." Huh? I thought they were in Los Angeles? "I know, Charlie, it's a lot of information. That's a long story that is really not important. What is important, however, is that you understand that this information must remain secret, just life Seth's secret."
"Who could I tell? They'd lock me in a padded room!"
"I trust you, Charlie. That's why I told you. Bella knows our secret, and the Volturi – the royals – know that she knows. They accepted this on the condition that we make her a vampire like us. It's very likely that her change will take place when she gives birth to the twins, as I'm not sure she will live through the delivery otherwise."
"Twins? You're having twins?" All serious thoughts were gone. I could barely even care that Carlisle had just mentioned my daughter becoming a vampire like him. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered. I was gonna be a grandpa. To twins! I knew there was a stupid grin on my face, but I couldn't help myself.
"Yes dad," Bella said, grinning. "A boy and a girl."
I jumped up and went to my daughter, wrapping my arms around her. "I love you so much, Bella. This is all crazy news, what you told me tonight, but I want you to know that I love you, whether you're the human that you are now, or a vampire, or a wolf, or any other thing that I don't know about yet."
"Thank you, dad. I love you too."
"Charlie, you need to understand that, once Bella becomes a vampire, she'll not be able to be near you for at least a year or two. In the beginning, it's very difficult to be around people without wanting to..."
"Eat them?" I supplied.
"Yes," he answered, slightly embarrassed. "But, as you can see, the three of us are fully in control, so there will come a time when you and Bella can be near each other again."
"And the babies?"
"I don't know. They want blood, I can tell you that much, but not much else. It's something that we'll have to determine after they arrive."
"Well, alright." I agreed, disenchanted. I took a minute just to be quiet. I'd just heard a lot. A lot of weird and crazy that no one would ever believe. I only believed it myself because of what I had already seen. My baby girl was going to be a vampire. My baby girl was giving me two grandbabies. The two thoughts warred back and forth inside my head.
"Charlie, why don't we excuse ourselves for the night, and give you a chance to think. We'll see you tomorrow at the rehearsal dinner. Is that alright?"
"Yeah, Carlisle. That would be good." I agreed, shaking his hand. I really did need a minute. This was just a lot to take in all at once. "Don't know how I never put it all together," I mumbled. "Cold, stiff, pale..."
"Your daughter is probably the only one who ever figured it out on her own, Charlie. Don't be too hard on yourself."
"You knew, Bella? The whole time?"
"I did, Dad. I knew since the day before I went to their house for the first time. It didn't change anything for me though."
"It really doesn't for me either, honey. I'm a little bit surprised is all." My words were completely true. It didn't really matter that much. Carlisle had obviously been a vampire the whole time I'd known him, so I couldn't think less of him. He was a respectable man. Or vampire... Whatever. Just like Seth was a wolf. I suppose it doesn't matter what you are, just who. I let go of Bella and turned back to Carlisle. "Thank you for being honest with me, Carlisle. I don't guess I could've kept my daughter if you hadn't, right?"
"That's right, Charlie. I couldn't do that to you."
"No, I guess not. Sometimes it takes being a father to understand how one thinks." His life was about to change, I knew that. I think he did too, he just had no idea how much.
We said our goodbyes, and escorted them back to their rental car. I kissed Bella one last time on the forehead, then went back inside.
"So you've known all this time?" Sue asked.
"Yeah, Susie Q, I knew. I wasn't sure if you did, though, and I didn't want you to be scared."
"I knew. I've known all along."
"Can you tell me about it?"
"The day that Harry died – that's the day that they changed." I could see a bit of a shimmer in her pretty black eyes, but she didn't let the tears fall. I wrapped her in my arms and held her tight. It was all I could do to soothe the pain that the past left on her heart.
"They?" I said a minute later, when I realized I didn't understand her usage of the word.
"Yes, they. Seth and Leah. The shock was so much that it gave Harry the heart attack that killed him. Harry knew there were wolves – his grandfather had been one as well. But the next two generations didn't change, so it was still a huge shock when it happened. Leah was the only female wolf ever."
"What do they...?"
"They're just like the boys you always knew, they just have the ability to change their form now. Their job is to protect people from vampires." I looked at her nervously. "The wolves, like Carlisle told you, are the enemies of vampires. But Carlisle and Billy's grandfather made a treaty many years ago, making a tentative peace. It wasn't until Carlisle and his family came back to Forks and the new generation turned that the relationship between the Cullens and our tribe became one of respect and friendship. There's much you don't know, Charlie, and much I should tell you..."
She started to shake a bit in my arms, so I kissed the top of her head. "You can tell me whatever and whenever, Susie Q. You'll be my wife in two days, and we've got the rest of our lives for you to share all the secrets, alright?"
She nodded her head, and I held her close. I knew there was still so much I didn't know. Maybe I'd never know all of it. What I did know, though, was that this town was certainly not what everyone thought, my son-in-law and his family were vampires, my stepson was a werewolf, and my daughter was just about to give birth to twin babies that were only half human. All the new information was making my head spin.
I picked up the Vitamin R that Sue had left on the table for me, and took a big swig. My new family might be crazy, but I loved them, and I was going to hold onto them for all I was worth.
