Disclaimer: All characters and copyright belong to Stephanie Meyer, but the plot is all mine!
Thank you all for your support and comments oxo…Twin268 hang on in there girl that bow's gonna be tied soon deep breaths!
Now the story continues…
Chapter 64 – The truth will out
The snow was falling thick and fast as Jacob headed towards the border between the rez and Forks, he felt Sam and the others phase in as he gave orders for the younger pack members to guard the tribe at all costs. He pushed himself even harder as the thought of Bella and their unborn child filled his mind he wasn't sure if he should be ecstatic or terrified, but now even more so he knew he must face this Volturi threat and destroy them…even if it cost him everything to do so. Whatever happened his mate and child had to survive they were his priorities now.
Jake lifted his large head and howled as Paul and Leah cut across the forest neatly dove tailing into his side behind them Jared raced in the darkness to catch up. All four wolves moved with incredible speed and agility somehow avoiding low slung branches and terrified creatures that darted out of their way, birds screeching loudly at being disturbed by the commotion of their passing through the vast forest kicking up earth and snow in their wake.
"Weather is closing in" Paul snarled raising his snout a little to peer up through the overhead canopy of leaves at the sky. "It's gonna take us a long while to get to Seattle Jake if it starts to drift"
His Alpha glanced his way acknowledging what Paul had said but remained silent as he focused on reaching the Cullen's every sense, he possessed told him that they were on tribal land and deep down that riled the wolf even if they came to offer help.
As they cleared the last few obstacles jumping over the undergrowth and fallen trees that lay in their path the four wolves skidded to a halt just inside their side of the treaty line. In front of them stood Jasper, Carlisle and Emmett.
Jacob trotted forward as snow swirled around them shaking his russet fur free of the fine covering of huge white flakes. Paul was right the weather was worsening every second and he had a gut feeling their plan of surprise was not gonna happen. A rustle to one side announced the arrival of Sam and the others. Eyeing the Cullen's with wary eyes they joined the rest of the pack who now stood behind Jake.
"Jacob" Carlisle began his voice gruff as he nodded in the russet wolfs direction. "I'm sorry that we meet again in such circumstances" He watched almost entranced as Jacob phased back into the man pulling on his cut-offs as he walked towards the assembled vampires.
"I'd rather we didn't have to meet at all." Jacobs face was impassive as he spoke but his eyes snapped to Jasper "Do we still have the element of surprise?" Jasper nodded the insinuation being did Alice know.
"Alice believes we are hunting" Jasper began "It wasn't until a few seconds ago that I finally filled Carlisle and Emmett in on our little plan. I am satisfied that the element of surprise remains and it's our only hope if we are to overturn events." Carlisle nodded in agreement
"It's a long shot Jacob I won't lie, but I agree with Jasper it's our only option if we are to avoid a massacre" Carlisle reached for his phone and seemed happy by what he read. "Good news" he began "If we can get to Port Angeles I have a private jet waiting to take us to Seattle" He looked up at the sky that was full of snow "Without this flight I doubt we would make it to Seattle on time" Jake nodded in return. "I'm sorry it's come to this…" Carlisle looked sad as his golden eyes swept over the pack. "If we'd known what effect our return would have upon you, we would never have come back."
"What's done is done" Jacobs voice seemed to be infused with Alpha power he wanted to get on with creating a future not a past he couldn't change "But…" His dark eyes flashed to Carlisle "If we survive this, I seriously think the time has come to end the treaty, a treaty I believe Ephraim Black had no right to agree to in the first place"
Although saddened Carlisle knew Jake was right their very presence had ignited the wolf gene and now, they had all been dragged into a battle from which some if not all may never come home…
"Maybe we can discuss this further on our return?" Jasper broached worried at the weathers turn for the worst himself "I suggest we go now before the snow makes it impossible to even take off"
000
Bella stared at her cell as it continued to ring then taking a deep breath, she picked it up and answered
"What do you want Alice?" Her voice sounded abrupt but underneath she was terrified the vampire had bad news…she gathered up her bottom lip and nibbled nervously
"Oh, Bella thank goodness you answered I'm at my wits end" Alice sounded almost breathless an almost impossible feat for a vampire considering they didn't breathe "Has Jacob left yet?"
"Why do you want to know?" Bella retorted she didn't trust her former friend she was always in cahoots with her so called brother Edward and that thought made her fearful as she glanced out of the kitchen window towards the dark forest. Afraid of what may lay in wait.
"Bella you need to stop Jacob and the pack from going to Seattle" Alice sounded almost hysterical her voice more-high pitched than ever and for a moment Bella could imaging her bouncing on her toes with the tension evident in her voice.
"How do you know…?" Bella replied, "How do you know he's going to Seattle?" Her heart was in her mouth as she thought about why was he going to Seattle in the first place. He had managed to avoid answering her question when he first said he was going and they had gotten distracted by the baby too. But she knew Jake well enough to know he had been hiding something and whatever it was, it was a more dangerous situation than leaving the rez to be protected by the youngest inexperienced members of the pack.
"I…I don't understand Alice I…" She began sounding a little flustered her heart beating fast as she remembered his final words to her
Love you both more than life itself…
"If he goes to Seattle he's walking into a trap!" Alice was frantic now "I've tried to call Jasper but he's ignoring my calls."
"Jasper is with Jake?" Bella sounded incredulous as she sank down onto a kitchen chair as Billy rolled himself in from the lounge her frightened eyes locked with his as she listened to Alice
"Carlisle and Emmett too they are going to take Victoria and her army down but it's too late and it's all my fault!" She cried. Bella bit her bottom lip hard unsure of what to do next as the small vampire rattled on. "I …I made a big mistake Bella…" Alice paused then. "I…I told Edward that the pack intend to go to Seattle! I shouldn't have done that and now everyone will pay because of me" Bella swallowed hard this wasn't good none of it was. She managed to almost whisper
"Pay Alice, what do you mean pay…I don't understand?" Bella held her breath afraid of what was coming next…
"It's a trap the Volturi are waiting for them and …." Alice faltered slightly
"And what Alice?" Bella cried "What's gonna happen?"
"Victoria and her army are coming here to Forks" Alice replied
"Can they be stopped Alice?" Bella asked but she knew in her heart what the answer would be
"Too late they are already on their way…" Alice whined
"When?" Bella asked, "How much time do we have?"
"Tomorrow mid-morning…" Alice replied, "I warned them…" she swallowed loudly then said, "I told them they would come when the snow settled on the ground."
Bella stood pulling her hand from Billy's grasp and went to the window. Peeping out into the darkness sure enough the snow had settled covering everything in a deep blanket of white and more was falling.
"What can we do Alice?" Bella asked knowing in her heart that it was already too late to leave the roads would be impassable
"How many wolves has Jacob left to guard La Push? Alice sounded a little better now and Bella frowned to herself what if this were a trap, she thought, that Edward needed to know just how many wolves he had to deal with if he stepped onto tribal land and came… for her.
"I'm…I'm not sure…" Bella hedged "I suspect he has left enough to take care of the tribe Jake would never leave us unguarded." The sound of relief coming from Alice was audible
"Thank goodness" Alice breathed "For a moment I thought he had taken everyone you know I can see nothing when it comes to the pack alone" She paused as if in thought "Bella you need to warn them, prepare them for tomorrows attack."
"Alice why did you tell Edward about Seattle? Why betray your family let alone Jacob" Bella's voice sounded harsh Alice had been her friend once… but now it appeared she moved with her brother against them all. The question kinda caught the little vampire off guard and there was a moment of silence…then
"It's a long story" Alice sighed "One of which I am truly ashamed but I can't sit by whilst my family and friends are slaughtered, I don't care what Edward does to me the cost of doing nothing is too high" Bella sighed loudly herself
"Why didn't Carlisle and the others listen to you Alice? If you told him the army would come when the snow settled? They have always acted on your visions in the past"
"I changed my original prediction…the one that was correct" Bella heard Alice swallow hard "I embellished the truth Bella as Edward asked me to…I…told them I had another vision but I simply lied"
She paused as Bella drew in a sharp intake of air. Billy reached for her hand again and squeezed it letting her know he supported her as Alice continued to unburden herself. Bella squeezed his hand back as her anger flared…what Alice had done put them all in immense danger…
"I lied to Carlisle who loved me as a daughter and I lied to my husband…." Alice went on her voice croaked with emotion "Jasper…he is my soul mate" she whispered "Yet I lied to him like he meant nothing to me when he is my very reason to remain in this world"
"But why would you lie?" Bella asked "Why risk it all Alice I don't understand…"
"Edward" She replied "I did it all for Edward because he knows something about me that would result in my losing everything I've ever worked for"
"But that's happening anyway…" A tear began to fall down Bella's cheek and Billy wiped it away with his thumb offering her a small smile. She locked eyes with him as she asked the question, she didn't want to ask but just needed to know
"How will it end Alice…?" She closed her eyes and prayed to whoever was listening
There was silence for a few seconds…
"It will not end well if we cannot stop Jacob and the others" Alice replied in a hushed tone "Bella…I..." She stumbled over her words
"But…but he will live…?" Bella asked her heart in her mouth and her teeth bit into her poor bottom lip so hard they almost bled…
"No…" There was a pause the Alice added "If Jacob does not return tonight, he and the others will die at the hands of the Volturi…"
000
Jasper and Emmett stood with the pack in the large hanger at Port Angeles airport as Carlisle went to discuss the imminent flight with the pilot of the private jet. Jacob noticed Jasper taking out his cell then shoving it back into his pocket, he'd done this several times already and it made Jake uneasy he'd put a lot of faith in Jasper what if it was all for nothing that this was a trap, a plan to get him and his best fighters away from La Push leaving the tribe and Bella exposed ripe for killing or worse…
"Someone's desperate to speak with you…" he hedged as the cell buzzed again, Sam and Paul immediately moved closer to Jacob they weren't happy with the situation either
"No one I want to talk to…" Jasper replied seeing his mates name light up yet again on his screen. Damn it he thought I bet she knows where we are going despite the wolves. He knew that Alice wouldn't get a full picture that there may be gaps but he'd hoped all the same.
"Maybe you should take the call just in case?" Jacob jutted his chin in Jaspers direction but before he could do anything, they were both distracted by Carlisle's return
"Bad news I'm afraid" Carlisle began "The bad weather is closing in faster than we anticipated. We're okay to take off but the pilot thinks we won't be able to land there's talk that Seattle airport may close for a few hours. He suggests we wait until the worst of the storm blows over
"Fuck" Jake mumbled under his breath his eyes catching Embry who shrugged his shoulders. There was nothing they could do now and time was fast running out.
"Maybe we can run there we've run huge distances before Jake" Paul pointed out
"Yeah let's run there" Quil piped up in support. But Jacob shook his head
"In this weather even in wolf form we will have to battle our way to Seattle and then fight highly trained assassins plus new-borns" he sighed loudly looking almost defeated "In all honesty I'm not sure we can pull that one-off Paul. When we eventually meet them, I want you all in the best possible shape"
"If it helps, I understand the storm is expected to blow itself out before the morning. Seattle may not even close the pilots just playing safe" Carlisle began "If they can keep the runways clear and de-ice the jet we can be up in the air before dawn" But Jacobs attention was once more taken by Jaspers buzzing phone. It was beginning to fuck him off
"Answer the goddam phone!" Jake growled "It's getting on my nerves "But Jasper shook his head
"Alice is the last person I want to talk to right now!" he spat as he pressed call reject. Within seconds it started again just as Carlisle reached his son's side
"I've had texts from Alice too" Carlisle murmured "Begging me to call her, to beg you to call her too" He looked Jasper in the eye "Call her back Jasper what harm can it do now?" Jasper looked around at the assembled company of shifters and vampires closing his eyes he sighed loudly
"Okay…" he murmured and on the second ring she answered
"Jasper thank god!" she huffed with relief "Don't go to Seattle it's a trap the Volutri know you are coming!"
Jacob almost staggered forward. With lupine hearing he'd heard the warning Alice had given Jasper and the rest of the pack growled in agitation all wondering what the fuck they were gonna do now
"How!" Jake demanded "How do they know?" his eyes zeroed in on Jasper "You said she wouldn't fucking know and now we find out that she does and there's a fucking welcoming party when we arrive. Some surprise attack this has turned out to be" Already he was shaking with the need to phase and return to La Push immediately. If they were going to die, he'd rather it was in defence of his land and the people he loved. He turned to face Sam and the others
"Were moving out now!" Jake's voice was infused with Alpha power as the order fell upon his pack
"Jacob wait" Jasper moved towards him but Jacob just stepped back he was done with trusting leeches look where it had got him, miles from home and an imminent attack on its way
"I'd keep your distance leech!" he spat his eyes rolling up and down Jaspers body full of disgust and hatred
"Jake listen to me please" Jasper held out both hands as he continued desperately trying to calm both Jacob and the pack with his gift but it wasn't working
"Why should I?" Jake retorted already the wolf peered back at Jasper
"Alice may have betrayed us to the Volturi but she has at least tried to warn us." Jasper couldn't help the vampiric hiss that left his lips he was as angry as Jake… "But I know damn well who is behind it all and that's Edward. He's got some sort of hold on her" Sheer power rolled down Jakes huge muscular arms already his features were lupine at the name of one he despised
"I might have known you were working with him." Jake snarled "Get us out of the way so he could get to Bella" Jasper didn't reply he knew that was exactly what Edwards plan would be and his fingers itched to rip his goddam head off
"I swear to you that none of us support Edward" Carlisle moved closer to Jacob "We are still here to fight the new-borns alongside you Jacob"
"It's going to be a little harder than we first anticipated." Emmett joined in "But were gonna take the bitch and her army down you can count on that at least" Jacob turned to face Jasper he knew what he had to say next was crucial
"I agree with Carlisle and my brother." Jasper began "Whatever damage has been done by Alice and Edward we will stand with you and fight. Jacob glanced back at the others he wasn't entirely comfortable with the scenario
"What choice do we have?" Sam snarled
"Better to go down fighting together" Paul added "If I'm gonna die let it be on the tribal land that I love" Leah slipped her hand into his squeezing it gently
"I agree with Paul I'd rather go down fighting in la Push than in a city miles from home" She smiled at her silver wolf man "I hate flying anyways" Paul pulled her close and kissed her quickly
"Me too!" Quil yelled "We're gonna take Victoria down and rip Edward apart!" The rest of the pack yipped and snarled already they too were beginning to vibrate with a need to shift.
"And Alice?" Jacob asked with a stern voice. "What happens to Alice?" He had plans for Alice he thought…
"Leave Alice to me. She is my mate I will decide her fate" Jasper replied "But we know one thing thanks to her. Victoria and her army will not arrive until tomorrow morning. By the time the Volturi realise we are not coming to Seattle it will be too late and if they choose to follow, we'll be waiting"
"The pack leaves now we need to get back to a Push" Jacob began as he watched the pilot walk back into the hanger towards his jet motioning to Carlisle to follow. "Did Alice share anything else of use?"
"Yes…" Jasper lowered his voice as they moved towards the hanger entrance and out of earshot of the pilot already engaged in conversation with Carlisle "We know the exact spot the army will come to" He smiled a little even if it looked more like a grimace "She also said if we fought together we had a chance of surviving" Jasper looked earnestly into Jakes eyes "I wish it hadn't come to this but we need each other to win"
Jacob simply nodded those odds sounded a little better to him, even a small chance of survival was better than nothing. Seeing the slight change in Jakes dark expression Jasper nodded in return
"We'll meet you at dawn Jacob at the Forks rez order but I'll call you before." Jasper held out his hand and after a moment's hesitation Jake shook it then turning, he followed his pack outside. Once out of sight they phased into wolves and began to run. If they were lucky, they would reach La Push in time to plan and maybe grab some rest.
His paws had just hit the snow-covered ground when he felt Bella touch his mind as light as a feather. He heard nothing, but her fear came through in a strong wave coursing through his body setting him on edge and with a loud howl his claws dug down deep as his pace quickened to reach home.
000
AN: Can Alice really be trusted or is it a double bluff? Where is Edward? No doubt plotting somewhere…
Till next time oxox