Chapter twenty-one

"Edward didn't look very happy about you coming with me," said Charlie as we were driving to La Push in his cruiser next day.

"He'll get over it," I mumbled, staring out the window at the snow that was swirling outside. Charlie was right, Edward hadn't seemed happy to see me go but he knew that trying to talk me out of it was pointless. He'd kissed me goodbye with a tight smile, telling me to take care and to let him know when I'd be back. Then he'd run off.

"You two didn't fight, did you?" Charlie glanced at me, frowning.

"No," I said, turning to him with a reassuring smile. "I just explained to him that he can't be with me all the time."

"I wouldn't want to get you in trouble or anything," Charlie muttered, his eyes now firmly on the road.

His words made me grin. "You know you're my father, right?" I teased. "It's Edward who should worry about getting me in trouble."

Charlie grumbled something unintelligible, but I could see his cheeks turning pink. I turned my head back to the window. The snow had picked up and it was harder to see now. Suddenly, I straightened up in my seat with a gasp. Something had moved past us behind the trees. It was a huge, dark shape and it disappeared quickly.

"What is it, Bella?"

"I thought I saw something move there." I nodded toward the trees, frowning.

"A bear?" Charlie said uncertainly but I could tell he didn't really think it was a bear.

"Maybe. Or the wolves…"

"We're almost there," said Charlie determinedly, his voice quiet. "They wouldn't dare to stop us now. They don't know we know about them, remember?"

"Yeah," I mumbled, sighing in relief.

"If Jacob turns up, I want you to promise not to talk to him alone again," Charlie went on, his voice firm now.

I looked back at him. "Of course. I have nothing to say to him anyway." This time I was determined to keep this promise. I didn't care how much would Jake insist on talking to me, unless it was to apologize for what he'd said to Charlie and me the last time I'd seen him.

We spent the rest of the journey in silence, but I stayed on alert, looking out the window for any kind of movement. I didn't see anything though so by the time we arrived in La Push, I felt a little calmer. Charlie pulled over in front of a small, red-painted house but when I looked up and down the street, I noticed most of the houses were painted in various shades of red. The Clearwater's house was distinguished by a dark green roof and a small, now covered in snow, garden in the front. There was only one other car parked in the short driveway and it was an old sedan that must belong to Sue.

As soon as we were out of the car, the front door opened and a dark haired, russet skinned woman in her early forties stood there with a kind smile on her face.

She greeted Charlie with a hug, which told me that they were closer than Charlie'd like to admit, and then turned to me.

"You must be Bella." She smiled and took my hand in both of hers.

Sue quickly ushered us in, and we gave her the bottle of wine we'd brought with us. Inside it looked even smaller than Charlie's house. There was a short hallway leading to the kitchen on the right and the living room on the left. I could see two other doors on the end of the hallway, presumably the bedrooms. It looked very cosy with fire crackling in the fireplace in the living room and the amazing smell coming from the kitchen.

"Leah, go get Seth, please," Sue called out and a tall, young woman came out of the kitchen. She gave us a tight smile and disappeared in the back of the house. After a minute she returned with a boy tailing behind her. His hands were in his pockets and his head bowed. He too was quite tall for his age.

Seth raised his head and as soon as he spotted Charlie, he smiled. I gave him a small wave, but he ignored it and started talking about football. They went into the living room, still talking animatedly and I shuffled after them, not really having much to say.

Dinner was ready soon, so we moved to the kitchen to sit at the only table big enough for five people. As we ate, Sue asked me about living with Renee. I answered the best I could, keeping it vague. I picked a few details from my Thanksgiving visit, though.

After dinner, Seth was excited to show Charlie his new videogame he'd gotten for Christmas and I was surprised to see Charlie agree with almost as much enthusiasm. He'd never seemed the type for videogames. I shrugged it off, turning to Sue.

"They seem to get along really well," I said, nodding towards the living room, where Seth and Charlie had disappeared.

Sue nodded, smiling sadly, and started to clean the table. I offered my help, but she just shook her head. She and Leah then started with the dishes.

"Seth is still young enough to need a father figure, so he's found one in Charlie," Sue said, her back to me, as she cleaned a plate. "And I think Charlie still feels guilty for Harry's death," she added quietly.

I frowned. "But it wasn't his fault," I said defiantly, not sure if she blamed him or not.

Sue turned to me and I could see unshed tears in her eyes. "Of course it wasn't, Bella. I wouldn't have let him near my house if I thought it was." She then smiled again and walked out of the kitchen, saying she wanted to check on Charlie and Seth.

The clanking of the plates had stopped, and I turned to Leah, ready to ask if she wanted me to help now, when Sue had left. The question froze in my throat though, seeing her expression. The whole evening she'd been rather quiet, only talking when someone asked her a question. Now though, she was staring at me with a very strange expression.

"What?" I said, unable to stand the silence any longer.

Leah leaned against the counter, crossing her arms across her chest. It took at least a minute for her to answer.

"Why did you go back to your mom?" she asked.

I was taken aback by the question. I'd certainly hadn't expected that. "Um… we… missed each other," I said, trying to remember all the lies I'd prepared for exactly this kind of situation.

She frowned, pursing her lips. "She's married, right?" I nodded. "I thought she'd want to be with her husband."

"Yeah, well, he travels a lot, so she'd be alone quite often." I hated this. Even though I'd kept secrets from people for years, I'd always tried to avoid answering questions about me.

Leah was quiet for a minute, looking deep in thought, her eyes narrowed at me. "I heard you have a boyfriend here in Forks." I nodded again, curious where she was getting with it. "How does it work?"

I supressed a sigh. Again with the lies. When I looked more closely at Leah's face, I could see a resentment written on it, but I didn't think it was aimed at me. I'd thought her silence during dinner had been because she'd been still grieving for her dad but now it looked like there was more to it.

"Well, we talk every day," I finally said, speaking slowly and trying to avoid lying if I could. "And he visited me on Thanksgiving and now I'm here." I shrugged.

Leah nodded. "I had a boyfriend too, you know?" she said, sounding calm but her features turned hard. "Sam. We were together all the time but still, it apparently wasn't enough. I wasn't enough."

I had no idea why she was telling me this, but I was curious. "What happened?"

"My cousin happened," she said through gritted teeth. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and opened them again. Then she sighed and sat down in a chair opposite me. "We were always close, Emily and me. When we were growing up, we were like sisters..." she trailed off, a distant look on her face.

The pause gave me time to realize something. Sam and Emily? That seemed familiar... "Your boyfriend was Sam Uley?" I asked, after I'd remembered Charlie telling me about them once.

Leah refocused back on me. "Yeah. You heard about him?"

I nodded. "Just a little. Dad mentioned him and Emily visiting him once. And Jacob Black used to be sort of scared of him before joining his gang."

"Sam used to be different," Leah went on. "Nice, funny... always felt protective of other people, those who were weak or mistreated by others. I loved that about him... We started dating when I was fifteen. We were so in love... just this spring we even started talking about marriage. I went to Peninsula College in Port Angeles just to be close to him. I mean, I could have gone to Seattle, I'd been accepted to UW and got the scholarship." She closed her eyes again, shaking her head slowly.

I listened to her story without interruption. I wondered what had happened but didn't want to pressure her.

"He started getting weird in the beginning of summer break. He became more distant and easily snapped at me even when I didn't do anything. And then he called to tell me he was sick, and I wasn't allowed to see him. It took two weeks for him to get better." She frowned, looking at her hands on the table. "When I finally saw him again, he was different. He'd cut his hair short and he seemed even taller than before. But he still insisted that he loved me, and we were gonna get married one day... And then, Emily came for a visit the last week of August and it was all over."

"What happened exactly?" I couldn't help asking even though I knew I was being nosy.

Leah looked up at me, her expression hard. "He fell madly in love with her," she spat, snapping her fingers. "Just like that. One look and suddenly I meant nothing to him. All the years we'd been together meant nothing."

I stared at her with wide eyes. "But... how could he fall in love with her so quickly? And while you were there?"

"I know, right? I mean, maybe love at first sight really exists but... he could have at least tried to hide in from me... but no. Emily walked in and he just gaped at her like someone had whacked him on the head. He broke up with me the next day, saying that he couldn't help it." She let out a bitter, slightly hysterical laugh.

"I'm sorry," I muttered, still trying to wrap my head around it.

"I didn't tell you, so you'd feel sorry for me," she snapped. Then she closed her eyes shortly and spoke with forced calmness. "That day taught me something though. Men can't be trusted. No matter how amazing and loyal they seem, they can easily betray you in a second."

Even though she tried to look calm, I could tell Leah was getting more agitated by the minute. Her hands were curled in fists on the table and her eyes were flashing angrily.

"Not all men are the same..." I started but the look on her face made me stop midsentence. Her hands were shaking slightly now.

"They are exactly the same. All of them," she growled.

"Edward wouldn't..." I tried again, but she refused to listen.

"You think he's the exception?" she sneered. "His family is not allowed here. There must be a reason for it."

"You don't know them," I said fervently.

"And you do? You don't even see them most of the time!"

My eyes grew wide. She had suddenly stood up, slamming the table with her fist. Why the hell was she so angry all of sudden? Her whole body was shaking now, and she looked quite deranged.

"I'm sorry, Leah. Calm down, please," I pleaded anxiously, but she didn't seem to listen.

"Leah!" Sue's alarmed voice sounded from the door. She and Charlie had been apparently drawn here by the raised voices.

"Come here, Bella," said Charlie, holding out a hand to me, his eyes on Leah, whose body was shaking more violently still.

As soon as I stood up, it happened.

One second, Leah was standing by the table. The next her body exploded into a huge, grey wolf, breaking the table to pieces. It'd happened so fast, that I barely had time to jump out of the way, pressing myself against the wall.

Sue shrieked and I heard Charlie curse, something he'd never done in front of me. Right then, Seth ran in the kitchen before anyone managed to stop him. One look at the wolf that had been his sister just a minute ago, was enough for him to transform too.

The two wolves, nearly as big as horses, were now standing in the small kitchen between me and the door. I could barely make out Charlie and Sue's terrified faces, but at least they seemed unharmed. The wolves were clearly panicking now, growling and whimpering, not knowing what had happened to them.

I stood there, still not able to understand what I'd just seen. Of course, I'd known about the wolves, but Leah and Seth hadn't shown any signs of impending transformation.

But I had a bigger problem right now. How was I supposed to get past them? They were blocking the way and I was scared to make even the slightest move. I could feel my heart pounding in my ears and my legs threatened to give up any second now. I was sure I'd have collapsed by now, hadn't I been pressed against the wall.

My thoughts turned to my wand that was hidden in my jeans, but I was reluctant to use it. They could become even more violent and it would do no good in this small space. And of course, that would mean a lot of explaining.

Just then, I heard the front door burst open and a moment later a huge man appeared in the doorway. "Is everyone alright?" he said, looking around at Charlie and Sue, who had backed away farther into the hallway when he'd arrived. Then the man's eyes swept around the kitchen. I nodded to his question and then he spoke to the wolves. "Leah, Seth, it's alright. I'll explain everything to you, you just must calm down. Go outside, the others will take care of you for now." His voice was calm but full of authority, and to my surprise, both Leah and Seth let out a quiet whimper and jumped out of the window, shattering the glass in the process.

I took a deep breath and slowly moved towards the door, my legs still shaking. Charlie stood there with his arms around Sue, who was sobbing into his shoulder. When he spotted me, his eyes quickly ran over my body. "Are you alright, Bella?" He looked pale and I could tell he was torn between comforting Sue and running to me.

I just nodded again, not trusting my voice. The huge man had walked to me and I instinctively took a step back and yet again pressed my back against the wall. He glanced at me but then turned his attention to Sue. She still hadn't looked at him, her face buried in Charlie's shoulder.

"Sue," said the man and waited until she reluctantly lifted her head and looked at him. "They will be alright. I'm going to take you to Billy now. He'll tell you everything you need to know." The tone of his voice didn't allow for any arguments. Then his eyes flickered between Charlie and me. "You won't tell anyone what you've just seen, do you understand?" There was an undertone in his voice to which Charlie immediately reacted.

"Are you threatening us, Sam?" he said defensively.

"It's not a threat. It's a warning," Sam said, but it did sound rather like a threat.

"I think we deserve an explanation. Those kids just turned into wolves for Christ's sake!" I was glad Charlie had the sense to act like he hadn't known about the wolves.

"You will forget all about it. Both of you." Sam's eyes flashed between us, stopping on me. He hadn't said a word directly to me but from the look on his face it was clear he didn't like me much.

"Or what?" said Charlie who had moved closer to me, pulling Sue behind him.

"I don't have time for this now," Sam growled and reached out for Sue. She glanced at Charlie worriedly, but he nodded reluctantly and let go of her. Sam put an arm around her shoulders, leading her towards the door. Then he turned back to us and said, "Go home and do not talk to anyone about this." He paused, smirking. "No one would believe you anyway. At least, no one normal would." He glanced at me at his last words and led Sue out of the house.

"Let's get out of here," Charlie said as soon as Sam and Sue were gone, handing me my coat. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, Dad," I mumbled, but let him steer me out of the door and towards the cruiser.


Charlie had decided to go straight to the Cullens. Alice must have seen something because Edward had been waiting for us on the porch and was beside the cruiser before Charlie pulled over. He yanked the door open, pulling me out and into his arms.

"Are you all right? Alice saw you coming here upset but she didn't know what had happened. Was it Jacob? I swear I'm going to kill him if – "

"I'm fine, Edward," I interrupted his frantic rambling, but still, I was happy to be in his arms, feeling marginally better. "And it wasn't Jacob."

"What happened?" he asked but at that moment Charlie walked to us, putting a hand on Edward's shoulder.

"Let's get inside, first," Charlie said, and Edward frowned but nodded, leading me up the steps and inside the house with Charlie following.

"Bella!" a familiar voice squealed, and I stopped, blinking at Alice who'd just appeared in front of us. She'd made a good use of the hair-growing potion I'd gave her for Christmas and was wearing two pigtails tied with pink ribbons. "What happened? My visions are all chaotic, I can't make sense of them! You're all over the place!"

She took me by the arm that wasn't wrapped around Edward's waist and dragged us to the living room. Edward protested against her force, but she ignored him. The rest of the family were there, of course, all looking worried.

Once we were seated on the couch, Alice perched herself on the armrest. "Speak, now," she ordered.

I was looking at Carlisle, who was sitting in the armchair opposite us, as I spoke. I told them everything that had happened at the Clearwater's, including me being nearly killed by Leah's transformation. I kept my eyes firmly on Carlisle the whole time, aware of Edward's tense posture next to me. When I finished there was a long silence.

"But... she's a woman," Rosalie was the first one to break the silence. "I thought only men were able to change?"

"Yeah, that's why it was such a shock. I never thought there was any danger," I said, shuddering internally as I thought about how close I'd been to being seriously injured or worse. "I mean, there even hadn't been any signs, right Dad?" I turned to Charlie.

"No. And Sue never mentioned anything either."

"How old is the boy?" asked Carlisle quietly, speaking for the first time.

"Twelve," said Charlie. "Too young in my opinion."

"Indeed," Carlisle muttered, and his eyes shifted to Edward. It looked like they were having a silent conversation and after a few seconds I saw Edward nod.

"All right," Carlisle said to the rest of us, looking around. "We need to meet with Billy Black or Sam Uley, preferably tonight. I want to know how many wolves there are and make sure they will respect the treaty. I will call Billy and try to arrange a meeting. Edward, Jasper, I will need you two to accompany me."

"I'm coming too!" boomed Emmett and Rosalie nodded fervently.

"No, Emmett," said Carlisle, shaking his head. "Your size might provoke an unwanted reaction and I want it to be a peaceful meeting. Just the three of us will be enough."


I'd been pacing around my room for the last fifteen minutes. It was one o'clock in the morning and Edward still hadn't come back from the meeting with the Quileutes. Sleep was out of the question – even if I wasn't used to falling asleep with Edward next to me, I was still too wound up to be able to sleep. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Leah's body transform into the huge wolf, breaking the table just inches from me. It made me shudder every time I thought about it.

I was also curious about the meeting. I wasn't worried about Edward's safety – he'd told me they just wanted to talk, and I knew Carlisle would do anything to avoid any kind of violence. But waiting until morning seemed too long to me, I wanted to know now.

Finally, I sat down on the side of my bed that was facing the window and tried to summon Edward with the power of my stare. It didn't seem to work though, so after ten minutes I gave up and lay down on the bed, covering my face with my hands.

"Why are you still up?" said a quiet velvet voice from the window, making me gasp. "Sorry," Edward muttered, but I'd already scrambled off the bed and threw myself around his neck.

"Finally! What took you so long? I was going crazy here!" I mumbled into his shoulder.

"Bella," he breathed out with a surprised chuckle. "You didn't really think I'd get hurt, did you?"

I let go of his neck, but he'd placed his hands on my waist, keeping me close to him. "No, it wasn't that. I just... couldn't sleep and you weren't here to calm me down and I wanted to know what happened in the meeting..."

Edward shook his head and an amused smirk appeared briefly on his face. Then he sighed and steered me towards my bed. "Get in bed first and then I'll tell you."

I quickly did as he'd told me and once I was in bed, Edward lay next to me and took my hand. "So?" I asked, my eyes on his face.

"We met with both Billy and Sam and another wolf, Jared, was in the woods. They thought we couldn't hear him, but he wasn't far enough to avoid my mind reading…" He smirked. "They were as surprised by Leah's transformation as we were. Apparently, Leah didn't take it well at all. I could hear her through Jared…" He fell silent, frowning slightly.

"What about the treaty?" I asked, making him refocus on me.

"It's still in place, of course. But they were concerned about you and Charlie knowing about them. They made it our responsibility that you won't tell anyone. It's actually a new addition to the treaty."

I let out a frustrated sigh. "That's ridiculous. I mean, if they knew about the existence of wizards, they would know that we've known about them for a long time and you wouldn't have to pretend to keep your word."

"I know, Bella, but it's not our place to tell them."

I grimaced but I knew he was right. "So, what else did they say?"

He shrugged. "That's about it. Sam was in a hurry to be with Leah and Seth."

"But you were gone for hours!" I said, surprised.

"Couldn't wait, huh?" Edward said with a cheeky smile and I glared at him. He kissed the tip of my nose and said, "I went for a quick hunt. I needed to clear my head a little. The fact that you were nearly killed didn't really sit well with me." His voice sounded calm, but I could detect a slight edge in it.

"I shouldn't have told you that," I mumbled.

He threw me a stern look. "I'd have found out anyway. I got a glimpse of how it had happened in Leah's thoughts… I didn't know it was that close…" he whispered and closed his eyes for a brief moment. When he opened them again, he looked at me pleadingly. "Please, promise you'll never go near them again, Bella."

The anxiety in his voice made me nearly gasp, so I didn't need to think twice about the promise. "I promise, Edward. I have no desire to ever go to La Push or see any of the wolves again," I said earnestly.

He watched me for what seemed like a minute before letting out a sigh. "I believe you but as much as I wish you didn't have to ever see them again, I'm not sure if we can avoid it completely." Seeing my frown, he explained, "They want to check on Charlie from time to time."

I gritted my teeth angrily. "I bet he won't be too happy about it. I'm going to spend more time in your house then. And they won't come here at nights, will they?"

Edward shrugged. "I don't know. But I'll keep an ear out for them and will be able to get you out of here in time."

I sighed out in relief. I really wanted to still be able to sleep here rather than at the Cullens, especially after my humiliating sleep talking the other night. I still expected Emmett to make fun of me again.

Then I thought of something else. "What about Sue? She and Charlie are friends..."

"His feelings for her are more than friendly..." Edward said, pulling me closer to his chest.

"I knew it!" I said with a chuckle.

"I don't know what his intentions are though. He might still want to see her," Edward went on. "I don't believe Sue would turn into a wolf, but Leah and Seth live with her and that is a problem."

I frowned. I didn't like the idea of Charlie in that house again. "We have to talk to him," I muttered, stifling a yawn.

"We will," he said, kissing the top of my head. "Go to sleep, now, sweetheart. I know you're tired."

I scowled at his chest, but he switched the lamp on my nightstand off and soon I drifted to sleep.