Chapter 9

When I regained my bearings, I was still on the same spot of bare cement, and my senses came back slowly. My head was pounding painfully, and my whole body was on fire, it seemed. Not so surprising, after countless hours trying to endure horrid pain and evil chuckles from Mad Joham. My hearing came back first, surprisingly, and I listened dimly as my eyes fought to stay closed against my will.

"… going to succeed," Joham was saying. "You saw, with your own eyes, that she can change back."

"She switched form constantly from wolf to human and back again," Mele argued, anger and fear saturating her voice. "It's not going to succeed, Joham. We're only two, and now we have the whole Cullen coven against us, not to mention the Volturi. Your little deeds in Brazil didn't go unnoticed. They'll come for us, and we'll be destroyed!"

"Relax, Mele," he said, and I saw in his mind the utter lack of self-doubt. "It is going to work. She can't take any more pain, today is our day. So steal her talents, give them to me, and we're even. You can walk away, if you prefer. I'm not forcing you, but I need your help. As soon as she's drained from all of her talents, you can go."

"Is that a promise?" she asked hopefully, too trustful.

"I promise," he said, lying easily.

Yeah, I thought with a wince. As soon as you walk away, lady, you're dead.

Nessie? Jake's voice reached me then, and I cursed myself internally. I had raised my shield, and now my family knew. Oh, crap!

Don't, Jake, please, I thought tiredly. I'm still there.

But in what state? he countered ferociously. Baby, do you realize that I can feel all your pain, right now? He broke you, Nessie, literally!

Don't remind me, I sighed, trying to stifle the tongues of pain lapping at me. Jake, I...

What is it? he asked with distress.

I can't... I can't take any more pain, I admitted shamefully, feeling utterly drained. Joham is right. I have to phase back and let the vampire venom mend me.

Yeah, about time, he thought, startling me. Nessie, please, I beg you. Do anything, whatever it takes for you to survive and mend. Even if...

He shuddered, and my heart sank. He was ready to sacrifice everything for me. Even if you have to become a vampire. It doesn't matter to me, as long as you stay alive.

I wept. I couldn't help it. He was truly selfless, and loving. I loved him so much!

I don't... I don't want to become a vampire, but... I don't know if I'll be able to change before...

Doesn't matter, he repeated heatedly. Baby, you're almost broken in half. Three quarters of your bones are a mush. You've got internal bleedings and concussions. You're lying in a pool of blood.

How do you know? I wondered in a daze.

I can feel it, he winced, and Edward is seeing you through Joham's eyes.

He...

He's here, like the rest of us, Jake confessed, not ashamed. We couldn't let you alone. And right now, we can't stand you being in pain anymore. We can't stay away, Nessie. So phase back. Either that, or we barge in, but we can't delay anymore.

The Volturi...

They aren't coming, he cut me. Carlisle called them. We'll deal with Joham ourselves.

I let that sink in, and a new vision hit me. Jake was right. The Volturi had agreed to let the Cullens deal with Joham, in exchange of us handing him to them and an iron-clad promise from us to never set foot in Italy again. I thought that maybe it meant that the Cullens were now the Volturi of America.

It seems so, in their minds anyway, but we'll deal with it later, Edward's velvety voice resonated in my head, laced with concern but soothing, making my eyes blur. Nessie, sweetheart, are you ready to let us help you?

I shot a glance at Joham, who was eyeing me with a smirk. I knew that he knew my family wasn't far, so he came right next to me in an instant, gripping my throat tightly.

"Interesting," he whispered softly, choking me. "It seems that your moron coven can't understand a simple order. Maybe they don't want you alive, if they think they can defy me like this. What do you think, Renesmee Cullen?"

I couldn't utter a single sound, much less answer him. In my head, I saw Jake poised to run, and heard Edward's roar.

No! I yelled internally. I'll do what he wants. Don't come here until I tell you!

They caved in, but very reluctantly. I knew that Joham was stronger than all of us, and saw that an attack in the following seconds would mean deaths. I couldn't accept that.

I tried to focus, ignoring Joham's vise lock around my neck, and breathed in small intakes of air. I could do this. I imagined myself in my bed at the cottage, my Mom's hand caressing my curls, and my Dad's crooning voice in my ear. I was Renesmee Cullen, half-vampire.

The air shimmered around us, and I heard Joham's exultation. Half a second later I was lying naked on the cement, closing my eyes, trying to ignore the lustful gaze of my enemy as he grabbed my hands behind my back, making me moan in pain.

"Mmmh, what a sight," he sighed, making me shiver in distaste. "I really could use your body, young one. And I know that you know what I'm talking about. But fortunately for you, we're on a schedule. Later, perhaps. Mele!" he called out, and the small female came right next to me.

"Is it safe?" she asked with fear.

"As safe as it can get," he snapped at her, getting angrier at her turmoils. "Get this done already, we don't know when she's going to change back."

As Mele's freezing hand rested on my back, I felt two different things. The strange heat, her talent wanting to gain one of mine, and a sudden rush of my vampire instincts. Bloodlust, thirst, strength, all seized me and made me pant in surprise. It was like a dam had broken inside of me. The wolf in me had fought, but the vampire was now loose. Immediately, a powerful fire ignited in me, or more accurately, the vampire instincts fanned the flames of the venom that had only been barely contained before. I gasped, and the fire raced out really fast, mending my bones in a flash.

"It's working," Joham bellowed with glee. "She's resisted a long time, but the venom was spread out already. Now that she's changed, she'll become one of us in a matter of minutes."

I gave in with Mele, resisting a little bit but finally letting her steal uncle Jasper's talent. It was the worst one for me, so I gave it away quite willingly.

"I got one," she exclaimed, sounding amazed, and she truly was.

"Well, give it to me!" Joham said in triumph.

I opened my eyes and saw her put her small hand on Joham's bicep, and a shudder run through them both. I saw in Joham's head the new talent settling in, and saw that he now felt what I felt. He laughed delightedly, staring at me with a sadistic twinkle.

"Oh, what a joy! I feel your pain. Enjoying it, Renesmee? Cause I kinda like it."

I gritted my teeth, focusing on Jake's voice in my head.

Nessie, stay focused, he begged. You're healing, it's a good thing.

I couldn't agree with him. I wanted to heal, to be relieved from the excruciating pain tearing through my body like a hundred thousand whips being lashed out at every single one of my cells every second, yes. But I didn't want to become a vampire. Again, the wolf instincts rose, warring with the vampire ones, and I felt like my head was bursting open.

"Mele!" Joham shouted, feeling the conflict in me. "She'll change back soon! Go on! You have to steal all her talents before it's too late!"

Mele put her hand back on me, her skin less cold already, and this simple fact triggered it all. I couldn't become one of them. I couldn't be a frozen slab of stone. I couldn't allow my heart to stop, because it was beating for my loved ones. And love engulfed me, a force so powerful it burned everything in its wake. Mele took aunt Alice's talent away from me just in time, but my body was healed. And love took over everything.

Before I realized it I was towering over Joham and Mele, even taller than the wolf I had been, encased in a gigantic shape. I saw myself in Joham's head, but this time I wasn't surprised. The wolf and the vampire in me had fought, now they were one. I no longer had conflict in me. I was whole. I was Renesmee Cullen, vampire wolf.

"Mele!" Joham yelled, feeling my new tremendous strength.

But he was too late. I crushed Mele's head between my gaping jaws, preventing her from giving him Alice's talent. Fortunately I didn't take it back. This was one I was happy to give up too. In my head I saw that my family, my pack and the Brazilians had made their move, they were seconds away. I faced Joham, who was now cowering in fear, feeling the undiluted power coursing through my veins.

"Renesmee..." he yelped, awed and terrified at the same time. "How... ?"

I enjoyed his last moments with us. He knew that the game was over, and that he would die. He knew that I could kill him in the blink of an eye, and that he could no longer beat me.

"Good luck with the Volturi," he sighed, suddenly resigned, his shoulders slumping in defeat. "They won't let you live now."

I saw in his mind the story behind his feud – his mate being killed under false pretenses – but didn't give a damn. His fate wasn't in my hands, and I couldn't feel any sympathy for him. He was too evil. A second later, Jasper, Emmett, Edward, Jake and Nahuel burst into the room, and grabbed him.

"Don't kill him!" Carlisle's voice echoed in the empty parking lot, a few yards away from us.

I could see Joham's astonishment as he took in Edward's and Jake's murderous rage, Jasper and Emmett's fierce resolve, Nahuel's revenge and my calm. But Carlisle was right. We weren't the Volturi. They would deal with him as they saw fit.

"No!" Joham wailed, true fear marring his voice and thoughts. "Kill me now! Don't let them have me!"

"I'm sorry," Edward said, taking a step back and eyeing Joham with hatred, who was locked in Jasper's and Emmett's strong grip, not sounding sorry at all. "But we're not the Volturi. They are our law keepers. A few members of their guard are coming to take you away for trial."

"I should've killed her," Joham spat at me, earning a low growl from Jake who was trying really hard not to tear his calf away.

"You're raving mad," Nahuel said calmly, standing in front of his father who glared at him. "I hope you'll understand that what you did was wrong and horrible before the Volturi kill you. Go to hell, Joham."

"Fucking son of a bitch!" Joham roared, straining against Emmett and Jasper. "I should've killed you a century ago!"

Nahuel reacted before Jake, and put his hands around his father's neck, slowly tearing it apart. Joham screamed in pain.

"I know from your experiments that I can wrench this head away from your body, put it back with a little venom, then tear it apart again countless times without you dying, Joham," Nahuel growled menacingly, making every one of us shiver around him. "And because of what you did to my sisters, and what you did to acquire this particular piece of knowledge, I'm ready to do it until the Volturi show up. So I highly recommend you shut up and stop struggling, because I won't hesitate any second, and I'm sure the Cullens won't, either."

"No," Edward agreed seriously, fire in his eyes, Jake's rumbling growl echoing him.

Joham swallowed uneasily, then slumped a little more. He had lost.

For the first time since the end, I looked around me, appraising my surroundings. We were in a large and empty room, lit by fluorescent lights, and half of my family was standing around me, eyeing me with awe and a little apprehension. Joham was still firmly maintained by Jasper and Emmett, so Edward and Jake came in front of me.

"Nessie," my father murmured, reaching out to pat me. "Wow, you're..."

… gorgeous, Jake completed in my mind, thunderstruck.

I sighed, shaking my head.

I'm a freak show, and you know it.

"No, you're not," Edward contradicted me immediately. "You're... one of a kind."

Lucky me, Jake sighed, eyes glazing over.

I huffed, looking at me through their eyes. I was now ten feet tall, large as an elephant, with teeth longer than Jake's hands, but that wasn't the most disturbing detail. Before my latest stunt my fur had been silver. Now it was longer, shinier, and pure gold. Midas' she-wolf, indeed.

"You're the prettiest wolf on the planet," Edward stated matter-of-factly, trying to hide his worry.

"That's not tr-," Nahuel started before stopping mid-sentence, blushing a little. Aha, I thought, love is in the air.

Not now, please, Jake begged me suddenly, his head about to explode. Leah is still unreasonable, and I don't want to think about it right now.

I yelped faintly in amusement, and Jake came right next to me, our heads caressing and nudging each other. We basked in each other's presence for a few minutes before Carlisle said, looking tense and shutting his phone "The guard will arrive in an hour. Alice called me."

"What do we do with her?" Nahuel asked, nudging Mele's twitching body.

"We'll let the Volturi deal with her, as well," Carlisle answered him calmly. "We can't start a bonfire in downtown Seattle, after all, and she was a Volturi. Let them do whatever they want with her."

"Think you're so strong and witty and superior, don't you?" Joham said with a snicker, trying to look strong in my uncles' arms but failing pathetically, his quivering voice betraying his fear. "But you just wait. Once Aro learns about you, and about her," he jerked his chin towards me, "they'll come right at you."

"And we'll be there," Edward said flatly. "By all means, let Aro know how Nessie can copy and steal talents thanks to you now, how she became such a powerful vampire wolf, again thanks to you. I'm sure Aro and Caius will be delighted to hear all of this, and reward you. And just so we're clear, we have many friends ready to come to us to help us stand our ground. So don't underestimate us, Joham. That was your mistake. Now you're going to pay for it."

Joham stared at him, dumbfounded, and I couldn't help my wolfish grin. Emmett snickered and winked at me, and I winked back. It would be fun playing with him, measuring our strength.

Nessie? Edward asked silently. Can we talk?

Not now, please, Dad, I answered him, sitting on my hind legs, my eyes riveted on Joham. Not until the Volturi are gone.

But...

I don't know, I confessed, answering the question haunting him. I'm feeling both wolf and vampire, but I'm not feeling human right now. And I'm too worked up to focus now. So please leave it. We'll figure it out later.

As you wish, he sighed in defeat.

Thankfully Jake had stayed silent, and his pack wasn't there. So only he and Edward knew about my worries. Would I be able to phase back again? Would I stay wolf? Would I be a full vampire if I phased back?

I heard Joham's vengeful joy and Jasper's concern at my reeling, but I couldn't do anything about it, so I concentrated instead on Edward's hand patting my neck and Jake's muzzle gently bumping my flank, basking in their love, our minds blissfully silent. And the hour flew by. When I heard the first whisper of air stirred by long cloaks, my ears perked up and my head turned towards the door. Nobody was moving, and I was the first to detect their presence.

They're here, I told Jake and Edward, who relayed the warning out loud.

We all regrouped around Jasper and Emmett, now holding a trembling Joham, and I went to stand between Jake and Edward. I tried not to look at the impressive pool of my blood on the cement floor two yards away from us, but I could tell that Joham had been affected by it since his defeat, and the approaching vampires weren't immune to it, either. Ha, take that, control-lacking leeches! I thought.

That's my girl, Jake laughed with a yelp.

Hush, you two, Edward thought, his lips twitching.

I focused on the entryway, where six vampires slowly trickled in and stopped in a line facing us. Once again, Carlisle took it upon himself to be the best of gentlemen.

"Good afternoon, Jane, Alec, Felix, Demetri, Chelsea, Ryan. We're glad you've come to take care of this growing problem."

"It's our duty and pleasure, Carlisle," Jane answered him sweetly and falsely, her red eyes sweeping over us before staying on me. "So, it is true, then. Your granddaughter is a wolf, now."

"Yes," he said simply. "But she has acquired some vampire talents along the way. I'm sure Joham here will tell you all about them."

I noticed Felix's evil smirk then, heard his thoughts, and repressed a shudder. I wouldn't want to be in Volterra in the coming hours for all the tea in China, so I was rather glad Italy was now out-of-bounds for Cullens. Joham whimpered a little, and I couldn't help some smug thoughts. Nobody messes with our family.

Right you are, sweetheart, Edward agreed smoothly.

"Well," Alec said with a soft voice, "Aro sends his compliments and thanks for you. Taking care of this problem before it came out of hand was very thoughtful and considerate of you, and he, Marcus and Caius feel indebted to you."

"Please tell Aro, Marcus and Caius that we were happy to be of service," Carlisle said, waving his hand. "We protected our family, that's all."

"And you know how to do it well," Jane said, smiling innocently, her eyes shooting daggers at Edward, who only nodded.

I could hear as well as he could that she was seething at our obvious strength. The Volturi wouldn't ever dare face us again, so it was better indeed if we never crossed paths, for a few centuries at least.

"Well," Alec said, pretending not to notice his sister's anger, "we have a plane to catch. Thank you again, and best wishes."

We only nodded, and took a step back as Felix and Ryan, a buff football-player-sized vampire with small squinting eyes took Joham into their wrenching arms and carried him away, ignoring his whispered pleas for mercy and forgiveness. Demetri and Chelsea took the pieces of Mele's body, and they followed, Jane and Alec behind them after a small nod in our direction.

When the last faint swoosh of fabric faded into silence, I let out a huge breath of relief. It was over. Well, not yet, I amended, but the Joham business was over. I turned and caressed Jake's head with my own before letting Edward scratch me between my ears.

Let's go home.

A/N: So, Joham's out of the picture, now! ;) Only a couple chapters left, I think, on a much lighter tone. Now Nessie's going to have some fun!

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