Over the next two weeks Frankie got closer to both Quil and Edward; her heart seemed to be pulling her in two different directions. Though she never spoke to Edward outside of school, except for text messages she thought about him more then she thought about Quil because she was romantically interested in Edward but he didn't seem to return the feelings. Edward wasn't mean, in fact he was more then nice but only in a friendly way while Quil made his feelings known in many ways. Edward's distance to Frankie was something completely different and not enjoyable, she'd always had the romantic feelings she'd felt for boys returned.
Bella, Jacob, Quil and Frankie all sat around a large bonfire at south beach, along with many of Jacob and Quil's friends.
"Do you want a beer?" Quil asked, and Frankie nodded. Jacob got up and got a beer for Bella and himself.
"This is fun." Frankie said, she'd never thought she'd be the type of person to party at a kegger on some beach but there she was.
"Here you go." Quil said returning with two bottles of beer. "Do you want to hear a story?"
"Sure."
"It's more of a legend, about the Quileute tribe."
"Is it real?" Frankie asked, leaning her head up against Quil's shoulder and stiffening a yawn.
"Yeah, it is." Quil said. "Long ago the harbor of La Push was settled by the Quileute tribe and there where men of the tribe who could take there spirits outside of there body and walk around unseen through the world, they where called Spirit warriors. One in particular was named Kaheleha and he was first noted as the first great Quileute Chief Spirit warrior. When chased from the harbor, the tribe would retreat to ships in the harbor and leave behind their bodies, using wind and animals to chase enemy tribes from their lands. They would then return to the ships and their wives victorious. After many generations passed, Chief Taha Aki has assumed the role and was known for his wisdom and peace, but the tribe was betrayed by a warrior, Utlapa who was then ordered to leave and never return to Quileute lands. He hid in the forest to seek his revenge. One day, Taha Aki left his body to sweep through the lands, even in times of peace to watch over his tribe. He was then betrayed by Utlapa and instead of just killing the Chief, he stole the chiefs body and slit his own bodies throat leaving Chief Taha Aki with no body and no way to return to the human world. Taha Aki watched as Utlapa ordered no warrior enter the spirit world and as he assumed many unheard of changes to the tribe. Taha Aki wandered aimlessly in the forest until one day a wolf followed him and he requested the wolf share his body with him, the wolf accepted and made room for Taha. Man and wolf returned to the harbor, but quickly retreated. An older warrior named Yut decided to disobey the false Chief's order and cross into the spirit world. But, the false Chief found his body before Yut could return and claim his body and warn the tribe, he died as the false Chief Utlapa slit his throat. As Taha Aki joined the wolf, his love of his tribe and his people rocked the wolf and turned the wolf into a man. He had a new form, not the same as his old, but reflecting the spirit of Taha Aki. Taha Aki assumed his role as the Chief of the tribe and was regarded as Taha Aki the Great Wolf leading the tribe for many, many years and fathering many son's who could also turn into wolves. After many years Taha gave up his spirit wolf once finding his true love, but a threat loomed. Several young women of the Makahs (a neighboring tribe) went missing and blamed the wolves. Taha tried to assure the neighboring tribe that the wolves had no wrong doing, but out of fear this did not calm the Makahs. Chief Taha Aki did not want a war, so he appointed his oldest wolf son, Taha Wi to find the true culprits of the several missing tribe's women. What Taha Wi and the five other wolves found would shape the way the Quileute tribe regarded the "cold ones." After finding a strange sweet scent accompanied by a human scent and blood on the trail, Taha Wi sent half the pack back to the harbor, as Taha Wi and his two brothers did not return.
A year later two Makahs tribes women went missing in the same night, the wolves were sent out, but only one returned the eldest son of Taha Aki's third wife, Yaha Uta. Yaha described the speed of the creature they found and that the Makahs women had been kidnapped to satisfy the "cold ones" thirst. Yaha Uta had not returned empty handed, he came with chunks of the creatures flesh and the horrified elders set the remains on fire.
Little did the Quileute's know, the creature had a mate. The cold woman entered the village with the sun shimmering off her skin, she was beautiful, but deadly. Yaha transferred to his spirit wolf and alerted the elders of the approaching danger and went to find the creature. Yaha was alone in fighting the creature slaying members of the village and his battle was quickly lost. Taha Aki screamed in defiance and shifted to the spirit wolf form, the wolf was old, but he gave a hard right.
As the third wife watched her eldest son and now her husband fight, she grabbed a knife determined to do what she needed to protect the village. Taha Aki fought the cold woman, the third wife did something shocking and plunged the knife into her heart, frenzied by fresh blood she distracted the cold one long enough for Taha Aki to bite into her neck and kill her."
Frankie sat up once Quil had finished the long story and yawned a little. "But it's not true, you said it was a true story."
"Why isn't it true?" Quil asked.
"People can't turn into wolves, and what are the 'cold one's'? Vampires? Not real."
"But they are real." Quil said. "The wolves are real and Jacob and I and everyone you see here can turn too."
"I don't believe you." Frankie said, crossing her arms.
"Do you want me to show you?" Quil asked.
"Yes." Frankie said.
"I'll be right back then."
"Why can't you do it right here?"
"Because I have to take my clothes off." Quil said with a smirk and he walked into the darkness and after a few seconds a large deep chocolate wolf stepped forward. It was much bigger then a horse and much stronger, Frankie felt a little scarred.
"W-What." Frankie stuttered, standing up and backing away.
"Don't be afraid." Jacob said. "It's Quil."
"I – I – I don't know what to say." Frankie said and the large wolf walked back into the darkness and then Quil appeared. He looked nervous and worried.
"Why are you telling me this?" Frankie asked, her voice cracking slightly.
"I imprinted on you, I know you feel it too." Quil said stepping forward. "And I want you to know that the cold one's are back and you need to stay away from them."
"No, leave me alone." Frankie said. "I want to leave."
"Calm down, Frankie." Bella said.
"I want to go home!" Frankie said, louder then she intended. "Take me home now!"
"I'm not ready to leave yet." Bella said.
"Maybe you should take her home." Quil said.
"I'll walk." Frankie said. "And you didn't imprint on me!"
Frankie pulled her jacket tighter around herself as she walked down the dark road out of La Push, she kept giving glances into the dark forest as if she could see the dark chocolate wolf that lingered there. After a while Frankie saw a pair of headlights coming down the road, she thought about hiding but then remembered this wasn't New York more then likely whoever it was could help her and give her a ride.
A shinny silver Volvo pulled over beside Frankie and through the passenger side window Frankie saw Edward Cullen and relieve washed over her.
"Can you give me a ride?" Frankie asked, after Edward had rolled down the window.
"Sure, where are you going."
"Home." Frankie said her voice wavering slightly.
The ride was silent for a long time until they where just a few minutes away from Bella's house.
"Can we turn the music on?" Frankie asked, and as she asked she leaned forward to turn the dial at the same moment that Edward did and Frankie felt his hand that was shockingly cold.
Frankie froze her hand stretched out and she remembered the story that Quil had told and his parting words, "the cold one's where back and you need to stay away from them".
"Can you pull over." Frankie said in a low voice. "I want to get out."
"Let me explain, please." Edward said.
"Explain what?" Frankie said, she felt dizzy and everything seemed very far away. "Can you please pull over? I'm feeling sick."
"Please, I need you to calm down Frankie."
Then everything went black and Frankie felt nothing, but she came too later and she was lying on a large white couch in a large white room, she could feel a cold hand checking her pulse and feel something lying on top of her and when she opened her eyes she saw a blanket.
"Don't touch me." Frankie said, sitting up and shrinking away only to touch Edward's shoulder and backing away from him too. "Where am I?"
"You're at my house." Edward said. "This is my father, Carlisle. When you passed out I got nervous."
"I – I know what you are." Frankie said, tears filling her eyes. "I won't tell anyone though, just please don't kill me."
"Let me explain, my family and I we don't drink human blood. We aren't like the others, we choose to survive off of animal blood we have a consensuses, we won't hurt you. I would never hurt you." Edward said.
"I've been through a lot, the wolves and vampires." Frankie said, rambling a little.
"Would you like a glass of water?" Carlisle asked and Frankie nodded dumbly.
"These things aren't suppose to be real, my granny always said they where real. She always told stories, she said we where witches and that – that these things where real but they're not suppose to be real it's just pretend."
"You're a witch?" Edward asked.
"No – I mean – I don't know. I didn't think so but now everything, I don't know."
Frankie sat on the couch and drank three glasses of water over the next twenty minutes before she'd sorted through enough of her thoughts to be okay. Her feelings for Edward where not changed, something inside of her loved him beyond that and it startled her to realize she did love him and even though she was completely freaked out by the idea of him being a vampire she didn't care. The same went for Quil, something inside of Frankie loved him and nothing would ever change that."
Edward groaned from beside Frankie and she looked over confused to see him with his face in his hands.
"What's wrong?" Frankie asked.
"I'm making the same mistakes twice." Edward groaned. "I made this mistake with Bella, I loved her and she had been imprinted by a mutt and now I'm loving you and the same is happening but even though I knew it before I – I did it anyway and now where am I?"
"How did you know I imprinted?" Frankie asked.
"I can read minds."
"Can all vampires?" Frankie asked and Edward shook his head. Frankie closed her eyes and cleared her mind until it was completely blank and then she let everything come back and the first face she saw was Edward's.
"I choose you." Frankie said.
"Don't be silly, Quil can give you everything you want. Children, a life, you can grow old with him."
"I don't want too." Frankie said. "I told you before, I wanted to live forever and even though I'm completely confused and crazy inside, when I'm with you or thinking about you I don't want to die, it's – I want to live forever again and see everything and do everything and – I think of Quil and I feel like he's Alexei, that – he's my best friend almost my other half but I don't feel romantic like – I – I do with you."
"I can't do it, I shouldn't have gotten you involved in this. To become a vampire you loose your soul, I wouldn't change Bella and that is party why she chose Jacob and I won't change you."
"I still want to be with you, eventually."
"Eventually?" Edward asked.
"Right now, I want to go back to New York, everything is so crazy here and – it's weird and I want to go back to home where things are normal."
"That's understandable."
"But Edward, I think – I think I love you. I think Quil might have imprinted on me but I think we're soul mates, I don't know how you feel this is just how I feel."
"You don't realize what that means, a life with me no one would choose that."
"Can you take me to the airport?"
"Why?"
"I want to go to the airport, right now!" Frankie half yelled. "I'm going home now."
Frankie sat in the passenger seat of Edward's Volvo and using her Iphone ordered a ticket to New York where her granny lived and thankfully the plane would be leaving in about two hours giving her just enough time to get there.
"Do you want to come with me?" Frankie asked. "I need to go and think but – you can still come with me."
"I don't think that would be a good idea." Edward said.
"Who cares, let's go. Live a little – Mr. Cullen." Frankie teased, which surprised her.
"Live a little." Edward repeated chuckling. "Lead the way, Miss Vander Waal."
"Good thing I already ordered two tickets."
"You did?" Edward said.
"As if you didn't know, Mr. Mind-Reader."
"I honestly didn't know, you're mind is different then everyone else's. It's like I can hear a lot of little voices in your hand and I have to try really hard to hear anything."
"Can I ask you something?" Frankie asked as they waited at the airport terminal and Edward nodded.
"How come you can go outside in the light?"
"It's just a myth."
"So nothing happens to you in the light."
"I sparkle, but you already knew that."
Frankie nodded, remembering the story. Frankie thought of Quil who was probably very sad and worried right now. Frankie thought she should call Uncle Charlie or Bella but couldn't bring herself to do it.
"Can you go into churches? What about crosses? Do you need to be invited in to a house? Does garlic repel you? Do you sleep in a coffin?" Frankie asked, rambling off all of the superstitions she'd ever heard about vampires.
"I can go into churches, crosses are just decoration, I don't need to be invited in, garlic doesn't repel me and I don't sleep in a coffin. I don't sleep at all."
"You don't sleep?" Frankie asked, shocked.
"No."
"I guess that gives you more time but – you don't get to dream do you?"
"No dreaming."