Chapter 11

BPOV

Quil and I sped along to the reservation in the SUV. I didn't even want to think about what might happen if Jacob and Embry phased at the hospital, or anywhere in town for that matter. They couldn't afford for their secret to become known any more than the vampires could. I knew they healed rapidly, but I still didn't want them to get hurt.

I tossed my phone to Quil and he quickly contacted Leah, filling her and Seth in about what had occurred. He had it on speakerphone so I could hear them too, which I really appreciated. Leah started yelling about Tyler's idiocy when she heard about the accident, and I heard Seth in the background, yelling, "Calm down, Leah! We don't need you phasing and running off to the hospital too."

"I'm fine, Leah," I soothed, trying to help her calm down. "Don't worry about me."

"Don't be silly, Bella! Of course, I'm worried about you," she berated me, though her voice sounded calmer. "You're the lynchpin holding everything together. I shudder to think what the wolf/Cullen situation would have been like if you hadn't intervened to bring us together. Even worse, I can only imagine how horrible it would have been to become a werewolf in Sam's pack and have to listen to his thoughts about Emily and to have the entire pack listening to my thoughts about him. What a nightmare. Besides, between talking to Rosalie and learning all about my future as a werewolf and imprinting, I'm ready to forgive Sam and let him go. I'm ready to forgive Emily and allow her into my heart and life again. I know now that neither of them wanted to hurt me, and there was nothing I could have or should have done differently. It wasn't my fault, or theirs—it simply wasn't meant to be. So, I'll distract Sam. I'll tell him I'm finally ready to discuss things rationally and have some closure so we can put the past behind us."

"I'll come with you and Quil to distract Paul," Seth volunteered.

"Excellent! Now we just have to figure out where they are," I proposed as I pulled up in front of the Clearwater's house. Quil flipped the phone closed, and we got out to knock on the door. We stepped up onto the front stoop, and the door was flung open. Seth and Leah both came barrelling outside, nearly running into us. I gave Leah a big hug, which she returned eagerly. Then she stepped back and waved her hand in front of her nose.

"Dang, girl, you stink! You smell like you've been rolling in Eau' de Leech," she complained playfully. I giggled and hugged Seth quickly, before jumping back into the SUV. The others all climbed in too.

"Doesn't smell too bad to me," Seth admitted with a shrug.

"You get used to it after a couple minutes," Quil explained. "Just take deep breaths and allow the scent molecules to saturate your nose. Once the brain has identified the odor and concluded you can't escape from it, it will begin to filter out your notice of it. The scent is still there, but your brain chooses to ignore it, so you don't notice it. Pretty cool actually."

"So where should we start looking for our prey?" I asked, getting down to business. They all gave me a weird look and started laughing at me.

"You've been hanging out with vampires too long!" Leah accused between chuckles. "Certainly, we should hunt down our victims. Let's start with Sam and Emily's place. It's around dinner time, so Paul's probably over there with them too. I know they run patrols, but it's like once or twice a day, scouting for trails, so they're human the rest of the time."

I nodded, and she directed me to their house. "You know, both you and Quil reek of the Cullens. I have no doubt Sam will send Paul to keep an eye on you while I talk to Sam. They are going to be curious as hell what you were doing to be close enough to a leech to be covered in their scent." She sent me a look when I met her gaze in the rear-view mirror.

I laughed. "Sorry, I don't kiss and tell, Leah." Quil snorted.

Leah rolled her eyes. "Yeah, that's fine for you, but Quil is going to have a much harder time explaining himself."

Quil huffed. "Puh-leez, girl. I just had a little tussle with Emmett during Mario Kart. I certainly wasn't kissing anybody."

"Who said anything about kissing, boy," Leah sneered. "Interesting to see where your mind was though." She smirked at him, determined to put him in his place.

He growled at her. "Watch it, bitch, or I'll have to teach you some manners."

"Ha! As if that word could bother me. It's not an insult if it's true. I am, or soon will be, a Grade A, number one, genuine Bitch, with a capital B. What else would you call a female werewolf? You're so moody, Quil. Are you sure you didn't imprint on Emmett? You two sure seem to enjoy each other's company."

Seth started laughing, thinking about Quil following Emmett around with lovey dovey puppy eyes. "Maybe we should get him a leash for you!"

Quil gave Seth the evil eye and whispered menacingly, "You're going down, Clearwater. Just wait and see. Your ass is mine!"

Seth grinned cheerfully. "Sorry, Quil, but I don't swing that way."

I bit my lip to hold back a chuckle, but Leah burst out laughing.

Quil frowned at her. He crossed his arms across his chest, the muscles in his biceps bigger than ever. "Leah, one of these days, I am going to spin you around by your tail and toss you up to the moon."

"Yeah, yeah. You keep telling yourself that," Leah provoked.

I was so happy we were pulling up to Sam's door then. I was afraid things were going to come to blows soon. It was like being in a car with Emmett, Jasper, and Edward all competing over some silly DS game. Trash talking, testosterone, and tight spaces tended to make me nervous. It was weird hearing Leah playing into it. Maybe it wasn't just a guy thing after all.

I got out of the car and heard two growls from inside the house. Boy, they must have strong sniffers. Sam and Paul were both out the front door and facing me in seconds. They seemed rather surprised at what they saw, though they continued to glare menacingly at me. My mouth twitched as I tried to hide my amusement.

"Howdy, gentlemen," I drawled pleasantly, keeping my face bland. "So nice to meet you. Leah has told me so much about you."

They both blanched at the mention of Leah, and they finally noticed her presence on the other side of the vehicle. Then they wore almost identical expressions of shock. Sam shifted uncomfortably, shuffling his feet and breaking out into a sweat. He cleared his throat nervously.

"Um, hi, Leah," he stuttered. "How can I help you this fine evening?" Paul snorted.

"Actually, Sam, I've made a few friends who have helped me put things into perspective. I'd like to talk to you and get some closure on our relationship. I'm finally ready to come to terms with what happened and to face my future without you. I was hoping you'd be willing to take a little walk with me so we could talk it all out."

Sam was pleasantly surprised. In fact, his jaw dropped. He closed his mouth with an audible snap, but he couldn't resist the opportunity to make peace with the woman whom he had unwillingly betrayed. He nodded and smiled tentatively. "Just a minute, okay? I'll be right back." Leah nodded, and Sam went back inside, giving me a cold stare in the process. Paul quickly followed behind him.

I couldn't hear anything, but I could tell by the intent expressions on Quil and Leah's faces that they could. Their eyes met in unspoken communication and Quil nodded.

"I'm going to show Bella around the rez. We'll be back to pick you up in about an hour, okay?" Quil announced, slightly louder than his normal speaking level. I knew it was for the benefit of the wolves inside. I got back in the SUV and pulled away from the house.

"What's the word?" I asked eagerly.

"Well, Leah's got Sam hooked and, sure enough, he ordered Paul to follow us around and listen in on our conversations. I was originally going to have us head to the beach, but I realized he would probably stay in wolf form and listen from the woods if we did that, which would completely defeat the purpose. So, instead, we are going to drive into the very center of town. With the noises around us, he's going to have to get a lot closer to understand what we're saying. He can't be in wolf form inside the town of La Push, so he'll be forced to stay human," Quil determined, as he sent Alice a text message letting her know the status of the two wolves.

"Great idea, Quil!" I encouraged. "I'm proud of you. We'll make a strategist out of you yet." I leaned over and gave him a brief kiss on the cheek. He promptly blushed and turned to stare out the window for a few minutes, trying to hide his reaction. I pretended I hadn't noticed.

"Awww! I'm going to tell Edward you were kissing Quil! You're going to be in trou-ble!" Seth taunted in a singsong voice.

I rolled my eyes. I seemed to do that a lot these days. Ever since I came to Forks, in fact. "Grow up, Seth!" I demanded.

"I've grown up a lot lately. About six inches in the past week. I'm surprised you didn't notice," Seth responded casually. I groaned and decided to just ignore him.

I parked where Quil suggested, and we got out to go for a little walk around town. We had decided to throw Paul and Sam for a loop with our conversation, and I knew the boys would follow my lead.

"You know, it was really nice of the Cullens to change that tire for me," I mentioned. The boys both smiled at me.

"The Cullens changed your tire?" Seth asked in amused disbelief.

"I was going to take care of it for you," Quil protested convincingly. "I know how to change a tire. You didn't need their help."

"I can't believe you jumped on top of Emmett, even if he did make a smart ass remark. That guy looks like a professional wrestler. I know you're pretty built, but I think even his muscles have muscles. You're lucky he decided not to fight you."

Seth burst out laughing.

"Hey! I could've taken him! Even he did feel like he's made of solid rock," Quil complained.

"Relax, Quil," I said with a smirk. "It's not your fault you couldn't find the jack. Who knew they would hide it behind a little panel on the side in the back instead of in the spare tire compartment?"

Quil growled at me, stalking toward me menacingly. I threw up my arms in surrender as I backed away. Seth just kept watching, wearing a big grin.

"Hey, I didn't know it was there either! Must be some kind of Mercedes thing," I quickly added.

Quil stopped in his tracks. He snorted. "Well of course the rich spoiled Cullens would know where to find a jack inside a Mercedes. What do you expect?"

"Why didn't you just read the manual in the glove compartment?" Seth asked, inserting the voice of logic and reason. I thought we were doing fairly well, considering we were making all this up as we went along. Both Quil and I glared at him.

"I was just getting ready to do that when the Cullens came along and took care of it," Quil explained through gritted teeth. Poor Quil. He didn't want to look stupid in front of Paul.

"I still don't understand how they took care of it so quickly," I interjected with a grin. "Especially without any tools. I swear they should be part of a pit crew or something."

Both Quil and Seth started laughing then, no doubt picturing Rosalie working in a race car pit. Any race car driver would be lucky to have her working on his car. Considering the improvements she'd made on everybody's cars thus far and the resulting maximum speeds, I'd say she's more than qualified for the position.

"By the way, Quil, did you notice anything odd about the Cullens?" I asked innocently. Both the boys immediately sobered, looking at me in surprise.

"Like what?" Quil asked guardedly.

"Well, they seemed to be giving you quick, nervous glances the entire time. It may have been because they thought you were going to attack them again, but it seemed like more than that. They also wrinkled their noses every time you got close to them, like you smelled bad, but you smell fine to me. Oh, and when I gave Edward that thank you hug, didn't he seem a little stiff?"

Seth and Quil exchanged a glance and Seth let out a guffaw. Quil struggled to keep a straight face as he delivered his line, "Oh, yeah, I'd say he was stiff alright when you were hugging him. He seemed to think you smelled pretty good too, but then again, so do I. I'd say you enjoyed it too, considering you couldn't keep your eyes off of him the entire time."

He and Seth dissolved into a laughing fit then. Great. If they weren't careful, they would give the whole game away.

"There was just something about him drawing me in—his voice, his face, even his smell. As if he needs any of that," I mused. Seth and Quil both gave me an odd look before changing the subject. They started talking about cars, which was utterly boring for me. I decided to have a little fun with them too, in addition to Paul and Sam.

"Hey, I know! Let's play the 'what if' game," I suggested enthusiastically. The boys stopped chatting and gave me with considering looks. They both shrugged and nodded.

"Okay, what if mythological creatures were real?" I proposed. "Would you rather be a werewolf or a vampire?" They both gaped at me in disbelief for a second before recovering their composure.

"Werewolf," Quil replied instantly. "What about you?"

"Vampire," I responded. I heard a growl come from behind the building on our right.

"Why?" Quil asked, before Seth could say anything.

I shrugged. "They're sexier."

"Oh, no way!" Quil protested. "How could a cold, dead corpse possibly be sexier than a hot-blooded werewolf?"

"They're not corpses, you know. If they were dead, how could they be walking and talking?"

"They don't have a heartbeat. Besides, a cockroach can survive for more than a week after you chop off its head. They're like walking, talking, blood-drinking headless cockroaches," Quil sneered.

I glared at him. He better not be serious. Seth was looking at him in surprise as well. He saw our expressions and mouthed an apology, looking sheepish. I relaxed.

"No, you're thinking of zombies, silly. That's a whole other story," I replied calmly. "What about you Seth?"

He grinned mischievously. "I want to be a vampire werewolf."

"There's no such thing," Quil scoffed. "It's one or the other."

"Ha! That's what you think," Seth taunted. "I say if there are vampires and werewolves, what if a vampire falls in love with a werewolf? They would have vampire werewolf babies."

"It would never happen," Quil disagreed. "They're mortal enemies. They'd never fall in love."

"What about Romeo and Juliet?" I pointed out with a smirk. "They were mortal enemies, but they fell in love."

"Yeah, and look how well that worked out for them," Quil snickered. "And at least they were the same species."

"Well, I don't see why the werewolves and vampires have to be enemies," I protested. "Sure, they should destroy the bad vampires, but what about the good vampires?"

"What good vampires? The only good vampire is a dead vampire. That's what I've always heard," Quil responded with disdain.

"Don't be ridiculous. They were human before they became vampires, weren't they? Just as there are good humans and bad humans, there must be good vampires and bad vampires, good werewolves and bad werewolves. It's the natural order of all sentient beings," I explained confidently. "Otherwise, there is no such thing as good or bad. It all becomes relative, and then there is no concept of morality, no inherent right and wrong."

Quil looked thoughtful, but Seth just looked at me with complete confusion.

"Okay, I was understanding the first half of that, but then you kind of lost me on the second part. A little too philosophical for me, I think," Seth stated.

Just then I received a text message from Alice letting us know the mission had been successful. I smiled at the boys.

"Time to pick up Leah, then I've got to head back home," I announced happily. They smiled in understanding. "We can continue this discussion some other time."

"Great," they groaned in unison. This time is was my turn to have the laughing fit. I couldn't wait to get back to the Cullen house and find out what happened with everybody else.

EPOV

I took off running for the hospital, desperate to get there before the wolves. I knew I could run faster than they could drive, though once I was out of the forest, I would be restricted to traveling at human pace. I could hear the thoughts of my siblings as they chased behind me. Rosalie was complaining as usual.

Those mutts better not do anything that makes us have to move away. It's bad enough Edward practically lives with his little human girlfriend, doing who knows what in her bedroom every night, but now we've got stinky werewolves making themselves at home in our living room. Jacob may know about cars, but he's even more childish and impulsive than Emmett, and I thought no one could be worse than that. The two of them working together is going to be catastrophic to the peace of the rest of us. Jasper's going to be working overtime. It's a good thing he doesn't need to sleep.

Jasper was busy working out battle plans. He was completely aware of the floor plan of the hospital, though he rarely went there due to his bloodlust. Whenever Carlisle started a new job, Jasper would always thoroughly investigate his new workplace, making a detailed map with all possible escape routes marked, just in case Carlisle ever needed to leave in a hurry. He was using the information now to determine where Tyler was likely being held, which route the wolves would take to get there, and the best places to direct them if we were unable to intercept them before they got inside.

I got to the hospital in record time and paced in the front, waiting for Jacob and Embry to show. Rosalie and Jasper caught up with me and helped keep a vigilant watch for their car. A few minutes later, Jacob's car came speeding into the parking lot, narrowly avoided a pedestrian, and screeched to a stop crookedly between two handicapped spots. Jacob and Embry jumped out at werewolf speed and began jogging quickly to the front door. Jasper, Rose, and I moved instantly to intercept them. They both growled at me, baring their teeth, their canines extended a bit now in their anger. I held up my arms, palms out indicating I didn't want to fight.

"Let's just talk about this before anybody does anything foolish, okay?" I suggested. I saw their hands trembling, but they both made a conscious effort to relax. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Carlisle, Esme, and Emmett arrive. Carlisle slid the Mercedes smoothly into his private parking space.

"Are you calling me foolish, leech?" Jacob demanded. Just get the heck out of my way and let me do this.

Rosalie grinned. "If the shoe fits…"

I swatted in her direction, trying to get her to be quiet. "No, no. I'm sure you'll make a wise decision that is best for your tribe and your pack. I do think phasing inside the hospital would likely be a very unwise choice."

They both rolled their eyes at me. "No, duh." Do you think we're stupid or something?

I closed my eyes briefly, lamenting the fact I was dealing with extremely dangerous, possibly lethal creatures with the mentality and vocabulary of an average eight year old. What law of nature put so much power into the paws of ones so young? It was just like making immortal children, which even we vampires could admit was a big mistake, no matter how cute they were.

"Look here, dipwads. We're all mad at Tyler for his idiotic behavior. We'd all like to give him a piece of our minds, though in your case, I don't think you can spare any. However, we all know what happens when you get angry, don't we? So it doesn't take a psychic to see it would be a disaster for you two to go scream and yell at Tyler right now," Rosalie instructed. "So tuck your tails between your legs and run home like good little doggies."

I think I'll phase now and take a little bite out of her. That would teach her better than to suggest we tuck tail and run. I'm no coward.

Great, now Rose has managed to make them angrier and even more resistant to reason.

I growled in frustration and quickly realized my mistake. I actually saw their hackles rise, and their trembling became worse as their snarls echoed back. Jasper began desperately projecting calm again, which only helped a little. Carlisle, Esme, and Emmett came up behind them, and they were completely surrounded. This was probably a mistake, because the looks in their eyes suddenly became hostile.

"Are you showing your true colors now, bloodsuckers? You planning on taking us out?" Jacob demanded to know.

"Please, Jacob," I replied, as gently and calmly as possible. "We're just trying to protect the humans, just like you. You're a Protector, right? Created to protect your people from danger." I needed to break through his anger to his more rational side.

He waved his hands angrily toward the hospital. "Those aren't my people. We aren't on La Push. And one of those people endangered a member of my family!"

Embry nodded vigorously, demonstrating his full and complete agreement with Jacob. At least I understood his reasoning, even if I couldn't agree with it. He considered Bella to be part of his family, and he wanted to protect her by taking out the boy who had endangered her life. I actually felt the same way on some level, but my maturity level allowed me to see past it to the possible consequences.

"Jacob, I understand, believe me, I do. But I can't allow you to endanger the rest of the population just so you can hurt the guy who hurt Bella," I explained, hoping to get through to him.

"Allow? You can't allow me? Since when do you have the right to allow me to do something or not?" Jacob shouted in rage. "Is that what you were hoping for when you befriended us? That you could control me and my friends? Cause that's not happening! Why don't I start telling you what you are and are not allowed to do?"

Edward, I'm doing my best, but I can't calm him. I can't help him now without physical contact, and I feel certain he'll snap and phase right here if I touch him.

I nodded slightly to Jasper to show I understood. Carlisle cleared his throat and stepped around in front of Jacob and Embry. He signaled for all of us to back off and give them space, which we immediately did. Once they were no longer surrounded by our family, the tension in the two boys dropped dramatically. They had instinctively felt threatened by our behavior; even if they knew intellectually that we had no intention of hurting them.

I watched as Jacob's entire demeanor changed as he faced off with Carlisle. He grew taller and his posture straightened. The lines of his face seemed more angular and defined, hinting at a greater physical maturity. An aura of purpose and strength pulsed out from him. Embry instinctively took a step back and a step closer, placing himself into the Beta position to his Alpha. Carlisle's demeanor also changed, altering from the kind, compassionate, father figure and doctor to that of indomitable leader.

The mantle of responsibility and wisdom he donned rested comfortably on his shoulders, and there was no question that he was an experienced and fearless leader. The changes occurred in milliseconds. Bella would never have been able to see them as they were made. They were no longer Jacob and Carlisle meeting in the parking lot. The Alpha of the Quileute werewolf pack was now conferencing with the Head of the Cullen vampire coven. The air around them fairly crackled with power.

"You have every right to enter the hospital and visit whomever you please, Jacob Black," Carlisle intoned respectfully. "We are here to offer our assistance in keeping your secret from the humans here, for the sake of the peace, and for the sake of your pack members and your tribe. Neither of us would wish to call attention to ourselves. I know you have no desire to cause accidental injury by phasing too close to a human being, so we would like to offer our services in reducing the risk."

Jacob's demeanor relaxed slightly, the hostility and tension fading. His voice was deep and commanding as he formulated his reply. "We will be addressing our concerns to the foolish Tyler Crowley. That is not up for debate or discussion. We are willing to accept your assistance in reducing risk and helping to keep our secrets. What are you suggesting?"

Carlisle nodded, his expression serious, but open and honest. "If you truly feel you must speak with Tyler tonight, please allow Edward and Jasper to accompany you. If you will allow Jasper to touch you, he can use his gift to keep you from phasing as he did earlier. Edward will be able to assess the mind-set of the witnesses and make sure no one suspects anything out of the ordinary."

"Hey, I want to come too! I've got a few things to say to that bastard," Emmett called out. He was immediately punched in the right arm by me, punched in the left arm by Jasper, and smacked on the back of the head by Rosalie, while Esme gasped, "Language, Emmett!" and Embry cheered.

Carlisle and Jacob maintained eye contact, neither one acknowledging or reacting to the commotion.

"I am willing to have them accompany us. In fact, you may all come if you wish, as long as you only interfere if it is necessary to prevent harm or to maintain the secrecy of either of our natures from the humans," Jacob answered, offering his hand to Carlisle.

Carlisle smiled and reached out to Jacob. They gripped each other's forearms. "I give you my word that my family will not interfere with your mission, except to prevent harm or to maintain the secrecy of our natures." They shook on the terms, essentially forming a new treaty between the two groups.

As their arms dropped back to their sides, they were once more their regular selves, back to being simply Carlisle and Jacob. Carlisle flashed his paternal smile at Jacob, and Jacob returned it with a sheepish grin. He stepped forward, and Carlisle gave him a fatherly hug.

"You're definitely growing up on me, son," Carlisle teased looking up into Jacob's eyes. Jacob's chest rumbled as he chuckled.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of you in your old age, Pops," Jake joked back. Esme couldn't resist running over to hug them both.

"Enough with the mushy stuff. Let's go kick Tyler's butt," Embry hollered. He and Emmett bumped fists.

"Heck yeah," Emmett agreed. "I'm with you, dude." The two of them headed to the front door of the hospital. The rest of us rushed to beat them there.

Carlisle led us to the room where Tyler had been kept, but the room was empty. Jacob and Embry looked at us to see if we were behind this, but could tell by our reactions we were just as surprised as they were. Carlisle went up to the nurses' station, and we all quietly chuckled to hear the heart rates of the two nurses on duty rapidly accelerate.

"Oh, Dr. Cullen!" one breathed huskily. "How may I be of service?" I would love to service you any way you want. There's an empty room down the hall we could use. She licked her lips suggestively. I groaned at the mental images she started projecting, wishing I could bleach my brain so I wouldn't see pictures of my father doing any of those things. Having a perfect memory could definitely be a curse.

Carlisle pretended not to notice as he responded. "I came to check on Tyler Crowley. Has he already been discharged?"

The other nurse came over. "Yes, he went home about an hour ago. Is there anything else we can do for you?" I'd be willing to share if it meant I could get a piece of him.

"No thank you," Carlisle growled crossly. "Have you met my wife and children? They're standing right over there, less than ten feet away."

The nurses finally noticed the rest of us, and had the decency to blush at propositioning Carlisle right in front of us. However, they couldn't take their eyes off of us and their minds were positively steeped in sewage. I desperately attempted to block them out, even though their thoughts were practically screaming at me. Jasper was whimpering and frantically texting Alice on his cell phone. He could barely walk due to the massive lust pouring off of them. Emmett took pity on him and practically carried him outside to recover.

"Can we do anything for any of the rest of you?" one of the nurses cried out after us. Jacob turned and gave them his most charming grin.

"Maybe later, ladies," He suggested, waggling his eyebrows and leering at them. Embry grabbed him by the arm and started trying to drag him down the hall.

"He's only fifteen," Carlisle warned the women, but they were still smiling seductively at Jacob. "And his father is Chief Swan's best friend." This time their faces fell, and they sighed in disappointment. Carlisle shook his head in disgust.

Jacob pouted at Carlisle. "Man, Carlisle, what did you have to go and do that for? This is the 21st century, not the 17th."

Carlisle gave him a parental 'look'. "You, son, are what is referred to as 'jailbait', and I doubt either your father or Charlie would appreciate any aspect of that relationship. You are also the leader of your pack, and it is your responsibility to live your life accordingly. You must be someone worthy of being obeyed or you will face mutiny when you most need support."

Jacob nodded slowly, allowing the words to permeate his brain, recognizing the wisdom Carlisle was imparting. He picked up his pace to catch up to the others and never looked back. They headed over to the cars. Chief Swan was there by Jacob's car writing out a ticket. He quickly rushed over.

"Aww, Charlie, please don't give me a ticket," he pleaded. "You know I can't afford to pay it." Charlie looked at him in surprise.

"This is your car, Jacob?" Charlie asked in disbelief. Jacob nodded. "You're not sixteen yet. What are you doing driving?"

Jacob flushed and ducked his head. "Uh, yeah, we get our licenses early down on the rez."

Charlie raised an eyebrow and frowned, clearly indicating he knew Jacob was lying through his teeth. Jasper sent him a few waves of peaceful tranquillity, hoping it would help, just as Jacob decided to throw himself on Charlie's mercy.

"Look, Charlie, I just found out what happened to Bella. I consider her part of my family, and I just wanted to scare the crap out of Tyler Crowley for being such an idiot. I was in a hurry, because I was really mad, and the Cullens came to make sure I didn't do anything I would later regret. But he's already been sent home, so I was planning to head over to his house now to complete my mission."

To my surprise, Jacob's decision was actually a smart one. Upon hearing Jacob's plan and destination, Charlie ripped up the ticket and offered to come along, just so he could witness it. I got a text message from Alice telling us Tyler would be home alone for another 43 minutes. I shared this information with the rest of the group, at a level too quiet for Charlie's ears, but loud enough for all the rest of us. I didn't want to try to explain to Charlie how Alice knew that.

We all quickly mobilized, cramming into the cars uncomfortably, since no one wanted to ride in the squad car with Charlie, and we couldn't run through town. We were at Tyler's house in five minutes.

It was quite a scene with Charlie, Rosalie, Emmett, Jacob, and Embry taking turns yelling at and insulting Tyler, while he cowered into the corner of the sofa. Jasper kept a firm control on Jacob and Embry, able to keep them only mildly shaking. The rest of us enjoyed the show, applauding for particularly amusing comments and suggestions of what Tyler could do with himself. I kept a close eye on the time and got everyone out of there with ten minutes to spare. I wished we had thought to video tape it, so we could share it with all those who hadn't been there, especially as Alice wouldn't have been able to see it in her visions. To my surprise, Alice was outside, videotaping through the window. I grinned and gave her a high five. Great minds think alike.