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Chapter Twenty-One

Ready

BPOV

Staying at my home with Charlie had at least allowed me to put the thoughts Edward had pulled out of the unknown immortal's mind. My family had tried so hard to convince me that none of this related to me, but it had been my experience since meeting the Cullens that anything that was negative that came into our family's path seemed to always have a direct line of intent toward me. I had decided when we laid in the meadow that I wanted to spend the night at Charlie's. After he passed on, I had not been to the house to look through his things. I had wanted to do that for some time but I had thought if I waited at least seventy years after my leaving, there would be nobody left that would remember us. Boy, had I been wrong. Leave it to Mike Newton to always through a wrench into things.

Edward had called and informed our family what he had learned. Carlisle and Jasper agreed that we all needed to prepare and make ourselves ready for whatever lay ahead. They had wanted Edward and I to come home that night but I had insisted I needed to spend that one night there. None of us could imagine how things would turn out and I needed to do what had been an underlying reason for our return to Forks, though none of them knew this. That was one thing I had always made sure to shield Edward from when I allowed him to know my thoughts. I wanted to return to my home to grief for Charlie in what had been mine and his home.

I had grieved harder than I would have ever imagined when I lost my father. I had thought I would be prepared, knowing what the end result would be, but I still think of him several times a day. Always something that reminds me of him. Every time a police cruiser passes me along the road, or when I see his favorite beer in the store. After Edward got off the phone, I insisted he go into Charlie's room with me. I wanted to share with him what I was doing now. I opened the doors to his closet. His clothing still hang just as it had the day he had left for the hospital. Charlie had terrible heart disease in his older days. Carlisle had made sure that the cardiologist my father saw was the best that could be found. He had done an excellent job, but in the end, Charlie's heart wore out. I found the tuxedo my father had worn to our wedding, hanging in the very back of the closet. I hadn't thought he would keep it. I took it from the closet and held it in my arms. I missed my father more than I had let anyone know. I could faintly smell what was my father's scent mixed with his favorite cologne. If I had been human, the smell would have went undetected. I breathed in and let the smell linger. I never wanted to forgot that smell and I never would, thanks to my immortal senses.

I felt Edward's hand around me. He didn't speak, he just allowed me to do what I needed to do. I put the garment back where Charlie had left it. I didn't want anything to be different from where he had it, I wanted that small part of Charlie to remain. The small part that I had left of him. I looked at all of the pictures he had placed in the room. The picture he had once kept of himself with my mother and me downstairs had ended up in one of the drawers on his dresser. His wedding photo of he and Sue, along with Seth, Leah, and myself sat proudly on his desk. Charlie had always hung one of his guns downstairs and laid the other on his nightstand. It still laid there. I rubbed my fingers along the grip, knowing that my father had placed his hand there once upon a time. I knew that Edward probably wasn't understanding the things that I was doing, but it helped me. I had said goodbye to my father, but I didn't have to say goodbye to his memory and the things he touched. Rosalie had told me to do all that I could to hold onto my human memories and that was what I was doing. I didn't know if or when we might ever return to Forks, but if I came to this house often, maybe all the human memories there were distant in my mind would rush back.

After having gone through most of the house throughout the night, I had traced many of my father's steps and could feel his presence with me even though I knew he wasn't present. Charlie and I hadn't had the best relationship when I was younger, but he had been a big part of my life for the rest of his after I came to Forks. It had been difficult when I lost my mother but I had known her life was different from both mine and Charlie's. My mother loved me and missed me very much, had wanted me to leave Forks and go back home with her, but I had known that without me in my mother's life, it would allow her to be more of the person she had desired to be. I was glad she had Phil and that he gave her the kind of life she had always wanted. She had wanted to be able to travel freely and to live and she got to do that. I regretted at times that I hadn't been able to continue to have my mother in my life as I did my father, and I knew that it hurt her, but she had always been the one that had told me to be happy and she would be happy. Living my existence would have been her top priority.

Once I was finished, I smiled to my loving husband and said, "Thank you for allowing me to do this and thank you for being here with me while I did it."

Edward kissed my forehead, pulled me close and hugged me gently. "Bella, thank you for letting me be here. You shouldn't be thanking me. Most would have wanted to do this alone, but you shared it with me."

He held me until I was ready to go. When we arrived back at our home with the rest of our family, Esme greeted me and hugged me. "Edward told us you wanted to spend the night at Charlie's," she said. "I am glad you were able to do that. I know you must have missed your old home, Bella."

My adopted mother was such a special lady. She always knew the things to say to you that meant more than any other words that could be said. "Thank you, Esme," I glowed. "I got a little bit more of Charlie by doing so. I miss him."

The rest of our family joined us in the foyer as they could tell we had arrived. Jasper came over to me and gave me a less than gentle slap on the shoulder. "You ready to train a bit more, Bella?" he asked. "Or have you had enough of my roughing you up to last?"

I laughed. "If you remember, dear brother, I believe you laid on your back several times yourself."

Emmett's booming laughter erupted. "Well, ya know, little sister, I wouldn't mind having a go with you. Though it was rather entertaining to watch you flip, ole Jasper, there."

Alice and Rosalie started laughing at the banter that my brothers were throwing out at me. Jasper gave me a puzzled look. I knew he could feel my mood. I was laughing and joking but after my night at Charlie's, I'm sure he was feeling the sorrow I was. I felt him as he made me happy. I sent a wink to him to let him know that I was good. "I guess you all know that Edward tapped into her thoughts. We need to get ready."

As if taking my words as the cue, everyone begin to file out of the door. Carlisle and Esme followed as well. "I believe we should go to the clearing," Carlisle suggested. "If we practice here, then those within a few miles will hearing the noise and will think a storm is coming. It would be quite unexplainable and I would imagine the news stations would be bombarded with calls. Plus, Esme really loves this house."

Esme nodded in agreement and we all began our journey to our clearing. The clearing where my family had defended me against the newborns, where the Volturi had come ready to attack. When we reached the clearing, the boys began to throw punches and began to run in full force at one another. Alice and Rosalie began to teach me different moves that would be helpful in many different defenses that the immortal girl could pose. Alice was the hardest for me to fight with as she saw every move I would think about making before I had even thought it, but it was a learning experience that I truly needed. We had been fighting for several hours, running many drills, when Emmett finally spoke. "We are seriously preparing for one immortal. We really just need to teach Bella."

Carlisle smiled and spoke, "Emmett, it wouldn't hurt if we all be at our best. This immortal has managed to avoid Jasper and Bella as well as you and Rose. I think we should be prepared to the best potential. With eight of us in full abilities, it will make it quite implausible for her to be able to get away. We must capture her and find out what it is she is after."

Esme agreed with her husband. "It doesn't hurt anything Emmett with all of us being prepared. We haven't fought another immortal physically since the newborns and we do need to be at our best. One mishap could be devastating for us."

Jasper walked back and forth, pacing the clearing. "Sorry, Emmett, you are outvoted. You should see more than Esme and Carlisle, Alice too, at the need for us all to be ready."

Emmett began to sulk as everyone was against him. To lighten the mood, I snuck slowly behind him and planted his back on the ground. I brought one foot onto his chest and gleamed down at him, "See, brother, you need your practice. I took you down."

All of our family erupted into laughter. Rosalie was laughing so hard that she just about fell over and immortals don't falter. I heard the laughter stop suddenly when Alice gasped. She was having another vision. I looked to Edward who was concentrating. I didn't know if he was concentrating on Alice's vision or if he was trying to listen. The face he made with either of the options was the same. Alice looked to Edward and then they both looked at me, then the rest of the family. "Alice, what do you see?" Carlisle prodded. Jasper walked over to Alice and put his hand on top of hers. "Alice, what is it? Do you see something?"

Edward spoke. "She is coming back into the forest tonight. She is racing around on the outskirts of the treaty line. She doesn't know there is a treaty line. She did, however, see Sam. He was already phased and he chased her. She is in fear. Her thoughts are that we are immortal like she, but she doesn't know she is immortal exactly. She hasn't been taught anything. She believes she just hasn't aged in awhile. She's afraid we might be a wolf, but she isn't scared to find out. She wants to find out…"

Edward's sentence ended when he looked to Alice and nodded. "I saw us, all of us, here tomorrow. Sometime in the morning, just after daybreak. She will try attack, but I don't know how. I just see her appearing but I cant tell who it is she is going to attack. I don't think she knows yet either. She is just going to go after the first one she can reach the easiest."

I looked around at my family. I hated the prospect of seeing any of them having to fight anyone. I wanted to protect them. I placed my head against Edward. He smoothed the hair on the back of my head. He had always done this when I was upset and I knew he was trying to keep the mood gentle. "I will fight if I must. I will kill if I must. I will not let anyone harm any of you. You have been my family and protected me. If I must, I will protect you."

Emmett stood up. "What are we talking this way for? We have this in the bag. Just like before. We got this. And little sister, you are not alone. And you have protected us before. I think you need to focus on your shield too. She could have a power we don't know about it. Leave the physical part up to me. I owe this witch one anyway for messing with my Rose."

I nodded and we began our journey back to our home. My brother is the strongest I know, but I was determined. I would fight this woman if she came at me. Or any of my family. Whoever she decides to attack in the morning, I would get her. From what Edward had read of her the previous day, she would probably go after Rosalie, but not on my watch. I would stop her.