Jasper POV
We pulled into the garage and headed toward the door. Alice eyes glazed over again. She was hyperventilating for the second time today. Edward opened the door as soon as he heard us. I picked her up and carried her inside. When I heard her say 'Daddy' I knew she was seeing a vision about Carlisle. Most of the time we all called him Carlisle; sometimes Dad and an occasional Father. But Alice was his little girl, and she would call him daddy all the time.
"Daddy! Oh God, Daddy. He hurt. He's so hurt. He buried. They think he's dead. He's hurt and he's in danger. Jazz, he is scared and he wants to kill."
I heard the collective gasp of everyone around me. Carlisle was the least violent person out of all of us. He kept us in check and was constantly on our backs about doing the right thing. But pure violence was simply against his nature. For Carlisle to want to kill, would mean some kind of personal affront; like someone causing harm to one of us, his children or …Mom. I sent out a wave of calm to keep our heads on straight.
"We have to help him." Alice was starting to panic. "Edward, where is he? Why can't I see mom anymore? Where are they? Ah," she gasped, "Earthquake! Edward there was an earthquake; England or Canada or something like that."
"I have already hacked into dad's computer and there are three conferences he was looking at this summer. They were all involving cancer and two of them were in that area," Edward confirmed. "Bella, search the web for any recent quakes no matter how minor or remote."
Edward started planning, "Perhaps we can see if Nessie can stay with Charlie and Jake will watch over her while we go look for them. All we need is a destination…"
"We are going to United Kingdom!" Bella announced triumphantly.
"Why? What made you pick the United Kingdom as our destination, Love?" he asked Bella.
"I checked out this web site that was bookmarked on the Thaxted Hall. It was a windmill that was converted into a hotel and convention center. They were able to preserve a lot of the old building and rebuild the structure to accommodate modern conveniences," she explained. "Does this not sound like Esme's kind of project to research?"
"Yes. Dad would go to a convention on leprosy just to give mom a chance to research renovating old buildings," Edward smiled as he agreed with her choice.
Bella continued, "It's remote and interesting and…"
"It's one of the conventions Dad was looking at. Edward continued. "Bingo! And the dates match."
"Ah, Edward…" Bella was still at the computer. Something in her voice made everyone turn to her simultaneously. "There was an earthquake in this area yesterday. They are reporting that the hall was relatively unharmed but there was a tragic accident involving a group of doctors from a convention being hosted there. Names are being withheld until next of kin can be reached."
Briiiiiiiinnnggg! All breathing stopped. We just stood there, six vampires in suspended animation, looking at a phone that rarely rings. Bella walked over and picked it up.
"Hello," she answered tentatively.
"Hello. Is this the Cullen residence?" asked a very British sounding voice on the other end. We all could hear every word he was saying with our vampire hearing so we stood stock still and listened.
"Yes, how did you get this number?" Bella asked.
"Ah yes, well you see it was on Dr. Cullen's registration form as an emergency number. Is this a family member?" he inquired.
"Yes, I am his daughter, Bella." she replied a bit shakily. Edward was by her side in a flash ready to offer any support she needed.
"I am so sorry about your loss." He began. "My colleagues and I were putting together a sum of money to donate to a charity and was wondering if there was a special charity that Dr. Carlisle supported."
Bella was starting to break, "I..I... am not sure what Dad would w..want to do."
"How is your poor mother doing through all this?" Alice started sobbing her tearless cries. "Is there anything we can do?" He went on. Rose was shaking like a leaf as Emmett held her barely holding on himself. "We would like to be contacted with information on the memorial if at all possible." Edward dropped to his knees as a silent whisper of 'Dad' escaped his lips. Bella laid the phone down and went to him, grabbing him around the shoulders as he shook with his back to us.
The caller continued oblivious to the turmoil and heartbreak his phone call was inadvertently causing. "Carlisle told me so much about his children. He was very proud of each and every one of you. I hope you know that."
"Yes, we do," I answered. "This is his son Jasper," I explained. "My sister is too upset to continue talking right now."
"Yes of course. I am sure this is a very trying time for all of you," he realized. Then another thought occurred to him. "Is your mother indisposed at the moment? Is she taking any calls?"
"This is not a good time right now. Let me get your name and contact information and someone will contact you at a later date."
Bella collapsed as Edward captured her before she hit the floor. Alice had a death grip on my neck as she shook uncontrollably and cried. I spoke to the gentleman, who had obviously assumed we had been given the bad news already. While I got the details, Bella and Alice moved to the couch and cried together, while Edward ran upstairs started packing. I heard Eddie on the phone calling for a private jet to take us to the Stansted Airport in the United Kingdom which was ten minutes from the Thaxted Hall Convention Center.
If Carlisle and Esme were gone, and we were still not certain it was true, we had to decide what to do. By rights, in a coven situation, Edward would be next in line to lead as he was the first one made by Carlisle. But he was also physically, the youngest at 17, next to Alice who was 16. Emmett was no where near leader material at 19. So that would leave me at 18, as a military strategist, having served in the vampire wars of the South, in charge until we could get them back.
Nobody wanted to be in charge. No one wanted to be the leader. We were not a coven, or a force to be reckoned with. We were a family possibly mourning the loss of our father, and maybe our mom too. I sent out wave after wave of calm but it was not effective as I suffered a disjointed feeling myself. We had to find our parents. We were kids looking for our Mom and Dad. All of a sudden, we got busy and shifted into survival mode.
Edward started with, "I suggest the girls stay behind, and take care of Renessmee and man the home front. We will…"
"Not be going anywhere without Bella and me!" Alice interrupted him. "Daddy is alive. I don't care what that man says. But he is hurt and he needs us. Jasper, we need to get to him and mom quickly. Daddy is feeling…overwhelmed."
"We need Bella's shield for something. I don't know why but I saw her using it. You know you need me and Edward.
"I am not staying behind while you guys go look for them," Emmett proclaimed. "You don't know what kind of trouble you may run into. You may need us all."
"No!" Edward said. "Renessmee has to stay here. I don't know what we are going to find and if there is any danger, I don't want her there."
"What are you thinking, Edward?" Bella demanded. "Something is going through your mind and since you are the only one who can see it, tell us."
"There is a power at work here, I think. Somehow Alice is not able to see Mom. Whether she was dead or alive, Alice would still be able to see her. I am thinking maybe the Volturi got wind of the fact they were traveling alone, without their family and chose that moment to attack or kidnap or whatever plan they may have hatched," he suggested a pained look on his face.
"And if it is not the Volturi?" Rose asked.
"There are other vampires out there with powers also. Mom and Dad will appear to be only two vampires and possibly vulnerable to a nomad group of three or four, I interjected seeing where Eddie was going. "It depends on whether or not there are any vampire wars going on over there."
Emmett understood then, "If it is another group of vampires, then a definite show of force will get their attention."
"Next to the Volturi, know this," I emphasized, "there is no force stronger than our family coven." This we all agreed on.
I was empathic, able to manipulate emotions which could excite or calm a crowd. Alice sees visions of the future. Edward could read anyone's mind he was near, except for Bella, his wife. She is a powerful shield that can block the powers of almost all other powers out there and keep us all protected as well. She was that effective against the Volturi, our own Vampire Royal family.
"The plane will be ready in an hour," Edward announced hanging up the phone. "So who is staying behind and who is going?"
"Rose," Emmett asked, "I know you can handle yourself with the best of us. But would you be willing to stay with Nessie while we go bring Mom and Dad home, Sweet Pea?"
"You'd better bring them back! And take the dog with you," Rose suggested. She loved the idea of getting rid of Jake for a while. But the idea was a good one as Edward agreed.
"Good idea Rose," Edward countered. "I'll call Jacob and let him know there are some more vampires he's allowed to kill. This might well be the show of strength our coven needs."
"No, Edward," Bella hissed. "He's just a child, still stuck at age 16."
"Who can turn into a four hundred pound, vampire dismembering, werewolf," Emmett barked. "Lighten up Bells. This is the person you're entrusting your daughter's life too. He is a part of the Cullen family, now. He might as well fight the good fight."
"Okay," Bella agreed, "but maybe we should not say anything to Renessmee right now about her grandparents being missing.
"Too late!" snarled Jacob coming into the room, consoling a sobbing Nessie. Apparently they had heard enough to know what was going on. "Just show me some vampires to kill so I can make my Nessie feel better."
Carlisle POV
I caught my reflection in the underground river. I was far from the Carlisle everyone knew. I was now the monster I had always tried to avoid. I had licked the wounds around my arm sealing them with my venom. I wrapped my arm up in the remnants of the shirt I had torn from my body. I needed to feed. This type of trauma to my body could make even me dangerous to humans. I needed to hunt, prepare for a confrontation, and save my wife with probably less than a couple of hours to work with. I sniffed the air and moved toward my prey.
I smelled a large game of some sort, bear. Emmett would be ecstatic. This is what I would need. The bear's blood would fortify me as well as speed along my healing. Considering I have had to repair appendages on my sons more than once, I was well aware of what I needed to do. I headed toward the outer caves. It was like a maze in here but I would find my way around.
I turned a corner and came up behind a huge bear. I had heard bears had been hunted into extinction here but obviously some have survived. I could tell that there were more around the caverns by the smell but unfortunately I was about to take the population down by one.
He smelled me immediately and turned to roar his challenge and swipe his sharp claws at me. My arm was still weak and I had to hobble but I was still faster than he. He swiped again but the close proximity of the cave gave him a better chance at me. His claws only tore my clothes and left claw stripes that would heal eventually. My skin was still weakened due to the exposure of the fire during the explosion. His third swing at me was more calculated as he aimed for my face. I moved and grabbed the extended paw and jumped on his back.
Unlike Emmett, I don't play with my food nor did I have the time. I grabbed his head and pulled it to the side and sunk my teeth into fur and skin and muscle. The venom covered bicuspids and molars brooked no resistance. They sunk in like butter and I drank. I felt my ribs healing and my skin regenerating. My leg straightened as I drew in my fourth pull of the grizzly and I felt the strength returning to my arm. At nearly 400 years old it did not take me as long to heal as my children and time was of the essence.