Chapter 16- Zachariah Then

"What's taking so long?" I asked looking ahead at the long line of cars ahead of us, on the single road leading to Aswan.

"The road is patrolled periodically. They are trying to catch thieves that raid the tombs nearby." She answered quietly.

I rolled my eyes poking my head out the window using my vision to see as far up the line of cars as I could. Sure enough there were officers performing inspections. "Great."

The dark-haired woman looked at me curiously and shook her head trying to hold in a smile, though her thoughts were somewhat smug. I didn't have to ask her to speak her mind because she did it on her own. "You would think someone who has been alive as long as you have would be able to have infinite patience."

"I normally do." I countered.

She shook her head still holding her smile. "It's odd. You have the gifts that give you every shortcut in life. You can know how a person feels or thinks without having to go thru the process of getting to know them. You have speed that can surpass any vehicle on land. Beauty that will attract any mate you desire. Not to mention an infinite memory that will never reach capacity as long as you live. None of these things you need, because you'll live forever. We possess none of these things and have a short time to achieve them all."

"You envy our kind…" I assumed, knowing that it would be only natural to feel that way.

This made her finally crack a scoff with a short laugh. "Not for all the gold in the world. I pity your kind."

That surprised me, and I couldn't help but notice this was the first time she had ever been relaxed enough to smile in my presence. I just wish it wasn't her mocking me that made it happen. "Pity? That's the first time I've ever heard that." Well then again it was the first time I had talked about what I was with a human other than Phillip.

"Yes pity. First of all…you take life to keep life."

I had to cut in on that, "No more than humans do. They kill animals all the time."

"You're a rarity, but humans are the preference of your kind." She raised an eyebrow daring for me to protest before she went on. "Not to mention you can't live. You are limited to where you can go, how long you can stay there, what you can do, and who you can interact with. It's a life of fear.

As a human we do things to learn, we do things for the hell of it, were reckless, mean, and kind all at the same time. But we do it all for the experience, to look back on our lives with a sense of finality knowing that our journey has an end and we made the most of it."

I raised an eyebrow at her in somewhat disbelief. Not many people thought this way, especially at her age. She was so young it surprised me. "So you're telling me that if I offered to bite you right now and give you everything that I have, you wouldn't take it?"

Her heart quickened, fear setting in for a brief moment. She had no idea I couldn't give her immortality, and I wouldn't even if I could, because up until I met Ness's family, I felt the same way she did about the immortal life. "No, no I wouldn't. One lifetime all you need to get it right." She answered affirmatively.

"Smart girl." I confirmed as we inched our way forward with the rest of the cars. "What's your name?" I wondered realizing that none of us had ever asked before.

She pushed the coal colored hair from her face before answering, "Merit."

"Well it's nice to meet you Merit."

She was silent for another minute as we inched further up the road.

"I know that helping me and my friends is a bit of an inconvenience for you. But I want you to know that it's greatly appreciated," I thanked her. "We wouldn't even know as much as we do about Zach without your help."

"Don't thank me." She repeated the same as every time she did when someone would thank her. "I didn't do it for your benefit."

It made me curious. "Merit. I know you don't like our kind, but it's only human that I thank a person that is hel-"

"-I'm not helping you." She clarified with a practiced patience. "Now please don't make me regret my decisions any more than I will.

I didn't say anything else after that. Silence in the car made the mile per hour roll towards the road block more unbearable. Her mind wandered into the desert carefree which seemed to irritate me more, but then again she wasn't on a time schedule I was.

"We're finally thru." I exhaled in relief as we proceeded slowly through the officers.

The flow of traffic seemed to quicken immediately. I expected Merit to give me another lecture about patience, but surprisingly she agreed with me. "Yes it seems like everyone is making up for the lost time. It shouldn't be long now…another thirty maybe forty minutes tops."

Her tone was kind enough for me to make another attempt at being friendly. "Thank you for helping me…" I repeated again. She sighed a little less patiently and I corrected myself, "I know you aren't doing it for me, but I am in your debt all the same."

She remained silent as she drove, her mind on nothing but sand and desert surrounding us. I tried to coax her mind into another direction since she was adamant on not saying anything.

"It's crazy that Ness came to you for help on the one person that's effected your family for decades. We really do all share the same sun."

Nothing.

"I just don't understand Ness could fall subject to him. He changed her so much…"

Nothing again.

"Or how he could single her out among millions of-"

She cut me off abruptly, "You can stop trying to stay in my mind. A plus side about seeing a person's life is, seeing their tricks."

"Then throw me a bone here…" I frustratingly pleaded.

She shook her head looking at the road ahead. "You're so content with taking that you forget how to ask."

She was right, ever since I acquired my talents from Edward and Jasper, I had never needed to ask anyone what they thought or felt. I just always knew. I was so used to being around people who were used to it that I didn't think of how intrusive it could actually be. "You're right… I'm sorry, please."

Merit looked at my reflection for a moment before returning her eyes to the road. "You want to know why Zachariah picked your friend Ness, because she felt incomplete."

"Incomplete?" That idea was ludicrous. "Ness is my best friend; I spent literally every day with her. I'm sure that you're aware of what talents I have, if she felt unhappy for even the briefest of moments I would have known. Not to mention her family."

Merit let out a patient sigh, once again sounding older than she was. "Asima, your defensiveness is unnecessary. I have no doubt that Ness was happy with you all, I'm sure she didn't even know she was lacking."

"Lacking?" I questioned.

Merit's mind ran over the easiest way to express her thoughts, and I gave her privacy to do so. "Your friend was the epitome of a free spirit. That's why she went with Zachariah, werewolves are the most inhibited creatures on the planet and she longed just for a moment to have that same life. "

"So you think she'll choose him over us?" I asked in disbelief, trying my best to control my voice. " You make it seem like we locked her away, and kept her from doing what she wanted."

She shook her head in disagreement, "No her love for you all limited her freedom. The love that she holds for you all is more profound than her love for herself. She sacrifices without thought and loves wholly, even if her own wants take a back seat. She didn't stand a chance."

"You don't know her and you don't know us Merit." I snapped in a low voice. I took a fraction of a second to calm myself before continuing, "You don't know how she is feeling. She went with them to save Jasper, Alice, Leah and the city. She was trying to be selfless. She wouldn't have gone if there were any other choice. She knows that we'll save her."

She rolled her eyes at me taking one of her hands off of the wheel jerking and rolling up her sleeve in frustration while doing so. The car swayed slightly to the other side of the road for a moment but she righted it immediately switching her driving hands to show me the inside of her forearm.

My eyes caught it immediately. She was scarred in the shape of teeth on the inside of her wrist, but it didn't look like a normal wound that had healed or scarred over. The pale pink puckering held a white tint to it that reminded me of the eye of a stove giving an indication that it was hot, and it clashed against her henna colored skin in the same way.

"The reason I can tell you I know what your friend is feeling is because I felt it. I was the same free spirit she was, and as soon as I got a taste of pure freedom, there was no going back." She answered keeping her eyes on the road. "Everything I cared about, things that were my life, became not so important. I felt seduced by freedom, and eventually desires became prerogatives. When my conscience did kick in I felt too far gone to change. Like the person I was wasn't there anymore and that I should just accept who I am now."

I listened to her, but didn't take my eyes off of the scar as she drove. I inadvertently reached out and stroked the scar on her wrist, and I could feel the unnatural warmth of it for a fraction of a second before she flinched away from me, suddenly needing two hands to drive. "I'm sorry…" I whispered unsure of which thing I was apologizing for; the invasion of her personal space or at what happened to her. "That's why… what happened to you. That's why you're helping her."

"I wanted to stop her from going thru what I did, and now it seems my efforts are in vain." She noted sadly.

I shook my head, "No, it's not in vain. She's still alive, you said yourself that Zach missed his spot this lunar cycle. So we have time…we can find her."

"And how do you plan to do that?" Merit challenged raising her eyebrow. "You can't track them."

"We will find a way." I promised. She didn't respond, and a thought came to mind. "Did Zach…"

She shook her head and her mouth sputtered a grim sounding laugh. "Oh no… it wasn't Zachariah, thank goodness. From what I know of Zachariah, he always gets what he wants." Her eyes darted to me and then back at the road, and then back at me again. "Sorry…" She apologized realizing what she said.

"It's fine."

She sighed, "But no, it wasn't Zach."

"May I know whom?" I pressed as softly as possible.

She thought to herself for a few moments, not really over the werewolf that pursued her, but her grandfather, and a younger man. He had thick curly black locks and a strong face, handsome, almost beautiful if it weren't for the fact that lividity filled every feature.

"My father and grandfather were sooo furious." She said thinking about the memory.

Ah so that was the unfamiliar face, her father. The more that I thought about it, I could see the similarity.

"We're here." She announced pulling down a long road that ran parallel with the water. The road was in worse condition than the main one, no longer the smooth dirt but gravelled rock and other thing. She stopped in front of a small wooden house. It was a shack in comparison to the ones that surrounded it, though they all seemed just as old. It was a clay red color, the sand changing it over time, not bothering to dress it with paint.

I was out of the car and at the door before she could unlock her seatbelt. NO! She mentally screamed, and it halted me from knocking. I turned to face her and the look of alarm mixed with curiosity on her face let me know that she wasn't intentionally talking to me, and she completely forgotten I could hear her thoughts. I walked back to the car showing her that I wasn't going to attempt to proceed without her.

"Sorry." I apologized quickly. "When I'm anxious it's hard to control my speed."

She nodded once in understanding putting her purse on her shoulder. "I suppose that's another reason you all tend to keep to yourselves. Having to use restraint at all times must be difficult."

I didn't know how to respond to that, so I just followed her up the porch at her own measured pace. She was taking her time, trying to figure out the right way to say why we were there. She didn't expect her grandfather to have a positive reaction to me, and she wondered what it would do to him in his age.

She warily knocked on the door, her heart racing as I heard movement throughout the house. The foot steps inside were slow and light, so I was some what surprise when the man who opened the door wasn't a tiny frail old person.

He was tall, well over six feet, and muscled. His hair was a long curly mixture of white and silver, and though his skin was tight and wrinkled like aged leather, he held the strength of a younger man. His arms scarred along with his face, and a pair of old eyes that shone no fear.

There was some surprise as he took in the sight of his granddaughter along with delight, and then silent curiosity as he took in ,my still form standing behind her. "Giddo…" Merit attempted to greet, again tucking a strand of hair behind her ear before doing so, obviously a nervous habit. She was trying to think of a way to explain me. Her grandfather noticed her behavior as well-looking her over in silence as she fidgeted. He froze at the sight of the scar on her wrist, apparently something she always kept covered, and he mentally winced at the memory. He had an amazing skill, because the emotions he felt didn't echo on his scarred face at all.

"Come in." He ordered knowing why we were there.

I had to practically push Merit in as I followed his direction. The inside of the house smelled like spices. I could pick out specific ones from the aroma that filled my nose. Curry, Sumac, Cardamom, and Dukkah to name a few, others I couldn't recognize.

"I see Fatima has already made your dinner." Merit noted relaxing from the smell. Her thoughts finding the aroma nostalgic and associating it with a face. And aunt. I suppose to a human it would smell different, appetizing even.

Her grandfather said nothing as he took a seat at a small table just outside of the kitchen. Merit nervously sat next to him tucking her hair behind ear before fidgeting with her watch as I sat next to her. "I see Fatima changed some things since I last visited Is she still here? She'll probably be cross with me for not coming sooner."

He said nothing, looking back and forth between Merit and I. Merit continued started fidgeting with her watch again, finally noticing her sleeve was still pushed up to her elbow. She quickly struggled to push it down.

"Why hide it now when it's the reason you are here Merit?" The old man finally asked. "And, Fatima has come and gone."

"So we're alone then?" I asked casually, though I already knew the answer.

His head snapped in my direction, "Do you hear anyone else?" The question filled with offended sarcasm.

"Touché…" I sighed softly. It was a reminder that he knew what I was. Well, more like had an idea, because there is know way he could possibly know vampire was only half of me.

Merit tried to intervene, "Giddo…"

"No Merit, you felt it necessary to bring it here, let it speak for itself," He demanded, his tone low, and without fear.

I had to give it to him, "He's right Merit." I agreed before she attempted to come to my defense. "Sir, it was rude of me to insult your intelligence, and for that I am sorry. You have an idea what I am, and I will continue this conversation with that in mind."

He didn't relax, thoughts still angry and disappointed with Merit. He couldn't understand why she would befriend 'my kind', to bring me there after all she's been through. "Sir, you shouldn't be angry with Merit. She only brought me here, because I would have come on my own if she didn't. I assure you she hardly considers me a friend."

His eyes widened as I answered his exact thoughts and then his eyebrows furrowed and his forehead creased. "You can eavesdrop in my mind."

"Among other things, " I answered honestly. "But that's neither here nor there, I came here, because I am at a loss and I require your assistance. Your old enemy, is my new adversary."

Merit joined the conversant. "It's Zachariah, the same." She had his full attention. "He has bitten a friend of hers."

"Then your friend is lost." He answered roughly, but with a hint of apology. "There is nothing you can do."

I shook my head. "There is always something that we can do."

"Besides hurt the other you love?" He asked looking from Merit to me. "There is nothing you can do." He reiterated.

" I won't lose my friend." I narrowed my eyes at him, vows ringing in each word as I stressed it to him. "Merit was bitten, and she stands."

Merit's grandfather looked at me thoughtfully. "Merit wasn't bitten by Zachariah." He pointed out like it meant something to me. When he saw that it didn't he continued, "But if you keep you friend by your side, you might still have a chance. Killing him will be nearly impossible"

"Grandfather…" Merit interrupted softly. "Her friend is with him."

Her Giddo lowered his head in a sigh, "I see…" his thoughts leaning towards the long gone.

"But I can get her back. I have help. Other friends, her family." I added quickly before he said what he was actually thinking.

"And how many of them are you willing to let die to try to retrieve her?" He asked intensely. "Is her life worth the other lives you care about? Are they expendable in comparison? "

I answered without hesitation, "None of them are expendable, and I don't plan on losing any."

"Well that's just the arrogance that comes with a young mind. Perhaps you were turned too premature."

My eyes locked with his, "Sir, I assure you physically I may appear young, but look into my eyes. I have very old eyes, and a mind to match."

His eyes searched mine for a brief moment, once again finding truth in my words. "What do you wish to know."

"The wolf that attacked Merit…" I started.

Merit answered, "I was fifteen at the time, he was a companion of Zach's. Giddo and my father killed him."

"How." I clarified.

Merit's grandfather answered, "We waited, until the beast was at it's weakest. Werewolves , after the three nights of the moon are more vulnerable during the first weeks of the month. If they were cursed by the bite, they're barely stronger than man. If they're born the monster, there isn't much of a change, but it's still their weakest time. After the half moon, their strength increases as the nights pass."

"How did you track him?" I was trying to pick through all the questions in my mind, finding the important ones first since I didn't know how long he would be willing to help me.

"Merit." he answered. "She was a drawn to the beast, it was easy to find him, only a weeks travel."

"You used your granddaughter as a blood hound?" I asked flatly. She was a child, she shouldn't have been near werewolves let alone the danger of a fight.

Merit spoke up, "We had no choice. We didn't know if I would turn, how long it would take, or if killing him would even fix me, but they had to try."

"And it worked? Killing him, I mean."

She nodded. "I never changed at all, and my mood swings, the violence, all of it faded."

I could feel my stomach twinge, an indication that she wasn't telling the full truth, "How did you kill him?"

"It was a tough fight, even as a man he was strong, and fast, but we were able to put a blade through his heart." He answered haunted. "We lost so many lives."

"Where was this?" I asked hoping that Zach still had the same travel route as years ago.

"Damascus."

"Syria?" I asked feeling hopeful for a start. Merit's grandfather nodded. "Then it's a start. There is one more thing that I wanted to ask you about."

He stiffened, his thoughts telling me that I was already asking for too much. "Go on."

"Merit allowed us the privilege of reading your journals..." I started.

Merit held her head down when her grandfather looked at her in disappointment. "What about them?"

"Well, I was wondering if you would be willing to let me read the next one?"

His eyebrows furrowed at me in fascination. "What give you the impression that there are more journals?"

"There is an Ansuz, at the end of each one, which suggests that there are more to come."

His eyes went wide. "You know runes?"

"As I told you before, I have very old eyes." I repeated.

He waited for a moment before answering me honestly, "You are correct, there is another journal but, those journals were my life's work. You shouldn't have had access to the first ones, what reason do I have to give it to you?"

"I don't understand." I replied equally honest. "I'm not just asking you to help me find my friend. I'm offering you a chance to give you closure, to help you finish something that you couldn't years ago. Why wouldn't you want that?"

"Or maybe me not aiding you, will be helping you in the long run." He answered back. "Are you really willing to exchange the lives of you other friends in an attempt to get back one? Because you will lose lives. You will lose everything you care about if you let the path you are about to take consume you. I should know."

Merit put her hand on his, "Giddo…"

"I'm alright Merit." He assured before turning his haunted face back to me. " I was going to marry a woman that was taken by Zachariah. I searched for him my entire life unable to let go, even after I knew she was long gone. I got my granddaughter bitten, I lost my wife, a daughter, Merit's father, my son and many friends in all of this. Is it really worth that to you? Because if you travel a road of vengeance against Zachariah, he will make you regret it. "

I processed what he said before I spoke. "Her name is Renesmee , but I've always called her Ness." I smiled remembering the first time we had met. "She has been my best friend for over a decade. As a matter of fact, she was my first friend in many years. I was on a very lonely path before I met her, but she has this warmth, this light in her, that makes even the darkest times seem brighter than they were. She introduced me to friendship, love, and I life I didn't think was possible. She saved me, so yes, I will do anything it takes to save her when she needs me."

"And the others?" He asked thinking over what I just said.

I didn't need the Cullen's and Jake around to know what they would say. "He family and friends will go to hell and back for her just as I will. Our minds are set. "

He sighed and got up from his chair walking around the corner, his steps moving quickly down a hall. It didn't take him long to come back with another leather-bound book. This one about two inches thicker than the other three. "You can't say that you haven't been warned." He cautioned again handing me the book.

"Thank you." I exhaled in relief sitting it in front of me and flipping through the pages. This one was different. There wasn't just writing, there off things flattened between the pages, pictures, as well as fabric mixed in with the words.

He sat back down. "The only think that I ask is that you return it to me yourself and keep it from Merit's eyes."

Merit whipped her head at him in disbelief but said nothing.

"I will." I promised standing. "Thank you for everything."

He nodded in silence and Merit stood with me. "I'll come back later in the week." She promised as he saw us out and hugging her before he told her to be safe and shut the door.

Merit asked me something as she walked to her car and unlocked the doors

I was too preoccupied with thumbing through the pages to hear her, "What?"

"I said, 'what next?'"

I closed the book, and secured it in my bag before putting in on my back. "You back to Cairo and I go home. You have gone above and beyond, and I thank you Merit."

"Do you need a ride back to Cairo?" She offered.

I nodded, "Sure,"

I pulled my phone out of the bag noticing that I had three missed calls. One from Carlisle, the other two were from my husband. I called him back immediately. "Asima?" He answered the phone. His sweet voice mixed with a sense of tension.

"I got the book. I just wanted to let you know I'm heading back to Cairo now." I informed getting into the passenger side.

"You need to get back as soon as possible." He urged ignoring the good news about the journal.

That alerted me, "Are their developments on your end?" I could hear Carlisle talking in whispers in the background, and it frustrated me that I couldn't hear him. "Seth… talk to me sweetie."

"There's something wrong with Ciyan and Phillip." He answered.

"I'll be there as soon as I can." I promised getting back out of the car and shutting the door. "I have to go."

Merit looked at me confused. "What's wrong?"

"Something is wrong with my children and I have to get home." I answered in a rush pulling a hair tye out of my bag to put up my hair.

"You have children?" She asked shocked until I gave her a 'not now' face. "Well get in the car, we should head back to Cairo."

I shook my head "I'll be faster running, it'll already take me a few hours."

"Run?" She asked unable to fathom the distance.

"Thanks for your help." I repeated before I secured my bag to my back and took off east thankful that her grandfather lived in the middle of nowhere. Just when things started to look up…

AUTHOR NOTE: Sorry guys. This is loooonnng over due. I was in a car accident a few months back, and required physical therapy which put writing on the back burner for a while. You all have been so patient, I will post again this week for 17. Thanks for your patience and support.

FYI.

Giddo- means grandfather in case you didn't notice

and about the eyes

Alot of people believe in reincarnation, and when people would die and come back in another person they would take their life experiences from their past life with them, and eyes are considered mirrors of the soul. So old eyes = old soul and we all know Asima is pretty much the epitome of an old soul in a youthful body.

Oh and if anyone wants to read my original work. I have posted the first 2 chapters on fictionpress ( s/3056316/1/The-Law-of-Gravity ). Thanks for your support.

Apathy.