Chapter Thirty One

Bella

My scream alerted Garrett and we almost threw ourselves in but Sue had beaten us. She stood behind Jazz, a huge wickedly sharp knife at his throat and I screamed as she sliced into his neck but then the window smashed, glass flying everywhere and she went over backwards, the knife spinning to the ground. When I saw who it was I thanked all the Gods. Peter killed Sue and drained her as Charlotte, Em, and Rose took out the remaining wolves then came to tend to us. I didn't care about myself only Jazz who lay across Charlie protectively venom soaking his shirt from the deep gash in his throat. As Charlotte used her hands to hold the edges together and licked the ragged skin to help it fuse I felt my anger rise and struggled desperately to hold back but Em seeing the danger grabbed me and slinging me over his shoulder ran out with me picking up the chunks the wolves had ripped from my leg and helping me to fuse them back in place.

"Thanks Em."

He just smiled and ruffled my hair,

"No problem little Sis. I didn't want you killing Char, we need all the help we can get by the look of things"

Jasper

I really needed to hunt to replenish all the venom I'd expended changing Charlie and healing the wound Sue had inflicted but there was no time. We didn't know if any of the wolves were still on the Reservation and we couldn't afford to be found by the authorities especially with Charlie in his present state so Garrett picked him up and took him out to the RV Peter had somehow gotten hold of and settled him in the back while Peter, Rose, and Charlotte, dragged in the dead wolf bodies that had been blasted out by Bella. We heard the first sirens and knew someone had reported the noise so I grabbed all the flammables and as I did so almost bumped into Peter who was sloshing gas around, great minds think alike! I threw a lighted match through the smashed window and Peter gunned the RV engine, screaming away from the house as the flames lit up the windows. Hopefully no one had seen the vehicle registration or we would have to change it.

"I think we should dump this ASAFP. It might be hot"

I nodded at Peters words and we drove out of Forks north towards the Canadian border. It would be safer if we could get Charlie over the border unseen. He was tossing and turning, moaning in pain, and I could see from Garretts face that he wasn't doing so well.

"I'll leave it up to you Peter. Charlie needs my help. Bella will explain"

Bella

I had been listening to Jazz but watching Charlotte. I still couldn't forget the sight of her tongue on Jaspers throat and it made me boil with anger which I held back with difficulty.

"So Bella you going to tell me what the hell is going on?"

I moved to sit in Jaspers place next to him but still watching Charlotte, if she made any move towards my mate I would rip her arms off and beat the bitch to death with them. I think she knew how I felt because she made a real effort not even to look at him as I told Peter exactly what had happened.

"So that's all the wolves wiped out? Fuck, if the Volturi hear about this there'll be hell to pay. Why did you decide to change Charlie? I thought he was sick?"

"He was, he has cancer Peter, he was dying so I gave him another chance, I owed him at least that much. Do you think the Volturi will link us to the fire and the dead wolf pack?"

"Well let me think, Aro knows where you come from so he'll probably put two and two together, especially when he finds out that a) it was Charlies house that burned down and b) there are some extremely pissed off Quileutes looking for their favourite mutts. What do you think?"

"What will they do?"

"Well you're lucky in as much as you are too valuable an asset to kill but they wont just ignore it, not if it causes ripples. Your only hope is that the fire is taken for a home invasion gone wrong but there are a few too many bodies for that to fly for long. If the wolves return to human form that is. If not then it could be an attack by a pack of wild wolves although I've never heard of a gang of psychopathic mutts before. Bella we're so deep in the shit not even our scalps are showing."

Garrett

Listening to Peters summation I had to agree, we would be extremely unlikely to get out of this one unscathed but then hey, he and I were alike, we loved a fight and especially when the odds were stacked against us. I watched as The Major took Charlies pain enabling his weak frail body to survive the transformation. He would be no good to us for a while yet so it was up to us to plan our next move. I motioned for Charlotte to take my place but she shook her head motioning to Bella so I called Rose to sit with them while I went up front to speak to Peter and Bella.

"Any ideas Peter? And by the way how did you know what we needed?"

"The twisted pixie rang, I hate to admit it but just for once she was useful. By the way, how many times do I have to tell you I'm a footsoldier, we don't have to think, just follow orders Garrett."

"Well you've just been promoted while The Major is out of it so..."

He rolled his eyes then sighed,

"Right, eyes out for a van we can hot-wire, preferably one that wont be missed for a few hours. Its only a couple of hours to the border and I know a place we can get across unseen but it wont be easy with Charlie as he is, it means crossing a lake."

"Peter, Charlie's unconscious."

"Yeah I know that Garrett but its our only option so watch out for a boat too."

"Any particular make you'd prefer?"

He turned to me,

"Fuck you Garrett, just think of a way to get him across or we have to leave him a pile of ashes and I don't think that's an option do you?"

Peter

Charlotte saw a van parked up at the side of a warehouse which looked shut up for the night so I drove in beside it and we all crammed in while I hot-wired it, one of many useful and nefarious tricks I'd picked up. Garrett, Bella, and Rose joined The Major and Charlie in the back while Charlotte and Emmett rode up front with me. It wasn't the fastest van I'd ever driven but it was fairly quiet and didn't look like the sort of vehicle anyone would drive if they were on the run. As we got closer to the border Charlie became noisier until I had to bang on the inner wall

"Hey, you're gonna have to shut him up, we're almost there and someone's going to hear that screaming."

There was a scrabbling noise and then Charlie went quiet, whether because of The Majors mojo or a gag I had no idea but it made me feel a little more hopeful. I turned to Charlotte

"You know darlin' I'm getting to old for all this shit!"

"You? Never, you revel in it. Mayhem is the thing that gives your life purpose."

I thought about that,

"Was that a compliment?"

She nodded and I thought some more,

"OK I'll accept it as such. The Mayor of Mayhem, I like it."

I put my foot down and the van surged forward with a rattle of the overworked engine.