Disclaimer:
All characters and known situations belong to their respective owners. Everything else came from my own mind- scary place that it is sometimes. In no way shape or form have I made or intended to make a profit from this story…. All rights still belong to Stephanie… though it's a shame she never did anything more with the wolves… ah well.. There's always fan fiction

Authors Note:
Thanks so much for the reviews guys. Makes me happy to read em. Your feedback is much appreciated. And for those of you who may think that Jake is being too lenient, trust me. His wolf is chomping at the bit to get a bite outta eddie boy… the man in him is trying to bide his time for the perfect moment to show him why its not ok to mess with a wolfs mate. Eddie boy'll get his . It gets bad before it gets good.

Chapter 6

Bella groaned in aggravation when she turned in the deserted hallway at the end of the school day, only to find that she wasn't the sole occupant. She shoved her books into her bag and slammed her locker shut. Her quick and easy exit was blocked by the obnoxiously persistent vampire in front of her- yet again. She sighed deeply and crossed her arms over her chest as she made the appearance of staring at him while actually looking over his shoulder. She had practiced with Jacob and the rest of the wolves until she could do it perfectly. She didn't want to be dazzled by him all over again and forget everything she had with the pack and Jacob.

"What is it this time Edward?" She asked tiredly. She didn't understand why he just couldn't take the hint.

Edward pinched the bridge of his nose. "Really, Isabella, this behavior has gone on for long enough. There is no reason for you to keep playing with their hearts the way you have been. Once you've come to your senses, everyone will fair better in the end." He cajoled softly.

"EXCUSE me?!" She hissed.

"I told you, I came back for you. Alice saw you as one of us. You know it to be true. Why must things be difficult for us?" Edward growled as he backed Bella further into a corner.

"And I told YOU, Edward, I don't WANT you anymore. I made my choice and I'm happy! Isn't that what you told me to do? Be happy? Be human? Guess what! I listened, for once." Bella seethed. She slapped his hand away from her face and was rewarded with a barely audible growl.

"This has gone on for too long. I'll not allow it! You've been missed in the family. I'll be at your house this afternoon to pick you up. Carlisle and Esme will be waiting at the house. We're leaving tonight. Those mutts have become a dangerous influence on you love." Edward told her. He frowned wondering why his allure wasn't working.

Bella arched an eyebrow. "You really think I'm just going to leave? You have another thing coming if you think for one minute you can just waltz back into my life and try to decide what's best for me. News flash Edward, I'm NOT the same Bella you left last year! I've grown up, I've changed and I've come into my own. Now MOVE." She growled. With her ire up, she made the mistake of actually looking into his eyes and gasped.

Edward stared into her eyes watching the anger that danced behind her brown orbs. Her scent was beginning to overwhelm him again; it was mixed with her anger and it was sending him over the edge slowly. It was just like the first time all over again, only now there was no one around to see him slip up, no one to stop him this time- after all, one bite and she'd be his forever and there would be nothing the dogs could do about it. He could feel her blood rushing through her veins from where his fingers danced over her skin, he could smell her- the tangent blood calling to him like a siren at sea- he could hear her every palpable heart beat as she tried to control herself and the fear she was feeling in ever increasing amounts. It would be so easy. She was already enthralled- it was natural instinct, especially when he was hungry- and for her, he always was.

His lips moved closer to her neck before he was suddenly and viciously yanked backwards, away from his prey. When his vision cleared he was in front of not one, but six very pissed off wolves. Embry had the pale and limp form of Bella in his arms and Quil, Collin, Seth and Brady had encased them in a protective bubble. Jacob looked ready to kill as he advanced on him.

"I warned you leech. I told you over and over again to stay the hell away from her." Jacob hissed shoving him into a concrete wall. The janitor would have a hell of a job trying to explain how a supposedly almost brand new wall suddenly had multiple hairline fractures and cracks in it as well as missing pieces in some places.

Quil growled when he noticed how pale and cold Bella was becoming. "What the FUCK did you do to her?"

"Jake! We need to get her back to the rez. She's not waking up." Embry was almost frantic. He glared at Edward and ducked when the vampires fist made to connect with his jaw.

Edward hissed and instead connected his fist to Jacobs stomach. "She's my mate! I told her we were leaving tonight." He growled when he saw Quil rapidly talking on his phone. He'd been so caught up in the fight with Jacob that he missed most of what was said.

"Guys… come on! I called Sam. We need to leave, now! Something's not right. Bella won't wake up!" Even Quil was slightly panicked now. Jacob took note of the worry in his voice that he was trying to cover up.

"This is NOT over, tick. If anything happens to her, the treaty is off! This is the last time you come near my mate uninvited." Jacob warned.

Edward straightened himself out. "We'll see. She'll be mine in the end." He warned.

He allowed the wolves to pass by him only because he had no choice. He was outnumbered. And while they were young, they all knew how to fight. It was instinctual. Brady knocked his shoulder into Edward and slammed him into the lockers behind them, denting a few in the process- more unexplained damage for the janitors to fix. It was a subtle warning. He had inadvertently riled them up by attempting to be so controlling over Bella in such a public place.

"Embry, get in the truck and hold on to her easy. We need to get her to Sam's!" Jacob told them with no room to broke an argument- not that any of them would to begin with.

"No… wait. Jake. Take her to my grandpa! He'll know what to do." Quil told them. His wolf almost purred with his split second reasoning. Even though Sam was the alpha, Bella needed to see the shaman.

Jacob nodded and put the truck into gear. Seth, Collin and Brady opted to throw their book bags into the bed of the truck and run back. They promised to alert everyone to what was going on so that by the time they made it to Old Quil's house, the proper people would be waiting.

The ride itself seemed to take forever and in that time, Bella's core temperature had dropped to a level that had the three wolves in the cab scared almost enough to lose control and phase then and there. Jacob put his hand over Bella's, trying to coax her to stay with him. Embry tucked her tighter to him in seat and Quil started trying to rub some warmth into her arms and upper legs, needing to touch her as well to make sure she was still here. He didn't know what any of them would do if they lost her.

"Jake, man, something is wrong. It's like… her body is trying to turn into a leech." Embry almost whimpered.

"It's the thrall. He told her she'd be like him in time. Fucking leech messed with her mind again." Jacob growled.

Quil's retort was cut off as the truck was slammed into park. The doors were opened and Sam and Jared were there to take her away from him and Embry. Paul was helping to calm Jacob who was trying to punch his way through the side of Bella's poor truck. He sighed when he saw Quil's grandfather.

"Bring her inside. Let's see how strong his hold on her is this time." Old Quil almost growled, not wanting to see her turn into a living shell of herself again. It was a wonder to his grandson and the rest of the pack sometimes that he never phased.

Paul sighed. "I'm gonna stay here. If I go in there…it won't be good." He told them with a small shrug of his shoulders. He saw Bella as his family. She was hurt, and he didn't know if he'd be able to handle knowing what was wrong with her.

Jared nodded. "I'll stay out here too." He didn't want to admit that he was just as worried as Paul was. Bella was pack- the future alpha female- and she was hurt.

Quil carried Bella into a small and rarely used back room of his grandfathers house. It was dimly lit and smelled heavily of sandalwood, cedar and various other herbs that he didn't take the time to scent out. Different bowls of ceremonial pastes and oils were waiting to be used and in the middle of the floor was a palate made of deer skins and a dog fur throw. Old Quil looked like the shaman of old as he stepped into the room in buck skin pants adorned with shell necklaces and an eagle feather woven into his long grey braid. His body was painted with different patterns and colors and his aging eyes were determined.

The wolves would have been awed if not for the seriousness of the situation. Embry glanced at his pack mates and watched with apprehension as Old Quil sat lithely at Bella's head. He began praying over her body, waving burning herbs around her face and trying to purify her spirit. When he reached to hold her wrist his calm demeanor changed as he reared back his hand as if he had been scalded by boiling water. Pushing her sleeve up, he removed the large leather wrist cuff she always wore. He and the wolves bore whiteness to the blatantly obvious bite mark on the inside of her tender flesh. They all of them growled when they saw it, all of them trying to contain their anger.

"All pack members who can not handle this must leave now. I will not risk her safety." Old Quil told them sternly. He watched as one by one they filed from the room bar Quil. He promised his grandfather he'd contain his wolf. He needed to know how bad it was. It was ten minutes later that a shivering Embry just about broke the door on his way out of the house. He couldn't handle hearing one of his best friends whimpering, much less stand to think that she had been BITTEN and was going to die- the pack wouldn't survive this blow. Paul and Jared caught him and their silent question prompted him to answer.

"She's got a bite mark on her wrist. We never saw it before because she's always had it covered. Old Quil thinks its what's making her like this. The venom… it reacts to their attempts to enthrall her. She could turn just by them keeping her sedate with their allure for too long." Embry almost growled.

"Why isn't she…I mean…" Jared couldn't even say it. He watched as one by one the elders showed up. He nodded respectfully as they all milled around in the front of Quil's home.

Old Quil came out a short time later. He looked entirely too grim and for a second the pack waited on baited breath fearing that Bella was lost to them. "She's awake. He spirit fought to regain control of her body. She was bitten last year after being taken by a nomad. The Cullen's exposed her to him in a field they were near. He was destroyed and most of the venom was sucked out. What little is left will remain in her for the rest of her natural born life. Though it does weaken her marginally if she's exposed to more vampires." He sounded entirely too frail and the worry in his aging eyes was apparent.

"Weaken her how?" Billy wondered.

Old Quil sighed. "She'll change if she's exposed to their… allure as she calls it. I think that is why the spirits sent her to the wolves. They can protect her on the reservation from the parasites."

Paul growled and took off into the trees. His wolf was entirely too close to the surface and he didn't want to hurt any of the humans present. No one tried to stop him and they all joined him one by one when Seth, Collin and Brady howled. The Cullens were at the border demanding to see Bella. His wolf snarled as he raced towards his pack brother. Everything in him told him they needed to answer for how messed up his sister was.

"Do NOT engage, Paul." A voice in his head told him sternly.

"So they get away with this too?! Sam, what the hell?" Paul growled. Bella had become the closest thing to family he had ever known. And to see her in pain was almost more than he could handle- even as a wolf.

"I understand the pain, Paul. I'm on my way. Stay with the pups. We're ALL on our way." Sam tried to soothe him until they could reach him. It wouldn't take much for the vampires to push Paul's wolf into a fight. His pack member had been hurt and he was out for revenge.

"Just give us a reason! You weren't there Sam! Seth and Collin… hell we were ALL insulted. I just want a piece of Edward." Brady growled.

Edward smirked having heard it. "Aww… poor little puppy. What's the matter mutt? Are you upset that Bella will be coming home with us before it's all said and done?" He cooed.

Esme hissed at him and Carlisle just shook his head. While Alice openly laughed, Jasper, Rosalie and Emmett sighed.

"NO Brady! Do NOT- Brady! NO!" Collin screamed in horror as Brady left the formation and charged towards the smirking vampire in front of him.

Sam and Paul arrived just in time to see Brady leap after Edward, his wolf too enraged at what he considered a blatant attack on his pack mate. The vampire in question moved in time enough to dodge and subsequently slam Brady into the ground. Before the stunned pup could fully recover, Edward had thrown him into a nearby group of trees. A high pitched whine echoed through the air before silence fell just short seconds later. Seeing their brother hurt was enough to spur Collin and Seth into action and attack as well.

The rest of the Cullens wisely stayed out of the fight. Carlisle nodded his head to Sam and placed a commanding hand on Alice's shoulder to keep her in place. It was only when Seth had his jaws around Edward's head that Sam gave an alpha command to drop him. Seth whined but obeyed.

"Now that we have that out of the way…" Carlisle sighed, "I'd like to ask how Bella is, if I may. Edward told me she fell ill."

Collin growled furiously from where he sat next to his unconscious pack mate. Edward merely chuckled. It was Seth who phased back and delivered a fist to the vampires jaw. "It was your SON who made her so sick in the first place!" Seth hissed.

Emmett glared at Edward. "What the HELL did you do you selfish son of a bitch?!"

"You're going to listen to them?!" Edward was shocked.

Collin phased and stood by Brady's side after pulling his shorts on. "He cornered her in the hallway. He was ten seconds from kissing her neck… if you get my drift." Collin sneered.

Seth spat on the ground at Edward's feet. Sam was only mildly shocked to see it. This however, wasn't the sweet natured boy but the highly incensed and very protective wolf. "If we hadn't shown up when we did, Bella would be well on her way to being dead and buried to everyone who loves her. Our pack included!" He growled.

Esme gasped. "Oh Edward. How could you?"

"You used the thrall on her again?!" Rosalie practically roared.

Edward only rolled his eyes. "She's fine."

"Tell me how she got bit." Jared said dangerously quiet. It was the first time he had spoken since he arrived and he was livid.

"She was bit?" Carlisle turned shocked wide eyes on his son.

"On her wrist." Paul hissed.

"She was bitten by James. Edward sucked the venom from her wrist in order to spare her an immortal life- one of the BEST decisions he's EVER made in regards to Bella." Jasper sighed.

Alice gasped. "Jasper! How could you say that?"

Embry growled. "Who the FUCK is James?! What the hell does he have to do with Bella, and where the HELL were you?!"

"James was a nomad… the mate to the red head we're after- Victoria. He took a personal interest in her all because Edward decided to tell him Bella was off limits. He followed her to phoenix, pretended to kidnap her mother, and convinced her that her mother would be spared if she came to him alone. Everyone who thought she flew down a set of stairs… yeah that's not even close. She was attacked by a vampire and survived it. Didn't she tell you any of this?" Rosalie asked. She noticed Carlisle and Esme had the decency to look ashamed.

"You know all of this already! How?!" Edward hissed as he watched Paul. "I see… so your shaman healed her. Pity she didn't turn." He said with a smirk knowing it would rile the wolves up.

Sam shook his head and let out a long suffering sigh as he reined in his seething pack. "She told me that you killed the redheads mate. That the redhead wants revenge now- a mate for a mate- or some such thing. She never said she was bitten by a vampire, much less attacked."

Edward smirked. "She was protecting me. You see Alice?"

"Not now, Edward!" Alice hissed. "Where is Bella? Is she ok? I want to thank her to protecting our secrets if she is able to have visitors." She said.

The wolves growled. "I assure you, I wasn't protecting you Edward! Nor was I protecting the covens secrets, Alice. I didn't want the reminder of the mess you left me in." A voice said from the trees. Those present turned to watch Bella come out of the woods on Jacob's back with Embry and Quil on either side.

"Bella! You're Ok!" Collin cried.

Seth grinned. "Chika! I'm glad you came back to us!"

"Hey guys." Bella smiled at Collin and Seth.

When they stopped, Quil phased, dressed and placed his hands around her tiny waist to help her down. "Easy does it Bells." He cajoled when she stumbled slightly.

Bella watched Jacob phase back and redress. They smiled at each other when their eyes met. The world seemed to fall apart as Jacob wrapped her into his protective arms. It was enough to make Edward hiss in rage.

"I see you're ok, Bella." Carlisle smiled.

Bella nodded. "Not 100 percent, but I'm alright for now. Old Quil said the venom spread."

"What do you mean it spread?" Esme almost cried.

Bella shook her head. "I know just what I'm told." She lied easily. "Old Quil told me I'm lucky to be alive and I have to agree with him. I'm here asking you and your family to PLEASE leave me alone. I'm happy and I've moved on. Will I miss some of you, yes, others, not so much. Just please, let me be!"

Jacob sighed trying to guard his thoughts. His anger however made it hard and it slipped to the forefront of his thoughts. They had been told that every time she was near the vampires, any time they tried to enthrall her or dazzle her in any way, the venom in her body left over from her attack would spread. If treated right, it would be fine and only be mildly cool to the wolves' touches. If left in the presence of vampires, she would surely die. He growled when he saw the look on Edward's face. He knew he had had his thoughts read.

Edward watched her with a pensive look on his face. This could work in his favor. He turned to Bella and held his hand out to her as he stared at her. "Come, Bella. You belong here, this just proves it. You're my mate after all." He frowned when she refused to make eye contact with him.

Bella scoffed. "For the LAST time, stay. away. from. me. I don't want to be with you, I don't even LIKE you. I want to have a life, I want children, I want grow old, I want to die! Why can't you UNDERSTAND that?!"

Alice looked like she wanted to cry. "Bella, you can have everything with us. We can protect you. You'll be strong enough to protect yourself. Just please, please come home!" She begged.

Bella rolled her eyes. "I AM home. With my dad, with Billy, with the pack, with my brothers, my friends. I have my boyfriend to take care of me…he makes me strong… that's ALL I want. I don't want to have to constantly look over my shoulder and wonder what kind of danger I'll be in next. That's all you have brought- misery, pain and heartache. I'm DONE with all of that!" She huffed.

The pack stood around her protectively. It was only when they shifted that Bella saw Brady laying where he had fallen. She gasped and ran to his side. "You SEE?! THIS is what happens when you're around Edward. People get hurt!"

"Isabella, I can assure you, the dog attacked me first!" Edward almost growled in irritation.

"Yes, because you're just the innocent victim in all of this." Collin bit out. His wolf was snarling, waiting for the next opportune moment to attack.

Edward smirked when Bella looked away. "I promise you, it was an unprovoked attack love. It just proves what I've been telling you all along, they are just too dangerous for you to be around."

"He was defending Bella you bloodsucking parasite!" Seth shouted with his hands balled in fists.

Jacob shook his head and looked at Sam. "This is getting us nowhere. You promised us they wouldn't be allowed near Bella. You swore to us that these two would leave her alone. If we had been just two seconds late…" He stopped talking then, still afraid of what could have happened.

Bella felt his pain as well as heard it in his words. She almost danced to his side and wrapped her arms around his waist. Her head was on his chest above his heart. "It's ok Jake. I'm still here because of you. You saved me. The pack saved me."

"Always Bells." Jacob whispered. "Always."

Edward hissed in irritation. "This is insane. Carlisle please! Do something! We need to leave with Bella, now. Victoria will be here in three weeks-"

"What?!" Sam growled. "When were you going to tell us?!"

Bella watched the way Edward sneered at Sam and gasped. "Oh Edward, how could you?!"

"What is it Bella?" Paul wondered.

She almost growled. "Have you sunk THAT low?!"

The Cullen's and the pack all looked back and forth between Edward and Bella to see who would break the staring contest first. Edward sighed and shook his head with his eyes closed to hide his irritation. His plan would have worked perfectly if it hadn't been for Bella being here now. He had no intentions of telling anyone what Alice had seen in her latest vision the last night he had seen Bella on her front lawn.

For two days he had known that Victoria planned to hit them with the newborns and Laurent, and while they were distracted, his plan was to take Bella and run. He now watched as those around him- vampire and werewolf- waited for an answer. He merely shook his head again. This was NOT looking good for him.

"It was for the best, love." He tried.

Bella stared at him in shock. "You KNEW and you thought it was for the best?! You KNEW that my friends- my family- could be killed and you told NOONE?! Have you no SHAME?! And what about Alice?! She had to have had the vision! Didn't you think I had the right to know?!"

"They are NOT your family! We are! You are meant to be with US! Stop this foolishness and come home! This is where you belong, at MY side! Not with that mongrel! That DOG is NOT your brother, nor will he EVER be- thank goodness for that!" Edward snapped. His patience for her delusions was gone.

Bella arched an eyebrow. He had obviously made a few fatal errors in judgment with those statements. Even Alice knew Edward had crossed the line. Bella was nothing if not loyal to those she considered family and friends. "Bella, I'm sure he didn't-"

"Oh shut UP you little pixie! I'm so sick of this. You have a mate! Stick up for HIM, not Edward." Rosalie hissed. In a bold move, she walked across the proverbial treaty line and stood in front of Bella. She dared the wolves to attack her with a single arched eyebrow.

"Rose?" Emmett was hesitant to move, afraid of the wolves' reaction.

Bella smiled unsure of what was going on. "Hi Rosalie."

"Bella… I'll stand with you. I'll stand by you. I'll protect you from EVERYTHING for as long as you want me to. I'm so happy that you've chosen to live for yourself. You're happy with the mu- with your wolf… so I'll protect that happiness. Even from my own coven." She vowed.

Bella's eyes welled with tears as Jasper and Emmett moved to stand on either side of Rosalie. She knew just how much family meant to each of them, and to go against their coven was not something to be taken lightly. She looked to Sam, Jacob and Paul with a small smile before hugging each one of them tightly.

Paul shook his head. He tried his hardest to find something to say, some way to insult them for what they had done. But instead, he found himself feeling something akin to a very small ounce of respect. They had walked away from their coven for Bella- his sister- in order to keep her safe.

"Jasper?" Alice questioned.

Jasper sighed and closed his eyes. "You can't know what I know. I've felt Bella's emotions around her Jacob. She has the ability to love whole heartedly- a gift if you will. Her entire being is filled with that love whenever he is around. When he's not, it's still there, if not just slightly dimmer. She never felt that with Edward. I told you. She's not it for Edward. You saw what you wanted to see Alice. She's not meant to live for eternity. She's meant to share but one lifetime on this earth. And that lifetime will be with the man she loves- Jacob." He shrugged.

"It's not true!" Edward said quietly.

Carlisle sighed. So much drama had unfolded in such a short amount of time since they had come back. He had done nothing to stop this. Edward had taken too many liberties with Bella. Had he not interfered, Bella would have never known heartache. She would not be hunted right now. With a heavy heart, he took one last glance at his first son and walked towards his three children already in front of Bella. It wasn't long- mere seconds- before he felt Esme at his side.

"Carlisle… but… not you too." Alice gasped quietly.

"This can't go on. I will work with the wolves, show them how to fight the newborns. And after that, I will make sure no one else gets hurt by my coven again." He promised.

Sam watched on in wonder. His feeling of awe was cut short as Edward made a lunge for Bella. She had moved to check on Brady again now that he was starting to stir. Panic and horror filled him as he watched Edward closing in on her. Just before his cold fingers could wrap themselves around her arm, Sam witnessed the entire Cullen coven pin Edward to the ground.

Collin had both Brady and Bella safely behind him and the wolves sighed in relief. Bella only shook her head. "I told you Edward… it wasn't meant to be."

Edward growled, his eyes black with his anger. "This is NOT over yet, Isabella. You will be mine. There is nothing else for you!" He seethed.

Jacob growled in the back of his throat and moved to stand in front of Bella and Brady. With just one touch from the lithe brunette at his side, the growls subsided slightly. "It IS over, leech. Bella has made it clear that she doesn't want you back. Now, you have a choice to make. Either you help us against the red head, or you and the pixie leave now and don't bother coming back. If I see you two near Bella again when she's not with at least one other wolf, treaty be damned, I'll kill you myself." He said, his voice full of the authority granted him through his bloodline.

Alice was full of resentment in that moment. The wolves, she felt, had stolen Bella from her and her family. "Bella, please… you have to know that we all love you. You can have an amazing life with us." She started.

Bella sighed and turned to the ebony haired girl. "I know that Alice. I know you do… but…what you have... it's not life. You're frozen in time." She gave Rosalie a small smile. "The wolves are my family now. Maybe if things had happened differently… maybe it was a passing chance. But I'm grateful that I have the wolves in my life. They're my choice. They're my path to follow." She said gently.

With a small sigh Bella helped Brady gingerly to his feet and when they were ready and plans were made to meet in a special clearing, she left with them back to Jacob's house.