A/N: Sorry to all my Jacob lovers, I've always thought he was kind of stupid. Sweet, but stupid. His moronic wolfy claim on Bella always bothered me, plus I felt like he wanted her like you want a new car, not that he loved her. I play up the possessiveness and give him another girl to droll over. Here's hoping it all ends well for him!

This chapter might be a little weird, let me know.

Hey, hey, hey, all you people reading and not reviewing, you're the reason it takes me so long to update. So pat yourselves on the back and don't hold your breathe for the next update.

Disclaimer: If I was making money off of this I wouldn't be a penniless college student and interestingly enough I wouldn't have it any other way.

Chapter Ten

The Wolf's Call

It was a very good thing that vampires were quick in Edward's opinion. Alice was on the phone with Hannah before the pack of seventeen shape shifters could get close enough to even speak to them. They were in their human form and Jasper was using his gift to keep them calm, so things stayed relatively under control. He'd thankfully managed to keep Allegra out of sight, but they had noticed the odd smell and Rosalie's mention of her.

Edward had no idea how they were going to explain her presence and was very thankful when he heard that Hannah was coming with back up. There were seven of them and they could probably hold their own against the werewolves, but Edward doubted that they would all come out unscathed or even alive for that matter.

They were calm and all of their thoughts seemed peaceable. The pack just wanted to know what the Cullens were doing back in Forks. They wanted to know if this meant they needed to renegotiate the treaty. Not unreasonable demands and it certainly wasn't the demands he was worried about.

Their fixation on Allegra's strange smell and what they heard of her scared the shit out of him.

He was thinking about making a run for it when Carlisle stepped forward to address Sam Uley, the apparent Alpha of this rag tag pack of shape shifters. There were a few faces that he expected, remembering their grandfathers and a few he didn't. Like Embry Call and Leah Clearwater. She and her bother accounted for the heavy scent of wet dog hanging around Charlie's house.

The improbability of a female shape shifter in this particular pack was not something Edward cared to dwell on. It was awkward enough for them. What he didn't like were the thoughts running through Jacob Black's head. The young man shaped creature was convinced that Edward knew where Bella was and that that was why he wanted to see Charlie. Jacob had only been momentarily sidetracked by the odd smell. All he cared about was Bella.

Edward would have respected that, even agreed with Jacob if it hadn't been for the heart wrenching, jealousy inducting memories running through his head. He was recalling the moment Sam found Bella in the forest after Edward broke up with her. He was thinking about the first time she came over to his house, with two motorcycles in the bed of her truck. He was remembering fondly the moment she started looking and acting human again.

It was a happy memory for him. It was a sad memory for Edward. He should have been the one to bring her back to life. He should have been smart enough not to leave her in the first place.

Allegra wiggled in his arms. Silently reminding him that something truly wonderful came from that break up. Something he wouldn't trade the world for.

"I'm sorry that we had to meet under these conditions," Carlisle apologized. He was actually sorry, his honesty in moments like this never failed to amaze Edward. Jasper was on Carlisle right, controlling the emotional atmosphere of the conversation completely. Emmett was on his left, a show of strength and in Edward's opinion blunt stupidity. Emmett thought this was going to be fun.

"You must understand," Carlisle went on. "We weren't aware that the pack had come back to this area. If we had, we certainly would have made contact sooner to reaffirm the treaty."

Sam nodded, as far as he was concerned nothing really needed to change. As long as the Cullens stayed off their land, it was no big deal. It was annoying and he didn't like it, none of them did, but it wasn't something to get upset about. The only reason they came was to make sure the vampires they smelled were in fact the Cullens and not someone else.

"We do understand," Sam said. "We only came to make sure it was you guys and not someone else." His eyes shifted to Edward the same time his thoughts shifted to the strange smell.

Edward tightened his grip on Allegra, who squealed in protest. The pack moved into attack position and the Cullens formed a circle around Edward. Allegra, who up to that point had been very quiet and well behaved, began hitting her Daddy in the head. She wanted his attention. She didn't like being held behind his back, she wanted to know what was going on. Were these friends like the Denali or someone new? She wanted to know.

Rosalie put a gentle but firm hand over Allegra's mouth to keep her from verbally demanding attention. Edward made a mental note to be nicer to her from then on. He didn't really care in that moment if she wanted to be Allegra's mother, she could want to be both of Allegra's parents for all he cared if it kept his baby girl safe.

"What was that?" Sam demanded.

"I knew it," Jacob said. "I knew they were up to something. Those filthy bloodsuckers are hiding something. Something that has to do with Bella."

"Hey!" Allegra said, muffled by Rosalie's hand, but still audible.

"It's a person," one of the shape shifter said. Edward didn't care to identify who.

"They have a human in there!" said another.

The pack was about to attack with or without Sam's order, but by the looks of the situation they were going to get his approval. Jasper was too focused on protecting Allegra to calm the pack down in time. They were going to attack and Edward was going to run when Hannah showed up.

She came tumbling out of the thick mist that had enveloped the forest, ran right into Sam, thus breaking his concentration and giving Jasper a chance to calm everybody down. She was thinking about flirting with him, but changed her mind just as quickly. Hannah flitted over to the Cullens, peaked over Edward's shoulder to check on Allegra and whispered so quietly that only they could hear her. "I got you plenty of back up, but just so you know I called in a huge favor for this one. In fact I'm probably going to have to marry one of his sons."

In the next second the house was surrounded. Hundreds upon hundreds of massive wolves formed a semicircle around the Cullens. At the helm were three very interesting looking people, two women and a man (obviously the leader of this pack). The man was tall, trim with muscle. He was dressed in a long, worn brown trench coat, a half open black dress shirt, showing off his abs and tattoos, and black jeans. The woman looked like they belonged in another century. They wore flowing silk dresses that draped across their lithe, muscular bodies. They looked like they'd be comfortable in ancient Greece.

The wolves themselves ranged in color. Some were the darkest black, while others glittered white. Some were so massive that they made the house look small, others were smaller, but none were smaller than a horse. The most telling thing about these wolves though, was that they didn't smell bad. They smelled similar to Allegra and Hannah. Musty, like old leather, and woodsy, but not toxic.

Their minds were separate, but all connected to their leader. They were fiercely loyal to their leader and their leader was fiercely loyal to Bella, who often helped him take care of his enemies. He loved Allegra, like many people seemed to, and would do anything to protect her.

He paid no mind to the pack of shape shifters, who were now so woefully out numbered that they were considering making a run for it. It was humorous now that Edward had been thinking of doing the exact same thing. Fear kept them from moving along with curiosity, arrogance and youthful stupidity.

The leader made his way confidently up to Carlisle, followed closely by his two companions. "My name is Lucien, this is my mate Marcheline, my oldest daughter Uryna, my other children," he indicated the left flank of wolves, "and the rest of my pack." He indicated the rest of the pack with a vague wave of his hand. He'd been leader of this Werewolf pack for most of his life (which was several ten of thousands of years longer then Edward ever imagined living) and was no longer in awe of the masses.

"We would like to offer our services to you as guards. Some of my daughters have taken it upon themselves to be professionals at this sort of thing," Lucien said.

He smiled at the two large pure white wolves standing near the front door. Edward learned from his thoughts that these were two of his oldest daughters. Uryna was the oldest of triplets. Kaatya and Anya were the younger two. Sitting on their massive haunches next to Kaatya and Anya, were Lucien's three youngest daughters. But they wouldn't be youngest for long, apparently Marcheline was pregnant again. With the couples twenty eighth, twenty ninth and thirtieth child.

Next to Kaatya and Anya were McKailyanna (who preferred to be called McKay), Radiavana and Katarciena. They were the few daughters that had become professional body guards, much to their father's pleasure. The rest of his fifteen daughters still lived off of him, waiting until they met their mate to move on. Kaatya, Anya, McKay, Radiavana and Katarciena had already moved on and were spending their own money on all those things women seemed to find necessary.

"That's very generous of you," Carlisle said. "I'd prefer to end this peacefully and-" Carlisle stopped suddenly. Edward looked up. Lucien had given a slight wave of his hand at his pack. In response they all began to shift back into their human-like forms. The largest wolves were the quickest and most resembled Lucien and Marcheline. The smaller wolves were slower but still fast. They all came out of their shift completely clothed, due to the magic inherent in their genetic make up.

"If you want this peaceful then it will be peaceful. The show of strength was just that. We have come here loyal to Bella, loyal to Allegra," he said. Edward flinched.

"Where is Bella?!" Jacob yelled. He sensed that this would be his only chance to get a word in. The pack had all but been disregarded and he needed to know. He wasn't paying attention to anyone but Lucien. Edward looked over at Kaatya who seemed to be getting angrier by the second. She was staring at Jacob with the most furious look on her face that Edward had ever seen.

"Bella's whereabouts are none of your concern, boy," Lucien snapped.

"I disagree," Jacob said, showing a bit of back bone.

"I'd have thought you would." Lucien's smile was unpleasant. Sam pulled Jacob aside, the Quileute pack huddled up. "Perhaps you should take Allegra inside."

"Who is Allegra?" Sam asked. He felt like demanding an answer, but knew better. He wasn't about to press his luck by being arrogant and getting his pack killed.

"Allegra is my daughter," Edward said. He knew from the minds of the Quileute pack that they had no intention of leaving without knowing exactly what was going on in and around Forks. In retrospect it probably wasn't the best idea he ever had, considering the reaction of the pack.

"A bloodsucker baby," one of them muttered, the voice sounded female, so Edward assumed it was Leah. Her tone was bitter with hate. It just figured. None of these children knew them from a hole in the wall but hated them all the same. It was illogical and infuriating. Just because Allegra was associated with them, most of the pack hated her already.

It was truly infuriating.

"What does this little bloodsucker have to do with Bella?" Jacob asked. He was only being mildly more polite because Sam had forced him to be. Emmett, Rosalie and Jasper growled at Jacob. He might have thought he was being more polite but calling Allegra 'little bloodsucker' hadn't won him any friends.

Lucien's pack rippled aggressively. A few of his children were growing taller, like they were on the very verge of shifting. Kaatya looked like she might have grown three feet in her rage. Sam pushed his pack back a few feet, obviously taking the threat much more seriously then Jacob.

"Allegra is not a 'little bloodsucker'," Hannah said, pulling herself away from one of Lucien's sons. She straightened her blood red t-shirt that read, 'Will Thee Kiss Me In The Dark, Baby?' across the front. "She's not a vampire anymore than she's human. She's Bella's daughter."

Jacob froze. In his mind, Edward could see the wheels turning and turning coming to the only conclusion he thought possible.

"Bella came back, didn't she?" he asked Edward. His voice was calm but his mind was chaos. "You got back together with her, didn't you? You two-" Jacob broke off shuddering at the thought. "And she got pregnant. When she had that little monster, it either killed her or you did when you smelled her blood. You killed Bella Swan didn't you!? That's why he won't tell me where she is! Because she's dead!"

Jacob shifted in an instant after that statement and came bounding towards Edward. Emmett, Jasper and Carlisle all stood protectively in front of him and Allegra, but Jacob never reached his goal. Before he'd even made it half way to Edward, a sleek white wolf cut him. Kaatya dipped her head low, underneath Jacob's head and bucked upward. The action sent Jacob flying back to his pack. She stilled, standing up on her hind legs, growling menacingly at Jacob.

Lucien walked slowly to his daughter's side, placed a calming hand on her massive hind quarters and spoke lowly to Sam, "I believe it's time that you leave. This family and more specifically that baby is under my protection now. Any move you make against them, is a move against me and that won't end well. Don't you agree?"

Sam nodded, slowly. "We still need to talk about this…. Carlisle," he said. "About the treaty, about Bella. She was our friend- Charlie's only family. We need to know what happened to her."

"She's working, little boy," Lucien snapped. "She'll be back for her baby in a few months."

"We'll need proof of that," Sam said, quickly. Kaatya snarled and snapped her razor sharp teeth at Jacob. She hadn't taken her eyes off of him since she'd seen him. Jacob was now staring back at her, his wolf eyes wide in shock.

"You'll take my word and be glad it's all I've given you," Lucien growled. "Now go, little boy, take your puppies and hie thee from this place."

The Quileutes, most confused by Lucien's medieval parting words, left quickly without a lingering glance at the larger pack or the Cullens. But Jacob couldn't take his eyes off Kaatya and hadn't shifted back yet, so Quil and Embry were forced to drag him, unwillingly, away.

Once they were out of sight, Jacob gave a long heart broken howl to the noon day sun.