Chapter Twenty Three

Garrett

When Luke rang I was relieved, I hadn't liked the thought of the girl alone at the ranch and I was still at least a couple of hours out.

"Is she OK?"

"Sure, a strange one this girl. Do you think she knows?"

"Knows?"

"That she's already becoming a vampire."

"So the rumor was true, you think it was The Major?"

"Smells like it to me, she told me he'd sucked another vampires venom out of her body. Do you think he knew what the result would be?"

"I'm not sure I would know myself. You're saying you think its his venom changing her? That's why he and Alice broke up, but does he know? Did she?"

"From what I've heard of her very little gets past Alice Cullen. Maybe we should contact her, find out whats happened to him."

"I'll try, hopefully if we're right and she knows she might be prepared to tell us more."

Alice

I knew the call would come eventually but I couldn't tell them what they most wanted to know. Once Bella's change started to accelerate and she puzzled out the bracelet I lost him from my visions. All I knew was where he was but of course that was all I needed. My little playing pieces were moving around the board just as I'd hoped. The call to Elektra had made certain I was ahead of the game. This was turning out to be the best ever!

"Garrett?"

"Alice, I take it you know whats going on"

"Sorry? Oh I guess you mean with Jasper and the girl. Not a lot really, I don't see either of them very well now. Of course I knew about the venom so I tried to keep him safe even though he was playing around behind my back with her. See how forgiving I am? Where are you by the way?"

"On my way to the ranch."

"Really? Oh good. I think something might be happening there but its all so misty now."

"You knew what it would mean, him sucking the nomads venom from her blood?"

"Of course and I told him too but he wouldn't listen to me until it was too late, He knows she's his mate but for some reason he decided to run and hide instead of facing her. Not the kind of behavior I expected from him but I suppose sometimes we panic."

"Why didn't you tell the girl? Help her find him?"

"I'll go so far Garrett but handing her into his arms is a step too far don't you think? Besides I saw she'd find him eventually. Once she worked things out for herself."

Garrett

I wanted to believe Alice but something inside told me to be very careful,

"You must have known he would be suffering Alice?"

"A little suffering wouldn't go amiss, after all he left me for her."

"Where is he Alice?"

"I don't know, I told you I can't see properly any longer. Maybe my visions aren't working in order to protect me from more pain."

"Did you know the Volturi are sniffing around. We think they might be looking for him, or Bella, or both."

"Why do that? She isn't a threat to them and she's already becoming a vampire so it's not as if any laws were broken."

"That's the way we see it but apparently they don't. So do the Volturi have him?"

"I don't know. I don't think you are listening to me Garrett, I don't know anything and now if you don't mind I'm terminating this call. It's all too painful."

"Just one more thing Alice."

"What?"

"If I find out you had anything to do with this I will hunt you down and you can be sure I won't be alone"

"Really? Just who will you bring with you? The one-legged warrior and the foul-mouthed idiot? I'm trembling already. Don't threaten me Garrett."

When he rang off I couldn't help feeling a little concerned, I hadn't really taken into consideration Jasper's so called friends and I would have to be careful and watch them. I wasn't going to be thwarted by a few coarse and lucky fighting machines. What I'd told Garrett was true enough and it was something I hadn't taken into consideration, how could I? Once Bella started to change I lost her and because she and Jasper were indeed mates it meant I had been losing him too. In the past week it had got to the point where I couldn't see him at all. Now I would be reliant on the Volturi and his friends actions to stay ahead of the pack. It made things more difficult and if I lost now I could still pat myself on the back for a game well played but I really wanted to see it through to the end, the bitter end for a certain couple.

Bella

I felt better for my soak in warm water but my body felt strange and I knew I'd been right about what was happening, that's how I'd heard the phone ringing in the house from the barn, how I'd known the stranger who appeared was a man before I saw him, vampire senses were kicking in. My hands started shaking and I clenched them as I walked back in the sitting room where Luke had lit a fire and I sat before it smiling to see the two cans of soda I had left in my car waiting for me along with a glass.

"Thank you."

"Garrett will be here shortly and Peter and Charlotte soon after that."

"Why?"

"It's what friends do Bella and we're all friends to each other which makes us friends of your m...The Major too. Besides we hate the Volturi and all they stand for."

"You were going to say mate weren't you?"

"Lets wait till the others get here and we can discuss it fully then."

I nodded and opened one of the sodas but it didn't taste the same as usual, my taste buds must be changing too. How long would it be before I wanted blood to quench my thirst? It was pretty obvious that Luke wasn't going to discuss what was happening or The Major but he was happy to tell me how he and Garrett had met.

"I fought in the American Civil War and lay wounded on the battlefield when a band of nomads came along. It was a great time for them, so many weak and wounded humans to feast upon and no one examining them. I guess I looked like a good fighter or something because the nomads bit me and then took me away with them. Once I woke up to my new life I found myself in an underground fighting circuit run by the very nomads who had transformed me. Garrett was an independent and luckily we never fought each other because he's good, very good. We were fighting for money on the same circuit for a few years before Garrett decided to give it up and I went with him. It was strange trying to live undetected in the human world but in fact humans are incredibly stupid sometimes. They see what they want to which makes it easy for nomads who prey on your kind, well what were your kind although I've never met a hybrid before."

"A hybrid?"

"Yeah, I know you are changing slowly because of The Majors venom but even so, there's more to it than that I think,

"Jasper's venom? I thought it was James, the nomad who bit me in the first place."

I shook my head,

"Nope, you smell of The Major, its his venom changing you. When he sucked James venom out he had no choice but to introduce a little of his to repair any damage already done. Were you injured anywhere?"

I nodded explaining about my thigh and he nodded,

"I'll bet he repaired the flesh long enough for you to get medical treatment, you're his no doubt about it. So, what do you think of the Cullens?"

I was still reeling from the information that it was Jasper's venom in my body which strangely made me feel a whole lot better about it all. From Luke's tone as he asked the last question I gathered he didn't like the Cullens particularly so I decided not to pull any punches. I'd waited a long time to tell someone what I thought about that family and now seemed a golden opportunity. One I had no intention of passing up.

"They ruined my life, turned my parents against me in every way that really mattered and left me to deal with the aftermath, how do you think I feel about them? I hate every one of them, they lied about me and then disappeared before I could even try to defend myself. As far as I'm concerned they can all burn in hell."

He looked at me slightly shocked then clapped his hands together and laughed loud enough to disturb the birds nesting in the barns rafters.

"You know something, I've waited years to hear a bad word said about that sanctimonious bastard and his brood. Well done Bella. Mind if you hate them all why exactly are you here?"

He smiled knowingly,

"You got me there. I always wondered about Jasper and when I opened the gift and found the puzzle I guess I wanted to know for sure."

I could see I'd lost him so I went back to the beginning and told my story, right up to meeting him here.

"Its my guess you'd like to get some revenge?"

I nodded my head,

"Oh yes and answers. If I could find a way to make their lives as miserable as they made mine I would jump at the chance."

"You know I think you mean that."

I suddenly felt very weak and the room started to spin and he threw his huge arms around me for support as I fell. Luckily I didn't lose consciousness, I didn't want to miss anything now.

"You OK?"

He'd laid me on the dust-covered couch until the room stopped spinning when I nodded and got up slowly going to the door for some fresh air.

"Thanks. I wish this transformation would hurry up and get over with it. I feel so weak and sick sometimes."

"Part of that will be a result of being separated from your mate."

"You're convinced that's what Jasper is aren't you? But if you're right why didn't Alice tell me?"

"No idea but as you say it seems everything was designed to ruin your life so why tell you?"

"Do you think the others knew?"

"I don't know the Cullens well enough to answer that question but I'd say its highly unlikely that if Alice Cullen knew she kept it to herself. Unless of course this is some plan of hers but I don't see what she hopes to achieve. Maybe the others will know more. Garrett was a friend of Carlisle's for some years, he knows them all much better."

"Do you think Jasper is suffering too?"

"Yes, I'd say so, wherever he is."

"Then we need to find him quickly. I want answers and he might be the only one with them."