Chapter Twenty

Jasper

I cooled my rage as I ran, knowing that the Quileutes had no intention of harming the children helped considerably but I would be back as I'd said. But for now I would concentrate on Bella and checking how she was doing. The pack had almost twenty four hours head start on us and could be anywhere. They would have used vehicles to hide their scent and probably scattered to lay false trails. Our quickest remedy to the situation was to let the Quileute elders get the children back, Charlie too of course although he was old enough to take care of himself and he was a friend of the tribe so in no real danger. As for the nomad who had caused the need for Bella's transformation and killed her parents...he could wait, but I would hunt him down and he would pay and if Justin had a problem with that he too would become my enemy whatever he meant to Alice.

At the house it was quiet, all three girls were upstairs with Bella who had been laid on our bed, her bloody clothes replaced by clean white sheets that made her look more corpse like than ever but I could hear her heartbeat, still ragged and quiet but there, they had got her home and she was still hanging on. Rosalie turned to me beseechingly but I shook my head,

"I don't have the children yet but we will. The Quileute wolves kidnapped them because they were afraid what we might do to them, especially Charity as a human. They are in no danger Rosalie, the Quileutes will look after them I promise you."

"And if they aren't returned?"

"I gave them an ultimatum, twenty four hours to produce Charlie and the children or I destroy their village and anyone still there, starting with Billy Black who drugged them to help the wolves snatch them from Charlie's."

Emmett appeared then and she ran to him followed by Alice but I caught her arm,

"Justin and I may have a problem Alice."

She looked at me puzzled,

"Why?"

"The strange nomad who tried to kill Bella was his brother."

"Brother?"

"Yes, I told Justin I aim to track down and kill him once we have the children back. If he doesn't want that he had better leave right now because if necessary I'll go through him to get to this James."

She nodded,

"I'll speak to him but he wasn't involved, he wouldn't have done that, so why are you worried about Justin?"

"Because it was James who killed Bella's parents and forced her onto the streets eventually and Justin admitted he used to run with his brother although he denies torturing any humans personally."

She nodded again and went out but I could feel the tension and fear in her mind as she ran down the stairs to find him.

Esme who had heard everything turned to me from her place at Bella's side,

"I can't believe Justin would have let his brother do such a terrible thing."

"I'm just warning her, Justin has to decide who to stand with. If he told me the truth he has nothing to worry about, if not..."

I let the threat hang in the air.

"Where's Carlisle?"

"On his way back. Has she made any sounds at all?"

"No, but I think she is beginning to get some feeling back, her fingers have moved so she may start to feel the pain any time. Are you staying with her?"

"Yes, until the deadline at least."

She moved so I could take her place and I longed to lift Bella into my arms and hold her but until Carlisle said it was OK I comforted myself by holding her hand and true enough I felt her fingers twitch very slightly and heaved a sigh of relief.

"It's going to be OK Bella. You're going to be fine."

Why was it that she had to go through all this, the loss of her parents, her own horrific past both in the home and on the streets, and all at the hand of the same vampire.

Esme

I found Carlisle in the doorway blocking the exit and talking quietly to Peter and Justin, with Alice holding onto her husband's arm, and joined them.

"Peter, don't you think you should stay here? Jasper may need your help tomorrow and Justin, I'm not sure running after your brother is a good idea right now, he can keep."

Peter pulled himself up to his full height and pointed a finger at Carlisle,

"Firstly The Major doesn't need my help to tear down the Quileute village, especially without the pack to protect it, and secondly I refuse to sit about with my thumb up my fucking ass while you talk to the elders again. I want James, he could be anywhere if we sit around waiting. Right now the trail is still fresh and who better to take with me than his ever loving brother. If you're worried what we might do, don't be. I know The Major will want to settle that score personally. We'll just give him the invite personally. Now get outta my fucking way before I go through you."

Deciding silence was the best thing I waited and Carlisle stepped aside as Peter strode out the door followed by Justin who said a quick goodbye to Alice. Carlisle watched them go shaking his head and I touched his arm,

"I think you should see Jasper, reassure him that Bella is going to be OK."

"They'll cause more harm than good going off like that. If only they would have waited until we have the children back, they might be needed here, especially if the wolves return and attack."

"Well, if they do we still have Emmett, and Jasper is the best fighter in our world, you know that. Besides surely you can talk to the elders. Get them to rein the pack in."

He turned troubled eyes on me,

"If they don't produce the children by this time tomorrow there may be no elders to talk with Esme."

Old Quil

The pack's rash actions could cause us our homes, our village, everything we had here in Forks and a war with the vampires that without their help we could not hope to win. I called the others together back at my place along with Harry who had returned from town. Sue filled him in while I tried to contact the pack but with no success.

"Billy, I need to speak to Sam urgently."

"I can't help you, I don't know where they are."

"You must be able to contact Jake."

"No. I told them I didn't want to know, that way I couldn't be forced to tell."

"Do you have any idea what you've done?"

"I'm not afraid of any leech."

"Then you are a fool. Not only will The Major kill you as he promised but he will hunt down and kill every one of the wolves, including your son and please don't think that they stand a chance against him. With his friends at his side he could take on an army of wolves and win. You looked death in the face today and he stared right back into your soul."

Billy turned, a spasm of fear and pain twisting his face and wheeled himself out of the cabin. Sue went after him worried by his sudden lack of color at my words although they had to be said. He should be afraid, we all should but I wished he would see the danger he had put the whole tribe in by his rash actions. And I had thought Harry might be the one to cause trouble if anyone! They hadn't been gone more than a couple of minutes when we heard her scream for Harry who hurried out followed by the rest of us to find Billy on the floor.

"He grabbed his arm then went slack and slid out of his wheelchair. I tried to help him but he just went rigid, grunted, and lay still."

Harry turned him over and we looked on the face frozen in a grimace of pain, the blue lips and the eyes open and staring.

"Harry, take Sue back inside."

Some of the other villagers had come over hearing Sue's scream and I instructed two of them to take Billy's body back to his cabin and ask the females to prepare him for burial.

Going slowly back inside I resumed my questioning of a now subdued gathering. No one seemed able to tell me where the pack had taken the children and Charlie or where they were headed but it was slowly sinking in what the consequences for the rest of us would be.

"Sue, Harry, what about Leah? Surely you can speak to her, change her mind and get her to help us."

Sue shook her head,

"She's the most dedicated of the pack, trying to prove her worth, she'd kill them rather any betray her brothers."

Joe alone was missing, having taken his son's body to his cabin to prepare him for burial. That and Billy's may be the last ceremonies ever performed by the Quileutes and even if Johnny H was to hear I doubted he would side with us or send any aid, not when he found out what the pack had done. They had broken every rule of the guardians and shamed us as a nation.