Chapter Seventy Nine

Bella

Everything had to be rushed because Jazz and Peter needed as long as possible to work with me and hopefully get me controlled enough to use my shield for our defence although both Darius and Eleazer were doubtful it could be done. Everyone wanted to wish me good luck before I went up to my bedroom, the next time I would see any of them I would be a vampire too and I wondered if it would make any difference to the way we all felt about each other. Carlisle had rung too, he wanted to know what was happening and to give an update on Emily who had woken terribly distressed and angry. It had taken Emmett, Rose, and himself to restrain her and he fed her blood from the hospital to calm her which worked to a degree but now she was bitter and angry at what had been done to her. She wanted revenge on the vampire responsible but of course Stuart was already dead.

"Did you tell her what the guardians want?"

"Yes Jasper I told her they wanted her at the meeting, to give her the choice of staying with us in the vampire world or going with them."

"And?"

"As you'd expect she just wants to die, to be with her beloved Sam but she knows in our worlds that is almost impossible so she will ask the guardians to kill her. For now she will only take donated blood and then only when the thirst is too much for her. I think left to her own devices she would find it very hard to control the anger, she'd be a danger to humans and other vampires. It still takes all Emmett's strength to keep her controlled when she gets wound up and he's got a few nasty bites for his pains."

Listening to the conversation I wondered if that was how they would be talking about me in three days time, it was a horrible thought but without the sacrifice I couldn't stay with Jasper and the others and I couldn't bear the thought of losing any of them.

Jasper

I had already explained everything to Bella and promised to be there when she opened her eyes. I was going to help her with the terrible pain too but I knew if she were aware of my intentions she would forbid it so I kept that to myself. As she lay on the bed like a sacrifice on an altar I felt so guilty that I was almost unable to bite her but I put aside my feelings of love and did what I had to do in order to keep her in my life for ever. As my teeth sliced into her flesh she gasped in pain and I took that into myself as I pumped my venom into her bloodstream. I knew the right amount to inject to get a quick result and didn't stop until I reached that point of saturation then I stood up watching as her poor body started to react to the fire of my tissue destroying venom. Taking her hand I pulled the pain from her body into mine until I was too weak to stand any longer and sank down on the bed beside her.

"I'm here Bella. I wouldn't let you do this alone"

I kissed her hot face and then lay back beside her and allowed time and the pain to overtake my own body.

Peter

None of us liked the pain Bella was enduring but we all knew it was the only way and that he wouldn't leave her until it was over so in the meantime Darius and I took over the preparations for the meeting. We had amassed a small army of friends willing to fight the guardians if it became necessary but in the meantime they stayed well away from Denali.

"Let's not give ourselves away too soon."

I agreed with Darius but within a day Aro was on the phone asking why we had the army mustered in Anchorage,

"It would be unwise to keep such a large contingent of vampires in a human city. I suggest you ask them to disperse before the guard arrives or they will be taken for enemies and you know what that means Darius don't you? I take it The Major is with his mate. Lets hope she can be of use to you as a vampire but two weeks isn't long to tame a new-born even with the combined skills of The Major and Captain Whitlock."

Darius asked me to go hunt with him later that day leaving Charlotte and Garrett sitting with Bella and The Major. Once out of earshot of the house he turned to me,

"Who's the mole Peter? Who is leaking information to the Volturi?"

"You saw it too then?"

"He knows far too much, my money's on Garrett."

"Garrett? But he's a close friend, we've known him for ever."

"So you know he has a sister who is also a vampire?"

"A what? He's never spoken of anyone."

"No I don't suppose he has. He only found out himself about two years ago, she's in the Volturi guard, she has a gift of telekinesis"

"What?"

"She can move things with the power of thought."

"Oh right. So how come he never knew?"

"No one did for a long time but Marcus has been doing a trace on the origins of all the gifted vampires, he's trying to see of there is any hereditary link. If so they can just snatch descendants of their guard and be more or less guaranteed a new gift. He traced her back to Garrett's family."

"He's being blackmailed you think?"

"Yes. Information in exchange for her safety. Aro held her in reserve until such time as he needed Garrett for something and it paid off."

"So what do we do? Anyway when did you put two and two together?"

"I only got confirmation yesterday and it took some time to double-check the facts. I wasn't going to confront Garrett without cast iron evidence. As for what we do, does it matter? Aro knew Bella would be changed, he knows what Johnny H wants, what else is there to tell? Leave it Peter, I just thought you should know."

"I'd have put my money on Carlisle knowing through Eleazer."

"Yes it did occur but then this news about Garrett came through."

"So you haven't actually caught him doing anything?"

"No why?"

"Nothing, I just wondered. Well lets keep it to ourselves as you said."

I wandered back later but my brain wouldn't stop working on the same line, Garrett a traitor? I couldn't see it, I knew him, The Major knew him, he wouldn't do it would he? If not him it only left Carlisle and Eleazer, Carlisle had his reasons but he wasn't here so he could only get information from Eleazer or one of the others in the family. I decided to watch and see, I wouldn't say anything to Garrett or even Charlotte until I was sure, there was enough tension in the house as it was. The girls while still missing Tanya had cheered up a little at the thought of a new sister in Bella. Personally I didn't think she would be anything like them but I guess you never know, or maybe if she was a violent newborn and we'd known enough of those, perhaps there might be another chance with The Major. Good luck with that one girls I thought with a smile.