A/N: It's been a hot minute since I sat down to write more on this story! Two months to be exact! I know- I'm terrible for leaving you all in the lurch waiting for another chapter to be posted, and for that I do apologize. To all of those who are still with me- THANK YOU! I mean that :-) Sometimes, life just happens and it can be hard to write. Believe me, I have missed it and I'm happy to be back at it again. I hope you guys enjoy this new update and please leave a review! It's always awesome to hear from all of you!

CHAPTER TWENTY

(JPOV)

The Lumber yard was full of chaos, maddening thoughts swirling in every which direction once I arrived and saw them all anxiously pacing around there.

"This could be another farce from the cold ones. We don't know their 'd be idiots to fall prey to it." Sam fretted, his head lifting up to catch my gaze then. "You know I'm right about this, Jacob. You have to! We can't play into their hands. We have to protect Bella another way and defeat Aro while we're at it."

"I strongly disagree." I huffed in reply.

"These new cold ones we've crossed paths with, one of them nearly killed Paul today and you're willing to side with them!? Have you lost your mind!?" He haughtily countered.

"Chelsea has the same end goal in mind as we do. To end Aro's reign. To turn the tide back on him. She wants to be free from him and she knows we're her ticket to that freedom. She has no chance in defeating him on her own. Neither does Salpicia."

"The elders are all waiting back at my house on the Rez. Emily was kind enough to keep them occupied with food for a while so we could hash this all out before including them in our plan. They would laugh at this idea at the very least, or worse, question our leadership altogether. Something we don't want happening- believe me." Sam quipped.

"Their old school ways of thinking has to change, Sam. So do yours. Forming a temporary alliance with the enemy for the greater good is sometimes the only way- in this case- for certain."

"-or it's the sure way to get us all killed and leave our lands at their mercy!" He growled in irritation. "That's a chance I'm not willing to take. Are you even listening to yourself right now?"

"I need you to trust me with this, Sam! I know it's the right thing to do!" I countered. "I'm not wrong with this! I know it!"

"You're blinded by the need to keep Bella safe! And while I get that! I also have to think about everyone else this could harm in the process. This pack isn't ready for an alliance like that, and if we don't work in unity, the plan will fail, and Aro will get what he wants in the end!"

I met his brooding wolf stare and rose up to his challenge then, unphased by the heated look he gave me.

"If you don't have what it takes to lead us into this fight then I will."

"What the hell are you saying? You think this is about the Alpha title?!" He angrily hedged, "It's about far more than that. It's about you asking all of us to trust the very thing we were born to loathe and destroy."

"No-I'm asking you to see it for what it is! An advantage that we need for this fight! How is this any different than when we joined with the Cullens for the newborn battle? Huh? It isn't. How can you not see that!?"

"What I see is your naivety! That's what I see."

A deafening silence followed from the pack then as we both stayed firmly rooted where we were. Neither one of us willing to give an inch.

It wasn't until Paul broke that silence that Sam backed up and took a needed breath, allowing for the two of us to cool it.

"Look, Jacob may have a point here. As much as it kills me to admit it. We're highly outnumbered. By a shit ton, and if it's not Bella their coming after this time, in the future, it'll be something else. I say we end them. For good. This may be the only shot we get to stop them. Sorry Sam, but my vote and alliance on this is with Jacob. It's the best plan."

Paul stood by my side with his words, his head held high in clear decision as he looked around and waited for the others to say their peace.

"We better be sure Chelsea and her sidekick don't screw us in the end, cause if they do, you have my word, I'll personally kick her ass all the way back to Italy. That's if I don't destroy her first." Leah darkly promised, huffing in annoyance as she reluctantly plopped herself down next to Paul.

"That a girl, Leah! I knew you'd pick the right side here." Paul chimed with sarcasm, earning himself a well deserved scowl from her in return.

"Don't test me!"

Sam growled and the two of them shared a less than friendly look as Quil piped up next.

"You know I've always respected and listened to you, Sam. But this doesn't feel wrong to me. Jacob made a valid point today with the alliance being made. If we don't deal with these leeches now, they'll come back for trouble later. Just as Paul said. We gotta' stick together."

He took his stance next to Leah and met my gaze of appreciation before we all looked to Seth and Jared, the two of them sharing glances of unsureness briefly before either one moved.

"Splitting us up is the worst thing we can do." Seth sighed. "There's gotta be a better way."

"There is! For Sam to see reason." I added.

"I won't go along with a plan that is this flawed and I can assure you that the elders won't either." Sam warned. "I've taught you all better than this. We're running out of time-..."

"Then choose to trust me! Damn it!"

"That's a big ask!"

"Why?! Have I ever led you astray before?"

"No, but I also know when my gut is telling me something is wrong. Like it is with this plan of yours. Siding with the enemy should never be an option if it can be avoided."

"It can't be-" I sharply countered.

Loud howling sounded above us then, the urgency and chaos of it stopping all conversation in it's tracks.

"The elders!" Sam huffed, whirling around and bolting through the forest with us fast behind him, our speed causing the woods to blur around us as we raced back to the Reservation.

The closer we got, the more the thoughts grew louder and I felt the heat consume me from the inside out from what we heard through the pack mind.

"Cold ones!... They took them... we couldn't stop them..."

Sam beat me to his house by mere seconds and the smell of choking smoke now billowed out from the burning mass that had been his quant home before. Flames covered its entirety as he phased back to human form and ran inside without thought for himself. I followed suit and went in after him, the smoke making it hard to see anything or breathe.

"Emily!" Sam yelled, desperately searching for her while the roof caved in bit by bit. "Emily!"

She was nowhere to be found and the flames were only growing higher.

"Sam!" I shouted hauling him back toward the only exit left. "We can't stay here-"

"She's in here!" He fought me, as another piece of debri overhead came crashing down toward us. I shoved him back out of the way and felt the fire touch my skin as we ran back out of the house.

"Emily!" Leah shouted from the yard, her eyes full of tears as she looked to us. "Where is she!"

The elders were scattered, all of them bloody and unable to stand.

"Paul! Go get Sue! Now!" I shouted, trying to see through the smoke filled yard for any signs of Emily.

"She's not here!" One of the elders then cried, his form naked from pain as he looked toward Sam and I. "Neither of them are. They have them."

We rushed to him, as he tried to speak again before losing consciousness.

"Them?! Emily!? They took her!? The Volturi? Aro? Who!" Sam frantically asked.

"The ones y-you warned us about before. W-when you beckoned us here for aid in defeating them."

"The Volturi." Sam hedged.

The elder nodded.

"How many!?" Sam hedged, covering the wound that continued to bleed from the side of his neck. The bite mark unmistakable now.

"Three...-Said more w-were coming. She fought them, too."

"Emily?"

"N-No..." He breathed, his eyes trailing to me. "Bella."

His breathing stopped and the house gave way to the fire then, crashing down to the foundation as ice poured steadily into my veins.

"I don't understand." Sam hedged. "When I left the elders here with Emily, Bella was safe at Billy's."

Sams words sounded far off, like they were a million miles away, as my eyes became glued to the palm of the elders hand now laying in Sams arms.

The glow from the raging fire touched the small shiny metallic wolf charm that dangled out from between the elders fingers just enough for me to see.

I numbly knelt down and opened his hand further, revealing Bellas charm bracelet, along with a folded piece of paper that held one word and a chess piece there. A small black pawn tumbled out of the elders lifeless hand then and into my own.

I opened the note and clutched the bracelet so hard, a single drop of blood soon ran down my wrist and forearm from the force.

"Checkmate."