Chapter 4
Olympia was in a state of panic after Peter rode into town yelling that Renesmee and her servant were kidnapped from the house. John and a few other men from town followed Peter back to the house and searched the property looking for anything that might indicate who had taken Peter's new wife and servant. All the pigs were eventually accounted for and there was nothing else missing in the house, so it couldn't have been bandits. Bandits wouldn't have left Peter's mother's jewelry and Renesmee's jewelry and all the money stored in the house. From what all the men could tell, it looked like the women were the only ones the perpetrators were after. Thomas found several paw prints behind the fence of the property which was very perplexing. They looked big enough to be from a bear or a mountain lion, yet that made no sense. Were it really an animal behind the attack, there would be at least one dead pig and there would be blood everywhere in the house were the animal to get into the house. Their bodies would've been left behind too. Yet the site of the kidnapping was completely clean save for the knife on the floor and the toppled over jars of apple butter and jam. The sheriff that stayed in town wasted no time sending a message of distress to the nearest military base.
"Don't worry, Peter," John said to his friend in an attempt to reassure him. "We'll find her. The sheriff is contacting someone as we speak and they'll send someone to help look for her."
"We should be looking for her ourselves!"
"If the sheriff's suspicions are correct, then we need to call in professionals. We have no experience with Indians." Peter went wide eyed and then rubbed his face.
"I can't believe that possibility never crossed my mind."
"Renesmee put too much trust in her own. It could very well have led to her kidnapping."
"I doubt it," Peter said. "Caevia's been with Renesmee for as far back as she can remember. Caevia wouldn't know any Indians in these parts anyway."
"Does that mean, then, that she wouldn't still favor the Indians over her white master any day?"
"I'll worry about that after we find Renesmee. How long will it take for someone to come to our aid?"
"To my recollection, the closest military base is in Seattle. It'll be days before they get here." Peter let his head fall against the table and nearly cried. "We'll find her, Peter. Reverend Lesley is praying for her."
Rather out of character, Peter stayed in the bar with John and drank whiskey with him. Peter was so distressed and he couldn't think clearly. It was made all the worse that he couldn't do a thing about it. He should've brought Renesmee with him when he brought the samples into town. He could've waited for a pie until later that night or the next day. He never should've left Renesmee alone. No matter how many promised it wasn't his fault and he had no way of knowing this would happen, he still couldn't shake the guilt. Her safety was his responsibility and here he was losing his wife when they'd only been married a few days. He would never be able to handle the shame if anything happened to her. He would be all the more ashamed should anything happen to her while he was at a bar in town sitting around doing nothing but drinking whiskey and waiting for a soldier to come into town that would do what he was supposed to do. He lost his taste for the whiskey after that thought and just pushed it aside.
"We'll find her," his friend promised. "Don't worry, Peter, we'll find her."
"What if we don't?"
"Don't think that way. We will find her," John promised.
Peter didn't want to be around anyone anymore, so he left after finishing glass of whiskey he'd pushed aside and went right back to the house. Perhaps this was a misunderstanding. He prayed it was a simple matter. Perhaps she had gone in the woods for some reason and gotten lost. Perhaps there had been intruders and she courageously chased them away. Peter walked around the woods outside hoping he might find her, but all he found were more footprints. These footprints however, Peter realized, belonged to a man. He followed the footprints as far as he could until he reached a brook. The footprints stopped here and his heart fell. It looked like she really had been abducted.
Back at the village, Jacob had made Seth spend the whole day teaching him more English. There were several wedding relevant words that Jacob learned that day and Seth continued teaching him more and more short, to-the-point, sentences that were easy to repeat and remember. Jacob's mother was the one to spend the day with Renesmee and Caevia. In the morning after she woke up, she went to her son's tent and let herself in with several flowers in a basket, three small bone needles, and long strands of thin bark that would be used as string.
"What is she doing?" Renesmee asked Caevia when the woman came in.
"I'll ask her." Caevia looked at the woman. "What are you doing with those?"
"They're flowers we'll be stringing together for the wedding tonight. It's an easy task, so I'm sure you will both learn quickly. The others are concerned with the feast preparations."
"What did she say?"
"She said we're going to help her string flowers together for a wedding lanyard."
"There's a wedding tonight?"
"It seems so." Caevia returned her attention to the woman. "Tell me, where is the closest town?"
"It's a town calledForksas I recall,"the woman answered politely. "I couldn't tell you exactly where it is, though. I never speak with the meat dealer we converse with. I would recommend you do the same. He's a smelly man and there's a look in his eyes that's very unsettling. He tried to trade sick cow's meat for salmon when we started an arrangement with him. Luckily, my son could smell it was bad and turned it away. He never tried doing that again, but we don't trust him."
"What's this man's name? How often does he visit?" This time, the woman looked at Caevia rather suspiciously, but remained as sweet as before.
"I don't know his name, I'm afraid. I never cared to learn it. He comes only when salmon are their most plentiful."
"What is she saying?" Renesmee asked.
"She said there's a town called Forks near here but she doesn't know where exactly and there's a man from there that comes on occasion to trade beef for salmon."
"So when will he be here again?"
"She said he only comes when the salmon is plentiful." Caevia turned her attention back to the woman. "When are the salmon most plentiful?"
"Between spring and summer time, so we won't have to see that dreadful man until then. Enough talk of that. Do as I do." The woman took one of the bone needles, threaded the thin bark through the small hole and began poking the stems of the flowers so they would form a long lanyard. "Here are your needles and thread." The woman reached out to both holding the needles which she'd already threaded.
"What did she say?"
"She said the man won't be here until spring. Now she's asking us to do what she just did." The two accepted the threaded needles and laced the flowers as the woman had shown them.
"What is this woman's name?"
"What is your name?" Caevia asked the woman.
"Sara," the woman answered. "My son was the one that took you," Sara pointed at Renesmee.
"She said her name is Sara and she's the mother of the man that took you."
"She's that man's mother?"
"Please do not be angry with my son. He means well."
"Means well!" Caevia snapped. Renesmee and Sara jumped back a little, though Renesmee had no idea what the outburst was about. She wasn't liking being out of the loop at all. "Your son kicked down the entrance to our home and forced us here. How can you say he means well?"
"There's no need to yell," Sara said calmly after she took a deep breath. "My son has imprinted on this woman. He was limited in options as to what to do about it. I acknowledge that perhaps his course of action was drastic and avoidable, but he would not have done so were this woman not his imprint."
"He said that word imprint, but I don't understand what you mean. We don't have that word in my language."
"From what people do you come now that your mention it? You speak our language so well."
"Not well enough to know what imprint means. Please tell me what that means."
"I don't know where to begin," Sara admitted with a light loving smile on her face. "My husband imprinted on me when we were young and I've loved him for as long as I can remember."
"So it's a lover? With all due respect to you, your son is rather crazy to refer to Renesmee as his lover."
"No, lover isn't the word. Lover implies only a sexual desire. It's far more than that."
"Renesmee is a married woman regardless. If your son wanted her so much, he should have objected at the wedding." Sara seemed extremely confused. Renesmee knew the feeling. She just continued working on the flower lanyard, otherwise listening to the two women speak together so fluently would give her a frightful headache.
"Pale faces object weddings?"
"The man that marries a couple gives the people in attendance the option to speak against the marriage or forever hold their piece."
"Why object to a marriage? If the couple is to be married, the father must have approved. What reason is there to object if the father approves?"
"It's just a tradition."
"If her father approves of her husband then I can't discredit him. But I will say my son is a good man too. I want only the best for him."
"Are you suggesting Renesmee and your son get married?" Caevia asked in a rather condescending tone. "Surely you're not serious."
"It will have to be up to the two of them. With her father absent at the present moment and no brother to take on the responsibilities of the father, it will have to be her decision. Jacob would never force anything, though."
"He's already forced her from her home and family."
"Again, my son's actions were drastic, but I believe it will all work out in the end. Imprinting is the purest love I know."
"So it's love," Caevia asserted. "If your son truly loved Renesmee, he would've let her be and live her life." Sara looked at Caevia with a strange look on her face.
"You never did tell me from what tribe you came."
"What are you two talking about?" Renesmee asked, tiring of being left out of the conversation.
"She's trying to explain the word Zoayisak to me."
"What did she say?"
"It's something romantic. That's the best I can understand so far."
"Romantic?" Renesmee rubbed her forehead and sighed. "I learned the man's name this morning. Beyond that, it's all I know of him. He couldn't possibly know anything of me."
"What is your name?" Sara interrupted.
"I'm Caevia."
"Very pretty name," Sara said. "So what tribe are you from?"
"The Tistihlal tribe of the south. We have the power to change into birds and it has cursed us with immortality. I don't know how many years I have lived but it's been too long."
"You can change into birds?"
"The men can. Women never can, but we can't reject our birds either. We are stuck in it."
"Interesting," Sara said as she finished the first strand. "Descendants of Taha Aki are able to shift into wolves but they always have the choice to let it go and remain human. I never realized there were other tribes that shared a similar gift to us."
"It's no gift. Perhaps it started that way, but selfishness and greed between twin brothers led to our downfall. At least that's how the story goes."
"Do they protect the tribe from cold ones as well?"
"Cold ones?"Caevia asked, having never heard that term before.
"Blood sucking night stalkers that shine in the sun. Our wolves protect us and our allies from these creatures. Do your birds do the same?"
"Oh," Caevia said, now knowing she meant vampires. "No, our birds did no such protecting. I come from a desert with blistering sun as a constant companion. I doubt cold ones would make such a place their home. They were soldiers if anything."
"What's going on?" Renesmee asked.
"She asked where I'm from and what my name is. These people also know about vampires." Renesmee looked surprised.
"Do they?"
"Evidently their men have a similar power to my people but they turn into wolves that are able to fight against vampires." Renesmee froze. She remembered now! That's where she'd seen those black eyes. She remembered the vampire that had run past the caravan running away from large wolves. The reddish brown wolf had looked at her and she'd seen those human black eyes. They were the same eyes on Jacob. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, I just realized something. I saw the wolves before. They were the ones that came across our caravan when we were going to Olympia."
"Ah," Caevia said. "So that's when her son saw you originally."
"It looks to be that way." Renesmee put the completed flower lanyard down and scooted back in the teepee to be as alone as she could be.
"You did a lovely job," Sara said to Renesmee.
"She likes how you did on the flower lanyard."
"Tell her I said thank you," Renesmee mumbled. In truth, her head had started to hurt halfway through making the lanyard from Caevia and Sara speaking to each other. The new realization was making her head hurt more.
As it got closer to nightfall, the woman began preparing the feast and the smell of fish and root vegetables filled the air. The bride was at her family's house being sewn into her rabbit hair dress while the groom helped prepare the bonfire at the beach. Sokajili would be out there soon once his face was appropriately painted for a wedding ceremony with paint made from purple flowers. Jacob kept Seth busy with English lessons through the whole day. During his lesson, Jacob and Seth began walking towards his tent and they saw his mother step out with several floral lanyards in her arms.
"Oh, Jacob! Good, I wanted to talk to you."
"Did that woman let you get to know anything about Renesmee?"
"You mean Caevia? Yes, she and I spoke a lot about her. We spoke about you too. I tried explaining your feelings for Renesmee, but I'm not sure she fully understands. She comes from a different world, that woman. It certainly wasn't something she enjoyed talking about."
"As long as she was polite to you," Jacob said. "So what did you want to talk to me about?"
"It's about Renesmee. The poor thing looks discontent. She could only sit there and work on these flowers while Caevia and I spoke to each other and left her out. I feel terrible for it, but I couldn't speak with her like I wanted to. I like what I've come to discover so far. Although I should bring her marriage to your attention."
"Her what?" Jacob asked suddenly and curtly.
"Renesmee is married. I don't know how pale faces handle marriage, but from what I gather, Caevia says her marriage can be objected to."
"I object to it then," Jacob said stubbornly and it made Sara smile a little.
"Stubborn as always. You really are your father's son." Sara walked closer to Jacob and reached up to pat his face. Jacob bent down as she asked so Sara could give Jacob a kiss on the cheek. "Tread lightly, dear. That's all I can suggest to you." Sara walked away and went to the beach so she could give the lanyards to the appropriate people. When they were alone, Jacob looked at Seth again.
"I want to ask Renesmee to come to the wedding. What do I say?"
"Would you please come to the wedding?"
"Would you please….come to the wedding?"
"Let's practice that before you actually go in there. Then I'll teach you theEnglishwords for yes and no."
Seth and Jacob stayed outside his tent practicing the question over and over again until Jacob was confident he'd remember how to say it. Then Seth reminded Jacob the English words for yes and no. Jacob did request Seth still come inside with him so any needed explanation could be provided and translated with Jacob's confidence. When Jacob and Seth stepped inside, Caevia and Renesmee looked at the two. Jacob noticed Renesmee looked less nervous of him but she still looked ill at ease. Whether that was a good thing or not was the question.
"Would you please come to the wedding?" Jacob managed, looking at Renesmee and trying to smile pleasantly. Instead of her answering, though, Caevia was the one to speak unable to resist poking fun at the man.
"LearningEnglishare we?"
"Don't be mean to him. He's trying," Seth defended. Jacob was looking at Renesmee, though, uninterested in Caevia's comment and attempt at insulting him.
"Why would we go?" Renesmee asked. "Prisoners don't usually attend weddings."
"She asked why they would go since they're prisoners."
"They're not prisoners," Jacob asserted. "I'm inviting her, so she's allowed to go."
"While your invitation is 'thoughtful'," Caevia said sarcastically, "we will have to reject your invitation."
"I didn't ask you," Jacob snapped back at her.
"Caevia!" Renesmee yelled. She'd had enough of this yelling in another language. "I'm sick of being left out! I'm a grown woman and I'm sick of having no control over what's going on!" Renesmee looked at Seth. "If we go to this wedding, will anything bad happen?"
"Renesmee," Caevia started.
"I want to get out of this tent! We've been stuck in here for three days doing nothing!" Renesmee looked at the boy again. "Now will be safe at this wedding or not!?" The boy took a step back and eventually looked at Jacob.
"Long story short, she's sick of being stuck in this tent, she's mad at her for speaking for her, and she'll go if she's promised nothing bad will happen to them."
"She has my word," Jacob assured, jumping on the opportunity.
"He said you have his word nothing will happen."
"Is that what he said?" Renesmee asked Caevia.
"He only said, 'You have my word'," Caevia answered.
"He meant that nothing would happen."
"Then make him say so in full." The young boy looked at Jacob.
"They want you to confirm what you're promising." Jacob rolled his eyes and almost growled a little. This Caevia broad was making his life much harder than it needed to be.
"She has my word that nothing bad will happen while they're at this wedding. I'm inviting her so she can move around and enjoy herself. Let her know there will be plenty of food too. I'm sure they would like more than just fish."
"Jacob promises that nothing bad will happen while you're at this wedding. He's inviting you so you can walk around and have a good time and there will be plenty of good food to enjoy."
"Is that what he said?" Renesmee asked Caevia.
"Yes," Caevia confirmed.
"Good." Renesmee stood from the ground and gently dusted the dirt off her dress. Caevia stood and did the same, dusting the dirt off her own, humbler dress. "Would they mind if I leave the top of my bodice unbuttoned?"
"People probably walk around this village naked. I'm sure they won't care."
"No one's walking around naked this late in the year," the boy said. "It's too cold right now. When it's summer, we will. It gets really humid during the summer."
"I can imagine," Renesmee said. "What is your name by the way?"
"I'm Seth. My sister is Leah. You'll meet her at the wedding too."
"Alright. I'm ready to go."
"Well, the wedding isn't right this instant," Seth said. "It doesn't start until sundown."
"Oh," Renesmee answered, disheartened as she sat back down.
"What's the matter?" Jacob asked Seth.
"She said she was ready and I told her the wedding isn't until tonight. I guess she was just hoping to get out now."
"She can if she wants to," Jacob said eagerly. "I can show her around."
"I'm sure you two will have plenty to talk about," Caevia said sarcastically.
"You can show her around," Jacob said to Seth.
"Me? Why me? She's mean."
"I'm not leaving her side," Caevia snapped back. "If you really want to show Renesmee around the village, you'll take me with and you will like it."
"What are you arguing about?" Renesmee said before Jacob could snap back.
"He's offering to take us on a tour of the village since you want to move around and get out of this tent right now. He's trying to make the boy take me so he can take you alone."
"It's Seth!" he said. "Stop calling me boy."
"Let him know I won't go anywhere without Caevia."
"She said the mean woman goes with her," Seth translated to Jacob. He groaned and rubbed his face. When he saw Caevia smile mockingly, it just irritated him even more.
"Fine, she goes to." Jacob stepped outside, leaving Seth alone with the two women.
"What did he say?"
"He said she could come," Seth translated.
"That's all I ask," Renesmee said as she stood back up and dusted more dirt off. They followed Seth outside where Jacob was waiting. Seth went to Jacob's right while Caevia stood between him and Renesmee to his left. Jacob said nothing and made no sound, but he wasn't pleased in the least.
When Renesmee stepped outside, she noticed all too well that everyone in the tribe was staring at her with looks ranging from intrigue, disdain and even indifference. She preferred those that looked at her indifferently. She saw Sara among some women that looked extremely displeased with seeing Renesmee. The women spoke and she saw Sara lose her smile and begin to scold the women she sat with. At least it sounded like she was scolding them based on her tone and body language. As far as locations, there really wasn't much to show. Jacob did, however, eagerly show off the beach near the tribe, staying away from the section with the bonfire. There was too much commotion going on to prepare for the wedding. Seth translated anything that Jacob was explaining but Renesmee was barely listening. She was more interested, admittedly, in the view of the beach and the breeze it offered. Were the circumstances better, she might have actually enjoyed being there. She noticed a few women coming towards them with baskets of root vegetables and all three women seemed less than pleased to see Renesmee, but one woman in particular seemed the least pleased to see her.
"Those are for the bride and groom, right?" Seth asked his sister when the women were close enough. Leah was the one to stop while the other two women continued on towards the bonfire. The woman, Renesmee assumed it was Leah, looked at her brother mildly irritated.
"Yeah," she answered.
"Since you're here," Jacob began, "Leah, this is Renesmee and that's Caevia. Since you speakEnglish, you introduce yourself."
"I'm Leah," she said more to Caevia. When she continued, she looked only at Caevia. "I hear you speak our language. Welcome to our tribe. We embrace you as a sister."
"Come on, Leah," Seth said. "You're not going to welcome Renesmee too?"
"It wouldn't be christianly to lie to her," Leah said as she looked Renesmee dead in the eye.
"It's not very christianly to loathe thy neighbor either," Renesmee said curtly right back.
"I suppose it's a good thing I'm not Christian." Leah began to walk away, but Renesmee refused to be spoken to that way and not have the last laugh.
"I'm curious, did you and your brother learn English for the good of the tribe or do I spy a quality German nose between those modest cheekbones and lovely brown eyes?" Leah turned around rather violently and glared at Renesmee. Caevia made sure not to snicker. Leah seemed to be alright with her, so she didn't want to risk ruining what could be a useful relationship.
"How'd you know our dad was German?" Seth asked, impressed.
Leah didn't answer Renesmee. Instead, she came back over and shifted the basket so she held it in one arm in order to use the other arm to grab Seth and drag him away as she started quietly scolding him in Quileute.
"Seth!" Jacob yelled, but Leah wouldn't allow her little brother to go back and she continued to scold him for bringing up their father and in front of strangers no less. Jacob sighed heavily and it made Caevia smirk a little.
"Looks like you're stuck with me as your translator."
"Joy," Jacob said sarcastically. "Will you at least translate what I say accurately?"
"Only if you're a good boy," Caevia said, attempting to make a mean spirited jab at his being a wolf, but considering that wasn't really a fraise their language used and certainly not in reference to domesticated dogs, the harsh joke fell flat on him.
"Tell him the beach view is lovely and I appreciate the fresh air," Renesmee told Caevia suddenly. Caevia repeated what she'd said to Jacob and it earned a rare and genuine smile from him. Renesmee felt butterflies in her stomach and she didn't like it. She felt really uncomfortable, though whether it was the radical change of environment, worry over Peter and what he must be going through, or the plain fact that somehow despite everything this man was managing to get under her skin, she wasn't sure.
"No matter where we rest, we always stay close to the ocean. We catch the best fish that way."
"He said the tribe likes to stay near the ocean."
"I don't wonder why."
The sunset against the water was quite a site to see. Since Renesmee seemed uninterested in any further explanation and since Seth was no longer there to translate for Jacob with his complete confidence, Jacob turned his attention to Caevia and asked what she and Leah had started arguing over that would bring up hers and Seth's father.
"Renesmee noticed Leah has pale faced features."
"Oh," Jacob said. "If she brought them up, I can see why Leah would be upset."
"Renesmee doesn't take well to being spoken to the way Leah did, so she bit back at her in a way she assumed might upset her."
"Bringing up Leah's and Seth's lineage would certainly do that."
"So if they're half white, how did they end up here with your people? I admit my people are far less accepting of anything less than a pure blooded Thunderbird."
"They're my cousins and my mom had done everything in her power to convince my aunt Uileila not to marry the pale faced man, but she wouldn't be convinced otherwise. My aunt wound up being beaten to death by her husband and Leah shot her father so she and Seth could escape with their lives. They came running to us and my mother embraced them into the family as if they were her own. I remember sharing a blanket with those two when we were little and we still stayed in my father's home."
"They're lucky they were accepted so readily."
"All things considered, our people need to stick together. We'd be lost if we didn't." There was a moment of silence between them as they continued to walk leisurely before Jacob decided to talk about what he really wanted to talk about. "If I were to ask you to tell me things about Renesmee, would you tell them to me?"
"What are you two talking about?" Renesmee asked having heard her name mentioned in the conversation.
"We were talking about Leah and then he asked me if I would tell him things about you if he asked."
"Ah," Renesmee said. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt to humor him. Just don't mention my parents. I'd like to get out of here alive thank you." Caevia laughed a little.
"I won't bring up the whole 'half breed' thing." She turned her attention back to Jacob. "She's fine with it."
"Does that mean you'll actually tell me anything?"
"If I feel it's appropriate for you to know then I will answer you."
"I'd rather speak with her."
"Well, until you learn English, you're out of options."
"Fine," Jacob grumbled. "Where is she from originally?"
"She was born in Milwaukee," Caevia answered.
"Where is that?"
"It's East of here."
"Far East?"
"Far enough that the trip here took us several weeks, but not far enough that it reaches the most eastern part of America."
"America?"
"It's the name the pale faces gave to the nation as a whole and it's divided into severalstates."
"What arestates?"
"Think of them as massive tribes bigger than you can begin to imagine depending on what part of thecountryyou're in that are filled with people and have strict beginning and ending boundaries of land. She was born in astatecalled Wisconsin."
"Did she not like it there?"
"She wasn't living there before we left. Most recently she had been living in Chicago in a state called Illinois which is right below Wisconsin. She wanted to be on her own so she decided to move to a far part of thecountryand become a bride."
"I already objected to it, so it isn't a problem." Caevia didn't bother trying not to laugh.
"What's so funny?" Renesmee asked.
"He said he already objected your marriage." Caevia had to take a deep breath before going on. "He thinks that's valid."
"What are you laughing for?"
"You're a little late to object to her marriage. She's already married, it's done, and it'slegal."
"You keep using words inEnglishthat I don't know. What doesLegalmean?"
"It's a term referring to laws of the people. So according to the laws of her people, she is a married woman and no whining and moaning on your part is going to change that. If you wanted to object to the marriage, you should've spoke up when the man marrying them asked for those with objections to speak up."
"I didn't even know she was married until mom told me."
"Oh well, nothing you can do. I suppose you'll just have to take us back."
"It doesn't matter anyway," Jacob said stubbornly after he stared at Caevia meanly for a moment before taking a deep breath. "The pale faces and their laws hold no importance to us."
"Not to you maybe, but that doesn't solve anything."
"What are you telling him?" Renesmee asked.
"I'm telling him that stomping his feet like a big baby and crying 'no' won't change that you're a married woman." Renesmee looked away and shifted her attention to her ring. It was just a simple gold band and it was slightly too big. She'd started wearing it on her middle finger so it wouldn't fall off her until she could have it sized correctly.
"I'm glad you seem to have warmed up to my getting married."
"I didn't say that," Caevia said. "All I told him was the matter is legally binding and that's that. On the bright side, once we get out of here, we can let them think you're dead and just go back to Chicago."
"Caevia," Renesmee said sternly.
"Sorry, sorry. I'll focus on getting us out of here. We'll worry about where to go later."
"We're going back to Olympia," Renesmee said.
"What are you two talking about?"
"Nothing important. She just agrees that, seeing as she's married, there's not a thing you can do about it now. You really can still just take us back now and we'll tell her husband Peter that we just got lost in the woods. No one has to get in trouble."
"I can't be sure of that."
"Well then, you shouldn't have taken us in the first place."
"I didn't want to take you, I only wanted her. You just wouldn't leave her alone."
"And it's a good thing I didn't, otherwise she'd be more frightened than she already is. I don't know what possessed you to think you could just kidnap her, force her into a completely different world and culture and just expect her to recover instantly from culture shock and fall madly in love with you. You can't force people away from their homes and expect them to be alright with that."
"I'm giving her a better home." This time Caevia didn't laugh in his face as he'd expected. She'd laughed at him for everything else, so why not this. Instead, however, she just sighed and began to scratch her head.
"' Better home' is a matter of opinion at this point. I've been trying to convince her we should go back to Chicago since we got here, but she's been determined to move on with her life and be independent from her family."
"Does she not love her family?"
"Of course she loves them. She just feels that she's a grown woman and it's time she started living like one. I don't think that necessarily had to mean she up and leave home to get married to a complete stranger, but she insisted."
"So she doesn't even love this Peter?"
"Don't get your hopes up," Caevia said in a harsh tone. "Just because she doesn't love Peter doesn't mean you have any chance. She'll swear up and down that she's at least fond of the man and under that basis alone she's been stubbornly trying to make a happy marriage. And quite frankly, boy, even if that weren't the case, you're still beneath her." Jacob stopped in his tracks and just stared at Caevia. Renesmee noticed and stopped as well.
"What's going on?" Renesmee asked.
"He's just being bullheaded. Pay him no mind."
"No, tell me what's wrong. You said you two are talking about me, so what are you telling him that's made him upset? I trust your judgment, Caevia, but that doesn't mean I'm exactly comfortable here."
"We were talking about your husband and how you're a devoted wife and he's taken offense to me stating the obvious."
"And what is the obvious?"
"That you're too good for this brute." Renesmee looked at Jacob and saw that he was noticeably upset. She couldn't help herself. She felt such a pang of sorrow when she saw the look on his face. He looked determined and stubborn yet she could swear something in him seemed to look defeated. It just didn't suit him.
"Try talking about other things, Caevia. The more you upset him, the less likely we'll be to get out of here alive."
"We'll get out of here alive no matter what. The only bright side to this mutt taking a shine to you is we at least know he won't hurt you."
"First of all," Jacob interrupted, "who are you calling a boy?"
"To me, you are a boy. Even your father is a boy to me. I've been alive a long time, Jacob. I might not be able to fly but I'm cursed with the same everlasting life as my father before me. In regards to your second point,"
"What second point? I didn't make a second point yet."
"I already know what your second point is,"Caevia said. "Your second point is going to be a dragged out explanation of what makes you so much better than the pale face Renesmee married. I don't care if you're the son of the chief of this tribe. Her father certainly wouldn't care either. I don't care if you can turn into a wolf, I don't care if you're a great hunter and fisherman. I don't care how grand a teepee you can build and I certainly don't care about the quality of your….masculine merits for lack of a better word."
"Do you care whether or not the man she marries loves her?"
"Of course I care."
"Then take that point into account. For your information, I wasn't going to mention any masculine merits as you called it. As far as I'm concerned, the fact that I imprinted on her is proof enough that I'd be good for her. I'll love her more than anyone else in the world, especially that complete stranger Peter."
"I still don't fully understand what this 'imprinting' nonsense is and I don't care."
"It's not nonsense!"
"Whatever you call it, I still don't care. You broke down the entrance to the home, threw her onto your back like she was a bundle of wheat, and near killed her when you fell to the ground. Even you can understand why I and especially she might not be too fond of you."
"I asked you to talk about something else," Renesmee suddenly interrupted.
"How'd you know-"
"He still looks upset so either you're still going on about my marriage or you've brought something else up that's making him angry. Whatever's going on, I want that topic dropped."
"What did she say?" Jacob asked.
"She's asking that whatever we're talking about needs to no longer be spoken about."
"That's alright with me," Jacob answered. Suddenly, drums began to sound, indicating that the wedding was about to proceed and the village had to make their way to the pile where the bonfire would be lit. "Let her know the wedding's about to start and follow me."
Jacob turned and began to walk in the direction of the ceremony. Caevia translated what Jacob said and they followed after him. It was very nearly nightfall. Just a few more minutes and the moon would be the only light in the sky. This was the optimal time to start a wedding. Quil sat with Claire's family when they got to the beach and Embry took a seat near them. Jacob took a seat near the back and instructed both women to sit next to him. When Jacob sat down with the two women, Embry glanced over so he could see what all this fuss had been about. After all the trouble Jacob made Quil go through for that woman, she'd better have a face that caused him to drop dead from her beauty. Embry saw the pale faced woman Jacob had gone through all the trouble for, but she wasn't the one that held his attention. He noticed the other woman, a woman with sun kissed skin (more so than anyone else in the tribe) dark eyes and what he could only imagine was silky black hair. Everything shifted for him and his heart skipped a beat. He was suddenly very grateful for all the trouble Jacob had gone through for his imprint seeing as it brought Embry his own.
"Hey, fish eyes," Quil said, poking fun at how love struck Embry suddenly appeared. "Has the world shifted for you too?"
"Yeah," Embry mumbled.
Quil chuckled, "I guess it's a good thing Jacob got impatient and decided to nab her too."
"Yeah," Embry mumbled again. "What's her name? Jacob never told me."
"I don't know if he told me or not. If he did, I don't remember."
"It's Caevia," Seth answered from two rows ahead. "Be careful, though. She's really mean."
"So she hasn't cooled down since we brought them here? Maybe seeing you will make her warm up to us a little bit. It might help Jacob with his imprint too."
"From what I've gathered," Seth continued, "She's trying to figure out a way to get the two of them out of here. She keeps asking where the nearest town is and how to get there."
"I say good riddance to the pale face," Leah said.
"Are you still mad about the German nose comment?"
"German nose comment? What does a German nose even mean?" Quil asked.
"She was just pointing out Leah's more pale fa-" Seth was silenced with a swat to the head from Leah, who then proceeded to tell him to be quiet and then tell Quil and Embry that it wasn't important. Embry wasn't really listening though.
"You said her name is Caevia? That's a beautiful name."
"Well go for it. The worst she can do is yell at you. I'm sure she's run out of air by now, though, so you're alright."
Embry took a quick glance around to make sure he could move without offending the bride or groom, but alas the wedding was about to begin. So he had no choice but to sit tight and wait for Sokajili to complete the ceremony and for the bride and groom to light the bonfire, signifying the start of their marriage. Sokajili's face was painted with streaks of purple while the groom wore a wolf headdress and the bride wore her dress made from the fur of snow rabbits. The actual ceremony didn't take long. Sokajili just resounded chants of prosperity and happiness for the couple. He asked the father of the bride to confirm before all that the presented young man was good enough to marry his daughter. The father of the bride welcomed the young man to the family. After that, four women went across from the bride and groom, the woodpile for the bonfire between them, and began dancing with a baby on each of their backs in little baskets. The dance had the women focusing their movements on their chests, stomachs and hips as the drums played accompanied by a drum filled with small rocks and a crud flute (at least it looked and sort of sounded like a flute to Renesmee). Renesmee glanced at Caevia and was taken aback by the look of surprise on her face. She scooted a little closer to Caevia and asked her question as quietly as possible.
"Are you alright?"
"I recognize this dance," Caevia answered.
"What is it?"
"It's a fertility dance. Women who've recently had sons dance together with their sons on their backs so as to offer the bride good fertility. It can only be performed by women who've bared children and only their sons can join the dance, otherwise it's considered bad luck."
"Your tribe practiced this dance?"
"Yeah," Caevia answered.
"Did you ever participate?"
"Of course not," Caevia said a little more harshly than she'd intended. "Only the Tistihlal were allowed to do this dance. My father was Tistihlal but by virtue of my mother being of the slave class, my joining in the dance would be blasphemy."
"Is such a thing done in this tribe?"
"I don't know."
Renesmee was surprised out of the conversation when she heard the song end with a loud bang of the drum and the couple lighting the bonfire, signifying the beginning of their marriage. Applause for the couple roared as they shared a kiss and finally all the guests were allowed to stand and dance around the pyre. Embry took that opportunity to go right to Jacob and the two women that stood next to him. Embry didn't bother speaking to Jacob. He just went straight to Caevia and smiled his kindest smile.
"Caevia," Embry said when he was close. At first, the woman looked mildly annoyed and even surprised. She didn't recognize that voice and she certainly didn't know how this voice would know her name. Yet when he looked at him in the eyes, she was speechless.
"How do you know my name?" she eventually managed.
"Seth told me," Embry answered, pointing at the boy in question. "My name's Embry by the way. I'm sorry I've only just now spoken to you."
"It's fine," Caevia answered hurriedly and immediately looked at Renesmee. "This guy says his name is Embry. He's just introducing himself."
"Is he a wolf too?"
"I'll ask," Caevia said. She looked at Embry again and the smile he had made her flutter again. It was such a strange and alluring feeling. "Are you one of the wolves too? You can turn into wolves right?"
"Myself, Jacob and Quil can become wolves. Only descendants of Taha Aki are able to turn into wolves."
"Who is Quil?"
"He was the man that came with me when I got you two," Jacob answered.
"He said he does turn into a wolf. Only descendants of Taha Aki are able to do that."
"Who's Taha Aki?"
"I don't know. Probably an old chief from years ago." Jacob finally looked at the way Embry was looking at Caevia and for the first time, he felt like there was hope. Maybe now Caevia would see where he was coming from. Maybe now she'd understand how much he already loved Renesmee. Maybe now she'd help ensure Renesmee stays.
"Embry, can I talk to you for a moment?"
"About what?"
"Just come with me so we can talk." Embry followed Jacob until they were out of earshot of the woman but still able to keep an eye on them. "You imprinted on Caevia?"
"Yeah," Embry smiled. "I should thank you for kidnapping your own. I guess I owe you an apology."
"Instead, you can get Caevia off my back."
"What are you talking about?"
"She's being unreasonable. I realize kidnapping Renesmee was drastic, but I want to make it up to her and Caevia won't let me. She won't let me really get to know her. I'm trying to make sure Renesmee isn't scared of me and I don't think Caevia's helping. I might have more luck if you could somehow get her to leave me and Renesmee alone."
"How would I do that?"
"I saw the way she was looking at you. She clearly likes you."
"That doesn't mean I'll be able to convince her to hang around me and leave you alone with Renesmee. And I won't force her either. That won't help either of us."
"I know." Jacob groaned and rubbed his face. "We need to figure something out."
"For that matter, Renesmee doesn't speak Quileute. How do you expect for the two of you to get to know each other if you don't even speak the same language? What Seth taught you so far is hardly enough for the two of you to hold meaningful conversations."
"What I know is better than nothing. At least ask Caevia to dance or something."
"Okay," Embry smiled. "I'll try that."
Embry and Jacob walked back to the women, neither of whom had moved. Caevia was keeping her eyes on the two men as they spoke, but she couldn't hear what they were saying. Renesmee could hear them, but when she tried repeating it to Caevia to translate, she kept mispronouncing things and she just gave up. She managed to relay that the term Zoayisak came up again, but that was about it. She saw Embry run towards them eagerly and he stopped right in front of Caevia.
"Dance with me?" Embry asked her.
"Excuse me?" Caevia said with a surprised stare.
"Come dance with me. We're at a wedding. We're all supposed to dance. It's bad luck if all the guests don't dance at least once."
"I," Caevia began before looking at Renesmee. She looked up at Jacob then. She wanted to threaten him, but something stopped her. She was wondering if perhaps this had been what he'd been talking about the whole time. If this feeling was what 'Zoayisak' really meant, then she'd be a hypocrite if she stopped him. She'd been nagging Renesmee since leaving Chicago that she was making a mistake throwing herself at the first man she found just because she wanted out of her parent's house. It looked like she'd been right about that all along, just not the way she'd imagined. "I'm still watching you." Then Caevia allowed Embry to pull her with him to the bonfire so they could dance with the rest of the guests. Renesmee wasn't sure what to do. Without Caevia being there, she would really be out of the loop.
"Well," Jacob began, getting Renesmee to look at him. "You heard Embry. It's bad luck for all the guests not to dance at least once." Renesmee just stared at him and it made Jacob lose his smile and start to scratch his head. He racked his brain for any words Seth had taught him that were relevant to what he wanted to say to her. "You," Jacob finally started, pointing at her, "me," he continued now pointing at himself, "there," ending with pointing at the guests dancing around the bonfire. It was the best he could manage.
"You want to dance?" Renesmee asked, not that it mattered. He couldn't understand her either. They just stared at each other, completely unsure if the other understood what they were saying.
He was getting frustrated and he knew it. So instead of continuing to attempt explaining himself, he reached to take a hold of Renesmee's hand. The sudden reach made her jump, but Jacob pulled through and when he had a hold of her hand, he pulled her with him to the bonfire and led her in a basic dance around the fire. Renesmee was so at a loss as to what was going on that she just went with what he was doing hoping whatever was going on wouldn't end badly somehow. After spinning around the fire a few times, Jacob pulled Renesmee away from the group dance. Renesmee looked back and saw Caevia still dancing with Embry. She couldn't believe her eyes. Caevia was dancing with the brightest smile she'd ever seen on the woman's face. She'd known Caevia most of her life and she couldn't recall her ever smiling and laughing like that. She was normally such a cynic, so used to the hardships life had thrown at her. It was bizarre to see her truly unwind and look genuinely happy.
"Renesmee," Renesmee looked at Jacob when she heard him say her name. Then Jacob continued with a fraise Seth had taught him that he knew was relevant and that he could use. "Come with me," he managed.
His accent was thick. She could tell he was having the slightest trouble pronouncing the m in come and me, but otherwise she could understand him. Jacob continued to hold her hand as he led her back up towards the village. She kept looking back at Caevia, but she remained distracted by the festivities. Jacob took her right to his tent and tied the inside so they wouldn't be bothered. That had Renesmee instantly on edge. She backed away and began to cradle herself. Jacob was still smiling when he looked at her, but when he saw how scared she looked, his smile went away and he tried thinking of any words or sentences that Seth had taught him that might help him convey that he wasn't going to hurt her.
"You," Jacob pointed at her, "safe," Jacob then pointed at himself, "with me," he finally managed.
"I'm safe with you?" Renesmee repeated back.
"Yes," Jacob said with a nod, finally smiling again. They were getting somewhere and it felt great. He began moving closer, but Renesmee scooted back again.
"Don't touch me," she said weakly. She wanted to be more assertive, but something about the sweet and eager smile wasn't letting her. And when he lost his smile and looked dejected, her sternness faltered even more.
"I not hurt you," Jacob said again. He thought about anything else to say. There was only so far repeating that over and over again would get him.
"That doesn't mean I trust you. I'm a virtuous woman and if I sleep with any man, it'll be my husband."
She saw the confused look on his face and realized he didn't have a clue what she was talking about. For all she knew, he wasn't trying to rape her. But what else could he possibly want with her? Why else would be bring her back to his tent while Caevia's distracted and the village is concerning themselves with the wedding? Seth had not taught Jacob how to express love and expressing imprinting was difficult enough in his own language let alone a language he just barely started learning and so far seemed to be doing poorly at. His best bet was to try and make her visualize what he wanted to say. He grabbed a small stick from the corner of his teepee and worked to get a fire going so they could see each other better. Once the fire was strong, Jacob grabbed another small pointy stick and began drawing, motioning for Renesmee to look at what he was drawing.
He started with the realm of the great spirits, the human world, and finally the world of the afterlife. To Renesmee it appeared to be a basic depiction of heaven, earth and hell. Once Jacob was sure he'd drawn the three worlds accurately, he began doing his best to draw Renesmee to the right of the three realms. He could barely manage more than a stick figure wearing a pooffed western dress with long curly hair. Renesmee assumed he was trying to depict her, but she couldn't be sure. After he'd finished that part, he started drawing a bizarre looking wolf, again barely managing more than a stick figure. Once that was drawn, he finished with two curved lines starting from the top realm ending right above the woman's head and another curved line that started from the bottom realm and ended right underneath the woman. Renesmee just stared at the little drawing at a loss again.
"You," Jacob started and pointed at the woman. "Me," he said then pointed at the wolf. He hadn't learned the words to accurately depict the three realms, so he waited for her to say something. Anything.
"I don't understand. What are you trying to tell me?" All Jacob could tell was she looked confused. He vaguely recalled at one point that Caevia had mentioned imprint to Renesmee, so he tried mentioning that.
"You're my imprint, Renesmee. I am what you need me to be and I'll love you unconditionally till the day I die." Renesmee looked at Jacob with some degree of awareness and it made him smile again. He noticed she seemed to blush and that made him feel even better.
"Zoayisak," Renesmee repeated, pointing at the picture. Jacob nodded eagerly.
"Yes," he initially said in Quileute, but then he caught himself and said, "Yes."
At the bonfire, Caevia and Embry finally stepped away still talking about nothing. She'd never felt so at ease with a man before and she was almost angry how much she enjoyed this stranger's company. When they stepped away, however, Caevia realized Renesmee wasn't there. She asked Embry where they went and, just as a guess, he suggested Jacob's teepee. Caevia started running back towards the village and Embry followed after her, trying to tell her Renesmee was alright and they would only be talking. Well, 'talking', but Caevia would have none of it. She found Jacobs tent and pushed the small leather door until it was forced open, ruining the strings that locked the door from the inside.
"Get away from her!" Caevia yelled. She attempted to push Jacob aside before running to Renesmee, smudging the picture as she went, but he was too strong for her to actually push aside. "Did he do anything to you?"
"No," Renesmee managed. "He drew me a picture, but I didn't understand it really. I think he was trying to explain what Zoayisak means."
"So you're alright?"
"Yes," Renesmee answered.
"I'm sorry, Jacob. I tried to tell her everything was alright, but she wanted to see for herself."
"Everything is not alright," Caevia snapped back. "I never said you could walk away with her to your tent. You have a lot of nerve trying make sleep with her."
"What?!" Jacob yelled. "That wasn't my intent at all! I just wanted some time alone with her to get to know her without you breathing down my neck!"
"Well I'll be breathing down your neck a lot more from now on."
"Caevia," Embry spoke up. She looked up at the man and wasn't nearly as receptive as before. As far as she was concerned, he was just doing a friend a favor and distracting her. That realization hurt really bad.
"I understand you were helping him, but I suggest you leave me alone from now on."
"You misunderstand," Embry said. "Yes, Jacob did want you distracted, but he only came up with the idea when he realized I'd imprinted on you."
Caevia went stiff a moment and looked up at Embry again. So she had been right. Now she really didn't know what exactly to do. She decided, however, that now was not the time to think about it, so instead she did the practical thing.
"Thank you for showing us the tribe and bringing us to the wedding. It was nice to get out and move around."
"You're both welcome to do so again," Jacob jumped in. "You don't have to stay in this teepee. Just come out and walk around when you want to, just stay within the limits of the tribe's boundaries that way you'll both be safe."
"Yeah, that way you can both get integrated and start getting to know people. I know she doesn't speak our language, but you could teach her. Seth is teaching Jacob English."
"We'll keep that in mind. Now please leave. We're both tired." Although Jacob wanted to say more, he took Embry's advice and moved to leave. But before he did, he looked at Renesmee, then Caevia one more time.
"How do you say goodnight in English?"
"I'll let her know you wished her good night."
"No," Jacob answered. "I want to tell her myself." Caevia sighed.
"Say, 'Good Night,'" she answered for him. Renesmee looked at Jacob again assuming he would repeat after her.
"Renesmee, Good Night," he said and smiled once more to her before walking out.