"I don't think we should tell them that something is amiss." Edward told Dr. Cullen as he retrieved the phone to call the Denali coven. "You can inform them that I have found Bella. Nothing more." He glanced down at me. "We don't want Irina to become suspicious."
"I do hope Laurent will have no way to inform her of today's altercation." Jasper said.
"Alice?" Esme asked.
Her eyes clouded over for a moment and she shook her head. "I don't see any problems. But you all know that decisions change. And Irina and Laurent have been avoiding me up till now."
"Because you never want to see our dear cousins' futures." Edward reminded her. "You purposefully stay away from those visions."
I furrowed my brows. "Why would Alice avoid those visions?"
"Uhm-" Edward scrunched up his nose. "They have a very liberal way of life."
Alice sighed. "They have lots of sex with loads of men, Bella. And I for one try to avoid seeing that. I usually keep a look out for Carmen or Eleazar. Any threat to the other three will affect them as well, so I would know about any problems."
"But is Irina actually doing any of that?" Rosalie asked. "Or do we just think she does because Kate and Tanya do."
"I don't know." Alice shook her head. "There is currently no decision in her future. But it is mostly a snap decision for the other two. They see a male they like and they seduce them. There is close to no planning beforehand."
"That is unfortunate." Rosalie murmured thoughtfully.
The atmosphere in the house had only lessened slightly when Dr. Cullen dialed the number of the Denali coven. As the phone rang, Edward and I exchanged worried glances. I knew we had little choice but to seek their cooperation in understanding the mysterious situation but I did not like it.
Finally, after several rings, a voice answered the call. It was Tanya.
"Hello, Tanya. It's Carlisle. How have you been?" He greeted her.
"Carlisle! It's been too long. We're doing well, thank you. Is there something you need?"
"I'm glad to hear you're all well." He told her sincerely. "There have been some recent developments on our side and we wanted to invite you for a visit."
"Oh? What developments?" She asked curiously.
Dr. Cullens eyes flickered to us. "Edward has found his mate." He told her carefully.
There was a brief silence on the other end of the line before Tanya spoke again. "I see. That is… unexpected." Her tone had shifted slightly, and I could feel the tension in the room rise as she responded. "Who is she?"
"Her name is Isabella, and she's a wonderful addition to our family." He smiled at me. "We wanted to introduce you to her."
"I'll need to speak with my family about this." She stalled.
"We have not seen each other in so long." Dr. Cullen said. "You have not even seen our new house in Forks. Esme put so much work into it. And she is so very excited to see Carmen again."
"I will speak to them, Carlisle." She told him reassuringly. "We'll get back to you soon. Take care."
She ended the phone call.
"Well, that was… something." Emmett commented.
"Do you think Laurent was already in contact with them?" I asked.
Jasper shrugged. "Possible but unlikely."
"Then why would she react so-" I did not find the right word.
"Strange?" Alice supplied.
I nodded and threw her a grateful smile.
"That would probably be because of your husband." Rosalie grinned.
I turned to look at him and raise one eyebrow. "What did Edward do?"
"Nothing!" He said indignantly.
"Both Tanya and Kate have been pursuing Edward." Alice explained to me.
"And Tanya was very, very, very persistent." Emmett grinned.
I scooted my chair a little closer to Edward who grabbed my hand immediately and ran his thumb over my skin.
"It was not so much about me as a person." He tried to explain with a calming voice. "They liked the challenge. No human man has ever rejected them, whether married or not, and no unmated vampire refused them before me. It was a hit to their self esteem and every time we met them Tanya has continued to ´convince´ me. Thankfully Kate has admitted defeat a while ago."
"And little Eddie is so allergic to a little attention that he always flees to sulk out in the woods until he can convince Esme to end the visit." Emmett scoffed.
"You have not seen what images she sends me." He shuddered at the thought.
"Oh, but I would like to." Emmett wiggled his eyebrows. "I'm sure they are inspirational."
"Well, I do not." Edward snapped at his brother.
"Come on, Eddie, you have to admit it's a testament to your charm. The ladies just can't resist you." Emmett grinned.
"Do not call me Eddie." Edward clenched his jaw and shot him a scathing look. "And no lady would act or think like Tanya does."
Esme gasped at Edwards' comment but kept quiet when Emmett continued his teasing.
"Eddie, you are too serious. I thought you would loosen up now that Bella gives you some," he mockingly mourned.
Edward's eyes flashed with irritation, and he shot a withering glare at his brother. "Keep Bella out of this." he ordered him coldly.
Emmett held up his hands while laughing out loud. "No need to get your knickers twisted."
"Emmett, this is not a game. Not to me at least. You all might think it's funny but I do not feel comfortable around Tanya. I will endure her presence this time because it is necessary to keep Bella safe but I do not appreciate you joking about this and invalidating my feelings."
"Invalidating your feelings?" Rosalie snickered.
I could practically see Edward's confidence fall before my eyes. His whole posture shifted. He leaned farther back in his chair, his eyes lowered and he pulled up his shoulders.
"What is so bad about two beautiful vampires throwing themselves at you? I mean they have nothing on my Rosie but…" Emmett argued.
I could feel Edward's desperation practically flow from him. He tightened his grip on my hand and I soothingly put my other hand on his. Cradling it. Showing him my silent support.
"Enough!" I ordered firmly.
My words hung heavy in the room, and everyone turned to face me.
"Yes, Edward has feelings. Yes, those feelings might be different from what you expect or even understand but that does not mean they are not valid. And yes, Edward is not obliged to simply accept the uninvited and obviously unwanted attention. He has the right to address it and he also has the right to avoid this person." I said harshly while staring at all of the Cullens. "I am quite shocked how little you seem to care for Edward and his feelings. How can any of you joke about this? And how can the rest of you just sit by and watch as he gets ridiculed by Emmett and Rosalie for being uncomfortable around Tanya?"
Emmett and Rosalie exchanged uncomfortable glances at being named.
"If this was about Alice or Rosalie feeling uncomfortable because Eleazar was not accepting their lack of interest would you joke about it?"
Rosalie growled at me.
"No, you wouldn't." I answered my own question. "You would protect them. So why is Edward any different?"
The room fell into an uneasy silence. None of them dared to meet my eyes.
I could feel Edward squeezed my hand. "Thank you, Bella!" he simply said with a strained voice that told me just how grateful he was.
I smiled at him.
"Bella is right." Esme said with a quiet voice while she gazed at her entwined hands on the table. "We should love and respect each other enough to understand."
Dr. Cullen nodded in agreement.
"I'm sorry, Edward." Alice said silently.
"Alice," he sighed. "You are not to blame. Your thoughts were always supportive. And you always helped me evade her."
She shrugged. "I still should have said something. Out loud."
"Yeah, sorry, Eddie. I guess we took it too far."
Rosalie was less sorry. She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms while staring at me without breaking eye contact once.
Edward nodded at both Jasper and Dr. Cullen.
"How can we make the upcoming visit easier on you, Edward?" Esme asked tentatively.
He shrugged. "I will have to see how Bellas presence changes their behavior. None of them ever went after the mated males of our family, perhaps they will drop it now that Bella is by my side." I could hear the hope in his voice. "But if Tanya continues her pursuit I would prefer it if you could refrain from joking about it and help me avoid her."
Alice nodded enthusiastically. "I will continue to warn you of any plans she might have."
"Thank you." He told her sincerely.
"And if her thoughts overwhelm you, I can shield you. Although I would probably make you more vulnerable by taking that sense from you." I told him thoughtfully. "And we have already seen what can happen when you are deaf to their thoughts with Jessica Stanley. Therefore I would suggest keeping that option as an emergency solution."
"Only when I can't bear it any longer." He agreed with me.
The following days we waited. There was nothing. No phone calls. No contact.
However, the wolves contacted us on Tuesday and arranged a meeting for Wednesday night. As agreed, we were at the designated spot on the border at twelve o'clock sharp. And this time the Quilleute made us wait less than five minutes.
"Thank you for contacting us." Dr. Cullen broke the silence that had developed as both groups observed the other. "I assume this is about your research regarding Isabella's human life at the beginning of the last century?"
Sam Uley, the pack's leader, stepped forward. "Yes. We've done some digging," he began, "and we've found evidence of Bella and Edward's human lives. Old photographs, newspaper articles, the whole deal."
Edward and I exchanged a look, and I gave him a smile. We had proved ourselves in their eyes.
"I wanted to thank you for your patience regarding our research. We needed to verify your claims, I hope you understand that."
"Of course." Dr. Cullen agreed. "I would be just as skeptical if I were you and found that the family that swore to never bite humans had three additional vampires in their ranks."
Sam seemed satisfied with him and nodded congeniality.
"May I be sworn to the treaty then?" I asked quietly.
"Of course." The elder in a wheelchair, Billy Black, said. "Step forward."
Edward stiffened at his order but made no move to stop me as I dropped his hand and took slow steps toward the border. The weight of Edwards' gaze on my back soothed me as much as Jasper's heavy wave of calmness.
Mr. Black rolled over the bumpy forest floor to meet me in the middle. I internally cringed at every twig that cracked under his wheels and had to fight my instinct to run from the foul smell that grew even more unbearable the closer I got to them but I managed to present a calm facade. If I had learned one lesson from my father it was that confidence kills most problems in these kinds of situations. I needed to hold my head high. And so I did.
"Give me your hand." Billy Black ordered as he held out his own.
His hand was too hot under my skin. Rough and yet incredibly pliable. It had little to no resistance and seemed to mold to mine.
I could see him cringe from the coldness of my hands or the thought of touching a vampire but then he met my eyes.
"I, Isabella Masen née Swan, pledge to honor and respect the treaty between the Cullen family and the Quileute tribe. I swear to neither injure nor kill any humans. I am forbidden from hunting them for food or transforming them into vampires." he recited the words, which I repeated.
"I swear to never step onto the sacred Quileute land. The border of which is known to me. In turn the Quileute tribe will not tell anyone of my true nature. I promise to uphold it for as long as I exist."
I smiled at him and added, "So help me God."
He dropped my hand as soon as I spoke the last word and nodded at me.
Sam Uley responded, "We, the Quileute tribe, accept your pledge, Isabella. May this oath stand for as long as both our parties live on this earth."
I stepped back from the treaty line and into Edwards waiting arms. Taking deep breaths I inhaled his scent to ease my nerves. And in turn I could feel his body relax as he held me close to him. It must have been challenging for him to let me be so exposed in the presence of our kind's natural enemy. Even though my shield would have kept them away if there had been any attempt to harm me.
Dr. Cullen once again thanked the Quileutes for their understanding in this situation and for swearing me in. And then we turned, vanishing just as swiftly as we had come.