A/N: For those of you eager to see Jacob get his ass kicked, it's in the next chapter:) Thanks for reading and reviewing!
Two Days
Charlotte flashed over to Bella and quickly pulled the human and Edward behind her and Peter, who then stood guard in front of them and the rest of the Cullens. Jasper, being the only vamp who could cross the line, sprinted to move the elders out of harm's way at the same moment Sam did. Jasper covered Sue and Old Quil while Sam quickly pulled Billy's wheelchair away from the two enraged wolves circling each other. Jared phased and jumped in between Jacob and Leah to prevent a fight from breaking out between the two, and Paul and Seth went wolf to back up Leah when Embry moved to stand behind Jacob.
Whatever Jacob was saying to Leah in the privacy of their minds had the fur standing up on her back and she growled and took another step towards him.
"I'll just go ahead and tell y'all now that if he somehow manages to get a tooth or claw in her, I'll be out for blood," Jasper said calmly, looking at the three elders who were watching the scene with wide, shocked eyes.
"Not helping," Sam snapped at him.
Jasper just shrugged. "It's the truth."
Jared let out a deep, low growl as he looked between Jacob and Leah, and both wolves immediately stopped in their tracks, though there were still growls rumbling in their chests. Feeling the authority in the Alpha and the resulting emotions in Leah and Jacob, Jasper looked at Sam. "Was that an Alpha Command?" he whispered.
Sam nodded, not taking his eyes off his pack mates. "He doesn't feel comfortable taking away anyone's free will, so he must think it's the only way to keep them from attacking each other," he whispered back.
"Jacob's a dick and doesn't deserve Jared's protection," Jasper grumbled under his breath.
"You're so sure he's protecting Jacob and not Leah?" Sam asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Of course," Jasper scoffed. "Jacob stands no chance against her."
"You have that much confidence in her?" Sam asked curiously.
Jasper immediately nodded. "Absolutely. If I didn't, I'd be standing at her side instead of over here chatting with you."
Sam would rather die than admit it out loud, but his estimation of the empath rose slightly at that. Most of the pack, including Sam, had doubted Leah's abilities when she first phased and he knew how much it hurt her to feel she was being sidelined just because she was a girl. Even Sam could acknowledge that Leah's imprint was a badass warrior who was highly protective of his loved ones, and Sam found himself slightly impressed that he had enough faith in her ability to keep herself safe that he didn't feel the need to rush in and defend her himself. He didn't think Leah's feelings would be hurt by that in the same way as when the pack doubted her, but she probably would have done some eye-rolling and told him she could take care of herself.
"Hey Jas," Peter called out. When Jasper turned to look at him, Peter discreetly tipped his head towards Bella. Jasper realized the human was in full on panic mode and he looked at Edward and spoke to him silently.
Wanna ask her if I can calm her down a little? I don't want to risk making things worse by doing it without her permission.
Edward nodded and leaned down to whisper in Bella's ear. "I know how it looks but I promise no one's in any danger right now. Jared forbid Leah and Jacob from moving and they can't go against him."
Charlotte turned and gently put her hand on the human's shoulder. "If you ever need help reading a situation, your best bet is always going to be looking at Jasper," she said quietly. "Let him be your guide."
Bella's eyes shot to the empath and he gave her a reassuring smile. "She's right. If I'm not losing my shit, everyone else knows they don't need to either," he told her. "Want a little help?"
Bella looked around at the other Cullens and saw that none of them looked overly worried. Rosalie was practically radiating anger while she glared at Jacob, but otherwise, they were relatively calm. They looked concerned, but none of them seemed to be feeling the same panic she was. Alice nodded at her to show that she agreed with Charlotte and Jasper, which made Bella feel slightly less panicked, but that still left the wolves to worry about. She might be angry at Jacob and hurt by his behavior, but that didn't mean she wanted him in danger because Leah was upset. And she didn't want Leah hurt just because Jacob was a stubborn ass with a short temper.
Esme seemed to understand her concern and quietly reassured her. "Jared won't allow any harm to come to those in his pack."
Bella turned back to the scene in front of her. Jared was still standing in between Leah and Jacob, and both had completely stopped moving. From the way Jared was looking between the two of them, Bella thought he was probably talking to them through their mind link to try and calm the situation down. She took a deep breath and nodded at Jasper that he could help her.
Jasper slowly dialed back her fear and let her feel his reassurance. "She's still pissed but she's not enraged," he told Bella, gesturing to Leah. "She won't hurt your friend."
"Much," Sam muttered under his breath, making Jasper huff a laugh and look at the wolf in surprise. He hadn't known the guy had a sense of humor.
Bella tried to focus on her gratitude so Jasper could feel it, and he looked back to her with a smile. "You're welcome."
It only took another thirty seconds or so before Jacob turned and stalked off in a cloud of anger and resentment. Jared stayed where he was and watched him until he was out of sight, then he loped further into the trees. Leah started to follow him but she turned back and walked over to her imprint, using her teeth to gently tug at the hem of his shirt.
Jasper wasted no time pulling it over his head and holding it out so she could take it. Because she'd gone wolf so spur of the moment the way she had, Leah didn't have any clothes to change into.
When she bounded off to go phase in privacy, Paul and Seth followed behind her. Jasper and Sam exchanged a quick glance and both men nodded at the same time and stayed where they were, keeping guard in front of the elders until the four wolves came back to the gathering as humans.
Jared nodded at Jasper and Sam that the danger had passed, so Jasper walked back across the treaty line with Leah to stand with the rest of the coven. "You good?" he asked his mate quietly.
Leah shrugged. "I guess. I still want to kick his ass but I can't go against Jared."
Jasper laughed and wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her against his side.
Jared had a short whispered conversation with the rest of the council that the vamps were polite enough to pretend they couldn't hear, even though most of them were shamelessly eavesdropping.
After only a minute or so, the Alpha turned back to the vamps and restarted the conversation. "Before we start working out the rest of the details, I just want to say that whenever it is that Victoria makes her move, Jake will stay behind to guard the humans."
"Do you not trust him around us either?" Alice asked him.
"That's partly the reason," Jared nodded. "I also think he would have eventually volunteered to stay behind, regardless of how much he wants to fight, just so he can be the one to guard Bella."
Bella scoffed softly at that. Jake might profess to love her, but she'd been learning lately that when you loved someone, you tried to go out of your way to not hurt them. After talking to both Jasper and Edward about how her behavior with Jake was hurting Edward, she'd sat Jacob down and told him straight out that it was Edward she loved and Edward she chose. She could see how she'd been giving him mixed signals for months and she didn't want to keep hurting him by making him believe there was a chance she would end her relationship with Edward to be with him.
Jacob's response to that had been cruel and cutting, and he'd lashed out at her in the worst way she could imagine. When he continued to insult the Cullens and then swiftly followed that up by telling her he'd rather she be dead than join Edward's family, she slowly came to the realization that he didn't truly love her.
Jacob wasn't a boy in love with a girl, he was a toddler who didn't want anyone else playing with a toy he thought should be his.
Jasper didn't know what the hell Bella was thinking about in response to Jared's words, but her emotions were heavy. He discreetly took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze and silently shared his feelings with her. There was no doubt that she could be a pain in the ass, but she'd been trying so hard recently to do the right thing and he couldn't help feeling affection towards her. He didn't love her as a sibling yet, but he had come to care for the human. He was also proud of her, so he let her feel that too.
Bella didn't look at him, not wanting to give away that her emotions had concerned the empath, but she squeezed his hand back and shared her feelings with him also. It was nice to know Edward's brother cared about her and her feelings.
Billy cleared his throat and looked at Carlisle. "I apologize for the interruption. What is the plan you're proposing we put in place?" he asked, wanting to get things back on track.
Carlisle smiled and nodded. "As soon as we know Victoria is coming here, we'd like Charlie and Bella to come to La Push. If it's possible, we believe the best defensive position is near the center of the Reservation, away from the water. If there is a way to have the humans who need the most protection in one centralized location, it will be easier to ensure adequate patrols around them," he explained.
"And all of you would fight?" Jared asked. "The wolves would be responsible for their safety?"
"Not necessarily," Carlisle said carefully. "Some of us are willing to stay behind. Aside from a general desire to ensure the tribe is safe, Bella and Leah are members of our family, which means their families are just as important to us as they are. We would all feel better knowing Bella, Charlie, and all of you are under our protection also. In addition to that, we want to be available to back up any of the wolves who stay behind."
Old Quil looked at him sharply for a moment. "Are you suggesting we allow you on our land?"
"Suggesting? No," Carlisle shook his head with a smile. "We understand why Jasper is the only one allowed on your side of the treaty line, but he won't be staying behind. With his particular skill set, we need him to be elsewhere. In an ideal world, yes, we'd like to be able to be closer than the perimeter of your territory, but that doesn't mean I expect you to make that allowance. If you aren't prepared to make an exception, we'll simply patrol along the line."
"Who would it be?" Jared asked.
Carlisle hesitated a moment before answering, because the coven hadn't yet come to a firm decision about that. Carlisle felt, as coven leader, that he should be with his family when they were fighting, but some of the others felt he should be the one to protect Bella, the lone human and most vulnerable member of the family. "The most likely proposal at this time is Esme, Emmett, and myself."
Bella looked up at Edward with wide, shocked eyes. Shouldn't he be one of the vamps who stayed to protect her? It seemed like a terrible idea for them to be separated.
"I'll explain after the meeting," Edward whispered quietly. His feelings about the situation were conflicted and he still hadn't decided what he should do. Bella blinked back a few tears and nodded, though she immediately started trying to think of ways they could stay together.
Jared silently considered Carlisle's proposal. He wasn't at all surprised that Jasper, Alice, Peter, and Charlotte would be on the front lines. Rosalie was also extremely protective of her family and would probably make a pretty compelling case for why she should be fighting with them. Edward was a surprise, though. He thought the telepath would want to stay with his mate. He briefly wondered why they thought keeping Bella and Charlie on the Res was better than some of the vamps protecting them at the Cullen's house, but then he realized that if Victoria managed to get past them, that was probably the first place she'd look for the human.
He thought about all the members of the pack to think about who should be where when the time came. Leah would want to fight at Jasper's side, which meant Seth and Paul likely would too. Jacob was staying behind whether he wanted to or not, and he thought Quil and Embry would probably volunteer to stay back with him. He wasn't sure what Sam would want to do. On one hand, he'd feel strongly about protecting Emily, but he also had a strong desire to fuck up the only vamps he was actually allowed to kill. Victoria had toyed with the pack for months while Sam was still Alpha and he still had a lot of anger about that.
If they were going to allow any of the Cullens in their territory, Jared thought Carlisle, Esme, and Emmett were probably the best choices. Unlike Edward and Rosalie, none of them felt any animosity towards anyone in the pack and they were all proficient enough fighters.
"We need some time to consider this," Billy said, breaking Jared from his thoughts.
Carlisle immediately nodded. "Of course. Whether you allow us in your territory or not, is the rest of the plan acceptable? Are you willing to provide protection for Bella and Charlie?"
Billy couldn't help rolling his eyes a little. "Charlie's my best friend, so yes, I'm willing to make sure he and his daughter are safe," he said dryly.
Carlisle just shrugged and smiled. He assumed that would be the answer but that didn't mean he was willing to let the question go unasked.
"How are you going to manage to get Charlie to La Push quickly without tipping him off that something's up?" Rosalie asked. "He's Police Chief for a reason."
"That's already taken care of," Leah answered, not offering any more than that. Charlie knew they might ask him at some point to haul ass to the Res and he'd agreed he would do it without asking questions. Giving Rosalie that information would only lead to questions that she and Jasper weren't prepared to answer.
Rosalie looked at her a little suspiciously but kept her mouth shut.
With nothing more to talk about until the council came to a decision, the meeting broke up. Leah gave Jasper a quick kiss and said she'd see him later and then headed back to the Res with the others.
Once they were out of earshot, Edward explained to Bella why he was considering fighting with his family. "The only way to know with any certainty that Victoria doesn't have any back-up plans or any additional tricks up her sleeve is for me to be there to hear her thoughts."
Bella nodded but her mind was racing. She was jolted from her thoughts by Alice pointedly clearing her throat and glaring at her. "Don't even think about it," she hissed.
"Think about what?" Esme asked, surprised by Alice's tone of voice.
"Bella's trying to come up with a plan to either convince Edward to stay behind or to make him bring her with him," Alice answered, sticking her tongue out at Bella when she scowled at her for telling the family what she was thinking about.
Most of the vamps looked at the human a little weirdly and she crossed her arms defensively. "Well you keep saying it's going to be an easy fight. If it's so easy, there shouldn't be any harm in me being there."
"An easy fight for us," Jasper said, trying not to smile. "You're not quite this durable yet."
Bella chewed on her bottom lip, knowing she was being a little ridiculous. She had no chance of defending herself against any vampire, and definitely not against a bunch of bloodthirsty newborns. Still…
"The only thing you'll accomplish is distracting us," Alice said, interrupting the human's pondering. "If we have to worry about keeping you safe in the middle of a battle, our chances of winning decrease dramatically."
Bella huffed a little at how strenuously Alice was objecting. "I thought you couldn't see anything with the wolves."
"I don't need to see that, Bella. It's basic logic," Alice said with an exasperated laugh. "It would also make Edward more vulnerable," she pointed out, knowing that might be the only thing that made Bella back down.
Bella huffed again in frustration but still nodded. "Fine," she grumbled, knowing Alice was right.
Alice laughed as she put an arm around Bella's shoulders. "Don't worry. Once you're one of us and you know how to fight, we'll let you stand right in front if we're ever under threat."
Bella couldn't help cracking a little smile at that. "Come on," she said, reaching for Edward's hand. "Walk me home and I promise to behave myself," she reassured him, wanting to relieve the worry she saw in his eyes.
The rest of the vamps split up - Rosalie heading off to find Emmett while Esme and Carlisle went on patrol - and Jasper, Alice, Peter, and Charlotte walked back to the Cullen's.
They hadn't been there long before Jasper's phone rang. Looking at the display, he frowned when saw it was Edward. "What's wrong?"
"Can you come to Bella's house?" Edward asked quickly, his voice a little frantic. "Someone was here."
"A vamp someone?" Jasper asked in surprise. He silently cursed that someone had come during the only time in weeks that patrolling had been so limited. "Where's Charlie?"
"He's here and he's fine. Can you bring Charlotte with you?"
Jasper realized Edward wanted someone to try and track the intruder, so he looked at Charlotte. "That's fine," she nodded.
"We're on our way," he said, then ended the call.
"Can I come?" Alice asked. "I can stay with Bella and Charlie while you guys do your thing."
Jasper just nodded, because Alice certainly didn't need his permission to do anything.
"Want me to run a wider perimeter?" Peter asked. "I can call the others and let them know."
"Yeah, that'll work," Jasper nodded and then debated for a second before making a quick call to the Clearwater's as he walked out the door. Not only were Leah and Seth the best trackers in the pack, but he thought the wolves should know there was an unknown vamp in the area. Leah had just gotten in the shower but Seth agreed to meet them at the Swan's. Jasper remembered Seth telling him he had the best sense of smell of all the wolves, so as much as Jasper always wanted Leah at his side, Seth was probably the best one to come.
Jasper, Alice, and Charlotte all caught the scent as they approached Bella's house from the side, and while Alice didn't recognize it, Jasper and Charlotte did.
"Riley?" Charlotte whispered to Jasper, and he just nodded. "Why would he be here alone?"
Jasper shrugged. "No idea. Let's see what we find inside."
Edward was waiting for them in Bella's open window and the three vamps silently jumped up straight to Bella's bedroom. "You recognize it?" he asked quietly, his arm around Bella in an attempt to keep her calm.
Jasper nodded. "Riley. He wasn't just in her bedroom?" he asked sharply as he realized the scent was drifting in from the hallway as well. Edward shook his head and told them the scent was through the whole house, including the living room, where Charlie was taking a nap. Jasper could hear Charlie's slow and steady heartbeat, so he knew the man was fine, but he still felt compelled to check for himself. "Charlotte, do you want to go with Seth while the trail is still relatively fresh?" he asked quietly, hearing the wolf approaching from the woods behind the house. "I'll catch up in a minute."
Charlotte just nodded and jumped out the window, though she sent Jasper a little bit of caution before she did. It wasn't really necessary, because Jasper had heard the car parking out front and knew Jacob had just arrived. It was only for Bella's sake that he was willing to let it slide that he'd crossed the treaty line. She was a ball of worry and fear that a strange vamp had been in her house and he didn't want to do anything to upset her more. He just hoped the kid didn't make matters worse.
Jasper went downstairs and walked into the living room to see a peaceful Charlie Swan still taking a nap. Riley obviously hadn't woken him up. He was looking around the room to see if anything was out of place when he heard Jacob run around to the backyard, his emotions an annoyingly familiar mess of fury and resentment.
"Don't take another step in this direction," Charlotte calmly warned him. Jasper silently flew out the back door to see she was standing in front of Seth at the very edge of the backyard where the sandy brown wolf was under the cover of trees. Charlotte was glaring at Jacob, who was visibly trembling.
"You think I'm just going to give a red-eyed demon a free pass to be this close to my territory?" Jacob snapped as he stalked closer.
"Demon?" Charlotte laughed. "Get over yourself, kid."
When Jacob took one more step towards Charlotte, Seth growled and started to step around her, but Jasper flashed in between them so she and Seth were behind him. "Not only were you told to stay off our land, but you can't touch her without consequences, so back the fuck up," he growled.
"Isn't she the one who pointed out she wasn't bound by the treaty?" Jacob sneered. "You can't retaliate without breaking the treaty yourself."
"First of all, I never said the consequences were going to come from me," Jasper snapped. "I'm not the one you need to worry about. Secondly, you're already violating the terms of the treaty by showing up here, asshole. So if you came to fuck with Bella's head some more, call her and invite her down to La Push."
"I don't fuck with her–"
"You're hurting her, you selfish fuck," Jasper growled, just barely resisting the urge to smash the boy's face in.
"What's going on?" Bella asked as she stepped out the back door, surprised to find a hostile Jacob facing a pissed off Jasper standing guard in front of an amused Charlotte. "Go home, Jake," she sighed. When he didn't move, she tried to channel Jasper and Rosalie and gave him her best glare. "You know you're not allowed on this side of the line anymore, so go before I tell Jasper he's free to kick your ass."
Alice and Edward had slipped outside behind Bella, and Alice looked at Jacob with a toothy grin. "No, stay. I've been looking for an excuse to kick your ass for weeks."
Jasper silently agreed with her, so he almost hoped the kid refused to leave. A second later, they all heard Charlie startle awake at hearing their voices by the back door and the last thing they needed was for him to walk outside and see more things he shouldn't.
Jasper and Alice only needed to exchange a quick glance before she nodded. "On it," she chirped and went back inside to distract Charlie so he wouldn't see the standoff in his backyard.
Charlotte turned to Seth with a smile once Alice closed the door behind her. "The less people out here the better. Wanna run the trail with me?" she asked, knowing Jasper wouldn't leave while Jacob was still in the Cullen's territory.
Seth gave Jacob a long look and then nodded, and the two of them discreetly walked around the side of the house to where the scent trail led away from the Swan's.
Jasper, meanwhile, had been keeping an eye on Edward. The only outward sign of what he was feeling was the cold fury in his eyes as he looked at Jacob, and Jasper was honestly a little impressed with his poker face.
"I'm only going to tell you one more time, Jake. Go home," Bella said, sounding more tired than angry. "I don't even understand why you'd bother coming here after what you said the other day."
Jasper looked between everyone in the yard at the resulting emotions. Bella had practically exploded with hurt, Edward was gritting his teeth and furious, and Jacob was defensive and angry. Jasper waited, but no one said anything. Jacob's only reaction was to huff and looked away from Bella. "What happened?" he asked.
Bella's voice trembled when she answered and Edward wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close to his side. "He said he'd rather I was dead than be with Edward," she said quietly.
Jasper's eyes went wide with shock as he looked at the wolf. "Are you for real?" he asked incredulously. "You say you love her and then tell her you wish she'd die? What the fuck is wrong with you?"
"Don't twist my words," Jacob snapped at Bella. "I only said that was better than you becoming a walking corpse."
Bella crossed her arms and glared at him. "Even if I didn't want to be with Edward, which I do, I wouldn't have a choice about being changed. The Volturi will kill me if I stay human and I have no intention of dying just so you're not offended by my life choices," she hissed.
"Offended?" Jacob exclaimed loudly. "The–"
"Would you keep your fucking voice down?" Jasper growled quietly. "Unless you want Charlie to come out here and ask what's happening, quit fucking yelling."
At the end of her rope, Bella yanked her phone from her pocket and made a call while she glared at the wolf. "Hey Billy," she said when he answered, ignoring Jacob's low growl. "Could you send one of the wolves over? Jacob's on this side of the line and he needs a little help leaving."
Before Billy could answer, Jasper caught Bella's eye and pointed to the woods.
"Never mind," she said into the phone as she saw Leah in her wolf form at the edge of the trees. "Leah's already on it."
Jasper caught Edward's eye and spoke to him silently.
Think using my gift would be considered an act of aggression?
"Not if you're subtle about it," Edward whispered back with a smile.
Jasper nodded and slowly sent Jacob some paranoia, dread, and fear. Not a lot, not enough for the wolf to know what he was doing, but enough for the kid's eyes to start darting around the yard.
"Is he close enough to hear me?" Billy asked Bella, and she assured him he was. "Come home now, Jacob. That's an order from your tribal elder, not a request from your father."
Jacob let out a frustrated growl, and with one last look at Bella, he stomped around to the front of the house to get in his car and drive home.
"I wouldn't mind being a fly on the wall for that conversation," Jasper chuckled. "Billy's great at those dad-looks that scream 'you really let me down, son'."
Bella pushed aside her hurt as she wrung her hands nervously. "How is the tribe going to react to me being changed? Isn't that breaking the treaty?" she asked Edward.
Edward opened his mouth to answer but then snapped it shut as his eyes darted first to Leah, then to Jasper. "Um, I think those two can answer that better than I can."
Bella looked at them in surprise. "Why you two?" she asked.
Jasper glanced at Leah to make sure she was fine with him answering, and she rolled her wolfie eyes and nodded as she backed up into the trees to go human.
"Leah talked to her mom about it pretty soon after she and I met," Jasper explained. "She knew the whole story and knew you would need to be changed at some point, and she wanted Sue's input on what kind of resistance the council might put up."
"Oh," Bella said, surprised that Leah had even given any thought to what might happen as a result of her joining Edward's family. "And what did she say?"
"She asked me to come by and the two of us had a long talk. I explained that yes, the Volturi were demanding you be changed and that failing to do so would likely result in all of our deaths, but I didn't want to use that as the excuse to let us off the hook for biting a human," Jasper said a little hesitantly. He hadn't been sure he was making the right call at the time, but it had felt dishonest to tell Sue that they needed to change Bella strictly because of the Volturi. "She already understood imprints and she was learning about vampire mates, so she asked a lot of questions about the mate bond and wanted to know if you and Edward were truly mates."
Leah came running out of the trees before Bella could ask any more questions and ran right to Jasper's side and took his hand. She gave Bella a small smile, determined to do her best to be nice to the girl. When Edward raised an eyebrow at her thoughts, she rolled her eyes a little. "Progress, not perfection," she muttered under her breath to remind him of Charlotte's most-used phrase after she and Peter went back to help Jasper escape.
Edward just smiled in response, so Leah looked at Bella. "My mom knows enough about supernatural bonds that she understood it was inevitable that you'd want to become a vamp to stay with Edward. I'm not sure if she's talked to the rest of the council about it yet, but she's going to make sure they understand all the reasons why you need and want to be changed," she explained. "My mom's ridiculously talented at persuasion so I think it'll be fine in the end."
"The terms still stand in every other aspect," Jasper added. "Biting a different human, whether to change them or eat them, is still a breach of the treaty."
"How did I never hear all that in your thoughts?" Edward asked Jasper and Leah curiously.
Jasper just shrugged and reminded the telepath that he was pretty good at keeping him out of his head, and Leah explained that there had been so much going on that she hadn't thought about it much.
"Thank you," Bella said, looking between the two. "I really appreciate that you'd go out on a limb for me like that."
"You're part of the family," Jasper answered with a smile that grew wider at the pleasure Bella felt at being claimed as a Cullen. "We look out for each other."
Jasper and Leah started to say their goodbyes so they could catch up to Charlotte and Seth, but Jasper stopped and looked at the window of the Swan's living room when he felt the jolt in Alice's emotions that meant she was being pulled into a vision. He was a little surprised she was seeing anything with Leah so close by.
Edward's eyes darted to the house and he drew in a sharp breath just as Jasper's phone rang in his pocket. He looked at Edward before pulling it out.
Peter.
"What's wrong?"
"Two days," Peter answered. "Riley came to get things with Bella's scent. They'll be coming through the mountains in two days."
"How many?" Jasper asked.
"Eleven newborns."
"And Victoria and Riley will be with them?" Leah asked in the direction of the phone.
There was silence on the line for a few seconds. "They all leave Seattle together but those two might split off at some point. They're still in the mountains in the park, but I think they hang back at the beginning of the fight," he answered. "I'm sorry I can't be more specific."
Jasper reassured him that there was no need to apologize. Any information was better than no information.
There had been a silent worry in the back of Jasper's mind that they would have no warning at all because of how connected the pack was to his coven, so he was relieved that they had two full days to make last minute preparations.
Two days. Two days and this whole mess would finally be behind them.