chapter 13 the meeting

The anxiety felt by Bella the first time she was taken to the Cullens' domain was nothing compared to the utter petrifying fear that took hold of her as she, Billy and Julie drove towards the home of the vampires. It wasn't the fact that she would be the only human present, or the fact that she would be seeing Edythe again after such an unpleasant goodbye. Rather, the idea that the nomads' stay here was specifically her fault, and that she could be blamed for the creatures being there in the first place... That made her shutter with terror. She could only imagine the (at the least) uncomfortable meeting that she would have to endure. She knew Edythe probably hated her now. Emmet and Rosalie might do the same simply by association of what their "sister" told them. Jasper already hated her, and Alice... well, she might try to eat her again. She was very glad that she was wearing her cross. What really frightened her, however, was Carlisle. The image of his stern, angry face flashed more then once in her mind. He had scared her enough the first time they met. And then, he was really only angry with Edythe. She had no idea how he'd act if he was angry with her. She clutched her arms tightly, eyes glued onto the road in front of her. Noticing her tense demeanor, Julie put a hand on her shoulder. Billy had insisted on driving, letting the two of them sitting in the back. Bella looked up to him.

"It's ok," he reassured her. "You don't have anything to worry about."

"But if the nomads are here because of me – "

"They're not," said Billy darkly. "They're here because they wanted to flaunt it in the Cullens' faces. The only reason they didn't kill them on sight was because Carlisle tries to be a pacifist."

Bella blinked. "Pacifist?" The stern faced, army Sargent of a vampire who stared at her with such piercing, sharp eyes strived to be a pacifist? If the situation wasn't so tense, she might have laughed.

"Hard to believe, huh?" said Billy with a chuckle. "He's only hard because he feels like he needs to be that way to protect his family. When my grandfather first got to know him, he said he was quite a nice man." He grunted. "Though I've never seen it..."

"What do you think of him?" Bella asked Julie.

She shook her head. "Wouldn't know," she said honestly. "I've never been to one of these meetings before. Dad's letting me come along because I'm older now and I volunteered to protect you if you need it."

Bella blinked. "Oh... really?" What a kind gesture. Then again, if they had switched places, Bella would probably do the same. She smiled and nodded in thanks before looking out the window. Her fear was ebbed, though only slightly. She still felt wary of the whole thing. The drive up the dirt road was rough, and sometimes non existent. Bella had to grab onto her seat more then once to keep herself from hitting the sides or falling over, despite the seatbelt. Finally, the truck stopped and they all got out, standing in front of the house, waiting for them, were three figures. Two of them were Emmet and Rosalie, and the third was a native whom she recognized as Sam, Julie's cousin. Emmet and Rosalie both were dressed in jackets, both hoods up to protect their faces from the setting sun. Where as Emmet had on a sweat shirt of neutral gray, a white ball cap beneath his hood, Rosalie wore a slightly more stylish jacket, white fur decorating the sides of the hood and the sleeves. Two white puff balls were attached at the end of the strings by her hood, dangling in front of her. They nodded shortly to her and looked to the other two, Sam joining up with Julie and helping Billy into his chair. Sam was only a few years older then herself, but he had grown to be quite a burly man, his strong presence rivaled only by Emmet. On his neck, Bella noticed, was a tattoo of a grizzly print. No doubt, his personal god was a bear. Once Billy was situated, they all headed into the house. The cold, closed up space of the home was even more daunting then before, the chills riding up Bella's back and arms rapidly this time. She kept close to Julie, staying away from the staircase that led to Alice's room. Finally, they were all lead into what seemed to be a living room type area, a few electric lamps the only light source that wasn't activated by wicks. Carlisle stood as proud as ever, hands behind his back. Where as the tiny Esme moved about, offering them seats on dark red couches. Jasper hung near the back, watching as Emmet and Rosalie took off their protective coats, Alice hovering off to the side. After counting in all the rest, her eyes then fell to the very last Cullen.

Edythe stood in the very back of the living room, leaning against the wall with her hands in her pockets. She stared, amendment, at the floor, as though it was incredibly interesting. Her jaw was tight, her eyes focused on one spot. She refused to even blink, let alone look up to meet her gaze. However, Bella knew that she could sense her eyes.

"Sit," came the low voice of Carlisle. They did so, Bella scooting close to Julie, who took her hand calmingly. Carlisle closed his eyes for a minute, collecting his thoughts. He sat on the opposite couch, and the others did so as well – save the three in the back. "So..." His eyes opened and landed on Bella's. "Is your friend alright?"

Bella swallowed a bit. "Y-yes sir... She's fine." She shifted, biting her lip. "She was knocked out before she could tell that one of the nomads had pulled her in. So... I'm still the only one who knows..." Under Carlisle's unwavering gaze, her voice fell. "...just thought you'd want to know sir..."

"Well that's good," said Esme in her gentle tone. She turned to Carlisle, putting a hand on his. "At least she's still the only one who knows..." Carlisle sighed and nodded, rubbing his eyes.

"That aside," said Billy curtly. "I want to know why you aren't doing your job. First it was the police chief, and now a young girl. How many people are you willing to put in danger before you act?"

"Need I remind you that it isn't that simple," said Carlisle, his ego ruffled slightly. "Nomads are evasive. Attacking one head on is never smart, no matter how many of us there are."

"Not to mention," said Rosalie, hands folded in her lap, "one of them is a multiplier. I think it might be the leader."

"A multiplier?" Bella looked to Julie.

"You know what a dark gift is, right?" Bella nodded and Julie continued. "A multiplier is someone who can make several copies of themselves."

"Great for confusing your enemy if you want to get away," said Emmit. "Even better if you're the one attacking."

Bella nodded and turned to the vampires across the way. "Ok... so how did she know?"

"Rosalie is an aura seer," Esme explained. "She can tell someone's ability by simply looking at them." Rosalie had a small, proud smile on her face, but extinguished it quickly in order to keep her composure. That must have meant that they met with the nomads prior to the meeting...

"In any case," said Carlisle. "We can't simply take them down up front. It would be unwise, to say the least."

"Then what do you suggest?" Billy asked, leaning back against his wheel chair seat.

Carlisle thought for a moment, eyes resting on Bella. She kept her mind as blank as she could, so that he wouldn't see her intimidation. He then stood quickly and looked over his shoulder. "Edythe." For the first time since they got there, Edythe's eyes snapped up. She must have not fed in a while; her eyes were dark. Carlisle motioned for her to come closer, and she did so, her gaze still refusing to fall on Bella. "I've changed my mind about school." Her lips parted slightly and she blinked.

"Really...?" There was true surprise in her voice.

"You can go back," said Carlisle. He turned to Bella. "It's apparent that they fancy you a play toy. Edythe will stay close to you from now on. If they try anything again, she'll catch them long enough for us to get rid of them."

Unwillingly, their eyes met. It was obvious that she still resented her for the fight. Bella looked away, her grip on Julie's hand exceedingly tighter. The shifter beside her stood to her feet. "No way," she said. She looked to Billy pleadingly. "Dad, let me go to school with Bella. I can fight them off – "

"It would be too suspicious if you were taken off the reservation," said Billy with a sigh. "Edythe went to that school initially, so it would make sense for her to come back."

"We can make up a story," Julie insisted. She glared at Edythe. "Besides... who's to say she won't take a bite herself?"

With a growl, Edythe rushed to Julie for that jeer, but was stopped by Emmet, who held her back. Sam also stood, hand on Julie's shoulder. The two glowered at one another, the silver in Julie's eyes blaring. Emmet whispered to his sister to calm down, and Edythe's rigid body loosened slightly. After a tense moment, she turned and went back to where she was, Emmet returning to the couch and Julie sitting down.

"I apologize for my daughter," said Billy. "She's a bit... tense. This is her first meeting." He frowned at Julie and then looked to the others. "That'll be it then. Edythe will shadow Bella during the day. Julie will keep to her when it's too sunny for Edythe to go out. It's not likely they'll attack on one of those days, but you never know."

"Agreed." Carlisle stood, the others following suit. "Good day, Mr. Black."

"Good day, Mr. Cullen." With that, the visiting party left, Bella's legs going wobbly. The ride back was silent, Julie practically fuming beside her. Sam left in his own car, heading directly back to the reservation. Gently, Bella tapped her arm. She looked at her.

"Don't be angry," she said softly. She tried to lighten up the mood by smiling. "I'm still wearing my cross, right? So I should be fine." She sighed and ran a hand through her long hair.

"Yeah..." She looked at her intently. "Just... if she does try anything... I want you to tell me. Do you promise?"

Bella sighed. Despite their bad blood, she knew that Edythe wouldn't try anything. If she was going to, she would have done it long before now. "I promise." She let her head fall to the back of her seat. "How long until we can get the nomads, do you think?"

"Who knows," said Julie with a sigh. "I only hope it's soon..."

"Yeah... me too." With that, they silently sat in the back seat, minds mucked in thought as the day finally turned to a quiet, haunting night.