Finding Truth Behind Legends
by Wizardtho
Chapter 19:
Once Dad heads upstairs to bed, I ask Aiden and Shiloh to watch over him, then go out back with Taha to sit on the covered patio off the living room. I pull up the number I had saved earlier to my phone, the one which Jasper had given me after the incident with James in Phoenix. He said if I ever needed to reach him, all I had to do was leave a message at this phone number.
I let out a breath while sitting next to Taha on the wicker couch, lean into the kiss he places on my temple, then dial the number. I’m not surprised when it goes to voicemail. I simply state, “Jasper, I need you to call me, please,” then leave the number of the burner phone I asked Zander to pick up for me when we finalized the plan during dinner.
It takes an hour before the burner phone rings. When I say hello, Jasper asks, “You okay, Bella? I never expected you to need this number when I gave it to you.”
I shake my head, “And I never expected to use it, Jasper. I would have contacted your normal phone -or Carlisle’s- if you still had those numbers. Is Carlisle with you by chance?”
Jasper hums, “He is, Bella. Hold on and I’ll put you on speaker.”
I hear Carlisle asking how I am, so I say solemnly, “Not well, Carlisle. If I give you a set of coordinates to meet me at, can all of you come? I need to talk to you about Edward. Please, Carlisle. This is important.”
Suddenly Rose is yelling in the background, “I knew it! The poor girl just wanted to live her life, and now he’s harassing her! I TOLD you he was going after her, but no! You wouldn’t listen! It took you almost 4 days after he disappeared to think anything was off!”
Esme hushes her, then I hear Carlisle saying, “Give me the coordinates, and I will tell you how long it will take us to reach you, Dear.”
I rattle off the coordinates Taha had agreed on with Zander and Greg, to which Carlisle says after a minute, “We can reach that location in just over 4 hours, Bella.”
I hum in thought, then offer, “I’ll see you then,” before I hang up the phone.
I turn to Taha, confirming, “They’re not far. They were either tracking him already, or Alice knew I would give Carlisle those coordinates. I don’t know how, because she could never see the wolves -or me when I was with them. Either way, they’re coming. I have to tell Carlisle and Esme that I killed their pride and joy. This is going to go swimmingly.”
Taha wraps his arm around me in comfort, then promises, “We already have a couple of coyotes watching from a nearby location. We have half the pack resting up to be there with us during the meeting. You will not go unprotected for even a second, Isabella, and I will be right by your side. We will get through this.”
I lift my face to his; he smiles as he brushes his nose against mine, then whispers, “Once we deal with the Cullens, I would like a night for just us. A night where we can focus on each other and nothing else.”
His lips tease mine for a minute before he pulls back, so I sigh, “I would like that a lot. We haven’t really had any time alone since I woke up from my dream state, but I have so much I want to talk to you about. I want to tell you about the imprint from my side, and how I knew… how effortless it was to envision our life together when I first looked into your eyes there.”
Taha’s eyes water slightly, but he whispers as the back of his hand lovingly caresses my cheek, “We have time. We have all the time in the world, Isabella, and to know that you sense our connection means more than I could ever express to you.”
Our lips meet again in a sweet but chaste kiss. I can’t help but nip his bottom lip when he goes to retreat, which causes Taha to growl slightly as he lifts me to straddle his lap. With a hum, I wrap my arms around his neck before again nipping his bottom lip. Taha groans, his hands moving to cradle both my neck and my ass, then deepens the kiss. Finally, he tangles his tongue with mine, which causes practically every nerve in my body to light up with desire.
Unfortunately, I hear someone clearing their throat only seconds later, so Taha and I end our first true kiss for us to look at the intruder to our moment. It happens to be my father, so I ask him, “Dad? Are you okay? I thought you went to bed for the night.”
He shakes his head, then says, “I tried, but I couldn’t sleep. Aiden said you were out here. Have you heard anything from those Cullens? I know you said you were going to call them before I went to bed.”
I wave him over to sit in the chair, then explain, “Yeah. I talked to Jasper and Carlisle about 15 minutes ago. We meet in just under 4 hours. I think they were already trying to track Edward, from a comment I heard Rosalie making in the background. Aiden and Shiloh will be here with you, and Dad? I need you to stay in the house. Don’t come outside. Remember that even though they act civilized, I just killed Carlisle’s pride and joy; his first companion as a vampire, and Esme’s first chance at mothering an eternal teenager. This may become very dangerous very fast.”
Dad grabs my hand, promising, “I understand, Bells. Just promise me you’ll be careful.”
Taha and I talk with Dad until it’s time for us to go. I can clearly tell his unease about the situation is the reason he can’t rest… won’t rest until we come home safely. I hug him and promise him I’ll be back soon, then watch him walk inside. My last words are a whisper to Shiloh, knowing he’ll hear me. “Keep him safe, please. Hopefully, we’ll be back soon.”
I get a nod in response as his eyes meet mine, then he ducks inside the house. Taha quickly leads me to the trees, offering when we stop, “No need to worry about clothing, if you want to run. The sundress I asked you for earlier is waiting at our destination. If you would like to ride on my back, though, you are welcome to do so.”
I think for only a second before I smile, “Let’s run together. You know how much I like running beside you.”
Seconds later, both Taha and I are landing on paws, then running toward our destination. We’re met on the way by Zander and nearly 10 other coyotes. I don’t realize until we’re almost there, though, that said destination is Taha’s cave.
When we slow to a stop about 2 minutes from the cave entrance, Greg, in human form, comes out of the trees. “There are 6, all with gold eyes, just like you said. We know they sense us, but none have made moves toward us.”
Zander nods, then Greg leads us toward the entrance. Without stopping, we break through the treeline, and I hear several gasps as the Cullens see 1 human walking toward them with 12 coyotes and a massive white wolf.
Taha shows no care as he heads directly toward the back of the cave, shifts, dresses, and comes back out. He lays his hand on my side in comfort as he states, “If you will all please wait outside the cave entrance, Bella needs a moment of privacy.”
Again, I hear several gasps, and a few calling my name in question as I step forward. Taha is right at my side as I stop near Carlisle and nod my head, then I enter the cave. Taha turns to block the entrance with his large form, and I quickly shift near the pile of blankets we slept on in my dream state. Slipping the sundress over my head and adjusting the straps, I then call out, “It’s safe; I’m dressed.”
Taha is at my side in an instant, so we exit the cave hand-in-hand. Every vampire is looking at me like I’ve grown a second head, but I knew this would happen. I get right down to business, saying, “Thank you all for meeting us.”
Carlisle shakes his head slightly before asking, “Were the bodyguards truly necessary, Bella? You’re family.”
I stand a bit taller before saying solemnly, “No, Carlisle. I’m not. You chose Edward’s wants over the reality of the situation long before our relationship ended. You knew if he didn’t turn me, I would be hunted; you would be hunted. What neither of us realized was the magnitude of Edward’s bloodlust where it came to me. I expected the Volturi to try and kill me. I knew that was coming, and told the pack protecting my new home about the situation. What I didn’t expect, Carlisle, was for Edward to try to purposely hurt me. Seek me out, yes, but not try to kill me.”
Esme gasps, then scolds, “Isabella, please. It’s not nice to tell lies about others. Edward would never-”
I cut her off with a condescending laugh, “Please, Esme. You might be able to convince yourself of that crap, but don’t try to make us believe it. We have already lived through his attack on the reservation… his attack on me. See, he caught my scent near the edge of the reservation, and proceeded to try to kill any coyote that stood against him. When he reached my house, on protected reservation land, he caught a fresh wave of my scent. The call of my blood made him insane, Esme. He was going to kill me, going to kill my mate…”
I get choked up as the emotions well inside me, then look into Taha’s eyes as he gently rubs the inside of my palm with his thumb. I take a deep breath, then say as I pull the cuff and bottle cap from my sundress pocket, “I was so scared. Seeing the insanity in his black eyes… it triggered my coyote to emerge. Everything happened so fast. One second he was crazed and coming to kill us, then the next second I was jumping over my mate as I swiped at Edward.”
Carlisle looks from me to my hand in horror, but Esme drops to her knees as she cries out for her son in disbelief. I take a shaky breath, then say, “I had to protect myself. He wasn’t going to stop, Carlisle. There was no reasoning left in him.”
Something finally clicks in Carlisle’s brain, so he says in understanding, “The singer lure, Darling… he’d been away from her scent for too long, and was no longer desensitized. After tasting her blood in Phoenix, then suddenly finding it again here…” He picks his mate up to hug her to his side, then says into her hair, “I can see how he could snap, Esme. Any vampire in that situation would lose all sense of self… all sense of reason.”
I place the cuff and bottle cap on the ground gently, then Taha and I step back several paces as I say, “For you.”
They don’t immediately pick the items up, but since I know we are surrounded in protection, I take a chance to look at the others. Carlisle is holding a sobbing Esme. Emmett and Rosalie look sad, his arm around her, but Rosalie nods to me in recognition. I nod slightly back before my eyes fall on Jasper and Alice. Though Alice is distraught, Jasper is calmly watching me. I meet his eyes and let him read me, hoping he understands.
It only takes seconds for him to kiss the top of Alice’s head before confirming, “She’s telling the truth, Carlisle. She’s not once been deceptive the whole conversation. I’m sorry, Esme, but Rose and I have both tried to tell you this could happen.”
Carlisle guides Esme over to Rose and Emmett, then eyes me before looking down at the cuff and bottle cap. I nod, so he picks them up before joining his mate. When he looks at me again, he says, “Bella, I understand you did what you felt you must, but you must understand that we all still have the Volturi hanging over our heads. We must turn you if we are to ever live without fear.”
I can’t help but look at him incredulously as every coyote and wolf start growling in protest. “Seriously, Carlisle? Do I need to pull out the craft paper and crayons to explain this situation adequately? I’m a shifter! I turn into a coyote. You saw that for yourself. That means that vampire venom that is left in my system to spread will KILL me. Got that? I won’t turn now… I’ll die. You’ll not only be killing a coyote, but a wolf’s imprint. A legendary wolf’s mate. I know you have enough sense in your brain to have figured out who my mate is by now, even though no one’s said his name.”
Carlisle whispers almost to himself, even though I hear him clearly, “Taha Aki. Quileute Chief and spirit warrior.”
I nod, “The coyotes and Taha have already killed one Volturi scout. We have plans for when the next one comes. They don’t include you in any way, and we are not asking for your help. We damn sure aren't asking your permission. My suggestion to you, Carlisle, is to take your family and go into hiding for the next few months. The ruling Aro made was because I was a human who knew too much, and my options were to become part of the supernatural community -so my life was tied to it in a very real sense- or die. As I am a shifter, and my existence would be in just as much danger as his if supes were outed, there is no need for me to turn or die. His ruling is void for that reason, and we have a way to try and convince him that if he pushes this ruling and keeps hunting me, the Volturi will have more than just a teenage girl to deal with.”
Jasper hums, then surmises, “You’ve contacted the other tribes who still have the ability to shift. Or you plan to. You’re preparing for war. Carlisle, it could work. If she shows enough force behind her to make them take notice and listen… if she pitches it just right, The Volturi could call the matter settled without a thing being done on either side. They don’t lose face, and she doesn’t die. No need for war or more death.”
I nod, then say again, “Go into hiding for a few months, Carlisle. Grieve for Edward in that time. When the situation is settled, I’ll call and leave a simple message on Jasper’s safe line again to let you know it's safe. ‘The mountains are beautiful this time of year.’ When you get that message, you’ll know the tribes have come to an agreement with the Volturi, and I’ve made it clear that any backdoor maneuvers against me or your family are in direct violation of the agreement. If they come after me, you, or are caught on any reservation land, they are starting a war with every tribe that has the ability to shift.”
Carlisle looks at me, at all the coyotes surrounding our little pow-wow, then at Taha. When he finally speaks, he says, “I hope, for all our sakes, that your plan works, Bella. I will take your suggestion under advisement. As for Edward, though my heart hurts for the loss of my first companion in this life, you have my word that we will not seek revenge for his death. Not by any here tonight, and not by anyone on our behalf. I swear to you. Edward chose his path when he entered protected land and attacked.”
With those words, I think everyone lets out a collective breath in relief. Though a few more words are said between us, it’s only a few minutes later that we part ways. A few coyotes hang back to make sure the Cullens truly leave the area, but the rest of us run back to the reservation.
Once Dad heads upstairs to bed, I ask Aiden and Shiloh to watch over him, then go out back with Taha to sit on the covered patio off the living room. I pull up the number I had saved earlier to my phone, the one which Jasper had given me after the incident with James in Phoenix. He said if I ever needed to reach him, all I had to do was leave a message at this phone number.
I let out a breath while sitting next to Taha on the wicker couch, lean into the kiss he places on my temple, then dial the number. I’m not surprised when it goes to voicemail. I simply state, “Jasper, I need you to call me, please,” then leave the number of the burner phone I asked Zander to pick up for me when we finalized the plan during dinner.
It takes an hour before the burner phone rings. When I say hello, Jasper asks, “You okay, Bella? I never expected you to need this number when I gave it to you.”
I shake my head, “And I never expected to use it, Jasper. I would have contacted your normal phone -or Carlisle’s- if you still had those numbers. Is Carlisle with you by chance?”
Jasper hums, “He is, Bella. Hold on and I’ll put you on speaker.”
I hear Carlisle asking how I am, so I say solemnly, “Not well, Carlisle. If I give you a set of coordinates to meet me at, can all of you come? I need to talk to you about Edward. Please, Carlisle. This is important.”
Suddenly Rose is yelling in the background, “I knew it! The poor girl just wanted to live her life, and now he’s harassing her! I TOLD you he was going after her, but no! You wouldn’t listen! It took you almost 4 days after he disappeared to think anything was off!”
Esme hushes her, then I hear Carlisle saying, “Give me the coordinates, and I will tell you how long it will take us to reach you, Dear.”
I rattle off the coordinates Taha had agreed on with Zander and Greg, to which Carlisle says after a minute, “We can reach that location in just over 4 hours, Bella.”
I hum in thought, then offer, “I’ll see you then,” before I hang up the phone.
I turn to Taha, confirming, “They’re not far. They were either tracking him already, or Alice knew I would give Carlisle those coordinates. I don’t know how, because she could never see the wolves -or me when I was with them. Either way, they’re coming. I have to tell Carlisle and Esme that I killed their pride and joy. This is going to go swimmingly.”
Taha wraps his arm around me in comfort, then promises, “We already have a couple of coyotes watching from a nearby location. We have half the pack resting up to be there with us during the meeting. You will not go unprotected for even a second, Isabella, and I will be right by your side. We will get through this.”
I lift my face to his; he smiles as he brushes his nose against mine, then whispers, “Once we deal with the Cullens, I would like a night for just us. A night where we can focus on each other and nothing else.”
His lips tease mine for a minute before he pulls back, so I sigh, “I would like that a lot. We haven’t really had any time alone since I woke up from my dream state, but I have so much I want to talk to you about. I want to tell you about the imprint from my side, and how I knew… how effortless it was to envision our life together when I first looked into your eyes there.”
Taha’s eyes water slightly, but he whispers as the back of his hand lovingly caresses my cheek, “We have time. We have all the time in the world, Isabella, and to know that you sense our connection means more than I could ever express to you.”
Our lips meet again in a sweet but chaste kiss. I can’t help but nip his bottom lip when he goes to retreat, which causes Taha to growl slightly as he lifts me to straddle his lap. With a hum, I wrap my arms around his neck before again nipping his bottom lip. Taha groans, his hands moving to cradle both my neck and my ass, then deepens the kiss. Finally, he tangles his tongue with mine, which causes practically every nerve in my body to light up with desire.
Unfortunately, I hear someone clearing their throat only seconds later, so Taha and I end our first true kiss for us to look at the intruder to our moment. It happens to be my father, so I ask him, “Dad? Are you okay? I thought you went to bed for the night.”
He shakes his head, then says, “I tried, but I couldn’t sleep. Aiden said you were out here. Have you heard anything from those Cullens? I know you said you were going to call them before I went to bed.”
I wave him over to sit in the chair, then explain, “Yeah. I talked to Jasper and Carlisle about 15 minutes ago. We meet in just under 4 hours. I think they were already trying to track Edward, from a comment I heard Rosalie making in the background. Aiden and Shiloh will be here with you, and Dad? I need you to stay in the house. Don’t come outside. Remember that even though they act civilized, I just killed Carlisle’s pride and joy; his first companion as a vampire, and Esme’s first chance at mothering an eternal teenager. This may become very dangerous very fast.”
Dad grabs my hand, promising, “I understand, Bells. Just promise me you’ll be careful.”
Taha and I talk with Dad until it’s time for us to go. I can clearly tell his unease about the situation is the reason he can’t rest… won’t rest until we come home safely. I hug him and promise him I’ll be back soon, then watch him walk inside. My last words are a whisper to Shiloh, knowing he’ll hear me. “Keep him safe, please. Hopefully, we’ll be back soon.”
I get a nod in response as his eyes meet mine, then he ducks inside the house. Taha quickly leads me to the trees, offering when we stop, “No need to worry about clothing, if you want to run. The sundress I asked you for earlier is waiting at our destination. If you would like to ride on my back, though, you are welcome to do so.”
I think for only a second before I smile, “Let’s run together. You know how much I like running beside you.”
Seconds later, both Taha and I are landing on paws, then running toward our destination. We’re met on the way by Zander and nearly 10 other coyotes. I don’t realize until we’re almost there, though, that said destination is Taha’s cave.
When we slow to a stop about 2 minutes from the cave entrance, Greg, in human form, comes out of the trees. “There are 6, all with gold eyes, just like you said. We know they sense us, but none have made moves toward us.”
Zander nods, then Greg leads us toward the entrance. Without stopping, we break through the treeline, and I hear several gasps as the Cullens see 1 human walking toward them with 12 coyotes and a massive white wolf.
Taha shows no care as he heads directly toward the back of the cave, shifts, dresses, and comes back out. He lays his hand on my side in comfort as he states, “If you will all please wait outside the cave entrance, Bella needs a moment of privacy.”
Again, I hear several gasps, and a few calling my name in question as I step forward. Taha is right at my side as I stop near Carlisle and nod my head, then I enter the cave. Taha turns to block the entrance with his large form, and I quickly shift near the pile of blankets we slept on in my dream state. Slipping the sundress over my head and adjusting the straps, I then call out, “It’s safe; I’m dressed.”
Taha is at my side in an instant, so we exit the cave hand-in-hand. Every vampire is looking at me like I’ve grown a second head, but I knew this would happen. I get right down to business, saying, “Thank you all for meeting us.”
Carlisle shakes his head slightly before asking, “Were the bodyguards truly necessary, Bella? You’re family.”
I stand a bit taller before saying solemnly, “No, Carlisle. I’m not. You chose Edward’s wants over the reality of the situation long before our relationship ended. You knew if he didn’t turn me, I would be hunted; you would be hunted. What neither of us realized was the magnitude of Edward’s bloodlust where it came to me. I expected the Volturi to try and kill me. I knew that was coming, and told the pack protecting my new home about the situation. What I didn’t expect, Carlisle, was for Edward to try to purposely hurt me. Seek me out, yes, but not try to kill me.”
Esme gasps, then scolds, “Isabella, please. It’s not nice to tell lies about others. Edward would never-”
I cut her off with a condescending laugh, “Please, Esme. You might be able to convince yourself of that crap, but don’t try to make us believe it. We have already lived through his attack on the reservation… his attack on me. See, he caught my scent near the edge of the reservation, and proceeded to try to kill any coyote that stood against him. When he reached my house, on protected reservation land, he caught a fresh wave of my scent. The call of my blood made him insane, Esme. He was going to kill me, going to kill my mate…”
I get choked up as the emotions well inside me, then look into Taha’s eyes as he gently rubs the inside of my palm with his thumb. I take a deep breath, then say as I pull the cuff and bottle cap from my sundress pocket, “I was so scared. Seeing the insanity in his black eyes… it triggered my coyote to emerge. Everything happened so fast. One second he was crazed and coming to kill us, then the next second I was jumping over my mate as I swiped at Edward.”
Carlisle looks from me to my hand in horror, but Esme drops to her knees as she cries out for her son in disbelief. I take a shaky breath, then say, “I had to protect myself. He wasn’t going to stop, Carlisle. There was no reasoning left in him.”
Something finally clicks in Carlisle’s brain, so he says in understanding, “The singer lure, Darling… he’d been away from her scent for too long, and was no longer desensitized. After tasting her blood in Phoenix, then suddenly finding it again here…” He picks his mate up to hug her to his side, then says into her hair, “I can see how he could snap, Esme. Any vampire in that situation would lose all sense of self… all sense of reason.”
I place the cuff and bottle cap on the ground gently, then Taha and I step back several paces as I say, “For you.”
They don’t immediately pick the items up, but since I know we are surrounded in protection, I take a chance to look at the others. Carlisle is holding a sobbing Esme. Emmett and Rosalie look sad, his arm around her, but Rosalie nods to me in recognition. I nod slightly back before my eyes fall on Jasper and Alice. Though Alice is distraught, Jasper is calmly watching me. I meet his eyes and let him read me, hoping he understands.
It only takes seconds for him to kiss the top of Alice’s head before confirming, “She’s telling the truth, Carlisle. She’s not once been deceptive the whole conversation. I’m sorry, Esme, but Rose and I have both tried to tell you this could happen.”
Carlisle guides Esme over to Rose and Emmett, then eyes me before looking down at the cuff and bottle cap. I nod, so he picks them up before joining his mate. When he looks at me again, he says, “Bella, I understand you did what you felt you must, but you must understand that we all still have the Volturi hanging over our heads. We must turn you if we are to ever live without fear.”
I can’t help but look at him incredulously as every coyote and wolf start growling in protest. “Seriously, Carlisle? Do I need to pull out the craft paper and crayons to explain this situation adequately? I’m a shifter! I turn into a coyote. You saw that for yourself. That means that vampire venom that is left in my system to spread will KILL me. Got that? I won’t turn now… I’ll die. You’ll not only be killing a coyote, but a wolf’s imprint. A legendary wolf’s mate. I know you have enough sense in your brain to have figured out who my mate is by now, even though no one’s said his name.”
Carlisle whispers almost to himself, even though I hear him clearly, “Taha Aki. Quileute Chief and spirit warrior.”
I nod, “The coyotes and Taha have already killed one Volturi scout. We have plans for when the next one comes. They don’t include you in any way, and we are not asking for your help. We damn sure aren't asking your permission. My suggestion to you, Carlisle, is to take your family and go into hiding for the next few months. The ruling Aro made was because I was a human who knew too much, and my options were to become part of the supernatural community -so my life was tied to it in a very real sense- or die. As I am a shifter, and my existence would be in just as much danger as his if supes were outed, there is no need for me to turn or die. His ruling is void for that reason, and we have a way to try and convince him that if he pushes this ruling and keeps hunting me, the Volturi will have more than just a teenage girl to deal with.”
Jasper hums, then surmises, “You’ve contacted the other tribes who still have the ability to shift. Or you plan to. You’re preparing for war. Carlisle, it could work. If she shows enough force behind her to make them take notice and listen… if she pitches it just right, The Volturi could call the matter settled without a thing being done on either side. They don’t lose face, and she doesn’t die. No need for war or more death.”
I nod, then say again, “Go into hiding for a few months, Carlisle. Grieve for Edward in that time. When the situation is settled, I’ll call and leave a simple message on Jasper’s safe line again to let you know it's safe. ‘The mountains are beautiful this time of year.’ When you get that message, you’ll know the tribes have come to an agreement with the Volturi, and I’ve made it clear that any backdoor maneuvers against me or your family are in direct violation of the agreement. If they come after me, you, or are caught on any reservation land, they are starting a war with every tribe that has the ability to shift.”
Carlisle looks at me, at all the coyotes surrounding our little pow-wow, then at Taha. When he finally speaks, he says, “I hope, for all our sakes, that your plan works, Bella. I will take your suggestion under advisement. As for Edward, though my heart hurts for the loss of my first companion in this life, you have my word that we will not seek revenge for his death. Not by any here tonight, and not by anyone on our behalf. I swear to you. Edward chose his path when he entered protected land and attacked.”
With those words, I think everyone lets out a collective breath in relief. Though a few more words are said between us, it’s only a few minutes later that we part ways. A few coyotes hang back to make sure the Cullens truly leave the area, but the rest of us run back to the reservation.