Sign Of The Times || Jasper Hale

chapter 82

"You sure you're okay?" Alex nods and takes a deep breath.

"Yeah." She turns around and suddenly hugs Jasper. "It's been a while since I've been there."

She needed the hug. It felt as if her chest was tightening around her and she couldn't breathe. As if someone was wrapping their arms around her and making sure that it would be her end. There would be questions at the gathering. About Peter. Pietro. And it scared her to have to relive the moment again and again.

"How can they hate Bella for being with Edward yet you can be with me and they still invite you to bonfire night?" Alex smiles at him.

It didn't help that Bella would be there as well. The young woman who had become so wrapped up in their lives, whom Peter liked good enough to let her join their game night.

"Are you a little jealous?" He shakes his head and looks at her.

"Just curious."

"Well, I am a wonderful person." He snorts. "Are you suggesting I'm not?"

"You are." He kisses her softly on the lips before letting her take a shower to get rid of the vampire smell.

At night, the group is gathered around the fire, eating hot dogs, laughing. Billy sits at the natural head of the circle. Old Quil sits on one side of him and Sue Clearwater on the other. The three Councilleaders. The whole pack is there; Paul, Quil, Embry, Jared and Sam, with Emily at his side. Leah sullenly stares into the fire. Meanwhile, giving him the eye.

Alex is sitting next to the she-wolf and eats a hamburger as if she never had eaten before in her life.

Jacob leads Bella toward a roaring fire. "You sure this is okay? I hate being a party crasher."

"Technically, you're a Council Meeting crasher. But you're okay. I thought - I mean, they think it'll be good for you to hear the histories."

Bella suddenly stops. "Wait, the history histories? Of the pack? Aren't they secret?"

"We all got a role to play. And you're a part of this. It's the first time Quil, Seth and Leah are hearing them, too. But you're the first outsider. Ever."

"Wow, I should have dressed better." Bella mutters and Jake smiles.

"JAKE!" They're interrupted by a gangly- limbed boy who trots up like a puppy. He clearly idolizes Jacob. "Bout time you got here. Paul's been hoovering th grub. But I saved you some burgers."

"Good looking out, Bro. Bella, this is Seth Clearwater, Leah's brother. Newest member of the pack."

"Newest, bestest, brightest-.."

"Slowest." Jacob grabs Seth in a headlock, the two to the sand. Seth laughs. A whistle comes from the circle. They look over and see that it's Sam. Seth jumps up.

"Come on. They're about to start." As Seth drags Jacob and Bella toward the bonfire.

"The Quileutes have been a small tribe from the beginning." Billy begins. "But we have always had magic in our blood." Everyone's has their attention wholly on Billy, his voice commanding. "We were great spirit warriors, shapeshifters who could transform into the powerful wolf. This enabled us to scare off our enemies and protect our tribe."

Alex looks over to Bella who seems to absorb the story, its images alive in her mind. Jacob glances at her, gauging her reaction. Alex could imagine what it would seem like.

Warriors all in human from emerge from the trees, horrified to find a male vampire bent aver two lifeless tribe girls. His eyes are blood -red, feral.

"It looked like a man, but it was hard like stone and cold as ice..."

The two warriors phase into wolves and charge the vampire. He grabs one of them, strangling it. The second wolf gets his teeth into the vampire's neck and tears off its head. But the strangled wolf falls dead to the ground.

"Our warriors' sharp teeth finally tore it apart but only firewould completely destroy it." Bella grimaces as the horrible visuals play out in her mind. Jacob watches her,gratified by her somber reaction. "They lived in fear that the cold Man was not alone. They were right."

A beautiful female vampire moves throught the Quileute village of long houses and teepees. She leaves a trail of dead bodies and people are screaming.

"She took her vengeance on the village. Our elder chief, Thaa Aki,was the only spirit warrior left to save the tribe, after his son was killed."

Taha Aki stands over his dead son. His third wife weeps inconsolably next to his body. Taha Aki spins toward the female vampire and takes a running lunge at her, transforming into a graet wolf. They clash. The third wife watches with horror as the female vampire quickly gets the upperhand.

"Taha Aki's third wife could see he would lose..."

The third wife pulls out a knife and runs toward the female vampire who barely acknowledges the impending attack.

Billy looks at Bella as he says the next words. "The third wife was no magical being, with no special power but one: courage.."

The third wife charges at the female vampire, dagger raised high. But as she nears, shockingly, she plunges the knife into her own heart! Blood flowers on her chest. The female vampire catches the scent and spins toward her, ravenous.

"The third wife's sacrifice distracted the Cold Woman long enough for Taha Aki to destroy her. She saved the tribe."

As Taha Aki as a wolf leaps onto the female vampire, tearing her apart, the third wife lay dying, her expression at peace...

"Over time, our enemies have disappeared. But one remains - the cold ones..." Bella's emotions conflict as she suddenly sees all this from the wolves point of view. "Our magic awakens only when they come near. And we sense it now, feel the threat in our blood. Something terrible is coming, and we must be ready. All of us."