Descent

Chapter 10

Jared, Paul, and myself were out the door in the blink of an eye.

The meeting was going to have to wait.

I phased in midair. The pain of shifting was long forgotten as my thoughts were centered on my packs safety and the danger that was imminent.

"Sam, where are you?" I thought.

Jared and Paul shifted right behind me and their thoughts were quick to follow. "Where are they?" Paul growled.

"What is going on?" Jared asked.

"Focus!" Sam ordered. "I am heading inland. I caught the vampires scent on the other side of the border. The vamp hasn't crossed over yet so I am shadowing them. Paul meet up with me at the treaty line. Jared head with Bella on the other side. Stick together."

My paws dug into the soil to slow down enough to turn around and then I hauled ass to the other side of the Reservation.

Jared was quick to follow but he was slower than me and fell behind.

I tried not to let their grunts and growls sidetrack me. As I got closer I picked up the scent and tracked it to the border line. It was fowl and my breathing sped up at having to choke the scent in as I moved faster.

It was the same smell from the shirt sleeve that my dad had shown me. I was on their tail. As I closed in I could hear them just up ahead. My claws dug into the ground beneath me to increase my speed. I was practically on top of them when they banked right, going farther inland than I could go. I followed as closely as I could without stepping one foot of the Res.

"I'm practically on top of them." I thought.

"Stay on them Bella. We are coming from the other side. We will cut them off and herd them toward you." Sam said.

Paul grunted in agreement.

"I'm right behind you Bella." Jared huffed, gritting his teeth in effort to go faster. He was still too far back.

This was definitely the scent of the vampire who had killed someone. Their smell was everywhere now. I was gagging on it. They had been in this area for some time because there was evidence of them all over. Footprints, broken tree limbs, their odor and stench, it touched every crevice of this forest, right on top of the boundary line between us and the Cullens.

And unfortunately, their scent wasn't the only one I was smelling.

My pace quickened as a sickly sweet smell tickled my nose. The wind picked up and carried it over to me. There were other vampires here and I knew it was the smell of the Cullens.

My mouth dried up and I faltered, slowing down. Sensing my pause Sam asked with urgency, "Bella, what is it? What do you see?"

It was Jasper. His back was to me. He was hunched over in a crouch looking for something. 

The sweet smell had been his, very similar to Edward and Alice's but also different. Each one seemed to have their own signature in their fragrance.

He turned with haste as if sensing me on his heels and drew up short as did I.

His teeth were snarled making me take a step back before he jerked in caution and stood up, straightening out of his attacking stance. He frowned, no longer growling in the distance.

His eyes narrowed bemused as he stared at me. The hairs on my back were rising. My muzzle was pulling back to reveal my teeth in a growl. I couldn't believe it. Was this evidence that the Cullens were killers? Were they teaming up with one?

The sting of pain at being fooled gave way to rising anger as I snapped my teeth at him. Jasper stepped back hastily throwing his hands up as if to fend me off.