Descent

CHAPTER 11

"What do you remember?" That was the second time I had been asked that question today.

But this time I was surrounded by Sam and the Elders.

My dad sat beside me. He couldn't stop throwing concerned glances my way as I practically wobbled all the way here.

Man, those steps to get up to the house was my kryptonite. It jostled my ribcage which felt like it had been shattered into a million pieces.

Sometimes I was even amazed at this werewolf gene thing if it could heal from that.

"Bella." I was jostled out of my thoughts and back to the meeting at hand. "Did you see it?" Sam asked me. "Did you see the vampire?"

I could feel my brow furrow as I tried to remember. There seemed to be something poking at my memory waiting to resurface.

My face scrunched up as a blinding headache appeared at my effort to relive it. "I remember tracking it. The vampire was hopping from side to side of the treaty line. "

"Yeah," Sam pondered. "I remember, Paul and I were coming up on the other side of you. Between us all we were caging it in but you stopped suddenly. You paused and because of your unique being I couldn't see what stopped you in your tracks. "

I bit my lip. It had been Jasper. He had been there with the vampire who attacked me. But not together. I think.....I think he had been hunting her. Possibly all of the Cullens because Edward had been there. He had carried me back.

Oh gosh. My chest squeezed.  I couldn't tell them that though. Billy would demand their heads just for being there. And though Jasper had warned me when he sensed the other vampire at my back, that's not enough proof.

Because every time he was missing this other vampire was around.  And I didnt know if that meant the Cullens were with the other rogue vampire.

My feelings aside, I didn't know the Cullens. Not well enough. Not yet.

"I don't remember much. I couldn't see who it was that hit me from behind. And all I saw after was the trees in the forest snapping and breaking around me." Again something beckoned at the edge of my memory but I couldn't grasp at it.

Billy grumbled in frustration.

"It's to be expected." Quil added. "You have went through a grave trauma. You did good Bella."

"How so?" I whispered.  I felt like a failure. "The vampire got away." We still didn't even know who it was.

"Because you survived."

"He is right." Sam admitted rubbing his jaw. "We were coming for you. We knew something was wrong. But in the time it took for us to get to you...." He trailed off.

My father tensed all over at the insinuation.

"Anything could have happened to you. And if it had, we would be having a very different conversation right now."

But it hadn't. Because I had protection. It just wasn't the werewolves.

"We can't let this stand.  We must retaliate." Billy declared.

"We still don't know which one it is." Quil said.

Billy whipped around to him. "They are all guilty by association."

My face scrunched up. "Because they are vampires?" I questioned.

Billy's stare went right through me. It felt like I wasn't even there. " You think they haven't done worse than this.  They are all guilty. And we won't let it stand that they have harmed our own."