Pre Edit Count –   2,486 Words

Song I listened to for this chapter: Wanted by Hunter Hayes

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Godric stands up straight.  He asks him, “Do you remember anything else like that, times when she had been irritated or upset but forgave him easily, or when she was acting oddly at all?”

Charlie frowns as he leans forward.  “Actually that is what made me dislike Edward.  It seemed like the more time they spent together, the more she was allowing him to dictate her life.  I even found myself agreeing with Alice when she would ask me things even though I had been determined to not agree.”

Godric growled and they could hear the vibration from Eric through the phone.  “Eric?”

He Calls for his child as he tells Godric, “Working on it.  I am going to send Pam your way.  I will explain what is going on.  I will also be sending Alcide with her.  They will be there tomorrow, and I will notify you if I find anything else.  Do you want me to send Ludwig to you?”

Godric sends his thanks as he tells Eric, “Yes.  I want her to not only check Bella, but her father too.  Also, send this information to her.  It sounds as if they are not all as peaceful as Aro has promised.”  With that Eric hangs up the phone as Pam enters the room in answer to his summons.

In the Swan house, Godric is rigid and staring up at where Bella is.  He is thinking, and then turns to Charlie.  “Once the good doctor is here, I will have her check on Bella and then you.  What you have described is something we have suspected, but never had confirmed, and it may be what is causing Bella’s symptoms.  If it is, this coven will not escape us.”

And for the first time, Charlie gets chills as he sees how very dangerous Godric can be…

Now:

The night is getting late but the Swan house only seems to get busier.  Normally it would be quiet, but that was before a change in destiny happened.  Inside, a dark haired vampire is working to get information on his mate.  Godric is on the phone, calling people and making arrangements, all in different languages.  The only time he had stopped is when he asked if they had a basement in the house.

Charlie looks at him and says, “Yeah.” His mind is still trying to wrap around the information.  The only thing that is sticking in his mind is that Bella is going to be leaving.

Chuckling, Godric asks, “Do you mind if we use it?  I will be using it for a couple days, but Pam will be using it longer.  I am not sure what we will do with Alcide, but we can figure it out.” This would do at least until a home can be purchased close by.  The more Godric thinks about it, the more he realizes that a Cold One’s home would not be suitable.  They don’t care if sunlight shines on them when they are hidden away.  He didn’t want to take a chance that they had not made their home light-tight.

Besides, he wants his mate with him.  He will provide her with a home here if she wants; the only thing he will ask is to be able to be in the same home.   But he will not remain here, not with how volatile her father is being.

Calling his attention back to the Chief, Charlie is looking lost as he tells him, “There is a guest room down there that can be used?”

Thinking, Godric asks, “Is there a room that has no outside light coming into it?”  He will be still in his coffin when he rests, but he would like to be up and working when he is awake.  There will be plenty he needs to do now for his Mate.

Sam finally takes pity on Charlie, “I’ve been down there, Godric.  There is an old coal room that I can put a door on today to make sure no one can get in.  Will that work?”  He will be making sure there is no way for Charlie to get in since he doesn’t trust the Chief of Police any longer.  As he had thought before, he had given him the benefit of the doubt, but he is seeing and hearing with his own senses how little Charlie seems to care for Bella personally.

Thinking through the options, Godric nods. “I will be having my coffin brought in, and Pam is coming during the daytime so it will be delivered then.  I will be making sure that everything is here for her.”  No need to let anyone know about the alternative until he has spoken with Bella, if possible.  He wishes to incorporate her into his life as soon as he can.

Charlie shakes his head and asks, “Coffins?  What is going on?”  This is not making sense to him.  He looks longingly toward the kitchen thinking of the coffee maker but Bella had bought a new one and he never learned how to use it.  She had  programmed it to go off for him every morning.

Looking at the man in front of him and knowing he is overloaded with information, Godric advises him, “Eric is sending Pam and Alcide here for Bella’s protection.  We told you she is very important.  Pam is going to be helping taking care of her, and Alcide will be here during the days.  Pam has also taken courses in college and has the qualifications  to home school Bella.  She will be switching to vampire hours for now, but this way Pam can make sure she is educated in everything she needs to know about Vampires and the supernatural.” There is no way his mate will be attending public school.  There are vampires out there who would be thrilled to take Bella from him.  All it would take is a phone call and many humans would do it without even knowing who they are really working for.

As he is making plans in his head to safeguard his mate, Godric smiles as he tells Charlie, “The coffins are for the day time.  They protect us during our most vulnerable time.  We literally die and cannot awaken if something comes for us.  In our homes, most of us have secret rooms and such.  You have no idea how hard but yet easy it is to be nocturnal now.  Pam’s coffin will be delivered with Alcide, and he will take care of everything.  He is a Were, as in a real Werewolf.  His family line and pack is sworn to my Bloodline.  I saved the life of one of his ancestors in the past and in gratitude they swear their fealty to me.  They are some of the most truly trustworthy people I know else I would not trust them with my  Children or myself, much less Bella.”

Afterward, he has been on the phone as Sam went downstairs to see about the coal room.  He nodded when Sam came back up with the measurements and called his supplier to get the special door he knew he had in stock.

For his part, Godric is aware of the passing time and his increasing need to know what is wrong with his Mate.  His plans depend on her, as they should and will from now on.  He is feeling a little bit anxious, but he figures that it is the Mating Bond exerting its influence on him, urging him to complete the Bond.  He has never heard of a situation like his where he has somehow managed to not form the Mating Bond as soon as he had found her, so he is anticipating some oddities.  However, he himself wishes for the Bond to be completed as soon as possible so he can be with her, with his other half, and so they can both be whole.

Charlie just sits there trying to understand all he has been told.  His eyes go upstairs to Bella, but Emily had come down a moment ago and told them that Bella is just staring into space.  Sam had looked at his mate, hung up his phone, and opened his arms for her.  He still holds Emily close to comfort her as she cries for his daughter.

He can no longer deny the truth in front of him.  There are vampires, and the Cold Ones were involved with his daughter.  Then it makes him wonder about Phoenix.  He looks up and clears his throat to get someone’s attention.

Godric asks the other person on the phone to hold and looks over to him. “Yes?” He is not impressed with the man in front of him.  He hopes that it is the shock of the influx of information, but is saddened to think that this is the man who is his Mate’s father.

Grimacing as he takes in the dismissal he hears in the vampire’s tone, Charlie haltingly beings, “Umm, this past spring, Bella got into a fight with me and ran off to Phoenix.  She broke her leg badly and there was something wrong with her arm.  She also lost a lot of blood.  The story I was told was that Carlisle and Edward had gone after her to talk her into coming back.  On the way out of the hotel, she fell and broke her leg.  I’m wondering now if that was the truth?”  He looks away as he wonders how much actually went on around him that he never knew. And the information that these vampires are coming out… He will need to be prepared for rioting…though this is Forks.

With this new information from Charlie, Godric’s eyes go dark as night and he growls.  He says into the phone, “Isabel, I will call you back.  I may be here longer than I thought.”  He then hangs up his phone and looks upstairs, trying to decide which would be worse.  But he needs to see his mate, to examine her and make sure she is ok.

Right before he leaves, a short woman appears before him with a medical bag.

Looking down at her, he gives her a respectful nod.  “Ludwig.” The woman in front of him had been one of the first of her race to give her loyalty to him.  He has done many things to help her out, and she is based in Eric’s area.  Both of them make sure she is always supported in her endeavors since she has helped many Supes.  He values the Brownie in front of him more than most vampires.

With the same respect, she bows her head, “Milord.  Eric called and said you needed me?  That you found your Mate?” She looks up and a smile is playing on her lips with the simple joy knowing that the man who had won her respect is one of the favored few to be granted his mate.

A light smile shows on Godric’s face at the mention of Bella as his mate, and he tells her concisely, “Tá, tá Bella ó anamchara. Amhras againn go bhfuil an stát go bhfuil sí i ba chúis leis an cinn Fuar. Tá a athair a bhí ina intinn a athrú agus faoi deara an rud céanna léi. Sé freisin ach dúirt liom go raibh ar siúl sí ar shiúl ag pointe amháin agus go ndeachaigh siad chun a thabhairt ar ais di, ach gur thit sí agus bhris a cos agus bhí caillteanas fola ollmhór.” (Yes, Bella is my soul mate.  We suspect that the state she is in is caused by the Cold Ones.  Her father has had his mind changed and has noticed the same thing with her.  He also just told me that she had run away at one point and that they went to bring her back, but that she fell and broke her leg and had massive blood loss.)

Charlie is not the only one  listening to him with his mouth hanging open.  Godric’s accent is obvious when he is speaking English, but this…this was as though they were thrown into the past.  There is no doubt that he is who he says he is.

Ludwig nods as she thinks.  She asks, “An bhfuil a thosaigh tú an Banna ó anamchara?” (Have you started the soul mate Bond?)

“Uimh.” (No.)

She nods and heads up the stairs with Godric following close behind her.  Charlie makes to follow them, but Sam stops him.  “Charlie, I don’t think you need to be there.  If Godric is like Jared or I would be, he will already be on edge just being in the room with her, and then there will be the added stress of Ludwig being in there as a doctor to check on his mate. To have another male in there would only make it worse…that you are her father will not matter.  He is her mate, the other half of her soul, just as if they were married.  Godric is trying to give you more time with her as he gets her used to their world, but make no mistake, she is his.”

In his world, this is the law.  He doesn’t know about Godric’s world, the one he is about to become part of, but judging by the everyone’s reactions, he understands that Bella is a huge deal for Godric.  Because of her rarity as  Godric’s soul mate, he figures their laws would be similar.

Clenching his jaw, Charlie watches them go into her room.  “She’s only 18, Sam.” And she is his daughter.  Charlie is gearing up to fight to keep her.  He does not need her to be taken from him right now.

Coming up to the other side of him, Billy tells him, “And from the time he is from, she is a spinster.  By the laws of the Tribe, she has been an adult since she turned 16.  Even by human laws she is an adult, and even if not, she would have been declared one long ago based on the decisions she has been forced to make most of her life.”

Looking up at his childhood friend, Billy sighs.  Charlie needs to snap out of the world he exists in, and realize that Godric may be the only hope that Bella has if he is reading the reactions of the vampires correctly. “Charlie, the Cold Ones had your daughter.  He might be the only chance you have in saving her life.  Yes, she may become a vampire, but you know she will be well guarded, well cared for.  He has already called in a specialist, and has his Child looking for answers.  He has a guard coming to protect her.  Eric’s own Child is coming, which by Godric and Eric’s reactions  is an honor from them to her,  to tutor her along with caring for her.  He is taking care of her right now.  And he has done the same for his own Child for over a thousand years.  Why would you think he would take any less care of her?”

Closing his eyes, he tells Billy, “I haven’t had her for long.  Renee kept her away from me and poisoned her against staying with me.  It was only when she wanted to travel with her husband that she planted the idea of coming here.  Is it so wrong I want to keep her with me?”

“Yes.”

Charlie’s head whips up to meet Godric’s eyes.

Hearing the argument outside the room, and as well as Ludwig’s polite request that he keep them quiet as she examines his mate, Godric came out to the confrontation he wished could have been delayed until later.   Meeting the brown eyes that he has noticed from the pictures around the house are identical to his Mates, Godric concisely advises him, “She is my other half, so I will try to be kind.  However, neither you nor your ex-wife deserve her.  She has been refused a childhood because your ex-wife couldn’t be bothered to do her job. When she comes here, she doesn’t have to worry about working to make sure she has food and electricity, but she is your live in maid.  She cleans your house, cooks your food, washes your clothes, and buys the food and anything else needed for the house.  She should be enjoying her childhood, even at this late date.  Instead she has had to learn from a young age to bear the weight of an adults worries.  And while I know most people, including myself, wouldn’t say anything against chores for the young, I suspect she doesn’t even get an allowance, just the right to stay here.  I also suspect that she makes the food, you come in to eat it, and then promptly return to your TV.  That is not being a father.  That is not even a roommate.”

Charlie’s face reddens and his eyes darken in his anger.  Godric didn’t stop though.  He asks him, “If she did all this for me and I acted like you, wouldn’t you be upset with me?  So why would I not be displeased about you treating my Mate this way?”

Emily quietly says from the safety of her own mate’s arms, “He is right, Charlie.  Everyone knows that Bella keeps your house.  And I know that she is also working at Newton’s for money for her truck and for college.  She has an old computer but never says anything about it.  Instead of spending your days off with her, you instead go on fishing trips with Billy and Harry.  Once in awhile wouldn’t be bad, but you go every single weekend.  From what I have heard around town, I’m not shocked that she got so involved with the Cold One.  He was the first person who truly paid attention to her.  She is so hungry for real  affection and love that she will take whatever is offered.  He may have done something to her later on, but she did walk into this with eyes wide open…well, as wide open as a human not wanting to believe anything evil of the first person who cared for her could be.  Who can blame her?”

Charlie clenches his jaw.  He finally spits out, “You don’t think I love her?”

Godric shakes his head. “There is no question that you love your daughter.  It’s more that you don’t appreciate her nor do you know what to do with her.  When she came here to live, you took advantage of her living here to make your life easier, but you never changed your life to bring her into it.   If your ex-wife had not been so much of a ditz, there might have been no problems.  But Bella has been so overwhelmed that she has no idea what is real love is, what a real childhood is.  You love your daughter, and it is not all your fault that you don’t know how to show it, but it is your fault that you are not more active in her life.  You could have easily spent the time eating with her to find out more about her, about her day.  Something so simple, and it would have not taken up any more of your time, but now…now we are dealing with whatever the Cold Ones did to her, as well as dealing with her heartbreak from losing the only loving she has received.  But from now on, she will receive the love and devotion she deserves.”

Charlie just glares up at the man in front of him, the man who is going to take his daughter away from him, the man who just called him out on his shortcomings.  But, damnit… he is right.  I could have just asked her about her day when we sat down to eat, instead I allowed our awkwardness to continue instead of working to get over it.  I could have taken her up to Seattle or done so many other things with her.

He drops his glare and closing his eyes as he makes one of the most painful admissions of his life, “You’re right.”  But then he looks up, “But I don’t want to lose her either!”

Emily sighs, “If you do lose her, Charlie, it will be because of what you did.  It’s your choice now, Godric has already detailed what is going to happen.  You had a chance at the easy way of being part of your daughter’s life.  Now, you will have to work around his plans.  And since his plans are to ready his mate for her new life and to make sure that she will not be lost in it, you cannot in good conscience make it hard for her.  So it will be up to you, and the effort you want to expend on getting to know your daughter.  If I were you, I would also make every effort to learn about this world and to get on the good side of Godric and his group of people.  That is your future.” Her voice is hard, not giving an inch.  This man needs to be aware of the world around him, and how much his mistakes have cost him.  His choices have led them to where they are now.  Not Bella’s.

Looking away, Charlie sighs as he realizes they are right. “What needs to be done?”

Just then Ludwig came out of Bella’s room.  She is angry as she informs them, “You need to get ready for a fight on your hands for that girl’s life.  Godric, call your Second.  Time is going to be our enemy for once.”  Everything she heard from the room makes her want to tell Godric to take that young girl out of that room and hide her away from the world…and that was decided before her prognosis.

Everyone stares at the small woman with looks of horror on their faces as they realize what she is saying.

Final count, 3.357 words.

Fairfarren~Wendy