By the time we reached the clearing near the lake, the forest had gone unnervingly quiet.
The water lay still, dark and glassy, reflecting the moon like a broken mirror. Mist clung low to the ground, curling around roots and rocks, dampening sound. It was the kind of place where noise felt wrong, where even breathing too loudly seemed like an invitation.
Perfect for an ambush.
Carlisle and Emmett moved first, silent and efficient, unpacking the blood bags. The metallic scent was faint at first, carefully sealed, but even that was enough to make the air feel heavier, charged. One by one, we hung the bags from branches at different heights, spacing them throughout the clearing like macabre ornaments.
The plan was simple.
When the newborns arrived, we would rupture the bags.
Human blood, fresh and overwhelming.
They wouldn't be able to help themselves. Control would shatter, instincts would take over, and whatever coordination Victoria had managed to instill in them would dissolve into chaos. Berserk newborns were dangerous, but predictable.
Easier to kill.
Once the last bag was secured, everyone started moving into position.
Pairs spread out across the clearing, each group keeping enough distance so no one would trip over another fight, but close enough that help could arrive fast if things went sideways. The Cullens and the Denali moved with practiced ease, their positions chosen instinctively, backs to trees, clear lines of sight, escape routes already calculated.
The wolves disappeared into the forest.
Sam, Jared, Paul, Leah, and I pulled back far enough to vanish into the undergrowth, our massive forms concealed by shadows and dense foliage. We'd hit hard and fast when the time came, right into the heart of the chaos. Surprise would be our biggest weapon.
As I settled into place, muscles coiled and senses stretched thin, a thought slipped through my mind uninvited.
Edward.
For a brief, frustrating moment, I wished he were here. His mind-reading would have made everything smoother, cleaner. Even in wolf form, he could have helped coordinate, bridged the communication gap between wolves and vampires.
But Edward wasn't here.
And we couldn't reach him.
When I had asked earlier, Esme's expression had shifted instantly, worry shadowing her features. Alice had been the one to explain, her voice tight.
"He's gone back to his old habits," she'd said. "Hunting criminals who slipped through the cracks. People who were never punished."
Vigilante Edward.
I'd snorted before I could stop myself. "I see. So he's busy playing Batman."
Emmett had laughed quietly at that, the sound rumbling deep in his chest, but Rosalie had elbowed him hard enough to make a point.
"It's not funny," she'd snapped. "He's going to have a really hard time going back to the vegetarian diet when he stops."
That had sobered everyone.
Now, crouched in the dark with the lake breathing quietly beside us, I understood her concern better. Once you crossed certain lines, it was hard to step back. Blood changed things for vampires. It always did.
I shook the thought away and refocused.
This wasn't about Edward.
This was about the army that was coming.
The wind shifted slightly, brushing across the clearing and carrying scents with it. Pine, damp earth… and beneath it all, the faint, tantalizing promise of blood.
I felt my jaw tighten.
They'd smell it soon.
Very soon.
I glanced toward Leah, her smaller wolf form tense beside me, eyes glowing faintly in the darkness. She met my gaze for half a second, steady and unflinching.
Whatever was coming, we were ready.
…
They came out of the lake like something dragged straight from a nightmare.
Dark shapes broke the surface of the water in near silence, pale skin gleaming under the moonlight, soaked clothes clinging to them as they climbed onto the shore. One by one, then dozens at once. Red eyes burned in the darkness, feral and unfocused, already hungry.
For a single, suspended second, they froze.
Their heads tilted almost in unison as they caught it, the faint metallic whisper of blood leaking from the sealed bags hanging above the clearing. Their nostrils flared. Lips pulled back from teeth.
Then Jasper moved.
The rock left his hand like a bullet and struck one of the blood bags dead center.
The bag burst, causing blood to spray across bark and leaves, the scent detonating outward in a violent wave that slammed into the clearing like a physical force. Even from where I was, the metallic smell hit my nose hard, thick and cloying and impossible to ignore.
The newborns snapped.
Whatever thin thread of control they had vanished instantly. Snarls ripped from their throats as they surged forward, abandoning any semblance of formation. They rushed blindly toward the source, colliding with each other, clawing, shoving, screaming.
The vampires moved to meet them.
Carlisle and Esme struck first, blurs of motion, limbs snapping and tearing with practiced precision as they practically dismantled one of the newborns. Emmett barreled into the mass like a wrecking ball, sending newborns flying. Rosalie moved low and fast, her strikes clean and lethal, while Jasper wove through the chaos, disrupting, unbalancing, breaking their momentum, Alice covering his back in a coordinated dance.
The Denalis held their ground beside them.
Kate's hands flashed with deadly purpose, lightning crackling as she stunned and tore through attackers. Irina fought with sharp, efficient movements, while Carmen stayed close to Eleazar, covering his blind side as he grappled with a newborn twice his size.
For a moment, it worked.
The clearing exploded into motion, bodies colliding, limbs flying, the sound of snapping bones echoing off the trees.
But there were too many.
They kept coming.
Newborns piled in from every direction, reckless and strong, throwing themselves at the Cullens and Denalis without hesitation. Even with experience on our side, the pressure began to build. I saw Carlisle forced back a step. Kate staggered as three newborns lunged for her at once while Irina was busy holding another two back.
That was our cue.
We hit them like a landslide.
The wolves burst from the treeline in a coordinated charge, massive forms crashing into the newborns with bone-shattering force. The impact sent vampires flying, bodies torn apart mid-lunge.
Leah went straight for Tanya.
She slammed into the newborn attacking her partner, jaws snapping shut around its torso and ripping it clean in half. Tanya didn't even hesitate, spinning immediately to finish another, their movements falling into rhythm without a word.
Sam, Jared, and Paul moved as one.
A newborn lunged for Eleazar from behind, claws outstretched.
They took it apart before it could touch him.
Paul hit first, tackling it low. Jared grabbed an arm and tore it free, while Sam clamped down on its neck and wrenched, ripping the head clean off.
I didn't slow down.
I vaulted over Carlisle as a newborn leapt for him, caught it midair, and bit down hard. My jaws closed around its head, crushing and tearing until it came free. The body hit the ground separately.
Another one came at me from the side.
I swung a paw and sent it flying into a tree hard enough to topple it.
There was no room for hesitation.
No room for mercy.
Just movement, instinct, and coordination.
The clearing was chaos now, blood scent thick enough to make the air feel heavy. Whenever it looked like the newborns started to regain reason, another blood bag would be destroyed and they would once again enter a frenzy.
Wolves and vampires moved together, covering each other's weaknesses, tearing apart anything that crossed into reach.
I landed beside Leah briefly, back to back, and she glanced at me once before turning to take down another newborn with Tanya at her side.
This wasn't clean or elegant.
But it was working.
And the vampire army that had risen from the lake was already shrinking visibly.
…