Tidal Wave

[25]

Bella sat at the Cullen's dining table, staring down at her laptop with a heavy heart. She had hit a dead end in her search for answers She had scoured the internet and read every book she could find, but nobody seemed to know anything about the missing mermaids.

Edward sat beside her, his hand resting on hers as he tried to comfort her. But Bella couldn't shake the feeling that something important was missing, that there was a piece of the puzzle she still hadn't found.

Suddenly, an idea struck her. "What if we go into the water?" she blurted out, looking up at Edward with a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "Maybe we can find other mermaids or even see the queen. Maybe they can tell us something we don't know."

Edward's expression was skeptical. "It's too dangerous, Bella. We don't know what we might find down there. And they'll be able to sense my presence. It could make things worse."

Bella understood his concerns, but she couldn't let go of the idea. "What if there's a way to hide your vampire-ness? Like a plant or something?"

Carlisle, who had been sitting at the other end of the table, suddenly spoke up. "Actually, that's not a bad idea. There are plants that can mask a vampire's scent. I could ask Renee if she knows of any."

Bella's heart leapt at the mention of her mother's name. She had been avoiding speaking to Renee since she found out the truth about her past, but she knew that she had to face her eventually.

Without hesitation, she picked up her phone and dialed her mother's number. "Renee? Can you come over to the Cullens' house? We need to talk."

Renee arrived half an hour later, her face grave as she entered the living room. "What's going on?" she asked, looking between Bella and the Cullens.

Bella took a deep breath and launched into the story, telling Renee about the failed attempt at researching. Renee listened quietly, her eyes sad as she took it all in.

Finally, Bella got to the part about going into the water to look for answers. "But Edward can't come with me," she said, looking up at her mother. "They'll be able to sense him. Is there anything we can do to hide his scent?"

Renee hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Actually, there is something you should know about your gift, Bella. The Queen has the ability to transform from a human to mermaid at will. And she can do it to anyone, not just herself."

Bella's eyes widened as she realized what her mother was saying. "You mean... I have that power too?"

Renee nodded. "Yes. It's a very rare gift, and we didn't want to draw any attention to it. That's why we never told you before. But now that you know everything, there's no reason to hide it from you."

Emmett let out a whoop of excitement. "Hell yeah! I wanna be a mermaid!"

Renee chuckled. "I'm not sure if it will work on a vampire, Emmett. But we can try."

Bella and Edward exchanged a look, both of them feeling a sense of relief and excitement at the prospect of finding out more. Maybe this was the key to finding out what was really going on with the mermaids.

Renee warned Bella to keep a low profile and to try not to draw attention to herself. "Get in quickly, find out what you need to know, and get out," she said.

Bella nodded, feeling more determined than ever. "Let's do this," she said, standing up and grabbing her bag. Edward followed suit, and together they headed out the door.

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