Lost in Translation

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to Stephanie Meyer.

A/N-thank you for the kind reviews. Nikki

Part Two-Katie

Bella felt the many hostile eyes shoot her way as she approached the council chambers. Everyone was already gathered in little groups outside, waiting for that star of the show to arrive. They obviously hadn't expected Jacob to bring her with him. Bella swallowed nervously as she hid behind Jacob's tall frame. She felt his fingers curl around her own and squeeze gently as they headed straight for Billy. "Dad." Jacob said a little formerly as he greeted his father.

Bella watched as Billy tried to hide his surprise upon seeing her accompany his son. "I didn't know you were visiting La Push today?" His eyes turned onto Jacob's as he frowned a little. "We have a ceremony going on." He hesitated a moment as Jacob's eyes darkened before ploughing on. You could cut the atmosphere with a knife. "Perhaps you could..."

"Find Bella a seat." Jacob locked eyes with his father and stared him down. "Is that what you were going to say?" The challenge in his voice was obvious. Bella wanted a hole to open up and swallow her. Why had he brought her here? She wasn't welcome. As far as the pack and the elders were concerned they had done their job, her life had been saved, and they no longer had to put up with her presence. What was Jacob thinking? He hadn't even told them he had invited her. Of course they would have refused immediately to let an outsider, as they still termed her, witness such an intimate ceremony.

"I think I should go." Bella kept her voice low as she avoided the many staring eyes. No one said a word, there was no greeting, not even from Embry or Quil, who had been some of her biggest supporters beside Jacob himself. Bella saw Sam glaring at Jacob from the corner of her eye. He was standing rigidly next to his imprint, Emily. As for Emily herself she looked absolutely furious as did Kim, Jared's imprint. The only one who seemed at all happy to see her was little Claire. She failed to notice the chill in the air and was waving at Bella.

Jacob's hold on her hand tightened, stopping her from moving. "No." His eyes travelled around the group. He stared each person down until they dropped their eyes to the floor. Only Sam and the elders met his cold gaze, although they refrained from saying anything. He then turned his attention back to a visibly distressed Bella, his face softening as he smiled at her gently. "Head inside. Emily and Kim will go with you. Wont you?" His eyes hardened again as he glared at the imprints.

Sam was about to say something but Emily put her hand on his arm and whispered quietly to him. Whatever she said it calmed him down. She then nodded at Bella before heading inside, followed hastily by Kim. They didn't bother waiting for Bella. Jacob was pissed, Bella could see the tension written in every line of his body. She wished that she could just flee this place and go home. Her nerves were hanging by a thread, and it was only out of respect for him that she stayed. She felt him touch her arm gently and she glanced up at him. "Go inside. We'll all be in soon." He leaned closer and placed a gentle kiss on the top of her head. Immediately there were horrified murmurings. Bella's face flushed red as she hurried away from the many accusatory eyes and stumbled into the council chambers, grateful for the shadows which hid her from the view of others.

Bella sat between Emily and Kim, silently wishing that she was anywhere else but here. The two women were frosty and hardly spoke. The others had finally began to file into the hall, and as each person passed her, Bella felt them staring at her as if she was an interloper of the worst kind. She supposed she was. She had fraternised with their enemy, the cold ones. As Paul had christened her long ago, she was a leech lover. The girl who had dragged the protectors down a slippery slope toward doom. It had only been pure luck and innate cunning that saved them. Her worst crime of all was stealing the attention of the future leader of the tribe, the chief protector of La Push. Bella sank lower and lower in her seat as the hall filled. When the last person finally made themselves comfortable she let out a long held breath.

"The whole ceremony will be in Quileute." Emily spoke for the first time. Her tone was cool and not friendly in the least. "I will not have time to translate any of it for you, if that's what you were hoping."

"No." Bella felt perspiration bead on her forehead. She was beginning to feel very hot and uncomfortable. "I can assure you I was thinking nothing of the kind."

Emily pursed her lips and stayed silent for a moment as if she was mulling over whether to continue speaking. The scars on her face shone silver under the bright lights, and her dark eyes brooded as she once again regarded Bella with hostility. "Let me give you some friendly advice, Bella." She whispered, sounding anything but. "See that girl over there." She pointed toward a young woman who was sitting in the front row next to Old Quil. "That's Katie."

"Katie?" Bella echoed her. She had never heard the name before. The girl herself was a beauty. Her long, black hair shone as it swept around her slim shoulders. Her dark brown eyes were framed with lush lashes and she had the most perfect pout Bella had ever seen. She shrank in on herself and slid further down in her seat.

Emily seemed pleased at seeing Bella cringe. She smiled maliciously as she continued to speak. "Yes, Katie is a member of Old Quil's family. She has been away at college and has recently returned. She and Jacob are very much an item these days. She has been tutoring him on tribal history, preparing him for his future role as Chief. You can just picture them together, can't you?" Emily's smile widened. "She would make him the perfect wife...I mean." She paused again as her eyes looked Bella up and down. "Katie is beautiful, brainy, and very domesticated by all accounts, and of course she is one of our own." The last sentence was a deliberate barb, Bella knew it. Emily put her hands in her lap and said no more. She had done what she had set out to do, put Bella in her place and showed her that she did not belong in La Push in any shape or form.

The ceremony seemed to go on forever. As Emily had taken great joy in pointing out, it was all in Quileute, so Bella did not understand one word of what was going on. Jacob was paraded before each elder and exchanged vows in his own language. Katie had obviously done her job tutoring him well. He spoke fluently and confidently as he answered each question, and by the end when he faced Sam and finally took on his role as Chief protector of the tribe, Bella could feel the power emanating from him. She noticed he turned and shot Katie a grateful glance before he exchanged a few words with Sam. Bella felt her skin go cold and her heart beat erratically in her chest as she realised that Emily had not been baiting her about Katie. Her words had been true. She felt like a fool. Jacob had not mentioned Katie to her at all.

Bella was grateful when the ceremony came to an end. The atmosphere in the hall was cloying and she longed for some fresh air. She was one of the first outside and breathed in the frigid air, filling her lungs to capacity as she tried to get her whirling emotions under control. She had never felt so forlorn in her life, and that was saying something considering what she had been through. Bella now longed to escape and go home. She knew for certain now that she didn't belong here at all. In the distance she saw Jacob exit the chambers. Katie was walking close by his side, one hand on his arm, as she smiled up at him proudly. Her dark eyes were lambent, and full of adoration as she hung on his every word. Bella felt the blood drain from her body as she saw Jacob laugh at something Katie had said. They seemed so at ease with each other, so in synch. Bella felt her misery swirl around her like a cloak. She began to edge away from the others, hoping to slip off silently before anyone noticed. But before she could move too far, Billy blocked her path. She sighed a little, her arms crossing her stomach as she tried to muster up a smile for Jacob's father. "It was a great ceremony." She said lamely.

Billy's eyes were full of pity, which made Bella feel even worse. He forced a smile onto his own face and reached out to take hold of her hand. "I hope you didn't feel that I didn't want you there, Bella." He said kindly. His touch was warm and it reminded Bella of Jacob. "Its just that as you noticed the whole thing was in our language and I felt that perhaps you would find it hard to follow."

"Your language is beautiful." Bella murmured. She really didn't want to engage in conversation. She just wanted to flee this place. La Push had at one time felt like her second home, now she knew she had been deluding herself. She had been tolerated here, not welcomed. Her only tangible connection to the place was Jacob, and now she was even losing that. She glanced his way again to see that he was preoccupied with Katie still. He hadn't even looked her way once. Bella wondered why he had even wanted her here? Had it been through a sense of guilt? Perhaps as his relationship with this Katie evolved, his guilt over what to do about her was the only thing keeping him in her life. She knew that Jacob would not leave her until he thought she could cope alone. He was loyal like that. Bella felt a lump come into her throat as she heard Billy continue speaking as if from a distance.

"Are you alright, Bella?" Billy asked for the third time. He saw Bella's sad eyes trained on his son; he could almost read the thoughts going through her head. "Bella?" He said again.

"Sorry, what did you say?" Bella tore her eyes away from Jacob and turned her attention back to Billy. There was the pity in his eyes again. She recoiled from him and stepped back. "Um...I have a headache. Um...could you tell Jake that I went on home." She swallowed down the bile in her throat. "Tell him...tell him that I thought the ceremony was great, he was great. Yeah, tell him thanks for everything. That I'm really grateful for everything he has done for me..."

"Bella..." Billy tried to stop her as he saw the tears shining in her eyes. But she was too fast for him. He watched in consternation as she stumbled away from him until she disappeared into the distance.

The taxi dropped her off at home. Bella climbed out and handed the driver the fare. "Are you alright, love?" He asked her.

Bella knew she must look ill if even a stranger expressed concern over her welfare. "I'm fine, thank you." She flashed him what she hoped was a reassuring smile before running up the porch steps. Thankfully she heard the taxi pull away. She was finally alone. Bella fumbled with her keys as she opened the door and slammed it behind her. Now she could breathe. She leaned against the door and let the tears fall silently down her face. All she could see was Jacob's animated face as he spoke intimately to Katie, their faces close together with matching smiles. Seeing it replayed before her eyes hurt. It hurt badly. Bella struggled to catch her breath as she slid down the door until she hit the floor. She stayed there for a long time, her knees drawn up to her chest, as she cried.

It was thirst which drove her to the kitchen. She forced herself back onto her feet and slowly walked toward the fridge. She picked out a juice bottle and pulled up a chair so she could sit down. That's when she saw it. The name SMYTHE, PEASON AND ASSOCIATES jumped out at her like an arrow to the heart. Bella actually put her hand on her chest as it squeezed painfully with fear. When had this arrived? She had hoped never to hear from them again, but it seemed they were not going to leave her in peace. She had a sudden urge to burn the letter and pretend she hadn't seen it. Today had been bad enough as it was, she wasn't sure that she could cope with amymore pressure. But another, deeper part of her was curious what this letter contained. The creamy envelope was thicker then the last one. She picked it up and shook it a little. To her surprise she heard a slight rattle inside.

In the end curiosity won over fear. She ripped the envelope open with trembling hands and upended the contents onto the table. A key fell out along with several pieces of thick paper. Bella stared at it for a moment before picking up the first sheet of paper and scanning the contents. Her eyes widened the more she read, and her heart constricted in her chest. This couldn't be true? There was more than just the money in the deposit account. The other papers were copies of deeds of an expensive property in New Hampshire, and the key belonged to a security deposit box which housed all of Edward's mothers jewellery. Once again the solicitors urged her to get in contact. If she wanted she could take the money, take the house and begin a whole new life. A life away from Forks, away from her dad, away from La Push and away from Jacob.

As his name entered her head she paused. He had warned her against taking the money, and she had agreed. But now after seeing him with Katie and realising where his future lay, things were different. The only thing holding him back in his life was his worry over her welfare. But now that was no longer a problem. She had enough to support herself for life. She could go anywhere, do anything. Jacob would finally be free of the burden she had placed on him for the last few years. He could begin a new life with Katie, happy in the knowledge that she was safe. She ignored the sick feeling welling in her gut at the thought of losing him from her life. Bella knew she could no longer be selfish. This was her chance to give Jacob back his life. She could secretly donate a big chunk of the money to the reservation. That would in part pay them back for all they had sacrificed over the years. She could set up a fund for Billy and give some to her dad. Charlie deserved to live an easier life. Maybe he could retire a little earlier? Vague plans began to form in her head as she found herself reaching for the phone and dialling the number for Smythe, Pearson and Associates.

A/N-thank s for reading!