Meanwhile
He kept running. He loved the wind in his hair, the rain on his nuzzle. Jake was enjoying a relaxing Sunday morning running through the woods. He spent a couple of weeks on the reserve to help Rachel and Paul extend their house. He was desperate to get back to Seattle. He was running to Logan. Just the thought of her still made him inexplicably happy and content. He started running even faster. He was close to the outskirts of the city and ran to his hidden location. A tree large enough to phase back without being noticed. And get dressed. He came out from behind the tree and walked to the parking lot where he left his bike.
He started the engine and headed into the city. He loved riding his old bike almost as much as running the woods as a wolf free of all restraints of his human form. He loved speed. He looked down at the speed dial and realised he was speeding. Only a little... The urge to see prevailed over following traffic rules.
As he approached Logan's street, he slowed right down. He saw Logan's Aprillia 125 parked outside and Caleb's latest purchase: a Triumph Speed Triple. A 'naked' bike, whose only purpose was pure unadulterated fun.
Wow, that's a beautiful bike...what are the chances Caleb will let me ride it? Erm...none.
As he pulled in he saw Logan standing outside, clearly waiting for him.
How does she do this? I mean my Harley is not exactly unique, yet she recognises it every time.
She was standing in her shorts and sweatshirt smiling at him. His heart leapt right into his mouth at the sight of her blue eyes and her smile. Her hair was a mess (as always). It had grown long since they met last fall and she attempted to tame it in a ponytail but failed. She threw her arms around his shoulders, pulled herself up on her toes and kissed him. For a moment they both forgot themselves and continued their kiss for an inappropriate length of time for a respectable residential area.
"Ahem!" Caleb feigned a cough. Neither of them were surprised as this tended to happen pretty regularly. Jake pulled away and gently pushed Logan away from him, still holding her hand. He tried a put on a responsible, adult expression, as he knew all too well that his signature Jake smile did not work on Caleb. His attempt didn't work. Caleb looked pretty annoyed.
"Jake, Logan, I thought we discussed this! Get inside!" Caleb WAS furious.
If I told them once, I told hem a thousand times. I know they're in love but com' on. In the front garden of MY house!!!!
At this particular moment Caleb did not care about imprinting, destiny, the fact that he actually really liked Jake and enjoyed spending hours discussing the latest bike models. And especially could not come to terms with the fact that his little ANGEL went all mushy over a guy. His wife, Frannie, disagreed with him violently. She understood her daughter perfectly.
"Jake, sweetheart, you're here! Poor thing, you must be starved! Get inside, and let me feed you" Frannie cooed at Jake.
Caleb was disgusted.
"Caleb, you just leave them alone! Jake, honey, how's your dad?" Frannie continued to tweet.
"He's great, thanks Frannie. You should come and visit - Rachel would love to see you" Jake tweeted back but was struggling with small talk as the smell of meatloaf tickled his nose. He WAS completely starving. He grabbed Logan around her waist and dragged her towards the food.
"Oh, Jake! You're always hungry! And I bet Emily fed you before you left...." Logan just wanted him to herself but she would have to wait (AGAIN!) while he stuffed his face on her mom's food.
It does smell good though...
and she tucked into the food Frannie placed in front of her.
************
"Finally!" Logan exclaimed and threw herself on her bed. "I finally have you all to myself!"
"Yes, you do...." Jake was equally happy with this result. "Did you have anything in mind that two of us could do, on a Sunday afternoon?" He edged very close to her and brushed his lips suggestively on hers. Logan liked his idea, but if she knew her dad, he was itching for an excuse to come in, so......
"I sure do! But, I'm afraid Caleb wouldn't be too happy....And I have homework to do - wanna help?" she asked eagerly.
Jake was less than enthusiastic about the idea of homework, but doing anything with Logan was fun. So, homework it was - English literature. They were doing Dickens - The Great Expectations. A story about 19th century London society, growing pains, and twisted love.
Thinking about London and twisted love stories...I wonder...He didn't actually expect anything, but it became a bit of a habit to check whether Bells would ever again speak to him. He still missed her just as much as he did in November last year no matter how madly in love he was with Logan. He tried to look casual as he edged towards Logan's laptop.
"Sweetie, do you mind if I check my email? I've been cut off from modern world at Billy's." He flashed the trademark Jake smile he knew made Logan weak at the knees and started logging on. Logan just beamed at him unsuspectingly and nodded. He scanned the list of unread emails. Spam, spam, work, more spam. And then, there it was. The one email he'd been hoping to see for months and months. He shivered with excitement and opened it with lightning speed.
His heart sank. So the Leech finally caught up with her...
And then it sank again. Shit...she knows about Victoria
He kept on reading. He read the short email again. And then one more time.
Hey Jake....It's great to hear from you.... being a friend and keeping me in your heart....... It still hurts so much when I think of what I lost when I left. I lost my best friend....I've missed you........ Until yesterday, that is. Then, I went to see a band, The Firefly.......Edward. ... Leech as you ..... He told me all about you and him, and the pact you had. And Victoria.......emotional blackmail. ...... You lied to me! .....forgive you............ best interest at heart.....rebuild our friendship and start over...
He focused on the last sentence. There was hope there. But he knew that it would probably take a very long time before Bella would fully forgive him for the lies about Victoria. I was so certain that she was my soul mate, that she was the one, I just wanted to protect her and make her happy...with this thought Logan jumped back on the bed with masses of folders and her book clearly ready to kick some English homework butt. Just as she leaned over him with surprising speed, Jake quickly closed his email and hoped she didn't notice anything. He turned to Logan and smiled the best smile he could. She smiled back but looked strained. Damn...not sure I got away with this...
***
Logan was buzzing around the room trying to focus her mind on the task at hand. The Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, the whole 800 pages of it were sitting on her desk. Her own great expectations for this Sunday afternoon were quite different....well as long we are together...she felt a strong surge of happiness and glanced at Jacob.
He just asked something about the laptop but his smile made her a little forgetful, so she wasn't entirely sure what he was doing. In any case, he was deep in thought.
She thought of the last few months since he declared his love to her in Billy's house and Caleb went berserk...It's still a bit intense to think I have a werewolf boyfriend that is completely devoted to me for the rest of my life...a GORGEOUS boyfriend, who's into BIKES! And, he's all mine.
The butterflies in her stomach were back. Concentrate Jones!
She finally grabbed everything she would need - the book, the folders, the notes and she jumped onto the bed behind Jake. He was completely absorbed in reading something on the screen and his face was very serious. Logan peeked over his shoulder and the next moment she felt as if a volcano erupted deep inside. Freakin' Bella! Will that never end! What the hell!
She exhaled deeply and tried to calm down. Just at that moment Jake flashed his signature smile. She couldn't help but smile, but it was strained. The volcano was still bubbling, simmering just under the surface. She felt she could explode at any moment and she continued the conflicting debate of thoughts firing through her mind.
What the hell is he doing writing to her? Why is he still trying to be friends?
Logan, be reasonable...she was not just his girlfriend, she was his best friend...
I don't care!!!! I just want him for myself! And besides, she always loved the freakin' vampires more!
Com' on Jones, be an adult.
She finally relaxed. This was helped significantly by Jake's long kiss. No fair....but she didn't really care. When they finally parted lips, she almost completely forgot why she was angry in the first place.
"OK sweetie, time to do the homework..." Jake was trying to be the responsible adult when he was sure that Logan was happy again. He grabbed her notes. "So, we need to write an essay about the character of Miss Havisham..." He tried hard to be enthusiastic, but he was never into reading much. However, years of living with Bella and her books, he picked up quite a lot. And Bella read A LOT of Dickens. So Miss Havisham should not be a problem.
Logan nodded and was ready to get this done. The sooner we finish, the sooner we can go out on the bikes....
*****
By the time she finished typing the final sentence of her book report, Logan was exhausted. It was late and it was getting dark outside. Damn...
Jake was asleep on the bed beside her. She nudged him and he moaned softly. He opened his eyes.
"Sorry babe, I guess I really was tired. You done? Wanna go riding?" he asked softly. Logan pointed at the window.
"It's dark outside..." She tried to hide her disappointment. And didn't succeed.
"Oh, that's too bad...we'll go tomorrow. 'K? Listen, I'm gonna go. Gotta be at work early and I clearly need to sleep. I doubt that Caleb would let me stay, no matter how many times I promise to be responsible and pledge my love and devotion to you" He started getting up, stroking Logan's cheek.
His phone buzzed and started ringing. Sam's special, pack business only, ultra-urgent ring tone. He jumped off the bed and grabbed the phone quickly.
"Sam?" His senses sharpened and he felt that tingling sensation before phasing. He could smell the cigarette smoke that little Mike was trying to hide from his parents 4 houses up the road. He could also hear that Caleb was once again ranting at the latest Bloomberg market report from his study. And, he could definitely sense trouble.
"Jake, we have serious trouble. Get back here as soon as you can." Sam stated urgently.
"What happened?" Jake was dreading the answer.
"I'll tell you when you phase. Just get here quickly". Sam responded and hung up.
Jake closed his phone and got up to leave. Logan looked completely panicked. He realised that all of this must have sounded quite ominous. There was really no trouble since they killed Victoria all those years ago and in the last few months hardly any point in even phasing (except that he loved being a wolf!). He owed her an explanation, but he didn't even know what to tell her. So, the truth was the easiest option. And besides, she had an uncanny capability to figure things out even if he didn't tell her...
"It's Sam, something's wrong and he wants me back in La Push. I don't know why though. I gotta go now." Her beautiful blue eyes widened even more in fear. And that made him feel more anxious than any trouble waiting for him in La Push. He wanted to stay and protect her more than anything else. But he had no choice. The Alpha summoned him and he had to go.
Logan didn't have a chance to say anything as he left the room at lightning speed. He shouted goodbye to Caleb and Frannie on his way out and left. As he was getting ready to ride out of their carport, Logan ran out to him and squeezed him tight.
"Come back to me safe and sound. You hear?" And then she ran back into the house.
****
He started to run back to La Push. As soon as he phased he could hear the muddle of thoughts from Leah, Sam, Paul and the others. He was right. It was the worst kind of trouble. Vampires were back and these ones were new. He sensed confusion from the pack.
"Sam, what the hell is happening?" Jake spoke to Sam.
"We got leeches. And not the Cullen kind. Get to the Cullen house double quick." Sam 'spoke' back.
Jake shuddered at the thought of what this could mean to La Push and Forks. Even with a pack as big as theirs, if they have unknown vampires, there was likely to be collateral damage with innocent people dying. Nevertheless, the potential of a proper fight exhilarated him more than he was prepared to admit to himself. And so he started to run as fast as he could.
When he arrived at the Cullen's house, most of the pack was there. They were all standing in front of the Cullen door looking at something. As he approached them he saw there was something written on the door in blood red. He could finally read the red spidery writing clearly
The secret is sacred. V
"What the hell is that?" Jacob blurted out. Sam looked back at him and shrugged his shoulders.
"It seems to be a message for the Cullens. And whoever wrote this doesn't seem too happy with them. And they are not aware that they have not lived here for years." Sam looked worried.
"Freakin' Leeches!" Paul shouted. "They are bringing trouble to us even when they are not around! We should have killed them all! We never should have trusted them in the first place!" He was having trouble controlling his temper and started to tremble.
"Paul ENOUGH! You're not helping!" The Alpha growled at Paul and he backed down. Sam looked at Jacob.
"Jake, you wouldn't happen to know anything about this?" Jake stared at Sam in disbelief.
"What do you mean? How the HELL should I know what this is about? The last time I saw the Cullens was when we dealt with that crazy Victoria and her bloodsucking freaks!" He was not impressed with what Sam implied.
"OK, calm down Jake. I had to ask, you know? Whoever they are, they don't seem to care about any treaties we had with the Cullens. These guys are not 'vegetarians'. Charlie Swan came to Billy's house to warn about wild animal attacks in the area. A couple of hikers disappeared in the area. Found their bodies mauled and drained of blood. Sound familiar?"
Sam was reminding them of when James and Victoria passed the area. And when Victoria was hunting for Bella.
"We need to find out who and how many. And what they want here." With that Sam split the pack and they began the patrol of the area.
*****
"We got nothing. The scent disappeared going north as soon as we left the local woods. Whoever it was searched the immediate area around Forks and didn't go north." Sam, Paul and Colin returned empty handed.
"Us too. We picked up 2 different scents around Forks, went south and then nothing" Leah, Quil and Jared had the same result.
"They went east." Jake's search party (Seth, Quil and Embry) was more successful. "But, I think they drove - the scent was very weak. We went way out east and they kept going that way."
"I'm not happy with this. We still don't know what they wanted or if they will come back." Sam was thinking out loud. Then he exhaled deeply and shook his head.
"I can't believe that I'm saying this, but it would actually be really useful if we could get in touch with the Cullens...." The pack looked at him in disbelief. Jake looked at his feet and shuffled uncomfortably. That did not go unnoticed.
"Jake?" Sam called and now the whole pack was staring at him.
Shit, shit, shit, shit.......Damn!
"Jake? If you have something to share, now would be a good time." Sam continued more forcefully.
"Erm...I may be able to get a hold of Edward..." Jake mumbled.
"What? You just said that you didn't have any contact with the Cullens since we killed Victoria!!!!" Paul was getting angry again.
"Jake, have you spoken to Edward? Aw man, you should have told me, I would love to speak to him again. You know he's in a band? They're really good. I mean that guy can write really good music!" Seth Clearwater, still the youngest of the pack blurted out naively. And now the attention of the whole pack turned to him.
"Come again? Edward Cullen is in a band? The freakin' leech sings?" Sam was getting very irritated with the fact his pack seemed to know more about the Cullens that he did and they never shared any of this. "You guys better come clean now! TALK!!!"
"Calm down, Sam!" Jake raised his voice. The two of them were facing off. The alpha genes in Jake were stirring up and challenging Sam.
"I said that I MAY be able to get in touch with him. Yup, he seems to be in a band - The Firefly - dunno anything else...don't really follow that stuff. Bella told me. Anyway, they found each other by chance. Bella went to their concert in London. And Edward told her everything about Victoria and our pact with him." The pack continued staring at him.
"What, she called you? For a little heart to heart?" it was Leah's turn to taunt him. Wow, thanks Leah!
"No, she replied to my email. I've been sending her emails hoping that she would respond. She usually doesn't but this time she did. OK? Anything else you want to know about my personal life? Can we please focus?" Jake was irritated with the teasing and the third degree.
"OK...let's think about this. Getting in touch with Bella may our best bet. Seth, do you have any other insight into the Cullens you may want to share? Does the psychic one have a TV show by any chance?" Sam was still not completely calm.
"No, I mean, I don't think so. And, you know, I just found out about Edward like a month ago. It's not like I'm on his facebook...I mean this band is just released their first album... they are like the next big thing. They were pretty big on MySpace. And Edward is using his old name - Edward Mason... They are based in Chicago and just touring Europe...." Seth kept reporting the facts on Firefly hoping that would redeem himself and appease Sam.
"Chicago? Well maybe that's where our visitors went. Hm...maybe they know about this band and they were looking for the Cullens to warn them about keeping the secret? Secret of what? Vampires?" Sam was thinking out loud again.
"Jake, you contact Bella, try to get hold of Edward. We also need to snoop around a little to find out about where the Cullens went from here. Surely the doctor would have left a forwarding address for the next hospital or something. We NEED to get a hold of the them."
Sam once again divided the pack, but this time their pursuit was of a more digital kind. Seth was to look at any contact details for the band, and to look if any other Cullens were doing the celebrity thing. Leah would speak with Charlie about getting Bella's phone number in London. Sam, Jared and Paul would ask around Forks. The rest of the pack was to patrol constantly.
******
The short summer night was ending and the sun was rising. Jake was running back to Seattle again much like the day before but mixed feelings. He ran slowly, trying to think of how he would write to Bella.
As he was approaching Seattle and his secret tree, it occurred to him that he automatically assumed that Bella and Edward would stay together. What if Bella didn't forgive Edward and told him to get lost? Somehow, he doubted that. No matter how much he hated the Leech's guts, he knew that Edward was just as devoted to Bella as Jake was now devoted to Logan and that Edward wouldn't give her up easily now that he found her again. And Jake remembered just how much Bella once loved Edward. So, he was pretty sure that even if she didn't want to go back to Edward, he would stick around. Therefore, writing to her to get to him made sense. Still it would not be simple.
As he was riding his Harley through the streets of Seattle, he realised another thing. All of the events, both good and bad, in his life for the last eight years, were completely determined by a single event - Bella Swan falling in love with Edward Cullen.
Even the trouble that was brewing right now. And he hoped all of them would get their happy ending.