Bella POV
I must have fallen asleep as I felt warmth penetrate my body. I felt the comfort seep through my skin. I opened my arms and felt... what the hell? I wasn't in the dungeon anymore. How? I heard voices coming towards me. Was that Jake?
"Guys, over here!"
I was pulled off the ground and swooped into Jake's arms. I rested my head on his shoulder. They took me to Emily's. Half way there, I stumbled and found myself being carried bridal style.
"Bella? What the hell happened?"
Hell was about right. Emily ordered Jake to place me in the spare room. She brought in a basin and slowly started washing away the dried blood and the mud. My flesh was covered with bite marks and Sam had to Alpha order Jake from the room. He stormed out of the house and I heard the howl as he phased.
"Don't worry about him. He'll be fine."
I tried to speak but it came out as a croak.
"Don't try to talk Bella. Just lay here. Sam, you need to call the girls and tell them she's safe."
What?
"Sam's gone to call Beth and Faye. They rang here a few days ago, looking for you."
How?
"Three days Bella. That's how long you've been gone. "
Cool hands touched my brow.
"Easy Bella, you've given us all quite a scare. Rest."
I couldn't lie still. My skin was itching. I wanted to claw it off.
And then I heard it. I heard her.
Let me out!
Faye POV
I rushed to the phone as soon as it began ringing. Beth looked up and my hand reached it. "Hello?"
"Faye, this is Sam Uley. I'm calling to let you know that Bella's back." The voice was filled with authority.
"Whatever you do, you have to keep her in La Push. We'll be there ASAP. "
"We'll look after her, don't you worry."
Me worried? Nah! I was terrified.
"Oh and don't let the Cullens have her. That's the last thing she needs."
"We weren't planning on it. Bye."
I felt Bijoux's hand on my arm. I looked down to see wary eyes.
"Is it time?"
I nodded. "Yes, it's time."
We grabbed the bags that had been packed ever since we realised Bella was no longer with us. I knew the Volturi wouldn't let her alone. Their grabbing strategy didn't surprise me.
Bloody cowards.
Beth and Bijoux loaded the truck whilst I mounted my bike. The rev of the engine echoed in the street.
I waved to the others. "See you in Forks."
Forks, Washington, here I come!
Bella POV
I can't sleep.
Every time I close my eyes, I see Francoise.
He's mocking me.
Touching me.
Stroking me.
His hands caress my body.
His touch is like granite.
I want to rip his hands away.
Remove them from my skin.
Let me out!
Sam POV
Bella spent the night twitching and muttering. The Pack and I took it in shifts to watch over her. Emily brought rags to cool her down but soon she found that the skin was hardening. Her skin turned to granite.
Embry came to relieve me just as Emily was serving up lunch. That's when we heard the revs of the engine, right outside the house.
A young woman with blonde hair ran in.
"Is Bella Swan here?"
"Yes, she's upstairs but..."
She was on her way before I could stop her. I heard her enter the room and shove Embry out of the way.
"Move."
Embry argued. "Wait, who are you? What are you doing?"
"She's burning up. I have to get her out of here."
The convulsions spiked.
We all stood helpless as Bella struggled to breathe and started to choke on her own blood. The woman knelt by the bed.
"Bella, Bells, please, stay with me."
She grabbed onto Bella, reaching into her pocket for a syringe and poked it into Bella's side. The convulsions stopped and she was still. From outside, we heard the sound of a truck pulling up beside the house. Two voices followed.
"What happened?"
"She's stable for now but I need to get her out of here. Is there somewhere I can take her? A safe house away from the Cullens?"
"You know about the Cullens?"
"I've always known. It's my job. Please say you know somewhere I can take her?"
There was one place that was relatively private. It was where I had taken Emily a few times, during rare moments of peace.
"I'll show you."
Nodding, she moved to the window and called out, "Beth, get the chains."
"Is that necessary?"
Growling, "Look buddy, less than a minute ago, we were seconds away from Bella going all psychotic on us. So spare me the lecture!"
"But..."
"You may think you're helping but you've never seen a hybrid lose, have you? You know what Bella is and you've seen the bites. Do you honestly think a few days rest will heal her?"
She lifted Bella and made for the stairs. We followed. Stepping outside, we saw a young girl who couldn't be more than thirteen, leaning against the truck. A dark haired girl poked her head out of the back of the truck, taking the now unconscious Bella from the blonde. We heard the clanking of metal against metal as the chains were wrapped around Bella and attached to the wall of the truck.
No-one spoke.
The girl stepped out of the truck.
"We should be good for an hour at most. If she wakes up, she can't do anything."
The blonde spoke. "Good," she motioned to me. "This is Sam Uley, the Alpha. He knows a safe-house. Sam, this is Beth Winters and I'm Faye." She motioned to the younger girl. "This is Bijoux or Jewel as we like to call her. She's Bella's sister."
"We'd appreciate it if Jewel can stay with you whilst we deal with Bella."
The young girl wasn't happy though. "But..."
"The next few days are going to be rough."
"I don't care; you will not separate me from my sister."
"Bijoux please. The last thing any of us want is for you to get hurt. Faye and I can take it. Bella would die if you got hurt."
"But I need her."
"You'll see her soon. Just stay here. We need to know you're safe." Faye's tone was placating.
Emily stepped forward. "We'll look after her."
The older girls nodded. "Thanks."
Bijoux nodded but she didn't look happy. "You won't hurt her, will you?"
Faye retrieved a rucksack from the front of the truck. "Us hurt her? It's more likely that Bella will hurt us."
Beth placed her hands on Bijoux's shoulders. "Be safe and take your medicine." She turned to Emily. "You should know that Jewel has epilepsy. She'll need to lie down for a while. Her medication is in the bag. She's usually very good but look out for her."
I climbed in beside Beth as Faye revved the engine, waiting for my lead.
Later, when Sam returned, he was exhausted. He pulled Emily into his embrace, breathing in her scent. His thoughts turned to Bijoux or Jewel or whatever her name was. Bella's sister.
He whispered. "Where is she?"
"She's in the other room. How bad is it Sam?"
"It's bad. They reckon that the Vampire in her is battling against the wolf. They'll keep us informed but Bijoux or whatever her name is must be kept away."
Emily kissed his cheek. "Don't worry Sam. Bella's strong. She'll get through this."
He breathed in his imprint's scent, calming him. Before pulling away, he motioned to the Pack to follow him. Bijoux sat curled up on the corner of the sofa. Sam cleared his throat. She looks up.
"Bijoux? My name's Sam. I'm a friend of Bella."
"I know who you are. You're Sam Uley right? You brought my sister home in September when Cullen left."
"I did. This is Paul, Jared, Embry, Quil, Leah, her brother Seth and Jake."
"Jake? As in Jacob Black?" Jake nodded. "Bella talks a lot about you."
"She does?"
"She's always saying what a great friend you are and how good you are in bed, though she doesn't know I heard that."
They all laughed and Seth found his eyes drawn to hers. He stood, frozen as her image cemented on his mind. He took in her tiny frame, pale skin that was only a shade darker than Bella's. Her eyes were wide and glowed brightly, like sapphires.
He knew then, that he would be whatever she needed him to be.
Leah's hand on his back brought his attention back to the conversation. Sam hadn't noticed what had happened.
"Really? What else has she told you about us?"
"Only that your Quileute. The legends are true aren't they?"
"How do you know our legends?"
"It's pretty hard not to. After all, I do live with two slayers."
"Slayers? You mean that they were..."
"Those were..."
Bijoux smiled. "Yes, they are the Slayers."
Three days had flown by.
Three long excruciatingly long days.
It had taken less than an hour for Bella to wake up. Finding herself chained, she was less than impressed. The combination of Wolf and Vampire strength did not match the cast iron chains. Besides, they were too busy fighting against each other.
Although Bella had never craved the taste of blood, her inner Vampire had rebelled against the suppression and fought for dominance. The wolf, however, was not willing to concede to its mortal enemy easily.
For twenty-four hours the fight continued taking its toll on Bella. She longed for peace.
The second twenty-four hours, she spent meditating. It helped to cleanse her body, calming the supernatural within enough to be suppressed until required.
Through this, Faye and Beth watched their friend in chains but it was for the best.
After forty-eight hours, Bella gave way to sleep. The Vampire was locked away. The wolf resting. The angel keeping the peace.
She woke up to a pain in her gut. Hunger pains.
During her sleep, Faye and Beth had removed the chains. They were delighted to have their Bella back.
"Welcome back. How are you feeling?"
"Well, aside from my insides turning themselves inside out, I feel good."
Her stomach announced its approval.
"Ready to face the world?"
"Just about. I need to see Bijoux. Make sure she's fine."
"We've kept in touch with the Pack. Don't worry, she's fine."
At Emily's, Bijoux has been waiting all morning. Seth had been content to watch her from a distance. She was so beautiful. Somewhere, deep inside, his wolf rose to the surface.
"Mine."
He watched her stand up suddenly and race to the door. Following close behind, he was in time to see Bijoux throw herself into Bella's arms. His wolf didn't appreciate that his mate was turning to another source for comfort but Seth knew that the girl needed her sister.
"Hey, easy there kid."
"Bella, I was so worried."
"I know. I'm here now. Everything's okay."
The pack filed out, each waiting to pull her into their arms. Jake held on the longest.
"Whoa Jake, it's getting hard to breathe here."
He lifted his head and stared into her eyes. "I'm sorry."
"Why? It wasn't your fault some leeches thought I was good enough to eat."
Her stomach rumbled, lightening the tension.
Emily snapped into full-hostess mode. "Well, come on in, I'll get you something to eat."
Bella POV
"Don't worry about it Emily. I'm ordering Pizza. But you guys are welcome to share."
We stepped inside and I took in the fresh smell of baking. I grabbed a chair, Bijoux sat in my lap.
"Does anyone have any requests?"
"They'll pretty much eat anything."
Perfect.
Faye pulled out the bag I had with me before the Volturi grabbed me. I reached in for my phone and credit card, already dialling. "Hi, I'd like to order for delivery please. Yeah, can I have one medium sized of each Pizza plus one of each side?"
"Don't forget the cookies."
"Did you get that? Can I have one of each dessert as well? How much are we up to? $500."
"Bella, that's too much."
"You're right. I tell you what; give me $200 worth of pizza."
Sam nodded, approvingly.
"$100 worth of desserts, including plenty of cookies." I added on for Bijoux's benefit.
"Bella..."
"And $200 worth of sides and drinks. Card please." I gave the details and the address. When I hung up, I looked up to see the Pack staring at me in awe.
"What?"
"Bella, you do realize you spent nearly five hundred bucks on a takeaway?"
"Yeah and? Is that a problem?"
Quil answered. "No, just cool."
"Well, like I said, you're welcome to join us. If you can't manage it all then we can save the leftovers for another day."
Paul looked confused. "Leftovers, what are leftovers?"
"My point exactly."
It took an hour for the food to get here. By then my stomach was threatening to sue me for neglect. I realised then it had been nearly a week since I've eaten. We invited Kim, little Claire, over as well and when the food arrived, I made sure that they, Emily and Bijoux had their fill before the rest of us hovered it up.
Leaving no leftovers.
It was as we were all finished that I noticed Sam looked tense.
"What is it Sam?"
"I had a phone call today."
"The Cullens?"
"They want to meet at the border tonight."
Sighing, I rolled my eyes. "Of course they do."
Jake reached for my hand. "You don't have to come if you don't want to."
"You know I do Jake but thanks for saying so. What time do we leave?"
"Six."
"Perfect, I'll go straight to Charlie's afterwards."
When six arrived, we were in the clearing of the border line. We had deliberately left early to await the Cullens. They didn't keep us waiting long. Edward was the first to arrive, then Alice and Jasper, Carlisle and Esme, Emmett and Rose. Alice, ever the enthusiast, made to approach me. Jasper held her back. Sam stepped forward.
"As you were the ones to call this meeting, I suggest you state your business so that we can wrap this up quickly."
Edward's eyes met mine. "We were worried about Bella."
Faye and Bijoux snorted. Beth looked amused.
Carlisle, ever the peacemaker, intervened. "I see your group has grown."
Sam snorted. "They're friends of Bella's. Is that all?"
"Not quite. We need to discuss the recent events. We have some theories about who is behind this."
Edward looked frustrated as he looked over at Faye.
"Can you please stop that? It's getting rather annoying."
Faye just smirked. "Hey, if you don't like what you hear then don't try and probe my mind."
Beth turned to her. "What are you thinking?"
Her smile grew. "I know a song that gets on your nerves, gets on your nerves, gets on your nerves, I know a song that gets on your nerves and this is how it goes."
I rolled my eyes. "He's right, it is annoying."
"Mission accomplished."
"I would have gone with oops outside your head."
"Only you Bijoux."
"As fascinating as this is, can we go back to the problem at hand?"
"Pompous ass isn't he?"
"Whatever did you see in him?"
"Can't be his looks, he's too wholesome."
"Can't be his money, you have your own."
"Can't be his sex appeal, he has none."
"Excuse me; I don't think this is an appropriate conversation..."
"Well, I didn't ask if it was."
"What did you see in him?"
"I don't know anymore. But right now, I'm too tired to care. If it's alright with you, we'll reconvene tomorrow at six. Sam?"
"Best idea I've heard all night."
The drive back to Charlie's was quiet. Bijoux nestled closer to me. I opened the door, to see Charlie coming out of the kitchen.
"Hey kiddo."
"Dad."
He pulled me in for a hug and seemed surprised when I wouldn't let go.
"Easy there Bells. I'm not going anywhere."