"Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it's thinking of yourself less."

Rick Warren

"Sam!"

A scream woke me from descent the first sleep I'd managed to grab in days (maybe since the day Red had stayed on my couch). I was up and out of bed before I'd really even opened my eyes, hauling ass out the door and to my mothers house. Momma wasn't home, and neither were the girls; she'd taken them to visit her sister in Hoaquim for the night. But Red was there, and she was alone.

Pushing open the back door to momma's kitchen, I found myself ducking a coffee cup. It smashed against the door frame, raining ceramic across the floor. I sniffed at the air, but found no scent of vampire, just the smell of adrenalin and anger; all familiar, all Red.

"Oh shit! "Red stood on the other side of the kitchen, in clingy little night clothes that caused me no little pause, armed now with a frying pan. . "Oh no you don't, you creepy bastard," she screeched, yanking me back out of my sleepy daze.

"Aw sugar, come on now," a male voice said from just out of eye sight. Suddenly, I was on fire with adrenalin, violent anger welling up inside me like a volcano. I pushed into the kitchen, wincing as Red swung a frying pan with surprising force. It caught my fathers jaw, sending him sprawling against the fridge. Rushing forward, I grabbed the pan out of Red's hand before she could hit him again, pulling her close against me.

"Hey shhh," I breathed, mouth pressed over her ear, feeling her shake. I could smell the fear on her as the adrenalin faded away; she was fucking terrified, and not without reason. A strange man had broken into the house, and who the fuck knew what he did then. "Shh, Red, I'm here. I've got you," I said in a rush, pressing the words right into her hair. "It's okay, it's okay. It's Josh, it's my dad. You're safe, okay."

"Sam," she breathed, spinning in my arms. Red wrapped herself around me tears clinging to her cheeks where she buried her face against my chest. I could feel her shaking with the force of my own trembles, and sucked in a long deep breath before looking up from Red.

Looking up over her head, I glared at Joshua Uley. "What the hell are you doing here? What did you do?"

Blinking back at me over the counter as he cupped his bruised jaw, Josh frowned. "She was in Helena's bed; how the hell was I suppose to know it wasn't your mother?"

An angry smile twisted up at my mouth as I imagined him touching Red. "And you make it a regular point to break into the house and climb in bed with mom?" I asked, deep and dangerous. Red's head had peeked up, peering at Josh over her shoulder.

"Now Sam," Josh replied, his tone taking on an authoritative edge I just did not appreciate this late in life. "What your momma does is her business. She's a full grown woman."

Never taking my eyes off him I addressed my questions Red, hands still curled around her waist protectively. "Did he touch you, Red?"I asked, feeling her shiver against me. She said nothing, but that was enough for me. "I'm going to kill you," I snarled at Josh, watching him swallow hard and press back up against the counter.

"Sam," Red said, looking up at me now. Instantly the tables turned, her voice turning quiet and calm, soothing me. "Hey. I'm okay. He really didn't know it was me. He just uh...he grabbed my ass. That was it. Over the clothes. Over the blanket, I swear. But it scared me. I didn't...Helena didn't say-"

"He touched you," I replied, my own voice taking on that cave-man edge I'd fought to keep in check for some few weeks now. Faint bruises marked blossomed at her wrist where he must have grabbed her, trying to stop her tiny assault. He'd hurt her and scared her; coupled with the fact that I just didn't like him... I was just to close to the wolf these days to want to let it go.

Tightening my hold on her, hearing the breath escape her in shock, I crushed her against my chest, arms trembling. I needed all those points of contact, needed as much of her against me as I could, to keep from flying apart. "He hurt you. I'm going to kill him." I could feel the wolf clawing up my throat, and the only thing in that moment that was keeping me from phasing was her, her hold on me both physically and emotionally. "You got lucky last time, Josh. Were you scared then? When you saw what I became? I didn't even know it was possible, I didn't even know it was a bed time story, Dad. But there I was, the big bad wolf. Did it scare you? I'm even bigger now." I didn't even sound like myself as I growled out the words, tasting blood in my mouth as I bared my teeth.

I felt her hand snake up my chest to cup my jaw, tugging me down to her. I was so angry, so washed in red that it took me a moment to recognize what she was doing. She was kissing me, pressing her mouth against my own with no regard for my father. My hands flew to cup her face, and I was just too close to the wolf to keep from licking my way into her mouth with a growl.

She pulled back with a gasp, blinking up at me with bright eyes and big pupils. "You should um...uh...not kill any one, okay? Are you better now?" She managed to ask, shaking her head. She looked frazzled, eyes wide and blinking, but I was more interested in staring at her kiss-bruised mouth. "You're not shivering any more."

So she'd kissed me to distract me. As far as distractions went, it was a good one, but the very fact wasn't anything short of disappointing.

"You must be Bella," Josh said, pulling my eyes back to him. His eyes were on her, narrowed and thoughtful. I didn't think my momma would tell Josh what she as to me, but the basics were probably obvious. That didn't stop his eyes from traveling down her half naked body. "You just like Renee," he said to her ass. For one horrified moment my brain shut down and I feared that Red was my sister too. Quickly forcing myself to rationalize that crazy train, I sucked in a sharp breath. If she was my sister, Jacob would have for sure imprinted on her. I was mostly sure you couldn't imprint on your own sibling, at any rate.

My hand slid down from her back at once, over the round swell of her cheek, to cup where thigh met ass. It was a possessive gesture, covetous and greedy. She squeaked, glaring up at me but I ignored it. I'd pay for it later if necessary, but if my dad was going to look at her ass, all he was going to see was my hand firmly planted there. "What do you want, Josh? Momma isn't here." I wouldn't be telling him where she was, however. My aunt didn't care for him in the slightest, but things like that had hardly ever mattered to Josh. Obviously.

"I see that," he replied, with somewhat of a smirk. "She didn't tell me that she's be out this weekend, or that she had a...a room mate."

"You don't come here," I growled, fingers clenching."You're not welcomed here." Red squeaked again, cheeks heating up against my chest. If my fingers had snuck up beneath the hem of her little shorts, well I didn't feel like could be blamed. They were very tiny shorts. I wasn't entirely sure I could take my hand of her ass, at this point.

"I'm a Quileute Elder," Josh snapped at me, lifting his chin. He was the youngest of the Elders, actually, holding the least amount of rank. I held more rank than him; to be fair, I held more rank than any one really. "It's for the chief to decide if I'm welcomed."

I stared at him. Red turned in my arms to stare at him too, both of us with blank, blinking expressions. How could he not even know? I was his son for fucks sake. But that had never mattered to him, nor had the Rez or the Tribe or any of it. It didn't surprise me in the least that he didn't know I'd been made chief, though it did surprise me that my momma hadn't told him. She'd have her reasons, I was sure, but at the moment, all I could do is stare.

"What are you really doing here?" I asked instead, with no growl in my voice, forcibly detaching myself from the wolf. I focused on Red, and the press of her body against mine. It was enough to distract me from murder at any rate.

Josh sighed, looking up at me with a black eye and a bloody mouth. Red had really handed him his ass. I squeezed her again, inordinately proud of the sheer fight in her, and ignored her muffled squeak entirely. "I just want to see my girls," he said with a shrug. It would have sound more heartfelt if I knew for a fact that he meant my Momma, and by 'see' he probably meant 'see her naked'. "I want to come home, Sam."

"This is not your home," I snapped, shaking my head at him. "This has never been your home. This house is a pit stop to you."

"Not this house," Josh explained. "The Rez. The Tribe. I want to come home, I want to take my place on the Council, be here for the girls and Helena. I want to come back."

"No."

"It's not your place to decide," Josh replied stubbornly, and he was right. Even as chief, this I didn't control. "I'm bringing it up with the council."

"You do that," I seethed, rage welling again. "But don't think-" Red slapped my chest to get my attention. "What?"

"Kwo'okilcha!" she said in slightly mangled Quileute, earning similar blank stares from both my father and I. "It's...it's a law, right? An old law for redemption. It was in the books, the journals Billy gave me. He's wronged the tribe. He can't be welcomed back without redemption. I think it's an older version of what the council did when I-"

"Now see here little girl, don't be getting into business that ain't yours," Josh began angrily. "You are not Quileute, just because your his-"

"She's right," I cut him off, burning him with a heated glare. "It's a law, an old law, and I know that you are not unfamiliar with it." It was a three fold law, just as Red's own punishment had been. He'd be forced to admit his wrongs before the council and Tribe. We'd judge him against his admittance. His redemption was up to him; he simply had to say it and mean it. It was simple, and not exactly a punishment. I'd always thought it was more a form of public embarrassment then anything else; or public apology. However you wanted to spin it, it was all about humility, something my father was sorely lacking. It dated back when pride was worth more then gold to a man, and though times had chanced, my father did hold his pride in high regard. Mostly though, it meant that if the Council voted him down, he could never return to the Rez.

So the deflated look he gave me was not surprising. Even Josh himself wasn't unaware of what a massively disappointing liar he was.

"What crimes?" He asked, but before I could tell him that was for him to decide, Red cut me off with her own snarl.

"Crimes against Michelle and Embry Call," she spat at him, turning fully in my arms. I held her tight, even as she struggled. "Every one knows. Every one know since he phased-"

Josh sucked in a breath, eyes widening. "Embry phased?"

"Yes he did, from the gene you gave him," I told him angrily. "So who knows, in ten years, we might have twin werewolves, Josh. You can be the proud papa of a whole fucking litter, half my damn pack. I'm sure that's exactly what you wanted when you knocked mom up again. Actually, be honest here, are there any more? Any more kids I need to be worrying about? Do I need to visit Hoquaim? Or wherever else you've been fucking people over?"

"Girls don't-"

"Leah Clearwater would say otherwise," I replied bitterly. "You want back in the tribe? Fine. You'll have your hearing. As is my right as Alpha of our Pack, I can arrange it. For tomorrow."

"Tomorrow-"

"Tomorrow, so no skipping town," I cut him off, pointing to the living room. "You can sleep on it. You know the law, so make it good." With an arm still curled around Red, I headed for the door. "Things have changed around here Josh. This isn't the Rez you remember."

tbc