Disclaimer: Twilight belongs to Stephenie Meyer not me.
Author/Note 1: This story is the sequel of Our Dawn 5. For the ones who don't know anything about Our Dawn Series, you can always read Our Dawn 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, and Our Dawn Series Specials but if you don't want to bother I have a resume on my profile page. As it would be expected this is a next generation story and as such, it's focused on Jake and Leah's children.
A/Note 2: A huge thank you for everyone who reviewed Our Dawn Series so far.
A/Note 3: I'm not a native English speaker so I'm sorry for my grammar and spelling. Thank you for reading.
Alpha
Book III – The Challenger
William Black
36. Spring Waltz & Vader
I woke up with the sound of a smooth melody that made me want to throw up that instant. What the hell was that? Was I in a fucking funeral?
I looked around and realised I was in my bedroom. The window was open and the sun was shining outside, which was odd because the sun rarely shone in this part of the state of Washington. I sat down on the bed trying to get used to the light. My body ached. It was almost as if I had been running the marathon.
That's when Isaac came inside the bedroom. He looked at me completely in shock and then he approached the bed and hugged me. In that moment I knew I was probably dreaming.
"Fuck!" He exclaimed pulling back. "You're awake!"
I eyed him suspiciously. First it was strange hearing my younger brother cursing like that. Second it was not usual for other people except for Harry and me to walk inside our bedroom unannounced. And third I had no idea why my brother had hugged me and looked so damn happy that I was awake.
"Of course I'm awake, you idiot!" I said matter-of-factly. "And what the hell is this music?"
"Spring Waltz by Chopin." He replied. "It's a bit slow but it's a nice song, don't you think?"
"It makes me want to puke." I confessed.
"I did tell Sarah this was a bad idea." He said turning off the music to my relief.
"This was Sarah's idea?" I was a little bit confused. Why the hell would my teenage sister want me to hear classic music when she knew I was more into rock and metal?
"You've been out for almost four days."
I stared at Isaac for a few seconds thinking that he was probably messing with me. I couldn't have been sleeping for the last four days, could I?
"Four days? Are you kidding me?"
He nodded negatively.
"Come on Isaac. Do you really want me to believe that?"
"It's the truth."
"Are you serious?"
"Pretty serious." He assured me. "When you didn't wake up, Sarah searched online and there was a website about coma patients that said that sometimes classic music helps, so she downloaded a bunch of classic music for you." Isaac smiled. "You might not like it, but it looks like it worked."
"Of course it worked. How can someone sleep listening to this crap?"
Isaac just shrugged. "It's not that bad."
What a geek. I rolled my eyes.
"Was I really sleeping for four days?"
"Three days and twelve hours to be more accurate." He replied.
That's when all came back to me. The gun shots and my grandfather on the floor bleeding.
"Granddad?" I asked worriedly.
"He's fine. It was just a scratch. Unlike you, the bullet hardly touched him."
I sighed in relief.
"You don't remember what happened after you were shot, do you?"
"Sort of…" I confessed. But my most vivid memory of that time was being on the wet grass watching my grandfather on the floor so maybe I did need a recap.
"Sam found you and Granddad. He helped Granddad first because he knew you would heal eventually. The problem was… you didn't heal. At least not immediately. After getting Granddad inside the house and making sure he was alright, Sam noticed you were crashing down. He performed CPR and called Uncle Seth."
Now that Isaac had mentioned it I had a few traumatising memories about Sam Uley kissing me. So I had not only been saved by Sam freaking Uley but also been kissed by that douche. The mere thought of it made me want to be in a coma again.
"Fuck. Just put on Chopin and let me die in shame." I commented.
"I really missed you, Will." Isaac laughed.
"Is there anything else I need to know about the time I was out?"
"Sarah got a new pet. It's a squirrel named Vader."
I raised my eyebrows.
"And that's relevant because?"
"The squirrel kind of likes you… actually Vader's been sleeping here with you ever since Sarah brought him home two days ago and the other night I swear I saw him caressing your junk."
My jaw dropped. First Sam had kissed me and now I had just found out I was being molested by a damn squirrel at night.
Upon watching my face Isaac burst out laughing like a mad man.
"You should've seen your face!" He was close to tears now. "It was epic!"
"You made that up?"
He nodded. His black eyes were shining with amusement.
"You fucking asshole!"
"That's payback for the ants, you dimwit!"
"I'm going to kill you!" I tried to get up but my legs were shaky so I opted to stay put.
"Easy there. Don't make sudden movements, you're still recovering."
"Recovering?"
Years ago Quil had been shot in the abdomen and he had healed almost immediately. All wolves were fast healers. A small cut healed in seconds, broken bones could take a couple of days, internal bleedings or organ failure maybe a week.
"Why did I stay in a coma for four fucking days after being shot?"
"You had an overdose."
"What? Are you crazy? I don't do drugs! I was shot…"
"Yes, we know you were shot but the bullet that hit you just a few inches above your heart had a powerful drug cocktail causing you to have an overdose and you crashed." Isaac was silent for a couple of seconds probably to see my reaction. I was too stunned to ask questions in that moment so he kept going. "After getting you to breathe again Sam noticed the bullet hole on your chest and he smelled the drugs so he cut you open and took the bullet out. It was broken in three pieces."
Great. Now I owed Sam Uley my life. Why was fate being so unfair to me?
"If he took the bullet out why was I in a coma? Why didn't I heal?"
"The problem with our metabolism is that it works faster than normal, so… your body absorbed the drugs too fast. Luckily Uncle Seth was there on time to treat you."
"It sure sounds like fun." I commented ironically.
"You're probably the first person who's not a drug addict to almost have died from an overdose of heroin and cocaine." Isaac laughed. "I'm glad you're awake." His expression had just changed to a serious one.
"So… Where's everyone?"
"Sarah and JJ are out. Mum is patrolling and dad's working."
"And Harry?"
He's probably with his girlfriend. I thought after making the question. I didn't know why but I felt a bit jealous. I was in a coma and Harry was playing around with a girl.
"Harry's..." Isaac hesitated which made me suspect something was wrong. Maybe he wasn't with his girlfriend after all.
"Did something happen while he was searching for Uncle Paul?"
An image of Harry being attacked by a vampire came to my mind but Isaac nodded negatively.
"Harry's fine. Everyone's fine... actually that's not necessarily true..."
"What the hell are you blabbing on about, Isaac? Just get to the point!" I cut him off.
"Do you want to know what happened or not?"
"Yes."
"Then don't interrupt me."
"Fine... keep going."
"We found Uncle Paul in a house in Port Townsend. When we got there he was being assisted by a team of paramedics and the house was on fire. You see... dad was right about EJ, he did phase but he only morphed when Uncle Paul confronted him and his friends in that house selling weed and booze to a group of teenagers. Everyone fled the scene afraid that Uncle Paul called the police. Uncle Paul didn't expect EJ to phase so fast."
"Damn it! I always miss all the action."
"EJ destroyed half of the house when he phased and attacked Uncle Paul leaving him unconscious with a broken arm and a broken leg. The rest of the house caught fire from a short circuit. When the smoke was too intense someone from the neighbourhood called the firemen and the paramedics. That was when we arrived. Our priority was to make sure Uncle Paul was alright and find EJ. We called Carlisle who transferred Uncle Paul to Forks Hospital where Uncle Seth and Kim took over. Caleb is still working with Port Townsend Police Department to clear Uncle Paul and EJ from any involvement in this accident but it's not going to be easy."
"EJ's quite strong for a new wolf. I mean Uncle Paul isn't easily defeated." I commented feeling a bit surprised with my cousin's strength. "Did you find him?"
"Sort of… EJ freaked out completely, he became more wolf than man. He crossed the states of Idaho and Montana before being seen in North Dakota by a Mormon family. He then crossed the border over to Canada."
"Are you telling me the pack was unable to get EJ to come home?"
"When we found Uncle Paul, Harry felt that something was wrong with you and he came back. Dad organized a search party led by Jared. I was amongst the wolves who tried to track down EJ. We went as far as Regina, in Canada but then I was called back too. Only three wolves, Jared, Denis and Jay stayed on the ground trying to locate EJ. They searched him for more than twelve hours straight. After that they had to call off the search."
"So EJ's still missing?"
"We found him the next day near Winnipeg. We were lucky to have Danny with us. Despite EJ's wolf-mode, Danny was able to reach the depths of his brother's mind and led us to him."
"Danny phased too?"
Poor Aunt Rachel. She'd been begging Uncle Paul to leave the pack for years and now both her sons were wolves. I guess we had to put up with Uncle Paul for a while longer.
"Yes, Danny is a wolf too… He felt lost and confused in the beginning but we managed to keep him on track. Quil had to spend hours with him in the forest teaching him to phase back."
"Well I'm sorry for Danny but… you still haven't told me what happened to Harry."
"Before I left with Danny and the others to Winnipeg to bring EJ home, Harry got a phone call from his girlfriend. She was hysterical and seemed to think that Harry was dead. Apparently a guy named Tom went to her house and said that he had taken care of her boyfriend."
"That slimy son of a bitch! He shot me thinking I was Harry!"
"Yes. That's what Harry realized too so he left to the Makah Reservation and he beat Tom into a pulp."
"Serves him right! I hope he's dead now!"
"Actually… Dad reached them on time."
"Why did he stop him? That motherfucker almost killed me!"
"He'd be charged with murder."
"Harry got arrested again?"
"Yes."
"Fuck!"
"Unfortunately there are witnesses this time so they couldn't bail him out. Alice is convinced that thanks to the bullet we recovered from grandad's shot, she's going to put Tom in jail for a long time. She only needs to prove there's a connection between Tom and the bullets."
"And can she do that?"
"She's off to find out."
"Off?"
Isaac shrugged.
"I don't understand Alice Cullen's methods. I only know she's doing some field work to save Harry's ass. At least that's what Jasper said yesterday."
"I should go see him."
"No, you have to stay here until you recover."
"I'm recovered."
"No, you're not. Plus… your girlfriend is here."
I felt Rhea's scent then and looked at my brother waiting for an explanation.
"She's never late." He smiled. "Mum threw her out the first time she came to see you but the next day, here she was again. She was lucky that only Harry was home and he let her see you. Then he got arrested and I took over the babysitting job… but she still kept coming."
"That means I still have a chance."
If she was coming to see me it could only mean she cared about me.
"What does she do when she's here?"
"I don't know. I usually give her some privacy."
"Has she kissed me?"
That would be unfortunate. I would rather be awake when she kissed me.
"Do you want me to let her in or not?"
"Yes." I replied. "But don't tell her I'm awake."
I wanted to test Rhea. I wanted to see her reaction upon seeing me waking up.
"I thought you two hated each other."
"I never hated her…"
"That's pretty obvious now. I mean you claimed her."
"You know?"
"The whole pack knows."
"Yeah… I guess I shouldn't be so surprised."
Sometimes I hated the pack mind link.
"Mum and Sam don't approve."
"They'll have to learn to accept it though because I won't give up on Rhea just because of an old quarrel between our families."
"Wow… that is so romantic!" Isaac mocked me.
"Shut the hell up and get the door before she leaves!"
"Okay… but remember I'll be downstairs so… easy on the romance, alright?"
He was about to leave my bedroom when I stopped him to ask one last question.
"Does she know what happened to me?"
"Harry told her you were shot by mistake but I have no idea if she believed him."
I nodded and then I laid down to pretend I was still in a coma.
At least she hadn't been told about the overdose. It would be kind of hard to explain.
It didn't take long for Rhea to get inside my bedroom. I heard Isaac turning on the TV downstairs and then I focused on the flowery scent that had invaded the airI was breathing.
"There's no music today." She muttered to herself unaware that I could hear her. "I heard your sister is trying to call you back with Chopin, Mozart and Schubert… but for some reason I think you would prefer Kamelot or maybe Dream Theater…"
"The sound of your voice is enough." I said causing her to look at me dumbfounded.
"Oh my God! You're awake!" She exclaimed approaching me. One of her hands touched my face but when I was about to hold it she immediately pulled back. "Were you awake when I got here?"
"What if I was?" I asked putting myself in a sitting position and exposing my naked chest to her on purpose.
She diverted her eyes from me and moved closer to the door.
"Don't go." I asked her.
"I wouldn't have come if I knew you were awake." She confessed.
"Why not?"
"Because you're a lot less infuriating when you're asleep."
"If you find me infuriating that means I mean something to you, right?" I wasn't expecting her to reply. "My brother told me you've been coming here ever since I got shot."
"Yeah… well I just wanted to check if you were dead."
"Liar… I can tell when you're lying." I stated. "You're worried about me."
"Where's your girlfriend, William?"
"Standing right in front of me."
"I'm not your girlfriend."
"Because you're too damn stubborn."
"I have moral values, you know? You have a girlfriend."
"I broke up with Lex. When I saw you at Old Quil's funeral, I broke up with her. I sent her text messages… but she never read them because her dog chewed her phone."
"That's quite convenient."
"That stupid dog chews about everything! You should meet Corky."
"I wasn't talking about the dog. I was talking about you wanting me to believe you broke up with her."
"I did!"
"She called the other day… I was here and I heard everything. Isaac picked up the phone and lied to her. He said you were doing some errands and that you had forgotten your cell phone at home." She paused. "And then I read the messages she had been sending you… and do you know what she said? That she couldn't wait to be with you the next week. That she was excited to meet your family. So don't tell me that you broke up with her!"
"You're cute when you're jealous." The words left my mouth before I could think about the consequences.
"Jealous!? Go to Hell, William Black!" She yelled at me. "Do you really think I'm jealous? I'm actually happy that you have a girlfriend because that means you'll stop bothering me and I can keep planning my wedding with Art."
"I'm not dating Lex and you're not marrying fucking Art!" I growled.
"You're not my father! You don't tell me what to do!"
My wolf was not happy with Rhea's reaction. Except for my parents, who were the alpha pair, I wasn't used to be bossed around. I didn't like it and my wolf liked it even less. So it wasn't a complete surprise when I found myself growling at Rhea. The animal caged inside me was in turmoil and wanted to come out and let her know who was in charge.
I was able to keep the wolf hidden but when Rhea tried to leave the room I grabbed her arms and pinned her against the wall. She fought back but only for a few seconds because I was too strong for her.
"Let me go or I'll scream!" She threatened.
"Scream all you want. Only Isaac can hear you and he's not going to bother us."
"Take your hands off of me!"
I enjoyed watching the fire in her eyes. Usually Rhea wasn't a fierce person but today she was particularly hostile.
"You'll do what I say." I whispered in her ear. She shivered but didn't submit to my will. I remember dad mentioning that mum wasn't easily tamed either. Not even after he marked her.
"You have no right to demand that. You have no claim on me."
"Actually I do." I grinned facing her. She momentarily stopped moving. "I claimed you and I'll claim you again as soon as your dear fiancé is out of my way."
"What are you talking about?"
"I'm talking about this." I released one of her arms and pushed her blouse aside on her neck. And then I saw my mark for the first time. It sent me back to that night at First Beach when we were seventeen and to the moment I had bitten her without realising what was happening.
And suddenly I felt powerful, dauntless and excited. "I made you mine that night… and I'm sure you know what that means."
"Yes, it means I was stupid."
"No, it means you loved me. You still do."
"How can you be so sure?"
"I can feel you… your heart is beating the same way it beat that night." I said. "I was afraid back then. Afraid to realise that I had deep feelings for you. I didn't want my friends to mock me so I stupidly let you go. But I'm not making the same mistake twice."
"If you had told me this back then… it would've made all the difference. But now… I'm engaged, you have a girlfriend and your family hates me."
"My family doesn't hate you." I advanced. "Harry has always liked you. Isaac clearly likes you too otherwise he wouldn't let you come and see me. JJ likes everybody and Sarah…" I paused. "Do you like animals?"
"Yes… of course I like animals."
"Good. In that case, you and Sarah will get along just fine."
"What about your parents?"
"Well… dad doesn't share my mother's hate for your family, so he's actually okay with us being together."
My mother was the problem, of course.
"But your mother hates me. She kicked me out the other day."
"She's overprotective."
"You're twenty-five. Mothers are protective over their children when they're little or when they can't fend for themselves. You're almost 6 feet high and no one would dare to mess with you, so don't give me that crap. Your mother's not overprotective she simply hates me because I'm a White."
"She kind of has her reasons."
"Which are?"
"Your aunt is a bitc… bitter harpy. She's been spreading rumours about my parents' relationship since Harry and I were born. Your grandmother has been trying to put my mother and my Grandma Sue down every time she can. And your grandfather's a major ass too."
"It's nice to know that you and your mother's opinion about my family are so in sync." She said coldly.
"Come on Rhea… you know how your aunt treats my mum in public."
"Aunt Vanessa might be a bit harsh but your mother doesn't make it easier, does she?"
"She wouldn't be my mother if she played easy." I grinned recalling my dad's words at a bonfire almost seven years ago.
"If I wanted an easy life I wouldn't have married your mother. She's complicated, stubborn and bossy but I wouldn't love her this much if she wasn't like that." At the time mum and dad were having daily arguments though I couldn't remember the reasons.
"Look…" I added. "Let me deal with my mother, okay?"
"I don't want you to deal with your mother William. I just wanted to know if you're okay. Now that you're recovering, I'm resuming the plans of my wedding with Art."
"You don't get it, do you?" I questioned her and she simply raised her eyebrows. "You won't marry that idiot because you can never be happy with anyone else but me." She tried to push me back but I grabbed her waist and forced her to stay still. "And if you keep saying that, I'll deal with that fiancé of yours myself."
"You wouldn't dare!"
"Of course I would." I grinned. "You don't want me to kill him, do you?"
I was joking but she took my words quite seriously.
"If anything happens to Art, I'll testify against you."
"Well, if you cancel your wedding with him, I promise he'll be able to go back home unharmed." I told her solemnly. "I was serious when I told you we should get to know each other better. I'm willing to do that even knowing that my mother will try to do anything to dissuade me. So as soon as Art is out of our way, I want us to go out, I want to learn more about you and I promise I won't let you down this time."
Rhea was silent for a while. I could tell she was confused but I needed an answer. Her fiancé was a nuisance to me and to my plans and it would be better if Rhea accepted to get rid of him willingly. I could, and probably would, force Art to leave La Push for good but if I took the matter into my own hands I could end up in jail like my brother so it was safer to convince Rhea to call off her wedding instead of doing something that I could later regret.
"What do you say?"
"I don't think I can do that." She admitted. "Even if I have feelings for you… weird and stupid feelings… I can't call off my wedding just because you suddenly discovered you might like me."
"I didn't suddenly discover I might like you. I've known this for a long time."
"Then why now? Why now when everything was going so well for me and Art?"
"Because…"
My wolf wants you. I almost said.
"Because now… after a long time, things finally make sense to me. Because when I'm with you I feel at ease, I feel that things aren't so confusing anymore. It's like a cloud has been lifted from my spirit…"
Okay… I'm sounding like a damn girl. I realised when I noticed she was looking at me as if I was mentally retarded. Maybe the shot or the overdose affected my brain.
"The point is…" I said trying to correct my last words. "It feels right when I'm with you."
Taking advantage that Rhea was completely still and caged in my arms I leaned down to kiss her but in that precise moment Isaac barged into the room.
"I told you to skip the romance part, didn't I?" Isaac muttered.
"If you want to stay alive leave this room immediately." I threatened.
"In case you didn't notice, mum's coming."
Isaac was right.
"I suspect you have less than five minutes." My brother added.
Against my will I stepped away from Rhea to open my bedroom's window.
"Go." I told Isaac. "You're taking her home."
"You owe me."
"Sure, sure… We'll talk about rewards later."
Understanding my idea, Isaac jumped from the window, landing safely on our backyard.
"Did your brother just jump from the first floor?" Rhea asked alarmed.
"Umm… Yeah… We do it all the time." I smiled casually trying to convince her that jumping from a first-floor window wasn't such a big deal.
Rhea approached me and put her head out to check on Isaac, who was perfectly fine.
"Unbelievable." She muttered. "How can he jump from such a height without getting hurt?"
"He's used to it. Now it's your turn." I said and before she could even begin to protest I picked her up bridal style. "My mother's coming and I don't want to push my luck today. Isaac's going to take you home. I need you to stay there and wait for me, alright?"
"What are you doing?"
"Don't worry. My brother won't let you fall." I tried to calm her down. "Just wait for me tonight, okay?"
I put her petite body out of the window's frame and before letting her go, I kissed her. Too stunned with the kiss, Rhea didn't make a sound during the fall. Not even when Isaac caught her.
"Come on, we have to hurry." Isaac turned to Rhea who just nodded still in a daze.
"Make sure she gets home safely. If something happens to her I'll hold you responsible." I yelled at my brother.
"Don't worry about her. Worry about you. Good luck with mum." He said waving smugly. "I'll see you later."
I closed the window and went back to bed. Two minutes later my mother was coming up the stairs. I waited patiently for her to open my bedroom's door and when she did all I could do was let out a horrifying scream when I realised that in her arms she was carrying a damn squirrel.
Not far away I could hear Isaac laughing.
I should've been an only child.
Thanks for the reviews: Guest(s), CentaurPrincess, brankel1, MelkiSihou, Island Mama, Weave the Magic, Kary G, almondbutter, rocklesson86, TheSlytherinQueenbee, nikkie owens, nene82743, Deadman'sGun, bonzgirl, Jazzmatazz30, sia-gomo01, FangsandDaggers, Sagal Farah, chemistrykim, Daughter of the earth, Gizmo60, Evangella Akriti, Sarah Clearwater, lory77.
I'd also like to thank all the followers of this story and all the readers who added it to their favourites list. Thank you.
Next chapter: The Lahote brothers enter the pack. William and Sam face each other. Quinn meets the Quileute's pack. William visits Harry in jail. Tom threatens the twins and Season makes a decision.
A huge thank you to all the readers who took a little time to review the last few chapters (brankel1, Evangella Akriti, lory77, rocklesson86, Deadman'sGun, Sarah Clearwater). Without your words I wouldn't have managed to keep writing.
Karisan