Chapter 32
Part 1
Disclaimer: - Please don't sue me. I own nothing except my laptop, my imagination and an undying passion for Jacob Black.
A/N: - It feels like saying sorry has become a bad habit of mine. :( I've been dragging my feet over this chapter for almost 2 months now. For some reason or the other, I just haven't felt inspired enough. But then, the trailers of BD started playing on the telly, incessantly, I might add and the thought of Jacob and the shitty deal he was soon going to be given made me find my lost rhythm once again!
I know it doesn't feel like it, but we're nearing the end of the story now. Per my calculations, there should be only about 5-6 chapters left in fact, so things will start coming together soon. I can't promise regular updates, no matter how much I want to (the crazy dictates of real life just don't leave me with the luxury to do so), but I urge all of you to hang in there just a little longer. I am trying to finish the story off as soon as I possibly can. Hopefully, the inspiration caused by the release of the movie will last for a little while longer. :)
As always, the chapter is dedicated to my brilliant beta Erin and to my friend Wendy. Thanks for all the love and support guys! :)
PreviouslyonUnforgettable:-
While rescuing Bella from Vladimir's clutches, Jacob's inner 'wolf' takes over (without his knowledge) and claims Bella as his mate. Jake; when he finds out about it; freaks and tries to undo the damage, but screws up big time and leaves Bella in Edward's care in the process. Later, realizing his mistake he rushes back to Bella's side.
Edward and Jake; having declared a temporary truce; take Bella back to the Cullen compound where she is checked over by Carlisle. During that check-up, Carlisle notices the mating mark on Bella's neck and questions her about it; resulting in the Cullen's and the pack also getting clued in on his secret.
JPOV
"Holy shit!" Quil exclaimed. "It was you? You'rethe one who bit her?"
Oh fucking hell!
The silence that followed Quil's completely ill-timed query was deafening.
Every single eye in the house was fixed on me. Questioning. Disbelieving. Alarmed.
And me…? I was stunned. Shocked. Speechless. This had to be a dream, right? He couldn't really have blurted that out in front of everyone, could he? Holy crap, my dad was here, I realized; panicking. And as if that wasn't bad enough; Bella's dad was here. No, it had to be one of those horrible, seemingly never-ending nightmares, right? Like the ones where you stumble into class late and everyone bursts out laughing because you're naked? Yup, that's exactly what it was. A nightmare. (I had to keep believing that or I'd lose my freaking mind!)
"Bite her?" An incredulous voice (Charlie's voice) exclaimed. Dammit, so much for wishful thinking, huh? I was... horrifiedto say the least.This could not be happening. Not to me. Not now. Oh Jesus, please let it be a dream. I'd give anything; do anything for it to be a dream!
"Why would he bite my daughter? What does that even mean? What's going on here?" Charlie continued, sounding more and more incensed when his questions were met with a blank, stunned silence.
So, not a dream then…? Goddammit! My mind was overcome with images of a shotgun toting Charlie giving me hell for defiling his only daughter and for being stupid enough to assume that I was in any way worthy of her. Jesus! That's it. I was a dead man. Moreover, Quil was a dead man. I was gonna murder him, tear him apart with my own two hands. Strangle him. Smother him. Tear his freaking heart out. Ugh!
"Charlie, hey, you're awake!" I exclaimed, trying desperately to inject my voice with false joviality. All the while, my brain was churning frantically, trying to come up with a semi-logical reason for the unexpected revelation.
Charlie, unfortunately, was in no mood to be appeased. "I'm waiting for an explanation, son!" He went on, sounding ominously calm.
"Uh..." I looked around at my brothers, begging them to jump in with a distraction. Unfortunately, they seemed to be as shocked as I was. Either that or they were terrified of Charlie. Cowards! None of them even had the guts to look me in the eyes.
Dammit, I had to say something. I couldn't just stand there like a dumb idiot. I was a smart enough guy. If I thought hard enough, I could come up with a reasonable explanation, couldn't I? Something that would make absolute sense. Something that would explain Quil's revelation. Something that would make me out to be the hero even. Not the truth, obviously, (because that would be an utter, unmitigated disaster) but something. Anything. But what? To my horror, my mind continued to be an utterly, completely blank slate. Jesus!
"Well...?" Charlie was a cop, with a cop's intuition. He could smell a rat in the way everyone was fidgeting around and refusing to say anything. Wow, what a bunch of supernatural creatures we made, huh? We couldn't even keep a teeny-tiny secret!
And shit, I was no better. Idiot! Moron! "Uh... it doesn't mean anything Charlie." I stuttered nervously, lying through my teeth in an effort to pacify his suspicions. "Quil was just joking. Right Quil? You were just messing with me, weren't you?" My pointed question didn't leave Quil in any doubt about the repercussions he'd face if he made the gross error of disagreeing with me.
"Joke? It didn't sound like a joke to me." Charlie muttered irritably, sounding less than convinced.
"Don't mind them, old man." My dad piped in suddenly; apparently having recovered from his shock over Quil's outburst. Oh, ThankGod! "They're just fooling around. Young people these days! Their idea of a joke is completely beyond our understanding."
"Hmmpf..." Charlie grunted, either in agreement or anger, I couldn't determine.
"No, really Chief...I was just teasing Jake. Ha ha. Hilarious, right?" Quil fell all over himself, trying to make amends.
The rest of the guys burst into forced raucous little, too late, in my very frank opinion, but thankfully Charlie was still under the influence of some heavy medication and therefore, sufficiently out of it that he didn't catch on to everyone's blatantly false joviality. (But boy, was I going to have to face the music once he was recovered enough to revert back to his usual sharp self... especially since the wolf's actions had guaranteed that Charlie and I would be closely associated with each other for the rest of our lives – that is; providing Bella chose to accept me as her mate, of course. My God, I might even have to let him in on my dirty little, furry secret. That was one conversation I was not looking forward to, for sure. Fucking hell! Better not to think about it until I had absolutely no other choice left!)
Fortunately for my current peace of mind, Charlie seemed to forget Quil's faux pa rather quickly. (Thank God for modern medicine, especially sedatives!) He grumbled some more about the inappropriateness of our jokes but other than that, he allowed my Dad and Sue to distract him from the topic.
With the crisis averted, I gave Quil a death glare and tipped my head indicating that I'd like to have some words with him in the corner. For once, Quil caught on instantly (which, if I thought about it, was a minor miracle in itself.)
"What the hell were you thinking?" Quil heatedly took up his earlier line of questioning the moment we were out of range of all prying ears.
Really? Really? He was still insisting on being all high and mighty? As if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. As if he hadn't just very nearly landed all of us in county jail. Or even worse, an institution for the criminally insane! Really?
"Me?" I whisper-yelled, just barely holding onto the vestiges of my temper. "What the hell were you thinking? What're you...12? How could you just blurt that out in front of everyone? In front of the leeches...? And Charlie! Jesus! What if he'd refused to let the matter go, huh? What were you gonna tell him – the truth? Were you going to tell him that I'm a werewolf; that we're all werewolves and that we turn into giant, horse sized creatures whenever we sense the presence of vampires around us...? Oh, but wait, then you'd have to acknowledge that vampires are real too. Then you could also tell him that his daughter was married to one for a couple of years during which time, she thought of becoming one of them just so she could be with him for all eternity?"
"Alright, alright jeez... enough already. I get your point, okay?" He muttered shamefully.
But I wasn't done with him, not by a long shot. He'd almost landed us in a catastrophe of epic proportions. There was no easy way out of that. He'd just have to suck it up and face the music. "Jesus Quil, isn't it bad enough that we're stuck here in vampire central, hiding from another psychotic vamp who wants us all dead just so that he can get his hands on the woman I love and do God knows what with her? What, did you think we needed yet another complication on top of that?"
To his credit, Quil managed to look somewhat contrite. "I'm sorry, Jake!"
Sorry...? That's allhe had to say right now? Oh, for fuck's sake! Sometimes I felt like I was still in charge of a bunch of teenage boys instead of a group of powerful supernatural warriors. Would they ever grow up? Not if their behavior's were any indication. (And God, was this how Sam had felt when dealing with us while he was in charge? If so, he had my eternal respect and admiration for not losing his shit and ordering us all to jump off the freaking cliffs of La Push a long time ago!) "Well just see to it that it doesn't happen again!" I snapped, unwilling to let him off the hook so easily and yet, unable to express myself the way I really wanted to, in front of so many civilian spectators (namely Charlie).
"But, that still doesn't answer the question, does it? Why did you bite her?" Colin interjected hesitantly from behind me; bringing home the fact that Quil and I weren't the only two people having in this conversation anymore. Somehow, while Quil and I had been involved in our little...er...squabble, the rest of the pack had managed to sneak in on us and now they were standing behind us, shamelessly eavesdropping on our conversation. Dammit to hell! Couldn't a guy have some freaking privacy around here? And what was worse; call it a hunch, but I was almost sure that none of the Cullen's – for all their gentility and their oh-so-impeccable manners – were trying too hard to shut out the argument either.
Grrrrrr!
"Yes Jacob, do tell us why you bit her. I'm really curious to know, you see... especially after all the crap you usually give us 'leeches' for our tendency to...oh, you know, bite people. What is that name you call us –? Oh yeah, Bloodsuckers! Well now, look who's biting people and sucking their blood!" Vampire barbie taunted; whispering theatrically near my ear; as if just to reinforce my suspicion from a few minutes ago. (Dammit, I hated being in vampire central! The entire house was so saturated with 'Eu de leech' that it played havoc with our senses, allowing all of them to sneak in on us without our knowledge.)
"Yeah, Jacob, do tell us." Emmett just couldn't seem to resist teasing me mercilessly. "Inquiring minds want to know..."
No. Just… no. This could not be happening. First Quil, then Charlie, then Colin and then the leeches. What was it with all the incessant questions, huh? I felt as if I was being interrogated by Homeland security on a matter of national defense, for heaven's sake! Like I was just going to come right out and confess or something. Yeah right!
There was no way in hell I was going to discuss any of this with the multitude of people present here. Not before I spoke to Bella. (Maybe not even after…) No freaking way. She was the one who I owed the explanation to, not them. She was the one who deserved to know first, not them. Especially when the 'them' in question included my mortal enemies for heaven's sake! And Edward...let's not forget about him! (Yeah, he got a category all of his own. What was worse than mortal enemy, huh? Whatever it was, that's what he was.) We might've come to a sort of understanding where we had decided to try and not kill each other until Bella was safe, but still. He'd made it perfectly clear that the truce would be over as soon as Vladimir was destroyed. And I really wasn't stupid enough to give him even more ammunition to use against me later on.
To that end, I called out decisively, "Alright listen up, people, this matter is not up for discussion, not now at least. It is something that is private to Bella and me and no one else has a right to interfere in what is essentially our business. So, I'll thank all of you to stay the hell out of it!"
"What do you mean it's not up for discussion right now? You bit her!" Colin retorted, sounding scandalized.
Goddammit! I should've known it wouldn't be as simple as that. Meddling gossipmongers, the whole lot of them! (The Rez was a small, tight-knit group and as such that closeness gave everyone the impression that it was okay to interfere in each other's personal lives whenever they felt like it. Ugh!)
Instead of losing my head over the matter and boxing the little twerp's ears like I really wanted to, I did the next best thing. I just turned around without a word and as discreetly as I possibly could, made my way back into Bella's room. Should I have faced my problems head on…? Probably. I knew a lot of people would be quick to dole out that kind of new-agey advice. But then if I'd stayed and followed that advice, we would've had a cold blooded massacre on our hands and I'd be going to prison for the rest of my godforsaken life and that wouldn't have been good for anyone involved now, would it? So all in all, my way was much more effective and helpful in the long run.
Thankfully, the pack members as well as the leeches had the presence of mind to recognize the thin, razor sharp line I was treading and let me go without comment.
Thank fuck! Maybe there was some hope for them after all!
Carlisle was just finishing up the physical exam when he noticed my presence. "Jacob," He motioned me closer, his expression bordering on grave, "I'm glad you're here. In fact, I was just about to come get you."
Instantly, the irritation caused by Quil and Colin's intrusive questions faded, only to be replaced by concern. "What? Why? What's wrong?" I didn't mean to sound rude or panicky, I really didn't, but god, this was Bella's well-being we were talking about here. Could anyone blame me for being tense and on edge? The girl had the tendency to get hurt and injured at the drop of a freaking hat. Not to mention, she'd just gone though a horrific ordeal – one that had potentially physical side effects.
"Oh, don't worry. Nothing's wrong with Bella." The doctor hastened to reassure me. "Like I mentioned earlier, she seems to be in remarkable health for someone who's gone through all that she has over the last day and a half. In fact, it's almost miraculous." I noticed passingly that the doctor sounded amazed, almost incredulous. His reaction was a cause for concern, for sure, but I was too busy being grateful to dissect the how's and the why's of the situation at the moment. I was just interested in knowing that there was nothing wrong with Bella and that she was going to be okay.
It seemed that the good doctor was on the same page. This became apparent to me as soon as he continued his previous train of thought. "Anyway, I'm sure you'll agree that right now, it isn't important why Bella's doing so well; just that she is. But leaving all that aside, she does have a few gaps in her memory regarding some of her injuries that seem to be bothering her. And since you were the only person present at the time she incurred them, I thought it prudent that you were the one to answer to address her queries."
"Questions…?" I called out weakly, the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach making itself known quite prominently.
God, no, not the bite mark. Anything but the bite mark!
Carlisle fidgeted around, clearly as uncomfortable with the whole situation as I was, albeit for very different reasons. "Bella has some… uh… scarring on her…uh… neck region that she can't account for."
Crap! Idly I wondered if trying to make a run for it at this point of time was a viable option. No, Bella would probably notice if disappeared all of a sudden, wouldn't she? Yes, she probably would. Dammit! "Scarring...?" I questioned weakly. Maybe he meant some other scar that I didn't know about. And maybe dogs would sprout wings and start to fly! (Cuz, yeah, it wasn't as if I'd memorized every sexy, glorious inch of her naked body last night, had I?)
"Uh... it's a bite mark, actually." Carlisle clarified, much to my utter chagrin. (Huh. Apparently he did mean what I thought he meant. What a fucking surprise!) "Now, Bella does remember Vladimir feeding from her. (God, why couldn't she have forgotten about that?) Only, this mark doesn't resemble a bite mark of a feeding vampire."
"It doesn't?" I questioned weakly. Of course it didn't! Because it wasn't a vampire bite! Well, shit! Now what?
"No. A feeding vampire, especially that kind of vampire has a set of extremely pointed incisors which elongate in times of physical hunger or uh...sometimes in situations of extreme sexual desire. Now while feeding, these incisors are used for puncturing the victim's skin. The only marks left from these types of invasions are two tiny puncture marks. The injury on Bella's neck, on the other hand, resembles a human bite, with a full impression of a complete set of teeth." Fucking hell! Could he be any more detailed? His words, the mental images they invoked! Oh God! It made me want to jump off a freaking cliff is what it did.
"Now, the injury isn't too severe or anything," The doc continued, blithely unaware of my acute discomfort, "but…uh… considering the fact that the rest of her body is totally unblemished, it is rather curious."
"What do you mean, curious?" I question, jumping on the opportunity to change the topic, at least momentarily.
"Well... taking into account the considerable trauma her body's undergone she should've had more wounds, more scars on her body... something."
I glared. What the hell? It almost felt as if the good doctor wanted her to be injured.
"Not that we aren't grateful for her miraculous recovery, because we are." He hastened to add; taking in and correctly interpreting my expression. "I think I'm going to order a few more tests, just to be sure."
"More tests?" I inquired hesitantly. "Why...?" That didn't sound very encouraging.
"Because, there has to be a logical explanation for this. Unless..." He trailed off in a horrified whisper.
My blood pressure shot through the roof. "What? Unless what?"
Carlisle paid no attention to my queries. Instead he leaned over Bella urgently. "Bella, did he make you drink his blood?"
No way. Nuh uh! No fucking way!
"What? No!" Bella's instant reaction was the only thing that kept me from losing my mind.
I took a deep breath, letting my heart slow down to its normal rhythm while simultaneously keeping a close watch on the leech's responses. "You're sure?" He questioned again, although with a lot less intensity this time.
"Yes, I'm sure! I would remember something like that, I'm sure of it!"
There was no hesitation or doubt in Bella's voice. She sounded very sure of herself.
I breathed a sigh of relief. And then...
"Wa...wait a minute. I... I... he made me drink something out of a cup after he took my blood."
Son of a bitch!I knew I was shaking violently; in danger of phasing; but I seemed to have no control over my actions. The thought of Bella (my Bella) being forced to drink that bastard's blood... it drove me fucking crazy!
Even Carlisle seemed a little out of sorts. "Did he tell you what it was? Did it have any immediate effect of your condition? Do you remember how it tasted?" He bombarded her with question after question without pause.
"I... I remember feeling sick and passing out. Then he forced something down my throat and I felt better." Carlisle's face tightened marginally. And I wasn't the only one who noticed. Bella sagged in on herself, the toll finally becoming too much to bear.
Goddammit! I felt so useless... so goddamn helpless in this situation. What the fuck was I supposed to do? I didn't even know what it meant or if there were any side-effects to an ordinary human drinking vampire blood. What I did know for a fact was that the woman I loved had been forced into doing something that she didn't want to do and for that, I was going to skewer that bastard and slow roast him over an open flame! But that resolution, while great on paper would have to wait. And I still didn't know what to do or how to react in the time being, dammit! Should I console her or just go out and kill the bastard? What would make her feel better? God, I was so not equipped to handle such situations. Not when I was trying desperately to keep a lid of my own emotions.
"W...wait!" Bella suddenly exclaimed, her voice falling into the shocked silence in the room. "I remember something! He... he called it a potion. Said he had his witch brew it up and that it would help me heal quicker."
Oh Jesus... thank you, God!
The leech's expression revealed the same level of relief at having just escaped a potentially disastrous situation. He hastened to change the topic as soon as he could. "So Jacob, as I was saying earlier before things got a little out of hand, Bella and I were kind of hoping that you could shed some light on her injury for us, considering that you were present for at least a part of her captivity…"
Holy fuck! Damn if this didn't make me feel worse about myself than I had before. The topic of the blood exchange had just left a sour taste in my mouth. I couldn't even begin to imagine how much worse it'd been for Bella. Taking that into consideration, there was no doubt in my mind about what her reaction would be to my little bombshell. She was going to hate me. Forever. There was just no getting around that now. Damage control...? Out of the question! The only question that remained to be answered was – how the fuck was I going to tell her?
"Jake…?" Bella called out hesitantly. There was nothing different about the way she said my name. The usual tone, the standard inflection. But to my guilty conscience, her voice sounded plaintive, almost pitiful.
I freaked! God, this...this was what I'd been hoping to avoid. I'd never wanted to hurt her… to confuse her. 'Shit.Shit.Fuckingshit!Thanks,asshole!' I snarled at my alter ego.
He wasn't one to take things lying down. 'Willyoujusttellheralready?' He snarled right back. 'Evenifshe'ssoundingpitifulandthat'sabigif,mindyou,it'sonlybecauseshethinksthatthemarkcamefromtheleechandunderstandably,shedoesn'twantanyreminderofhim.Whenshecomestoknowthatitwasus;whoknows;herreactionmightactuallysurpriseyou!'
'AsifIhaveanyotherchoicebuttocomeclean!Aftereverythingyoupulled?Yeah,right!Butjustsoyouknow...she'sgoingtohatemeforeverandIsweartoGod,Iwillneverforgiveyouforthat!'
'OhJesus,notthisagain!Sheisnotgoingtohateyou,youmoron!Ipromiseyou,we'regoingtojustfine.Nowjustgetonwithit,youfuckingcoward!'
To be honest, I'd had enough of the snide remarks and the bitching to last me a lifetime. But no matter how much I hated him (and right now I really, really did), the bastard did have a valid point. I was going to have to come clean. Right. Fucking. Now. So I made a point of ignoring that last comment and powered on before the bastard could think of something else to taunt me with. "Hey, Doc…? Could you give Bella and me some time alone? I really need to talk to her."
"Oh, sure…No problem. We were done anyway. Bella, we'll just continue with your painkillers and antibiotics for a little while longer, just as a precautionary measure more than anything else. You spent almost two days out in the open, exposed to the elements. We don't want to take any chances that you'll catch an infection later on."
"Alright."
"And I'm prescribing lots of rest, so no wild stunts for you young lady. Take it easy, relax and drink plenty of fluids to replace any that you might've inadvertently lost along the way."
"Whatever you say Carlisle." Bella responded with a tiny smile. "You know I trust you."
Huh. Looked like Bella had forgiven the doc for the unwitting role he'd played in the unfortunate forced-abortion incident. (At least that's what her words seemed to imply. Maybe that whole conversation she had with Eddie boy had really helped her gain some much needed closure.) This was great news as far as I was concerned. Because logic dictated that if she'd been able to forgive Edward and Carlisle for the stunt that they'd pulled, then she should be able to forgive me too, right?
The way the leech was looking at her, his eyes full of astonishment and a wild, desperate hope lent credence to my theory. "Bella, I... I don't know what to say. Except, I'm sorry..." He spoke, his voice choked with emotion. "God, you have no idea how sorry I am...how much I've hated myself for what happened. You have to understand, I was just thinking about your well-being. We both were."
"I know." Bella's eyes swam with tears. "It took me a long time, but I do realize now that you had my best interests at heart. And I want you to know that I blamed you for a long time but I don't anymore. I forgive you Carlisle. But only if you can forgive me..."
As I looked on, Carlisle threw his arm around Bella's shoulder and gave her a hearty one-armed hug. "Silly girl!" He chided her gently, still sounding a little shaky. "There's nothing to forgive. There never was..."
The words clearly meant a lot to Bella; as demonstrated by her smile. (It was so bright, it seemed to light up the room.)
I looked on silently, not sure what to make of the easy affection between them was difficult to miss and I wasn't sure how to feel about it. (I mean, the guy was alright and all but he was still a leech.) The wolf, on the other hand, was extremely clear on where he stood on the subject. He hated it, hated the ease between the leech and his mate. (He especially hated the almost casual way that the leech was touching her. Given free reign, he wanted to rip the leech's arm right out of his socket for daring to lay a hand on the woman he loved.)
To be honest, the intensity of his emotions scared me a little. 'Don'tbeanass!' I cautioned in what I hoped to hell was a soothing tone of voice. 'It'snotlikethatwiththem.Hethinksofherlikeadaughter…'
"I don't care what he thinks or how he feels about her. I just want his damn hands off her!" The wolf growled territorially, not at all in the mood to be appeased.
Well, Jesus. Such violence, such possessiveness.
Even as I struggled with my beast for control, the leech went on speaking, blithely unaware of how close to bodily harm he was right then. "I'll uh… also see if I can send you some Neosporin and some bandages for that mark on your…uh… neck."
Oh God. There it was again. The damn, fucking mark! It was the bane of my existence.
Just like that, the anger drained away, only to be replaced by a familiar feeling of shame. Jeez, talk about embarrassing.
My gaze automatically drifted to the aforementioned mark. The leech had been right. It didn't look like a vampire bite at all. Even from this distance. I could see the raised half-moon like circles marring the otherwise smooth perfection of her neck. Jesus Christ! And as if that wasn't bad enough, the mark looked red and angry…painful! Goddammit! What had I been thinking?
'Ohcomeon!Don'tgetyourpantiesinabunch!' The wolf interrupted. 'Thebiteisn'tpainful;itwasjustanipafterall.Besides,itshouldscaboverprettysoon.Afterthat,it'llbarelyevenbenoticeable...'
Was I supposed to say something to that? If yes, what? Jesus, I didn't even want to meet Bella or the Doc's eyes for fear that my guilt would be stamped clearly on my face for everyone to see.
But apparently I was more adept at hiding my feelings than I gave myself credit for, because there were no sudden shouts of "Gotcha!" from either of the participants of the room. Instead, Carlisle was slowly making his way towards the door. "I'll check in on you later, Bella. But meanwhile, if you need me for anything; if you're feeling unwell in any way, just holler." Yet another grin followed that statement.
Wow. Smiling and joking? The doc was in a pretty good mood for someone who'd been on the verge of losing a patient not even half an hour ago. It was Bella. It had to be. She brought out the best in all of us.
A click of the door clued me in to the fact that Bella and I were finally alone. (Or as alone as you could be in a house filled to the brim with vampires and werewolves. I could've bet my entire bank balance – and it was considerable – on the fact that every damn person/creature in the house was tuned into this conversation at this very moment.) God, how I wished I could've had this discussion with Bella somewhere else. Anywhere else would've been better than this. Oh well, beggars couldn't be choosers.
"You okay Bells?" I asked, moving closer to her.
"I'm fine. See?" She made a show of flailing her arms and legs around haphazardly in such a dorky way that I couldn't help but laugh.
"Okay, okay… I believe you."
She smiled too, an adoring kind of a smile that made me dread the upcoming conversation even more. I didn't want to do or say anything to take that smile away. (And it would go away once I told her, no question about it. I mean why would she adore me so blindly once I told her how I'd gone behind her back and taken advantage of her vulnerability?)
Maybe it would be okay if I told her later…? I mean, she was still recovering from her ordeal, right? Why would I add to the burden she was feeling? It was only right to wait until she was feeling better and more prepared to handle everything I had to tell her.
'Ohyouchickenshit!' My alter ego was ever ready with the taunts, unwilling to let me off the hook so easily.
'Fuckoff!' I lashed out savagely.
'Can't!' He cackled. 'Kindastuckwithyouatthemoment…'
'Ha ha. You think you're freaking hilarious, don't you?'
'IamratherhilariousifIdosaysomyself!' He smirked. 'Listen,canIjustgiveyouapieceofadvice?'
'Would it matter if I said no?'
'No, because you need to hear this and right now I'm the only one who can say it. Sometimes it's better to just get it over with. Just rip the band-aid off, you know? I'm not saying that she won't be upset with us for a while, because, in all probability, she will be. But you still need to tell her. Right now.'
Shit, did he have to start making sense right at this instant? Made it that much harder to ignore him.
'Whyme?' I couldn't resist whining some more. 'You'retheonewhoscrewedup!Shouldn'tyoubetheonetofacethemusic?'
He sighed theatrically, as if at the end of his rope. 'Youknow,soonerorlater,you'regoingtohavetocometotermswiththefactthatyouandIarejusttwosidesofthesamecoinsotospeak.Mydecisionsareyourdecisionsandviceversa.Wejusthavedifferentwaysofdealingwiththem.SowhatthatbasicallymeansisthatyouwantedwhathappenedinthatcavejustasmuchasIdid.Ijusthadthegutstogoaheadandactuallymakeithappen.Soquitblamingmeforthedamnmatingandjustadmitthatyou'vewantedtoclaimBellaforyourownforaverylongtime.'
'I refuse to admit anything of the sort!'
'Fine! Be that way. Coward!'
Something in my expression must've alerted her to my turmoil because little by little Bella's smile dimmed. "What's wrong Jake?" She questioned, far too seriously.
Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Now I was bringing her down too. Just fucking perfect! "Uh… are you sure you're okay? Cuz, this isn't urgent. It can wait a while if you need to rest or something."
What the fuck? I was such a pussy!
'Finally!That'spreciselywhatI'vebeentellingyouforsodamnlong!' The wolf piped in a little too enthusiastically.
Thankfully Bella responded before we got into another one of our epic battles. "Yes, God, I'm fine! Whatever it is, just spit it out will you? All this hesitating is making me downright nervous."
Well alright then, it was time to man up and swallow the bullet. I took a deep breath and went for broke. "Themarkonyourneck…thatwasnttheleech. Itwasme. I bit you."
She looked at me as if I'd lost my damn mind. Who knew, maybe I had. "I know Jake." She stated calmly. "I was there."
What? Come again…? Did she just say what I think she did…? What the…? How? Shit, I'd never taken into account that she might remember the whole thing! Jesus, what the hell was I going to say now? How was I going to even begin to explain my crazy-ass actions? Also, and more importantly, how much did she remember? All of it…? (Good God, I was so screwed!)
"Uh…" I stuttered, at a complete loss of words. "What…?" I exclaimed stupidly.
Wow. Brilliant move, Sherlock!
"I remember everything…" She repeated patiently.
Oh Jeez. But… why the hell was she so calm? And why hadn't she said anything to Carlisle…? I just had to ask. "Why didn't you say something earlier?"
She blushed a bright, brilliant red. "Like what…? That the bite in question came not from the vampire who kidnapped and tortured me but from my werewolf lover, in the middle of what was probably the most spectacular sex of my life?"
The most spectacular…? I almost groaned out loud. Jesus, what was she trying to do, kill me?
(The wolf was damn near dancing a jig in my mind. All that was left was for him to burst into a rousing chorus of 'I told you so'. Jesus! Who'd have thought that someone so brutal and vicious could be so damn annoying?) I couldn't exactly blame him though. After all, I could barely control my own reaction to her words. God! Within a few seconds and with a few careless words this woman had managed to reduce me to a slobbering pile of goo. But I couldn't exactly help it now, could I? No matter where or when she made that statement, I was bound to have a drastic, er, shall we say reaction to it. After all, I'd only waited, what, half my lifetime to hear her say it.
Vivid memories of last night bloomed in my mind. The way she'd felt in my arms... the lingering taste of her... the way she'd fallen apart so gloriously all around me. God, I wanted her and I wanted her right now! I wanted my hands on her and her hands on me!
But wait, (Fuck, it was so difficult to curb my instincts where she was concerned) hadn't she said that she had some questions…? I forced myself to focus with difficulty. "So?" My voice came out sounding all hoarse so I had to clear my throat before I could go on. "What did you need to ask me?"
"Well, I want to know why for one! And I also want to know what it means. For me. For us…"
Well, that was reasonable wasn't it? She'd made her feelings for me clear in my apartment. She deserved the same courtesy from me. Also...and more importantly, the wolf had made pretty sure that we were going to be stuck with each other for the rest of our lives so the least I could do was let her in on that itty bitty fact! But damn, this was not how I'd envisioned telling her I loved her for the first time. Especially not with so many prying ears around. Oh well, there was nothing to it I guess...
"It's a mating mark." I spoke hesitantly.
"A what?" She questioned, her delicate brow scrunched in confusion. Jesus, she was damn near perfect and I was going to screw her entire life over with this one revelation. How could I have let this happen?
"Uh... it's a mating mark." I reiterated while desperately trying to come up with a way to explain all of this without coming across as a lunatic or worse, a delusional schizophrenic. Finally I realized that there was no way out of this. I was going to have to tell her everything... beginning with my alter-ego. "Do you remember how you got out of Vladimir's clutches?"
"Uh... no." Bella replied drolly. "In case you didn't realize, I was kinda out of it at the time. But I assume you had something to do with it considering the fact that the only thing I remember about the whole ordeal is waking up next to you in the cave last night." For some reason, she found it difficult to meet my eyes as she uttered the last part.
But I didn't have time to dwell on any of that. I was too busy trying to dig myself out of the big ole' shit-hole I'd buried myself into. "Umm... yeah, about that..."
She just rolled her eyes at my avoidance tactics.
Oops! Looked like I was out of second chances. Well, here goes nothing... "Do you remember how I was captured by Vlad's minions and brought to his lair while you were being held there?" I questioned.
"I think so..." Her beautiful eyes were filled with confusion and frustration. "At least I remember feeling your presence somehow and feeling safe all of a sudden."
For a few moments, all I could manage to do was stare at her in wonderment. How was it possible that this gorgeous creature had so much blind trust in me? After everything I'd done... after I'd tried my best to push her away! By all rights, she should've hated me. But here she was instead, trusting me with her life; feeling safe in my presence. It was nothing short of a miracle. She was nothing short of a miracle. Dear God, how I loved this woman.
"Jake...?" She prompted gently, bringing me out of my amazed daze.
"Uh, so yeah... I was captured and brought to the same location where they'd been holding you the whole time – his godforsaken lair. He used his witch to bind me with spelled chains – chains that continuously drained me of my powers. They made me weak enough that I couldn't break free."
"Oh my God..."
Under normal circumstances her enthralled reaction would've amused me. She sounded like a child at story-time; engrossed, scared, eager. But these were not normal circumstances. Far from them. "I don't know how, but the bastard knew everything. Especially about you and me."
I hadn't meant to embarrass her or to put her on the spot but apparently that was a lost cause. The way she avoided my gaze as if her life depended on it and the sudden rush of color in her cheeks revealed her mortification. I was amused and enchanted. Some things would never change and Bella, no matter how worldly she appeared, would apparently always be Bella.
"Go on, please..." She prompted me; growing increasingly uncomfortable under my gaze.
It took me a few moments to get my head back in the game, but then, I carried on the narrative, as dispassionately as I could. "Suffice it to say, he was not happy with me and he didn't hesitate to demonstrate his... shall we say displeasure."
Bella blanched, her eyes widening in panic. "Are you alright? God, tell me he didn't hurt you!" She exclaimed, her voice thready and frantic.
Dammit! As soon as I'd uttered the words, I'd known that I was making a mistake – a tactical error if you will. As if she wasn't already prone to guilt trips and incessant worrying. By saying what I did, I'd just handed her the perfect excuse to fret over me for the next decade or so. Genius Black... just genius!
I hurried over to her side immediately; taking her tiny hands in both of mine and squeezing reassuringly. "I'm fine, honey. Don't worry. I'm a thick-skinned werewolf, remember? Do you really think that some pansy-assed leech could manage to hurt me? Nah! Besides, don't forget, I have that pesky super-healing on my side. So even if I was hurt; hypothetically speaking; then I'd be as good as new by now. See?" I twirled around ridiculously for her benefit, hoping to tease a laugh out of her.
She smiled briefly (not as good as a laugh, but still good enough, right?) before getting back to her interrogation. "So if you were captured too, how did we manage to get out of there safely? Did our friends launch a full-on rescue mission or something?"
"Or something..." I muttered, still hedging over revealing the entire truth.
"Jaaaaake!" She whined impatiently. "Whatever it is, just spit it out! Come on, it can't be that bad!"
'She'sasmartone,thismateofours.' The wolf rumbled; his words pointed enough so that only the most obtuse person in the world (which I was not) would miss their hidden meaning.
Choosing as always to ignore the sick bastard, I went on with my account of the daring (if I may say so myself) escape from Vladimir's clutches. "So like I was saying, Vladimir was pissed; ranting and raving at me; about how you belonged to him and him alone, how I wasn't even supposed to touch you and how he would kill me for daring to lay a hand on you – you know, the usual ravings of a madman – when he threatened to turn you. Something inside me just seemed to slow down. Where earlier the chains binding me had been impossible to get out of, it seemed like child's play to just snap the restraints in two. I felt faster, stronger, more powerful. And Vladimir's minions...? They were suddenly no match for me."
"Then what happened...?" She gasped.
"I could get through them easily; tossing some aside, killing others in my need to get my hands around that rat-bastard! And I would've got him too. But just as I was about to leap at him, the bastard had his witch take him out of the equation! I wanted to go after him, God, how I yearned to! But I realized that getting you to safety was my top priority at that point and I chose to carry you out of there."
"Wow. I uh... I don't know what to say. It all sounds so fantastic and unreal." Bella breathed. "But that still doesn't explain how you managed to overpower all of them... and in your injured condition, no less! I mean, didn't you say that you couldn't get out of those chains earlier; that they were draining you of your power? So how did you break through them so easily later?"
"I didn't know what it was at the time but just as that bastard bit his wrist to feed you his blood, I felt this... shift inside me. This surge of power. It was only later that I came to know that I 'borrowed' power from all the other members of the pack at that moment – minus Embry apparently because he was too weak to spare any."
"And once again, all I can say is... wow. I didn't know you could do something like that!"
"Join the club, honey. It came as a total surprise to me too."
"So how did you do it then? Like, how did you know what to do?"
"I didn't." I took a deep, fortifying breath before taking the plunge. "But my wolf did."
"What do you mean, 'your wolf'?"
"Well, turns out that apparently, the wolf isn't just some tribal mascot or an animal that I can turn into at will. He's a separate entity, a separate part of me, but a part nonetheless. In fact, he's been there inside of me ever since I first phased. I just wasn't aware of it till yesterday. But now I know that he's his own person...er animal...er whatever."
"Wha...what're you talking about?" She stuttered, looking as if she'd been completely bowled over by my words.
"You know how back when I first phased, I could always find a way to defy Sam's orders or at least get around them?" She nodded mutely. "And how everyone used to say that it was due to the fact that I was the true alpha of the pack?" One more nod, signifying her continued understanding, "Well, it was more than that, apparently. It was due to the fact that my mind was divided into two parts – one that was me as a whole, and one that contained the animal – separated from each other by this supposed 'partition'."
"Jesus, that sounds like a bad science fiction movie, you know that right?" Bella tittered nervously.
"I know!" I exclaimed loudly. "God, how I know. But please just hear me out. It's nothing bad, I swear." What the hell was I talking about, of course it was bad! Ugh! "So most of the time, the wolf is or rather was silent inside of me, just waiting for the time when I phased and he had free reign. I wasn't even aware of his existence. But all that changed in Vladimir's lair. Something he did; probably a combination of physical pain, magic and the immense worry and panic I felt over you; brought that barrier between me and my wolf tumbling down. Now I can feel him all the time. Talk to him too." I finished hesitantly; deathly afraid of what her reaction was going to be.
"Holy mother of God! Let me get this straight. You think that your wolf is an actual person inside your head and that you can hold an entire conversation with him...?" She exclaimed somehow managing to sound dazed and incredulous all at the same time.
My only response was a curt nod. (Something about the tone of her voice succeeded in raising my hackles thoroughly.)
"Are you sure Vladimir didn't hurt you?" Dammit, she thought I was crazy! "Maybe you should get checked out by Carlisle too?"
Ugh! What a mess! "Bells, trust me, I'm not insane and I did not hit my head. I'm telling you the truth. Please honey, you've got to believe me..." I knew I was practically begging but heck, if she didn't buy this part of the story, what hope did I have that she'd buy the whole 'mating' thing, huh?
"Wow. This is a whole lot to take in, Jake."
"I know honey, I know." I allowed her the time to digest the boatload of information I'd just dumped on her. Lord help us both, I was nowhere near done.
"So technically, yourwolf was the one who got me out...?" She questioned tentatively after a few minutes.
My alter-ego loved that; smirking delightedly in reaction. Figured! 'I' on the other hand was not amused. I was not letting that little shit take away the credit that was rightfully mine! "Didn't you hear what I just told you? Him? Me? It's practically one and the same thing."
'Ohhowthemightyhavefallen!'The wolf couldn't resist gloating.
'Shutup!'
'What? I was just pointing out the fact that just a little while ago, you were vehemently denying any connection between us. Now that it seems that our mate prefers me more than you; which isn't surprising in the least if I do say so myself; you're suddenly falling all over yourself trying to convince her that you and I are the same person. It's downright amusing, is what it is...'
I growled soundlessly, imagining baring my teeth at an unknown foe.
'Ohpipedown!Iwasjustmessingwithyouandyouknowit.'
'Whatever asshole! Just stay out of my head!'
'I think you could do with a little more brains and a little less attitude, don't you think?'
"Jake...? What's going on? Are you okay?" Bella's hesitant query brought me out of my internal struggle for dominance.
Okay well... this was embarrassing. "Erm, yes... I'm fine." I muttered.
"You were talking to the wolf, weren't you?" She questioned with dawning amazement.
"Yes! How did you know?" I asked, equally if not more, amazed at her leap of logic.
"Well... it wasn't that difficult to figure it out. You looked like you were kinda having a disagreement with yourself."
Damn, she was a smart one alright! "So anyway, now you know my deepest, darkest secret Bells. Just like old times, huh?" I tried to act nonchalantly but inside I was fretting over what she was thinking of all of this.
"Uh... so... you were telling me about the mating mark...?" She questioned hesitantly.
"Oh. Of course! Jeez, i'm such an idiot!" (Or not, as the case may be. I knew that on some instinctive level, I was dreading talking about the bond and that's probably where the lapse stemmed from most likely.)
"When we were in the cave, I was still largely under the influence of the wolf as well as the adrenaline high of the fight. I didn't realize it at the time – I was otherwise distracted, you see – but when we were... well, you know..." I could just feel the heat suffusing my entire face. What the fuck? Was I really embarrassed about having a 'sex' discussion here? Me? Jesus! Unexpected to say the least. After all, I wasn't some blushing teenager having his first sexual encounter. (Come to think of it, had I ever been a blushing, fumbling teenager?) "I was constantly fighting the urge to bite you, to mark you. That was the wolf, telling me to claim you as my...our mate." I broke off; too ashamed to go on; hoping desperately that she'd deduce the rest of the sordid tale for herself.
"It doesn't look like you resisted for too long." The perceived sharpness in her response made me wince. Not that I didn't deserve it. I did. All of it. Her anger, her condemnation and much, much more. "Just tell me what it means Jake." She continued, unaware of the turmoil she'd unleashed on me with her previous words. "You're starting to freak me out just a little..."
"Did you know that in the wild, wolves mate for life?" I asked; adopting a different approach; wanting, no needing her to understand. "So basically, with that mark I've chosen you as my mate – for life." I paused; allowing the words to sink in; bracing myself for the revulsion that would surely follow.
Nothing. Except an alarming lack of reaction. I tried again. "By this mark I'm telling everyone that you're mine. That you belong to me in every way possible... for the rest of our lives."
And still, she was quiet. Too quiet. I was disgusted with myself, sick to my stomach. Jesus, how could I have done this to her? She should hate me, despise me for what I'd done to her. And yet, despite everything, a part of me still hoped; prayed; that by some miracle, she wouldn't.
"Are we talking about imprinting here...?" Her barely audible query felt too loud after the eons of silence that preceded it.
I froze. Shit! How could I not have anticipated this reaction? Shit, shit, fucking shit! What was I supposed to say? My answer, no matter how I chose to frame it, was bound to open up a humongous can of worms. But what other choice did I have? I couldn't very well ignore her question now, could I? Finally, I decided that it would be wisest to just answer her question point-blank. "No, Bells... it's not imprinting." What I didn't have the heart to tell her was that it was much, muchworse. Dammit!
"No, of course it isn't..." She muttered.
Okay, now I was confused. Did she sound... disappointed? But that couldn't be right, could it? Did she want me to imprint on her? But that didn't make any sense. Bella hated imprinting almost as much as I did. More, actually. Maybe it was something else that was upsetting her. Maybe, she'd figured out the truth... that the mating bond was just as bad, if not worse, than imprinting. Yes, that had to be it.
"I can't believe this is happening!" Bella cried out suddenly, bringing my thoughts to a screeching halt. "God is punishing me, isn't he? Yes, that must be it. He's punishing me for wanting to defy the laws of nature and wanting to become a vampire. He's punishing me for taking the life of my unborn child! He's punishing me. Why else would he do this to me?"
The pain in her voice lanced my heart. Jesus, this was even worse than I'd imagined. She hated the thought of sharing the rest of her life with me. What was worse, she most likely hated me. Overcoming the despair I felt was difficult but I realized that I had to do something to make things better. Somehow, I had to find a way. "Bells," I interrupted her tirade painfully, "Don't do this to yourself, please! I'm begging you. This is not you fault, it's mine! I swear to God, I never intended for any of this to happen! I didn't even know about it till the deed was done. And unfortunately, the process, I'm told is... irreversible." At this point, I knew I was probably blabbering nonsensically but try as I might, I couldn't seem to stop. I just wanted... needed her forgiveness. I was desperate for it. "I'm so, so sorry Bells. If I could take this back, I would!"
"Jake" I heard Bella call out to me, but it didn't stop my tirade. It couldn't. I was too far gone for that.
"I didn't mean to trap you Bells and I especially didn't mean to force any of this on you." I continued brusquely. "I'll totally understand if you hate me for what I've done to you. In fact, if you never want to see me again, I'll understand that too. And I know that I just said that the bond was irreversible but if you really, really want me to stay away from you, I'm sure we can find a way. After all, I found a way around most other wolfy no-no's didn't I? I'm sure I can manage a way around this too. All you have to do is say so..."
"Jake! God, just shut up will you!" This time, there was a sharpness in Bella's voice that was difficult to ignore. So I didn't even try. "You're starting to make my head ache. Jeez, let a person get a word in edgewise, will you?"
Uh, wow... where had this Bella come from? I could only gaze at her in stunned surprise.
"I'm not mad at you, at least not in the way you seem to think." She continued in the same vein, her tone brooking no argument.
Uh oh. That sounded ominous.
"What I am is confused, but then you can't exactly blame me for that, can you? Most of the things you've told me today seem more like a part of my favorite science fiction novels than actual fact. And I'm definitely not happy about the fact that you're stuck with me for the rest of your life due to something that was clearly out of your control. I know this wasn't what you wanted. And I know how much you hate not being in control. I can only imagine how much you must hate this, being connected to me in this way..."
What the hell was she going on about? Why would I hate being stuck with her for the rest of my life? That was ridiculous. I loved her! "What're you talking about...?" I blurted out harshly.
But she was having none of it. "Shh! I'm talking now!" She insisted so authoritatively, I had no choice but to shut up. "I'm not upset about the mating mark... or about you forcing it on me or whatever the hell you think you've done. I'm upset that due to mark, you're now stuck with me forever when it's painfully clear to both of us that you no longer have those feelings for me."
What? What the hellwas she talking about...?
A steady stream of tears was flowing down her cheeks by this point, making me feel more helpless than I'd ever felt in my life. I was at a loss. For the life of me I couldn't figure out what to say... how to make her understand how completely wrong she was in her assumptions... how to convince her that I loved her more than I'd ever loved anyone in my entire godforsaken life.
Bella on the other hand, had no such qualms about articulating her feelings. "In case you didn't hear me clearly the first time I said it back at your apartment, let me just say it once again. I love you. I'min love with you."
Those damn words got to me, every single time. There was just something about the way she said them. Or maybe it was just the fact that it was Bella saying them – the woman I'd always loved saying the words I'd been waiting for all of my life.
Bella went on, unaware of my love-struck musings. "Iwant to be with you...for the rest of my life. But at what cost? I never wanted to force myself upon you! And that's what I hate the most...that for the rest of our lives I'll have to live with the knowledge that none of this was your choice..."
It astounded me that anyone could love me like this, let alone Bella. But I couldn't let her go on thinking that I didn't love her. Not for even a single minute longer. She had to know that I felt the same way about her, she just had to.
"You amaze me." I breathed tenderly, uncaring that I probably sounded like a lovesick fool. The truth of the matter was, I couldn't have kept the adoration out of my voice, not even if my life had depended on it. "You're the kindest, most caring person that I've ever met in my life. You're beautiful inside and out. And you love me. Me. I still can't get over that fact. Come to think of it, I might never get over it!" My hands inched towards her face of their own free will, itching to touch her in any way that I could. "My beautiful, darling girl. You can be so clueless sometimes, you know that, right? Honey, you couldn't be more wrong about the way I feel about you!" I whispered softly, taking the opportunity to brush a light kiss over the delicate shell of ear while I did so.
I felt the slight tremor that went through her. I reveled in it.
"Wh...what do you mean?" She asked breathlessly.
Unable to resist, I leaned closer and pressed a brief, tantalizing kiss on her lips. "It means that I'm..." I paused purposely, teasing her.
"What Jake? You're what? What were you going to say...?" She questioned breathlessly... impatiently.
Now that the moment was finally here I couldn't wait to tell her that I loved her (that I'd always loved her); to finally make her mine – officially. "I'm..."
But before I could continue, a sharp knock sounded on the door. "What?" Bella and I both snarled at the same time; both of us equally pissed off at the interruption.
"Jake...?" Sam's brisk, no nonsense voice acted like a bucket of cold water.
"Come in." I called out, backing away from the bed... and Bella. She busied herself in straightening out the blankets around her, trying to appear nonchalant and unconcerned.
Seeing her effort, a sharp pang of regret went through me. Dammit, why was it that every time we came close to finally getting our happily ever after something or someone had to interrupt? Why was every goddamn person in the world hell-bent on keeping me and Bella apart? It was starting to feel like some kind of sick joke that the universe was playing on us.
"What is it, Sam?" I barked impatiently as soon as he entered the room.
"Sorry to interrupt." He spoke, his voice sounding terse and business-like; his manner, stiff. Warning bells jangled in my mind. Something was up. Something big. And whatever it was, it wasn't good news, that was for sure.
"Sam...?" I prompted brusquely, bracing myself for whatever was coming.
"We just got news that three people were brutally slain in Port Angeles last night."
Sonofabitch!"Anyone we know?" I asked, instantly switching gears.
Sam's response was equally short and to the point. "Tourists from Seattle."
Those poor bastards! Just caught in the wrong place at the wrong damn time. God! Such a godawful waste of life! "Bloodsuckers?"
"Affirmative. The bodies were found in different parts of town, dismembered, all of them completely drained of blood. Also, all of the bodies were placed in locations where they'd be easily discovered. It was almost as if someone wanted us to know about the murders at the earliest... "
"Fuck!" I spat, incensed at the indiscriminate loss of human life. This had Vladimir written all over it! There was no doubt in my mind that he was responsible for this atrocity, none at all. I'd taken Bella away from him and this was his way of getting even. Fucking hell! This was my fault. All mine. I had killed those people; as surely as if I'd drained them dry myself. (Not that I would've changed anything even if I could – for me Bella's safety always had and always would be paramount – but that didn't mean I didn't feel guilty about the senseless killings.)
"Vladimir?" Sam questioned discreetly, apparently of the same opinion as I was.
I nodded briskly, in no mood to elaborate on the topic. I had other, more important things that needed to be dealt with first. "Cover-up?" I questioned, mentally going over a list of all the things we'd have to do. Somebody would have to go take and a look at the crime scene and gather all the evidence. Then, I had to organize patrols and most importantly, come up with some viable plan to get rid of this asshole.
"Rafe and Seth are coming up with a cover-story for the local cops even as we speak."
"Good. That's good. Gather the pack in the living room. I'll be there in just a few minutes to brief them."
Sam inclined his head slightly before turning around and walking out of the room.
Dammit, I really needed to go. But I so didn't want to leave Bella alone. Fuck! Couldn't this crisis have waited just a little while longer? I stomped over to the bed; anger and frustration rolling off me in waves; and pulled her to me roughly. "I have to go." I whispered.
"I know." She whispered back.
"Just remember... this discussion is far from over, okay?" I declared before pressing a bruising, reckless kiss onto her petal soft lips.
Bella groaned, her tongue darting out to brush against mine. Dammit to hell! I didn't have time for this. My pack was waiting for me; even at this distance, I could sense their growing impatience. "Later..." I promised Bella before pushing her away as abruptly as I'd pulled her to me. Then, making a conscious decision to avoid her gaze at all costs, I walked away to do my duty.
The way I saw it, Bella would still be here when I got back. Right now, I had me some leeches to kill!
A/N: - Okay people, simmer down. Keep the torches and the pitchforks aside. Take a deep, calming breath. Better? Okay then.
So, the only reason that Jake hasn't declared his feelings for Bella yet is that I wanted to be in Bella's POV for that momentous occasion. And since the JPOV came up to about 23 pages, I obviously couldn't include Bella's POV in this chapter too. Hence, the title : Chapter 32 – Part 1. But that just means that the rest of the 'goodies' that I'd intended to include in Bella's POV, will be included in the next installment, which; God willing; will be ready pretty soon! :) So, Yay...?
One way to speed up the process, as you all know, is reviews! (Yup, every writers loves them to death – me included!) So, click on that little blue button and do your bit to keep the creative juices flowing... ;)
And finally, a huge thank you to my kickass beta, Erin. Thanks soulmate – for always being there, for keeping me on track and for not letting me falter! You're the best and I honestly couldn't have done this without you. You keep me honest... and inspired! ;)