Wolf Boy

Disclaimer; all characters and copyright belong to SM.

A/N-thank you for the kind reviews!

Part Forty-Four

Jacob used the pads of his fingers to touch his lips, they were still tingling from Bella's fierce kiss goodbye. He'd never really believed in the phrase parting is such sweet sorrow, but he did now. His heart ached to leave her behind on the reservation. He knew that her heart ached just as much to let him go. But they had no choice but to part-Riley had managed to set the trap-Victoria had finally agreed to meet him, the only downside was she had been the one to decide where and when. She was still very mistrustful, suspicious of everyone and everything.

At first, when Riley reported the news that the feisty red head was finally agreeing to meet him, the pack was joyous, adrenaline pumping they got ready to kill Victoria. But when he delivered the blow that she was only prepared to do so on her terms and not his, the packs celebratory mood dissipated. The place originally chosen to ambush her had been perfect for them. It was actually close to the meadow where the Cullens had once played baseball, but the wolves weren't to know that. The place Victoria had chosen was much more perilous and would give her all the advantages. It was up the side of a mountain, giving her a clear view of the terrain all around her. There were only a few places that the wolves would be able to hide. This unsettled them, and Sam and Jacob were considering calling it off, until Riley informed them this was probably going to be their only chance. She would become very suspicious if he cancelled on her, especially after going to so much effort to persuade her in the first place.

Worse was to come, the night before a fierce snow storm had blown in. The whole mountain was coated in a pure white carpet. The wolves' darker fur would stand out like a beacon to even a human's naked eye. Again, the pack became uneasy. An emergency meeting was held, everyone voiced an opinion. Sam and Jacob decided to put it to a vote, they would not allow any of their brothers to risk their lives if they weren't fully on board with the plan. In the end, the pack stuck together, the unanimous agreement was to go ahead and finish what they had started. Victoria was a lone vampire, what chance did she really have against all of them united?

The pack travelled up the mountain to the agreed meeting point in their human forms. It was easier to meld in with the terrain and keep hidden amongst the large rocks and bushy scrub clinging to the side of the mountain. The icy snow underfoot didn't bother them, their supernatural heat kept them toasty warm. They made sure to cover their tracks as they went. They didn't want to chance Victoria seeing any evidence in advance that she was walking into a trap. Jacob and Sam made sure that everyone kept downwind, after being careful in every other regard, they didn't want things to fall apart at the last hurdle by Victoria catching their scent. Once they had reached their destination, each member of the pack took careful pains to hide themselves-some even burrowing in the deep snow.

Now all they had to do was wait!

And wait.

And wait….

Jacob was the one closest to the meeting point. He was the first to spot the black shadows moving toward them. Slowly, three vampires edged into sight, their eyes intent, missing nothing. Jacob tensed as he watched them, his keen eyes moving first to Victoria-her orange hair blazed brighter than the winter sun beating down on them-it was more like a flame. There was no wind, but the fire around her face seemed to shimmer slightly, as if it was alive. Jacob noticed her lips were pressed into a tight line. There was a striking feline quality to the way she held her coiled body, a lioness waiting to spring.

Riley on the other hand looked as nervous as hell-even though he was muscular and tall-he appeared less intimidating than Victoria. He kept sweeping his fingers through his blonde hair, his gaze flitting anxiously to the smaller figure standing next to him…. Lily.

Jacob gritted his teeth in frustration. What the hell was Lily doing there? Riley had promised to stow the unpredictable newborn away somewhere. Her presence just made everything much more precarious. He glanced over his shoulder toward where Sam was hiding a few metres away. Jacob could see that Uley was thinking the same thing.

Victoria was sniffing the air now; her eyes were black with thirst. It was clear she hadn't hunted for a long time. That alone would make her more ferocious. Tension rolled off of her, nearly visible in the air. Jacob could feel her hatred, the all-consuming passion that held her in its grip. Almost as if he could hear her thoughts, too, he knew what she was thinking.

"Why did you make her come?" Riley was the first to break the tense silence.

Victoria rounded on him, snarling. "Insurance."

Jacob's eyes widened in shock at the sound of her voice. It was not the strong, wild, catlike growl he would have put with her face and stance. It was soft, it was high-a babyish soprano tinkling. The kind of voice that went with blond curls and pink bubble gum. It made no sense coming through her bared, glistening teeth.

"Riley?" Lily chirped as her brow furrowed in confusion. "Who is this woman?"

Riley's jaw tightened, and he squared his shoulders. His eyes emptied-there was no more nerves, no more anything. "She's here." He said dully, all life gone from his voice.

Victoria's body trembled; she was so tightly wound. Her fingers were ready claws, reaching to strike and rip Riley's eyes out of their sockets. "TRAITOR!" She screamed.

It was time to strike. Jacob was first, he phased on the fly-always the fastest, the swiftest, the strongest-his mammoth russet shape flew through the air, heading right for Victoria.

"No." Victoria cried, her baby voice shrill with disbelief. She grabbed Riley, yanking him back by the hair. Using his body as a shield she backed away, yelling curses at Jacob.

"RILEY!" Lily sobbed in fear. "RILEY!"

Jacob was forced to swerve. He crash-landed a few feet to the right of Victoria. He didn't want to hurt Riley if he didn't have to. One by one the other wolves revealed themselves. Soon Victoria was surrounded by masses of fur and sharp teeth. Her eyes darkened further, filled with a disappointment so ferocious she looked deranged.

"No." She said again, through her teeth, as the wolves began to swirl around her in a slow circle.

Behind them Lily was sobbing hysterically. Her eyes remained dry, but her pained cries pierced the ears of the wolves, causing some of them to whine in protest. They were taking their lead from Sam and Jacob, some getting frustrated by why they were hesitating to attack. They hadn't built up the relationship with Riley that Jacob had. He didn't see him as just a vampire, but a victim of circumstance, just like they all were. He didn't deserve to die on this god-forsaken mountaintop. He had risked everything to help them.

"You're a fool." Victoria hissed in Riley's ear. "They don't care about you. They used you. Didn't I warn you about their mind tricks. You're going to pay for your foolishness now. You're my ticket out of here."

With that parting comment, Victoria lifted Riley up as if he weighed nothing, then flung him bodily at the wolves. His stone body crashed into Embry and Quil, the force of the blow sending them sprawling into the snow, and temporarily breaking the circle. As soon as a gap appeared Victoria was off, running like a flash. Her outline blurred as she charged past the wolves, laughing hysterically as she aimed a vicious kick at Riley's body as she passed him.

"Fuck!" Jacob cried in his head. "Get her!"

As one the wolves spun around-Embry and Quil taking a little longer to follow-they were winded from the blow of Riley's body crashing into them.

Victoria did not spare one glance for the boy whose life she'd ruined. Instead her gaze focused on a hysterical Lily. She stopped her forward momentum and grabbed the newborn by the roots of her black bob, wrenching her head back at a painful angle so she was forced to look into Victoria's angry eyes.

"The red one. His mother killed your parents. He killed your brother. He wants to kill Riley now. This is your last chance to save the one you love. KILL HIM!" Victoria abruptly let go and continued to run like crazy down the side of the mountain, the pack of baying wolves hot on her heels.

Lily's whole body shook as she looked wildly in Jacob's direction. Her crimson eyes turned opaque, a flash of recognition crossing her face. Victoria was weaving through the scraggy tree trunks at the far end of the clearing, whooping as if pleased with the chaos she was causing. That was until Sam's teeth snapping on her heels cut short her glee. She showed her teeth and hissed at him.

Jacob was close by Sam's side. The black and red wolf moved in unison as they chased down Victoria, second by second gaining ground on her, until out of nowhere Jacob felt something rip into him on his left side. He howled in pain, swerving off to one side, blood dripping from his flank. Lily was standing inches away from him, her poisonous teeth bared, her pretty features twisted into a vengeful mask.

"I know who you are now. I remember." She screamed at him.

Jacob crouched into a defensive stance. There was no way he could answer her in his wolf form. Her fist lashed out and caught him on the end of the nose, a low yelp coughed out of his throat. Jacob didn't want to hurt her, so he backed away, his shoulders twitching as if he was trying to shake off the pain. Lily kept coming forward, driving Jacob toward the cliff face. Jacob snapped at her; out of the corner of his eye he could see his brothers closing in on Victoria.

"You killed Trent." Lily whispered as she darted closer. "Your mother killed my parents." A dry sob tore from her throat while her crimson eyes glowed with the madness of her renewed grief. "You deserve to die."

Jacob shook his head from side to side. He was backed against the cliff face. Lily clenched her teeth, trying to keep her focus on Jacob.

"Lily." Riley's crooning voice echoed off the cliff face.

Lily paused in her attack, glancing over her shoulder at the boy she loved. "Riley?" She whispered uncertainly.

"You don't want to do this." Riley continued in the same hypnotic tone. "You're not a killer, Lily. Don't let Victoria get in your head."

"But he is." The words were torn from Lily's throat in an anguished cry. "He killed Trent."

"Trent hurt a lot of people, Lily. He hurt me. He abused you."

"No, my brother loved me. He looked after me." Lily shook her head in denial.

"He controlled you, Lily. You just don't remember." Riley held out his hand toward her. "Come with me. You love me. I've never lied to you, Lily. Ever."

Lily shook her head, fast and jerky, fighting his diversions, and tried to refocus her attention on Jacob. But it was too late by then. Victoria had come back around. The red head was no inexperienced, instinct driven newborn like Lily. She was lethal. That's why she had managed to survive for so long. But even with all her experience she was struggling to escape the wolves. Angered by the knowledge that she was losing the fight, she decided to take as many others down with her as she could, starting with Riley, who was right in her flight path.

The enraged red head barged into him like a homing missile, knocking him flat to the ground. With one swift movement, she snapped his neck, ripping his head from his body and sending it rolling across the frozen ground, until it stopped right in front of Lily's feet.

There was a fleeting moment of silence; time stopped…

Lily stared down at Riley's decapitated head lying on the cold ground. His lifeless eyes stared back up at her.

Then she screamed.

It was an agonising, high pitched wail of despair. It thundered off the mountain, reaching the peaks, the intensity of the cry sending the wolves diving into the snow to stop it ricocheting painfully in their ears.

Time started again…

Victoria, battling with the same deafening pain in her ears like the wolves, moved to end it. She grabbed Lily, intending to do to her what she had just done to Riley. But the kill wasn't so easy this time. With the strength of a newly born vampire, Lily grappled with the redhead, fighting tooth and nail, wanting to scratch her eyes out for what she had done. Lily continued to keep up the high-pitched feral screaming right until the very end. Finally, she succumbed to Victoria's greater experience. The last wails died on her lips as Victoria stood, raising Lily's decapitated head up to the blue skies in triumph.

It was a triumph that didn't last long. Free from the ear-piercing screams that had subdued them, the wolves slowly circled around Victoria, driving her right back toward Jacob, trapping her. The triumphant smile slid from her face as the massive red wolf launched his final attack.

A/N-thanks for reading!

Jeez, writing fight scenes are so damn hard. I hope it came across as credible!

Let me know what you think in the reviews.

I have to admit I'm sad for Riley and even Lily here. :'(