Moonlight
Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong SM.
A/N-thank you very much to everyone who kindly read and reviewed the last chapter.
Chapter Twenty-Seven-Rescue
All sorts of panicked thoughts filtered through Bella's mind in quick succession as she stared at Alice's message. The hand holding her cell trembled as she tore her eyes away from the screen and glanced around her distractedly. In her peripheral vision she caught sight of the same flash of fiery red. She held her breath as she focused her full attention on it, thinking at first it was some kind of strange seaweed floating toward the shore from a great distance away.
Then, as she scrutinised it more closely, she realised whatever it was, it was moving through the water faster than the waves. It wasn't floating randomly; it was propelling itself toward the beach. Bella felt her stomach flip as she recognised Victoria's hair floating on top of the water.
Bella now fully understood the import of Alice's frantic text message. Bella took off at a fast sprint across the sand. Victoria was still some distance away, and Alice's warning had given her the opportunity to at least get a head start on her pursuer. If she could just reach the refuge of the cliffs, maybe the wolves would sense that she was in trouble. Jacob had told her once that they often roamed that way when they patrolled, as the towering cliffs gave them a good vantage point to check along the coastline.
Bella knew her way to the lane that passed closest to the cliffs, but she had to hunt for the little path that would take her to the ledge. Any delay was critical. As she followed it, she looked for turns or forks.
Being chased brings with it a primal fear, the kind that tests stamina. It is the kind of fear of the worst of nightmares, the kind that ignores physical and mental pain in the pursuit of safety. Bella's chest was tight, she was struggling to draw breath as she blindly forced her way through the undergrowth.
Jacob had planned to take her cliff diving off the lower outcropping rather than the top, but the path wound in a thin single line toward the brink with no options. Bella didn't have time to find another way down-Victoria had to be closing in. The wind was beginning to touch Bella now as the encroaching storm moved in. Just as she reached the place where the dirt path fanned out into the stone precipice, the first drops of rain broke through and splattered her face.
Going to the beach had been the most reckless and stupid thing to do. If she hadn't had the confrontation with Billy, she would have waited in the house until Jacob came home.
The ocean sounded very far away, somehow farther than before, when she was on the path in the trees. The wind blew stronger now, whipping the rain into eddies around her. Bella found herself close to the edge, her horrified eyes on the empty space in front of her. She gasped, a shudder rippling through her entire body as she stepped back, her toes blindly trying to find purchase on the slippery ground.
Then something hard slammed into her, knocking all the breath from her body. Bella let out a terrified scream as she tumbled off the edge of the precipice. She dropped through the open air like a meteor, the wind resisted, trying to fight the unconquerable gravity, pushing against her and twirling her like a rag doll crashing to earth.
Bella wasn't prepared for the icy cold as she sliced through the surface of the water. It was freezing, colder than she'd feared, the chill creeped into her bones and almost immediately she was caught in the current.
Bella had held her breath in a pool before, but this was nothing like that. This was like having a gun to her head and being told not to let her heart beat. Of course, it will beat. And just like the heart must go on so her lungs would inhale whether it is air or briny water. In the moment that the coolness rushed in, she knew she was going to die. It felt like the waves were fighting over her, jerking her back and forth between them as if determined to share by pulling her into two halves. In moments, Bella knew she would float like the sea weed, nothing more than flesh and bones ready to decay in the currents. She wanted to be saved, she wanted a rescuing hand to tow her back to life, to the world she knew…to the people she loved.
"Jacob!" Bella gasped.
The cold of the water was numbing her arms and legs. She didn't feel the buffering as much as before. It was more a dizziness now, a helpless spinning in the water.
Then she knew no more.
"Breathe." A voice wild with anxiety, ordered.
Jacob?
Bella struggled to obey. The waterfall pouring from her mouth didn't stop long enough for her to catch a breath. The black, icy water filled her chest, burning. Something hit her back, right between the shoulder blades, and another volley of water choked its way out of her lungs.
"Breathe, Bella! C'mon!" Jacob's face, wet with tears mixed with saltwater from the ocean, kept pleading with her to respond.
Black spots bloomed across Bella's vision as she tried to focus on his anguished face. Jacob's hand was hot on her skin as he continued to try and beat the water from her lungs.
She wasn't dead then. Victoria had failed in her attempt to drown her by pushing her off the edge of the cliff.
"Bella, honey?" Jacob asked, his voice still tense, but not as wild as before. "Can you hear me?"
The contents of her head swished and rolled sickeningly, like they'd joined the rough water.
"How long has she been unconscious?" Someone asked.
Bella's eyelids fluttered as she tried to concentrate her gaze on the tall figure standing a little way from Jacob. It took a few seconds for her to realise it was Sam Uley.
"Fuck you, Sam!" Jacob growled. His arms were shaking and his eyes were wild, a simmering anger bubbling away just below the surface. "If it wasn't for you, I would have gotten here sooner. I told you I sensed something was wrong."
Hands-so warm they had to be Jacob's-brushed wet hair from Bella's cheeks. "You're okay now." He said, his voice softening.
The quiet whooshing in Bella's ears was not the waves-it was the air moving in and out of her lungs as she breathed. Each breath burned-the passageways were raw. And she was freezing. A thousand sharp, icy beads were striking her face and arms, making the cold worse.
"We should move her." Sam's suggestion earned him another growl from Jacob. "Alright, what do you suggest then?" He said severely. "I don't like the colour she's turning."
"Just get out of here, Sam. Leave Bella to me." Jacob retorted impatiently.
"Jacob, I wasn't- "Sam tried again.
"I said get out of here!" Jacob yelled again, his tone turning increasingly brittle.
Bella battled to keep her eyes open. To her surprise Sam obeyed Jacob's direct request, although to her ears it sounded more like an order. Jacob's handsome face suddenly blocked out the sky. "Oh, Bella, honey." He gasped, relief shining in his dark eyes. "Do you hurt anywhere?"
"Just my throat." Bella mumbled, her lips quivering from the cold.
"Let's get you out of here." Jacob said huskily. He placed a gentle kiss on Bella's cold forehead, his lips warming her icy skin. Then he slid his arms under her and lifted her without effort-like picking up a small child. His chest was bare and warm, he hunched his shoulders to keep the rain off Bella as her head lolled on his arm.
"Jake, how did you find me?" Bella rasped. Her throat burned horrifically as she spoke.
"We were following a fresh trail that Embry, Jared and Paul had picked up this morning. Then out of nowhere I got this really sick feeling in my gut. My heart felt like it was being cut out of my chest. It was the worst feeling in the world. I sensed you were in danger-I've never felt so desperate in my life. I left to go find you…but Sam tried to Alpha order me to stay right where I was. He believed I was overreacting. He was certain that the trail would lead us to the red head, but its clear now it was a fucking false lead."
Jacob sounded vexed and irritated. He was half jogging through the rain, up the beach toward the road. "I followed the tire tracks to your truck that were leading toward the beach, and then I heard you scream..." He shuddered, closing his eyes briefly at the memory that had so nearly stopped his heart. "I saw the red headed witch standing on the edge of the cliff, as soon as she spotted me, she leapt off the edge. She got away again. I'm sorry."
"Why are you apologising to me?" Bella's throat flamed again as she spoke. She sounded like a chain-smoker. "You saved me, Jake. You can't be in two places at once."
"We would have gotten her if Sam had listened to me in the first place instead of trying to exert his authority to prove a point." Jacob shook his head angrily, drops of rain shaking free of his hair as he did so. He was still more running than walking as he headed up the road to his house.
"But Sam was with you…" Bella felt increasingly confused. "Is everyone okay?"
"He knew he screwed up that's why. He still can't apologise, though." Jacob sighed, his face looking drawn. "And everyone is not okay."
Bella tried to read his expression, squinting into the hammering rain. His eyes were tight with pain and she felt tears pool in her eyes. "Did one of the others get hurt?"
"Its Harry Clearwater." Jacob told her haltingly. "He had a heart attack this morning."
"Harry?" Bella felt the tears begin to run down her face. Her thoughts immediately went to Harry's family-Sue, Leah and Seth-they would all be devastated. And Charlie…" My dad! Does he know? He was supposed to be going out on a date tonight."
"He knows, Bella, honey." Jacob said in a low voice. "He's at the hospital with my dad and Harry's family."
"Harry will be okay, won't he?" Bella pleaded.
Jacob's eyes tightened again. "It doesn't look so great right now."
"What can I do, Jacob? What do you need?"
"Jeez, Bells, you've been through absolute hell and you're asking what I need." Jacob said incredulously. They had reached his house now. He walked right in and placed her gently on the short couch. "Wait there a sec and I'll get you some dry clothes."
Bella heard Jacob banging around in one of the bedrooms. The cramped front room was dark, and seemed so empty and desolate. She shivered in her wet clothes and began to make an attempt to pull them off. As she tugged off her jeans, Bella heard a dull thud on the floor as her cell fell out of the back pocket. She was surprised it hadn't been swept out to sea. She picked it up, only to find it was a dud now anyway. It was irreparably damaged with seawater. She chucked it to one side and pulled her jeans the rest of the way off.
Jacob was back in seconds. He halted a few feet away when he saw Bella by the couch, his eyes widening slightly at the amount of creamy skin on display. She had stripped off most of her clothing, apart from her bra and panties. She stood there nervously; her adorable blushing sent his heart racing. She was so incredibly beautiful and had no idea how much she was affecting him.
"I brought you these." Jacob's voice was huskier than normal as he stepped closer and handed her a wad of clothing. "They belonged to Becks. She left them behind when she went to college." He cleared his throat awkwardly. "I'll, er, step outside while you change."
"You don't need to. I'm mostly changed anyway." Bella mumbled as she pulled Rebecca Black's old t-shirt over her head. The other girl was taller than she was, so it was an easy fit. She hastily tugged on the leggings and the hoodie. "All done." She declared in satisfaction as she settled back down on the couch.
Jacob felt a pang of regret now that she was all covered up again. He sat down on the floor next to the couch. He leaned his head on the cushion next to Bella's and glanced up at her, his brow furrowed with worry. "I was so scared when I heard you scream, Bella. If anything had happened to you…" He looked in agony.
"It didn't. I'm fine." Bella studied Jacob's face. He looked as exhausted as she felt. She wondered when he'd last slept properly. "You should get some sleep." She suggested.
"I guess I could rest for a minute…." Jacob's eyes slid closed.
Bella reached out and tentatively brushed her fingers through his tousled locks. Her thoughts wandered to Harry again. She knew Charlie was going to be devastated. Harry was one of his best friends. Despite Jacob's negative take on things, she hoped fervently that Harry would pull through. For Charlie's sake, for Sue's and Leah's and Seth's….
Bella had no idea if she was going to be able to sleep, Billy's couch was right next to the radiator, and with Jacob's incredible heat combined with that coming from the radiator, she was pleasantly warmed up. Every time she breathed, her lungs ached in a way that would keep her awake, but her own exhaustion managed to circumnavigate that problem. Jacob began to snore softly and the sound calmed like a lullaby. Bella slipped off the couch and climbed onto Jacob's lap. His strong arms instinctively circled her even in sleep, and she nestled against his body as the blissful heat emanating from his skin soothed her into sleep.
A/N-thanks for reading! Please review.