Moonlight

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to their respective owners.

A/N-thank you very much to everyone who kindly read and reviewed the last chapter.

Chapter Twenty-Eight-Bad News

When Bella awoke Jacob was still asleep. He'd slumped down to the floor and his breathing was deep and even. The house was darker now than before, it was black outside the window. Bella felt stiff, but toasty warm. The only thing that still plagued her was the inside of her throat. It burned with every breath she took. She knew she was going to have to get up-at least to get a drink. But she just wanted to lay there, too comfortable to move.

Instead, she looked at Jacob's sleeping face, his head was resting close to hers, the dark fringe of his eyelashes settled softly on his cheeks. His arms were wrapped around her protectively, instinctively, even as he slept.

Bella wondered for a moment what he was dreaming about. His lips were quirked slightly in the beginnings of a smile. She wished she could see inside his mind to see what he was fantasising about. It was clearly something pleasant. His features were totally relaxed. She actually felt a little jealous. She would love to explore inside his mind, to see what he was seeing. Her dreams were usually nightmarish in tone, her vivid imagination taking her down twisting paths she wished her dream self would refuse to follow.

Jacob's slow, deep breathing was the only sound in the room-like a lullaby hummed to a child. It was the sound of comfort. Bella reached out and tentatively brushed her fingers over his forehead. "I wish I could see what you're seeing." She murmured.

Bella closed her eyes and drifted again, letting her mind wander. She thought about what had happened that afternoon and shuddered at the memory of almost drowning…she could again feel the air as she fell, the blackness of the water, the thrashing of the current. She remembered Jacob's warm hands, trying to beat life back into her…. the stinging rain flung down by the purple clouds. Slowly, hot, heavy tears began to dribble out of her eyes as she relived her near death experience in horrifying detail.

Damn her vivid imagination to hell!

Bella moaned quietly, opening her eyes again to find her fingers still resting lightly on Jacob's forehead. While she was being tortured by graphic images of her almost demise, his face remained the picture of serenity in sleep. She wondered again just what he was seeing that made him look so joyful.

"I wish you could show me what's going on in that head of yours, Jacob." Bella whispered pleadingly. She had never wanted anything so much in her life as to see what was playing out inside his mind. She let out a self-pitying sigh as she rested her chin on his broad chest, closing her eyes as she continued to lightly stroke his brow with the tips of her fingers.

Then something odd happened. As if her desperate pleading had given her brief access to his mind, a series of images began to expand behind the lids of her tear wet eyes. As if she was looking through the filter of Jacob's thoughts, Bella could see Charlie and Renee mixed into a strange collage of Billy and Sam and La Push. It was like she could see years passing, and meaning something as they passed-like she was getting a precious glimpse into the future-or the future that Jacob envisioned. She could see the enormous red-brown wolf that she loved, always standing as protector if she needed him. For the tiniest fragment of that second, she saw the bobbing heads of two small, black haired children, running away from her into the familiar forest. When they disappeared, the vision faded.

This time Bella's tears were of joy. She woke up to find herself blubbing all over Jacob's chest. She trembled and it woke him up. Immediately alert, he scanned the room quickly. He breathed through his nose, smelling for danger, she assumed. He looked at her in concern when he saw the wetness coating her lashes, but before he could ask her what was wrong, they were interrupted by the sound of a car squelching through the mud on the road outside. It stopped in front of the house, there were more sounds of doors opening and closing. Jacob sat up, pulling Bella along with him.

Billy's voice was easily identifiable, but it was uncharacteristically low, so that it was only a gravelly rumble. The front door opened and the light flicked on. Bella blinked, momentarily blind. Jacob was quickly on his feet to meet his father.

"Sorry." Billy apologised as he rolled his chair into the room and finally noticed them. "Didn't mean to wake you."

Bella's eyes slowly focused on his face, and then, as she could read his expression, she found herself crying all over again. "Oh, no, Billy!" She cried.

Billy nodded slowly, his expression hard with grief. Jacob hurried to his side and took one of his hands. Their recent estrangement was immediately relegated to the past as he took one of his father's hands. The pain on his face was evident and it made Bella's heart hurt. Like always, his pain was her pain.

"I'm so sorry, Dad." Jacob said huskily.

Billy's normal composure was missing. All he could do was nod again. "Its gonna be hard all around." He muttered.

Bella climbed to her feet. "Where's Charlie?" She asked tentatively.

"Your dad is still at the hospital with Sue. There's a lot of…arrangements to be made. He's been calling you but you didn't answer." Billy gave her a grudging look.

Bella felt every bit of Billy's unspoken admonition. "My phones broken. I…. I dropped it…." She lied badly. She swallowed hard and failed to meet the older man's eyes.

"You better call him now then." Billy pulled his hand away from Jacob, and then he rolled himself through the kitchen toward his room. He closed the door behind him quickly, stifling a sob as he did so.

Jacob crouched down, staring after his father for a minute, his features contorted with grief. He covered his face with his hands as Bella rubbed his shoulder in sympathy, wishing she could think of something comforting to say. "I'm here." She whispered. "I'm right here."

Jacob pulled his hands away from his face, his eyes were rimmed with red. He caught her hand and held it to his face. "I'm so glad you're here with me."

"Me, too." Bella answered hoarsely. Her throat was burning.

Jacob glanced at her, still holding her hand against his cheek. "You still sound awful." He examined her face anxiously. "How are you feeling? Are you okay? I should have taken you to a doctor or something."

"Don't worry about me." Bella rushed to reassure him. "The croakiness will go away soon."

Jacob nodded, sighing heavily as he finally released her hand. "I probably ought to take you home now so you can be there when Charlie gets back."

"Right." Bella agreed reluctantly.

Jacob kept his arm around Bella's shoulders when the cold air outside made her shiver. He helped her into the truck and took the driver's seat without asking, and then pulled her over to his side to keep his arm tight around her. Bella leaned against her head against his chest gratefully as she soaked up his warmth.

"What will you do when you get home again?"

"I'm not going home. We still haven't caught the bloodsucker, remember?"

Bella pressed her cheek against his chest and nestled closer. "I hate this. All of it." She lamented. "You should be with your dad. Not out there chasing vengeful vampires. This is all my fault."

"It is not your fault, Bella, honey. I don't want you thinking like that, k.'"

"I'm sorry." Bella apologised guiltily. "I know my freak out isn't helping. I'm just scared."

"I know." Jacob leaned down and quickly dropped a kiss on top of her head, before concentrating on the road again.

It was a quiet ride after that. Bella's mind remained on full alert, working overtime as she tried to stifle her fears. Jacob needed her to be strong, not some wallflower. They had reached her house now. Jacob stopped the truck and parked in the driveway. When he cut the engine, there was a resounding silence. Like always, he seemed in tune with Bella's thoughts. He placed his other arm around her, crushing her against his chest, almost as if he was binding her to him.

"I have to tell you something." Jacob confessed in a low voice. He pressed his warm cheek against the top of her hair, his expression pensive.

"You can tell me anything." Bella urged him, wincing as the effort of speaking made her throat ache.

"I don't know if you're ready to hear this- I just can't keep it in anymore. With everything that happened today…. losing Harry…I don't want to waste time…." He paused again, his breathing quickening.

Butterflies assaulted Bella's stomach. This was it. She was certain. Jacob was about to make a big love confession…. although why he was so nervous about saying the words aloud, she couldn't imagine. His feelings had been obvious for a long time, she was the one who had asked for time….

Bella felt Jacob stiffen as storm-cooled air blew in from the opened driver's side window of the truck. "Fuck!" The breath whooshed out of his body like someone had punched him in the gut.

"What's wrong?" Bella asked in alarm, picking up on his disquiet.

"Vampire!" Jacob spit out. He switched the engine back on and revved it too fast, it sputtered and died. Another curse fell from his lips as he hit the steering wheel. He twisted the keys in the ignition again and the engine caught with a roar. The tires squealed as he spun the truck around, turning toward their only escape. The headlights washed across the pavement, lit the front line of the black forest, and finally glinted off a car parked across the street from the house.

"Jake, stop!" Bella cried in astonishment.

It was a black car-a car she knew. It was a Mercedes S55 AMG. Bella knew the horsepower and the colour of the interior. She knew the feel of the powerful engine punting through the frame. She knew the rich smell of the leather seats and the way the extra dark tint made noon like dusk through those windows.

"It's the Cullens. That's Carlisle's car."

Jacob stomped on the brake so hard that Bella had to catch herself against the dashboard. She glanced at Jacob, his face was a picture of misery, violent tremors rocked his frame.

"Hey, calm down, Jake. Its okay. No danger, see? Relax. I think I know what's happening here."

"Yeah, calm." Jacob panted, putting his head down and closing his eyes.

While he concentrated on not exploding into a wolf, Bella stared out of the window at the black car. She was sure it must be Alice. With everything that had gone on surrounding Harry's untimely death, she had forgotten all about the warning text message that Alice had sent her moments before Victoria launched her attack. That prior warning had given her just enough time to get a head start on James' vengeful mate.

"I think Alice Cullen is here to check on me." Bella said aloud.

"What the fuck?" Jacob swore again. "There's a vampire in your house! Why would she bother after all this time?"

Bella quickly filled him in about the text message.

"And you never thought to tell me before now?" He accused, glaring at her angrily.

"Don't give me that look, Jacob Ephraim Black." Bella warned him as she caught the spasm of betrayal in his eyes. "I know you're pissed off right now, but I won't be spoken to like that."

Jacob's face hardened. "You want to go in." He said flatly.

"I want to see what she has to say. And, honestly, I have a few things I need to say to her in return." Bella was surprised at how calm she sounded about the whole thing.

Jacob took a deep breath. "Are you sure its not a trick?" He asked in a low, heavy voice.

"No, I don't."

A shudder rippled through his wide shoulders, but his eyes were flat and emotionless when he spoke again. "Look, Bella, I can't go in that house. We haven't spoken about it in great detail…but you remember the treaty I mentioned…the one from the stories I told you."

"Yes." Bella said quietly. "I remember."

"Even one of them being back here changes things. This is their territory. I have to tell the others right away. Treaty or no treaty, that's my enemy in there…"

Bella huffed out a frustrated breath. "Dammit, Jake, I understand. I really do. But don't you want to know what Alice has to say?"

Jacob swallowed a few times before he answered. "I'm more worried what she might have to say to you and your reaction to it."

There was a heavy tinge of despair in his voice that made Bella's heart ache. "If this is to do with Edward, you don't need to worry."

"Don't I?" Jacob sounded so young and unsure that Bella immediately reached for his face. She moved in for a kiss. When their lips connected, for that brief moment, they were their most pure and vulnerable selves.

"Do you still doubt me?" Bella asked fiercely when the kiss was over.

A relieved smile took over Jacob's face. He was no longer shaking, only a few fine tremors rippled up and down his arms. "No."

"Good." Bella smiled back weakly. "I know this is tough for you, but I think we really need to go in there and speak to Alice."

Jacob's smile turned into a grimace. "Damn, Bella, honey. How much control do you think I have?"

"I have every confidence in you." Bella said firmly.

"I'm glad you have. Don't pin the blame on me if I wolf out in there." Jacob answered dubiously. "I swear you are going to be the death of me Isabella Marie Swan."

"Just try not to break the furniture if you do." Bella quipped.

"Ha ha!" Jacob muttered as he cautiously opened the driver's door and stepped outside.

Bella slid along the bench seat and followed him rather than taking the extra time to climb out the passenger side. "Ready, then?"

"No." Jacob muttered as he reached for her hand.

A/N-thanks for reading! Please review.