PREVIOUSLY-
As we lay in the bed ready to go to sleep, I looked over at Sam. "So how does it feel to be 20?" I questioned.
"I feel… like it's going to be my best year yet." He then leaned down to kiss me before we all fell into a comforting and restful sleep.
New Year's was peaceful as I wrung in the new year with my two imprints by my side, beckoning it to be an amazing year.
It wasn't until January 8th that our rest was disturbed.
Jared was out patrolling while Sam and I made dinner. Halfway through cooking, we heard one loud howl, followed quickly by another.
Sam was at attention immediately, dropping what he was doing in a split second.
"Stay inside, Bella. Someone new just phased and that's not what must've just set Jared off." Sam told me before rushing out the door.
My heart started racing in worry. Our peace had ended.
Through the next two hours, I heard intermittent howling as I stayed in the chair by the window, watching for any signs of my wolves, practically trembling as I clutched a cup of tea in my hands, willing it to calm me down.
Finally, almost three hours later, Jared came inside and made a beeline directly for me, pulling me out of the chair and into his arms as he scented his mark on me immediately.
"What happened? Who phased?" I asked him worriedly, considering he was acting strange. I'd never witnessed them in full-on pack mode. There hadn't been any vampires in the area since the Cullen's left, nor any newly phased wolves, so seeing them in action was new to me.
"I caught a leech scent up near the Cullen's place, but it wasn't one of them. Whoever it was made a pass too close to the res for my liking -and Sam's- and it must've triggered Embry Call to phase." Jared told me, resting his forehead on my shoulder and still breathing in.
"Embry Call?" I asked him. I knew that he was one of Jake's friends, but he hadn't been in the lineup of boys with the known wolf gene in their ancestry, at least not that Sam knew of. It was supposed to have been Jake next.
"Yeah, it surprised us too." Jared muttered. "Why would a vampire that isn't one of the Cullen's be scouting out their place?"
"Maybe they were just passing through and smelled the residual scent? I mean you guys can still smell it, right?" He nodded but I began to worry. "Did you see them or just smell them?" I asked quickly.
"They took off as soon as I got close, so I didn't get a look. Paul is sweeping the outskirts and all of the hiking trails to make sure there weren't any casualties while Sam tries to reign Embry in. He's pretty freaked, but I guess we all were when we first phased too. It's just been so long since any of us were in that position. I feel for the kid. Having three people other than yourself in your head is a complete mind-fuck. I at least got used to it only being Sam before Paul joined in." He said, pulling me onto his lap on the couch. "I stopped in and gave Charlie a heads up before I came back, told him not to go in the woods unless one of us clears the area first."
I buried my head into his chest as he ran his fingers through my hair. "Do you think they'll come back?"
He sighed before answering. "I don't know, babe. It's just better to play things safe for now. Just a heads up, Sam's going to have Embry stay here for a week until he can get his phasing under control. That being said, please don't get too close to him while he's here. If he phased accidentally and hurt you…" Jared nearly begged me.
"Of course, Jare. I'll keep my distance." I promised him.
Almost three hours later, Sam walked in with a very terrified-looking Embry in tow. He motioned for Embry to sit at the table while he walked over to me and hugged me tightly, kissing me before pulling back.
Sam turned to look back at Embry. "Embry, this is Bella. She's mine and Jared's imprint."
He looked at me and I could see just how terrified and tired he was in his eyes. "Hey, Embry. Welcome to the pack. Why don't I get you guys some food? I'm sure you're both starving."
I figured that would help at least some, so I walked to the kitchen and pulled out the leftovers from the dinner Sam and I had been making before he was called out and heated them up.
After giving both of them a plateful, Embry ate at the speed of light, seemingly surprising himself too.
"I didn't know how hungry I was…" he murmured. "Thank you."
"Your body burns off a huge amount of calories when you phase. Better get used to eating like this and being hungry all the damn time." Jared informed him as he helped me do the dishes.
"Bella, I'm going to show him up to the guest room," Sam told me after a few more minutes. It was already past 1 am but I was so hyped up with worry and potential situations running through my head that I wasn't even tired.
"Come on, babe," Jared said to me, pulling me toward the stairs to go up to our room.
Once we were lying in bed, I rested my head on Jared's chest.
"You gotta slow down your thoughts, Bella. We're okay, the area is clear, you need to rest." Jared whispered to me as he ran his fingers through my hair, playing with the tips.
I knew what was in the forefront of my mind though.
"What if the vampire is here because of me?" I felt tears building up in my eyes as he tilted my face up to look at him.
"What do you mean?" He questioned. "It's not one of the Cullens."
I ran my fingers over the crescent-shaped scar on my wrist. "You remember what I told you when you both asked about this?"
It had been a hell of a day, not long after I'd moved in, that they'd learned I'd been bitten, which resulted in both of them phasing out of anger. Not at me, but at vampires in general.
"The nomads." He responded and I nodded. "You said he was dead, so why do you think that's connected somehow?"
Before I could answer, Sam came into the bedroom and closed the door.
"I heard what you're talking about. Go on…" Sam said before sitting down on the edge of the bed.
"The vampire that bit me, the one the Cullen's killed, he was the true mate of the redheaded woman, Victoria, who swore to get her revenge for his death. Edward thought that she'd come for him, but I'm the reason why James was killed. The Cullens aren't here anymore. What if she's coming for me?" I felt a teardrop fall from my eye and land on Jared's chest.
Sam reached down and gathered me into his own arms in the bed and held me tightly, trying to calm me down.
"Calm down, honey. You know we'd never let anything happen to you. We don't know anything about this vampire yet. It could just be another random nomad passing through. If it is this 'Victoria', the pack will handle it. We're going to ramp up patrols, and now that Embry is phased, we'll be able to cover more ground." Sam told me, rubbing my back.
"Yo Sam, how could Embry have phased?" Jared asked him after I'd stopped sniffling.
"He doesn't know who his father is, Tiffany wouldn't ever tell him. We all know that she's from Makah but we didn't think about his father being Quileute. The only problem is that there could only be three candidates that could be his father that would've been able to pass down the gene…" Sam answered him although I could tell he was processing something else.
"That's good though, isn't it? That there are only three options." I asked, wondering why he sounded more apprehensive about it than not.
"No, honey. All three of the options were married at the time. It would have to have been either Quil Ateara IV, Billy Black, or my father, Joshua." Sam told me, completely blowing my mind. "I think we all know who it was."
I looked up at him in shock. "So you're saying you think Embry is your brother?" I asked him quickly.
He ran his hand down his face and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"I know he is, Bella." He replied quietly.
I was confused. "Wait, how do you know?"
"Our wolves. Call it intuition if you want, but it's almost like my wolf can smell or feel some type of familial link between the two of us. Not only that, but you two know how my dad was. He took off right about the time Embry would've been born. Put two and two together and you come to a pretty convincing conclusion." Sam responded to me.
I reached up to his face and ran my fingers down his jawline, noting that he needed a shave soon. "Are you okay?"
He smiled down at me. "I'm alright. I already knew my dad was a piece of shit anyway, I just wish I knew I had a brother before he was already 16 years old. I would've given anything to have a sibling as a kid. Hell, even my mom would've welcomed him."
"Well he's here now and you get to be the big brother," I replied.
"No, I get to be the alpha." He chuckled.
"Same difference," I muttered before closing my eyes. "I love you both."
"We love you too, babe," Jared stated, turning off the bedside lamp so that we could all go to sleep.
The next week was spent teaching Embry control and showing him the ropes. I'd even managed to get another wolf tattooed on my back to represent Embry.
It had been quiet again during that time and I wondered if it really had just been a nomad passing through. At least I was hoping it was.
My hopes were shattered when Sam was on patrol the following week. Jared and Paul had been out back cutting firewood while Embry ran with Sam. I heard his howl followed by Embry's and then heard a third, which I knew was Paul having phased in. Jared came rushing through the house and kissed me.
"Stay inside. I love you." Jared told me before taking off back outside, phasing in immediately.
I lost track of how long they were gone as I sat and waited, staring out the window for any sign of them, drinking a strong tea to calm my nerves in the meantime.
I had almost fallen asleep on the couch when I heard the door open, making me suddenly wide awake again.
It was Embry. No sign of Sam or Jared.
"What was it? What's going on?" I asked him quickly as he grabbed a bottle of water and came to sit down in the chair across from me.
"A female nomad. She was up around the Cullens place again but this time Sam saw her. We chased her halfway to Seattle before she cut north toward Canada. Sam is talking to your dad right now while Paul and Jared do a final sweep."
My heart was pounding. "A female?"
"Yeah, a redhead. Crazy one too."
My surroundings started spinning and everything I saw turned to black.
A/N- And so the drama begins.
Just to keep you guys on track:
I'm very big on trying to stick to timelines in my stories and this one is no different. Sam and Jared found/imprinted on Bella on September 16th. It's now January 20th. (Two weeks out from when Embry first phased). So the trio has been together for four whole months now.
Please review and let me know what you think so far!