An Occasion

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to SM.

A/N-thank you for reviewing the last chapter.

Part Thirteen-The Truth Hurts

Bella had been home from the hospital for three days. Charlie had taken time off from work to care for her. She was grateful, but his constant attention and fussing was beginning to wear her down. Seeing her back in the hospital again so soon after the last time had really shaken him up. The only times he seemed to relax was when Billy and Jacob swung by for a visit to check on her progress.

"How are you doing?" Jacob asked one day as he threw himself down on the sofa beside her.

"I'm climbing the walls with boredom. There's only so much daytime television a girl can take." Bella complained grumpily.

"So read a book." Jacob suggested. "You like reading, right?"

"I've read every book I own. Twice over." Bella sighed.

"You must be a quick reader or have a very small library." Jacob joked, nudging his shoulder gently against hers.

"Both." Bella finally offered up a small smile. Jacob always knew how to cheer her up. He had such an easy way about him, no one could stay miserable in his company. He was a constant ray of sunshine. Bella envied his confidence and optimism.

Jacob looked at her keenly. He could tell her sour mood was more then just being stuck indoors with boredom. "Is it Cullen?" He guessed. "Has he been calling again?"

"Constantly." Bella admitted wearily. "Not just him. Alice, too. I've been screening their calls."

Jacob put a sympathetic arm around her shoulders. "That sucks, Bella, honey. You should tell Charlie."

"I don't want to bother him. They'll give up…. eventually." Bella didn't sound too hopeful.

When she had first come home from the hospital, she had been dreading finding Edward camped out in her room again, waiting. To her relief there was no sign of him. It was only when she had glanced out of her window that night that she saw the reason why. The wolves were out there, all three of them, guarding the house. Their eyes glowed like torches in the darkness, the vague outline of their ginormous shapes visible within the line of trees at the bottom of the garden. They had been out there every night since.

Bella kept her voice low so she wouldn't be overheard by Charlie and Billy, who were out in the kitchen sharing a beer. "Have you had anymore luck with Billy? Has he said anything else about the wolves?"

Jacob let out an exasperated sigh. "Every time I bring it up, he just changes the subject. Things have been a little tense between us." He admitted. "He's out of the house a lot these days, and is spending most of his time with Harry and Old Quil." His expression darkened. "And not just them – Sam Uley, too."

"Sam Uley?" Bella's ears perked up at that name. "Isn't he the guy who brought me to the hospital?"

"Yes." Jacob confirmed.

Ever since she had learned that it was Sam Uley that had brought her in and not Edward, she had been experiencing strange dreams, almost like flashbacks about the day of the 'accident.'. The dreams came mostly at night and had taken on a surreal quality. They all started out the same way – a kind of snuffling, like an animal sound, close to her ear. Her dream self was too dazed and confused to feel frightened, the animal sounded big. Of course, there was the ever-present rain to add to the atmospherics. She would turn her head, only to find she was pressed against Edward's cold, hard chest. There were voices- his and another she didn't recognise- the second was deep and unfamiliar. They were exchanging sharp words. She was too out of it to comprehend what they were saying.

Then, like always, the dream would shift. Bella now found herself pulled out of Edward's arms and cradled in another. She would stare bewildered up at the stranger's face that she could now see above her.

"My name is Sam Uley, Bella. You are safe now. I am going to take you straight to the hospital. They won't hurt you again." His black eyes would appraise her for a second, then he shrugged when she didn't answer. She always hung there in his arms, limp, as he took off at a fast sprint. Then the familiar blackness would overwhelm her as she lost consciousness and the dream would fade out.

It was only when she looked at Jacob's confused that Bella realised, she had completely zoned out. She gave him an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry. What were you saying?"

"I was telling you about Sam Uley." Jacob frowned, not bothering to hide the resentment in his tone.

"You don't like him much, do you?" Bella asked curiously. "Why?"

Jacob made a disgusted noise in the back of his throat. "He's part of the La Push gang."

"You have a gang?" Bella's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

Jacob laughed once at her reaction. "Not like that. I swear they're like hall monitors on steroids. They don't start fights; they keep the peace. They're all about our land, and tribe pride…and Sam is their leader. It's getting ridiculous. The worst part is my dad hangs on his every word, not just him, the council actually meets with Sam." He shook his head angrily. "I heard Leah Clearwater- she's Sam girlfriend – boasting that they call themselves 'protectors' or something like that. She acts all proud that she's dating someone so influential. As if her ego wasn't big enough already!"

Bella noticed that Jacob's hands were clenched into fists, as if he'd like to hit something. She had never seen this side of him before and it confused her. She reached out and put her hands over his. "He's really gotten under your skin." She observed. "You shouldn't let him." She tried to soothe him, to make him cheerful again. "It doesn't sound like Sam and his gang are doing anything bad. Just sort of annoyingly goody-two shoes for a gang. And as for Leah, she's always scared the shit out of me. She is fierce."

Jacob's fingers relaxed under hers, they slowly uncurled and his shoulders sagged. "Yeah. Annoying is a good word. They're always showing off. They act like…., I don't know. Like tough guys. I was hanging out at the store only the other day with Quil and Embry, and Sam came by with his followers, Jared and Paul. Quil said something, he's got a big mouth sometimes, anyway what he said pissed Paul off. His eyes got all dark, and he showed his teeth but he didn't smile – and it was like he was so mad he was shaking or something."

"Like you're doing now." Bella cut in nervously.

Jacob paused, glancing down at the fine tremors running up and down his arms. He sucked in a deep breath and abruptly the tremors ceased. He looked at Bella guiltily, waiting for her to pull her hands away from his, but she kept them locked in place, gazing at him anxiously. "I'm sorry. I don't know what that was."

"It's okay." Bella mustered up a smile. "Carry on with what you were saying."

Jacob swallowed thickly and nodded. "When Paul kicked off, Sam put his hand against Paul's chest and shook his head. Paul looked at him for a few minutes and calmed down. Honestly, it was like Sam was holding him back – like Paul was going to tear us up if Sam didn't stop him." He groaned and rolled his eyes. "I'm making it sound like something out of a bad western. You know Sam's a pretty big guy, he's twenty. But Paul's just sixteen, shorter than me and not as beefy as Quil. I think any of us could take him."

"Don't get into any unnecessary fights, Jacob." Bella pleaded with him. "Promise me?"

"I'm not planning on it, Bella." Jacob finally smiled, a genuine one this time. "And despite my misgivings about Sam, I owe him for bringing you to the hospital."

Bella was still watching his face carefully. "What's really bothering you? About the Sam thing, I mean. Is there something you're not telling me? You can trust me, Jacob." She knew she had hit the nail on the head when she saw him grimace. His fingers were beginning to curl up again under hers, and she gripped them tightly to stop them forming into fists again. He was totally shaken up and she didn't understand why. "Talk to me, Jacob."

Jacob turned his head to one side to hide his expression and sighed. "Its just…the way they treat me." His words came out thick and fast now. "You know the council is supposed to be made up of equals, but if there is a leader, it would be my dad. I've neve been able to figure out why they treat him the way they do. Why his opinion counts the most. It's something to do with his father and his father's father. My great grandpa, Ephraim Black, was sort of the last chief we had, and they still listen to Billy, maybe because of that. But I'm just like everyone else. Nobody treats me special…until now."

Bella sucked in a sharp breath, her eyes widening slightly. Something had been nagging at the back of her mind ever since he had told her about Sam Uley. She thought about the number of members in Sam's 'gang' and the number of wolves who had been guarding her house ever since the 'accident.'

"Sam treats you special?"

"Yeah." Jacob looked at her with troubled eyes. "He looks at me like he's waiting for something…. like I'm going to join his stupid gang someday. He pays more attention to me than any of the other guys. I hate it."

As Bella listened to him talk, her throat closed up so tight, she felt like she was choking. She was slowly beginning to put two and two together. "Jacob." She said in a strangulated voice. "We got it all wrong from the start."

"Huh?" Jacob peered at her face worriedly. She had gone deathly pale. "What's wrong with you, Bella? You look like you're gonna be sick."

"Oh, Jake, don't you get it?" Bella pleaded. She thought about the animal noises she had heard in her confused dreams. It was all beginning to make a horrifying kind of sense. "We were looking in the wrong place this whole time. I know who the black wolf is."

Her words caught Jacob odd guard. He stared at her, going completely still. "Who?"

"Its Sam Uley." Bella blurted out. "Every night since coming home, I've seen the black wolf and his two companions guarding the house. Sam's gang has three members."

Jacob frowned, his eyebrows pulling up in a way that looked quite comical. "No way! Not Uley!" He shook his head in denial.

"Why was it so easy for you to believe that it was Billy, but you won't entertain the thought that it was Sam all along?" Bella demanded. She could feel Jacob's hands clench together beneath hers.

"You're wrong!" Jacob choked out. There was anger on his face now.

"I'm not wrong. You know I'm not." Bella whispered fretfully. "And you know what this means. Its obvious now why Sam has taken such an interest in you."

Jacob was biting his lower lip and clenching and unclenching his hands. The same fine tremors from before began to run up and down his arms again. He looked like he was about to cry. "You're saying I'm next, aren't you?" He declared unhappily. "I'm going to be the next one to turn wolf."

A/N-thanks for reading! Please review.