Chapter Sixteen
A/N - Absence explained at the end.
Fallen angel
Tell me why?
What is the reason?
The thorn in your eye
Angels - Within Temptation
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So I'd come to the conclusion that this whole 'imprinting' situation didn't change things between Jake and I in the slightest. I mean I guess in the long run we were one of the lucky ones, we were already in love before the whole imprint. So all that had really happened was that our already strong connection was made that much more stronger, as well as our relationship was solidified. I mean I know people say we're only young, that we don't know what we're going to want in the future but I have always known I'd only want Jake. All imprinting had done for us is confirm everything the both of us already knew.
None of this had been Jacob's issue.
What he had worried about was me and how I may take this all. Any normal life we had planned had been tossed aside and his pushing me away was his way of trying to give me options…none of that was a good enough reason for me. He knew how I felt about those few weeks apart and I made sure he understood that I was in this now, completely. I may not like it, but I loved him and we were a lot stronger together than we were apart. I believed that, with everything in me.
If we stuck together there was a very good chance we could get through this chaos.
I hoped.
As it was one perpetrator of the current chaos was still missing, it was now three days later and both Dad and I still hadn't heard anything. That on top of the funeral arrangements, well Dad was barely holding it together. He was terrified, I could quite clearly see that. It was the not knowing that was the worst about it all. It frustrated me to no end that she hadn't even text to let us know she was okay. At least then I'd feel better about letting my sister go off on a suicide mission to save Edward from those psycho vampires her and Alice were so worried about.
I was positive she was okay though. Despite our differences, I knew without a shadow of a doubt that if anything had happened to Bella I'd know. I just wished Dad believed she was alright.
Dad and I…well things were kind of tense since our little confrontation. Emotions were heightened after Harry's death, throw in our mutual worry over Bella and my near-death experience and well none of it had been surprising. It was still disconcerting though, I hated feeling distant from my Dad, it didn't settle right with me and I think he felt the same, but both of us so caught up in everything else, we just didn't do anything to rectify it. All I wanted was to spill the beans about everything to Dad but like Jacob kept reminding me it was too dangerous. The best way to keep Dad safe, as much as I hated it was to keep quiet.
I didn't feel like I was doing well at all.
I was tired of the hits and I longed for the days of just everything being normal. No supernatural crap mixing up our lives.
So, I'd hidden away in the house for the last two days, trying to find some kind of calm inside my head. When I wasn't studying for my AP exams in one month's time, I had taken to baking. Not to blow my own horn but I'd completely mastered it, finding a strange sense of peace in baking cookies…and even muffins! It was all a welcome distraction and thankfully Jacob seemed to understand.
Sam from what Jacob had told me was keeping the pack extra busy with patrolling for vampires, so I wasn't seeing Jacob a whole lot but he sent me messages when he could, or even popped by for a quick five-minute visit just to make sure I was okay. I appreciated the concern and seeing him always seemed to help alleviate this heavy weight on my chest.
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[03.20.06] Grace Swan (3:17pm) - Bella you've hit a whole new level...I know it's a long shot but please just get in touch with Dad! Today is the funeral, he needs both of us!
[03.20.06] Grace Swan (5:37pm) - Just let us know you're okay please.
[03.20.06] Grace Swan (7:16pm) - We're your family, that should count for something. Let us know you're okay, Dad is sick with worry!
[03.21.06] Grace Swan (9:24pm) - Bella please!
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I awoke suddenly.
I was unsure of what had woken me up, when a crack of lightening outside lit up my entire bedroom. Sitting up in bed I frowned at the window, watching as the rain battered against the glass mercilessly, flinching as another crack of thunder reverberated around my room, I fought the urge to hide under the sheets. Throwing the duvet off me I stood and headed to my bedroom door to find Kitchi.
As if on cue, I opened the door and Kitchi barked again before letting out a worrying cry. My stomach clenched in a way that made me feel immediately sick. He didn't bark again, even as the thunder cracked loudly over the house.
I met my Dad on the landing, both of us pausing as we listened for Kitchi. When the silence lingered Dad began to head downstairs, with me quick on his heels. "I'll get him Gracie, get back to bed." Dad muttered tiredly.
"I'm up now." I whispered back, standing close to my Dad as we stepped into the darkness that was downstairs.
Almost instantly a bad feeling settled over the both of us, I could see from the way Dad's shoulders tensed and his body went rigid that he felt it too. There was something wrong and it definitely wasn't the weather. It was too quiet, almost foreboding. It was still, too still and my stomach churned dangerously. The darkness seemed too deep and I could almost feel something watching us.
"Dad?" I whispered his name, feeling his hand reaching out to find the light on the wall. Only as he flicked it upwards, the light didn't come on. The power was out due to the storm and it did nothing to ease my fear, in fact it only increased.
I wanted to leave.
Lightening illuminated the endless darkness and that's when we saw it. There, in the middle of the room a statue like figure with red eyes.
There was a beat.
"Dad."
I'd barely gotten out a whisper or another breath, before we were draped in darkness once more and that's when the world seemed to crash around me.
The impact hit Dad and I like a freight train, I felt my feet lift off the floor as we were thrown backwards over the sofa, landing with a violent crash into the glass coffee table, which shattered into pieces beneath us.
I heard the crash.
I felt the landing but there wasn't any pain, not at first.
Dad was back on his feet quicker than I could even blink and reaching for the spare gun he kept in the box on top of the fire place. Whoever had been in the house though was long gone, the patio door swung violently in the wind. Then as if on cue the lights turned back on as the power returned. Dad cursed loudly, turning back to me looking wild.
"Grace baby you okay?"
I didn't answer. I couldn't answer. All I could do was stare at the lifeless body of my beautiful pup laying at the bottom of the sofa. My heart was breaking as I let out a painful cry.
"No..." I whispered, sobbing as I turned to look at Dad.
His eyes though moved from Kitchi, the devastation of the loss mirrored on both of our faces. As his eyes landed on me though he cursed again, rushing to drop on his knees beside me, the gun on the floor beside us. "Jesus baby..." he exclaimed.
Finally, almost numbly I pulled my eyes away from the lifeless body of my little friend and stared down to what Dad was panicking over. Already he was grabbing his discarded work shift from the washing basket, and hurrying back to me to wrap the fabric around my leg, to stem the bleeding.
There was a large shard of glass wedged into the back of my leg, just above my knee and I hadn't felt it.
Not until now.
"Okay baby we gotta get the hospital." He told me. I cried out as Dad tightened the shirt around my leg, before he carefully scooped me up into his arms and rushed us both out of the house into the storm. Sitting me on my side in the front seat of the car, he rushed to the other side, his movements almost wild.
He was already calling the station as we pulled out of the drive, demanding that a unit be sent to the house immediately. I glanced at him, at my usually calm Dad, and I could see the fear all over his face. How could he even begin to comprehend what had happened? I didn't want him to know there were vampires around but could I really keep this from him now? As we drove away from home I began to cry again. I was exhausted and in pain, that on top of the loss of Kitchi, I felt completely broken.
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Kitchi was dead.
Our house, currently a crime scene.
Bella still wasn't home.
And I was hurt. Again.
Dad was making a statement outside whilst I was lay down on a gurney, getting stitches in the 4 and a half inch, deep laceration at the back my knee and thigh. I was tired of this place, tired of being hurt. When I thought about it though, it was preferable to what could have happened tonight. It had been too close, we could have been killed. I could have lost my Dad, like we'd lost Kitchi.
Kitchi.
I felt another wave of sadness wash over me. I just didn't understand why. Why he'd been killed. It wasn't fair. None of this was fair.
Jacob was here.
He'd shown up at the hospital, the exact moment we'd gone inside. Dad hadn't questioned it, he was confused no doubt but he was too frantic to ask how.
I knew why Jacob had shown up when he did. I'd felt his panic, his fear as if it was my own as we entered the hospital. I knew it to be an imprint thing, we connected on a deep, emotional level. I felt his fear, his love just like he'd felt my heartbreak, fear and pain so deeply he'd been frantic up until the moment he'd been able to see me and even then it wasn't until he could physically hold me did he calm.
His presence soothed me but it couldn't quell the sadness I was feeling. Things just seemed to be getting worse and I hated it. I wanted the quiet and peace we'd had before any of this rubbish had come to life. Before vampires and werewolves. I just wanted things to go back to normal, but they wouldn't. They couldn't and I had to accept that, especially now. I couldn't afford to ignore what was happening anymore, I couldn't bury my head in the sand. It was all real and the danger was more present than ever. If I was going to survive this, I had to face it head on.
Jacob's fingers lovingly traced over my forehead as the nurse finished stitching my leg. His tough was loving, soothing and helped it ease the fear building inside of me. I think it helped him too. Jacob's love language had always been touch. It's how he said I love you, it's how he expressed his desire and I loved it. I needed this right now, I needed his hands in mine, his warmth. He was my world and he made feel safe and grounded. We hadn't talked but he'd quietly hinted that Sam and Paul had gotten to our house before the police, to scent it and figure out who had attacked us. Hopefully this way they'd be able to track the vampire and stop him like they did with Laurent.
"What do I tell him?" I whispered once we left alone. Jacobs hands gently guided me up into a seated position, with my legs dangling off the gurney. I winced as I moved, adjusting my leg into a better position.
"What did he see?" Jacob asked gently, his fingers combing through my knotted hair, tucking it behind my ear.
"Same as me. A guy with red eyes and strong enough to toss us both up into the air." I replied quietly, leaning forward ever so slightly to let my head rest against Jacob's chest. I closed my eyes, wishing more than ever I could go asleep but I feared what I'd dream of.
"Oh man..." Jacob sighed and I felt the tension rolling off him. I could feel his rage, his deep, instinctual desire to protect me and find the monster who had invaded our home and rip him to shreds, but I also knew, he knew how much I needed him here. Right now he was were he needed to be.
"My Dad's not stupid Jake, he'll know what happened was more than a little weird..." I said quietly, pulling back to look at him. Jacob frowned, nodding his head before he moved to sit beside me on the gurney, his hulking figure taking up most of the bed. His arm went around my waist, his free hand taking mine.
"Maybe but telling him..." Jacob trailed off, his fingers threading through mine and giving my hand a gentle squeeze. "Telling him puts him at risk..."
"That risk is just the same if we don't tell him Jake. He's in danger either way." I reminded him and he nodded his head, agreeing with me. "Part of me wishes I didn't know." I spat, not missing the way Jacob flinched.
Realising my mistake I reached out to him, my head against his as I took a breath. Sighing I shook my head, "I didn't mean..." I trailed off when Jacob's hand squeezed mine again.
"No baby I understand, I wish none of this was happening. I wish we weren't involved in any of this but as much as I hate it, I'm okay with knowing because it means I have the ability to take out those threats." he told me lovingly.
"I love you." I whispered, my eyes watering. I was so exhausted but so grateful I had him by my side, keeping me grounded.
"Jacob?"
The sound of Sam's voice interrupting the momentary silence drew both of our focus towards the door. The other man nodded in greeting, stepping inside the small room and immediately making it feel so much smaller.
"Did you find him?" I asked, my voice hoarse. Jacob's posture tightened beside me as Sam came to stand in front of us, crossing his arms over his broad chest.
"We caught his scent but we lost it at the beach." he growled and I felt my shoulders slump forward. Jacob's hand in mine tightened as he shook. He was frustrated I could feel it rolling off him in waves. "I've got Embry and Jared patrolling right now. If he comes back we'll get him, I promise." he said earnestly.
I nodded my head, believing him but still upset that the monster who had invaded my home and killed Kitchi was still out there. "I could of got him, if I'd have been out there.." Jacob growled, practically shaking. I frowned, placing my free hand around his arm in an attempt to get him to calm.
"No you wouldn't Jacob. He was gone before we even got his scent at the house. Whatever he was doing there, whatever he was looking for he got." Sam said firmly. I barely suppressed a frightened shiver, wishing I knew what that monster had wanted but I think, deep down I already knew. It had to do with Bella and Edward, in some way...was it connected to Laurant?
"Grace I um, I didn't want to leave him there so I buried him for you guys." Sam said and I felt my eyes water, my lip wobbling as he spoke. "I put him at the bottom of your garden, beneath the tree...I'm sorry if I...
"Thank you Sam."
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The car was silent as Dad drove us home from the hospital, and for that I was grateful.
I was tired of talking and guilt of knowing what I was keeping from my Dad was eating me alive. I hated not telling him what I knew but I knew Jacob was right. Dad knowing, opened him up to more potential danger and who was to say how he'd react? I wanted to believe we were right, that not telling him the truth was the right thing, the safe thing to do but I couldn't help but think maybe if he knew it could safer.
I didn't know what to think. My head was so full of everything, that there was no room to figure anything out properly. Does telling my Dad put him more at risk, or lesson the risk of something happening? I had to figure it out. Right now he was sure the attack had something to do with what was happening in Seattle, there'd been a trail of similar crimes in homes just outside of Fork's. Right now, Jacob and Sam seemed to think it was right to allow him to believe it had something to do with that. Maybe they were right.
"Bella...?"
Dad's voice was filled with such relief, and anger it was hard to pin point what he was feeling more of. I lifted my head from the passenger side window and following his line of sight, my eyes landed on my sister immediately.
I didn't relief though. Whilst I felt somewhat grateful she was home and she was alive, all I felt was a disconnect. After everything that had gone on this last week, the cliff, Harry, Kitchi and the attack I found I couldn't care that my sister was home. She'd left, without so much as a second look, to chase a boy...a vampire that had left her alone for months, without a care for her family.
Why should I keep caring when all she did was hurt me, hurt us and offer us no sort of love in return. Why didn't she care? Or even if she did, why did Edward's selfish actions in Italy come before her family...again? Would she even care that only last night Dad and I could have killed like Kitchi? Would it even register that she was the reason all of this was happening to us?
It was only as the car stopped at the end of the drive did I realise Bella wasn't alone. Stood beside her, as still as statue's was Edward, and the rest of the Cullen's minus Rosalie and Jasper. They hadn't changed, even a little bit and that pissed me off because for me everything had changed! My entire world had been changed irrevocably and I hated them for that. I hated that they dare show their faces again and I felt a hatred towards my sister for bringing them back.
After everything...
I was well aware of what a hot mess I was but the last thing I cared about was how they saw me. I was tired, hurt and devastated. I didn't have it in me to care about any of this right now and so I turned to my Dad.
He'd turned off the engine but he still hadn't moved. His eyes went from Bella, to the house and I knew he was replaying the attack in his head. The glaring sight of the crime scene tape was hard to miss and a crushing reminder of what had happened. After a moment his eyes drifted back to Bella.
He was devastated, hurt and exhausted it was written clear as day all over his face. Another beat passed and he took a breath, his knuckles were white as he clutched his keys tightly between his fingers.
"Dad?" I whispered his name, forcing his focus back onto me. It was then he seemed to come back to the present and his attention shifted again. Without waiting another beat he opened his door and climbed out the car, rounding the vehicle to confront my sister and the Cullens.
Bella was home and I wasn't ready for the storm she'd brought back with her. Life was about to change again and this time, there was a chance I wouldn't survive.
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Hey guys so firstly let me just start off by apologising for my absence. I took a fall at home and ended up fracturing my collarbone. As you can imagine it's incredibly painful and it's made trying to write extremely difficult. That's why this chapter took so long to finish but I hope you guys liked it either way. It isn't my best work because I tried writing with one hand and I'm sure the painkillers made me trail off a few times, but I still hope you guys liked it.
As for what happened in this chapter, Kitchi was always going to perish. Things are set to get darker from this point, I just wanted to nail in the point that their lives now have irrevocably changed and they're all in more danger than ever. So forgive me, I hated doing it to Kitchi but it was always set to happen. Still made me sad though.
Also I wanted to get your guys opinion. How far into the future would you guys like to see this story go...? If Jacob and Grace survive I was hoping to see them after college, building a life together and I have plans of another threat...
kpop2012, Sharava, Martucxa11, writergirl007, grosskopfmichaela, Rochiii37, ellie-wright101297, Cheesecakefgcu
High Gaurdian - Thanks for the review love! I have three sisters myself and I love it, we're super close and I have three brothers as well. I do understand what you mean though, Bella's not a shining example of a good sister right now! I always struggled to sympathise or connected with Bella so I understand what you feel again! Sorry for the late update but hope you enjoyed this chapter!
Winter Kiss (Guest) - Thanks for the review love! Poor Grace indeed, Bella certainly isn't thinking about her family during this whole thing, she's obsessed with Edward! Hope you enjoyed this chapter!
Snow Wolf Alpha - Thanks for the review love! I understand the confusion, but in my mind Alice's visions are based on choices made. Grace didn't choose to jump in front of Bella, she went with her yes, but everything that happened up there wasn't planned. Alice saw Bella preparing to jump BUT without giving too much away, she didn't see the rest of what happened due to Jacob's presence near by. As far as Alice new, Bella jumped and whilst we know that the reason she couldn't see what happened was because of Jacob, Alice assumed her friend was dead. Grace is at her limit with her sister I think and the heightened emotions of the day caused her to shout out, unable to listen to her Dad worrying about someone who obviously didn't care for them. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!
Kagz419 - Thanks for the review love! Charlie has had one hell of a reality check and he's fed up with Bella's attitude and careless actions now! So yeah, he's done and Grace is long since done, especially by time we get to the end of the next chapter! Jacob's got a little more to tell her yes, but everything is on the table now, he's holding nothing back! We'll be meeting the rest of the pack soon which I can't wait for! Hope you liked this chapter.
Twin68 - First things first, so sorry for your loss love and I hope you're all doing okay. I'm glad your sister felt the need to share this story with you, makes me happy to know she thinks so highly about it, her support has been wonderful. Jacob's my guy, but you got to love a little bit of Paul. So I completely understand how you feel about him. Grace will be meeting Paul properly soon, so I hope you'll enjoy that. Hope you enjoyed this chapter love!
101297 - Thanks for the review and support love! So glad to know you love this story, hope this chapter was to your satisfaction as well!
Twin268 - I hope you're doing well love and you're more than welcome for the prayers, I just hope they helped you some! The slap in the fact chapter is coming next, so I hope you feel it's impact in the way I hope it's meant to come across! I explained my absence above, so I'm sorry for being away! Anyway I hope you enjoyed this chapter!