"Hey Jake." Embry could see Jacob's feet sticking out under the station wagon. "Sorry I'm late. Something came up at home."
The dolly rolled out and Jake, still flat on his back, looked up at his friend. "Is Leah okay?"
"Yeah, she's fine. It's something else. I'll talk to you about it when we have a few minutes, okay?"
The boss disappeared under the car again. "Sure, Embry. If you're sure it can wait. There's an oil change in the other bay."
They didn't find those few minutes until lunchtime. Both mechanics washed their hands and took their lunch boxes to the picnic table behind the garage. Unscrewing the top of his thermos, Jake looked at Embry. "So what's up?" He poured a cup of steaming coffee and took a big gulp, then picked up a sandwich.
Embry sat with his hands in his lap, his unopened lunch box on the table. "This isn't easy, Jake. Bear with me."
Jacob laid his half-eaten sandwich on the plastic bag and wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Come on, Embry. Spit it out. There's nothing we can't talk about. Or is there?"
Embry nodded. "Just one subject has always been taboo, and you know what it is."
Nodding, Jacob said, "Your father. Did you find out something?" he asked warily.
Embry stared at his hands. "I did one of those DNA tests, Jake. I just had to know."
He was starting to make Jacob nervous. "I guess I get that. But those things aren't a hundred percent accurate, are they?"
"Yeah, they are." He looked up, his eyes wary. "It says you're my half brother, Jake."
"NOooooow!" It started as a word and ended as a howl. Jacob upended the wooden table, dumping food, napkins, thermoses, and lunch boxes into the grass. Embry's bench tipped backwards, and he landed on his back behind the overturned table. He recognized the tearing and popping sounds as the enormous russet wolf materialized behind it. Furious golden eyes glared at him before the wolf turned and ran for the woods.
Embry automatically scanned the area; there was no one around. He sighed deeply and located his phone among the rubble. With trembling hands, he punched in Leah's number. It was answered on the first ring.
"How'd it go, Em?"
"Not well, Honey." His voice was shaky.
"He phased?"
"Yeah. I know it was a shock. What have I done, Lee?"
"Oh, NO you don't! You don't take the blame for this, Embry Call! None of it is your fault. None. I'm sure he just needs some time. He'll come around."
"You didn't see him," he said miserably.
"Look, Embry - you can lock up the shop. Put a message on the answering machine - an emergency or something. I've gotta call Nessie."
"Okay, Lee. I have a couple of things I need to finish up here before I head for home." He quickly changed the answering machine message, indicating they would be closed for an emergency and hoped to reopen tomorrow. Then he walked into the woods where Jacob had disappeared and stripped down, phasing into his wolf form.
"Jake? Talk to me, man."
No answer, though his mind's eye could see the landscape flying by the other wolf. He recognized the terrain and headed in Jacob's direction.
"Leave me alone, Embry."
"That's not ever going to happen. You're my brother, Jake. That's the bright spot in this whole mess."
Silence. The dark grey wolf ran on, slowly gaining on his brother.
It took Leah longer than she expected to make the call. "Ness? It's Leah. We have a problem."
"You okay, Lee? Is it the baby?"
"Actually, it's our husbands. Embry got his test results, and apparently Billy Black is his biological father."
Renesmee propped the phone against her shoulder and handed Mei her apple slices. She walked into the laundry room and whispered, "Shit! And he told Jake?"
"Yeah. Jake exploded. Literally and figuratively. Embry wasn't hurt, but Jake shredded his clothes and took off. Embry should be on his way home by now. I'm sorry, Ness. I feel terrible about this."
"So do I, Leah, but it's nobody's fault. Well, nobody but Billy. Embry's only a few months younger than Jake. They're like twins with different mothers." She groaned.
"The worst part is, Sarah was pregnant with Jake when Tiffany conceived Embry. Please tell me this will all work out and they'll be happy one day to be brothers."
"Not today, I'm afraid. Want me to pick up the kids? Or hey - what if I phase and try to track Jake down - at least talk to him. If you can do the pickup today." She heard a dark chuckle from the other phone.
"Yeah, that'd be great - except for the fact that my water just broke before I called you. Carlisle is on his way here. Will you keep Amber until you hear from us?"l
Renesmee gasped. "Of course! Tell Embry to keep me posted, okay? Hang in there, wolf girl. You've got this. You've done it before."
"Thanks, Ness. Gotta go. I don't think Carlisle wasted time driving - he's here already."
The russet wolf stopped, wheeled around, and snarled with menace. "Do you really want to fight me, Embry? You know that can't end well. I'm still the alpha wolf - beat you by three months."
"Dammit, Jake, you know I don't want to fight. You just need to calm down! There's a wife and four kids waiting for you at home. It's bad news. I know it is. But we have to move past it, buddy. You'll have to talk to your dad - give him a chance to explain."
The larger wolf's lip curled, exposing murderous canine teeth. "You mean OUR father, don't you?" Without another word, he sprang. Powerful jaws clamped onto Embry's neck, narrowly missing his jugular. Blood matted his grey fur. Bracing his feet, the smaller wolf shook him off, but he pounced again, his massive head butting against Embry's rib cage. The snap of rib bones echoed in the crisp clean air.
"Stop it, Jacob! What the hell did I do to you? I had no choice in any of this. Would you stop and think for a minute?" He stopped suddenly and coughed up a stream of bright red blood. "You punctured a lung, Jake. If you're really trying to kill me, you just might succeed." Whining softly, he fell on his side on the mossy forest floor.
Jacob stood still, panting loudly, Embry's blood dripping from ferocious fangs. Slowly, his eyes focused. "Shit," he said as his human form rippled into existence. There was no time for apologies. He knelt next to Embry and ran his fingers through the fur, feeling his way along the rib cage.
A sharp involuntary bark and his sensitive fingertips told him when he located the spot. He found two fractures. "Stay as still as you can. I have to line up the bones, and then you have to lie still while they knit - and hopefully the lung repairs itself."
The pain was incredible. The wolf's eyes widened, then closed as he lost consciousness and phased back to his human form. Jacob panicked and slapped his face. "Embry!"
His eyes rolled open, then glazed over with pain. "I'm sorry, man," Jacob whispered. "I lost my mind."
Embry nodded weakly. "It's easing up." He wheezed and tried to sit up. "I feel like I'm drowning, Jake. Help me sit up." In the sudden silence, they could hear Embry's phone buzzing. His shorts were banded to his leg, and the phone was in his pocket, miraculously intact and ringing after the altercation.
Jacob snatched the phone and handed it to Embry. The bright screen indicated the incoming call was from Leah. His voice was getting stronger. "Lee?"
It was Carlisle's voice, not Leah's. "Wherever you are, Embry, you need to get home! Leah's in labor and this baby is coming fast." Without waiting for an answer, the doctor disconnected. Embry tried to struggle to his feet.
"You gotta give it a little time, Embry," Jacob said miserably. "I know you need to go, but you can't risk re-breaking a rib."
"My. Wife. Needs. Me. You can either help me or get out of my way!" Grabbing Jacob's shoulder, Embry lurched to his feet. He looked around. "Where the hell are we?"
"We're in Forks - not far from the Cullen house. Will you PLEASE stay here while I go over there and borrow a car? That's the fastest way I can see to get you home." Embry nodded and tossed Jacob his shorts.
"Get me something to wear."
The fifteen minute wait seemed like hours. Jacob came crashing through the underbrush. "The car is just over that rise. Come on, I'll help you." Embry moved slowly but steadily, and in ten minutes he was ensconced in the front seat of Edward's Volvo and wearing a pair of Emmett's gym shorts..
"Edward saw my face and just tossed me the keys," Jacob explained. My mind is usually out of his reach." There was no more conversation as they sped along the road to Embry's house. The car had barely come to a stop when he threw open the door and flew up the steps.
Jacob stopped at the open door, listening to the silence within. Embry whispered, "I'm here, Leah. Take my hand." She uttered a blood-curdling scream, quickly followed by the sound of a newborn baby's angry cry.
Carlisle's voice was jolly. "Sounds like she's got some good lungs."
Jacob bowed his head, then sprinted back to the car to go home and share the news with Renesmee. This was no time to intrude on their happiness. The rest could wait.