M I S T A K E N
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, or any of the characters.
Yay! No school til next Wednesday, and I'm not goin since I don't have any exams to make up. SHWEET! I should finish Mistaken by this weekend – hey, maybe today if I type enough. Anyway, enjoy! It's got action, I promise!
21) safety first ) JPOV )
Dude, Quil laughed in my head. You and the mutt! Good choice, she's got nice hips.
Quil, Ari and I growled in unison. Shut up.
Without meaning to, I recalled the feel of the satin straps beneath my fingers. I clung to the scent of Ari's hair and the warmth of her soft skin.
Jacob, I heard Sam say tersely. I was trying to go over which trails to take.
Right, sorry.
I could feel Ari and Leah staring at me. I could hear Quil's snickering and Embry's sigh. Sam quickly explained his plan, his thoughts radiating between the seven of us. I looked around me, comforted to see Quil, Embry, Leah, Seth, and Sam – more than enough to guard Ari if my back was turned. Collin, Brady, Jared and Paul would be guarding La Push and our exit, in case we had to retreat.
Come on, mutt. Embry passed Ari, heading towards the edge of the beach. Seth had already started off. The three of them would backtrack and try to lead the bloodsuckers into an ambush, if they came from that direction. We were basically guessing until the wind changed.
Don't worry, Leah comforted me. They'll take care of her.
I bobbed my head, acknowledging her words. My eyes followed Ari as she dashed through the trees, her form soon disappearing.
Let's do this.
We sat and waited for at least an hour before I heard the yelps. I staggered back as Seth blew past me. I blinked in confusion.
There's only three!
Sweet, this'll be easy!
AHHH!
I turned, looking for Ari and Embry. Something crashed into the trees beside me. I felt my heart race. It calmed when I saw Ari wheel away from the vampires, turning back to face them. I instantly felt guilty that I was glad Embry had been thrown.
Don't worry 'bout it, man, Embry sniffed, standing.
I didn't have time to answer as Ari leapt forward. Something flitted past me. I growled as I snapped at her, managing to get her to turn around. How was I going to keep an eye on her?
Guys…
What? I thought, annoyed. What could Leah possibly want to-?
Ow! Ow ow ow ow ow! My head erupted in pain. I fell to the ground, writhing in absolute agony. Sam whimpered beside me, the both of us rendered useless in our pain. Seth bounded before us. He attacked the brown-haired vampire. She didn't look that old, with her burgundy eyes narrowed. Whatever she was doing to us – it hurt.
Seth! The bloodsucker had thrown Seth and now advanced on Ari. She was holding her own, having saved Quil from a what would have been fatal blow. She had become injured in the process. I saw her try to dodge the female vampire's ruthless swipe at her shoulder. Her hind leg buckled and hung limp. She was seconds from death.
Sam saw what I was planning to do. He managed to roll onto his side. Hurry, Jake. I'll check on Seth.
I launched myself at the vampire. I could feel my shoulder pop out of place as it came in contact with the marble-hard creature. I had had enough momentum to knock the vampire off of her feet. I snarled in her face, clawing at her mercilessly.
Ari, get out of here!
Seth…
He's fine. Look – he's getting up.
Jacob, I can't leave you. Before I could react – moving swiftly despite her injured leg – Ari knocked herself into me, pushing me off the leech. She whimpered as the vampire clawed at her stomach. I grabbed the fur of her neck and dragged her away. I could hear a growl behind me as Quil and Sam started to attack the fallen vampire. Leah and Embry were finishing off the other. I couldn't see or smell the third one. Maybe he had retreated.
I shuddered. Maybe this had only been a test.
Sorry… She could feel my anger towards her stupidity. I forced a laugh.
What for? You saved my life.
I had to.
Her blood soaked the ground on which I tread. Seth had recovered and was now helping Embry to drag away the pieces of the vampire that had first attacked Quil. Shrieking in rage, the vampire who had tried to kill Ari and I fled, a bloody mess. I glared at Sam. How could he have let her go after what she had done to Ari?
Then I felt Sam recall the pain we had both felt earlier. Sorry, I mumbled. I'd get her next time.
I was sure there was going to be a next time.
Take her home, Jacob. When she comes to, tell her she did well.
I hadn't noticed Ari had passed out, but now I noticed she didn't respond to being dragged. It took forever to finally get Ari to the house. I kept stopping to clean her fur and checked to make sure she was breathing. When I reached the house I pawed at the door, barking and whining until I heard Billy wake up.
"Jake – what happened?" His eyes were wide at the sight of all the blood on my muzzle. I was drenched in it. He gasped as I stepped aside to reveal Ari.
"Is she…"
I shook my head, quickly shedding my fur. As soon as I was human, I dashed past Billy to retrieve some pants. I ran back out of the house, using dishrags to try and stop Ari's bleeding. I turned to Billy. "She's dead if she can't stop bleeding. It looks like she's sliced open…" It was hard to keep down my nausea and fear.
Billy looked fearful. "We can't just take her to a hospital. She hasn't phased back… No vet'll believe any story you come up with."
I was panicking, well aware that Ari could die at any moment. I groaned as her warm, sticky blood ran over my fingers. I couldn't think. I couldn't breathe. All I knew was that my Ari needed a doctor. I couldn't let her die.
"The leech!" I exclaimed suddenly. "One of the leech's a doctor!" I ran into the house, my bloodied fingers left streaks on the table as I snatched the keys of the Rabbit. I ignored Billy's warning as I popped open the trunk. "Be careful!"
I picked Ari up in my arms, wincing as I felt the warm crimson liquid that was her blood stain my chest. She was no where as big as I was as a wolf, but she was larger than a Great Dane, much larger. With my heightened strength I found myself able to carry her. I gently placed her in the trunk of the car and got a few more rags to stall the bleeding and closed the trunk.
----------------------------------------------------
I kicked the door, my arms full. I heard the vampire come to the door, then pause. It took all of my strength to keep my lip from curling.
"I told Jasper one of you'd get hurt," It was the largest one – Emmett, I think – that said this.
I ignored him, my eyes searching for the doctor. He appeared behind the first. "Emmett, I'll be in the study. Hello, Jacob."
"You can save her, right?" I could see Emmett's smirk as my voice shook. He lumbered away into another part of the house. "Tell me you can-"
"I'll do my best." He opened the door wider and led me to his study. I followed him into the room. It was full of books, papers, and other nonsense. I refused to notice anything that wouldn't effect Ari's survival.
Carlisle quickly pushed all books on the desk away, shuffling all the papers and removing his laptop. I laid Ari down on the table, watching anxiously as Carlisle pulled away the rags. He looked up at me, but he didn't say anything.
"Carlisle."
"In my study, Jasper," I knew it was a formality. Jasper knew exactly where Carlisle was. I knew where Jasper was as well, I could smell him. Maybe he was just used to saying such things for Bella's sake.
I frowned.
Jasper entered cautiously, glancing at me. If possible, he looked sick. I knew wasn't because the doctor was up to his elbow in wolf intestines.
"Is it you?" Jasper rasped.
"I didn't do it. A vampire-"
"Jasper, what do you need?"
"It's the strongest thing I've felt in my entire existence," He paused, his golden eyes troubled. "Stronger even… than my love for Alice. Everything is her. I breathe for her, I weep for her, and I bleed for her… She's everything. Carlisle," His voice was a whisper now. "Please – save her. If she dies, he dies. He exists only to see her well."
Carlisle nodded, his face troubled. "We might need some morphine, Jasper."
The vampire turned to leave. I felt a bit of my panic ease as he left the room. Carlisle was talking to himself. His soft murmurs worried me even more then the smell of Ari's blood.
"It looks fresh. Why hasn't it started healing?"
I cursed myself in my head. She should've stayed with Billy. Quil would probably be dead if not for her… The guilt and the fear twisted my stomach into knots. I clenched my fists.
"Great! It's punctured."
"W-what?"
He looked up at me, then immediately lowered his gaze. He stood up and stepped away, blood ran down his arms.
Jasper came in with a large white box. I watched silently as they injected Ari with various amounts of something. Carlisle was so focused on sewing some burst organ that when I finally inhaled, he looked startled. I bit my lip as I stared into the gaping wound. "We've managed to slow her heart so that the blood doesn't pump as fast. She had internal bleeding… it should be taken care of, but she may vomit pink for a day or two. I'm leaving the skin unattached. It should heal nicely, she'll barely notice the scar." While he explained that I shouldn't move her around too often, he gave a subtle nod. I winced as Jasper popped Ari's leg into place.
"She's so broken," I murmured, brushing my fingers against her muzzle. "She's like glass…"
"You may take her home, Jacob. It'll be painful when she wakes up, but you should avoid painkillers. They may start the internal bleeding again."
"Thank you," I picked her up with tender care and exited the house. I drove in particular silence until I returned home. I brought her in the house and laid her in the tub. Billy rolled after me, the wheels of his wheelchair made tracks in the blood. He watched me wordlessly as I used warm water and soap to rinse the blood from her fur.
"She's a tough girl. She'll be okay."
I had bubbles on my hands, arm and face. I felt comforted by the wet fur between my fingers. "Yeah, she'll be fine," I sighed, grabbing a towel. I rubbed Ari down with a towel until she was completely dry. I took her to my bed and laid her on it. Her legs hung over the side, but it held her for the most part.
"You're safe," I whispered as I tucked the blanked around her. I went to the window and leaned out to watch the gray smoke snake up through the trees into the dark sky. I sighed softly, glad that there was one less vampire to threaten her.
Just in case anyone's confused: Jane and two other random vampires came. Jane's alive and one of the other guards is dead. That's all. Ha, um… Well, I guess I'll start the next chapter, which features Bella's wedding. Yay. Please review!