Disclaimer: I am not Stephenie Meyer. I do not own Twilight.
Chapter Ten
Bella's POV
The days went by exceptionally slow after Paul's departure. I spent my time with the pack, though mostly with Sam and Emily. Jake was around a lot, too, constantly hovering to make sure I didn't "stress out". It was nice to have my best friend back, but I was missing my wolf. Kim and Emily tried to keep me busy with idea for a baby shower, despite my instance that I didn't want one.
The only peace I seemed to get was visiting Charlie, which is where I found myself a week after Paul had left, busy in the kitchen.
"Bells, you wanna tell me what exactly is going on?" Charlie asked as I puttered around the familiar room.
"I'm making paella," I answered, purposefully misunderstanding his question.
"You know what I mean," Charlie frowned, crossing his arms over his chest as he stared me down.
I avoided his gaze, focusing instead on stirring the rice. I didn't want to admit that I was avoiding La Push because it felt odd being there without Paul.
"I just miss you," I told him instead.
Instantly, his stony expression faded and he roughly cleared his throat.
"Well, I miss you, too, kid," Charlie grunted, patting my shoulder as he walked past me.
I breathed a sigh of relief, thankful he wasn't going to push me further.
"Have you heard from Paul?" Charlie asked on his way to the living room.
"Oh, um, no. Not since Tuesday," I said.
"Hmm," Charlie hummed, but didn't comment on the fact that it had been three days since I'd heard from my wolf.
I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat, forcing back the tears that wanted to spill. My hormones had gotten worse with Paul leaving, my doubts and fears constantly bubbling up. Going three days without hearing from him certainly wasn't helping things, but with no way of calling him myself, there wasn't anything I could do about it.
His last call had been from a payphone outside of a gas station in Othello. After three days, he was less than 100 miles from Rachel. He'd promised to call as soon as he found her. With three more days having passed, I was beginning to worry about what had happened to my wolf.
Sam and Jake both assured me he was fine, having been phased at the same time as Paul, but they couldn't give me any information about what he was doing. Paul was purposefully blocking their thoughts. That only added to my worry that something was wrong.
Shaking the negative thoughts from my head, I went back to focusing on dinner. Pleased to see the rice had absorbed almost all the liquid, I moved to pull down a couple plates and a glass for myself.
"Dad, do you need another beer?" I asked over the sound of the TV.
"Sure," Charlie called back.
I plated some of the rice, grabbed a beer out of the fridge, and walked into the living room to give Charlie his dinner.
"Smells really good, Bells," Charlie appreciated, breathing deeply.
"Hope it tastes as good as it smells," I smiled, walking back into the kitchen to plate my own dinner.
As I walked past the phone, it startled me by letting out a shrill ring.
"Got it," I told Charlie, lifting it off the receiver.
"Hello?" I asked, fitting the phone between my shoulder and ear.
There was a long pause on the other side, making me check the connection before I spoke again.
"Hello? Is anyone there?" I asked, becoming slightly worried.
"Bella?"
The phone fell from my hands, making a loud clatter as it hit the laminated kitchen floor. The roaring in my ears couldn't block out Charlie's frantic shout as he launched out of his chair.
"Bella! Are you alright?" Charlie asked, gripping my shoulders.
I couldn't respond, but stared at the phone as if it was going to snap up and bite me. Charlie followed my gaze, frowning at the phone on the floor before picking it up.
"Hello? Who is this?" Charlie demanded, curving an arm around my shoulders.
I moved into his embrace, for once grateful for Charlie's support. I didn't want to talk to the person on the other end of the line and I doubted Charlie would either, but I couldn't bring myself to hang up the phone.
The soft sound from handset indicated the person on the phone was talking and I watched as Charlie's face steady turned red.
"What the hell do you think you're doing calling here? Do you realize what your family did by leaving?" Charlie snarled, the arm around my shoulders tightening.
More sounds came from the phone, but Charlie quickly cut them off.
"The hell you are! You stay away from my daughter or, so help me, I will throw your ass in jail for harassment," Charlie threatened before hanging up the phone.
Almost instantly he picked the phone back up, removing his arm from around me to angrily stab at the numbers.
"Billy, you might wanna tell your boys, the Cullens are coming back."
Paul's POV
I watched through the screen door as Rachel cooked dinner with one of her roommates, the two laughing together as they moved around the kitchen. The wolf itched to run in and force Rachel to break the bond. Only the knowledge that doing so might put our mate in danger kept us from doing so.
I had been staking out her ground floor apartment for three days, learning her schedule in order to get her alone. I knew her roommates and she worked odd hours, never coming in at the same time.
It made approaching her difficult.
I could never be sure whether or not her roommate would be far behind. So far, I hadn't ventured forward despite my wolf's increased anxiety at being away from our mate and pup for so long. The need to protect was paramount at this stage, knowing how vulnerable she was while carrying our pup. Not to mention that fact that the wolf tended to lose its shit if we were away from her for even two days. After not hearing her voice for over three, the wolf was like a junkie coming down from a high with no fix in sight.
With a frustrated growl, the man turned from the apartment and hurried away from the apartment complex. There was a pay phone a few blocks away, stationed outside an old, run-down motel. I kept my head down as I walked through the semi-crowded streets. While I didn't mind being recognized, I didn't want to alert my prey to my presence too early.
I still needed to figure out how to break the imprint once I approached her.
I spotted the pay phone a few yards ahead and made a beeline for it. Digging into my pocket for the required amount of change, I lifted the handset from its cradle before dialing.
"Sam," my Alpha answered on the second ring.
"Sam, it's Paul," I replied, leaning against the phone.
"What's your progress?" Sam asked, all business.
"I still haven't been able to approach her, but I think I'll be able to arrange a run-in tomorrow," I informed him.
"Good. You need to finish there and get home. Fast," Sam insisted.
The way he spoke, the severity in his voice, let me know something was very, very wrong.
"What happened to Bella?" I demanded, clutching the phone tighter.
"Nothing," Sam answered, sounding as though he was going to say more, but stopped.
"Don't fuck with me, Sam. What. Happened?" I growled, feeling the plastic of the phone crack under my hand.
"She's fine, Paul. She just got a phone call while she was visiting Charlie tonight," Sam assured me.
The foreboding feeling crept up my spine before spreading throughout the rest of my body, making the hair at the back of my neck stand on end.
"Who was it?" I asked, though I already knew.
"Alice Cullen. Bella picked up the phone, but when she heard the leech on the other end, she dropped it. Charlie went and picked it up. He's the one who talked to her. Apparently, they want to come back. The leech told Charlie they heard about Bella's accident through hospital records, but Bella was never admitted to the hospital. They had to have found out a different way. However they got the information, it was wrong. They thought Bella was dead. Charlie threatened them to stay away from him and Bella, but I have a feeling they won't listen. We're preparing for their return. We need you back as soon as possible," Sam explained.
"I'll leave now," I said, my only thought about getting to my Swan, protecting my mate.
"No. You will stay and break the imprint. We will protect Bella and the pup until you return," Sam argued.
"No way in hell," I started, hitting the wall beside the phone.
"Break the imprint, Paul. Do you really want to put this off? Make Bella doubt your bond to her more? You need to break the imprint before you come home," Sam insisted.
"I don't fucking know how!" I growled, hand fisting in my hair.
Sam gave a heavy sigh, but didn't respond right away. I fought down my wolf, knowing I couldn't phase in such a public area.
"Alright, look. She just has to reject you. Get her to tell you she doesn't want you and it should break the imprint," Sam reassured me.
"What about phasing?" I asked.
"It shouldn't matter. You and the wolf hate her enough that if she rejects the man, the wolf will break the imprint. Jake was different. He actually cared about Bella. It was his wolf that hated her. You shouldn't have the same problem," Sam said.
"So get her to reject the man and the wolf should break the bond?" I clarified.
"Yes," Sam agreed.
"Let me talk to her," I demanded, aching to her my Swan's voice.
The sound of the phone being transferred echoed across the phone line before her voice came on.
"Paul?"
My gut clenched at the hesitant fear in her voice. The wolf growled reflexively as the urge to protect our mate crashed over me. I shook off the wolf, needing the man to reassure her everything was alright.
"Swan, are you alright?" I asked, needing to know the answer to that question first and foremost.
"I'm okay. Where are you?" Bella asked, though her voice still shook slightly.
"Pullman. Listen to me, Swan. I am going to finish up here tonight and run day and night until I'm back with you. You stick close to Sam and Jacob, alright? Don't go anywhere without one of them," I ordered tersely.
"Paul, I'm scared. I don't want them to come back," Bella admitted, her voice barely more than a whimper.
"They can't touch you on the reservation and I will be home within two days. Just keep you and our pup safe for me until I get there," I insisted, closing my eyes as the wolf battled against the chains holding him back.
"I love you," Bella whispered and I could hear the tears in her voice.
"I love you, too, Swan. So fucking much," I growled softly, the wolf pushing forward to comfort our mate.
"I know you have to go," Bella sniffled reluctantly.
"The sooner I get to her, the sooner I can come home to you," I agreed.
"Be safe, okay?" Bella pleaded desperately.
"For you, always," I vowed, wishing I could hold her.
For a few moments, I stood there, neither one of us speaking. The sound of her breathing soothed the wolf and the man, though neither one of us wanted to lose the connection with her.
"Go take care of it and hurry back to me. I'll be waiting for you," Bella murmured, sending a thrill down my spine.
"I'll be there soon," I promised.
"I love you," Bella repeated, no doubt feeling the need to say it as often as possible, just as I did.
"I love you, too. Stay close to Sam," I reminded her.
"I will," Bella sighed.
I waited until the line went dead before hanging up the payphone. I stood there for a few minutes, my fingers caressing the worn plastic as if it were my mate. Eventually, though, I pulled away and headed back towards Rachel Black apartment.
This time, I would get her to reject me.
Ta-da! Chapter Ten! Now, for anybody who has actually been to Pullman, sorry if the details don't exactly match up. Never been to Pullman before, so all my information was fictional. Well, except for the distance thing. I did Google that. Did you know, it would take six days and one hour to walk from Forks to Pullman? Now you do!
Not sure when the next chapter will be up, but hopefully soon! See you guys then!