Chapter 7: To the Rescue

Disclaimer: S Meyer owns Twilight

The cabin was practically submerged in the white powder. It looked like a gingerbread house all covered in meringue. Leah was surprised she even found the place. It was unrecognizable. If it wasn't for the Jeep parked outside, she couldn't even be sure she was in the right place.

Trucking along, she motioned to the reporters behind her, leading them to the doorway. Damn, all this fluffy stuff was masking the scents she knew so well. She finally caught a whiff of Quil as she pushed through the snow. He was trying to scoop the stuff away from the front entrance, when she waved to him.

He looked up from his task. "Hey, Leah." His head swept from side to side taking in the tourists, with their camera snapping pictures of the place. "You made it, but what's with all the visitors?"

"They wanted to get the story. This is big news." Leah raised her hands above her head, both forefingers and thumbs in the shape of an L. "Avalanche traps woman about to give birth. With no food and freezing temperatures, young mother faces nature undaunted, and bears child unaided by medical science."

One of the guys tapped her on the shoulder. "Can I use that quote, Miss Clearwater?"

Shaking her head and smiling, she said, "Knock yourself out.

"Okay, boys, you can interview Bella first, but only for a few minutes. I have to examine her and be sure she's all right. Five minutes, that's all, if she's willing."

Hector, the snow plow driver, yelled from the vehicle. "I'll stay here and wait. You might need me on the way out again."

QPOV:

Another reporter gazed quizzically at Quil. Aren't you cold out here with no shirt or shoes on?"

"Nah, my buddies and I are all members of the Polar Bear Club."

The man pulled the cap off the lens of his video cam. "So tell me, sir, what was your part in all this?"

"Not sir … name's Quil Ateara. Q-u-i-l A-t-e-a-r-a. Well, we were out hunting deer, and my friend, Jake, was nervous about getting back to Bella ... that's the gal that had the baby. Anyway, the damn truck engine wouldn't turn over, so I stayed behind, gutting the animals, and then trying to get it started. It wouldn't budge, so after that, I walked to the cabin, following after Jake.

"You both had to walk all those miles in the blizzard?"

"Yup, it was a test of my strength and endurance, but I got through it. That's the kind of guy I am." He flexed his biceps blatantly, and winking, blew a kiss at the camera.

Averting his eyes, the man muttered, "Oooookaaaay," turned the camera off, and replaced the lens cap, finished with the interview. He walked into the bungalow, on the heels of the other people.

Just then Quil ran up to the snow plow and banged on the window. Hector jumped a mile. He apparently had fallen asleep. "Hey, do you think you could give me a ride. I need to jump-start Jake's pick up."

"Sure, hop in. Wait … dontcha think you should get some clothes on first? "

What's with these people? They all have a freakin' clothes fetish.

He found some of Harry's old duds in a closet, and a pair of boots that were two sizes too small; he squeezed into them anyway. The jumper cables were in the floor compartment of the Jeep, but Hector shouted. "I've got my own. In my business, ya gotta have 'em handy. So, let's get rollin', huh?"

JPOV:

Jacob was lost in thought, just staring at the miracle in his wife's arms. Bella jostled him with her elbow.

His head jerked. "Huh?"

"What's going on in that head of yours, Black?"

Rubbing his forehead, he told her, "I was wondering what we should do about telling our families."

"I am not telling them anything until we're safe at home. My mom will freak out if she finds that we're stuck in a snow drift. As soon as we get to La Push, I'll call everyone and give them the news."

He sensed Leah's presence as soon as she stepped through the entry to the cabin, but who were all the rest of these people? The noise of the group filled the tiny living room with an energetic buzz.

Leah opened the bedroom door and stuck her head in the crack. "Hi, Mommy," she said. "I guess you're wondering what all the commotion is about in the other room."

"It occurred to me."

"They're just some reporters that came with me to do an interview. You're big news. I told them five minutes, max, but you can refuse to talk to them if you don't want to do it."

Jacob interrupted, and stood up from the bed, clearly irritated. "She's been through hell, Lee. I can't believe you brought this mob with you. She's in no shape to be answering stupid questions."

Bella took his hand, squeezing it. "Jake … please."

"No … it's okay, Bella. I understand where he's coming from. He's just upset and rightly so, but the truth is, I had nothing to do with all this. When I requested the snow plow, the media somehow got wind of it, and bingo—I had a freakin' caravan trailing behind me, snaking up the mountain."

Bella nodded. "It's fine, Jake. She handed Liam to Jacob. "Here, take the baby. You can let them come in now, Leah."

BPOV:

When the door opened, the reporters made a mad dash into the room, jockeying for position.

The cameraman moved in closer, lining up his shot. "Just relax, folks, I'm Rick, and the gal with the microphone is Ann."

Shoving a mike in Bella's face, the female newslady from KTAC asked, "When did you first recognize for sure that you were in labor?"

After taking a calming breath, Bella answered, "I'd been having what they call Braxton Hicks contractions for weeks. So I didn't think anything of it when then started in again yesterday morning. By mid morning, they began to get stronger. That's when I knew this baby was on his way."

The lady nodded, and continued her line of questioning. "What were your feelings when you realized that you were snowed in, and couldn't get to medical help?"

What a dumb question. She glanced at Jacob who was rolling his eyes. "Of course I was scared, but I had Embry with me, and I knew he would do his best to help me."

"Embry's your husband?"

She turned her head and smiled at her sweetheart. "No—Jake's my husband. Embry's the guy in the other room."

Like a cattle stampede, several reporters bolted out the door to interrogate Embry.

Again, Ann inquired, "And where was Jake all this time?"

"He'd been delayed. His truck was dead, and he was stranded, so he had to walk to get here. Jake nearly missed seeing his son born."

The reporter now turned her attention to Jacob, holding the mike close to him. "How did you feel, knowing that an amateur was about to deliver your child?"

"Embry's my best friend. He wouldn't let anything happen to Bella. I was just thankful he was here to be with her.

"I actually helped deliver my son. I got to the cabin just as Liam's head began to appear."

"And, how does it feel to be a first time father?"

Jacob grinned, and kissed Liam's forehead. "It's the greatest feeling in the world."

Ann lowered the microphone, and stepped back a pace. "Well, thank you all for your cooperation." The other reporters continued to enter notes in their devices.

Leah piped up, "Any more questions. If not, then thanks for coming, but I have a job to do."

Ann and Rick shook hands with Jacob and Bella and left the room, along with Leah and the remaining reporters.

EPOV:

Here it comes. It was inevitable. The heat rose in Embry's cheeks, as the newsmen furiously took down all his statements. They all stood around him as he sat on the hot seat, surrounding him like a pack of vultures.

"Had you ever delivered a baby before?" one asked.

Embry's fingers were nervously tapping on the arm of the chair. "Not a human baby, no … just a calf or a foal a couple of times."

"What was going through your head during all this?" another inquired.

"I was praying that Jake would show up. I was afraid that something might go wrong, but at the same time, I had to forget about myself and be strong for Bella. She was scared enough as it was without me gettin' hysterical."

"Do you think you might ever help deliver another baby?" the first reporter said.

"Not on your life. I was so shook after this experience that I might not even wanna make a baby, let alone, deliver one."

That response got a chuckle. A third man, touted, "Well, you seem to be the hero of the day. Congratulations."

At that moment, the TV cameraman, Rick, his partner, and Leah returned to the living room. Ann gestured to the others. "C'mon guys. I think we're done here." They all filed out of the cabin, and back to their vehicles. Tooting their horns, they were on the road and on the way down the mountain.

Embry's head hit the backrest of the chair in relief. Leah walked toward him, with one finger pointed in his direction. "Don't get too comfortable there, Em. I need you to get the groceries, and my newborn kit out of my car. And then, you can make us all something to eat."

He didn't mind. Even Leah's bossing didn't faze him. At least it was a normal everyday type of thing he could do. He didn't have to ask for instructions either.

The wolf boy set to work carrying all the things that Leah had sent him out for, then started frying up some bacon, and scrambling eggs.

LPOV:

"Can you hand me that flashlight? It's right behind you, Jake."

Leah trained the beam on Bella's sore bottom, checking for injured tissue. "Uh-huh, looks like there are a few small tears—nothing major. So, Jake, that means you need to stay away from your sweetheart for that full five weeks. No fooling around."

Jacob scowled at her. "Why do you need to tell me that? Do I look stupid to you?"

She handed the flashlight back to Jacob. "No, you look like a guy."

"Jeez, why do you always think us guys are horn dogs. I'm not some animal, Lee. I won't hurt her. I can wait."

Applying a sanitary pad to catch the bloody discharge, Leah, pulled the blanket down to cover the new mother. "You don't have to get all pissy about it. I'm just warning you. That's my job."

"All right—I got the point," he huffed. Folding his arms across his chest, Jacob sighed, shaking his head. "Look … I'm sorry, Lee. I'm still pretty shook up about almost losing my son. These last twenty-four hours practically gave me gray hair."

Leah sat on the bed, and looking up at Jacob, smiled. "Apology accepted.

"Now let's see about Liam, here. After she looked over the little guy, she replaced the shoestring with an umbilical clamp, and declared, "He's perfect … and wet. Jake, there are diapers in that plastic container in the corner. You wanna begin your training as a dad?"

As he walked to the carton, Jacob grumbled, "You'd think I'd never diapered a baby before …"

Leah winked at Bella. "Ya gotta start 'em early."

Suddenly, her eyes widened. "All right! I smell breakfast."

There was a knock at the door.

"You can come in, Em," Bella said.

The door creaked open and in walked Embry. "Hey, guys, I brought food."