One More Night
Chapter Seven
Bella laid on the couch, surrounded by a nice, thin sheet, sleeping peacefully for the first time in a long time. The only bad thing was that Jacob couldn't hold her. If he did, her temperature would rise faster and all he wanted to do was hold her close.
"I'm sure she'll be fine." Seth said as he sat by Jake and Jacob nodded. Carlisle, Esme, Jasper, Rosalie, Emmett, and Alice entered the room.
"We need to hunt." They said and Jacob stood up.
"You can't leave." He said in an alpha tone and Rosalie growled.
"We don't take orders from you, Fido." Paul snickered at the nickname Rosalie gave Jacob.
"I'm not ordering you. Sam will kill you if you leave here. His whole pack will be after you." Carlisle and Esme took a seat on the free sofa while they talked with Jacob.
"We need to hunt to be strong for Bella." Jacob took a deep breath.
"I know, but Sam has lost the element of surprise because we came here. He knows he can't just attack this house without a major loss since we would be expecting it. If you leave, he will pick you off. You would be making it easy for him." Jacob stated honestly.
"We won't fight the wolves. The treaty says-" Carlisle started to speak, but Jacob interrupted him.
"The treaty is void. At least, in Sam's mind. He sees Bella being pregnant as enough just cause to override the treaty and kill all of you. Even when none of you have done anything against the treaty." Esme was the next to speak.
"It's not void to us, Jacob." He nodded in understanding.
"Give me some time to figure out a way for you to be able to hunt without getting killed. Bella needs all of you at your best in two days." Carlisle smirked with gratitude.
"Thank you, Jacob." He nodded before he looked at his sleeping girlfriend who was smiling in her sleep. He was glad she was comfortable, but his need to hold her was just getting stronger.
"I'm gonna get some air." Paul and Seth nodded as Jacob walked out onto the balcony, taking in the fresh air. It was hard to always be in a house full of vampires, but outside he could finally breathe.
Soon, the door opened and he looked to see the little pixie named Alice walk out, moving towards the ledge.
"Sam's pack is pretty loud." She said and he nodded while taking a deep breath.
"He's trying to keep everyone on their toes." She nodded as she moved closer to him, only an inch between them.
"It's working." He looked to her perplexed.
"Whatttt are you doing?" She gulped before looking down at her hands.
"I can't stand next to you?" He shrugged nonchalantly.
"Okay?" He looked out amongst the trees as she sighed, explaining herself.
"Standing next to you is the equivalent to a human just shutting their eyes and sleeping. All the noises, visions, and distractions go away." He nodded as he looked to her. She gave him a playful smirk. "Except for the wet dog smell." He chuckled softly and nodded.
"At least there is someone I can help." Alice caught his sad tone as his head hung forward.
"You do help more than you know, Jacob. Bella probably wouldn't be doing as good as she is without you here." He gazed towards her, unsure of what she meant. "She's different with you, Jacob. It's like you take away all of the negativity in the world for her, like she could take on anything with no fear. She's in constant pain, weak, and was starving until earlier, but when you threw that damn dog bowl at Rose, she just laughed like she didn't have a care in the world." He smirked a little as Alice placed her hand on her shoulder. "My whole family, except for Rose and Edward, like having you here because, every day you are here is another good day Bella has. It's not the quantity of life, but the quality that matters. She has two loves of her life, Jacob. You and your child and she is living for both of you." He felt way better after Alice's words of encouragement.
"Thanks, Alice." She nodded before removing her hand from his shoulder.
"No problem. Edward is just going to have to get used to the fact that you are going to be sticking around for a long time. We are going to do everything we can to keep Bella alive through this. We aren't going to stop fighting for her and we aren't going to give up. She is our family which makes you and the child family as well. I would happily give my life for her." He smirked and nodded.
"Thanks. I just hope we won't have to fight too hard to keep her alive." Soon, they returned inside and Jacob strolled over to Bella, sitting in front of her on the ottoman. "We have two days until Carlisle takes the baby out of Bella. Once that happens, we can prove to Sam that the child is mine. I just need until then to keep Sam and his pack away from here." Paul and Seth nodded when Jacob realized that Leah had been missing for a while. "Where the hell is Leah?" Seth shrugged, happy his sister wasn't bugging him.
"Probably running a perimeter check." He nodded and waited for Bella to wake up.
Edward and Leah came into the house as Bella awoke, groaning.
"What's wrong, Bells?" She shook her head as another hiss left her lips.
"My stomach hurts." Jacob nodded before kissing her forehead.
"I'll get you some food." She smirked appreciatively before laying her head back down. Jacob went off to the kitchen as she sighed.
"How long was I out?" She asked and Seth smirked.
"Between four and five hours. You must have been really tired." She nodded as Carlisle went over to her, placing his hand on her forehead which felt really good.
"Your temperature is starting to heat up again. Are you sure you don't want to push forward the birth?" She shook her head with a groan.
"My baby needs this time. I doubt any one of us wants a premie werewolf." Seth rolled his eyes at this as Carlisle sighed.
"The longer we wait, the less chance you have." Jacob came out with some cooked chicken for her and helped her sit up before giving her the plate. He sat next to her and watched her start to pick at it.
"Thanks, Jake." He nodded as he looked to Carlisle, pleading with him to let it go with his eyes. Jacob knew Bella was stubborn and all everyone pressuring her would do is upset her.
"Well, for preparation for your birth, I'm going to give you some blood. You are very anemic and that's not good when you are going to give birth. It will just lower your chances." She nodded as she curled into Jacob's side, still picking at the chicken on her plate. "I'm going to warn you. When you receive a blood transfusion, it can have some side effects. You could feel like your heart is bearing out of your chest, it may feel like you can't breathe at times, and you may get a pretty bad headache." She nodded, but Jacob was irritated.
"She is already dealing with enough side effects and you want to give her more?" Carlisle shook his head.
"It's not my intention. She might not get any of these, but people have been known to. They probably won't even pop up until after the birth, Jacob." Jacob groaned and nodded as Bella finished her plate and sat it down.
"It's okay, Jake. I'd much rather just feel sick than actually be dead." He flinched from the thought and she realized how insensitive the statement was, but she wasn't given a chance to apologize.
"I'm gonna grab the equipment I need for the transfusion. I will be back in a moment." Carlisle exited and returned in record timing.
"I think the rest of us should wait outside." Edward spoke and everyone left except for Jacob. He sat by Bella's side as Carlisle wrapped a large band around her arm and began to search for a vein. It took some time, but he found a good one which made her groan.
"Sorry, Bella. Your veins are flimsy when you are so anemic." She became confused.
"How did you know I was anemic?" He gave her an amused smirk as he fixed up her IV before flushing it with saline.
"I'm a vampire. I don't need a blood test to know something like that." She nodded with a roll of her eyes.
"Oh, right. I sometimes forget you're a vampire." Jacob chuckled at this before kissing her temple.
"I catch myself forgetting sometimes, too." She giggled as he connected her IV to the bag of blood, it instantly flowing through the tube and into her bloodstream. She felt a little light headed and leaned against Jacob's shoulder.
"Wooh, head rush." Carlisle chuckled softly.
"It's okay, Bella. Once it's done, you will have a big burst of energy." She nodded with a light giggle.
"Maybe I can run a marathon." She joked before Jacob sweetly kissed her cheek.
"Not anytime soon, Bells. We need to focus on you feeling better after the baby is born." She rolled her eyes at him.
"It was a joke, Jake. Don't take what I say too seriously." The three of them sat silently as they went through three bags of blood and the day was gone. She did feel like she had more energy, but not like a burst of it. It was just enough to stay up late.
"Doc, are you ready to go for your hunt? I've got a plan." Carlisle nodded as Bella sat up, placing her hand on her swollen stomach. "I think you should just take Emmett and Esme with you. Blondie has good control and we will need Alice if god forbid Sam decides to attack while you are gone." Bella and Carlisle completely understood Jacob's logic.
"But, all of them need to feed, Jake." Bella whined in protest and he quickly told her the tragic truth of it.
"We can't risk your safety or our child's. Once our child is born, we can prove to Sam that he is no threat and all of this can stop, but until then, we have to keep both of you safe which means leaving Blondie, Edward, Jasper, and Alice behind. Jasper can affect their moods, Alice is a good fighter, Blondie has a good amount of strength even while being hungry, and Edward can read their minds. Carlisle needs to be strong for when you give birth." Bella caved and nodded as she soothingly stroked his bicep.
"We will get ready for your word to head out." Jacob nodded as Carlisle exited and he turned to Bella.
"Honey, I have to make it so they can leave. Once they are safely where they can hunt, I will be back. I promise." She nodded and he pressed his forehead to hers. "You better not give birth before they get back." She giggled before she sweetly kissed him.
"I love you. Please, hurry back." He chuckled before he placed his hand on our swollen stomach.
"I love you, too. This one better be good for you while I'm gone." She giggled before smirking lovingly at him.
"I will try to keep him in line." She teased him as he stood up and Edward stormed in, a look of shock on his face.
"Edward, what is it?" Bella asked, worried. He quickly shushed her before looking around.
"Don't talk. Don't even think." He looked around before he heard it again. "Did you hear that?" He asked and Jacob looked at him like he grew a second head.
"Hear what?" Edward moved closer to Bella before his eyes zoomed in on her stomach, gasping.
"Holy shit." They both looked at him concerned. "Yes, I can hear you….Oh, my god." He said as he covered his mouth, dropping to his knees with bewilderment in his eyes.
"Edward, what is going on?" An emotional smile popped up on his face.
"I can hear it." Bella looked to him confused until he placed her hand on her stomach. "I can hear it's thoughts. They are very loud and clear." She gasped before placing her hands on her stomach and Jacob was shocked by this.
"What? What is he saying?" She asked with tears filling her eyes.
"I can't tell by the voice if it's a girl or a boy, but it's…. It's amazing, Bella. It says it likes all of our voices. Our voices soothe the child, but it loves your voice the most along with your heartbeat. Your heart makes it happy." Her tears spilled as she rubbed her stomach. "I don't know why, but I thought maybe because of what your pregnancy is doing to you that it might be a monster, but it's not. The child is like you, Bella. It has a pure heart, full of love and joy. Your child is so full of life, Bella." She sobbed a little as Edward said this to her. "That baby loves you so much and can't wait to meet you and thank you for giving it the wonderful gift of life." Jacob smirked at Bella as she nodded.
"I knew it, but…" Another sob left her lips as she rubbed her stomach. "I love you, too, and I can't wait to meet you." Edward released his hand on her stomach before standing up.
"I just heard the voice and I was worried that someone snuck into the house. I had no idea it was your child." She nodded before she reached out and squeezed his hand.
"Thank you, Edward." He nodded before he accompanied Jacob outside.
"Thank you for doing that for her. She needed that." Edward nodded with a kind smile.
"I think we all needed that." Jake nodded before he whistled for Leah, Seth, and Paul to follow him. This also signaled to Carlisle, Esme, and Emmett to start running towards their uniting grounds.
Jacob and his pack jogged to where they heard the wolves growling.
"Jake, I really think we need to phase." Leah begged, but Jacob was just as stubborn as Bella. Plus, he had thought this through completely.
"They will see it as a threat." He turned back towards the trees that hid his former brother's. "I want to talk. It would be nice if I could hear you, too." Within a minute, Jared and Quil came through the brush, still standing a few yards from them.
"What do you want? Planning on coming home now?" Jacob growled at Jared.
"Home is not a place where the so called leader will slaughter innocent lives just for the hell of it." Quil huffed.
"Come on, Jake. This is pointless." He growled deep in his chest before Jared spoke again.
"What do you want?" He reiterated his question.
"I want Sam to take back Leah and Seth." The siblings gasped in protest.
"What? No!" Seth objected, quickly followed by his sister.
"Don't do this, Jake! I want to stay here! I want to be here!" Jacob growled at the siblings before turning back to the two wolves before him.
"Why would we do that when they obviously want to be traitors to their own kind, much like you?" Jacob's eyes narrowed.
"Because I want to make a deal. I give back Seth and Leah and Sam backs off." Quil laughed before shaking his head.
"You must be joking." Jacob groaned.
"Do I look like I'm joking? I know all Sam wants is the tribe safe from a vampire hybrid. If that child is born and it's not mine, you will have my word that I will destroy it myself." Which was a lie. From what Edward had told them about hybrids, there was no way he would do that. They would be no threat and Edward had no reason to lie. He even still denied that he had sex with Bella. Why would he deny that when he could easily shove it in Jacob's face? Jake knew that the baby was his. There was no other possible father.
"Are you serious?" Jacob smirked, easily hiding the lie.
"Scouts honor." Then came the ring of howls of in the distance, alerting all of them that Esme, Carlisle, and Emmett had made it through and escaped.
"You tricked us!" Jared bellowed before the two ran off.
"Bye bye now." Jacob joked before he turned back to his pack, seeing amused smirks.
"You could have told us that was a ploy." Leah stated and he rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, but I didn't. Get over it. I couldn't take the chance that they were listening in on our conversations. Let's get back." Seth and Paul ran back towards the house. Leah was about to run off, but Jacob called out to her, stopping her. "Hey, what was that whole thing about you actually wanting to be here?" She rolled her eyes before crossing her arms, obviously uncomfortable with talking about her feelings.
"Why does it matter?" He shrugged with a knowing smirk.
"Just enlighten me." She groaned before she started walking back towards the Cullen house.
"I like being around Edward, alright?" Jacob gasped when she said this, truly shocking him. "He's nice and he isn't bothered by me. He actually likes having me around and his company is nice, alright?" Jacob's eyes stayed wide.
"Holy shit. You've got a crush on him, don't you?" She growled at him before flipping him off, running back towards the house.
This day was just getting better and better. Now he had something to toy with Leah and Edward about.
Jacob ran back to the house before strolling in and he found Bella standing with Rosalie on one side and Alice on the other, both looking at her with happy smiles.
"What did I miss?" He said, alerting Bella to his return.
"They were doing the whole baby names thing." Edward said as he sat in the corner and gazed over Leah curiously while she leaned against the wall, looking at the Cullen women fussing over Bella. Jacob got a smug look on his face.
Have fun with your staring contest over there? Edward looked to Jacob confused before Jacob flashed his brief conversation with Leah to him and Edward averted his gaze, gulping nervously. I always knew you both were weird, but damn!
Jacob looked back to the girls to see Bella blushing.
"Rose hates the names I was thinking. I thought we needed to figure out the names before the baby arrives." Jacob softly chuckled as Rosalie rolled her eyes.
"I don't hate them. The boy name is nice, but the girl name doesn't flow right." Bella shrugged as Jacob smirked lovingly at his pregnant girlfriend.
"What were the names?" He asked in the sweet voice she loved to hear and she blushed harder.
"I was playing around with the names of the people that were important in making us who we are. I thought for a boy Charles William for Billy and Charlie." Jacobs smirk brightened as Alice smiled at Bella.
"I like that name, Bella." Jacob nodded.
"I agree with Alice." Bella bit her lip before she looked to Rose who nodded.
"Me three." Bella rubbed her stomach before she spoke again.
"Then, in case it doesn't turn out to be a boy, I thought we should have a girl name picked out. I was thinking of the woman that raised us. I wasn't raised by my mom, but my Grandma Higginbotham." Rosalie looked at Bella like she grew a third head.
"Higgin what?" Jacob chuckled as Edward answered.
"Higginbotham. It's her mother's maiden name." Bella nodded as she bit her lip.
"I never liked the name Marie which was her first name, but I always loved her middle name, Vanessa. I wasn't sure how to order it, but I thought using the names Vanessa and Sarah." Jacob softly chuckled and nodded.
"My mother's name wasn't actually Sarah on paper. Everyone just called her that because she didn't like her long name. It was Savannah." Bella smiled happily.
"Then, Vanessa and Savannah then." He nodded with a happy grin.
"How about Vanessa Savannah?" She smirked and liked it.
"That is better than the whole 'Vanessa Sarah' thing. I like it now." Rosalie said to Bella who smiled.
"I'm glad everyone now approves of the names. We will just have to wait to see which one gets used." They all laughed at the joke, but the fun was short lived.
Suddenly, everything came crashing down before their eyes, none of them expecting it to come so fast or to be such a big ordeal for what happened. They had hoped that it would wait until Carlisle was back so she could actually have a doctor, but that child had other plans.