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Dear readers,

Just for the record, I don't intend to delve into the Eclipse love triangle. But I'm not entirely sure of all the minor details of the plot, so inferences may occur. Anyway, thanks again for the reviews! I appreciate every one! Oh, and those of you who asked me questions: every one of them will be answered/explained at some point. There must be some amount of suspense!

Thanks for reading,

Rusty Myers

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~Chapter Three~

I was in the kitchen in a millisecond, startling him a little. But he regained composure before I could even open my mouth.

"Why are there so many of them here?" he complained loudly.

Thankfully, the Cullens remained in the living room, giving me time to explain things. Not that any explanation on my part was going to help the situation. I could only hope he would be able to keep his cool. Otherwise, this could get ugly really fast.

"Jake, calm down. Just listen to me."

He raised an eyebrow curiously. I heard the gasps, inaudible to human ears, from the Cullens as I said his name. Edward seemed to have been the only one who had figured it out previously.

"Bella, what's going on? Why are you acting so weird?"

He made an attempt to move past me, but I moved to stop him.

"Just let me explain."

He stared down at me expectantly. I took a useless deep breath and stared back at him. He must have been out running again. He wore only gray sweatpants and a pair of tattered tennis shoes. His face was tensed against the smell, but his eyes were calm. Let's see how long that lasts.

"Oh, how do I say this…" I mumbled, looking down and forming sentences in my head.

"What's the big deal, Bells? So you have a bunch of your smelly friends over for vampire sleepover. As long as they're not moving in, I'm fine. I can hardly stand your smell; I don't want a pack of reeking bloodsuckers."

"I'm not sure how long they'll be staying," I confessed.

He squinted his eyes, studying me intently.

"Bella?"

I slumped my shoulders in defeat. Sensing this, Jacob moved past me, heading for the living room. I sighed and slumped after him, admonishing myself for my weakness and inability to tell him.

The scene in the living room was exactly the same as a few moments ago. Edward was still standing in the same spot, a controlled expression on his pale face. Alice and Jasper were on either side of him in their new clothes. Rosalie, Emmett, and Esme were all standing at the foot of the stairs, Rose with a towel wrapped around her hair. Carlisle was the closest to the kitchen, appearing ready to moderate if the occasion arose.

Jacob stopped dead in his tracks. I caught up to him, reaching up to touch his shoulder. I could feel his muscles tensing and trembling a bit. If I couldn't get him to calm down we were going to have a fight on our hands.

"I thought I recognized that stench," he murmured.

Then, much to my surprise, he brushed my arm aside and headed off towards the stairs. The others cleared out of the way, Rosalie making a show of plugging her nose. I just stood there staring after him.

"Jacob…"

Carlisle was at my side. "Bella, perhaps we should leave. Esme has a friend in Rome. I'm sure we can-"

"No." I shook my head. "Just let me talk to him."

"Of course. We'll give you some time. Our hunt was interrupted earlier; we're all a bit thirsty."

That brought a smile to my face. It was the first time I'd ever heard him talk about their diet without an awkward, discomfort.

Without another word, he turned to his family and they left. Rosalie tossed the towel into my arms as she left. I sighed and looked to the top of the stairs for a while, wondering how I ever thought that this could work out.

With a resigned sigh, I went up the stairs and was standing in front of Jacob's door in a second. But a quick intake of breath told me he wasn't there. I took a step and opened my bedroom door.

Jacob was standing with his back to me, something clutched in his right palm. I approached him slowly, at a normal, human pace. When I was only a foot behind him he turned around, giving me the coldest stare I'd ever seen. I choked on a sob as it escaped my lips. I wished more than anything I could cry, so he could see how bad I felt.

"You'll probably be wanting this back now," he said simply, holding his hand out to me.

I looked down at his outstretched palm and gasped, feeling another sob coming through.

"Where did you get this?" I demanded. "I left it…"

"For him. Yeah, I know," he replied, bitterness apparent in his voice. "I took it."

"Why?" I whispered, lifting my arm slightly, but not taking it.

"I didn't want him to have it to remember you by. He didn't deserve it after the way he treated you."

"He came back, Jake! He-"

"Look at you! He's here an hour and already you're defending him again!"

"No!" I pleaded. "I'm not! I just-"

"After all these years, all you've been through, you're welcoming them back with open arms."

"Jake, you don't understand! They were attacked! Or were you too busy storming off to notice?"

"I think I have a right to be upset, Bells!"

"Jake please! Alice came to me and told me they were attacked by Victoria and they were injured! They had nowhere else to go! It's only for a few days! Until they can make it to the airport safely!"

"Victoria?" he questioned, calmed a little by his puzzlement. "The one who was after you?"

"Yes. Carlisle told me she's gathered new followers. At least seven of them. And they're strong. And Victoria…she nearly killed Edward."

He scoffed. "Why do you care? You've spent the last ten years trying to forget them! To forget him! And suddenly they show up on your doorstep and everything goes back to the way it was before!"

"It's not the same," I said, hearing the bitterness in my words as my human memories began to resurface, fuzzy though they were. "It's definitely not the same. Besides, I need to find out what Victoria wants with them. Aro will certainly-"

"Oh, don't bring him into this! Seven vampires are bad enough!"

I smiled sympathetically at him, knowing he put up with an awful lot for my sake. "Ok, ok. But I will need to meet with him eventually. The Volturi need to be informed of Victoria's actions."

Jacob stepped closer to me and enveloped me in his huge embrace. He sighed, resting his chin against my head. "Bella, why are you doing this? Why are you helping them?"

"I don't know what else to do," I admitted. "Alice was there and…I just couldn't say no."

He pulled away, keeping hold of my arms and looking me in the eyes. "Is this really what you want? After all you've already done for them, all you've gone through to forget him. Is this really what you want to do?"

I dropped my gaze to the floor. "I don't know Jacob. But can I really turn them out?"

He smiled. "No, probably not. Always thinking about others before yourself."

"I'm so sorry, Jake."

"Don't worry about it, Bells. It's you I'm worried about. I can deal with them."

"I'll be fine," I said firmly. "I'm not as naïve as I used to be."

"Will you tell them?"

I hesitated. "I don't know."

He didn't offer his suggestion. I felt him slip the object into my hand and then he left, releasing me and walking off. He stopped at the doorway and turned around. "You might want that back."

Then he was gone from sight. I looked down at my hand. The diamond glistened in the dim light, light bouncing off all the edges of its heart-shaped surface. I shifted my gaze to the bracelet further down my arm and the sculpted wolf hung from it. With a sigh, I turned it around and looked at the empty link.