Disclaimer: All the Twilight stuff belongs to Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement is intended. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

Chapter 63 Sam Arrives

Hell yea Jake better come back here and take over you pack of mutts! Although, if he wants to just be in the pack and not the leader, maybe we can get rid of a leech or two before we fly back . . . that would make it a good trip . . .

Emily POV

"Doesn't look like they put us on a freighter, Sam," I said as we walked through unmarked doors near the terminal gate and into a luxurious lounge filled with comfortable leather sofas and chairs, flat screen TVs and a wall of coffees and lattes and snacks, all served by the staff that was there waiting.

"Damned bloodsuckers. It doesn't matter. It's not like they can buy my cooperation. Let them spend their money, it doesn't change anything," he spat.

I chose a sofa near the television and sat down, the attendant scurrying off to get me a latte and a pastry. I was certainly willing to enjoy this, even if Sam wasn't. I had no idea that these types of lounges existed, I had always just sat in the row of plastic seats waiting outside the gate in the terminal for my flight. There were vending machines at a point in the terminal, and an occasional restaurant or coffee shop . . . but never anything like this.

Maybe, just maybe the Cullens were trying to be nice, trying to show Sam that they appreciated his help.

I had spent time with Bella in the months before she and Jake left . . . quite a bit of time. She had been so broken, so devastated after that boy left her. She sat, staring into space most of the time. Jake would bring her over and hang out at our house with the rest of the guys, but she never joined in, never seemed to take notice even of where she was.

It took me weeks to get her to talk to me, to open up a little. She spoke of Carlisle and how kind and compassionate he was. I had always heard that about him in his dealings with the people at Forks hospital. Though we Quilletes were not supposed to go there, again a stupid prejudice because of the Cullens, some of us did and always found him to be both an excellent doctor and a kind man, gentle in his dealings with his patients. He treated things that bled, bled right in front of him and showed no interest in the blood. How could vampires be so ruthless, such cold blooded killers and yet one of them was a respected surgeon working in a hospital? Carlisle existed in direct conflict with all the things our legends taught about their nature, and you couldn't just discount it.

She spoke kindly about the rest of the family as well, but Edward she would never mention . . . it was as if she could not bear to say his name. Jake and everyone else figured it was because he hurt her so badly, and I thought the same. The difference was that I began to realize that the hurt she felt was from his absence. She loved him beyond all reason, of that I was sure.

I understood. I was with Sam. Sam had been engaged to my cousin Leah when we met, but it hadn't mattered. We loved each other. Had he left me, for whatever reason, I would have been in exactly the same condition I saw Bella in. I began to understand . . . she had to be with him, she loved him and for some reasons that seemed to only be known to her, he had left.

I was drawn out of my thoughts by Sam's grumbling.

"Em, please," he said turning to me and putting an arm around the back of the sofa where I sat and taking my hand in his, "Please don't do this. Please don't put yourself in this kind of danger. I couldn't take it if something happened to you."

"Nothing is going to happen to me, Sam. Sue has been there for days, nothing has happened to her," I reminded him.

"Emily, I need to phase and be with Jake. I need to be gone for hours, days at a time in the woods with him . . . I can't do that if you're there, I can't leave you unprotected with them!" he said as though the idea disgusted him.

"Sam, I trust Sue. She's an elder of the tribe and our friend. If she feels safe there, I'm sure I will be fine as well. Anyway, you have no choice. I'm going. I know how Bella feels about Edward and you are not gong to hurt her by taking him away from her again. She's my friend and if someone were going to try and hurt you I would want her to stop them. I'm going to do the same thing for her," I said as adamantly as I possibly could.

"Emily! It's not the same thing!" he almost shouted. Thankfully the attendant walked over to inform us that we could board.

"This way, please," he told us as he gestured towards the door and picked up Sam's bag.

Sam stopped dead right at the gate entrance, turning to me and putting both his hands on my shoulders, "Emily. If I promise not to harm the bloo . . .Edward, will you stay here?" His eyes were pleading with me. He had never broken a promise to me but somehow this felt different It wasn't as though I thought he would intentionally or purposefully directly harm Edward if he made me a promise not to, it's just that . . . something didn't feel right. Something about this went deeper than a promise . . . ingrained somehow, like it was an inevitability.

"No, Sam. there is just too much temptation here. Too many things could happen that could change things. If I'm there, you'll be much more careful not to make mistakes around the Cullen's because you won't want to endanger me," I told him. I thought hard about it for a moment longer, his eyes still pleading, "No . . . I think I'm coming with you regardless."

My husband's chin dropped as I turned to walk down the gate in the direction the attendant had taken with Sams' bag and was shown to wide comfy seats in first class. I hadn't realized that I really hadn't eaten this morning, being to intent on listening to Sam with Embry and Paul. It had taken awhile for me to face reality, that Sam was truly intending and planning to kill Edward while he was there helping Jake . . . and even longer to decide what I was going to do about it.

I slept most of the flight. The first class seats were spacious and the attendants considerate of our every need. I was avoiding anymore conflict and useless words till Sam settled down. I knew that he was anxious about the ride to wherever Jake was and hopefully Sue would be there to meet us. I could only imagine how tense it would be if it were only us and the Cullens in the car driving for however long it would be.

As I came up the escalator at the Atlanta airport, Sue was there smiling and happy to see me. Sam greeted her warmly as well, until he noticed the Cullens standing by the exit doors, waiting for us. His back stiffened immediately and his face set in a hard line.

"Sam, ready to go or did you check a bag?" Sue asked.

"All set. Are we riding with them?" he gestured toward Carlisle and Esme.

"Yes, Sam. They have been real friends to Jake and you will not disrespect them. Do you understand?" she said sternly.

"I understand, Sue. You need to understand that we do not associate with their kind. They are not friends, Sue. It's not possible," he spat through gritted teeth.

"Never the less, you will be civil Sam Uley. I mean it," I told him as firmly as possible without yelling, "I would think you would respect my request because I have known you all your life, but if that isn't enough, consider it a request from an elder of your tribe . . . one you are bound to abide by it."

Sue turned to leave and we followed her. "Carlisle, Esme, this is Emily. Emily, Dr. and Mrs. Cullen," I said by way of introduction, "and you know Sam of course."

"No Sue, Sam and I have never met, though I have heard his name mentioned before," Esme said. She extended her hand towards Sam and greeted him, "Nice to meet you, Sam."

He looked down at her small hand as though it were a snake, never offering to shake it or be polite. "How far is it to Jake?" he asked stiffly, seeming to have real difficulty even managing to stay somewhat civil.

Esme looked at Carlisle, who put his arm around her and answered Sam, "It's about a two hour drive from here to the house, Sam. It's only a hundred and thirty miles or so but the last is over small winding mountain roads."

"And to Jake?" Sam continued.

"Jacob is at Edward's house. When I last spoke with them, they were out on the patio waiting for us, Sam," Sue told him.

Sam huffed as if the very idea disgusted him. Sue shook her head and turned to Carlisle, "Well, we might as well get on the road." I put an arm around Sue as we walked, leaving Sam to follow by himself.

Carlisle and Esme got into the front of the black Mercedes that we were apparently riding in and Sue climbed in behind Carlisle, leaving me to sit in the middle and Sam to sit behind Esme. Sue thought of everything, even the most comfortable seating arrangement under the circumstances and still Sam hesitated to get into the car. He had been reluctant to even put his duffel in the trunk when Carlisle had opened it. I had taken it from his shoulder and tossed it in, shutting the trunk and moving swiftly to get into the back set, leaving him to follow.

"Jake phased last Wednesday?" Sam asked to no one in particular.

"Yes," Carlisle answered, "Three days ago. He had been running a fever for a week or so before hand and Edward and I tried to explain to him what we thought was the cause late in the evening on Christmas Eve."

"How in the hell would you know anything about it, bloodsucker?" Sam spat.

"Sam!" Sue spat right back.

"I did a blood test on Jacob because of the fever, Sam. His blood showed no infection but his chromosomal count was all wrong. If the ability to transform into a wolf is genetic, then I assumed that the extra gene he had was just that. He didn't believe me, of course. It seems that Jacob has never believed the tribal legends," Carlisle told him.

Sam chuckled at that. He was quite smug. "I bet you didn't explain them to him in detail either, did you, bloodsucker, not that you would know anything about it. You would have had to tell him what you were," Sam almost snarled, the disgust in his speech so strong.

"Edward did tell him that we were the cold ones mentioned in your legends, Sam. He also explained that we do not feed on humans, as you well know. He explained it all," Carlisle continued making an obvious effort to remain calm and polite.

"And Bella," Sam started.

"Sam, Bella already knows everything about Edward and his family, you know that from talking to them yourself when you and I ran into them in Forks last fall," Sue reminded him.

"Bella was there on Christmas when Edward was explaining it to Jacob . . . as I was. He is aware that Bella knows she is married to a vampire, Sam, if that's what you're getting at," Carlisle told him, hitting the nail on the head.

"How is Bella?" I asked, "I can't wait to see her!"

"She is well, Emily, and I'm sure she'll he glad to see you as well. I appreciate you're coming with Sam," Carlisle answered me, and his emotion seemed genuine

"It was kind of you to supply the ticket, Carlisle. And I have never been in first class, I enjoyed it," I said by way of thanking him.

"No thanks needed, Emily, and Edward took care of the tickets. He's the one that is trying so hard to help Jacob," Carlisle told me.

"Well I am not happy about her coming and if Jake were anything other than the next in line to be Chief of our tribe, I wouldn't be here either," Sam spat, his revulsion at being here obvious, " I want some guarantees that my wife will be safe with you bloodsuckers around. Where the hell is she supposed to stay, anyway? I planned to be out in the woods with Jake, but Emily . . . "

"Bella and Edward have a beautiful guest room waiting for you both, the one Charlie has used the last week while he was here, Sam. It's across the hall from my room," Sue told him.

"You actually expect me to let her stay in the fucking bloodsuckers house?" Sam virtually yelled, "Aren't there any damned hotels close by?"

I have never been as embarrassed by my husband than I was in that moment. I could not control his actions and the venom coming from him, but I could react independently from him, and I chose to.

"I would love to stay wherever you are staying, Sue. I'm sure that it's lovely and very nice of Bella and Edward to have me as a guest. Sam can sleep wherever he sees fit," I pointedly said directly to Sue as I stared at Sam. His jaw was hanging open. Apparently he did not expect this from me, but he needed to be more accommodating. They had flown both of us across the country to help Jake, they at least deserved some consideration for that.

The rest of the drive was spent in relative silence, except for the occasional sentence or two between Sue and I. We turned up a long winding drive and pulled in front of a two story house at the edge of the woods with a large lake in front of it. It was lovely, as was the area. We all got out of the car and I noticed two other members of the Cullen family emerge from what appeared to be a trail in the woods and the other two stood on the front porch.

Carlisle parked and opened the trunk for Sam to retrieve his bag. As we turned to enter the house, Sue stopped us.

"Sam, I need your word that there will be no violence toward the Cullens," Sue demanded.

Sam dropped his bag and stared at her, incredulous.

"You are here as Bella and Edward's guest, Sam. You are here to help Jacob and only because Edward was worried enough about him and a good enough friend of his to call and ask for your help. Do you understand? Jake and Edward are friends, Sam," Sue insisted.

"That's messed up and you know it," Sam said, pacing back and forth, "They are our enemies, our natural enemies. Hell it's instinctual, Sue!"

"Calm down. There is more and you need to hear it now. I need your word, Sam," Sue continued.

"There is more? What the hell else could there be?" he asked.

"Sam, you should know ahead of time so that you aren't shocked. I don't want Bella upset by you, she's . . . ," Sue was interrupted from behind us on the porch. We all turned to see Bella in the doorway, half hidden behind Edward.

"They are wanting you to know that I'm pregnant, Sam. Edward and I are having a baby and Sue is apparently thinking that you are going to be upset by that news," Bella told him.

I walked toward her, taking the few steps up to the porch to hug her with both arms. Edward stepped to one side to allow me near her, but stood protectively between Bella and where Sam was still standing in the yard.

"Bella! You look great! I'm so glad to see you again," I told her as I hugged her. I turned and greeted Edward as well.

Sam's fists were clinched and I noticed Edward stiffen and sink into what looked like a crouch. The rest of his family followed his lead as Sam started to shake uncontrollably.

"Sam," I yelled to him, "Calm down, Sam. You don't have to act this way."

It was too late, I had seen it too many times before, and the scars on my face bore witness to it. Sam blurred for a moment, shreds of clothing flying in small pieces in all directions as he ruined yet again another outfit. He had quickly phased into a large black wolf who stood snarling at the vampires who surrounded him on two sides. There were seven vampires and he chose to act like this. Maybe he just couldn't help it, I didn't know. What I did know is that I needed to protect him.

I ran down the steps and stood in front of Sam, between him and the Cullens.

"No one wants to hurt you, Sam, but we will protect our family," Edward said calmly.

Just then a russet wolf came around the corner of the house. He walked over to where Sam stood and pushed him with his head against Sam's shoulder. He continued shoving him till Sam apparently got the idea and they both took off into the woods. Everyone let out the breath they had been holding, including me. This was exactly why I felt I had to come.

"Well, Emily, won't you come in?" Bella asked and I walked back up the steps onto the porch and entered the house. Edward, Carlisle and Esme followed us in, the others staying outside on the porch.

"Let's go have a cup of tea and let all the testosterone settle down. We can talk, okay?" Bella suggested.

I nodded and followed Bella to the kitchen. "The Cullen's have a beautiful home, Bella," I told her, as I sat down.

"Actually, Emily, the rest of the Cullens live at the top of the hill, just next door. This is mine and Edward's house," Bella told me. I must have looked surprised because she continued, "Since we were just newly married after the accident, Edward wanted us to have some privacy from the rest of the family, so he built this home for me for my birthday last year."

"Well the privacy must have worked," I snickered, gesturing to her belly. She laughed and nodded with one hand resting on her belly as she poured our tea and sat at the counter with me.

"I'm so sorry about Sam's reaction, Bella. He's going to need some time to adjust," I told her, "In truth, I'm surprised as well. I wouldn't have thought it possible for you two to have a child. Sam just spent most of the way here telling me that you two couldn't be really married because Edward would be unable to control . . . well he would never be able to be that close to you, according to Sam, or able to contain his inhuman strength."

"Edward is amazing, Emily. He controls his thirst for my blood as well as his strength when he's with me. I'm sure it does take great effort on his part at times, but he is one of the most gentle and loving men I have ever met, vampire or not," I told her quietly, though I knew all my family could hear even a whisper.

"We had no idea that it was possible either, Emily . . . the baby that is," Bella said as Edward appeared and put an arm around her and kissed her cheek, "But we are thrilled beyond belief.

I really do thank you for coming, Emily. Jacob is my friend as well as Bella's, and we want to help him through this, but my wife's safety is more important than anything else," Edward insisted in earnest, "I won't allow anything to upset her, especially this close to our son being born."

Edward kissed Bella, right there in front of me. Not a passionate kiss, but certainly more than just a peck, before hugging her and walking back to the living room to join Sue and the rest of his family.

We finished the tea and Bella took me on a tour of her home. It was absolutely beautiful. The library was amazing and she seemed so thrilled that Edward had remembered her love of books and incorporated it into their home. We headed upstairs and the room she called theirs was the most amazing bedroom I had ever seen. The beamed cathedral ceiling gave way to large airy windows and a stone fireplace . . . and the bed. The bed was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen, wrought iron vines with rose buds holding up a canopy of gossamer cloud like material.

"Bella, this room looks like something out of a fairytale! You say that Edward picked this canopied bed and these curtains?" I asked in amazement.

"He did. He is just the most amazing person, Emily. I can't wait for you to get to know him," she said, "He always thinks that he belongs in a horror story, not a fairytale but I think he's coming around. He's starting to see what I see in him." The painting of them over their fireplace reflected the same look in her eyes . . . they sparkled at the mention of his name. I knew that look, I felt the exact same way about Sam. Bella was in love with a vampire and I was in love with a werewolf. Both creatures weren't exactly human, but they functioned just fine in the human world . . . with care. Both belonged to the mythological world and they were both the love of our lives. We just had to somehow manage to get them not to kill each other.

We walked to the other end of the hall, passing a room that looked as though it was being redone, and Bella explained that Rosalie was making it into a nursery for her. She gestured to Sue's room on the right and the door facing it on the left was to be Sam's and my room. It was beautifully done in blue and cream with a huge king sized bed. I couldn't believe the hospitality that she and Edward were showing us and the concern that they both obviously felt for Jake.

"As soon as you're ready, I thought we could go into town and get you some changes of clothes . . . Sue said that you made a last minute decision to come and you have nothing with you. Alice loves to shop and there are some cute shops in town, I have to admit," Bella explained. Her thoughtfulness struck home. I hadn't given much thought to what I would do without a change of clothes. "Thank you. I don't know what to say. You have always been a good friend to Jake and he has always defended you to us. I'm beginning to see even more clearly why that is."

Bella turned to leave and I saw Edward meet her in the hall, their arms immediately around each other as he pulled her close to kiss her before they headed downstairs. I knew that Jake needed Sam's help, but I also knew that Sam would need to learn a great many things about acceptance from Jacob . . . I only hoped that it was possible.