Chapter 18: like a thief in the night

Rebecca almost cried when she heard Paul's voice over the phone. Genuine worry and relief filled her when she heard his voice. That's how she found herself verbally tearing a chuck out of him when he invited the pack to his house just a few hours later.

They were scattered around his living room and she had to admit the house was gorgeous. He had a huge amount of land and the whole house could fit the entire pack. They were currently standing on his back porch while the rest of the pack waited inside.

" A week Paul! A week! No one knew where you or Bella was! We couldn't feel your spirit anymore! I couldn't feel your spirit anymore! And neither could Rachel! I mean for crying out loud ! We have an enemy on our doorstep and you disappear! Do you have any idea how terrified I was? How terrified the pack was. As much as we disagree about things and see things differently we do care for you! your pack! And you need to act like it" she roared.

For once and to her shock, Paul bowed his head in submission.

Rebecca felt a wave of a feeling she had never received from him.

Respect.

Rebecca sighed. Half of what she said was unnecessary. She knew Paul would never abandon the pack for no reason. The man always had a reason yet here he was completely blameless and taking the heat from her.

"im sorry. I believe you had a good reason but the wolf panics when our pack is broken. Now what happened?" she asked him

As she looked at him, she watched as he seemed to struggle with something internally. His head was cocked to the side and his eyebrows were furrowed as if he were listening to something.

He then sighed and took off the shades that had been hiding his eyes.

Rebecca gasped.

His eyes were a bright violet with a ring of blue in the middle.

"paul… your eyes…their… wow…" was all she could say.

He gave her a small grin before he spoke.

"I am…sorry if I scared you… We were feeling very …overwhelmed by our last meeting and we needed time with our mate. Our wolf took over. We took her to the woods in one of the sacred spaces where we had an encounter with my spirit animals. They had much to say. I didn't realize how much time had gone by. My mate and I woke up naked in the forest just a few hours ago. You can imagine my confusion when it was revealed we had been gone for an entire week."

Rebecca nodded.

"That makes sense. The instincts of our wolves can be intense. I can't imagine having to deal with two spirit animals in one body. They must…demand a lot from you.."

She watched as the pauls tense muscles slowly started to relax.

"yeah… they do…I wasn't meeting their needs and they weren't meeting mine."

Rebecca gasped. Three wills battling against each other. No wonder he was standoffish all the time.

With hesitation, she reached out and gently very gently cupped the back of his neck.

He froze but slowly allowed her to touch him. Paul looked like a deer caught in headlights.

"i…I won't hurt you, Paul. I am your alpha and I am here for you. I am glad you and Bella are safe. We all are ."

All he could do was nod.

Rebecca let him go and felt something in the air shift. It is something akin to acceptance.

Had paul accepted her as his alpha?

Once again he bowed his head in submission.

Rebecca felt her wolf howl with joy and yet the ropes that connected her pack were tightening.

"Let's go inside, Whatever it is your cooking smells really good."

Paul gave her a small smile.

"Thanks, it's called Jamaican brown stewed chicken. We serve it over rice. Im going to go finish up the rest and then we can all eat."

Rebecca nodded and watched him disappear into the kitchen. The pack was currently in the living room, all of them pretending that hadn't heard the conversation between their alpha and new beta.

The past week had been rough for them all. Even though most of them hadn't been close to Paul, and despite their emotional feelings, their wolves recognized him as a pack. He was one of their leaders. To think that something had happened to him and Bella had been scary. Whether they knew it or not, being in his den brought a sense of healing and peace. It also gave them a sense of trust. Paul was allowing them into his private life.

The latter popped his head into the living room and said "You know you guys don't have to stay in the living room, there's a game room downstairs. Pool and a couple of video games."

As soon as the words came out of his mouth most of the guys were thundering down tip aul basement. However, Paul stopped Seth and Leah before they could go any further.

" I need to speak to you two in the kitchen."

The siblings followed him in wearily. To their surprise, Paul called on Rachel and asked her to watch the food. The girl looked stunned at Paul's attention but did as he asked.

Paul then motioned for the two siblings to sit down.

"so im sure you two know that at some point we will be family. I mean we already are but my wife will be your sister-in-law. This bitterness you two have towards your mother has to end. She's the only mother you have ."

"And what makes you such an expert?" Leah growled in annoyance.

"I lost my parents to drugs and alcohol. They are currently locked up to never see the light of day. My mother…"

Paul paused as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"About a month ago, I found out my mother committed suicide in her cell."

Gasps were heard around the kitchen and the noise the guys were making in the basement went silent.

"I never got closure. never got to ask why and I never got to see her one last time. Yeah, she was a horrible mother but she was still my mother… the only thing your mother ever did was love you. with all her heart. And the only thing she was guilty of was falling out of love with your father. don't punish her for falling in love.."

Leah ground her teeth while Seth looked mournful.

"Where is she?" Seth questioned.

"Mom and Dad have their apartment attached to the house, just go down this hall and make a left." Paul directed.

Seth made haste but Leah stayed.

"What if she doesn't want to see me? I said some pretty horrible stuff to her."

Paul tilted Leah's head to look at him.

"Yes you did, you said some things you can't take those words back. The only thing you can do is ask her forgiveness and if your mother is the wonderful woman I know she is, she will forgive you. Now go.."

Leah practically ran out of the room.

When Paul looked up, he was surprised to see his wife and Rachel both of them staring at him with tears in their eyes.

Bella and Rachel shared a meaningful glance before Rachel walked out of the kitchen.

"Paul…baby why didn't you say anything?" Bella asked him.

Paul shrugged.

"I compartmentalize Izzy, I didn't want to think about it. You were my main focus."

Bella shook her head. She was wearing one of his hoodies and some shorts. She was sexy even then.

"I don't believe you," she argued.

"Can we not do this now?" Paul argued back

Bella's eyes flashed those bright colors like they did in the forest as she looked at him.

Immediate, Paul felt a tug on his heart. It was as if she was pulling him, but not just him wolf and tiger too.

She closed her eyes and Paul was suddenly surrounded by warmth and…understanding.

In two strides she was in his arms, burying her head in his chest.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there for you guys. I know it was hard."

Paul buried his face in her hair and breathed in her scent.

"You're here now and that's all that matters."

Once they calmed down, Bella and Paul resumed finishing up the final touches for dinner. Bella even asked Rachel to join them.

The threesome cooked in silence as peace settled around them.

…..

Bella smiled as her other sister-in-law Kaden escorted her to work. She was Julian's fourth born. The order went as follows Julian Junior, Paul, Teagan, Kaden, and then Henry. Junior and Teagan were patrolling with some of the pack, while Paul's stepmother went to scout the enemy. Kaden had been put on guard duty. The pack and her tiger family were all anxious. This was the final week before the battle and they needed to be on their guard.

She hugged her sister and went inside the store.

The next five days went by in a blur for Bella. Instead of just sitting behind the store counter, she somehow found herself delivering groceries to some of the tribe elders. Many of them smiled upon her, speaking to her in Quileute and calling her the warrior's blessed wife. She knew it had something to do with Paul but she didn't look too much into it. Some of the pack would even accompany her on her trips. Sometimes it would be Jacob, it would be embry, and other days it would be Rachel.

To her surprise, she and her husband's imprint had gotten along pretty well. She no longer felt jealous or defensive around Rachel. Bella took the time to truly get to know her. and with her new understanding, Bella could understand why Paul was Rachel's imprint. It wasn't about romance, it was about protection. It was about Rachel having someone to keep her in check. By technicality, Rachel was the middle child. The one who got the least amount of attention. Jacob was the only boy and Rebecca was technically the firstborn. Not to mention she was always in her sister's shadow. She and Rachel even had a deep conversation about this. Rachel had broken down in tears when Bella gave her the revelation. Her heart had felt free for the for time. She had loved the idea of Paul but she wasn't in love with him. She now had the freedom to love any man she wanted.

And this is how Bella found herself, dropping off the last of the groceries to an elderly couple, with Rachel by her side.

She yawned tiredly as they closed the door and headed back to the store.

"All alright Rachel, let's lock up and we can go home."

Rachel yawned and smiled.

"Sounds like a plan to me. im exhausted. I neutered like six dogs today."

"Do you like your job?" she asked.

"You know I do. Being a wolf gives me many benefits in figuring out what's wrong with our furry and scaly creatures. I even have some people from Seattle that come to my clinic because their rottweiler will only sit for me."

Bella laughed.

"Of course they do. Have you thought of expanding your career into an animal behavioral therapist? You could train dogs.."

"You that-"

Rachel was cut off by the sound of a howl in the air. It was a warning howl.

A leech was on their lands.

All of a sudden Kaden was running toward them.

"THIERS A LEECH ON OUR LAND!" she roared.

She was then quick to scoop Bella up with Rachel following. Collin and Seth joined the fray.

"What's happening!" Bella screamed.

" Esme Cullen ran unto our land! She crossed over the river! And then at the same time, a few more leeches appeared. It's an ambush!" Seth informed her.

Bella didn't get a chance to respond because Seth was suddenly struck down.

Rachel and Colin phased while Kaden kept running.

"Paul coming sister."

"Rachel! It's Victor he's invisible!" Bella shouted into the wind.

She screamed when she saw Rachel yelp and get thrown against a tree.

"crap! Crap! Crap! I can smell him but can't see him!" Kaden yelled.

Bella closed her eyes and sought out Paul. She could feel the wolf and tiger, they were angry and worried.

She could also feel Paul getting closer.

However, she screamed when a force sent her flying out of Kaden's arms.

"Nooo!" she screamed when she landed on the ground.

Kaden was pinned to a tree.

At the same time, a vampire wearing a black cloak and red eyes appeared next to her.

It was Demetri. His cloak was burned and a few of his fingers were missing.

"Bella swan. We keep meeting this way. But I have bigger fish to fry."

He then turned and looked around him. Paul appeared just a few moments later, he was in his tiger form. A low growl was heard as he and Demetri circled her. both of them trying to scent out the enemy.

"This is insane. An invisible vampire. I can feel him but it feels like he's pulling me different direct-"

Bella never got to hear the rest of Demetri's words because someone was pulling her into the trees and a horrible pain was felt through her head.

Everything went black.