Troubleshoot
Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to SM.
No Remorse
Jacob faced off with Sam, his dark eyes smoldering with repressed anger. Bella hovered anxiously by his side, concerned that things might kick off at any moment. Even Jacob's finite hold on his self-control might not survive this latest betrayal.
"You knew they were here the whole time." Jacob seethed through gritted teeth. "You lied to me, while at the same time continuing to shield them."
Emily was by the stove, scraping the egg mixture mindlessly around in a big skillet. She made no move to defend her imprint like she normally would. Instead, she stared apprehensively in the middle distance, doing her best to ignore the rising tension.
Sam hid behind his usual stoicism, his face and body language giving nothing away. "They asked for shelter. I gladly gave it to them."
Jacob's expression grew grimmer. His fingers twitched at his sides as he fought the urge to ball them into fists and punch Sam in the face. "You had no right to do that. Rachel must answer for what she has done."
"You cannot come in here accusing people without valid proof." Sam continued, his voice rising an octave. "When Paul brought Rachel here, she was in a state of high distress. She was totally distraught by what the cops had insinuated about Paul and what they were trying to accuse her of."
"I bet she was." Jacob muttered under his breath.
"Yes, she was." Sam stated coolly, catching every word. "She knew you would come here demanding answers, and needed a safe space to collect her thoughts. She made it plain that there was no truth in any of it, that she was totally innocent. Paul backed her up, of course. As his imprint, he knows Rachel best. She is a good person, Jacob. You are allowing others prejudices to estrange you from your own family." His gaze alighted on Bella, making his meaning clear.
Jacob bristled at once, his anger rising at the unprovoked attack on Bella. She had turned white as a sheet, staring at Sam in anguish.
"You asshole! Don't you dare accuse Bella of trying to influence me! She has done nothing but be supportive, even going so far as to be willing to give Rachel the benefit of the doubt, though all the evidence points to her being guilty."
"Circumstantial evidence." Jared interjected sardonically.
"Stay out of it, Jared." Embry warned, immediately jumping to Jacob's defense.
"This involves all of us." Jared snapped back. "Rachel is Paul's imprint. That gives her a pass in my book. There is no way she could have been capable of doing any of those wicked things. Its not possible. An imprint is – "
"Is what?" Jacob challenged, fire shooting out of his eyes. He jabbed his forefinger in Jared's direction. "You think every imprint is perfect? That they have no flaws? That's bullshit and you know it. Kim has many…yet you don't want to hear about them, do you?"
Jared glared at him; his expression livid.
Sam put a soothing hand on Jared's shoulder. "Don't rise to his bait." He said calmly. "He's just trying to get under your skin. Don't fall for it."
Jared nodded curtly, simmering down as he listened to his Alpha's wise words. He sat back down at the table, reaching for a muffin and biting a huge chunk out of it.
Sam moved toward Emily, his hand touching the small of her back, an unconscious gesture. She flinched at his touch; her eyes tight with strain. She kept scraping the wooden spoon around the big skillet, although the egg mixture had become one soggy morass a long time ago.
"This conversation is a waste of time. You have all convinced yourselves that your imprints can do no wrong." Jacob directed his heated words towards Sam. He had learned long ago that anger cost far more than it earned.
It was pointless taking another swipe at Uley. To assuage his own guilt over the complicated love triangle that had developed because of his own imprint with Emily, Sam had placed all the imprints on a high pedestal, unwilling to believe that all the emotional trauma he had endured to be with his perfect match had been futile. To survive he had convinced himself that it was all worth it, that the higher beings knew what they were doing when he was paired with his own lover's cousin, coming up with his inane theory about procreation and making stronger wolves. It wasn't just crap; it was also insulting.
"C'mon, Bella, honey." Jacob said to her, reaching for her hand. "I'm just wasting my breath here. If Rachel stealing my car isn't enough proof to get these boneheads thinking, then no words of mine are going to have any impact. I'm done here."
Jared glared at Jacob, while Seth and Quil exchanged an awkward glance. Sam's expression remained indifferent, showing no offence at Jacob's intended barbs. Emily looked thoroughly miserable, her head hanging low.
Embry threw them all a look of disgust. "I'll come with you." He said to Jacob. "I can't stand the bad vibes around here."
But just before they had the chance to follow through and leave, the sound of a car pulling up outside made them all pause. Jacob went straight to the front window to peer outside, with Bella and Embry quickly joining him.
To their surprise they found the Rabbit parked back in its former position just in front of the house. They watched as the driver's door swung open and Paul alighted out of the vehicle. He looked furious. He quickly loped around to the passenger side, wrenched the door open and ducked down. This action was followed by raised voices. He emerged into view again, this time with Rachel Black imprisoned within the iron grip of his arms. His muscles flexed as he lifted her off her feet, with her back to his chest, she squirmed in his hold, her legs kicking wildly as she tried to free herself from his chokehold. She continued to cuss and scream, using the most derogatory language as Paul carried her stoically toward the house, her insults falling on deaf ears.
Jacob, Bella, and Embry couldn't believe what they were seeing. It took them a good minute to react. Sam and the others had joined them now, staring out with incredulous expressions at the chaos going on outside.
Bella was the first to recover from the shock. She ran to the front door, pulling it open to give Paul quick access. He shot her a grateful look as he passed, releasing Rachel as soon as he stepped foot inside.
Rachel fell to the floor in a heap. She rose slowly onto her hands and knees, her silky, black hair a tangled mess as she pushed it out of her eyes. She had the posture of a wildcat, her livid gaze sweeping across all the occupants of the room, who stared back at her in disbelief.
"So, is this it?" She snarled. "You are all here to be my judge and jury?"
Sam was having a hard time recovering from his shock. He looked staggered. He stared down at Rachel, holding onto the kitchen table for support. "What is going on here?" He exclaimed, looking toward Paul for confirmation. "Why would you humiliate your imprint in this way? How could you be so cold and unfeeling? This is not the way. Whatever happened – "
"ENOUGH WITH THE BULLSHIT EXCUSES, SAM! I'M NOT LISTENING TO YOU ANYMORE!" Paul cut Sam off savagely. His face contorted with pain for a moment as he glimpsed Rachel climbing unsteadily onto her feet. Resisting the imprint pull was exhausting. Even now, after everything she had done, he still wanted to reach out and protect her. He closed his eyes and breathed deep. "Tell them, Rachel. Tell them what you've done." He pleaded.
"What is he talking about?" Sam questioned in a low voice, and then continued at his regular volume. "Jared, get poor Rachel a chair."
"No." Paul opened his eyes again, shaking his head. "She doesn't deserve a seat at your table." He sucked in another deep breath, filling his lungs with air. "Tell them the truth, Rachel. Show these people that you've wronged so badly, that you at least have a little bit of decency left in you."
Rachel swung around and glared at Paul, her hands bunching into fists. She took a swipe at him but missed. "You sanctimonious bastard." She raged. "Stop acting so superior. You are worthless. A waste of space. Everyone in this room despises you even more than I do. And you know it!"
Paul shuddered and averted his gaze, stepping back toward the doorway, he fled outside.
"That's right!" Rachel screamed after him. "Run away you fucking coward!"
"STOP, RACHEL!" Jacob commanded forcefully.
Grabbing his sister by the arms, he shook her slightly, his whole body trembling with anguish. Her true colors were on show now for everyone to see. She didn't even need to admit the truth, her actions spoke louder than words. This was going to devastate their father.
"Oh, shut up, Jacob." Rachel retorted bitterly. She had a nasty gleam in her eyes as she regarded him with contempt. "You sicken me, little brother. You really do. Acting so smug, like you are any better than I am. We share the same genes, remember?"
"I am nothing like you, you selfish little witch." Jacob shook her so hard her teeth rattled in her head. No one came to her aid – not even Sam or Emily – and for the first time a hint of fear showed in her face. "How could you do this? To me? To Billy? And Charlie? You nearly killed him. He's going to have to live with the devastating injuries you inflicted on him for the rest of his life. If you were a man, I'd fucking rip you to shreds – "
"Jake! Jacob!" Bella's hands found their way onto his shoulders. She rubbed them soothingly, doing her best to calm him down before he lost control completely. She knew he would never forgive himself if he accidentally hurt his sister, no matter what evil she had done. "Let her go."
"Yes, listen to Bella." Rachel wheedled, her tongue darting out to lick her dry lips. "You're hurting me."
Jacob growled menacingly in her face, before he pushed her away from him forcefully, uncaring when she hit the floor with a dull thud, the wind knocked out of her.
"I need some air." He muttered, knowing that if he didn't leave right now, he would end up phasing in the house. He gave Bella an anguished glance, which she returned with one of her own. Completely in tune with his suffering, she watched him go with her heart in her eyes.
"I can't believe this is happening." Sam murmured, still shaken up with all that had happened. He looked toward Emily for comfort, but she didn't offer any, just stared up at him with a dull expression.
Seth had tears in his eyes, distressed by it all. He fell into one of the empty seats at the table and put his head in his hands. Embry went and put a sympathetic hand on his shoulder, understanding his pain. Jared appeared shellshocked. As did Quil.
Rachel remained on the floor, breathing heavily. The air was so brittle it could snap. No-one spoke, what was there left to say? Platitudes wouldn't cut it right now. It was all out in the open. There was nothing that Rachel could say in her own defense. She had been given a chance to come clean, to confess and own up to her misdeeds, but she had shown nothing but disdain and scorn for all the suffering she had inflicted on them all.
Bella had retreated to the corner of the kitchen. Pouring herself a fortifying glass of water, she chugged it all down in one go, wiping the excess from her mouth afterwards. She was about to do something she never envisioned doing, for she wasn't a violent person. Condensation beaded the rim of the now empty glass. She ran her forefinger around it as if slicing the top off and watched the transparent "blood" drip to the pristine wooden floor below. It was now or never.
Composing her features into an inscrutable mask, Bella bypassed the others and went to stand in front of Rachel. She extended her hand as if to help the other girl to rise. Rachel glared up at her with hate-filled eyes, the usual hostility making her look ugly.
"I don't want your help, you sanctimonious cow." She sneered. "All of this is your fault. You just couldn't keep your mouth shut, could you? None of this would have happened if you hadn't kept poking around. You're the reason your old man is rotting away in a hospital bed, not me."
Charlie had always told Bella that before you punch someone, to make sure that your thumb was on the outside of the fist, between the first and second knuckles on the index and middle finger. If the thumb is on the inside, you're likely to break the thumb. Bella made sure she followed through on that advice to the letter.
Rachel didn't see it coming. Bella's fist hit her square in the face, smashing her nose, the soft cartilage collapsing like a flimsy house of cards.
"That's for what you did to Charlie." Bella said coldly, ignoring Rachel's cries of distress as she clutched her bloody face in her hands.
Ignoring the pain in her hand, and without so much as a backward glance, Bella walked out of the Uley's house with her head held high in satisfaction.
Heading straight for the Rabbit, she climbed inside, searching the glovebox for the card the good cop had given to Jacob containing his contact details. It didn't take her long to find it. Settling back comfortably in the passenger seat, Bella pulled out her cell phone, leaving it balanced in her lap as she waited patiently for Jacob's return so they could make the call together.
A/N-thanks for reading!