The White Feather
Disclaimer; all characters and copyright belong to SM.
Chapter Four
Jacob was gone again. Billy sank his hands into his long hair in despair. He didn't think he could take much more worry and stress. He had tried to keep his son contained in the house for days by keeping a careful eye on him. Jacob was still feverish, his skin burning hot, but other than that he was wired full of adrenaline. The change had to be close. It wasn't a case of if but when. Billy hadn't meant to fall asleep, but he had just been so exhausted. Old Quil and even Harry had been trying to help as much as they could, but they had their own families to care for. The twins were still staying at the Clearwaters. Billy was so grateful for the tending loving care that the family had shown his girls. He felt guilty for neglecting his daughters, but Jacob was taking all his focus. He couldn't risk having Rachel and Rebecca in the house if his son did phase. It was too risky.
"Where are you, Jake?" Billy lamented aloud as he went straight to the phone and called Old Quil. It didn't take much to guess that Jacob had probably absconded to Forks again to see Bella. His young son was getting wilier. He had managed to avoid Charlie seeing him the last two times by hiding in Bella's closet. It had taken a while for Billy to extract this much from his son when Jacob finally returned back home after his wanderings.
"Are you alright, Billy?" Old Quil asked in concern as he answered right away.
"Jake's gone missing again." Billy sighed. "I fell asleep."
"It's not your fault. Don't blame yourself." The elder sighed heavily. "It's the wolf inside him. They like to be free."
"This can't keep happening. I don't know what to do." Billy was despairing. "Charlie has been very gracious by not asking too many questions. But he won't hold back if he catches Jake with Bella again."
"Young Jacob is very attached to the girl." Old Quil mused. "I would like to see them together again just to observe."
"They went through a traumatic experience together." Billy was getting dismissive of the special connection that the old man kept alluding to. "That's why Jake is so attached. Little Bella offered him comfort during one of the worst times of his life."
Old Quil didn't push it. He could hear the strain in Billy's voice. Jacob's father was trying to cope the best way he could. And right now he was hiding behind plausible deniability. It was such a shame that Sarah wasn't still around to support her husband. She had always been a great source of strength to Billy. Without her he was floundering. "I'll come on over, Billy. Perhaps we can find Jake together." He offered instead. "I'm sure Jake will turn up soon, anyway."
"Thanks, Quil." Billy said in relief.
Charlie watched his daughter curiously as she poured a huge helping of cornflakes into her bowl. She then added a layer of milk. Resting beside her on another plate was a pile of chocolate chip cookies. Bella only had a small appetite. He found it odd that she was having second helpings for breakfast, let alone stocking up on cookies. Something wasn't adding up here, especially when she lifted up her breakfast bowl and the plate of cookies and tried to balance them as she left the kitchen.
"Where are you going with those, kiddo?" Charlie finally decided to ask.
Bella stopped. She glanced over her shoulder at him, looking very guilty. "I'm hungry." She whispered faintly.
"You don't need to eat it upstairs." Charlie patted her vacated seat. "Eat it here."
Bella blew her long fringe out of her eyes as she held the plates unsteadily in her hands. She bit down on her lower lip as her gaze flicked toward the stairs. "I like upstairs." She protested.
"I'm sure you do." Charlie said wisely. "Especially if you have company. Tell young Jake to come down, kiddo."
Bella's eyes widened in surprise and her mouth dropped open. The plates wobbled alarmingly in her hands. Charlie quickly took them from her and put them on the table. "I'm not upset, Bells." He promised as he knelt in front of his small daughter. "But it's probably more civilised if Jake eats at the table."
Bella nodded slowly. Her long, lustrous hair swirled around her tiny shoulders as she bobbed her head. "Sorry, Daddy." She mumbled.
"Don't be sorry, kiddo." Charlie assured her. "You are not in trouble, but you do know that Jake can't keep leaving home without Billy knowing. He could put himself in danger. If you want to see him and he wants to see you we can arrange a visit. No one needs to sneak around, alright."
Bella bobbed her head again, her lower lip wobbling. Even at her young age she knew it wasn't as simple as that. She turned around and scampered up the stairs. She would have to tell Jacob they had been discovered. He wouldn't be happy. He would panic that they would be separated again. Bella felt sad and didn't know what to do. She was torn between doing the right thing and making Jacob happy. She just didn't know how to combine the two.
Old Quil and Billy turned up together again after Charlie called Billy to tell him about Jacob. Charlie let them inside and motioned toward the front room. Billy went in first, hunting for his son. He couldn't see him, but he could hear him whispering. Charlie came up beside him, followed by Old Quil. "Behind the sofa." Charlie mouthed quietly.
Billy nodded his thanks and knelt on the cushions and peered over the back of the sofa. He found Jacob and Bella wedged behind it. As soon as Jacob saw his father's face hovering above him his mouth clamped shut and he frowned. Bella looked nervous. She was chewing on a tendril of hair, gazing anxiously at Jacob as if worried about his reaction. Billy felt his throat tighten. Old Quil was right, there was something going on here. He wondered how much the insightful little girl realised.
"Go way, Daddy." Jacob muttered. "I stay with Bella Angel."
"That's not possible, Jake." Billy scolded him. "We've spoken about this. You are too young to take off like this. I said we would arrange a proper visit."
"No." Jacob said mutinously. He shook his head fiercely.
Billy swallowed thickly. He didn't know how to handle his stubborn son. He could see perspiration breaking out on Jacob's skin. His core temperature was heating up the angrier he got. "Come on, son. Look we'll arrange something before we go home. How does that sound?"
Jacob shook his head again. He didn't believe his daddy was telling the truth. He shifted closer to his angel. Bella gazed up at Billy from under her thick lashes. Jacob was pressed into her side. He felt so hot. His distress was escalating and she sensed she needed to diffuse it. She leaned close to Jacob and whispered in his ear. "You go home with your daddy. I come with my daddy."
Her words quietened Jacob. He raised his head and looked up at his father's worried face. "Okay." He agreed. He stood up and held out his hand to help his angel onto her feet. "I come and Bella Angel come." He said to Billy.
Billy couldn't refuse. He looked helplessly behind him at Old Quil and Charlie. "Can Bella visit for a few hours?" He begged his friend.
Charlie could see the struggle on Billy's face. He hated seeing his best friend under such strain. He was deeply curious about how Jacob managed to find his way to Forks. He couldn't fathom how he had travelled the distance all alone and on foot, let alone knowing where he was heading. For a three year old he had an amazing sense of direction. It was all so intriguing, but Charlie didn't bombard Billy with questions. He wondered if Billy or Old Quil had the answers anyway. The whole thing was a mystery. There was something special about Jacob that couldn't be denied.
"Ren was coming over today to visit Bells." Charlie began. He sighed and scratched his chin. "But I'm sure we can spare a few hours. I'll ring Renee and tell her to come over later in the day."
"Thanks, Chief." Billy was grateful. He knew what a big undertaking that was going to be for Charlie. He was warring with his ex-wife over custody of Bella. Charlie was contesting the custody arrangement and Renee was furious. Charlie had already engaged a lawyer, but Renee hadn't. She didn't have the money. Any funds she did have were coming out of Charlie's pocket in child support. "Are you sure about this?" He checked.
"I'm sure." Charlie forced a smile onto his face. He wasn't sure at all, but some things were more important than appeasing his bitter ex, and this was one of them.
Bella twirled the precious feather nimbly between her fingers. The white strands caught the faint light shining in through Jacob's bedroom window. She was perched on the edge of his bed, her legs crossed underneath her. Jacob was on the floor, pulling out his box of treasures. He was trying to find something. Bella waited patiently while he searched. She puffed out her cheeks and blew on the feather. It stirred in her fist. She smiled as she released it. The white feather floated gently to the ground. Bella kept her eyes trained on it for a few seconds, and then to her surprise another feather floated down from out of nowhere and settled beside the original.
"One and one is two." Bella marvelled.
Jacob's guardian angel was around him. Bella focused her gaze on the corner of the room. She saw the shimmering outline of Sarah Black as she hovered by her beloved son. Jacob couldn't see her. He was still occupied with his treasures. Bella raised her lips to smile at Sarah, but they fell when she noticed the troubled expression on her face. Jacob's guardian angel was scared. The blood drained from Bella's face as she watched the beautiful woman fade away to be replaced with the red wolf from her dreams. "Jake go wolf." Bella mumbled sadly as she began to cry.
"You must have questions." Billy passed Charlie a beer.
"I have but I don't expect you to have the answers." Charlie popped the cap off the bottle and took a long drink.
"You're too good to me, Chief." Billy's eyes were moist as he looked at his best friend in despair.
"There are many unexplainable things in this world." Charlie replied astutely. "I can tell Jake is special."
"He is." Billy confessed heavily. "He's very special and I don't know if I can be the rock that he needs."
"You are doing your best, Billy. You asked for help and that's all you can do. You are surrounded by people that care about you." Charlie turned when he heard Old Quil approach them. The elder had been with the children, observing them discreetly. "Everything alright?" Charlie asked cautiously.
Old Quil looked grave as he adjusted his baseball cap on his head. "I don't know." He admitted. "Your daughter just gave me these." The old man passed two small white feathers to Charlie. "Do you know where she got them?"
"I don't know." Charlie was completely mystified. He stared at the feathers resting in the palm of his hand. He didn't recognise what bird they might have come from. Somehow they seemed more intricate, more intensely white than a normal bird's plumage. In fact they seemed to glow. "She must have picked them up from somewhere." He said, puzzled. "What did she say when she gave them to you?"
Old Quil put his hands on his hips and hitched up his jeans. He couldn't shake the sad expression on the little girl's face when she handed the feathers to him. He cleared his throat as the two men waited for him to answer. Old Quil couldn't quite meet their eyes. "She said the angel was gone and we're on our own now." He said with a sense of foreboding. "When I asked her what she meant she ran over to Jacob and hid behind him. I haven't managed to get a word out of her since."
A/N-thanks for reading!