MORTAL LIABILITY-----Chapter #25
MORTAL LIABILITY Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Natalie POV
It was the Friday before Christmas; I for one was holding back my hysteria while Bella…was in denial. Bella sat next to Edward on the piano bench while he played. I hummed along quietly to a familiar tune. Anthony sat next to me on one of the living room couches. I stared at my guitar; which leaned against the end of the armchair next to Esme (I painted my guitar, it took a very long time, I thought it was the best piece of art I have ever made, I’ll never be able to duplicate it). Esme sat quietly, listening to the music. I tapped the beat of Edward’s song on my knee, but my mind was counting the beats for the song I wanted to play on my guitar. I wasn’t sure how I was doing this but it kept me busy. I heard the front door swing open. My focus was gone and I looked up. I was half expecting to see Carlisle step through the door. But to my pleasure there stood Emmet with Rosalie a step behind him. Then with a flash of movement, they were gone. Emmet was back down stairs in a second. He sat next to me and rested his elbow on my head, he sighed.
“Emmet, get off of me” I moaned
“Sorry kid, it’s to much fun watching you react” he laughed, he lightly flicked my forehead (for a vampire it would be light, but it still hurt). I crossed my arms.
“Why don’t you bug Edward? Tackle him to the ground or something” I suggested
“Ha, Edward can fight back” he shrugged; “You’re an easy target” he laughed.
“Survival of the fittest, Natalie” Edward laughed from the piano. I scowled. “When are you guys supposed to leave?” I asked Emmet, expressing enthusiasm. He laughed loudly.
“Soon” he sighed patting my head, I ducked away.
Ellen was now in the room. She sat down in the armchair with my guitar. I looked over at Bella; her face was troubled. Edward arm was over her shoulder and he played with one hand. I looked back at Ellen, she seemed completely at ease. “Carlisle is meeting us in five minutes in the field” Alice suddenly announced, I looked up to see her already at the door. Emmet stood up to join Alice followed by Esme, then Ellen and Rosalie.
“You coming, Edward?” Alice asked impatiently
“I’ll meet you there” he replied, and they were gone.
Edward stopped playing and led Bella to sit across from Anthony and me. “I can’t read Ellen’s mind anymore” he started, I frowned
When did you stop hearing her? -I thought
“A couple weeks ago” he stated, fixing his gaze on my face, reading my every expression.
What was she thinking before you stopped hearing her? -I asked in my mind, I was pretty convinced that Ellen was the voice in Bella’s head now, but I was against the idea that she was up to no good. In other words, I didn’t believe she was helping the werewolves. Edward felt strongly about this idea, he hated her. He gave her hell once a month ago. “She was always changing her thoughts all the time, she sounded…too careful, it’s like she knows I’m listening in” he pinched the bridge of his nose.
Why would she do that? -I thought to myself
“Well she’s-”
“Don’t start” I stopped him, “I’ll figure this out later, I’ll talk to Ellen” I explained, he nodded and stood; helping Bella up with him. “Bye” Bella said
“Bye, I’ll see you later” I smiled and gave a small wave.
I turned to face Anthony,
“What do you want to do?” I asked, “I’ve got…four-five hours ‘till I have to leave” I sighed
“Well, you’re on your own, I’m going to Port Angeles with the guys…and Jamie to see this new movie” he explained
“Isn’t it a bit late?” I wondered aloud, he shrugged and walked to the front door, jingling keys as he walked
“Fine” I whispered to myself. I tapped my knee. I walked into my room, I changed out of Alice’s cloths and into a black tank top and cargo pants.
“Jacob!” I exclaimed suddenly, covering my mouth. I couldn’t believe it.
What the hell does Jacob like…?
I looked around wildly for a gift. I stopped for a moment. I felt my locket on my neck.
No, that’s gay - I thought letting the heart thump on my chest. I realized he probably didn’t want my stuff.
I let out a hard sigh. I rushed over to my desk and opened one of the drawers. I pulled out a small piece of stiff paper and a picture I took of a sunrise on the beach in LaPush. I yawned. I grabbed a pencil and drew a light sketch of the picture on the paper. At this point it was almost a struggle to keep my eyes open. Afterwards I took out my paint and brushes. I started to paint, and I painted details over the first coat.
Finally when the paint dried I dragged my feet lazily to the stairs. I checked my watch; 1:26 am.
“Dammit!” I growled and I broke into a run, I stopped half way down the stairs and ran back up to put on my sweater. When I reached the front door I slipped on my sneakers and ran to the garage to get my bike.
*********
I skidded to a stop on the road and pushed my bike into the woods. I checked my watch again while I sprinted onto the beach; 2:17 am. I groaned. I saw the light from his lantern. He turned to look at me, he smiled. I came to a stop in front of him.
“Sorry I’m late” I apologized, fighting back a yawn. He pulled me into a hug, “its okay” he sighed. His hot skin warmed me up immediately. It was nice. He pulled away and sat down, I sat next to him. He put his arm around my waist.
“How’s it going?” I asked randomly
“Better now” he replied kissing my forehead, “How are you?” he returned the question
“Exhausted” I murmured, resting my head against him. “I have something for you” he whispered in my ear. My eyes widened and I cursed. “I forgot it!” I exclaimed angrily.
“What?” Jacob asked confused
“Your present” I muttered harshly, he put his finger under my chin and raised my head to look at him. “That’s okay” he reassured me, a big smile planted on his face. I stared up at him suspiciously. “You already gave me what I want” he said, his expression a bit more serious than before.
“What’s that?” I asked a bit stupidly
“You” he said slowly
“Thank god” I sighed in relief. Simple, he wanted me. Surprise, surprise! Jacob laughed and pulled me tighter to his side. I watched his other hand reach into his pocket and he pulled out something and held it in his fist. He held his closed fist to me. I looked up at his face and back at his fist. “I’m starting to feel bad about this” I frowned
“Close your eyes” he instructed me, I did. I felt his arm around my waist move away and grab my right hand. He played with my fingers and then slid something on my third finger. He got me a ring? He let go of my hand, and it fell to my lap. I felt his arm around me again.
“Okay?” I asked
“Go ahead” I could hear the smile in his voice. I opened my eyes and automatically raised my right hand to examine my third finger. There was a ring; it was wooden and a vine-like pattern was carved into it. To me it was beautiful. I yanked it off of my finger and rolled it in my fingers, feeling the carvings. I noticed a tiny carved wolf on the inside of the ring.
“Oh, Jacob, you made this?!” I asked astonished
“Yep”
“It’s gorgeous, I love it” I said, slipping it back on the finger he had placed it on. “A ring though, why?” I asked without thought, my nose wrinkled a little
“To prove your mine” he said simply, I looked up at him and kissed him.
“Hmph” I smiled happily then yawned. He pulled me onto his lap.
There was silence. I turned the lantern off and stared out at the water. As usual it was beautiful; the black water reflected a blurry image of the snow white moon. A light crisp wind pulled small waves across the water’s surface and blew gently across my face. The black sky glittered with millions of stars. The only sounds were the water, the gentle whistle-like sound of the wind through the trees and the rustling of the leaves. Jacob was so lucky to have a place like this, a place this beautiful to claim his. I closed my eyes and didn’t bother to try and open them again. I felt Jacob’s fingers running down my face. I sighed, then grunted and I wrapped my arms tightly around myself.
***********
My eyes fluttered open, and I tried to go back to sleep. It took me a moment to realize how hot it was. I cheek was pressed up against something soft and hot. When I opened my eyes I realized Jacob was causing the heat. My face rested against his neck; with his chin on my head. I looked around, we weren’t on the beach anymore, and I recognized the room I was in almost instantly. We were in Sam’s house. Jacob snored. I found we were sitting upright on a couch; I was tucked into a ball in Jacob’s arms. I noticed my sweater hung over a chair; I managed to look down and saw I was only wearing my tank top. Sunlight filled the room. I groaned.
Then I remembered, and terror began to boil in my veins. Edward. It was morning maybe noon. I was supposed to meet him at the mansion, but instead I’m still in LaPush…the awful possibilities raced through my thoughts. I’m dead. I shook my head harshly, Jacob groaned.
“Jacob, Jacob!” I continued to shake my head; I felt his head move off of my head. “Wake up!” I ordered, now struggling to break free of his tight grasp. “Go back to sleep” he complained,
“Edward…I’m still here!” I kept my voice low just in case I started to yell, “Jacob, Edward’s gonna find out! He’ll kill me!” I continued, he sighed and put several inches between us so he could look at me. “No one is going to kill you” he reassured me, “and don’t worry about Edward, I’ve taken care of it” he slurred, resting his chin on my head again. I frowned.
“How did you take care of it?” I questioned suspiciously, now trying to free my arms. He sighed,
“Bella n’ me, took care of it last night”
“…How!” I asked again
“Sleep over…at friend’s” he replied slowly, I grunted. His chin slid off my head and he stared into my eyes,
“Relax” he said, and he released me. I got up and stood for a moment, not to sure of what to do next. I turned around to face Jacob again. He was already sleeping again, only this time he laid across the couch. I crossed my arms and walked back to the couch and sat on the ground, I leaned my back against the front of the couch. I could hear Jacob’s heart beat, slow and even.
I spent the next ten minutes (which seemed like hours) thinking of what I should do, run back to the Cullen’s and face Edward, and try to make him believe I was at a sleep over. Or stay here with Jacob in LaPush, where there are 17 werewolves who want to kill me not including the one vampire…fabulous. Just then I felt Jacob’s hot fingers trace the scars on my shoulder. I raised my hand to my shoulder and slid my hand between my scars and his hand. I hated it when he sees my scars; I hated how it made him feel. “Jacob…” I almost whispered. I stood up and walked toward the chair with my sweater. I grabbed it and put it on. “I’m sorry, I should have covered them up earlier” I said slowly moving back towards him. But he stood up. And grabbed my hand, he pulled me into the kitchen, the smell of bacon and eggs lingered in the air. I saw Emily at the stove; she turned her head around to look at me,
“Good morning” she greeted with a smile, I smiled in return
“Hi” I replied, Jacob led me to a chair and the table. Sam was there already, he nodded at Jacob, then looked at me, “How are you feeling?” he asked
“Confused, really” I answered I gave a short glance at Jacob; who watched me carefully.
Emily gave me a plate of food; I thanked her with a smile and began to nibble on a piece of toast. Jacob ate faster than I did; he ate a lot more than I did. When I was finished I stood and put my dishes in the dish washer. I couldn’t stop thinking about an enraged Edward, I was getting anxious. I sat back down at the table; my hand tapped a quick beat on my knee. I bit my lip.
“Jacob I should leave” I said standing up
“No, stay here” he instructed, I didn’t sit back down for a couple moments. When I did I rested my head on my hands. “Jacob I really should leave…” I continued, my voice was uneasy, he shook his head
“No you have to stay here” he said, I glared at him, why did I have to stay? I leaned in on the table. “Why?” I asked, he didn’t answer
“Jacob, what’s wrong? Why can’t I leave?” I asked, now worry began to mix in with my emotions. He studied my expression, and then sighed. “Come” he instructed, standing up, I did. He grabbed my hand and led me out of the house; he stopped me in front of his car. He held my wrists together
“You should know this” he murmured, it sounded more like he was a talking to himself. I just stared up at him with a worried expression. He took moment to look and me before we got into his car.
It took me a bit of time to find the right thing to say, “What’s wrong?” I asked, I noticed his increasing speed. He didn’t answer for a moment. He reached over with one hand to hold my face. “It’s Anthony” he whispered, I began to glare,
“What about Anthony?” I said, getting defensive. He didn’t answer, “Answer me! What happened?” I demanded furiously, grabbing his hand and pushing it away. “Jacob, please” I pleaded, worry beginning to overwhelm me. “Don’t cry”’ he begged, I frowned
“I’m not going to cry” I muttered, he glanced at me, “There’s been an accident…” he began; I knew it was related to the werewolves, my teeth clenched together. I realized we weren’t driving anymore; we were parked outside of Carlisle’s hospital. My mouth fell open, and utter rage boiled like acid in my veins.
+there has been a question about the locket so here it is, but it doesn't have the emeralds
And here is her painted guitar!
if there are any other questions feel free to ask
+comments please