Intoxicating - Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Fifteen
Day 18
I woke to the sound of the front door closing. My naked shoulders and back felt cool as I lay there, so I knew immediately that I was alone in the bed. I reached my hands up over my head and stretched languidly as the bedroom door opened slowly.
“You’re awake.”
I could wake up to that smile every morning for the rest of my life and be a happy girl.
“Yeah, I heard you just come in. Where did you go?”
He held up a small bag and a Starbuck’s cup of coffee. “I would have made you something, but I didn’t want to burn the kitchen down,” he grinned. He handed me the bag. “Four mini vanilla scones and one grande vanilla latte.”
“Yum,” I said, sitting up and taking my goodies from him. “Want one?” I held out a scone.
“No thanks. I already ate about 10 of them.”
“You were out early. What time did you get up?”
“I uh, I got up about an hour and a half ago,” he told me, avoiding my eyes. I frowned; why did he look guilty of something to me?
“I took a swim in the river and then walked over to the store to get some breakfast for you.”
“Hmmm,” I studied him. He wasn’t telling me something. I suddenly lost my appetite. “What’s up Jacob? What’s happened?”
He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. It always made me sad when he did that. His hand always went beyond the ends of his shoulder length shaggy hair, like it was still reaching for the ponytail he used to wear before he was forced to chop it off before he began phasing.
“We don’t have to talk about this now. I said I’d give you 24 hours, so you’re still on the clock,” he tried to make a joke.
I knew he was talking about what was going on back home, and my stomach clenched. I hoped those scones I ate would stay down. My ears didn’t want to hear it and my body reacted by jumping out of the bed to reflexively distance myself. I grabbed one of the robes out of the closet and put it on to cover myself.
“I’m sorry Bella. Come on, come back over and finish your breakfast.”
“I’m done,” I said coolly. I was already stuffing the emotions that threatened to leap out, back down. “We might as well talk about it now.”
“There’s not much to talk about Bells,” he told me sadly.
“What do you mean? I hate to waste the money we spent on staying here till Friday, but whatever, it’s only money. We’ll just keep going. We’ll stay one step ahead of them. We can go to Nevada next. I’d say Mexico, but you don’t have a passport. Vegas! We can go to Vegas.” I was rambling.
“Bells,” he shook his head. “We have to go back.”
“No!” I yelled, panicked. “No! I can’t! We - we can’t go back!” I started pacing, while my heart raced and I gulped in air. I could feel a panic attack coming on. Jacob stood up from his seat on the bed, watching me worriedly.
“If something happened to you Jacob - I can’t. I won’t.” I shook my head wildly and crossed my arms stubbornly.
“We have to go back,” he told me quietly. I could tell by his tone that it wasn’t up for discussion. His mind was made up. He was speaking as the true Alpha and the chief of his people.
I understood the weight of responsibility he felt, but he didn’t understand how important he was to my survival - my sanity.
“Then why did you do it?” I yelled. “Why, why, why!?” I came at him, my hands in fists at my sides.
“Why did I do what, Bella?” he asked, confused.
“Why did you let it happen? You saw what was happening. You wanted it to happen! Why didn’t you stop it?” I shoved him.
“What are you talking about? I never told you to change. And I begged you not to go to Italy. How is the Volturi after us my fault? How is this my fault?”
“Not that! I’m not talking about them! I mean this! You and me. If you knew you wanted us to go back so you could fight - where you’re probably going to die - why did you make me do it?”
“What did I make you do, Bella? What? I’m not getting it.”
“Why did you make me have to fall in love with you?” I sobbed, collapsing. He caught me and pulled me against him, rubbing my back soothingly.
“I’m not going to apologize for that,” he whispered.
“Well you should,” I sniffed stubbornly.
“It’d be a lie,” he told me.
I shrugged. “Say you’re sorry anyway.”
He pulled me away slightly so he could look me in the eye. His face was impassive, but his eyes were twinkling.
“I’m sorry for making you fall in love with me.” There was a grin on his face before he finished the sentence.
“You don’t sound sorry,” I tried to stay mad, but I never could with Jacob.
“That was probably the stupidest thing you’ve ever made me do,” he snickered. “You’re a nut.”
“A nut who loves you,” I sighed, resigned.
I guess we were going back.
~~``intoxicating``~~
Jacob wanted to leave right away. Sam had already booked us a flight from Sonoma County Airport to Seattle for that afternoon at 5:15 pm. We’d arrive in Seattle at 8:20 and one of the boys would pick us up and drive us the long 4 hour trip back to La Push. Meaning we would be home around 1:00 am that night. It all seemed very surreal.
Jacob had gone against the rules and phased earlier in the morning. That was what the guilty looks and ‘um’s’ in our conversation earlier were about. He had to know that his dad was alright and what was going on back home.
Billy was okay, but the Volturi had played one final dirty trick before they’d left La Push.
“Someone” had called the police and left an anonymous tip that Sam Ulley had started the fire that burned the Cullen’s house down. So the pack were walking on eggshells as Sam was now under police surveillance.
The good news was there was no evidence and Sam had no prior arrests. In fact, his record was impeccable, and being a tribal elder at such a young age looked respectable. But after questioning some of the people on the rez, the police were able to surmise that the Cullen’s were not held in high regard by some of the Quileute. Especially these same tribal elders - of which Sam was a member.
Keeping a pack of werewolves organized and under control was a daunting task under the best of circumstances. But when their Alpha was under police observation… it was next to impossible.
~~``intoxicating``~~
“So you can’t leave La Push when we get there. You’re gonna be staying at my house, and you’re pretty much gonna be stuck there. I’m sorry, honey. At least no one knows you in Seattle, and it will be around midnight when we drive through Forks, so Charlie will never know you’re back.”
Jacob made a face. “I’d bet money Billy is going to make you stay in the twins’ room.”
I tried not to let Jacob see how sleeping in a bed without him in it, upset me. He had enough to worry about. Judging from his next comment, he must have known anyway.
“I’m not happy about it either, Bells. I’ll miss my little ice-cube,” he kissed the top of my head.
Jacob let me have the window seat even though he’d never been on a plane before. I gazed out the window at the nondescript brown scenery far below.
We’d had to leave the bike in one of the airport parking garages. I didn’t know when or how we’d pick it up. The longer it stayed there, the higher the fee would be when we picked it up.
Getting the money through airport security had been scary as hell. We’d each gone into the bathroom and shoved as much money as we could in our clothes and prayed we wouldn’t be randomly searched. Luckily, we made it through without a hitch.
“I need you to do something when we get back, Bella.”
“What’s that?”
“I’m gonna need you to sit down and try to remember everything you can - everything that Edward ever told you about the Volturi, and write it down. We’re going to have to try to come up with a strategy if it comes to a fight. So anything you can tell us, no matter how random, we need to know. Okay?”
“Of course,” I nodded.
“But you’ll have time when we get back.” He rubbed my arm soothingly and tried to smile. We’d been in the air for almost an hour, which meant we wouldn’t be landing in Seattle for at least another two. I leaned my head against Jacob’s shoulder and tried to get some sleep.
~~``intoxicating``~~
We hadn’t checked any baggage in, so as soon as the plane landed, we headed for the pick-up area near Arrivals. It was just getting dark as we walked outside and the fog was so thick I almost didn’t see Jacob’s Rabbit parked right at the curb.
I heard a whistle and then the call that the pack made to each other.
“Hey, Black! Over here!” Paul jumped out of the car and popped the trunk.
“Hey!” Jacob must have been homesick, because he actually looked happy to see Paul as he tossed my backpack and his canvas in the back. He gave Paul a quick 2-feet-away-from-each-other guy hug, with a pat on the back.
“Man, it’s been crazy around here since you’ve been gone,” Paul told Jacob as we all piled into the car. I heard Paul snicker softly as he leaned toward Jacob and mumbled quietly, “Well, you don’t look any different!”
I pretended not to hear him.
Jacob and I both got into the back seat. Paul seemed keyed-up and full of energy. “Dude, I’ve got to stop and get something to eat. I’ve been driving in this car for almost 5 hours. Traffic sucked getting here! I need to stretch my legs before we drive all the way back.”
“That’s fine,” Jacob told him. “I could go for some pizza. You want some pizza?” he asked me.
“Sure.”
We stopped and shared a pepperoni pizza, Paul talking a blue-streak the whole time. He sucked down two large Coca cola’s with dinner and he was bouncing his knee up and down so fast, it was a blur.
It was a looooong ride back to La Push, four hours to be exact and I don’t think Paul shut up for more than 10 minutes the whole way. But he filled Jacob in on everything that had gone down while we were at the cabin and after we’d fled.
“So now Sam is being watched by these damn cops. We’ve had to take on all these extra shifts cos Sam has trouble sneaking past them! These cops catch sight of a big black wolf as big as a house, Sam’s ass is getting shot. And boy, the explaining he’ll have to do when his naked ass phases back in front of their unmarked cars… “ Paul snorted to himself.
It was 12:58 am when Paul pulled into the drive of the Black’s house. I could hardly keep my eyes open. He cut the engine and I was just getting out of the Rabbit, when Paul turned to me with a big, lopsided grin on his face. “You’re welcome.”
I felt the heat as my face turned every shade of purple with embarrassment. I just knew exactly what he was talking about. Stupid pack mind! I hurriedly opened the side door and scrambled out, latching onto the back of Jacob and keeping my head down.
“Hey, thanks Paul,” Jacob shook his hand and took the keys from him as Paul pulled his shirt off over his head and stuck it through the band around his ankle.
“No worries, bro. You’d do the same for me. I’ll tell Sam you’re both back safe and sound and I’ll see you at the meeting tomorrow. See you, Bella.” He headed for the trees, to remove his shorts and phase.
Jacob took a deep breath and reached for my hand. “No place like home, hah?”
We walked up the porch and he opened the door, which was unlocked. I don’t think the Black’s ever locked their door. After all, a locked door wouldn’t exactly deter the things they had to be afraid of. The house was dark and Jacob and I tiptoed down the hallway.
“Jake, that you?” Billy’s voice called out from the dark.
“Yeah, Dad.”
“Come in here and let me get a look at you.”
Jacob turned the hall light on and pulled me toward the second door on the left. Billy turned on a small bedside lamp as he pulled himself up to a sitting position one-handed, his other arm in a sling.
“Come here, give your old man a hug,” Billy chuckled.
“You look good,” he told Jacob as he embraced him.
“Come here,” Billy told me, a twinkle in his eyes.
I smiled and bent over the side of the bed, giving him a big hug as well, avoiding his left arm. “Okay, you’re both alright, I’m alright, go to bed and get some sleep. We’ll talk in the morning.”
“How’s your arm, Dad?” Jacob asked him, worriedly.
“It’s fine, son. Go get some sleep. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Billy turned out his light and Jake and I headed down the hall. I looked at him questioningly as we passed his sisters’ room, but he shrugged and pulled me into his. He shut the door behind us.
“Are you sure this is okay?” I asked him.
“My dad didn’t say anything. Trust me, he’d have said something if he didn’t approve. He’s not shy.”
“Jake?” We both looked at each other like the party was over when Billy called from his room.
“I’ll be right back,” he sighed. “Don’t go anywhere.”
He jogged back down the hall and went into Billy’s room, where I could hear them murmuring back and forth, but I couldn’t make out any of the words. A few minutes later, Jacob came back into his room with a big grin and shut the door.
“What did he say?” I asked him.
He chuckled. “He told me to use a condom. If I get you pregnant, he’ll hold me down while Charlie aims his shotgun.”
“… oh.”
Did everyone in La Push know we were having sex?
I used the bathroom and brushed my teeth before creeping quietly past Billy’s room yet again and closing Jacob’s door behind me. Jacob was already in his bed and I studied him curiously, wondering how the heck we were both gonna fit in that tiny bed.
“It’s gonna be more like sharing the sleeping bag on the floor than the king-sized beds we got used to, huh?”
“Yeah,” I murmured. I pulled my shirt and my jeans off, leaving me in my underclothes and crawled in. I couldn’t sleep naked like we’d been doing the last week or so - not with Billy in the other room. But when I got under the sheet and Jake pulled my back up against his warm chest, I could feel he didn’t have anything on.
“Jacob! I am not doing anything with your father right down the hall!” I whispered harshly.
“Calm down, Bella. I always sleep naked. Come here, honey.” He pulled me tight up against him and kissed the back of my shoulder.
We were definitely home - I could hear the rain pattering steadily on the roof, and Jacob’s heat felt good against the chill.
“Goodnight. Love you, Bells.”
“Goodnight Jacob. I love you, too.”
~~``intoxicating``~~
Day 19
The tiny front room was so packed full of large teenage boys I could hardly breathe. It was raining hard outside, but it was hot, making the air sticky and heavy in the small-enclosed space.
I had planned on getting up early, Partly so I wouldn’t have to make the ‘walk of shame’ out of Jacob’s room in front of Billy in the morning. And partly so I could make breakfast for Jake and his dad. I appreciated everything they had done for me so far. My actions had put everyone in danger and I would never let myself forget how much I owed them all.
But Billy was already up, sitting in his wheelchair at the kitchen table. There were scrambled eggs and bacon and toast that he had just finished cooking, waiting for us. I don’t know how the heck he did it all one-handed.
Billy never said a word about the sleeping arrangements. He didn’t look at me funny or act uncomfortable. He was gracious and much too kind, considering the circumstances.
I wanted to ask him about my father, but I knew there was going to be a meeting in less than an hour with the whole pack, so I figured there would be plenty of opportunities for it later.
Sam had been the first to arrive. His face was grim and while Billy didn’t seem to have a grudge against me, Sam barely looked at me. I knew he had been unhappy with me for reuniting with Edward after the whole Italy incident, and I suppose this just cemented his annoyance.
Once everyone had arrived, the closeness in the room was stifling. Sam stood at the front of the room, near the window - which had the blinds drawn and the curtains closed, just in case anyone had followed him here. The rest of us were seated around the room, in chairs and on the floor.
Jacob was alongside me on the couch, with Embry next to him, and Quil on the armrest. Paul was on the floor, with Seth cross-legged beside him and Leah in a chair. Jared sat just in front of Billy, who was also sitting in.
Sam began the meeting with an update of the last two and a half weeks. I knew all this from Jacob, so as Sam spoke, I worked on my Volturi list with half an ear. I heard him reiterating about the anonymous tip to the police, and how everyone had to be careful, as there were eyes watching.
“So Bella,” I looked up startled when I heard Sam say my name. “Under no circumstances are you to leave the Black house. You are to stay in the house.”
I couldn’t even leave the house? What the? He caught the shocked, disappointed expression on my face and looked at Jacob angrily.
“Jacob? Didn’t you tell her?”
Jacob put his head down and mumbled. “I told her she had to stay in La Push.”
Sam shook his head, annoyed. He looked at me. “Bella, your father has been watching me. He’s on a leave of absence at work - you did at least tell her that, right?”
“Yes!” Jacob said indignantly.
“Good. Your father has taken it upon himself to watch me personally. On his own time. Apparently,” he cleared his throat and looked down, uncomfortable. “Apparently, when Jacob first began phasing, Charlie was made to believe that I had some kind of cult going on that I wanted to initiate him into. So now that the Cullens have… passed away in this fire, and I’ve been implicated, Chief Swan is watching. Especially since he believes that you were there at the Cullen house that night. So, it’s personal.”
I didn’t know what to say.
“By the way,” Sam added. “I’m sorry for your loss.”
A murmur went around the room as everyone quietly acknowledged ‘my loss’. I felt the tears well up and threaten to spill over onto my cheeks. I was not expecting that.
Thankfully, Jacob stood up and re-directed the meeting.
“Bella’s been working on something to help us when the bloodsuckers come back. Edward told her all about them, and she’s written down everything she can remember. She figured out who the three that came after my dad, were. Who’s the guy that put his hands on my dad, Bella?”
I cleared my throat as 9 pair of eyes turned to look at me.
“Aro.”
I got up and handed him the paper with all the details I could remember written on it. Jacob studied the paper before they passed it all around the room, each of them reading it in turn. The final pair of hands were Sam’s.
“I’ll make a copy of this for all of you.” He looked at me. “You have an idea of who the three Volturi who stayed behind were?”
I nodded. “I think it was Aro, he’s the one that found out Jake and my location at the cabin from Billy. And Alec is the young one, who made you all unable to move while they came into the house here. And Felix was the big guy.”
“Thank you, Bella,” Sam said solemnly. “We appreciate all your help.”
I put my head down, sure that what he really wanted to say was ‘thanks for all this grief’.
“Okay, we’re gonna break for today. Thank you all for making it here, and being on time. There’s some chicken and cookies in the kitchen that Emily sent over.”
Everyone jumped up from their seats and practically knocked each other down making their way to the kitchen. You’d think none of the had eaten in days.
“And all of you - clean up your messes!” Sam’s deep alpha voice rang through the room above the chatter.
Jacob took my hand and started to lead me toward the kitchen, but I wasn’t feeling good. I needed a minute alone.
“I need to use the bathroom,” I told him. I snuck down the short hallway and locked the door behind me, trying to block out the sound of laughing and conversation. I sat on the side of the tub and put my face in my hands.
I suddenly felt really, really alone. My father was crazed with worry and following Sam around - which was my fault again - trying to catch him starting fires. I was the one who told my dad that Sam ‘had gotten to’ Jacob and wouldn’t allow him talk to me, after that first time Jacob phased.
I seemed to make a mess of everything.
The knob on the door turned and I jumped. “Is someone in there?”
It was Leah.
“I’ll be right out.” I got up, wiping away my tears and splashed some cold water on my face.
“Hey,” I tried to smile as I opened the door, hoping she wouldn’t see the salty tracks on my cheeks.
Paul, Jared and Seth were in the kitchen going through the chicken like it was popcorn. Sam and Billy were talking quietly in the front room, so I made my way down the hall to Jake’s room. The door was open a crack and I could hear them talking inside. I stood just outside the door for a moment, listening.
“So come on, Black - spill. What was it like?” That sounded like Embry.
“I bet they did it in the lake. What’s it like in the water?”
“Is it really like hot apple pie, man?”
My mouth dropped open and I waited to hear what Jacob would tell them.
“Did you bring that book back, dude? You said I could read the dirty book. Did Bella like, read the book and get herself all hot and shit? You kept thinking about that book when you phased, man. The book must have made her hot, right?”
“I think it made Jake hot,” Embry snorted.
“We saw you naked in the water - did you do it in the water?”
“Guys!” Jacob finally shouted. “Shut the fuck up. I’m not telling you shit. Leave me alone, man.”
“Aw come on dude. As soon as you phase, we’re all gonna know anyway. You know you’re gonna be thinking about it. Might as well just tell us now.”
“How long were you gone before she gave it up?”
I heard two loud thwacks and then two loud “Ow!”’s.
“Geez, man! That was uncalled for!”
“With all that getting laid, you’d think he’d be all zen and shit. What’s with the temper?”
“Get the hell outta my room!”
I backed up as the door opened and Quil and Embry exited Jake’s bedroom, each of them rubbing their cheeks.
“Hey Bella,” they said as they headed back to the kitchen.
I stood in the doorway and smiled at him stupidly.
“Did you hear any of that?” he asked me.
“Mmm-hmmm. So… what was it like?” I slowly walked into his room, shutting the door behind me. I made my way toward him. “Was it like hot apple pie? Did you like it? Did the book get you all hot when you read it?”
The back of his calves hit the bed as he backed up and fell back on the edge. “Was Bella a wild woman?” I sat on his lap straddling him. “Was she worth the wait?”
He laughed, his face in my hair. “Ummm, yes, yes, yes, yes and yes.”
He leaned back, falling backwards on the bed, and I shrieked as he took me with him.
If I was gonna be stuck in the house for god knew how long, we might as well make the most of it. I jumped up and stumbled across the room, and locked the bedroom door.
~~~`intoxicating``~~
A/N: Link to Bella's notes on the Volturi. Reviews are nice. Thank you.