And So The Lamb Became the Wolf

10. I Would Love to See More of You

Bella, shut the hell up! Jacob screeched through the mind link.

Bella paused in the middle of her 'She said yes. I said wow. She said when, and I said how about right now.' The song had been reverberating throughout her head and it was making the wolves insane. Sorry, how long have I been doing this?

For five miles. Five damn miles. WE'RE JOGGING! THAT'S LIKE FIVE MINUTES REAL-TIME. I swear to all things holy if you don't shut up...

Jacob! Too much! Sam called, ever the parent.

My bad guys.

I'm so excited! Brady railed in his mind. It's so cute! Brady slammed happily into Bella's hindleg. She snarled. He was undeterred.

Was I this annoying? Bella asked.

Still are, Sam laughed.

Still are, Bella mocked.

Hush, Sam chided her. We're almost there. The pack was swiftly coming upon the Cullen territory. Bella, fall back, Sam commanded. Bella huffed, but she was powerless to disobey. She fell back, trailing some of the newer wolves. It wasn't meant as a punishment, but to help Bella keep her emotions in check.

It had been a few days since the pack had rescued Charlie. He was in the hospital recovering. He wasn't in bad shape, but he had developed a small infection from a scratch on his leg and had developed a fever that refused to break. He had fractures in his leg, just like Carlisle had thought. His CT and MRI had been clear, much to Bella's relief. Bella had been to see him after school every day that week. Charlie insisted she go to school during the day, though she would have been content to spend it with him.

They hadn't yet discussed how Bella had saved him. They weren't really a touchy-feely family, but Bella knew at some point this topic would have to be breached. The most Charlie had done was pat Bella on the shoulder and say, "Thanks kid," while he watched a game with his leg propped up and she did her homework. It wasn't the conversation they needed, but it was a start.

Charlie hadn't yet asked how the wolf situation happened to her, but Bella had wasted no time in asking him what happened to him. "It was the dumbest thing, if I'm honest. I had my mag, and i was shining it every which way. Little kids, ya know? I didn't want to miss her because I wasn't looking hard enough. The rain was coming down, I had my walkie in my other hand...Mark was talking to me and I slipped. I was too close to the river when it happened, and I ended up in it. Rookie mistake, honestly. The water was so high that I didn't stand a chance. I lost my walkie and my maglight in one go. Then my leg got caught and you saw how that turned out." He pointed at the splint he had to use until the cut healed. "Honestly, I just hung on for dear life."

"For three hours?"

"Wow. That long? Yeah, I guess for three hours. I gotta stay around for you." Bella had snorted at that. "What? Who you gonna feed if I die?"

"No one, I guess."

"No one. And that's why I gotta keep healthy." Charlie had looked proud of himself as he repeated, "Three hours. Jesus."

Bella thought about Charlie. She had planned on spending Saturday with him, but if the wolf pack had a job, the wolf pack had a job. She tried to refocus on the task at hand as they cautiously broke through the tree line. They all caught the scent of unfamiliar vampires. The hackles of every wolf raised; Bella included. Sam slowed their procession. Is this a trap? Jacob demanded.

Sam's caution rippled through all of them. He briefly considered if it was a mistake for all the wolves to come to this meeting. Embry. Quil. Remain in the woods, just in case. The boys balked at the command. Now! The pack must survive. The boys shrank back from the command of the alpha. They withdrew from the group and the pack rearranged to fill their empty spaces in the formation. The remaining wolves slowly advanced, incredibly cautious. As they broke the tree line they spread out, displaying the full size of the pack.