Rising Moon - A Twilight Fan Fiction

Chapter Fifteen - Bells and Bandages

Chapter Fifteen: Bells and Bandages

Hannah still wouldn't let me in to see Jacob, but she kept coming out to check on the two boys. She'd smile at me disappear again, only providing encouraging nods that gave no clue to what was happening on the other side of that door.

At the sound of Benny crashing through the door, fully clothed with a furious glare sharpening his eyes, she quickly came back out and untied the stained apron from around her waist. We both looked hopefully at Benny, August and David rushing outside to shift before coming back in with the rest of the pack.

"He said the pack north of us caught your scent. He was coming down to see for himself before he called the Cullens," Benny announced, the other men frowning with him. "He wants the reward."

Everyone stared, speechless.

"They turned us in?" I asked, breaking the crackling silence.

Gravely, Benny nodded. "I'm so sorry, Renesmee."

"I bet fighting didn't help much," I said sheepishly, sighing.

All the men smirked at me, and, with a deep laugh, Benny answered, "Not really. But it did teach him not to mess with a mutt."

"Benjamin!" Hannah scolded loudly.

"It's okay, Hannah." I shook my head, laughing with them. "I've gotten used to hanging out with dogs."

She returned my smile as everyone only laughed more.

As I finished, the little old woman came waddling out from the medical room. Her eyes were sharp as she glared at me, and I automatically took a few steps closer to the wall to allow her passage. She went straight to Benny, shaking her head.

"He is fine. Healing now," she whispered, knowing everyone in the room could hear her perfectly fine. I scowled.

"How much blood did he lose?" I asked worriedly, coming closer. Hannah shot me a warning look that I promptly ignored.

The woman's silver head snapped around, dark eyes boring into mine. "Figures you'd be interested in the blood."

"Grandmama," Hannah shushed, stepping between the two of us. Her glare instantly wore away as she looked at me, and she gently pushed me towards the medical room. "Why don't you go see for yourself while we try to find you two a way out of here?"

Frowning, I nodded. The old woman scoffed as I left the room, rattling off what sounded like an insult, except in a completely different language. Some of the boys smirked, trying to hide their chuckles as I disappeared.

The moment I saw Jake, their comments were forgotten. He was sprawled on the mattress, carefully arranged under a blanket. I could smell the blood though; it suffocated the entire room, slapping me in the face every time I took a breath. I was tempted to hold my nose.

"Ness?" Jake said quietly, studying my expression.

"You look like hell, Jacob Black," I teased as I tried to get myself under control. He could read me better than anyone, but it didn't mean I'd stop trying to pretend I was fine.

He grinned at me. "And you look like an angel, as always."

I came to his side, kneeling down and gently stroking the hair back from his sweat-beaded forehead. "You feeling okay?"

He smiled wider and met my eyes as he nodded, but he quickly flipped through the novel my face was telling. "What's wrong, Renesmee?"

I bit my lip and stood up, releasing his hand. "We have to go. That wolf turned us in."

Immediately, he shot up, and I winced at the tearing sounds his body made.

"Jake –"

"We're leaving. Now," he said, yanking on clothes from the edge of the bed. As the sheet fell away, I had to stop myself from gagging at the amount of wounds littering his body. They were sewn shut, but, with his sudden move, the stitches had neatly ripped in half and blood was beginning to ooze once again.

I gulped.

"Jacob –"

"Nessie, let's go," he interrupted, buttoning his jeans and cursing as he noticed the blood on his chest.

I tried to stop his hands, but he quickly shook me off. "Jake, stop."

He ignored me, tugging on a shirt.

"Jacob!" I yelled.

The sound broke his focus long enough for him to look at me. I grabbed both his hands, restraining him with all the strength I could muster. "We're going to be okay," I whispered.

He laced his fingers with mine and squeezed. Slowly, the tension drained out of his body and his forehead came down to rest against mine. In a hushed tone he said, "I just want you safe again."

"And I don't want you hurting," I answered, squeezing his fingers back.

He straightened up and gave me a final nod. "We have to move. Now."

Gently, he ran his thumb over my cheek and placed a kiss to my nose. "I won't let them take you away from me, Nessie."

I leaned into his touch, replying, "I know."

Keeping one of our hands woven together, we stepped back out into the living room. The wolves had made a protective circle in front of us, Hannah and the old lady trapped behind it as well.

"Nessie –" Hannah blinked, almost shoving me back into the room.

"Renesmee Cullen!" a bell-like voice trilled from the other side of our cage. "Call the cavalry off. Now."

Jacob bared his teeth as I instantly placed the musical sound and the familiar scent.

I forced my way in front of Benny, who tried to stall me in vain, and stared wide-eyed at Aunt Alice, sitting on the couch in the middle of a pack of wolves.