motormouth.

V.

The situation seemed to go from zero to one hundred very quickly. One moment, Bella was moping around her bedroom over Jacob, the next she speeding towards the reservation in her beat-up truck that certainly couldn't handle the pace.

"Bell, at least let me drive." Ashlyn pleads, noting her sister's white knuckles as she grips the steering wheel with such force. "And explain to me what's going on."

"I need to see him. I know what's happened."

"Yeah, so do I. Sam got to him, that's it." Ashlyn sighs in frustration. "I told you to give him time! You're just gonna push him further away if you keep bothering him like this."

"You don't understand." Bella counters, shaking her head.

Ash scowls, a mixture of anger and frustration etching across her face. "Then help me understand. You asked me to come with you!"

The tyres of the truck squeal to a halt outside the red house, mud spraying from the speed of the vehicle. Bella immediately exits the truck, stalking over to the front door to thump at it wildly with her fist. Ashlyn sighs again, unbuckling her seat-belt when she watches her sister rudely push past Billy Black and storm further inside.

"Sorry, Billy." Ashlyn smiles apologetically as she strides up to the house. "I don't know what's got into her."

"She needs to stop pushing him. It's not good for either of them." Billy states, wisely.

Ashlyn scoffs. "You think I haven't told her that?"

Before he can respond, Bella is storming back out of the house, clearly on the warpath. Both Billy and Ashlyn glance out the window to source what she's after this time, spotting Sam and his 'cult' strolling towards the house. Ashlyn curses loudly. 

"Bella, you need to stop." She warns, jogging after her sister. "Bella! It's not worth it. Let's go home."

Her words fall on deaf ears; it's a matter of seconds before she is faced with them, seemingly ignorant that they are easily twice her size. Ashlyn recognises Sam as the largest and Embry, Jacob's friend, but the other two she has never seen before. 

"What did you do to him? He didn't want this!" Bella exclaims, just as Ashlyn reaches her side.

"Bella, stop." She positions herself between the men and her sister, pushing her back. Bella briefly meets her worried eyes, but it is soon lost as one of the others speak.

"What did he tell you?" He demands, stepping in front of Sam. There's an anger in his face that isn't like the others - it's a lack of control. 

"Easy." Sam warns, casting Ashlyn a warning look which she can only interpret as to control her sister, just as he tries to control his own. 

"Let's go, come on." 

Ash forcefully drags her sister backwards, but the size difference doesn't act in her favour. The taller girl brushes her arm off, marching forward again.

"Nothing! He tells me nothing because he's scared of you." 

This seems to amuse them, besides Sam, as they all erupt in a rather taunting laughter. Bella's jaw clenches and before Ashlyn can react, the sharp sound of a slap rings out across the landscape and it falls silent. All the boys step back, leaving the temperamental one shaking.

"Oh, it's too late now." One of them chuckles. The man is breathing deeply, almost snarling in fury, as his entire body trembles.

"Get her back." Sam commands and Ashlyn obliges, the shock that has overcome Bella working in her favour as she hauls her backwards.