Chapter 7: Sweet Sacrifice

(Song: Within Temptation - Stand My Ground)

Jacob sat in his father’s office watching him process all of the information he had just given him. He’d returned home from Bella’s and hopped in the shower as quickly as possible, hoping that his dad would still be home once he’d finished dressing. Billy had been just about to leave when Jacob caught up with him and told him he needed to talk to him.

Billy had finally relented and had led Jacob to his home office where they could talk in peace. There Jacob had finally told Billy everything that had been bothering him and what he hoped to do about Vanessa.

Billy had listened for the most part, then sat and thought about everything his son had just told him. He could tell that Jacob had meant every word he’d said, plus he’d finally answered the question that Sarah had been asking him since the beginning.

Jacob wasn’t in love with Vanessa and had only been marrying the girl for the sake of the baby. Now that Jacob had confessed that he didn’t want to marry her, Billy knew he could help his son and he knew he could make sure that the baby didn’t suffer from the outcome.

He sighed as he looked his son in the eyes. “Have you told Vanessa that you don’t want to marry her?”

Jacob shook his head. “I wanted to talk to you first, to see what my options are.”

Billy nodded. “Okay, well I have to say son, she’s not going to be a happy woman when you do tell her…and your mother isn’t going to be pleased about it either.”

Jacob ran his hand through his hair. “I…I know that dad, but I just…”

Billy got up and moved around his desk to pat his son on his shoulder. “I know son. It’s okay.” He sighed, “I could wish you would have realized this before your mother started planning the wedding, but it’s okay. We’ll deal with everything as it comes.”

He leaned back against the desk and gave Jacob a sympathetic look. “You know there’s going to be a lot of fallout from this, especially with Vanessa.”

Jacob nodded. “Yeah, I’m already expecting that.”

“Good, well I’ll get with our lawyers and set up a meeting for us to get things in motion, but before I do I need to ask you a serious question.”

“Shoot,” replied Jacob.

Billy hesitated a moment before asking, “Are you positive that the baby is yours?”

Jacob sighed. “She said it was.”

“You know that’s the first thing the lawyers are going to ask you.”

“Dad, I never had any reason to believe it isn’t mine. Vanessa isn’t like me…she’s five months pregnant now and I know I was with her five months ago.”

Billy nodded. “Okay son, but the lawyers will still insist on a paternity test, it’ll also be safe to have one for just in case she tries to take off with the baby by claiming it isn’t yours after all.”

Jacob nodded.

“Listen, let me call the lawyers and set up a meeting first. Then they’ll be able to tell us exactly what we need to do about the baby, okay?”

“Yeah, okay.”

Billy made his way back to his chair. “I’ll let you know as soon as I know when the meeting will be.”

That was clearly a dismissal, so Jacob got up and headed for the door. He stopped as he placed his hand on the doorknob and turned to look at his father.

“Dad?”

Billy paused in picking up his phone to look up at his son.

“Thanks…for helping me out…and being here for me.”

Billy gave his son a genuine smile. “You’re welcome, son. Don’t worry, we’ll figure this all out. It’ll be okay, you’ll see.”

Jacob nodded as he left the room, feeling a little bit better now that he’d finally made peace with his old man.

****************************************

Now two days later and Jacob was making his way through the winding roads of the suburbs. He was on his way to talk to Vanessa now that his father’s lawyers had begun hammering out all of the details that would allow him to leave Vanessa but still be able to care for their child. Granted, the lawyers had told him that Vanessa was going to have to take a paternity test just like Billy had warned him.

While the lawyers had worked, Jacob had managed to avoid Vanessa over the last couple of days by saying he had a project to finish before Spring Break and that his dad was riding him hard at work. She had accepted that, especially when she’d seen how tired and preoccupied he seemed when they’d met on campus. So, she’d kept their conversations to a minimum, talking mostly by texts or chat.

Jacob was glad she had believed him and that his appearance had been a great help, whether he’d meant it to be or not. He was also glad that most of their conversations were done through the computer or phone so that he didn’t give away anything that he wasn’t supposed to until the lawyers gave him the word.

Luckily, his dad had managed to set up the meeting with the lawyers later that very same day that Jacob had gone to talk to him. At the meeting, Jacob had explained his situation to them, then they had asked him questions that would help them to prepare and present his case. It had taken a couple of hours of discussion before the lawyers had told him what they already knew he would have to do at that point in time.

One of those things was to ask Vanessa for a paternity test. They said it was not solely for the purpose of making sure she wasn’t lying since Jacob seemed to be certain that Vanessa was telling the truth. It was just always safe for the father of a baby to also have his own written proof of paternity for things like insurance and other legal matters.

The other thing he was going to have to do was call off the engagement and the wedding. That meant he was going to have to try to get the ring back from Vanessa, and both Vanessa and Sarah would have to cancel all plans they had already made for the wedding. So all of the reservations would have to be cancelled and the invitations needed to be recalled, as well as whatever else was deemed necessary to make sure that it was clear that there would be no wedding.

Those were just some of the things the lawyers had come up with for the beginning of those proceedings, but he knew they were going to spend the next few days putting more details into his case. Not only that, but they had immediately prepared the papers that would order Vanessa to take a paternity test, which was why he was now on his way to see her.

After the initial meeting, Billy and Jacob had gone to Sarah and sat with her to inform her of Jacob’s decision. Luckily, Sarah had been more understanding than Billy had thought she would be. He hadn’t realized that Sarah had known all along that her son wasn’t in love with his fiancée, but she had gone ahead and helped plan the wedding since that’s what Jacob had said he’d wanted at the time.

Sarah told Jacob that she would begin cancelling all of the reservations she had made then go from there. She knew Jacob still had to talk to Vanessa, but since it was Sarah who had made most of the reservations in her own name, it wasn’t going to be hard to make the cancellations. Plus, most of the ones she was going to do were with people who were friends of hers or who had owed her favors. That meant when she called them to tell them that the wedding was off, they would understand without having to ask any questions, nor would they mention anything to Vanessa about it.

So Jacob had waited until the lawyers had drawn up the papers that he was to take over to Vanessa. Not only was she to sign them, but she was to give the engagement ring back as well as pick an appointment date from the list that the lawyers had provided. This was to ensure that the results would be given not just to Vanessa, but to Jacob through his lawyers.

It was also to keep Vanessa honest.

Thankfully the lawyers had only needed a couple of days of researching and consulting with Jacob and his parents to get most things in order. The rest would come depending on how Jacob’s visit with Vanessa turned out.

As he pulled into the parking lot of Vanessa’s condo, his cell phone beeped, indicating he’d received a text. He pulled his car into a space and pulled out his phone, touching the screen to view the text.

It was from Bella.

She was responding to the text he’d sent her earlier that day. He’d informed her that the lawyers had given him the go to end things with Vanessa and he’d wanted her to wish him luck.

Her text read, Good luck!

Nothing more, nothing less.

Jacob sighed as he shoved the phone into its case and got out of the car. He knew he shouldn’t let it get to him, but he’d hoped she would have said more. He’d tried to call her after the first meeting with the lawyers but she hadn’t answered her phone. So he’d sent her a text saying his dad and the lawyers were helping him break it off with Vanessa but he’d still be a part of his child’s life.

Her response had been slow to come and just as short as this one was. That’s great! Glad ur dad is helping.

As he stared up at Vanessa’s door, he knew his talk with Bella was going to have to wait. Once he dealt with Vanessa, he’d be able to have more time to be with Bella. He missed her terribly.

(Song: Within Temptation - What Have You Done)

He steeled himself for the coming confrontation and rapped on Vanessa’s door. A few moments later a surprised Vanessa opened the door.

“Jacob? What are you doing here? I thought you were busy?”

“We need to talk,” he answered, not wanting to say anything else just yet.

She looked at him for a moment before nodding and stepping back to let him in.

Jacob walked into her condo, heading over to the pristine living room. He surveyed the surroundings, noticing that Vanessa had kept it as clean as always. Her condo looked like something out of a magazine, except somehow it appeared even more sterile than that.

Vanessa was clearly a product of her environment. Her parents may not have been the richest in the world, but they had raised her to believe appearances and social standing counted for something. Jacob knew Vanessa couldn’t afford the condo on her own. Her parents were clearly helping to support her current lifestyle.

In the living room, he took a seat in one of the cream lounge chairs and waited for her to sit down. She stopped near the door to the kitchen and gestured to it.

“Would you like something to drink?” She asked, acting like the perfect hostess.

Jacob shook his head. “I’m fine. Come have a seat, Vanessa.”

She slowly made her way to sit on the edge of the couch, closest to him. The way she held herself told him that she knew something was up. He decided not to beat around the bush.

“Look, I’m just going to say it, okay? I’m sure you’ve been feeling it, but I think it’s time I told you how I really feel.”

She stared at him. “How…you really feel?”

He nodded. “Yes, I’m sorry Vanessa…but I’m not…in love with you. And I don’t think it’s fair…to either of us…to marry you when I don’t feel that way about you.”

In an instant, she was on her feet with her hands balled into fists at her sides as she screeched, “What!?!”

Jacob held up his hands in a gesture of placation. “Let me explain. Just have a seat.”

“NO! I’m not sitting down while you break up with me!”

He sighed, of course Vanessa wouldn’t even try to talk about it in a civilized manner, she was all about the theatrics.

“Vanessa, I’m here to tell you that even though we won’t get married, I’m still going to help you take care of our child.”

“How dare you!” she growled.

He frowned. “I don’t understand? How is that a bad thing?”

“You don’t understand? God Jacob! This isn’t just about the baby! I want to know why the hell you don’t want to marry ME!?! How dare you break my heart! I won’t let you!”

He sighed. “Look, I’ll be honest with you. I never wanted to get married in the first place. I just…did it for the sake of the baby.”

Vanessa gaped at him as she staggered back. “No,” she mumbled as she shook her head. “No, you…you don’t mean that. You said…you told me you loved me.”

“Yes, I do love you, but I’m not…in love with you.”

He watched as she sank back into the couch and stared at the floor, tears forming in her eyes.

He swallowed. “Vanessa…”

She shook her head. “You’re lying.”

“No…I’m not.” He took the papers out of his coat pocket and set them on the coffee table. “It’s all there, my declaration that the wedding is off and our engagement is over…”

She closed her eyes. “Please…” she whispered.

He went on trying not to let her tears or her pain-filled voice get to him. “My dad’s lawyers…my lawyers, drew this up for me. Um, I need to ask for the ring back.”

She curled the hand with the ring into a fist as he continued, “And…I need to ask that you get a paternity test done as soon as possible.”

Her head snapped up. “What?”

He placed the second paper next to the others. “You are to choose one of these times from the list and go see the doctor listed next to it.”

She glared at him. “Are you saying the baby isn’t yours!?! How dare you!”

He shook his head. “No Vanessa, this is for insurance purposes okay? They need proof or I can’t provide the baby with whatever it will need.”

Once again she was on her feet. “Jacob Ephraim Black! You’ve got some nerve coming in here and demanding all of that!” she screamed. “If you think I’m going to let you get away with this…”

“Vanessa, this isn’t a game! And if you don’t comply, you will be taken to court and forced to do this!” His voice was raised, but he wasn’t at the point of yelling like she was. At least not yet. “Please, can’t we deal with this like two civilized adults and not drag the courts into this?”

“Oh you think you’re sooooo clever don’t you?” she growled. “Well I’m on to you! I know the truth!”

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t try to hide it!” she screeched. “I know this was all her idea! That bitch still has you wrapped around her little finger!”

He frowned. “Vanessa, you’re not making any sense.”

She screamed as she grabbed the papers and threw them into his face. “I’m not signing a damn thing, you hear me! There’s no way I’m letting that meddling Ms. Swan take you from me!”

“What? Bella?” he was looking up at her all confused.

“It’s all her fault! Stupid bitch! Never knows when to back off! Well she can’t have you!”

Jacob had stood up and was now glaring at her. “If you’re talking about Bella, Vanessa, then I would appreciate it if you didn’t call her names and leave her out of this!”

“Why? If it wasn’t for her and those hooks of hers, you would be mine! I tried everything but that sniveling, little cunt…”

“That. Is. Enough!” roared Jacob, effectively cutting her off. “One more word about her Vanessa and I’ll…”

“See!” she sneered, “Look how fast you defend her! You never did that for me! I’m the one you love! I’m the one having your fucking baby!”

Jacob stood there with his own fists clenched, trying to get himself under control. Vanessa had obviously gone off her rocker and was pushing all of his buttons. Unfortunately, that wasn’t good for either of them.

Taking a few deep breaths, he tried to speak with a level voice. “Just sign the papers Vanessa.”

“NO!” she growled.

“Sign them and do as we ask. Just…you need to let me go. And just…just know that I’ll make sure that the baby will never want for anything.”

She continued to shake her head. He sighed and picked up the papers, putting them back on the coffee table. He knew he wasn’t getting the ring back today. “Sign them okay? I’m…I’m sorry Vanessa, but this is my decision. No one else helped me make it. I’ve got to go…but if you don’t do as we ask, you’ll be hearing from my lawyers and it’ll get ugly…I…I don’t want that for our child.”

Vanessa didn’t say a word as she glared at the wall, keeping her eyes from him. Her hands were still curled into fists at her sides, while tears ran down her face and her body shook uncontrollably.

“Goodbye Vanessa,” he said, in a low voice as he made his way to the front door.

Stepping outside, he shut the door just as he heard a high-pitched scream and something crashed against the door. He closed his eyes as he listened to the shattered pieces of whatever it was that she’d thrown at the door, fall to the ground making tinkling noises. Then he jumped as something else crashed into the door and shattered.

Frowning, he pulled away and began to head to his car, the sounds of more things being thrown around echoing behind him.

****************************

(Song: Flyleaf - There For You)

Vanessa let out another scream as she picked up yet another vase and threw it at the wall. She watched as it shattered into a million pieces before it rained down to the floor in a myriad of colors. The light from the window caught the pieces and made them glitter, as if they were raindrops falling through a rainbow.

That sight was enough to calm her down a bit so that her mind began to focus on the now. She gritted her teeth and growled low.

“Stupid bitch! Did that whore really think she could take my man away from me and not expect me to do anything about it? I’ll show her!”

She stalked to her bedroom and yanked open one of her drawers. As she began tossing things at random, she continued to mutter to herself.

“And Jacob…thinks that’s all it’s gonna take to get rid of me! Well you’re wrong buddy! There’s no way you’re denying me the riches I’ve worked so hard for! I’m going to be your fucking wife if it’s the last thing I ever do! When I’m done with you and that miserable cunt, you’ll be begging me for mercy!”

She slammed her drawer shut and stomped to her closet, ignoring the mess she’d made. Throwing the doors wide, she stood there as a slow grin began to spread over her face.

Oh yeah, she thought, this is gonna be good.

She laughed as her mind began plotting ways of getting revenge on one Jacob Black and the meddling tramp known as Bella Swan.

******************************************

(Song: Evanescence - Sweet Sacrifice)

Jacob threw himself down on his bed, landing on his back to stare at the ceiling.

“Well that went well,” he muttered to himself, wishing he could pick up the phone and talk to Bella.

He’d texted her again when he’d left Vanessa’s but she had only replied that she was kinda busy at the moment and couldn’t talk.

He was seriously missing her something awful in the last few days. Ever since he’d spent the night with her, he hadn’t stopped thinking about her nor stopped wishing he was with her. Closing his eyes he thought about how sweet she’d been in his arms that night.

He loved how no matter what she’d been through, she’d always retained her sweet and caring disposition. It made him wish more women were that way. He didn’t want them to be so nice that others walked all over them, but rather they be warm and nurturing with a backbone. Always there to give a hug or smile, but still have a hint of fire in them. Like a lioness, one that looked cuddly but had that protective instinct buried beneath the soft fur.

Thinking of Bella that way made him remember an instance where she’d seemed like the fierce, yet nurturing lioness.

Jacob was fourteen when he and Bella were working in her dining room on the science project they had agreed to do together, for once, instead of against each other. They had divided up the duties evenly between themselves according to their strengths. That had been Bella’s idea and Jacob couldn’t help but admire her ability to organize and figure out what all they needed for the project.


She was good at that and at numbers, which was why she was in charge of getting their supplies and divvying up the amount of formula needed in each beaker or tubes. She worked diligently on her part while Jacob worked on the presentation of their experiment.


That was one of the things he was good at, making presentations. He could often come up with very persuasive ones, plus he had a way with words. That meant he was doing all of the writing for their project. From the abstract, to the hypothesis and finally to the conclusion. Of course, he was also helping Bella to conduct the experiment but no matter what their individual duties were, the other would always have a say in the final decision.


Bella had finished setting up the beakers on the table while Jacob worked on the hypothesis nearby. When she was ready, she got his attention.


“Jake? You ready to conduct the first experiment?”


He held a finger up until he finished writing the sentence he was working on, then nodded.


“Okay, let’s do it.”


He got up and went to stand besides her. She grinned and handed him three test tubes with a different powder in each one.


“You start on that end and I’ll do this end.”


He chuckled. “Cool.”


Jacob watched as Bella moved to her end and lifted one tube over the beaker that was halfway full of blue liquid. She tipped the tube and tapped her finger against the edge of it, making the powder fall gently into the beaker. As soon as she had emptied the tube, she began writing notes on the note card set in front of the beaker.


Jacob shook his head and grinned at how dainty she’d looked as she tipped the tube over the beaker. He moved to his end and took the tube with the label that matched the one on the last beaker. Lifting the tube over the beaker, he upended it and dumped the entire contents into the beaker.


Next thing he knew, the beaker seemed to bubble over and then literally blew apart with a soft ‘poof’. He hissed as his finger began to sting, making him lift it and shake it with a scowl.


“Ouch, dammit!”


He saw the drop of blood and was about to stick his finger in his mouth when Bella grabbed his wrist. “Jake! Stop!”


“But it stings!” he whined.


Bella grabbed two towels and threw one over the leaking mess on the table before wrapping the other one around his finger. She pulled his arm closer to her chest and surveyed the damage done to his finger.


“Hm, looks a bit like a burn. It may blister. And you got cut by a piece of the beaker. Come on,” she tugged him towards the kitchen, “there’s a first aid kit in here.”


Bella wasted no time at all sticking his finger under the sink, making him hiss again. “Stop being a big baby,” she muttered as she gently washed his finger with soap and water.


Then she wrapped it in the towel and made him sit at the breakfast table. She retrieved the kit from beneath the sink and sat with him where she began spreading ointment over the reddened skin to help with the burn and the sting. Then she dabbed some red liquid over his cut with a Q-tip before she covered it with a band-aid.


“There. All done,” she announced.


He pouted. “It still stings.”


She smiled at him. “Aw, poor Jakie. Here,” she took him by the wrist and pulled until his finger was close to her mouth.


Kissing a spot over the band-aid, she looked at him with mock worry. “How’s that? Feel better?”


He grinned and nodded. “Much!”


“Good, now sweetie…listen to me okay?”


Again he nodded.


“Don’t just dump the test tube into the beaker. You have to do it slowly and carefully. Remember, this is two chemicals mixing together and sometimes they won’t like each other,” she said in a motherly voice.


He stared at her for a moment before bursting out laughing. “Right. Got it Bells. Sorry, I wasn’t thinking, I was a bit preoccupied.”


She raised an eyebrow. “Really? About what?”


He chuckled. “I was actually kinda making fun of the way you were pouring your tube into the beaker. You looked dainty…like a girlllllll.”


She gasped and swatted his arm. “Jacob Black, what a thing to say!”


He was still laughing, but then so was she.


“Well, you did! But I guess I got what I deserved huh?” He wiggled his fingers in front of her.


She shook her head. “Yeah, I guess you did.” 


She got up and took the kit with her as she grabbed his arm. “Come on, let’s go clean up and finish this, but I’m bringing the kit this time. Just in case you decide to get distracted again.”


Together they’d returned to their work, trying to stifle their laughter long enough to get down to business.

Jacob smiled up at the ceiling. Bella had definitely been a lioness that day. He’d seen it in the way she’d kept one eye on him for the rest of the day, ready to come to his aid should something else have happened. Still, she kept her distance, allowing him the space to work on his own. She’d hovered, but it hadn’t been so obvious.

Her caring of him that day made him wonder what she’d be like with children of her own. He’d bet she’d be just as gentle and caring as she’d been with him that day. Nurturing, but still able to keep them all in line.

Those thoughts made his smile grow wider.