Jasper paused as he heard the faint rumble announcing the arrival of Bella's truck. He estimated she was about two miles away yet, plenty of time to finish up. The others would have also heard her approach anyway, no need to rush.
As Bella turned off the main road onto the Cullen's drive she hummed a little tune to herself. It was three months since they had returned from Volterra – she shuddered at the memory – and now everything was perfect. Edward had been a paragon of virtue since their return and consequently Charlie had reluctantly lifted her lifetime grounding. So it was with a happy heart that she clunked towards the Cullen residence for the first time since that fateful birthday party so long ago.
She hadn't told Edward she was coming as she wanted it to be a surprise; no doubt Alice would have foreseen it and told everyone anyway, but a girl could try! On the seat next to her she had some gifts for the Cullens; silly really but she just wanted to let them know how much they all meant to her. Really, aside from Charlie, they were the closest thing to family she had around here and she valued that bond.
As the house came into sight she sighed again at the breathtaking beauty of it all. Truly Esme was a genius when it came to design. She parked the truck outside the garage and dashed up the steps towards the front door.
Inside the house six vampires were looking expectantly at Edward.
"Man you've been dating like a year now," exclaimed Emmett. "How much longer are you gonna delay the inevitable?"
Carlisle frowned at his excitable son. "Now, now, Emmett," he gently chided. "We agreed to support Edward in his decision to proceed slowly with his relationship."
Edward grinned at his loving family. "You're right, and I think I deserve an award for my self-control," he chuckled. "You can relax, Em, I've decided today will be the day."
Alice squealed with delight and Emmett gave him a hearty pat on the back.
As the front door opened there was a brief flutter and Edward found himself alone in the living room.
"Bella, my love!" he exclaimed. "Did you sneak out or has Charlie finally relented?"
Bella rolled her eyes. "I'm pretty sure that between Alice's visions and your mind-reading you know perfectly well that I'm out on parole," she laughed. "Where's everyone else? I've brought a few things for them."
She held out three sweet bouquets of violets, freesias and delicate wispy gypsophila.
"These are for Esme, Rosalie and Alice," she said, blushing deeply. "I know they're only small but I just wanted to give them something to let them know I appreciate their kindness to me."
Edward gazed in adoration as the capillaries beneath the surface of Bella's cheeks swelled with the sudden influx of blood and a rosy bloom swept across her face.
"Edward?" she said, waving a hand to break the trance he appeared to be in. "I need to put these in water. Do you have some vases?"
Edward moved his eyes up to meet hers and smiled gently. Maybe he should retrieve the vases himself. But no, maybe it would be easier if she saw for herself.
"I believe there are some in the basement," he said softly. "Shall I get them for you, or do you want to do it?"
He knew full well that Bella's independence would lead her to find the vases herself.
"No, I'll do it," she said as she opened the door to the basement and flipped the light switch.
The wooden stairs wound down steeply to a large dimly lit basement. The floor was made of compacted earth and there was a damp musty smell to the air. As Bella neared the bottom she could make out various sheet covered packing crates, numerous old items of furniture - many of them broken, no doubt a result of over-zealous wrestling matches, and, as Edward had said, several different sized crystal vases neatly arranged on a shelf. There was also a rather large body lying on the floor.
Bella's heart lurched violently and she felt her blood pounding wildly as she stared at the corpse. Did Edward know it was down here? Had one of them slipped? Should she just collect the vases and pretend not to have seen it?
Alice giggled lightly. "I wish you'd decide soon what you're going to do, Bella. All these possibilities are making me dizzy!"
Bella swung round and stared up at the open doorway to see seven pairs of eyes watching her with rapt curiosity.
"Wha… I… I don't… " she stuttered.
"Ah, the classic symptoms of extreme shock," said Carlisle smoothly, as if he was just making a routine diagnosis. "Note the dilated pupils, the lack of coherent speech and of course the elevated pulse rate."
There was a collective sigh of pleasure as the pulse rate was savoured for a moment. Bella regained her senses.
"What is this?" she gasped. "Edward, what's going on?"
Edward pushed past the others and made his way softly towards Bella. Gently he put his arm around her shoulders.
"You need to sit down, my love," he said soothingly. "This must all have come as a great shock to you." He exerted a little pressure on her and encouraged her to sink onto the bottom step.
She clung to his arm in terror; fearful of what might happen were she to relinquish her hold on him.
"Who was he?" she whispered.
"Do you know, we haven't checked his ID yet," said Carlisle, turning to look at Jasper. "The boy was so thirsty I didn't have the heart to delay his meal."
Jasper grinned at his father and leader. Bella stared at Carlisle in dismay.
"You knew?" she asked incredulously.
"Well of course I knew, child," replied Carlisle. "What kind of a parent would I be if I didn't make sure my children ate regularly?"
For once it was Rosalie who took pity on Bella, noting that she was now such a quivering wreck that she probably wouldn't be capable of taking information in for much longer.
"Carlisle, why don't you just explain everything to Bella," she said. "Before the human does something vulgar like fainting."
Carlisle looked at Bella with a professional eye.
"Jasper I feel a little calm is called for here," he said, and immediately Jasper's influence slowed Bella's heart rate down to a more tolerable level. In her head she still felt terribly afraid but her body no longer responded to it.
"Perhaps first we should show you what we really look like," continued Carlisle, turning to his family and nodding.
As one unit they all covered their eyes briefly, an action which at first confused Bella, but when they removed their hands she saw immediately what they'd done. With the topaz contact lenses removed, their true, deep burgundy eyes gazed back at her.
"The contact lenses are quite durable," said Carlisle. "They do darken to a black colour when they are in need of replacement though. We decided long ago that there would be less competition for us if we convinced the other vampires we were vegetarian. They see us as no threat even though we are an exceptionally large coven and so very rarely do others bother challenging us. Only the Volturi are aware of our real nature but have agreed to keep the secret for us. In return, of course, we pass on useful information to Aro regarding rebellious covens or conspicuous ones."
"You mean… you've always fed on humans?" asked Bella.
"Kerching!" said Rosalie. "I do believe that's the sound of the penny dropping!"
"Rosalie!" admonished Esme. "Remember your manners!"
Rosalie looked down and apologised for interrupting.
Carlisle smiled indulgently at Rose before continuing. "Yes my dear, we have all fed on humans from the moment we were turned. As soon as I emerged from the stinking cellar where I had writhed in agony for three days, I sought out the angry mob I had previously led. Their ridiculous pitchforks were no match for my granite skin and lightning speed. Ah, how I remember that first soothing deliciousness as the hot adrenaline soaked blood pumped in thick spurts down my burning throat." He smiled, reminiscing about the pleasure of his first feed.
"Esme of course flew off to find her abominable husband, Charles. He was at their old home with Esme's parents, discussing how ungrateful and cruel Esme was to have abandoned him. Ha! They all wished she really had abandoned them when Esme burst through the door and sucked greedily on their necks."
"Carlisle, I did not suck greedily," exclaimed Esme.
Carlisle laughed and kissed his indignant wife. "Esme, my darling, industrial strength vacuum cleaners couldn't have drained those bodies faster than you did!" he said.
"Rosalie made quick work of her dreadful fiancé Royce and his vile friends," said Carlisle approvingly. Rose smiled proudly.
"My only regret," she said, "is that I finished them off so quickly." She frowned. "They should have suffered for longer."
"Can I tell my story?" begged Emmett.
"Oh, alright then, son," said Carlisle. "But no exaggerating!"
Emmett grinned and rolled his eyes. "Before I got mauled by the grizzly," he said, "my family had been having problems with the neighbouring farm. They were putting pressure on my dad to sell some of our land to them, and using underhand tactics like putting poison down for our cattle. As soon as Carlisle turned me I went home and removed all competition for my family for three miles in all directions. I believe the McCarty descendants still own a vast area of that land to this very day!"
He looked around proudly and Bella almost found herself wanting to applaud him before remembering what he had just admitted to – the decimation of numerous human lives.
"Jasper and Alice told us their stories when they arrived here. Maria led Jasper to where a Union army battalion of seventy men were encamped. By morning the camp was no more."
"Pig!" teased Emmett.
Jasper laughed. "To tell the truth I threw up four times that night, I was so full. But it still didn't stop me from moving on to the next victim each time!"
They all laughed at his antics.
"And dear Alice here awoke to a ready made larder. Everyone in the asylum was conveniently restrained in their beds as Alice flitted from one to another."
"I was very kind to them," she said, "I hummed lullabies as I drained their lifeblood."
There were murmurs of 'Aww, sweet' and Jasper gave her a big hug and told her once more how much he loved her.
"Which brings me to Edward," said Carlisle, turning towards his first son. "There was no one Edward particularly wanted to feed on when I first turned him and so he sampled from the neighbourhood – a vagrant here, a wealthy businessman there, a baseball team now and then."
"A baseball team?" interjected Bella incredulously. "How could you get away with killing a whole baseball team?"
Edward smirked. "It was rather easy actually," he said. "I selected lesser known teams who were coming to play at the White Sox stadium. I would intercept the guide vehicle which had come to lead them into the city. I would merely tell the coach driver that there had been a change of plans and that they were now staying at a hotel on the outskirts of town. I would lead them to a deserted area, board the coach, mangle the door behind me so it couldn't be opened, and feed. Really, Bella, are you still so unaware of the implications of our phenomenal speed and strength?"
"Edward was always rather a fussy eater though," added Esme. "The times he would half drain a body and then say it didn't taste good enough and move on to another victim."
"Mom!" said Edward with chagrin as everyone chuckled.
Bella looked around at them all. "But how do you manage to live in one place so long? Where do you find all your victims without getting caught?"
Carlisle smiled. "Why do you think I work at a hospital, Bella?" he asked. "I keep a careful list of all the new patients who have no family or who are just visitors to the area. It's remarkably simple to forge self-discharge forms you know. Plus of course we don't just choose the wettest places in the country for the sake of our skin. I'm sure Charlie has regaled you with the number of motorbike accidents which occur on the slippery mountain roads all year. Sometimes we help those accidents along a little."
Alice giggled. "Jasper stands at the side of the road and projects total lethargy at the oncoming biker. They practically nod off instantly and slide along the road into our waiting arms. After we've fed it's a simple case of butchering the remains to look like an horrific road accident."
"So you see, Bella, we've created quite a wonderful existence for ourselves," concluded Carlisle. "We can blend in with the local population easily and thereby source our next meals, and we are also free from competition from other vampires who dismiss us as the poor weak Cullens who want to pretend to be humans and live in peace and harmony."
"But now I have a little problem," said Edward, as the rest of his family drifted away. "As Esme said, I am known to be rather particular about my food. But what with spending all night watching you sleep and all day at school I'm finding it rather difficult to seek out suitable victims, and that simply won't do at all."
As Edward got up, Bella backed away from him. Without Jasper's influence the full impact of her predicament had returned and she no longer felt reassured by Edward's presence.
"Why didn't you kill me that first day at school?" she whispered.
"Oh Bella, you have no idea how much I wanted to," sighed Edward. "Truly you are the best thing I have ever scented. But perhaps I can compare you to an excitingly wrapped Christmas gift beneath the tree. The extravagant paper and interesting shape hide the promise of something quite exquisite and yet part of you just wants to savour the anticipation a while longer. You are my unwrapped gift, Bella. When I left you in the woods it wasn't because I rejected you. Foolishly I hoped that one day you would find a human partner and produce offspring. Of course they wouldn't taste as tantalisingly pure as you, my love, but still. It would have given me a rather more extensive and satisfying food supply."
Edward appeared not to notice as Bella crept slowly backwards across the floor, seeking out the hidden shadows in the corner.
"When I thought I'd lost you after that ridiculous cliff-diving episode it very nearly killed me. Literally! To think that I would never sip from your delicate veins," he shook his head at the memory. "No, better to have drained the source than to have never tasted at all."
"But I'm not like one of those patients Carlisle mentioned," she said falteringly. "I have got a family and friends. I will be missed."
Edward smiled and shook his head. "When Charlie gets home from work he will read your note and realise with sadness that his impetuous daughter has once more pitched a fit and this time decided to hitchhike her way to Jacksonville to be with her mom. Ah, such a dangerous means of travel. A lonely girl standing by the roadside… A truck driver with less than honourable intentions… Of course there will be an investigation, Charlie will leave no stone unturned. But sadly runaways go missing every day, and all too often are never seen again."
Bella felt the cold stone wall pressing into her back as Edward approached. She tried one last-ditch appeal for her life.
"Edward," she pleaded, "You love me."
"It's true," sighed Edward, reaching out to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "I love your scent. I love the way your blood rushes across your face at the slightest embarrassment. I love to listen at night as your heart thumps steadily through your dreams. In fact, sometimes I deliberately blow gently across your face as you sleep as I know it causes your heart to flutter with excitement. Oh Bella, truly I do love you. In fact, after you I doubt anything will ever taste quite the same again."
Note from Edward:
Dearest Reader,
I am shocked and appalled by what I have just read! For someone to suggest that I, Edward Cullen, gentleman par excellence, should stoop to such dastardly deeds is beyond comprehension. I would never dream of tasting Bella's sweet succulent AB positive blood and felt the tingle throughout my cold dead body as its life force reached into every fibre of my being; warming and… Oh. Did I just slip into past tense? Damn it!
Yours thirstily,
E Cullen
Note from author:
Oh come on people - they're VAMPIRES! V^^^V
Please, please, please, review :)