Bella dies in the ballet studio.
It took all the patience and self-control that I could muster to stop myself from ripping Carlisle off that damn steering wheel and putting myself in his place. Deep down, I knew that I wouldn't be able to drive any better than him, but even so, it would feel better if I was the one that was in control. If the dreaded thing happened, I didn't know if would be able to go on. She was my world, my only love. I couldn't let her die, I wouldn't be able to. I wasn't going to, that's what I promised myself.
We pelted past green forests which merged into never-ending green walls. We must have been going at about 120mph, but it was nowhere near fast enough. I needed to be there now. Every second that passed was a tick of Bella's life.
It was either sheer luck or years and years of wisdom, my guess was on the latter, which enabled Carlisle to find his way through the winding roads of Phoenix. That was another reason that it was probably better with him in the driving seat. Not to mention the fact that I would almost surely lose control of myself and do the car some serious damage. In the very back of my mind, I wondered if the others were any closer than we were. I didn't bother me who got there first, as long as someone got there. I needed a call, a call to confirm that Bella was safe and that she would soon be in my arms, but I wasn't a magician. I was immortal, but no, I couldn't perform miracles.
The moon was high in the sky by now, and it was frustrating to know that I still wasn't where I needed to be. Poor Bella must be so frightened and scared. Not knowing if anyone was going to turn up to save her.
Time passed so slowly that it hurt and it felt like weeks later when the Mercedes screeched to a halt outside the ballet studio. I literally jumped out of the car before it had fully stopped and practically flew across the short space from the road to the front doors. It was then that my muscles froze me in place as my brain told me something that I didn't want to recognize.
The lights were off. The doors were locked. There was a little note half under the door, and half on the street.
I didn't bend down to pick it up. I couldn't face it. I knew that this was the end, that Bella was gone. I didn't want to see the note, to have to read the words that would signify the end of my world. No doubt, there'd be a smug tone to the words as well. James would revel in tearing the last shreds of my being apart.
"Edward." Carlisle's word meant nothing to me. It wasn't meant as a question or a calling. He said it in the hope of comforting me. He must have realised that the inevitable had occurred. "Edward…" he began again.
"No." I didn't want him to speak to me. No matter what he would try to do, nothing would make me feel better.
I saw from my peripheral vision that he had bent down to pick up the note. I made a noise of disgust which came from my throat and burst out of my mouth. Carlisle didn't stop his flow at my disagreement.
"Read it Edward. It's not for me to read. Bella wasn't…" he searched for the right word. "She wasn't mine."
It all came out of me.
"No Carlisle she wasn't yours! She was MINE! And I loved her like nothing else. She was beautiful and such a mesmerizing person. She was what I lived for. Even now, I can't fully comprehend how happy she made me. James will pay for this. He's ripping me apart. My heart's in shards. I hate him. I hate him with all of my being. I hate him and I want him to die. God help him when I get within reach of him. He's going to be tortured."
Carlisle listened to my speech without letting any emotion cross his face. After a moment, he went into father mode. "Edward, that's not you. You're not a killer."
"NO CARLISLE! I WASN'T A KILLER! BUT LOOK AT ME NOW. I'VE LOST THE PERSON I LIVED FOR! WHAT MORE DO YOU EXPECT?"
Carlisle did nothing more than hold out the note to me. I was so fuming that I wanted to see the note now. I wanted to know what James had dared to write. I snatched the envelope and sneered at the barely legible addressing on the front. It read Edward.
I took a deep breath and steadied myself for what was sure to tear me up.
I raised a finger and, in a very human manner, slipped it under the opening. I pulled it across, the ripping of the envelope like a rock slide in the silence. The tension in the air between me and Carlisle was unbearable. Grief was pressing down on me and it seemed to hang over me, like a black cloud. Carlisle could feel it too. His head was hanging, in despair. He'd given up, just like me. I'd bet anything that he felt cut up about it too. Bella was family. Bella was mine.
I sighed heavily, thankful that I couldn't cry. If I could, it would make the situation even more grief-stricken, if that was possible.
I lifted up the flap of the envelope and pulled out the white, perfectly folded piece of paper.