Thank you for all the reviews and followers! Heres the next chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

I don't know how long I was out, allowing my body to rest with what little sleep I was given. After so many years, one learns how to function off only a couple hours of sleep with a twenty four hours' time frame. Not many were capable of such little sleep, and those who were not able to, where punished more often, if they even survived.

I felt the truck come to a stop, and Peter mumbled something. My body refused to move and my eyes felt heavy to even try to open. My body was curled up in a fatal form. Somewhere in my mind, I must have trusted this Peter Whitlock, since usually my mind and body were always ready to do whatever was commanded of me.

Peter, as quietly as he could, got out of the truck and came around to the side I was sitting on. Sometime during the drive, my body had moved, as I was not leaning against the door, but more of the back of the seat. I was lifted out gently, one arm of Peter's under my bent legs, the other around my back. I leaned automatically into Peter's strong hard body and breathed him in. He smelt of woods, or at least what I thought they smelt like.

His footsteps crunched against the gravel and dry weeds. I could sense the sun rising, but yet could not force my eyes to open. I never slept this good before, of course the only bed I have even been allowed to sleep in since my captivity in the compound was the old cot that was standard for all of us 'pets.'

"Bout time," grumbled a new voice. This one also male and sounded vaguely familiar. He didn't sound impressed.

"There was an accident on the interstate and didn't want to sit in traffic for an extra three hours, so I took back roads," Peter spoke, walking up some steps.

"You always have to bring the strays home?" the male asked with a hint of humor in his voice.

"Only the ones that need help. This girl here will change our lives. I can feel it," Peter answered as he kept on walking. "And I save you, Jasper," he said fondly.

I was placed onto what I considered the most comfortable bed ever made. I felt like I was laying on clouds. A light blanket was laid gently over me. Then I heard them talking as they walked away since they left the door opened part way.

"So, tell me how you found this girl? And how old is she? She looks so little," spoke the one called Jasper.

"Not sure how old, Jazz. Like I said on the phone, she hasn't spoken a single word. We probably should give Esme and Carlisle a call so they can take a look at her for us. I'm no doctor, but some of those bruises she has look bad," Peter spoke lowly as not to wake me.

"Okay, but after you tell me how you found her," Jasper stated.

"I was at the warehouse, finishing up the meeting with Jenks for our new ID's. My 'feeler' told me I had to stay around for a few more hours after the switch was made. So I had a guy who owed me a favor go to the store around the corner and grab some women's clothes and bath products, that sort of thing. After he dropped the items back at the place, I stood outside in alleyway and saw this poor girl, running for her life, down towards my way. Some guy was chasing her. He was trying to cage her in, as the alleyway was a dead end.

"So when she got close enough to where I was standing in the shadows, I took her into the building, scaring the daylights out of her in the process. I got her cleaned up, well she did that part, but she had to have help getting her filthy gown off.

"Her body, just skin and bones, is covered in bruises, cuts and who know what else. But she is marked. She's one of our kind. On her wrist are three dots, similar to what we have. She's about 18, I want to guess, but not sure. Maybe a year or two younger.

"Anyways, she's extremely light. It's obvious she's gone weeks, possibly years, without proper food and bathing. I did make her something and she ate it without any issues.

"Then, that guy set the place on fire. We barely made it out to the truck before the building exploded. She fell asleep on the way here, and I did try to wake her, but she wouldn't. I know she's extremely tired. You can see the deep shadows around her eyes." Peter finished more quietly, almost like his heart was hurt for the condition I was in.

"What about her hair?" Jasper asked, almost scared to voice his thoughts.

"I didn't have a brush. I figured Esme would be happy to fix it up, or at least know what to do about it. I don't want to hurt her if either one of us tried to brush it out. Once its untangled, it'd be easier for us to maybe braid it for her after her showers," Peter answered. "Now, if you don't mind, call the good old doc. I'm taking a nap," he laughed tiredly. Not knowing or caring where Peter was planning on sleeping, I fell back to sleep myself.

I awoke sometime later, feeling much more rested than I ever remember feeling. I stretched out, trying to prolong having to get up out of this bed. Blinking my eyes opened, I saw the light shine in through the windows near the bed. On the right side, next to me, was a little brown night table with a little black alarm clock. It read 3:47. I didn't think I slept that long, but it did feel good.

I could hear the whispers of voices outside of the bedroom. I guess from the living room most likely. It was hard to tell, but I could gather there was another two or three people here besides Peter and Jasper. I knew I should get up and at least make sure they didn't need me. I always had to wait on everyone's needs, inside or outside of the compound. I'd cook, clean, and bring whatever they wanted along with a few other things I was required to do.

With a deep breath, I threw the covers off, seeing that they were a gray dark color. I sat up, putting my legs over the side of the bed, where they had a foot to go before touching the floor.

"Good morning, sleeping head," spoke a voice at the door way, causing me to jump. Instinct gave in, and I knelt onto the floor, knees about an inch apart and head down, hands folded in my lap. I was used to being smacked around, so I couldn't stop the flinch as Peter reached his hand out near me that was in my line of sight. "You don't need to do that, here. Ever, sugar," he stated quietly.

Confused, I squinted at his hand. Wasn't I a salve to him now since he owned me? He took me from Master.

"Come on, girl," he urged, wiggling his hand about a foot from my folded hand. "I won't hurt ya."

After a few long seconds, I Slowly reached my left hand to his, laying it lightly against it. His hand was easily twice as big as my own, unlike most men's hand that were cold and rough or clammy, Peters hand was warm and inviting. It felt like my hand belonged there.

"There ya go," Peter smiled as I finally stood up from my kneeling position.

"Find out her name!" shouted a female voice from the other room, which caused me to jump once again. I am not usually so jumpy, but I was unable to control it since everything was so different than I was used to.

Peter laughed, shaking his head to the yelled command. He turned his light brown eyes to me and it was the first time I had really looked at him. His eyes held wisdom beyond his youthfulness. His skin was tanned like he'd been outside for most of his life working. His dark blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail and a few pieces of his hair that had fallen out framed his face. His face had some hair around his jaw line, but other than that it was clear of any stray hairs. He wasn't all that bad looking. Much better on my eyes than most of the slobs I had to service.

Noticing I was starring too long, I dropped my eyes downward on to my hand that was still in his own. My face turned red in embarrassment.

"So, do you have a name girl?" Peter asked lightly, letting go of my hand. I took a seat on the edge of the bed, not knowing what to do with myself. I nodded to his question.

"Do you plan to share?" Peter asked, tilting his head to the left. He looked like an adorable puppy. But I wasn't trying to look at him. I kept my head down, but I couldn't help but glance at him often. "I would like to know so I can call you something other than 'girl.'"

"Isabella," I spoke quietly, almost afraid to speak at all. "Bella, sir."

"Bella?" Peter asked, with a small smile in his voice "It suites you. Now, I have a few people who'd like to meet you, if you're up to it."

"They won't hurt you," he stated seeing the worry on my face. "It's just my parents, Esme and Carlisle, and sister Alice, along with Jasper who lives here with me. Come on." He then grabbed my hand and began to pull me gently out of the room.

I mostly hid behind him. My left hand held onto his right, but I kept about two footsteps behind him. He was a good half foot taller than myself, so it was easy to keep hidden behind his back.

He guided me out of the room and into the living room where everyone was in. I was used to being around people, but for some reason the idea of meeting these who were known by Peter had me wanting to hide. I could tell that Peter was different than anyone I have met before. I'd been wrong before. Men also usually only wanted my body and services, but this man who saved me was completely different. I saw his triangle mark on his forearm, the similar mark that I had.

Pulling me around from behind him, Peter put his hand that was holding my hand around my waist, bringing me to the right beside of him instead of hiding. I wanted to pout but contained it so I wouldn't make him upset. I kept looking down at the hard wood floor we were standing on.

"This here is Bella," Peter spoke. I could feel everyone's eyes on us, on me. I never wanted to hide more than this at the moment. I did the best I could to keep my face bank as I slowly looked up to meet the people who seemed important to my savior.

Around the living room sat four people. Three sat on the couch about five feet away from a big screen TV against the wall. Two females and one male. A male sat nearest to me, about three feet away. His short blonde hair was cut normal, his blue eyes that were filled with calmness. Next to him sat a women with caramel colored hair and light green eyes. She had that 'mother' look about her, causing me to have a small feeling of want for a mother of my own.

Next to her sat a bouncing girl, a little smaller than myself. She had her black short hair up into two short pony tails. She had to be around my age, I was thinking. Her bounciness was not what I expected at all from anyone. I was between amused at her antics and afraid of what she wanted from me.

In the far side of the room lounging in a matching oversized chair, sat a man I had seen a few times before at the compound. His curly blonde hair sat a few inches above his shoulders. His wide green eyes stared at me in shock

The first time I had seen him, I was sent to the ward for some sort of sickness that was gone as soon as it came. He had been the one I saw to get looked at. A few weeks later, I ran into him when I was walking to Master's office, which I was tortured for being late to. The last time I remember seeing him was when he sought me out. I thought he was my next 'job' but instead he promised me that our lives as slaves was about to be over. That was over three months ago.

"I'm sorry," was all he said, sitting up straighter. I couldn't contain the need of hiding, and buried my face again Peter's chest. I couldn't stop my body from shaking in fear.

"Jasper?" Peter asked confused while he brought his arms around me, holding me to him. "You didn't say anything last night?"

"I didn't really look at her when you showed up, Pete," he answered. "Plus it was dark. I met her when I was on the mission. I thought that place was taken down, and all the girls were taken care of."

"Apparently not!" snapped Peter, causing me to whimper. He mumbled a quiet 'sorry' to me.

"Bella, dear," spoke a women from near me. I glanced to the right, trying to keep my face against Peter. He was my safety net in the new environment. "Would you mind if I tried to fix your hair?"

I looked up towards Peter to gauge his reaction. Truthfully, I would love my hair to not be such a mess as I couldn't remember the last time I was able to brush it.

"It's up to you, sug," he answered. ". She couldn't hurt a fly if she even wanted to."

"Okay," I whispered quietly, moving myself from Peter's arms. I knew I shouldn't find comfort in him like I did.

When the black haired girl went to get up, Esme piped in. "Alice, how 'bout you help Jasper order some clothes for Bella here. And nothing too fancy. Comfortable is the best way to go until she wants to pick out her own clothes to order."

"Okay!" Alice chirped happily.

"Sorry about her. She gets a little excited sometimes," Esme laughed. "Edward, her brother, likes to tease her about having too much caffeine."

I looked towards where Jasper and Alice sat with some sort of laptop that was silver and had an apple on the back of it. Jasper didn't seem too pleased about the task. When he saw me looking, he smiled sadly at me.

"Come on, dear. Let's get that hair straightened out," Esme said as she guided me towards the bedroom I had woken up in. She led me through the room and towards the bathroom. It was a simple big bathroom. A jet tub, a shower and a double sink and toilet. The colors were light brown and gray throughout. Esme had grabbed a fold up chair from the bedroom and sat it next to the sinks, the back towards the toilet. I took a seat while she dug around in some shopping bags that covered the counters.

"Carlisle and I stopped at the store to grab a few things for you after Jasper called us," Esme said as she began to work on my hair. She sprayed some fruity smelly stuff onto it before beginning to brush it. "Alice helped pick out some clothes that will fit you. Some simple comfy stuff, bras, that sort of thing.

"She will settle down in a day or so. She tends to get a little excited with new things, or even shopping. How old are you?"

"Um . . . seventeen, eighteen in November," I answered quietly.

"Not much younger than Alice is then. Of course, she didn't get her marks until shortly before we adopted her, so she won't age anymore. She will stay at twenty, no matter how many years she lives. Carlisle and myself didn't get them until we were in our late twenties, about fifty years ago."

I was confused, once again, I thought the three dots on the inside of my wrist were a birthmark.

"Alice is different, and doesn't remember much of her childhood. She was locked up in a psych ward by her parents, and when they passed away, she was sent to the state child services, where I was volunteering my time while Carlisle worked at the hospital. She's always been hyper, and I blame the meds that were pumped into her when she was in the hospital," she spoke.

By now, Esme was almost done getting the knots out of my long brown hair. My head felt less itchy with my hair all smoothed out.

"What are we called?" I asked quietly, still confused about what I was, or even who I was.

"We are what people call Unknown. Not many people know about our kind," Carlisle spoke from the door way. He kept his hands in his short pockets and his voce calm and quiet. I am guessing as to not startle me. "Most of us were born with the marks, but they don't always show until later. We are human, but heal faster than normal. Most [EW1] of the time if we lack nutrition, the process may take a few extra days to weeks. Some of our kind are born in this world with one or both parents of the Unknown gender. I have only met a few that were."

That explained it some, but I was still confused. Confused about Jasper, about Peter's feelers and about my places in all thins.

"Now, Peter is concerned about some of you injuries. Is it okay for me to take a look? Esme can stay if you're more comfortable.

"I'm okay," I whispered wide eyed at him.

Esme left, after putting everything away from the bags. My hair was down to the middle of my back.

"Can you take off your shirts? Peter was mostly concerned about the bruises there," Carlisle spoke, setting a doctors bag on the chair I was sitting on after I stood up.

I slowly undid the buttons of Peter's borrowed shirt, then talking off the top I had also on. I was used to being naked in front of men, and sometimes women too. So I did what I was trained to do.

Standing there in the bathroom in only a bra and bottoms on, I closed my eyes. I always hated the look of disgust that everyone would usually look at me with. He gently touched some of the darker bruises around my ribs, which had been there for about three days or so. I knew there were a few bigger cuts from when Master used the knife the night I escaped from the 'job' I had to be at.

"I think after a few more good meals, they should heal right up," he spoke. "When was the last time you had a meal?"

"Last night? When Peter made me something," I answered. "Before that, I don't remember. I'm not allowed to eat often."

"Okay. You are allowed to eat here, whenever you want. I will have you start out slow though, so get your body used to having food again. It shouldn't take too long at all. Esme plans on making some sort of soup for dinner. You're welcome to come back out and join us in the living room, or stay in the bedroom. You can even take shower." He patted my gently on my shoulder, then walked out. I was happy he didn't linger.

Since I was mostly already naked, I decided to take a shower. After washing my now smooth hair, I got dressed in another pair of yoga pants and a pink tank top that had an inner bra. I also put Peter's flannel shirt over it, leaving it unbuttoned.

Not wanting to go out there and be stared at, I went and sat on the bed, looking out the window. I also took in the room. A small four drawer dresser stood to the left of the door, which was closed most of the way. A bigger, taller dresser stood against the wall opposite the bed. Looking out the window across the room, I stood up taking the red throw blanket at the end of the bed and wrapped it around myself as I walked to the window.

In the yard, I could see the tree line a few yards away. The green grass was freshly cut. In a lone tree hung a simple swing by two ropes. I yearned to feel the sun warm my skin and to feel the fresh air blow against my hair.