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Chapter 2

The next morning I awoke slowly. My dreams had in fact been peaceful, and I woke up feeling refreshed.

A nurse wheeled in a cart with trays of food on top of it. Placing it on my table, she gave me a glass of water and left me there. I carefully pulled the tray closer to me.

Looking at the food, I felt my stomach rumble ominously. On my plate was a heaping serving of very questionable meatloaf that looked like it had been thrown in a washing machine. Sides of green Jell-O and mashed potatoes completed the lunch, and for dessert was strawberry frozen yogurt.

Knock-knock.

"Come in."

A young woman opened the door to my room. She had long auburn hair with a heart shaped face. The woman was very thin and very pale, wearing a long sleeved shirt and jeans, she looked very familiar.

"Hannah?" she asked, probably looking at me. Dark sunglasses covered her eyes so that I could not see them.

"Bella?" I asked her. Her voice sounded slightly deeper than it had ten years before, but it was still hers.

"Carlisle told me you were here. What happened to you?" As she spoke she walked forward and gave me a hug, somewhat uncomfortable because she didn't seem to know what to touch.

"My sister scared me. I fell out of bed and impaled myself on my knife. Not my finest moment."

Bella looked at me with a shocked expression and I smiled saying, "It's OK though. Dr. Cullen patched me right up. Aside from some stiffness and some really bad cafeteria food, I'm just fine. They're keeping me here, but they said I was going to be fine. I think he said something about wanting to observe me."

"I'm glad to hear that. I brought Edward with me because you didn't get to meet him at the wedding. Do you mind?"

"Of course not. He's your husband; bring him in." I smiled to let her know I meant it, and she went to the door and gestured for someone to enter. A guy walked in, smiled, and wrapped his arm around Bella's waist. His wavy copper hair looked tousled, but in a very stylish way. He had the same golden eyes as his father, and he stood at least six feet, possibly more. Well muscled, he wore the expensive-looking and well tailored clothes nicely. All in all he screamed two words to me: high maintenance.

"Nice to meet you, Hannah. My wife has told me much about you on our trip here."

His accent had traces of British in it, but not the same as Felix's. I took him for a New Englander. "Nice to meet you as well, Edward. Sorry I couldn't be at the wedding. I just got the invitation a few weeks ago."

"It shouldn't have taken that long to get too you."

"Mom and I have moved a lot lately."

Bella and I shared an understanding look. My mother had married and divorced more guys than was probably healthy, and each time she married she moved us to a new place. In the past ten years, we had moved eleven times.

They took seats in the chairs beside my bed, and Bella and I talked for an hour. We pretty much reviewed everything that had happened to us in the last ten years, exchanged phone numbers, and agreed to go out to dinner when I got out of the hospital. We discussed Monte Carlo and Forks, Phoenix and Jacksonville. I skimmed through the miserable events of my life, but Edward kept giving me strange looks. If I didn't know better I'd have thought he could read my thoughts.

Finally they left with the promise to bring me some real food the next day. The rest of the day was uneventful for me. I held my nose as I ate the meatloaf and went without the rest of the meal. Another tray was delivered later on and my original was taken away.

I played solitaire all day long, watched some sappy flicks on the TV, and convinced one of the nurses to let me have a notebook and a pencil to draw in. I was bored out of my mind with nothing to do but hope they would release me from here. Even school was beginning to sound fun compared to the static of my room.

Dr. Cullen came in at around eight o'clock that night. He again agreed to play cards with me, but this time we tried speed. He beat me badly and I coerced him into playing a few more rounds. Eventually he left me, and the nurses turned out the lights soon afterward.

That night I lay in bed, thinking of the man who had rescued me from my nightmare of the night before. His face floated in my mind and I recalled the way he had kissed me and called me ragazza prezioso. I knew enough Italian to translate that- he'd called me precious girl. An odd choice of words, but then he was Italian.

I fell asleep thinking of him, and just before I awoke fully the next morning, a cool something drifted across my cheek. I turned into the caress and fell deeper into my sleep.

The following few days passed in a blur. Bella and Edward kept me company in the early mornings and Dr. Cullen always came to check on me before he left for the night. My dreams were either nonexistent or peaceful, and always I thought of Felix.

When I awoke after a week, I realized I had been here at least seven days, definitely more, and I had not seen my mother or sister in that entire time. My IV had been removed, and the last of the drugs must have worn off because my thoughts suddenly seemed clearer. I decided to ask a nurse. When one came in, I asked her if she knew anything and she said she had received a call that morning asking about me. It had come from a man with a very deep voice and he'd asked for me by name. I wondered who had known that I was…wait, where was I?

I had been in this room for a week, and I did not even know what floor I was on, let alone the name of the hospital. I hadn't even thought to ask. I must have been really drugged up if I hadn't used that much common sense.

But I did now know for sure that my mother had not bothered to ask for me, nor even come visit me. I wondered if she herself had been in an accident, or perhaps Sarah had, or if they had both simply…forgotten me.

I hoped that was not the case, but then again knowing my mother…not entirely unfounded.

I asked if I could call someone, and the nurse brought me the phone and I dialed her number. When voicemail picked up on the second ring, I sighed, knowing she probably would not think to call me back.

I stayed in my room for another day before I finally started receiving homework for school. The work was simple, and I finished it quickly. Again left with nothing to do, I petitioned the nurse for entertainment, and she kindly brought me a romance novel. By the time Dr. Cullen came to visit me, I had finished the book.

"How are you tonight, Hannah?"

"Feeling better, Dr. Cullen."

"You can call me Carlisle, you know."

"Alright. How are you?"

"I am well, thank you. I think we may be saying god-bye to you very soon."

"Why have I been here this long anyways?"

"When you fell on you knife, the blade entered on a downward slant. It nearly pierced your heart, but it did pierce your lung. We wanted to make sure that no permanent damage ensued."

"Carlisle, where am I?"

"You're in the hospital." He looks at me like he wants to examine me for a concussion.

"I mean what hospital. I've been here almost a week and I'm not even sure what wing this is. Let alone the floor."

"Well, you are on the second floor of the Memorial Hospital in West Virginia." He no longer looked concerned, only amused.

Eventually he left for home and his wife, and I was left alone, but not before he explained to me the new drug they were introducing to my system. Carlisle told me that I might experience some dizziness, but because I would still be in bed it should not matter. The nurses turned off the lights, saying goodbye to me on their way out.

All was quiet in the hallway. I listened to the sound of my own breathing and let my eyes drift closed and my thoughts wander.

A dark shape moved over me; it's cool skin not quite touching me, but close enough to feel its lack of heat.

Felix.

Not wanting to open my eyes, I sighed and arched slightly in the direction of him. Frozen lips touched mine and I sighed again in contentment, reaching up to grip his shoulders as I tried desperately to make him kiss me harder. His tongue touched my lips and I opened to him, tugging on his clothes until his torso met mine. I groaned into his mouth as he pressed me into the mattress, and I bent my legs and cradled his hips with them. I felt my gown begin to rise, and I shivered at the touch of his bare skin.

He stopped moving, and I opened my eyes to see him staring at me as if he was not sure how he'd come to be in my arms. He leaned closer to me and reached up a hand to palm my breast. "La tua pelleé cosí calda, cosí liscio; come seta riscaldati. I love how you feel."

I could feel my thighs becoming moistened, simply from the way the Italian flowed off his tongue and wrapped around me. The cold sensation of his hand on my breast sent shivers running up and down my spine. I reached up to grip his shoulders through the soft fabric of his shirt and coat, my hands ending up far away from each other due to the breadth of his shoulders. I tugged on the lapels of his coat until he leaned forward again and kissed me feverishly.

He stayed with me for what could have been a lifetime to my addled brain, before releasing himself from my hold. He did so with such a lack of effort that I was surprised; obviously I was still very weak from the surgery. The explanation made me feel better even as I mourned the loss of his closeness. He stared at me silently before turning and moving away.

"Please stay."

I wasn't sure what caused me to speak out. One moment the thought was in my head, the next it was floating in the air between us. Felix turned to look at me, still in shadow so I had no clue to the thoughts preserved behind his eyes.

Blushing, I backtracked. "Forget about it; it was a stupid request. You probably have much more important things to be doing." I turned away from him as best I could and closed my eyes, pretending to fall asleep. I heard no movement for several minutes, and, unable to resist, I opened my eyes to see him standing in the same place, still not moving.

"Un angelo chiede di dormire tra le braccia di un demone; un'offerta allettante per il demone. Quale sarebbe la punizione del cielo per un tale atto? La morte l'angelo, o il demonio? Sicuramente di morte per il demone sarebbe più misericordioso, in caso affermativo allora il demonio non ha bisogno realizzare per l'eternità ciò che ha perduto, e l'angelo non devono essere ulteriormente contaminato dal demone. I'm afraid I need to leave, and you need to sleep."

I nodded my head, confused. From what I understood of Italian, Felix had spoken of angels and demons. That would be odd for sure, but maybe my translation was off.

That night as I slept, I dreamt of Felix. As I watched him in my dreams, I wished he had stayed, and I called him.

"Felix! Felix come back to me!"

He turns to me, befuddled, his face yet again in shadow. He walks toward me, and follows me as I travel up the stairs to my floor of the hospital. I climb into bed and he joins me there, his arm encircling my waist.

"As you wish, piccola. I will stay for awhile."

I turned my face to him and rested my head on his chest. The rest of my sleep was peaceful and dreamless.

As dawn drew near, Felix's weight shifted on the hospital issued mattress, and I woke to see him leaving me again. "You really did come back." I stated drowsily, not quite believing my dream was real.

He leaned over me, his back to the window and said, "I did, piccola, but I really do need to leave now. Try not to call me back."

I yawned unattractively. "Maybe if you weren't so damned addictive, I wouldn't want to. And you came back; next time just ignore me."

He chuckled and I frowned at him. He was laughing at me? He gently kissed my forehead, and turned without another word, heading for the door to my room, and presumably, wherever he was headed to last night when he left me the last time.

I sighed, missing the cooling effect of having him near me, but eventually I convinced myself to return to sleep. I stayed that way for a few more hours, before my first visitors arrived.

Knock-knock.

"Come in." My cousin entered with her husband and another woman.

"Hey Hannah. This is Renesmee, Edward's sister. I hope you don't mind that she came, but she wanted to meet you."

"I don't mind, Bella. It's nice to meet you, Renesmee. How've you all been?" There was something about Renesmee that looked off; something that screamed at me, but I couldn't quite pinpoint it.

"I came to visit dad, and when I heard about you, I convinced Bella you might like to be entertained. I had to be quarantined as I child, and I remember it as if it were just a few months ago. I was wondering if there was a book or something I could get for you."

"That would be wonderful, Renesmee, thank you. Unfortunately I don't have any money."

"Don't worry about it." She set something on the non-wheeled table beside my bed and I looked over to see that it was an ipod docking station. She handed me an ipod, and I scrolled through some of the list, extensive though it was, and saw many of my favorite songs on it. "From what Bella told me about your personality, I figured we had similar taste in music."

"This is great, thank you. You like Crazytown?"

"Oh yeah. The lead singer is a total hottie. Those tattoos are just…" Her voice trails off and I see Edward glaring at the back of his sister's head. Smothering a laugh, I say, "I really love the piercings. His body is a parchment, and I always wonder what he has that you can't see in the music videos."

She wiggles her eyebrows at me and we laugh. I can tell she and I are going to be really good friends.

She and Bella take seats in the chairs beside my bed, and Edward leans on the wall beside the window. As we talk about music and fashion, I catch my mind drifting back to the night before. Though I try to fight it, my mind recalls the way Felix had left me, then come back and told me not to call him. Humph! Just like a man. I don't even have his phone number; how could I call him in the first place? And if he really had to leave then he shouldn't have come back. Stupid nocturnal…male.

My train of thought is cut off by Edward speaking. "Excuse me, Bella, may I speak with you outside?"

They left the room and my mind was drawn back to the conversation with Renesmee.

"You seem somewhat distracted. Is something wrong?" Renesmee asked me, and I realize my mind had again wandered, this time to my mother and sister.

"I'm sorry I just started thinking about my mom. I haven't seen her since I woke up. She hasn't even called to check on me. I'm starting to wonder if she even remembers I'm here." I laughed at myself, but inwardly I cringed. It was a lousy attempt at self-deprecating humor, and I could tell Renesmee was not buying it.

"Have you tried calling her?"

"I did. I even left voicemail. She hasn't called back."

"I'm sure she hasn't forgotten you. You have a sister, don't you?"

"I do."

"I'm sure she probably doesn't want to worry her."

Out of all the excuses for my mother's behavior I'd given myself over the last few days, Renesmee's was definitely the worst. I smiled anyways, and nodded like I believed her. I could tell neither of us truly thought it plausible, however.

Edward and Bella returned to the room and brought Carlisle with them. I was surprised to see him here this early.

"Hello Carlisle. Why are you here?"

I then noticed the strange looks on all of their faces.

"I'm afraid security recovered some footage of an intruder. Apparently he was snooping around this floor. We think he may be responsible for the recent deaths of some of our patients. Did you see anyone or anything unusual in the past week or so?"

I looked at Carlisle askance. Felix was here last night, but he couldn't be the murderer; he was with me last night. What if the killer cornered Felix? What if Felix came back to see me and got murdered for his trouble? "There's a murderer roaming the halls of the hospital at night and I'm just finding out about this now?"

Carlisle sighed. "I'm afraid they just told me about a half hour ago."

"Well that's just dandy. No, I didn't see anyone strange last night."

I saw Carlisle and Edward exchange a look before Edward wrapped his arm around Bella's middle and pulled her close. She looked frightened and worried, Carlisle and Edward looked concerned. "Do you think he'll be back?"

"We are not sure. All anyone has said is that three people are dead so far, and that none of them were terminal patients. Last night, a young researcher on one of the upper levels apparently spooked whoever it was, because they ended up slaughtered. There was another body in the room, and we think he may have come across someone trying to hurt a young child with a broken leg. The girl lived."

"So you're telling me this creep doesn't have any priorities where his victims are concerned?"

"Yes, that is exactly what I'm saying." He and Edward exchanged another glance. "Hannah, the young girl that was almost attacked last night woke up in time to see her attacker leaving. She was able to identify him this morning when security looked at the tape. We have reason to believe...that you know him."

There was no possible way I knew who killed those people. I didn't see anyone besides Felix last night. Unless it was someone I'd just seen in passing. Maybe someone had come into my room while he and I were sleeping... No, I refused to entertain the thought.

"What makes you think that?"

"He went into your room, Hannah. Twice. The first time was right after the nurses turned off the lights. He left, and the tape follows him down the hall to the elevator, up the stairs to the girl's room. Another man enters, and when the first leaves, the second is lying in a pool of something on the ground. The man leaves the building and returns a half hour later, where he returns to your room and does not leave until just before dawn."

The man must have entered while I was distracted with Felix. I suppose the first time I was too wrapped up in watching his mouth to pay any attention to the door. The second time I was half asleep, and doubted I would've noticed or cared at that point whether or not there was an intruder.

"I can't think of who it could possibly be. I'll let you know if I do see anything though."

"Hannah..." Carlisle looked extremely uncomfortable, and I imagined that this was how he would have looked having the 'Birds and the Bees' conversation with his kids. "I'm not sure how to say this, but...did you allow anyone into your room after light's out, Hannah?"

"Well...yeah. But he's not a killer. He couldn't be."

"I'm afraid he is. After he was identified, the police looked him up in their system. Apparently he's a serial murderer, possibly an insane one at that. Hannah if you see him again, you must let us know. Even if we do not arrest him, we have to hold him for questioning. Please, Hannah; we need to make sure he really isn't the killer- to make sure no one else is harmed."

I nodded despondently. Felix couldn't be the killer. He just couldn't.

Everyone left me soon afterward, and I pondered the situation alone and uninterrupted. Felix was videotaped at the scene of the murder. He was the only person that I knew of that had entered my room. A small part of me whispered that it was entirely possible for him to have killed that researcher. The rest of me screamed defiance. No! Not my Felix!

I realized that somehow in the short time I had known him, I'd started referring to him as mine. How could I be so stupid? I decided that if I did see him again, I would ask him; remaining entirely clinical until I got the answers I wanted. I was sure there was a perfectly logical explanation for all of this.

A/N Translations:

La tua pelle è così calda, così liscio; come seta riscaldati.: Your skin is so warm, so smooth; like heated silk.

Un angelo chiede di dormire tra le braccia di un demone; un'offerta allettante per il demone. Quale sarebbe la punizione del cielo per un tale atto? La morte l'angelo, o il demonio? Sicuramente di morte per il demone sarebbe più misericordioso, in caso affermativo allora il demonio non ha bisogno realizzare per l'eternità ciò che ha perduto, e l'angelo non devono essere ulteriormente contaminato dal demone. : An angel asks to sleep in the arms of a demon; an enticing offer for the demon. What would be heaven's punishment for such an act? Death to the angel, or to the demon? Surely death for the demon would be more merciful, if so then the demon need not realize for eternity what he has lost, and the angel need not be further tainted by the demon.

Well, what'd you think? Tell me tell me tell me!