Bella was very quiet on the plane ride home. When she finally fell asleep, exhausted against my shoulder, I expressed my concern to Alice.

She's been through a lot, Edward, she thought gently. She's just as traumatized as you are.

I immediately reproached myself. Of course, Alice was right. It was a miracle that Bella had even spoken to me, much less forgiven me for what I'd done.

I kissed the dark head that leaned on my shoulder. "I love you, sweetheart," I breathed, though she couldn't hear. "I hope you know that now."

She was still sleeping when we arrived in Seattle. Her body lay drowsily across my lap on the car ride home, and I told Alice to expect me at the house soon. She dropped me off at Bella's. I barely had enough time to walk up the driveway before her father came barreling out the door.

"Put her down!" he shouted. His eyes were like Bella's, except they blazed with anger and indignation. He reached for his daughter.

I tried to unwind her arms about my neck, but she clung to me. "No!" she shouted, echoing Charlie. "You don't understand."

"Put her down!" Charlie repeated.

Bella grumbled, burrowing her face in my shoulder. "Go away, Dad."

I finally convinced her to go inside, touching her cheek once. "I'll be there," I whispered, before the patio door slammed shut in my face.

I waited, crouching in the dark undergrowth. I could dimly hear Charlie calming down. Twice, he considered going up and giving Bella a good talking to, but then he'd change his mind again. I did, however, hear him say she was grounded "for the rest of her existence."

I chuckled. It reminded me of how protective my own mother, Elizabeth Masen, had been, and how Esme always fussed over me.

Esme. I sighed. How could I face her, or any of them? Rosalie was the only one I was eager to see, but not for pleasant reasons. I had more than just a few things to say to her. Carlisle would step in, of course, and Emmett defended Rose no matter what she did. But she had to know the misery she'd caused. She had to see how her arrogance had very nearly destroyed everything.

I raised my head. Bella stood by the window, looking out anxiously. I waited until she'd moved away, then swiftly clambered up the tree, along the wall, and onto her window sill. She wore a light blue camisole (my favorite color for her), and her old pair of raggedy gray sweats.

"Hello, Bella."

"Edward!"

She rushed towards me, then covered her mouth, eyeing the door. I stepped inside carefully and shut the window. In no time, her warm body was curled up in my lap, and we forgot all about Charlie or anything else.

"How are you?" I asked gently. "This has been a terrible day for you, I know."

"You, too," she murmured.

"Yes, but I'm a vampire, Bella. We're more durable."

"Perhaps." I wanted to ask her what she meant, but she spoke again. "Why couldn't Aro read my thoughts?"

I stared at her. "I—I don't know."

"Is it just because I'm immune to everyone else? Could he hear them if he tried?"

"I've tried multiple times, Bella, and nothing's worked."

"Yes, but your power is not the same as his."

She was staring away from me, towards a shadow on the wall. Her hands were pressed together tightly, but her attitude was thoughtful.

"Well…of course," I said slowly. "His gift far surpasses mine."

She didn't answer. I saw her bite her lip, as if she was in pain, or pushing against something stronger than she was.

"Bella?" I touched her cheek anxiously. It felt very warm. "You need to sleep, love."

She looked at me then. Her eyes were deeper than before, and I thought I saw something like tears in them. She climbed off my lap into bed, pulling up the covers. "Will you stay?" she asked.

"Of course."

"All night?"

No need to bring family quarrels into this. "Yes."

She reached for my hand, falling asleep with a smile on her face.

It was 3:00 in the morning, five hours later.

I rocked in Bella's chair, careful not to sink too far back and snap the wood. Bella hadn't woken, not even once. I was relieved to see the stress finally leaving her face. I sighed. She was always so beautiful when she slept.

"Hm… don't forget… no…."

Bella rolled over on her side, still mumbling. I lay down beside her, my face close to hers. I'd known Bella long enough to realize her nightly conversations were the perfect insight into her dreams, and therefore, her true thoughts. It was a chance I could never resist.

"Mm…Edward."

"Love you, too, Bella," I whispered.

I slid off the bed and walked across the room to her window. I didn't want to leave her. I'd spent too many hours imagining that face, and the dark hair that tangled under the blankets. But I needed to hunt. No point in giving up precautions just because she was suddenly restored to me.

I'd just eased up the window, placing my foot on the sill, when something she said made my whole body freeze in place.

"Aro?"

I whirled around. Bella's arm was across her face. She said it again, this time a hint of petulance in her tone. "Aro?"

I tiptoed closer. I must have misheard. I had to have misheard. Grasping her wrist gently, I moved her arm back down to her side. Her brow was creased, as if in anxiety, and she tossed a little as I removed my hand.

"Mm…no," she said softly. "No… not right…"

What isn't, my love? I'll make it right for you.
I watched as her body stiffened, and a mask of pain came down over her face. I bit back a cry of alarm. Her lips twisted in a grimace. She was crying.

"I miss you," she whimpered. Her right hand came up slowly, resting on her throat.

I wanted to say something, though I knew she wouldn't hear me. Something like, "I'm here, sweetheart," or "You're safe now." But there was a cold, dead feeling in the pit of my stomach, and it wouldn't go away. So I said nothing, leaning in to catch her next sentence.

"I miss you…" she repeated. And then, with a tender sigh, "…Aro."

I was not prepared for the pain those words would cause me. The feeling intensified, moving up my chest, my arms, my throat. It froze as it spread, tightening my already dead limbs, and freezing the heart that hadn't beat in decades…

In a million years, I would not have seen this coming. Yet he had. I should have known. Should have guessed when his first thought pierced my mind.

"Stupid," I whispered. I lay my hand on the soft sheets, still holding Bella by the wrist. My Bella. But she was mine no longer.