Despite Alice's reassurances, I remained worried about Charlie's reaction to Carlisle's proposition. Edward waited in the kitchen while I prepared dinner. When he heard the cruiser, he slipped outside to stand in the shelter of the trees, phone in hand so that he could call his father at the appropriate time.
As soon as Charlie got home, I sat down to dinner with him and tried to chat casually about my day. I mentioned the vocational assessment results and career week.
He took a forkful of mashed potatoes before asking, "Any idea who you want to shadow? Sorry it can't be me, kiddo."
I smiled fondly. "Me too, Dad, but law enforcement doesn't look like it's in the cards for me. Actually, Carlisle said he'd speak to someone he knew; he thought he might have a lead on something for me."
"Yeah? That'd be great."
He reached for the carrots just as the phone rang. I answered, knowing it would be Carlisle.
"Hi Carlisle," I greeted enthusiastically.
"Bella. How is your father doing this evening?"
"Fine. We're having dinner."
"Ah yes, just as planned." He chuckled. "I suppose you should pretend that I'm telling you about Sister Caroline and the orphanage."
I waited about fifteen seconds, nodding with interest, then asked, "Really? She sounds great. How many children are there?"
He laughed again. "You're rather good at this, Bella. I think you'll really like Caroline. I suspect you two will get along very well."
"Yes," I replied a bit mechanically. Now it was time for me to use my feeble acting skills. "Where is it? Oh, I don't know… I don't think my dad will let me." I tried to infuse as much disappointment into my voice as possible. I gave Charlie a quick yet pained glance.
"I think this is my cue to ask to speak with him," Carlisle said. I could hear the smile in his voice.
"Okay, if you think so. Thanks, Carlisle." I pulled the phone away from my ear. Charlie was clearly interested in our conversation now.
"What's going on?" he asked.
"Carlisle wanted to tell me about a really unique career week experience he can set up for me." I arranged my features to reflect even further regret.
"Yeah? Sounds good. So why the long face?"
"It's not here in Forks, Dad."
"Where is it? Port Angeles?" At the shake of my head, he tried again. "Seattle?"
"Um, maybe you should just let Carlisle tell you about it."
I passed over the phone then moved to the window to stare outside while they spoke. I could just glimpse Edward's pale form between the trees, but I knew he could see me perfectly.
I listened to Charlie's voice rise and knew Carlisle had told him that he wanted to take me to Mexico. Charlie began to protest, but after a few moments I could tell that he was listening, soothed by Carlisle's calm manner and reasonable speech. There were the obligatory questions, but the one I dreaded—the one that could be the sticking point—made my stomach clench.
"Edward's going, too?" Charlie asked.
I decided not to turn around. I didn't want to see the look on my father's face as he received this bit of information. Surprisingly, he had nothing more than a few "huhs" and "yeah, rights" to say as Carlisle continued speaking. I wished I possessed Edward's perfect hearing; I was really curious to know what Carlisle was saying.
Finally I risked a peek at my dad. He didn't appear angry… perhaps slightly perturbed…but his expression was shifting, softening, and finally he simply nodded and said, "Thanks, Carlisle. I appreciate this. It was really nice of you to think of Bella."
A few final words seemed to address some logistics, then Charlie said good-bye. I turned around to face him.
"Mexico, huh?" he said.
I nodded. "Yeah. I was pretty surprised when he told me about it."
"Sounds like this Sister Caroline can use all the help she can get. But Bells, is this something you really want to do? Do you want to go all the way down there? It could be pretty rough—sounds like a very rural area, and there's a lot of poverty, probably much worse than what you saw when you went down to the beach with your mom."
"I know, but like you said, they really need us."
"They do," he agreed.
"So I can go?" I asked hopefully.
"If you really want to, then yeah, you can—if your mother says yes, too."
I was going to remind him that I was eighteen and didn't technically need either his or her permission for the trip, but I refrained, instead promising to call Renee immediately. I was unsurprised to receive her enthusiastic approval. Despite her limited means, she'd always been one to help out whenever she could. We'd spent more than one Thanksgiving preparing and serving food at the local homeless shelter in Phoenix.
"Just be safe," was her only caveat.
"Edward and Carlisle will see to that," I assured her, knowing it was true.
I promised to provide her with more details as soon as I was given them. I knew Carlisle had already begun making the travel arrangements. We were tentatively scheduled to depart next Tuesday evening. We would arrive in Ciudad de Durango the following morning then drive north toward the town of Canatlan. The orphanage was about twenty-five miles from the town, in a mountainous region with a fairly low population density. I learned that silver mining and ranching were the primary industries in the area, but, as Charlie had said, a great deal of poverty remained.
Edward confirmed our travel plans as I lay in his arms that night. We talked for a long time; I was too excited to sleep. I wanted to make lists of all the things I hoped to bring for the children, but he assured me he'd remember every word I said and have a list ready for me in the morning. Finally I drifted off to sleep, images of small, happy faces filling my dreams.
I spent all day Saturday with Esme and Alice, shopping in Seattle. Their flawless memories held information about each child at the orphanage. We bought a variety of clothing—underwear, socks, shirts, pants, sleepwear—in sizes to cover every child. We also chose an age-appropriate toy for each of the children: stuffed animals, blocks, puzzles, games, dolls, and little cars. Esme helped me select several games designed to help with visual-spatial development and reasoning; these would be for the orphanage in general. We purchased school supplies, too: pencils, crayons, markers, rulers, lined paper and art paper, and calculators.
Alice told me that Edward would drive me into Santiago Papasquiano, the largest town in the region, on Friday to buy additional materials such as some new dictionaries; it was hard to find many school supplies in Spanish in Seattle. Edward would also purchase whatever materials were necessary to complete building repairs.
I had to smile when we hurried inside the Barnes and Noble. It was across the street from Nordstrom, and Alice's eyes barely darted to the department store. For once, she was entirely focused upon shopping for the children. We ended our shopping trip at Best Buy, where Esme got five new laptops and an array of educational software that Jasper would load onto the computers before the trip.
I had never enjoyed a full day of shopping so much.
We returned to the Cullens' house just before sunset, Emmett's Jeep loaded with bags and boxes. He and Edward appeared in the garage the moment we pulled in, and in the blink of an eye all the packages had been transported inside. I watched in slightly dizzy fascination as Esme and Alice expertly unpacked and prepared all of the items then repacked them into five large suitcases. Their movements were rapid yet efficient, and in less than half an hour the bags were ready for travel.
Edward had explained that we would take our personal items in our carry-ons. Carlisle would pack an additional large suitcase with the medical supplies he had gathered during the week. He sent shipments to Sister Caroline on a regular basis, so on this trip he would merely need to restock some items and bring new medications for several of the children who he believed would need them.
I hadn't really spoken with him since his conversation with Charlie. Carlisle had been very busy, working extra shifts to cover the time he would be away. However, just as Esme was finishing with the last suitcase, he returned home. His gaze swept the empty shopping bags, piles of tags, wrappers, and receipts, and he grinned.
"You had a successful shopping trip," he commented, darting over to kiss his wife on the cheek.
She looked up at him, her own face alight with happiness. "We did. Bella picked out some wonderful books and toys for the children." She beamed at me.
I felt my cheeks grow warm. "It was a lot of fun," I said.
Carlisle chuckled in appreciation. "It is. I don't usually help buy the clothing and toys, but I get to see the children's faces when they receive the items. I'm not sure there is anything I've ever witnessed that makes me feel happier."
Edward slipped his arm around me. "I'm glad you're coming with us," he said softly.
"Me too," I replied, then to Carlisle I said, "Thank you for arranging this."
"No need for thanks, Bella," he replied. "I'm thrilled that you want to join us. I think you'll find it a very rewarding experience."
I nodded in agreement. There was something I remained curious about, however. "How did you manage to convince Charlie so easily?" I asked.
Carlisle offered me a slightly enigmatic smile before replying. "I simply told him the truth: That Sister Caroline and the children need all the help we can offer. I gave him some basic information about the orphanage and the children, as well as about Caroline's work there. I explained what sorts of support we can offer, too, and made sure he knew that you would be an invaluable part of this trip."
I was blushing again. "I'll do whatever I can, but I can't offer the kind of help that you can." Despite my rather significant experience with emergency medicine, I'd always been on the receiving end. Suddenly I worried that I wouldn't be able to provide much assistance.
Edward tucked my head beneath his chin. "We do a lot more than attend to the children's medical needs. That's always a priority, of course, but we also help to maintain the building and to ensure that the children have a safe, comfortable place to live."
"Currently the building is in need of exterior paint and some roof repairs," Carlisle added, catching Edward's eye with an amused grin.
I knew I was missing something when I felt Edward sigh against me. "What?" I asked.
Esme was smiling; she was in on it, too.
Carlisle laughed softly. "I told your father that Edward would be completing the entire paint job and roofing repairs himself as part of his punishment."
While Edward had received few concrete consequences for his trip to Italy, Charlie believed that his parents had dealt with him fairly severely.
Edward said, "Your father thinks I'm going to be painting night and day. Carlisle assured him that I'll barely have time to eat or sleep, let alone to see you."
"So that's why he didn't object to your going, too," I confirmed.
Carlisle was still smiling. "He rather liked the thought of Edward doing something akin to hard labor for four days straight."
I rolled my eyes at my father's attitude then looked up at Edward. "Sorry."
"Bella, you know it's no trouble for me. I'll have the painting done in a day at most, and the roofing won't take any longer. It's not as if either one will tire me. The most tedious part is having to work at just a fast human pace." His lopsided grin was slightly sardonic.
I nodded. "Right."
"We'll likely hold off on the building work until Friday," Carlisle said. "I'll want Edward to help me with the children on Wednesday, and you and he will need to drive into town on Thursday to pick up supplies."
"What do you think I'll be doing while you're busy?" I inquired.
"Oh, Sister Caroline will find plenty to occupy your time," Carlisle assured me. "If nothing else, she'll have you watch the youngest children while she's teaching the older ones. I imagine she'll ask you to help some of her students, too. I'm sure you're an excellent tutor."
"I did some peer tutoring in Phoenix," I acknowledged. "I think I was okay at it."
"I'm sure you were wonderful," Edward said, kissing the top of my head.
He always had such confidence in me. I hoped I could live up to his expectations. The children deserved nothing less.
To be continued...
