What If The Storm Ends?
Chapter 3
Today was my lunch date with Esme and I couldn't be more happy and nervous in one.
Alistair was gone with the stupid slut Jane for the weekend.
I needed to get things in motion with Esme and get out NOW!
I'd seen that he'd set up video cameras around the house and outside a few places, but I wasn't going to let that deter me. I was going to get out.
Garrett was safe at school. His college was taken care of, nothing could ruin that. My money was just that, my money. He had no idea how much I actually earned with my computer programming, most people paid cash or charged and since I didn't have my own 'company' I didn't have anything to claim.
The hardest part would be getting all my computer stuff out safely without harming it. I could only hope that Alistair took Jane far enough away he wouldn't be home anytime soon and that he wasn't monitoring me from where he was at. It didn't look like it from the way the monitors were set up in his office, but you could never be sure.
It was time to meet Esme for lunch, I took a deep breath and hopped in my car driving to our favorite bistro.
"Bella!" she hugged me tightly and I tried not to flinch. "Again?" she questioned lowly.
"Yes." I whispered.
"Bella, we've got to get you out. Garrett is gone, there's no reason for you to stay anymore." She squeezed my hand.
"I know. I actually was going to talk to you about it today." I wiped a stray tear.
"Seriously?" she beamed.
"Yes.' I nodded.
"OK, look Carlisle is off today, and Edward is getting ready to go to lunch too, I'm going to get them here. We're going to have to do this quickly." She sighed.
"Very." I agreed.
She called the guys and they were there within 10 minutes. We caught up with each other, girly stuff, let the other planning until the guys got there.
"Bella." Edward and Carlisle said as they were seated.
"Bella, are you OK after last week?" Edward questioned.
"What happened last week?" Carlisle and Esme asked in unison.
"Nothing." I looked to Edward.
"If this has to do with part of you leaving them you need to tell them." Edward looked at me.
I went on to tell them what I'd walked in on.
Apparently Edward knew, he'd went into Alistair's office after me and seen for himself, giving him hell, not like Alistair cared.
"Bella, I'm so sorry you had to go through that. You shouldn't ever have to feel that way." Carlisle pulled me into a hug and for the first time in a long time I felt something more, but I didn't know what and he pulled away all too quick.
We ate lunch and worked out a plan.
"I think I should call my family. I haven't really talked to them in a while. Alistair and my dad hate each other and my brother, forget it. He told me not to call him until I was ready to leave. Then he'd come help me pack. They're both police officers, so it might be nice to have them here." I shrug.
"I've got all the pictures from when you've been into the clinic. So we can use those in your divorce case or whatever you press again him." Carlisle smiled.
"We need to stop by the clinic before doing anything else, we've got some three day old bruises." I sighed.
"OK, you can call your family too, use the phone there, and in case he has yours bugged or tapped." Esme smiled softly.
We left the bistro and headed straight for the clinic.
Esme went into the room with me and took the pictures.
After we finished we went into Carlisle's office for me to call my family. I tried my dad first but no answer. I knew better than to try his cell phone while at work because he'd have a heart attack, so I tried Emmett's cell phone.
"Chief Swan speaking how may I help you?" he asked.
"Chief Swan, yes this is Carlisle Cullen. I'm a friend of your sister and she's here at my clinic and would like to speak with you, would that be OK?" Carlisle asked.
"Depends… Is she pressing charges and leaving that motherfucker?" he growled.
I grabbed the phone from Carlisle and motioned for them all to leave the room.
"Emmett." I cried into the phone.
"Bell?" It sounded like his heart was breaking. "Is it…Is it really you?" he asked.
"Yes. Yes, it's me!" I laughed through my tears.
"Oh God!" he started crying. "Dad is going to be so happy. He's so sick Bell. You need to come home. You need to see him." He begged.
"Em, what's wrong?" he was scaring me.
"He's really bad off. We've tried to contact you over the years. That sick fucker that you're married to though returns all the mail and all phone calls go unanswered or he says you're busy. Why and how are you calling today?" Emmett was trying to control himself now.
"I'm leaving him Emmett, Garrett is in college, I don't have to worry about him trying to take him away or hurt him anymore. I can leave and never look back. I have proof of all the abuse…" I was telling him and he starting yelling.
"WHERE ARE YOU? I'M COMING TO GET YOU RIGHT NOW! YOU CAN STAY WITH ROSE AND ME, WE HAVE A LOFT OVER THE GARAGE!" he screamed the entire thing, I think I lost my hearing.
"Emmett, please. Calm down. I'm in Seattle. I'm at my friend's clinic. I need to get home though, he's expecting me there. I was just going to lunch with Esme, I'm supposed to go home right after." I started to cry.
"Don't cry. Listen, you need to text him or call. Whatever you usually do. Tell him Esme has insisted you stay for dinner, is this something that she'd normally do?" he asks.
"Yes, frequently." I laugh.
"OK. You need to be persistent than. Don't let him bully you either, tell him Esme is suspicious. That should shut him up." Emmett sighed.
"OK." I let out a shuddering breath.
"I'm on my way sis, I'll bring Rose too." I could hear the relief in his voice.
I sat on Carlisle's couch and cried for a few moments before the door opened.
"Bella, are you OK?" Carlisle sat next to me.
"No." I shook my head.
"For what it's worth, I'm sorry." He pinched his nose.
"For what?" I wiped my face.
"All this. If I would've grown balls and just asked you out all those years ago, it'd be you and me and a house full of kids and happiness, not you and Alistair and all this pain." Carlisle wrapped me in a hug and I melted.
"I have to text Alistair and tell him that Esme wants me to stay. My brother is on his way. I- I'm going back to Forks, my father is extremely ill. I need to see him." I started crying again.
"Shhh, Shhh. It's OK. Look, let's get you taken care of and I'll talk to your brother, find out what's wrong with your dad and if I can help, I'll come back and take care of your dad. I haven't taken a vacation in years. I need one. Does that sound good to you?" he asked wiping the tears from my face.
I just nodded, not trusting myself to speak.
I text Alistair and within five minutes he was calling me and screaming at me.
"You're ruining MY fucking weekend!" he snapped.
"Sorry. Um, Esme is suspicious and wants me to stay for dinner since you're not home." I whispered.
"Oh, fine! If it'll keep the nosy bitch happy! I'll be back late Sunday afternoon. Be prepared." He snapped and hung up.
I dropped my phone and clung to Carlisle crying into his chest.
I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I know I'm being awoken by a huge bear hug.
"Bell!" Emmett his hugging me and kissing me. "Look at you. It's been too long. You're too skinny." He laughed.
"Look at you! You're like the hulk!" I slapped his chest.
"So, do we have a lot to get out of your prison?" Emmett asked.
"No, most of it is my clothes and computer equipment." I shrugged.
"Sis, that's easy shit." He laughed.
"Apparently you don't know anything about your sister's computer." Carlisle replied.
"We can always get new ones." Emmett said frustrated.
"No! No we can't Emmett. These are my babies. I built them." I stated firmly.
"You built them?" Rose questioned with a bitch brow.
Here's a little history on Rose and I.
Rose and I went to school together since kindergarten.
We were best friends until middle school when popularity and hormones came into play.
She started developing and noticing boys, especially my brother and he noticed back, leaving me in the dust, to cover for them. "Can I sleep over?" she'd asked and of course I'd be thrilled and say "Yes!" but she'd end up in Emmett's room, dad would be working the graveyard shift as the Chief of Police, so I was left to cry myself to sleep.
My brother was happy, he didn't see what it did to me and I didn't tell him, Rose was nice to me for the few minutes they spent with me at dinner and breakfast before she'd have to go home, but come Monday at school she'd ignore me.
It was a vicious cycle all through middle school, come high school, she had football games and Emmett was driving, she was allowed to date and her parents were free spirits so she could come and go as she pleased, Emmett spent a lot of time there, I spent a lot of time alone or with my friend Angela.
I didn't date in high school all the guys were idiots, not to mention Emmett threaten to beat them up on a daily basis, seeing as I was a freshman and he was a senior.
Rose and I went on this way until graduation, then she walked up to me and hugged and said "I've always been so jealous of you. You always do what you want, no matter what. Your brother loves you unconditionally, he tells me all the time. He also tells me that he hates the fact that you're going away so far to college and he won't be able to protect you from the assholes there." She smiled at me.
"Thanks Rose. I know he loves you too." I smiled at her.
"I love him too. I can't wait to join him at college, even if it's for a year." She shrugged.
"Might be longer. Isn't he going to take extra criminal justice courses?" I asked.
"Yeah, but he's coming back here so he can work with your dad and commute to the satellite campus in Port Angeles next fall." She shrugged.
"Oh, well that's good." I smiled.
"Yeah, he'll get trained by the best." Rose smiled.
"Definitely." I agreed.
"I miss this. I miss us." She hugged me tightly.
"Yeah." I hugged her back.
We made promises to keep in touch throughout college, but of course with full class loads and social lives, that doesn't always work out.
And then after my marriage, I lost all contact with my family, and the last words Rose spoke to me were at my reception and she hugged me tightly and said "I'm sorry." And she and Emmett walked out after the father/daughter dance with my dad.
I didn't see them again until I had Garrett, Alistair was an ass to them ruining my special day again they'd only seen pictures of their nephew through e-mail, poor Garrett didn't know his other family.
"Earth to Bella." Emmett shook me.
"Oh, sorry, just thinking." I shook my head.
"You were saying about your computers?" Emmett sighed.
"I'm the only one who can take them apart with the exception of Garrett." I shrugged.
"OK, well we need to get this show on the road. We have to get back to Forks. We'll leave first thing in the morning." Emmett responded with a yawn.
"OK. He'll be back sometime tomorrow afternoon." I stated. "I know he's got cameras around the house, they feed into the house, and I don't think they go remotely."
"I'm a pro at those, no worries little sis." Emmett smiled and kissed my head.
"So the plan when we get to the house is, Esme and Rose, go to Bella's room and pack all her clothes and personal effects. Edward, you'll come and help me with the electronics and Carlisle, you'll stay with Bella, help her anyway you can with the computers, build the boxes while she starts on the computers. Bella, just take them all apart, you're not going to be putting them back together for a little bit, right?" Emmett hedged.
"Right. I'm just keeping out my 2 laptops." I smiled.
"OK. Do you have bags for those?" he asked.
"Yeah, they're already packed in there, I put them away after every use." I smiled.
We pulled up to my house and Emmett whistles. "Really sis?"
"I didn't pick it out. I had no say so over anything really." I shook my head.
"She really doesn't, except maybe the weekly groceries." Esme sighed.
"No, he makes the lists for that too." I put my head down ashamed.
Carlisle puts his finger under my chin and lifts my face to look at him "Please don't hide from me anymore." He smiled softly.
Emmett got all the cameras unhooked, Esme and Rose had everything packed and I was working on my computers.
"Bell, what about money?" Emmett asked.
I filled them in on my money.
"What about all your legal documents? Garrett's things?" Emmett asked.
"Shit! I forgot about that." I need his birth certificate.
"Well, you can order new ones, he's got his social, you don't need your marriage license, if you're getting a divorce, they can look all that up, no big deal." Esme smiled.
Edward gave her a look.
"I've been researching these things for Bella for quite a while. I know he keeps this shit locked up tight just for control." Esme shook her head.
I finished with the computers and the guys packed them while I did a walk through with the ladies.
I took my wedding rings off and laid them on the dresser, knowing whatever is left I can replace unless it's to do with Garrett.
I quickly go to his room and take several pictures, then head downstairs, taking one last look and a deep breath I see Carlisle is the only one waiting.
"I'm going to Forks with you and your family. Your father needs a private doctor and I can be that for him. I'm going to stay in Emmett's old room. I'll be right across the street from you, so I can keep an eye on you too." He rubbed my cheek softly.
"Thank you for everything Carlisle, thank you." I leaned into his caresses.
"I'd do anything for you Bella. Please know that." He kissed my cheek and led me out the door with his hand on the small of my back.
Maybe now the storm would finally end…
AN:
I hope you enjoyed this chapter…
We'll meet Charlie next chapter and a very angry and pissed off Alistair…
Reviews=Love