Chapter 4
I woke from my short nap when a door creaked open and closed. I sat up quickly to see the intruder. But it was only Jacob.
"I'm sorry Bella, I didn't mean to wake you," Jacob apologized quickly when he saw I was on his bed.
"Oh no, you're fine. I was just taking a nap," I assured him. He really was too kind. I was foolish to think this creature was a monster. The past week that I have been here he has treated me like a real person. Unlike the others though, they were always very rude and hostile towards me. Jacob and I put on an act in front of the others so they would chide him and he would lose his image.
"Good, I need to speak with you," Jacob came to sit on the bed. We had grown very close over the past week. When he wasn't out, we would just sit and talk.
"Okay, what about?" I sat up more and crossed my legs. I was wearing a pair of his basketball shorts that had trouble staying on and one of his t-shirts.
"One of my scouts retrieved this letter that was addressed to you from a mail carrier. He gave it to me to read, but I thought you would want to read it." Jacob handed me an envelope that had my name on the front. I looked at the return address and my chest ached. Edward.
I looked up to Jacob with tears in my eyes. "Thank you," I whispered and took the envelope from his hand. I tore it open gently. Inside was a folded paper, a photo, and what looked like a chain with a locket. I pulled out the letter first.
Dear Bella,
It pains me to think that after the best month of my life with you I had to leave. Honestly Bella, I rather be there with you right now. I look around me and all I see is death and pain. I found the time to write this when we were successful with an attack on a small troop of Lycans outside of Gigandet. Emmett is doing very well. Besides his longing to be with Rosalie, he is having a blast killing Lycans. I know that nothing would be better than return home to you. I miss you so much, love. I miss your smile. I miss your laugh. I miss being able to spend every second of the day with you. Now, all I have to remember you by is memories. Yes, they were great memories. But only a few were of holding you, kissing you, being only yours and you being only mine. I hope that hasn't changed from our separation. I hope to say that this separation is only temporary for the time being. We are doing very well here and I thought you should know that. I am doing my best to be done here and get home to you. Bella, you are my life now and nothing will change that. I love you. Yes, I love you. I hope you will never forget that. I have enclosed a photo of me to keep with you if you ever miss me. Keep it close to your heart and I will always be there. Also, there is a chain with a locket on it. I found it on our way here and thought of you instantly. I want you to have it. The picture inside of us will hopefully carry you through the time we are apart. But do not worry; I will always be right there for you. I promise that you are on my mind every second of every day. I count the minutes since I left you in Volturi. I will return home to you my love. Please wait for me.
Love always,
Edward Cullen
P.S. You have stolen my heart; I want you to keep it safe for me.
Tears were falling down my cheeks and onto the letter. I was surprised. I brought a hand up and touched my cheeks that were drenched with tears. It was very hard for a vampire to cry real tears. I had never done it before. I had never seen any vampire do it before, either. Jacob pulled me into his lap when my tears started to fall faster. I pulled out the picture of Edward. He looked very nice. His usually messy bronze hair was styled neatly. Edward's emerald orbs seemed to bore into mine from the picture. He was wearing his favorite leather jacket he often wore while we hunted. My favorite crooked smile was present on his face. I clutched the picture to my chest and turned into Jacob's chest. He rubbed soothing circles on my back and rocked us. I calmed down greatly. I reached for the envelope again. I pulled the heart shaped locket out and opened it. Inside was a picture of Edward with his arms wrapped around my stomach picking me up. We looked so carefree. The war wasn't bothering us and we were just having fun. I remembered we were at the pier by the lake on that nice sunny day. Our skin sparkled in the sunshine and the picture didn't do Edward's beauty justice. But I had always loved this picture. I closed the locket and put the necklace on so it could stay close to my dead heart.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Jacob asked me.
"It's just that…" I struggled with the words. "I miss him so much." Jacob knew who I was talking about. I spoke often of Edward and how much I missed him.
"What was the letter about?" Jacob inquired. I handed him the letter and waited while he read it. He looked up at me when he finished reading. "Do you love him?"
"Of course I do, he was the greatest thing that ever happened to me," I told him honestly. I saw pain flicker through his eyes before they were masked. I was slightly confused by this but I didn't say anything. There was a loud bang on the door.
"Who is it?" Jacob asked loudly and sat me on the bed next to him.
"Seth," was heard from the other side of the door. Seth was a nice guy. He didn't treat me like I was nothing. He was actually considerate of my feelings, but left me alone because his sister would scold him for talking to me.
"Come in," Jacob said. The door opened to reveal the teen. His hair was cropped short like the other Lycans. Seth's body was built and he was tall, but not as tall our muscular as most of the other Lycans. Seth was the only one who knew about mine and Jacob's friendly relationship.
"Bella, Jacob," Seth greeted quickly. His face was distraught and he looked like he was very nervous.
"What is it?" Jacob recognized the uneasiness about the usually calm teen.
"There are several vampires on horses above ground that are on a search party for Bella. We thought we led them east, but they returned a few hours ago," Seth informed us.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Jacob demanded.
"Leah said not to worry about it and that they would just go away after a little while. Well, some of the guys are getting anxious. Especially every time one of them crosses an entrance." Jacob had told me about the many entrances they had to get above ground and how it spanned across the forest. He never told me where we were, just that we were underground deep in a forest. Jacob often apologized about kidnapping me. But I actually thought it was kind of fun. It was also a chance to leave the kingdom and not have to worry about things for once.
"Of course it was Leah. And again, I ask you, why do you listen to her? Sorry, Bella, I will be back in a little bit," Jacob stood and made his way outside with Seth close behind.
I was left alone. I curled up on his bed and grabbed the book I had been reading earlier. It was about ancient legends and I found it really interesting. The door opened after some time but I wasn't sure of how long I had been reading. I peaked up from the book and saw Leah in the doorway. She always treated me the roughest. Leah did NOT like me; at all.
"Hello Princess," Leah said with a slick smile. I sat up slowly and sat the book down. I nodded my head to her. "You know, now that Jacob has left you alone for a few hours, I thought it would be good if we had some… girl bonding time." The smile on her face told me it was going to be anything but 'bonding time'.
"Uh," I started to protest.
"Come on Princess, it will be fun." Again, it was going to be anything but 'fun' for me. For her, it might be.
"Uh," I tried to refuse.
"No, you are going and that is that," Leah said, the smile going away instantly. She rushed to me and grabbed me by the arm. "Now don't go screaming. Utter one word and our play date will get worse for you," Leah threatened.
I nodded my head. She roughly pulled me through the door and dragged me down the hall. There was no other Lycans in sight. I couldn't sense any near us either. I started to get worried. Leah was someone you did not mess with. I guess I was on her bad side because she threw me into a room that had torture tools and ropes. She tied my arms to a hook in the middle of the room. I was about a good three feet off the ground.
"Don't even think about getting down from that," Leah warned me with a sick glare. "I'm tired of Princess getting special attention just because she reminds him of her," Leah was muttering under her breath. I was barely able to make out her words.
"Leah, I really don't…" I was cut off with a sharp pain in my back. That bitch had whipped me. I saw her walk in front of me with a long leather whip with tiny spikes on it in her hand.
"It's your turn now," a scary grin came across her face and I was scared to death. "Are you ready for some fun?"
"Leah," I protested before she hit me across my stomach. I bit back the scream that threatened to escape my lips. I would not show her my pain. She won't get that satisfaction. I composed my face and readied myself for the next whip. It came, and when it did it was harder than the other two. It slashed across my shoulders and I knew it would leave a scar. I heard the whip slash through the air again and strike me across my lower back. A whimper slipped through my lips, but I held back the cries that were sure to follow. One after another hit me until I lost count. I just bit my lip and thought of Edward. Edward. I thought of his bronze hair that was always a mess. I thought of his crooked smile that was always present on his face. I thought of his beautiful, velvety voice that could make me weak at the knees. I thought of his emerald eyes that were an oddity in vampires, but they were so beautiful. I thought of the way his arms felt around me. I thought of the way he laughed. I thought about the way he made me feel. I was so lost in remembering Edward I almost didn't hear the door being thrown open and a loud growl breaking the almost silent room.
"LEAH!" A snarl ripped through the room. The whipping stopped and I opened my eyes. Jacob was standing there looking at Leah with so much anger that I was scared for Leah. His whole body was trembling with rage. I could see the veins in his neck pulsing. His tendons were strained along his arms and chest. "GET OUT BEFORE I RIP YOUR HEAD OFF!" He growled. Leah ran like a dog with its tail in between its legs out the door. Jacob took a minute to calm down a little before he made his way over to me. "Bella, I am SO sorry, you have no idea. Oh, look at you. I'm going to kill her," he was saying as Jacob untied my hands and I fell weakly into his arms. "Why didn't you defend yourself? I'm sure you could have taken her," Jacob was mostly talking to himself as he carried me back to his room. "Bella, look at me," I looked up into his pained eyes. "I will never let this happen again. This is my entire fault. I am so sorry. Words can't even begin to describe how horrible I feel for this happening to you. Trust me, Leah will not go unpunished. Let's get you cleaned up," he said as he sat me down in his bathroom. "Um, uh, I don't want to make you feel comfortable, but it will help if you take your t-shirt off," Jacob explained in a rush. His cheeks started to tint with a blush. I pulled the shirt of quickly. When I saw it lying on the floor I was surprised to see it tattered and torn with my blood coating it. Of course it wasn't my blood, but the blood I drinked. I could even see traces of venom on the cloth. I quickly covered my chest with an arm before I told Jacob he could turn around.
"K," I told him. He turned around and paused before going to the sink and soaking a washcloth. Jacob returned to me and started to clean my back. I hissed while he scrubbed. I heard him gasp every time he found a new marking. He instructed me to turn around so he could get the front side damage. Jacob took extra care while he cleaned me off to try not to hurt me. I was glad there was a gentle soul here. I didn't deserve this treatment after all I have done to his kind.
"That should do it, I will be right back. I'm going to get you something to bandage that up," Jacob stood and left the room. He returned quickly though. I noticed the white bandages in one hand and in the other was medical tape. "I'm sorry if this hurts," Jacob apologized before beginning the antagonizing process. I didn't feel much because of how numb I felt though. "There you go," Jacob said, massaging my shoulders. "Why don't you go get some rest for a bit, okay?" I nodded and put the t-shirt Jacob handed me on. I followed him to the room and crashed on his bed. "I need to go take care of some things, but Seth is outside the door. Nothing is going to happen to you, I promise," Jacob promised and left the room. I laid my head down on the pillow.
What if Jacob hadn't shown up when he did? Would I have been killed? Did Leah really have it in her to kill me like that? Would she if she had another opportunity? Does she still want to? Is she angry that she didn't finish her job? All these questions rushed through my mind. But one kept repeating itself like a chant. Am I going to die here? Then more like that followed. Am I ever going to see Edward again? Am I ever going to see my family again? What about Alice? Or Rosalie? Or even Jasper? Am I ever going to enter the gates of my kingdom again?
A/N I am soooooooooooooooooooooo sorry that I haven't updated! I got on to update and my Microsoft Word Trial expired. Mom said she would buy me the program but she hasn't yet because she hasn't had the money to. The other day she gave me the idea of looking for a free download on the internet. Well, I found it. So hopefully I can buy the program before this one expires. Please review!
