SM owns all. I own some candy, but I ate it.
Edward's POV
"The Wild Things are here, Mo. We have to kill them."
India laughed maniacally while Morgan softly frowned behind her. India's thoughts were chaotic, incoherent, and muted. The sort of thought pattern that was dangerous because it was unpredictable. After what I suspected the girls had been through, rape and torture, this sort of behaviour wasn't abnormal, but there was a darkness that had me worried. I tried to read Morgan's thoughts, but was met with the same tingling sensation as before. It frustrated me. She could be the only sane link to her twin, the only one who could help her, and I couldn't hear her thoughts. It was evident from her expression that she was concerned for her sister. I had the impression that she, too, knew something was dreadfully wrong.
"How do you kill the wild things, Mo? The book never said. I'm afraid we may be fucked," India giggled, her voice filled with the former insanity of her laughter. Her eyes never wavered from Carlisle, Jasper, Nadia and me. In those eyes I could see the depth of injury she suffered. I saw the face of evil reflected in her eyes.
"This isn't going to turn out well," Jasper whispered, too low for the twins to pick up. His ability to calm seemed to have no effect on India.
Nadia took another step forward, reaching out to India.
"Indie, it's ok. It's really going to be ok. I'm different, but better. C'mon, Indie, let's sit and talk." Her voice was smooth and seductive, subtly demanding compliance.
India scowled and dropped into a defensive posture, looking like a caged dog ready to attack. Morgan was silent behind India. Her frown had melted away leaving only a blank expression. They were a study in opposites: one seemingly calm and balanced, one on the edge of sanity.
India raised her hand, the wooden hairbrush still held firmly in her grip. She brandished it like a weapon.
"Don't worry 'bout it, Mo. We may be fucked, but they won't get us. I won't let them. They killed Nadia, but not us. Never us."
Nadia looked destroyed. I've failed them. I've failed her.
India repositioned the hairbrush in her hand, holding the base of the bristles and the upper part of the handle. She brought her arm forward and then, with surprising force, she brought the brush back, smashing it against the window. The window casing groaned but everything remained intact. Again, she brought her arm forward and back, applying more and more force. The brush cracked and splintered in her hand, impaling the soft flesh, but still she continued. The window pane cracked in a pattern of spirals. Blood smeared against the window, filling the grooves of the crack and covering the brush. The coppery smell quickly permeated the room.
"Jasper! Take Nadia and get out of here now!" I whispered forcefully. I could see that Jasper was fighting his nature. The girls might not smell human, but blood was blood. Surprisingly, Nadia seemed unfazed by the smell. My curiosity piqued and I listened to her thoughts.
Indie, please! I'm just trying to help. Why won't she calm down? Why won't she talk to me? That fucker didn't touch her while I was passed out, did he? Oh fuck! Did he hurt her too? I'm going to kill that motherfucker. She's going to hurt herself badly if this doesn't stop. Why isn't the doctor stopping this?
She was right, this needed to end. I looked at Carlisle who nodded. He was thinking much the same thing.
"India! Put the brush down now!" Nadia growled. "Stop being such a fucking prima donna. I swear I will kick your ass if you don't stop this."
"Lemme get this window open Mo, and then we're out." India continued pounding on the glass with the mangled remains of the brush. Morgan might as well have been a statue behind India; she never moved a muscle. The only sign of life was the rise and fall of her abdomen as she breathed and the sound of her heart pumping.
In less time than it took for a human to formulate a thought, Nadia was by India's side, holding her wrist and prying the bloody brush from her hand. Nadia yanked India's arm behind her and forced her to the bed, pressing her into the mattress.
"RUN MORGAN!" India screamed as she tried to fight off Nadia. "GET OFF ME YOU MOTHERFUCKING BITCH!"
Her screams echoed through the room as she thrashed beneath Nadia. Nadia easily held onto her, watching her sister in horror and fascination. Shouldn't I want to drink her blood? Shouldn't this be driving me crazy? Shouldn't I be killing her?
"Edward, we need to sedate the girl. I'm going to go and get the medication," Carlisle spoke softly, backing out of the room. His presence was replaced by another. Bella's hand reached out and took mine, squeezing gently. She gave me a concerned look.
We watched the girl pinned to the mattress. India's face was bright red from screaming and her dark auburn hair was a wild tangle of curls around her face as she continued to thrash. Her screams had turned into a combination of sobs and shouts. The sobs shook her body violently; she wretched twice, before spilling the contents of her stomach onto the bed. It was evident that she hadn't eaten in some time as the fluid was mostly clear. She sputtered and coughed, screams beginning anew. Nadia pinned her body, continuing to hold her down and making it impossible to move.
Morgan remained pressed against the window, her palms flat against the glass. Her eyes were closed, her breathing was even and deep; she looked like she was meditating. I gasped and took a small step back as I felt the familiar tingling sensation I associated with her mind. She was reaching out to me. I stared at the unmoving girl in shock. In the periphery I could see Bella look between the two of us.
Carlisle stepped back into the room with a syringe in hand. He took five slow steps toward the bed, showing India the syringe he held.
"India, this is some medication to help calm you down. It's going to make you feel sleepy, but don't worry, no one will hurt you while you are here."
India's efforts to escape increased. "GET AWAY FROM ME! POISON!" She screamed until her voice failed.
"Stop!" Morgan whispered.
Her voice boomed even though she had only whispered softly.
Carlisle froze on the spot. Nadia remained still. I didn't dare move a muscle.
Morgan took the few steps to the bed and placed a hand on Nadia's back. Each of Morgan's movements were calculated, containing an unearthly grace. Nadia closed her eyes and eventually sank to the floor, letting India go. She backed up until she sat against the windowed wall with a blank expression on her face. I frowned and probed her thoughts. There was the faint sensation of electricity, but nothing else. There were no thoughts. Her brain was silent. What had Morgan done to her sister? What could incapacitate a vampire so quickly?
Morgan took in a shaky breath.
India scrambled to the top of the bed, her bloody hand leaving prints on the sheets. Morgan held her arms out to India and waited only a moment before her twin collapsed against her. Morgan sank until she sat on the edge of the bed with India wrapped tightly in her arms. India clung to Morgan as though her life depended on her sister's strength.
"Shelastra y et hithestard. Doogruth il kahkihuni? Brod ar jo mamoshi," Morgan whispered into India's hair. India sniffed, her sobs quieting.
I looked at Nadia. This must be the twin speak she spoke of earlier. I probed India's thoughts, wondering if I could translate the secret language into something useful, but India's thoughts were completely wrapped in Morgan. Morgan had formed a protective cocoon around her twin joining the two of them together on a psychological and spiritual plane. As I probed the protective web I felt as though Morgan was gently electrocuting me.
Morgan held India for what seemed like hours, although, it was probably only twenty minutes. She whispered words in their secret language and rocked her gently in silence. When India's soft snores filled the room, Morgan gently laid her twin on the bed. She ran her hands over the sleeping girl's arm, down to the hand that she had injured. Morgan opened India's fingers and brushed away the pieces of wood and dried blood. The wound was gone. All that remained were faint pink lines where the skin had been pierced.
I looked at Carlisle, Bella and then Nadia before returning my gaze to Morgan. Morgan rose from the bed, wobbling. She took two careful steps back and reached out to balance herself.
"I think I, I think I'm..." She dropped to her knees and vomited a thick reddish-black fluid.
Carlisle rushed to her side, picked her up and took her to the bathroom. I could hear the water running and Carlisle's soothing voice. Nadia remained motionless, staring into space.
"What are they?" Bella asked, her words beyond the perception of the twins. "What did I just witness?"
"I don't know," I said, "but I'm fairly certain that whatever gift they have has brought unwanted attention." I looked over at Nadia who was still on the floor. She rocked gently now, her blank expression turning into one of anxiety. She darted her eyes between the girl sleeping on the bed and the girl in the bathroom with Carlisle. "We are going to need some answers."
Morgan exited the bathroom on shaky feet, Carlisle following behind her.
"We are grateful for your hospitality and terribly sorry for any trouble we have caused you," she said, her voice never rising above a whisper. "I think we will soon be on our way."
She took a step forward and then collapsed, unconscious.
Carlisle reached her in less than a second and knelt to pick her up. As his hands touched her skin he pulled back quickly. Bella and I immediately came to his side and dropped to his level.
"What is it, Carlisle?" Bella asked.
"I just... she...just touch her."
Bella reached out to Morgan, but before she could touch her skin, I grabbed her hand. Bella looked at me in surprise. If this girl could have such an effect on Carlisle, I couldn't risk something happening to Bella. I touched Morgan's exposed arm and felt the electric sensation shoot up my arm and threaten to overtake my body. I pulled away just as quickly as Carlisle had.
"What's wrong with you two?" Bella scoffed. Her tone of voice indicated that she was getting annoyed.
Bella reached out and picked up the unconscious girl, ready to place her on the bed beside her twin. She stopped, her eyes widening.
"Fuck me," she whispered in wonder, holding Morgan.
"What? What is it Bella?" I stood quickly, walking Bella to the bed and dumping Morgan out of her arms.
I turned Bella so that she faced me.
"Bella, please!"
She looked at me with wide eyes.
"I can remember everything about my human life. No haze, no fuzzy memories. Everything ..."
Carlisle POV
I sat in my office, staring at the rows of books that lined the walls. Two weeks had passed since the girls were brought into the house. None of my research had turned up any clues as to the gift the twins shared. I'd seen rapid regenerative abilities with the shifters. I had known of others who were telepathic. 'Gifts' were not uncommon in our world, but something was different in this case.
In Nadia, I had witnessed considerable self-control when it came to her sisters. At this point in her development she should be thirsting after every human she came in contact with. I knew her hunger was strong, evident by her very frequent hunting trips, but when it came to the twins she was a mother bear protecting her cubs. She had little to offer about the twins. She reported that India was a healer, the vibrating energy of the two, and Morgan was her calming balance. I don't think she saw the true nature of her sisters. She did mention that India loved to dance and Morgan loved music.
Nadia had also developed an interesting relationship with Tanya, and I was much surprised by Tanya's seemingly submissive role. I think it shocked Tanya as well as she stayed for a week before abruptly leaving.
The twins were a mystery. There was evidence of rapid healing, and Morgan - I could barely wrap my thoughts around her. When she had held my hand, it felt as though she was expanding into my existence, pulling every experience from my essence. She spoke with such authority. She knew things that she could not have known. I had the sense that Morgan was the stronger one, despite her visual impairment and Nadia's fierce protection of India. Maybe they thought she could care for herself? Maybe they didn't know the power she had?
Edward had little luck finding answers in their thoughts. He couldn't read Morgan at all and India's thoughts were too fractured to glean any useful information. Nadia was quite easy to read, but her thoughts tended toward the protection of her sisters, and the rush of power she felt as a vampire. Edward was concerned that she might become addicted to such power, that our vegetarian life style might not be enough for her. Emmett, who had taken her hunting several times, agreed. Nadia thrived on the rush of power and was starting to flex that power to get what she wanted.
I had spoken quietly with Alice days ago, hoping to get a glimpse of their future so that I might know better how to interact with their present. She had frowned, her eyebrows coming together.
"It's the funniest thing, Carlisle. I've seen visions of Nadia's future, but I see nothing of India and Morgan. Nothing at all. For all I know, they could be werewolves and that's why I don't see them. OOOOOOh! Carlisle! Do you think they marry into the pack? I think Morgan would be perfect for Seth! They would make a great couple! That's such a great idea! I'm going to go call Nessie and set something up!!"
Over the past two weeks the twins had fallen into a routine. They would wake up each day, shower, and then Morgan would lead India to the kitchen. Bella and Esme made the girls breakfast each morning and would leave it on the counter letting the twins help themselves. After breakfast, the twins would sit outside on the porch or on the grass if the weather was nice. After eating lunch, Morgan would silently read a book typed in Braille and India would stare blankly out the window. Now and again India would snicker and Morgan would respond with a smile. Dinner was always followed by bed. The twins would lock themselves into their room and not emerge again until morning.
All the while, Nadia watched, ever the protector and extremely concerned about India's non-responsiveness to herself and the rest of the Cullens. India flat out ignored everyone except Morgan. Nadia had tried many things to get India's attention, but she was always met with a blank stare.
India hadn't spoken a word since her breakdown the first day. It didn't seem as though she needed any verbal communication though. Sometimes India would giggle softly and Morgan would respond with her own smile. India kept a distance from my family, staring through us as though we didn't exist. Morgan rarely interacted, I think more so because she was, by nature, an introvert.
Screams interrupted my thoughts. India's voice was distinct. "NO! DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!! THEY'LL DEVOUR YOUR SOUL!!"
I ran from my study, following the panic in India's voice.
India stood in the grass behind the house facing the forest, Morgan sitting beside her. Two figures stood at the edge of the forest: It was my granddaughter, Nessie and her husband Jacob. India tried to chase them away. Jasper, Alice, Rose, and Emmett ran from the front of the house, stopping several feet from India. Nadia hovered close by her sisters.
"What's going on, Auntie Alice?" Nessie looked at Alice in confusion, not sure how to deal with the hysterical woman screaming at her to leave. "Who is the crazy she-beast?"
Jacob frowned at the screaming woman.
"Did one of you bloodsuckers go shopping at the asylum?"
"No, you dumb ass dog," Rosalie spat, "how about you mind your own business?"
India stopped mid-scream. Her eyes opened wide and she walked backwards toward Morgan. She grabbed Morgan's hand and started dragging her back toward the house before Morgan could even stand.
"India?"
"This place is no good, Mo. We need to leave." She looked at Nessie and Jacob, "You should leave too. It's not safe here."
"Why?" Morgan whispered, speaking in English.
India dropped to the ground beside Morgan and scanned the clearing.
"They are everywhere."
"They?"
"Oh god, Mo. They are screaming!"
"Who, Indie?"
"The ghosts."
"Ghosts? What ghosts India?"
"His ghosts."
"Who?"
"They are all his," India choked, pointing at Jasper. "He killed them all."
A/N: If you are reading, please review! I 3 feedback!
