Okay, so, as promised, this chapter begins like this: it has been six and a half months since Edward and Bella's wedding and the Cullens have moved to Rochester. Rosalie is very excited to see her old house (though it's in ruins now) and everyone is please with the town. Bella misses Forks, but the weekly calls from Charlie keep her connected. All in all, everyone's happy.

I DO NOT OWN TWILIGHT; ALL KNOWN CHARACTERS WERE CREATED AND STILL OWNED BY STEPHENIE MEYER.

Chapter 9: Insight

EPOV

"No, No, No!"

The shouts made me stiffen, almost freeze. In other times, I'd think it was merely Emmett annoying Heidi or Alice again, but this time, it was my Bella. I flashed out of the living room (smelling strongly of new paint) and darted into the kitchen where Bella was groaning at Heidi and Alice.

I leaned against a counter, now at ease, as I watched, grinning widely, Alice and Heidi attempt to convince Bella that shopping was fun. Poor Bella—she hated shopping, and her three sisters adored it. I muffled a laugh.

"Edward!" she pleaded. "Help me!"

Oh, come on! Its just shopping. No one's going to eat you! Alice thought. "Bella, come on! It'll be fun! And we're going to buy—"

"More clothes?" Bella demanded, cringing back and running for me. I pulled her close. "How much space do you have left in your wardrobe, Alice? Sooner or later, it'll explode and you'll lose all your precious clothes."

"Well…" Heidi hesitated. I laughed as I saw what she was thinking. Apparently, both Alice and Heidi had disposed of all their clothes.

Bella understood too. "No! Don't do this to me!"

I combed my brains, looking for a way for Bella to get out of this. I thoughts too quickly for Alice to form a coherent vision—she wasn't pleased. I selected one place in the world which Bella adored above Forks.

"Bella and I need some alone time," I said.

Heidi rolled her eyes. "Oh, you two."

"Fine," Alice grumbled. "But you won't be able to escape next time, Bella."

Bella gulped, a little scared by the light intimidating edge in my sister's voice. "Sure," she said weakly, panic screaming from her eyes. It was very amusing, watching how much she hated shopping contrasting wildly with Heidi and Alice's passion for it.

Alice and Bella's friendly sister, Heidi, left soon, taking a slightly annoyed Emmett with them. I laughed when I saw why he looked disgruntled—Alice preferred making him carry the bags. Bella grinned widely when I told her.

We walked out of the house, hand in hand, yelling byes to the others. I could tell Bella was confused on where we were going. I tried my best to hide my wide smile, but she saw through me, like she always did. It was almost like a sixth sense for us. I always knew everything connected with Bella, and she always knew everything connected to me. We were literally one.

"Edward, what's going on?" she asked, frowning the slightest bit from curiosity.

I couldn't help the smile anymore. "Somewhere special. Somewhere you love."

"Hmm," she said, thoughtfully. I could feel her scanning her mind for places she adored. "Forks? Or is it something in Forks?"

"Somewhere in Forks."

"The meadow?" she gasped, her eyes wide. "Really? Oh, thank you, Edward! We haven't been there for forever!"

"It's been half a year, actually," I told her, pulling her closer to me.

She laughed. I listened in wonder to the sound. For the millionth time, I wondered how such a beautiful, lovely, perfect sound could exist in a world so full of evil. And how could anyone want to harm my angel, the way Jane and the Volturi had? Was it even possible for anyone to be so completely heartless and selfish?

We didn't take Bella's car, nor mine. Both of us loved running. I, for one, enjoyed the sensation of intense speed. The sheer velocity of moving at a speed impossible for humans was a joy both of us loved immensely. Bella was very fast too. Faster than Emmett. But a lot slower than me.

My mood darkened considerably as I remembered the reason for that. Jane…

The pain, the torture…that was the only thing Bella had never opened her mind for me. I knew she knew that seeing the agony she had endured would drive me into a thirst for revenge that could only be quenched once Jane had been destroyed. And she didn't want me in danger. And, also, being apart from each other was a pain none of us wanted to experience—and to destroy Jane, I would have to go to Italy; a place I never wanted Bella a hundred miles around.

Both of us detested having secrets between us, but Bella considered it needed. But I wanted to know what she had endured. I wanted to share her pain, her torture. And since we would be completely alone today, it was the perfect time.

"Edward, you know what?" Bella said suddenly, as we sped through Rochester.

"What, love?" I asked, intrigued. Whenever she said this, she had something special in mind. And her special things were unique and wonderful and…perfect, like her. Like the time she'd decided to hold a sculpting contest between the two of us. I'd had had so much fun. Sculpting was something I'd never tried before.

And, wonder of wonders, her special things were always something I'd never done before. With her, I discovered a stunning long list of thing I'd never experienced for some reason. How she found them out was a wonder and an intriguing mystery for me.

She grinned, dazzling me. "Edward, have you ever been deep sea diving?"

My eyes widened. "Wow, you know what? I never have. You want to go now?"

"I heard the British Seabed has some really interesting aquatic life," she told me.

Excitement was bubbling inside me. "Perfect. We could have another honeymoon. Alice probably already knows. She'll tell the others. Come on!"

I took her hand lightly, making sure the pressure didn't hurt her. She was so fragile…Bella was delighted by my acceptance, something which confused me. How could I ever refuse anything she proposed? The only reason I hadn't set fire to myself yet was because now I had her. She was the reason I was still breathing.

Crossing New York City took a matter of minutes with our speed—we ran too fast for humans to notice anything more than the whoosh of the wind as we flashed past them. Soon, we were standing at the harbor, hidden in the shadows cast by the shops and buildings. Why couldn't it be cloudy today?

"Ready?" Bella whispered, while I lost myself in her eyes.

I blinked once to regain control of my body. "When you are."

She flashed a wide, excited smile, and then grabbed my hand, and raced headlong toward the water, taking me with her. We splashed into the warmth; the sea was hot enough today to heat the water to a perfect temperature. I heard Bella squeal with delight as we plunged right down, our breath held. I could go without air forever, but Bella needed oxygen. She could hold for around three or four hours, enough time to swim right across the ocean with our speed.

She wrenched away the shield around her mind, and said Come on! The water's perfect today!

I grinned. I loved her smile, and underwater, with the sunlight barely seeping into the depths, she looking exceptionally enchanting, even more than she usually did. She was the most perfect, beautiful, exquisite...where there enough appropriate words to describe her?

Let's go! I thought back to her, excitement building in me.

Bella was a superb swimmer. She flowed like the water itself, moving with the waves, making no ripples, no disturbance. In fact, from the surface, even if she were skimming over the top, no human could ever have been able to detect her presence unless she spoke.

We swim side by side, eyes never leaving each other. We continued going deeper and deeper, until the sunlight almost completely disappeared and both of us could feel the weight and pressure of so much water above it. It wasn't enough to make us stop. It was more like a cottony pillow on top of us.

About twenty minutes after diving into the sea, we reached the bed. The view was incredible. The coral was so colorful, and added with the thousands of fish and water-life swimming around it, was a wonderful sight.

Wow! Bella thought. Did you see that fish, Edward? You did see the tail? It looked like an anchor!

I grinned, amused, when I saw the thing she was describing. The tail looked incredibly like the metallic anchor humans used to crow their ships. And the pigments matched too, the patches of red looking like rust. I laughed.

Nice, I told her. I wonder what it's called.

Her eyebrows lifted in amazement, and her eyes widened. You don't know? I thought Edward Cullen knew everything. Aha! I finally found one thing you don't know. Though I don't, either. She added sheepishly.

I laughed. Well, I laughed mentally. Laughing underwater is a really interesting experience. Bella snickered when she heard the strange sound that escaped me when I laughed, and I smiled when I saw her amusement.

We explored the coral for a long time, running our hands over the rough texture, playing with the shy fish, and mostly just enjoying the sensation. Bella loved playing with the fish. Neither of us was as fast in swimming as we were on land while running. Our arms moved slower too, so the fish always escaped us. Bella found a really fast one, a tiny trout with miniature gills, and chased it around for a long time.

All the while, we were heading to the British Isles. I was eager to see what Bella had meant by 'exceptional aquatic life' there. I knew it must be beautiful, but I was having a hard time imagining an ocean bed better than this one. The American waters really were wonderful. And fun in a way I had never expected.

It took us two hours to reach Britain. Bella was getting uncomfortable without air, so we surfaced to supplement her oxygen storage.

"Phew!" she sighed as we broke through the surface. "That's a relief." Her face had a slight purplish tint to it, like she was choking.

I was wild with worry. Was she alright? Was the time without air too much for her? Was she getting better or declining? Oh, how could I ever have been so careless! Of course she was suffocating in there! She was half-human, for crying out loud! And she must have realized I was enjoying myself and didn't want to interrupt my fun. God, this girl's selflessly was going to be the end of her. Suddenly, I was disgusted at myself. I should have paid better attention to her.

I was at her side at fast as the water would allow me to.

"Bella!" I shouted. "Are you alright?"

Her eyes were slightly unfocused, and her breath came in gasps. Was she still suffocating? God, I should have asked Alice to look ahead before we ran off like that. I wished I had Carlisle around; he could have treated her easily. I found myself wishing I had had at least one doctor's degree.

Bella blinked rapidly, and cleared her throat. "I'm fine, Edward. Oh God! Edward, relax! You look like you're about to die! Come on, I'm fine! It was just the pressure—"

"I shouldn't have allowed you to do that," I muttered disgustedly. "Look what I almost did. You very nearly fainted. God, we should go back now. Come on, I'll hire a ship to go back to the US, or we could board a plane if you—"

"Edward, we're not going back," she said sternly, all traces of exhaustion and tire gone from her gorgeous face. "Don't ruin this, please. I had so much fun. Please, can we stay?"

I stared at her for a full minute, analyzing her face. Already the unhealthy color was fading fast from her skin. She looked perfectly fine to me. But was she faking it? I knew she was a good actress, but I also knew Bella and I could never lie to each other, even if we wanted to. She must be alright now if she said so.

"Ok, Bella," I allowed. "If you feel bad again, you must tell me. Carlisle had an English friend, a vampire called Alistair. He can help us if you—"

"I'm fine!" she insisted. She laughed happily. "Come on. We can book a hotel room for the night. I'm getting a little—" she yawned. "—a little sleepy."

I smiled. "Of course, love. Come on, but we're sticking to the surface for now. You need time to recover."

She rolled her eyes but agreed. We stayed clear of human civilization until we reached the harbor. I didn't even note the name of the place. We entered the nearest shop we saw (a small place Alice would never approve of) and got some clean, dry clothes. We also grabbed several sets of new clothes for our stay in England, and Bella picked out a nice quaint suitcase for the attire.

"Will you mind if we get into Alice's idea of a good hotel? I want a good bed for you to rest in," I said, knowing she didn't like expensive things, nor anyone spending anything on her. But this time, she agreed. I realized this was because she really needed a proper time to recover. We must have been underwater for longer than I had thought.

I quickly guided her to the most lavish hotel available in the city. Like before, I didn't bother with the name. I simply checked in, telling the concierge we were honeymooners (which was perfectly true).

Both of them are so young! And the bride is really pretty. Whoa, their last name is Cullen. God, I heard about this family before. Stinking rich, yes they are. Better give them the best suite.

I smiled when I heard his thoughts. At least we won't be disturbed, but his views of Bella annoyed me. How dare he call her 'pretty'?! She was a million times more than just mere beauty. But I was gracious. He quickly assigned three of his best men to lead me and Bella to the suite.

I ran my eyes quickly through it, approving of the luxurious furniture and carpets. They left quickly, and shut the door behind them. Bella swayed with sleep in my arms and I caught her before she could fall. She fell asleep right there. I smiled at her exquisite sleeping face and carried her to bed. I gently laid her there and watched her sleep, a quiet smile on my face.

* * *

In all my years, I had never quite seen a morning as bright as today. The birds seemed so loud, and the minds of the humans around me were happy and fresh. I could even hear a small five-year-old girl playing with her older brother in their suite.

Yayy! I get the ball! She was thinking. I smiled—I had always enjoyed listening to children. Their thoughts had always been pure and sincere, not complicated and twisted like other elders of their kind.

A tiny hummingbird barely the size of my smallest finger fluttered over to the window a few feet from the bed and knocked on the glass. Bella stirred and opened her eyes, her deep brown eyes' pupils contracting slightly to adjust to the brightness. Her eyes swept over the room, confused.

"Where are we?" she asked, her voice husky from sleep.

I smiled at her. She must have been too tired last night. I should have taken better care of her. "Hotel, love."

"Oh, right, of course, sorry," she said. She was quiet for another minute before saying, "Oh, God! Of course, now I remember! The seabed!"

I smiled back at her. "How are you feeling now?"

"Perfect," she replied, grinning brightly. "Though I think I really need to hunt, with all these humans around. Forks really is a rather small town."

"Wonderful. I need to hunt, too. We'll go—"

"Though stars be dead and hearts be sore, our love shall last forevermore," she said, her eyes unfathomable.

I gazed back at her. She was so full of surprised. I had no idea she could make little verses like that. And this simple line said so much about us—our really shall outlive stars and other beings. We were both immortal, about to spend eternity as one and together.

"Exactly," I told her. "Our love shall last forevermore."

"So what are we waiting for?" she asked, her calm air gone to be replaced instantly by excitement. "What English animals are sweeter here?"

"I don't really know," I admitted. "But we could ask around, saying we're going hiking or something."

"Sure," she hopped off the bed and grabbed her clothing. I pulled mine on and waited outside the bathroom for her. I glanced out the window; it was a wonderful view outside. Almost as nice as with the coral and the fish underwater.

"I'm ready," Bella announced when she got out of the bathroom. I loved her pale blue dress. Blue was the perfect color for her—incredible, even in my human life, blue had been my favorite color.

"Let's go," I took her hand and led her outside, kissing her lightly before stepping into the lobby. The concierge's face brightened when he saw us: he was expecting a large tip and a few compliments about the suite he'd appointed us to.

"I hope you found your lodgings suitable?" he asked Bella hopefully.

His lustful thoughts around her triggered my temper, and I stepped in front of her subtly. She had been listening to his thoughts as well, and cringed into my shoulder. She wasn't used to mature adults being so lusty around her, it scared her some. I gritted my teeth.

"Yes, thank you," I replied icily. "I've been to places far better than this, so I don't suppose we'll be staying here for long. Anyways, thank you for the suite. We'll be checking out now."

No, no, NO! You can't be leaving! "May I ask what we did to displease you?" He was feeling nervous. Pretty nervous.

I wanted to say, "Oh, nothing. You were imagining yourself in love with my mate. That's all." But that would almost be confessing that I wasn't human, so I simply said, "I've got a better place in mind."

"Oh." Damn! I can't believe the Cullens are leaving…Oh, dear God; my boss is going to murder me for this! But what did we do?

I rolled my eyes and strode away from the man. It seemed I'd have to be really careful with having human males around Bella here in Britain. I could, of course, understand why and how much she appealed to them, but I'll just have to announce that she was mine, and I was hers. Inseparable. Forever.

"Edward, calm down," Bella insisted. I looked down at her, eyes wild with worry.

"If you want me to," I told her.

She caressed the rings around my darkened eyes. "You need to hunt."

I smiled. She was ever-caring and concerned about me. "Anything you want."

We strolled along the lanes and sidewalks, making sure to never let the sun touch my skin. Bella, on the other hand, had no problem with the sunshine at all. Her skin, rather than glistening and sparkling like mine, only glowed faintly. With perfect eyesight like mine, I could almost make out facets in the light like mine, but human eyes could never see that.

She walked through the crowds and sun, smiling brilliantly while I shuffled around in the shadows. She shot me apologizing glances every time I slipped into the dark.

It's alright, Bella, I told her mentally. I don't really mind so much.

Even though I lied with perfection, somehow the pretense never worked on her. We knew each other too thoroughly to see through another with perfect clarity. Bella snickered when she heard me.

Of course not, she teased sarcastically.

I smiled and shook my head. That girl…

She soon had a map and a whole list of local vampire-edible animals constructed into perfection in her head, which she showed me to repeatedly, so that I didn't feel left out. I smiled at her thoughtfulness. No wonder Heidi was always worrying about Bella—she was so…perfect.

I let her lead me into the road heading out of town, and we hailed a cab there.

"Where to, my friends?" the driver asked. He looked at me and Bella through the rearview mirror and his eyes widened. His heart rate increased rapidly. Yes, I always had had that affect on humans. I gave the location where Bella and I were 'hiking' and he nodded, his eyes lingering—to my fury—on Bella.

Gosh, that's one gorgeous girl! His thoughts were enough to make me see red. Wonder what her name is...is she single? Gosh, she's American. Now, there's a worthy catch. Hmmm…

I decided it was time to show this little human never to mess with my mate again. My voice was icy and hard when I spoke to him. I mentally enjoyed the fear and panic when he heard the menace in my tone.

"I'm Edward Cullen," I told him, smiling coldly. "And this is my wife, Bella Cullen. We're honeymooners here." I put enough emphasis on the word 'wife' to diminish his repulsive thoughts.

Damn, they're together. Ah well. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Cullen," he said politely.

Bella decided to take matter on her own hands. "Thank you." Her voice was rock hard. The driver never looked away from the road after that short conversation. Bella giggled silently.

"That was hilarious!" she whispered, too low for human ears to hear.

"I enjoyed it too," I replied simply. "But if he so much as blinks at you, I'll annihilating him."

"Overprotective," she teased, and seemed pleased all the same.

The scared man was anxious to get us out of his car, so we arrived at the forests pretty quickly. Bella thanked him and handed him the money, then we strode off into the greenery. It was beautiful. But it seemed every place with Bella in it was beautified a thousand fold. She brightened everything and everyone around her.

The hunt was short and fun, like always with Bella. The prey here was much different than those in Forks or Rochester, so the blood tasted different too. Bella really began to like panther.

"They're better than deer," she told me. "They've got more fight in them. But I wish I could wrestle them like Emmett does. Just swooping them in the air and killing them seems…vicious and…almost slaughter."

Her sentences triggered my previous promise to learn about her endurance. I was one hundred percent sure that the moment I brought the subject up, her great mood would vanish to be replaced by sorrow and pain. I hated to cause her this, but I needed to know. Needed, not wanted. I wanted to share her experience, so I knew exactly how much to torture Jane before I murdered her. Though it wouldn't really count as murder, more like justice than anything else.

"Bella?" I began slowly.

"Yes?" she looked up from the carcass of the panther she'd just drained and stared at me with glorious, chocolate eyes that seemed almost too deep to be real. She was too perfect and beautiful and iconic to be real.

How to say it so I don't scare her too much? "Bella…you've told me a lot about…the Volturi's second visit—"

Bella flinched horribly, shuddering violently. She swayed a little, her knees bending as she began to fall to the ground. Lurching forward, I grabbed her body and stood her upright. She was still shivering. Her breath was ragged, her eyes wild and suddenly tired. She was panting.

"Bella!" I shouted. "Bella?"

She righted herself, still shivering slightly. "I'm sorry, it's just…"

"I'm sorry," I apologized. What was I thinking?! "I'm so sorry. I'll never bring it up agai—"

"No, Edward," she interrupted, her eyes terrified but determined. "You're right. You have a right to know. We're joined for eternity. Its agony, hiding this from you all the time, but you're perfectly right in wanting to know. Its only fair—you've shared every secret with me, I should do the same."

I was silent. But how could I want something that pains her so? "Bella, if you don't want to, you know I'll never force you."

She ignored me, and closed her eyes, taking a deep shuddering breath. "Here we go," she muttered quietly.

The forest around us became a little more silent, the wind stopped rushing so much, and the leaves' rustling quieted. It seemed Nature itself was waiting to see Bella's torture. I inhaled slowly too, and closed my eyes as well and tentatively reached out and brushed her mind.

A/N: Okay, people. The parts from Bella's memories are from Bella's point of view and are given in italics. In between, you'll find some parts un-italic: that's Edward's POV, well mostly his reactions and thoughts about what he's seeing in Bella's memories.

I never saw a more beautiful day than today. Heidi is out hunting of course. For some reason I cannot understand, Daddy's lessons about never hurting humans never work on her. She likes hunting humans—even she is partly human herself. Yuck.

The wet rainforest around me is wonderful. I wander through the dense foliage, my hunting already finished. I don't want to hunt anymore—I just want to enjoy this most perfect of all days. The birds chirping above me make a lovely melody. I suddenly wish I could sing, but Dad never taught me that. Oh, how I wish he were with me right now!

Tears sting in my eyes as I remember his beautiful white face. He had the prettiest red hair, and his skin was icy, but he was so sweet. For the hundredth time, I wish I could remember Mom, but I can't. I've never seen her. Heidi has, but she doesn't know how to describe her to me.

My heart broke as I felt the pain Bella had felt that horrid day while she remembered her father. The image was shrouded with love and care and so much worry. But through it all, he was staring at Bella with staggering tenderness in his eyes, a look that spoke of a great sacrifice and a terrible decision…

I spring lightly onto a tree's branch, and look over the glorious view. This has to be one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to. We have to come here again someday, when no one here can remember or recognize us.

A faint rustling in the bushes near the bottom of my tree alert my senses. I know instinctively that it is not Heidi, so I reach out mentally and touch the being.

My teeth clenched in fear and anticipation. The torture wasn't far off—I could almost feel it. Bella, on my side and clutching my arm tightly, whimpered silently. I caressed her cheek, soothing her. She knew she could stop at any moment and I wouldn't say a word about it, but she wanted me to hear this, to see this, to feel this. She was ever selfless, like always.

A vampire, a full vampire. Holy crow, it has been so long since I have last met a real, full vampire! I must go and greet her, for this is a female. Her name's Jane, but I don't like the menacing edge to her thoughts. But still, courtesy was Daddy's strictest rule, so I jump off the branch and land almost right beside her.

She isn't expecting that, but freezes she watched me. She smiles, and the look on her face immediately makes me retreat back into my own mind. I don't want to live in her head anymore; she's scary enough without having to add vicious thoughts to the pile. She is thinking about someone called Aro. Who might that be? Perhaps her mate, but she looks barely fourteen…

"Hello," I greet her shyly. "My name is Bella. Who are you?"

I know her name is Jane, but I want to know more about her.

She smiles a little again, and I retreat back further into my body.

"Hello, Bella Cortes, I'm Jane Volturi," she replies.

I stiffen. The Volturi. Daddy had warned me that they might come to me someday for my abilities. He had explained their vicious ways and their hideous diet, their malicious intentions and things he'd rather never have me face. Of course he had been right. Now the Volturi have come to collect me. Well, I am never leaving.

She notes my defensive posture. "I see you have heard of my masters. Then you must also already know why Master Aro has sent me here. And what is your answer, Miss Cortes?"

"I refuse to join," I tell her curtly. "Leave me alone, and never return."

She frowns, her patience lessening. "This is a great honor, Miss Cortes. Very few are offered this greatness. Denying this might be your life's greatest mistakes."

"Kill me if you have to, but I'm never joining you or your foul ways."

"I'm saying this for the last time!" she thunders, her face ferocious. "Accept the offer, or suffer the consequences!"

I keep my mouth shut, my resolve unaltered. No matter how much she might hurt me, I'm never moving an inch out of the path my father had so painfully laid out for me and my sister. He lived on for seven years after Mom's death, just to make sure we had a safe and happy life. I'm not about to ruin that all.

Bella's determination astounded me. I had never realized she was such a strong-willed girl. But I shuddered with pain as I realized the assault was soon to come headlong and hit my precious love. I was going to destroy Jane forever.

"Answer me!" Jane screams. I remain deathly silent.

Suddenly, her face broke out into an angelic smile.

I was on fire. Every inch of my body hurt like white-hot knives piercing my skin everywhere. My mind blurred with pain, and I screamed out. Fire was burning me, hotter and painful than anything imaginable. I scream out once more, writhing on the ground, trying to cover myself in my shield, but the agony forces my concentration away. My fingers curl inwards painfully; my head is thrown back, my legs straightened. It hurts…it hurts more than I have dreamed.

"Jane!" I shout. Through the ferocious burn in my skin, I hear a wild laughter. She has a torturing gift, I realize then.

The fire gets hotter and hotter, burning me, scorching me; hurting…I have never imagined pain to surpass so many limits. If she doesn't stop this, I am going to die. My heart, beating painfully fast, already seems to get slower.

But, what is this? I can see Daddy's face. He is telling me: "Bells, when you're in pain, lock yourself down. Shut off all your senses, and drift…"

But how can I drift? How I shut down when pain beyond imaging rips through my skin, tearing it to shreds which can never but put together? I feel my inhuman strength crumbling as I struggle against the darkness which long to engulf me. I slip many times, but scramble back onto my iron grip, refusing to allow Heidi to live a lonely and desolate life without me.

This is beyond agony. This almost equals the pain I felt when I saw Daddy burn. At least I know hurt worse than this. But even that pain didn't last for so long.

How long have I been screaming and writhing and shrieking in pain? How long has it been since I breathed a fresh whiff of air, since I saw Heidi's smiling face, since I had spent a single pain-free moment? How could anything hurt so much? I feel myself slipping away, and this time I know I cannot hold on. I am too weak. My strength is gone, my bones feel like rubber. I have to let go and die—this pain cannot be endured anymore.

Thoughts of Heidi fill my mind, and the tears in my already-filled eyes spill over. Oh, poor Heidi, how is she going to survive without me? We had never been apart from each other. She will be crushed when she finds me dead here. No!

When she does find me here, Jane will almost certainly be waiting for her! And she will torture my sister as well! No! I cannot let that happen! Never! I redoubled my grip on life, and refused to slip and let go even once more.

Suddenly, the pain stops. I lay still on the ground, panting and covered in sweat. I lie there for who knows how long, my eyes closed, and my body perfectly still. I rest for almost a full day. When I open my eyes, it is morning. Two mornings from the time I saw Jane. And beside me is a letter from Heidi, addressed to me. Jane is nowhere to be seen. I am completely and utterly alone.

A/N: And this is where Bella stops showing her memories to Edward. The letter explains where Heidi has gone and why. She asks Bella never to look for her, ever. The rest is in Edward's POV.

A/N: Okay, guys. I know this is a rather long chapter, but it was necessary. But beware, updates MIGHT be almost regular now, and the next chappy has a really big surprise in store!

Secrets of the Dark.

XOXO