A/N: Reached a record breaking number of hits and reviews! I love you all.
Disclaimer: Twilight related content belong to S.M., all else me!
Chapter 8
Edward sensed his brothers running behind him and slowed down to allow them to catch up. Jasper's gait was light and quick while Emmett seemed to be making as much noise as possible as they ran through the forest.
"It's a miracle you were able to hunt when you were human with all the ruckus you make while trudging through the forest," Jasper chuckled.
"Shut it Jazz," Emmett punched him on the shoulder and the sound of the brief contact echoed in the forest, sending small animals scurrying away.
"What do you guys want?" Edward crossed his arms and looked expectantly at his brothers.
"Nothing, Alice and Rosy just sent us away so they could torture Bella," Emmett shrugged. The memory of the two girls in the house with a defeated Bella caused Edward to break into a small smile.
"Good," Edward nodded slightly and turned around to hunt.
"Since when did you support unnecessary torture Eddy," Emmett trailed behind Jasper as they ran north towards Canada.
Jasper seemed to put the two pieces together and he paused momentarily before picking up speed. "You volunteered Alice to do it didn't you? What were you so curious to find out that you couldn't do it yourself?"
Edward whirled around suddenly to face Jasper and hissed, "I could kill her Jasper. Every time she blushes I want to kill her."
"You need to give yourself more credit," he replied. "Your feelings to not hurt her are more dominant than you wanting to kill her. You just concentrate on the later more, for no reason what so ever."
Edward grunted before he couched down to his hunting gait. He could hear in Jasper's thoughts that his explanation was the truth but he didn't want to believe it. Every day he fought for control around her. Fought to keep his hands at his sides, and to keep a safe distance from her blushing cheeks. But did he really do it so he wouldn't accidentally feed on her? Or so he wouldn't run his hands through her soft brown hair, or rub his thumb across her delicate cheek every time she blushed.
The sweet tangy scent of a bobcat cross his nose and he launched himself up a tree to stand behind it. The large cat whirled around to face him and hissed, it's own prey long forgotten. With a lightning fast motion, Edward snapped the bobcat's neck and fed on its carnivore blood. He had fed less than 24 hours ago but his thirst flared as though he was a newborn. Every gulp that streamed down his throat elicited a small moan of pleasure. It was as though he had been wandering in the desert for days and finally found an oasis. When every last drop was gone from the limp corpse, he dug a hole and buried it.
Where the hell did all the bears go? Emmett grumbled as he threw down the elk he drained.
"Should we start heading back?" Jasper asked as he brushed off his pants that had bits of debris clinging to it.
"Why don't you give her a call?" Emmett said as he made his way closer to his brothers.
"I really don't know why you refuse to carry a cellphone," Jasper said rolling his eyes.
"Rose would kill me if I broke another cellphone she got. They're so flimsy," he justified.
"No one said you had to push your finger through the screen. It's a touch screen Em. Not a poke screen," Jasper said as he put the phone by his ear.
"But I hate those heated finger pads I have to use since none of you modify phones for me anymore," Emmett whined.
"Hey Jazz, you guys can head back now. I'll see you in a bit!" Alice's voice rang through the speaker then hung up.
"What was that about?" Edward raised a brow at the phone.
"Hey I'm just an empath, not a mind reader or a seer," Jasper shrugged.
"Last one back has to take Alice shopping," Emmett said as he burst through the forest. Edward and Jasper launched themselves and easily overtook Emmett who had a comical look on his face.
Jasper suddenly pulled up short and Edward dashed past him before coming to a stop. "Do you smell that?"
A growl ripped through Emmett and Edward as they caught the scent of another one of their kind in the forest.
"Maybe we should call Carlisle," Jasper shifted uneasily, wanting to pursue the scent but wanting to return home to protect Alice. Edward had already shot in the direction of their home.
An image of Bella in danger crossed Edward's mind, and he pushed himself even further leaving his brothers trailing far behind him.
-x-
Bella tossed the last of the Chinese food containers in the kitchen trash and washed her hands. She noticed that Alice and Rosalie constantly pushed her to take a taste of their food. In the end, Bella thought she had eaten everything by herself.
"Aw crap," Bella groaned when she saw a food stain on the shirt Rosalie made her wear.
"Don't worry about that Bella," Alice said wandering into the kitchen. "Come, lets get you changed into something more comfortable. The guys should be back soon anyway."
"Where did they go?" She asked while she trudged up the stairs. She didn't remember Edward leaving with them. "Is Edward still upstairs?"
"No, he's with Jazz and Em," Alice distractedly sent Bella in the direction of the bathroom while Rosalie handed her a set of pajamas.
"I'll be out in a second," she closed the door behind her and carefully looked at the pajamas in case there were cut outs in them. Once she was sure that she would be covered, she put them on and brushed her teeth.
When she emerged from the bathroom she saw Rosalie whispering to Alice too quick for her to understand. Alice had a look of alarm on her face but that quickly cleared when she saw Bella.
"Let's go watch a movie downstairs!" Alice skipped down the stairs but constantly seemed to twitch until they were all seated around the room.
What the hell is wrong with her? Alice's erratic behavior was starting to wear on her. As Bella began to settle into the soft couch Edward burst in through the door, his hair windblown as though he had stuck his head out of a speeding car window. His eyes were wild and darted around the room as though he was waiting for something to attack them.
"Hey guys," Rosalie moved closer to Bella as Emmett and Jasper rushed in behind him and closed the door.
They all appeared jittery and nervous. What am I missing here? Bella looked at Edward who was staring out the glass wall, while the rest of them took a seat facing the flat screen television.
She took the moment to get up and walked up behind Edward.
"Is something going on?" She asked, and was met with a look of concern in his eyes. She took a step back unconsciously surprised by the amount of pain and concern in his eyes.
Instead of walking away from her, Edward took a step towards her and gently stroked her hair as though she were a fragile bubble. Bella instinctively closed her eyes, and leaned into his hand, but he was already gone.
"I'm sorry," he said softly, and looked out into the wilderness again.
"For what?" Bella reached out to touch his arm before she knew what she was doing. He stood still with his jaws locked and she could see the muscles strung with tension. He whipped around to Alice with a menacing glare.
"Alice can I speak to you please? Privately?" He said through clenched jaws, but Alice daintily stood up and lead the way out on to the back porch.
"What was that all about? Is Alice in trouble?" Bella looked at Jasper to see if he had any answers but he just shrugged and took Edward's post by the window.
They seemed to stay out for a long while so Bella settled on watching the movie Alice had put on. It was about possessing the ability to invade the human mind via dreams. Bella watched it intently, silently wishing that such technology existed to help solve the dreams she had been having all her life.
"Bella?" A gentle hand shook her awake. Bella groan groggily as she rubbed her eyes and stretched.
"Hello Esme. Did you enjoy your night?" Bella asked with a smile.
"Carlisle and I had a wonderful time. It's just so hard to get him away from that hospital sometimes," Esme hung her light jacket in the closet, and Carlisle walked over.
"Why don't you go on up to Alice's room and get some sleep Bella?" Carlisle said softly. For someone who had been at the hospital all day, then spent a night out with Esme, he didn't seem tired at all.
"Sure, sure," Bella turned off the television and slowly followed them up the stairs. When they shut their door, Bella knocked on Alice's door.
"Come in Bella," she sang in response.
"What were you talking about with Edward? He seemed mad," Bella asked quietly as she hugged herself in the fleecy pajamas.
"Mostly you," Alice giggled, which convinced Bella that she was lying.
"Be real Alice," she rolled her eyes. Why would Edward ever talk about her in any context.
"It's nothing I swear!" Alice patted the space on the bed beside her. Bella eyed her carefully, not wanting to be taken by surprise. "Belllaaaaa, you need to sleep!"
Bella climbed into bed begrudgingly, "And you don't? Where were you last night anyway?"
An innocent expression crossed her face, "I was hanging out with Rosalie and fell asleep there."
"Yeah okay, wake me up before you guys head out for school," Bella yawned and snuggled deep into the covers.
"Don't worry Bella, you'll get to see your Edward before we leave," Alice teased but saw that Bella was already fast asleep.
The sound of a whip cracking loudly against flesh started Bella. A burning sensation raked her back, then another lash cracked through the air. She couldn't see anything but darkness, or who was whipping who, but she cringed with every lash.
She tried to move her arms and found them bound in chain in front of her. The cold stone that she was hugging felt wet and sticky. She caught a glimpse of metal, and heard the leather whistle by her ear.
Then she really began to feel and began screaming. She felt the metal hooks rip into her back then cut their way out as the torturer yanked the whip back for another blow.
Thirty-nine lashings later, she saw a bright light filling the room. The next thing she knew she was being dragged out by her arms, her legs splayed out in front of her.
"No please," Bella cried but it was only came out only as a whisper. She felt her body give out when she was tossed on the ground. Her skin burned and the sand crawled into every crevice of her fresh wounds.
"Save me." When her eyes closed she felt a cool embrace wrap around her.
-x-
Edward wandered into Alice's room, and found her reading a book on her iPad. The glow of the screen made Bella look as pale as the rest of them. Alice gave him an impatient look. Could you have taken any longer? And remember this time, no destroying my furniture. She quickly slid out of the bed. It's okay, you won't hurt her. Edward nodded as Alice closed the door softly.
He gazed at the sleeping figure, and debated whether or not he should take Alice's place until she returned from her night with Jasper. Alice did say I wouldn't hurt her, he reasoned with himself as he lay on top of the covers with his back against the headrest, in case she awoke from his frigid body temperature.
Bella gasped in pain in her sleep. If he had a heartbeat, it would have froze. He looked at her trying to see if he had inflicted pain on her accidentally. She continued to twitch at timed intervals thirty-nine times. He debated whether or not he should wake her. Surely no one wanted to stay in a nightmare that horrible.
"No, please," she cried softly. His hands reached out instinctively but he froze. He pulled his arm back when she rolled over towards him. The ache he felt in his chest was nothing like he had ever felt. Even when he feasted on innocent people during his darker times, the guilt was nothing compared to what he was currently feeling for this girl. He remained unmoving as she unconsciously moved closer to him until her body was flushed beside him. Warmth radiated through the right side of his body as though he was sitting under a heating lamp.
"Save me," she breathed. He almost choked as he felt his heart breaking. There was nothing he could do to reassure her in her sleep. If only he could save her there. Her body was tense and her breathing turned shallow. He could hear her heart slowing further, each beat weaker than the last. This couldn't be how normal humans dreamt, could it? She whimpered, and Edward carefully put his arms around her, going against his better judgment.
Bella visibly relaxed, and he breathed a sigh of relief when her heart began to beat strong and steady. When he breathed in, he was intoxicated by her floral and mouth-watering scent, but the desire to savagely kill her was on the back burner. Her silent mind, intriguing scent, and her hidden story made him crave her more than human blood.
Told you, Alice's thoughts were smug as visions of them together in a grassy field bombarded him.
"Thanks," he whispered, knowing she would hear.
You better maintain that self-control around her, or I will rip your cars to pieces, Rosalie thought envisioning his cars strewn in pieces across their lawn.
A slight nudging sensation against his side brought him back to the room. A smile broke across his face when he saw that Bella had buried her face into his side. She shivered slightly but seemed content. He pulled up her covers, trying to keep her as warm as possible. Maybe he would bring a small standing heater next time.
Next time? Did he plan on doing this every night? The thought of being away from her created a throbbing ache in his chest. His entire being shied away from being away from her. And thanks to Jasper, he now knew that any pain inflicted on Bella would be exponentially more painful to him. If she were to die, it would be of old age. He stood resolute on this subject.
Could he be selfish and ask Carlisle to condemn her to this life? No, he couldn't bear it if her heart ceased to beat. As though her heart could hear his inner monologue, it beat irregularly then resumed it's normal beat.
Edward, Jasper told me of a visitor you all came across while hunting. Perhaps you could come down and share your perspective? Carlisle's thoughts were concentrated around his family. Edward felt elated when Carlisle included Bella in his thoughts.
"Eddie's cuddling with his human," Emmett stage whispered, earning a smack by who Edward assumed was Rosalie.
Oh, I'm sorry Edward, but this is a pressing matter, his thoughts were hesitant. Edward watched as Carlisle's inner conflict flickered back and forth between being elated that he finally found someone, and fear that they would be caught unguarded by this unknown visitor.
"Oh get down here already. Bella will be up soon anyway, and it'll be really awkward if you were in bed with her," Alice stated. He could see her rolling her eyes through Carlisle's eyes.
With one lingering gaze he gently eased off the bed, careful not to create any sudden movements or noise. Bella groaned and rolled into the now vacated space. A frown appeared on her face and Edward began to move back towards the bed.
"No, get your butt down here Edward," Alice warned. Edward sighed and slowly backed away from the sleeping figure then dashed down the stairs.
-x-
Bella's body felt off when she finally came to in the morning. It felt a little too warm in the room. Did Alice turn up the thermostat last night? She brought her hand to her face to see if she was coming down with a fever but it felt normal. I suppose I should get up, but she remained in bed. A decadent scent wafted across her face. It smelled familiar but she couldn't quite place it. She breathed in heavily and stretched.
"Good morning Bella," Alice waltzed into the room with a smile on her face. Whatever concern she had last night seemed gone.
"You're way too peppy in the morning Alice. I may just have to leave to get away from it," Bella grinned expecting Alice to beg her not to leave, but to her surprise Alice smirked.
"Yeah, as if you'd ever want to leave this fashionable thing behind," she exclaimed as she gestured to her body, "and you are completely infatuated with my brother."
Bella's eyes widened, "What the hell are you talking about Alice?"
"Oh please, if it wasn't obvious before, you saying in your sleep, 'No Edward, please don't go, please' would make it pretty darn obvious," she rolled her eyes and hopped onto the vanity stool.
It wasn't the first time Bella heard that she talked in her sleep, but hearing those words come from Alice's mouth had her severely embarrassed. What else did I say? Please say that was it, she begged internally.
"Was that all?" Bella asked not meeting Alice's eyes as they burned with curiosity.
"Yeah," Alice replied hesitantly then her eyes gleamed, "why is there more I should know about?"
"No," Bella replied a little too quickly, and Alice erupted into a fit of laughter.
"Oh Bella, what did I do before you came along."
"You probably made googly eyes at Jasper all day," Bella retorted as she finally rolled out of bed.
Alice sighed happily, "He's just so perfect for me. I felt like I waited for him forever."
"You're only a teenager Alice. We're not supposed to define relationships in 'forever,'" Bella rolled her eyes and shuffled towards the pile of clothes Alice set aside for her.
"Just you wait Bella, just you wait," Alice grinned with a knowing smile on her face as Bella walked across the hallway and into the shower.
While the hot water steamed up the glass, Bella scrutinized herself in the mirror. Something felt different this morning and she couldn't quite put her finger on it. It felt like something significant had occurred while she slept but she couldn't see it. Finally she shrugged and stepped into the shower.
She scrubbed her face first out of habit. In the past, her foster parents were the ones that attempted to collect as many foster children for the government paychecks and bathrooms were rarely a private space. She learned quickly that she had to brush her teeth, wash her face and take a shower in ten minutes flat or someone would burst in the bathroom to use it. Old habits were hard to break.
When Bella turned to let the hot stream of water run down her hair and back, she let out a sharp wince. Her back felt raw, as though they were freshly wounded. Quickly she turned off the water, her eyes stinging with fresh tears. She breathed in slowly through her clenched teeth, and gently toweled off the moisture on her back.
A knock on the bathroom door had her stumbling out of the shower.
"Just a second," Bella winced as she wrapped the towel around her torso.
"Are you okay Bella?" Rosalie asked worriedly. Bella unlocked the door and cracked it open.
"Can you check my back for me?" Bella reluctantly asked then she did a quick sweep through the hallway with her eyes to see if anyone was beside Rosalie.
"Yeah sure," she slipped in and closed the door quickly as Bella retreated towards the toilet and pulled the cover down. "Holy shit Bella, are you okay? You're bleeding."
"What?" Bella wiped the fogged up mirror and turned to look at her back. And there it was. Red spots speckled the white towel from when she gingerly dried herself, and more seemed to be seeping through the cotton.
"Maybe I should call Carlisle," Rosalie trailed off, her eyes fixated on the blood. Is she squeamish about blood? Bella asked herself.
"No, you can't do that Rosalie. It's nothing," Bella slowly loosened the towel to see where her back was bleeding. The small scars that were on her back were bleeding as though she had just received them. "It isn't so bad."
A loud thud snapped both of their heads up. Bella met Rosalie's eyes as there was another loud noise downstairs. Suddenly a curt knock on the door sounded.
"Bella? Rose? You okay?" Alice asked worriedly.
"Yeah I'm fine Alice. Actually do you guys have some Neosporin or some ointment for scrapes and cuts?" She asked through the closed door.
"I'll be right back," Alice's voice trailed off instantly then a quick knock came again.
Rosalie cracked open the door and Alice slid in quickly with a small first-aid kit in her hands.
"Wow that was quick," Bella smiled.
"Yep, keep these handy, you never know when you'll need them," Alice said looking straight at Rosalie, then motioned for Bella to turn back around on the make-shift toilet chair.
"Let me know if I'm pressing too hard okay?" Rosalie squeezed some gel-like substance on to a Q-Tip and quickly dabbed the cuts. Bella counted thirty nine cuts from the way Rosalie treated her back. It seemed like a significant number but at the same time something that didn't matter anymore. She growled in frustration. Lately it felt like what she imagined an amnesiac to feel like when they know they should know a certain person or something but can't quite place it.
"Does it sting?" Rosalie asked misinterpreting her little outburst.
"No, I hardly felt a thing. Thanks," Bella smiled when Alice quickly twisted her hair up with a hair-claw so it wouldn't fan out on her medicated back.
"What the hell happened Bella? I thought those were healed. They looked like scars yesterday," Alice furrowed her eyebrows.
"I have no clue. I thought I was fine until I let the hot water touch my back," she shrugged.
"You really ought to have Carlisle look at that when he gets home. Old scars shouldn't randomly start bleeding," Rosalie pressed.
"If it gets infected or I bleed out, then I'll call Carlisle okay? I don't want to bother him with papercuts." Bella rolled her eyes then continued, "He might think I cut myself for scarification tattoos or that I cut myself for fun. I don't want your dad to get the wrong impression of me."
It was Alice's turn to roll her eyes and sigh exasperated, "You could have webbed feet, a third eye, a sixth finger, throw in facial tattoos and horns and he still wouldn't think any less of you Bella." Rosalie silently nodded in agreement.
Bella looked down at her feet awkwardly. It felt nice to be wanted and loved but it felt foreign to her. This family seemed a little too good to be true. There had to be something wrong here. But for now she would bask in their unconditional love.
"Thanks guys. I appreciate it," Bella said shyly.
"No problem! Now we'll let you get dressed, well in your underwear at least, and let me see if I could steal some bandage wraps from Carlisle's office for your back so you can wear regular clothes," Alice said then dragged Rosalie with her.
Once they left, Bella closed her eyes and smiled. She shook her head in disbelief at the kindness of the people in this house. With that, she vowed to herself as she did every day, that she would do everything in her power to keep them safe.
-x-
Edward paced the living room, as Esme followed him with her eyes. He had broken a coffee table and shoved his grand piano against the wall when he saw the image of Bella's back, freshly bleeding in Rosalie's mind. It took everything he had to not go on a rampage. He had apologized profusely to Esme, and explained his behavior and she was just as concerned.
"She hasn't screamed or anything so maybe Rosalie and Alice could take care of it," Esme said gently.
"She was fine when I left her this morning. I would have smelled her blood if she had been bleeding like that," he spat. "I knew I shouldn't have left her alone."
"Be reasonable Edward, she couldn't even explain it herself. And no one went into Alice's room in the thirty minutes that we were down here earlier," Jasper reasoned. Edward could feel waves of calm envelope him.
"We have to go to charade-land soon. Esme will keep watch," Emmett said from the kitchen counter where he was scribbling his homework at lightning speed.
"Maybe we should stay home, afterall we do have a vampire we don't know running around here, and they probably won't be vegetarians," Edward suggested, trying to find something that would keep him here by Bella.
Look how nervous he is. Ah, my son, so in love, Esme thought lovingly then continued her train of thought out loud, "Maybe Bella should be enrolled. We could get her transcripts sent over if she'd like."
Edward perked up at this idea. If she attended school with them, he could keep an eye on her all day. With Carlisle and Esme as her guardians, the school wouldn't have any problems admitting her. She would be able to attend all the school functions, and start anew. He could feel his excitement escalate with each new vision he had for her.
And if they should go to the school prom, it wouldn't be weird if he asked her to attend the dance with him, student to student. Or to attend any other school related event. She would sit with them during lunch. What if she doesn't want to sit with you, he froze at that thought. Of course there was a chance that she would want to make her own friends and relationships in high school. Afterall it would be her first time through it.
"Whoa, whiplash," Jasper said suddenly, "what the hell are you thinking about that your emotions did a complete 180?"
"Nothing," he said dejected.
"I'll just ask Alice," Jasper smirked as she glided down the stairs.
"She's free to do whatever she wants Edward," Alice mumbled. Edward analyzed each vision that Alice came across as though they were riveting short films. Most of it was murky but only because Bella never really thought about the topic and therefore couldn't decide her path. But he knew he was an active participant in each vision good or bad, and that was enough to satisfy him.
"What is he thinking about love," Jasper asked when he led Alice towards the garage.
"What do you think? Bella, duh," she giggled and shut the door of the Volvo. Edward quickly followed and slid into the driver's seat and waited for Rosalie and Emmett to pile in before speeding off to another boring day with children.
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A/N: Another interesting tidbit (I'm just so full of random info): The scars on Bella's back are a reference to a method of torture from the Roman period. It is a result of a whip attached with metal hooks and they typically did 39 lashes. If you saw Passion of the Christ, the scene where they whip him, its the same era, ergo thats pretty much it but I set it in a setting like a gladiatorial arena.
