Chapter 9: The Survivor

This Is For You

Bella Swan

I don't like going back to that night, but whenever I do, all I hear is the wails of my baby sister as those soldiers shoot her.

I was grabbed roughly and shoved towards the other side of the room. I heard another gunshot, and then my sister's screams of pain.

I wanted to die.

Thinking back now, with a more logical perspective, I can see how she would still be alive. If she'd died right away, her screams would have faded off. But they didn't.

So, the question remained, where is Jane?

"Bella?" Edward's voice brought me back to the present, but it doesn't do much help. I am still frozen, going over every single last detail in my mind. How can she be alive?

Immediately, I started to feel angry at the soldiers who took me to the refugee camp. Why couldn't they see that someone else was alive in the room? Why wasn't she brought with me?

Why isn't she dead?

With monumental effort, I focused on Edward. He was worriedly perched in front of me, unknowingly making me angrier.

"You were there," I hissed. "You were there, and when I was taken, you didn't bring her with me?"

My voice slowly starts to rise with the anger, and I was having difficulty not attacking him right now. After all, the gun was still in front of me.

"Bella, it's not like that," Edward said hurriedly. "I wasn't there when…when she was shot. I only came there after you were gone, but I remember finding Jane. She was so tiny, I remember. She kept whispering your name – she wanted to know where you were, where your mom was—"

"Stop it!" I shrieked. His voice, his words, they were bringing back memories that I didn't want to dredge up. I didn't want to hear about how she'd screamed for me, because I already knew. I'd screamed for her in the exact same way.

I felt the tears running down my cheeks, but I didn't do anything to stop them.

Edward's arms slowly encircled me, drawing me into his addictive warmth. I was grateful for it, but all I was thinking about was Jane.

I smacked his chest, suddenly angry. "You were there!" I yelled. "And you didn't tell me sooner?"
"I didn't know," he defended. "I didn't realize until I heard your middle name and her name."

"And-and you still didn't think to t-tell me?" It was harder to get the words out now. I was sobbing uncontrollably, mourning for the loss of my sister's childhood. Only the gods knew where she was now.

Edward stroked my back soothingly, and kissed my hair. "Shh….shh, it'll all be alright, Bella, I promise—"

I pushed him away. "It's your fault!" I screamed. "Those soldiers, my mother dying, Jane being taken away…nothing would have happened if it wasn't for your stupid side! Hell, the war wouldn't even exist if it wasn't for the Volturi's greed!"

I was beyond any type of control at this point. My rational side knew I was overreacting, but what was I supposed to do?

"I'm sorry, love," Edward said, wrapping his arms around me again. I didn't fight him off. "I'm truly sorry. If I'd've known—"

"Where is she?" I demanded, the tears having stopped.

"Hm?"
"Where is my sister?"

Edward was silent for a moment, before muttering, "I don't know."

"You don't know?"

He shook his head jerkily, as if not wanting to admit it.

I pushed him away from me again. "You tell me she's alive, and then you tell me you don't know where she is?!"
"Bella—" he said, trying to pull me close again.

I shoved his arms away. "Don't." I moved away from him to collapse on another couch, but he followed me. It was too much to process…the entire thing.

Jane was alive. Was she handicapped? The bullets had to have done some damage. Why didn't she tell me she was alive? Why didn't she call out for me once the soldiers had left?

Why was Edward there? He couldn't've been older than fifteen or sixteen at the time…he'd joined the army that young?

And where was my little sister now?

I wanted to scream. So many questions and no answers. It was frustrating.

"We're going to find her," I decided. "I have to find her."

"What?" Edward said. "How on earth do you plan on doing that?"

"I don't know," I hissed, pulling at my hair. I was certain that I looked like a mad person when I did that. "I'm going to find her."

Edward moved closer once again, gathering me into his arms. "Bella, you have to understand, finding her is not going to be easy—"

"Fuck easy!" I screamed. "I'm going to fucking find her, no matter how hard it is!"
Images were starting to rush through my brain, of Jane as a child, her sweet disposition, the times that I was more of a mother to her than our own mother…what her life had been these past four years. There were so many possibilities – she could have been sold as a slave to the other side, just like me, but she wouldn't've been used for sex…she was too young, still. She could have been put into a refugee camp, just like me, except with no knowledge of her surroundings. The last option was a long-shot, but there was a possibility that she was taken in by an adopted family, hopefully someone good.

No matter where she was now, I was going to find her.

Edward was stroking my hair softly, whispering little words of comfort into my ear. Suddenly, he stopped and turned my head around to face him.

"Bella, listen to me," he said, gripping my face with a determined fire in his eyes. "I'm going to help you find your sister. We can search her up on the military computers or something, but I'm going to help you find her."

I was shocked at this. If I'd hypothesized based on what he was like when I first knew him, I would have guessed that he'd flat-out refuse to let me even try searching for her.

"Why?" I whispered, curious as to why he'd suddenly wanted to help me.

"I feel bad for not telling you earlier, when I first figured it out. I feel bad that you had to go through this, I feel bad that I picked you out from the refugee camp. If I'd left you alone, you wouldn't be put through this. I fractured your ankle, forcefully kissed you twice…I just want to do something to help."

He had literally rendered me speechless. I didn't know that he felt bad for taking me from the camp. I didn't know he felt bad for any of that shit that he inflicted on me. I didn't know that…he cared about me this way.

And I had never known that I cared about him to.

"Edward?" I said, tentatively. If something bad came out of what I was about do, I would never forgive myself.

"Yeah?"

"Kiss me."

He stared at me for a long minute. "God, I thought I'd never hear those words." He crashed his mouth down on mine.

The force of the kiss pushed me backwards onto the couch, and Edward's lean body soon covered mine. His mouth was so soft, so tender…and tasted amazing.

He pulled away and looked at me, his eyes brighter than the sun itself.

"Thank you," he whispered, lifting me up off my back. I immediately cuddled into his chest, not ready to lose the warmth that his body provided.

"For what?"
"For letting me do that. You have no idea how long I've waited."

"A week?"
"How did you know?"

"That's exactly how long its been since you laid eyes on me for the first time." I chuckled.

"Oh. Right."

"Were you serious about helping me find Jane?"

"Of course! Why would I not be?"

I shrugged. "Maybe you just wanted me to kiss you."

"I was as surprised as you when you asked, Bella."

I smiled into his chest – his rock hard chest – and sighed. I was in a pretty happy place right now. His arm snaked around me, pulling me closer into the comfort of his body.

Just for this moment, I could be happy.