HAI! Ok, liar here *points to self * Said it would be sooner than soon but sooner became later. Had to rewrite most of the chap cuz Beta is a smart woman and pushes me till the word doc isn't full of 'duh'. :-) Worked out….I hope? YOU tell me.
I don't own Twilight. I just own a Mini and my FF reading device—iPhone.
|:::::[-]:::i):::| — Look, I made a belt.
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Sound: Evanescence – Bring me to life
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Chapter 9 – Memory
Goosebumps prickles my skin. It's so quiet I only hear myself breathing. But my insides tremble.
I watch the sun brighten my skin. The fine hairs rise to attention as a new surge of cold flows through me. My hair trickles down my back and drips on the bed. I grip the towel folding myself in it. It smells like him, too.
Warmth from the unwavering sun beams rays around me. I stand and follow it hypnotically, closer to the edge on the tall clear window. I sigh.
I don't see anything different from what I saw through the bathroom window. My teeth nip at my lip from the memory. A forest of trees, grass and skies. The day looks inappropriately calm and sunny for what I'm feeling.
My mind drifts to all the events of the day before. The surreal moments like an endless nightmare. I can't escape the doctor's words echoing through my mind like a broken record. My mother…murdered. It can't be true.
I reject it.
My body tells me to run, to find escape… anywhere. The rapid beat of my anxious heart tells me to find the answers. The seeker in my nature wants to dig for proof. But I also want to scream loud enough for someone to hear me and get me out of this glass prison. For Charlie to hear me. He would clear away the lies. He has to.
I have to keep focused and strong. I can't show them fear. I promise myself, standing here, that one way or another, this confusion will be cleared. The demon doctor has the answers. My entire body tenses. I fist an angry tear away.
A slight shift in the room makes me turn. Edward is standing at the door fully dressed with a bundle tucked under his arm. His jades bore into my brown watery stare. I turn away clearing away the stray tears with the towel discreetly.
"Get dressed," he says. His voice lacks the typical sternness. I hear him drop the clothes on the bed. I turn again and he's gone. The door closed.
The clothes are cotton and comfortable. The style isn't something I'd see in a store. The lack of labels tells me they're probably hand made. I pull on the fitted black pants and a loose long shirt touching my upper thighs. The only revealing part is a slit running from my neck over my left collarbone. I slip on slippers that remind me of ninja shoes I've seen in movies as a kid. They're oddly comfortable.
As I'm slipping on the last shoe, the door swings open. He walks in with a tray of food in his hand. He slips it on the bed next to me.
I look at its contents. My stomach rumbles and I realize I didn't eat solid food the whole time I was out. Visions fill my mind of poison killing me.
I look up at him to find any sign of malice over his face. He quietly sits on the chair he brought in last night looking out the window. He's eyes squint against the sun.
"If I wanted to poison you I would've done it long ago. Poison wouldn't be the most creative and indulging way to do it," he says, never looking away from the window. He's read me. Without a doubt.
He reaches for his side and lifts his knife. He picks at his nails with the end looking genuinely bored. His hair is still dark and damp from the bath. His tired eyes didn't wash away. I wonder if it's permanent as I glare from his remark. His eyes cut to mine. I look away scared.
I eat quietly, never looking up at him. Every bite I grow more anxious. I'm famished. With shaky hands I wash down toast, fruit and cinnamon oatmeal with orange juice. Before I can take a deep breath, I've eaten everything in a gulp.
I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand. I freeze.
The silence around me makes me grimace. I look up and he's staring at me. His arms are crossed over the back of the chair, knife mid air in one hand. My teeth find my lip sheepishly.
I look at my hands or at the windows, anywhere but his face. He quietly moves to put his knife away. "I need to talk to Carlisle…or…the Doctor, Dr. Cullen," I stutter.
I fidget looking back at him. I straighten my spine and shake off my nervous hands. I can't show fear. I tell myself in a mantra again and again. "I need to talk to him." I set my jaw and look straight into his eyes.
"Not gonna happen," he responds. I blink.
"But…he said it himself," I protest hesitantly, my brows knit in agitation, "He said if I wanted to talk to…"
"Not today," he interrupts. He stands. Quickly, he reaches my side and pulls me by my elbow. "Come. Alice is waiting."
I try pulling out of his grasp. I go stiff to keep still. "I need to talk to him!" I seethe. He pulls harder. My feet drag on the carpet as he pulls me. I bang a fist on his knuckles with my free hand. "Let go of me!"
He turns abruptly and rattles me by my shoulders. I stagger and blink, bracing myself. "You know well I'm fully loaded. Do you really want to fight me? When I say not today, I mean not today," he snaps pulling me, "Walk."
I comply with a huff. I walk past him towards the door. I feel him reach for my arm again and again. I pull away every time. Finally, he relents to pushing me by the small of my back with a few fingers. My strides double as my feet try to catch up. I've never been obnoxiously handled like siblings fighting and bickering. My teeth grind.
I take in our surroundings with focused eyes as he pushes me around corridors in bright lights. We turn a corner in the maze of walls and double doors appear at the far end. The doors are metal and heavy. Bolts secure it from intruders. A tall woman appears from another corridor in a stiff sleek white uniform. Her soft blonde locks cascade over the back in contrast. She balances a tray in one hand and opens a door with the other.
My eyes strain to see what or who is inside. Dr. Cullen sits behind a large desk in a dark room, his face lit from a near by lamp. Bingo.
I memorize and count corners to remember my way back as Edward pushes me out of sight. I have to find his office again.
We arrive at familiar doors. I walk in to a clean lab—no sign of the havoc I've caused the day before. Alice stands by an occupied bed. A man lies pale and lifeless connected to spider-like wires. Her face doesn't show the impersonal mask a doctor wears for a patient. She cares. She hides her hand holding his under the crisp white sheets. She looks up startled at our presence and pulls away.
"Isabella," she calls to me with a warm grin. Her heels click on the shiny floor as she walks around the bed and comes closer. "How are you feeling?" I blink as her hand comes up to check the temperature of my forehead. Her touch is feathery and warm—a relief compared the harshness still lingering on my lower back. I nod slightly.
"I'm ok," I whisper, surprised at her kindness. Edward leads me to a bed across from her patient. Quickly, Alice reaches for my arms, lifting the sleeves to examine every inch of me. She moves to my face, her warm palm sooths the worry wrinkles on my forehead.
Edward tenses, still standing by my side as her fingers graze my jaw and chin. I watch her eyes and see no indication of a discovery. I think Edward sighs in relief. He smothers his face with a hand as he walks away to pace. A bubble of amusement crawls in my stomach. It quickly sobers when his icy stare finds my eyes. I look away.
Alice freezes on my ankle. I wince.
"Masen!" she calls behind her infuriated. He's gone. She sighs looking back at me.
"It wasn't…" I don't know why I begin a lie.
"Don't you dare. I gave him specific orders." She snaps interrupting me.
"I tried to escape." It wasn't a lie. She watches me for a moment and looks away without saying a word.
I sit still as she checks my vitals. The beeps of a machine across from us fills the awkward silence.
"Is…he going to be ok?" I ask looking over at her patient. He's handsome even in his state. Dirty blonde hair, lean body and firm features. His built looks militant and strong even under the large patches of gauze covering his torso. He intimidates me…unconscious. I imagine what his story is…If he's like me.
Alice's shoulders drop. Her worry and sadness radiates even through her touch. "He's stable," she says plainly.
I don't want to press, but as I watch her for a moment, she looks his way one too many times. Something about her melts the fear and anxiety in me. Something tells me she's the person to trust in a batch of all bad apples. But I need assurance.
The velcro and strap to the blood pressure monitor tightens around my upper arm. She continues pumping the small balloon in her hand. She doesn't elaborate. "What's his story?" I ask. My question stops her movement and looks up at me from her gaze on him. "Does he know he's here or was he also taken?"
At my words I watch her wince. The corners of her mouth slightly dip in a frown when her lips press in a line. She looks at anything but my face. I wait.
She sighs. "Isabella…"
"Bella," I say interrupting, "Please, call me Bella. I mean…I'm here for god knows how long, right? Might as well drop the formalities. Get to know each other. Girl talk. Bond, even."
She blinks in shock.
"I need to talk to that Doctor. Can you do that?" I say to her increasingly narrowing eyes. Her spine straightens and suddenly her face hardens. The intimidating Alice I first set eyes on comes forth.
"No today," she says turning away.
"Then when?" I shout leaning towards her. She looks up to her patient as a machine beeps abnormally.
"He's been through more than a human should ever be forced to go through," she says about him, clearly ignoring me. I hold back a frustrated grunt. My fists clench. "Far from what you're going through. Compared to him, you're lucky."
My eyes narrow in anger. Lucky.
"And no, he wasn't taken, like you. He was saved, like you," she says finishing as she continues with my arm.
"Saved?" I ask, a brief humorless chuckle escapes me. "Or kidnapped?" Her lips go pale with anger.
"We were all saved, Bella. Every one of us." She walks away to search a metal tray. I don't respond trying to process what she said. Who's us?
"What do you mean?" I finally relent.
"Him, you, Edward, Emmett, Rose, myself. All of us." She shrugs. "We all needed to be saved. And now we're here…safe. You're safe, Bella." She looks at me. Bliss in her expression. Is she insane?
"I'm safe? There is nothing safe about this…" I spread my arms. Hot blood pluses up my neck. I fume. "Where the hell am I? WHY AM I HERE?"
My shouts reach the corridors forcing Edward to barge in through the doors. My chest constricts. I find Alice's hands on my shoulders trying to calm me. The urge to repeat the chaos of yesterday itches my shaking hands. I snatch my arms out of Alice's grasp. She turns to send Edward a warning glare until he leaves.
"Yes. You're safe, Bella! You didn't die. They didn't take you!" Her hands hover over my shoulders.
"If I'm safe, then don't treat me like a prisoner!" I hiss.
"Stop trying to escape!" she hisses back.
We stare each other down before she turns away again. I blink.
"Wouldn't you?" I ask after tense silence. "Wouldn't you try to find your way out? One moment I'm normal. One day I'm living happily and then the next… I wake up here," I pause to look into her softening eyes. "I want my life back. I want my mother back." My hold back the lump building at my throat.
Alice keeps silent. Her brows knitted in sympathy. "I need to know, Alice. Why am I here?" I manage to choke out in a plea.
She shakes her head slowly. "I don't know. But we have to keep you alive….safe."
"Does he know the truth?" She knows I'm referring to the doctor.
"He only gave us orders to keep an eye on you. We do what he says. No questions asked. You don't fight with Carlisle. Not him." She focuses on the wall behind me in thought. "He's…dangerous." Even in her strong features I see fear when she uttered the words.
She pulls up my shirt exposing my stomach. Her fingers find my ribs and poke examining.
"Then why do you put up with him?" I'm curious. "You're free," I state. She chuckles.
"No. We're all family. I'd never betray him. And there's no other place I belong. Like I said…he saved us."
"He doesn't own your life."
"No, but he created it," she responds without a thought.
I shake my head in confusion.
"I would know how dangerous he is, Bella because he's my father." She doesn't look at me as she says this. It's not an issue.
But her fear shows. Fear of her own blood.
She removes the gauze on my neck and her demeanor changes to anger. I can't help it. "And him?" I ask speaking of the one in question. Visions of his bare skin and dark scar bring only questions. I'm hassled to know what makes him tick…what happened. I hold my breath for her response.
"Him," she pauses. Her eyes shift to mine from her position. Grim. "Not to be toyed with. Worse. Do as he says." She looks away without another word.
My heart picks up. Suddenly, I can't breathe right. She didn't elaborate and I'm sure for a reason. Worse… than the doctor?
"He seems to fear you…" I whisper. Threatening him with mentioning her name had to mean something earlier.
She shakes her head in assurance. "I'm the daughter," she says as a way of explanation.
Oh.
"Carlisle takes his every word with immense weight. He's an extension of his right arm. I wouldn't be able to say who fears whom exactly. Carlisle seems to lose the battle at times." She stops herself and straightens. Her face mortified from revealing too much. "Don't…repeat that. Ever."
I nod once. I can't respond. My heart is in my throat. And I toyed with him. I keep my mouth shut about the bathroom incident. No way I'll repeat that either. Ever. My face goes crimson red.
"What…" I cower instantly, my thoughts freeze. Alice holds a long syringe, clear liquid floats in a cylinder.
"It's a must. Turn around and keep still," she says casually. My eyes roll back to my head instantly. The fear of needles threatened me since young. I shake my head. Her lips tighten in a line.
"I'll call him in and you'll regret it," she says in a bored tone.
I jump off the bed and turn as fast as my shaking legs let me. Fuck no. I think I hear her snicker.
"What is it?" I have to ask after a moment.
"Cocktail. Antibiotics, pain killer, hormones for balance…" she trails off.
"Why?"
"You almost died, Bella. You need help." I nod understanding. I yelp from the prick on my cheek.
"Hormones?" I ask after the pain subsides. I taste blood off my lip from my nipping.
"Very important. It gives you strength, aligns your system, nerves, protects reproductive organs, menstrual cycle."
I nod.
"You… fractured your pelvis. Amongst other things," she adds. I gasp.
"What other things?" My eyes wide.
"Ribs, ankle, wrist, dislocated arm, internal bleeding, skull…" Oh god. I stare at her in disbelief. I can't speak.
"Thank you," I whisper. A tear escapes. She shrugs.
"Like I said… lucky."
I can't swallow. How did I heal so fast?
I sit watching Alice move around the lab gracefully. I glance a few times over the unconscious man and wonder how he'd react when he wakes up and finds he's been in a strange place…healing from whatever almost broke his life.
My thoughts are interrupted, as my tongue grows heavy. It presses to the roof of my mouth. I taste metal. My mouth goes dry and like a flash, I'm transported back in time. De ja vu. The shot rushes through my blood stream.
I close my eyes, dwelling in a sphere of tingles running through me. I shiver. I rub my eyes attempting to clear away the fuzziness. I've felt like this before. I remember the feeling like a clipped dream. My mind struggles to skim through that moment. When was it?
Like snapshots, flashes of my mother's hands appear behind my eyelids again. My dream from this morning. I press a palm on my forehead and lean an elbow on my knee. What was it? I can't recall.
The taste of metal intensifies in my taste buds. I vaguely notice Alice across the room, shuffling through files.I give in to my slouched spine and slip over the metal bed, my elbow over my eyes. My breathing constricts. Weight presses over my chest.
"Dizzy?" Alice asks moving to my side. I nod unable to respond. She sounds far away. "Keep still. It'll pass." She pats my leg as her voice echoes through my ears. I try to move—anything to alarm her. This is too intense.
I whimper. The weight deepens. Flash after flash of images reveals more. My mother's hands are soft and protective, holding mine. Suddenly, they tighten. I felt the panic in her hands in my dream, I remember. I heard cries of a child. Did I? I feel like I'm floating in a hazy fog. I can't feel the bed beneath me. I can't feel my limbs. Sleep threatens to take over. I fight it away inhaling gulps of air through my parted lips. I try and focus but the brightness behind my lids blurs the vision.
"Bella?" Alice calls in echoes from miles away. "Sleep." I don't want to sleep! I want to yell. I'm trashing, kicking my legs and arms to awake. But I'm not moving.
"Bella, hunny?" my mother calls.
I gasp.
I open my eyes to find her voice. I'm not in the lab. Brightness blinds me. "Keep still, ok?" I hear her again. I look up and I'm holding her hand. Mine is small in hers. I'm a girl again. My cheeks feel wet. My throat aches. I'm crying. "You're so brave, my Bella." Something is wrong but her voice sooths me. I feel myself hiccupping as I let her voice calm me. I can't see her face.
I look up. A silhouette of a man is in front of me. I travel my eyes from his chest to his face. My hand grips my mother's tighter in fright. I feel leaks of new tears traveling down my cheeks. In his hand he holds a syringe. He laughs.
My blood runs cold. I know this laugh.
I strain my neck to look above me as he towers over me. The needle is getting closer. I blink. The white cotton dress covering my lap is red—speckles of blood. My screams reach my ears. My mother is still by my side. She doesn't fight away the needle.
I look up to his eyes. They're ice blue. His eyes wrinkle at the corners. His platinum blond hair is parted to the side in a slick mound. He looks too kind for his fearsome laugh. It penetrates my chest in waves. Anger flows through me.
His white coat swivels as he comes closer, bringing the needle with every inch. "He won't let it hurt, hunny. Just close your eyes," my mother assures me from above. He laughs again. But I trust her. My eyes flicker closed. I sniffle and tense, knowing it's coming. The prick jolts me. I scream. The coos from my mother reach my ears. I open my eyes watching the pattern of speckled blood on my dress. He speaks but I can't understand him. I follow his hand reaching for his breast pocket. My eyes widen at the sounds of a candy wrapper.
His fingers linger in his pocket. I lean in closer, anticipating my reward. His finger covers black letters stitched into the fabric of his pocket. I focus on the curvy stitched capital 'C'…waiting. He finally pulls out a red lollipop. Without hesitating, I let go of my mother's hand to reach for it. I smile despite my hiccuping. I wipe my wet cheek with the back of my hand. "Bella, hunny, Say thank you to Dr. Cullen," she says, her hands on my shoulders, "Go on…" she presses. I look up at him.
Fear.
His eyes darken. Dr. Cullen.
I jolt awake. Screaming sounds sobers my dizzied slumber.
A monitor with wires attached to Alice's patient crashes. I look up to see Alice running towards the noise. In a blink of an eye she's beside him. I watch blurry-eyed as the man convulses off the bed. The cacophony of noise fills the lab and its high ceilings. Alice hovers over his body holding him down.
I rub my eyes. My back aches feeling like I've been laying here for hours. I watched Alice struggle. But my mind is still foggy. Dr. Cullen. My brain relives what I've seen. It felt so real. My staggered breaths accelerate. Something deep inside tells me it was. Did she really know Carlisle? How?
At the sight of a needle, my stomach turns with a crippling feeling without failing. I felt this way in the dream. I instantly wonder if this was the source of my phobia. But what I need to know with urgency is what was in the shot my mother allowed him to give me. She didn't fight it. She allowed it. Why?
My stomach churns as I look around. Realization hits me with coiling muscles.
I'm alone.
A set of intimidating metal doors I saw earlier pops into my mind. Do I dare to find it?
I climb off the bed slowly hoping Alice won't notice. I tiptoe to the middle of the lab, the door just a few feet away. I look back at Alice and she's still struggling.
Go. My feet shuffle over the shiny floors. My heart in my throat. I find the glass divider I hid behind yesterday where needles crashed into. I grip the door handle behind it. I stop. Edward must be out there…waiting. Damn it.
I look back and Alice is elbow deep in wires and tubes. Her face focused and scared. Her hands never cease to weaken in her haste. What do I do?
Murdered. She was murdered.
The doctor's words pierce into my thoughts. My hold on the handle tightens. Curiosity builds with each thump of my heart. Answers. I need answers.
I dismiss the guilt of leaving Alice to struggle on her own and turn the handle. The door cracks open. Brightness seeps through a slit. I blink. I focus my eyes to an empty corridor. I inch the door wider. No one.
My heart leaps with relief as I stick out my head through the crack and scan the area. The guarded area is abandoned. My back thrashes against the wall once I slip through, closing the door softly behind me. My steps mimic my quickening heartbeats as I run down the path I remember.
Left…right…another right.
Every light fixture, walls, lines through the corridors look alike. I glance behind me. Anxiety. I run faster. My shoes clutch to the shiny floors and to my relief keep silent. Not a sound echoes around me besides my own breathing.
Right…right…another right. I stop.
Footsteps. Oh god.
My back is against the wall before I even know where to look. I don't know where it's coming from. It's far still, slowly getting closer. I hold my breath. I try to concentrate on the distance, estimating their proximity. I try to calm my pulse in my ears to listen closely. My palms find the wall behind me, pressing over a seam.
Left. I turn my head instantly. They're coming close. A woman. Her heels hit the floor. As if an escape would appear, I look around me frantically. There's nothing to hide behind. I run forward to a near turn. I slowly peak around the bend and keep running when I see no one.
Shit, I lost track. I'm panting as I look around me. Was it a left… or a right?
My senses are screaming to keep running, but my hands find the wall again. I remember Alice coming from a hidden door yesterday. There must be more. I slide along the wall pushing against it, pressing my fist on each seam I pass. I hear the footsteps are around the bend.
Please, please, open!
I start, practically leaping off my feet. Loud clatter hits the floor. "Motherfucker!" I hear her voice clearly. I look, following something clear and round roll down across the corridor's floor. Pills bounce to opposite directions in various colors. She's still out of view around the corner.
I turn. Running, I try and reach the end of the wall, my right hand slides over it supporting me as I turn to look over my shoulder.
I almost yelp. My knees lock slightly as I'm startled again. My arms reach to cover my head in a crouch. An angry growl reaches my ears from behind me followed by metal hitting the wall. I look to see a tray bouncing off the floor as it rattles to a steady stop. Her heels stomp around as she bends to pick up the mess. I see her shadow across the wall, tall and thin.
It gets smaller and smaller as she get closer to the bend. I freeze. Instantly, her arm is in view. She bends to pick up more stray pieces. If she comes any further, she will see me. I shuffle my feet one behind the other trying not to make big movements.
I'm falling.
I hold back a grunt when I trip over my foot. My hands reach out to brace myself against the wall. It opens. I fall deeper into a dark slit through a seamless door. I wince as my chest and face hits the hard floor.
I glance back sure that she heard me. My alarming eyes watch as she continues moving. A gush of breath escapes my throat with relief.
I turn and crawl as fast as I can through the door. I hide looking out through a slit. My heart eases from its frantic beating. I'm safe… but now I have to wait. My shoulders drop as I lean my head back against the wall beside the door. I look around the dark room. My eyes adjust over boxes stacked on top of each other—a storage room.
She's walking closer. I see her hand fumbling to gather everything within the edges of the tray in frustration. To my relief she's looking down. My fingers shake trying to make the open seam invisible. I keeping my thumb form closing it fully, hoping it won't lock me in.
Her heels stop as another clank of plastic hits the floor and bounces off the door. My breath hitches. My hand shifts against the door being pushed. I shift my body and frantically fight to keep it closed. I hear a grunt as she bends down to get the stray object while balancing herself against the loose door. And It had to happen right here!
I silently pray she won't push further. She let's go. I let go of a held breath slumping to the floor. I listen to her heels fading away frozen in place. Angry mumbles echo behind in her wake.
I sit up with seeping anxiety. By this time, Alice should already know I'm absent. They must be looking for me. He must be looking for me. My blood runs cold. I silently wonder how I'll distract Edward this time from cutting my fingers off.
I slip out when the coast is clear. My heart seems to pick up right where it left off. My guess is I have to follow wherever she came from. I creep back to the bend, the abandoned pills crunch under my shoes.
Left… next right.
Like a mirage in a desert, I face the shiny doors with tremor. Relief soars through me with accomplishment. It quickly dissipates when I realize the hard part is yet to come.
I look around for any new obstacle or stranger. I don't hear a sound. Nothing moves behind the doors. The walls around are clear from any surveillance, yet I feel I'm being watched.
Electricity charges through my fingers, up my arm, the moment I touch the handle. I freeze. Beads of sweat run down my nape. I hold my breath as I take a last peak behind me. The sharp corners of every corridor mock me with visions of Edward appearing. I bite down on my lip.
I turn. I hear a faint sound from behind the door. He's in there. I press my ear to the cool metal.
Not today. Their warnings flood my mind—tantalizing whispers of danger.
I came this far. I can't go back.
I push.
Red carpeted floors. Black walls and shelved books. The room is peculiar. The door is heavy. I push harder. A shadow of a man's head and shoulders bathes the carpet below in crimson. A dim lamp lights the space in a glow. I stop.
I see the lamp set on the desk. A tall, dark and solid desk sits in the middle of the room. My hands shake. I don't think I have the strength to push further. I'm watching through a slit from the parted door and he doesn't move.
The same eerie feeling from my dream crawls through my limbs. This doesn't feel right. I look behind me. Nothing. I can't breathe.
I welcome it, as I'm sure the sounds of my staggered breaths are too loud. I stand very still…and wait.
I wait. And I wait.
He doesn't move an inch.
With furrowed brows my hands find the handle again. Curiosity strikes bravery. I push. My eyes witness a slow reveal of more desk. My movements cease the moment I spot a pair of woman's shoes peeking from the side. The heels are tall—the soles match the carpet. Their black satin fabric contrasts with the red tendrils that make the floor. I hitch a choked breath the moment I realized they're cradling a woman's slender feet.
They don't move. Nothing makes a sound.
I want to turn back.
Sweat runs over my forehead now. I reach to wipe a bead away with a clammy hand. I look back. Still nothing. My prison under Edward's watch is beginning to look appealing. At this very moment, every bone in my body pleads to be far away from here.
Her toes move. I blink.
Her red polished nails shift slightly in her shoes. I almost missed it. My hands find the handle again. What is going on? My mind runs to find a reason for this. She's dying. He's killing her.
I carefully take a step in. His shadow moves. I freeze.
His shadowed arm lifts from behind the desk. The shadow of a gun is nestled in his hand. He cocks it.
I gasp.
Silence shatters. Loud pops ricochets around me. I turn for cover. The door becomes a shield. Run. The sound is earsplitting. I reach to cover them.
Pain.
I grunt. My legs grow weak instantly. My arm numb. I stagger, crashing into the doorframe. I feel the hard floor before I can catch my fall. Pops and pops of bullets rush above me. I hear them slicing through the air and the thick metal doors.
I try to stand. I have to move. My hand reaches for my arm with a scream. I hear my own voice echo through the walls of every corridor. He hit me.
I look down at blood coating my palm. He doesn't stop. The angry shrills repeat with every shot.
I lift to my knees and crawl before I crash down again. The pain shoots up through my chest and neck. I can't move. I chance a look beyond the maze of corridors. I scream until it reaches them…anyone—not caring anymore. I drag my body with an elbow.
I hear running footsteps. My heart lurches. I look up to see down a corridor metal gleaming from his hand. His dark familiar clothes rustles against his torso with the speed of his charging legs.
"Carlisle!" Edward screams. He's running towards the gunfire. I reach a hand out in warning, but it's too late. He's falling.
I gasp watching his thigh and hip slide over the shiny floor towards me. I blink and he's beside me. He breaks his speed with a kick to the shielding door. It swings open. At once, he's over me, crushing my chest to the ground. He shoots.
One single shot. The gunfire stops.
A mist of smoke clears slowly as time stretches. "Fuck," he murmurs above me breaking the silence. The weight of his chest is still on my back, struggling to catch a breath. The floor beneath me is cold but his chest is warm. His hand gripping his deadly piece slaps against the floor by my wounded arm. The pain is like I've never felt before. Sharp burning. I whimper watching my blood spreading towards his hand. I'm dizzy again. A haze covers my eyes as I see blurred red inch closer to him thumb. The hair at my temple moves with his staggered huffs.
Regret. Shame. I grimace. My forehead presses to the floor. He could've been hit…because of me. I'm betting he saved me to kill me himself.
With a growl, he stands. I flinch. His occupied hand shifts with the effort and disappears from my line of sight. I lift my head to look back.
The doctor is still sitting behind his desk—an amused expression playing over his lips.
He laughs.
The soaring howl coming from him makes his body slouch around his broad leather chair. With a choked "Oops", the demented doctor sets off into a fit again. His fist bangs on the desktop.
Edward is beyond enraged.
I look down to see the doctor's gun by the woman's shoes. Edward must've shot it out of his hand. I look up to see the shoes disappear before a woman materializes at the doctor's side. She smoothes wrinkles from her skirt with manicured hands. She stands tall and lean with fiery red locks—dark blue irises coldly stare. Carlisle sags his head on her hip as he tries to sober. His arm snakes around her waist. She wipes her red lips clean with a grin.
Edward grips his gun at his side with white knuckles. I spot a speckle of my blood running down his thumb.
"I told you there was someone there," the doctor says looking up at her. She snickers with hand on her waist, the other stroking his hair and neck. "Ah, what a wonderful surprise. Don't you think?" He smiles motioning towards me.
I struggle to my knees managing to lean against the doorframe. I hold back the screech from the searing pain pressing my lips together. Shuddered whimpers escape my throat. I want to cower away from the staring couple. I glance through Edward's parted legs above me before I turn away. Betraying tears streaks my sweat stained face.
"Aw, forgive me darling. I didn't…"
"Call Alice," Edward demands cutting him off.
"Oh, it's just a scratch," Carlisle argues with a dismissive hand. "She's fi…"
"Call her!" Edward is frozen in place not attempting to move a centimeter. I look up at him in disbelief. He's talking back.
I look up in time to see Carlisle's face loose every ounce of humor over it. His eyes darken.
My instinct is to crawl behind the door. The woman stands unphased.
He reaches with one finger on his desk and presses a button never breaking eye contact. The tension is palpable.
"Edward, meet Jelena." He motions with a hand towards her. "I've told her so much about you." A crooked grin creeps up his lips ignoring their heated exchange. The woman nods with sly smile eyeing him from head to toe. Edward doesn't respond.
"She came for business…" He pauses, pressing his lips together to hold back a laugh. Jelena nudges him playfully. "I'm still not finished with our…meeting. I gave specific orders not to disturb me today. Didn't I?" Edwards stiffens and finally looks away.
I try and listen but I'm growing weaker. My eyes flutter with dizzy focus. My breathing accelerates. I palm my numb arm fighting the fatigue. I can't black out. Not here. I hear him speak of her but I can't make out what he's saying.
My eyes roll to the back of my head. I groan aloud. The pain is eating at my every limb. The burning grows hotter. Suddenly I can't breath. "I take full responsibility," Edward murmurs above me.
"Oh, I know. And you'll pay," Carlisle responds. The threat to his voice is back again. He's not laughing anymore. I hear them faintly as I'm slipping further down the doorframe. I can't hold back the sounds I'm making as my throat closes. Instinctively, I lift my palm to my throat. I'm choking. Panic.
My good arm flays around me trying to will oxygen into my lungs. Oh god. I try to word aloud a pleading help but nothing comes out. I'm on the floor where I can see her in her red outfit staring down at me with a grin. The men are too engrossed in their own glares they don't notice hers on me.
My hand connects with Edward's ankle. I pull his pant leg. My nails scratch the denim in a death grip. He cuts his eyes down to mine. They darken under furrowed brows. He looks up to Carlisle. His eyes fill with panic. "Your round was laced," he states without a question. His arms tense under his shirt.
"Hm, might've been." The doctor responds with a detached tone.
I watch him bend over me through watery eyes. "Damn it, Carlisle," he hisses. My body curls. I'm lifted off the ground.
"Leave her!" Carlisle shouts. Edward stops. Silence swallows up the echo of his order through the corridors. The tension stretches in a heavy pause.
I stare through half lidded eyes at his stubbled jaw. It tightens. His lips are grim in a line as he side glances the doctor with flared nostrils. I'm slumped back on the cold floor. I whimper in a strangled plea.
My face feels like all the blood has drained from it. The little air I can pull from my lips slips uneasily. My lungs are burning. Edward doesn't move away as he stiffly straightens to face him. I lie facing the ceiling, partly over his left shoe were he placed me. He looms above with trembling fists as white as paper. His chest heaves.
"I haven't dismissed you," the doctor says calmly. His leather chair creaks as he shifts. I can't see what he's doing. My attention is growing as narrow as my windpipe.
"Jelena here has information on our lieutenant. He's butting in too much and getting too close. He'll go through any possible way to get her back." He audibly sighs. I'm thrashing my legs as I snake around over the floor. Everyone seems to be watching me struggle silently. He doesn't say a word for a moment.
I heard lieutenant. I know I heard him say it. My eyes widen as my hand grips Edwards leg again—scratching at his shin. He doesn't flinch. Everything about him seems calm and collected, only his hands uncurl and tighten with an anxious twitch.
Not Charlie! I want to scream.
"Go snoop a bit. Eliminate the source feeding into his plans, please. I'm getting a bit tired." He finishes with a sigh. His chair protests again. I turn my head with all my strength to catch a glimpse of him. He's watching me. A hand is cradling his chin. His eyes full of sympathy.
Anger heats the burning in me to a flame. I would kill him.
He looks up at Edward with knitted brows as if realization hits him. "Well hurry, she only has seconds," he snaps with an incredulous wave my way.
Edward lifts me off the floor in a rush. He's running. My head falls back as I strain to keep my eyes locked on the grinning doctor's face. His office grows smaller and smaller with the distance. A wall obstructs his piercing Icy blue glare as he blows a kiss goodbye.
—•—•—•
A/N: How will Edward punish Bella for disobeying?
Next chap, when inspiration hits me in the forehead. Cross your fingers for me! (LOL, that's reassuring, huh? No, I'm ok.) ILU all for your reviews! I see you adding! thanks!