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Bella
"Relax your legs." Carlisle said gently to her, and she slowly did. I reached around her and ran my fingers through her hair comfortingly as Carlisle pulled down her panties and repositioned her so that he could examine her.
I felt terrible for it but at one point throughout the examination, I had had to hold her down so that he could finish.
"It's over, it's over." I coaxed, pulling her into my arms as she cried. Carlisle stood, staring down at us sadly,
"Is she alright?" I asked, desperately and he nodded,
"She should be…Physically anyways. I still need to talk to you though." I swallowed, and nodded, "It can wait until tomorrow, though." He finished, and smiled down at me before walking towards the door.
"Do you want me to get Edward?"
I smiled and nodded, "Please do."
Bella
I bit my lip as Edward and I tucked Natalie into bed. She was exhausted, for obvious reasons, and she fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. I turned and faced Edward as soon as Natalie was tucked beneath the covers. He pulled me into his arms immediately, and I buried my face in his chest.
"You scared the hell out of me, Bella." He said, softly. If tears could have filled my eyes, they would have.
"I'm sorry." I whispered.
He sighed, "I know you are."
I gasped as he picked me up suddenly and carried me over to a chair in the corner of the room. He sat down and held me in his lap, and I didn't argue, as I lay my head against his chest.
"I saw the way you looked at that…man earlier." He said quietly, and I tensed. He rubbed my arm, comfortingly.
"Anyone with a heart, Bella, would feel remorse."
"I don't." I lied.
"Yes." He said, "You do."
I frowned up at him,
"How do you do that?" I asked. He seemed confused for a moment,
"You say you can't read my mind, but yet, it seems like you know what I'm thinking all the time…"
He smiled, "You're just easy to read. For me anyways."
I laughed quietly, "I'll have to work on that."
"It won't work."
I sighed, relaxing against him, instead.
"You know…" He said in my ear, and I fought the urge to shiver the way I used to, "You're in trouble with Carlisle."
Definitely. I heard Carlisle from the room across the hall, and I swallowed,
"Uh oh."
Edward wrapped his arms around me, and kissed my head, and I smiled, then the memory of Michael hit me again,
"Michael said that I was just like him, because I killed him." I whispered, and yelped as Edward grabbed me and turned me around on his lap so that I was straddling him, facing him. I looked away, and he grabbed my chin, turning it back, so that I was looking him in the eyes,
"Do you see what he did here, today?" He asked, his voice, low. I looked over to Natalie and nodded. He reached between my legs and cupped my sex through my jeans, I would have blushed if I could have.
"Do you see what he did to you?"
I wilted slightly, "Yea…"
"Have you ever hurt another person like that?" He asked, and I smiled,
"Well, I technically don't have the parts…"
"Bella." He said and I groaned and lay my head against his shoulder,
"I've hurt one person as bad as that."
"One person who tried to rape a seven year girl, raped you, and sold you to sadistic bastards who nearly killed you, not to mention he hooked you on drugs and pushed you to suicide…"
"Edward please stop…" I begged,
"All those other women in that house Bella. He beat you down, probably with words would be my guess, he hit you, hurt you…"
A sob shook me and I leaned down, putting my head to his shoulder, and cried, knowing that he spoke the truth.
"He did horrible things to you, Bella." Edward said softly,
"You shouldn't feel even an ounce of regret."
I nodded against his shoulder and he simply held me as I cried.
"I love you Isabelle Swan."
"But after what he did-" I whispered, acknowledging my deepest fear, "After those guys…the way they touched me…what they did to me-"
Edward growled low in his throat, "I don't care about that, you're still perfect to me. Still mine."
I smiled against his shoulder, thinking about how I should have protested him calling me, his. But to be completely honest, it didn't bother me even a little bit.
"What about Natalie?" I whispered.
We'll look into it, Bella. I heard Carlisle, If we can't find her parents…we'll take her in.
I sat straight up, "Really?!" I asked like an excited child. I heard him laugh, Yes. And when she gets older, we'll let her go.
I practically clapped my hands with joy, and Edward smiled at my obvious excitement.
Edward and I walked down to the lobby with Carlisle as Rosalie and Emmett baby-sat Natalie who was swimming happily in the pool.
"I looked into her past." Carlisle breathed and my eyes widened,
"And?"
Carlisle looked down for a moment, "Those bastards" I was shocked at his language, "They stole her from a car accident, which I don't doubt they caused. Her parents died instantly. She's an orphan. She had a sister who was four at the time, but her she was put in a foster home."
I froze…My God. I knew the men that had taken me could be cruel and unusual… But to cause a car accident and kill two people? To have possibly killed a seven year old girl, not to mention her four year old sister? That was an all-new kind of low
Carlisle nodded, seeing our faces,
"Carlisle, please… We can't put her in the system."
"We won't." He promised, "She's been through enough. We'll raise her. But keeping our secret from her will be difficult. It may even be impossible."
"She's a smart girl." Edward said, "I don't think she would say anything, if we asked her not too if she starts noticing things."
I nodded, agreeing.
Carlisle looked towards the pool, "She really is a sweet girl." He said, laughing as Natalie splashed Emmett. "Well, mostly."
Emmett looked towards me, "She's your child." He said and I covered my mouth, laughing.
Natalie looked towards me and waved through the glass wall, smiling the biggest smile, I'd seen on her, and I waved back,
My child…
"Natalie… I said, as I dried her of after her bath. She looked up at me,
I knelt in front of her, "Natalie, how would you like to stay with us?"
Her eyes widened,
"Really!?"
I smiled, "Yep. We'd love to have you."
Natalie's face fell for a moment, "Will you be my mommy?" She whispered, and I stilled, "I know mine died in that accident….They told me." She looked at me hopefully,
I nodded slowly, "Of course."
She squealed and jumped into my arms, and I laughed, picking her up. I walked out into the hotel room, and lay her on the bed, picking out a dress that Alice had bought her. I turned, holding it up, It was a light blue shirt attached to a plaid blue and black skirt,
"What do you think of this one for tomorrow?" I asked, and Natalie squealed,
"Yes!"
I laughed, "You and Alice are going to get along perfectly."
I picked out her pajamas and dressed her, then Edward walked in as I sat her on my lap and began brushing her hair.
"Momma?" Natalie asked, I paused, only for a moment, and Edward's eyes widened.
"Yes?" I murmured after a second,
"Is he my daddy?" She asked.
I smiled and looked up to Edward,
"Yes."
Natalie giggled, drumming her feet against my legs as Edward knelt in front of her,
"Is that alright with you?" He asked and Natalie nodded,
"Yep," she said, and he caught her as she fell into his arms.
He smiled up at me, and I grinned at the happiness in his eyes, I couldn't believe that this was happening. When I'd become a vampire, I'd lost all hope that I could ever have a child, that I would be able to be a mother…but yet, here I was. I could hear the others, and practically feel their excitement at the idea of being able to raise Natalie to the beautiful young woman, I knew she would be.
Edward lifted her and spun her around and she squealed happily, and that night…
She fell asleep, between us, in our arms, and for once, I understood the appeal that Edward had when he used to watch me sleep…
She looked so young, so innocent, it was almost possible to imagine that she hadn't experienced all the terrible things that she had.
But I knew from the strength that I'd already seen in her, that…
She would make it. And even if she didn't, we would be by her side the whole way.
THE END.
Sorry guys, I know it's a short chapter, but there wasn't much needed to tie up the story-line. I hope you still enjoyed it though!(: Please review and let me know what you thought!