Charlie... my own father... had just tried to end my life in a hospital full of people.

"Isabella!" his voice sent a chill down my spine as it echoed through the hallway and up into my bedroom. I knew instantly that I was going to be in even more trouble now. Jumping up and off of my bed I tripped running across the floor in my attempts to get downstairs quickly enough.

Of course I was still not quite fast enough. Charlie's boots were already stomping up the stairs, thundering as each step pounded the poor wooden floorboards.

"I'm sorry Char... I mean Dad." I had just pushed myself up and was on my way towards the stairs, knowing that he was expecting his dinner to be out and waiting for him. "I... I fell asleep... I didn't mean... I'll get your dinner..." I had squeezed passed him, surprised when he had let me pass by and move down the steps. I was three stairs from the bottom when I felt it, hard against my back, sending me tumbling the rest of the way down, landing hard on the floor beside the door.

"I told you Isabella, that I expect my dinner to be waiting when I walk in that door." I was so tired but I tried to get up again, pushing myself up to my knees as I felt him approach me, not able to get all the way up again before my back was pressed down by his boot. "I'm sorry Charlie, it's ready, it's in the slow cooker. I just need to plate it." I was trying my hardest not to give him the satisfaction of seeing me cry as I spoke, but the cracking in my voice still managed to give away my fear.

I was right to feel afraid as I heard him grunt and suddenly I was flipped over when he grabbed my ankle, dragging my body roughly as he backed up the stairs, my body unable to do anything as it thumped against each step.

"I was driving by the school today Isabella... saw you as you were getting out of your truck and what did I find?" I tried to think back to what it could have been that upset him so much but my mind was blank as each step caused my head to pound. "I found you walking with one of those damn Cullen kids that I warned you to stay away from." I was too sore to try and answer, to try and explain that it wasn't my fault, that Alice just kept hanging around me.

Charlie's grip slipped then and I felt my body fall, unable to do anything as I tumbled backwards down the stairs, twisting and rolling to the bottom, my body aching when it finally landed.

"I don't like those Cullens. Too nosy. And since I already warned you once to stay away from them... this time I think I need to teach you a lesson about respect and obedience." he huffed as he grabbed my ankles again and started back up the stairs.

Charlie was heaving with the effort of dragging my body by the time we reached the top and I was surprised when he continued down the hall and into his room instead of turning into my own.

"Get up," he grunted between breaths and dropped me to the floor in his room. Struggling through the dizziness to obey him I pushed myself up and tried to lean against the wall to keep myself upright, knowing that if I didn't it would only be even worse for me.

"I'll teach you not to go against my rules," he muttered once he had regained his breath and as he reached for me I instinctively cringed back... something that I should have known better than to do.

I didn't have time to apologize for my action, Charlie's anger bubbled over and his face turned crimson as he grabbed my arms and I felt the bruises beginning to form before he tossed me into the wall face first, twisting my arms roughly behind my back.

I felt the cold metal bracelets as they wrapped around my wrists so tightly I knew that if I had to wear them for long I would lose feeling in my hands. Once he had them in position he yanked me to him by the chain and I felt my body begin to fall, my footing slipping as he pulled me back down the hall and towards my own bedroom.

I had no idea what he had planned as he pulled me along and I struggled to keep up. My imagination was running wild with ideas about what he would do, but I certainly wasn't expecting him to slip, for his body to fall sideways and pull me with him. And I definitely wasn't expecting him to let go, allowing my body to hit the banister, flipping over the top, sending me tumbling through the air, struggling against the handcuffs before I hit the hallway floor below.

"Bella, it's alright sweetheart, you're safe here." I jumped back from her touch as my eyes adjusted to the dim lighting of the hospital room. My hands were twisted together and I felt myself rubbing the spots where I could still feel the cold metal squeezing my wrists. My head was aching and my entire body was drenched in sweat as I shook my head, trying to move my dampened hair off of my forehead.

"Bella, I don't want to push you, but you know that I'm here if you want to talk about your dreams." This scene had become far too familiar over the past few days as I recovered from my many injuries in the hospital room, my current home. Since I had been shot in the shoulder I had been here, refusing to speak unless it was necessary, unable to open up to or trust anybody. It wasn't that I didn't want to though, it was just that for some reason I felt like I couldn't.

Ever since I had realized that Charlie had attempted to end my life in such a public way I had closed down, pulled away from the Cullens. I didn't want to, but I also didn't want to involve them any further... it wasn't safe for me to get so attached to them – to count on them. But they still stayed with me, keeping a protective watch over me each day, sitting with me and trying to get me to open up to them.

"Bella?" I looked up into her worried eyes and realized that I was still sitting stiffly up on the bed, my sore arm starting to ache as I woke up further and tried to shift back to a better position.

"I'm sorry," I whispered softly and pulled the thin blanket up over me, hissing slightly in pain as I jostled my shoulder. Esme moved to help me fix the covers and I smiled at her gratefully.

"Bella, you don't have to..."

"No, you don't have to stay here with me. I'm sorry that I've gotten your family involved in all of this." my voice was raw as I spoke and she looked at me in surprise as I said the words. It had been days since I had voluntarily spoken to any of the Cullens.

Without speaking again she sat down on the bed next to me and as she had so often during the previous days she began to hum a soft melody as she stroked my head and I felt my body beginning to relax, the nightmare beginning to fade in the early morning light.

But for some reason I couldn't fall back asleep, "Why are you still here with me?" She had barely left me since Charlie's last attack and the question had been plaguing me the longer that she stayed, the more that I struggled against myself to trust her.

"I know you don't understand it and you still don't trust it Bella, but we do care about you a great deal... all of us." Her words struck something within me and even though I couldn't explain it, I knew that she meant them because I was beginning to care about them as well.

"Is he still safe?" I hadn't dared to ask the question before now, terrified of what the answer might be. I had only heard the official answer from the social worker, the one that stated that he was safe and would be checked in on. I didn't trust it but I had been too chicken to ask for any further details and when Carlisle had attempted to talk to me about it or anything else, I had simply shut down.

"Yes Bella, he's safe. The Reynolds moved to Colorado just after Christmas. Nobody has attempted to contact them or to find them." I breathed a sigh of relief at her answer.

"I fell over the railing," It was the first time I told her anything about my dreams, about the incidents that had started everything. She didn't say anything as I continued to tell her about the incident that had landed me in the hospital and when I began to shake, to cry, she did nothing but comfort me.

"When it was time for Charlie to leave for work he came down and kicked me to wake me up... he took the handcuffs off and gave me the usual warnings before he left. I knew it was worse than any other head injury I've ever had but I couldn't skip school... that would have been even worse." Esme had her arms wrapped around me as I finished up and while at first glance she seemed sad, I could also see her anger underneath. I didn't say anything else after that and neither did she, but there was a new sense of understanding, of basic trust between us that hadn't been there before and I wondered what it would mean for my relationship with them.

The silence was calming as we sat through the early morning and although I was thankful to her for staying with me, I was also still unable to completely trust her. Continuously I flipped between gratitude for their family and confusion and worry over what and when things would change with them. I wondered if I was being stupid for even trusting them a small amount and whether or not it would finally kill me.

"How long until I can go ho... get out of here?" I asked Carlisle the next morning and like Esme he seemed surprised to hear me initiate a conversation with him.

"Medically... you can leave any time as long as there is proper follow up for your injuries. Right now we're just waiting on social services to figure out where you will be going from here... most likely it will be somewhere in Seattle." He leaned up against the wall across from me and I tried to interpret the look on his face, the slight glance towards the door to my room.

"Is that Edward?" I had gotten used to feeling his presence in the hall outside of my room before I would hear his voice when he came to relieve Esme in the afternoons. We didn't speak much but something always seemed to alert my senses when he was near. It was odd as I didn't seem to be as attuned to the others in the family as I was to him.

"Yes, he and Alice are just out in the hallway." Carlisle's brow was furrowed and once again I felt like I was missing something that was going on in their silent conversations. Some key piece of information that I just wasn't able to clue into.

"They can come in if they want." I didn't really want to see them but I did want to stop feeling like I was in the middle of some secret discussion.

"Hey Bella, how are you feeling?" Alice's bell-like voice carried across the room as they came in and I tried not to stare at the one posed as her brother, the one who my attention always seemed to be drawn to.

"Fine I guess..." It was my standard answer but they didn't push it as I watched Alice turn to glare at Edward before he opened his mouth, still not able to speak before Carlisle shook his head slightly at him.

"Whatever it is you might as well just let him say it." my voice was flat as I tried to hide my curiosity and I watched Alice glare once more at Edward before she floated across the room and sat in the chair, her arms folding stubbornly across her chest.

"Would you be opposed to living with us for the next six months or so?" To say that I was surprised by Edward's question was an understatement and as the three of them sat in the room watching me, awaiting an answer of some sort... I was once again left speechless.

I was trying to sort through my thoughts, to decipher the ones that were terrified of getting too close to anyone – especially vampires - and to push back the ones that were comfortable – too comfortable with the Cullens.

"I... I don't think that's a good idea..." Edward's face fell and I felt an odd pull, a sadness at his expression. "I just... I... I'm a human... and..." His expression was directed at his hands and the room fell into an awkward kind of silence, none of them moving or saying anything as I thought through Edward's offer.

It didn't make sense that they would want me there with them and I understood Carlisle and Alice's hesitancy to ask me. But I also felt a strange surge of disappointment as I wondered what it would be like to live with them and that odd pull to say yes, to stay with the Cullens – with Edward – was growing stronger.

I was beginning to picture it... to see the freedom it would bring me... when my memories began to invade the picture. Seeing him as he helped himself to my body, to my blood. His possessive nature and his mate's wrath. His face began to morph into that of Edward... then one by one each of the Cullens as I got lost in my thoughts, in images of the past.

A stone hand on my upper arm and my name being called pulled me back out of it and I blinked my eyes, surprised to find that I was curled up on the corner of my bed, my arms wrapped around my knees as my body trembled and I roughly pushed away the icy fingers.

"Are you..."

"Please... just leave me alone." I begged quietly, my nails digging into my legs as I watched their concerned expressions all around me. The flashback was still fresh in my head and I needed time alone to collect myself. Alice was the first to stand up to leave and I watched as she gave Edward a pointed look before he too stood and left with her.

"I'm sorry that we frightened you Bella," I was still trembling and gripping my legs as Carlisle backed away from the bed, "Edward – and the entire family – feel very protective of you and we just wanted you to know that it was an option if you were open to it." I felt awful for my reaction but my memories were still flashing in the back of my mind and I needed time by myself, time to think.

"Please. Just leave me alone for a little while... I just need... I need time to think..." I begged him and saw him nod in understanding before he silently turned around and left me to my thoughts.

An hour had passed before I finally found myself able to move from my curled up position and stretch out, my limbs stiff and sore as I began to pace my room. I still couldn't get Edward's words out of my head and I found myself beginning to analyze them further, wondering whether or not he had been serious, what the looks between the three Cullens had meant, wondering what was going to happen next.

The idea was sudden and beyond my control and I wasn't even sure if it was an idea at all or just my instincts kicking in, a need to escape, to get out, overpowering my senses.

Once I was dressed in my street clothes and carrying my backpack it was easy to pretend I knew where I was going, moving down to the main floor and out the doors without anyone glancing twice at me. It was when I was outside in the parking lot, looking around and trying to decide what to do next, where to go that things got difficult. I stood just outside the door for a few minutes, trying to decide which direction to go and battling my brain which was telling me to just turn around and return to my room. But I couldn't do that. I needed this.

So I threw all caution to the wind and just started walking.

Across the parking lot.

Down the street to the crosswalk.

Down the sidewalk towards the school.

Across the street.

A left turn and walking towards the highway.

I didn't have a plan and I didn't know where I was going, just that I needed to get out of Forks, away from everything.

The rain started to fall heavily on top of me, my thin sweater soaking quickly through.

I moved inside the forest at the edge of the road, looking for some sort of coverage.

My mind was blank as I tried to erase my past. Erase memories of Weston, of Cole, of my mom and Phil, of Charlie, of Him.

The rain was pounding down and I could no longer see more than a few inches in front of me, even under the cover of the trees hanging above me.

I continued to walk.

At some point the forest beside the road curved down and into a small valley, a rocky stream running through the middle of it. I stumbled down the hill and began to follow the water's edge.

"Are you alright Miss?" The deep voice startled me and I blinked through the rain, my hand moving to shelter my eyes, to see the man standing several yards in front of me. I stopped dead in my tracks and a ripple of fear flooded down my body at the sight of him. I couldn't answer and as I stood there frozen he began to move slowly towards me and I could make out some of his features, his shirtless body glistening in the rain, his dark eyes watching me carefully as I continued to stand there, trembling.

"Bella?" My head whipped around at the worried voice behind me, to the vampire standing on the other side of the valley. A low growl sounded from the man on the other side of me and another ripple of fear passed through my body at the sound.

"Get out of here Cullen. This isn't your land." I was confused again and turned to see the strange man nearly to where I was standing. Instinctively I took a step back from him.

"This isn't your land either... dog." I could feel myself getting dizzy, "Come on Bella, let's get you back to the hospital." Her voice was softer when she spoke to me but I still stayed planted in my spot between the two of them, unable to move.

"You aren't taking her anywhere." Another low growl and I turned back to see him practically vibrating in front of me, his fists clenched at his sides.

"Bella, come here." Rosalie's hand grabbed my arm softly and I stumbled back towards her just before the man in front of me disappeared, a massive reddish-brown animal – a wolf – taking his place, the sound of snapping and growls drowning my ears as my own screams got caught in my throat.

"Emmett! Jasper!" I heard Rosalie's voice calling loudly from above me but my mind was shutting down as my body collapsed into the stone woman, her arms easily picking me up.

"I'm sorry." I muttered gently, closing my eyes. I could still hear the growls from in front of me, only now there were hisses and growls coming from behind me as well, followed by a familiar feeling, an awareness of his presence... and I knew then that although I might not fully trust the rest of them... I trusted him.

A/N: Sorry for the long delay in getting this up. It's been crazy busy around here! It's a bit of a longer chapter this time and quite a bit in it. I hope you enjoy! Please Read and Review!

*Just a disclaimer here. I'm not a doctor or a lawyer or a social worker. I know there may be mistakes in this story but really I'm just writing it for fun and as much as I try to be accurate, things are going to slip through the odd time.

** I don't own anything Twilight. It all belongs to it's creator Stephenie Meyer who I am grateful allows us to play with her creations!