Ok so I know that it's been a little while that I've updated but here is the tenth chapter to this story. My wonderful friend DragonGirl323 has been gracious enough to beta my chapter again so I'm hoping that you all like her edited work. I'll try and update whenever I can but these days, I've had exams and the entire moving process back to Canada is stressful enough so I'm trying my best to update soon for you guys. Anyways, hope you all like this chapter so please READ AND REVIEW.

Disclaimer = I don't own Twilight!

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(Facebook dot com)/ #! / MortalParalight (remove the spaces and please fill in the blanks that are written there, i.e.. (Facebook dot com) is the address of Facebook)

Chapter 10

Gift from the past

Siobhan's Point of View

It had been three months since Bella decided to stay with us. Once her fever had gone down completely, we sat down all four of us and gave her the option to stay with us and work or try to find another place to live in until she turned eighteen—which shouldn't be very long now, according to her. Bella pondered her options carefully, but in the end, it hadn't taken her very long to decide to stay with us. Liam wondered why she made that particular decision, but I knew why.

It was as clear to me as a glass of water. When looking into Bella's eyes, I could see that she wasn't ready to forget the Cullens, but she also wasn't ready to try and search for a new home.

I could understand her point of view, if only slightly. When we adopted Emily, she hadn't wanted to go back to her family—even though we had given her the option to do so. When someone opens their door to you, after you believe that all hope is lost, you tend to get attached to those who offer you shelter, affection, and compassion.

And in this case, Bella had become attached to us, and us to her.

At first, it was the small things that made us—mainly Liam and Maggie—appreciate her more. Bella helped with the cooking, cleaned the house from time to time and worked extremely hard at the pub, trying to earn her keep. Of course, in the beginning, Bella wasn't the best waitress in town—seeing how clumsy she was at times—but with our help, we were able to help Bella keep her balance and keep the food off the floor—or on the customers' clothes.

But thankfully, in the end, Bella was able to learn balance and coordination—something that was essential for helping us around the pub.

Sadly, Bella knew that this James fellow was still looking for her. She didn't want to risk going out and being discovered or hurt others around her. To minimise that risk, we helped her hide her appearance by procuring her a wig and some blue colored contacts. We tried to say that she would look better with green eyes but she wouldn't let us explain. Bella was completely against it. In the beginning, I was perplexed by the quickness of her decisions but then my mind went into overdrive and I understood why. It reminded her too much of him, her Edward. And so we didn't go against her judgement. She even decided to continue playing her alias, Marie, until she knew that there was no more danger of being discovered by James or because of the posters.

Either way, she was protected as long as she was hidden from knowing eyes.

As time progressed, Maggie and Bella began to form a bond as well. In the beginning, they only appeared to be acquaintances but that soon developed into friendship—and even sisterhood. Both of them found common interests—such as literature and poetry—and created a bond that could not be severed easily.

But it wasn't just Maggie that developed a connection with Bella.

I had also started to grow attached to the girl living in our attic, but it was more in a motherly manner than Maggie or Liam. Considering the fact Bella reminded me a lot of my late adoptive sister, the closer I got to Bella, the stronger our connection grew and the closer we became.

You could even say that we had somewhat developed a mother/daughter bond in only three short months.

As time went on, Bella was still frightened by the idea that her pursuer could come after her at any moment. There were some nights that she would wake up in a cold sweat and be unable to fall back asleep—I should know. Sometimes she would even talk loudly in her sleep and startle me awake. And so, with the salary Bella earned from working at the pub, Bella had decided to enroll in a self-defense class four times per week. It had been helping her and she even went through the trouble of buying a punching bag to practice outside of her classes.

I could see that she was very adamant in protecting not only herself but those around her, if she could.

We also discovered that Bella was a talented musician and songwriter. One day, when Liam and I were out grocery shopping, we came back home to find Bella playing the guitar and singing to 'Set Fire to the Rain' as Maggie played the piano. When Maggie found out about Bella's talents, she had wanted to see how artistic our new guest was. And when she discovered that Bella was born to sing, we tried to use Bella's gift for everyone's benefit: have her perform at the bar a few nights a week. Bella was hesitant at first,—what with her experience and everything—but after thinking it over, she agreed but had never wanted to perform her own songs. Even now, she still refused to even try.

But I could see it in her eyes every time she performed that she missed it.

Her yearning for her old life was apparent and even though Bella tried to hide it as much as possible, she couldn't fool me. My heart reached out to her for wanting everything to go back to normal and I wanted to respect her wishes but a part of me wanted to help her, offer her something that could somewhat fill the void of her past.

With that in mind, I began searching for music equipment, something that could benefit Bella and help her regain some confidence in writing her own songs. While searching, I stumbled upon an add from someone named 'Familylove38' who was selling an entire ensemble of music equipment and a laptop that came with it, all for a reasonable price. Contacting her, we were able to negotiate a fair price and discussed a meeting place—apparently, this person was coming to Seattle soon and she decided to meet me at the pub early in the morning on her way to town—to do the exchange, which would benefit us both.

A smile spread across my face the minute the meeting had been arranged. I knew that this would make Bella happy—at least, it was my hope. If she was looking for a piece of her past, maybe this little surprise would fill that void.

The days passed by and my meeting with the seller finally arrived. I was placing the groceries in the pub's kitchen while Bella—who decided to go out wearing her wig—cleaned the glasses behind the bar in the back when suddenly, the front door bell rang, signalling that someone was here. Bella and I looked up simultaneously as realization hit me. The seller was here. I couldn't let Bella know my plans. This was supposed to be a surprise, after all.

Walking over to her and placing a hand on her shoulder softly, I gave Bella a small but comforting smile before saying, "Bella, why don't ye go and help Liam and Maggie upstairs with painting the office? I'm sure that they could use another hand." Once she was on her way upstairs, I shouted a quick "Come in!" to the person outside of the pub.

Bella paused and looked back at the door, briefly catching sight of a lock of familiar caramel coloured hair through the window, and froze. Following her gaze, I tried to see what she could possibly be afraid of but that confusion was simply put aside for now. We gazed back at one another and Bella nodded slowly, continuing up the stairs leading to the as a woman stepped inside carrying a large cardboard box in her hands.

Smiling, I walked over and helped her place the box down on one of the tables, noticing her gaze stray toward Bella's disappearing form before settling on me with gloomy eyes. Obviously, this woman had suffered greatly in the past—or was still suffering.

This woman looked to be in her mid forties and she looked strained, almost as if she hadn't slept well in weeks. Her piercing green eyes never wavered from mine as she placed the box down and leaned back against one of the chairs.

"Ye must be Familylover38. Hi, my name is Siobhan. And ye are?" I asked, extending my hand in a friendly manner, smiling softly at her as she shook my hand in return.

"Esme Cullen, a pleasure to meet you." I tried not to let my eyes widen as comprehension suddenly dawned on me, only now understanding the significance of her last name. Cullen, as in Bella's former family…

This must have been her mother, or better yet 'adoptive' mother, which meant that I was buying something expensivefrom Bella's former family.

How could I have not seen that…?

"Pleasure to meet ye as well…" I answered, trying to hide the slight waver that had crept into my voice. A sudden fear began to creep into my mind as we uncomfortably stared in each other's eyes. If she somehow found out that Bella was here, then everyone would be in trouble—physically and financially.

Clearing my throat, I looked inside the box to find a white portable computer, an electronic keyboard, music sheets and much more. Obviously, everything was in here. I began removing the money from my pocket before looking back at her and smiled, trying to appear as if nothing was wrong and get this meeting over with as soon as possible to keep Bella's secret intact. "Seeing as everything is here, here is yer money," I said, extending my hand towards hers and handing her the required amount before placing my hands in my pockets, anxiety spreading through my body.

Esme verified the amount and nodded toward me, a small melancholic smile forming on her face. Something troubled me about that fake smile of hers… Just as I was about to ask her something, Mrs. Cullen said, "Thank you very much. I…hope that you enjoy using all this… They're very—"

"Ye don't want to do this, do ye?"

This question seemed to have taken her by surprise because she stopped midsentence to gaze back into my eyes curiously, straightening her body and asking, "What do you mean?"

A small chuckle escaped my lips and I crossed my arms over my chest before gazing back in her confused eyes. "I can see it in yer eyes. This box holds something dear to ye and selling it to a complete stranger isn't what ye want to do," I explained, watching her sigh and sit down on one of the chairs at the table, then took a seat opposite from her.

Simply gazing at her, Esme took a few moments to regain her bearings, kept her gaze on the ground before finally speaking again. "My husband believes that it's time to sell everything and I'm trying to agree with him but…" Sighing, Esme looked up at me and tried to smile genuinely this time. "I'm very sorry to trouble you with this. I really do hope that you enjoy this set. It's practically new, seeing as it hasn't been used in the last three months… The person who had it before used it, quite a lot actually…but she always took great care of it. I think some of her music sheets might still be in there…" she said, gazing at the box and seeming to be lost in thought.

Did this box belong to Bella…? I asked myself as Esme turned her attention back to me, stood up and grabbed hold of her purse.

"Please do make sure that you use this equipment with the utmost care… You seem to be a kind woman so I assume I'm leaving this in good hands," she said, smiling softly at me before starting to walk toward the door.

"Of course, I'll take great care of it."

Smiling slightly, Esme grabbed a hold of the knob and began opening the door slowly. But she didn't walk out as expected. Instead, she asked something that made my body freeze in place out of fear. "If I might be so bold to ask, who was that girl with the blond hair…? You know, the one that exited the room before I walked in?" she asked, turning to face me with her hand still wrapped around the door handle. Her eyes seemed desperate somehow as she searched mine for some answer that might help her.

Panic started to tighten around me as her eyes pierced mine desperately. Maybe telling the truth couldn't hurt…at least part of it anyways. "That was Marie. We employed her a few weeks ago." Well, she didn't have to know how many weeks that Bella had been working here…

Esme nodded sadly and turned her attention to the floor, seeming to stare into space. "She just looked like someone important to us…" Mrs. Cullen turned her attention back to me after a few uncomfortable moments and bit her lip before rummaging through her purse for something. Having piqued at my attention, I inclined myself toward her—simply to see what was hidden inside her handbag—and saw Esme take out a small yellow half folded flyer.

Oh no…

"If it's not too much to ask, would it be possible to ask if you've seen this young lady?" she asked, walking over to me and opening the flyer, showing me an exact replica of the 'missing person' that Charlotte had showed me on our lunch outing. "She…She's my daughter and she went missing about three months ago. Dark brown hair, brown eyes, has a few scars on her arms and legs. She likes to go by Bella. Have you seen her anywhere?"

Looking up from the flyer, I could see that Mrs. Cullen was desperately hoping for a yes. But I couldn't just tell her that Bella was here…right? That would go against what Bella wanted. Bella wasn't ready to try and talk to them, not after what she saw.

So what should I do now? I thought to myself when looking in Esme's eyes. What would Bella want me to do? Would she rather I tell the truth or keep to my promise?

Biting my lip nervously, I tried to come up with a reasonable answer and finally said, "I think I saw someone like that a few weeks ago but it was from quite far away so I wouldn't be able to give you a specific answer." The minute those words escaped my mouth, Esme's expression flattened and she sighed in exasperation. It was almost as if her hope had deflated with my half lie.

Esme sighed once again before nodding and looking in my eyes. "Please call me if you see her. We just want her to come home," she said before turning toward the door once more, attempting to leave.

My heart clenched at seeing her hopeless eyes and, biting my lip, I took a step towards her and said, "I…I wouldn't give hope just yet." She turned around and raised one of her eyebrows, looking at me with confusion, but I simply smiled at her and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, gazing deeply into her eyes before continuing. "I think yer daughter is simply having a hard time returning home. Give her some time and don't give up. I'm sure she'll find her way soon."

At least I had kept my promise to some point.

The next day, after carefully wrapping the box of musical equipment, I knocked on Bella's attic door and heard her say a small 'come in'. Walking in with the large present in hand, Bella looked up from her large novel and narrowed her eyes to stare at the box inquisitively.

"What's going on?" Bella asked, placing her book down on her bed and standing up, walking over to me and looking from the box to me. "What's with the box?"

"Actually, it's a present." Extending the box toward her, she narrowed her eyes once more and looked down at the present in her arms. "From us to ye. We hope that you like it," I said, smiling at her as she looked at me curiously.

Bella hesitated a few moments before placing the box on her bed. "There really wasn't any need to give me this," she said, before beginning to unwrap her present, looking at me from time to time as I walked over to her bed, sitting on the edge of it. Watching her sit down and unwrap the rest of the present, a smile began to spread on my face as Bella opened the box and gasped at the contents inside. "This can't be…" she whispered while moving her hand slowly to her mouth, covering it as she rummaged through the contents.

A few tears fell down her cheeks slowly as Bella began removing some of the equipment from the box. My gut feeling was right; these were Bella's belongings.

Bella's eyes fell on mine as more tears fell down her face. "How did you get a hold of this...? This is all of my old music equipment..." Just as I was about to speak, realisation began to dawn on Bella's face and she sighed, looking back down at the box. "Esme... It was her that came in yesterday."

"I didn't know it was her until she said her name. I was trying to find a way for ye to feel less lonely and this seemed like the perfect gift." Looking in her eyes, I tried to find some inkling in them that she liked what I'd done and hesitated. "Do ye...like it?"

Bella nodded and closed her eyes, placing her forehead against the edge of the box and letting the tears fall silently. "I never thought that I would see this again... I had thrown it away when James gave me that task. I...I really don't know what to say."

"Just... Just say thank ye," I said, fishing out the flyer from my back pocket and handing it to her. Bella lifted her head, about to tell me thank you, but the words got stuck in her throat as she gazed at the flyer with wide eyes, taking it slowly from my hand and gazing down at it, speechless now. "She was asking about ye. Apparently, they've been looking for ye since yer disappearance. She asked me to keep an eye out for you but..."

"Did you tell her that I was here?" Bella asked, her eyes snapping up to look into mine with a panicked gaze. Shaking my head, she sighed and relaxed against her pillows, looking down at the flyer in her hand.

"I really do think that ye should maybe consider calling her, or at least letting her know that ye're alright," I suggested, seeing Bella's eyes lift up and gazing back into mine. "She honestly seems worried about ye. She told me that she just wants ye to go home. Maybe...maybe you should consider it. Sleep on it and make your decision."

Bella kept gazing at me and hesitated a few moments before sighing and looking down at her hands where she had placed them on her lap. "I know that it might sound selfish, but I'm…I'm just not ready to go back to the disappointment and the betrayed looks. I hurt them beyond comprehension, even almost got some of them killed, and I don't know if I'm ready to go back to see that in their eyes," Bella explained, twirling her thumbs together. "I know that's all I'm going to see if I go there. And I can't see him. He regrets loving me, maybe even meeting me. That's the last thing that he said to my face... I can't go back to see that and to be told that again."

Bella looked up at me and her expression just seemed so lost. It broke my heart to see her like this... "I know that' it means staying here longer than I should but I...I'm just not ready yet. If I were to go back, I'd have to think about it long and hard..."

Nodding to her, I stood up and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, smiling softly at her. "That's alright. I know that what ye went through is very traumatic and that ye want some time to think things through. Take yer time. And enjoy yer equipment. I'm sure ye'll love using it again," I said before beginning to leave her room.

Just as my hand reached for the door handle, Bella spoke up and said, "Thank you very much for everything. I hope you all know how grateful I am for everything that you have given me. No one—except the Cullens—has ever been this kind to me before."

Turning around to face her, I smiled warmly at her and nodded. "We know. We see it in yer eyes every single day. And we love having ye around. Ye're a very kind person. Any family would be thrilled to have ye as their daughter."

Ok so what did you all think? Did you like the small twist that was formed when I had Esme show up? Well, please leave your thoughts about this chapter in some REVIEWS to see the EXTREMELY large twist that will come up in the next chapter!

Mortal-paralight

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