CHAPTER ELEVEN

People tell you all your life how things will be different when you grow up. How things will change, and you'll sooner or later have to grow up. You'll have to face challenges and sacrifice things in order to get through each day and succeed.

I never knew how my grandfather came to be a Lord. I knew of course that you weren't just given such a title for nothing. Whenever I asked him however, he would tell me the same thing; "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference."

I never understood what he meant by that. He never explained it to me either. He would always just give me a knowing look and start talking about something else.

I tried asking my mother too; however my answer from her would be a shake of her head and an uncomfortable look on her face. Growing up, I realized that this probably meant that Grandpa Henry did something he shouldn't have to get his title. Nevertheless I was taught from a young age that I was to be a lady and not ask questions. So I learnt to forget about my burning curiosity and soon enough I didn't even think about it anymore.

I couldn't help but think about it again this morning.

Coming out of my room and locking the door, my eye caught one of the headlines of the paper laid our neighbor's door mat.

LORD DWYER'S SECRET SCANDAL OF ILLIGITAMATE DAUGHTER REVEALED

There was silence in my mind as I lost the ability to think for a few seconds. Then the questions flooded. I could feel my heart rate quicken as confusion and panic took over. I didn't know what to make of the story. Sure, the tabloids tried to spread rumours about my grandpa all the time; but it was never as personal as this.

I quickly looked around me to make sure no one was around and then scooped up the paper. I tucked it under my arm and walked off swiftly towards the elevators. Once inside and alone and ripped open the paper to the page where the article was written.

It was revealed yesterday that the daughter of Lord Dwyer of Kensington Court, Renee Dwyer, is in fact none other than the result of a secret affair the Lord's late wife, Eleanor Dwyer had during their marriage. The identity of the biological father is still unknown, as investigations are taking place.

It is thought that Lord Henry Dwyer kept the knowledge of his daughter's illegitimacy to himself in order to protect her heritage. Renee Dwyer was set to inherit £9 million upon the death of her father. Sources say that trust funds were also in place for the Lord's granddaughter; however after investigations are fully complete, it is unlikely Kensington Court will allow Renee Dwyer to be the heir to the Lord's fortune.

I sat at my desk in a daze; barely able to hear the teacher's voice as he droned on about theorems. The words of the article kept replaying in my head as I tried to make sense of them all.

My mother was not her father's daughter. She was the result of an affair her own mother. She was not the daughter of a Lord.

And I was not the granddaughter of a lord.

I felt the panic start to rise again and couldn't help but feel scared and also a little ashamed of myself. I felt scared because I had no idea what this meant for my family. I didn't have a clue how powerful the media could be in these types of situations. I didn't know what they could do, if or how they could tear apart my grandfather's reputation and life.

I felt ashamed because the first thing I thought about was that my inheritance was going to be withdrawn. My mother's inheritance was going to be withdrawn.

My dad never stopped working; even when my mom brought him back from Michigan and moved them into a huge townhouse fully paid for, my dad has too much pride to sit around and life off my mother. I was really proud of him for that. He worked in a corporate office for a while before making his way up the ladder to his current position as CEO of an international company. And so, I knew that my parents wouldn't be bankrupt without my grandfather's money. But I also knew that without that money, a lot of things would change. My mother was recognized everywhere in London, especially our hometown and so her reputation was now in jeopardy. It's sad, but a lot of things are done for you based on your status.

My breath caught as I realized something else.

I had discretely set up a standing order from one of my savings accounts in London to be able to pay for my treatment here in Florida. The chemo was not cheap as my dad hadn't got me health insurance here. I already had the best insurance in London that was still available, and if anything had happened to me, I was to be airlifted to safety. I never gave Everglades hospital the details of that policy, so I was paying for my therapy privately – through my London account. If that were to be stopped then I wouldn't be able to pay and my parents would definitely find out. My head started to swim as I thought about what this would do to them on top of the worry they now already had.

"Miss. Swan?"

My gaze shot up to the teacher as he asked me a question I didn't know the answer to.

"Ah… I'm sorry, I don't know," I mumbled.

A few students sniggered, "You don't know an example of a three sided shape? Are you sure?" Mr Bertie cocked an eyebrow.

I blushed scarlet, "Oh, sure. A triangle."

The class giggled and laughed some more as Mr Bertie carried on with his class. I shrunk in my seat and looked to my book, pretending to write notes. My eye caught something moving outside through the window. Edward was on the field playing baseball. He had his uniform, on and was talking animatedly to his team. My heart stopped as I suddenly realized the worst thing of all.

Without my grandfather's money, my parents would most likely not be able to afford to pay for Everglades Academy. The annual tuition was higher than average boarding schools in London, never mind America. If my parents couldn't pay it, then I'd have to leave and return to London.

I'd have to leave Edward.

I couldn't think of anything else but trying to keep my breathing steady and my blood pressure under control. I was the first to shoot up and out of the door as soon as class was finished. I ignored everything else and tried not look at Edward as I ran across the field towards the dorms; failing miserably to keep my tears from falling.

EPOV

My eyes flickered up and to Mr Bertie's window again, where I could see Bella sat at her desk, lost in thought. I wondered what she was thinking about and completely forgot my own train of thought. I was supposed to be leading my team talk and giving game plans to defence and field. I paused, not knowing what I'd just said, "You know what, just run and try and catch the ball."

They all laughed and put their fists in the middle to break up the talk.

The game ended with our team winning. Coach praised us and said he was confident we could win the tournament if we played like he knew we could.

I followed a few steps behind Emmett and Jasper to the bleachers where our gym bags were. They were chatting animatedly about the next game and how Jasper was supposed to be hosting the victory party if we won.

I had stopped to tie my shoe laces when I heard Emmett shout out, "Jesus! Whoa, London, slow down!"

I looked up and saw Bella running away across the field. She had the head down, clutching to her books, refusing to look at anyone or anything.

"Bella!" I stood up and shouted after her. She didn't turn around or stop running.

"Dude, what's up with Britain?" Jasper asked. They hardly ever called her by her name, but I knew they didn't mean anything by it. Emmett and Jasper actually really liked Bella, even though they hadn't hung out with her a lot. Mine and Mike's relationship had completely deteriorated. He still made sly comments now and then, like: "Bros before hoes, dude!" To which I always replied that he was never my bro in the first place. I actually never liked Mike, I always just put up with him for the sake of the team because not matter how much of a dick he was, he was still a great baseball player.

I looked back to Jasper, confused, "I don't know. I was supposed to meet her for lunch."

Jasper shrugged his shoulders as he continued to pack his things.

"She's pretty fast for someone her size!" Emmett laughed. I smiled, although I was still worried about Bella. She must have heard me but just ran straight past. What if she was having another attack? What if Mike got to her again? Or someone else? She was so vulnerable these days; she wouldn't show it, but I could see how much even just one word could upset her.

She had been doing the chemo for a month now and it was putting her under a lot of strain and sometimes she seemed so weak that I just didn't know what to do.

"Edward, what do you want for lunch?" Jasper asked, slinging his bag over his shoulder, "I think I'm meeting Alice." I didn't miss the sparkle in his eye whenever Jasper mentioned my sister's name. I could already see the outcome of that.

"Actually, I'm going to see if Bella's okay. I'll catch you later, yeah?"

"Whatever, see you later dude."

I waved off both Emmett and Jasper before grabbing my things and sprinting towards Bella's dorm. I knew the hallways like the back of my hand now; always coming here to walk Bella home or bringing pizza's and Chinese to her for one of our dates.

I still couldn't believe how much my feelings toward someone could change – or, in this case, intensify – in such a short space of time. I knew from the start that I was attracted to Bella; I knew from the first time I met her and she gave that smart ass reply to Mike. She was shy and timid, yet something would light in her eyes when she was provoked or annoyed. It was like she was awakened and she would become this total bad ass. It was quite hot. Not to mention the fact that she made it so damn hard to even get a first date.

When I found her on the beach that night and I finally find out about her illness; I hadn't realized how a heart can hurt so much. I remember my heart speeding up and having flashbacks when I kneeled down next to her on the sand.

Suddenly the sand had turned into grass under my hands and knees and the waves of the sea sounded exactly like the waves on the rocky beach. Bella's limp hands felt like my mother's as they slipped out of my hand exactly like hers did on the cliff so many years ago.

I shook my head and tried to forget that memory as I reached Bella's door. I knocked on it gently. After a minute and no answer, I tried again, "Bella?"

No one answered and I leaned my ear against the door to try and hear something. It quiet and I could have imagined the sniffles on the other side, but I knocked harder, "Bella? Come on, open the door. Please?" After a few more seconds and no answer, I tried the doorknob and to my surprise it opened easily.

I pushed it open and saw Bella sitting on the floor with her head down, sniffling uncontrollably. Her arms were limp by her sides and she held a phone in her hand.

"Bella?!" I my bag aside and dropped down beside her. I pushed her hair away, revealing her face that was tear stained and red from crying.

"Bella, what's wrong? What's going on, are you okay?" I felt the panic bubbling up inside me and my hands started to shake. She just sniffled and shook her head.

"Bella will you please tell me what going on? You're scaring me," I pleaded.

She leaned back and took a long unsteady breath, pausing. She wiped her eyes and looked at me. It seemed like she was focusing really hard; taking in each of my features one by one and committing it to memory. Her lower lip trembled and her expression made me more and more scared until she finally said,

"I'm going back to London."