Chapter X
Edward Cullen
I dumped Mike into William's room (now it'll be Mike's, since William won't be needing it anymore) and went back to William.
William was groaning in pain, and blood was still slowly dripping from the wound.
I eyed his blood.
It'll be such a waste to keep the blood dripping onto the ground.
His blood will be such a good ingredient for my next couple of meals…much better than the substitute animal blood I had been using. Animal blood has a nice tangy taste on my meals, but I always have to add two spoonfuls of sugar onto it. Human blood is much sweeter, and excess sugar isn't needed. Freshly squeezed human blood is the best.
I knew that I could've gone to the vampire black market to buy bottles of human blood, but they could be contaminated, and I am a wanted vampire!
I placed a bucket in front of William's legs and watched in satisfaction as his blood dripped into the bucket instead of the floor.
Slow process, but it'll be worth it.
I took another pair of sharp scissors from my surgery kit.
I stabbed William again, in a spot under the first wound.
More blood streamed into the bucket.
I licked my lips. I could literally smell the delectable scent of human blood in the air! I had to stop myself from drinking the blood from the bucket!
"Don't worry," I smirked. "Your blood will be treasured greatly."
William moaned quietly.
I sat back and watched him suffer, while eating blood pudding. Images of Bella fluttered continuously throughout my mind. What's wrong with me? I had just seen the girl of my dreams, and I don't feel the same as I was before!
I imagined it was Bella chained to the wall instead of William.
That would be a wonderful sight!
Beautiful Bella, trying to escape, pleading for her life. She would be a much more entertaining victim than Angela ever was.
I shook myself.
"No," I told myself sternly. "Bella won't suffer. Bella will be treated with the utmost care. Bella is your soul mate. Bella isn't your victim. Bella will love you just as much as you love her back. Bella's blood won't be used for your cuisines. Bella will be treated as a Princess, and you'll serve her forever. Bella will be the key to stop your murder spree."
I looked into the bucket and grew impatient.
This process is too slow!
I decided that waiting for blood is a waste of time, and went to get bandages.
I pulled out the two pairs of scissors and threw them onto the table. I quickly injected anaesthetic into William and unchained him.
I dragged him onto my operation table.
Glancing around, I re-chained him to the table and prepared my tools.
This'll be the first time I'll skin a human alive.
I waited patiently as the anaesthetic wore off and William's eyes slowly opened. How slow can this weakling get?
"Where am I now?" he murmured.
I'm glad he wasn't praying to God this time!
"Don't worry," I said, licking my lips. "Your life's nearly over. You'll have a nice afterlife. Just relax, and try to enjoy yourself. I promise that I'll be, ahem, gentle. From what I heard, it doesn't hurt much. You'll enjoy it, I promise you."
"What will you be doing?" said William nervously.
"It'll be better as a surprise, don't you reckon? Now keep your eyes open or I'll re-staple your eyes, and
a second time isn't as pleasant as the first. Should I trust you? Nah, I'll re-staple your eyes. Just in case you do close them."
"Please don't!"
If he doesn't pray, he whines! He'll die either way.
I quickly re-stapled his eyes, and pulled out the old staples from his eyes. As I expected, William screamed as if his life was over.
His screaming reminded me of mine when I was changing into a vampire…
I shook myself away from the thoughts of my past.
Turning into a vampire was more painful than this. This is nothing compared to a painful and agonising transformation into a monster. The thirst and longing for human blood at the beginning of vampire life, was uncontrollable…
I whacked my head against the wall.
What has gone into me?
Why am I thinking those thoughts? I had never thought of them before, when I was murdering Angela, or when I was robbing the bank!
"Whoa, man," said William, staring at me. "You alright?"
I stared at my hands.
The Devil and Angel were battling inside my head.
Burning someone to death isn't much of a problem, but skinning someone is a different story. Skinning is more hands-on than burning. Would I really have the guts to skin my victim? I became apprehensive at my earlier, irrational decision. If I back off now, then William would call me a coward. I wish I thought more before I acted.
"You'll be viewed as a chicken," the Devil side of me purred.
"Better to save a life than kill a life!" argued my Angel side.
"Save a life? You must be crazy! You already killed a person without hesitation! Why do you hesitate now? Kill him now you have the chance!"
"Don't force yourself to kill him! Trust your instincts!"
"You're a chicken for trusting your soft spot!"
"NO!" I said out loud.
"No?" said William incredulously. "You'll let me go? You won't kill me? You seriously won't stab or kill me after all that?"
I stared at him, my anger boiling up.
I grabbed a garden hose and pointed it at him.
"You'll spray me with water?" said William, snorting with laughter.
"Laugh while you can," I sneered. "You won't ever laugh again!"
Instead of water connected in the hose, I had replaced the contents with hot wax. Wax isn't something you should play with, but I knew exactly what I'm doing with it, and it'll be nice and painful to William. My Angel side was screaming in my head to stop.
I turned on the hose and sprayed William with wax.
Wax stuck all over him, and I made sure wax stuck to every piece of his body.
I turned the hose onto full blast and laughed as William tried to pull off the wax in vain. I would be the one pulling the wax off him.
"Just calm down," I said with a sneer. "It'll all go away soon."
William's eyes widened.
He attempted to speak, but the wax had sealed his mouth shut.
I sprayed the last of the hot wax all over him and turned the wax off. Only humans get deeply effected with wax. Vampires (like moi) have no effect to wax, and even if I get wax on me, nothing will happen to me. The worst would be getting dirty and having a shower.
I sat back and read a newspaper.
Five minutes later, I peered at William and saw him as stiff as a mummy. He would die slowly this way, but not as fun as I wanted.
I walked up to William and made sure I was wearing latex gloves (to stop getting my finger prints on the
body, once I dispose of it). I smiled to myself.
Without listening to my Angel and Devil sides, I slowly ripped the wax off William's face, and along with the wax, was William's skin.
I cackled in delight and poked his flesh.
He groaned.
"Hurts, doesn't it?" I said nastily. "You can literally feel your skin being pulled away, and your face suddenly feels exposed and without protection. It'll only hurt more once I pull your skin away from the rest of your body, so be prepared, my friend!"
I laughed and ripped off more of his skin.
It was more and more enjoyable by the minute.
Dr Carlisle Cullen
When I woke up, I found myself tied up, gagged and locked in my own car! Fuck! Who the Hell had the guts to do that?
I immediately knew it must've been Edward.
Being tied up and gagged is uncomfortable for an adult (or well-known vampire) like me, and a little embarrassing, but being locked up in my own car? That's humiliating beyond belief! If a werewolf finds me like this, it'll only get worse…
After a while, it had gotten darker and darker.
I knew that it'll be night time soon.
I didn't know when I drifted off to sleep, but when I opened my eyes, I saw a policeman standing outside my car and looking at me.
I heard the lock click, and I tumbled out.
The policeman helped me up and untied me.
I looked at him and realised it was Police Chief Swan.
"Dr Cullen?" said Police Chief Swan, writing down my car plate number. "Are you alright? How did you get yourself in this situation? Do you remember anything about what happened to you? Your wife called me when you didn't return home from work."
"I'm fine," I lied. "What happened?"
"Have you seen your attacker by any chance? Maybe even a glimpse?"
"No. I remembered falling asleep after drinking my usual cup of coffee, and waking up in here. I think that's all I remember."
"May I have your cup for evidence, sir? There's a good chance that you've been drugged and sent here for someone's convenience. I also need a list of people associated with you. If you're feeling better, will you answer a couple of questions?"
"Um, sure. Can I have a glass of water first?"
"Of course. Unfortunately, we only have bottles of water while we're on the field. I'm sure you don't mind a cup instead of a glass!"
I drank some water thirstily.
Police Chief Swan motioned for me to sit on a park bench.
For a minute, we watched CSU dust my car for prints and evidence.
"Dr Cullen," began Police Chief Swan. "Is there anyone that has a grudge against you, or need something at the hospital that you're in charge of? There's always a reason for him or her to drug you like this. Do you know anyone who hates you?"
My thoughts were all of Edward.
I had no idea why I thought of my rebellious Edward.
Shouldn't I be telling the Police Chief about having strong feelings that Edward did this to me? I spent all my time, efforts and money looking after that boy, and he treats me like this? Why do I still have emotional and sympathetic feelings for him? Probably that's the fatherly side of me. Would I really give Edward up to the authorities?
"I'm not sure," I said slowly. "There's a couple of doctors that are jealous of my fame and position. I
think that's it. None of my family members have a grudge against me. We all get along quite well. Apart from the usual couple of arguments about my work shifts, there's nothing to complain about. My children get a fair share of money, and I have no other relatives."
"And your wife?" asked Police Chief Swan. "Any major disagreements?"
"Of course not! We get along very well!"
"And what job does she do? Who do you have the work shift arguments with?"
"She's a housewife. She takes care of our house, and looks after the children. My work shift arguments are normally with her. We always make up after that though. She just wants me to spend more time with her at home."
"And your children?"
"Emmett, Rosalie, Jasper, Alice…"
My voice trailed off.
Should I have mentioned Edward? If I did, would it be good or bad?
"Yes?" prompted Police Chief Swan, his pen poised over his notepad.
"That's all," I lied. "I was thinking of the ones that died. We had seven children in total, but unfortunately three died."
"My condolences. Any complaints from them?"
"No. When can I go home? Esme must be worried about me!"
"In a couple of minutes, sir. CSU is almost done checking your car. I'm afraid that you have to get a new car. The keys were taken. I'm guessing that you're intending to go back to work tomorrow, so I suggest either you rent a car, or catch the bus."
"That'll be no need. I'll borrow one of my children's cars."
"Very well. Can I have your contact numbers?"
"Of course."
I handed Police Chief Swan my business card.
"You don't live far from here," commented Police Chief Swan. "I'm surprised that your abductor would take you to a place so close to home. He must know you pretty well. By the way, I might not be able to solve your case right at the moment, since I'm a little preoccupied with another more important case, but I will solve this case!"
I smiled thinly.
This case would've been solved in a couple of seconds if I told Police Chief Swan that Edward was the one responsible for all this.
"I'll contact you soon," said Police Chief Swan, shaking my hand. "I hope you get better. If you remember anything, just give me a call, or ring my deputy at the station. I think you should take the day off tomorrow, to rest and all."
"I will," I murmured.
I said goodbye to the Police Chief and walked home, thinking all the way.
When I opened the door, I was greeted by an enormous bear hug!
"Esme!" I spluttered.
"Honey Bunches!" squealed Esme. "You're alive! I thought the Volturi had caught you! What happened to you? Your wrists have deep cuts on them!"
Even for a vampire, my cuts were visible.
"I'm fine," I tried to tell Esme, but she would have none of it.
"You're not going to work for a week!" she decided. "We'll be hunting, shopping and sleeping in for the whole week! You've already worked for too long without a break! No, no! I can see what you're going to say, so zip it and let's go! I must apply cream onto your cuts before they become so obvious to humans, werewolves and vampires."
I flushed at the thought of those werewolves laughing at me.
"Where's the others?" I asked.
"Rosalie and Emmett are hunting," answered Esme. "Jasper's visiting his vampire pals and Alice is playing poker in the local casino. Apparently, she has money to burn or something. I'm guessing she's planning to win via her special ability. If she donates at least a quarter of her casino earnings to us, I have no objections in her going to casinos. I know you'll disapprove of it, but take a break! Alice is playing poker with other vampires!"
"Which local casino?"
"The one in Italy, I think. I can't remember."
"Esme, darling. Italy isn't local. It's on a completely different continent. Why's Alice playing poker with vampires there?"
"I don't know. Maybe ask Jasper when he returns?"
"Maybe. When's Emmett and Rosalie coming back? I'm a little hungry."
"They'll be back soon! I have some leftovers if you want."
I thought of reasons of why Alice would depart so quickly and unexpectedly for Italy. The Volturi (royal vampires) live there, and one of their lifelong goals was to 'collect' vampires with special, rare abilities to their cosy, little coven.
Vampires like Alice and Edward.
Bella Swan
I couldn't stop thinking of the handsome, striking Edward Cullen.
I thought of him as I walked from Forks Hospital to my other destinations, and couldn't stop reflecting my conversation with him.
He had the most gorgeous golden eyes I had ever seen.
I had actually never seen golden eyes before!
Edward's voice was melodious, and music to my ears! None of the songs on my iPod or phone can match Edward's musical, harmonious voice. I wondered whether it was fate or coincidence that Edward and I met a few hours ago, at Mike's death bed.
Charlie had called me back to the station, and he said it was an emergency.
"Hey dad," I said, entering his office.
"Bells," said Charlie seriously. "The case has gotten from bad to worse. A couple of my officers had found another body."
"Same as the first?"
"No. Are you brave enough to see the photos?"
"Yeah…I think. How bad can the pictures be?"
Charlie pulled a couple of photos out and placed them on his table, facing me. I glanced at him, and then at the photos.
At first glance, I saw a chunk of meat.
A large chunk of meat.
After looking at it closely, my stomach turned, and I felt sick.
The chunk of meat had eyes, a hole (most likely a mouth) and a nose! The chunk of meat isn't a chunk of meat! It's human!
I grabbed the nearest bucket and vomited.
"Oh dear," said Charlie sympathetically, handing me a wad of tissues. "Hopefully you didn't eat any meat for lunch. Unfortunately, this crime was more heinous and monstrous than the first. Are you alright for more details?"
I nodded, wiping my forehead.
"The ME had identified the remains as William Wellington," said Charlie quietly. "There's no DNA or fibres on the body, that can lead us to solve the case. The only thing that I can think of that can connect both murders, is that Angela and William's sister Vicky, were best friends (when Angela was alive), and their families were close. Some could say that they're family friends. Only a couple of detectives agree with my theory. Others believe that both of the murders are separate cases. I just need something to tie both those cases together!"
I had stopped listening to Charlie, and thought more about Edward.
I wondered why I never had any siblings.
If I did, would they look and have traits like me? A thought struck me; what if Edward's my older brother
and I have a little sister or two? Would I be happier than I am now?
Would Edward care and protect me?
"Bella!" said Charlie, interrupting my thought. "Why don't you go to the library or something? The other detectives will be coming in a couple of minutes, for our usual debate. Renee will kill me if I let you sit around here with nothing to do!"
I laughed.
Charlie wasn't joking about Renee killing him.
My parents were as opposite and night and day, or sea and land.
"I'll go and call up a friend," I said, standing up. "When will you come home tonight? I'll be cooking dinner by the way."
"That won't be necessary," said Charlie, with a small laugh. "You're not my maid or housekeeper! I'll buy a pizza, or maybe buy some three-minute noodles. You won't have to cook me dinner! I survived at least a decade on fast food before you came! I don't need proper meals, Bells. The most I had of proper meals was once a month at the most!"
"That won't do," I said disapprovingly.
Before he could reply or protest, his office phone rang.
"Police Chief Swan," Charlie said wearily. "Yes, I know. My daughter went to see him a couple of hours ago. What? You serious? Why are you telling me this? I know, but my cases are already stacked high, and there's a debate going on between my men. You sure? Thanks."
He hung up, his face grim.
"What is it?" I asked.
"I received news from Forks Hospital," he said grimly. "Mike Newton didn't die."
