Chapter Thirteen

Bella

I came to with a terrible head ache and a sick feeling. The back of my head felt tender and I tried to remember what happened. I remembered going for a walk with Jasper, seeing the view and then... running...running away from someone...then stopping when someone blocked my path but I couldn't remember any more except flashes, cold hands on my body, lips forcing mine open...oh God! I tried to sit up too quickly and threw up. What did I remember?

"Run Bella, the way you came"

I remembered Jaspers words.

He shouted for me to run but why? I wish I could remember. I lifted my head again more slowly this time but I couldn't see anything, the room was dark, not just dark but pitch black as if there were no light at all and I began to panic. I sat up and realized I was laying on the ground, it was hard and gritty, concrete? Stone? I couldn't tell but it smelled damp and it was very cold here. I listened but I couldn't hear anything except a slow drip, drip, so there was water close by, a leak? A tap? I had no idea. I needed to explore my surroundings but I felt too weak, too sick at the moment so I lay back and closed my eyes, hoping my head wouldn't hurt so badly when I next opened them.

When I woke up again the darkness was still complete and there was still a steady drip, drip, but I had remembered who had hit me...Edward! I forced myself to my knees and stayed there until the nausea passed. Then I got to my feet without hitting anything so the ceiling in here must be reasonably high. I put my hands out to stop myself colliding with anything and took three paces forward. I couldn't feel anything so I walked forward two more paces and felt a cold stone or rough concrete wall. Leaving one hand trailing along the wall I walked to my left ten paces before feeling a corner then repeated the action again. I was in a square room but I couldn't find a window or a door. It was like a concrete box.

If there was no way out in the walls then the opening must be in the ceiling but had no idea how far up that was or how I was going to find it. Crawling on my hands and knees I tried to discover anything that might help me on the floor but there was nothing. It seemed to be just an empty concrete box and I wondered how long I'd been in here and how much longer it would be before Edward came back. I knew he would be back, I vaguely remember him telling me he would but that's the last thing I did remember. I started shivering, was he going to leave me here to freeze or had he just forgotten that I was human?

I was thirsty and hungry but most of all I was mad. Mad at Edward for assaulting me, mad at myself for being so clumsy and so slow, if I hadn't fallen over maybe I could have reached the safety of the house. Jasper had tried to give me time to get away. Jasper, what had happened? Was he dead? Hadn't Alice said something about not ageing? Perhaps Edward hadn't been able to kill him or hurt him much. I could only hope that Alice and the others would find him, make sure he was OK because I knew with certainty that if he was alive he would be looking for me. How I knew was a mystery but I did. I knew he would never stop looking just as I would never stop trying to get out of here and back to him. Something had happened between us, a connection that was so powerful it pulled me even now. I felt an ache deep inside, one that had nothing to do with being attacked and everything to do with being separated from Jasper.

I must have fallen asleep again because I woke curled in a ball on the floor, but it wasn't so cold nor dark any more. There was an upturned crate in the centre of the room with a box of candles, bottles of water and packets of cookies on it. I was covered by a thick coarse blanket and in the far corner was a bucket with a lid. So he'd been back and provided me with the bare necessities, but I was alone for now. Scrambling to my feet I grabbed the candle lighting another from its flame and holding it above my head. I could see the ceiling at last, the room was cinder block and I was right about the entrance. There was a trap door in the ceiling but it was far out of my reach even if I stood on the crate.

I opened one of the bottles and took a long swig, choking most of it back up in my haste. My head still hurt and when I explored my scalp with my fingers I could feel why. There was a long gash in my scalp that had stopped bleeding and clotted. The area around it was very tender and I guessed I was lucky I hadn't done more damage, no he hadn't done more damage. I remembered him head butting me and feeling the contact with a sharp rock on the back of my head. I had no idea how long my supplies were supposed to last but I used some water to rinse my face and then tore open a packet of cookies. The smell of chocolate chip permeated the air around me and I bit into one greedily.

After the first few I felt a little better but I knew I was in danger, at the very least Edward was attracted to me, he was a vampire, was it my blood or my body he wanted? I hoped it was my blood, at least it would be over with although I wouldn't go down without a fight. Thinking of that I took an inventory of possible weapons, there were the water bottles but they were plastic, the candles, perhaps I could burn him, the crate. Perhaps I could break it apart and use the wood as a club. It was pathetic but I had nothing else. I checked in my pockets, tissues, a couple of mints, a pencil stub, and an old shopping list. He must have taken my cell phone, or had I dropped it when I ran? Wrapping the blanket round me for warmth I leaned against the wall and closed my eyes again. What a mess! I wondered what the Cullens would tell Charlie, "Sorry Bella's missing, we think our son snatched her."

I heard a scraping from the ceiling and the trap door opened revealing Edwards grinning face,

"Awake at last Bella. I'm glad you found something to eat and drink. It was never my intention to starve you or kill you with the cold but I have to be careful."

"Yeah you wouldn't want anyone to know you are holding me prisoner would you Edward? The only way you could ever hope to get me."

He frowned,

"Bella, we will get along much better if you drop the attitude. Remember I'm the one with the key to your prison. It will be much nicer for you if you tried being nice to me"

"In your dreams Cullen"

The trap door crashed down much as the piano lid had a few days ago, did he really expect me to smile and say pretty please?