Chapter Fourteen

Edward

It was snowing hard when I left Bella which made it even more critical that I get the old hunting lodge habitable provided it still stood. The thought of Bella and I alone in the middle of nowhere with a baby due and not just any baby but a hybrid was pretty scary but I wouldn't let her down. I would read a couple of books I had purchased on childbirth when I went to get Bella some hot food and hopefully, it would give me some idea what to do although if there were any complications and God knew there was plenty of scope for that, I would just have to do my best.

The strange thing was that in a way I was pleased that Bella had contacted me, pleased that I would be the one supporting her through this and not Carlisle. Although she would undoubtedly be safer in his hands I wanted this time with her. All I could think was that if I had understood Bella's needs better then maybe it would be my baby she was carrying, we might even be married. I knew my opinions were old fashioned, I should have listened to my heart not my head maybe.

Was I bitter? Sure, how could I be anything else although I didn't hate Bella or even Jasper totally for what happened. I felt strongly that there must be a strong bond between the two of them Jasper wouldn't have slept with Bella for fun or to hurt me and I had a pretty good idea that the two of them would end up as a couple. Of course, he had no idea what a mess he had left behind for Bella, maybe the mating pull, and I was sure they would be, or were, mated, was being hidden by the same strange force that stopped me from hearing Bella's thoughts.

Where was my "brother" right now? I knew I would have to find him. However scared and responsible for things Bella felt at the moment she would eventually recognize that he not only had a right to know but that she would want him to. I knew he would stand by her and not from any old-fashioned sense of guilt but because he loved her. But if I were wrong, if he did turn his back on her and his child then I would stay with Bella and help her all I could, provided she would let me.

When I found the lodge I was relieved to see that it was still standing and looked weather tight and was unoccupied. I had wondered what I would do if I found someone already using it, find another I guess but time was of the essence. There was a track still accessible halfway to the lodge and I could carry Bella the rest of the way if the snow drifts were too deep. The door wasn't locked, they never were up here in the mountains and inside it was dry and sheltered from the wind but bitterly cold. Out back was the log store although there weren't many logs left and of course, the place had no running water, just a well outside and no toilet facilities. I wondered how Bella would feel about a bucket in the back porch!

With some blankets, food, and a roaring fire it would be acceptable and no one was likely to bother us. The old mattress on the huge bed felt damp and I decided it would be better to make up sleeping quarters in front of the huge fireplace, easier to keep Bella warm and keep an eye on her. So, at least two more trips up here to supply the place for a siege! Then I could bring Bella up here while the fire warmed and aired the place. I realized leaving a fire unattended was risky but it couldn't be helped.

I had no idea how long we would be up here, how long was the gestation period for a hybrid? Bella certainly looked big, I wasn't sure she had long to go and she had told me that once she began to show it seemed she got bigger every day.

"I don't think my little traveller is going to be waiting the full nine months Edward. I'd say I have maybe three or four weeks left and then there will be a new life in my arms."

Her eyes had shone with that last sentence and I could see she had already formed a bond with the life growing inside her. Absentmindedly she would stroke her huge belly when she spoke of the child as if comforting it and I wondered if it was aware of her emotions, the love she felt for it. Envy vied with the bitterness when I thought about that and I tried to push both to the back of my mind as I picked up supplies in the town.

The guy in the sporting goods store chuckled when he saw the huge heap of things I had chosen.

"Wrong time of year to be going camping in these here mountains young man, you'd freeze to death the first night."

"Oh, I don't plan on using them now. I have a friend who's crazy about hiking and camping. Most of this is for him."

He looked at me wide-eyed,

"You must really like this friend, that little lot is gonna cost you a couple a thousand dollars minimum. Those sleeping bags are mighty expensive for starters."

"That's OK. I'll be borrowing them often enough so I'll get my monies worth out of them. Are the camping meals any good?"

I picked up one of the instant heat packs,

"I haven't tried them myself but from what I hear they taste like crap but keep you warm and the wolf from the door."

I was sure Bella would be delighted by that news, I hoped to get a supply of real food in too but these were incase of emergencies, I was trying to cover all eventualities and times like this I really wished I'd been a boy scout when I was young and human!

It actually took me three trips to the hunting lodge, loaded down with supplies for Bella and a third when I remembered she would need a supply of blood for the baby. Would this baby drink human formula when it was born or blood? While I could steal enough to keep Bella supplied for the next couple of weeks, it would store fine outside in the snow I couldn't steal that much. Maybe Bella could introduce Junior Swan to animal blood from the beginning if he or she needed blood to feed their hunger. If not then I guess I would just have to leave her to forage further afield. I didn't like that idea much but then maybe the baby's father would be with us by then. That was another thing on my to-do list, track down Jasper although I doubted he would be too keen to accept calls from me, I knew he would be feeling guilty about Bella and would probably think I was trying to track him down because I discovered the truth and I guess in a way that was true.

By the time I finally got back to Bella at the motel there were blizzard conditions and it was the middle of the night so we decided to wait until morning to try for the lodge when hopefully the weather would be better. She still looked tired and the dark smudges under her eyes made her look ill but she managed a smile for me and once I had showered and changed my clothes I went to sit beside the bed but she patted the place beside her.

"Would you mind? I'm feeling a little lost and scared right now. You were gone so long."

I smiled and took my old place beside her wrapping an arm around her as she leant against me.

"Thank you, Edward, for everything."

Her voice was only a whisper and within seconds she was fast asleep.