Chapter Thirteen
Esme guided me into the living room, all the while whispering encouraging words in my ear. Like Charlie, I guessed she was trying to convince herself that everything was fine, had to be. It didn't really make me feel any better. But I tried to keep a straight face as I sat on the couch, sinking into the soft material and letting all the feelings I had evaporate.
"I don't know how it happened. I just... I woke up and he wasn't there."
Esme nodded, running her cold hand over my hair. "It's fine. It's going to be fine. Don't worry. We'll find him."
I looked up, my eyes gleaming in the light of the house. "How? I mean, he could be anywhere by now. He's been gone for hours, probably.
"I'll go to the house," Edward said, coming to stand next to Esme. "I'll catch his scent of anything I can. And I'll follow it. I'll find him and bring him home, Bella. I will. If it's the last thing I do."
The tears welled in my eyes again, and Esle sat next to me, bringing me into an embrace. "What are we going, Carlisle?"
"Well, there's only so much we can do. We can follow his scent for as long as we can. Or we can just wait here and let the authority's do their job. But that's not a good idea. We don't know who has him, what they are or who they are. We should go."
When I looked up, suddenly aware, I blurted. "Where's Rosalie?"
Carlisle pat my back. "She went hunting yesterday. She'll be back in a few days. In the mean time, Jasper, Emmett, Edward and myself will go to your house and get something belonged to Mason. We shouldn't be that long. We might be back this evening. It all depends. Just, try to stay calm."
I inhaled a breath, and exhaled a long shaky one. Edward leaned down, and cupped my cheek with his hand. I closed my eyes. I didn't want to be here. I wanted to be home with my baby, or maybe in Florida. I wanted to feel the sun on my face, the wind on my hair, the sand in my toes. I wanted hug my mother and father, holding Mason in my arms. I wanted to his his forehead softly and sing him to bed. I wanted to do all the stuff I didn't know I would ever get the chance to do again.
When Carlisle, Edward, Emmett and Jasper left to go look for Mason, Alice and Esme, sitting by me on the couch, were trying to make me feel better. It wasn't working.
"I don't know how I didn't see this," Alice said. "It must have been a spur of the moment desision. And I have no idea who could have done this. I can't see it in my visions."
"Well, don't worry about it. Alice's vision's sometimes get a little confusing, and she can't see everything. It's normal."
"I should have woken up," I blurted. "I should have heard something, anything. And it should have woken me up." I felt stupid now. I let that stupid dream of Edward and I at prom get in the way. And now Mason was paying for it.
"Now, don't talk like that," Esme said. "It wasn't your fault."
I was about to say something, anything, but my phone vibrated in my pocket, making me lose my trail fo thought. I reached down and dug through my pocket, finding my phone and sticking it to me ear. "Hello?"
"Bella." It was Charlie. "It's Dad."
"Dad," I said. "What's going on? Have you heard anything?"
He sighed. "Nothing. But I send as many officers as I could to go to all the motels from here to Seattle. Police from other county's are going, too. We'll find them, Bella, and when we do, we'll rip their head off for doing this. No one messes with Grandson and gets away with it. No one."
"Just make sure they get there fast," I said.
Charlie made a noise, and then said, "Where are you?"
"At the Cullen's house. Carlisle and the boys are gone to look for Mason. I'm here with Alice and Esme."
"Oh," he said. "Where's Rosalie?"
"Out of town for a few days."
"Oh."
The conversation started to get a little akward, so I said, "Well, call me if you see anything. I'm going to go home now, anyway. I'm tired."
"Okay, Bells. Bye."
When we dissconnected, I looked over at Alice. She was looking at me, her normally happy features overtaken by something more serious, more sad. She must be so fustrated with not being able to use her visions to help find Mason. But it wasn't her fault. It wasn't my fault. It was the bastard who took my son's fault. And hewas going to pay.
"You look tired," Esme said, pushing back some of my hair with her hand. "Rest."
I started to stand up. "I really should get home."
She gently pushed me back on the couch. "Nonesense. I don't want you there alone. Alice, get a blanket and pillow for Bella."
Right now, I was too tired to refuse, so when Alice came back with a pillow and blanket, I laid my head on the soft material, and drifted off into a deep slumber.
--
The tiny casket lowered into the ground slowly, meloncoly music playing in the background. My cheeks were wet with tears, my eyes glossy as the pale light hit them. Beside me, Charlie gripped my hand and Renee held my shoulder. They both weren't looking at me, but instead at the tiny wooden casket which obtained my infant son.
"Thought Mason's time here with us was short," the reader said, "he left an impression on everyone present. I don't doubt that he had a wonderful time here on Earth, and that he will be loved just as equaly in Heaven, guided my God's hands."
More tears fell down my eyes, and I didn't even bother to wipe them away. I didn't have enough strength to move. I was numb, just wishing I wasn't able to feel this pain. This hurt was like no other. It shadowed over the day Edward left, squat the day when I was attacked my James. Now, I was facing something so much for devestating.
I never really understood what it was like to lose someone you love until Edward left. But I got over it. I knew he was alive somewhere. But now Mason ws gone, and I was going to have to face the reality of it. He was no longer with me, no longer alive on Earth. I finally understood what it was like to face death, to have it standing right in front of you. I understand what it's like to have everything you've ever loved riped right through your grasp, never to be seen again. And I hated it.
Death was miserable.
I wish it were me, not Mason.
My heart raced so quickly inmy chest that it hurt. My eyes were so swallowed in tears that they burned. Everything about my body ws frozen. I couldn't move. I couldn't breath. I wanted to die. I wanted to be swept from this Earth to be met my Mason once again. I wanted to get out of this place, now.
I looked up at the Cullen's, who were all just standing still and looking at the casket. I could see Edward, his hands clenched in fist on his side. He was biting down hard on lip and, if it were possible, I was sure he could have drawn blood. His hair was blowing in the wind, stranding stringing around his eyes. But he didn't move to fix it. He was frozen, just like everyone esle.
Jacob was there, holding onto Alyssa's hand as she bounced Mason on her lip. Even Michael was there, alone, standing in a black suit and tie. Angela and Mike were standing next to him, surrounded me my friends from Florida. Lauren was crying -she had a connection with Mason.
And then there was me, Bella, just standing there. I felt like I should get up to say something, but each time I tried to move, I just couldn't. My feet were glued to the ground, it seemed.
Then it started to rain.
The drops were tiny at first, but then started to get bigger and bigger. The brown soil was heavy with liquid, running down. Mason's casket was soaked, and I knew that it wasn't suppose to happen like this. It should be sunny, the grass green and dry, the wind just blowing slighty. Was that too much to ask for?
Then it happened. They started to lower the casket down at a faster pace, eager to get out of the rain and the dirt. I watched, unable to speak, as my son was lowered into the ground. Then, I screamed, "Mason!"
I lerched forward, but something caught my arm. Charlie pulled me back, holding my against his chest and I scrunched my face and cried, "I should have woken up! I should ahve woken up!"
"Sweetie."
"I should have woken up!"
"Bella, wake up."
"I should have been with him! It should be me!"
"Bella, honey. Come on. Wake up..."
I jumped up. "No!"
My eyes felt heavy. I looked around and saw Esme's worried face peering down at me. Her cold hand was covering mine, her thumb running over my knuckels. Alice was standing above her, looking at me with those same eyes. It was just a dream, I reminded myself. Just a stupid little dream. Don't worry about it, he'll be fine.
"Where am I?" I asked, a little disoriented.
"You're at our house," Esme said, and then it all came rushing back to me. Mason, gone. My life, ruined. "How are you feeling?"
I rubbed my temples. "I don't know." I paued to look around. "What time is it?"
Alice glaned up at the clock on the wall, which was nothing but a blurr to me. "Four- thirty. You pretty much slept through the whole day."
"Are they back?"
Esme shook her head sadly. "Not yet, Bella. Not yet. But I have a feeling they will be back soon. Just hold tight, alright?"
I didn't know what to say, so I just nodded. Alice and Esme didn't speak, either. They just stared at me, the same blank expression on. I could tell that they were just as worried as I was, and that made me feel hopeless. If vampires were afraid, things were bad. Real bad.
"Would you like something to eat?" Alice asked after a minute. I shook my head. "Come on, Bella. You need to eat something."
"I'm not hungry."
"You must be. You haven't eaten all day."
"I said no." My voice was a little harsher then I hoped it would be. Alice just sighed and nodded, then walked over to the loveseat and sat down. I closed my eyes, and re-opened them, hoping this woudl all be some freaky, over- rated stupid dream.
It wasn't.
Time seemed to drag n forever in silence until I heard the front door open and the sound of voices ring through the house. I sat up, eager to see my baby boy, but my face fell when I didn't see him. Instead, Carlisle, Edward, Jasper and Emmett were just looking at me, empyhanded.
"I'm sorry Bella," Carlisle said. "But whoever took him, knows what their doing. They did what we did to confuse James. It's almost impossible to track Mason down. But we won't give up."
I looked up at Edward, but he was just looking out to space, his face holding this blank stare. His fists were clentched tightly, his knuckles even whiter than they already were. I tried to meet his gaze, to see what he was feeling, but he wasn't moving.
"So now what do we do?" Esme asked. She was holding me. But I was frozen.
"What can we do? Not much. But we won't give up."
"You know," Jasper said. "Maybe if we had Rose here, she could help?"
Edward groaned and rolled his eyes. "What is Rose going to do? It isn't like she cares about Mason, anyway!" His voice was hoarse, rough.
"That's not true," Emmett said defensively. "You know that isn't true. When she get's back in a few days, she's going to want to help find him. She will, and you know it."
Edward just sighed. "I just... I don't know what to do."
"Well, we can't panic, that's for sure," Carlisle said as he came to step between Emmett and Edward. "We just have to think a little harder."
"Carlisle," I siad dryly. Everyone stopped and looked at me. "Do you think Laurent has Mason? I mean, he has reason..."
He shrugged. "I don't think. But he is a suspect. I'll have to be in contact with him soon. The sooner the better, I guess."
I felt my heart sink a little. Who knew what he was capable of? I didn't. And I don't think anyone else was, either. I know Edward didn't -I could see it in his golden eyes, flaming with fear and enger towards whoever did this. I was sure I looked the same way, just as anyone would when they find out someone has taken their only child.
"We are going to go out and look again tomorrow afternoon. That was we can try to track any new scents," Carlisle was explaining to me. "And we will go again with Rosalie comes back. The extra help is needed."
"I can go," Alice said sudeenly from the loveseat. She was sitting next to Jasper and holding his hand. "I won't mind. I'd love to help."
Carlisle shook his head. "I want you to focus on your visions, Alice. Try to see something. Anything at all that might help us find who did this. That'll be your job. And Bella," he said as he turned to me. "I don't want you to panic, as I've said before. I just want you to try to stay calm and content. Esme and Alice will always be with you."
"But they have my baby," I whimpered. "He's probaly so scared right now. They didn't even take his favorite blanket."
Esme rubbed my back. "Just relax, Bella."
I was about to say something, but there was a knock at the front door. Eager, everyone stood up and walked over to it. Carlisle opened it, and Aro looked up to meet our eyes.
"Hello," he said in that same voice. "It seems we have a little bit of a problem."
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A/N- Here is the next chapter! I really hope you like it and that it was worht the wait! I really enjoyed writing it! So, please reveiw! Thirty or more please!
Also, I've had someone tell me that they don't like it when I ask for a certain amount of reveiws. Well, her is my explanation. I do that so that I get peoples opinion. I don't know if it makes any sense to you, but it does to me. I do it so that I can tell that so many people like or dislike my story. That way I have something to go by. Understand?