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Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. No copyright infringement is intended.

Huge hugs to Snarkymuch and Gredelina1 for sharing their awesome beta skills and to Arrr and Augustmoon99 for pre-reading.

I have been looking forward to reaching this part of the story since I started as it was the original idea for the story. Everything else that has happened and is yet to happen is the result of this idea.

Chapter Thirteen — Every Little Thing

Jasper POV

I sat at Bella's bedside and tried to focus on the words I was supposed to be reading. I was reading Wuthering Heights to her and was finding it extremely dull. That wasn't the real problem, though. It was knowing that any minute now, we were going to get the results of her latest barrage of tests, and these were the most important yet.

We had been shepherded out of the room a few hours ago while they performed their tests and examinations, none of which I truly understood. While they had done that, we had taken the time to discuss the events of yesterday and the death of Jacob Black.

When Rose, Emmett, and I had reached Bella's house, the emotions had damn near crippled me. There'd been no question of what had happened - that had been obvious for us all to see. He'd lain in a pool of blood and brain matter, the gun still protruding from his mouth in an almost comical pose. There'd been no humor in the situation, though. The rest of the pack had been in agony; the grief had come from them in waves as they'd howled their distress at the sky.

Sam had been the one to calm them down; he'd phased back to human form and ordered them into silence. Cradling Jacob's destroyed body in his arms, he'd run back in the direction of La Push, the other wolves running with him in a bizarre parody of a funeral cortege.

We'd had no desire to remain around the grisly evidence of Jacob's death, yet we'd known it had needed to be dealt with. If it was discovered that Jacob had taken his life here, there would be questions, attention drawn where it was not needed. We'd made quick work of the clean up, dousing the area in water and clearing away the evidence. As soon as we were sure there was no sign left discernible to human eyes, we'd left.

Reactions to his death were conflicted amongst the family. Esme had been saddened, but understanding, and Alice had been disappointed, but it was Carlisle's reaction that had surprised me the most.

"He is in Hell now," he had stated simply. "But I imagine it is a lesser Hell than he had been living in since the attack. I know I should feel pity for him, but in truth, I am angry that he has been given that release."

That statement told me more of Carlisle's changed attitude - towards the wolves and humanity in general - since our return than anything else could have. If anything positive could be found in Jacob's death, it was the fact Carlisle didn't discover what Emmett and I had been planning. He'd thought we were hunting when we came across the newborn and the wolves. It turned out Rosalie had been lying when she'd said we had his blessing. Apparently, Emmett and I weren't the only ones that wanted some payback.

We knew we would hear from the wolves again sooner or later. They may even feel the need for retribution against us. Some of them were more volatile than others, but we were ready. We had been lenient with them following Bella's attack, but we would not be if they tried to place blame on us for this.

We had bigger things to worry about anyway - the army Riley had mentioned. Alice had seen nothing of Victoria or any newborns, but when the newborn spoke of them, there had been no hint of deception. We were going to be on guard from now on. Once things settled down a bit here, we could look into it further, but for now, our focus was Bella.

Esme slipped back into the room. She had taken a moment to hunt while we waited, but from her emotions as she had left, I think she needed solitude to vent her anxiety more than she needed sustenance.

She slipped to Bella's other side and kissed her on the forehead. "Hello, sweetheart. Has Jasper been doing a good job as a narrator in my absence?"

"I'm doing the best I can," I defended lightly. "Though your choice in reading matter leaves a lot to be desired, Bella. Why couldn't you have a passion for thrillers? I'd even settle for Harry Potter, rather than this convoluted rubbish." My tone was light and joking, but apparently did not fully cover my true emotions, as Esme shot me a sympathetic look.

I just wanted to get these damn results already. This waiting was driving us all crazy.

"Don't you listen to him, Bella. He has no taste for the classics. I'll take over for a while." She held her hand out for the book, but we were interrupted by Rosalie and Emmett coming in from their own wanderings.

"Carlisle is waiting for us in the family room," Rosalie said. "He has Dr. Toad with him."

I sighed with relief. Finally.

"Sorry to leave you hanging, Bella," I said. "I'll be back as soon as I can, and we can continue the tale of Cathy and Heathcliff systematically destroying each others' life."

I felt a stab of amusement and looked to Esme. She was staring down at Bella with an expression that was anything but amused. It must have been Emmett.

"See you in a bit, Bells," he said cheerily and led us out of the room.

Alice was already sitting with Carlisle in the family room, surrounded by bags from the gift shop. She seemed to have made it her mission to keep the children's ward stocked with soft toys and games, and judging by the amount of bags, there would be some happy kids later. There was little any of us could do to help Bella, and I was glad she had found something to distract herself, if only for a short time.

We all took our seats and waited for the doctor to speak. He was nervous - because of the news he was about to impart or because he was in a room with six vampires, I didn't know. He may not know our true nature, but he seemed to feel the distinctly uneasy presence we commanded.

He leaned forward in his chair and cleared his throat nervously before speaking. "Well, we have the results, and I'm afraid they are not all we hoped for."

He cleared his throat again and tugged at his tie. I sent him a calming wave. I didn't give a shit about his personal comfort level, but if he didn't start talking soon, I had a feeling Emmett was going to throttle him.

"Of course, we cannot be sure given Miss. Swan's condition, but given the results, we... uh..."

"For fuck's sake, just tell us!" Emmett burst out.

The doctor blushed and stiffened slightly. "The tests show she has no sensation below the T1 level of her spine. The thoracic function-"

"In English, please," Emmett said in an annoyed tone.

"She's paralysed from the waist down," Rosalie said. "What about the thoracic function?" She was using that calm, cool tone again, and just like with Riley, the doctor seemed completely dazzled.

"We think it is unaffected by the spinal damage. However, the EEG results are not good. There is no sign of brain activity." He spoke so calmly that the impact of his words did not reach me immediately, I was tracking his emotions, trying to make sense of whatever it was Rosalie was doing to him. It wasn't until she broke her gaze from him and gasped that I heard what he had said.

Bella was brain dead.

"No brain activity?" she questioned. "You start off by telling us about the paralysis and neglect to mention the lack of brain activity. Are you out of you mind?"

"My sincerest apologies," he said. "I don't know what happened." He shook his head, as if trying to break out of a trance.

"Are you telling me my daughter is brain dead?" Esme asked, her voice breaking.

Alice let out a muffled sob. I pulled her into my lap, and she clung to me with a grip that was almost painful.

"Yes. I am very sorry to say there is no sign of higher brain function. I know this is a difficult time, but I would like to discuss organ donation. It can be-"

"Get out," Carlisle interrupted. His voice was calm, but his emotions were anything but.

"Again, I'm sorry to be-"

"I said get out!" Carlisle bellowed. His expression feral and furious. "Get out now!"

The doctor hurried from the room, leaving us stunned and silent.

"I don't understand," Emmett finally said, breaking the silence.

"Bella is brain dead," Carlisle stated coldly, pacing the room. "She's paralysed, too, but that doesn't matter when, essentially, she's dead."

"No, she's not. Her heart is beating. I can hear it." Emmett sounded like a child being told the Earth was round for the first time. He knew the truth, but he was refusing to hear it. I understood the desire.

"Her heart is beating, but she is not there anymore. There is nothing of Bella in that room but a shell," Carlisle said savagely.

"Carlisle, stop," Esme said, reaching out to halt his manic pacing.

"Why should I stop? It's true, dammit!" His emotions were assaulting me with their force - anger, pain, frustration. I had never seen him like this.

He needed to get out of here before he lost the tenuous hold on his control he had. Emmett seemed to be thinking the same thing. He gripped Carlisle's arm and dragged him from the room, Rosalie following.

Esme stared at the closing door with an expression of confusion and despair.

"Go after him, Esme," Alice said quietly. "He will need you when he calms down."

As if she had been just waiting for someone to tell her what to do next, Esme shot out of the door after him, leaving Alice and me alone.

"You okay, darlin'?" I asked.

The look she gave me made her feelings clear; how could she possibly be okay?

"I'm sorry. I just meant..."

"I know what you meant," she said kissing me on the cheek. "No, I'm not okay. I want to see Bella now."

She stood and held out her hand to me. I took it, and together, we walked slowly back to Bella's room.

I expected to feel something different when I saw her again, that the knowledge that she was gone would somehow make her look different, but she was the same as before - silent and still, no expression on her face. She looked like she was sleeping, not the shell Carlisle had called her.

"Oh, Bella," Alice gasped. "What have they done to you?"

Her emotions were a confusion of pain and sorrow, yet there was a hint of frustration that did not seem to belong.

"I can't do this!" she said, turning to me. "I can't see her like this, knowing she's dead. I have to get away."

"Do you want me to come with you?"

She shook her head. "I'm going to go find the others, see how Carlisle is."

"Okay, then. I'll stay here and finish reading this God awful book to Bella."

She looked at me curiously. "What's the point? She can't hear you anyway."

There was another surge of frustration; yet, this time, there was irritation, too. That was fine; I was irritated, too. This was Bella. It didn't matter if she could hear us or not; we still needed to treat her like the person she was.

I waved her away, and she shrugged and left the room, too.

"Just me and you, then, Bella," I said, picking up the book. "Ready to dive back into the world of eighteenth century England?"

I felt a wave of sadness and turned to see who it was. It was rare for anyone to sneak up me, but there was nobody there. We were utterly alone.

I shook my head and began reading aloud. I had reached the part where Cathy was explaining why she could not marry Heathcliff, when the alarm on one of the monitors beside Bella's bed began beeping manically.

I jumped to my feet, panic stricken. What the hell was happening? I could hear Bella's heart racing and thought for a moment it was going to stop.

"No, not yet!" I pleaded with her. "Please, Bella, not yet!"

There was a rush of footsteps and a nurse arrived, coming to Bella's side and reading a printout from the monitor.

"What's wrong with her?" I demanded.

I felt a wave of intense anger and frustration, which, even as I felt it, faded back to nothing. Bella's heart slowed to its usual pace, and the machine alarm ceased.

"She's having rounds of tachycardia," the nurse explained. "I will inform the doctor, but given the situation..." She trailed off and shrugged.

"It's not a big deal?" I asked.

Again, there was a surge of frustration and anger, but this time, it was much more muted. Suspicion tugged at my mind, and I ignored the nurse's reassurances as I contemplated the girl laying in the bed beside me.

Could it be?

"It's okay, I understand," I assured the nurse, cutting off her continued blathering.

"Well, I'll let the doctor know, and I'm sure he'll be in to see her soon," she said, clearly fearing reprisal for her thoughtless words. I nodded, and she left the room, sliding the door closed behind her.

I stared down at Bella. There was no change, but I knew I had felt something.

"Bella?" I asked softly. "Was that you? Can you hear me?"

Her heart sped slightly, and now I could feel it clearly. Relief. A clear wave of relief coming from her.

"Bella!" My voice broke, but I didn't care. I was far too happy to care.

She was in there, and she could hear me.

Thank you to everyone that read the last chapter, especially those of you that reviewed, I appreciated every one. Nobody guessed the lyrics for the last chapter so I am giving you another chance — Which is my way of saying it's 1am and I'm too tired to search for a new song — I have added a couple more lines to help you out.

~ I've been counting on nothing. But he keeps giving me his word, and I am tired of hearing myself speak. Do you ever get weary? Do you ever get weak? How do you dream, when you can't fall asleep? ~