Lost Loves of Meadow Lane

Chapter 21

October 31, 1910, Labor

Bella stood at the window with one hand against the wall while the other rubbed her back.

Victoria had left right after dinner the night before. Other than the door being locked from the outside, it would have been the perfect time to escape. She could disappear without a trace, but Riley was still not feeling well and in danger. How long would it be before they returned? How much longer would she have to stay and live a life that she didn't want? How much more was she expected to take?

While she dreamed of a life that could have been, a sudden pain that ripped through her caused her to lean heavily against the wall. Was this type of pain normal? The muscles of her stomach contracted again, causing Isabella to feel the need to urinate. While she was relieving herself, the intense pain grabbed her again.

"Isabella, are you okay," Riley asked from behind the closed door as he continued to pace.

"I . . . I think you were right, Riley. I think the baby is coming early," she replied in the calmest voice she could muster.

"I'll go get the doctor," he told her.

"But the door's locked, Riley. How are you going to do that?" Isabella asked. "Besides that you're sick. You need to stay in bed!" What was she going to do?

"I know how . . . I'll be back really fast."

"Riley!" she screamed. "Riley! Come back!" But it was too late; Riley had already ducked through the trap door in his bedroom.

Bella once again stood by the large window, this time looking for signs of Riley. The pain was increasing and she was scared. She had never been around a woman having a baby and didn't know what to expect. Why didn't women talk about these things? Where was Riley? Why wasn't he back yet? Was he okay?

Bella was finding it harder to stand and moved to the living room to sit on the couch. Just when she didn't think she had it in her to bare the pain, a loud banging on the front door got her attention. Someone was there on the outside of the locked door. Was it Riley?

Fear, worry, and pain were the company Isabella had been keeping for hours when the front door crashed to the floor. The tall shadow that entered rushed to her side. His blue eyes were full of concern as he dropped his bag next to them.

"Everything is going to be fine, Mrs. Witherdale. Can you tell me how long you have been experiencing labor pains?" Dr. Cullen asked. He held her wrist between two fingers and looked at the watch from his pocket.

"Mid-afternoon?" she guessed. "The back pain . . . a few weeks," she continued.

"A few weeks?" the doctor asked for clarification. Isabella nodded.

"Yes, about the same time Riley started getting upset stomachs and not feeling well."

Silence filled the room. Time stretched out until Isabella began to moan and her stomach muscles tightened.

"Mrs. Witherdale, the contractions are still ten minutes apart. If I help you to the carriage, do you think you can hold on until we get you back to my house?"

Dr. Cullen was a good man; Isabella could see it in his eyes. She didn't know why but she trusted the blond-haired caregiver. He had always been kind. She prayed she could trust him. With Riley next to her, she let the doctor aid her out the front door.

The trip was uncomfortable and there were several times when Isabella thought she was going to crush Riley's hand. She even noticed him wince once or twice when her pain became almost unbearable.

Isabella November 1, 1910, Birth

Isabella didn't know how the doctor's wife did it. She would appear in the doorway at just the right time with hot water or clean linens before Dr. Cullen had said a word. With each time she appeared, Esme would comfort her and explain what was happening, how the baby was working his or her way into the world. She would whisper that the pain was only temporary and that soon she would be able to hold her child with her own two arms and look into the baby's beautiful face, touch soft cheeks, and count ten fingers and ten toes.

Hours passed and with pain that she didn't know she could bare, she struggled and pushed a new life into the world. Tears of exhaustion and relief blurred her vision.

"It's a girl," Dr. Cullen announced as he set an angel into the arms of her mother. Isabella's breath caught when the cherubim opened her eyes and looked up as if seeing the very soul of her mother ran the whole universe.

Her eyes were such a light shade of blue. Her eyes looked nothing like Isabella's. Isabella kissed her baby's forehead, counted all of her fingers and toes. Was it her imagination or was there a hint of green hidden just below the blue of those all too familiar eyes? Edward, she thought. She thought about the months she had spent with him learning to play the piano and falling in love. Recollecting on how often she saw Edward's eyes, the thoughts struck the deepest part of her heart. Her baby had Edward's eyes.

Heartbreaking sobs ripped from her chest. It couldn't be . . . she had only been intimate with him the one time, and now to save her daughter and herself she had to pull off the biggest lie of her life.

"Take her away, please," she begged. When her child was lifted from her arms, Isabella became hysterical. She could survive James and Victoria, but giving up her daughter, Edward's daughter . . . she didn't know if she had the strength to survive that.

A woman's emotions were not his specialty. Doctor Cullen sedated the hysterical Mrs. Witherdale and wondered. "What did a man have to do to create such heartbreak and sadness?" After watching his patient calm, he left her in the care of his able wife. The only way he could have been more blessed than the day he met his wife was for them to have a child of their own.

2011 Redeem

"Alice," Emmett spoke in a warning tone. He didn't like how close his sister was standing to the man who had thrown him across the room. It had been a long time since anyone had gotten the best of him, and he didn't like, nor did he trust this man. It was impossible to miss the rigid stance of someone who had been in the military. As much as he didn't want Alice in the middle, he didn't want the situation to escalate into something more dangerous than things already appeared.

"Jasper, " Alice whispered, getting the man's attention. "This is my brother, Emmett. He wasn't hurting me. I'm sorry I scared you," Alice tried to explain, watching as Jasper slowly calmed. She reached out her hand and waited for him to take it, never looking away from his pain-filled blue eyes. "He has such lovely eyes," she thought to herself. "Thank you," she added when he finally entwined his fingers with hers. "Let's go into the kitchen and have some coffee . . . or tea," she suggested.

When Jasper didn't move immediately, Emmett took the first step. He had already pulled cups from the cabinets and poured himself some coffee when his sister and her friend slowly entered.

Jasper felt guilty once he was again in charge of his faculties. "I'm sorry-" he started to say before being cut off by Alice's brother.

"No problem. At least I know you can handle yourself. How long has it been?"

"Not long enough, obviously." Jasper's tone was laced with guilt, but it wasn't his fault. He had truly believed Alice was being attacked.

"Well, I'm not sure I would have reacted any different if I had been the one to walk up to a house and hearing a woman screaming at the top of her lungs either," Emmett told him. His voice didn't hold any animosity. Jasper could not believe that the man he had attacked wasn't beyond livid, considering the fact he was rubbing his arm; the man was in pain.

Alice stepped to the side, opened the freezer, and retrieved a bag of frozen peas, offering them to her brother. Emmett snorted but took the offered gift and applied it to his upper arm and shoulder.

As they all took a seat at the kitchen table, Jasper offered his apologies to Emmett for the pain he'd caused. Emmett waved him off, then started his brotherly duties of interrogating the man. He was a police officer, after all; his sister should have known what he was going to do. Jasper answered the questions honestly up until Emmett got to why he left the military and what had he been doing since. Jasper looked at Emmett's suspiciously narrowed eyes and was grateful for Alice's intervention.

"Emmett, stop. I'm a big girl. Jasper is my friend, so leave him alone. He doesn't have to answer your questions," Alice grumbled. "So, what do you two want me to cook for dinner? Steaks or casserole?"

"Steaks," Jasper asked hopefully in unison with Emmett's repulsed tone of "You're cooking?"

The conversation seemed to flow as Alice cooked and served an early dinner. Emmett backed off his interrogation knowing once his younger sister fell asleep, she couldn't interfere. Jasper continued to relax as he listened to the sibling rivalry he had never experienced until he had joined the military.

"Alice . . . if you will excuse me, I think I'm going to take a much-deserved nap, out in the camper. You two," he spoke, looking at Jasper. "Behave yourselves. Don't do anything I would do," he finished, laughing at his own joke. For a brief moment, Jasper experienced a sense of déjà vu. His best friend, Corporal Royce King, had said the same thing when he had introduced his new bride, Rosalie Hale King to Jasper and the rest of the team.

"Do you wanna take a walk?" Alice asked, looking a little peeked.

"Are you feeling okay?" Jasper asked.

"Yeah, I just think I ate too much. I hate feeling this full and a walk always helps."

Together they walked the length of Meadow Lane and back, quietly, as they listened to the sounds of nature.

"Would you like me to read you another of my great-grandmother's letters?" Jasper inquired as they neared his car. He smiled at the light and excitement radiating in Alice's eyes. Reaching through the open window, he pulled out an olive-drab satchel as Alice pulled his free hand and dragged him toward the back of the house. He searched his bag, retrieving a single letter and opened it once they were seated on the porch swing.

November 2, 1910

To Thee my Heart, Edward,

I have watched and waited and listened beyond what I have been able to withstand. The door has opened and I flee even as a silent prayer passes my lips.

I lead the dogs away for fear that they have gone rabid and seek blood as payment. Danger surrounds us with every mile we overcome to distance ourselves.

My list of sins grows longer by the day. I have taken what is not mine and claimed him as such. Is it possible that to redeem myself in your eyes after the sheet has been torn and light is shed on my secrets?

With all my Love,

Bella

"That's it?" Alice asked. "What does she mean? She's running from something or someone. Does someone want to kill her? Her sins . . . taken what is not hers? That's a very cryptic letter. What does she mean by redeeming herself?" Mentally, Alice was trying to put the pieces together with the little she already knew.

They sat together, watching the sun lower itself behind the trees, both lost in thought.

"I don't think my great-grandmother was a very romantic woman when it came right down to it, Alice," Jasper said trying to justify the letter.

Well, now! Y'all thought I had forgotten about you, didn't you? Not a chance. I'm back for a short time. Lots to do this summer after a long semester of classes. Glad that's over lol. Only 3 more years to go.

Anyway… how many of you are ready to kill me? Nobody? Really? Wow!

Hope everyone enjoys the update! Thank you all for sticking with the story. There is more to come. I haven't been reading fanfiction, so sorry, I don't have any rec's at the moment.

Well, I do have to mention that Approaches to Literature wasn't as horrid as I thought it would be… well.. okay, not my favorite class but I did get to do some creative writing for the class. If I can figure out how to add them, I'll post them for you. I guess you will have to enjoy Carver and other writers of that caliber thought. We'll see.