Chapter 21 – Rubble

APOV

I stared out the window. Sorrow almost took control of me. Grief was all around me. Through the window I saw the devastation that had taken its toll on the island. It was ruined. So much was destroyed. Over half of the island had been reduced to ashes. Thankfully the harbour and airport had gotten through unscathed. We began dropping height. I watched as the people on the ground grew less and less insignificant. Details began to sink into my vision. I saw trees, houses, people. Life was still here, even if it some had been taken away. I felt the helicopter land smoothly onto the ground. I got out and the helicopter was whisked away into a more out of the way place. A plane took off just seconds after we had been cleared off. It set off in the direction of the Brazilian mainland. The sun smashed down against me. A trickle of sweat fell off my brow. My gel was melting in the heat. Disaster.

We took a taxi to where our house was. I gasped in horror at the sight of it but in the end it didn't seem too bad. One side was very burnt but that was in the direction the fire was coming from. The other exterior walls seemed OK. I forced myself to remember that the side of the wall that got burnt was the same side that Bella and Jake would have been sleeping beside. I could picture flames surrounding them in my head. I tried to block it out.

It seemed that our house was the last one to be hit by the fire. We were the lucky ones. I stared down the road to see over houses, reduced to ash and rubble. Everyone that survived was helping to clean up. It would have been chaos earlier. Putting out the fire. Getting the injured/dead to the extremely small hospital. I stopped putting pictures in my head. It would only make things worse.

For about an hour we helped clear up the rubble, and look through the house for Bella and Jake. There was no sign of them whatsoever. We eventually gave up and went to the hotel where we would stay the night before returning home.

I walked into the hotel in a foul mood. I felt Carlisle had given up much too easily. We had barely looked for them. I stomped up to the rooms in which we were staying. I slumped on the bed in my room while Carlisle and Esme settled down in a double bed room. I walked through into their room in a fit of rage. It had bubbled up inside of me and I had to say something. Bella and Jacob deserved this.

"How can you give up this easily?" I demanded towards Carlisle. My eyebrows flew out the top of my head and Carlisle looked like he shrunk about six inches.

"Alice." he started.

"How?"

"They are not here Alice, they are dead. Accept it."

"NO. They are NOT dead. Would you give up this easily if I had been lost in a fire?"

"That's different Alice." he said but I interrupted him again.

"No it is not." I yelled. "Bella is a sister to me, and Jake a brother."

Carlisle sighed impatiently. "Face the facts Alice. There is nothing we can do."

"Yes there is!" I pleaded. "You saw that the house was barely on fire. There was barely any damage on our house whatsoever."

"Then explain why they weren't there." Carlisle demanded.

"Both of you stop!" Esme cried suddenly.

I sneered at my father and walked back into my room. He didn't care whether they were dead or alive. I slammed the door behind me and slumped down on my bed. I fell asleep instantly despite the change of time zone. I needed to wake up early and try to find Bella and Jake. I would never give up on them. They would never give up on me.

Earlier that day...

JPOV

I sat on the small plane, preparing my mind for the long journey back home. I didn't want to leave early but it would be good to get back and let everyone know that we had survived the fire. Bella briefly squeezed my hand. I grabbed my iPod and settled down to watch a film.

The journey passed quickly enough. Bella dozed off before we took off. I watched as a helicopter was moved so that we could take off for Rio de Janeiro. Everything seemed a little blurry. I felt as if the tiredness had come back into my life. I felt sure that if we had spent the whole planned two weeks in Isle Esme, I would feel a lot better. Fortune had not favoured us again, apart from keeping us alive.

The plane wheels hit the ground forcefully. I woke with a start, not realising I had fallen asleep. I stood up immediately but my legs instantly buckled beneath me. Jet lag washed over me like a virus. I tried standing again and this time my legs kept me upright. The instant I left the plane, hot air drenched me head to toe in sweat.

I exhaled loudly and felt the need for water. I saw the temperature in the airport. 35 degrees Celsius. Hot hot hot. The connecting flight would take us to Seattle. Back to the cold and the rainy. I didn't miss it.

The plane flight felt slower than ever as my iPod ran out of battery. I cursed silently. Bella again had no trouble falling asleep. I stroked her smooth, soft hair and kissed her forehead. She smiled in her sleep. Maybe she realised what was happening and maybe she didn't. I stared at the unfamiliar ring on her fourth finger. A ring that symbolised marriage. I grinned at the thought. Married to me!

Again I was woken by the same crash of wheels on the tarmac runway. I yawned and clicked my neck. Bella smiled lovingly at me,

"Home, sweet home." she smiled and I sighed as dramatically as I could. She laughed at me. This time when I got off the plane I was not greeted by the warm sun. Cold water droplets landed on me repeatedly. I shivered in the cold and I pulled a warm jumper over my body where goosebumps were forming. The airport reminded me of being in jail. No unauthorised access. I tried to get rid of my falsely accused prison sentence memory. It was not a happy one.

Thankfully we eventually left the walls of the airport and got into a little VW golf, that had replaced the Chevy truck. It ran well, but I always wanted to get something more exciting and faster. Not that money was an issue any more. I chuckled at my little joke. Then I thought of the large sum of cash that was ours.

It felt good to get my hands on the steering wheel. The conversation in the car was energetic and light hearted but we were both starving after all the travelling. A while later, we pulled up into a familiar town. Forks. It felt good to be back. The rain had subsided a little. We hauled all of our bags inside. We had had plenty of time to pack before we left to get back. We couldn't have stayed in Isle Esme because despite the house being the least damaged out of all of the houses affected by the fire, ours was the best, yet a whole wall was ruined so it was impossible to stay there.

"I'll ring Dad, Quil, Embry and the Cullens. Can you whip up some eggs or something Bells?"

"Of course." Bella agreed.

"Hows the little thing in your womb?"

"Great!" she grinned.

I dialled my Dad's number and he answered quickly.

"Hello." he said

"Hey we're back!" I beamed.

"Why?" he asked.

"There was a fire on the island and the house we were staying at got damaged."

"Oh, shame. At least you're back though."

"Yeah. Anyway, I've got loads more people to call, and I am knackered, so I'll see you soon."

"OK bye."

I hung up and dialled the Cullen's number.

"Hello?" Emmett answered.

"Hey it's Jake." I announced. I heard a gasp at the other end.

"Are you alive?" he asked.

"No I'm lying, buried a under a tonne of grass, and I'm dead." I laughed sarcastically.

"Ha ha ha. I gotta go!" he said and the phone stopped dead.

I furrowed my brow and turned to Bella. "Emmett thought we were dead."

"That's weird." she laughed.

"Yeah." I muttered and dialled in a third number.

Thanks for all the great reviews! I needed the encouragement! I hope you enjoy this chapter. Thanks again.

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