Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. I am in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise, I just use their creations to have my wicked way with them. No copyright infringement is intended.
Time is running out.
(Edward Masen)
I awoke the next morning to the very pleasant sensation of Bella kissing a trail of open mouthed kisses down my chest. "Good morning sleepyhead," she chuckled before returning her attention to the task at hand.
"What time is it?" I croaked, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes.
"Six AM," she hummed against my skin, her lips moving lower with determination to my ready and eagerly awaiting dick. "Plenty of time for round two."
"I love you," I grinned. "Did I tell you that?"
"You might have mentioned I," she chuckled, lapping up the fluid that had assembled on my head before placing a kiss on my head, her fingertips tracing a featherlight trail along my shaft.
"Tease," I groaned, folding my arms over my eyes as I felt myself harden to an almost painful degree from her ministrations.
"And don't you love me for it?" she grinned, eying me mischievously before taking me into her mouth, her head slowly bobbing up and down, her hands gripping my base and stroking what her mouth couldn't reach.
I could feel my head hitting the back of her throat as she took in as much of me as she could manage, fastening her pace as she felt me getting closer and closer to my release.
"Feels.....so.....goooood," I panted, my hand fisting in her hair as I felt that familiar tightening feeling in my balls heralding my release. "God....don't stop!"
She hummed, in response, the vibrations reverberating though my dick and sending me straight over the edge moaning her name as I came into her mouth.
She took everything I gave her, sucking me clean before she released me and sat up again, a slight blush tinting her cheeks. I loved those blushes. They told me what she was thinking even when she tried to hide her feelings for me.
"That was amazing," I panted, still coming down from one of the most amazing blowjobs I had received in my life, the other being the one she gave me yesterday. "But now....I believe it's my turn!" I lunged at her, making her squeal as I flipped her around, her back landing on the mattress with a slight bounce.
"You are so beautiful," I sighed, kissing her tenderly before letting my eyes wander over her glorious naked body.
She was perfect in all her imperfection. The scars and bruises telling the story of her life and her occupation – not the hardest part for me to accept, but part of who Bella was none the less. I loved every single fibre of her, everything that made her the woman she was.
My love.
I looked up at her face again to find her gazing down at me with an amused smirk.
"Are you going to lie there and ogle me all day or are you going to do something?" she grinned, her cheeks indicating that she was slightly embarrassed by my staring.
"Oh believe me miss Swan," I purred. "I have every intention to make you cum at least twice before you leave this room."
Her cheeks turned deep read at my words but, judging by the look in her eyes and the smell of her arousal that wasn't all from embarrassment.
I kissed her one last time before making my way down, lingering at her beautiful mounds, her puckered tips greeting me as soon as my lips closed around them, before kissing my way down her perfect flat stomach, taking care not to touch her bruises as I slowly inched lower.
"Who's the tease now," she groaned, her ribcage moving with her increased breath.
"And don't you love me for it?" I chuckled, throwing her own words back at her, before taking her clit between my lips and sucking gently on it.
"Edward," she moaned, her back arching into the mattress as I felt her body tighten.
"Yes my angel?" I purred, letting go of her clit for now and focusing my attention on the rest of her center, lapping up the juices that had gathered there. I groaned as the taste of Bella – pure, unadulterated Bella – hit my pallet. I could eat her all day and be perfectly content. She tasted like heaven. Bella and heaven.
"Please," she panted.
"What do you want me to do love?" I asked, feigning ignorance as I removed my mouth from her completely.
"Your....hands," she groaned in pure frustration.
"Yes...." I replied.
"I want them on me...." she half growled.
"Like this, you mean?" I asked, slipping two of my fingers inside her hot core and moving in an out slowly.
"Yesssss," she moaned, the sight of her completely flustered face making me decide I had teased her enough.
I added a third finger as my lips found their way to her throbbing clit again, sucking and nipping at her tender flesh as I felt her slowly moving towards her release underneath me.
"Edward," she panted, looking down at me with a mixture of love and lust in her eyes.
"Let go love," I muttered, craning my fingers in a search for her G-spot.
Almost the moment my fingers found their mark and started to gently stimulate it, I could feel her whole body starting to shake underneath me, her heals digging into the mattress as her orgasm racked through her with a shattering force.
I rejoiced inwardly, knowing that it was me, and only me, who did this to her. I moved up her body again to kiss her deeply and profoundly, my dick twitching against my stomach at the thought that she would probably be able to taste herself on my lips.
I guided my erection to her entrance, looking into her eyes for permission before I entered her.
"Please," she whispered, closing her eyes as I sheathed myself fully inside her warmth, bot of us groaning with pleasure at the feeling.
Being like this, being inside Bella. It felt so...right. Like it was meant to be. Like she was made for me. Only me.
Our bodies fit. They moved together in perfect synchronization, registering the others need even before they had realized it.
"Open you eyes Bella," I demanded, grasping her wrists in mine and entwining our hands above her head as I moved inside her.
She looked at me, love floating freely between the two of us as our movements and sounds slowly grew more urgent and demanding, both of us getting close to our release.
"I love you," she whispered, locking her ankles around my back, pulling me even deeper inside her. "Forever."
"Forgiver," I repeated, my lips crashing onto hers in a searing kiss as we both flew over the edge, her walls clamping around me as I spilled inside of her.
"I don't want to leave this room," she groaned as we lay in each others arms, our bodies slick with sweat as we tried to catch our breaths.
"Then don't," I sighed..
"You know Rose," she snorted. "She'll kick down the door with no regard for what she's going to find on the other side of it if I don't make it into the office at eight o clock sharp.
--
One joined shower, round three and a hasty cup of coffee later Bella was sitting next to me in the car, biting her lip as she stared out of the window, nervousness radiating off of her in huge waves.
"I'm going to get fired, I know that much," Bella shrugged, finally breaking the silence. "The only hope I have is that Rose won't dismember me."
"It'll be alright," I soothed, taking her hand as I tried to calm her down a little. "Perhaps they'll even be able to understand why you did it."
"I doubt that," she snorted.
"I heard the tape," I shrugged. "I can imagine what it did to you."
"Are you defending my actions agent Masen?" she chuckled. "I thought you called me reckless and stupid yesterday."
"You're still reckless and stupid," I shrugged, bringing our entwined hands to my lips. "But that doesn't mean that I don't understand why you were being reckless and stupid. They heard the tape as well, baby...."
"Doesn't matter," she said stubbornly while I pulled into the parking lot next to the building of Cullen Investigations. "I'm still going to get fired."
"I love you, no matter what happens," I told her as I kissed her goodbye. "Will you let me know as soon as your meeting finishes?"
"I take it you're not braving the dragons with me?" she grinned, leaning in for another kiss.
"I would love to but Garrett called while you were brushing your teeth. Apparently something is going on at the hospital."
"Tell him I said hi," she sighed, putting on a determined face as she got out of the car. "Wish me luck," she spoke over her shoulder.
"Good luck, love," I replied. "Call me as soon as you know more."
She lingered on the sidewalk, waving goodbye as I made my way down the street at a snails pace, relishing my last glances at Bella before she left my sight.
I thought I had lost her yesterday. When Rose had called, telling me Bella had been detected by Aro Volturi while breaking into his office my heart had stopped. Fortunately the expertly trained special agent in me had taken over right there and then, mobilizing just about every cop in a five mile radius within half an hour and basically shoving the voicemail message, which Rose had given me, down their throats while ordering them to invade Volterra Towers.
Bella wasn't the only one in danger of loosing their job.....
In the end not even Alistair Trevelyan had been able to stop us and Eleazar, though seething with rage, had promised to keep an eye on his boss when we left, preventing him from contacting Aro.
I had been so close to loosing her.
I had seen the debate in Aro's eyes as he held a gun to her head. In the end opportunism and Rose's balls of solid steel winning out and saving Bella's life.
Just in the knick of time.
"Ah! Masen!" Garrett greeted me at the main entrance of Forks General Hospital. "Back from cloud nine?"
"Shut up Scully," I growled. "What have you got?"
"Mall security found a homeless guy this morning, hanging out in front of the mall looking kind of shady. They thought he'd overdosed or something so they called in an ambulance."
"I take it he isn't a junk?"
"Not as far as we know," Garrett explained. "They soon found out in the ER that he wasn't suffering from an overdose but from a virus."
"Shit," I muttered, letting out a huge breath of air. "A second victim. And they are dumping them at about the busiest spot in town.....a disaster waiting to happen."
"Yep," Garrett nodded solemnly, leading me up a couple of escalators and down a corridor to a room that was shielded off by a glass wall, detective Mulder standing in front of it. "They got him up to quarantine but he won't be speaking to us any time soon. We've got an appointment at the morgue for the post mortem of the guy they brought in yesterday though."
It was strange, coming back to the place where I met the love of my life, but I didn't have much time to reminisce on the past. We changed into protective clothing as fast as we could before joining doctor Ryan and detective Mulder at the lab.
"Do we know more about him?" I asked, looking at the sorry pile of human being lying on the table in front of us.
"Fingerprints identify him as Michael Newton, some rich kid who's hanging with the wrong crowd," Garrett explained. "He was bailed out of Forks Penitentiary days ago by his lawyer."
"His lawyer?" I asked. Usually it was some family member who came to post bail, not their legal aids.
"A woman called Madison Lee," Garrett answered, gazing at the victim with a look of utter fascination. "McGee is looking into it. Is that guy frothing?"
"A little respect for a dying man you idiot," detective Mulder scowled, slapping him up the head.
"Owch, bitch," he yelled, grabbing the back of his hand. "What did you have to do that for?"
"You were acting like a dick," she shrugged. "How is the poor guy upstairs is doing?"
"Not too good," Garrett said, shaking his head. "They don't think he's going to last much longer. Did you guys come up with any leads on who dumped him at the mall yet?"
"No," she sighed, looking a little frustrated. "Denali put every available cop on it but so far they've found nothing but the surveillance tape showing Newton being pushed out of a black Hummer with tinted windows. They found no trace of it, other than that it belonged to Newton."
"Is Denali still......." I started.
"Yep," she grinned. "If I were you I'd steer my pretty little ass clear of the police station for a while if you want it to remain pretty."
"Hey!" Garrett growled offended. "What about my ass?"
"Yours isn't in danger idiot," Mulder shrugged, rolling her eyes. "but if it helps you sleep at night.....you have a very pretty little ass too. Okay now?"
"Yes sweetheart," Garrett grinned, much to Mulder's chagrin. "And you know you love me."
"In your dreams boyscout," Mulder huffed, before turning to leave. "In. Your. Fucking. Dreams."
"And in yours as well darlin'!" Garrett yelled after her as she walked away with that sexy kind of walk that women use when they want to break a man down.
Judging by the way Garrett was barely able to keep himself from drooling as his eyes were fixed on her ass, sashaying down the corridor, it was working.
Eleazar hadn't exactly been thrilled when I barged into his office yesterday and basically started ordering him to invade Volterra Towers. He had agreed – after perhaps the most tormenting moments of my life – after he had heard the tape from Bella's answering machine but he had made it very clear to me that this was overstepping the bounds of our friendship. I couldn't blame him, not that I wouldn't do it again in a heartbeat.
"Wanna go back to your little ladybird again?" Garrett grinned as soon as Mulder was out of sight.
"More than anything in the world," I replied, visions of Bella writhing underneath me from earlier this morning floating through my head. "But we have to go meet this doctor."
"Right," Garrett sighed. "I forgot about that."
With the virus out in the open the threat James was posing to public health had become incredibly critical. Not only did we have to find the bastards, and fast, before he could be able to spread the disease even further, we would also have to be very careful in what we told the outside world.
If word got out that a highly contagious and very lethal virus was out in the open, complete panic would break loose. People would try to leave town and possibly take the virus with them. They would spread the disaster all of Washington and beyond.
On the other hand, if we didn't issue some kind of warning the virus might spread from people coming into contact with one another and that was something we sure as hell wanted to prevent as well. It was a good thing I knew a team from the Center for Disease Control was on its way. They had much more experience in dealing with these kind of things. Perhaps they would be able to keep this thing under control before it spread.
"What are we telling this doctor?" Garrett asked as we were walking up to the office of doctor Carter, chief of staff of Forks General Hospital.
"As much as we can about the virus while revealing as little as we can about its origin," I said. For now the fact that there was a terrorist on the loose armed with a lethal virus was something that was on a strict need to know base and the medical staff, though they had to known about the virus, did not need to know about the threat.
"Right," Garrett chuckled. "You do the talking."
"Smart," I grinned, pulling my phone out of my pocket to see if I had any new messages from Bella. I smiled when I saw her name flash across the screen.
Things went surprisingly well over here. Any news on the virus?
Heading home to shower. Meet me there?
I grinned, quickly composing a reply.
Can't wait. Give me an hour or so to wrap things up over here.
I'll fill you in on the latest developments when we meet.
"Oh to be young and in love again," Garrett sang, pulling me into a tight embrace while ruffling my hair.
"Keep your fucking hands to yourself Scully!" I huffed, shoving the annoying git away from me.
"What?" he complained in a mock hurt tone. "Are you afraid your girlfriend is going to be jealous?"
"That'll be it," I groaned, announcing our arrival to the secretary who appeared to be highly amused by the scene unfolding in front of her.
"The doctor will see you in a minute gentlemen," she chuckled, motioning for us to take a seat.
--
We stepped out of the office of doctor Carter about an hour later and completely robbed of the illusion we could keep anything a secret from the guy. He would have been my hero if only he hadn't been so annoying. It was like he was reading our minds as we spoke.
Garrett hadn't exactly been useful either. I knew smart and cultured people kind of freaked him out but I had relied on his years of interrogation training to kick in. Apparently that training hadn't prepared him for the kind of duress the good doctor provided because he had cracked almost the moment the doctor turned his cool, calculating gaze on him.
Even my own control had failed.
I guess I had been too busy trying to find out why the guy sounded so familiar to me that I hadn't paid attention to the fact that he was wheedling classified information out of me like he had done nothing else in his life. The guy would have made a damn good detective.
What was even worse was that I hadn't even managed to find out where I knew the guy from.
At least I could get back to Bella now. Being away from her was getting to be an almost painful affair, especially now that nothing was standing in the way of our love. I couldn't wait to have my arms around her again, breathe in her scent.
I wondered if she would be opposed to do our debriefing naked and on top of me.....
"For God's sake man, get your fucking mind out of the gutter!" Garrett growled. "If there is one thing a guy doesn't want to see it's his partner sporting wood. It would lead to me picturing you having sex and being naked and that's just .......fucking unhealthy."
"At least I'm getting some," I replied, rolling my eyes while making some adjustments to my pants. "That's more than you can say."
"I'm working on it," he huffed, almost ripping the passenger door out of his hinges as he opened it.
"Yeah right," I laughed. "So where do you want me to drop you off?"
"Police Headquarters?" he asked. "I could fill in the rest of the detectives while you're off playing 'hide the salami' with your girlfriend."
"Shut up Garrett!" I growled, tearing out of the parking lot.
"It's not like I'm talking bullshit," he grinned. "You have that aura of 'horny devil going home to sex up his girl' coming off you in waves."
"Just keep your mouth shut for the rest of the ride, will ya?" I snarled, gripping the steering wheel a little tighter in my hands.
He kept his promise right until I dropped him off in front of the station. I guess I should have known better than to expect him to leave without throwing a 'go get her tiger!' my way.
By that time I was just glad to get rid of the guy and focus on getting to Bella's apartment as fast as I could without attracting the attention of traffic cops. I had hidden behind my badge too many times for Gibbs to let another speeding ticket be remitted without there being consequences involved.
I sped up to her door and knocked, waiting impatiently to be admitted to Bella's home. To heaven.
No answer.
Strange.
I quickly debated my options. I could use my master key like I had done before but, considering the reaction that had caused the last time, I didn't think it would be a very smart move.
No. Calling first would be the safer option.
I picked my phone out of my pocket and dialed the number. I could hear Bella's ringtone playing on the other side of the door, but I didn't hear anyone move to pick up.
Strange. Bella should be home right now. Perhaps she was in the shower?
By that time my master key was almost chanting my name but still I resisted. I had been lucky enough to have been forgiven one time, I wouldn't push my luck.
About ten minutes and a dozen phone calls later though, concern won out on fear of rejection and I opened the door, the sight in front of me in the living room kicking the air straight out of my lungs.
In the middle of the living room floor lay Tanya Denali in a pool of blood, her eyes staring out in front of her, fixed on a point that wasn't visible to whose who lived.
Next to her, crumpled up like a rag doll, lay the most precious thing in the world, looking equally lifeless.
No.
I was by her side in a minute, breathing a sigh of relief when I saw her move right before I reached it.
"Bella!" I cried, moving her on her back as I checked her body for visible injuries. There were none, apart from the fact that she was sweating profusely and her face was as pale as the dead.
"Get away from me Edward," she croaked, sounding like she was dying of thirst. "I'm poison."
"What happened, honey," I demanded, almost frantically, as I fished my phone out of my pocket again. "You have to talk to me."
"Get away from me Edward," she repeated in an anguished wail. "It's the virus..........I'm infected with the virus."
"No," I growled. "It is something else. Don't think like that."
"She....." Bella coughed, "She.....injected....me....with the stuff."
Sure enough, I saw a syringe lying somewhere across the room but I still would not – could not – believe it.
"911 Emergency response. How can I help you?" a female voice asked in an all to chipper tone.
I quickly rattled off all the information she needed, while Bella made a vain attempt to struggle free from my hold, complaining incessantly about me needing to back off for my own safety.
Silly woman. Like I was ever going to do that! I would not let her go, not even if it killed me.
After what seemed like an eternity of cradling my Bella in my arms, watching her deteriorate under my eyes, the ambulance finally arrived.
I had made a quick call to doctor Carter, notifying him of my arrival and Bella's suspicions before we arrived. Even though a part of me wouldn't believe this was happening, I was slowly starting to realize that Bella had spoken the truth. She was showing all the signs and the speed with which the virus had manifested itself in her body could only point to one thing.
"I am coming with her," I growled at the paramedic as they pushed the gurney holding Bella into their vehicle. I had never let go of her hand, not even while they had assessed her situation.
I had made a promise to myself. I would never let go.
I guess the paramedic deemed it safer for public health not to argue with me but rolled his eyes as I followed him into the ambulance.
Smart man.
The trip to the hospital went by in a blur and before I knew it I felt some annoying bastard tugging at my arm and telling me I had to leave as they pushed the gurney through some hospital corridor.
"Let go of me!" I growled, shrugging the guy away.
"If you would be so kind as to let go of miss Swan?" a doctor who's face I couldn't see because it was being obscured by a hazmat suit asked. "We need to assess her status as well as yours."
"You can do that with me holding her," I barked, tightening my grip on Bella's hand. She looked so pale, so fragile, almost as if the slighted wisp of air could take away her life. She had drifted into unconsciousness somewhere during our ride to the hospital and had not opened her eyes since. The only signs of her being alive being the beeping of the heart monitor and the groans and moans of pain she was emitting in her fevered state.
I didn't want to let go, not just because I promised myself not to, but because I feared that if I allowed myself to be dragged away this might have been the last time I saw her alive. The though of it, of Bella leaving me behind, caused a loud sob to leave my throat, making me realize I was on the verge of breaking down.
No.
Be strong.
Be a man.
Be the man Bella needs right now.
"I'm calling in security," the doctor warned.
"You do that sir," I replied, never taking my eyes off Bella. "I'm not leaving."
"Edward," Bella's weak voice drifted into the room. "Do what the doctor says."
"I'm not leaving your side," I said determinedly.
She moved her body slightly upwards, wincing as it protested against every move she made, before shooting a weak glare in my direction. "Edward Antony Masen get the hell out of here before I kick you out of this room myself!"
"What if anything happens to you?" I yelled exasperated, unable to even laugh at her joke. "I'll never forgive myself if I'm not here."
"And I'll never forgive myself if I infected you," she growled back, coughing as she sagged back onto the hospital bed. "Gentleman....please....take good care of him."
I looked behind me to see three huge guys in hazmat-suits looming in the doorway. That would be security I presumed.
"Just stay alive baby," I pleaded. "And don't do anything stupid."
"I'll be in a quarantine room," she smiled faintly as she pried her hand out of my grip. "How much trouble do you think I'll be able to cause in there?"
"It's Bella Swan we're talking about here," I answered with a halfhearted smile, kissing her lips one final time before the security guards pulled me away from her. I thought I saw a tear gliding down her cheek through my own fogged vision right before she was out of sight.
It was like my world had turned black, like all hope had gone and I was left to linger behind in a cold, deserted place until my time on this planet would come to an end.
Stop.
I must stop this.
Bella will live.
The constant repeat of those words got me through those first agonizing moments after leaving Bella's side. Doctors filed in and out of the quarantine unit they had put me in, drawing blood and hooking me up to an array of wires and other equipment to assess my state. I let it all happen without paying much attention, they all looked the same in their ridiculous outfits anyway.
"Edward!" I heard the combined voices of Garrett and Emmett thunder through the room before I even saw them on the opposite side of the glass wall that separated my room from the corridor. I hopped off my bed and rushed to the glass wall as fast as my feet could carry me, reaching it even before Garrett and Emmett.
"Have you seen Bella?" It were the only words that had left my mouth since saying goodbye to Bella but they had never been answered satisfactory.
"We just left her," Emmett sighed, his face betraying his emotions. "She's hanging in there Edward and the doctors are doing everything they can....Rose is still with her."
"Did she say anything?"
"She was unconscious while we were there," Emmett replied, hanging his head in sadness. "She looked so...frail."
"I know," I groaned, fighting hard to keep myself from breaking down in front of them. I had to stay strong. I owed it to Bella.
"Was Tanya dead when you got to the apartment," Garrett asked, changing the subject. It was only then that I realized they weren't just paying a social visit.
"She was," I nodded. "I never moved her or touched anything apart from Bella."
"Did she tell you what happened?" Garrett asked next, moving a little closer to the glass wall.
"No," I sighed, "the only thing she told me was that that bitch injected her with the virus. She must have been waiting for her when she got home."
I groaned, realizing that if only I would have ditched the meeting with doctor Carter when I got her message Bella would have been safe. I could have have stopped Tanya. I should have stopped Tanya. Something told me that it I was to blame for this. I had failed to protect her again. This time with fatal consequences.
"This isn't your fault Masen!" Garrett yelled, his fist smashing into the wall beside my face. "Man up and try to find a way out of this mess!"
"There is no way out of this mess!" I yelled back. "Bella is going to die and there is nothing we can do."
"Shut the fuck up!" Emmett roared, his voice reverberating through the glass. "If you ever say that again I'm going to break through that wall and rip your fucking throat out with my bare hands. Bella is going to live and you better fucking believe that or you're even more unworthy of her than I thought you'd be." He glared at me, trying to catch his breath before continuing. "We can all sit here in a group sobfest pulling out our hair and crying like a bunch of chicks or we can do the man thing and catch the son of a hitch who's responsible for this and beat him into a pulp."
"I vote for the latter," Garrett snorted.
"Great plan," I sighed. "But there always the problem of not knowing where the bastard lives."
"From what I heard Tanya didn't strike me as the most secretive of people," Garrett replied. "Maybe if we go through her things we'll be able to find something."
"Sounds like a plan," I nodded. "Did anyone tell Eleazar yet?"
"Mulder did," Garrett sighed. "He's devastated."
"I can imagine," I said flatly. I felt bad for Eleazar but considering the bitch's last action on earth had been the attempted murder of the most precious thing in my life, I could not lament the loss of Tanya Denali.
In fact, had she been alive I would have probably killed her myself.
"What are you two standing here for?" I growled, composing myself again. "Go find the bastard!"
"We'll beet him into a pulp for ya Stalkward!" Emmett nodded, clenching and flexing his fist before he turned to leave. "Just hang in here and try not to kill yourself with gloomy thoughts buddie. My baby is keeping an eye on your baby. I'll make sure she checks in with you every now and then."
"Thanks," I sighed. "Let me know as soon as you catch the son of a bitch."
As soon as Garrett and Emmett left I sagged back on the bed, trying to think of something – anything – that might proof useful.
Rose came by once to tell me Bella was still much the same and once after that, right after nightfall had made the gloomy hospital corridor even gloomier, stating there was some kind of emergency at the office that needed her immediate attention. Something about Emmett hitting a panic button or something...
Before she left she ensured me that Bella was being taken care off by the best doctor this hospital had to offer, the chief of staff himself, and that he would fill me in on her situation as soon as he was able to.
I spend the night pacing up and down the tiny space that held me captive. It was the only fucking thing I could do, except for cursing that apeshit of an ER-doctor to the fiery pits of hell for taking me away from Bella.
"Mr. Masen?" It was somewhere during the night that a deep voice stirred me from my thoughts. I looked up to see doctor Carter in a lab coat and scrubs standing at the other side of the glass wall. He looked like he'd had as rough a night as I had.
"Any news on Bella?" I yelled, almost running up to the glass.
As if yelling would change a fucking thing.
"Her condition stabilized a little over the last couple of hours," the doctor stated in a solemn voice, "though she is still very much in danger."
"Can't you fucking do anything about it?" I growled, pounding my fist against the glass.
"There is nothing to do but wait...and pray," he sighed, his voice laced with sadness and regret. "Tests have shown that parts of this virus can be traced back to the Avian Flu virus so we've gotten her on a high dose of Tamiflu, the drug commonly used to treat that particular disease."
"Why can't I see her?" I snarled.
"You know why," the doctor stated calmly, not at all fazed by my anger. "You were in contact with her and even though you show no signs of infection yet, there's no way of being sure you're not infected."
"Then put me in that fucking room with her," I insisted.
"And be sure you're going to die right along with her?" the doctor quipped. "Even if I would be willing to throw my career and even my own better judgment out of the window, do you really think that's what Bella would want?"
I sighed, turning my back to him as I sank to the floor, my back freezing up with the cold glass pressing into it.
He was right. Bella would use her last breath to push me out of the door the moment I stepped into that room.
Silly girl.
Silly amazing girl.
As if there would be a point to my life without her in it.
I chuckled inwardly at my own thoughts. How long did I know her? Not even as long as a fortnight. Wasn't that a little soon to go all Romeo on her Juliet?
No.
I had know it the moment I first saw her. She was perfection and she was perfect for me. Every cell of my being called out to her in a way you'd only read about in books or snort at when it happened in movies.
It was surreal.
It was frightening.
It was love.
Pure, unconditional and irrational love.
"Edward?" the doctor asked. "Believe me....we're doing everything in our powers to save her."
"I know," I groaned, the image of Bella lying on the floor of her apartment, so weak and fragile it almost looked like she was dead, flashing in front of my eyes again.
"I'll get back to you as soon as I know more," he added. "Or if anything happens....."
"Thank you," I interrupted before he could finish that sentence. I leaned my head on my arms and closed my eyes as I heard the doctors footsteps retreat down the deserted corridor while I tried to concentrate on the case. Maybe if I could think of something that would bring us to James Bella might be saved in time.
I knew I was being a total cad for reacting so unkindly to the doctors kind words. He was only trying to help and, as he said, he did everything in his power to make my Bella fight this new threat off.
But that was just it. There was nothing that could be done.
The thought that Bella was in danger – a danger no SWAT team could save her from – and that I was completely powerless to help her was like my worst nightmare come true. I had always been a man of action, a man of practical solutions. Right now, when everything in me told me to act and protect, I was forced to step aside and sit back, helpless and dependent.
I don't know how much time had passed – it was still dark so it couldn't have been more than a few hours – when I heard footsteps approaching me again. From the sound of them – heavy and almost hesitant – I knew it wasn't doctor Carter.
Perhaps some other doctor?
I looked up as the footsteps grew louder, my curiosity quickly fading into anger when I recognized Garret.
What was the dumb fuck doing here? He was supposed to be watching Bella. What if something happened to her while he was off gallivanting across the hospital?
"What the fuck........."I hissed through my teeth, trying to prevent myself from ripping though the glass wall to strangle my partner.
It was then that I saw what caused his steps to be so heavy and hesitant. His head was bandaged and he looked completely out of it.
"I'm so sorry Edward," he slurred, sounding like he could collapse any moment.
"What is it?" I yelled, panic creeping up on me fast and relentless.
"It's Bella," Garrett croaked. "She's disappeared........"
The plot thickens. So far James' plan is working perfectly. First he infects Bella, getting her to exactly the spot where he wants her, then he distracts Rose, giving him the perfect opportunity to strike. What's next? What will Edward do?
I think it's not really difficult to guess who doctor Carter is. As far as I'm concerned he has the face of Carlisle but the name and background of doctor Carter from ER. Of course you're free to imagine him differently. Coming up with a name for the guy was actually pretty hard. He's been called Townsend (too corny even for me), doctor Wayne ( I kept on imagining a cowboy in scrubs) and doctor Cooper (right until I did some research into Nurse Jackie). I think doctor carter works best out of these options.
Next up: Emmett