Bella tried to picture Paul's face, to find the sincerity she could remember as he laid out his soul for her to judge. There was little doubt that Edward would do anything to finally have her by his side, but he also seemed to believe the words he spoke. Finding herself at a mental impasse, she tried to concentrate on the things she could control, because right or wrong, it was a certainty that she would never be happy by Edward's side.

"Edward, I need to check on Leah, to make sure that she's still breathing." Bella said calmly and was about to stand on unsteady feet when his words stopped her. "She's fine, I can see her dreams." Bella watched as Edward looked beyond her shoulder, his eyes unfocused as he pillaged Leah's subconscious against her will.

A little spark of courage slipped into the room as Bella's eyes fell on her fallen friend, a simple plan taking shape in her mind. "Edward, you said that we belong together, that Alice had seen us?" Bella worked hard to keep her voice steady, fear and hope tugging her in opposing directions.

"I did, Isabella, and I know you doubt me, but it won't be long before you see these louts for what they are, how they've cast a spell of lies over your innocent mind." Edward looked longingly into her eyes and she shuddered, realizing she was right; he believed every word he spoke.

"They lied to me, Edward. They lied to me from the very beginning and they've been lying to me ever since, but I need to know why they did that…" Bella trailed off, purposefully looking to the floor to hide the deception in her eyes, hoping he would see it as a passive countenance.

She could sense his body drawing closer, feel his approach like frozen fire. Subduing the adrenaline that was cascading into her heart, she lifted her head, meeting his eerie, ethereal eyes with untapped hope.

"What can I do?" He asked, his hand reaching out to close the space between them. Bella held each muscle still, held in the contortion of disgust she felt under his touch. Opening her mouth to speak, she readied herself, knowing she was taking a risk to manipulate the only person who was keeping her safe.

"I need to speak to Leah, Edward. I need you to find out from her mind why they used me?" Bella's words were a whispered plea spoken only for him and probably would have worked In her favor were it not for the deep, dark chuckle which travelled all the way from the back yard to their ears, breaking her web of intoxication.

Turning her eyes to the backdoor, Bella shuddered to see Sam's gargantuan form fill the frame, his eyes glinting dangerously in the shadowed light.

"Little girl, you think Edward doesn't see your lies for what they are? That he doesn't taste your manipulation in the air? He's been around for decades and you hope to fool him with your school girl charm. If I decide to keep him alive, rest assured Paul will hear how quickly you turned, how easy it was for you to betray yourself to a leech."

Bella heard his words and felt her hope fall, unable to keep her eyes from turning back to Edward, to see whether she'd been so foolish once again. However, she was too late to see any glimmer of honesty and all she found was the mask of a monster, emotion trapped behind a statuesque façade.

"If you'd like, I'll tell you all about how your precious wolf thought about throwing you away once too; how he truly felt when he first saw the weak little girl the Elders had chosen for him, punishment for his failure to protect those that needed his strength." Sam strode angrily into the room as he spoke, and it was only Edward's outstretched arm that held him at bay, spittle flying from his mouth, only just missing her shaking body.

Pressing herself back as far as she physically could, she watched as Edward shuffled Sam back into the corner of the room, his thin frame hiding the strength of his kind as he moved the irate man with seeming ease.

"If I have to tell you one more time that she is not to be harmed…" Edward's voice held a crystal calm clarity, but Sam didn't care for his inferior's instructions as he pushed the boy away, his eyes turning black with ferocity. "If I was you, I would simply be grateful that I haven't killed her already. You've done your job by luring them here and what I decide to do with my pack is now my own business, the pale face included."

"She's not yours." Bella felt Edward's tone as it crept to her ears, sliding with a deathly undercurrent all the way to the depths of her toes. She didn't want to be claimed by either one of these beasts, but for the moment she realized she'd been forgotten and as slowly and cautiously as she dared, she slid from her chair, making her way with painful patience to a pair of legs and what she hoped would be her still living friend.

"Not yet, but once Jacob Black see's he has no choice, once he steps down and hands over my pack, then she will be mine and you will be begging me for her safety, not demanding it from me like a whiney child." Sam's words dripped with the wretched smile that he wore, dried blood caking to his lips where the wounds Paul inflicted had long since healed.

Bella reached Leah as she heard deep growls rumble from their chests and against all her usual reserve, she prayed that they would kill each other, that whatever megalomaniacal ideas they held would lend themselves to claws and teeth, tearing them apart for good.

Her hands reached out tentatively and pressed down on cold flesh, the bruises and blood on her body so thick that she didn't exactly know where her touch would cause the least pain. Leah had been beaten so severely that when she did find a pulse it was so weak she had to convince herself it was there at all. Time, it seemed, was not on her side and as Bella took one last look at the bloodied body of her friend, she whispered out a promise to return and then crept to the backdoor. It was a choice of salvation and one she hadn't made lightly, but in the moment she knew it held the most hope for their survival.

Edging her way to the door, she could almost taste the freedom on her lips, feel the sweet breeze on her tongue. Her fingers reached forward to grasp the frame to the backdoor when a bellowing voice stilled her heart and her movements.

"You fool. You stupid, idiotic, childish fool. You think she loves you? She can't even stand to be in the same room as you." Sam cried and before she could tell herself that it's was a pointless choice; she turned her head to see both men watching her attempt to escape.

Taking a blind step backwards, she fell unceremoniously out into the night, her injured arm collapsing under her as it caught the strain of her weight. The judder of pain was too much to bear and as she watched their approaching forms through tear stained vision, she willed herself to move.

Her legs scrambled wildly in the mud, but it was too little too late, and as Sam yanked her upwards and to her feet, she watched as Edward merely watched her with interest. Whatever had happened while her back had been turned had been pivotal, and she searched her mind for any hint of the new development.

"Here… I'll show you how much she loves you." Sam snarled and dragging her with him, allowing Edward to follow of his own recourse as they made their way to the line of trees forming a perimeter around the back garden.

Embry's body was still hanging from the trees and she assumed from the way blood was still trickling to the ground beneath him, Edward's venom was coursing through his system too. She knew he should have healed by now, but the pink flesh of his insides was still on display and though she told herself not to look, she couldn't help her eyes moving to the body strung up neatly next to him.

Their sibling blood ran together on the ground beneath them, collecting as one to stain the earth. Whatever they had done to Paul, whatever wounds they had inflicted, were hidden from Bella's eyes. His shirt had been torn from his body, dirt and dried blood covered his chest, but as she looked down, she followed the lines of fresh red as they created new rivers of blood down his thick legs. A terror filled possibility entered her mind and as new tears left trails of clear skin on her face, she longed to never know the truth.

"You have a choice Bella Swan…" Sam whispered in her ear, his foul breath coating her skin as she jerked her head away from her proximity to him. "You choose Edward and I'll let you walk away with him. I won't harm a single hair on your head and if you belong together as he claims you do, then you will be blissfully happy forever." Sam's voice rose and fell, dancing in joy over whatever macabre plan had been conjured for his sick pleasure this time.

Bella trembled under the weight of his words, because she knew what was coming next. "Or you choose Paul, and I promise not to hurt him. You'll lose the protection of your savior no doubt…" Sam's fingers reached out, turning her face him to him. "…but I…." Bella shuddered as his forefinger rubbed angrily over her lip, pulling down the wet skin with a gleam of pleasure in his eyes. "…get to do…" She felt bile rise in her throat as his fingers crept lower, the thick heat of his touch rolling through her stomach with revulsion. "….whatever I want…" She swallowed thickly as his hand caressed the top of her breasts and the rest of his words were forgotten as he threw his head back in delighted laughter, the sound coiling dangerously through the night.

Her wolf hung unmoving in the trees, his head lay limply against his chest. She watched the life drip out of him, resting finally on the forest floor. There was no choice, she decided, no way that she would win. This game had been concocted with only a sick pleasure in mind and they were all here, playing their parts for his amusement.

Forcing her shoulders up, she wiped away the tears that were still falling. "No." Bella said firmly, her voice clear and strong, even as she stood weak and wounded.

"No?" He replied incredulously as he began to circle her, his teeth bared as though any moment he might pounce.

"I'm not making a choice." She said, trying to force a little of the ferocity he exuded so effortlessly.

"Well that's where you're wrong, little Swan. You will make a choice, or I'll have Edward here kill Embry." Bella turned her whole body as he paced around her over and over, his path confusing her mind, leaving his words lingering in the air until finally they reached a place of comprehension.

Shaking her head wildly, she couldn't find the words, couldn't bring herself to open her mouth, lest the scream that was building to a crescendo inside her should escape.

"You see, I knew you'd see it my way in the end. So, what's it to be: Edward or Paul, Paul or Edward? Not really much of a choice, now is it?" Sam rubbed his hands together in glee and Bella looked beyond him to find Edward watching on, his eyes narrowed, waiting to hear her choice.

"Please, Edward, don't you see what he's doing now? You don't need to be a part of this. Do you think I'll ever be able to look you in the eye? To fall in love with you, knowing you stood here and did nothing? Do you think I can be with you, knowing you acted like a coward?" Bella spat her words out, each one a desperate final plea before she threw away her life and gave herself up as a dog's plaything. Her focus was so heavily on Edward that she didn't see Sam coming, didn't see his hand as it flew through the air and smashed heavily against the side of her face.

Pain exploded in her jaw and as she fell to the ground, clutching her face, she curled into a tight ball. Growls erupted around her and though she longed to open her eyes and see the chaos surrounding her, her body was simply too weak. Even the unnatural screech of metal twisting and tearing wasn't enough to rouse her mind. Bella's energy was too depleted to do anything but fade, and as she fell into a black abyss she heard a weak voice in her head telling her to let go.

It couldn't have been more than minutes later when she felt angry hands shaking her, pulling her aggressively back to her feet. She swayed unsteadily, dazed by the impromptu awakening. It only took his breath on her skin, his callous voice in her ear, to bring her jolting back into reality.

"I didn't give you permission to sleep, little girl..."


a/n: Thank you to my lovely, wonderful beta Twiticulate

For those of you who take time to read/leave reviews/alert this story, thank you so much. I can't even tell you how much I appreciate it... xxx

See you all again on Sunday... or maybe sooner if I get my arse in gear and sort the next chap out to worthy standards! x