Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I am just using the names that she created for her wonderful story.

This story was pre-read and beta'd by the wonderful X-NessieCullen-X. Special thanks to you, my dear, for making this not so pretty story of mine a little more shiny ;)

Chapter 36

Girl Gone

As the three of them made their way into the house, he noticed Bella holding on rather tightly to things as if trying to keep from falling. "What's wrong, Bells?"

"Oh, nothing. I'm just tired."

"Why don't we both head to bed early tonight? I'll be up late tomorrow, anyway."

"What about the dog?"

Edward was already guiding the dog by the leash while juggling a water dish, a food dish, and a bag of food. He left the house earlier empty-handed and came home with a job and a dog. "I'll get him settled in, take him out to go to the bathroom, and be up soon. Do you need anything?"

"No. I'm okay."

He watched her go carefully up the stairs and it was then that he realized how strong the police dog actually was. Pulling the dog's leash back to him, Edward got him to heel but there was no way Bella would be able to control him. This was a bad idea, Cullen. Setting things set up for the dog was pretty easy and after a walk around the yard, they were back inside with wiped off paws and shoes. As soon as Edward let the dog go, the animal took off up the stairs. He chased after him, not wanting to wake up Bella, but arrived just in time to watch the dog jump up onto his side of the bed and plop down right beside her.

It was actually quite comical but there was no way in hell that large beast was sleeping in the same bad with them. "Diesel, get down!" Edward said with as much authority as possible. Bella was wide awake now and looked rather amused. The dog just stood back up on the bed and turned so that his back was to Edward. Bella was biting her lip to keep from laughing.

What happened next shocked him even more than the previous events of the night, his little Bella, with her large tummy looking completely un-proportional to the rest of her petite body, looked right at the dog. With a raised eyebrow and the smallest voice, she glared at her new furry friend and said, "Diesel, get down..."

The dog let out a long whine and then snorted before standing up and jumping off the foot of the bed. Edward watched as the annoyed creature circled over to her other side, sat down, and rested his head on the bed where her arm was. She looked shocked as well and just laughed. "Get over here, Cullen. You're the only male I like cuddling with in bed"

Edward just shook his head at the audacity of it all and stripped down to his boxers before joining her. The dog must have realized he wasn't getting much attention because he laid down on the floor and left them both alone. "How's my baby girl doing in there?" Edward asked, sliding down to rub his palms over her now exposed belly and trailing kisses along her naval.

"She's wonderful. I can feel her kicking...right...here."

Edward laughed as Allison began kicking again the second Bella positioned his hand. "I love her so much already."

"Are you sure you're okay with the dog situation?"

"I think it's insane how much he's already loyal to you. He needs to learn that like you, I'm a boss too. You also have to be careful walking him, Bella. He's strong. He'll pull you where he wants to go."

"He's cute, though," Bella shrugged.

"So are you. Now get some sleep."

The very next day, Edward got to work on the finishing touches in the nursery. His mom had visited a couple of weekends ago for the shower and had insisted on taking him to buy some decorations for the baby's room. It looked great and Bella seemed to be bouncing with excitement. He couldn't wait to see her with Allison once their little girl arrived. Still, when he left around lunch time to go get a part for the washing machine, he was truly worried about what he would come home to. He didn't know if it was the impending birth, her past coming back to haunt her, or just the pregnancy hormones but she was definitely very easily upset and it wasn't surprising anymore to come home and find her wandering around the house in tears.

He supposed it could also have something to do with her being back in Forks, the place she was originally taken from. When he added in the fact that before they moved here, he was with her almost constantly, he could see why she might be having a little separation anxiety. The counselor had told her before that she had to accept that he couldn't be around all day every day. So, as much as he wanted to see her, a small part of him worried about what condition he'd find her in.

Pulling in, he was glad to see the ice had melted in the driveway and the sun was melting some of the snow in the yard. Later that night, Bella would have to take the dog out to use the restroom and the last thing he needed was for her to fall on the ice or have to wade through deep snow. Putting off salting the porch, he headed inside to check on his fiance. "Bella? Sorry it took so long..."

The place was dead quiet with no dog coming out to growl at him-which had happened when he went out to shovel the driveway that morning. Heading up to the bedroom, he could see she wasn't in there. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up when she wasn't in the nursery or the bathroom. "Bella? Where are you? Baby, answer me!"

Looking at his phone, he saw that he had no calls and it was way too early for Charlie or Renee to be home from work. Bella wouldn't be over there unless she was visiting with them. His pregnant fiance was missing. Fuck. The baby could have come...but she was supposed to be having a home birth. He realized his hands were shaking as he called the Swan residence. Maybe she went into labor and they took her there. Why the fuck wouldn't they call me?

When there was no answer, he called Renee at work. She was actually the teller that answered. "First Bank of Forks. Renee speaking. How can I help you?"

"It's Edward, Renee. Have you heard from Bella?"

"Bella? No. Oh, God, did something happen? Edward, did something happen to her again?"

He immediately wished he had called Charlie first instead. He had figured, though, that Bella would be more than likely to go to her mother with a problem. "I...I don't know. I came home from the store and she's not here."

"Maybe she just went for a walk or something..."

"It's Bella...she barely leaves the house by herself."

"Is the dog there?"

"No." Guilt was ripping through him at the fear that he could practically feel coming from Renee through the phone. He also wished he had thought about the fact that the large beast wasn't there, either. "Look, I'm betting that's what happened. She probably just took Diesel for a quick walk. I'll call you as soon as she comes home. I guess I just panicked a little. I'm sorry."

When he got off the phone with her, he debated on whether or not to call Charlie. He had to remember that they'd had to go through the pain of losing her once. He didn't know what the situation was and there was no reason to upset them because he was being paranoid. Heading outside to look for footprints in the snow, he felt his phone buzz and saw that it was actually Charlie calling him. "Hello?"

"I'm on my way over. I'm having a friend of mine call the hospitals to see if she was checked in anywhere..."

"How do you know about this already?" He asked as he stepped onto the porch.

"Renee called me. She's worried. She said you tried telling her Bella went for a walk by herself. Thanks for trying to calm her down but we both know she wouldn't have done that. She's afraid of her own shadow..."

"She used to take off when we were in the city all the time, Charlie. Maybe she just needed... There are footprints. They look like hers. Dog prints, too."

"She's due any day now!"

"Look, I'm going to follow the prints. I'm sure she didn't go far."

"Call me as soon as you get her home. What the hell is she thinking?"

Edward followed the trail until it reached the clean sidewalk and prayed that if he kept following it, he'd find them. Even if I did do something to upset her, she'd never put the baby in danger. Still, I have to talk her into going to the grocery store with me now. She doesn't like leaving the house. What if she was kidnapped again? Fucking hell...

Dark thoughts tore through him, causing his steps to become more urgent. His legs propelled him forward as his brain ripped into him. She was kidnapped here before. He knew that's why she had been so scared lately. He thought she was warming up to it. If she was kidnapped again, if they fucking got her again... Don't fucking think like that, Cullen.

Up ahead, he saw a silhouette of a small figure with a very large tummy throwing something for a dog. It was her. Thanking the heavens, he ran at a full sprint towards her. About to yell, wanting to scream, he forced himself to stay calm. He couldn't believe it. She was fucking smiling and laughing and looking genuinely happy. She laughed as Diesel hopped through the snow and then jumped back, waiting excitedly for her to throw the stick. She threw it again and rested her hand on their baby. As she turned just slightly enough for him to see her face, he saw tears on her cheeks but her smile was huge. His Bella was happy, peaceful even, and looking like she'd finally found her own little happiness. It took his breath away.

It wasn't until the dog saw him, put himself between Bella and him, and began to growl that she even noticed him. "Bells..." he breathed, walking towards her now.

"You're crying." He noticed then that his face was as wet as hers. He was glad the park was abandoned.

"Yeah. I've never seen you this happy. I was also scared. I couldn't find you..."

"I left you a note on the table. I thought you'd see it. I wanted to go for a walk to the park."

"You hardly leave the house anymore! What made you decide to come here? I tried bringing you here a few weeks ago and you panicked."

"I had the dog with me and no one is around. I'm sorry I upset you."

"Bella, I swear to you that I'm happy about you being so independent...today," he had a feeling it wouldn't last too long, "but what if the baby came when you were out here?"

"I have my phone."

"It's not good enough, Bella. It's winter. It's freezing."

"I'm sorry. I just...I feel okay."

"Let's just get you home and warm and when it warms up, you can walk down here with Allison and Diesel all you want. Let's just get her into this world safely first, okay?"

"Yeah. It is a little cold. The good news is Diesel got some exercise."

"Bells?"

"Huh?" she asked, taking his hand and walking back to the house with him.

"As scared as I was, you have no idea how good it feels to see you this happy. I love you so much. I get scared sometimes that I make things worse on you by constantly trying to shelter you."

"Please don't stop," she replied quickly. "Edward, dog or no dog, I need you. Please promise me you won't stop. I mean, unless you get tired of it..."

"Never. I've learned to coddle. It's what I do best now," he teased.

"I thought your favorite past-time was beating up unruly bar patrons," she said dryly.

He had to laugh at that. "I guess I'm not that person anymore. I have a new purpose in my life. Let's go home."

"Why is the cruiser in front of the house?"

Edward frowned and sighed as if figuring it was safer to just be honest with her. "I called your dad. Well, technically, I called your mom and then she called your dad."

"Edward!"

"Don't you dare get upset with me..." he cut his sentence off as Charlie approached them in full police gear. Bella knew her father still intimidated her future husband.

"Bella, what the hell were you thinking?" the cop asked, looking like he was about ready to cry.

"Dad, I just went for a walk..."

"Alone."

"I had the dog with me and I went to the park. It's a public park! I left a note and he didn't see it. End of story."

"Bella, don't get angry with us for worrying about you. You never go out on your own unless you absolutely have to and I know Edward bends over backwards to make sure you don't have reason to have to. Even if you did leave a note, do you really think it's a good idea to be trekking through the snow with a dog that weighs as much as you do when you're this far along?"

"I had my phone!"

"What if you fell and couldn't get to it? What if Diesel pulled you and you got hurt and couldn't call? What..."

"What, dad? What if a meteor crashed to Earth and was torn apart so much that by the time it got to Forks, Washington, that speck of dust got in my eye and caused me to run into a tree? Say what you really mean! What if I was taken again?" Charlie looked like he'd been slapped. Way to be a total bitch, Bella. "Dad, I'm sorry..."

"I'm going back to the station," he said, turning to address Edward. "I'll let Renee know she's safe."

"Dad..."

"Bella, I'll see you later."

"I can't believe how he reacted..." Bella began as soon as her father walked away but when she turned to Edward she stopped and closed her mouth. Edward was now trudging through the snow towards the house; the way he was walking told her he was definitely tense. No, pissed was probably more the word. Looking down at her new, furry friend, he looked at her sideways the way only dogs could. After locking eyes with the animal, her fears were confirmed when she heard the front door close.

Frozen in place, it took until Diesel began to whine for her to head inside to face her soon-to-be husband. After all that walking, she could feel that she was sore and realized that she had really fucked up. She was the one who wanted this baby more than anything and now she was traipsing around in a Washington winter at eight months pregnant. Carefully sliding her boots off, she made the dog stand on the towel Edward always used to dry off his paws before letting him into the house. She just simply couldn't bend over to wipe them herself.

"Edward?" she called quietly, wondering if she really wanted to find him at that point. She didn't know what to say. She found him down in the cellar, kneeling in front of the washing machine. After a loud sniffle, she heard him call to her as she stood on the stairs. "Don't come down. I'll be up in a minute!"

Ignoring his command, she peeked below the railing a little further and saw that there were tears on his cheeks. "Edward..."

"Bella. Go back upstairs. Now."

"Come with me," she said so softly she wondered if he could even hear her.

"No. I'll be up in a minute."

He was fine at the park. Was he really upset over what Charlie said? Bella sighed but gave in. As was normal, her hand was already on her belly and Allison was kicking like crazy. Walking through the house, she peeked into the bathroom to make sure everything was ready for the baby's arrival. For the past month, Edward had made sure to keep out plenty of clean towels-which were stored in a bag to keep them as clean as possible, the midwife's number was on the mirror in the bathroom as well as the refrigerator in the kitchen, and the items the midwife recommended were in another bag beside the towels. Leaning against the bathroom door, Bella rubbed the kicking little feet and frowned. "I can't wait to meet you, baby. Just a couple more days...maybe another month...and you'll be with us. Your daddy wants to hold you so badly and Grammy Swan is going to spoil you rotten."

Realizing her maternity jeans were wet on the bottoms because of the snow, she made her way upstairs and got into something warmer. Diesel had fallen asleep by the bed already and suddenly she felt exhausted. I love dad and Edward both but they can't keep me prisoner here. This isn't due to their fear about me and the baby, at least that's not the main issue; not where my dad is concerned. Curling into a ball, she hugged her belly and let the tears come.

Almost falling into sleep, Bella realized that Edward was now pulling her into him and had curled his on body into hers. "Baby, hey, shh."

"I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry, too. I just don't like talking about... I can't let you get hurt again. I'm trying to give you space now that you want it a little more but Jesus, Bella, how many times did you break down before we came here? It's hard for me to step back now. Especially when we are in the place you were...yeah. So, just, don't get too upset with me over this kind of thing. Okay?"

"I don't want to be like this. I'm used to being better about stuff and now I feel like an old lady who never leaves her house. I'm a hermit! I just can't help but think that every time we drive past certain areas that this was where it happened. A little, tiny town where nothing ever happens. I can't understand why and I don't know if it will happen again. It's so different from the city. I could pretend to be someone else there, someone damaged but independent. Here, I don't know, I guess I just feel a little overwhelmed."

"Did I mess up, Bella? Should I have kept us in the city?" His voice sounded strained and Bella knew that he had to have been asking himself that for a while now. It was no secret to anyone that things were different for them now that they were here. She was different.

"No. I'll be okay. I like being here with my mom and dad. I love this house. I want Allison to grow up where she can run around and play outside and not be afraid of..." Bella's voice trailed off as a terrible thought hit her. The idea that her daughter could face the same fate as she had made her angry, scared, and sick all at the same time. This was where it had happened to her.

"Don't think about that. Bella, it was a fluke. No one has gone missing here besides you in years. Your father and I have talked about that kind of stuff already when I thought about us moving back here. This is a good community with great neighbors, and a lot of opportunities. Allison will be a safe and happy child here. I'd rather raise her here than in the city, anyway. People go missing there every day."

"She's going to know something's not right. What will you tell her when I wake up screaming and she comes in to see what's happening because she's scared? What will you say when mommy has trouble taking her to the doctor's offices so you always have to?"

"I tell her that her mother is a strong fighter who had a really hard life before she met me. That there are some things that mommy is afraid of but that daddy will never let that or anything else happen to either one of you."

"I promise that I will just text your phone from now on when I want to go out like I did today. Also, I won't walk Diesel anymore until after the baby comes. I guess I need to make what I said up to my dad. I didn't mean to upset him, I was just upset myself and it came out. I'll stop over there tomorrow."

"We have a couple hours before I have to go into work. Why don't you get some sleep before I leave?"

"Edward?"

"Yeah?"

"What happens when you work nights?"

Edward opened his mouth and closed it again. Obviously, it was not something that he had thought about before figuring it would be better for him to work nights. It was all she could think about. When she actually saw him struggle to find words and that look of sympathy cross his beautiful face, she hated herself more than ever. He was giving up so much just to be by her side, who the hell was she to ask him for any more favors? Who the hell was she to act as if he should have thought about it? Clearing his throat, the said with a strained voice, "We'll figure it out."

"I'm sorry," she breathed for the millionth time. "I'm working to be better. The nightmares are less frequent and..." I'm trying...it's just so damn hard.

"Get some rest, baby. I know you're doing better." I jst pray to God it keeps up.

Happy almost fourth of July to those who celebrate! Even if you don't celebrate it, I still hope you have an awesome week! I'm heading out the door now to get my computer screen fixed so I'm hoping to get it back within a couple days. If I don't, there may be a delay on the next chapter but I'll do what I can to not let that happen :) Please review and tell me what you think! I'd really like to hear from you! Love, Letzy xx

PS I'm VERY sorry if I was unable to respond to your review this week. My dad is turning 50 this upcoming week and with the fourth, we are planning a rather large party. I've been super busy and my computer has been giving me trouble. Just know that all of your support and kind words keep this story going. I very much appreciate each one!