Chapter Fifty Three

Garrett

I'd just about had enough, Alice hadn't stopped bitching for the past three hours and all because Rose and Emmett had been invited to meet Bella's kid before us.

She hadn't been the same person that I met since Darius asked for my help. It was as if discovering that Bella's baby survived had turned something in her brain. I couldn't get through to her much as I tried.

"Does it really matter who meets her first? We were away and anyhow we've been invited next week."

I'd asked this question a number of times but so far Alice hadn't answered it.

"You have no idea what it means. I was Bella's best friend, I helped her so many times when she first met Edward. Rose hated her, she wouldn't have anything to do with Bella, yet Rose gets an invitation to visit and see our niece first. How can that be fair?"

"Fair? What the fuck does that mean? Alice listen to yourself. You sound like a spoilt child and you're better than that."

I knew instantly that I'd said the wrong thing, even though I had soon learned that putting my foot in it was pretty much an occupational hazard being around Alice. How had the Major managed it all these years? I wish I could ask him for some tips.

"A spoilt child? You're calling me a spoilt child? How dare you. You have no idea what family means and how important one's place in it is. I was Bella's best friend, Jasper was my husband, and now both are treating me like dirt. Do you have any idea how that makes me feel?"

"Actually yes, I do. You just spent the last two days telling me exactly how it makes you feel and quite frankly I'm getting a little tired of hearing about it. Swallow your pride, accept that you are not the center of the fucking universe and move on."

She stared at me in shock, had no one ever told her what they really thought before? Or did the Major just have the magic touch?

"You're my husband, you should be on my side. You should be caring about me and my feelings and I do not like the tone of your voice or your language. You're beginning to sound like that sewer rat Peter Whitlock."

Now I was pretty laid back as a rule, but that pissed me off. I knew exactly how she felt about the Whitlocks, she'd told me that too and in intimate detail and I didn't like the thought that my wife of just a few weeks was thinking of me in those terms. What the fuck had I gotten myself into? What you saw on the surface was not necessarily what you got with Alice Cullen.

"Gutter rat? Well, I'm sorry I'm such a disappointment to you Alice, but I guess no one would ever match up to your exacting standards."

She whirled around, her eyes glowing with a strange intensity and her teeth bared.

"I married you because you asked me. Because you told me that you loved me, that you had never met anyone quite like me and I thought you would love and support me in everything. Not stab me in the back the first opportunity you got. I'm going for a walk."

She stormed out slamming the door behind her which cracked the surrounding plaster as well as breaking the lock and splintering the wood. That girl sure had a temper and for the first time, I became concerned. Alice had been acting a little erratically since she heard that the Major had saved Bella's baby and it had only gotten worse since we discovered the two of them were an item. Could it be that she was jealous? That she'd never gotten over losing him? If so, then I was second best and that just wasn't going to work for me.

I rattled the car keys in my pocket toying with the idea of driving away and leaving her to her tantrum. Give her time to cool off, but I wasn't a runner, never had been so I sat down and turned the TV on. She'd be back when she cooled down and in the meantime, I had some serious thinking to do.

Alice

I had to get out of that room before my head exploded, why did Garrett not see how upset I was?

How my head spun right now and the noises inside my skull made thinking difficult. The noise frightened me most of all, those and the lights that flashed before my eyes. I hadn't had an attack like this for quite a while. Less powerful ones yes, ever since Jasper left me after the terrible fights over Bella and her baby. But they had eased off again when I met Garrett and I really thought he might be able to drive them away permanently. That it would be like having Jasper around again, but it seemed I was wrong.

Since the call from Esme with the news that Jasper had saved Bella's baby I had felt excited, happy, and looking forward to seeing them all again very soon. However, it seemed I was the least significant person in the family. Meeting my niece, seeing my best friend again, meant nothing to them, only to me. Did no one care about my feelings?

Why hadn't I seen what happened? Why had Bella screwed with my visions so badly? Why had she been so cruel to me?

The noise became unbearable and I staggered, keeping myself upright only by holding on to a tree.

When I closed my eyes, the lights came, they flashed faster and faster and suddenly I was back in the asylum clutching at my wooden bed frame to ground myself.

I feared the lights because they were a precursor to the voices and if they started up once more I knew I would never be free of them again. Becoming a vampire had freed me last time but that was no longer an option and the voices said such terrible things.

It had been the voices that had forced me to kill my stepmother. The voices told me that she and my father had murdered my mother. I tried to reach my father too but he had been one step ahead of me and had me committed to the asylum.

Memories of that place flooded back. The cold steel rasping across my skull as they shaved my head. The electrodes being taped to my temples and the awful shocks that jolted through my body.

"You know they don't love you, Alice. Everyone hates you. What will you do about it? Garrett's probably talking to Bella right now. Planning on going to see Megan without you or telling her that you didn't want to see the child. He wanted you all to himself. He made you leave before you could see Bella and Megan. He knew, he had to have known, but he didn't tell you."

I shook my head and the voices quieted but I knew they were still there and would begin to whisper into my brain again soon. Only seeing Megan would stop them. I could prove to them that they were wrong, that I was loved and important to the others. That would shut them up, it had to.

With a sigh, I straightened up and started back to the hotel. I would prove the voices wrong and then they would stop.

"But what if we're right? What then?"

"You're not. Shut up."

I knew I had shouted these words out loud but I couldn't help it. The pressure was building and I refused to let the voices claim control of me again.

I was about to reach out for the door handle of our room when I heard Garrett speaking. I froze, listening as I heard my name spoken.

"I don't know what to do with Alice. Whatever I say just makes things worse. It's like she's going crazy over nothing. Maybe you're right. Maybe I should talk to Esme or Carlisle. Listen, I have to go, she could be back at any time. So long, Amy."

Amy? Yes, of course, that was his little friend from England. The one he always ran to when things got tough. Well, if anyone was going to talk to Esme or Carlisle it would be me, not him. No one was telling tales behind my back, especially not to my own family. How dare he!

Backing away I went back down in the elevator and into the street where I took shelter in a doorway and called Carlisle. All the while the voices were whispering to me.

"See. Told you he was going to betray you. Get to Carlisle first before he can tell any lies. You can't trust the man. He's probably spoken to Bella already, told her you're crazy and to keep her kid away from you."

"Alice? How lovely to hear from you. When are you due to arrive?"

"Carlisle.."

I was whispering as if afraid I might be overheard, although there was no one around. Except, of course, for the voices.

"It's Garrett. He wants to have me put away. He told Bella that I'm crazy and she won't let me see my niece. It's not fair. She owes me, I was her best friend and she's shutting me out. She stole Jasper and now she's trying to steal Garrett too. What should I do?"

I didn't give him time to answer, the solution was clear, the voices had just told me exactly what I needed to do.

"No. It's OK. I know. The Volturi should be told about the little girl, how Bella drove Edward mad so he didn't know what to do. I bet she and Jasper had this all worked out to split the family, Destroy us, the best family, the only coven that worked. She'll be trying to take over the Volturi next, or kill us all. Carlisle, you have to stay away from there. Warn the others to get out while they can. Bella wanted that baby so she could lure us in, break us up and kill us all."

I wasn't even aware of what I was saying, only that I was repeating what the voices said and that it made perfect sense.

"Carlisle. My head hurts, there's so much going on in there. I see it all so clearly now. It was all a plot from the very start. Bella never loved Edward. She was in league with the wolves. She and Jake planned all this. They're going to take over our world and destroy us, anyone who knows what she's doing."

"Alice. Just a moment. Stop. Take a breath."

I did so, Carlisle understood. He was just trying to work out what to do. How to help.

"Now. Has your head stopped hurting?"

"A little."

I was tried, the voices had calmed again now someone understood and wanted to help.

"Good. I want you to tell me where you are. Esme and I will come and pick you up. You'll be safe with us and we can work all this out."

That sounded like a good idea.

"Thank you, Carlisle. I was afraid Bella had gotten to you. Do you think we should tell the Volturi? Warn Aro what she's doing?"

"I think you should explain it all to me first, Alice. That way we can work out the best way to approach him. Now, where are you?"

I told him, and that I was scared to go back to our room because I didn't trust Garrett any more.

"Then go somewhere you feel safe and text me the address. We're leaving right now."

"We?"

There was a note of hysteria in my voice and I tried to hold it back.

"Just Esme and I."

"And you won't tell anyone else?"

"No."

"Promise me, Carlisle."

"I promise."

The fact there was no hesitation in his voice calmed me tremendously, Carlisle would never let me down. My father would protect and help me I was certain of that.

"How long will you be?"

"I'll be there as quickly as I can. Luckily I have access to a plane care of a grateful patient so it won't take long. Just get somewhere you feel safe."

"What about Garrett? What if he comes looking for me?"

"How long have you been gone?"

"I don't know. Not long."

Think, Alice, think!

"A...About half an hour I guess."

"Then I doubt he'll get worried for a couple of hours especially if you two argued."

How did he know that?

I must have spoken my question out loud because he answered.

"Alice, you told me you overheard him talking to his friend and that you and he had words. Please, my dear, try to calm down. You know you can trust me to look after you."

"Yes I can, I know. I'm sorry I'm just a bit overwrought right now."

"Don't worry. We're here for you. We'll always be here for you. I'll call as soon as we land. In the meantime try to keep calm."

I clutched the phone to my chest like an anchor, my connection to the only person I could trust and whispered, "Hurry Carlisle. Please get here before the voices start up again."

Then I fled along the street, staying out of the lights. Hugging the shadows and looking for somewhere to hide while I waited, somewhere safe.

I walked for ages and as I walked the voices began to whisper once more.

"Can you really trust Carlisle and Esme? After all, they're very friendly with Bella these days. Maybe she's poisoned them against you. Maybe Carlisle isn't coming, maybe he's even now sending word to Bella warning her that you know what she plans."

I shook my head, "No. I trust Carlisle. He loves me, he looks after me, so shut up. Just shut up"

I ignored the startled look of the passers-by, what the hell did they know? Wasn't it obvious that I was in trouble?

Finding a small motel I hurried inside and rented a room for a night using the cash I always carried for emergencies and using a false name.

"Victoria Rouge."

It appealed to me to use the name of Bella's enemy, well one of them anyhow and by the time I was safely locked inside my room, I felt so much better, more light-hearted and decided I could finally relax and the voices would leave me alone.