Chapter 46 – I Need a Hero
Bella
I had just gotten my heartrate under control when Dr. Cheney walked around the corner. He spotted me holding Dorianne and looked up and down the halls before coming over and stepping too far into my personal space.
"Miss Swan, wonderful to see you today," he crooned at me with his attempt at a smooth voice. "That youngster looks familiar. Have I treated her before?"
"She's the youngest of the Brooks children from the hostage case a few months ago," I offered coolly, hoping to deter any further ideas that I might be interested in a non-professional conversation.
"Well, you look like a natural with her," he continued. "I'll bet you'd look really cute with a baby bump of your own. I'd be willing to help you practice getting one…"
He was cut off mid-sentence by Edward's painfully firm grasp on his shoulder. "Hello, Ben," Edward hissed low next to his ear, not releasing his grip on Dr. Cheney's shoulder. "You know, I have to agree with you that Bella is going to look stunning as she carries my children, and if she needs any help 'practicing' getting pregnant, I'll be the one to do it. She is my fiancée, after all." I grinned at Dr. Cheney and held up my left hand, allowing my ring to catch the lights in the corridor. He started stammering, as Edward released him, stepping backwards away from Edward and me.
"Sorry there, man," he mumbled. "I'd better go check on…" was all we heard, as he hurried away. Edward took Dorianne from me and then pulled me into his side.
"If he approaches you again, let me know. I'll wipe the floor with him," Edward growled under his breath.
"My hero!" I giggled, kissing his jaw.
Dorianne threw her little arms around Edward's neck, her curly blonde pigtails bouncing, and exclaimed, "He-wo!" before she planted a mushy wet kiss on his cheek as well.
"Back off my man, little sister!" I teased, as Edward handed her back to me, laughing. He was obviously dead on his feet from being here all night, and then in surgery all afternoon. "How's the little girl from this morning?" I asked, wishing I knew what name to call her.
"She's stable for now. We just have to watch out for infection. That glass was like dirty razorblades shot from a cannon. Some of it went all the way to the bone. She's probably going to have some scarring from it in combination with the burns. She's lucky those sunglasses protected her eyes. Otherwise, I probably would've had to remove them from the sockets. The glass would've gone right through her eyelids." I shuddered at the thought of that and leaned in to give Edward one more kiss goodbye. He was headed home to rest and clean up before coming back in a few hours.
Carlisle and Esme came out of the NICU and were heading towards the nurses' station when Dorianne saw them coming. She started squirming, wanting me to put her down. I set her on her feet, and she went waddling towards them, chattering mama and dada the whole way. Carlisle grabbed her up, and Esme came to me, wrapping her arms around me. "Oh, Bella, we want to take the baby home with us. Has there been any word on who was keeping her?"
"I haven't heard back from Rose or Alice yet, but we suspect she was traded for drugs by a teen runaway, given what the other children have said. We don't know for certain if the people were also traffickers, but the chances are high that they would've sold her to someone. Are you sure you're up for one more?" I asked with a smile. Knowing Esme, the concept of too many little girls was foreign.
"I'd love it!" she exclaimed. "She's so precious! I just want to take her home right now."
"I'll call Rose and get the paperwork started. I don't know the story behind this baby, but as far as we know right now, she has no one, and she'll at least need foster care until we've determined her history. You guys are the most awesome foster parents. We're so lucky to have you in the program."
"We're the lucky ones, dear," Esme smiled, as she took Dorianne, hugging her close. I sincerely wished we had hundreds more foster families just like the Cullen's.
With all four children settled into the hospital, I needed to head back to the office to wrap up for the day. The snow had picked up, blanketing everything in white, so I was going to use the underground tunnel system to go back to the office. I was just about to open the access door when I felt a hand on my shoulder pull me backwards, and I was certain I heard, "No!" whispered sharply near my ear. I spun around to see who was there, but no one was anywhere near me. However, the hair on my arms and the back of my neck was standing on end. I immediately turned and headed for the front door instead, braving the cold and snow in favor of safety.
The week passed slowly, with Edward being gone most of the time I was home. Fortunately, these weeks only came along every few months, so I took heart in knowing it would be a while before he had to do it again. Thankfully, tonight was the last night for this week.
It was hard for me to settle down at night, because I had gotten used to Edward's soft piano playing at bedtime lulling me to sleep. I usually heard every snap, creak, pop, and groan of the old house, but tonight, with the cold wind howling outside, they sounded particularly menacing.
I knew I wasn't going to get any sleep tonight unless I did something to make myself sleepy. So, I went down to the kitchen to make myself a huge mug of steaming hot cocoa and grab a couple of cookies. Chocolate and chocolate worked for me!
As I was stirring the hot cocoa on the stove, I leaned to glance into the living room where the Christmas tree was set up, admiring it in the bay window in the dim light of the hallway. The headlights from a car turning down the street shone on the window, revealing the silhouette of a person on the front porch looking in at me, but they were standing just far enough back that I couldn't make out any distinctive features. I screamed and jumped, knocking the saucepan off the stove. It landed on the hard floor and bounced, splashing my legs and the hem of my nightshirt in scalding hot cocoa that had been just shy of boiling.
When I looked back, the figure was gone. I ran for the phone and dialed 9-1-1, reporting a peeping tom. Within minutes, there was a police car in front of my house and two officers looking around the yard for footprints or evidence. A couple of minutes later, Emmett came running up to my front door.
"Bella, are you alright?" he asked in a panic. "Did they try to break in?" Emmett was looking around, trying to determine if I was injured or in any further danger.
"How did you know? I didn't think you were on call this late," I said, confused.
"Police scanner. They keep one on in the squad room, so we can know what's going on in the city," he said. "I had to stay late to turn in some paperwork and was just getting ready to head home when I heard the dispatcher with your call. I came straight over to check on you. Are you sure you're okay?"
"Just a little freaked out is all, and I'm a bit scalded." I had been too scared to do anything about my legs until now, and the pain from the burns was starting to ramp up. Large red spots that would probably blister were flaring up in several places on both legs, and it hurt to stand there.
"Where's your first-aid kit?" Emmett asked. I directed him to the closet in the bathroom. The officers came back in and said that, other than a few smeared-out footprints, there was no sign of anyone now. I signed the report they took, and they said they would be patrolling in the area for the rest of the night and would keep an eye on the house. I felt a little better knowing they would be around.
Emmett helped me upstairs, so he could treat my burned legs. The welts were worse than I had thought, extending from my knees to the tops of my feet, and they really hurt, especially when he had me stand in the tub, so he could rinse off the remnants of the cocoa with cool water. With his eyes closed, he helped me into a clean nightshirt. He suggested I see a doctor in the morning and gave me a couple of acetaminophen tablets for the pain.
"Try to relax and get some sleep, Bella. I'm not going anywhere," he said, turning off my bedroom light as he left. Downstairs, I heard Emmett relocking the front door before he cleaned up the spilled cocoa from the kitchen floor. Then, I heard the springs in the old recliner squeak, as he stretched his massive frame into a more comfortable position, ready to watch over me for the duration of the night. I felt like I had put my guardian angels through their paces today. I just hoped they continued to stick around, because whoever was watching me seemed to be getting bolder. I think I preferred it when they were just a figment of my overactive imagination. Now, I couldn't deny that they were real.
