The Whispering Woods
Chapter Forty-Four
"I want to believe Renee is alive, but we don't know if that's possible, Bella." Esme placed her hands on her niece's shoulders and squeezed, kissing the top of her head from behind her. "I want it to be true as much as you, but it's been too long since she disappeared."
Bella rolled her shoulders to release her aunt's grip, turning to look her in the eyes. "Considering Dad, Uncle Garrett, and your husband are at least a hundred years old and look to be in their late thirties to early forties, a few years isn't too long."
"Maybe not, Bella, but your mother would never willingly leave you."
Charlie had to look away from his daughter, unable to meet her eyes. She'd find that his hope had long since disappeared, too.
"Willingly? No, but under coercion or to remove the threat to me and my father, then yes, I believe she would leave." Bella stood her ground. "If they're willing to take Dad's heart to control her or any of us, what makes you think they wouldn't use us against her?"
Garrett and her father tried to argue, but she shook her head and held up her hand. "I will not hear any more of it until we had definitive proof of her death."
Carlisle cleared his throat. The peacemaker of the group, when they all refused to back down. "Perhaps we should allow Edward and Bella to tell us what they've learned."
Though reluctant, Esme nodded and sat primly on a chair, giving the children the floor.
After twenty minutes of explaining and reexamining what Edward and Bella had learned about Mike's mother, how most people saw different women instead of the same one, they determined it was best to stay away from the Newtons until they had more answers.
Garrett decided he would like to experiment by having Carlisle use hypnosis on him in their quest to dig for long-buried memories to find answers.
"We're speculating at this point; we're assuming the Newtons have answers when they could be going off instinct." Edward paced, speaking his thoughts aloud. "We are, aren't we? I instinctually know to protect Bella, but also felt the need to call her Princess before Bella's gift told her she's royalty. How is that possible if we hadn't met face to face until, holy fuck, only a few days ago?"
"We met before," Bella stated, and shrugged when he glared at her. "Okay, you were in your mother's womb, but we met."
"The point is, they could be in the same boat we are." Edward turned away from Bella, finding her much too distracting. "Maybe they weren't the ones who took Charlie's heart. Maybe it was someone from the woods."
"That is a possibility—that something is in there trying to lure us in." Bella looked thoughtful and somewhat confused. "Though I don't think whoever it is, has power there all the time."
"We've had good and bad things happen in that forest," Edward agreed, tapping his temple where a scar should be.
Bella nodded, then turned to her father. "By the way, Dad, we need to put some markers up on the trails or consider closing it for now. I didn't know the creek had become a roaring river."
Four heads pivoted toward her, asking her to repeat herself.
She swallowed, their fear thickening the surrounding air. She shared a look with Edward. "The first day we met, I took a tumble in the forest, but caught myself…"
"The whispers told me Bella needed me and guided me to her." Edward winced. "I wasn't wearing gear to hike, and I fell, but Bella jumped on me as I rolled past her and we fell off the cliff." He had quickened the pace of that last part, leaving himself breathless.
"You what?" Carlisle and Charlie's nearly identical roars made the walls quake, framed photos and degrees becoming askew.
Garrett looked more confused than ever. "There are no rivers or cliffs anywhere near the Crescent Hills trails."
Esme covered her face with her hands. Alarming everyone, she let out a slight sob that quickly morphed into a laugh. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but stop doing something healthy like taking a walk in the woods. Take up video gaming or something." She waved her hand. "I'd rather you two have sex than either of you go back into those woods. Do you understand me?"
"Hey, I'd rather not give them permission for that either, Es!" Charlie was on his feet, going toe-to-toe with Esme, Carlisle shaking his head.
Garrett looked rather bemused by the situation and wondered when he'd have time to explore the woods again. He had mapped the changes over the years, but what the kids explained sounded rather extreme. Since when did the change occur? Did Carlisle, Esme, and Edward start some kind of chain reaction? Why did the kids see through the deceptive magic while he and the others remained under the spell? So many questions, and before he could ask the kids something, he realized it would have to wait. "If you could all stop yelling for five seconds, you'd notice the kids left."
Charlie cursed, determined to go find them, but Carlisle issued him a warning. "Charlie, you need to take it easy. We don't know what your phantom heart can take."
"I'll be fine." Charlie shrugged. "I've lived without my heart since Renee disappeared. Bella is the only reason I'm still here." With that awful truth said, he walked out of the office to head home. He'd give his daughter an hour, then he'd go looking for her.
"Everything is going to change," Esme stated, taking Garrett's hand. "You need to tell Kate everything we know. I know she'll have plenty of questions you'll have no answers to, but she needs to prepare."
Garrett snorted. "Prepare for what, Es? War? Peace? The magic that takes over our lives? Is evil going to descend upon us? "
"I don't have my sister or Bella's gift, it's a feeling. I know you feel it too, you'd have to as a guardian."
Carlisle and Garrett looked at each other, and neither of them could deny the need to hone their bodies and skills for the last few months. Garrett had dropped fifteen pounds in the last two weeks and had gone from one-mile runs three times a week to five miles every day. It wasn't until that moment he knew why.
Something or someone was coming, and they needed to be ready.