The Haunting of Bella Swan

Chapter Thirty


The pain in Edward's left temple was unbearable, yet the stench around him was worse. It had been years since he'd been that hungover; not since he realized he could see his dead cousin, James.

Only then he remembered he hadn't drunk any alcohol the night before. Memories assaulted him. His mouth had the unmistakable metallic taste of blood. He'd bitten the inside of his cheek and murdered the corner of his bottom lip. For a moment, he wondered if he and Bella had gone out for drinks and got into a fight with some asshole. His body felt like it had been through hell.

A whisper of his name caught his attention, his head lolling toward the direction of Bella's voice. It sounded distant and distraught, and anxiety shot through every limb of his body, emphasizing that his head was not the only thing hurting. It didn't matter. What did was the fact that Bella was too far away. Every time they separated for whatever reason led to fucking disastrous consequences. Something Bella was well aware of but chose instead to run and face it alone.

She needed to stop doing that shit. His place was with her, by her side, always, through thick and thin. The fact that they had shared countless lives should've been proof enough of his devotion.

Anger coursed through him as he sat up, his hand rising to run through his hair. Only to find he was handcuffed to Bella, and though he was angry and hurt, he turned to face her. His greatest concern was her wellbeing; they'd have plenty of time to address his anger.

Then again, a deep, meaningful discussion had been a long time coming.

"Are you okay?" He shifted to get closer to her, his eyes roaming over her prone body. She lay face down on the concrete, her hair was a mess around her bruised face. Her lashes fluttered along the tops of her cheeks as she started to move again.

"It hurts too much, so I can't be dead." He pinched her ass, causing her to yelp in surprise. She turned enough to glare at him. "What was that for?"

"If you're dead, so am I, remember?" He rolled his eyes as her brow furrowed in confusion. "You can't seriously think I'm not angry after what you did?"

Bella tried to sit up but their handcuffed wrists made it difficult. After some shifting around, they managed to look at each other in the eyes. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Memory loss after a purging like last night is common, Edward." The voice came from the foot of the stairs. A grave and exhausted Jasper looked at them with wary, blue eyes. "You may have helped take some of the burden from her, Edward, but she took the brunt of it."

"That was taking 'some' of the burden?" Edward cursed several times and refused to meet Bella's eyes. He wanted to remain angry; had every right to feel that way.

"Can someone tell me what's happening? Weren't we at your aunt and uncle's place?" Before Edward or Jasper had a chance to answer, she made a sound and edged closer to Edward. "I think I slept in my own vomit."

Her eyes widened as she took a better look around her. "What happened? I don't remember coming home." Tears started to form in her eyes, and some of Edward's anger dissipated in his need to help her. "What did I do? Did I hurt anyone?"

"Not physically." Edward managed to get to his feet but had to help Bella do the same.

Jasper remained rooted to the foot of the stairs and looked tired; ancient, in fact. He tossed the key to the cuffs to Edward, who quickly unlocked them. "You two almost died last night." He appeared haunted, and considering how old he really was, whatever happened throughout the night was horrible. "At one point, I thought Bella was going to break her own neck. No amount of phasing to heal would help that shit."

"Fucking hell." Edward shook his head, tugging on his hair. He groaned at the taste of his mouth and how sore his body felt. As if he'd fallen down the stairs or off a building. "I had no idea recovering from that shit would hurt this much."

"You shouldn't have touched me." Bella passed him but swayed, one of her knees crumbling under her weight and sending her sprawling on the floor.

Edward went to his own knees beside her, helping her sit up but insisting she wait until her dizziness subsided.

"Your knee is still broken." Jasper stood up but remained at a safe distance. "I'd advise that you both phase parts of your body until you're healed. The aches and exhaustion will only get worse after doing that. You can get cleaned up after you've done that and we'll talk if you're feeling up to it." Jasper climbed the stairs and said he'd make them some food, too.

Edward realized then that Bella wasn't the only one in desperate need of healing. His right shoulder and his arm felt like a dead weight, and the tips of his fingers of his right hand felt numb. One of his ankles shot bolts of pain up his entire leg and his back felt tight. His muscles felt like unmoving stone.

They held hands despite the lingering anger and resentment they each felt as they lay back and did as Jasper suggested. It took longer than usual, but as they were functioning on only a handful of hours of rest in the last few days, it was understandable.

From the top of Edward's head, he slowly phased each part of his body. He ignored the panic that usually came when his sense of touch disappeared as his arm or leg became nothing more than a phantom part of his body.

Bella looked at Edward with a small smile on her lips. Her eyes were weirdly dilated and one was still covered in blood, having popped a few blood vessels. The redness started to fade into nothing. "Once you reach your waist, do your dick and balls count as a part to phase or each one separately?"

"Stop doing that," Edward hissed, snatching his hand away and rolling to his side away from her. "Stop making light of this situation." He felt her hesitance as she tried to reach for him. "How many times do we have to fight about this? We're in this together, good or bad. We'll never break whatever this shit is if we keep coming back to this."

"I don't remember the reason, but I do know I'm the one being punished. You happen to be along for the ride because you love me. Our souls are forever intertwined because it was what you wished for. And no matter how many times we've tried to avoid meeting when seeing each other die was tearing us apart, we do anyway. We can't stay away from each other once we do."

Edward closed his eyes, her words bringing up painful memories. They tried so hard to stay away from each other in the last cycle. Though they didn't always remember that the other existed in every life, they were haunted by the memory of each other in their dreams or nightmares. They longed for what they were missing, and other relationships never worked for either of them. A part of their souls always knew there was someone else waiting for them.

"Why is this happening to us? Why are you being punished?"

"I don't know. I don't think we've ever found out, but it's clear someone has answers." Her hand settled on his back, right in the center, his heart beating under her touch. "I'm sorry. Our memories are still unclear and scattered, and there's so many, but I think I was aware that it was the worst it's ever been yesterday. As in, in every life we've shared. I could've hurt you or the rest of your family. I had to leave immediately."

Edward turned to face her, taking her hand in his. "I understand your reasons in wanting to get away, but we need to do it together. You heard Jasper, I help take a little of the pain, though I wish I could take it all. That's better than you taking it all, baby."

"I know, but all the negative energy is like a voice in my head. A whisper telling me you don't want to help. To get away, because you'll hate me."

"Fight it! Each and every time you hear that voice, you remember how many times I've said I love you. I've said it countless times, and each one was no less significant or a lie. It is the only truth we know. We're bound for eternity and the only way we can break this is if we work together. I'm asking you to fight. Something tells me that the clock is ticking for us. We may die and not have a chance to live until we're old and gray this time. We have to fix this and fight for the right to live and be together."

Bella nodded as Edward spoke, grimacing when bile rose in her throat, hunger slicing through the pain. Phasing always made her hungry. "We should go get cleaned up before Jasper is called away."

Once they were sure most of their bruises had healed, they helped each other traverse the basement stairs. They had to take breaks when their exhaustion threatened to send them tumbling down. Bypassing Jasper in the kitchen, they managed to share a shower. Under the hot spray of water and helpful hands, they cleaned each other, reaffirming that they were okay. Any spots or cuts the other missed, they allowed the area to heal through their gifts.

"We're getting stronger with every life." Bella flexed her ghostly fingers, creating a bubble of protection around it that didn't allow water to penetrate her phased palm. "That has to mean something. I don't think you've ever had this power or at least wield it so easily. I'm trying to remember if you had more power as a female."

Edward's brow tightened in confusion until it dawned on him that she was right. Their souls were bound together, not their mortal bodies. In several lives, he was female and she was male. That messed a little with his mind, but despite the realization, in every life, it was her soul that was continuously punished. The one whose body was always marked with the spell someone had given her. They'd worked hard over the lives to figure out why it was happening, and they were finally close to finding more answers. The question was, why now?

"What are you thinking?" Bella asked, handing Edward a towel to dry off.

"If I enjoy being a man or woman more?" He grinned and shrugged when she glared at him. "It appears your need to make a joke in difficult times has rubbed off on me."

"Personality traits would remain the same with some variations, so I don't find that hard to believe. Are you ready to find the answers we've been seeking…?"

"How long has it been?" Their limited minds wouldn't allow them to go back to the fateful night so long ago.

"Almost a thousand years, give or take." Jasper knocked on the door of the bathroom. "You need to hurry since our guest only has a limited window to visit."

"Guest?" Edward repeated, helping Bella get dressed. She was still wobbly on her feet.

"You allowed someone in my house?" Bella grumbled and quickly finished drawing her yoga pants up her legs. "Considering I don't see or hear any alarms, I'm guessing he or she isn't a demon."

"No, he's not."

Bella stomped toward the bathroom door and yanked it open. "Who is he?"

Jasper averted his eyes as Bella slipped by him to pick out a shirt from her dresser. "I think you know."

"My head feels like it wants to cave in at the moment, and every sound I hear feels like someone is nailing a railroad spike into my head. I'm doing as little thinking as I can at the moment."

"It's your father, Bella."

Bella's eyes went instantly black as she screamed like a banshee, then phased and started to go through the floor.

They really needed to work on her temper. Edward phased his arm to grab her before she disappeared. "That's one hell of a dramatic entrance, don't you think?"

Bella pouted, floating back up until she was standing before Edward. She became corporeal again, her eyes turning into the warm brown he'd come to love in the current life. "He's had plenty of chances to talk to me. Why now?"

Edward gently held her by the shoulders, his eyes softening as he saw how tired she looked. "We had a child in 1963, baby, and we're in 2016 now. Something is wrong, maybe that's why he finally decided it was time."

Her heart beat wildly in her chest, her breathing harsh and quick. "Oh God, he's dying."

Jasper didn't deny it. "We'll do our best to answer your questions."

They finished getting dressed, and Jasper led them to her dining room, where food awaited them. A tall, dark-haired man stood near the bank of windows that overlooked Bella's backyard and garden.

Bella gasped the moment she saw him. "Charlie?"


AN: Thanks to my partner in crime, kyla713 for your help with the chapter. Any mistakes are mine.