25
The day before Charlie was born, Bella had been restless. She couldn't focus on anything, her hips aches, her back was sore. Looking back, she knew she had been in the early stages of labor, but seeing as she was completely and utterly alone, she didn't know what labor felt like. She didn't have a mother to hold her hand, a father to tell her everything was going to be okay. She was alone because a monster had taken a liking to her.
It was just after midnight when Bella realized Charlie was coming. The pain was unbearable as she scrambled through the house and found her phone, calling the only person who hadn't let her down.
"Talk to me," he had said.
"It's time," Bella had cried, clutching her stomach and trying to keep from screaming as another contraction ripped through her.
"I'm coming." And he did come.
Bella managed to crawl over to the couch, but hadn't had the strength to climb on it. She knew should call 911, let an ambulance take her to the hospital, but that wasn't safe. That's what she told herself. He would find her there, he would take her back to hell, and she couldn't let her baby grow up in that life.
Felt like she laid on that floor for hours before she felt the unstoppable urge to push. So she did. Over and over and over again, she tried to find the strength to keep pushing. Just when she was starting to give up, the door to her small country house was thrown open and Edward came rushing inside. He feel to his knees in front of her and managed to catch Charlotte Renee Swan.
In that moment, Bella had a reason to fight, a reason to live. A reason to spend five years trying to keep her daughter safe. She was the one who spent night after night walking the floor to settle Charlie when she was crying, to feed her, change her, to teach her to walk, run, talk, play, to dream, to be happy. And she tried to be a good mom. Even when Charlie threw tantrums, when she would scream and cry for hours. Bella tried to shield her daughter, tried but failed. Because instead of keeping Charlotte Renee safe, she had killed her.