Chapter 36
As soon as Alice settled in, we had Matthew fly to New York to sort things out with Holly. Alice wanted to go herself, but we convinced her to call her friend to let her know that we had someone going for her. Her friend was as distrustful as expected, but we just had Alice back, and Edward couldn't stand the thought of having his baby sister out of his sight.
After dinner, during which Alice barely touch her food, he excused himself from the table, explaining that he needed to let Esme and Carlisle know that she was back unharmed. Alice looked both frightened and ready to attack at the thought, in the same way, a cornered wild animal would. Much of what she said upon arrival was probably a pre-planned speech that must have taken her some time to articulate. A classical case of fake it, not until you make it, but until you become it. We tried not to fuss too much over her, but normal was somewhat unattainable in that predicament. He assured her that he was only going to let their parents know that she was okay and alleviate some of the tension back at home. We didn't speak much about what was going on. Jasper was spotted going from club to club like nothing happened, Carlisle seemed numb and incapable of handling the situation, and Esme was beyond depressed. I was afraid of what Edward might do to Jasper now that his attention wasn't focused on finding Alice. He had been forced to come to terms with the unhealthy relationship his siblings shared, and I think he managed to digest it impressively well considering the global picture. The recent turn of events reopened a putrid wound that was bound to make him react. If only Jasper tried to be inconspicuous; instead he poked a dormant beast with a hot iron when he gave me the porn video starring my boyfriend and Jasper's fiancé. Suppressing the image was hard. At least in that aspect, he had won. He inflicted me a terrible amount of pain and the image would stay with me forever, undermining my self-confidence.
"It took me a while to calm my mom down," Edward said as he came in the bedroom. "She wanted to be on the next plane to Seattle, but I convinced her to wait for Alice to call her. I hope she does soon," he paused as looked up for a clean t-shirt. He never guessed which his drawer was. "Do you know where my t-shirts are?" He asked puzzled. That sort of everyday interaction was refreshingly pleasant – I could relate to the need for normalcy.
"Third drawer from the top," I clarified because only the first two were checked.
"I think I'm entitled to more than a drawer from now on," he complained.
"Whatever for if one drawer seems like too much for you to handle?" I teased.
"That's grand coming from you, Miss I don't know where I left my car keys while holding them."
"That never happened…"
"It did. And I need at least a quarter of your closet," he bargained. He assumed I was a typical girl with lots of clothes. The thing is, I rarely bought new clothes considering I spent a lot of time in scrubs and for the most of the parties I attended, Alice lends me the dresses.
"Over half of it is empty; I think you can use the space."
He looked at me incredulously and decided to look for himself if it was the truth. "You weren't kidding. Are those all of your clothes?" He asked stupefied. "Henry must be turning in his grave; you're clearly not using his money correctly."
It bothered me to talk about Henry with Edward; even the silliest remarks were enough to put me on edge. How could I admit to him that I've been trying to live with my lowly resident's salary? It was evident that it couldn't pay for the security team, J's investigations, my mom's allowance and so on. But my expenses were a lot less demanding. I've always worked for financial stability, of course, being a doctor pays a little better than average, but insanely rich? That's something it takes a bit more time to grow into. Besides, I had to face it: I had virtually no spare time, not even for shopping.
"Maybe I just don't have the time to spend it."
"This is just one of many reasons I want to marry you," he said as he unbuttoned his shirt seductively.
"It's quite the floor show, Your Grace."
"It's only a good floor show it works. I think it is working," he said discarding the shirt to the floor. "Your breathing pattern just changed, and you just made a swallowing sound." How could he tell? "Aren't you glad this day is over?" Edward asked as he unfastened his jeans frankly slower than needed. It was a well-thoughted gesture, meant to entice. He dropped his jeans and left only his dark gray boxers, the movement was swift, but as he sat on the bed, seemed to hesitate. I laid my palm against his thigh softly, feeling his muscles tense beneath my hand, the light hair in his arms erect and he shivered.
"Are you cold?" I asked, arresting my movement.
"No, go on, it's quite the opposite in fact. I'm too hot. Your touch feels amazing. You have this way with me; you're like a cocktail of valium and cocaine all in one. It's dangerously addictive." He exhaled slowly and soundly as he pushed my hand up, teasing himself.
"That's something I can understand." I could hardly recognize myself. My voice came out husky and all wrong. He was just too much of everything: too handsome, too smart, too desirable and too wicked.
He directed my hand higher; I could feel the heat coming out of his erection through his boxers, guiding me under his waistband and covered my hand with his, wrapping mine around his penis and began stroking himself. All I wanted to do was to straddle him and go for the quick gratification. After all the stress, I needed the connection. He sensed my impatience and grinned.
"There's no hurry. We have all night, and I want to savor the moment. This little bit of perfection before tomorrow comes. It's surreal, almost like a dream," he continued his slow motion, my hand moving up and down in his. I shifted uncomfortably on the bed, trying to ease the discomfort between my legs. "The light of the day has finally dimmed so that we can take shelter in the seclusion of the night. It's finally just the two of us." He stopped his ministrations, pulled my hand up intertwining our fingers and moved over me, pinning me against the bed. "We have tonight. Be mine."
I held his face with my free hand, caressing the soft skin of his cheek, looked into his eyes and saw mine. My one reflection. The same longing, the same need to connect, the same confusion and tumult. But I also saw my favorite green eyes, that were darker with lust. I kissed him with everything in me when the sense of oneness was too much to bear, and it became painful to look. The physical part was easier to take. He was an expert lover but, though his touch started slow and deliberate, it quickly became unrestrained and almost feral. I've always thought sex was a messy affair, with too much sweat involved and grimy body fluids, but with him, his smell was an aphrodisiac I craved. Like he said, it was my personal stash of cocaine.
He teased, stroked, massaged and licked everywhere he could get a response from me.
"Edward, you're driving me insane," I was on the brink of an orgasm for so long it was torture.
"I'm driving us both insane. You are just perfect for me," my husband-to-be said between kisses before he thrust deep inside me in one single movement.
"Oomph!" I cried out, stopping him immediately.
"Did I hurt you?"
"Not too much. It's been a while…" The distance wasn't compatible with a regular sex life.
He grunted something in appreciation, his ego seemed gratified by making me uncomfortable with his size, but he cared enough to give time to adjust.
"Tell me you're mine," he demanded, regarding me intently, angling his hips so that he gradually pushed inside me as deep as he could go. The pressure was unbelievable, and he pinched my nipple in a way that was slightly uncomfortable but extremely pleasurable.
"I'm not a thing to be possessed," I managed to say. I was trying to move my pelvis for some friction, but he wasn't making it easy for me.
"No, you're not. Neither am I, but you own me all the same."
"My heart is yours," I conceded.
"It was a hostile take-over," he teased, pacified by my response and kissed me deeply, shushing me and quieting all the whispers of malignant voices in my head.
We made love slowly, and it was a transforming experience. We came together in what was the most prolonged orgasm of my life. It was shattering, and it took us both a while to come down from that high.
"That was… something else," I told him when I found my voice.
"Don't try to put what we just shared into words. It'll never do it justice," he kissed me softly.
He climbed out of bed a couple of minutes later, and I would've complained if not for the languor coming from post coital bliss that took over my body. I could hear him in the background, rummaging about for something but opening my eyes took too much energy. As I was drifting to sleep, I felt the mattress shift under his weight.
"Isabella Swan, open your eyes. I need to be certain you're awake for this. There'll never be a better moment." He nudged me playfully, arranging the pillows, pulling me to a sitting position in bed, close to the edge. He kneeled on the floor, taking my hand in his, and asked "Isabella Swan, I promise to you the sort of all eternal love that we were both too cynical to think that we could ever find, let alone in one another. Blissful as we are, at last, let's make tonight the first day of our lives together. No matter what Daybreak brings, we'll always have the nights. The moon has always been the best companion for lovers. Please, take my ring. Will you marry me?"
"Yes." There was nothing more to say. My eyes tore as I saw him sliding the ring that had been such an offending object earlier that day and became, against all the odds, the tangible proof that love defied all logic.
.:.:.:.:.
I woke up the following day with a bit of a headache. The feeling of being hungover was still there even two days after a night shift. Edward was still sound asleep beside me and as I watched him sleeping peacefully. It took me a while to notice that something was different. A reminder rested in my hand, a foreign object in my fourth proximal digit. Glittering in the day light, it seemed to weigh more than it did the previous night. It was 7:52 a.m. per the clock over my night stand. I guessed I could use a shower to quiet the panic that threatened to make an appearance and maintain a calm and collected façade. In the morning, it didn't seem so easy to just be in love, like the night before.
"Edward, I'm getting up for a shower," I whispered in his ear.
"Do we have to? I was hoping for some morning loving," he mumbled trying to get me under him.
"We have a big day ahead of us."
"Yeah, I guess. But it'll start a lot brighter if I fuck you senseless first. Think about all the endorphins. Exercise is good for the heart, isn't it?" And he pulled me against him, showering me with sloppy, playful kisses, lifting me onto his lap, rubbing himself against me. "God, I love you," he said against my lips as he impaled me. All coherent thought just vanished from my mind, and as I sat there, so closely connected to him, I made a small prayer because I needed it to work. "Baby, you're killing me, please move…" he was kneading my hips, urging me to move. As I complied, he groaned and let his head fall back enjoying the view.
We went to the kitchen for breakfast, and Alice was already perched up on her stool, swirling her spoon absentmindedly around the bowl of oatmeal in front of her. A glass of orange juice laid untouched in front of her. It was maddening that I was all rosy cheeks and content while a woman who quickly earned a spot as one of my closest friends was fighting the deciding battle in a war against an invisible enemy. It just didn't seem fair.
"Good morning," Edward greeted her happily.
"Hey," she said without taking her eyes away from the window ahead of her. "I hope you don't mind, but I asked Mathew to bring Holly here. She can sleep in my room."
"Of course," Edward quickly agreed. I only nodded, but was silently preoccupied, what did we know about this young lady? I've seen what living on the streets can do to a person, how it irrevocably transforms someone until they are nothing but an empty vessel. Most people can never get away from it, from what they become.
She was a slight little thing, much like Alice, a lot shorter than I am, her pale complexion marred by several bruises. She had raccoon eyes, both so swollen that it was impossible to know from a distance its color. And if I had to guess, she was a lot younger than we first assumed. Her body language was screaming at Mathew for him not to touch her. The way she walked as far away from him as possible, glancing on occasion to make sure he kept his distance. Her eyes opened infinitesimally with female appreciation when she glanced at Edward, who was sitting next to Alice. She fussed a bit, trying to straighten her short wrinkled dress. The gesture annoyed me, and I had to make an effort to keep my face impassive. He had that effect on every heterosexual female. Seeing a young battered girl reacting the same way defied all logic.
"Welcome, Holly. I'm Bella, Alice's friend."
"A bit more than Alice's friend, we hope, considering you'll soon be sisters," Edward completed smiling at me while clearly establishing a boundary. He noticed her reaction too. "I'm Edward Cullen, Alice's brother. I just want to thank you. We're all greatly indebted to you," he continued kindly.
"You're welcome. Thank you for helping me, Mr. Cullen," she stammered, completely mesmerized. Mathew, who was standing behind her, just rolled his eyes, making me smirk.
"You should thank Bella because I had very little to do with it. She was the one who asked Mathew to help you out, and this is her home."
She looked at me and blushed, before handing a very belligerent "I didn't ask for anything, so if you don't want me here…"
"Where else would I want you to be?" I asked in my most pacifying voice, the one I used on trying patients. "You're very welcome here. Alice, why don't you show Holly your room. You must rest for a bit, and we'll talk later."
She grudgingly left, while Alice glanced at me apologetically as she led her to their shared room. My apartment was not designed to be a family home, it was more of a bachelor's pad and was bought primarily for its exclusive location and security plan.
"It's getting a bit crowded in here," Edward commented as they cleared the area.
"That was fun," I said sarcastically.
"Don't be like that; she's just a scared child, in awe of her surroundings, looking for prince charming."
"Considering all my offers may be misconstrued, do you think you can go to them to make sure they're both settled and that there's nothing they need?" He looked surprised by my request but nodded and went to them.
"Library?" Mathew, who was watching the display with an amused look, asked.
I closed the door behind us and sat on the couch. He looked wary as he began to report what he discovered.
"Holly's real name is Faith Holly Stevens. She just turned 18. Ran away from home at 16 with the boyfriend who became her pimp. Her father is nowhere to be found and left her mother when she was just a kid. She probably doesn't even remember him. Her mother, who was 17 when she got pregnant, remarried around three years ago. To my knowledge, there wasn't a missing person report filed by the mother."
"That's awful."
"Faith was getting in all sort of troubles already before that. She's bad news, Bella," Mathew warned me.
"With that background, who can blame her? She was kind to Alice, so let's give her some credit."
"Even so, I'll keep my eyes open."
"Thank you," I said standing up and squeezing his hand. "There's not enough money in the world to repay you."
"It's not money I want. Surely you know that by now?"
The library's door opened, and Mathew hurried outside without glancing at Edward.
"What's that all about?" Edward inquired with a frown.
"It seems like we welcome a Miss Faith Holly Stevens into our home. She's just 18."
"That's not what I was talking about."
"He thinks she's bad news."
"I know she's bad news; I'm not blind. But again, that's not what I'm asking. I don't want that bloke anywhere near you!"
"Who? Mathew?"
"Yes, I want him to be reassigned. I don't like the way he looks at you."
"Baby, there are so few people I can trust…" I started, but deep down I knew he was right.
"I mean it."
"We'll talk about this later," I pleaded.
"Bella, don't test my temper. He's threading a very thin line here. You might not like the outcome."
Lunch, as you can guess, was an awkward affair, with very little conversation. Alice asked me when should we start working on the wedding dress and stressed that it was imperative that we set a date. Holly choked, her discomfort was apparent so the subject was dropped and Edward and I pretended to be oblivious to it.
"She has a crush on you." I accused later when we went to bed.
"I know, and it's damn annoying." He assured me. "I told Alice that we should rent a place for Holly somewhere. She understands why, but she still doesn't want her to be out of her sight…"
"And you don't want Alice out of your sight so… I'll have to suck it up. I get it…"
"It's just for a few days. Anyway, Alice is thinking about going back to England, and then we'll see how it goes."
That was news for me. I felt put aside in my home and then felt bad for feeling that way. Just thinking about what they went through was nearly enough to make me cry. And Holly's battered face... the kid needed help.
On the following day, I had to go back to work, and life settled into a routine. Edward was trying to work as much as possible from Seattle, but he had to go back to England on Wednesday. With him gone, it became a bit easier to converse with Holly, but I always felt like the third wheel. They had formed a special connection, to the extent that I felt like I was a surplus. The rational part of me knew how petty that was, and I pushed the feeling aside. There was also another matter that concerned me: apparently, Holly had been calling her ex-boyfriend behind Alice's back. Mathew was screening every move she made. I had no idea how to breach the subject and considered talking to Alice about it. But if I did, I would have to admit I was suspicious, and Alice might not take it well.
On Thursday night, there was a light tap on my door. I was studying late, trying to catch up on work, so I could be fully available for Professor Walker in the following day as Greta was also flying back. It was almost midnight before Holly showed up at my door.
I noticed that the bruises and the swelling were fading. There was still a yellowish hue around her eyes that made her look somewhat sickish. At that moment, I saw for the first time the sharp brown eyes and realized without a doubt that she was trouble - of the sort that I was trying hard to avoid. She looked like Renée did whenever she took a new boyfriend home and forgot to cook dinner.
"Alice is asleep," she said as a matter of introduction while she entered the room. "I've never been in this room. You like reading?" She asked looking around her. I had hundreds of books.
"I do. If you find this impressive, you should see Carlisle's library."
"I never read one," she said mostly to herself.
"A book?"
"Yeah. I prefer watching TV."
That didn't surprise me, but I didn't say it aloud, avoiding the risk of sounding like a patronizing bitch, which arguably I was.
"Is there anything I can do to help you?" I asked instead.
"How did you do it?"
"Do what?"
"Get all this? Alice told me that you had nothing and were just like me…" Not just like her, but it seemed that Alice wanted to break the ice.
"I was lucky, I guess."
"Oh, come on," she snorted, "like you really didn't sleep with the old man. I'd do him too if I had to. I mean, I had worse," she made a gagging sound before she continued. "I came to ask for a truce. Alice said you were the one with the money so I guess I'd be wasting my time on Edward. Like he's going to leave you. You're too smart."
"Is this conversation going somewhere?" I demanded. My patience was nearly gone.
"I like Alice, she did me a huge favor, but I guess I need to sort my life. You know what I mean? I figured you could pay me up. I don't think you want me talking to the magazines how you became so rich. I think I can get real money if I spill the beans or some shit. But I figured you'd pay me better. That way, Alice doesn't need to get hurt."
"Let me get this straight, are you trying to blackmail me?" My mind was spinning and I was trying to figure out how to get out of this mess. I'd have to call Edward about this.
"I'm doing you a favor and get out of your hair."
"What you're going to do with the money, Holly?"
"That's none of your business," she yelled.
"Have you been talking with that boyfriend of yours? The one that beat you up to a pulp and left you almost dead in the back of some shitty motel? How's that smart?" I demanded. I felt like slapping her but remained seated, digging my nails into the soft leather of my chair.
"You stuck up bitch like you know anything! Jonny get in here and get her! I told you she's a bitch."
I suddenly rose from my chair and immediately realized that I was in a lot more trouble than I first suspected. An armed guy with a black balaclava entered the room. It couldn't be happening again!
"Let's not be rash," I hated how my voice quavered.
"Now you tremble. You should be afraid, we'll cut you up so bad that no money can make your face look pretty again. Maybe we should try some acid, would you like that?" I tried not to panic, my house was secure, and someone would come.
She grabbed my hair and pushed me against one of the shelves behind me. It didn't hurt much, but I felt a small stream of blood down my head. The scalp has a very rich blood supply, so small cuts bleed terribly.
"Holly, you really don't need to do this. What do you want? Let's just talk and forget this ever happened," I managed to say.
"We're taking you with us. You're worth millions."
The guy with the balaclava was saying no with his head.
"Shut up, let's make the most of it and run. You know the cops will never give us any real money if we kidnap her and we'll both end up in jail."
"But Jonny," she pleaded before a deafening thunder blasted inside the room. The impact of the bullet pushed her against the wall, leaving a print of blood and cerebral mass in the wall behind her before she dropped lifelessly before me. I would have screamed if I could, but the cry for help was stuck in my throat.
"The bitch had it coming. See?! See what she made me do?! Always fucking with me, the stupid whore. I'm not fooling around; you must have some money in this house and some jewelry. Where's the money?"
I was petrified, completely glued to the floor. I accepted that I was about to die as well when another blast sounded, and a stupefied Jonny dropped to his hands and knees. Mathew stood behind him staring expressionlessly at me.
"Mathew, thank you," I whispered as I sat on the floor. My legs felt numb and folded, unable to support my weight.
"You're okay now, I've got you," he chanted as he grabbed hold of me and sniffed against my hair. His eyes were moist with emotion, but he seemed otherwise composed.
"Oh my God, I heard gun…" but Alice never got to finish her sentence as she stared in horror at the scene in front of her.
AN: things will get messy from now on and right up until the end. Just four or five more chapters to go. I hope you can bear with me. Love you all 😊 and thank you for reading.