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I open my mouth to say something, but I can't form words.
Bella is the one to break the silence. "Dad was gone for days. I don't know if he was ashamed or horrified, but when he returned and admitted what he'd done, we were. We were horrified. We didn't know what was happening, what we'd become, and I refused to become a monster. My mother felt the same way, so we improvised and found an alternative. It was difficult at first. Trying to supplement a thirst for human blood with animals, but we did it. I found it was easier when the animal in question was a carnivore."
She holds up her mug.
"I've noticed."
We're quiet for a beat.
I'm reeling from Bella's story, and she looks exhausted from sharing it.
When she speaks, her voice is full of defeat. "Things didn't turn out the way I wanted them, Edward. I was supposed to find a gentleman of my stature and get married and give my parents loads of grandbabies before dying at a ripe old age surrounded by the giant family I dreamed of. I never wanted this life." She shrugs. "I still don't sometimes, but it is what it is."
I'm reeling from all of this new information, and I take a minute to collect my thoughts. Bella is understanding, waiting for my human brain to catch up with everything she's shared.
"So you're using my girls as substitutes?"
She nods. "It's nice to pretend. I would never do anything crazy like make them call me mom because I know what this is. In two years, they'll be adults, and I'll move on to the next chapter of my life. They have a mother, and I understand that. If I can teach them how to cook and clean up after themselves and maybe even spoil them a little …" She laughs humorlessly. "Okay, a lot, then I'll face your wrath because it'll be worth it."
"Their mother." I sneer. "Gianna isn't in their lives anymore. When we found out she'd been trying to bribe anyone on the fourth floor who would give her the time of day, she not so politely bowed out of all our lives. My wife had been cheating on me for a long time with the vampires and humans at V.C. because she thought it would improve her chances of being approved for Eternal Life. It crushed my girls. Our opinions on vampires changed."