My Bella had done it. For exactly three seconds, Nell's silence disappeared and I could hear again. I didn't get to hear much, other than her analysis of the way Mrs. Danvers from 'Rebecca' was trying to get the protagonist to commit suicide, but at least there was no more silence. I felt proud of Bella - so proud, in fact, that I rushed to reward her efforts with a ravenous kiss.
This silent training extended well into the next day - the day the full moon was set to rise. When the afternoon came, I asked Nellie to go to the city and buy some gasoline and more lighters. I could have done it myself, but the thought of leaving Bella on her own frightened me. Ever since the night of the accident, we had barely spent more than fifteen minutes apart. The possibility of parting from her for an extended period of time, like I did when I went hunting with Emmett and tragedy struck, brought an insurmountable anxiety upon me.
What if something happened? What if she somehow found herself again into a situation in front of which her vampire instincts could not resist? The possibility was slim, of course, given that there were no humans nearby. But what if some adventurous travelers stumbled upon our beach? I could never take her control for granted again, it was far too dangerous. She wasn't exactly a fan of this new obsession of mine. However, her guilt kept her from protesting as much as she normally would have.
While Nell was away, we went hunting - none of us felt particularly thirsty that day, but it couldn't hurt me to power up for the battle, just like it couldn't hurt Bella to be overly-saturated with blood at any given time. We found some effortless prey: monkeys and pangolins. It was easier this time around to drink their blood without going crazy over the memory of Bella's. That echo of that experience was there to stay, but it no longer controlled me.
After we finished, we somehow found ourselves on the forest floor, making love slowly, without many words - just moving, breathing, watching each other. I waited and waited for her mind to open up again, but it didn't happen. When we got back to the villa, Nell still had not arrived, so we took this as an opportunity and continued our earlier activity in the bathroom, in the grand tub that was placed right by the glass wall.
But there was hesitation tangled in Bella's actions, in the way she didn't say too much. When I asked her about it, she admitted that she, in fact, felt scared of what was coming that night. More specifically, she didn't like my plan and wanted to join in on the fighting part. Our lovemaking turned into fighting faster than a freight train after that.
We dressed up and called Alice, foolishly hoping that she must have had some vision to settle our debate. But thanks to the mutt's power to distort her visions, it was hard for her to tell us what exactly was the best course of action. This of course gave Bella the incentive to believe that she might be right, which only made her more set on her idea.
By the time Nell returned, we were still arguing under our breaths, while facing each other at the dinner table. We stopped when she got closer.
"Are we doing any last-minute changes to the plan?" she asked, placing the gasoline can she had bought and five lighters on the table in front of us.
"Absolutely not."
Bella's only response was a short growl.
"It didn't sound like it."
"Edward doesn't think I can hold my own while fighting with the werewolf," Bella explained.
"Well, can you?"
"Yes! I do know how to fight, he's taught me that in the past month."
"I only taught you how to defend yourself," I corrected her. "And you can be damn sure your first real fight will not involve a werewolf. You don't know what they're capable of."
"You don't know either, you're only going by what Carlisle's told you."
This was a moot point. What Bella failed to understand was that I had experience in fighting, while she did not. It certainly wasn't worth taking unnecessary risks.
"Okay, but the moon is set to rise soon, so we should probably go at least some place else, right?" Nell asked and for a short second I was astounded that she had managed to be the voice of reason.
"You are right."
"We could go further north down the beach," she suggested. "I took a detour upon returning and there are no humans nearby."
"Okay, I will go get some towels to make those cotton balls," I said.
Half an hour later, we were miles away from the villa we had rented. All three of us were sitting in the sand, waiting. Far into the horizon, above the calm sea, the moon was rising, plump and buttery. Any other night, it would have been an exquisite sight. In any other circumstances, I would have asked Bella to join me for a swim. But right that moment, I dreaded with every fibre in my body the ominous globe rising in the distance, wishing it would explode and dissipate into the endless cosmos.
Bella didn't talk much. I could tell that she had remained upset and I planned to make up for it later on. I kept one arm around her - our discussions might have left us in a tough spot, but I couldn't bear to remain separated from her, not even one bit. For better or for worse - we had promised each other that.
"So let me recap a little", Nell began. "I am the one who has to throw fireballs at the thing, right?"
"Yes, but not as many as the last time," I said. "We don't want it to run away, we want it dead."
"Awesome. And you're sure you can deal with it on your own?"
"Kid, this will not be the first monster I had killed."
"I was just saying, because if you can't..."
"If I can't, we'll scare it away, although I'm hoping it won't come to that."
"And I'll watch," my wife mumbled and a pout darkened her beautiful face.
"Bella, love, I don't want you to hurt yourself in the process, how many times do I have to tell you this?"
"I won't hurt myself if I help Nell with the fireballs."
A great part of me doubted that. As strong as she was, I couldn't trust that strength when it came to the battleground. She was still so young. So inexperienced. Too naive for her own safety. And far too courageous for her own good. How could I let her test that strength she was so convinced she had if it meant assuming the slightest risk of losing her?
"She's done this before," I explained.
Nell nodded in agreement and I felt thankful.
"I'm kind of used to doing this shit," she pointed out.
"You've really got a foul mouth, kid."
"Or you're just far behind the times, old man."
I looked at her over Bella's head and I smiled. In return, Nellie did the same.
"You're underestimating me," Bella muttered.
"Maybe, but I'd rather do that than see you hurt in any way, shape or form."
As we talked, I noticed that the moon was well over the water now. The last violet stretches of the sky had darkened and gave way to the nightfall. The only sounds filling up the air were those of the cicadas, the seagulls, the sea and the breeze. Each new passing second hurt. All I wanted was to be done with it. My mind began to replay Carlisle's advice just to pass the time.
Do not make too many noises - those trigger the beast more.
Try to avoid getting caught under the monster's body (like I did last time) - the werewolf can easily kill you in that position.
Attack from behind whenever possible - just like a real wolf, a Child of the Moon cannot turn its neck without turning its whole body.
As I was going through these directives, I heard Bella's phone. It rang only once, a sign that she had received a text. As she was opening it, I was getting ready to look away to give her some privacy - until I saw who the sender was: Alice. My eyes remained glued to the screen despite my will, staring at the concise text:
'Try that. But don't tell him'.
She tucked her phone away in a second, but we both knew it was too late.
"Bella," I kept my voice calm, reasonable. "What does Alice mean by that?"
"I have no idea."
"I have a feeling you do."
She avoided looking at me, I could tell. I yearned to find the unspoken answer that she was hiding, so I didn't hesitate when I grabbed her chin with my fingers and pulled it up, to look into her eyes. The caramel streaks in them seemed more fluid than usual.
"Please," was all I said.
Bella didn't say anything and the need to hear her thoughts burned fiercer than ever. There would be no need for this charade if I could do that. I would simply know.
"What do you want to try?" I asked.
"Can you please drop it, Edward?"
I sighed - this was not going well. Maybe I had to be more precise.
"Do you plan on ignoring what we've planned and join in on the fight? Is that it?"
"That's not-"
"Wait a second."
I quieted her with a finger on her lips. The sounds of the beach were still unchanged, with an exception: the whoosh of the wind seemed to have changed direction - as if something moved fast against it.
"It's close," I breathed.
"I can hear it too," Nell whispered and I saw her raise up and grab the sachet of cotton balls.
"Bella, you need to promise me you won't do anything reckless," I pleaded, taking her face in my hands and pressing my lips hard against hers.
"Nothing reckless," she said under my kiss.
"I'll take care of it, I promise. Just be good."
I rose up and motioned Nell to follow me. I didn't want to leave Bella alone, nor to have her too close, so I moved away until there were at least three hundred feet between me and her. I could still see her - still reach her in a second if she needed me - and that made me feel less on edge.
"Try to throw the fireballs at the werewolf, not at me, okay?" I reminded Nell.
"You've got it."
The whoosh grew closer. Along with it came the sound of paws hitting the ground with a feral rhythm. The dread I had been trying to repress for the past month at the thought of seeing the creature again seeped back to the surface, bubbling at the edge of my conscience. I could still remember the feeling of its claws on my back - scraping in vain, making a sound straight out of the deepest pit of Hell. The hot saliva dripping on my face, almost burning me with its temperature. The overabundance of teeth. The speed. The strength. The howls.
All of a sudden, we were no longer alone. It was here.
The werewolf launched from the shadows of the woods, leaving me no time to think, only to be led by my own intuition. Its human eyes sparked in the dark and its mouth opened in anticipation when it attacked. I jumped backwards, to dodge the incoming bite, and I saw Nell with the corner of my eye disappearing and positioning herself behind the werewolf. As my hand grabbed the beast by the throat, she threw the first fireball, hitting its back. The beast let out a hellish sound and bent from the middle when the fire touched its fur.
It yanked itself from my grip, hurling into the sand to put out the fire quicker. Maybe it was a little more intelligent than I was giving it credit for. Nell left it no time to recover and launched another ball. Taking advantage of the now-kneeling beast, I motioned her to take a break, even if there was no need to, since she could hear my mental commands. I positioned myself in front of the creature and tried again. With a hand clamped tightly on its throat, I reached with the other to its chest. This was it. I felt its heartbeat deep within and rammed my hand right where the rhythmic thud came from.
But my hand didn't go in as easily as the first time I had met this being, when I had managed to thrust my fist through its throat in one fell swoop. In fact, my hand barely made its chest yield. Whatever strange matter the werewolf was made of, it was clear that its most vulnerable area was well protected.
Just as the realization hit me, the monster roared and threw me to the ground. I managed to pick myself up to avoid getting caught just in time. I circled it until I was behind it and, without any hesitation, plunged my hand between its ribs. They cracked under the pressure and caved, allowing me to penetrate the steel-hard layers and reach the ligaments underneath. The blood splodged on my skin, searing and thick. Its scent was unappealing in a way I had not noticed before - it wasn't the sawdust undertone that was particularly disagreeable. There was something primarily repulsive - poisonous almost - within it.
As my hand reached deeper, breaking another rib, Nell resumed throwing more fireballs in the beast's direction. Soon enough, the animal was kneeling again, growling and wailing in pain.
"That's it," I groaned. "We've got it, kid."
She smiled and I felt something mushy on my fingers - lungs? - but the thudding source still seemed unreasonably far away. I searched deeper, accompanied by a tragic symphony of whimpers, knowing that I was close and no longer needed the fire to help me.
I almost didn't realize that Nell had stopped throwing the fireballs and she was now staring at the scene in front of her eyes. It only took three seconds of her not being on guard with her attack for the werewolf to raise up again on two legs. The movement was so fast it yanked me out of its body in a second. I saw the tissues glueing themselves back together before my very eyes just as the beast turned to face me. The noise coming out of its mouth could have awakened the dead, but I had no time to dwell on that, because before I knew it, my back was on the sand.
Somewhere in the back of my brain I registered the sound of Bella calling out my name. Breaking Carlisle's advice of keeping quiet, I cried out in return for her to stay put. Just as expected, the werewolf didn't like the clamour and in an instant I was back to where I had been one month ago, with the werewolf crawling on top of me, its breath reverberating in hot waves over my face. I felt its claws once again, this time tugging at my hair. In an attempt to use whatever opportunity I had left, I kicked the beast with my knees, right in its rock-hard abdomen.
Once. Twice. No result.
And again. Nothing.
I smelled the flames burning on its back without seeing them. I begged Nell mentally to keep going, to give me some kind of momentum to escape, and she did. I fended off more bites, as the beast tried and failed to sink its teeth in my throat. It wasn't the easiest task, especially when I had to make sure the flames did not touch my hands, which were now attached to the beast's scruff.
As the beast began to whimper, overwhelmed by the fire, I tried to stick my hand up its chest once more, but failed. This wasn't going the way I expected and I was going nowhere fast. I had to use the strongest weapon in my arsenal to get to its heart: my teeth. However, I wasn't in a position in which I could do this incident-free - I couldn't bite my way through its chest, while still protecting myself, even with all the fire in the world.
While I was busy averting another bite, the strangest thing happened. At first, I didn't understand the loud and untamed roar of the werewolf, that tore through the calmness of the night like a thousand knives. I hadn't exactly hurt it, yet I saw its eyes rolling in the back of its head and I felt its grip on me loosening. My confusion didn't prevent me from exploiting this momentary weakness by sliding to the side and raising up on my feet. I saw Nell lighting another ball on fire. But more importantly, I saw Bella, now closer than she ought to be. She wasn't doing anything, yet I saw her hands closed into fists. She didn't look at me, her eyes fixated on the whining beast at my feet.
Then, for the shortest moments, I could hear.
"I need to get a new can of gasoline. Should I join in on the act? I might be rusty, but I still remember a thing or two. Would it be stupid? This mutt is so ugly. It kind of looks defeated, I wonder..."
I looked at Nellie, fully in awe. She hadn't opened her mouth, but each word had been loud in my mind. Then I looked back at Bella, understanding why her fists were so tightly closed. She was concentrating on projecting her shield - and it worked. But in the most twisted turn of events, it seemed to have an effect on the werewolf as well. The creature was wriggling at my feet, as if beaten by an invisible force.
Pull it together.
I didn't have time to wonder more. I had to act. I launched myself over the beast, teeth first. In the back of my mind, I heard Nellie thinking "He's got it again, yes!". Just as my teeth pierced through the dense fibres of the werewolf's pectoral, the veil of her thoughts disappeared. All of a sudden, I was back to hearing only the sounds of the fight and of the warm Filipino autumn. Bella's shield had snapped back.
In the blink of an eye, the beast not only disappeared from under me, but threw me on my back. I spat immediately the bitter blood in the sand, expecting to feel the werewolf's weight over me once again, but I didn't. Instead, I saw it running in the opposite direction: not towards Nellie, not towards the woods.
Towards my Bella.
All precautions went out the window. With a powerful growl, I jumped up and bolted in the same direction as the werewolf - but I wasn't fast enough, because it already had Bella tightened in its grip. I could no longer think straight. My mind was one long string of curses and an even longer string of primal instincts when I snatched the beast by its shoulders, trying to push it away from her.
At the same time I did that, Bella decided to put to the test one of the many techniques I had shown her. As fast as lightning, she bent from the waist, throwing her elbows back and forth, forcing the monster to let her go. But while she glided away, she had forgotten the most important lesson: never keep your back turned on your opponent.
While my arms were already around her, ready to get her back to safety, the werewolf also had its claws around her wrist - and that it was all it took. With a nimble movement, Bella's hand was no longer there, a small stump now taking the place of her wrist, right where the werewolf had broken it.
The last remains of my conscience pummeled to the ground. I was no longer able to ponder, to muse, to deliberate. All I wanted was blood and torture and pain. I wanted eyes gouged out of orbits. Ripped tissues, oozing red under my fingers. Teeth pulled out one by one and stuck back to their place upside down. Fur peeled along with the skin underneath, leaving the raw flesh exposed. Guts spread out on the sand. And the beast's heart in my teeth.
But all of these desires had to wait, because my angel was now screaming in my arms. I almost didn't register the fact that I was also screaming with her.
For God's sake, pull it together!
The werewolf didn't get a second chance with Bella. I hadn't realized Nell had come besides us, launching a full-force fire attack on the beast.
"I've got it, go," was all she said.
She didn't look at me, focused only on the task at hand. I raised Bella's body in my arms, taking her broken hand from the sand, almost in a haze.
"Edward, it hurts so bad!" she cried.
Her voice was the only thing that made me move - she needed me. I had to take her out of there.
"Go already!" Nell yelled, undisturbed in her mission.
The werewolf was now kneeling again - such an easy prey - and I knew that if she continued what she was doing at the same rate, she would be safe. Or so I hoped.
Please be safe, kid. This was the only rational thought I had managed to have when I began to run, heading back to the villa. The rest was all pain.
"You're all right, my love. I'm with you. Just stay still, angel. I'm right here with you."
Bella's tearless crying had not stopped for one second in the few minutes it had taken us to arrive at the house. I knew it hurt - a vampire having a broken limb was one of the worst pains imaginable, second to the throes of changing. While I had never had this experience first-hand, I had a few clues about it from Jasper's memories of his time fighting in the Southern vampires wars. And those very memories were the ones that assured me that Bella's hand was salvageable.
I laid my wife on the bed, trying very hard to keep my own emotions under control - she was terrified enough without my help. I kept telling myself she was fine and her pain would soon be over, but I knew that the memories of this night would never fade away completely. This agony was going to remain in her thoughts, just like it happened to Jasper.
"It hurts… make it stop… please..." her pain pierced through me so deeply and I would have given anything to trade places with her.
"I know, I'm sorry, I'm sorry... it will be better in just a moment."
I knew what I had to do. Vampire venom could heal these wounds in minutes. Making an effort to hide the dread beneath my action, I grabbed her broken limb and sealed my lips to the place where it once was attached to her wrist. The venom in my mouth covered the frozen tissues in a fine particle. Carefully, I placed the hand back to her broken wrist, trying to put it back in the exact same position. I kept my hand around it, making sure that the wound was going to seal properly.
Bella whimpered and writhed in pain, her eyes stuck on the ceiling.
"It's still there, Edward, it's-"
She stopped mid-sentence when another moan left her lips.
"Shhh, my love, I know, in a few minutes you won't even feel it."
I held her wrist in place and kept my other hand on her face, watching her pained expression soften as my venom sewed her tissues back together. It seemed as if forever had passed when her eyes flew from the ceiling to me. The pain from a few minutes ago was no longer desecrating their beauty.
My phone rang once, signaling I had received a text, but I didn't bother to check.
"How is your hand?" I asked.
"Better now. Thank you."
The venom was not rustling anymore, a sign that the healing was now complete. But I didn't want to let go of her wrist - not yet. I wanted to hold it for as long as possible, to make sure that nothing would hurt it again.
"What happened there, Bella?" I murmured.
"I don't know, I guess… a little before the battle, I had this theory."
"A theory?"
"Yes. You've been so adamant about me remaining on the sidelines, that I… I just wanted to try to do something that you couldn't see and find out if I could be of help."
"So you tried projecting your shield - that explains Alice's text."
Her face looked guilty, as if she expected to be admonished. But this was the last thing on my mind - for the moment, all I could feel was the relief of seeing her safe and whole again. Nothing else mattered.
"She must have seen this, yes," Bella replied.
My phone rang again, but I ignored it.
"I know it was a risk, Edward, but you were trapped under that monster and I wanted to help, if I could."
Her voice had apologetic undertones.
"And I love you for being so brave, but you almost gave me a heart attack."
"You're indestructible," she muttered.
"All right, I'll give you this: I don't know how, but what you did worked."
Until it didn't, I added in my head - but that part wasn't her fault.
"It seemed that the werewolf hated your shield," I continued. "I can't explain why. Maybe there is some frequency within it that hurts it."
"Wait," she said, suddenly rising from the bed. "Nellie's alone with that thing now?"
"She probably chased it away already. I wouldn't worry, she's had enough experience with it."
"We should go find her."
"She will surely come back when she's done."
Bella sighed and I grabbed her other wrist tightly in my hand, to make sure she wasn't planning some surprise escape.
"We've had enough for today," I warned.
"What if the werewolf comes back?"
"If Nell's past trials of driving it away with fire are of any indication, it shouldn't. Besides, we're probably not the only ones being followed by it."
"I don't understand."
"Carlisle told us that these creatures can follow up to five vampires at once, back in Belaya Gora. Remember?"
She frowned, but nodded. I loosened my grip on her a little. My phone rang once again, its screen lighting up with another text.
"Shouldn't you get that?" Bella asked.
"I probably should."
Unwillingly, I let go of her. I could now see a fine line, resembling a crack in a wall, surrounding her right wrist like a bracelet. This mark was there to stay, an unending reminder of this disastrous night. I leaned to kiss it gently, inhaling the emanating fragrance - the warm lavender was there, but it wasn't alone; along with it, I could sense the scent of my own venom mixing up in her tissues.
I reached for the phone on the nightstand. I wasn't surprised when I saw three text messages from Alice. I opened the first one:
'I am sorry. Last minute vision. I don't know where it came from.'
And then, the next one:
'You might hate me, but all of a sudden it was the only scenario beyond which I could see your future. I hate what this mongrel does to my visions.'
And the last one:
'It was this or you dying and I know which I prefer.'
I sighed, irked by the whole thing. The thought of Alice knowing that Bella would get hurt and still encouraging her drove me mad - yet I could understand why she did it if the predicted alternative had been so grim.
My previous solace at seeing Bella in one piece again began to wither, as I started to realize the werewolf was still not dead, as it should have been, if my plan had worked. My thirst for murdering the beast had been quieted by Bella's need for me, but now that she was fine and by my side, I felt it coming back. I didn't want the monster dead. I wanted it to suffer through every minute of it and to have its blood on my hands. And I couldn't afford another near-miss again.
I heard Nell's footsteps outside on the sand, getting closer to the house. She was fine, but it somehow wasn't enough. Nothing was enough now and I felt a most powerful greed flowing through me: the greed to avenge.
In the farthest corner of my mind, I told myself that this had to be the worst possible eve of Bella's birthday ever - and I had been convinced that such a thing was impossible after her last birthday.
Wow, so fighting scenes are a ride to write, not going to lie! Now: who's ready for Bella's birthday next chapter?
If you have any thoughts - small or big, positive or critical - on the events of this chapter or on the story in general, I am always happy to read and respond to them :). It's hard to explain what a tremendous joy your reviews bring, really, but trust me when I say that they make my day!
In case you want something light and fun to read after this dark chapter, you can check my first outtake for this story: "A deal with the angel". It takes place back when Bella was still human and it deals with how exactly she convinced Edward to "practice" for their first night together ;).
And if you want to get sneak peeks for future chapters and see the visuals I make for my story, you are welcome to join the Facebook group "After Nightfall: Updates, sneak Peeks, music and discussions"(the link is on my profile page).
Until next time, stay safe and happy, lovely people!
