A/N: Hello all! I am celebrating the completion of my other story, and decided to give all of you a mid-week update. Once I have completed all of the chapters of this fic, I will shift to posting twice a week going forward. It's over half done, though, so that's something. Anyway, I'm glad that everyone is enjoying this so far. Here's the next piece of our puzzle.

Chapter 3: Adding to the Family

Carlisle

Over the next three years, Edward and Elizabeth began to settle down from the newborn urges. Elizabeth had really come into the role she played now, and didn't seem to struggle as much as Edward did. But Edward...well, he focused on the monster within and never truly felt right in his own skin. I was thankful for Elizabeth on multiple occasions, and I found myself loving her more every day. She was a quiet and calm woman, who loved her son fiercely. She regarded me with understanding, though I was sure she didn't feel for me what I felt for her.

I had gotten better at controlling my thoughts around Edward, though. I tried to focus on the feeling of companionship and friendship, hoping that was all Edward would hear in my thoughts. However, when Elizabeth spoke to either one of us, my attention was immediately drawn to her and there were times when idle thoughts crept into my mind. One occasion a month ago was the worst, and Edward almost snapped.

"Carlisle, stop it!" Edward raged, his anger igniting at a random thought I'd had. "I will kill you if you keep thinking about my mother like that!"

Embarrassed, I mumbled an apology to them both. Edward's anger, once ignited, took a while to cool. He stalked off to hunt while Elizabeth and I remained seated inside the small cabin.

"Elizabeth..." I started, unsure of how to proceed.

"I understand, Carlisle. I have not made my decision yet, though I can see the possibilities. Please give me more time to understand who and what I am, and to mourn my husband. I can tell that if I make a decision now that it will not end well for either of us. I must continue down the path that I am on for some time."

Though we had talked at great length about the talents of the Masons, I was always curious. "You don't see specifics, though, do you?"

She shook her head. "No, more like the, hmmm...flavor of the outcome? I'm not sure how to really put it into words, but I can tell if I choose now one way or the other that something terrible will happen. I cannot tell what, of course, but it's the feeling behind it that I can see." She smiled at me, reaching her hand over to mine. "I believe my choice will be clearer later. There are things that will happen soon that will bring out the need to make a choice."

"What does that mean, Elizabeth? Things that will happen soon?"

She shook her head and didn't reply.

Exasperated, I stood up and began pacing. "I know that you know more than you are saying. Why can't Edward see what you are thinking? Why has he not told me what is coming?"

"Because I block him."

My head shot up. "What? How can you do that?"

"One of the paths I saw for myself was to choose to ignore the futures when around my son. I see flavors of possibilities, but all he can hear from me are feelings. I can block him, to a degree, so that he cannot see all of the choices that are possible. He does not need to know everything, and honestly it would be bad if he did.

"I could tell that if I showed him everything, he would be angry. Angrier than I've ever seen him before, so I have to hold some back."

"And you don't tell me now because you know I cannot control all of my thoughts around him." I had formed it as a statement, not a question, for it was clear to me what she was doing. She nodded, but didn't comment.

By the time Edward came back from the hunt, it was time for me to leave. I had started working at a small hospital in northern Ohio just a few months ago. Elizabeth could see that it was safe for her and Edward to be somewhat close to humans, though they did tend to stick to our house outside of the city just to be cautious.

It hadn't been as hard as I thought it would be to convince them to keep to animals, and so far, neither of them had slipped up. We had stayed in the Northern Territories for far longer than necessary, probably, but I was being extremely careful.

I bid my goodbyes to both of them, and Elizabeth smiled. I stopped short and looked at her. Her smile was forced, almost sad. Edward had noticed also.

"What is it, Mother?" He jerked his head toward me. "Did he do something?"

She glanced at Edward, but her eyes focused back on me quickly. "No, dear. Everything is fine. Have a good time at work, Carlisle."

Though her voice had tried to be convincing, I knew something was going on. Unable to do anything about it, though, I made my way to the hospital. The Spanish Influenza had been squashed finally, though it had taken its toll on society. Because of the multiple waves, the general population had been devastated by the massive losses.

When I got to the hospital, I kept to myself as always. I worked the night shift in the medical ward helping those who came in off the street with various injuries. Most were mild colds, fearing a return of the influenza, but most were simple scraped knees and unnamed illnesses. It was usually pretty small work.

However, about halfway through my shift several men came rushing in with a makeshift gurney. I could smell the blood immediately, so I knew whoever was on the gurney was badly injured. The nurses rushed over, and I was right behind them. I barked orders to get the patient into a room, but one of the nurses looked at me, sadly.

"I don't feel a heartbeat, doctor. I think it's too late." She grimaced, and I tried not to roll my eyes at her – a mannerism that I had picked up from Edward - because I could hear the patient's heart still beating.

I glanced down and was immediately taken by the woman's beautiful familiar face. I recognized her immediately as the child I had treated years ago for a broken leg. She had only been about 16 then, and while she was still young, she had grown into a beautiful woman. Due to her injuries, though, she probably wouldn't survive much longer, as her heart was beating very lightly. Not as strong as it should be, anyway.

I almost corrected the nurse, but a plan formed in my mind. What if I took this young woman, who was certainly going to die, as a partner for Edward? Maybe he would ease off of me and my feelings for his mother if he was distracted. Realizing that this plan might just work, I looked up to the nurse, and glanced to the men who had brought her in.

"I'm sorry, but it appears to be too late. Let's get her down into the morgue." The nurses all converged on the gurney, heeding my instructions. I turned to face the men. "Do you know her name?" Of course, I remembered her name, but they didn't know that.

"Esme Platt, doctor," a young man said, stepping forward. "She was my next-door neighbor."

"I'm sorry son, I wish I could have done something to help her. Can you give me the name of her husband? I can make sure he is informed." I hadn't missed the wedding ring on her hand.

The boy shook his head. "He died a few days ago. It was just her." He looked up at me, his eyes wide. "I'll tell my mother. She will know what to do. They were friends."

I nodded, not wanting to leave Esme alone for too much longer. I took my leave then, and made it down to the morgue just after the nurses had left. As silently as I could, I grabbed her and ran back home to Elizabeth and Edward.

"Carlisle, what are you doing back so soon..." Edward started, but stopped as soon as he smelled the blood on Esme. His eyes were wild, but Elizabeth was standing in-between me and him, holding him back. "What is this?"

"A woman I treated a few years ago. She is going to die if I don't help her. She lost her husband a few days ago, and is close behind. Please, I need your help," I begged Edward, trying not to make eye contact with Elizabeth. I kept my thoughts to Esme, my concern for her, embellishing how much I had actually known her. "She's my friend, Edward. Please."

He growled at me, but stayed behind his mother. "I can't do it! I can barely keep myself away from them on a regular basis, what makes you think I'm strong enough to stop?"

I shook my head. "No, I can do it. I need you to watch her, protect her while I go back to work. Please, Edward?"

It wasn't me that won him over, though, it was Elizabeth. "Edward, look. Do you see the path forward? If we both choose this path, saving her – ultimately, she will be much happier. You, too, dear."

He nodded at me once, and I set her down on the couch in the center of the room. I leaned over her, again keeping my thoughts guarded from Edward, as I bit her on her neck twice. I stayed only a few minutes to make sure that the venom was spreading successfully, then I swept out of the room.

The last thing I saw before I closed the front door was Elizabeth's face and her sad smile. I knew I hadn't fooled her, but I was hoping that I had fooled Edward just enough that he would help focus on Esme rather than me.

I took a leave from the hospital, wanting to stay near Esme when she woke. Edward doted on her, keeping her cool, saying that he remembered the feeling of being set on fire. She moaned and twisted, writhing somewhat on the couch. Elizabeth had whisked her away into the back room, returning after cleaning her up and changing her clothes. Once the torn and bloody clothes were off of her, I ran off with them and buried them underground far away from our house. The smell of blood had been testing Edward's patience, and there was no need to keep that distraction around him.

She woke on the third day, as Elizabeth and Edward had, after a thundering heart and a final shutter. She opened her blood-red eyes and searched the room, immediately wary of the vampires standing around her.

"Esme, it's ok. We are here to help you." Edward stepped closer to her. "No, we won't hurt you. Please, listen. We will protect you; we are your family now. I know it's overwhelming, but you will get used to it."

I assumed he was responding to her thoughts, because she hadn't said one word yet. But whatever Edward was saying seemed to have a soothing effect on her. Elizabeth and I took our cues from her, and we stepped back allowing Edward to approach her slowly. She seemed to calm down as we did this, Edward being the calming influence she needed.

He took her out to hunt, asking us to remain at the house, so she felt more comfortable. Elizabeth took the opportunity, once they were out of earshot, and turned on me.

"I knew you would choose this path."

"And I knew you saw the possibility." I started pacing. "What was I to do? She's my friend, Liz, I couldn't just let her die."

She wasn't fooled, and I knew it. She stopped my pacing, placing her hand on my shoulder. "The path you chose isn't going to work the way you want it to. I do see them becoming close, more like brother and sister. There is no romantic love there, and I don't even see that as a remote possibility." She sighed, seemingly tired, sitting down on the couch. "I do not believe this is a bad thing though. I see things coming that could be good now that we have her with us. But, it's not what you want."

Suddenly exhausted myself, I sat down next to her. "Look, Liz, I love you. I want to be with you. I cannot get past Edward, and you know that. I wanted him to have a companion, and maybe he would be better about the possibility of us."

She smiled, putting her hand on mine. "I know, Carlisle. And I believe we will have that one day. But not now. I cannot choose you right now."

"But, one day you will?"

She didn't say anything. Instead, she closed her eyes. I recognized this as her searching through the branches of the future, since she did this often. "Perhaps."

I tried not to be frustrated. I knew I would love her the moment my eyes landed on her, and I thought for sure she would return my feelings. Now that she knew how I felt, and she knew the choice was still hers, she was not giving me any information. I ran my hand through my hair and sat back in my seat, letting her hand fall away from mine.

"Patience, dear. And please, trust me."

"I do trust you, Liz. It's not about trust."

She nodded, smiling sadly. "I understand. Really, I do. Let's concentrate on getting Esme settled in her new life. We can discuss this later."

Edward and Esme came back through the door soon after that. I had moved to my favorite chair; Edward didn't like it when he saw me sitting next to Elizabeth. Esme seemed better now that she had hunted, but she still looked at Elizabeth and myself with a leery expression.

Through the next few months, Edward continued to take charge over Esme's hunting, as well as distracting her with books, tales of our lives so far, and trying to learn more about her. Every now and then my thoughts would shift to them being happy as a couple, but Edward would glare at me when I did. So, I tried to stomp that down, remembering Elizabeth's comment.

As time went on, though, I knew that Elizabeth was right. Edward and Esme were close, but nothing more than a sibling love existed between the two of them. I managed to continue to work at the hospital, not worrying too much about Esme's development since Edward had taken control over that, with Elizabeth's help. We were still living outside of the city, and I knew that they would keep her away from the humans.

I waited until I was alone, or at the hospital, to think about Elizabeth: her quiet reserve, her strength, her beauty. She was quickly becoming the focal point in my life, everything else on the sidelines. I remember Aro talking about how different love was to a vampire, and wondered if that's why I felt what I did. If I had found my mate. She was cautious, thinking of others more than herself, and this made me realize why she hadn't chosen to be with me. Perhaps she did love me after all; but she wouldn't jeopardize Edward's happiness for her own.

With that in the back of my mind, never in the forefront, I continued my life with the rest of my new family. Things would change someday;Elizabeth had seen that. I just wondered how long I would have to wait.

A/N: And now we have Esme! I wrote her in a very similar way (I think, anyway) to the character in the books. I just needed her to not be in love with Carlisle. In my story, that is never of question. It was always going to be him and Elizabeth Mason from the beginning. Don't despair, though, oh lovers of Esme's character...stuff is coming. I promise.

Just remember that this is primarily an Edward + Bella = Love story. Others are here, others have stories...others are not as important. Cool?

Thanks again to my sister and my amazing beta zombiefied419 for pre-reading this for me! I appreciate you both very much!