Chapter Thirteen
Daddy can you hear the devil drawing near
Like a bullet from a gun, run daddy run
All the songs you used to sing to me
Would rock birds to sleep
I need you now so please somehow
Put rockets on your feet
Oh oh oh oh
Daddy can you hear the devil drawing near
Like a bullet from a gun, run daddy run
Saw that dark cloud coming from a million miles away
Oh how I've dreaded this God forsaken day
Daddy can you hear the devil drawing near
Like a bullet from a gun, run daddy run
Mama's been crying in the kitchen
Sister's been afraid of the dark
I've been gathering the pieces of all these shattered hearts
And I don't care where you go to
And I don't care where you land
But just get out of there daddy as fast as you can
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Daddy can you hear the devil drawing near
Like a bullet from a gun, run daddy run
- Run Daddy Run by Miranda Lambert ft Pistol Annies
She was burning from the inside out. Every part of her; every cell, every limb, was on fire. She'd screamed, and yelled, and begged, but nothing would stop it. It felt like every piece of her was being torched off. She couldn't tell how long it's been. Days. Hours. Minutes. No relief. She kept waiting for her body to get used to it; for the pain to ebb, but it never happened. She screamed for water that wouldn't come. She didn't exist outside of the pain. It was all she could think about. She tried to focus on her life before, but she couldn't concentrate on anything but the fire. She thought maybe she didn't exist outside of this agony.
Then, in the corner of her mind, she felt, rather than heard a cool voice calling to her. A safe place that offered the tiniest reprieve from the pain, and she found her self searching it out. As she retreated further into her mind, the voice became clearer, and she realized it was calling her name. Then she remembered. She was Bella Swan. And she was changing. The voice tried to soothe her, almost like it was holding her hand. It told her that she was strong. She just had to hold on, to keep fighting. The burning would end, and then she just needed to remember who she was. To never forget who she was.
It could have been an hour, or a hundred years, but finally the searing pain ended and her eyes flew open. She was lying on the ground, staring at the ceiling. It was dark in the room, but she could still see the details of the decrepit walls perfectly. Every imperfection, every tiny blemish, standing out for her to see. As if she'd never truly used her eyes before this moment.
Instincts she didn't remember having before told her not to move yet; to try and take in as much information as she could before she let on that she was awake. She concentrated on what she could hear. She listened, and heard water babbling softly somewhere. She heard birds tweeting softly. She heard the small animals that were burrowing, making their homes in the walls that surrounded her.
Then she focused on what she could smell. She smelled the dirt, and the water, but she could also pick up the scent of flowers. More than one distinct flower scent, actually. She realized that the animals she could hear in the walls smelled vaguely of food, and she felt a slight burning in her throat. Then she smelled cinnamon and leather, and was aware of another presence in the room. Quick as lightening she tried to move to a defensive crouch against the wall, but found that aside from standing, she could move very far. She was chained to the ground at the wrists, by some metal that looked like iron chains, but smelled like nothing she'd ever encountered. She knew she was meant to be strong, she could feel it within her, so she tried in vain to pull the chains from the ground. The sound of chuckling brought her attention to the source of the cinnamon/leather she'd smelled. She saw red hair and hate filled eyes. She felt hatred build in her, though she couldn't exactly recall why. For a moment, all she could taste was rage as she lunged for the figure, only to be reminded that she was currently stuck.
"You know, there aren't many metals in existence that can render a vampire immobile." The redhead said. Vampire. Was that right? Damn it, why couldn't she remember. There were pieces floating around her, things she could almost remember, but they were just out of reach. As she grew more frustrated, she struggled against her bonds again. "Oh Bella. Keep trying pet, but you will never get free." At hearing her name, Bella suddenly remembered everything. Her entire life flashed before her eyes; Being a heart broken five year old, not wanting to leave her father; trying so hard to please her mother, but never knowing how; Jacob; Leah; Alice; Edward. It came and went so quickly she almost felt dizzy. She wondered if vampires could throw up.
Victoria continued, unaware of Bella's epiphany. "I've been around for a long time. Longer than James, for sure. I'm very good at surviving. These chains came from a metal alloy from a remote area of South America. You're not going anywhere."
"So what now then?" Bella was surprised by the change in her voice as she spoke for the first time since her change. It was beautiful, and melodic. It almost sounded like bells. Victoria, for her part, was surprised that Bella could form a coherent thought, let alone express it. She recovered quickly though.
"Now, my dear, my perfect plan will come to fruition. Don't worry, I'll take my time. We're going to do this nice and slow. I'm going to enjoy this."
"I'm not afraid of you."
"Stupid girl. I don't want you afraid. I want you broken." Bella lunged again, and felt the chains start to break her hard skin. Victoria didn't even flinch. She just laughed. "Oh newborns. So emotional. Tell you what; why don't I leave you here for a few days. Let the thirst, that burning in your throat build and build." Victoria leapt up to the door to climb out of the well, but turned back once more. "And incidentally, you will be scared. I promise you that." And then she was gone.
If someone had asked Bella two weeks ago if she knew what loneliness felt like, what hunger felt like, she would have said yes, and she would have been a fool. The burning in her throat grew steadily, and there was no relief to be had. She couldn't fall asleep, or even pass out. All she could do was sit there, fully conscious, and try not to let the thirst drive her mad. She tried to hone her new senses. She used her new sight to catalogue the room for weaknesses, though she couldn't really find anything that would help her. A small hole in the ceiling provided the tiniest glimmer of light that she used to deduce how long she sat there. She watched spiders and other insects crawl on the walls, and she made up little back-stories for them. She listened to the scritching and scratching that was happening in the walls. She thought about her family, and her friends, trying to make sure she didn't forget them again. Trying to make sure she didn't forget who she was. Staying awake forever would take a lot of getting used to. She started to understand why some vampires went crazy.
She wondered if Alice saw this. If she knew that she was one of them now. If Victoria's threats were true, then maybe Alice had seen it. The Cullens could hide. Stay out of Victoria's reach. Leave the two of them at a stale-mate in this hole forever.
After three days the door opened again and Victoria popped through, as chipper as ever. "Ah, hello pet. Are you feeling more pleasant today?"
Bella was about to retort when she caught the most mouth watering scent she'd ever thought possible. Somewhere in the very back of the mind she realized that something that smelled this wonderful can't possibly be good, but she ignored it. Suddenly Victoria wasn't there anymore. Nothing in the world could possibly matter as much as tasting this scent. She felt the venom pool in her mouth. She started to fight her bindings again, searching for the source of the smell, when Victoria laughed and caught a bag that was tossed down to her from higher in the well. The scent was coming from inside that bag. She didn't care what it was. She needed it.
"Thirsty pet? Well, by all means." Victoria unzipped the bag and a body tumbled out and stopped just short of her range. Bella's entire world stopped as she found herself looking into the wide, terrified eyes of her father. "What are you waiting for?"
Bella felt sick. The shame she felt over what she almost did, what a part of her still very much wanted to do, made her want to die. She had never seen her father look like this before. He'd never been afraid, let alone terrified, especially not in front of her. Then she realized what he was afraid of. It was her. He was afraid of her.
She remembered a long time ago when she'd asked Edward if she could watch him hunt. She didn't understand why it made him so scared to think of her seeing him give into his senses, but now she understood. Even if he'd resisted her blood, she still would have seen him at his most primal. Seen the monster within. The monster she'd just shown her father.
"Daddy..." she started, but stopped when he flinched at the sound of her voice.
"Oh Bella, what did she do to you?" The sorrow that replaced the fear on his face stabbed her through the heart.
"I'm sorry" she said lowering her head to stare at the floor, keeping him in her peripheral vision, but not making eye contact. Something in her face, or voice, must've hit Charlie because his face softened a little.
"Hey, look at me kid." Bella continued to stare at the ground, making sure not to breathe, for fear of losing to the monster again. She was afraid that she wouldn't be able to resist forever. She needed to get them out of here. They needed an out. She felt a warm strength start to grow in her chest. "C'mon Bells, look at me honey". Bella reluctantly lifted her head to meet her fathers gaze and, to his credit, he didn't flinch at all when her red eyes met his own. His instinct to protect his child, even when she was the threat, was overwhelming. "It's okay. You are going to be okay."
Victoria's cruel laugh interrupted the moment. "Apparently foolishness runs in the family."
"Look lady, whatever it is you want, you're not getting it like this. "I'm a cop. You don't think people will notice that I'm missing?" The smile disappeared from her face.
"Foolish and stubborn." She grabbed Charlie, and Bella flinched as she heard a snap in his leg, and a gasp of pain.
"Leave him alone Victoria" Bella growled. The feeling in her chest grew a little bigger. Victoria moved closer and pushed Charlie right in front of Bella, forcing his head to the side and exposing the flesh of his neck. Bella caught her self staring, and fought hard not to breathe on accident. She closed her eyes and fought all of the instincts that were screaming at her to feed.
"Come one pet. Just one bite."
"No!"
"It will make all your pain go away. You'll be stronger, faster, more powerful than you could have ever imagined. Just listen to your body, it's telling you what to do. You know what you are now".
"I'm not going to let you turn me into a monster! You'll never win!"
"Oh you stupid child! I've already won. You're already a monster, and nothing will save you now. Or him" Victoria took one of her nails and cut a deep, long gash between Charlie's neck and shoulder, causing him to cry out in pain.
Bella felt the warmth grow and branch out through all of her, and she realized it was more than warmth, it was power. She needed to fight the thirst. She needed to get away from Victoria. She needed to save her dad. She needed to get out of these goddamned chains. The power was coursing through her entire body and she could feel it building until it finally burst out of her. The chains that held her exploded apart, and Victoria was flung away from them as the energy erupted out of her, blowing the walls and ceiling out, blowing out the entire well, until it was just Bella and Charlie in a huge, dirt, crater. Over a hundred yards away, Bella could clearly see Victoria as she quickly jumped to her feet. In any other situation, she would have been amused by the string of emotions Victoria displayed in that moment. Her face told a story as her eyes showed confusion, terror, panic, and finally, rage. "This isn't done" And with one last look at Bella, she turned and fled.
Bella looked around the wreckage, shocked. Had she done this? How? What did it mean? What was she? She looked around, seeing that they were somewhere in the forest. In seconds she made out the sounds of birds and water again, but also the distant sound of a car on a highway. Then she heard the sound of a slowing heartbeat, and a labored breath. Charlie. She removed the flannel over shirt she'd been wearing when she was taken and applied pressure to the wound on his neck. He was losing consciousness and she knew he needed a hospital, but she didn't know if she would be able to do it without leaving behind a massacre. Just then, she picked up two horrible scents. Like wet dog and hot garbage. She fought the instincts telling her to take a defensive position in favor of keeping pressure on Charlie's wound. Two huge wolves came out of the clearing, and she could have laughed with relief. She knew these wolves.
"Leah! Jacob! Thank God! You guy's have to help me." The two wolves didn't make any movement to shift, or help. The one she recognized as Jacob even snarled a little. "Hey, stop that!" she scolded, slightly affronted at the apparent lack of trust, though she guessed she couldn't;t really hold it against them. But there wasn't any time. "Look, you can take time to hate me forever later, but Charlie is hurt, damn it! He needs a hospital, and I don't know how much longer I can hold out either." The two wolves took a moment, obviously engaging in a telepathic conversation, then they nodded, and ran behind the trees, returning a moment later as Leah and Jacob.
"You have to take him now! Go fast, he's losing a lot of blood." She handed him to Jake, who seemed to hesitate. "Go!" she yelled. When he ran off she looked to Leah. "We have a lot to talk about, but I need to hunt. Now. I need a deer, or a mountain lion, or something."
Leah shook herself out of her shock and nodded. "Okay, I passed a couple back that way. Let's get that taken care of first. I'm not going to phase, in case someone else in the pack hears what I'm thinking. I'll meet you back here?"
Bella shook her head. "Not here. I'm pretty sure she'd gone, but I don't want to risk coming upon a stray hiker or something. Meet me at the Cullen's place"
Leah made a disgusted face. "That place is going to reek!" she exclaimed, but quickly agreed after seeing the look Bella gave her. "Alright, I'll see you soon. Be careful"
Bella focused on the direction Leah had indicated. Hunting. This would be interesting.
Authors note: 1) sorry! I guess I don't know the length of a week! But here it is, and I'm going to try to stay more frequent. 2) So, I obviously took some liberties with Bella's vampire powers, and I will be developing those slowly as we go. 3) Thank you for the reviews and follows/favorites. I'm really glad that people seem to be liking it. Happy Reading!