Summary: Isabella lived a perfect life with her husband until the abuse started. With the death of her mother, she may have just been given life changing gift: a way out. But with it comes a whole new world that she may not be ready to face. Maybe with the help of her green-eyed savior. Mafia, Crime, Abuse, Hurt/Comfort.

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. Stephanie Meyers owns characters but the plot is of my original work.

Enjoy!

* Reader discretion. Italicized sections contain graphic content. *

Chapter 19: Phantom

That night, I did everything I could to avoid Edward. I sat in the seat furthest away from him during dinner. I realized it was childish, but putting distance between the two of us was for the better. My feelings for Edward wouldn't develop any further, and he wouldn't feel sorry for me anymore. In the end, Edward was only pleasant to me because he knew my life story and I was a Swan. That's always the problem—I couldn't tell who was genuinely nice to me because of me or that I came from a rich family.

Esme and Alice gave me questioning looks. They probably felt the tension between Edward and I and the sudden change in my mood. Emmett didn't try to hand me Annabelle again, thankfully. I did sit beside her, and I helped Rosalie keep her entertained for the duration of dinner.

I excused myself after the meal was complete and headed once again for the veranda. I needed time to clear my mind, and some fresh air sounded nice. The only difference this time was that Edward didn't come out to talk to me. To say I was disappointed was an understatement, and when I rejoined the family in the sitting room, Edward had left. I almost cried because I thought we had made progress in the friendship. I put on my best mask so that Alice and Esme wouldn't have any further ideas or suspicions on my infatuation with Edward.

The next day, I had originally planned to visit NCCE, National Center for Children Education. It's where Esme's organization first started, and I wanted to volunteer my time to once again help children learn to read and write. But due to the fact that James was in New York, I was under house arrest. Not that I wanted to risk taking chances anyway, Charlie pleaded with me to stay indoors until James left the state. Unfortunately, the knowledge of James being so close to me brought back the nightmares. After the family dinner, along with the anxiety and depression over Edward, I woke up in the middle of the night gasping for air.

"Palms up, Marie," James sneered.

On my knees, naked, and beaten, I held my shivering hands out in front of me. Silent tears fell down my cheeks; I refused to make a sound. My cries only pleased him. I held my breath when he put the bamboo stick along my fingertips.

I hated the bamboo stick the most.

When he whips it, and it makes contact with my skin, the wood bends, and pinches. The worst was when he whipped the cane so hard, my skin and the wood both split. I now have a permanent scar along my left hip where a doctor had to stitch me up. There was so much blood. But I had to laugh it off at the emergency room. To the rest of the world, we were just a married couple who had too much fun with our kinky sex. Then when we got home, James punched me in the eye so hard that I blacked out.

"This was your fault," he had said.

The cane had made a whoosh before it made contact with my skin. I bit down hard on my tongue to prevent myself from crying out loud. James didn't have a legitimate reason for beating me up this time—or at least reasons he didn't want to voice.

James is frustrated that I haven't conceived yet.

I started taking notice of his intentions when my birth control pills changed. They weren't in the usual pink compact container that it came with. This time, it was in a white one, and the pills were slightly smaller. James also started demanding sex daily…sometimes more than twice a day. Whereas before, he would only force me two or three times a week. He made a point to slam hard at his climax and made me go to sleep without washing. Then, after a week of that, I got UTI, and the doctor advised me to pee after sex or take a shower so that I wouldn't develop another infection.

Of course, James once again blamed me.

After James had his fun whipping me with the cane, he strapped me up on the harness. My entire backside was stinging from the lashes, and the thick straps didn't help. I took it like a champ, though, and located a single spot on the red carpet while James had his fun. I remember thinking about where I got that carpet. Before we moved into the house, James let me decorate the rooms as I pleased and I picked this particular rug because it reminded me of home. Now, as I stared at it while my husband molested me, I wished I were truly home.

"Stupid" slam "fucking" slam "bitch!" James growled from behind. With one final thrust, it was finally over. Disgusted, James pulled away from me, and left the room. Only when he slammed the bathroom door did I finally let out a sound.

Strapped up the air like that with my legs spread open, I felt degraded. I didn't feel human anymore. I felt like a toy that he threw aside after he finished playing with it.

I woke up because I tossed and turned so much in my sleep that the sheets wrapped around my ankles. I shot up in bed and cried as I desperately tried to detangle myself. When I did, I folded myself into a ball and fell back to sleep after I finally exhausted myself from sobbing.

X

"No sleep again?" Tammy questioned me after the third morning.

I shook my head and plopped down on the kitchen stool. I was bored, exhausted, depressed, and in dire need of sleep. Tammy also noticed that my healthy appetite slowed down because I haven't been able to finish my food. I tried to eat, but I couldn't really stomach anything after being bombarded with thoughts of my ex-husband.

"Do you think you should see a doctor about that?" she asked.

"Maybe," I mumbled.

"Maybe he'll give you something to help you sleep at night," she said helplessly.

I smiled sadly at her as she placed a plate of eggs and toast in front of me. My stomach grumbled at the smell, but that didn't fool me. After two bites, and like the past three days, I'd run to the bathroom and dry-heave into the toilet for five minutes.

"You need to tell Charlie," she said.

I shook my head quickly.

One of those nights, Tammy happened to be somewhere near my room. She was putting away some clean towels when she heard me screaming. She burst in and held me until I stopped crying. I told her everything that night.

"He's too busy," I replied. "He has enough going on, and I don't want to bother him any more than I already do."

"You aren't a bother," she insisted. "You mean everything to him."

"I know," I said. "But…I don't even know how to fix myself. Until James leaves and flies back to Chicago, I don't feel safe. I don't like him being here."

"What has Charlie said about that?"

"Nothing more than what he said before," I shrugged my shoulder as I tossed the egg around with my fork. "James is persistent with meeting up with Charlie. He keeps showing up at FSC, but Charlie refuses to make time for him."

"He'll get tired some point."

"I just want him to leave," I sighed and sat back in my seat.

X

A whole week passed, and James was still here. Every day that went by, the nightmares got worse, and Charlie started noticing the dark circles under my eyes. He suggested that I stayed with Esme and Carlisle while he continued to sort out the issue with James and I agreed. Maybe a difference in my environment would help, and Esme comforted me in a way that only a mother could.

Charlie already went as far as banning James from entering the building. James apparently didn't take it too well when security at the lobby of FSC barred him. He caused a ruckus and demanded to see Charlie. Part of Charlie's suggestion that I stayed with the Cullens was also a safety precaution. It wouldn't be hard for James to hire a private investigator to find out Charlie's home address. That thought sent shivers up my spine. James was desperate to get Charlie's money back into Witherdale Industries and was willing to go through great lengths to do it.

If only he knew that Charlie had something else that he wanted back.

My entire security team was on high alert as they transported me from Hewlett Bay Park to North Hills. I got in and out of the car only when the SUV was parked inside a garage to prevent being exposed to the outside world.

The imprisonment only added to my depression.

Sam and the rest of my suits were going to stay with me while I lived here. The Cullen house was heavily guarded, but Sam goes where I go. Unlike Charlie's neighborhood, the Cullens didn't have neighbors. To get to their driveway, it was a short winding road between thick trees before you could even see the house. The entire property is gated and because of this, there was only one entrance into the property, and it made it easier to track who went in and out.

I also tried hard not to pay attention to the new weapons that they carried.

It seems that Charlie upgraded his artillery—not that it was hard to do considering his limitless supply of weapons. They discussed having a rotation system on who patrols both in and out of the gates and they even went as far as adding one more person into the security team. The increase in security made me nervous and instead of feeling satiated with my bodyguards, it made me wonder why Charlie felt it was necessary.

"Bella," Esme hugged me fiercely when she saw me. "I'm so sorry that I've been busy. I haven't had time to see you."

"That's okay, Esme," I said.

When she pulled back to look at my face, her mouth set into a firm line. "You look like you haven't had any sleep," she said.

I shrugged my shoulder lamely and said, "It's been a rough couple of days."

"You're safe here," she said as she ushered me into the house. "Did you eat?"

I shook my head, and her frown deepened. "Mashed potatoes?" My face blanched. On any typical day, I would have agreed instantly, but I just wasn't feeling like it today. "Well, you must eat something."

As we turned the corner, the man who I wanted to see the least came to a halting stop a few feet from me. Edward glared as he looked at my face and gave the rest of my body a once-over. I knew I looked disgusting, but I didn't know it was that bad.

"What happened to you?" he asked.

"Edward," Esme chastised.

"Uh…" I stuttered.

"Never mind," he said and then he brushed past me. His shoulder made contact with me, and the electric buzz that I missed ran through my body.

"I'm sorry about my son," Esme apologized.

I waved a hand and shook my head. "He's probably dealing with a lot more stuff than I am," I dismissed. Esme looked as if she wanted to say something, but she shook her head and continued walking.

I ended up stuffing an apple in my mouth, and although it didn't truly appease Esme, she also didn't want me emptying out whatever was left in my stomach. She agreed when I asked to sleep in the room she prepared for me. I needed to sleep, and maybe I'd feel different being in Esme's house. She always comforted me.

I dragged my feet all the way up into the room and collapsed on the bed.

X

"Come be a good girl for me, Marie," James crooked a finger in my direction.

I crawled on all fours toward him, and he unzipped his pants. As I got closer to him, I was stunned from the sudden stinging on my left cheek. He slapped me.

"Hurry the fuck up," he growled as he fisted a bunch of my hair and yanked me closer to his body. I flew forward and landed directly on his crotch. He yelped and stood abruptly. "You can't even give your husband a good blowjob."

"I'm sorry," I whispered. "You pulled me…"

His face darkened, and he bent down to my eye level. "This is your fault, Marie. You're useless. You're worth nothing if you can't even pleasure me," he said.

He grabbed my hair again to pull me into a standing position. I can feel strands of my hair ripping out from its roots. I accidently let out a cry of pain, and I can see the smirk on James' face when I did.

"You get thirty lashes for talking back," he said. "On the bench."

"Please, no" I begged.

I was barely recovering from the lashes a week ago. He used his leather whip last time, and although it didn't hurt as much as the bamboo stick, it still left open wounds along my backside. I couldn't sit for two days.

"Bend over the bench," he hissed through clenched teeth. I did as he told and prepared myself for the first lash.

"Bella!"

I felt strong hands gripping my shoulder trying to jostle me. "Please don't," I cried, and I found myself enveloped in a familiar pair of strong arms.

"It's okay," Edward whispered. "You're safe."

I continued sobbing into his shirt as I gripped him tightly. Every time I woke up like this, I had to remind myself that this was my reality, not the one in the dream. That it was in the past and James couldn't hurt me anymore. But it was just so hard to believe, so I struggled to find things that felt real.

But Edward was real.

He wasn't a tainted memory.

The way he smelled and the warmth from his body. The way I could feel his chest rising and falling and his hot breath against my hair. This feeling was different from the dream. I felt safe as long as I was in his arms. I couldn't let go even if I wanted.

"Bella," he hummed my name. "You're here…you're safe…please don't cry."

He laid us gently onto the bed, and he pulled me tighter against him. He rubbed his hands up and down my arm as he allowed me to calm. All the while, he kept whispering that I was safe.

"I'm sorry," I whispered.

He pulled his head back to look at me. With him being so close, our faces were mere inches apart. "What are you sorry for?"

"I don't know," I admitted.

"I heard you," he said. "I was staying in the room next door, and I heard you crying."

I closed my eyes, embarrassed. "I shouldn't be here," I said. "I'm bothering Esme and now you. You didn't have to come in here."

"I had to," he said. "I couldn't bear to hear you like that." I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. He sighed and said, "I'm tired of staying away from you."

"What?"

"I've been avoiding you, Bella," he said. "I thought that you were far too pure for me. That of all the things I've done in this world, I didn't deserve to even feel attracted to someone like you."

"Someone like me?" I laughed darkly. "I'm far from pure."

He grabbed hold of my chin and turned my head to look at him, he said, "No, Bella. What I've done in the past, what I did last week, it will send people running in the other direction. I have my own personal stairway to hell. You, you were hurt, beaten, and betrayed by someone you trust the most. You were helpless against him, and that doesn't make you impure."

"I'm damaged, Edward," I sighed.

"You're perfect in every way," he said.

I shook my head in disbelief.

"Earlier… when I asked what happened to you…"

"You looked disgusted," I said.

"What?" he gasped. "Far from it. I was furious. Not at you, but at what caused you to look like this. You haven't slept in days, and now, I can see why."

"James is in New York," I said. "I haven't been sleeping well since I found out he was in the same state and he's been trying to speak with Charlie. I think Charlie's plan to pull all of his assets from Witherdale Industries backfired on him. It only brought James closer to me instead of the other way around."

"But this time, you're safe," he said.

"It still doesn't take away the nightmares," I said. "I need sleep." Immediately, I felt him trying to pull away. He was leaving. "Edward," I said, stopping him.

"Yeah?"

"Can you…stay with me…just for tonight?"

I bit my lip in anticipation, but I didn't have to wait for long. Edward once again enveloped me in his arms and continued to rub my arm in a soothing motion.

"Then sleep," he said. "You're safe. He's not going to hurt you anymore. Not as long as I'm around, Bella."

I felt my eyes slowly droop, and for the first time in days, I didn't fear falling into slumber. His smell, his warmth, and the electric buzz between us soothed me. Right before I finally succumbed to blissful sleep, I heard him say something.

"None of this is your fault."

This chapter was edited by SunflowerFran. Thank You!

4/12/2018