Chapter 3

BELLA'S POV

I walked out of the airport in New Mexico. I immediately felt the warmth of the sun, and it felt good. I would never become accustomed to the damp and cold of Forks, and shivers began to shake me as I thought of living in Alaska.

I walked to the rental car counter and rented a 4x4 pickup truck. I wanted to do a lot of sightseeing while I was here, so I wanted something rugged. I also thought about taking a small trip down to Mexico since I was so close, but not wanting to make any decisions as to where I was going. After renting my vehicle, I decided to find a nice hotel, get showered and changed and find someplace to have dinner.

I found a nice upscale hotel. Nothing quite like what Edward or the rest of the Cullens would choose, but it was beautiful none the less. After I was checked in, I took the elevator up to my room. It was nicely furnished with a southwestern feel. I took out a pair of black jeans and a red tank, some underwear and my bath products. When I went into the bathroom, I saw that it had a very inviting jacuzzi style garden tub that I couldn't resist, so I decided to take a bath.

As I laid back in the tub and let the jacuzzi jets massage my weary body, my mind drifted over my life.

FLASHBACK

I had just gotten home from school. My mom wasn't home. I'd just gone into the kitchen when there was a knock on the door. I went and answered the door to find the mailman.

"I have a registered letter for Isabella Dwyer," the postman said.

"I'm Isabella Dwyer," I told him.

"Sign here, Miss," the postman said. I signed where he indicated and took the large manila envelope he handed me. I closed the door and went to my room to see what I'd received. In it was a sizeable legal folder along with a letter from an attorney. I sat the folder down and read the letter.

Ms. Dwyer

It grieves me to inform you that your father, Chief of Police Charles Swan was killed in the line of duty. I was retained by your father, before his passing, to ascertain the whereabouts of you and your mother.

I wish I were able to reunite you with him in a more joyous manner. However, your presence is requested for his funeral, as well as the reading of his will as you are his only heir.

I wasn't able to read anymore. The letter slipped from my hand. I was stunned. Why had Renée lied to me? And why was my last name Dwyer, if my father's name was Swan? I began to feel my face was wet. I didn't even realize I was crying until the tears fell on my hand that was on my lap where the letter had slipped to the floor.

I picked up the legal folder from the bed and began to go through its contents. In it were reports from courts and private detectives and other things I had no idea what they meant, but from what I could tell, Charles Swan had been searching for me for a very long time. I then became furious. I went to my closet, pulled out my suitcase and began packing my clothes.

I heard my mother as she came into the house. She was humming some silly little tune that only made my anger boil more.

"Bella, honey, are you home?" I heard her call out, but I didn't answer.

"Bella, Bella, where are you, honey? You'll never believe what happened to me today," I heard her say as her footsteps came down the hall towards my room. I never stopped packing to acknowledge her. She came into my room as I was in the closet taking more clothes down.

"Bella, didn't you hear me…" she trailed off, as she must have noticed my open suitcase on the bed.

"Bella, are you going somewhere?" she asked, her voice marred in confusion.

"Yeah, Renée, I'm going to Forks, Washington," was all I said.

"Bella, why Forks, of all places?" her voice was nervous. I rolled my eyes as I brought the last of my clothes hanging up in the closet. I threw them down on the bed and picked up the letter from my nightstand and flung it at her. I started folding the clothes and putting them in the suitcase.

"Bella, honey, I know you must be confused, but let me explain." I started shaking from anger, and I saw red.

"Confused? Why would I be confused? And what is it you could possibly explain other than the fact that you've lied to me my entire life? How could you? You know the only thing I have ever wanted was a father in my life and you took that away from me! And now, now it really is too late because he really is dead!"

"Bella, you don't know what it was like. All he really cared about was staying in that podunk town and his career as a police officer. He was suffocating me. I couldn't stay there anymore…"

"Stop with your lies!" I was now beyond anger. I picked up the legal folder and slammed it against her chest as I made my way past her. I went to the storage shed and grabbed a couple of boxes we had left over from our last move. The number of times we'd moved in the previous five years alone was ridiculous. Now that I think back on it, the moves were always sudden. She must have had a clue that my father was looking for us and made us move. We were currently in Jacksonville, Florida. We'd just moved a year ago from Atlanta, Georgia. Before that, it was North Carolina. Before that, was Louisiana, Wyoming, and Chicago, Illinois. The longest we ever stayed in one place was in Phoenix. I came back with two boxes and began packing up my books.

"Bella, at least let me come with you," Renée said in a soft begging voice.

"No, you wouldn't let me have him in life, you will let me have this time with him in death. ALONE!" I told her.

"Isabella Marie—"

"Swan?" I questioned with a quirk of an eyebrow as if daring her to challenge. She just threw her hands up in defeat and walked out of my room. I finished packing my boxes and loaded them in my truck. I had managed to get a job each place we lived and saved as much money as I could. As a reward for my senior year, I purchased myself a rather beautiful truck. It was a not so late model Toyota Tacoma, and it was a steal. I paid $3,500 for it, even though it was apparently worth much more. I saw it in an ad in the Penny Saver. Some old lady's husband had just passed away, and she didn't have a use for it anymore. She just wanted to get rid of it, as she was moving in with her son and daughter-in-law. She said her son was a doctor, and they had a very lovely expensive vehicle. She said her son wanted her to sell it for $5000, but she said she had a feeling that I would take good care of it.

Once I had everything loaded, I went back into the house. I heard Renée on the phone.

"Well, I'm her mother, and she is a minor so…" she was saying to whomever she was speaking to. I went to the kitchen and snatched the phone from her hand.

"Hello, This is Isabella Dwyer, I mean Swan. With whom am I speaking?" I asked.

"Ms. Dwyer, this is Jay Jenkins, but you may call me Jenks. I represented your father and am now the executor of his Estate.

"Well, Jenks it's a pleasure to speak with you. Look, I don't know all the ins and outs of all of this, but as my mother said, I am a minor. I'm 17 but will turn 18 in a few months. Isn't there some way I can become a legal adult? I believe it's called an emancipated minor?" My mother gasped. I rewarded her gasp with a sneer.

"Yes, and with you being so close to the legal age, there won't need to be a hearing. I can draw up the papers," Jenks said over the phone.

"Good. I just received your paperwork today; I guess you can tell by my mother's phone call. I am driving to Forks. I'm leaving tonight," I told Mr. Jenks.

"Isabella, you will do no such thing. Now, I know I can't stop you from going, but would you please, at least wait until tomorrow? It's already late, and you are angry. None of those is right for you to be driving alone at night," Renée said. I was just about to answer her when Jenks spoke up.

"I must agree with your mother, Ms. Dwyer. I also wouldn't want you to drive alone. While I draw up the paperwork, you will need to be under guardianship. A friend of your father's, Dr. Carlisle Cullen and his family, would probably be the best choice. I'm sure Dr. Cullen would have no problem flying down and driving back to Washington with you," Jenks said.

"I understand your concern, Mr. Jenks, but please, I don't want to use the name Dwyer ever again. That obviously is not my name…" I said as I looked at my mother. She had the sense to look ashamed. "Please call me Bella. My name is Bella Swan. And I really don't want to put anyone out. I'm sure the doctor has more important things…" I heard a change of hand of the phone.

"Isabella, this is Dr. Carlisle Cullen, but you may call me Carlisle. I assure you it would be no problem at all. I had been anticipating your call and told Jenks to call me as soon as he had a notification that the material he sent had been received. I'm very sorry for your loss Ms. Swan, and please know that the town of Forks is at a great loss by your father's passing. He was one of my closest friends. I would be honored to fly down and escort you back to Forks," the smooth male voice said to me over the phone. Just the sound of his voice sent a sensation down to my lady bits. Then it dawned on me what Jenks said, he and his family, well damn!

"Thank you, Dr. Cullen. And you are sure your wife won't have a problem with you driving with me and having a teenager in your house?" I heard the most magnificent laugh I think I've ever heard.

"My dear, we have two teenagers about your age and two young adults that are just entering college. Trust me, my Esme is looking forward to you coming, and my youngest, Alice, is literally bouncing waiting for your arrival." Oh great, another hyper-hormonal teenager, as if Renée wasn't enough I thought as I rolled my eyes, thinking of all the times I had to fight through another of Renée's flighty projects and whims.

"Fine, but I don't wish to stay here another minute with the woman I've known as my mother if she is even who she says she is." The tears that welled up in Renée's eyes kind of made me want to take it back. There was no doubt she was my mother, and I knew those words would hurt her, but I couldn't seem to care at that very moment. She doesn't seem to understand how much her actions hurt.

"Bella, I can arrange for a hotel for you for the night if you wish. I will be there tomorrow. I will collect you, meet with your mother, and assure her you will be well taken care of," Carlisle reassured me.

"Yes, Dr. Cullen, that will be fine," I replied.

"Good, give me a moment, Jenks is looking for a hotel in the area." I was then placed on hold. I took that time to speak to my mother.

"Renée, I'm not sure what reason you have for what you did, and I don't really care. You've hurt me more than you could ever begin to understand. I just don't understand, if you loved him enough to marry him and conceive a child with him, how could you keep us apart for all that time? Did he abuse you?" She shook her head no.

"Did he mistreat you or me in any way?" Again, she shook her head no.

"Then I have nothing more to say to you. Please, I can't even look at you right now." Renée only hung her head and left the kitchen. I could hear her sobbing as she went down the hall to her room. I could tell she fell onto her bed in a ball of tears.

"Isabella, are you still there?" I heard as I placed the phone to my ear again.

"Yes, sorry Dr. Cullen."

"It's fine my dear. I have a suite booked for you at the Omni Hotel, in Downtown Jacksonville. You just need to show them your ID. It's all taken care of," Carlisle told me. I knew the hotel well. It was a highrise hotel, in the middle of downtown. I'd collected Renée from there many nights when she was too drunk to drive home after she decided to party with the many Jaguar football players or Jacksonville Suns Baseball players' parties that were thrown there. We didn't live far from there. We had a quaint little cottage on the other side of the river from downtown in Historic Riverside.

"Oh, my, Dr. Cullen. I didn't mean for you to go to such extravagance. A simple room at the Holiday Inn would have sufficed."

"It's no trouble at all, Isabella."

"Dr. Cullen, please, it's just Bella, and that is just too much for one night…"I tried to say but was cut off.

"Please, allow me to do this for the daughter of my dear friend. And I will call you Bella if you promise to call me Carlisle,"

"Okay, Carlisle. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Very good, Is—Bella, until tomorrow. Sleep well, goodbye." And with that, Carlisle disconnected the call. I grabbed the last of my things and went to my mother's room. I could still hear her crying softly into her pillow. I knocked softly on her door.

"Come in," she said through sniffles.

"I'm leaving now, I'll be back tomorrow before we leave for Washington. I will call you and let you know I arrived safely. Carlisle would like to meet with you before we leave, so can you at least make yourself presentable to speak with him. He is, after all, a married man, with teenaged children my age, so no flirting. Don't embarrass me," I told her. I knew my mother. She had a tendency to throw herself at any living breathing man. She rolled her eyes at my comment but nodded in understanding.

"Bella, before you go, I have something for you." She went to her closet and pulled out a book and photo album. "These belonged to your father. Maybe it will help you understand why I couldn't stay, and I knew he would never leave Forks," Renée said as she placed the books in my hands. The first was a book on the Native American Tribes of the Olympic Northwest. The other was a photo album marked Clearwater-Swan Family. I took them, turned and took my leave.

END FLASHBACK

The water had turned cold, and my skin looked like a prune. Tears were falling down my face at the memory of the day I last saw my mother. How could I have been so stupid? Once again, I let my mother's life become more important than my own and even the man I loved. I decided it was time to get out of the tub, wanting to leave my tears in the bath water. Renée was indeed not worth my tears. But then grief overtook me. The grief over losing Edward and my father. I stayed in bed for three days.

On the third day, my stomach would no longer allow me to grieve. I had to get out and find food. I took a quick shower and dressed for the first time since I'd been in New Mexico. I decided to venture out and find someplace to eat. I checked my phone, and thankfully, I'd only had missed calls from Jacob. There was a Bluetooth stereo in the truck, so I decided to call Jacob while I looked for a place to eat.

"Bella, thank God. Please tell me you are alright." Jacob sounded worried. I just giggled.

"Yes Jake, I'm fine."

"Well, the Cullens seem to think you are in some kind of danger. They tried to pressure me into telling them where you were," Jacob told me. Of course, they do. What else is new?

"You mean Alice hasn't seen where I am?"

"No, not the exact location. And you overestimated the pixie. It turns out she really can't get a good read on you. She can only see the decisions others have regarding you. You were right, though, when I'm around you are totally black to her. She says she only gets glimpses of you, especially if you are in danger. Even then, she has to really concentrate and specifically be looking into your future to see it." Why that manipulative little bitch. All this time, I've seen you in that outfit, and you just love it! When I become a vampire, I'm going to smack her upside that spikey head of hers.

"Speaking of which, Bella. We really think you should come home. It seems you are in more danger than you know. They've even brought in some kind of experts that have unique knowledge of the area. Something about Southern Wars and someone named Maria of the South. Some dangerous vampire bitch."

"Well, I'm not in the south, you know that," I told him.

"Yeah, well, I'm really not that great with geography, so I looked it up on the map. But New Mexico is somewhat in the south, Bella, even if it's not considered the south. Look, I really don't know what all this vamp speak means but it sounds like you are in real danger if they brought these guys in to find you. Not to mention that Dr. Fangs is really torn up. The whole family is really. They love you, Bella. Then they kept saying something about Mexico," he told me. I was planning to take a trip down there, but I hadn't really made a decision to do that, for fear that Alice would see.

"Well, I hadn't made a firm decision as to where I'm going just yet. Did you tell them why I left? Did you tell them where I went or give them my number?"

"Bella, please sweetie. I didn't have a choice. We're all so worried about you. Then after I didn't hear from you, I thought it was best I let them know where you were. I didn't give them your phone number, but I did try and call you for them. Please don't be mad at me," Jacob pleaded.

"I'm not mad at you, Jake. I understand I have everyone worried. Carlisle is really that torn up about me leaving?"

"We all are. Don't you get it? That's what people do when we care about family. Even if you won't admit it. We are your family. I'll even give it to the leeches. I now understand what Charlie meant. They have more of a capacity for love than I even realized. Please Bella, just come home."

"Yeah, I get it, Jacob, I really do. I was just so caught up in my own grief, I didn't think about what I was doing to all of you. But look, I'm starving. I haven't eaten in three days. I've spent this entire time locked up in my hotel room crying and sleeping and crying some more. Will you tell them you've talked to me? I'm fine; I'm safe. Once I've eaten, I'll call them and let them know I'm okay and I'll be home soon."

"Sure, Sure, Bells. But please be safe. You know you are a danger magnet. If you see any red-eyed leeches…" I cut him off.

"If I do, Jake there isn't a damn thing I can do about it. They will most likely see me before I see them, and if that happens, then I'm dinner, regardless. Really, what are the chances? I've gone my entire life without knowing about vampires and werewolves. Look, I'm just pulling into a restaurant to have dinner. I promise I will call them and I'll come home," I assured him.

"Okay, Bella. Just please be safe. Talk to you soon."

"I will. Bye Jacob," I said and hung up the phone.

I went into the restaurant. It was a quaint little Mexican restaurant, with a bar, a live band and they even had Karaoke. This would be fun. I went in and ordered dinner. People were singing karaoke before the band set up since it was still early. I listened to some of the patrons; some were good, and as usual, some were just awful. I ordered a couple of Margaritas. I still had my fake ID. I was beginning to enjoy myself. I now felt like it was time to let go of the grief and get back to my life.

The waiter came over with another Margarita and sat it on my table.

"Wait, I didn't order this," I told the waiter grabbing onto his arm before he walked away.

"No Seniorita, it was from the gentlemen at the bar," the waiter told me. He cocked his head towards the bar. I turned to see who sent over the drink, even though I was going to refuse it anyway. I wasn't much of a drinker, and I had to drive. I turned my head to look into two pairs of red eyes. One of them tipped his beer to me and gave me a sly smile. I turned around quickly.

FUCK ME!