A/N: I couldn't keep you guys waiting for too long! I just know you're dying to see what happens :) I want to give a special thanks to Cindylee99 and Coffeefilterart for constantly showing me so much love in my reviews and for keeping me motivated to keep writing! You guys seriously are the best and I love your enthusiasm towards the story :) okay, I'll stop ranting now! This chapter is in Edwards point of view again!

Also, CindyLee99, you mentioned in your last review how this wasn't how you expected Edward to find out. I would love to know what you thought was gonna happen!

Disclaimer: I Do not own twilight!

EPOV:

A surge of power pushed me towards her, though I couldn't even control it. My instincts did the work that needed to be done as my mind caved in on itself, unable to bear the pain that came along with the realization of Bella's troubles. I couldn't believe the force of pure agony that dwelled inside me as I pulled her weak, fragile body gingerly into my arms, my eyes running all over her face in panic.

"Bella?" I called hoarsely, the sound of my own cries smacking me in the fucking face.

She remained still and motionless in my arms as I cradled her to me in one arm, using my other to pull my phone out of my pocket and call Dad.

The 5 seconds of the phone ringing felt like a fucking eternity. My palms were growing so sweaty that keeping the phone clamped in my grasp was becoming difficult.

"This is Shirley, how may I help you?" The secretary at the hospital offered in a bored tone.

"H-hi," I stammered weakly. "I need to speak with Carlisle Cullen. I'm his son, Edward." I rushed, never keeping my eyes from Bella's face. Blood from the back of her head oozed into my hand, a small puddle forming in my palm.

"One second," there was shuffling as the phone was being handed around before I heard Dad's curious voice. "Edward, what can I do for you?"

"Dad, I'm on my way over. It's Bella… I found her at her house beaten and unconscious. Please, you have to help her, please…" I trailed off, my voice suddenly catching in my throat as my words became entangled with a dangerous sob.

"Relax, son. Take a deep breath! Place her in the back of your car and get here as quick as you can. Be careful driving, alright? I'll be prepped and ready upon your arrival."

"Thanks," I whispered before hanging up and shoving my phone back into my pocket. I picked Bella up bridal style and ran outside, lying her across the backseat of the Volvo. I took a spare sweatshirt from the backseat and placed it under her head snuggly, wrapping the sleeves around it and tying a knot on her forehead in an attempt to put pressure on the wound. I raced into the driver's seat and kicked the car into action.

I did my best to go quickly as well as drive tenderly as not to harm her fragile body. This was quite tough. Especially due to the fact that I couldn't stop my mind from racing, my vision from seeing red.

How the fuck could someone harm such an innocent girl? A quiet, defenseless, down-to-earth, perfect girl? I wanted him dead. I wanted to break each and every one of his fucking bones slowly before I killed him. I wanted to bring him pain that he never knew existed.

The thought of Bella dealing with this made me want to empty my stomach right into my fucking lap. I couldn't stop my body from shaking, but I did my best to drive safely, unwilling to risk hurting her any more.

I peeled into the hospital parking lot in record time, parking as closely as I possibly could towards the entrance. I gently pulled Bella into my arms and ran her inside, my eyes meeting her face once again. I felt her breathing, which relaxed me more than words could describe. That doesn't mean I still wasn't a fucking mess.

"Edward! This way." Dad called as I ran into the lobby, a gurney standing next to him. I placed Bella on the gurney and grabbed her hand as Dad quickly strapped her in.

He said his words swiftly. "Tell me everything you know before I take her back."

My heart pounded at the realization that I had to describe what I had just saw… and think about it in chronological order. "I went to her house to visit her. I was upstairs in the bathroom when her Dad came home, screaming at her. I snuck out a window in her room and climbed the tree down. He got in his car and drove off, so I ran back inside and found her like this. "

He nodded in understanding, however, his eyes held deep sadness.

"We'll take care of her. Why don't you wait here in the waiting room and alert the authorities while I bring her back?"

I shook my head, panic setting in my veins. "I don't want to leave her."

Dad smiled sadly and apologetically. "I'm sorry, but you have to. I can't bring you back there. You can always wait out here. I'll work as quickly as I can and then you may go see her."

I thought about getting on my hands and knees and begging even more, but realized that all my whining was adding to more time that Bella didn't get taken care of. I nodded in defeat and shuffled to one of the boring tan chairs in the waiting room, pulling my cell phone out of my pocket.

"911, What is your emergency?" A young male voice asked.

"I need to report an incident of domestic abuse."

"Go on," he urged.

"It's the Chief of Police of Forks, Mr. Dwyer. I went to his home to visit his daughter. I was upstairs in the bathroom and he came home, screaming at her. She didn't want him knowing I was there, so I snuck out her window and climbed down the tree. He left and drove off, so I ran back in and found her beaten and unconscious."

"Very well, I'm sending some officers to his house right away. Are you at the hospital with his daughter at the moment?"

"Yes."

"I will also send some officers there, who will ask you some questions. Can I have your name, son?"

"Edward Cullen," I muttered helplessly, my knee bouncing in agitation and my vision growing blurry from unshed tears.

"Thank you for the call. A couple of officers will be arriving at the hospital momentarily."

"Thanks."

I dreaded the end of that conversation, for I knew it was the only thing distracting me from my violent thoughts. But now…. Now I would be alone with them until the cops arrived.

I threw my head into my hands and welcomed the tears as I let it all sink in. My poor Bella… who knew how long she was dealing with this? Was this an everyday occurrence? God I fucking hoped not.

I hated myself. How could I not have done anything about this sooner? I walked around school like a hot shot and thought of nothing but getting drunk and fucking Tanya while Bella was being beaten by the only person in her life. She deserved nothing close to the shit he put her through.

But he would never, ever harm her again. He wouldn't get within a hundred yards of her if I was still alive. I would protect Bella every second of everyday for the rest of my life, no questions asked. I would never allow her to feel any type of pain again.

It only took about ten minutes before two middle-aged officers entered the building and went straight for the reception desk, asking for an Edward Cullen. When the secretary pointed at me, I wiped the remaining tears from my eyes before they made their way towards me.

"Edward Cullen, Dr. Cullen's son?" One of the men asked, his nametag reading "Williams." He was tall and dark-haired with a deep voice. His partner stood a few inches shorter than him, with a bald head and a nametag that read "Carson."

"Yes," I answered weakly, my head beginning to pound.

"I'm officer Williams, you can call me Caius. This is my partner, Alec.

I nodded meekly in response.

"We want to ask some questions regarding the phone call you made to the office earlier."

"Okay."

They sat down on either side of me and whipped out identical notepads and black pens.

"Can you describe the situation in detail? This is a very important deal, having our own member of the force being the suspect."

For the next twenty minutes, the officers hounded me for answers while I did my absolute best to provide the best responses that I could. I tried to remember what he was wearing. What direction he drove off in. The exact time he fled the house. The problem was that I barely remember anything from that situation besides Bella's body on the floor…

I told the officers that Bella would be staying with me with zero hesitation. I knew that she had nowhere else to go – frankly, if she did, I would still beg her to stay with me because I was definitely not willing to let her out of my sight for a long while. I knew Mom and Dad would allow it given the circumstances.

They gave me their cards and asked me to call them as soon as Bella was able to talk, needing information from her as well. I agreed and thanked them for their service.

After they left, I figured I would call Mom and fill her in.

"Edward, where are you? It's getting late and you have school tomorrow."

"Mom, listen to me, I have something to tell you."

Her voice immediately held concern. "What is it, honey? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's about Bella."

"Bella?" Her voice rang in question.

I explained the situation once again – actually, growing tired of repeating the horrible evening – and grew upset when Mom began to cry. I felt my own heart break just at the sound of her distress. This situation was just too awful for any of us to bear.

"Oh, Edward… you did the right thing, dear. I'm so proud of you, and thankful that you were there. Is your father still with her?"

"Yeah, I think she's gonna be okay, but I can't let her go back to that house, Mom. She needs somewhere safe to go. Can she come stay with us?"

"Of course, I would never want her anywhere near him again. I'll start cleaning up around here and making the guest room a bit more welcoming. Unless you want me to head to the hospital?"

God, how I loved my fucking Mom. "No, it's alright. Thank you, Mom, for all of this. I knew you would be okay with her staying with us. I just know she has nobody else. You know her Mom passed, and her real Dad walked out before she was born."

She sighed sadly on the other end. "I know. Now, she has us. Try not to worry too much, okay?"

"Yeah."

"We'll talk about her stay more when you get home. When will that be, by the way?"

I rubbed my neck in stress. "I'm not sure. Whenever Bella is released."

"Edward, that will probably be tomorrow or the day after. Why don't you come home and get some rest?"

"No, I have to be here when she wakes up."

"Honey, I-"

"Mom," I interrupted. "I'll be okay."

There was a slight pause before she muttered dejectedly, "Alright. Call me in the morning. Are you going to school tomorrow? I won't force you to."

"I'll probably stay here."

"Okay. Try to get a good night's sleep. I love you."

"Love you, too."

I spent the next thirty minutes trying to think of anything besides hunting Phil Dwyer down. I wanted to keep my emotions under control before I saw Bella. I tried my best to pay attention to the nighttime news segment on the ancient television mounted on the boring, white walls, but I couldn't bring myself to care about the weather or the burglary that happened in a gas station the town over.

Now, sitting here with nothing but my raging thoughts, it suddenly all began to make sense. This is why Bella was so keen on pushing me out of her life. This was why she was always alone, always hiding behind her hair. This was the mystery that I was just dying to solve.

Finally, Dad burst through the door with a smile painted with relief on his face. "She's going to be okay. She's got a terrible concussion and a badly bruised eye, a broken nose and a swollen lip. Also, a few of her ribs are cracked. We also detected some past injuries on various parts of the body. She's expected to recover smoothly and quickly, though. She's on a pretty strong painkiller at the moment, so she's knocked out. You may go sit with her, but she most likely will be sleeping until tomorrow."

"I want to go see her," I responded without hesitation, because I knew that I had to see her, or else I would flip the fuck out.

He nodded in understanding and led me through the hallway, shuffling between doctors and nurses with clipboards and equipment in their gloved hands. I was lead into Bella's room and gasped at the sight in front of me.

Dad told me the outcome of the beating, but I couldn't bring myself to imagine all the terrible things to look like on her face. Seeing it was like a punch in the stomach. Her eye was bruised and giant – so large that she would not be able to open it if she tried. Her nose was covered in a think bandage and her usually soft, perfect lips were puffy and cut up. I rushed to her side and examined her features before cursing under my breath and plopping heavily into the plastic chair beside her bed.

"I'm sorry, son. I know this must be tough for you."

"Dad… you said there were past injuries," I muttered while pinching the bridge of my nose.

He sighed. "Yes, bruises on her arms, legs, back... they were faint and almost healed, but they were there."

"So, this shit happens to her often, I suppose?" I spat angrily, crossing my arms over my chest and gazing out the window.

"We must not dwell on the past, Edward. It does no good. We are going to focus on her future now and help her." Dad insisted as he filled out some of Bella's paperwork beside me.

"About that…" I trailed off. "I called the cops in the waiting room and told them everything. Two of them came and I gave a statement. I also told them that Bella would be staying with us from now on. I already called Mom and she agreed. I know this is sudden, but she has nobody else. I need to make sure she is safe."

Dad smiled, clearly proud. "I'm on board with that, son. I'm proud of the man you're becoming."

I smiled and nodded, basking in my father's praise. It felt appropriate to enjoy his positive qualities since I am now realizing how lucky I am to have him.

Dad left the room a few minutes later to check on another patient, so I was left alone with Bella. I leaned forward and kissed her forehead tenderly, grasping her tiny hand into my much-larger one. "I'm so sorry, Bella," I whispered into her ear, her strawberry scent still hitting me like a ton of bricks. "I will never let anything like this happen to you again. You're safe with me." I rested my forehead against hers and breathed deeply, hoping she was awake to feel how amazing this tiny moment was.

I wanted to get closer to her, and the bed was huge. I snuck around some of the wires attached to her and snuggled beside her, suddenly feeling drained. I wrapped an arm gently around her waist and kissed the side of her head before shutting my eyes and falling into a deep sleep.

I woke up a couple times in the middle of the night because of the nurse. She came in about three times to check on Bella, and I was surprised that she never berated me for lying with her. I made a mental note to thank her in the morning.

I woke up for the day around 8:00 AM, surprisingly feeling well-rested. Probably something to do with sleeping next to Bella all night.

I went downstairs and bought myself some food before she woke up. I ordered a bagel and ate it in all but 3 minutes, not willing to let Bella wake up alone.

I trudged back upstairs, taking a seat next to her and rubbing her arm. "It's okay, beautiful, you can wake up. You're safe now," I murmured, glancing at her sleeping form.

Now, there was nothing left to do but wait.

A/N: yay! So we got a lot going on now. Phil is MIA, and Bella has somewhere safe to live! I can't wait for you guys to see how all of this unfolds :) review pls! Let me know what you think!