Chapter 8 – Alliance

BPOV

I couldn't have contained the scream, even if I'd wanted to. It escaped my lips the moment my eyes opened to the sight of someone hunched over me, their fingers pressing against my wrist. My mind couldn't register who it was faster than it could register that this person, whoever they were, had their hands on me.

The scream ripped through me, my already raw and burning throat aching even more. I clapped my hands over my mouth, my tears spilling unwillingly.

The darkness had been so abruptly pulled out from under me, and here I was.

I focused on the face, my acute, knee-jerk reaction finally fading.

Rosalie?

Rosalie was standing at least four feet away from me, her hands raised in what appeared to be a show of surrender. Her eyes were wide and filled with concern. Her lips were pressed open in an 'o' shape, her brows furrowed in contemplation.

"Bella," she whispered, frozen in place.

I started shaking – I couldn't control it. It wasn't intentional. It just took over, rolling through me in an almost rhythmic way. I registered how painful the sensation was as it awakened the rawness of my aching body. Every limb felt as though it was on fire, boiling me from the inside out.

I was burning again.

I'd managed to slow my breathing, but as soon as I felt the calmness, it was pulled out from under me.

The door to the bedroom flew open in one swift motion, the sound loud and reverberating off the surrounding walls. The shaking intensified and I shut my eyes as I stiffened, preparing for the worst.

"Bella."

Edward?

Edward.

Edward.

I kept my eyes shut, wondering if it was just a dream, unable to trust myself. If I opened my eyes, would it all be whisked away, leaving me alone again?

I inhaled, trying to understand what was happening around me.

I rolled through what I knew to be true, the things I could confirm with one of my senses, in order, to decipher what was real from what was not.

I could feel a glorious, soft mattress beneath me, depressing minutely beneath my slight way. I could smell the sweet, earthy aroma of cedar and burning firewood. Rosalie and Edward were here. I was in the Cullen's home.

But how had I gotten here?

My eyes flew open against my better judgement. The desire to prove that this wasn't a passing figment of my imagination won out over my desire to protect myself.

Edward was standing in the doorway of the room, Rosalie pressed against him, her hands wrapped around his biceps as she attempted to push him outside.

His eyes were coal black, his brow was pulled together in an unmistakeable gesture of agony, his hands curled into claw-like formations at his side and his body was so rigid and tense he looked like he might crack in half.

My stomach churned at the sight of him and his agony.

Something is wrong…

I tried to sit more upright, to get a better look at him, but the attempt caused a short, clipped scream of agony to rush out of me. I clutched at my stomach, the pain of my movements causing everything to crash down around me.

I realized now where I was and why I was here.

Anxiety was building inside of me as my breathing became ragged and laboured. I struggled to breathe, it felt like my throat was closing in on itself.

I didn't want Edward to see me like this.

Did he know now?

Did he hate me?

Could he even stand to be near me?

As if in answer he rushed to my bedside faster than I could register, kneeling next to me. He placed my hand in his own and his eyes locked onto mine.

I cast my gaze downward, avoiding his stare. If he looked into my eyes, would he see it there, too?

I was gasping now, the fear building to an almost unmanageable head. I could feel the darkness closing in on me again, my vision blurring, my aching body protesting against the chaos and commotion.

Small shrieks were escaping my lips without my consent. The violent thrashing of my body was unbearably painful, but I couldn't control it. I wrenched my hand away from Edward's, my eyes welling with tears.

The look on his face was excruciating. His body was slouched forward, his shoulders shaking with silent, tearless sobs. His large hands were grasping the blankets covering my body. Everything about him reflected the brokenness I felt.

I wanted to out to comfort him, but I couldn't catch my breath, and the darkness was starting to swallow me completely.

I pressed against the it, pushing it away, trying to remain present. I noticed as Edward shifted away from my bedside and vaguely registered Carlisle taking his place.

"I'm sorry, Bella." Carlisle's voice was muffled and difficult to comprehend. His hand was pressed against mine, pulling it against his side, holding it in place between his ribcage and his upper arm.

A sharp pain pierced my flesh as I watched him press the needle through my skin, his finger pressing down on the plunger as a clear, colourless liquid flowed into my vein.

The heaviness of the darkness was swallowing me now. I felt the pain washing away, sliding out of my body as the weightlessness overwhelmed me.

EPOV

I was on my knees, resting against Bella's bedside, unable to tear my eyes away from her. Her breathing was slow and steady, the familiar sound of her heartbeat, albeit a great deal weaker than it usually was, provided me with comfort.

"She's had a rather large dose of morphine," Carlisle explained "which should keep her resting peacefully for a while longer," I could scarcely register his voice as his own, the unfamiliar exhaustion and sadness making him unrecognizable. Even his thoughts were unfamiliar to me in this moment.

I'm sorry, son. I wish we could have prevented this.

I didn't take my eyes off Bella, nor did I respond to Carlisle. There was no point. There was nobody else to blame in this moment but myself.

"Edward, I'll need you to move aside for the moment. I have to take Bella's vitals and prepare her for further examination."

I nodded, standing and moving to the opposite side of the room, my eyes never leaving Bella's face.

She looked completely foreign to me now. A ghastly row of stitches across her cheekbone with a monstrous bruise forming around the cut, spilling out from behind the edges of Carlisle's perfectly precise sutures. A horrendous array of bruises and small gashes were covering the remainder of her face, and the swelling was pressing against her eyelids, obscuring her bone structure. Her normally rosy, pink lips were cracked and cut though pale white in colour, save for the small smears of blood that painted certain spots red.

My body tensed. The smell had been unrecognizable to me before this moment because I'd been blinded by my own rage and grief. I'd barely spoken to Carlisle, and it suddenly registered that I hadn't really understood the conversation we'd had outside.

He'd said a Quileute wolf had done this. When I'd heard that I didn't care which wolf it was, I immediately prepared to launch an attack – to tear every one of them to shreds.

The scent overwhelmed me now that I was more in control of my emotional state.

Werewolf, undoubtedly.

I realized how careless it had been of me to rush off, seeking revenge, without knowing enough to know who was responsible for this.

I knew that the scent didn't belong to Jacob Black, because although I'd known him before his transformation, his new werewolf scent would mix with his former human scent to create something unique. There was no trace of him here.

This brought me some measure of relief, though not enough to feel comfortable ruling him out. It was difficult to believe that whoever did this acted in isolation. How could they have not known about this?

My thoughts were interrupted by a quiet rap at the door. Carlisle turned away from Bella, glancing at me as if to defer authority to me. I could hear Jasper's thoughts outside the door, his concern centred on Bella, his mind focused on trying to help.

"Come in." My voice was gruff, and not exactly inviting, but Jasper entered nonetheless.

The sight of him reignited my internal torment. He was covered in blood – Bella's blood. His hands were bathed in it, and his gray button up shirt was soaked with it. I hissed, fighting against the urge to destroy something… someone.

"How is she?" He asked, and then I noticed Alice peek out from behind him, her small frame snaking around Jasper as she tried to catch a glimpse of me.

I thought about his question for a moment before realizing I didn't have an answer. I didn't know how she was – I had no idea. I felt like my ability to process what was happening around me was faltering, like I couldn't keep up, a completely unfamiliar and hauntingly human feeling.

"She's stable, the sedation is for her benefit at this point," Carlisle explained, his back turned on all of us as he continued to work around Bella, pulling on wires and IVs.

"She's dehydrated and needed a blood transfusion after losing so much blood." Jasper noticed the bag of blood that was hooked onto the IV pole and immediately averted his eyes.

My thoughts were suddenly overwhelmed with desire, the bag of blood becoming the sole focus. I turned on my heel to face Jasper when I realized I was hearing his thoughts, the desire wasn't my own, it was his. Alice's hand was clasped around his arm as she began dragging him out of the room.

"Come with me, Jasper. Come now," she urged, her worried catching mine. A fury rose within me that I couldn't contain at the sight of Jasper struggling with his bloodlust. How could he, in this moment? Did he not understand the severity of Bella's condition? How could he pine for the bag of blood that was keeping Bella alive, when he was covered in her blood already. He had been there… he had watched it spill out of her.

"Keep him out," I roared, pushing him out of the room and slamming the door behind him. Carlisle continued to work, but spoke to me sternly.

"Jasper saved Bella's life and has spent the past hour fighting against his bloodlust. He needs to hunt now, but he's done everything he possibly can to make sure he remains in control."

I nodded, unable to reply. I knew that my outburst wasn't only a result of my frustration with Jasper, but that everything else was spilling over. I braced against the wall behind me and exhaled.

"Talk to me, Carlisle." I needed to know, to understand what was happening to my Bella. I listened for his thoughts, but he was so focused on his current task that it crowded out all other thoughts.

"She lost a lot of blood. I don't exactly know how Emmett and Jasper came upon her, and frankly I haven't had a moment to ask them. Though, I believe that information will be important later on."

I silently agreed.

"She's receiving a transfusion now. When I found her in my office, she was losing a lot of blood, and very quickly. Her facial laceration was very deep and needed suturing right away. I assessed her for a head injury and I believe she has a concussion, though a minor one. A physical examination revealed some possibly broken ribs, though I'll need an x-ray and further physical examination to confirm as much. I have concerns about internal injuries but I need a more thorough examination to assess what's happening internally."

My stomach dropped. This was only the beginning, I figured. How long had this been happening to Bella? How long had she been going through this? I couldn't make sense of any of it, no matter how hard I tried. I didn't understand why someone would do this to her.

My focus shifted when Carlisle began to admonish me from within his thoughts.

Edward, you need to keep it together. I understand this is unbearably painful, but you're not helping when you lose control of yourself.

"I know." I could hear the faint whispers of my family members, gathered downstairs. The panic in their voices evident. I struggled to block out their thoughts, to remain engaged with Carlisle and to focus on what he was saying. The more emotionally disturbed I became, the more difficult it became to keep track of their thoughts.

I haven't completed Bella's exam, Edward. I'll need to do that as soon as possible.

Carlisle's thoughts were full of an uncomfortable hesitation.

"I figured as much," I replied, searching his face in confusion, trying to understand what he wasn't conveying to me.

My urgency piqued, understanding how important it was to act quickly, we needed to make sure there wasn't anything urgent that we were missing.

"How long until she wakes up?"

"She'll probably remain sleeping until tomorrow morning. It was a large dose of morphine. To be honest, I think its best she rests as much as possible, it seems she could use it." The softness in Carlisle's voice had returned as he lovingly stroked a hand across Bella's forehead.

I felt my resolve weakening, my hands began to shake and my body felt numb. This information was too much to absorb. There was no world in which I'd imagine this horror would be inflicted on Bella. I had never thought about the possibilities… about what she might be subjected to without me there to protect her. I'd considered myself and my family to be the biggest threat to her. I had been wrong.

I flew out of the room, down the stairs and outside in seconds. I pulled my cell phone from my pocket and shakily punched a number into the phone, trying my hardest to not crush it to dust in my hand.

Alice appeared next to me, her hand dropping over the phone, hitting the end button.

"You were calling the directory," she said simply "but I know the number you're looking for." Her sad eyes met my own and understanding dawned on us. This was painful for all of us, but especially for Alice and myself. We loved Bella in an extraordinary way.

Alice pulled the phone from my hand, and dialed the number, returning it to me when she was finished.

I pressed the phone to my ear, and exhaled, willing myself to calm down enough to speak.

The voice on the other end was shaky and heavy, rivaling my own.

"Hello?" came Jacob Black's gravelly voice.

"Jacob," I began, struggling to maintain my composure "it's Edward Cullen."

There was a short pause before he spoke again "I know. I'll be there in ten minutes." And with that, the other line went dead.

I looked at Alice questioningly, the conversation leaving me confused.

"I can't see them, Edward. I can't see the wolves so I don't know… but I imagine that his willingness to come here and meet you means two things: one, he already knows something is wrong and two, he's not responsible for whatever it was – otherwise he wouldn't be so willing to come face to face with a mind-reading vampire." Alice leaned against a tree stump, her sad eyes cast downwards.

Her theory made sense. Although I'd never explicitly told Jacob I could read minds, I imagine Bella would have told him, especially after he'd disclosed his own family's oddities. It made sense that he would know, and if he did it would be suicide to come here and meet me face to face.

"It could be a decoy – what if he's bringing the others? What if they're planning an attack?" I growled as I spoke, and in an instant Jasper, Rosalie and Emmett were at my side. They had been listening to our conversation from inside and the possibility of an attack from the wolves had them on high alert.

"That's a strong possibility," Jasper said, answering a question that hadn't even originally been intended for him. Emmett growled behind him.

Their thoughts were loud, clear and devastating. Images of Bella, broken on the floor of the forest, blood pooling around her overwhelmed me. Her twisted, broken body being carried in Emmett's arms… Carlisle as he sutured her, Bella uttering my name with a raw, strained voice. It was clear from their thoughts that they, like Carlisle, believed Bella had endured far more than broken bones and deep gashes.

I shuddered.

"Enough! Keep your thoughts to yourself. I can't focus." Jasper and Emmett stiffened next to me, but nodded, their thoughts filling with apologies.

"We need to prepare, in case it is a decoy and the mutts are actually planning an attack," Jasper's focused voice broke through our unintentional silence.

"Carlisle is occupied at the moment," Esme's soft voice surrounded us as she joined us outside "he's going to stay with Bella unless his help is absolutely necessary." Esme glanced at me, her soft eyes filled with worry and grief.

"Is he… can he do it alone?" I was referring to the exam, and I was sure Esme knew that.

"He's going to wait until this is over, Edward. He thinks that would be best, in case things escalate here." I nodded. I was weary at this point, not having Carlisle's calm presence to guide us through this would be difficult, but I knew it was more important that he stayed with Bella to care for her. We would have to rely on Jasper alone.

I was grateful now that she was unconscious.

"Edward, I think it's best if you greet Jacob outside. Your ability to read their minds will let us know in advance if he's truly alone. Of course, they could be hanging back in anticipation of your abilities, so Emmett, Rosalie, Esme and I will wait just behind those doors," he emphasized his point by glancing in the direction of our home.

"Alice, you stay outside with Edward. Maybe closer proximity to the wolves will help you see them?" Jasper questioned. Alice nodded, though in her thoughts she was very doubtful that anything would help her seem them. She sighed and came to stand closer to me.

"We'll be listening and waiting, Edward. At the first sign of trouble, we'll be by your side. We won't let them hurt her again."

I cringed away from Jasper, stifling a growl.

We'd already failed Bella enough. I would die a thousand times before I allowed anyone to hurt her again.

Alice stood by my side while the remainder of my family dashed inside, pulling the door closed behind them. I could hear running, two feet meeting the forest floor at a steady pace. An unnaturally fast heartbeat followed and the unmistakeable wolf stench became more potent.

I had to call upon all the strength I had in me to control my reaction. Every instinct inside of me wanted to throw myself at Jacob, to tear him to shreds. The stench of werewolf triggering my memory of Bella and the smell that was all over her.

I growled but Alice's hand thudded loudly into my chest, effectively trapping the sound inside of me. I glanced at her as she stared straight ahead, absolute fierceness registered on her face.

Not now, Edward, she chastised.

Jacob approached us no longer running but walking at a brisk pace. His hands were outstretched and his faced was filled with something unfamiliar… an unusual grimace overtaking his features.

"I'm alone," he offered, keeping his hands outstretched.

I glanced at Alice and she cocked an eyebrow at me.

I listened in on his thoughts – but stumbled over them when I realized what was contained within them.

I growled, my lips pulling back over my teeth as my body tensed, preparing to spring for Jacob.

"Edward?" Alice called after me, her confusion doing nothing to calm me. Within seconds Emmett, Rosalie, Esme and Jasper flanked me, their teeth bared and their bodies crouched into a defensive stance.

I threw my hand up, signaling them to stop. They stood, frozen in place waiting for my explanation.

"He's telling the truth," I ground out from between my clenched teeth, "he's alone."

"Then why the reaction?" Jasper whispered so quickly and quietly that I doubt Jacob could have picked it up.

"I don't know exactly how your mind reading thing works… but before you go poking around in there, let me explain." Jacob's voice was wavering and his hands remained stretched out in front of him.

My family relaxed around me, the tension lifting a fraction.

"I didn't do this to her…" he started. He had my full attention now "but I know who did." I looked at this face and examined it, noticing that large beads of tears were beginning to collect in his eyes.

Paul.

Several small snippets of memories flashed through his thoughts, all of them focused on Paul and Bella's tense relationship.

The silence surrounding our conversation seemed to greatly confuse my family, each of them glaring at me, waiting for an explanation.

"Jacob has a theory about who did this," I explained, running a hand through my hair "he believes it was Paul Lahote. His relationship with Bella has been strained since Bella started spending time with the pack on the reservation…"

"We can… hear each other when we're phased and in our wolf form… but Paul… he doesn't phase anymore. Not since…" Jacob stopped speaking, his hands shaking at his sides, his nostrils flared as he took deep, intentional breaths.

"He's trying to control his anger," I explained, taking advantage of my ability to read his mind to explain what was happening "Paul hasn't phased since he attacked Bella in her car three weeks ago," I growled when the memory flashed across his thoughts, becoming clearer in my mind each time he recalled it.

I felt Emmett's strong hand clamp down on my shoulder, and I realized that he was holding me in place. I didn't shake him off, knowing that in this moment I couldn't be trusted to act rationally.

Jacob shook his head, trying to shake off the memories as he struggled to compose himself.

"Today he phased, only for a quick second. I… I couldn't make any sense of his thoughts, but it shocked all of us because it's been so long since he's done it. And I saw…"

I roared, no longer able to contain my anger and charged at Jacob, leaping on top of him, my fingers clawing at his supple, permissive flesh.

Within his thoughts, I saw the glimpse he'd caught from Paul's mind.

From Paul's eyes, I saw him on top of Bella, hitting her repeatedly, her eyes rolling back into her head as she struggled to remain conscious.

But that was it. It was the only thing Jacob had seen because apparently in that moment Paul had shifted back into his human form.

I tried to control myself when I realized I was attacking Jacob, and I allowed Jasper and Emmett to pull me off him.

Jacob jumped to his feet, brushing the dirt off his body, rubbing his neck, mentally assessing the damage.

"I deserved that," he said simply.

"And more," I growled, trying to contain my rage.

Alice looked between Jacob and me, clearly confused.

"Edward, the rest of us don't understand what's happening."

Jacob cleared his throat and appraised my family before speaking.

"I was able to see a quick picture from Paul's mind before he phased back into his human form. We can only hear each other when we're in our wolf form. I saw him…" Jacob struggled with the words, anger swelling inside of him.

"What?" Alice questioned impatiently.

"Paul attacked Bella again. I could see him… hurting her." Snarls erupted all around me, but Esme spoke, reminding us to stay focused.

"And now, Jacob? Where is he?" Esme questioned.

"He's gone. He broke away from our pack. We don't understand how it could happen, but he's managed to completely break away, and we can't hear him anymore. We only knew he broke away because Sam could sense the loss."

"How did this happen without you knowing?"

"Bella's been pushing me away, keeping me at a distance. I figured it was because she was all messed up because of you leaving. But then I heard you came back and Paul was really messed up about that, angrier than usual… and then he phased for the first time in weeks and it all came together for me."

"You don't think the incident in the car, and the incident today were the only times this happened, do you?" Jacob shook his head bleakly.

"Can I see her?" I was taken aback by his request. I knew he felt strongly for Bella, but I hadn't realized that he loved her. It was clearer to me now that I could read his thoughts. Jacob wasn't capable of hiding much, I could see. He was pretty much an open book when it came to his thoughts, and that helped me understand that everything he'd said was truthful. He was here, speaking with us, alone, because he needed to help Bella.

"Not right now." Jacob's eyes filled with sadness, his brow furrowing and a hand coming up to rub across his face. He looked as disturbed as I felt.

"The pack is all over this. We all care a lot about Bella," Jacob explained, a dark edge to his words. "Can I just ask… what happened to her? I… I didn't get the full picture… and… well, I'm worried." His voice was filled with fear, he was afraid of my response. He didn't want to imagine what could have happened, what Paul could have done. He only caught a glimpse and it was enough for him to know that it wasn't good.

"We don't know yet. Carlisle is caring for her now," Alice spoke for me, thankfully. It gave me a few needed moments to collect my thoughts.

"We'll let you know when we know more," Esme offered, a small, half-hearted smile on her face. She was grateful to Jacob for speaking with us.

I wish I could have felt gratitude toward him, but I didn't. I knew that we were both responsible for what had happened to Bella – me for leaving her alone, unprotected, and him for leaving her unprotected though not alone.

"Is it bad?" he asked, needing to confirm his fears.

I nodded, unable to say more. Jacob growled, turned on his heel and phased into his wolf form, disappearing into the surrounding forest.

Immediately after Jacob had left I returned to Bella's room only to find Carlisle keeping vigil at her bedside. He looked anxious and tense. I could tell he desperately needed to examine Bella, to ensure there was nothing else he was missing.

I agreed. It couldn't wait any longer.

"I think you should leave, Edward," Carlisle offered gently.

This won't be easy, and you needn't subject yourself to it.

I shook my head once.

"I need to be here."

And what of Bella's privacy? It's enough that I'm doing this without her knowledge, I'm certain she'd be unhappy to know that you participated.

"I'll see it anyway – in your thoughts. At least this way I can be helpful." My voice was hard and cold. It perturbed Carlisle but he didn't say anything aloud. I could offer nothing else right now.

Carlisle nodded and moved to Bella's bedside. He pulled the cover back from her body, folding it at the bottom of the bed in a neat pile. His hands moved to the hem of her turtleneck and he lifted it with great hesitation.

I swallowed thickly, the action unnecessary but grounding all the same.

I flew to her bedside and started to help Carlisle lift her sweater.

And what we found there, against the flesh of her body, ripped at my insides, shredding them instantly. I growled, catching the sound and suppressing it before it could grow into anything else.

Her stomach was as badly battered as her face. A smattering of old and new bruises was painted across her abdomen. Beneath the neck of her turtleneck, she had been concealing finger shaped bruises.

Someone had choked her.

The storm brewing within me was insatiable. It was sickening, witnessing what had been done to her body. My eyes could see every small, minute detail. I could make out the bruised imprint of the toe of a shoe on her ribcage. I could tell where he'd kicked her repeatedly, cracking the bone, fracturing it. The places where the bruising was more vivid, where the delicate skin was stretching over swollen tissue – those were the places where her bones had been broken.

It only grew worse as we continued. Dark bruises lined her chest. Peeking out from behind her bra were several small welts, small enough for me to realize that those were the places where someone had sucked the skin into their mouth, leaving a wealth of bruises behind.

I growled, snarled, hissed – everything in me was fire. My icy, deadened heart was roaring to life and my body felt like it was burning again. The rage I felt was unparalleled, unlike anything else I'd ever experienced before in all my years of existence.

I couldn't fathom this. I couldn't imagine someone hurting Bella in this way. And though nothing was confirmed yet, the realization that Bella had been terribly violated was beginning to permeate my reality.

I looked at Carlisle, similar pain present in his own eyes. We remained silent because there was nothing that could be said in this moment to disrupt the anger that was blistering through us.

I wanted to conjure some alternate explanation, but I couldn't. There was no other way to explain all of this. Nothing else made sense.

Carlisle continued to work, his fingers palpating across her abdomen as he surveyed the damage mentally noting which ribs were broken and exactly where the brunt of the damage was. I listened to his thoughts, keeping my own mental tally. The anger and rage were building, boiling into the cavernous depths of my body. It was growing and multiplying, moving beyond my control. I could feel a roar building – I could feel destruction manifesting in every limb of my stone body.

Carlisle looked up momentarily and spoke to me with a complete command "get out."

His words weren't meant to be harsh, though they were. It was a warning more than anything else. My rage and pain had no place in this room right now. They weren't welcome emotions. Right now, Bella's well-being superseded everything else. And I wasn't capable of prioritizing her in this moment because my rage was too consuming.

I made to move but felt frozen in place. Stunned. Completely unmoving and unable to react. My eyes locked onto Bella's body, images flooding my mind, filling in the blanks. Assessing exactly how she'd received every cut, bruise, break…

"Come."

Alice's voice engulfed me. Her tiny hands wrapped around my wrists, pulling me with a great deal of effort.

The calm in her face, in her voice, in her thoughts… it was helpful. But it wasn't enough. I was torn between the desire to never again leave Bella's side, and the need to unleash some of the rage that was corroding away at me.

I wasn't of any use to anyone when I was this out of control. I felt like I had as a newborn again, only my focus wasn't drinking, or thirst. It was revenge. It was the total and absolute obliteration of whoever had done this to my sweet, beautiful Bella.

"You aren't helping anyone here, Edward. Trust me." Alice tugged again, pulling me with slightly more force this time.

"Trust me?" She squared her body in front of mine, and although she was too tiny to fully obstruct my view of Bella, she was enough of a distraction to pull me out of my stupor.

"Look into my eyes…" she whispered. My eyes locked onto her own, and in them, I found pain, anguish – all of the things I was feeling. I found comfort. I didn't want to move; it went against every primal instinct in my body. And if it had been anyone else come to fetch me, I would have violently cast them out. But Alice could see what I couldn't, and in this moment I had to trust that.

"This is better, Edward. I promise." Her hands slipped from my wrists and locked around my fingers. This time, she gently pulled, probably already knowing that I would follow.

And I did.

It wasn't long before Emmett came to fetch Alice and me from the woods. He seemed absolutely unconcerned with the destruction that surrounded us. Trees shattered, roots torn from the ground, boulders smashed into thousands of tiny pebbles – the manifestations of only a fraction of my rage.

Alice sat on a branch high up in a tree, her knees pulled to her chest as she looked down on me from above. I leaned against the base of it, my eyes pressed closed and my body slack against the trunk of the tree now that my tirade was over.

Emmett's eyes were the sadder than I could describe. No doubt Carlisle had shared with the rest of the family what he thought had happened to Bella. I knew he already suspected as much, but there was no way to confirm it completely. With each discovery, we came closer to confirmation and that was painful for all of us.

Emmett looked around, a knowing look on his face.

I get it, man.

I pushed off of the tree and came to stand next to him. I suppose he did get this, to some degree. With everything that had happened to Rosalie before she had changed – when Emmett found out, it had nearly destroyed him. It was years of anger and rage and it bubbled out into every facet of his life. He had eventually moved beyond it, though it still clouded much of their relationship.

"They're ready for us," Alice declared, jumping down from the branch to join us. Emmett nodded, confirming why he was here.

I searched Emmett's thoughts for any information he might have – anything that Carlisle might have shared with him, but there was nothing. His thoughts relayed a brief conversation where Carlisle emerged from Bella's room, asking that Emmett find me and bring me back.

We ran back keeping an unusually fast pace, even for us. We arrived back home in a matter of seconds. I wasted no time, bounding through the open upper floor window into our family sitting room.

I searched Carlisle's thoughts, but to no avail. He was blocking me.

"We must respect Bella's privacy in whatever way we can, Edward. I don't think it's right for me to allow you to see what I've seen." His hands were folded across his lap as he sat in the pristine beige leather chair.

"My main concern is infection, the possible damage to her esophagus and vocal cords, and her fractured ribs. Based on my physical assessment I don't think her fractures punctured her lungs or anywhere else. I'm confident she has a semi-severe concussion. I'm monitoring her blood transfusion and we're infusing her with Ringer's lactate to ensure she remains hydrated." Carlisle's eyes avoided my own. I knew this was immeasurably painful for him.

"Anything else?" I strained against the words, bracing myself for what he would say.

"I can't do any further examinations without Bella's consent. But I think a vaginal exam is necessary and I don't think we can put it off for very long." His voice was hard, stone-like and devoid of emotion. I knew he was taking on this demeanor as a tool for self-preservation. He couldn't properly care for Bella unless he detached himself in the hardest moments. Like now. This moment was hard beyond description.

And there was something he wasn't telling me, something he was concealing from me. I knew better than to push for that information right now. I surrendered to Carlisle for the moment, though I knew I would have to question him about it later.

"Can we let her rest a while longer?"

"Yes. But we'll have to broach the subject with her as soon as she awakens. I'm not comfortable putting this off any longer."

Neither was I.