Disclaimer:
I own no part of the 'Twilight Universe', only the idea to this story. This is strictly for fun.
Author's note:
Thank you all for your feedback! It means so much to me!
Again, I apologize for the long wait. I know, it is getting old. "Sorry!"
Recap:
Last chapter was in Felix pov. This one is about the same time line, it is spring still.
Chapter 28:
Carlisle's pov:
...and thus we leave Mrs. Smith to your ambulatory treatment.
We recommend a daily check of the surgical wound for three days. The stitches can be removed form the tenth post- op day onwards.
In case of complications we solicit immediate re- representation.
Sincere regards,
( Dr. C. Cullen)
As if there would be complications. I shook my head. I knew I hadn't made a mistake, that the wound was healing perfectly fine. It was a clean cut, I had operated.
But Mrs. Smith was stubborn and I was sure she would not heed our advise to go easy for the next week. Her behavior was, what might cause complications...
So stubborn. I shook my head and took a deep, unnecessary breath.
She had reminded me of our Bella; same age, dark brown hair, brown eyes, similar petite figure, pale skin. She blushed a lot, too.
But she seemed to have one goal only, to get out of the hospital as fast as possible, away from my presence.
Unlike Bella, she had a healthy dose of self preservation and kept the little contact we had to a minimum. Fear was always detectable in the air, when I was close to her.
So unlike our Bella, my dear daughter.
Once again I got lost in fond memories. How happy we had been, when my son first brought her to our house to introduce us officially. She had been so brave, sure, she was excited and quite nervous, but there was no trace of fear, when I met her that second time; she had been so polite. She had wanted to please us, to make a good first impression. I almost couldn't stop the bright smile that would have revealed my teeth, something most people found threatening.
Later on we had learned, that she didn't feel frightened, even when confronted with blatant presentations of our inhuman nature...
I went through every memory I had of her, always concluding with the last moments I had with her in my study, stitching up the delicate skin of her upper right arm. Her blood didn't entice me, but calmed me somewhat. It calmed me to know she trusted me as much as she did. The conversation I had with her regarding our different beliefs in souls still had me reeling, even after all these months. She truly didn't think of us as damned creatures, but persons; good persons at that. She had unknowingly given me hope, and I would forever be grateful for her and her forgiving personality.
For how could a forgiving god, in whom I believed, not forgive us our sins if a human could? Was it possible, that I had been wrong all along? That I was not cursed?
As always, remorse followed these musings. She had forgiven us for everything, had redeemed us, and in turn, we had left her. I didn't dare to think of how our actions would affect her. In my opinion, we had proven our true monstrous nature with this single act.
She must hate us now. How could she not?
Not for the first time, I wondered how she was doing. I feared the worst; how could one survive a life-changing event like this?
It had been obvious, that Edward and Bella were made for each other. The way they moved, gravitating towards each other, like a dancing couple, performing a memorized step sequence. They were so in tune. She had brought him to life, as he had her. She seemed to glow in his presence, to thrive in our company. There was no doubt in my mind, never had been either, that she was meant for him, meant to complete our family, meant to become one of us.
Even if I had not been so sure about that before, it was fact now. Edward was empty, a shell of the man Bella had made. He was like Marcus.
I shuddered, when I remembered my old friend. Could I even label him as such? We had hardly spoken during all the years I had spent with them. Then again, he never said much to anyone. But I had the distinct impression he had been rather benevolent towards me, unlike his other brother, Caius. He was a hothead, and didn't hesitate in showing his it not been for Aro, I would have left Volterra within a few days time. Alas, I truly had enjoyed the many discussions, that I had with him, regarding everything and anything.
Another shiver ran down my spine. At some point, we would meet again, and he would know of our capital offense. We would be punished, severely. I still held the hope, that I would be allowed to carry the guilt alone, as I was the leader of this coven, I should have made the decision.
My dear Esme. She knew of my dread, of course, I had talked to her about it. She had decided to stand by my side to the very end.
The greatest fear I had was, that Bella would still be alive, when this time came. She would be killed, no questions asked. I had been witness to the proceedings during my time in Italy. The human with knowledge of our secret would be tracked, brought before them, and drained, effectively silencing a possible liability forever.
My chest constricted with worry for my daughter. She was so innocent, she didn't deserve any of this, but they would not listen, never. Edward had condemned at least us three, himself, Esme and me, possibly even Bella.
What disappointed me even more was that Edward, my eldest companion had left us shorty after we had arrived in Alaska. We hardly ever heard from him.
My and Esme's desperation was palpable. Jasper and Alice knew, of course. It was tangible. Also, Jasper knew about the consequences of our infarction. He had been hell bent on going back and taking out Bella himself. Esme and my words had fallen on death ears. Only Alice's pleading moved him;. reluctantly, he had agreed. They had distanced themselves, however. They had gone to research Alice's past, and only called every few weeks, to keep us in the loop. Jasper's intention was obvious though, he didn't want for him or Alice to be involved with this any further. I couldn't blame him, he was trying to protect his wife, his mate.
Shortly after their departure, Emmett and Rosalie had left us, too. Effectively ending the existence of the Cullen Family.
Now it was only Esme and I. The house was far too spacious for only two of us, but my dear wife still held the hope, that we would reunite again. Ever since her change, she had been so optimistic, and I only loved her more for it, but I couldn't find it in me to share her point of view.
A knock on the door to my study interrupted my musings. A moment later, my dear wife came in and slowly walked over to me. Her presence used to calm me. Now she was too upset herself. Still sitting in the comfortable leather chair, I rolled back from the table.
She regarded my expression carefully, memorizing every detail. I didn't bother to school my features into a mask; we were always honest with each other. We had no secrets.
With a sigh, she sat down on my lap, her left side against my chest.
She snuggled her head against my chest and gently slung her right arm around my left side.
"You stopped typing a while ago, my love," she said. There was no accusation or any emotion of this sort in her voice, she simply stated a fact.
"I got distracted," I admitted, my tone just as soft as hers.
"You were thinking about our situation again, weren't you?" she asked, and placed a small reassuring kiss into the small hollow at the base of my throat. She knew me so well.
I just nodded, unable to speak, as my throat was choked with emotion. My arms slung around her and encased her in a steely embrace, that would crush a human. She didn't mind, didn't object, if at all she seemed to hug me tighter in return, clinging to me like to a lifeline.
Nothing more was said. We had been over this far too many times and the outcome had never changed.
When the sun came up behind the trees, signaling the later hour, I begrudgingly lifted my wife off my lap, gave her a loving kiss, and finished yesterday's work by printing and signing the discharge letters. After that I followed my hideous routine I got changed, said goodbye to my loving Esme, and made my way to work.
It was spring already, Christmas had come and gone. We had received a post card from Emmett and Rosalie, wishing us well, telling us how much they liked Africa. We also had gotten a box with gifts from Alice and Jasper. The enclosed letter told us not to feel bad for not getting them any in return. Alice had seen it already. Neither Esme nor I had shopped for gifts this year. We had everything really, and knew we loved each other. Our gift was the time we spent together.
The new year had begun and nothing had changed; well, apart form the fact, that I had begun to reconsider past decisions.
Jasper's pov:
Alice and I currently resided close to Biloxi, Mississippi, to find out more about her past. Our relationship was tense, and had been ever since we left our former home in Washington.
Of course it was not so much the home itself she missed, but Bella. She had not wanted to leave her, and neither had I. Only the reasons therefore were different, very different. She didn't want to leave her best friend, her sister, behind; the one person through which she had been able to experience humanity, at least in parts. I understood her, and I did like Isabella. She was an astounding young woman, and had earned my respect, a feat no human had ever achieved before. I felt bad for what I had done on her birthday, regretted my loss of control.
But I didn't want to draw unwanted attention to ourselves, by leaving alive a human who knew about us. That was why I had been unwilling to leave her.
At first, when we had arrived in Alaska, I thought Edward would cave soon enough and run back to his mate, effectively rendering my interference unnecessary.
However, he didn't. He even left the family in a cowardly attempt to avoid further repercussions. So I found myself constrained to eliminate her as a liability. The law claimed her, either way, and Carlisle knew that; everyone knew that, yet no one seemed willing to take care of this matter. I liked Isabella, I truly did, but I would not risk my mate for her. No way.
As soon as I had made my decision, my mate stood before me, sobbing, begging me not to harm her friend. Carlisle and Esme pleaded with me to let her be, and Emmett even went as far as to threaten me. He really loved her as a little sister.
We had argued for hours. In the end, I had relented under the condition that we would keep our distance from the family.
The fact that neither of us had ever met any member of the Volturi guard, especially their tracker, in person, soothed me a little. I had heard how formidable his gift was. In comparison to him James seemed like a complete layman. We would do well to keep away from them. I felt for Carlisle and Esme, even admired the loyalty they held for Edward. But at the end of the day, I couldn't understand their decision to condemn themselves to death for a mistake they didn't make.
My wife would have stayed with them, but I forced her to accept the compromise by being determined to follow through with my threat on Bella's life, if she would not comply; and I would have. Sure, Alice would have been terribly angry with me for a long time, after everything was said and done, I was her mate and she would have forgiven me. It was a given, and she knew that, too.
We had decided to come here in hopes of distracting ourselves by finding out about her past. It was a futile effort, because the the clues that had let us here had been revealed by none other than James, when he had tried to off Bella. Subsequently, being here was a constant reminder of what had happened.
Alice blamed herself, as she thought the whole ordeal had been her fault, since she should have seen the events. In my opinion, the whole mess was the result of a succession of accidents and trivialities.
No one was to blame more than the other, well, apart from Edward. He should not have run away like a scared schoolboy, when first faced with problems in his relationship. Every couple had their fall-outs, even soul-mates. He could have worked through those issues. But he chose not to. In this instance, I truly sympathized with Bella, for being mated to such an idiot.
Alice had sent a package with gifts to the family for Christmas, and we had called on New Years eve. Other then that, contact was sparse and far in between.
Over the time my wife had become more and more restless, but when asked for the reason of her agitation, she wouldn't tell. I would simply have to keep an eye on her.
As soon as we were done here, I would try to make her agree to a long over-due, extended visit with my family, Peter and Charlotte. Hopefully the company of those two would be enough to distract her. I missed her exuberant moods. Lately she was rather down.
When I could hear her coming back from her hunt, I got up from the window seat to go greet my wife. Leaving my thought to continue at a later time.
Today we had plans, we would go and observe her niece, make good use of a cloudy day. Perhaps I could even tempt her into shopping...
"Perhaps some other day, Jasper. I'm not really in the mood... Let's go," she shot my plan down from still outside the door. A low chuckle escaped me in turn. Even after all these years, I had not learned, not to make any plans. It was a personal trait of mine, I simply had to plan.
"Very well, Darlin'," I said, my accent breaking through. In a swift move, I grabbed her and held her in a tight embrace, placing a soft kiss to the top of her head, enjoying the love she had for me. "Lead the way." With this I set her free from our embrace and followed hot on her heels.
Rosalie's pov:
I felt the raging mass of water battling for control over my body, trying to sweep me away. But it couldn't, I didn't budge, not an inch, I lay unmovable. The constant thunder of its might drowned out every other noise, and left me in a peaceful state, alone with my own thoughts. Em was off hunting again. The big game he found here, near the Victoria Falls appealed to his playful side. He saw it as a challenge, but he was not as enthusiastic as he had been last time we were here. He was subdued; I caught him frowning sometimes, when he didn't realize I was there.
It made me angry, and I felt a little remorse.
How could our family break apart like this? We had always been so strong, had faced dangerous situations head on, as a unit, and now we were splattered all over the western world. And all that happened because of this stupid human girl. How could she!
I hated her for that, I was so angry with her, but at the same time I knew she was not to blame, at least not completely. The main portion would have to be placed on Edward. I always thought that the girl would damage my family, but in the end it had been Edward's stupid decision to leave, that did us in.
My anger grew into fury. We could have been a family. She would have had to be changed and I would have had to deal with her on a daily basis for the rest of eternity, but at least the family would have been whole. Now, we were torn and would have to face the Volturi eventually. We would have to live on the run until they caught us.
Edward was such a selfish prick. To use Jasper's bad conscience over the incident against him, as well as Esme's, Emmett's and Alice's slip ups against them. He guilt-tripped them, saying that in the past he has has to leave a home due to their actions, that now it was their time to support him. I hated him for using their shame, their moment of weakness for his own gain. What an ass.
If I ever saw him again, I would make his existence hell. I would make him pay for saddening my boisterous Emmett.
A sudden splash above me alerted me to my husband's arrival. He sank down next to me and immediately realized my bad mood. In the blink of an eye he had me encased in his strong arms and held me tight.
The motion saddened him. This was the kind of bear hug he had given Bella in the past. She had made him happy, had given him something back, that he had lost with his change, the love of a little sister, that adored him.
Perhaps, we could sneak a peek at her? Just to see she was right, to sooth his worries. I disregarded that thought almost instantly, but quietly, without my permission, it had taken up a permanent residence in the back of my mind, tempting me.
End note: I know it is short, but we almost made it through the tough time! Have a nice Pre-Christmas season! Sorry for the layout mistakes. I can't save it the way I want. No idea, why?