Chapter fifteen-
Set Up-
Edward POV-
I watched Bellas eyes light up as we walked into the elegant buffet. I'd always loved this place. I hadn't been here in a while, and figured it would be the perfect place. It still looked the same. It had soft lighting, leaving the room in a soft glow. It was a darker restaurant, but not too dark. There were little circular tables, each with a small candle in it. I headed toward one of circular booths. I didn't want to try and get circular tables to fit together. We all slid into the booth. Emmett and Rosalie paired up, as did Bella and I. Our seating had forced Jasper to sit with Alice, and it didn't look like either of them were going to have any problem with that.
Our server came over and asked us what we wanted to drink. We went around the table, giving her our order, and then got up, heading over to the large buffet tables. They were each labeled to the culture of food they held. I looked around. Italian, Chinese, Mexican, Indian, Thai, Greek. It went on forever. I looked over at Emmett, who had a huge grin on his face. I could tell that we would be returning here in the near future.
I walked over to the Chinese table and filled my plate, heading back to the table. I slid in next to Bella, who was already back.
"Do you like this place?" I asked Bella in a low voice.
She nodded, covering her mouth with her hand while she spoke. "Yeah. It's amazing how much food they have."
We went back to eating, and everyone was soon back at the table. I kept noticing that Bella and Rosalie were giving each other meaningful stares, and then nodding towards Alice and Jasper. I laughed to myself. Those two could probably pull off anything. I actually felt sorry for Alice.
"Bella, would you come to the bathroom with me? It seems Alice is busy." Rosalie said, winking. Oh, God. What are these girls up to? I thought to myself, as I scooted out of the booth, letting Bella join her.
What was it with girls and going to the bathroom in pairs? I mean, in a club I could understand, but at a restaurant like this? I know that they went because it made them feel safer. And that I could agree with, but it was so obvious they were going there to talk, and I couldn't help but wonder what they were saying.
It was obvious that it was something to do with Alice, and if she hadn't been so caught up in Jasper she would have caught on instantly. Lucky for them, she was off in lala land, which happened to be in Jaspers eyes.
I noticed a figure that I vaguely recognized, but then shook it off. Yeah, like that would ever happen.
Bella POV-
I walked back towards the bathroom with Rosalie. I knew what we had to talk about, and I was anxious. I hoped that whatever we planned would work. Alice and Jasper were obviously meant for each other. We just had to arrange it for them to see that.
"So, what are we going to do about those lovebirds?" Rosalie asked in her pleasant voice. Rosalie looked like a model, honestly. She had long hair, that reached down her back. Even though it was long, and looked like a lot of work, it looked perfect. Every hair in its place. I wondered how she managed that. My hair looked like a haystack the majority of the time, no matter what I tried to do to tame it. "That dress is amazing, by the way."
"Oh, thanks. It was one of Alices shopping results. I don't know. We need to set them up somehow. I just can't really think of anything that wouldn't be so painfully obvious. They need to keep bumping into each other."
"Ooh! I have one. Alice loves shopping, right? So us girls go out and shop, but we're bound to get hungry, especially if we time it right. So we go to a cute little place, and the boys are there." The words came out in a mush, as she bounced slightly.
"So which one of them is going to be in on this?" I asked, hoping that she said Emmett. It seemed like Edward had more contact with Jasper, and while I knew that he wouldn't mind getting Alice and Jasper together, I didn't know if he would approve of our silly matchmaking.
"Emmett. Definitely. He actually can keep a secret, surprisingly. You'd think with his personality that he would be like a kid trying to hide what he got for his mom on Christmas."
I laughed. I knew how that went. "So how about tomorrow, that way we know both of them will be in town." I suggested. Then I thought of something. "Do guys randomly go out to eat like we do, though?"
She shrugged. "Emmett does. I don't see why not, especially if they didn't have anything else planned. It'll seem normal if it's Emmett suggesting they go out to grab a drink, or something. I'm sure you noticed that he never stops eating. I could swear he's like a teenage boy."
I tried not to think of all of the things she could mean by that. "Perfect! Do you think Alice will suspect something, though?" I asked. I honestly didn't know. She seemed to always be behind everything, and I wondered how she would adjust to us pulling something over on her. If we could, that is.
"Nah. Did you see the way they were looking at each other? No way she's onto anything."
Suddenly Alice walked in.
"Hey, Alice. What's up? We were just leaving." I couldn't help but think Rose was trying a little too hard.
"Um, I came to the bathroom. To pee. That is what people do in bathrooms, you know." She laughed at herself and headed for a stall.
"We'll wait for you, then." I said, a little loudly, so she would hear me.
"Thanks, guys." Came her reply.
I was glad that no one else was in here. They would probably think that we were all nuts. When she was washing her hands I took the opportunity.
"So we were thinking that neither of us have been shopping in a while, and even if you have, we know that you'll go again. There is a pretty big mall somewhere here in town. What about hitting some shops, and then grabbing a bite to eat tomorrow?" I asked, hoping that she would say yes. I almost crossed my fingers, but realized that she would be able to see it in the mirror.
"Yeah! That would be so much fun. I've seen your closet, Bella. You seriously need an update."
"Thanks so much, Alice. By the way, what's going on with you and Jasper, huh?"
Alice blushed. "I'm not sure."
"Okay Alice, let's get you back. I'm sure he's missing you by now." I teased.
I walked out of the door behind the girls. A tall figure swayed to miss them, and collided with me.
"Bella? What are you doing here?" I recognized the voice instantly. Jacob.
I suddenly didn't know what to do. I just stood there, not saying anything, looking at the ground. I wish I could talk to Edward in my head. That would be extremely helpful right now.
"I asked you why you were here. Answer me." His voice was the rage that I had heard only a few times, and I braced myself for the impact.
"Edward!" I screamed, as I was shoved into a wall, my hands held above my head. It hurt worse this time, seeming as how some genius had decided to cover the upper half of the wall in stainless steel, that my head only bounced off of.
"I knew something was going on between you. Sleep with your lawyer? I always knew you were a whore. I'm so glad to be rid of you. You'll never amount to anything, you know. You'll never get anywhere in life." His voice was harsh, and I shook my head, which resulted in being bounced off of the wall again.
I wanted to scream, it hurt so badly. Everything went black.
Edward POV-
When I heard Bella scream I knew something was wrong. I ran towards the bathrooms and saw Jacob smash her into a wall. Her body crumpled and she fell on the floor. Emmett was right beside me, and we had him pinned against the wall in a second. Jasper was on the phone with 911, getting an ambulance. I was glad that we had talked Bella into getting a sitter for Connor. It wouldn't be good to have him in this.
When Jasper got off of the phone he took my place, and I ran over to Bella.
"We're not supposed to move her, Edward. The police are coming to get him." He jerked his head toward Jacob, and I clenched my jaw shut. I reached down and brushed her hair down her face that was now streaked with blood. I spun around, stopping inches away from Jacobs face.
"If you did anything to cause her permanent damage, if you killed her, I will make sure that you pay the consequences. The cops are coming to take your sorry ass to jail. She has a restraining order, dumbass. She was nice, and didn't press charges, and she could have. You should be in jail right now. At least you will be soon. Stay away from her, or I'll take things into my own hands." I hissed, clenching my jaw.
I could hear the sirens in the distance, and I went to the door, to wait for them. They were unloading the stretcher when I got there.
"Come with me, I'll show you where she is. The police were right behind the ambulance, and I motioned for them to come with, also.
"Oh, wow." I heard a paramedic whisper.
"Is this the man?" The police said, motioning towards to Jacob. I nodded.
"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to speak to an attorney, and to have an attorney present during any questioning. If you cannot afford a lawyer, one will provided for you at government expense..." The police officer read Jacob his Miranda Rights, and I turned my attention back to Bella. They were putting her on the stretcher. Alice and Rose were holding each other, crying. I realized that I would be done the same, if I hadn't been so shocked. I couldn't believe that he'd found her so fast. I'd made sure that there was no way to get her address.
I followed the paramedics, and jumped in my car, noticing that the others all piled into Emmetts.
I followed closely towards the ambulance, wishing that they would drive faster. We went into the office, and I filled out as much paperwork as I could. I paced around the room until the nurse came out.
"Friends of Isabella Cullen?" I couldn't tell by her expression if it was good or bad news.
We all stood up, and walked over to the nurse. I was dreading what she would say, and yet I couldn't wait any longer to know if Bella would be okay.
"I need to talk with you for a minute." My heart sank.
We walked into a small room, and I noticed new tears in the girls faces, along with Emmett. I knew that he was thinking about Connor right now.
"She will live." We all let go of the breath we were holding. "She doesn't have any serious head injury, but we will definitely need to keep an eye on her for a bit. She lost quite a bit of blood. It's surprising that she didn't break any bones. I understand that an ex-husband started beating her. What did he hit her up against?"
"Stainless steel." I whispered. At least she would be okay, I told myself. She wasn't going to die; she wouldn't be stuck in a bed, hooked up to machines for the rest of her life. Just breathe.
"That explains it. We have her cleaned up, and you can go sit with her. It'll be a little while before she wakes up, though. Don't try to wake her up, let her body protect itself a little longer. She is no way in a coma, so you don't have to worry about that. She's one lucky girl. This could have been much worse than it was." She sighed. "I'll let you go visit her now. I'll be in to check on her soon."
I walked down the hallway, to the room the nurse pointed at.
"Oh, my God." Alice said, covering her mouth. She walked over to the bed and held Bellas hand.
Bella had multiple cuts along the side of her hairline, and she had a big bandage around her neck, covering the spot that had broken open, I assumed. She didn't look good, at all. I filled with hatred towards Jacob. How could he do this to her? He was obviously insane.
Bella whimpered in her sleep, and I moved over next to her, taking her other hand in mine.
"We might be here a while, guys." I said, looking down at the broken girl lying on the bed.
The buffet is an unrealistic result of craving Chinese. I'm sorry this is taking so long to get out. I was at dance registration all day. Starting August 11th, I will either be posting early in the morning, or super late, on Mondays and Tuesdays. This will last until June, when my dance season is over. This chapter is pretty eventful and long, so please forgive me for taking so long!