Happy Sunday everyone! Hello to all my new followers! *waves hi* Thank you to everyone who reviewed, I'm happy you are all still enjoying this story. Here is chapter 14 for you! I hope you like it.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Some day everything ends
Can we begin
Finding a way back before we're
Too late and lost in between
The truth and the dream
I've never been more ready to move on

The Sound of You and Me - Yellowcard

Chapter 14 – The Sound of You and Me

BPOV – Monday

Monday night was always the slowest night of the week. I guess I could understand the reason: a new week had started, things had to be settled before people could go out the other nights. Because it was so slow, I had more time to think today and I decided that I would tell Edward about my situation – and Rose's – I would work up the nerve to tell him sometime this week. I can't endure much more of this. I'm ready to move on.

I sit in my make-up chair, my silky hair easily pulled through the hair brush as I gather it up into a ponytail. I contemplate how to broach the subject with Edward. I couldn't very well go and say 'Hey Edward, I was kidnapped two years ago by my step-dad, I need your help'. Yeah, I'm not sure that would go over so well. But then again with a subject like this is there another way other than to just jump right in?

My thoughts drift away from our conversation and just focus on Edward only when Rose enters the room and sits down in her chair that matches my own at her make-up table.

"Apparently there's a new girl," she says.

"A new girl?" I ask, it doesn't seem normal but who the hell has any idea what Phil and Laurent will do. If they think it will make them money they will always go with it.

"Yep. Phil puts her on trial tonight, so he changed the order of our solos. Not that it changed much for us, we're still the two last to go: me, then you." I'm glad to hear that we still have our normal places. I know that we don't want to be replaced in Phil's eyes. That means less privileges and rewards, so I definitely don't want that. We already get so little from him. Rose's voice still talks away in the back ground. "You'll need to hurry up to be ready for the auctions."

"I will hurry, you know me. Do you think that's kinda weird, we haven't had a new girl in a long time." I throw that out there to Rose to get her ideas on the subject.

"I know."

We are both silent for a moment as we finish our make-up, then Rose says: "Maybe we could try to befriend her before Tanya gets to her."

"Are you sure it's a good idea?" I am instantly afraid to trust someone new, especially with our secret.

"She has access to the outside, Bella. Maybe she could help us out."

"But what about Edward and Emmett?" I don't want to sink my trust in anyone else; Edward is the only option for me. I don't want to stray from our already established plan.

"We need a back-up plan, in case they run away screaming after we tell them about our situation. I don't think they will, but we never know. It's better to be safe than sorry." I could see the logic in her ideas. Of course we need a back-up plan, why didn't I think of this?

"Okay. Let's try to talk to her tonight. What's her name?"

"Carmen," a new voice replies just as Rosalie is about to speak. We both turn to the door. A girl with dark skin and dark hair stands in the opening with a bag in her hand. "Hey, Mr. Dwyer said I could share your dressing room."

For once, Phil makes things easy for us without even knowing it.

"Yeah, sure," I reply to the new girl. "Just try to find some space on the counter."

"Thanks." She steps further in the room and makes her way to the bench behind us to pull off her shoes. "So what are your names? Nobody gave me a tour or anything, so…" she trails off.

"I'm Rosalie," my best friend replies, "and that's Bella."

"Nice to meet you both, have you worked here for long?" She continues to prepare herself for work so she misses the look that I shoot to Rose.

On a silent agreement, we decide to tell her the basics for now. We need to see if she could be trusted before we drop the bomb.

"I've been here for three years," Rosalie says, "and Bella, two."

"Wow." Carmen seems surprised. "Are you here for a specific reason?"

"The pay is good," I reply quickly. We need to turn this back on her. She has asked too many questions already. "What about you? Do you have a specific reason to come and work here?"

"Well, I need a lot of money quickly. Besides selling drugs, this was the next best thing, and it's legal, as opposed to selling drugs." Legal? I'm not so sure… but hey, I can't really do much about it right now.

"You're right. It's probably better this way."

We don't say much more before the solos start. Since she's first to go, she has to hurry up and prepare. Later that night, I'm the first to get back to the dressing room since my auction client is already gone. There is still a few hours left before the club closes. Talk about a slow night. I have a feeling we won't be able to shower tonight…

"Whew," Carmen says as she comes into the room. She sits down in Rose's chair and unpins her hair, "I hope it's not always this slow!"

I laugh a little. "No, it's not always this slow. Only Mondays are slow, but this is the first time I have seen the place so empty. I promise the other nights are a lot more eventful."

"Okay, good." I could see her reflection from the mirror. She takes me in cautiously as she removes he make-up. I decide that I better start the questions so that I could lead them down the path I want them to go.

"So where did you work before you came here?" I figured I would kill two birds with one stone, direct the questions as well as a good time to get to know her.

"I mostly did odd jobs here and there. I even walked dogs. But you know, if it helps to pay the bills…" She shrugs. I wish I understood what she is talking about but with my experience I could only guess. I have no real knowledge since Phil destroyed that for me when he brought me here.

"Yeah." I reply and hope that I sound knowledgeable about it all.

We fall silent again as we remove our make-up.

"So where are you from?" I ask when I stand to remove my corset.

"What is this? An interrogation?" Carmen says. I worry that I pushed it too far but then I hear her laughter so I know she's joking with me.

"Ha, no, I promise. I just want to get to know you."

"Okay, okay. Sorry. I'm from San Diego. I've travelled around a little, but I've been in Seattle for a few years now."

"Do you have any family?" Rosalie joins us again, as I ask.

"What are you girls doing?" She asks.

"Just talking, Rose," I reply, "I'm trying to get to know our new colleague."

"Oh! Don't let me stop you then."

"My parents are still in San Diego, but my brother is around here somewhere in the state of Washington. He didn't leave an address, so I don't know where he is."

"Are you guys on bad terms?"

"No, we just lost contact at some point."

"Oh, okay."

I keep the questions flowing for her for a while until we three end up at a table in the bar area. James and Victoria aren't in the room, so Laurent joins us.

"Hello girls," he says.

"Hi Laurent," Rosalie and I greet him. "Carmen, this is Laurent. He is our host during the evening. I know you saw him onstage, but since nobody gave you a tour or introduced you to anyone…" I continue.

"Thanks, Bella. Nice to meet you Laurent." Carmen says.

"Same here. Are you from Seattle?" He seems a little too interested, if you ask me.

"Not originally." She replies vaguely.

Just as Carmen replies, Tanya and Irina walk by us, closely followed by Jessica, on their way out of the club.

"Say, I'm beat, are you two ready to leave? I'll walk out with you both, if that's okay?" Carmen asks.

"Some girls have to stay and wait for Phil to finish up." Rosalie answers.

"Why?" I tense as Carmen asks. I wait for Laurent to get angry or something. I know it would come.

"Because they owe the boss and they can't leave until they pay him off. Why?" Laurent replies too easily, like it was rehearsed or something and I have to say, it even sounded believable. I want to scream at the absurdity of the whole situation. Like a good girl, I keep quiet though. I know better.

"Oh, okay. I just want to make sure I wasn't missing out on any high roller after hours activities, that's all. So does that mean I can leave?" She uses her fingers to mark the high roller with air quotes as she speaks. Her purse is slung over her shoulder and she stands behind the chair she was occupying. All real casually like she's unaffected by the answers to activities that went on around here.

"Yes," Laurent replies.

"Okay then." She slides her chair under the bar table and turns to leave. "Good night everyone, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Good night!" Rosalie, Laurent and I reply.

"She asked a lot of questions." Laurent says suspiciously, his eyes glazed over as he gently swirls the bourbon in his glass, once Carmen is out the door.

"She had good reasons, you know," I reply immediately, "nobody gave her a tour of the place. She has a right to know how things work."

"As long as she doesn't ask more questions about you or why you are always the only ones left to wait for Phil, we should be alright." He smiles a greasy smile for us as he stands. "I wouldn't like to be in your place if Phil came to know you spoke to her about your situation." His gaze meets briefly with mine as well as Rose's before he walks off and makes his way upstairs where Phil's office is situated.

"We need to find a way to tell her," Rosalie says once Laurent is out of earshot.

"I know." I reply, as I nod my head.

The next night, Edward keeps good on his promise and comes back, and of course, Emmett is with him. Rosalie hasn't told me if he had made any kind of commitment to her, but if he hadn't been interested in her at all, he wouldn't have come with Edward, of that I'm sure.

The knowledge that I would see Edward a few nights every week makes this situation a bit more bearable. He wins me at the auction again (big sigh of relief), but this time it's not for such an outrageous amount like last week. I feel bad that he has to spend so much money just to see me. I just don't know how to make it stop without risking all of us.

The evening goes without a hitch, well mostly… Edward acts a little strange. I wonder if he's bored? Is he tired that I won't go out on a date with him? He doesn't talk as much as he usually does. The other times he came, he would ask all kinds of questions to try to get to know me and such. Tonight, not so much. I'm the one doing all the talking, and even then… I don't get much from him. I try to ask him more complicated questions where he would have to elaborate, but he always finds a way to give a short answer.

"Are you alright?" I ask at some point.

"Yeah, why?"

"I don't know, you're just… you don't say much."

"I know, I'm sorry." At least he has the decency to look sheepish. "I just have a lot on my mind right now."

"Oh. You know you can talk to me, right?"

"I know. I just need to sort it out before I talk to anyone."

"Okay. I understand. But promise me you'll tell me when you're ready?" I know my answer sounds desperate but I'm determined to do whatever it takes to keep Edward with me. I couldn't lose him, it would kill me.

"Of course. You'll be the first to know." He promises me with a smile, it's a little encouragement but not enough. I had seen a real smile from him. A real smile takes my breath away and makes me feel light headed from the sheer beauty of it. It takes over his whole face and lightly wrinkles his eyes. This smile only touches his mouth, none of the other tell tale spots across his face.

EPOV

Whew, that was a close call. Good thing I was able to avoid the real reason why I have a lot on my mind. It kills me that I know she's being held here against her will and I can't say anything to her. Chief Swan told me I have to try to act normal. That is certainly easier said than done, believe me. And Emmett is so bad at keeping secrets, I'd bet my trust fund that he will slip up before the night is over. Then we'll have to speed up the process, and things wouldn't go as planned.

Chief Swan wants to get the girls out on Friday. So that gives me three days to find a way to make her tell me about her abduction. I have a microphone hidden on me so that everything could be recorded; I just hoped she wouldn't find it.

I mean, it's right beneath my shirt. If she puts her hand under my shirt and touches my skin at all, she will find it for sure. I have to keep the making out to a minimum even though I want nothing more than to kiss her senseless right now.

God, I can't keep thinking like this. I have to keep my mind out of the gutter for at least a few hours.

Hello, I'm a guy. Good luck with that.

Okay, let's try to concentrate. I need to find a different approach with her, maybe I can make her say things without her really knowing, perhaps…

"So Bella, when are we going to go out on a date? I'm dying to take you out…" She blushes. She's so beautiful… Not helping, Edward.

"I… I don't know. I've told you many times before, I'm very busy. I'm here every night of the week, I never get time off."

"And what about a lunch date? Surely that can be arranged, you only work at night." I could see her hesitate. She scrambles to find a credible story.

Gotcha, love. You won't have to lie for much longer.

"I can't, I sort of have a day job as well." She doesn't look me in the eye when she answers me. Even if I don't really know the answer I would certainly know that this is a lie.

"Sort of?" I ask for more from her. I want her to trust me for two reasons, I want her out but the other part of me wants her to actually trust me enough to divulge a secret as all encompassing as the one she holds.

"Um, yeah… I clean up the bar during the day. There's no escaping it." I can see her discomfort, the war she wages inside of her own head. I just want to pull her to me and assure her that she can trust me but I can't. I have to wait for her to say it without provocation from me. It has to be all from her, according to Charlie.

"They didn't hire a janitor for that?" I pretend to be shocked but it is really just to get her to say more.

"Umm, no… I mean, yes, but he was fired two weeks ago, and they still haven't found a replacement. I offered to do it until they find someone, I need the extra money." My heart breaks a little more with each word she says.

"Alright, then. If you ever have some time off, let me know." I sigh and show a small amount of my frustration. The funny thing is that I really feel the emotion. It just isn't for the reason she thinks it is for. I want her trust more than anything. Okay not more than anything but more than most things.

"Okay, I will." Her face falls and she looks off toward the floor. Poor Bella, if only I could say something… but I promised Chief Swan to keep my mouth shut. I better not even try to hint at something; especially since he is listening to this as well. Otherwise I'll be in big trouble, his words exactly. I believed him.

"Bella, it's getting late," I say after I take a quick a look at my watch. "I'm really sorry, but I have to go. I have class early in the morning."

"Oh, alright," she replies, still looking down at her lap. She has not looked back up after her last comment. I have to do something; I have to make her see that I would never leave her. How do I make her believe that I would not abandon her so that no one else that listened in would understand what I said in reality? My brain searches for the right words. I get down on my knees in front of her and make her look at me. I have to direct her with my hand under her chin but she does eventually turn toward me.

"I wish I could take you with me right now." I'm certain that this comment will earn me a slap on the back of my head later, but I don't give a damn. Bella's too important to me and she has to know how conflicted I am so that she feels better about things. "Then do it," she replies, which catches me completely off guard.

BPOV

I can see that I have surprised him with my comment, that wasn't really my intention. The words flew out of my mouth before I knew it.

"I… can't. Not tonight. But soon, okay? I promise."

I can only nod as disappointment fills me. He's abandoning me, once again. He would leave without me by his side once again. I worry that this is too good to be true, and that I have scared him away.

"Hey," he says, grabbing my chin again to make me look at him, "I'll see you on Friday, okay?"

I nod again; I still have no words so I just use my nod as his answer. He leans in and kisses me softly. I kiss him back, while I try to hold on to the last shred of hope that remains in my heart. He leaves another kiss on my forehead, and then he walks out the door. Hopefully, not out of my life.

I go through my end of night ritual in a haze, the motions are robotic, nothing more. Finally when Rosalie is out of the shower, back in our basement, that's when I finally come out of my haze.

"Are you okay?" she asks as she sits down beside me.

"Honestly, I'm not sure."

"Why?"

"Well… Edward acted kind of strange tonight."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know, it was like… we didn't talk much tonight. But that's not what was unusual. The unusual part was that there was some kind of awkwardness, a tension in the air. He wasn't the Edward that came the other times. He was distant."

"You know, I'm glad we talked about this, because it was basically the same with Emmett. But as opposed to you, Emmett did everything he could to stop any conversation. The second we were inside my room, he started to kiss me. I couldn't say I complained too much because he's an amazing kisser –" I giggle at that, "but we usually talk more in between the kissing."

"Do you think there is something behind this?"

"I honestly don't know."

"Do you think they're tired of us? Tired of not being able to date us properly and have a real relationship?" These questions have eaten at me ever since Edward left earlier tonight. "Have we scared them off?"

"Oh, Bella…" Rose says when she engulfs me in a hug. "I hope not. But this breaks down any doubt we have about telling them. We have to do it. On Friday. We can't wait any longer."

"I know."

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