I've got a plan for these two. A good plan. At least, I think it's a good plan. We'll see. Thanks for sticking with me on this one. Too many plot bunnies, not enough hours in the day…I tell ya!
Up next we've got some action and the return of a couple of characters…who do you think?
Chapter Eighteen
"Why are we traveling in the sewers?" Jasper moaned. "It smells foul down here."
"It's because we are walking in shit," Edward replied. "Your genius wife said that there was a slew of newborns down here in the sewers, dragging humans to their deaths."
"I hate walking in the mucky, disgusting water as much you do," Alice snapped. "My jeans are designer!"
"Now, they're designer garbage," I quipped.
Alice hissed at me, giving me a glower. "Besides, it's sunny out and I refuse to let today be wasted because we sparkle like a damn disco ball," Alice grumbled.
"Why didn't you see that it was going to be sunny, Ali?" Edward asked, innocently.
"I don't know. My visions are all sorts of wonky, lately. I really think that one of their new creations is some sort of jammer. He's jamming my vision frequency, or something. I can't see anything. It's frustrating and I hate not knowing what the hell is going on," Alice sighed, running her fingers through her spiky hair.
"Is this jam recent?" I asked.
"Within the last twenty-four hours," she said, hopping to the side of the sewer, walking on a slightly raised platform out of the water. "Seriously, how can vampires live like this? The stench is abhorrent. It's going to take days to get it out of my hair."
"Quit whining, Alice," Jasper said, sending her a wave of exuberance. She beamed, bouncing to where Jasper was standing. "Much better."
She's got a point. How can vampires live like this? With our heightened sense of smell, hearing and vision…this place kind of sucks, Edward thought to me.
When you're a creature of the night, this is where you dwell. Most vampires live like this, a nomadic existence. The Cullens, the Denalis and myself, we're the oddities in the vampire world. I would rather have a permanent residence where I could hole up on sunny days; where I could shower after a particularly brutal hunt; where I could be me, I replied.
We continued walking in the sewers, dodging rats, dead animals, garbage and human excrement. Despite the fact that my skin was impervious, I was still squicked out from walking in the sewers. It had been a week since my shield went haywire, manifesting itself physically. It hadn't since, but Eleazar thinks that it had something to do with my emotions. I agreed with him.
We were on another recon mission. Alice had been adamant that we needed to just use this as a recon mission. We couldn't engage in any of the vampires that were swarming Chicago. Well, we could, if they attacked first. Prior to losing her visions, Alice saw that if we tried to take down the near sixty newborn vampires, our family would be decimated. No survivors. I refused to have that happen. So, we were just gathering information.
In the sewers.
Of Chicago.
On a sunny day.
My condo sounded much more appealing right now. Wading in ankle deep, mucky, nasty water was not my idea of a good time.
"Edward, do you know, does Tanya own any real estate?" Jasper asked.
"She used to have an apartment prior to moving in with me," Edward replied. "However, her lease had lapsed after she made herself comfortable in my townhouse and I don't know where she was living after I kicked her out. Nor do I really care."
"Did Tanya have any family?" Alice asked, kicking a rat off her shoe.
"Why the fuck are we talking about her?" Edward snarled, his temper getting the best of him. His growl was low and fierce, making the walls of the sewers resonate.
Baby, relax, I soothed, rubbing his shoulder. I didn't understand his aggression toward Alice. His eyes were black as pitch and he was ready to strike. Edward's muscles were tense and he was glaring at Alice. She was hiding behind Jasper, asking why Edward was acting like a jerk. He was growling lowly. "Edward," I said, stepping in front of him. "Talk to me."
His eyes dropped to mine and he immediately softened. "I don't know what that was…" he muttered. His eyes lightened and reddish-gold swirled in his irises. He looked abashed and ashamed.
"You were involved with Tanya as a human and now she's involved in this mess. You're not happy about it. I get it," I said, cupping his cheeks, massaging his soft skin.
"It was more than that," Jasper said, sniffing the air. He ran his hand along the sewer. "It was like a surge of angry emotions was sent in our direction. Edward got hit with most of it, making him snap at Alice. Though, you do that again and I'll tear off one of your limbs."
"Sorry," Edward replied, feeling a great deal of remorse for what he did to Ali.
I inhaled deeply showing my frustration of the situation, and caught trail of a scent that was fairly recent. It was heavily disguised from the shit in the sewers since the scent wasn't very pleasant itself. The scent was musky, earthy and smelled like sweat socks. How would that scent lure someone? With another sniff I turned my head, "This way," I said as I took off. We ran through the sewers, trailing the sour scent. About two miles from our original location, we found an opening in the sewers that housed roughly six of the newborn vampires. They were feeding on ten humans. Brutally. Bodies were broken and dismembered, blood covering every flat surface. Edward's eyes blackened and he growled lowly. I wrapped my shield around him, blocking the scent of the fresh blood. It was very tempting, but I wanted to ensure that he didn't taste human blood. I didn't want him to become a monster.
One of the newborns tossed the body of a victim towards our hiding spot. The victim's heart was still beating and if they weren't drained, the change would begin. After a beat, the woman arched her back, screaming. "It's burning!"
"What should we do?" Edward asked, his heart breaking for the woman at our feet.
"We can't just let her change. No one should be forced into this. Her heart still beats. She hasn't crossed the point of no return. I need to help her," I hissed. Keeping my shield wrapped around Edward and the rest of our party, I bent down, looking at the woman. She was sobbing, begging for death. If someone drank from her, she would get her wish. "I'm sorry," I whispered. I brushed my lips against her neck, finishing what the newborn did not and ending the woman's suffering. Her blood didn't hold the allure that it once did. I felt guilty for drinking her last pint; almost like going off a diet and gorging myself on chocolate. I couldn't get her blood past my esophagus. Her heart stopped beating and I said a quiet prayer for the woman.
She thought you were an angel, Bella. An angel to take her to heaven, Edward said in my head, his hand rubbing my back.
I felt like the angel of death, I said, purging her blood from my system. I had forced it to stay in my mouth as I put her out of her misery. It felt wrong to drink from her. So, I just acted like a conduit to end her pain.
"Sean! Smell that?" asked one of the newborns.
"All I smell is blood," Sean replied. "I need more."
"I smell it, too. Strawberry and freesias," said a woman. Another sniff. "Leather and horses, too."
"There's also the masculine smell of sandalwood, linen and honey," said a husky woman's voice. "And cookies?"
We've been had, Jasper thought to me, his eyes narrowed.
"What should we do?" Edward hissed to Jasper.
Run, Jasper replied, shooting off in one direction with Alice in tow. Edward grabbed my arm and we darted in the opposite direction. Our movements were light and fast. However, we could hear the newborns gaining on us, using their newborn strength to catch up. Edward looked behind us. Three newborns were on our tail. Without faltering, Edward scooped me onto his back and kicked it into high gear. He was moving so quickly that the sewers seemed to blur. A low boom rumbled through the sewers as we passed through the sound barrier. I tightened my hold on Edward's neck as he easily moved through the sewers. Within seconds, we reached a grate heading out to Lake Michigan. Putting me down, Edward kicked out the gate and we dove in, swimming north toward Wisconsin.
On land, Edward ran us back to the house in Whitefish Bay using his supersonic speed. He moved so quickly that humans would not have been able to see him. It just appeared the trees moved or there was a gust of wind. After showering, we contacted Carlisle and Eleazar, explaining our need to get out of Chicago quickly. They agreed that we handled the situation the right way. Carlisle was also shocked that I was able to end the poor woman's suffering without falling into complete bloodlust. I was so new to the vegetarian diet.
However, talking about what I did caused me to feel thirsty, the tell-tale tickle in the back of my throat erupting into a ball of flames and it was almost like a delayed reaction. I was crazed, needing something to drink. Edward hung up the phone and he dragged me to the middle of the Canada where I felled two moose and a random coyote.
After I finished my meal, I sat down on a random rock, overlooking a small town. I curled up and sighed, wishing that this whole ordeal with James, Victoria and the newborns was over. Edward found me, handing me a random daisy. I smiled at his sweet gesture, tucking it into my hair. "Thank you," I murmured.
"You looked like you needed something to make you smile," he said, sitting behind me and pulling me to his chest. "Penny for your thoughts?"
"Hmmm?" I responded.
"Your mind, it's closed to me," Edward said as he kissed behind my ear.
"Sorry. Just trying to sort out everything," I replied, frowning slightly. "Wishing that all of this was over."
"I know, baby," Edward said, tightening his hold on me. He put his chin on my shoulder as we sat in silence. "Are we going to stay with Cullens when all of this over?" he asked.
"I've been on my own for most of my existence, save for the first year with Jasper. This living with other people is challenging. I love having them close by. They're our family, well my family. You still have yours," I said sadly, twining my fingers with his.
"But not for long," Edward said. "Bella, we have an eternity together. My parents will probably be with us for another thirty or forty years. I'll be just like you, but instead of being alone, we'll have each other. We'll have the Cullens. We'll have the Denalis."
"I'm sorry that I…" I trailed off.
"Don't apologize for coming into my life, nor for changing me or anything, Isabella Masen," he growled, arching a sexy eyebrow. I smiled, kissing him swiftly on the lips. He smiled against my mouth, deepening our kiss briefly before pulling back. "Though, I'm with you in regards to challenge of living with four pairs of mated vampires with super hearing and acute senses of smell. The stuff I want to do with you…" His eyes darkened and his arousal grew against my back.
"Insatiable, Edward," I giggled, elbowing him in the ribs.
"I am, Bella. Seriously, I'm hungry for your body every second of every day. If I could, I'd want to stay inside of you because I need you that much," Edward said, nuzzling my neck. "But, logic and the need for wearing clothes would dictate that I can't be permanently making love to you, so I'll take this instead." His arms wrapped tighter around me, hugging me to his solid, warm body.
"But, what about when this is over?" I asked, snuggling further into his solid, strong arms. "Do you want to stay with the Cullens?"
"With the Cullens or near the Cullens?" Edward clarified. I frowned. "Bella, my angel, we are, for all intents and purposes, a newlywed couple. I know I've said this before, but I want to take you on an extended honeymoon once all of this is done. While we're gone, we're going to conceive an 'heir' for my web/internet business."
"Edward, we can't…" I began.
"Conceive. Have the allusion that we had a baby. I know that we can't have children," Edward replied, holding his fingers in air quotations around the word conceive. "Bella, I'm a control freak. I do not trust my company in anyone's hands but my own. Yes, I handed over the reins to Jasper for the time being and he's doing fantastic, but there are things that I feel the need to take of personally. When our 'heir' comes of age, I can go back as Edward Masen Jr. Until then, I'll run the company remotely and making limited speaking engagements. I'm twenty-five. With the right clothes, hair style and air, I can pass for up to thirty-five. It'll give me ten years to run the company as our 'child' grows…then, ten years to turn into an odd recluse before dying in a car accident and my son, Edward Jr. takes over at the age of twenty."
"You're an idiot, but it works," I snickered. "So, when we come back from our honeymoon with our 'heir,' where do you want to live?"
"We could live in Antarctica with damn penguins for all I care. I just want you," he whispered, kissing just behind my ear, nibbling on the soft skin there.
I wrinkled my nose. Penguins? I giggled.
"Nah, not really. I like the blood of carnivores. Besides, we'd have to eat like a hundred penguins to satiate ourselves," Edward shuddered. We sat quietly for a few moments, Edward's fingers gliding along my arms and hands. "Seriously, though, where do you want to live after our extended honeymoon, angel?"
"I would like to be close to the Cullens. I've missed Jasper so much and I want to get to know Alice, since we are sisters, to an extent," I replied. "Do I want to live with the Cullens? No. Nearby, yes."
"What about college?" Edward asked as he turned my face to him. "You never got to finish your original degree."
"I don't know. I'd like to finish my degree in Psychology/Social Work. Jasper told me that was what I was studying. He looked at my transcripts before he went off, running into Alice. I was the top of my class," I said smugly. Edward smiled crookedly, flashing all of his teeth to me. I kissed him because he was so adorable. "Would you want to go with me?"
"I would, but with my role as the CEO of my company, it would pose a challenge," Edward frowned.
"You could go, but taking classes to get an additional degree. It's completely plausible. You need to stay ahead of the current trends. Taking classes would be beneficial," I smiled. He bit his lip and nodded, giving me his signature crooked grin. "In regards to where we live, it really doesn't matter. I just want you, me and someplace where we can make love."
"That is definitely doable, Mrs. Masen," he growled, nipping at my earlobe. I squealed, squirming in his arms. His nipping stopped and turned into languid kisses on my neck and shoulder. I settled back into his arms, sighing contentedly. The sun was dipping below the horizon. We needed to head back to the house, but staying up here in a little bubble in Canada was really nice and soothing. It almost made me forget the drama mounting in Chicago.
Almost.
"How did you do it?" he asked, his voice filled with awe.
"Do what?" I asked.
"The woman? The one that the newborns didn't drain," Edward whispered. "You…you…were amazing with her, Bella. Such control. How?"
"It wasn't without a lot of restraint," I said. "I know that Jasper was struggling with his bloodlust. It stopped when I wrapped my shield around him, but he was growling when I drank from the woman. Though, it felt wrong. Did you ever go on a diet as kid?"
"Yeah. I wasn't always this svelt," Edward snorted. "In middle school, my appetite grew but I didn't have a growth spurt until I was in high school. Even after the growth spurt, I had a fair amount of baby fat. My mom put me on a strict diet. I hated it."
"Did you ever cheat?" I asked, quirking a brow. "Sneak a Twinkie or a Ho Ho?"
"More than just one, but I had discovered the joys of working out at that point," Edward chuckled.
"Well, that's what it felt like when I drank from her. I felt like I was cheating on my diet. So, I had a bulimic moment, purging the blood from my system. It was too rich…too decadent…too filled with humanity for me to enjoy. Some of it was absorbed into my system, but I got a majority of it out."
"Do you think you'd drink from humans again?" Edward asked.
"No. Not anymore," I said with certainty. "We probably should head back to Wisconsin. We need to tell our family what we saw."
"Yeah," Edward replied, sighing heavily. "Come on, angel girl. Hop on."
"Why?" I smirked.
"Because I want to try out my new wheels. Breaking the sound barrier is fucking cool," he chortled. "I do not want to wait for you, slow poke."
"And to think, I was once the fastest," I giggled, climbing onto his back.
"Not anymore. Perhaps one of my aliases should be 'Speedy Gonzalez,'" he laughed before taking off like a shot. My laughter trailed behind us like melodious bells in the distance.
xx A&M xx
A week later, we were back in Chicago. It was night time. We were with Carlisle and Esme, searching near where I first met Edward, at the club. There were a rash of missing people from that location and a number of dumpsters that were lit on fire. Apparently, the newborns were told to dispose of their kills and this was their way of doing it, much to dismay of the city of Chicago. Regardless, their means of disposing of their kills was sloppy and causing the death rate in the city to rise, dramatically. Sixty newborn vampires could easily destroy Chicago. They were will on their way to do so. Over four hundred mysterious deaths since the whole ordeal began. I'm surprised the Volturi haven't stepped in yet. Yes, they've noticed, but not done anything about it.
That disturbed me more than anything.
"I feel so badly for these newborns. James and Victoria are creating them on a whim, with no care or guidance," Esme frowned. She was arm in arm with Carlisle as we wandered along the streets outside of the club. It was around midnight. Music from the club and surrounding bars filtered out onto the street. We were all dressed like club goers. It looked weird to see Esme and Carlisle, who were twenty-six and twenty-three, respectively, look like college students. They'd always dressed older, but still stylishly. Tonight, Esme was wearing a pair of black hip hugger jeans and a tight, asymmetric top. Carlisle, who usually opted for khakis and a dress shirt, wore a pair of dark wash jeans and a black button down. His hair was mussed up, more akin to Edward's unruly do.
"Me, too, Es," Carlisle sighed. His mind was filled with sorrow and regret for the state we found the newborns in; living on the streets, feeding in sewers and back alleys, acting live savages, wild and feral.
"What has happened in a situation like this before?" Edward asked, squeezing my hand and dragging me closer to him. He wrapped his arm around my waist, molding me to his body. "This is ludicrous in creating sixty newborns."
"James and Victoria seem to think that numbers are going to be what saves them," Carlisle sighed. "It does seem to be a bit or overkill. I almost think that they're creating these vampires to spite us. It's another 'throwaway' body, a line of defense between them and us. Emmett was the first, triggering the growth of their bloodthirsty army."
"And to answer your question, Edward, the Volturi intervened before it got to be too much," I said. I gave him the abridged version of the Southern Wars around the time of the Civil War in the United States. I also told him about Jasper and how he was one of the newborns created during that time, helping the rise of Maria. She was destroyed by the Volturi, paying for her crimes of creating a newborn army with her life.
"The Volturi will undoubtedly do the same, but we're the apparent eyes and ears for them, since they do not want to send a contingent to Chicago," Carlisle sighed. "I understand their trepidation to leave the castle in Volterra, but we are not a part of the Volturi Guard."
Edward nodded but stopped abruptly. He growled lowly, looking to his left. "There are some newborns feeding a half mile from here. I can hear them chanting for more blood," he said.
We walked briskly toward the small alley were seven newborns were feeding on three humans. I wrapped Edward in my shield, blocking him from the scent. The newborns were torturing the humans. It was sadistic and reminiscent of what James did to me prior to my change.
Did James change them? They are particularly violent? Edward thought to me. The one in the corner is…
I know, I cringed.
"Stay away!" hissed an African American male vampire, clutching an unconscious woman to his chest. "This is our hunt." His ruby red eyes glared at us as he sunk his teeth back into the woman's neck, tearing out her throat. Esme whimpered behind us, crying for the death in the alley. Unceremoniously, the vampire tossed the woman away and darted to another human, biting down at the ankle.
Another male vampire was glaring at Carlisle and Edward, perceiving them as a threat. Both men positioned Esme and me behind them and took a defensive posture. They weren't crouching, but protecting us from the feral slew of vampires in front of us. A small female bounded past the glaring male, launching herself at Carlisle. He twisted quickly, pinning her to the ground. The rest of the vampires snarled lowly, preparing to fight.
The first vampire, he looked at my husband and settled his eyes, which were now black onyx, on me. "Victoria called for your death," he purred, sounding almost like a child singing. "And die you shall!" He snarled and I felt my power zap out of me. The African American vampire was the jammer. He crouched and jumped over us, wrapping his arm around my neck. He was strong, trying to pull my head from my body. I screamed, squirming in his arms. Carlisle and Edward jumped on the vampire while the rest converged on Esme.
Edward used his newborn strength to pry one of the arms off my attacker and I flew from his deadly embrace. I darted into the fray with Esme, working on destroying as many newborns as possible. The jammer was beating the hell out of Carlisle and Edward. Carlisle's shirt was torn and he was covered in two visible bite marks. Edward was a little better off, since he was more equally matched to the jammer, but he couldn't wrap his arms around the vampire, to tear him a part.
The first vampire was in flames in a dumpster, thanks to Carlisle. We were dealing with five additional vampires. It was an unfair fight and we were losing.
Esme and I managed to dismember another vampire, adding that body to the growing flames in the dumpster. I was fighting a teenage girl. She was unseasoned, but strong. Her bright red orbs indicated that she very recently changed. Behind me, I heard another vampire jump into the fray. They didn't join the fight, but rather watched. When I was done with the girl, I threw her into the dumpster. I turned to face the newest vampire and was faced with my sire.
James.
"My best creation to date," he purred, an evil smile spreading across his face. "Though, it was unintentional. If I hadn't been interrupted…"
If my heart was beating, it would have stopped. Fear overwhelmed me as flashes of my last moments as a human flickered through my brain; memories from Jasper, depicting what he saw. I felt sick, terrified and so insignificant against his withering gaze.
"No tearful reunion, Isabella?" James sneered, stalking toward me. His gait was purely feline and absolutely predatory. His smile was even more evil as he reached for me, running his finger along my jaw. "Hmmm, I loved the way you screamed, Isabella. It was so erotic when I fucked you."
"You didn't fuck me. You raped me," I hissed, wanting to hurt him but my anguish and fear was crushing me.
"Potato, potahto," he said, sniffing my hair. "Still smell as sweet, Isabella. I wonder if you feel the same, too." His hand wrapped around my waist and inched up to my breast. I was trembling, afraid of his touch but unable to move. I was glued to my spot. Venomous tears were spilling over my cheeks unabated.
Edward's head popped up and just as James was about to cup my breast, he was torn from me. Edward was snarling and clawing at James, ready to take his head off. I collapsed with relief, but my heart shattered when James reacted. With a guttural roar, James kicked Edward off his chest and sent him flying into the middle of the street. I was planted on the ground, still unable to move. My mind was panicking and I felt weak, vulnerable and so unbelievably dirty. I was stronger than when James last saw me, but he still held the same power of my mind. If it weren't for Edward, I would have been in the same position as before.
I was so out of it, locked in my own head and buried in my paralyzing fear that I didn't see another newborn creep over a building. I was thrown into a wall and my leg was stomped on, nearly wrenched off. My right foot was twisted and hanging off my body, uselessly. The male who attacked me, bit my wrist and his venom caused searing pain to radiate through my body and my hand was tossed into the street. I fought as best as I could with one arm and one leg, but I was weakening quickly due to the loss of venom from my injuries. I was still jammed by the African American vampire, who was now getting pummeled by both Carlisle and Esme. I couldn't defend myself with my powers. Everyone was silent to me and I couldn't block anyone.
"GET THE FUCK OFF MY BEST FRIEND'S WIFE!" I heard in the distance. I knew that voice. I'd heard that voice directed at me…
Weakly, I looked up and saw Emmett barreling toward me. He pulled the vampire off of me, breaking him two and sending him into the flames of the nearby dumpster. He turned and worked through the remaining newborns, dismembering them easily. I slumped on the ground, falling to my knees. Rosalie walked over to me and she held my hand. "Do you want me to reattach it?" she asked. She was disheveled and windblown, like she had sprinted all of the way here.
"When did you get here?" I asked, my voice pathetic and barely above a whisper.
"Alice asked us to come when her visions went blank last week. We were running through northern Illinois when she texted us, saying she had a feeling that something bad was going to happen. We followed your scent here and lo and behold, she was right," she responded. Tenderly, Rose lifted my arm and put my hand back on, biting down just above my wrist. Her venom rushed through me and I whimpered. It was nearly healed when the most awful blood curdling scream filled the air. My chest hollowed out and I knew it was Edward.
"Help me," I hissed. Rose wrapped her arm around my waist, dragging me to my foot. My one leg dangled uselessly with venom leaking out of it. Despite my weakness, I felt the jammer's power lift as he was thrown into the dumpster. With everything I had, I directed my zinger at James. I tried to wrap my shield around my mate, but in my deteriorated state, I couldn't.
James had punched his hand through Edward's stomach and was biting at his neck. James let out his shriek, turning his hateful glare to me. James was surrounded and he gave us all a parting snarl before taking off in the night. The remaining newborns were destroyed and my mate was in a broken heap in the middle of the street. Emmett was cradling Edward, who was dazed and whimpering in agony. Rosalie helped me hobble to Edward. Emmett got up and helped him into my arms.
"Edward," I whispered.
His hollow, black eyes looked up at me. "I'm fine," he said feebly. He was anything but fine. There was a gaping hole in his torso, just underneath his sternum. His neck was nearly ripped out, causing venom to leak freely onto the pavement.
"Carlisle, what do we do?" I sobbed. I knew that we had to replenish his venom, but I didn't have enough to do it. However, the mate in me didn't want anyone else to touch him.
"Can I approach, Bella?" Carlisle asked quietly, his hands held up defensively. I narrowed my eyes, growling as I nodded yes. Carlisle was disheveled and littered with bite marks on his arms and neck, but he was fully intact. Carlisle checked Edward's injuries and they were severe. If he had been human, his back would have been broken and he would have been dead. The fact that he was still alive, albeit weaker than a newborn kitten, was a testament to us being vampires. Edward's eyes were black and empty, gripping at my arm to try and stay coherent. "I know you probably don't want this, but we all have to help Edward in order to heal him. You included."
"Carlisle, she's injured herself and barely hanging on," Esme admonished.
"Alice and Jasper are on the way, should be here in two minutes," Rose said. "Carmen and Eleazar are stuck with a bevy of newborns with Kate and Garrett. Irina is close by. I smelled her on our way in."
"I'm here," Irina said, dropping to her knees next to Carlisle. Alice and Jasper arrived, too. I was holding Edward, wanting to pick him up and run, but my useless right leg made that impossible.
"Rose, I need you take Bella and tend to her leg," Carlisle said authoritatively.
"No," I hissed. Edward growled lowly in agreement, too drained to verbalize.
"Bella, this is for Edward, sweetie," Alice whispered. "And for you. Once you're both healed, you need to hunt."
"Shouldn't we grab them and go back to Wisconsin?" Jasper suggested.
"Edward is fading fast. He won't die but he will fall into a trancelike state if we don't do something quickly," Carlisle said quietly. "That takes weeks, if not months to bounce back from. Rose, take Bella and head back to the house. We will be there as soon as we can with Edward."
Rose bent down, swiping me from underneath Edward and taking off, running as fast as she could away from where Edward lay in the middle of the street. My chest cracked and I was sobbing, trying to reach back for him. Rose didn't stop until we were over the border in Wisconsin. She righted my leg and bit down, filling her venom into my thigh. I screamed at the sheer amount of venom needed. After a few moments, my leg was rightfully attached and I was able to stand on my own accord. "Now hunt," Rose commanded. "Do not run back to Edward. I can beat you right now."
I scowled at her, opening my lungs and mind to find something to drink. I found two deer and three wolves, drinking from the quickly. I was nearly as sated as I should be, but I was in better control. I didn't feel weak and out of sorts. "Better?" Rose asked.
"Yeah," I replied. "I'm still thirsty…"
"That's understandable. You lost a lot of venom. You'll probably have to hunt again, but wait until Edward's back up in Wisconsin. He'll need your help," Rose answered.
"I should be with him," I muttered, looking longingly south, back toward Chicago.
"Don't," Rose warned. She tugged on my arm, guiding back toward Whitefish Bay. "You don't want to hear his screams."
"It's bad, isn't it?" I whispered as we ran back to Esme's house.
"Imagine what you felt in your leg times a thousand," Rose grumbled. "It's like going through the change again, but amplified for a short amount of time. Six vampires are injecting your husband with their venom to replenish what he lost and heal his wounds."
"It should be me," I growled possessively. The hollow feeling in my chest deepened and I started to change my course. Rose stepped in front of me, pressing her hand to my chest. "Fuck! Rose, let me go!"
"No," she said harshly. Her phone beeped. She pulled it out of her jean pocket and she smirked. "It's done and they are working on getting Edward to hunt. He's very weak and needs the boys to get his kill. They are just outside of Wisconsin, in a forest preserve. When they get something in Edward, you will need to take him up north to get some carnivorous blood." Her phone beeped again. "And bond with your mate," she snorted.
"How long until they get here?" I asked, picking at my venom covered clothes, plus the feeling of disgust and filth from James' hands on me filtered through my brain.
"About an hour. You'll have time to shower," Rose replied, leading me back to the house. We got into the house and I went directly into the bathroom, stripping off my ruined clothes and tossing them into the garbage. As I stepped under the hot spray, everything from tonight hit me.
Hard.
A/N: A shorter chapter, I'm sorry. However, this seemed like a good stopping point and such. Anyhow, no pictures with this bad boy since it was a lot of action. There will be some pictures next time around (NSFW and otherwise). You can find pictures for this story on both my blog and tumblr (links for both are on my profile). You can also find me on Facebook (Tufano79's Twilight Fanfiction Appreciation) or on twitter: tufano79. Leave me some lovin, kids! Please and thank you!