Rescued.
Chapter 3.
I walked for a good hour, I had no idea how long Vanessa had been in the water, the movement of walking kept me warm and the sun had mostly dried our hair and clothes, but I was really worried about her getting sick from being cold and wet for so long. I came into a clearing and as I entered it I could see three men running in our direction, I hoped that meant that I was close to Forks or at least close to finding someone who was looking for my pumpkin, it was starting to get dark quickly now. As they neared I could see they were all tall and muscular, they were all similar in features but the biggest of them was black haired, one blond and one had the same striking redish bronze hair as my pumpkin.
"Nessie." The red head almost cried out when he saw her in my arms, she woke when she heard them approach, her grip re-tightening on me instantly. He reached for her, his face a mixture of fear, and relief. But she hid her face in my hair. "Vanessa?" he asked confused, "its me, Eddy." but she shook her head, she was hanging on to me for dear life. "What happened." he asked me.
"I saw her being swept down river, so I jumped in and pulled her out, it was quite far away, so its taken us sometime to get back here," I said, not quite able to suppress the yawn I was fighting back. They gasped.
"Is she okay?" they all asked.
"Scared, tired and shook up." I answered.
"For the love of all that is holy, she could have died." red head said horrified, "I need to check she 's okay."
"You're Eddy, her uncle?" I asked, he had the same green eyes as her.
They all stared at me for a beat too long before he spoke again. "She's spoken to you?" they asked shocked.
"Of course." I answered, was it such a shock that she'd do that?
"She hasn't spoken to anyone since her parents died." Eddy said, oh my... my heart ached at the thought of what this tiny thing had been through.
"She told me they were in heaven... how long ago was it?" I asked not hiding my own surprise.
"Its been a month now, I took her to the meadow, to get her away from all the madness over this damn wedding, I've been so stressed out I must have fallen asleep, when I woke up she was gone." he said, the panic still evident in his tortured green eyes.
"Yes she saw a rabbit and followed it." I explained, "Well, we need to get her in the warm and have a doctor look at her." I said.
"I am a doctor." he said.
"Pumpkin, Eddy needs to look at you, to see if you're okay." I said to her, but she shook her head, and Eddy groaned in frustration.
"Come on lets get them back to the house, then we can work something out." Blondie said.
Eddy was staring at me "You must be freezing." he said. Now he'd mentioned it I was actually shaking now the sun had gone, he wrapped his jacket around my shoulders and then surprised the hell out of me by scooping me into his arms, so he was carrying me and my pumpkin.
He was practically running with us in his arms, about ten minutes later a house came into view, it was all glass, and the lights from inside lit up the path around the house. As we rounded the side of the house the sight before me had both pumpkin and myself cringing into Eddy's chest, cars and people everywhere, but worse still were the flashing lights of the police cruiser. I groaned internally when I saw the search and rescue team from La Push. Voices erupted and people came running towards us.
"Bella?" I heard Charlie and Jake's voices above the rest, and I hid my face in my Pumpkins hair. Eddy looked down at us, with a raised eyebrow, but headed straight into the house, I felt the warmth instantly.
I was placed on the couch and blankets were placed around me, several people tried to pull my pumpkin away, but she wouldn't budge, not that I wanted her to.
Eddy sat beside me, and rubbed my shoulder, I was positively shaking now, but not just from the cold, just hearing Charlie, and Jake's voices bought back all the memories of our last meeting.
Dr Cullen appeared and stuck a thermometer into Pumpkin's ear, he frowned then looked at me. "Isabella, its a surprise and a pleasure to see you again." he said, I smiled in response, then he put a thermometer in my ear too, "You're both running a slight temperature." he said, then pulled out his stethoscope. "Vanessa, sweetheart, I need to listen to your chest." he said but she shook her head refusing to let me go.
"Pumpkin I promise not to let you go, but you need to let doctor..." I stopped and looked up at him.
"Grandpa." he said with a small smile.
"You need to let your grandpa listen to your chest." I finished.
She peeked out from my hair. "You pwomis, not to yet me go." she said, and the collective gasps from around the room at her voice were almost alarming.
"I promise." I said then pulled her from my neck I turned her around and sat her in my lap with her back against my stomach, I wrapped my arms around her waist as Dr Cullen began to examine her.
I didn't see any communication, I was too busy watching my pumpkin for signs of stress, but Dr Cullen suddenly spoke. "Isabella is Chief Swan's daughter."
Just then Blondie walked in with a familiar young woman. "Oh my god... Bella?" Alice squealed, Alice was the only real friend I had in this town, she shoved Eddie out of the way and threw her arms around my neck. "Why didn't you call me? When did you get back in town? God I've missed you." she went on not giving me chance to answer, and making Pumpkin stare shocked at her.
Before I could reply to her Charlie walked in the door, his glare causing Alice to release me and get up, she went to stand by blondie, who put his arm around her.
"Nice to know that my daughter is back in town, I'd have preferred to have heard it from you, are you coming home?" he asked, I couldn't even bring myself to look at him. "Answer me damn it." he yelled. Making me and my pumpkin jump in fright, it made me see red and for the first time ever I stood up to my father.
"I do not have a home in this town, I have no family in this town, and I have no reason to tell the police when I come here, and I advice you not to raise you voice in front for this child again."
"Oh really, you ungrateful little..." he started.
"Chief Swan." Dr Cullen interrupted him. "If you insist on frightening my granddaughter and my guest I will have to ask you to leave."
Charlie scowled at him, and turned back to me. "This is not over, you ungrateful..." he started but the big guy with the black hair shoved him out of the door
I must not cry, I must not cry, I must not. I told myself but I felt a tear escape and roll down my cheek. Eddy reach over placing his hand on my shoulder. "Where are you staying?" he asked.
"I'm supposed to be staying at the Webber's." I said. "Oh, they must be worried." I said as Pumpkin turned around she looked at my face and her lip quivered, she wiped away my tear, then hugged me. "Don't cry B, stay wid me, you av to stay wid me." she said sobbing into my neck, which just set off the tears I was trying so hard to hold back.
"I'll call reverend Webber, tell him that you'll be staying here with us." Carlisle said getting up and walking out of the room, I wanted to object but I couldn't speak.
"I'll go make up the guest room." a pretty auburn haired woman said and exited the room quickly.
"Edward, Take Bella up to the spare room, I'll drive over to the Webber's and pick up her things." Blondie said, and almost instantly I felt myself back in those warm strong arms. Edward huh? I like that better than Eddy, he looked more like an Edward. He carried both myself and my Pumpkin up the stairs.
"Here, you can borrow these." Alice said on the landing, handing me a bathrobe and some other clothes.
Edward walked into a bedroom, "What should I do about Nessie, mom?" he asked the woman, as he sat me on the bed. She came over to me and sat next to me.
"Isabella, I'm Esme, please make yourself at home here, you are welcome to take a shower or a bath?" she said. "Vanessa, would you like to come and I'll run you a bath." she asked. Pumpkin hid in my hair again shaking her head, I didn't fight it, I really wasn't ready to let her go either.
"If everyone is agreeable, I'd like to take a bath, with my pumpkin." I said.
Esme looked at me confused, Edward looked shocked and my pumpkin spoke up. "I want to take baf wid B."
"If you're sure you don't mind, she has kind of taken control of your life all of a sudden." Edward said.
"Honestly, I don't mind, as long as she's happy."
"So Bella, doing what everyone else wants, no change there then." Alice said smirking from the doorway, "I can't believe you rescued her from the river, its like it was fate for you to be together or something." she said eyeing me, then side glancing at Edward. I chose to ignore her. If there was one thing I remembered about Alice it was her uncanny predictions.
A/N So what do you think so far? & what do you think Charlie and Jake did?