*~I DO NOT OWN TWILIGHT....I OWN 'La Pomme D'Armor'~*
*~THANK YOU for the reviews!!~*
*Bella*
*(Two Weeks Later)*
I woke up to the quiet and peace before all hell was going to break loose with my father – he had not spoken to me in a fortnight and I had never missed a place so much than France being back in England.
I stayed here for the two weeks – because of my mum...Even if one parents never wanted to talk to me I can still hold onto the one that did. Fortunately the wrath of my father was not going to be endured this particular morning because he had already sodded off to work...The escape was so much easier for him – a coward who runs away from him...Deep down inside he knows that I am right and that kills him.
After a quiet change for the morning, I picked up my dirty clothes for the week and went down the stairs to put them into our wash room...I threw the pile of darks into the machine and put it on a 'cotton' cycle after pouring some detergent into the small drawer.
I decided then, to not walk back up to the quietness of my room where in the past – it could be only place I can go to truly be alone but now, it was different.
I walked into the kitchen with the original plan of making mum and I some much needed caffeine, when I was stopped in my tracks my hands covering my mouth in shock when i found my mum....On the kitchen floor sobbing her heart out, her gaze up on the ceiling...I have never seen her look so broken and it broke my own heart to see her in this position.
"Mum?" I rushed over to her, my system going onto auto-pilot throwing me against the shock and sadness that I was truly feeling in that moment.
"Bella" she acknowledged me, letting out a loud wail...I wrapped my arms around her shoulders and held her close to me.
"What happened, mum?"
She pulled away from me wiping her nose with the back of her hand...That was the one gesture that indicated she was trying to be strong but...She had been strong for me for so long – now was not the time to show strength.
"Talk to me" I pushed her gripping onto her shoulders, trying so hard to keep my voice steady...It was time for a role-reversal, it was time for me to be strong for her.
"I am sorry you have to see me like this"
"Stop...Don't apologise to me...Let me help you"
"Sweetheart you can't help me"
"I can....But I won't be able to if you won't tell me what's wrong"
"Bella, please?"
"Mum...Tell me, now!"
Without saying a word, my mum choked on a sob and looked down to one of her arms...Slowly she brought one of her hands to her sleeve as I followed her gaze to her skin...As she trailed her sleeve up her arm, nausea flowed my stomach and the tightness of my throat constricted my voice or getting any kind of emotion out of my mouth.
There, along her arm were small bruises in a circle there were other larger ones further up her arm, as well...The bruises still a dark blue colour but they were not very recent...Mum started crying again as she released her gentle hold on her sleeve and sunk back against the wall.
"Mum...How long?" I choked out, the tears falling down my face.
"Don't worry about me, sweetheart – You have your own life, now"
"Stop talking like dad...You are my life, mum and I need to know how long dad has been hitting you"
"I caused these, myself"
"Don't lie to me – when I was a child, both yours and dad's views on your hatred of liars got drilled into me"
"Bella...Stop, you're worrying over nothing"
"Nothing....You are calling this nothing?!"
"It's my fault"
"How is it your fault?!"
"Dad gets very stressed and I have habits of asking him too many things when he comes home from a long shift"
"Violence is not the answer to anything...How long have you been suffering mum?"
At her silence, I took her face gently in my hands and made her turn her eyes to mine.
"I love you, mum...You have to tell me...How long has this been going on?"
"Since you left"
"What?"
"I am so sorry, Bella...I do not want to upset you – please don't cry"
I made a sudden snap decision in my head...I was already planning on going back to France to see Edward again mum staying here could surely mean that she had to endure the domestic violence that I had no idea that she had to go through at the hands of my evil father. I had never liked my father, of course with your family there is always a strong love there...Unconditional against your better judgement but seeing the way he had treated my mum had made he HATE him...Hate him with such a passion!
"Mum...Listen to me, I am not going to have you stay here with dad...Come back to France with me"
"What?"
"I will figure something out...I can dig into the savings account you and dad left for me, here...I can buy us our own place and get a job-"
"That money has gone, Bella"
"What?"
"Dad spent it on a holiday home in Barbados"
"Why did you let him do that?!"
"He promised me....He promised that he was going to put it back from his pay check but it never happened"
"Fine...Then I will get a job...I cannot go back knowing that you are going through pain every day for the likes of my father, mum"
"We can't"
"Why not?!"
"I am married, Bella....That kind of commitment cannot be erased by using the end of a pencil...I made him vows – vows that even now, I have never broken"
"Things change when he is hurting you, mum...He is no dad of mine – he has never been a dad to me!"
"Don't say that, Bella"
"I am being realistic....Come back with me"
"How?"
"I will help you pack and we will go to the airport right now and get late tickets...Before dad comes home"
"What will he say?"
"Something tells me that he is not going to care one inch about you....Let me help you for a change, mum...Even though, I should be mad at you for not telling me about this"
"I love you so much, Bella...Do you know that...I want you to know that I am so sorry I have never been a mother to you in the past"
"The past is the past...Come on we haven't got much time"
*Edward*
"What are you talking about?!"
Sebastian had bounded into the kitchen...Out of breath and a worried look on his face...He had thrown down the weekly newspaper on the kitchen table...He was trying to explain something to me but he was so out of my breath that he was not making any sense – it was almost infuriating. Sebastian pointed at the paper as he held a hand to his chest and crouched slightly in order to steady his breath back...Honestly he sounded like an angry bull.
Sighing, I picked up the paper and glanced down at the headline.
YOUNG WOMAN KILLED IN NIGHTCLUB SHOOTING
"What is this supposed to mean?" I exclaimed throwing the paper back down on the desk...Sebastian's breathing had subsided a little as he opened his mouth to reply to me.
"Lucy" he breathed.
I felt my mouth turn into a wide 'O' shape...My mind too in standstill to register any normal and understandable words. "Carlisle has been arrested, the police were sent a tape of his nightly....Happenings and...They got there in time to see Lucy get shot" Sebastian spoke his voice breaking slightly at the end..Overall breaking the silence, I was thankful that he had kept on talking when I had not been able to. "Lucy got Carlisle behind bars but had to pay the ultimate price...The funeral service is being held for next week"
"I don't believe this....I always thought that there was no way that he could get caught"
"Lucy did what she had wanted to do....I imagine she did it for Bella as well"
"Oh my god....I have been so busy trying to get vacation time to go back to England and get her...How could I have not heard about this?"
"Working in the town has its advantages, Edward...There are flowers and letters scattered all around the outside of the club and on the pavement"
"What is Bella going to say?"
"Bella is not coming back, Edward...She does not need to know"
"Don't say that, Seb...I know it may be true, but don't say it!"
"Edward have you slept at all?"
"Why sleep when I have work to do and an income to earn?"
"Edward...This is not about your hours – I am sorry that you are missing Bella and believe me, you are not the only one but you really must sleep...You are destroying yourself"
"Seb...I have to get to work"
"Luckily...So do I, I will be lying flowers down for Lucy when I finish later on this evening...If you wish to join me – then please do"
*Bella*
"Get your passport, mum!" I yelled up the stairs, getting the last of my things packed together as I had gathered my suitcase and my handbag by the front door...I had been successful in getting my mum ready and telling her to pack her own things...My mum was not one of those mums who needed to spend hours upon hours gathering all her things and needing a separate suitcase for her makeup products...Thank god!
"I have everything, Bella" I heard mum say as she came down the stairs...I took the suitcase from her hand and put it with mine, mum also had a handbag over her shoulder...My dad had the most clothes than any of us in this house and now, my mum can spread her own wings and earn her own money the way that she wants to and buy the things that she wants...All I want for her, now is to start afresh and if that meant that I have to live with her, then that is what I would be prepared to do.
"Got everything?"
"Yes...Listen; I have some French notes that I exchanged in secret...Take them for me"
"Mum-"
"Please, Bella let me be a mum for once in my life...Let me look after you"
I nodded in defeat and grabbed both of our suitcases...Mum took the car keys out of her handbag and climbed in...I was adamant that she not take her car because of the fact she had to leave it at the airport but she had planned for her sister, my Aunt who I hadn't seen since I was a little girl to pick her car up from the airport and look after it...God knows whether mum was going to sell it – for now...I needed to get her away from this awful place.
"Honey..Can you drive...I am really shaky?" mum choked as she stood next to the open passenger door...I nodded and swapped places with her.
I could drive, I had learnt and passed the test but my dad had never brought me a car even though he had promised to...Another promise that was never kept.
The drive to the Airport was quiet and awkward...My mum was shaking, silent tears falling down her face – she looked so fearful of being away from my father...But this truly was the best thing for her – divorce was far from her mind, but everyone deserves a break and she had been a victim for a long while and I refused to stand by and watch her get hurt and blame herself for things she has never done, again!!
*Edward*
*(Afternoon)*
As I stood in front of the huge amount of flowers...My thoughts went to my Bella. I wondered what she was doing...Whether she was okay and maybe having a small hope inside myself that she was missing me as much as I was missing her. It was stupid to think that she could ever love me back like I loved her but, being a friend to someone can still mean that you miss them when you go away.
Sebastian had not finished work, yet...I had chosen to go early because of making the choice to leave my own work a little earlier...I put down my bunch of white roses from the local florists and stepped back a few steps breathing in a slow breath.
Lucy had done what no other girl had – I never knew her until the last weeks of her death and it hurt me to think that she had to meet her end like this in such an unjustifiable and unfair way...Then again, Lucy had shown that any woman can do anything – 'Beau Lace' had shut down and there were already planning permission signs going up on the outside of the glass windows for new flats....Lucy had changed everything and her not being here to see what she has succeeded was hard to swallow.
"Hey"
I turned to find Jacob standing behind me, I had to do a double-take for the reason that Jake and Paul always spent their time together, Jake was harbouring a sad look on his face – neither of us could share tears because we did not know Lucy well enough but it did not stop the whole situation from being sad.
"Hey" I replied glumly putting my hands in my coat pockets.
"How are you feeling?" Jake asked as he stood next to me "I heard about what happened and...Well, I suppose I had to come and see it for myself"
"Yeah...I still can't believe it"
"Judging by the huge bags under your eyes...There is no point in me asking about whether you are missing the love of your life?"
"What?!"
"Relax...Alice told me"
"Of course she did...That girl cannot keep a secret!"
"Don't be mad at her, I pushed her to tell me and believe me, it took a long while for her to crack"
"That's good to know"
"Come on, Edward...We could all see it – we had bets on but then we stopped because you took so long to finally admit it to anyone"
"I refused it because of her...I did it for her"
"I know...But she left France because of you...Does that not tell you anything?"
"No...Friends protect each other"
"Bella is not your friend...She never has been, since her first night here you have had that smitten look on your face the moment she walked into a room"
"Okay...Let's change the subject, now"
"No...I don't want to"
Sighing in defeat...I didn't have the energy to fight against Jake.
In arguments he always won and there was no way I was going to start winning now!
*Bella*
"Gosh, this place is beautiful!"
Getting to France had been surprisingly easier now that I was able to find where I was originally going and know my bearings...I never once released mum's hand as we both stormed through the gardens and into the main town square.
Upon seeing the fountain...I stopped in my tracks, I had planned to go straight to Edward's but there was someone who may be able to help me a little better than he can.
Without saying a word to my mum...Keeping her hand firmly in mine and our other hands pulling our suitcases along behind us...I walked into Sebastian's cafe.
He had not noticed me as his back was turned...I put my case down on the floor and rang the bell on the countertop as he turned and gasped out loud...On his noise...I panicked and put my index finger to my lips luckily to get the feeling back into them after lugging my suitcase across France.
"Seb...I need your help" I whispered "you have to promise me, you won't tell Edward that I am here"
"He has been missing you, Bella...So much...We all have!"
"I have missed you, too but this is no longer just about me...I know that you probably already know about my acts at that nightclub and as much as it scares me to be back here...I need to know the cheapest places to rent here"
"Of course but why?"
"This is my mum...My dad has been treating her badly and I need to look after her, she needs to have some therapy as well...If I can get a hold of it"
"Calm down, Bella...Listen – There is a spare flat above here that is not being used...We rent it out to people but it hasn't been lived in for months...Your mother can stay in there"
"Oh...Really, thank you so much!"
"My mum's friend knows a good counsellor and she does do home visits – I could organise that for you"
"Oh Seb...You're the best – everything has been so hard...I don't want Edward to know...At least not yet, first I need to look after my mum" mine and Sebastian's conversation was quiet enough so that my mum would never be able to hear the plans for therapy – having a place was all well and good but if she had been emotional for a while – a stranger may help her relieve some of the feelings and burdens she felt in her heart about my dad.
"Come here, Bella" Sebastian walked around the counter and wrapped his arms around me...I let out my tears silently where my mum couldn't see me, holding my amazing friend close to me with one hand as the other was still occupied.
"Bella...None of us thought badly of you...You are loved and I will do everything I can to help you...I promise"
"Thank you" I replied appreciatively.
Thanks for Reading!
*Samantha*
xoxox