All the important stuff belongs to SM.
Sorry for the delay, but I hope you like this chapter. As always, thanks to my favorite readers and reviewers. I don't have any other major life events to keep me from updating for awhile so I should be updating regularly unless I get taken out by a tornado. Also I want to say my thoughts and prayers go out to those effected by the tornado's that sprung up this weekend. Me and my family were luck, but I can't say the same for those only three miles from my house.
I had retreated into Bella's room three days ago. Her scent had still lingered there until today when my own scent had finally saturated into her bed. I clutched a different pillow and pressed my face into it hoping to get just one more breath of her. It had been months since she left for Volterra and as the weeks past by I fell deeper and deeper into despair. She had a boyfriend, she had replaced me and she willingly left with him. I had destroyed her trust in me and left her unprotected. I still didn't even know what truly happened to her. Lost inside my head time pasted, I could hear as my family checked in on me; asking me to get up and hunt, but I couldn't respond. My soul, my Bella was gone and I couldn't find the strength to go on in her absence. Moments later a thud close by brought me out of my thoughts. And when I opened my eyes, my angel sat on the floor, looking broken. I took a breathe filling my lungs with her heavenly scent as I rose from the bed. In two quick strides I was within reach, so I knelt down grazing my hand across her jaw; my eyes pleading the depths of my apology. And suddenly, she was all around me. Her arms wrapped around my neck in a flash and she pressed her body against mine. I was so shocked by her response to me I was speechless. Then sobs shook her body in my arms, so I held her closer rubbing circles on her back while I rocked her back and forth.
All of a sudden her body tensed and she was yelling that I needed to let go. My heart sank as she pushed me away, but a second later she burst through the window. I paused only momentarily before following after her. She was fast, but her movements were frantic and then she collapsed letting out a gut wrenching scream. I ran toward her, but the Denali's held me back. I fought against Eleazer's grip while Bella writhed on the ground a few yards away.
"Release me!" I screamed. "What's happening to her?"
"There's nothing you can do, it will pass on its own" Eleazer said. My head was telling me to run to her and comfort her. Once I stopped struggling Eleazer let go, and I realized the wind was beginning to blow furiously.
"Edward stay back, you are only going to make it worse" Tanya pleaded with me, but I couldn't just watch her while she was in so much pain. Her body contorted on the ground when suddenly I felt heat coming off of her.
"We need to get back now!" Eleazer called out and the Denali's and my family slowly stepped back as flames broke out across Bella's body. Within seconds her whole body was engulfed in fire, but strangely enough just as the flames began to reach beyond Bella's form they were drawn back. And the intense heat that I felt was suddenly blocked out too.
"She has contained it" Eleazer said. "This how she is when she has an attack, the only thing left to do is wait."
I took a deep breath not realizing that I had been holding it all this time. Just as the sun was beginning to set the fire decreased and vanished as quickly as it appeared. Bella was curled up into the fetal position facing away from us. Kate shrugged out of her sweater and wrapped it around Bella's naked body. Eleazer approached suddenly pulling Bella's arm away from her body.
"I knew it" he said knelling over her. She has enough bite marks here for someone to... and both arms..." Eleazer shook his head tucking Bella's arms in as he lifted her. "She still hasn't told us the truth about how she ended up with Laurent."
"May I see" Carlisle chimed in. He examined both arms revealing multiple silver scars frm previous bites. "What are you supposing happened, Eleazer?"
"I think he fed on her until she started changing, unless she got into one hell of a fight before we met her, but that fact that it is in such a contained spot makes my first suspicion more plausible. It took her some time to come out of her shell when she came here and even after she did I still don't feel like I know her, because she would tell us so little about her life.
"She did make reference to you Edward, but it was too painful for her to go into details even when she tried. She was definitely closest to Laurent, but I couldn't help but think that she hid behind him before she spoke often times" Tanya said.
"Exactly, he victimized her. She was afraid to really tell us who she was, but after all the time I spent training with her I thought she would realize how much stronger she was. Even with as powerful as she is Laurent must have had something to keep her quiet. I just don't know what" said Eleazer standing over Bella's bed.
"He didn't have anything over her" Rosalie suddenly said. Everyone turned to her in shock especially me. "She had no one else so she stayed with him. Edward told her that we thought she was a joke essentially, she couldn't stay with the wolves or the humans and she didn't tell you who she was because you are connected to us. If I was her I wouldn't want to leave a trail that would allow the people to hurt her find her again." Rosalie's words echoed through the room, all of my family was staring at their feet, while Rosalie glared at me. Tanya shooed us away from Bella's room leaving herself and Kate inside before closing the door on me. Carmen sadly smiled at me as she showed me that Tanya and Kate had stayed with her before during one of her attacks. Alice's thoughts sounded in my head next letting me know she would wake up in about six hours. The rest of us filed into the living area and sat in front of the tv. Emmet flipped through channels at a rapid pace as I sat down next to Esme. My family's thoughts were ones of sadness and hope. They knew Bella would be okay in a few hours, but the realization that we caused her so much pain was hard for everyone to bare when they cared so much for her. Carlisle was going over all the facts of Bella's change that he had been told of by the Denali's. Eleazer told him after each attack she was closer to becoming a full vampire and after this last attack Carlisle was tabulating the differences in her heart rate and respiration. If Carlisle was correct Bella's would only experience one more attack before she would be complete. More over Carlisle was very interested in how this had occurred, because he had never heard of such an usual change. I pinched the bridge of my nose in frustration, I don't think I could have been more wrong about leaving Bella than ever before. I should be the one up in that room with Bella, not Tanya and Kate. It was my penance to pay for Bella's hardship and I couldn't believe that of all the people Bella would make friend's with Tanya. I was beginning to think of it as my worst nightmare, but when I considered the whole picture I realized I was lucky she found them. If Bella hadn't made friends with the Denali's I might have never found her again. I cringed at the idea of Bella learning about this new life, solely from the Volturi. It was hard to get my head around everything that had occurred with Bella. My beautiful Bella left or was abducted from Forks and taken across the US by a vampire that most likely fed from her for months. Then he took her to Europe, where she resided in France and charmed the Volturi and more specially caught the attention of Felix before returning to the US to meet the Denali's. After that she made friends with the werewolves and was involved in an epic battle against an army of newborns whose sole purpose was to destroy her. And through all of that Bella came out looking like an experienced vampire. For a second I thought Jasper was reading my mind, because he was considering the same topic. He was is awe how strong and confident Bella portrayed herself in battle after the clumsy life she led as a human. Listening to my family's thoughts made the time pass faster and I particularly enjoyed Emmet's memories of Bella at our home in Forks; whether he had done it on purpose or not it was helping me immensely. Then I hear movement upstairs, Tanya and Kate were no longer speaking to each other any more.
"Well now what will you do?" Tanya asked. I heard someone blow out a deep breathe, but there was silence. Moments later Tanya, Kate and Bella descended the stairs together. I stood as they approached and was met by Bella's carefully gaze, as I crossed the distance between us.
"You need to hunt" she said lifting her fingers up to touch my face, but she stopped just before she touched my skin. Then she turned toward the door, waling away from me until she paused looking back. "Are you coming?" she said with her hand reached out toward me. I smiled instantly taking her hand and took off towards the woods with her. Every few minutes she glanced at me as we ran, but I never took my eyes away from her. It was odd to see Bella like me; strong and beautiful. Even now when I thought of her she was still human, but I knew I would get used to the new her. Bella moved with grace as we approached a herd of elk and didn't hesitate when she saw her opportunity; taking down one of the largest bulls. I had never understood why it was so appeal to watch her mate hunt until now. I had always found Bella to be attractive, but the feelings she was stirring in me now were almost unmanageable. Bella caught me staring and I attempted to shut my mouth with slow success as Bella laughed. Bella pointed toward the retreating herd and I didn't need any more prompting than that. I took off with purpose, pushing my body forward and suddenly realizing how weak I had allowed myself to become. I took down the first elk I caught up to and then a second before allowing myself to look for Bella. She seemed composed when I finally met her eyes, but they were surprisingly black, not the usual silver they had been before. In less than a second she was in front of me and my body reacted to her. I reached for her, pulling her body tight against my own, inhaling her scent. Bella's hands roamed my body as she whispered my name and at that moment I couldn't restrain myself from kissing her. Bella responded to me eagerly and soon our kisses became more passionate. Her hands drew me closer and I couldn't help but moan into her mouth. She tasted like heaven and I wanted more and more of her. Bella wasn't helping my condition as she moved to kissing my neck and my natural instincts took the lead. My hands moved from Bella's hair and back to her hips which I promptly lifted. Bella wrapped her legs around me in an instant and a growl escaped from my chest. Bella growled back, bucking her hips against mine and I almost lost it.
"Bella" I said all out of breath. "Bella if you don't stop me now I won't be able to." But Bella didn't respond to my words except to tear my shirt from my torso and to begin kissing my chest. "Oh God Bella, I need you" I said as I attacked her lips again.
"Edward, I have only belonged to you" she whispered. Feelings of joy passed through me at the sounds of her words, but I felt the need to slow my actions in order to take the proper time to explore Bella's body. I watched as her chest rose and fell quickly under my scrutiny.
"You are so beautiful" I told her while I unbuttoned the blouse Tanya and Kate must have dressed her in. Bella unbuttoned my pants with a shy smile on her face before moving to kiss my shoulder as I devoured her bare neck and shoulder. Soon it was flesh against flesh as I continued to worship her skin leaving a trail of kisses. Bella squirmed impatiently underneath me, nibbling my ear and sending my mind into over drive. Slowly, I lowered the full weight of my body on her as she peppered kisses across my chest. She stopped long enough to lock eyes with me, showing me it was okay to proceed. Carefully I pressed myself into her warmth taking in all of the new sensations. I was surprised when I felt resistance and saw Bella cringe slightly. Upon finding out that Bella had a boyfriend I had not allowed myself to think that she still would have waited for me. But knowing now that she had after what I put her through was indescribable. I knew I didn't deserve her kindness, but I made a promise to myself and her that I would spend the rest of my existence proving my worth to her. Bella moved beneath me starling me from my internal ramblings urging me to continue. The shear ecstasy I felt multiplied as Bella and I moved towards our release. Suddenly, Bella's movements were stronger and I felt her insides clenching down on me. As she cried out I could no longer contain myself and I gave in to my inner desires while I whispered Bella's name. I held Bella softly as my body slowed from the spasms and listened for the sound of her heart. If I concentrated just enough it was easy to recognize the sound that used to be my lifeline. Bella and I laid together not moving or speaking for some time; we were more than happy to just be in each others company. But after a while longer Bella finally made a move to search for her clothing and so did I. I helped Bella dress taking my time to kiss the parts of her body she offered to me. Bella laughed handing me the scraps of my shirt with a whispered "sorry." All to soon as far as I was concerned we were heading back to the house. When we reached the house I noticed that someone had taken the time to clean up the broken glass. Together Bella and I leapt through the opening into her room. Bella gathered a change of clothes and headed toward the shower, I couldn't help but smirk when she paused just inside the door reaching out for me. Upon entering the bathroom I shed my clothes and once again helped Bella out of hers. I stepped into the hot shower hugging Bella to my body never wanting to be away from her skin. We made love slowly and rather quietly compared to what we had done on the hunt. For a brief second I realized that my family could probably hear us, but I tossed the thought aside not wanting to end the moments of pure bliss I was experiencing with my Bella. An hour later, we had finally dried off and got dressed. Bella seemed to be looking for just about anything to do besides going down stairs to face our families. After she cleaned her room twice she signed as she sat on the bed.
"You can't avoid this forever" I told her. "I know" was all she said. Hand in hand we went downstairs to find everyone huddled in the living room and they were all looking at us expectantly. There was only one seat available next to Emmet which put Bella and I at the center of attention. I sat down pulling Bella on my lap and wrapping my arms protectively around her; earning a smile from her.
"Well you must know that we want answers" Eleazer stated. Bella's gaze fell to the floor "what do you not understand?" she said.
"We just want to know what really happened? We want to understand why you did what you did? It's not meant to hurt you" Carlisle said.
"Will you start at the beginning?" Alice asked.
"The beginning where you left me!" Bella yelled.
Bella's POV
It had finally come to this. Alice wanted me to start at the beginning, I felt like I was about to relive the worst nightmare of my life, except this wasn't a nightmare at all; it really was my life. "It started when Edward left me in the woods… I was too stubborn to go back to the house so I walked toward where I saw him disappear. I was so upset I just kept going until it was getting dark and after I tripped for hundredth time, I just laid there. A werewolf search party was sent out to look for me" I said chuckling. I take that back a group of boys from the reservation were the ones that found me. Jacob Black was my only friend after you were gone so we spent time together until he turned into a werewolf. After that Jacob and his friends didn't have time for me, so I went looking for my own fun. I had seen some of Jacob's friend cliff dive for fun so I decided to try it and of course I almost drowned when the tide carried me away from shore, but Jacob saved me. So that explains why Alice says she thought I killed myself I guess. A few days later I ran into Laurent, Victoria sent him to see how protected I was." I paused as Edward growled and everyone else stared at the floor. "Obviously, I wasn't protected. Laurent told me Victoria was out to kill me, but he offered to tell her I had left with you if I would help him to be more like you. I didn't want to walk around Forks with a giant target on my back so I left, hoping that Victoria wouldn't hurt Charlie because I wasn't there."
"When was it that you left with him?" Carlisle asked me.
"It was before Christmas."
"Then what happened" Tanya asked.
"Umm, we traveled east and stayed at random places like that hotel in Wisconsin and then Laurent found us passage to France on a boat leaving out of Boston."
"When was the first time he bit you?" Carlisle asked. Shocked I looked down at my arms realizing that my cuffs were gone. With everything that happened I hadn't noticed they were gone, but I remembered burning during my attack. I had never planned to tell anyone all of this.
"What does it really matter? It's obvious that he fed on me. I hoped for a long time he would just kill me, but every time he fed I still woke up." Edward's arms tightened around me pulling me to his chest and I tucked my face into his neck. I knew this was hurting him; listening to me recount the worst parts of the last year. "The first time happened before Boston and after that I let him whenever he wanted it." Someone gasped but I didn't look up to see who it was. "I saw him kill people because he couldn't stop himself, but for some reason he was able to stop when it was me.
"So after some time in France I started changing and not long after that Irena came. Laurent was different to me after I started changing, especially when Irena showed up. He wanted to family with Irena so he asked me to stay with him and I did. Of course, France is not far from Volterra so I ran into Felix one night which led me to meet all of the Volturi. Laurent wasn't happy about that they Volturi were trying to recruit me so we came to Alaska so I could meet the rest of Irena's family. Which was good at first, but I never meant for them to know me and when Eleazer started poking holes in the story Laurent and I agreed upon we left. I went to La Push to see Jacob and Laurent and Irena were going to have some alone time. All the while Victoria had been spying on me and started creating that army to come after me." From the other room I could hear my cell phone going off, but before I could get up off of Edward's lap, Alice jumped up. I stood up as she came back into the room, with my still ringing phone. I saw Leah's name on the caller id and answered right away.
"Hello" I said walking away from everyone.
"Bella, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I'm sorry I didn't call sooner."
"You need to come home and see Charlie. He needs to see you so he can stop worrying."
"Okay, I know. I will be there as soon as I can."
"Do you promise, because I have to tell him something? It's so hard for him."
"Yes, I promise."
"Alright, I will see you soon."
"Bye" I said flipping the phone shut. When I turned around Edward was standing there.
"I'm going with you" he said.
"You can't, you aren't allowed in La Push" I told him.
"Then I will wait for you at the border" Edward said sternly.
"I need to spend some time there. I promised my sister we would spend time together months ago" I told him.
"Your sister?" He asked.
"Uh ya, my dad married Sue and she has two werewolf children. My sister Leah and my brother Seth; which also got Charlie an honorary seat on the tribal council. He knows all about all the mythical creatures that have been running around Forks now." Edward's mouth was hanging open, so I pushed it back into place for him, before leaning around the corner to say goodbye. "I am sorry, but I need to take care of some things. I need to spend at least a week or two with them."
"Well you know Edward isn't going to let you go down there with out him, so I will come to keep Edward company" Alice said as she smiled.
"Alright we are going back home!" Emmet yelled as he jumped up. "Do you think you could ask if I could wrestle a werewolf? I have always wanted to do that" Emmet said grinning as I burst out laughing. Well I don't think vampire werewolf relations have really come that far, but I will ask.
"Excellent, then it's settled. Edward and Bella are going to leave now and the rest of us will head down in a few hours" Alice stated.
"Okay, see you guys there" I said grabbing Edward by the arm and opening the front door to leave. But as I pulled back the door I realized someone was standing on the other side. "Felix" I gasped.
"You just left, you didn't even tell me you were going" he said as his eyes traveled to my hand holding Edward's arm. I knew what he was looking at so I let go of Edward trying not to provoke him, but Edward had other ideas. When I let go of Edward's arm he circled that arm around my waist pulling me back towards him inciting a growl from Felix who grabbed my arm.
"Stop it!" I shouted, but neither lightened their grip. I turned to look Edward in the eye and told him to let me go. He let go slowly, but did as I asked. Felix never released my arm so I pulled him along away from the house a bit. "Felix, please don't do this. You know we were never meant to be, you deserve someone who can love you back as much as you deserve" I said angling him away from Edward's facial reactions.
"So you are just going to go back to him. He left you, he will hurt you again. You know how good we are together and Aro wants to give you the world. I can give you so much more and I knew you have feelings for me" he said as his lips crashed into mine. His kiss was familiar but didn't warm me the way Edward's kiss does to me. I put my hands up trying to push him away, but Edward was already yanking him back. Felix and Edward let out furious growls that echoed through the surrounding forest. I looked on in horror as they were both ready to pounce on each other. The Denali's and the Cullen's were approaching now ready to break up the fight.
"Let's see what you have Cullen" Felix said.
"Bring it on, you Volturi lap dog" Edward said in disgust.
"NO!" I screamed as the terror was welling up inside of me.
"Don't worry my sweet once I destroy him you will see I am the better choice" Felix said. That last comment was just enough to put me over the edge.
"We are so over Felix" I said feeling the power inside of me rise. Felix looked at me momentarily and then lunged at Edward. Edward moved to meet him in the middle, but my shield deflected Felix before he got the chance to make contact. I knocked Felix to the ground and crouched on his chest so I could look him in the eye. I could hear the fury in my voice and knew my eyes must have been blazing white fire the way Felix was looking at me with fear. "Don't ever threaten my mate or my family or you will feel my true wrath. Are we clear?" I seethed at him.
"I am sorry. Please forgive me, Sophie" Felix whispered and most of the anger I was feeling fled out of me at the sincerity of his words.
"It is I that should be asking for forgiveness, Felix" I told him as I moved aside to let him up. Felix stood in front of me searching my face and I felt Edward pushing at my shield.
"I forgive you if you forgive me" he said as he stroked my cheek.
"So be it" I told him.
"I will miss you" Felix said looking broken until he looked up to make eye contact with Edward. "You know how to find me when he disappoints you again" he said as he kissed my forehead and took off into the forest. I released Edward from my shield and let out a shaky breathe.
I felt Edward's arms around my waist again and he turned me to face him. "I am sorry about him" I said.
"It's not your fault, now shall we try this again?" he asked.
"Why yes, I think that should be enough drama to occur for us to at least get to Forks I think" I laughed.
Thanks, to everyone who has been so patient with me. I hope to update in two weeks. Please read and review!
Finally I would like to note that there are only a hand full of chapters that I have planned left. So with that in mind is there anything you guys want to me to get into before the end? Thanks!