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LadySharkey1 rocks my world by being the most amazing, kick-ass beta I could ever imagine.
Belmont Island, Maine
Friday, March 16, 1951
5 PM
"…and then, of course, the studios practically started fighting to sign me on!" Alice was holding court on one side of the boat, regaling her audience with all the tales of her success, rarely stopping to take a breath. "I know that if I held out a little longer, I might have been able to get more money at Paramount but my heart told me to go for MGM."
"You're with Fox, aren't you, Edward?" Jasper asked, inconspicuously rolling his eyes at the inescapable bragging of the girl he'd once admired. If only her soul had matched her pretty exterior things between them might have taken a different turn, as he had been quite smitten with her when he'd first set eyes upon her delicate features. It didn't take him long, though, to find out that instead of a purity to match her pale skin tone, the blackness of her hair came closer to describing the true character of Alice Brandon.
And he wanted nothing to do with her.
Edward nodded. "My contract's up for negotiation, though."
"You should come over to MGM!" Alice squealed as the plans started to take shape in her head almost visibly. "They could do so many great things for you, what with you being this big war hero and all. And with us at a studio together, we could create a narrative that would have the press salivating over us! I can just see it now…," her eyes took on a dreamy look at the thought of another possible media frenzy that could bring her more fame and money, "…the spark re-ignited: former sweethearts back together again."
"No, thank you," Edward rebuffed her wryly. "Not everyone hungers for the spotlight like you do. I actually have every intention of negotiating an increase in my privacy or I might even quit Hollywood altogether."
"What on earth for?" Alice seemed to be so puzzled by Edward's statement that, for a moment, she forgot to put attention on herself. "Don't you want to make money? Be famous? Have everyone in the world want to be you—or be with you?" Her fake saccharin smile shone brightly.
"No." Edward shrugged. "Unlike some, I'm not in this to make money, though it's a nice side-effect of my chosen career, I must say. I like acting; making movies that excite me and challenge my capabilities. The rest of it is just a nuisance, and it's starting to grow more annoying by the year."
"Hmm." Alice still seemed puzzled but, as a whole five minutes had gone by without her stealing the limelight, she refocused on herself and the less-challenging audience of Emmett McCarty who had managed to escape the clutches of his wife. "What about you, Emmett? I could see you as the manly hero to my damsel in distress."
"God, I'd love to!" He groaned, his eyes full of resentment as they glanced along to railing to where Rose stood, watching out across the waves by herself. "But Rose doesn't want to leave Rochester. You know…with the grave being there and all?"
"You're the man of the house. If you tell her to go, she is under an obligation to follow you." She paused. "Or you could always divorce her…" Alice cocked her head, narrowing her eyes as the makings of another plan started to hatch in her mind. True, Emmett lacked the hero-status that Edward, or even Jasper, brought to the table but he was definitely more docile and less smart than the other two gentlemen. If only she could save him from the clutches of his wife—which, considering the way Rose had let herself go, wasn't going to take a lot of effort, Alice presumed—she could mold him into just the kind of arm candy that would show her off to her advantage. After all, he was likeable and easygoing, and she knew herself well enough to know that those were character traits that she lacked.
"You know…" Emmett mused, leaning against the railing as he considered her offer. The thought of escaping the dreary life that had killed all of his ambitious plans was incredibly appealing even when he, like his wife, was very reluctant to be the first to throw in the towel on their marriage. Still…"You just might be right about that. I'm dying there, in Rochester."
"Then be a man!" Alice winked, already slightly bored with the easy success her scheme seemed to have as she walked on along the deck, her small hands holding on tight as the boat rumbled up towards the dock of Belmont Island, a small, private island miles off the coast of Maine.
Alice had been the last one to RSVP for the little island escape Carlisle had planned for them. Like Bella, there were about a million other places in the world she'd rather be at that moment than trying to keep her balance on a narrow gangplank as she first set foot on Carlisle's domain. Unlike Hollywood, this place held only very few chances for her own advancement, which was all Alice cared about. And with the old director well and truly sidetracked after his final train wreck of a play and virtually all of the other actors having careers that ranked decidedly below hers, the weekend was looking like a complete and utter bust already.
Unfortunately for her, Carlisle had some tricks up his sleeve, one of which being the considerable influence he wielded over his friends in the industry. And with the things he could tell them about her, Alice had deemed it more prudent to come, be bored, and stick out the forty-eight hours on Carlisle's godforsaken little spit of land than to reject his invitation.
"Damned gardener thinks he's a ladies man!" the boatman grumbled as he hoisted their bags on land.
"What?" Edward asked, his arm offered in support as Bella navigated the narrow wooden plank.
"Nothing!" the sourly looking seaman replied. "It's just that the gardener-slash-handyman Cullen employs ran off to the mainland to chase the ladies and left me to do all the work." The man huffed, loading as many pieces of luggage under his arms as he followed the group to the house. "Not only did that bastard…pardon my French, ladies. Not only did he up and leave, but he took the dinghy with him! He'd better get back tonight before Sam—the butler, that is—misses him or he'll really lose his job this time. He might be a young kid, that one, but after the warning they gave him last time…"
Bella sighed, thinking about the little boy she'd left behind at home. He'd been her life, ever since he'd come into the world, screaming at the top of his lungs. Leaving him had been the hardest thing she'd ever had to do. At least she comforted herself that he was safe and loved in the care of his aunt. But even after only a few short hours apart, her heart already throbbed painfully with the knowledge that later that night, for the first time in his young life, she wouldn't be there to tuck him into his bed.
Looking up at the imposing, mock-medieval castle, her heart sunk even further into her shoes. The high façade of dark grey stone was imposing enough to cast its shade over her; its chilling cold shadows left her with goosebumps on her arms and a feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach.
"Bella!" Looking up, she saw rest of the group had already gathered around a frail looking old man who, on further inspection turned out to be Carlisle Cullen. "I'm so glad you could make it." Bella noticed he needed the full support of the nurse who seemed to be glued to his side as he walked out towards her with outstretched arms. His embrace felt like a hug from a broom and a bunch of twigs as he whispered in her ear, "I'm so sad that your father couldn't be here with us. He would have been so proud to see the woman you are today."
Bella had her own ideas about that but, whether out of common decency, or because the shock of seeing the once so vibrant director brought down to this ghost of a man, she kept them to herself. "Thanks for inviting me, Carlisle. I've never been to Maine."
"And here you are now!" Somehow Carlisle managed to smile as he waved his arm around his domain. "If you really want to get away from the world, this is the place to be." He smiled as his eyes traveled the rocky coastline, his slight frame wobbling as he stepped back from their embrace. "There's nobody who can hassle you here, unless they go through the trouble of hiring a boat and coming all the way out here."
"So there's no chance of a quick swim to the shore, huh?" Emmett joked, his face showing his concern as he gently put his arm under one of Carlisle's elbows while the nurse took his other arm. He, too, had been shocked to find their former boss so changed.
"Not unless you want to drown," Carlisle was quick to warn him. "It's almost ten miles to the mainland and two to the nearest island. Besides the distance, the currents alone are strong enough to pull you out to sea before you're even a few feet in the water."
Bella shook her head. Knowing what she knew about Emmett and his boisterous nature, it would be just like him to overindulge in after dinner brandy and decide he could take a midnight swim to the shore. It was a good thing Carlisle had forewarned him.
"I gave you one of the finest rooms in the house," Carlisle, catching up with her again, spoke. His voice was breathless with the exertion of having to keep up with his guests, but he seemed determined to fulfill his duties as their host even if it killed him. "It looks out across the mighty expanse of the Atlantic and-"
"I should have it," Alice sneered. "After all, who would she be if she hadn't married a rich husband? It's not fair that she gets the best room in the house when I made my fame and fortune by working hard."
"Alice!" Jasper warned, clearly already fed up with the Hollywood star. "Would it kill you to act like a decent human being for forty-eight hours? Look at this place! I'm sure the room they put you in isn't exactly a dump."
"It's okay," Bella conceded, knowing from experience that it was easier to give Alice exactly what she wanted. "We can swap…if Carlisle's okay with it."
Carlisle looked slightly saddened but nodded as Alice stalked forward towards the main entrance with a smile as if she'd won a war.
The castle itself was as magnificent on the inside as its neo-Gothic splendor on the outside had suggested. After she'd made sure Carlisle was settled in one of the grand parlors, Esme, his nurse, took them on a tour through while their luggage was brought up to their rooms.
When finally, after sufficiently oohing and awing over the décor, Bella found herself in her own room, with the door closed on her former cast mates and all of their unpleasantness, she was finally able to take stock of her feelings.
Meeting everyone again after ten years had been quite an experience, but to say that it was a pleasant one… No, that would not have been how Bella would describe her weekend trip so far.
Of three things, though, she was completely certain.
One: something was wrong with Carlisle…something bad...something dreadfully serious.
Two: Edward Masen was up to something with all his smiles and obliging behavior. And while she wasn't sure what it was, she regretfully had to conclude that even after ten years, his presence didn't leave her quite unbothered.
And finally: making it through the weekend without killing Alice Brandon was going to be a task worthy of a Congressional Medal of Honor.
Thoughts?