Chapter Two

Time To Let Go

"That's your daddy, baby girl," Bella cooed. Bright green eyes looked up at her from the heart shaped face of her eleven month old daughter. Allegra Renee Cullen had been born the spitting image of her father. Her bronze hair now reached to her narrow hips and Bella often had to braid it and pin it up so that it wouldn't get her rambunctious child's way.

Allegra reached up and placed her dimpled hand onto Bella's cheek. The image before Bella's eyes obscured and transformed into the image running through Allegra's head. She saw her daughter in Edward's arms, him smiling down at her, with love gleaming in his amber eyes.

Bella pulled Allegra's hand from her cheek and the image faded into nothing. Allegra had gotten much more than her looks from Edward, but that fantastic gift as well. The image running through her daughter's head was one that Bella loved to hope for, but doubted all the same. She realized shortly after having Allegra that it was remarkable selfish of her to make this child Edward's. He had said that he didn't love her anymore, she really needed to let it go.

But with Allegra as her constant little reminder, Bella doubted that she ever would. She guessed that that was all right. Allegra made most things all right.

Allegra pulled her hand out of Bella's and put it back on her cheek. The image was the same but the longing behind it intensified. Maybe it wasn't only unfair to Edward. Allegra wanted her daddy so much that the only way Bella could get her to sleep some times was to play the C.D. Edward made for her eighteenth birthday. She had found it and the two pictures of him hidden under a floor board in her room when she moved out of Charlie's house.

She framed the pictures after Allegra was born, figuring that someday her daughter would want to know what her father looked like. Though in Bella's opinion she could just as easily look in a mirror to see what Edward looked like. The pictures made her heart ache, but they kept Allegra happy so they stayed out.

The picture of Edward and Bella was on the mantle piece in the living room and the picture of Edward smiling up at her from the kitchen table was in Allegra's room.

Allegra sighed dramatically and pulled her hand away. Allegra could walk, but preferred to be carried, she could talk but preferred to simple put her demands directly into her mother's head and was so fiercely independent that her first words were, "I can do it!" It was in that moment that Bella realized what exactly she'd done when she decided that Edward was going to be the father of her baby.

She had made her daughter into a little female Edward.

Bella believed whole heartedly that most of Allegra's vast intelligence came from Edward. Dien babies mature mentally very quickly, far more quickly than their bodies mature. But Allegra was more intelligent than most Dien babies. She spoke fairly clearly and seemed to truly enjoy being taught how to speak correctly. When she did walk somewhere, Bella noticed that she probably got her balance from her mother. That never stopped her from moving around though. She was the fastest crawler that Bella had ever seen. She probably got that from Edward too.

Allegra started wiggling in Bella's arms. That meant she wanted to get down. She didn't say or show as much, Bella knew her well enough to know what she wanted.

Bella placed her on the floor and Allegra went off like a bat out of hell towards the kitchen muttering something about, "sinamon wrolls." Cinnamon rolls just happened to be her favorite food.

"She got her sweet tooth from you too, Edward," Bella said, smiling. She moved to follower her daughter when she heard a knock at the door. Three sharp bangs, that would be James. The emperor had given her a healthy amount of money when she gave birth and merely smiled knowingly when she handed in her resignation. She opened the door, inviting James and his five body guards in.

"What can I do for you, James?" she asked. Bella knew better than to bow to him. James hated it when people he respected bowed to him.

"It's funny you should ask me that," he said, folding himself into one of her plush leather chairs. Bella froze. "I know you don't exactly work for me anymore, but in your resignation you did say that you owe loyalty and fealty to me still."

"Who is it this time?" Bella whispered.

"There are five hit men that have been causing me a bit of trouble. I can't have them banding together, I can't have them knowing I'm coming after them. Which is why I need you to take care of this. No one is quite as subtle and efficient as you."

Bella fell onto her coach. Both she and James knew she'd do what he asked. She owed her life to him. He didn't ask much of her and she knew she was the best at her job. He wanted it done quickly and quietly and no one could do that better than Bella.

"How long do you think it'll take?" James grinned.

"For you, I'd say six months."

"Who's going to watch Allegra?"

"I don't know, but what I do know is that last night, everything evened out." Bella blinked at him.

"What?"

"Time evened out across all universes. Six months here is the same as six months in Forks. She could stay with your father."

"Or her father," Bella whispered as the thought occurred to her.

With careful instructions, Hannah could take Allegra to Edward as a sort of peace offering. Proof that she'd forgiven him. Hannah would have to make sure before hand that Edward even wanted the baby, but once she'd done that, Allegra could experience the longing that had plagued her thoughts since the day Bella had first shown her the pictures of Edward.

She couldn't go herself because James would expect her start her new assignment as soon as possible. But luckily Hannah was in the kitchen making cinnamon rolls with her baby at that very moment.

And if Edward didn't want her, Hannah could take care of her. It wasn't the best solution, but it was all Bella could think to do. Hannah wouldn't want to take care of her if she had any other option. She wasn't exactly the maternal type. But, hopefully, Edward was the paternal type.

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Edward was quiet. He hadn't said more than two words in three days. His Bella was pregnant. By a man she apparently despised. He knew that this Jon character must have been a bastard. His jealousy wouldn't let him be anything but. He also logically assumed that if his good, sweet Bella hated him, he must deserve it. She said that it was a mistake but one she was evidently glad to have made. If she was glad, then he was too.

It wasn't necessarily the pregnancy he was upset about, but the last thing she said in Alice's vision. She was glad, for the first time that he broke up with her. It was so… Bella to be happy now about something made her sad before. That was Bella, a child, something she never hinted at wanting, made everything worth it.

Edward shook his head. The pregnancy did bother him, but not as much as her attitude. He was jealous, horribly jealous that another man had been with his mate. He wanted to kill him, to cry, to kill himself. He never would. Just because he felt terrible right in that moment didn't mean he would always feel that way. Someday Bella might need him and he needed to be there for her… and her baby. He couldn't hate anything that Bella loved or anything that loved Bella.

And how could a child not love Bella, when she loved it so much.

The whole family had tried to engage him in several conversations. Rosalie was suddenly very interested in finding Bella, mostly because she wanted the child for herself. She never said as much, but Edward could feel the desire she felt for the baby. Emmett mistook her enthusiasm for caring about Bella's well being and Edward didn't correct him. Anything that got the family to help him find her was okay in his opinion.

Pregnancy brought on all sorts of risks. Many pregnant women were killed by the men who got them pregnant. If Jon so much as touched a hair on Bella's head, he'd kill the bastard.

Alice and Esme were both thrilled, of course. Even though they hadn't seen Bella in years they both still considered her part of the family. Esme tried not to think about it, but often couldn't help considering of herself as a grandmother. Bella was supposed to be with Edward after all. As far as she was concerned the child growing inside of Bella was Edward's. Alice was thrilled mostly because she had finally succeeded and found Bella happy.

Jasper was happy Alice was happy.

Carlisle was happy that Esme was happy.

Emmett was happy Rosalie was finally concerned about Bella.

Only Edward seemed upset for the right reasons. He didn't count Rosalie's worrying because it was selfish, as usual. He was sitting in the meadow he'd taken Bella to all those years ago. He remembered looking into her eyes and telling her he loved her. He hadn't said it in so many words, but he meant it with all his heart. How she could ever question his love, he had no idea. It was excruciating when he broke up with her. Not only because it was the end of their relationship, but because he could see in her eyes that she honestly believed he didn't love her anymore. He didn't know what he'd done to deserve her lack of faith, but he hated himself for it.

"Edward!" Alice's voice snapped him out of his pity party. He looked at her from where he sat perched on low boulder. "Enough. You've sat in silence for three days, you're making Esme sad." Alice showed him a vision of Esme dry crying after Carlisle came back without Edward and without having much to say about how he was. Edward sighed. He was miserable but that didn't mean he had to make everyone else miserable too.

Someone's coming, Edward, Alice said. She's a friend of Bella's. Alice showed him what she'd seen. A short red hair woman walked up to Carlisle and Edward. She extended her hand and said, "Hi, I'm Hannah."