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Chapter 11 - Forgive me


The Cullen residence

There were no words for what she was looking at. Her own little log cabin was nothing compared to the size and splendour of the Cullen house. Ada had to remind herself that they did live here with their entire coven, at least that's what she thought. It was quite modern compared to the places she tended to buy or rent, but no less beautiful.

"It's something, isn't it?" Charlie Swan said to her.

"Quite." She replied softly.

After Charlie had ended the phone call with his daughter Bella, he immediately offered to give Ada a ride to Forks and to the Cullens. As predicted, he wouldn't take no for an answer. Strangely enough, he not once asked her why she hadn't mentioned that she was going to Forks to visit his daughter and husband's family, though the look on his face told her that he was a bit let down by the fact that she hadn't.

During the car ride he told her couple of stories about the Cullen family. What his thoughts had been when he first met them. How he felt when Bella had introduced Edward to him as her boyfriend. Charlie also mentioned his divorce to Bella's mother and how he'd been alone for a long time. Dating hadn't been his thing, he'd tried but no woman stayed in the end. Until Sue. He liked her very much.

Ada smiled politely and listened closely as he talked. She was good at that, making others feel heard and comfortable in her presence. Perhaps too much as she usually was the one who had to cut a conversation short. People really did tend to talk an awful lot to her. But she didn't mind hearing about the Cullens as she learned more from Charlie than she had from those few times she'd seen Bella and Edward.

So far she'd learned that Carlisle was a doctor, something which had surprised her and she still couldn't believe. He was married, something she'd rather not think about if she had to be honest. And him and his wife had adopted five children in total.

Edward, Bella's husband, who she already knew. Alice, the girl who'd ever so rudely showed up on Ada's doorstep. It was still a mystery how that had even been possible unless she'd somehow caught wind of her scent in town. Charlie seemed to really like the girl though, he talked about her with a broad smile and even a twinkle in his eye.

Then he mentioned a young man who hardly spoke and another who was extremely loud but good with cars. And last but not least another girl who was beautiful but hardly ever smiled. It was a bit unfortunate that Charlie had the hardest time recalling their names, but Ada knew it wouldn't take too long for her to find out.

Charlie parked his police car on the gravel path and turned to her. "I'll walk you to the door. Gives me a chance to say hello to my daughter."

He opened his car door, as did Ada. As she got out, her eyes were once again glued to the large house. When she shut the door behind her, Charlie was already at her side. Together they walked across the path up to the porch steps. The moment they reached them, the front door opened revealing Esme and Carlisle Cullen. Ada immediately stared up at the blond vampire's face.

Seeing him for the second time was different than the first. At the time, she'd pushed herself so much to keep a steady and normal conversation whilst recalling where she'd seen that gorgeous face before. And now that she knew who he might be, it was proving to be incredibly difficult to even say one word. She parted her lips, closed them again and gave a small smile.

Shifting her gaze to Esme, she greeted her with a nod. "Good to see you, Esme. Carlisle, good to see you again as well." She added, acknowledging him for a swift moment.

"Hello, Ada. I'm glad to see you. Bella informed us you had an accident?" Esme asked with concern.

"An animal jumped in front of Miss Willoughby's car. I have no doubt it'll be in the garage for a few days." Unexpectedly it was Charlie who answered for her.

Ada cleared her throat and smiled. "Officer Swan offered me a ride. He just happened to pass by."

"Oh my. That sounds like you were rather lucky." Esme said. "Must have been quite a collision?"

For their kind it was a unnecessary comment. It was nothing to be worried about. Of course, had Ada been human it would have been a much bigger deal. But from what Ada could gather with regards to Charlie, was that he was unaware about what the Cullens really were. Bella included. She suspected that they intended to keep it that way. Odd considering his daughter was not a mortal anymore. But they obviously had their reasons.

"I suggested a check-up from a doctor." Charlie mentioned and he looked at Carlisle. "Just to be on the safe side."

"I'm perfectly fine, Officer Swan. If anything was wrong wouldn't we have noticed that by now?" Ada looked at him, a frown adorning her brow and she tilted her head sideways. "Rest assure that I will visit a doctor should I start to feel anything out of the ordinary."

Charlie didn't seem to believe her, but he said nothing of it. "That's all I can ask for. Mrs Cullen, before I go, is my daughter nearby? I'd like to say hello to her."

"I'll go get her." Esme replied and she took a step back giving one last look at where Ada and Charlie were standing. "Until next time, Charlie."

"Mrs Cullen." Charlie nodded.

The air seemingly changed the minute Esme went inside the house. Ada sensed it almost immediately. Maybe it was just her considering she was in close proximity of Carlisle and she was rather nervous knowing she was going to spent the next couple of hours in his company. But she also caught a rather particular expression adorning his face. A look of disdain. Was he not pleased or excited to see her?

But then he walked down the steps from the porch towards her and Charlie and she realised that look wasn't meant for her. He halted a couple of feet next to her but with his gaze settled on Bella's father. Even more unexpectedly so, he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I'll keep an eye on miss Willoughby, Charlie. Make sure that the accident hasn't affected her in any sort of way. I take it that ought to ease your mind?" He flashed a swift smile and his grip tightened on her for a second. "Shall we head inside, Ada?"

The small gesture as well as saying her name managed to take her breath away, despite not having a need for air. A fuzzy feeling settled in her stomach and her skin tingled. She swallowed a lump slowly forming in her throat.

"Yes, I think that's best. Thank you once again, officer Swan, for your kindness."

"Pleasure was all mine, ma'am. And before I forget,-" Charlie said as he reached for something inside his uniform. He took out a business card and handed it to her. "Here. It has my phone number on it. I'll be happy to give you a ride back tonight. Seeing as I brought you here and it's the least I can do."

"Oh." Ada mouthed as Carlisle narrowed his eyes.

"Thank you, Charlie. But that won't be necessary. I'll drive miss Willoughby back to her house. Safe and sound, I promise." Carlisle spoke firm and shortly. "If you'll excuse us, we'll be going now. Bella will be here soon, have a good night."

He looked at Ada and nodded towards the house, telling her silently to head inside. She followed his lead while eyeing him quietly. That had been a rather weird display of so called politeness. Did he not like Bella's father? The tone in Carlisle's voice was not as friendly as she remembered when first meeting him.

"He means well, doesn't he? Kind people are hard to find these days. Perhaps it's because of his profession?" Ada noted while they walked up the steps.

Carlisle huffed. "Yes, I suppose. Did you know he is dating someone?"

The woman gave him a look, though he wasn't looking at her as he talked. Such a specific comment he dared say to her. One would almost think something of it. "I was aware of it, but thank you for reminding me."

This time Carlisle did stop and turned to look at her. It was frankly impossible for Ada to hold his gaze for longer than a couple of seconds and she averted her eyes. "I believe her name is Sue? He spoke quite fondly of her in the car."

"That is good to know." Carlisle pushed the door aside and motioned for her to walk. "Ladies first."

How chivalrous. Ada entered the house and took in all of the things surrounding her. The sights, the smells. There was a lot to see and various scents hitting her senses. This place was without a doubt the base of the Cullen coven. Only three scents were unfamiliar to her, most likely belonging to the people Charlie had mentioned. From what she could gather they were all present in the house. It was intimidating to say the least.

"Welcome to my home." Carlisle spoke behind her, his voice low and soft. A shiver went through her just like the first time she heard him speak.

"I suspect there is much to see. The outside alone left quite an impression already." Ada replied.

"I'll be happy to show you around and please, do allow me to make good on my promise." He added.

Ada frowned. "Promise?"

"Bringing you home tonight."

Her stomach inadvertently flipped. Coincidentally the reaction to such a small and innocent gesture made Ada realise that coming here might not have been such a good idea after all. If she was going to keep having these inwardly reactions every time Carlisle talked to her, a member of his coven would surely notice it at some point. Having a poker face was not one of her strong suits.

"Ada!" Bella's voice sounded from the other side of the entrance hall. She approached her with Esme and Edward in tow. "So nice to see you again. Let me say goodbye to my dad and I'll show you a tour of the house."

With a smile she walked out of the house before Ada got a chance to reply. She'd almost forgotten how energetic the girl was.

"She's very excited to see you. It came as a surprise when Esme and Carlisle told us they'd invited you over." Edward said as he threw his adoptive parents a look.

"Well I for one was incredibly curious." Esme explained. "After all, you all speak so highly of her."

It was no secret that it was but one of the reasons, Ada knew what the main one was but she wasn't sure how they would act towards her once they were to learn of her past. Besides, she still needed to be absolutely certain about all of it before revealing anything to them. She was pretty sure most of them would not like what she had to say. For now she was going to keep any knowledge to herself, maybe drop small hints with the hopes that Carlisle would figure it out on his own.

"Praise I haven't received in a long time. I hope I can live up to it." Ada answered and she clasped her hands in front of her.

Her eyes landed on Edward and he was giving her a rather peculiar look. His gaze darted from left to right, up and down. Why was he looking at her like that? Then all of a sudden he blinked once and turned his head to Carlisle.

"I'm sure the others know she's here by now. Maybe it's best if Bella and I show her a tour of the house and while you and Esme gather everyone?" He said.

Carlisle's mouth twitched for a second but he gave a short nod eventually. "Good idea, son."

::::::...::::::

"And this is the attic with a balcony. You can see the forest and the mountains in the distance. If you look through the trees you'll spot a small cottage, that's where Edward and I live." Bella pointed. "I'd be happy to show you later, if you'd like?"

Bella and Edward had taken their sweet time showing Ada the Cullen house, though Edward hardly said a word throughout the entire tour. Bella on the other hand had a lot of stories to tell as they passed each room. They didn't enter every one of them as some belonged to the other 'children'. In the meantime she learned the names of them. Alice, who she had already met, her husband Jasper. And last but not least Rosalie and Emmett.

"I'd be delighted to see your house too." Ada answered. "This really is a lovely place. I hope it'll be many years before you have to find someplace new to live."

A grim expression flashed across Bella's face and Ada furrowed her brow at the sight of it. "I'm sorry. That was rude of me."

But Bella shook her head. "It's the truth. Sadly. It's just not something I tend to think about. You're right, there will come a time for us to leave. That would also mean leaving dad." She paused and looked up at her husband. "But we'll deal with it when that day comes."

"I understand."

"You mentioned doing the same back in Port Angeles. Have you been to many places?" Bella asked.

"Quite a lot." Ada answered. "I live by a ten year mark. Sometimes seven. Never too short or too long for people to get suspicious of me not aging."

"I know you haven't been in Port Angeles that long." Edward interjected. "Did you live around the area before that?"

"Sort of. I resided in Canada before coming to Port Angeles." She replied.

"And before that?" He added hastily.

Okay, now she was starting to feel cornered. It wasn't necessarily the question but the way he said it. Short and demanding. She wasn't asking them anything and certainly not in such an interrogative manner.

"I'm sorry." Edward suddenly apologized. "I was merely curious. Shall we head back downstairs? I'm sure the others are more than ready to meet you."

He walked in front of them, leading the way back downstairs. Bella stuck near Ada and gave her an apologetic smile. "Sorry for that." She said softly. "He gets carried away at times. I am halfway through your book by the way. Abigail just gave Charles the locket she bought for his birthday."

As soon as the words left Bella's lips, Ada froze halfway down the stairs. Bella paused and glanced over her shoulder. "Everything alright?"

"Sorry, that caught me off guard somehow." She quickly smiled and continued her descent. "Are you still enjoying it?"

"You mean, you're wondering why I haven't finished it yet?" Bella chuckled. "I'm taking my time. Don't want to speed through it and end up not remembering half of it. But yeah, I'm enjoying it. Hoping for a happy ending between Charles and Abigail,- but I know you won't tell me how it ends. I won't ask for any spoilers."

"Spoilers?" Edward's voice sounded from the bottom of the stairs in the main entrance room. He looked up at the two as they reached the final steps.

"Don't act like you weren't listening." His wife replied and she rolled her eyes playfully. "As if you're interested in the books I read. If anything I should discuss it with Carlisle. I'm sure I could have a proper discussion with him about Abigail and Charles."

Ada could feel the locket she was currently wearing underneath her turtle neck pressing into her skin. Almost as if it was telling her to show it to Carlisle. She placed a hand against her chest and told herself to not do anything of the sort.

Edward headed into the living room, followed closely by the two women. However as he entered the room, Ada lingered and halted on the threshold. A bit nervous to enter the place where she already sensed the others of the coven were gathered. And then she felt a presence right behind her. She didn't have to turn around to see who it was. His scent hit her quite hard. Ada clasped her hands together to stop them from trembling.

"I trust the tour went well?" He asked and a shiver shot through her body from the soft timbre in his voice.

But then just as quick as she felt it, it was suddenly gone. Or less present. She turned to him, trying to locate what she'd just felt but it was no longer there. He was looking at her intensely though.

"Your house is really beautiful, Carlisle." She answered.

"Carlisle, dear?" Esme appeared next to her husband and place her hand upon his arm. "Will you introduce our guest to the others?"

"Right, my apologies."

The oldest Cullen turned to face his family, stepped aside and cleared his throat. "Children, I'd like for you all to meet our guest. You've all heard about her by now, but this is Miss Ada Rose Willoughby. She recently moved into the neighbourhood, Port Angeles, as you all know. Be kind." He added.

For the first time, after having already learned something about each of them, Ada got to meet the remaining Cullen members properly. The new faces were all staring in her direction. One smiling broadly and the other two hardly revealing anything. A girl with blond hair, the same shade as Carlisle's. Charlie had been right, she was indeed stunning. The young man with the broad smile had an arm wrapped around her waist. Emmett, no doubt.

"Ada Rose." He walked towards her, pulling the girl along with him, and extended his hand. "Name's Emmett Cullen. Welcome to our home. This here is Rosalie. My heart and joy."

The girl's mouth tugged upward but she quickly transformed it back into the tight line it had been before.

"Hello." She greeted before stepping aside to let the last member of their coven through. He had wavy hair which hung in his eyes, the colour of honey. A bit like Ada's but hers was more red.

"My name is Jasper, ma'am." He said. "It is nice to finally see the face that goes with a name I've heard many times these past couple of weeks."

His comment did not match the stern look he was giving her, almost as if his attention was elsewhere or focusing really hard on something. Neither him nor Rosalie offered her a hand, but that was alright. It was already a lot to take in. However Ada did notice that there was someone missing. Alice Cullen.

"My other sister will be joining us later. She mentioned having to take care of something." Edward said and he shrugged after Carlisle and Esme threw him a puzzled look.

"It's lovely to meet you all." Ada said to Emmett, Rosalie and Jasper and she bowed her head just a tad bit.

A quiet spell fell over the room and she was starting to feel nervous again, not sure how to act. She never really surrounded herself with this many people, not anymore at least. The last time had been a long while ago and that had not been a pleasant experience. Were the Cullens expecting something for her? She turned her head and looked at the people that had invited her. Esme and Carlisle. She managed to conjure up a smile, but truth was, it was difficult to look at them.

"Bella tells us you're a writer?" Emmett started. "I don't actually read books myself. I'm more of a 'work with my hands' kind of guy."

Ada was glad he was breaking the silence by asking her her something simple. "She's right, I am,-"

"Sorry to interrupt, but how about we all take a seat before continuing this conversation?" Carlisle spoke up as he motioned at them to pick a spot.

Ada quickly sat down in a large brown leather chair which stood nearest to her. A convenient spot as it was situated closest to the entrance of the living room and it was quite a comfortable seat as well. It wasn't until she sat down that she noticed a more prominent scent hanging around it. She looked up just as Carlisle walked by, she could have sworn she saw a smirk on his face as he passed her. Something told her that she might have very well chose his favourite seat in the whole room.

"How long have you been a writer, Ada, if I may ask?" This question came from Esme who took a seat in the corner of the couch so she was nearest to her.

"For as long as I can remember. I learned how to write after I was turned immortal and it soon became my passion."

"What do you mean, you learned how to write after being turned? You are obviously an adult, are you not?" Rosalie frowned. She was sitting on Emmett's lap on the other side of the couch.

"I am. But it wasn't common for girls back then to know how to. Society believed all we needed to know was how to cook or paint or do needlework. I had learned how to read, but that was about it." Ada explained.

The blonde female titled her head and narrowed her eyes. "Just how old exactly are you then?"

"Rosalie." Carlisle's voice was stern as he settled down next to Esme.

Rosalie leaned back into Emmett. "I'm sorry, Ada. You'll find that in this family I'm the one who tends to ask the questions nobody else dares to."

Ada wasn't surprised by the question. The fact that Esme asked her how long she'd been writing for was already sort of a giveaway that probably all of them were curious about her age. She was just as equally curious about theirs. She already knew Bella was the youngest out of all of them and she was pretty certain both her and Carlisle were the oldest. Which left the others somewhere in between.

"I appreciate your honesty, Rosalie. I'm not bothered by your boldness." Ada paused and glanced at all of them until she reached Carlisle and Esme. "I was changed somewhere in the 17th century."

Again the room went quiet. Glances were exchanged, but the only two people who kept theirs on her were Edward and Carlisle. Almost as if the news didn't surprise them.

"To be more specific, in a few years I'll be three hundred and fifty years old." She added and low muttering sounded through the room.

Esme shifted in her seat and she threw a seemingly uneasy look at the man next to her. Carlisle was rubbing his chin and he furrowed his brow as if thinking real hard. But from what Ada could tell was that he was no closer in knowing who she was. Revealing her age would not be good enough to trigger a memory.

"You weren't changed here, were you? On American soil, that is?" Jasper looked at her with one of his eyebrow arched. His accent was thick making it easy to deduce from what state of America he originally hailed from. No doubt he had a suspicion about her.

Ada folded her hands in her lap. "As you can hear, I'm indeed not from around here. I'm from across the pond. England to be more precise. I arrived in the states almost a century ago."

"That's funny. Same as Carlisle." Rosalie turned her head to look at her adoptive father. "All of us were born and turned here. But he wasn't."

"Rosalie,-"

"He's from England too." She continued ignoring Carlisle saying her name once more.

"Aren't you also that old, Carlisle?" Emmett added as he looked at the man with a frown.

"England isn't that big, is it?" Even Bella chimed in this time. "Maybe you've bumped into each other at some point?"

"I just remembered something, if you'll excuse me for a minute." Esme suddenly got up and walked out of the living room.

The mood in the room turned rather drastically. Carlisle glared at his children, scolding them silently before excusing himself to go after his wife. And Ada was once again beginning to feel incredibly uncomfortable. It was clear that they knew why Esme had invited her. And Ada was beginning to realize that she didn't like it at all. As if it was all some sort of setup.

One thing was certain. Carlisle was her Carlisle. She was a hundred percent confident about that now. Only none of them knew that yet and nobody in the room was aware of her history with him, not even Carlisle. She wasn't sure of that was a relief or if that complicated things.

"That depends on how you look at it." Edward suddenly said.

"I'm sorry?" Ada frowned at him, had she been talking out loud?

"I can hear you." He tapped a finger against his head.

"Edward?!" Bella exclaimed with surprise and she grabbed his hand to lower it.

"It's alright, Bella. There's no harm by telling her about my abilities or all of ours for what it's worth." Edward told her and he turned his gaze back on Ada. "I can hear thoughts. Bella here has a shield which protects her from other mental abilities, such as my own." He grimaced quickly.

A mind reader. Fantastic. Ada's expression shifted and she pushed herself up from the chair, causing all of the other Cullens in the room to do the same. All five of them were looking at her. But clearly Edward was the only one who'd been reading her thoughts. Most likely from the minute she arrived there.

"Every single one." Edward replied. "I can't block it out."

"I guess my secret is out then?" She said.

The young man stepped to her. "It wasn't necessarily a secret. Suspicion was already there, but now I know more than enough." He told her.

Ada wrapped one arm around her body and placed her other hand against the location of her locket. "So what's next?"

"We'll wait for Carlisle and Esme to return and we'll talk about this. They're the ones who invited Ada because of this." Bella stepped in front of her husband, her eyes resting on Ada. "Right?"

She glanced over her shoulder at her husband, who didn't seem to agree with her. In fact, none of the others did from what she could tell.

"Edward?"

But he ignored her and kept his focus on the other woman standing before him. "Just how close were you two exactly?"

Ada figured that he knew about that. Did he not say he'd heard her thoughts from the minute she'd walked through the door? If he'd missed that little bit of information, she sure wasn't going to think about anything else aside from how angry she was with all of them.

"Jazz?" Edward looked at his brother as Ada kept her mouth shut.

"I sense a deep love. An intense attraction. Romantic." Jasper said flatly. "Betrayal and hate, but that's mostly directed at you, brother."

"Of course it is." He snorted.

"Jasper can sense and influence emotions." Bella explained. She didn't look too happy with the current situation either. "Edward, this really isn't our business. I'll go look for Esme and Carlisle."

"It is our business, Bella." Rosalie spoke up. "From what Ed has told us, Carlisle as been acting incredibly weird and obsessed even. I don't know what's going on exactly, but it's clear that whatever this is, it can break our family apart and we can't let that happen."

Bella crossed her arms and pointed her chin up towards Rosalie. "How could you think that. You don't even know her."

"Neither do you." The blonde countered. "You saw Esme's reaction. She's already worried something bad is going to happen. Why else do you think Alice went to this woman's house last night?"

This was insane. Assumptions were being thrown left and right. Ada had no idea what she wanted to get out of coming today. Yes, it had been to trigger Carlisle's memory of her, but now after all of this. His coven was making it perfectly clear that she was not wanted. Nothing more but a mere homewrecker.

"As nice as this has been, I'd hate to overstay my welcome." Ada was about to turn around when Edward grabbed hold of her wrist and held it tight within his grasp.

"Carlisle will not hear of this. Any of it. Not from me and not from you." He said firmly, but then his expression softened. "We just,- we're just looking out for each other."

He didn't have to explain himself. Ada understood the situation perfectly. "I never had any ill intend. The past is the past."

Edward only nodded and he let go of her. With one final look at the rest of them, Ada made her way out of the living room and left through the main door. Down the patio steps, across the gravel path and into the forest before finally setting off into a run.

::::::...::::::

"I can't believe you did this." Bella uttered as she stared out the window watching Ada disappear amongst the trees. "And I can't believe I actually let it happen."

Aside from Bella and Edward, the others had left the room. The only one who'd actually left the house was Jasper, who'd gone out to meet Alice and tell her what had happened. Though chances were likely she was well aware of what had happened. It would only be a matter of seconds before Carlisle and Esme would come back. Not even five minutes had passed yet and a lot happened during that short timespan.

"I know it may seem cruel, but she wasn't going to tell us anything. I needed to confront her before she would tell Carlisle without any of us present." Edward explained.

"You didn't confront her, you threatened her. I like her, Edward. I wanted to be her friend." The brunette turned away from the window.

"That would never be possible."

Bella groaned with frustration. "You don't know that. You heard what she said. The past is the past."

"What if that's the case for her but not with Carlisle? You didn't hear their thoughts, Bella. Jasper tried his best to subdue their emotions." Edward wished he hadn't said that last part as Bella widened her eyes.

"You and Jasper really thought this through, didn't you?"

Edward immediately felt guilty. Yes he and his brother had talked this over after learning Esme had left for Port Angeles yesterday to invite Ada. They wanted to give Ada the benefit of the doubt, but were more than willing to interfere if either of them noticed things were going to get out of hand. He was about to open his mouth again when he sensed Carlisle and Esme coming back towards the living room. Within two seconds, the couple stood in the opening and glanced into the room with surprise. It was Esme who spoke first.

"Where is everyone?" She turned her attention to Edward and Bella. The latter shook her head and she pressed her lips in a tight line.

"Ada had to leave. Something urgent she had to take care of." Edward said, but he found himself struggling with sounding believable. Perhaps he hadn't thought this through as much as he thought he had. It would have been far more credible if Ada had left while Esme and Carlisle had been there.

"Bella,-" Carlisle frowned and he locked eyes with his daughter-in-law. "What exactly happened while we were gone?"

The young woman threw another look at Edward who watched her with anticipation. She knew why he'd done what he did. That didn't mean she agreed with him. If there was one thing she hated it was lies. People withholding truths for the so called benefit of others. She loved this family and yes, she didn't want to see anybody unhappy. But it wasn't Edward's nor anybody else's decision to interfere.

"Ada remembers you. Edward heard her thoughts and confronted her about it. She then left, she figured it was better that way." Bella exhaled heavily and Edward lowered his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Carlisle. I should have approached it differently and with both of you present." He admitted.

The look on his father's face would torment him for a long time. He had never seen Carlisle this upset. He didn't say a word, he only stared at him. His golden eyes distant and cold. With a shake of his head, Carlisle stepped to Esme. He gazed into her eyes for a few seconds. She nodded and he planted a kiss on her forehead. Without looking back he rushed out of the house at high speed. Edward was about to run after him but Esme blocked his path.

"Leave him, Edward." She sighed, looking very tired.

"But, Esme,-"

"You heard me. He has to do this." She flashed him a faint smile. "We'll explain later. But this is something between the two of them."


Don't hate me for stopping here! Already working on the next chapter.

Please, I would love to hear your thoughts :) Have great day and until next time.