Chapter 14: Press Conference Junkies
AN: Thanks to all my reviewers and readers.
BPOV
That bitch.
That fucking bitch!
Who the fuck did she think she was? How dare she try to take Charlotte and Gisele away from me.
I saw the Hale's walking towards their car. I wanted to fuck them up. I started charging at them, claws out, when I felt something restraining me around my waist.
I looked down and saw Edward was holding onto me, making sure I didn't commit murder. "Easy, Bells," he said quietly.
"Let me at them," I snarled, trying to pull free from him. "I'll show them how we settle arguments in Forks!" I was in full white-trash mode, ready to fuck a bitch up with my bare hands.
"Bella, mangling the face of your niece's grandmother is not going to look good to a judge. Can you try to keep your trailer park impulses to yourself?"
I glared at him, but calmed down. He still didn't let me go, because we both knew what would happen if he did. Mrs. Hale would end up in the emergency room and I would earn a one-way trip to the police station in the back of a squad car. What a great role model I would be for my children.
"Bella, let's go home. We can discuss it there," Edward murmured in my ear. I nodded, then buckled the girls in the back seat before climbing in the front with Gisele on my lap.
We brought her back to the hospital, then drove back to our house. Three cars were already parked in our driveway—everyone else was here.
Edward and I walked in the house with Charlotte, Emily, and Olivia. Alice was in the kitchen, putting plates of food on the table and counters. Jasper was already mixing drinks and putting beer and wine out. Mike and Leah were going through my CD's, looking for some good music to put on. Seth and Cynthia were sitting on the floor, playing with the kids.
"Charlotte!" Evan called out, running over to her. He gave her a big hug, then took her hand.
"Do you want to see my new room?" Charlotte asked, pulling Evan towards the stairs. I heard the two of them laughing as they disappeared.
I sat down at the kitchen table, looking over the subpoena. I didn't know what Edward and I were going to do—what if we lost the case?
"Bella, you have to move," Alice said, putting a fruit platter in front of me. "People are going to be here any minute."
"Who the fuck cares?" I snapped at her. She looked taken aback.
"Ignore her, Alice," Edward said, shooting me a look that said keep your trap shut.
I sighed and went upstairs. When I got to my room, I slammed the door shut and threw my purse against the wall, screaming. Edward opened the door a minute later and grabbed me by the shoulders.
"Bella, shut up!" he shouted. I stopped at once—he had never spoken to me like that before. "You have to calm down. We can't do anything about this today. I'll call our lawyer tomorrow, but you have to forget about it right now. We're going to have many people here soon, and I need you to be calm. Can you do that?"
I took a deep breath and nodded my head. He kissed me lightly on the lips, wiped my tears off my face, and then let me go. We walked back downstairs together. Everyone acted as if I wasn't completely losing my marbles. I saw Alice shoot me a worried glace, but I just smiled at her. We'd tell everyone what was going on once the luncheon ended and everyone left.
I heard the front door open and went to see who had arrived. Carlisle and Esme walked in, Esme still sobbing. She threw her arms around me, and I returned the hug.
"Oh, Bella, I can't believe they're gone!" she wailed. Carlisle stood behind us, keeping silent. I don't think the reality of what had happened have fully sunk in with him.
I led Esme into the living area and had her sit on the couch before I brought her a glass of wine. Carlisle just drank water.
After Edward's parents arrived, everyone else showed up. For the next few hours, I was greeted by people who offered us their condolences. Everyone kept telling Edward and I how wonderful it was for us to take in Charlotte and Gisele.
"Those poor kids," an ex-teammate of Emmett's told me. "They're the sweetest little girls I ever met. How are they doing?"
"Charlotte's doing better, and Gisele is starting to talk. She's still in the hospital, though." He nodded sadly.
Jasper stayed at the bar the entire time, pouring everyone drinks, while Alice patrolled the house, carrying trays of food. Cynthia and Seth watched the kids, making sure they behaved. Once the luncheon ended and everyone left, we all sat down in the family room on the couch, exhausted. Esme and Carlisle were in the kitchen, cleaning up.
"So, what's going on?" Alice asked me.
"This," I said, handing her the subpoena from the Hale's lawyer. Alice read it, her eyes getting wider with each line she took in.
"How can they do this? Rosalie hated them!"
"I know," I said. "I don't know what we're going to do about this."
"Can't you just tell the judge it was Emmett's dying wish that you and Edward raise Charlotte and Gisele?"
Edward shook his head. "Unless it's in writing, they'll think we just made it up."
"What about their wills?" Jasper asked.
"They're reading it tomorrow morning, so we'll find out if it was in there."
"When's the press conference?" Leah asked.
"Tomorrow afternoon," Edward said softly. We were all nervous about the press conference, mainly because we were going to be telling the truth about what really happened on the island. We didn't know how people were going to react to that. It was going to be an interesting day.
After all the kids were tired from running around the house, everyone else decided to leave besides Charlie, who was staying with us for the week.
"Bella, don't worry about it," Alice said, referring to the Hale's. "Everything will work out in the end, I promise."
"I hope you're right, Alice," I said, giving her a big hug.
Once everyone had left, Edward and I put the three girls to bed, then went to our room to wind down for the evening.
"Do you think Alice is right?" I asked him as I took out my earrings.
"Bella, don't worry about it. I'll call Bill in the morning and we'll get this whole thing figured out. I promise." I turned around and saw my husband standing right in front of me without a shirt. It made me happy to know that even after being together for eight years, Edward still had the power to make my heart stop beating. I laughed as he pulled me into his arms and carried me over to our bed.
********
APOV
"Good morning," I called, opening the door to the room where Seth and Cynthia were sleeping. I felt a pillow hit my face as I laughed and headed into David's room to get him up. I lifted him out of his crib, brought him downstairs, and put him in his highchair to feed him breakfast.
Once David was fed, I brought him back upstairs to change him for today. Once he was finally ready, I brought him downstairs, where Seth was sitting in the living room, watching television.
"Seth, can you watch David while I get ready?" I asked. He nodded, and I put my son on his lap before running upstairs to hop in the shower.
Once I was showered, I walked back into my room to apply my makeup and do my hair. Jasper was almost dressed, with the exception of his tie.
"Come here, baby," I said, walking over to him. I reached my hands around his neck and tied his tie for him before giving him a small peck on the lips.
"Thank you, darling," he drawled. As I walked away, he slapped my ass lightly. Just to tease him, I dropped the towel on the floor before heading into the bathroom. Once there, I pulled on my bra and panties before pulling on a white blouse and a black high-waited skirt. I slipped into my black stilettos before coming out.
I checked myself in the mirror, reapplied my lipstick, then grabbed my purse and headed downstairs.
Everyone else was already downstairs, waiting for me. Cynthia had on a tight blue dress that showed off her curves very nicely. She took Seth's hand, and the two of them walked outside. Jasper picked up David, and the three of us headed to our car.
We drove to the Los Angeles courthouse, where we were going to hear Emmett and Rosalie's will. Once we got there, we headed to the fourth floor and headed into the conference room. Bella, Edward, and everyone else was already here. I saw Rosalie's family sitting in the room in the corner. What were they doing here?
"Not that everyone is here, we can get started," the lawyer standing in the front of the room said. He picked up a document off the table and cleared his throat. "Here, I have the wills of Emmett N. Cullen and Rosalie C. Cullen."
"Hale," Mrs. Hale corrected.
"Excuse me?" the lawyer asked, looking up.
"Her last name is Hale, not Cullen," she snapped.
"I'm sorry, but it says Rosalie Carina Cullen on the will." Mrs. Hale glared at him as he continued. I took Jasper's hand and he gave mine a small squeeze.
"Right. We'll start with Emmett Nathaniel Cullen…"
Unfortunately, Emmett's will was written before the crash. He made Edward the executor, and left everything to Edward and his parents. Charlotte and Gisele. Rosalie had written hers right after she was married. Again, there was no mention of her daughters. She made Emmett executor and me the alternate. She had left everything to Emmett, but in case they died together, she left me in charge of what to do with her estate.
Emmett and Rosalie's lawyer looked at me. "Mrs. Whitlock?"
I cleared my throat and stood up. There was only one option of what to do. "Rosalie Carina Cullen's estate will be divided into two equal parts. Two trusts will be set up, under the names of Charlotte Addison Cullen and Gisele Marie Cullen, to be accessed when the girls turn 18. Any property such as pictures will go to the legal guardians of Charlotte and Gisele." I sat back down next to Jasper.
"What about that?" Bella asked.
"I'm sorry, what?" the lawyer asked.
"What's going to happen to Gigi and Lola?"
"Who?"
"Emmett and Rosalie's kids," Edward sighed.
"Umm, I don't know. You'll have to work that out with a judge." He smiled sadly at us before leaving the room.
"See you in court," Mrs. Hale sneered at Bella and Edward. Bella looked like she was going to rip out Rosalie's mother's throat. Good thing Edward was holding on to her.
"Bella, calm down. We'll get this all figured out, don't worry."
"I don't mean to interrupt, but there's a bunch of reporters outside waiting for you all," the lawyer said, sticking his head in the room.
"The press conference," Edward said, standing up and taking Bella's hand. "Let's go."
Jasper and I followed Edward and Bella. Once we got outside, we saw just how many reporters were there for this press conference. It was like every reporter in the United States decided to come. This was going to be interesting.
Once everyone made it outside, we all stood in a group with Edward in the front. After all, he had always been our unofficial leader.
"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen of the press," he greeted them. "My friends and I are here to answer your questions. We understand you are all very curious about what happened to us and to my brother and his wife."
All at once, every reporter started calling names. I shrunk closer to Jasper's side, feeling slightly overwhelmed.
"Yes?" Edward said, pointing to a reporter in the front.
"What happened on the island?"
We all looked at Edward, telling him he should answer the question. He cleared his throat. "Well, our children were kidnapped and taken to the island we crashed on before. We had to go there to get them back."
"Who took them?"
"A man by the name of James Howard."
"What happened to him?"
"He's dead."
"Why did he want to kidnap your children?"
Edward looked back at us. Here was the moment of truth—were we going to go with the truth or a lie?
I stepped forward to answer the question. "We didn't give the whole truth about the first crash, and he wanted revenge for that."
It sounded like there were thousands of bees in the audience with all the muttering. "What do you mean, you didn't tell the truth?"
"We lied, okay?" Bella snapped. She was pissed off at the world with the whole custody situation. I didn't blame her. "We were on some uncharted island in the middle of the ocean where a group of native people lived. They tried to kill us. In fact, they ended up killing the rest of the survivors from the plane, save us."
"I thought you said…"
"I know what we said. There were about 40 of us who survived. Everyone else was massacred one night. There was one man, Aro, who was controlling everything."
"What happened to him?"
"We thought we killed him on the island, but he ended up escaping, made it back here, kidnapped me from my house, and tried to kill me. I would have died if Edward hadn't found me." She gave Edward's hand a squeeze.
"How did you end up escaping from the island?"
Jasper cleared his throat. "The first time, a group from a freighter came to save us. We made it back to the boat when it became clear they planned on killing us. This last time, we were saved by someone who already knew we were there. She was intent on stopping Jim Howard from killing us all."
"Why did this man want to go after all of you?"
I sighed. "Most of us had somehow wronged him in his life."
"How?"
I looked to Edward. It was his brother—he should be the one to tell the truth. "Emmett accidentally killed his sister in a hit-and-run accident when he was a teenager. Rosalie murdered her husband, who happened to be his friend. Alice was involved with his nephew. Jasper's family was killed by his people. I used to be married to his daughter."
Everyone was silent. "Rosalie killed someone?"
"Yes. Her ex-husband, Royce King III, who was abusing her. It was self defense."
None of the reporters said anything. They seemed to understand that this was all true, and very hard for us all to talk about.
"Are there any more questions?" Edward asked.
"Is it true you and your wife are being sued for custody of Emmett and Rosalie's daughters?"
Edward nodded. "Her family thinks they are more equipped to care for Charlotte and Gisele. We only want to go along with Emmett and Rosalie's wishes. It was Emmett's dying wish that my wife and I raise Charlotte and Gisele. We all need to be going. Thank you!"
We all headed to our cars to drive home. The custody case was coming up next week. Having met Rosalie's family, I could tell it was going to be an interesting case.
********
BPOV
"Aunt Bella, what's going on?" Charlotte asked me. I was getting her dressed in one of her nicer dresses. "Why do I have to wear my fancy dress?"
"We're going to a court today and they're going to decided who you're going to live with," I told her as I tied the sash on the back of her dress.
"But I want to live with you and Uncle Edward and Emily and Olivia!" she said.
"I know you do, sweetie, but your grandma and grandpa Hale want you to live with them."
"I don't want to live with them!"
I laughed. "Well, you'll have to tell the judge that."
"Judge?" she asked as I started straightening her hair.
"Yes. We're going to see a judge, and he's going to ask you who you want to live with. All you have to do is tell him the truth."
"I'm scared," she whispered.
"I know you are, sweetie, but you don't need to be. The judge is a very nice man and he only wants to hear what you have to say. I'm going to be there with you if you get scared, okay?"
"Do you promise?" she asked, looking at me with Rosalie's eyes.
"I promise."
"Bell, we have to go," Edward called to me from downstairs. I took Charlotte's hand, and the two of us walked downstairs where Edward was waiting for us with Emily and Olivia. Gisele was still in the hospital, so she wouldn't be coming to the trial with us.
I buckled Charlotte into the seat while Edward helped Emily and Olivia into their car seats. I climbed into the front seat next to Edward and we drove to the courthouse.
"What do you think is going to happen?" I asked him.
"I don't know. It all depends on how Judge Turner rules and what the Hale's lawyer says. This could become very messy very fast. I just need you to promise me you'll remain calm. The worst thing would be for you to try and kill Rosalie's mother."
I took a deep breath. "I'll do my best."
He smiled at me and took my hand. We pulled into a parking space in the court parking lot and I turned around to face Charlotte. "Lola, I want to remember one thing: you need to tell the truth. When the judge asks who you want to live with, you tell him the truth. I don't care what the truth is; I just want you to be happy, okay?"
She nodded. We got out of the car and walked us the steps to the courthouse. I took a deep breath before walking inside.
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