Disclaimer: All things Twilight belong to the wonderful Stephenie Meyer and not to me… sigh.I also don't own Sleeping with the Enemy. The book belongs to Nancy Price and the movie belongs to Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation.

Sleeping with a Monster


Previously…

Since neither one of us felt like cooking, we stopped off at a restaurant on the way home to grab a bite to eat. As soon as we walked into the house, we got ready for bed and collapsed for the night, exhausted and happy in each other's arms. Life was good.


Chapter 34 - Wicked

Bella POV

"Bella, let's go." Rose was tapping her foot impatiently waiting for me to grab my things.

Alice scowled at me as she placed her hands on her hips and declared, "I still can't believe you two didn't do anything last night. It was Halloween, for crying out loud."

"We were tired, Alice," Edward whined.

"And the hospital woke us up at four thirty in the morning." I added my two cents for good measure.

"Ugh! You two sound like an old married couple," Rose quipped as she pushed past me on her way to the door.

"We'll see you at lunch. And Edward, don't be late." Alice gave Edward a pointed look as she nudged my shoulder and followed Rose out to the car. He just rolled his eyes at her before he gathered me in his arms.

"I'll see you in a few hours," I said a little hesitantly as Edward pouted. He let out a forlorn sigh, playing up the dejected boyfriend shtick a little too much. I fought and won the battle against the smile tugging at the corners of my mouth.

Deciding it was time to turn the tables, I furrowed my brow and matched his little pout. "Aw baby. If you want me to stay, I will. I can pick up that cute little biker outfit Rose was telling me about some other time." I watched as his eyes flashed with something akin to delight at the mention of motorcycle apparel knowing how much he liked what I wore for our ride on my birthday. I had noticed him eyeing his bike a couple of times last week, but our schedules had not allowed for riding time together.

"Oh. Well… um… a biker outfit?" Edward almost stuttered out, his face full of longing. It was mystifying and almost comical that I could affect him with the mention of me in motorcycle gear. It was one of the few things that truly got my man flustered. I'll be filing that little tidbit of information away for future use.

Looking down at his chest, I drew lazy little circles just under his collarbone before I looked up at him through my eyelashes. "I'll just let the girls know, although I don't know when I'll be able to find the outfit again without Rose's help." The little sigh I let out at the end was the clincher.

"No!" He blurted out before he blushed a bit. "I mean… I'll be okay. You… you go to the swap meet and buy what ever you want." Edward tried to play it cool, but that silly grin on his face gave him away.

"Hm. I will." I gave him a quick kiss and I winked at him as I stepped out of his arms.

He gave me a confused look for a minute before understanding dawned on his face. He narrowed his eyes at me and muttered, "Evil."

I gave him a smug little smile. "I prefer wicked." He gave me a discontented grunt but flashed me my favorite crooked grin letting me know I was forgiven for exploiting his weakness.

"See you at the restaurant, wicked," He called, shaking his head at me still grinning.

"Have fun with the realtor," I sang, as I got into Rose's convertible.

Earlier this morning Edward and I had made a quick run though the rental to make sure it was presentable. My dishes and utensils were still there, as well as several items of food in the pantry and cupboards. I had put off moving the things that lasted a good while or we didn't need right away…


As I opened the pantry, I was greeted with the sight of several cans and boxes lined up, perfectly – labels in front, looking like they would on the grocery story shelf. I let out a small squeak before I composed myself.

Wow. Did I really do that? It had been several weeks since I moved in with Edward. I couldn't remember, but I must have done it. I guess old habits die hard.

My reaction, of course, did not escape the ever-watchful eye of my Edward. "What's the problem, love?"

I let out an embarrassed huff. "Oh, just a little reminder of my life in Miami." Edward gave me a questioning look.

I motioned towards the random items arranged neatly, almost perfectly, in the pantry. "Imagine an entire pantry full of items, placed perfectly on the shelves like these." I shook my head. "I guess I still find myself doing that from time to time."

Edward pulled me into a hug and chuckled. I gave him a disbelieving look. He smiled and said, "Let's go home and mess up the pantry and cupboards." His eyes sparkled with mirth. "I don't ever want you to feel uncomfortable or have little reminders around our place…"

Rose maneuvered her red car into a parking spot at the swap meet. We got out and hiked to the big building that housed the booths. As we entered, I saw large crowds of people milling about, looking at merchandise and haggling with the booth operators over price. Alice looked like a little kid in a candy store as she started to drag me along with her to her favorite booths.

"Jeesh, Alice! Pace yourself," Rose laughed, causing me to smile. I had to hurry to keep up with these two, having agreed to stick together. We had to assure our men that we would stick together and not become separated.

I couldn't remember ever having this much fun shopping, but I think it had a lot to do with the company I was with. I had been shopping with girlfriends before. That was nothing new. But my life's experiences and new outlook on life taught me to appreciate the little things – good friends, the freedom to enjoy life, the ability to make little mistakes and be forgiven without punishment, to lead the life I wanted, make my own decisions, and best of all… love Edward and be loved in return.

After almost four hours of shopping and haggling with the merchants, we walked out into the parking lot. We stowed our swap meet treasures, including my biker outfit, in the trunk of Rose's car and left to meet the guys for lunch.

********

"Wow! Somebody loves you," Jessica all but squealed from the doorway of my classroom as she smiled at me. "What's the occasion – Happy Thursday?"

My perma-grin was so big, my cheeks were aching, but I didn't care. "Aren't they gorgeous?" I gushed, marveling at the sheer magnitude of the arrangement of multi-colored lilies Edward had sent me. As much as I didn't like the attention, I found myself feeling a little smug that he wanted to announce it to everyone how much he loved me. The note on the card was one simple word – Soon. It was same as the message on the mirror in our bathroom. The same thing he said to me in the hotel room after the fiasco at the charity ball. Soon. Who knew such a simple word could cause a flourish of butterflies to erupt in my stomach. It was rapidly becoming my favorite word in the English language.

"So, it's pretty serious, huh?" Jessica pressed, her eyes twinkling. Her hopeful look caused, no doubt, by her desire to get the latest scoop before the rest of our coworkers.

I nodded. "We moved in together a couple weeks ago," I said, blushing like a schoolgirl. But, it was the thought of living the rest of my life with Edward that caused my heart to swell with happiness. The bell rang, signaling the end of lunch and students started to file into my classroom. Jessica waved good-bye as she left.

As soon as the arrangement arrived, I called Edward, but he was in surgery. I didn't want to leave my thanks on his voice mail. I just left him a message to call me 'soon' as I laughed and hung-up, sure he would get the double meaning.

Unable to resist my inner romantic, I quickly looked up the meaning of lilies. I was very encouraged by what I read. Lilies symbolized everything from purity to feminine sexuality. The oranges meant he burned for me. The white meant it was heavenly to be with me. The yellow ones meant he was walking on air. Lilies of the Valley meant I had made his life complete. The list went on and one. If someone dreams of lilies, it means they are hoping for marriage and happiness. There were other interpretations of lilies in dreams that weren't so encouraging, but this wasn't a dream, so I didn't give those too much thought. And, as much I was hoping Edward put that much thought into the arrangement he sent, I knew he probably looked at the flowers and said… 'That looks nice.' But, a girl can dream, right?

I floated through the rest of my classes feeling giddy. After the last of my students left for the day, I rushed through my work, hoping to get an early start on my weekend. I wanted to fix a special dinner for Edward tonight to thank him for the flowers and well… everything.

I had about fifteen more minutes of work left when my cell phone rang. I looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Tori. She was the realtor who had contacted Edward last week about his rental. She had several investors who were looking for properties in the area and wanted to know if he was interested in selling. Edward and I hadn't really talked about whether my moving in with him for protection was permanent, but when he made an appointment for her to come by to view the rental, I got my answer.

"Hello?" I leaned back in my chair and relaxed.

"Hello. This is Tori Rand. May I speak to Miss Thomas please?" I recognized Tori's impeccable phone manners and uber-feminine voice right away. I had never met the woman, but it wasn't the first time we had spoke on the phone. I was hoping to meet her later this evening when she brought by yet another investor. I think this was the third one since she had contacted Edward.

"Tori, only my students call me Miss Thomas. Please, call me Bella," I laughed.

"Alright, Bella," Tori replied cheerfully.

"What can I do for you?" I flipped through my lesson plan absently.

"My client has finished with her appointments earlier than expected today. It's her son's birthday and she was hoping to catch an earlier flight home to Cincinnati this evening. Would it be too much of an imposition if we were to come by and see it earlier than we had arranged." She sound hopeful and I smiled.

"What time did you have in mind?" My shoulders were tense from my hunched position over my desk, and I stretched stifling a groan as my aching muscles protested.

"Is there any possible way we could come by in say 30 minutes? I would be forever grateful," she gushed a little.

"Of course. I was just getting ready to leave work in a few minutes. I'll meet you there." I groaned internally. There goes my plan to run by the store for some necessary items for tonight's dinner.

"Oh, you're a doll!" Tori's grateful voice rang out.

I laughed at her flattery. She was a salesperson through and through. "I'll just give Edward a call and let him know about the change in plans. I'll see you in a little while."

"Thanks, Bella. You don't know how much this means to me." Her sigh of relief gave me some idea.

I hung up the phone and went back to my work. Ten minutes later, I found myself finished so I put this week's allotment of essays needing grades in my messenger bag. I gathered my things including the gargantuan floral arrangement from Edward, and made my way out to the parking lot. Once inside my car, I found that the only place I could put the arrangement was in the passenger seat. It was so big that I had to seatbelt it into place and rest my messenger bag and purse up against it to secure it in place.

Once I was sure the flowers weren't going to topple over, I started for home. Traffic was light and as soon as I pulled into our neighborhood, I called Edward. When he answered, I felt relieved this time to actually speak to him instead of his voice mail.

"Hey beautiful," Edward sighed. I could hear the smile in his voice.

"Hi, Sweetie. How was your day?" Just his voice made me relax.

"Hectic. What was supposed to be a routine procedure on one of my patients turned into a six-hour major operation when the patient had a few unforeseen complications. It was pretty touch and go for a while, but he should make a full recovery." His sounded heavy with exhaustion.

"Oh, I'm so glad. That must have been so stressful for you. Are you okay?" I still wondered how he did it.

"Now that I've heard your voice… I can't wait to have you in my arms, Love. I miss you." I laughed freely at his comments, my heart swelling even more.

"When are you done with your shift?" I couldn't wait to see him and thank him properly for the flowers.

"It just ended. I'm actually just getting into my car." His voice sounding lighter by the minute.

"Oh that's perfect. I just got home myself. Tori called and said she needed to move up the appointment time for the investor. She'll be here in about 15 minutes." I pulled into the driveway and turned off the car.

"Will you be okay to be alone with her?" He just couldn't seem to help himself, always worrying about me.

I wanted to get inside, check on the rental, and make sure it was presentable before Tori and her client arrived. I got out and grabbed the floral arrangement, thinking it would provide a touch of elegance to the place. Trying to juggle the phone and the flowers proved to be a feat in and of itself.

"Edward," I chastised lightly through the flowers pressed into my face. "It's Tori. She's just a realtor and her client. Don't worry. Besides, you'll be here in a few minutes." I heard the familiar beep on the phone alerting me that someone else was trying to call me. I glanced at the screen and saw Carlisle's name. Having spent too much time talking to Edward's voice mail, I ignored Carlisle's call knowing I could call him right back.

"I know. I just can't help but worry about you. I just thought that when you filed for divorce, James would do something. But this waiting and not knowing what he's thinking is almost worse than him showing up on our doorstep." He sounded a little aggravated, even though I knew he didn't really want James to try anything. It was the not knowing that was driving us insane. When I reached the front door, I put the flowers down on the porch to free up my hands. I pushed my key into the lock and opened the front door. I picked up the flowers and walked inside, shutting the door behind me.

"I know. I really did think he would have responded in some way, even if it were just through his lawyers to contest the divorce. It really isn't like the James I know. Maybe he really did move on," I said, my voice a little distracted. James's lack of response was certainly out of character. Maybe I didn't know him as well as I thought. I quickly made my way through the living and went straight to the dining room. I placed the bouquet in the middle of the dining room table and dropped my keys next it.

"Soooo. How was your day?" Edward's long drawn out 'so' alerted me to the fact that he was fishing for my reaction to his bouquet. I hurried back outside to the mailbox. I was still getting errant pieces of mail delivered to the rental.

"Oh, it was pretty uneventful. Nothing as exciting as your day," I teased with a laugh as I thumbed through the endless stream of junk mail and ads. A hand-addressed letter with my name on it caught my eye.

"Hm. I guess you'll just have to fill me in on all the boring details when I get home," he teased back and I laughed again as I made my way back to the front door.

"As if you don't know." I marveled at how carefree and happy my voice was. Mmm, I loved this man. I went back in the house, turning on lights as I went, flooding the place with light in order to showcase the house better for the investor.

"Know about what?" Oh, he was playing it up. I gazed back at the flowers on the table and smiled.

"Oh, nothing. I guess you'll just have to wait and see." I gravitated back to the dining room table and set the mail down. There was that beep again. I glanced at the screen – Carlisle. I decided to ignore the call for the second time. I was having too much fun with Edward.

"No really, Bella. I really don't know." Edward's voice started to lose some of its teasing. I arranged some of the flowers that were knocked out of place during their transport, before I turned my attention back to Edward's voice on the phone.

"Come on Edward. Did you forget that gorgeous bouquet of flowers you sent me today? They're quite breath taking. I don't even want to guess how much money you spent on them." I turned my attention to the mail suddenly remembering the letter. I quickly pawed my way through it and pulled it out. It was thick and didn't have a return address on it, but the postmark was from Phoenix. I tore it open, curious to see what it was.

"Bella, what are you talking about?" Edward's voice was no longer light and I felt he was taking this ruse a little farther than necessary.

"Edward!" I laughed, but his end of the line was quiet except for the sudden revving of his engine as it gained speed. "Edward?" I felt confused at his silence.

"Bella. What did the note say?" I could hear the control in his voice alerting me to the fact that Edward was not happy.

"What's wrong?" A warning bell went off in the back of my head and I suppressed it.

"What did it say?" His voice held an urgency that swept away all vestiges of our light banter about the flowers.

"It said 'soon.' You know, like what you said to me in the hotel after the charity ball." I glanced down at my hands only to realize I had pulled the contents of the envelope out. It consisted of a white piece of paper wrapped around a stack pictures.

"Bella, I didn't send you any flowers." Edward's voice was almost a low growl. It confused me.

"But it was the same thing you said to me at the hotel, and the same message you left me on the mirror in our bathroom last week," I said incredulously. Who else would send me that message? It was a private conversation between us. That single word had a special meaning to us that no one else knew about.

Edward's sharp intake of breath sent a cold shiver down my spine. "What message?" I gasp at the realization that someone else was responsible for the writing on the mirror. "Bella! What message?" Edward's voice was almost frantic as he yelled in the phone.

"Soon," I whispered. I understood now. It wasn't a message from Edward. It was a message from James! The beep from Carlisle's third attempt to call me barely registered in my ear as I saw the pictures slowly slid out of the letter in my hands. They were pictures of everyone I held dear in my new life – Carlisle, Esme, Alice, Jasper, Emmett, Rose, Angela, Ben, and… Edward. Some of them were intimate pictures of Edward with me. And each of them had the same word crudely cut into each picture – DEAD. "Oh God! Edward!" I sobbed, my hands shaking as the pictures scattered across the floor of the dining room. I was barely aware of Edward's voice in my ear.

"Bella! Bella! Talk to me. Are you okay?" Edward asked frantically, trying to break through to me.

"Edward… pictures… you and me… everyone." I gasped in between sucking in deep breathes in panic. I opened the letter and read the large scrawl that I recognized instantly. It was short and to the point.

Soon, My Beloved.

Nothing will come

Between us again.

"Damn it! Bella! Get out of there! Now!" Edward was screaming at me on the phone, but it wasn't registering in my ears. James was coming for me. That thought alone left me helpless in the iron grip of fear.

"Edward? Ah…what?" All coherent thought fled as my mind raged. James had been in our house, taken pictures of Edward and I sleeping, pictures of me shopping with Alice and Rose, pictures of Edward and me in our formalwear, walking into the hotel, pictures of everyone.

"Bella! Run! Shit! Can you hear me? Are you alright?" Edward's pleadings continued, but I seemed to be rooted in my spot there in the dining room at the realization of what I had done. Everyone I loved in my new life would die because of me. In that moment I realized that James was not the monster, I was. I had entered their lives; my wonderful, perfect friends and my Edward would now suffer, simply because they wanted to help me, befriend me, and love me. And I had unwittingly led them to their doom and they didn't even realize it. I was the accomplice, the lure that would lead them to their deaths.

Suddenly that song, his song filled the house, loud and pulsating as it sliced through everything around me. I could hear a string of curses coming from Edward in reaction to the song I was sure he could hear over the phone.

"Damn it, Bella! Say something! Anything! I'm coming! I'm almost there! Oh, please, Bella!" Edward kept up his pleadings.

But I found myself paralyzed, stuck to my spot on the floor as I felt his breath fan across my neck from behind as he breathed my name in my ear – 'Marie.' The cosmos sucked in its breath and waited.

A/N: Dun, Dun, Dunnnnn! Gasp! Another cliffy. Sorry, but it was just the best place to stop! ;)

I have the best fans in the world! 57 reviews for the last chapter! I feel so loved XD Thank-you!

Now the title of this chapter is actually in honor of "Wicked" the broadway musical, which I got to see last Thursday. LOVED IT!

Thanks for reading and reviewing my story. - SavageWoman