A/N: Once again… I usually don't put my author's notes at the beginning of my chapters, however, I needed to add an **VIOLENT CONTENT WARNING** to this chapter. It's not a rape – I promise, but it is violent. I did try to tone it down, but I still had to do the story justice. Unfortunately, I could not contain the violence to one section of the chapter, so use your discretion if it worries you. Now, on with the story! Thanks! - SavageWoman
Sleeping with a Monster
Previously...
"Edward?" She paused before her sneer grew more pronounced, indicating he was still on the line. "We'll take good care of her." She let out a horrid cackle before she tossed the phone into the bushes next to the cabin.
"No!" I shrieked just before the door to the cabin closed, locking me in my prison once again.
Chapter 39 - Angels
Bella's POV
James gripped my slender throat in his massive paw and pushed me up against the bedroom door. I could hear myself gasp for breath, the noise sounding foreign to my ears. All he had to do was squeeze a little more and I'd be done for. Just as I started to see black spots, he released me. I slumped against the door, taking deep breaths with my hand to my throat.
James leaned in and whispered, "You're worthless, nasty. Nobody wants you – you're used and dirty. Even Edward won't touch you." My sharp intake of breath betrayed me. How did he know Edward didn't touch me? James's words cut into my heart, doing exactly what he intended for them to do – tear me down, show me how worthless I was.
Stop it! I will not let him do this again. I'm better than this. Edward loves me…
"And you betrayed me by lying in another man's bed!" Out of the corner of my eye, I saw James raise his hand to strike and I shrunk back in horror.
Slap
I whimpered. I was no longer capable of handling this abuse. This day was too long, my emotions were no longer under my control, my physical body was exhausted, and my mind was turning to mush. My psyche refused to make sense of the disgusting names spewing from his mouth like an angry swarm of hornets, stinging me at every turn.
"You left me," he ground out. "Made me believe you were dead. Do you know what you put me through?" His face twisted with his rage as he shoved me up against the door.
Slam!
The jolt of hitting the door shocked my system awake.
What I put him through?
I suddenly realized I needed to buy more time. I knew Edward was close. If I could just last long enough… Keep James talking… Get him angry… Stay conscious… Keep away from that bed… Mentally I could handle a beating better than a brutal rape.
"Look at you. You look like a trailer tramp. You're fat and ugly. You've undone everything we accomplished together. Everything."
"After all I did for you…why? Why did you do it?" He stepped back almost as if he expected me to answer that.
After all he did for me!
As he raised his hand to hit me, again, I snapped.
"That!" I screamed pointed at his hand, poised to strike me again and again. "That right there is why I left! All the abuse and pain - God, James. You never wanted to share you life with me and you certainly didn't love me. You just wanted a punching bag." I took inventory and realized I was standing tall – chest heaving, red-faced, fists clenched standing up for myself.
Wow! That felt good! Let's do it again…
"What?" James looked at me stunned for a moment, hand frozen in the air. His arm dropped and he gripped my upper arms and shook me. "Why do you think I went though this trouble? Do you think I would waste my time helping you improve yourself if I didn't want you in my life?" His voice was tight and controlled.
"Stop it!" I shrieked, shoving him away. Surprisingly, James released my arms and took a step back. "Did you ever ask me if I wanted it?"
He furrowed his brow and looked as if I had grown two heads. "You didn't see yourself clearly. I did. I could see your potential. I knew you would thank me one–"
Thank him? Was he nuts? Don't answer that! Okay go ahead – YES!
"No! Did you honestly think I wanted to get beat everyday? To live in fear of my husband? Did you think I wanted to be put down, kicked, degraded, feel worthless? Do you think I wanted to feel used by my husband?" I couldn't hold back the tears any longer – tears of regret, of pain, of betrayal, of loss for what could have been.
"Marie." He gazed at me, and for a moment, I saw the man I married. His face was full of understanding and sadness. Unfortunately, that too was an illusion as his expression morphed back to my tormentor, fully of hate and distaste.
"No! You're lying. You wanted it, you understood me, understood us and what we could do, where we could take our relationship," he roared, taking a step closer and bringing his hand back up and hitting me, again.
Slap
I slammed against the door from the force of his blow. But my determination would not let me crumble as I pushed myself away. "How can you be so obtuse? James, I loved you – you! Just the way you were. I didn't need much from you. Gah! I would have walked on water for you had you just asked me. All I wanted was your love in return – loved for who I was. Not some idea of what you could make me into. You never once asked me what I wanted. Never once asked me to understand what you needed. You just took and took and the only thing you gave in return was hate and fear!"
He shook his head in anger, in denial as he growled out, "No! He poisoned you against me – your precious Edward. He has unraveled all my hard work, all the training; you were so close to perfection. He just used you. If I didn't take you away from him, he would eventually throw you away once he saw all your imperfections, your flaws. I will make him pay for ruining you." He came at me again and I tried to get away. There was nowhere to go. He grabbed my shoulders while driving his knee into the side of my abdomen. I felt something snap as a searing pain shot through my side. I slumped to the floor gasping and groaning in pain and curling up into myself.
James took a step back and paced in front of me. I glanced up at him as he undid the cuffs of his shirt and rolled up the sleeves. That meant only one thing – he was getting ready to get down to business and give me a real beating. My mind started to race and my body started to shake in anticipation. Instinct and past experience caused my reaction.
When James grabbed my wrists and pulled me up, I cried out in terror. He pressed his body into mine and my chest flared with another sharp stab. I knew something was wrong. This pain was unfamiliar, frightening. He grabbed the back of my head and looked into my terrified eyes full of tears. He smirked when he saw my lips tremble before he took them in a bruising kiss. He released my wrist and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me even close so I could feel every inch of his powerful body. I sobbed against his lips as the pain in my chest increased. Unable to take much more, I started to panic. I beat on his chest and pulled his hair in a vain attempt to get him off me. He released me from his kiss but quickly grabbed my wrists and yanked me toward the bed. I struggled against him trying to get him to release me. Every movement I made caused more pain and it was all in vain. I was no match for his strength.
He grabbed the black scarf on the nightstand and tied it around my wrists. But then, he surprised me by releasing me. I staggered backwards until I hit the wall as far away from James as I could get. I sucked in a sharp breath, trying to keep conscious. He trained his malevolent glare to me and smirked.
I knew that look.
"It's time to take what's rightfully mine before I purify you. Take what Edward so obviously didn't want." My body went cold. I felt clammy and my hands shook with fear. He leered as he looked me up and down and I felt naked in the silk red cocktail dress James had given me to wear. I don't think I could endure that. He would enjoy forcing it on me, taking what I was unwilling to give.
Oh God! Someone help me!
"No! Please, James. Don't. Not. Like. This," I gasped out in between my sobs, but it only seemed to egg him on.
I made a last ditch effort for the door, but in three long strides, James was there, blocking my only means of escape. He grabbed my wrists and yanked me to the bed with such force I lost my footing and fell to my knees. The force caused the scarf around my wrists to tear, freeing my hands, but my body refused to cooperate. I was unable to get up, to fight, forcing James to pick me up and toss me on the bed.
Pain, pain – something is wrong, terribly wrong with this pain…
I closed my eyes, not wanting to see the things James had planned for me, but James smacked my cheeks.
"No you don't. Open your eyes, Marie. I want you awake to enjoy this as much as I will," he purred in a voice that made my entire being quake uncontrollably. "You are mine." His blue eyes burned with fury and his voice was husky with lust. James shoved his knee between my legs, bruising my thighs from the force.
I don't think I can do this, endure this. I don't want to live with this…
A part of me willed my senses to blur around me as James started to kiss me mouth, my neck, my shoulders. The tearing of my dress barely registered. However, the other part of me wanted to fight, to smash his face with my fists. So I started to struggle against him, but every time I moved my torso, my chest flashed with excruciating pain.
"Marie. Why are you fighting? You should be participating?" James taunted. I could feel his body pressing down onto mine, pinning me to the bed. He was much too strong for me. I felt powerless to stop him. It was hopeless. How could I survive?
We continued to struggle against each other as James tried to gain control of my arms and legs. My attack was relentless, desperate and useless. I didn't know if or when Edward would get here, but I couldn't give up because to give up hope would be to give up the fight.
James clamped his hand around my left my wrist and snapped it like a twig. I felt and heard the crunch before the pain hit. My wrist was radiating so much pain I could almost see it. My ear-piercing screams of agony filled the room, flooding my ears. As I sobbed in pain, stilling my struggles for a moment, James took advantage of my temporary disability by capturing my other wrist. But, as he continued his attempts to possess my body, I started to struggle again, screaming for him to stop.
"Shut-up, Marie," James yelled back before he assaulted my mouth with another bitter kiss.
"Bella!" The voice calling my name was far away and muffled and for a moment, I thought I was losing my sanity. There was a loud 'boom' from somewhere inside of the house. But, when James tensed and withdrew from his kiss, I knew it was not my imagination. His head whipped up looking at the bedroom door before turning back to me. He leered at me and I saw the resolve in his eyes intensify.
"Bella!" This time the voice was unmistakable.
"Edward!" I screamed before James smothered my mouth in another kiss in an attempt to quiet me. I tried to break away from his kiss, but he gripped my chin with his hand after releasing my broken wrist. I cried out in pain when he released my broken bones, but the sound was lost against his kiss.
CRACK!
The sharp crack of wood breaking permeated the room in between my sobs, my body trapped under the weight of James. My eyes followed the sound to behold a most glorious sight. There standing in the doorway was Edward – my Edward. He looked like an avenging angel as his green eyes flashed narrowing in on James and my heart leapt at the sight. James shifted his weight on my torso causing pain to slice through my chest. I sucked in a painful breath and closed my eyes in an attempt to steel myself against the searing pain. The room filled with shouting and angry words blurring into one another as the pain overtook my senses.
There was a sense of painful relief that flooded my torso as the weight from James's body suddenly left me. However, the jostling movement caused the pain in my chest, arm and wrist to flare, sickeningly, eliciting another whimpering scream, hurting my ears. I curled in on myself pulling my arms in close to my torso and cradling my broken wrist to my chest. I could see the unnatural bend of my wrist and I cringed at the prospect of setting it right again.
"Bella!" The sound of Edward's voice caused fresh tears to form in my eyes blurring my vision. The pain-filled fog clouding my mind refused to allow me to hope, telling me the sound of his voice was a hallucination, but oh, what a sweet hallucination it was. It wasn't until I felt him touch my shoulder sending that familiar tingle of electricity through my skin that I knew without a doubt that it was real – he was real.
"Edward!" I gasped, finding it a little difficult to breathe but I pushed it aside. Edward was here! I searched through my tears until I found his green eyes shining down at me. I reached out my hand to touch his face, but just before I made contact with his cheek, he was pulled away.
"Don't touch her!" James bellowed, gripping Edward's shoulders from behind and ripping him backwards. Moments later the sound of Emmett's fist making contact with James's face rang out. All three of them crashed to the floor from the momentum of the backwards movement and Emmett's punch. Due to my injuries and my position on the bed, all I could do was listen to their grunts and swearing as they struggled for the upper hand.
Eventually they all staggered to their feet. James was facing me and trying to get by Edward who had placed himself in front of me, acting as my guardian angel. Before James could make a move, Emmett grabbed him from behind and restrained him.
Emmett grinned and said, "Let's have a little fun, eh?" He nodded to Edward who started to pummel James with his fists.
"How does it feel? Do you like getting the shit beat out of you? I'm going to give it to you so bad you'll be sucking your dinner through a straw when I'm done with you," Edward growled at James in a low voice that sent a tremor to the core of my being.
I watched Edward give James a taste of his own medicine for a few moments. The muscles in his arms and back flexed and rippled with every blow he delivered to James. But, in between blows, James taunted Edward revealing the horrible things he had done to me in the past. Things I did not want Edward to know about. His anger grew as James continued his taunts by telling Edward what he had planned for me tonight and how I would never be free of him. There was no place to hide and he would always find me.
"What makes you think we're going to let you live?" Emmett growled in James's ear.
Then, in between blows, James's eyes snapped to mine and he laughed, "You see Marie. Your boyfriend is just as big an animal as I am." James face was red and bloodied, but his eyes were still just as cruel. His spirit had not been broken. He was thriving on the violence, on the attention.
Edward abruptly stopped his assault on James who let out a low chuckle. "That's right, Marie. He wants to do all the things I did to you, to me and then some. Who's the monster now?"
I watched Edward's as he straighten his back. Unable to see his face, I hoped he didn't believe the words James was spewing. Edward was tense, his hands clenched into fists at his sides with his shoulders heaving from the physical exertion.
"You seem to have a knack, Marie, for turning men into monsters. Is this what you want? Do you want my replacement to kill me?" As James uttered those words, the truth of them struck me to the core. Death was the only means by which James would ever leave me alone. Moreover, if Edward or Emmett ended up killing him, they would defile themselves, their souls with my sins. Even if James wasn't an innocent, they would still be damned for killing him. It would still be murder. And, even though it seemed like a good idea right now and completely justified, over time this would burden their spirits, turning them black. I knew what I had to do.
"Don't listen to him, Bella. He's full of shit." Edward growled, but didn't turn or take his eyes off James.
"You son of a bitch!" Emmett growled as he took James and slammed his head into the wall.
"Stop, Emmett. Stop!" I said with all the force I had left in my body. Emmett complied and gaped at me curiously. Edward spun around and looked at me for the first time since starting to beat James. James, of course, just sneered as he gave me a smug smile.
I couldn't look at Edward just yet. I knew he would not understand, so I looked up at the ceiling for a moment as I steeled myself for what I had to say. "I can't believe… I'm saying this," I muttered before I looked straight at Edward. "I don't want you to kill him."
Edward's jaw dropped open and he just stared at me with an unfathomable expression on his face. James chuckled again.
"That's right, Marie. Tell him," James snarled.
I looked James squarely in the eyes before I said it. "I want to do it." As my words sunk in, confusion filled James's face. His brown furrowed and his eyes widened. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. An uncomfortable silence followed my declaration.
"No, Bella. I won't let you," Edward whispered, shaking his head in denial of what I wanted.
Leave it to Emmett to diffuse the charged atmosphere of the moment. "Damn! I knew I loved you, Bella. You are definitely the sister I never had, but always wanted!" His laughter filled the room. I don't know if it was Emmett's reaction or the stupid look James was sporting, but a wonderful sense of emancipation washed over me from my declaration.
I gave Edward a wicked little smile. Edward shook his head in bewilderment and smiled back. He probably thought I was full of it. What he didn't realize was how much truth there was in my statement. Unfortunately, I never got the chance to explain my intentions fully.
As I took in the scene before me, the pain in my chest started to increase along with a feeling of tension. It was as if the pressure in my body was building making it harder to breathe. My brief sense of empowerment quickly faded as the gravity of my injuries started to dawn on me.
My eyes widened in fear and uncertainty while my breathing hitched. Edward caught my eyes in his gaze and a look of understanding dawned on his face.
"Hey, Em. He's all yours. I'm going to take care of Bella." Edward's gaze never left mine as he strode to my side.
The look on Edward's face told me he was mentally berating himself for getting lost in kicking James's ass instead of attending to me. But, I was glad he was able to have his moment. I could only imagine what he had been through during this ordeal. I tried to give him a smile, but failed completely when another jolt of pain rocked my body.
"Bella," he exhaled before he sucked in a sharp breath in response. His face was full of guilt and anguish as he took in my condition. As he reached for me, his bloodied hands were trembling.
My chest felt constricted and I started gasping for air. "It's hard… to breathe…" I struggled to get the words out with any semblance of calm.
"Okay, love. Will you let me take a look?" Edward looked at me for permission, almost as if he was expecting me to say no. I nodded at him to continue, a little confused by his reaction.
He reached for my broken wrist cradled in my right hand; I instinctively shied away a bit before I presented it to him. When he saw the angle of the break, his face turned hard like marble. While he took in the condition of my wrist, I could tell he was mentally documenting the angle, bruising, swelling and other things I probably didn't understand.
"Edward?" I questioned. I needed to know it would be okay. He met my worried eyes and his face gentled instantly. He reached his hand up to my face and lightly caressed my cheek.
"Don't' worry – it will be okay." I let out a sigh of relief at his reassurance, but the pain in my chest flared reminding me I had something brewing in my chest.
"Uh, Bella? Did James rape you?" The tremor in Edward's voice belied the calmness of his exterior façade.
"No," I scoffed terribly relieved before I whispered, "but he was trying to when you got here." He blew out a huge sigh of relief. I smiled at him and he returned it with one of his own.
He turned his attention, once again to my body. Now that my wrist was no longer pressed into my chest, Edward gently pushed my torn dress aside to assess the damage done to my torso. His cool fingers gingerly pressed into my side around the ribs that made contact with James's knee. I hissed at the pain when he hit a particularly tender spot.
"Does it hurt worse there?" Edward said in response, his eyes searching mine for my answer. I nodded, breathing through my nose as I tried to control my reactions to the pain.
"Are you feeling a sense of pressure in your chest?"
"Yes and I can't seem... to catch my breath." Edward turned around looking for Emmett. I had almost forgotten that Emmett was still giving James the pounding of his life. It wasn't until I turned my attention to them that I became aware of the sights and sounds of that one-sided struggle.
"Emmett. Get my bag! Hurry!" Edward sounded like he was in agony. He shouldn't suffer and I wanted to ease his pain. I tried to lift my arm, but more pain shot through my body. I tried to contain the gasp, but couldn't. Edward's head whipped around at the sound.
"Sh, love. I'll take care of you. I won't let anything else happen to you. I promise." Again I tried to smile, but was overcome by another wave of pain. So, I closed my eyes instead.
I heard Emmett's fist come in contact with James in an unusually loud manner before hearing someone hit the floor with a thud.
"I'll be right back," Emmett said, his voice disappearing quickly as he left the room.
I opened my eyes again and found Edward staring at my face. His face was fearful before he quickly hid it away. I felt uneasy. However, as quickly as that feeling came, it was drowned out by an overwhelming sense of shame and I started to cry.
I was never more grateful that Edward was here, but I had not intended for him to see me like this, not now. He saw me last spring, but I was not this broken, this battered. I was just some anonymous abused woman back then. However, to have him see me this way, now, was just too much. A feeling of worthlessness welled up inside of me.
"Oh, sweetheart. It's okay. I'm here. He can't hurt you again." Edward tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear as he leaned in and kissed my forehead.
I shook my head in denial. "That's not it," I choked out before my body shuddered. "I never wanted you to see me like this. I'm broken, hideous and wor–"
"Don't you ever call yourself that!" Edward's angry outburst cut through my shamed confession. "You are the most beautiful thing I've ever seen, even now. I love you and nothing is going to change that. Nothing is going to change how I see you. This is not you, Bella. This is what someone did to you. These wounds will heal." His face glowed with his love for me as he touched my cheek. A sob of relief escaped my lips and I nodded my head.
"I thought I'd lost you." His whisper was tortured and choked as he gazed into my eyes and I found myself lost in their depths. Unfortunately, Emmett cleared his throat and ruined the moment.
"Uh, here's your bag." The corner of the bed shifted slightly when Emmett set the big black duffle bag down. "Do you need my help or should I help find Tori?"
"No, I'm going to need your help," Edward said quietly as he turned to dig through the bag. He had a stethoscope in his hand when turned back toward me.
"Emmett. Will you to get on the other side of Bella there?" Edward motioned for him to come around to my left side. "Be careful of her wrist," he added.
"Bella, do you think you can sit up? I need to listen to your lungs and heart." I nodded. "Okay. Emmett and I will help you sit up. I want you to relax and let us do the work for you." Edward was all business.
"Em, put you hands here and here. Once she's upright, you will need to support her so she doesn't fall over. Be careful not to touch her right side," he said before he turned to me. "Are you ready, love?"
I tried to take a deep breath to prepare myself, but was unsuccessful. "I think so." I looked into Edward's face and found the reassurance I needed that everything was going to be okay.
"Okay, on three." Edward slid his hand under my shoulder blade and another on top of my shoulder to steady me. Emmett placed his hands on me in a similar manner.
"One… two… three." As soon as they started to lift me, the pain radiated out from my side causing me to suck in a sharp breath. Emmett slowed his upward motion a bit, catching my eyes with a wary glance. I grimaced and nodded to him that it was okay to continue. I pursed my lips together afraid if I opened my mouth, I would cry out in agony. The pain abated to a slow ache as soon as I was upright and the pressure in my chest shifted.
"How do you feel?" Edward's voice drew my eyes to him. I sucked in some air, but found I still could not get any more air than before.
"My side still hurts… It's still hard to… breathe. But… the pressure… in my chest… has shifted… lower I think." I wasn't sure if I could explain the feeling and it was hard to talk when I couldn't breathe.
Edward nodded and put the stethoscope in his ears. "Bella, I'm going to listen to your heart. Breathe as normal as you can. When I tell you to inhale, I want you to take several breaths – as deep as you can."
"Emmett, hold on to her. Don't let her fall." Emmett nodded in agreement. Edward placed the stethoscope against my chest and I flinched back. He looked at me alarmed.
I looked at him sheepishly and smiled a little. "Sorry… cold." Edward chuckled lightly. He shook his head before placing the cold stethoscope back against my chest again to listen to my heart. He listened to my heart from several locations on my chest and back, before he asked me to inhale deeply. That was harder to do, since the only breathing I could do was approaching the shallow side of things. Edward glanced over to Emmett and they exchanged a worried stare.
"What is it?" I looked between Emmett and Edward, wondering what kind of mind reading these two were doing. I felt them slowly lower me back down onto the bed and I screwed my eyes shut, groaning at the pain the movement caused.
"Hey, the ambulance is coming up the road." My eyes snapped open at the sound of Jasper's voice.
"Bella, how are you holding up?" Jasper looked at me and inhaled sharply, taking in my appearance. My body was jealous of that deep breath. I gave him a half-hearted grimace.
"Where's Tori?" said Emmett.
"I don't know. I lost her." Jasper shook his head in defeat. "Maybe the Sedona Police Department can do a better job with a manhunt. It's pretty dark and I don't think she'll get very far."
Jasper glanced over at James, lying unconscious on the floor near the door. "Is he still alive?"
Emmett's face erupted into a grin. "Yeah, but he's pretty messed up. No permanent damage though." Jasper shook his head and chuckled.
"How close is the ambulance?" asked Edward, cutting Jasper and Emmett's exchange short.
"Maybe a minute. Why?" Jasper glanced at me quickly before he looked back at Edward.
"Can you get the paramedics in here as soon as possible? Let them know we have a possible tension pneumothorax and need to perform a needle thoracotomy." I realized Edward was referring to my injuries, and I did not like the sound of the medical terms he was using, especially the one that followed the word needle.
"I'm on it." Jasper rushed out of the room.
"Edward?" I whispered. "What does that mean?"
"It's nothing for you to worry about." I gave him my best 'death glare' and he chuckled until Emmett slapped him upside the head garnering an indignant 'hey' from Edward.
"Don't treat her like a child. What does it mean – in English?" I felt my lips tug into a smile when Emmett took Edward down a notch.
Edward sighed in resignation and looked at me. "I'll tell you, but have to promise me you will not panic. You need to keep your breathing as normal as possible." I nodded in agreement and so did Emmett. Edward glared at his brother.
"I believe you have a punctured lung. With every breath you take, your lung is leaking air into your chest cavity. Because you can't exhale the air out of your chest cavity, the pressure is building. The air is displacing your lung which is collapsing as we speak. That is why you're finding it difficult to breath. I can relieve the pressure in your chest with a needle before we put you in the ambulance." The news of my injury washed over me like a clammy blanket and I felt faint. He conveniently left out any vital details about whether this was life threatening. However, I was pretty confident that my injuries could cause my death.
"Breathe, Bella. Breathe." Edward gently nudged my shoulder and I let out the breath I was holding. I took a shaky breath and forced myself to relax.
"This way. She's in here." I looked toward Jasper as he directed the paramedics through the doorway. They had a stretcher and various bags and equipment.
I glanced up at Edward, feeling worried about what they would be doing and the pain I would be feeling. Edward gave my right hand a gentle squeeze before he released it to talk to the paramedics. I closed my eyes, waiting as Edward introduced himself and filled them in on my condition.
"Bella?" My eyes flew open at Edward's voice. The concern in his face eased into a tight smile when we made eye contact. "I'm going to lift you onto the stretcher."
"Okay…" Talking was getting more difficult and the pain from my chest was starting to radiate to my back and arms. "Chest… is… hurting… more… left… side…," I gasped out my short sentence.
"I know, love. As soon as I get you on the stretcher, we'll take care of that." I nodded in agreement before I gritted my teeth in preparation for Edward to lift me. I let out a strangled gasp of pain when Edward gently lifted my broken body into his arms.
"Put! Her! Down!" My body started to tremble before my mind even registered that it was James shouting. Everyone in the room froze. I looked toward the voice to confirm my fears. My breathing started to quicken.
There was James standing in the doorway of the bedroom with gun trained on Edward and me. His face looked a little like raw meat from the pounding he received. One eye was starting to swell and his mouth and ear were bleeding. If it were not for that familiar icy stare that met and held my eyes, I would not have recognized James. Edward started to take a step in the direction of the stretcher.
"I said put her down!" James bellowed never breaking the hold of his eyes on me. Edward looked at the stretcher and back at James. "On the bed," James ground out and he spit the blood from his mouth onto the floor to his side. He wiped his mouth with the back of his free hand.
"Damn it, James! She needs medical attention," Edward growled back, his body tense and coiled as if ready to spring into action at any minute. As much as I wanted to look away, I found my eyes unwilling to break free from the power James seemed to have over me – so sure if I did, he would kill Edward for no other reason.
"Put her down." The sound of the gun cocking left no doubt in all of our minds that James was not going to bargain. The pain, fear and lack of oxygen were starting to make my head swimand my eyes fluttered shut for a brief seconds. That was all it took to break the hold James's eyes had on me.
I opened my eyes and looked up at Edward to find him staring with his mouth open at James for a moment before he looked down at me. "I'm sorry, love." He lowered his head to my ear before saying, "This is going to hurt."
Three things happened. Someone shouted 'down,' I found myself on the bed with Edward on top of me, and the sound of several gunshots echoed throughout the room.
Edward's body stiffened on top of mine and I let out a strangled scream. Did James shoot Edward? The pain from the jostling movement and Edward's body pressing down on top of me was just too much. Slipping into the oblivion of unconsciousness, my last thoughts were of Edward.
**********
I had a lovely sense of floating. I felt carefree and well rested. My mind was unfettered and able to wander in and out of the many doors of my memory, blending one thought into another.
The earliest images of my mother fluttered through, glimpses really of her soft brown hair, warm smile and kind hazel eyes. It was only in my dreams that I could really remember what she looked like anymore, when my subconscious mind was free to pull her images out of my early childhood memories.
These images of my mother swirled together with those of my childhood friends only to abruptly flash to my fish. It was my first and last pet, having been unable to keep it alive.
Ah… fishing with my dad… how I hated and yet secretly loved it at the same time.
Sirens around in my ears and a paramedic mumbling medical jargon filtered through my mind. I felt uneasy.
What was that?
However, before I could ponder on it the scene changed…
Funny arguments with my dad over what movie to watch for our Thursday pizza-flick night usually ended with us compromising on a movie neither one of us really wanted to watch. I realized years later it was not the movies I recalled, but the fun times I had with Charlie.
Out of nowhere a velvet voice said, "Bella, breathe." I started to smile at that until the voice continued, "This is going to hurt." I frowned.
Where did that come from?
Ryan Baker's face popped up – my first kiss. I was fourteen, he was sixteen and soooo dreamy with his light brown hair and caramel-colored eyes. But, his face started to change, getting older, his hair lighter, and his eyes bluer. I started to feel uncomfortable with the new face before me. But, before I could make out who it was, I found myself in a different memory.
My last day of high school, Eric Yorkie and Tyler Crowley got in a fight over who was going to ask me to the after-graduation party. Only to have Justin Shipley ask and me accept while they fought. Then someone hit me with a resounding 'slap' that thrust me into the next scene.
Charlie watching sports from his recliner in the living room. Suddenly he looked up and, in a loud voice that seemed familiar but was not his own, said "Get down!" Out of no where Charlie was standing in front of me with his gun drawn and pointing it at someone behind me. I was beyond confused. I don't remember this ever happening.
The same velvet voice from earlier called my name again. "Bella, just hold on – everything's going to be okay." I turned toward the voice and saw him and I smiled.
Edward.
Edward.
Edward!
My eyes flew open, only to clamp shut against the annoying overhead light hurting my eyes. I started to inhale deeply but found it slightly difficult and a little more than painful. Wincing through my discomfort, I noticed the smell of disinfectant, illness and sterility. It smelled like a hospital in here. I slowly opened my eyes and confirmed my suspicions.
Yep, a hospital. Why am I here?
I glanced around. I found I was in a room with yellow walls and faded pink curtains on the windows. There were a couple of boxy chairs upholstered in the same faded fabric as the curtains. I felt something tugging on my face, but when I went to lift my right hand, I felt at tugging sensation there as well.
I looked down and that's when I saw him. Or rather, his face.
Edward.
My mind praised his name reverently, as if it was a prayer to the Almighty.
Sitting close to my bed in one of the chairs in the room, his upper body was slumped over the side of my mattress near my hip. His arms were crossed on the bed with his head resting on them for support. His bronze hair was a mess. His gray t-shirt and faded blue jeans were wrinkled as if they had been slept in. The sight elicited a smile from my lips, but strangely enough, the movement caused my face to ache a bit. It reminded me there was something on my face. I brought my hand up and discovered an oxygen tube running under my nose.
I brought my hand back down and ignored the throb from my cheek while I took in Edward's tired features as he slept. That favorite little snore of his graced my ears. When I lightly brushed back the loose curls of his hair scattered across his forehead, I saw the IV line attached to my arm. Then I noticed Edward's black eye and started to worry what had happened to him.
These thoughts stopped immediately as I realized I was the one lying in a hospital bed. I scanned my body quickly and found my left wrist covered with a heavy bandage. The right side of my chest ached and I noticed some bruising on my arms. There was an array of monitors and other unknown equipment beeping near the head of my bed.
What in the world happened to me?
I knew the man keeping vigil at my bedside would have the answers. Gazing back down at Edward, my Edward, I brushed my fingers through his hair hoping to wake him slowly.
"Un… That feels so good, love," he mumbled as a sexy crooked smile graced his lips. I continued to caress his scalp lightly, waiting for him to become a little more coherent. A few seconds later, his eyes fluttered open and stared into mine.
"Bella," he sighed giving me a relieved smile. "How do you feel, love?" He slowly sat up pulling my hand out of his hair and bringing it to his lips before gently kissing the palm of my hand.
"Edward," I croaked, my voice sounding like gravel. He released my hand before reaching over to grab the cup off the nightstand beside my bed.
"Here, love. Drink this." He brought a straw up to my lips. I took a small sip and then another larger one relishing in the cool liquid sliding down the back of my throat making it feel almost normal again. When I had had enough, he put the cup back.
I could not resist the pull to touch him, so I reached out again and cupped his cheek with my hand. He relaxed before he closed his eyes and leaned into the connection, covering my hand with his.
"I love you." My voice was thick with emotion and tears stung my eyes. Edward opened his eyes and gazed at me, his eyes full of love. Feeling broken and vulnerable, yet at the same time loved and relieved, a sob rose up from my throat and I started to cry. However, as soon as I did, I felt pain radiate from my right side causing me to quietly hiss.
"Sh, Bella. I love you. Everything's okay. You're safe now." Edward cradled my face with his hands and gently brushed the tears from my face with his thumbs. He leaned in and tenderly kissed my quivering lips. My body relaxed from his touch.
"What happened?" I whispered through my sniffles, this time my voice sounding a little better. He eyed me warily for a moment, and I searched his tired face for an indication as to why my brain wasn't presenting me with this information instead.
"What do you remember?" Edward asked bringing his hands back down to hold mine.
"I… er… um, I don't know. Let me think. I remember going to school, talking to Jessica about the flo…" My voice trailed off as the memories started to flood my mind. I closed my eyes and inhaled quickly. James! James was here! No, wait… What happened? I opened my eyes to see Edward looking at me intently as the memories bombarded my psyche. My breathing picked up causing pain to radiate from my right side again. I stiffened and groaned in response but quickly pushed the ache aside.
"Where's James? Is he still out there?" I could hear one of the monitors frantically beeping on the other side of my bed.
Edward's eyes darted to the monitor before returning to mine. "Calm down, love. James is dead." I stared at him in disbelief for a moment. He started to rub soothing circles on the back of my hand helping me to calm my stress. I was still finding it difficult to breathe, but pushed that aside as well.
James was dead. Dead!
"How?" I panted out, not quite able to wrap my head around the idea.
"After James pulled the gun, Jasper let me know he was behind me. When James spoke, Jasper told me to lunge for the bed. Jasper shot James three times. One of the bullets completely severed his carotid artery and he bled out before we reached the hospital." My last lucid thought of that night was Edward covering my body with his to protect me from James.
"Are you okay? Did he hurt you? How's your head?" I reached out to inspect him but Edward grabbed my hand and chuckled. Other than his black eye and a few scratches, I didn't see any other injuries on him.
"I'm fine, love. Maybe a bruised ego, but nothing I won't recover from." He smiled at me and I let out a relieved sigh.
Then another thought struck me and I gasped at the implications.
"Did you have to work on James? Try to save…" I couldn't finish, the words refused to come out of my mouth. That had to be awful.
"No, love. The paramedics worked on him. I don't think I could have remained objective. Besides, I had your injuries to contend with. You were fighting your own battle against death," he said as his face took on a haunted look and my heart suffered with him.
"How serious are my injuries?" I whispered, not sure if I wanted him to relive them. And, to be honest, I was a little scared to hear how bad off I really was. Edward took a deep breath before he started talking again.
"Both bones in your left arm were broken just above the wrist, your knee was probably sprained, you have a slight concussion and you have a lot of bruising." He took another deep breath, signaling that this was just as hard, if not harder, for him. He gave me a sad smile before continuing, "Two of your ribs were broken, badly. One of them punctured your right lung and caused a tension pneumothorax. After you passed out, I performed a needle thoracotomy. Do you remember me telling you about this? It's where I insert a need –"
"Yeah, I remember," I quickly interrupted him, not wanting to think about big needles boring into my chest cavity. I gave him an apologetic smile.
"Why is it still hard to breathe? Oh and why does my right side hurt so much?" I furrowed my brow. Shouldn't I be feeling a little better?
Edward frowned. "Are you still in pain? I'll have the nurse give you more medication." He started to search for the nurse's call button, but I stopped him.
"Can it wait? I want to hear everything first." He gave me another disapproving look. "Please, just for a minute," I pouted, knowing he would cave. But, in all honesty, I just wanted to spend time with Edward. He was my lifeline and I needed him right now, more than he would ever know.
"Okay, but only for a little while. You really need your rest. You've been through a lot, Bella. And, you body needs to recover. It will be a long time before you feel like your old self again." I could hear Dr. Masen taking over and I grinned at how sexy he sounded. Edward returned my grin and chuckled. He knew what I was thinking.
"Your lung was partially collapsed, but not fully – that's good. You are short of breath because your lung is still trying to expand on its own. We had to do surgery on your wrist and chest to repair the damage. We wired your ribs back together and repaired the tear in your lung, but you still have a chest tube in place for the time being in case your lung reopens. We don't want your chest cavity to fill with air again." Edward held my hand and continued with the soothing circles.
"Wow. How long have I been here?" I asked, a little distracted by the fact that my injuries were so extensive.
"Three days. You've been unconscious for most of it." Edward smirked at my expression as I blinked at that revelation. It certainly didn't feel like three days.
"I don't really remember anything after the gun shot," I scoffed a little, shaking my head in disbelief.
"No surprise. You've been on morphine most of the time. Which reminds me…" Edward's voice trailed off as he pushed the call button for the nurse. I glared at him, but decided it wasn't worth the fight. I really was starting to feel the throbbing in my chest. He let the nurse know I was ready for more pain meds.
"Did you do the surgery?" I started to grin at him, but found it hurt too much.
"No, but I did get to scrub in and observe." He seemed happy about it.
"So you could say you know me inside and out, literally." Edward's soft laughter was music to my ears.
"Love, you are as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside." I shook my head at him.
"I highly doubt that. I'm pretty sure I look like quite the mess." I frowned at what I could only imagine my face looked like after the beating James gave me.
"You've never looked more beautiful to me than you do at this moment." Edward's words and adoring smile left no doubt as to the sincerity of his belief in that statement. He caressed my cheek and I closed my eyes and basked in the warmth of his love for a moment.
"So, James is dead. Wow. This is surreal. I guess I don't need that divorce anymore." Laughing softly I squeezed Edward's hand. He beamed at me before I continued, "So how do you feel about widows?"
"Well, to be honest, I'm looking forward to spending the rest of my life with one starting right now," Edward said, his eyes shining with adoration and love. He gently took my face between his hands and kissed me senseless while the monitor by my bed beeped wildly.
A/N: Whew! That was extra long AND a little early. But eh, I'm leaving to go camping for the weekend, so Happy Memorial Day Weekend – Early!
Just the Epilogue is left where I will answer the question about what happened to Victoria. It just didn't seem something that was important enough for Edward and Bella to be discussing in this scene. There were more pressing things for them to say here. Now, If there are any questions you want answered in the Epilogue that I haven't cleared up so far, either ask it in a review or send me a PM. I do plan to tie up the lose ends in the Epilogue, but I'm not perfect, so a few reminders would be nice. (; You all have been good to ask those questions of me when I miss something important in the story. Thanks for keeping me on my toes!
I wanted to send out a teaser, but I got sick and then had to scramble to get this chappie done in time. So sorry! Instead I will send out a heart-felt thanks to everyone who has read, put me on alert, added me to their favorites and especially to those who reviewed or pm'd me! You don't know how much of a gift it is to hear what you think of my story. I appreciate all your support!
I also want to send out a special thanks to Pochacco906 and blackgem88 for once again keeping my typos and weird grammar down to a minimum. Thanks ladies!
Please, please, please forgive me if I got anything wrong concerning the medical aspect of this chapter. My marketing degree won't pass for a medical degree now matter how much I spin it. - Savagewoman