.:Twilight Series - Nightshade's Hale:.

Hello guys and girls, here's another chapter up. As always I hope you enjoy it.

So in this chapter you finally get to meet Lace's abusive uncle for the first time (I knew there was a short flash back scene earlier on, but this time it isn't a flash back scene. So it's kinda for the first time).

Any way I based his looks of an actor called Michael Bailey Smith, just thought you'd like to know . . . Now comes the bit I know we all hate . . .

As I say every time, I owe nothing (if I did there would be more Jasper and Paul scenes), it all belongs to Stephanie Meyer... Well beside my own OC characters, but other wise it still all belong to Stephanie Meyer . . . SO PLEASE DO NOT SUE ME. . .


.:Chapter Twenty-Three – Doing Something Stupid:.

I sat quietly in the arm chair that Jasper had in his room, the fire was blazing beside me, it calm waves soothed me, and I had to try my best not to fall asleep. It had been two days since the incident with James.

Two days since Alice had taken Bella southwards in an attempt to keep her say, two days since I insisted both the love of my life Jasper, and my best friend and big brother Sirius, to go with them.

It had been two long and gruelling days, and 48 hours without sleep, and even though I was in desperate need of it, I would not allow myself to think of sleep or go to sleep until Jasper, and the others walked through the front door and told me James was gone for good.

Within the first few hours I had insisted on checking in of Charlie, and had regretted it, he had been a mess, all anger and tears. It had taking everything I had to talk him out of going after Bella, and once that was done I had to force him to get some sleep, and only after I told him I'd stay the night if he didn't get some rest did he agree to sleep.

I had spoken to Bella once since she'd gone, only calling to make sure she had got there safe, after which the phone was bombarded with an angry Sirius, and then finally Jasper.

I had asked them to keep me up dated, to which they did I had at least 20 texts telling me what was going on, which I was glad off, as it all kept me awake.

After everyone had left Esme had kept her promise to stay with me, even going as far as to drive me to Charlie's and wait around the corner for me. And I was grateful for the company, but it was hard been around any one when I had so much on my mind.

There had yet to be any sign of Dale showing up, he was probably snooping around close by, just waiting for the right time to pounce, and get what he wanted. But he hadn't had the chance yet, as Esme was always down the hall or in the same room as me.

I was pulled from my thoughts when a sudden pull in the pit of my stomach alertedly me that something was wrong. I was up in an instant, and making my way towards the door. As I exited Jasper's room I heard extra voice, and quickly made my way down stares.

"Jasper? Sirius?" I ask as I round the corner into the kitchen.

I stop though when I see Rosalie stood talking with Esme. They both turn to face me when I enter the room, looks of sadness of their faces.

"What happened?" I ask them.

"The tracker changed his course, he's going straight for Bella" Rosalie tells me.

I take a step back as I let what she's told me sink in. A sudden bang from the door makes me jump, and I turn towards the doorway of the kitchen.

"It's just Carlisle, and the others. Their leaving now to get Bella" Esme tells me.

I nod in understanding, and then turn back to face them. "You should go hunt Esme, I've got it covered here" Rosalie says.

After a breath look between the two Esme nods, and then looks towards me. "I'll be back as soon as I can. Rose won't let anything happen to you".

"It's ok. You need your strength" I tell her.

Esme nods as she walks towards me and pulls me into a soft hug. I hug back slightly, and then pull back and watch as she leaves the house. I then turn towards Rosalie, a small smile on my face.

"You look like you could use a bath" I say.

"Yeah, but it can wait" she tells me.

"No, go get a bath. I'm just gonna get quick snack and go back to Jasper's room. You can check on me afterwards, I'll be fine" I tell her as walk towards the cupboards.

"Ok, but I'll be quick" she tells me, and then disappears.

I wait a few seconds, and then turn and grab the keys that were laid on counter top, and make my way quickly and quietly down towards the garage. Once there I quickly get into the Jeep, and start it up, and then pull out of the garage. Emmett was gonna kill me for stealing his Jeep!

I stare ahead of the road as I drive. The pulling feeling in my stomach hadn't eased when I found out about Bella and the Tracker, James. Instead it just got more intense, it was a wonder I could hide it that well from Esme and Rosalie.

My stomach was now yelling at me to driver faster towards my destination, The Swan resident. The pulling sensation wasn't warning me about Bella, it was warning me about Charlie, and I knew I had to do something. I couldn't just sit back and let him get hurt, cos it would kill Bella if anything happened to her father.

After a good, fast fifteenth minute drive I pulled into the driveway of The Swan house. After turning the car off, I jump out and make my way towards the front door. I stop though when I reach the door and find that it's slightly ajar.

I slowly reach out and push the door open, and enter the house. My eyes widen when I see that the house is in a slight mess. I walk slowly towards the kitchen, but find nothing but pots and pans laid scattered on the floor. I then make my way threw into the back living room, making sure to keep alert for any sudden noise or movement.

The house was dark, but I knew instantly that the dark shape on the floor was Charlie, all thought no leaving me I rush towards him, falling to my knees when I reach him, and slowly turn him over. I check for a pulse, or any sign of broken bones or cuts, only to find he perfectly fine. I take a deep breath of relief at this as I stand up slowly.

I stop suddenly though when I feel something breath right down my neck. My eyes widen when a large, pale hand grips my should, it was human strength they used but it still hurt.

"Welcome home, Lacey!" a deep voice says.

I shiver involuntarily when the hand slowly moves down my back, and then around my waist before stopping on my belly. A deep chuckle sounds out, and I close my eyes in response. Cold, hard lips trace suddenly find my shoulder and trace the bone line, all the way up to curved section of my neck.

"I knew you'd come back here, after all you can't help trying to protect people" he says as he pulls his lips back but not his head. "It's a shame you never could protect yourself though!".

Another chuckle, and I'm balling my fists. I know now why I never stood a chance against him, and I knew better than to try anything but comply with him know that I did know what he was. I'm turned suddenly on the spot, and forced to face the owner of the voice.

A hand clamps around my jaw, the other almost tenderly pushing my hair out of my face. "I have so much planned for you Lacey. After all, you let another man touch you, and your body isn't yours to give away".

I freeze at this. "I'm not yours to own!" I tell him definitely.

A sigh, followed swiftly by a hard, human strengthened slap across the face. And then I'm falling, just barley missing Charlie as I hit the floor. I scramble backwards quickly, trying to ignore the pain in my face, and knowing that a bruise was already forming.

He turns towards me, talking a step into the light that filtered through from the moon outside. Dale hadn't changed, not at all, except his eyes, instead of the cold brown ones I was so used to been there (obviously contacts now that I thought back), there were now two bulging red eyes.

Two sets of the deepest, darkest red I'd ever seen, rimmed with the darkest black to match. "Your mother said the same thing, and my Ameria too! You always want some else, but the truth is, you'll always belong to me!" he growls out.

His hand in round my throat in an instant, and I'm picked off the floor like a child would a rag doll. "Now let me show you why!".

I stare wide eyed as he suddenly grips the side of my waist and squeezes. A sickening crack sounds out, followed by another and another. A scream escapes my lips, but his hand around my throat closes it off as he pins my up against the nearest wall. With a snarl he lifts me furtherer up, my head almost touching the roof, and then buries his face in my bruising side, were I was certain he had broken at least three of my ribs.

I clamp my mouth shut when I feel a sharp pinch in my skin. After only seconds I'm dropped to the floor in a hep, landing heavily on my feet, causing my left leg to give out under me and twist my ankle in an angle it shouldn't go. I look up expecting to find Dale stood there, but instead I find an empty space.

"Lace?" a voice calls out.

I look round towards the voice, just as Rosalie and Esme rush into the room. Esme is by my side in an instant, a look of anger and relief on her face. Rosalie hangs back, a pain stricken look on her youthful face.

"What were you thinking?" she practically yells at me, but the concern was evident in her voice.

"I had a bad feeling, and I just had to make sure he was ok" I tell her. "Charlie can't know, we have to make it look like he got drunk and passed out, or something".

Rosalie nods as he says "I'll take care of it".

"Rosalie, don't blame yourself. This was my fault, not yours" I tell her.

Rosalie pauses slightly at this, and then says "I think Esme should get you home, and make sure your alright".

I sigh but give a nod in response, and allow Esme to help me up. Pain suddenly shuts through my body, but I force it down as I limp towards the Jeep, they didn't need to see or know I was in pain. I was suddenly glad I was good at hiding things.


Once we reached the house Esme helped me limp upstairs to Jasper's room. After insisting I was ok, she left me to clean up and change. But not before insisting on making me something to eat for after wards.

I hadn't told them off my side, I didn't need them to worry or feel any more guilt, as this wasn't their fault, it was mine. I had gone out alone, I had put myself in danger. But most importantly I had lied to both of them. But I had to make sure Charlie was ok.

I grimaced at the sigh of my stomach as I looked at myself in the wall mirror in Jasper's closet. There was a large purplish black bruise with yellow patches around it forming heavily where he had practically crushed my ribs. I gingerly touch my side and winced at the pain. As I ran my fingers gently along the battered skin in felt it, indent markings on my skin.

I look down at my fingers as I pulled them away, there was no blood. I flinch suddenly as I feel a bout of pain shout through me, my arms instinctively wrapping around my waist even though it did know good to me, in actual fact it just hurt my side as I tried to breath through the pain. I look round suddenly when I hear alight tapping on the bedroom door. I quickly pull on a loose fitting shirt that Esme had brought me from my bedroom at Sirius', and then exit the closet.

"Come in" I call out as I slowly lower myself down onto the bed.

The door opens slowly, and the Rosalie pops her head through the gap, upon seeing I'm descant she fully enters the room, a small tray in her hands as she makes her way towards me.

"Esme insisted I bring you this" she tells me as she places it down on the beside table.

"Thank you Rosalie" I tell her with a strong smile.

Rosalie turns to look at me, relieving a look of disappointment and anger in her eyes. "Tell me what's bothering you?" I ask her.

Rosalie clenches her fists as she looks at me, the anger even more evident. "I thought you were smarter than that!" she tells me. "Don't you care that he could have killed you? Do you have any idea what that would have done to Jasper? To Sirius?".

"Rosalie, I admire you, I really do. Your a strong, independent woman. But right no, I don't care about what you think of me, or about what I did!" I tell her.

Rosalie looks at me with fury in her ever golden eyes, her fist clenching even harder into balls.

"I would have done the something for you, for anyone of you, hell, for any one I care about. I've never been one to just sit by and let some get hurt, especially not when I feel I can do something to stop it!" I tell her, all the while trying my best to hide that I was in pain.

"I may dislike that my brothers are with humans, but this family can't lose either of you, it'll destroy us" she says, her voice more calm now.

I stand slowly and walk towards her. "Look, I understand what your saying, but I'm not about to change who I am. And you off all people should understand that. Now I'm not gonna do anything stupid again, not unless I have to!".

"I understand, I really do. But like Carlisle said, your apart of this family, so I can't let anything happen to you" she tells me, a small smile tugging at her pale red lips. "But that doesn't mean I want you here, not when you can both have normal, human lives".

I tentatively reach out and places a hand against her right shoulder as I say "You don't have to worry, cos if there's one thing I always wanted is a normal human life. I want grow old, I want to paint, or write even, or maybe play the piano professionally. I want a farm house, with a white picket fence by 28, four kids by the age of thirty-five; two of each".

Rosalie looks straight at me, tears in her eyes as she says "I envy you, both you and Bella. All those possibility's you have, I wish I could have them too... If you really want that future, you can't be with Jasper".

"I understand that if I want that dream to become a reality, then someday I'm gonna have to leave him. But right now I'm young, and I'm helplessly, and hopelessly in love with someone who actually loves me back. So let me have these years, let me be stupid and reckless, let me get lost on a road trip, let me dance in the rain at 3 in the morning, let me get drunk and get arrested for doing illegal stuff. Let me scream, and shout, and argue, laugh and cry with all the people I care for. Let me fight, and fail at things only to pick myself back up and try again. But first, let me be a stupid, pathetic teenager with high hopes, and then I'll go off, and I'll have that white picket fence future for both of us" I tell her, a smile pulling at my lips, but at the same time tears well up in m eyes.

Rosalie nods, and then suddenly pulls me into a tight hug. I flinch but fight it down as best as I can, after all I'd just got her to stop feeling guilty, and I didn't want her to start up again.

"You can do all of that, as long as you stay human, as long as you grow old. This isn't a life I want you to have, I wouldn't wish this on any one. It's a curse, not a gift" she says as we hug.

After a few minutes she pulls back, silver tears falling freely down her face, but a smile was gracing her lips as she looks at me.

I smile back at her as I say "Now, I'm gonna have my supper and then go to sleep. If that's ok with you?".

Rosalie laughs as this and then says "Yeah, you do that. I'll check on you in a few hours".

I nod In response and watches as she turns and heads towards the door, but she stops when as she takes hold of the door handle. Rosalie turns back slightly to looks at me.

"I don't know if Jasper told you, but a vampire's teeth are venomous, and the venom makes you one of us. Its a three day course of pure pain, and agony. So if your every bitten by one of us, pray they drain you, cos if not, the venom will change you, it'll take away your live. That was the main reason I was angry with you, I feared you'd get bit, and end up been one of us" she tells me.

"Well you don't need to worry, you and Esme got there in time to save me. No bite marks, so no venom. I'm a hundred percent human" I tell her with a smile.

Rosalie nods with a smile and then leaves the room. After a good few minutes I stand and make my way back into the closet. I slowly lift my stop back up, taking in the sight of my waist before slowly feeling the bruise. I freeze when I brush my fingers across the indents that had been made.

I wonder instantly why I wasn't in pain like Rosalie said I should be, but again I wasn't sure if he'd actually bit me or just fooled me into believing he had. If he hadn't I would be fine, but then again if he had, he hadn't bit me for long, only a matter of seconds, so I doubted there was any venom in my system at all. After all I was in no pain, well my ribs killed and my ankle hurt like hell, but other wise I seemed fine.

I pull my shirt down, and walk back out of the closet, only to stumble slightly when a fire builds in my side, and tears its way across my stomach, but just as I think its gonna get worse it disappears like as if it was never there.

I stand slowly and make my way over to the bed, and lay down as I pull the cover over me. I hoped that going to sleep would stop me from having such thoughts, and worries. I also hoped I would walk up feeling much better, and not like I wanted to pass out or be sick.


A/N - I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and I hope you'll let me know what you think.

And can you let me know if i should bring Morgan back as a vampire and have her killed, or should I let her live, so she can go on to help Victoria in New Moon and Eclipse. Let me know what you think.

Thanks for reading, and there will hopefully be another chapter up soon. So please until then review, review, review. Thanks ... MarsPlanetsGirl, aka Emma xx.