-1Edward's POV
I was walking down the steps to the basement. Emmett and Jasper had left a few days ago to hunt and I'd put this off long enough. They'd be back soon and I wouldn't get another chance. I had a small tray of food for Isabella. Isabella. It was a beautiful name. she was beautiful. I entered the room. I knew it was too dark for her to be able to see who was visiting but I could see her flinch as I shut the door. Why did that bother me so much? I went over to her, and sat next to her. She looked at me, the new chain clinking around her throat. Jasper had decided that while rope was good, chain was better and had fitted a metal collar around her neck, chaining her to the wall. It was just unnecessary. It's not like she could run away! She was in a locked basement, in a vampire castle! No escaping possible! And if she managed by some miracle, she'd be in the middle of nowhere! She'd starve, or get eaten by an animal (Jasper/Emmett/me/any-other-vampire-nearby/maybe-an-actual-animal) or something even worse!
"Hey Isabella" I said.
"Don't" she said.
"Don't what?"
"Don't call me that"
"Okay. So what do I call you?"
"Don't call me anything. Names are for friends. You are a captor and I am the captive. You don't have the right to call me anything" I didn't know what to say to that.
"Err…I brought you some food. I don't know when you last ate?"
"Try, before I got here"
"What?! They haven't feed you?!"
"Why should they? I'm nothing to them" oh god! I should have come down sooner! If only I'd known.
"So eat this"
"No" I picked up a piece with the fork and pressed it against her lips. She shuddered and pulled away.
"I'm not leaving until you eat"
"Well, then you'll be here a while. And your brothers will probably be less then happy when they find out you've been down here" we sat in silence.
"Why do you think I care what they think?"
"Because"
"And when you first heard who I was, you looked at me like you expected something"
"I did"
"What? And why?"
"I don't want to answer your questions"
"You have to" I insisted.
"Why? Will you force me? Hit me? Stick me underwater and see how long it takes for me to drown? Burn me? Whip me with a thorny branch?"
"We haven't burnt you. Or whipped you with a thorny branch" I said confused.
"You weren't there" she said. She moved round so that her back was to me. Oh my god, how long had those been there? Her back was criss-crossed with red scars and patches of burnt skin.
"When was this?"
"I don't know. I don't know when a day ends and a new one starts!" she said.
"I think you've been here about a month now"
"Joy"
"You don't normally talk this much. It makes a nice change" I brushed a strand of hair out of her face. She moved away.
"You don't have to keep flinching. I'm not going to hurt me"
"You already have and you did it without a single thought" but I didn't want to. Doesn't she realise that?!
"I didn't want to do that! Any of the things I've done. Please believe me!"
"You said that you wanted to know what I expected and why? I expected mercy. They talked about you. Said you weren't 'strong' enough for this. I took that to mean you were kind. My mistake"