Chapter 4

I couldn't help it.

I had made up my mind not to cry anymore. After all, it wasn't as though my 'captor' intended to harm me - far, far from it. I was safe, even lying bound to the headboard of this ridiculously sturdy and probably massively expensive bed. The childish, petulant thought ripped a snort from my lips as I gave one more ineffective tug with all my might, a move which netted me exactly nothing: Stupid rich vampires and their elegant tastes; only the finest, strongest wood would do for securing their fragile humans against their will.

But still, I was safe - almost ridiculously so. Edward was so far gone with worry for me at this point that I had no doubt he wouldn't allow so much as a fly to touch me. My father was safe, too, according to Edward; Carlisle and the rest of Edward's family were seeing to that, he believed, and I believed him. So I didn't need to cry about my own safety, or Charlie's.

And yeah, when this was eventually over and Edward released me back to Charlie, I was going to be grounded for the rest of forever; but at least, if I did decide not to kill Edward for all of this, I'd still have a boyfriend who could silently let himself straight into my room every night anyway, so what did even that matter?

But as I lay there, I became more uncomfortable by the second - not because I was losing circulation or experiencing muscle strain, because I wasn't. I knew that he had been extraordinarily cautious to make sure that wouldn't happen. I had, in fact, helplessly lain there refusing to watch while he went to great lengths to doublecheck that the loops around my wrists weren't too tight and that I had enough slack to move around some while still not being able to reach the very tightly tied knots...as though I had any hope of picking loose a vampire strength knot anyway. No, it was more the fact that I couldn't get up. It was definitely more of a mental thing.

And did it make me absolutely the most horrible person in the world to be just a tiny bit irritated that I'd managed to fall in love with the one unbelievably gorgeous vampire on the face of the planet who could tie his girlfriend down to a bed in a secluded forest mansion without even thinking about the possibilities for making that a fun thing? No, it was all about safety. In retrospect, for just a second I wanted to laugh. Only Edward...

That impulse died out quickly as the enormity of the past days hit me.

The first helpless sobs annoyed me; after that, the remainder of my sobs were almost entirely fueled by pure frustration with the whole situation, along with a healthy dose of anger at Edward for leaving me like this. Before I knew it, I was halfway to full-fledged hysterics as I tugged harder at the ropes holding me down - a bad idea, because the wrist I'd injured with the handcuffs was beginning to swell as I continued to yank on it, aggravating the injury.

My breakdown continued for quite some time, leaving me puffy eyed and miserable. It went on and on...at least until I heard the sound of what must be the front door to the house opening. That silenced me and froze me in place pretty fast.

ooo

James...it had to be. But how? Edward had promised to stay close enough to hear James' thoughts. How could he have found me?

Instinctively, I jerked hard against the ropes holding me to the bed, but even in the sudden violence of my now frantic struggles there was absolutely no give. There was only one hope I could think of, but I had no way of knowing if it would work. If Edward wasn't close enough to hear James, he wasn't close enough to hear me scream, either. But I would yell his name in terror, and just pray that he could reach me before James could do something to me that not even vampire venom could save me from...and just hope there were no innocent hunters or hikers nearby to hear my screams, try to intervene, and become dessert for their trouble.

But before the terrified shriek could even leave my throat, it died there - as the locked door to the room I occupied was forced open in one quick, surprisingly quiet movement.

I didn't bother to look up at James entering. What good would it do? As though the ropes made me any more helpless against him - which in reality I knew they most certainly did not - my attention had turned to desperately (and pointlessly) trying to get my fingers just the extra half inch they needed to reach the knots, my breath coming in terrified gasps and sobs as I waited for the snarl that would signal the end of my life.

The low whistle of surprise that I heard instead caused my terrified eyes to swing around to the door, to the three forms that now stood just inside it - Carlisle, Esme, and Emmett. I'm not sure whose eyes were widest - mine or theirs. A lingering hysterical sob escaped my lips as I gasped once for air, and then all was quiet as I finally started to realize that I was safe and wasn't about to be killed after all.

The flabbergasted whistle of surprise, clearly, had come from Emmett, and it was his face I was first drawn to even though he stood in the rear of the group. His stance was defensive - he had his parents' backs if trouble followed them into the house. He didn't speak, but his eyes ran over me and I knew he was looking for any sign of blood or damage. I also knew from his uncharacteristically frowning face that if he found any, he'd be the second person in line to get a piece of his brother - me being the first, probably while he held him for me. Even though I didn't feel particularly violent toward Edward, the feeling of Emmett's brotherly protectiveness was a calming one. I'd never expected to fall in love with a vampire, much less have another one for a big brother. I found that I rather liked the idea of both. Already, I felt less hysterical.

Now if one of the vampires would just untie me...

My attention next turned to Esme's face, which was completely unreadable. Like Emmett, she was utterly speechless. Had vampires been able to go into shock, I'm quite certain she would have needed to be treated for it. In retrospect, I assume that's understandable. After all, did any mother really want to wander in to a room where her son was staying, only to find his girlfriend tied to the bed, hyperventilating and desperately trying to escape, complete with a panicked look and a tear-streaked face? No, probably not. I wanted desperately to calm her concerns, but speech was beyond me at that point.

Carlisle was the first to speak. He stood at the front point of the little triangle they formed, his gorgeous amber eyes radiating both disappointment and understanding in equal measure.

"Oh, Edward," he uttered the first thought through his mind, on a heavy sigh, as his eyes briefly closed and he slightly shook his head.

He was then at my side before I had even noticed him moving. I jumped, flinching away and whimpering as my all-too-human eyes finally adjusted and saw Carlisle suddenly standing there over me, my reaction heightened by the adrenaline still surging through me. But Carlisle immediately withdrew the hands that already reached toward my bonds, misinterpreting my reaction.

His mouth fell open slightly and he exchanged a loaded look with Esme - who seemed to have recovered somewhat and now had her lips pressed into a thin angry line - before turning his eyes back to me with even deeper concern in them.

"It's all right, Bella," he assured me, holding his hands out to his sides with his palms forward, a gesture one might make as they approached a frightened or injured animal. He made no move toward me. "We won't hurt you. I won't hurt you. I'm just going to untie you, okay?"

Shaking my head furiously and feeling my entire face blush pink, I tried to explain my reaction. I failed, epicly.

"No, it's...I just didn't...this isn't what...he didn't..."

But my disjointed explanation made sense to somebody, at least, even if Carlisle and Esme still looked like they couldn't decide whether they should dismember and permanently confine their son immediately, or after he had a chance to explain. Esme looked like she was leaning toward 'immediately.'

Before I could even stop rambling enough to explain that Edward oh-my-god-are-you-crazy-how-could-you-think-that hadn't done anything to hurt me, I heard a deep chuckle announcing that Emmett had appeared by the bed next to Carlisle and finally had something to say. It was probably some type of miracle that it had taken that long; but it was clear that, even in his crudeness, Emmett had now read between the lines of my rambling explanation and knew Edward hadn't harmed me in any way. He was back to his normal happy-go-lucky self. Now he just looked amused as he reached down and picked up the forgotten handcuffs that still lay on the bed beside me, twirling them around his finger. He also looked impressed.

"Damn, Edward. Kinky. Didn't see that one coming."

Okay, so maybe he'd just gotten the wrong idea in a completely different direction. Typical Emmett. I blushed even pinker.

His big-brotherly delight was all too plain to see, and I suspected the only thing that could have made it better for him was having Edward there to hear it.

Carlisle, unlike Emmett, was less than amused, especially when he saw - and most likely smelled - my furious blush.

"Emmett!" I had never heard the calm, unflappable doctor sound so frustrated or impatient. For a half second, as he turned to glare at Emmett and snatch away the antique cuffs, I could actually imagine this gentle creature as a terrifying...vampire. The bulky metal disappeared out of my sight for the last time - Carlisle had put them somewhere out of sight so quickly that I didn't even see it.

"Sorry, Bella," Emmett told me, almost managing to sound remorseful for the split second before his lip jerked back upward. "But c'mon, you've got to admit...I mean, it's Edward..."

At that point, the only thing that could have surprised me more than Carlisle's ferocity was the furious snarl that came from the last place I'd ever expected to hear it. Beautiful, loving, motherly Esme had just snarled at her biggest son.

"Emmett, not one. more. word."

Before I could even blink, she was on my other side. I managed not to jump this time. In contrast with her vampire speed to get over to me, her hand moved at a snail's pace as she cautiously brought it to my forehead to smooth the hair out of my eyes. She smiled warmly, but it faltered for just a second when her sharp eyes flicked to my right wrist, which - thanks to my my ill-conceived escape attempt - had now swollen to the point that the ropes were no longer loose around my wrist as Edward had left them. My struggles when I thought James had found me had only increased the swelling; the ropes were now cutting in painfully and noticeably.

I saw Esme catch Carlisle's eye, silently using her eyes to indicate my injured arm to him. I heard his small noise of disapproval and watched his jaw clench, as she returned her attention and warmth to me.

"It's okay, sweetheart," she soothed. "We're here to help. Carlisle's going to get you loose, okay?"

I had calmed enough by this point to make speech possible, hopefully without managing to act like some kind of catatonic victim. Adrenaline began to fade, and I could now feel myself shaking from head to toe. "Yes. P- please." My lips trembled, and I couldn't force my tongue to form any other explanations.

"Bella, you're injured. I need to get you free," Carlisle told me gently in what I was certain was the voice he reserved for his most cowardly, terrified patients. "It'd be faster to just break the ropes but I'm afraid I might hurt you, especially this arm. If you're okay for just a few seconds longer, I can untie the knots without having to take that risk." He still didn't seem entirely sure that I wasn't going to freak out on him, so I tried to reassure him - which probably would have been more convincing if I wasn't shaking like a leaf.

"I'm f- f- fine. Do what you need to. I tr- trust you."

A small, pained smile graced Carlisle's features before he slowly approached me again. Seeing that I didn't curl up in a ball and start screaming, he finally began to make swift work of the knots Edward had taken such care in tying, and before I knew it the loops hung loose around my wrists and my arms were free. Without waiting for Carlisle to finish the job, I used more force than necessary to sit up and jerk the loops off my wrists, flinging them across the room angrily. Still shaking, I wrapped my arms around myself, suddenly freezing and shivering as well. Esme sat down on the bed beside me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders tightly. It should have only intensified the freezing feeling, but it didn't. Had she tried to let go, I might have started crying again.

Ignoring their unspoken questions and my shaky voice, I answered the only question I felt like answering.

"He finally had to h- hunt. He wasn't going far." I gulped, and had to stop and slow my breathing - which for some reason still came in gasps as I tried to recover from my fear. Esme gently smoothed my hair. "He's l- listening for James, but he's going to be back here f- fast when he h- h- hears your thoughts. He's not...he's not going to be happy to s- see - to see you."

"Bella..." Carlisle began, and I realized he'd backed off after releasing me and had been silently scanning me from head to toe at a distance. Not finding anything else of concern, he was now staring at my swollen wrist, fingers twitching at his side with the urge to see for himself how bad it was. "How exactly did you hurt your..."

A sharp hiss escaped from Esme, drawing every eye to her - but her eyes were fixed on Carlisle. The two vampires exchanged another loaded glance, and I realized that she was objecting to his phrasing which unintentionally put the blame on me for being hurt. I didn't have to ask who she thought was responsible. I'd never seen her like this before. She was angry at her son, I gathered, most likely for taking off in the first place and worrying her, but also on my behalf. I felt guilty about that, but there was nothing I could do about it. At the same time, it also warmed my heart that she cared for me so much.

Carlisle had the look of someone caught in the middle - like part of him agreed with Esme, but I also saw another flash of that same look I'd seen on his face when he first came into the room: understanding. Some part of him, more so than Esme, understood Edward's actions. But I noticed that he did rephrase his question when he started over.

"How exactly were you injured, Bella?" he amended diplomatically, and I opened my mouth to answer, prepared to clear up all of the misconceptions.

But a much more terrifying thought hit me at that exact moment, and I jumped to my feet instead.

"Oh my God! Charlie! If you're all here..."

Esme had risen with me, and she took me by the shoulders now, forcing me to look in her face despite my panic. "Bella, relax. Chief Swan hasn't been unguarded for even a moment. Alice says James has taken a different course now which doesn't involve him, but Rosalie is still guarding him just in case. Your father's fine, Bella. We're taking care of you both, I promise."

I relaxed somewhat, sinking back to the bed in relief. Again, Esme mirrored my action, staying close and putting a supportive arm back around me. I still hadn't stopped shaking.

And then the floodgates opened, my tongue loosening and every question I had spilling out at once.

"But why are you three here? Why not...where's Alice? Can she see anything? Who's looking for James? Where's Jasper?" I couldn't seem to stop babbling long enough for Emmett to talk, so he just answered the first question.

Grinning at me, he jerked his huge thumb first in the direction of Carlisle and Esme, then at his own broad chest. "They're here to give Edward the parental guilt trip. I'm here in case he needs his ass kicked."

I stared at him for just a moment, and then blinked in surprise as a sharp bark of laughter unexpectedly came out, mingled with a leftover sob. I felt some of my normalcy return as I looked into Emmett's good-natured face, almost laughing again at how overly pleased he was with himself for his joke. I could definitely get used to having a brother, especially one like Emmett. I forced a tiny smile for his benefit, knowing he'd appreciate my answer.

"Oh, he does. Believe me. But I want to be the one to do it."

Emmett grinned huge at that, a look of approval in his eyes as he interlocked his fingers, popping his knuckles and flexing his muscles at the same time. "Oh, we can probably arrange that."

"Emmett, you're not helping." Esme's soft voice, but I thought I saw a hint of a smile on her own lips as she gave me a gentle squeeze, glad to see me acting somewhat normally. She seemed a little more relaxed now.

"Bella," Carlisle tried again, the furrow in his brow increasing in concern as he attempted to answer the rest of my questions. "Jasper and Alice have been tracking and pursuing James, protecting Charlie at the same time during the time that James was shadowing him. The three of us, along with Rosalie, have been tracking you and Edward since he took off with you. Rosalie is now with Charlie just in case, as James seems to have tired of involving him in his game. He's taken a different path at the moment. Jasper and Alice are still following him, but we're unsure yet what he's doing."

I was pretty sure I probably looked as confused as I felt. "But Edward hasn't heard you. He's been listening for you. How...how did you follow us all this way without him knowing?"

Carlisle smiled, seeming more relieved now as well that I was responding more naturally and asking questions that made sense.

"We've stayed just out of range so Edward wouldn't hear our thoughts and become even more frantic. We're in constant contact with Alice, which is how we've stayed with you. She's been able to pinpoint you every step of the way through Edward's decisions. She saw today that he was leaving to go hunting and that he's utterly focused on listening for James' voice to the exclusion of all others, so we decided to risk coming in closer to check on you. We were simply going to make sure you were all right without your noticing us, but when we got close we heard you crying..." He trailed off, his lingering question about my tears obvious - just how far off the deep end was Edward? Why had I been crying?

"I'm fine," I responded, hating the tightness in my voice and the tears that sprang back into my eyes just thinking about my temporary confinement. "I didn't mean to worry you. I wasn't hurt, or even scared. I did this to my own wrist, trying to break free. It was stupid. But I was just so...mad at him."

It was a pretty simplistic response, and a slightly hostile one, at least as far as Edward was concerned. But that didn't seem to bother my new...family. The word gave me a warm feeling despite the knot of anger in my chest. They had belonged to Edward first, by many, many years. But here they were, allowing me to vent my frustration at him without chiding me for it.

"What do you want to do, Bella?" Esme asked me gently. "We'll do anything we can without putting you in danger."

What I really wanted was to leave. But at the same time I didn't want to leave Edward alone. In his state, I wasn't sure he could handle my disappearance. So I was as honest as I knew how to be as I found myself clinging to the woman I had begun to think of as my future mother.

"I want to go with you. I want to go home. But I don't want to leave him, either. I want to slap him. But I want to kiss him."

To me it made no sense, but understanding radiated from Esme and Carlisle both. This time as they exchanged a glance, there was a tiny smile on each of their faces. The man I already thought of as my second father approached a step closer, his eyes filled with truth.

"Bella, I don't pretend to condone what Edward has done here. Clearly, this has all gone too far. The decision what to do now is yours, and we will respect that. But although Edward has quite certainly handled this the wrong way, I believe I might be able to explain it in a way that might ease some of your conflicted feelings. I can try, if you'd like?"

I sat up a little straighter, nodding eagerly. I hadn't dared hope to get a direct explanation of that look of understanding in Carlisle's eyes that I had seen a couple of times now. I wanted more than anything in the world to hear what he had to say that could possibly excuse kidnapping and false imprisonment.

But I wasn't going to get that chance, it turned out - at least not at that exact moment.

A sudden, vicious snarl was punctuated by the sound of glass breaking - a lot of glass breaking. Before I could even see what had happened - almost before I even heard it - Carlisle darted in front of me and shielded me as shattering glass shot through the room like tiny daggers.

I tried to look around him to see what had come flying straight through the wall-length window looking out over the forest, shattering it along the entire length of the wall; but his arms and body held me fast, shielding me and keeping himself between me and...whatever it was.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Author's Note:

So, what did you think? What'd you like? What's your favorite line? What do you think just flew through the window? Knowing things like that really help me as a novice writer. So...

Give me an R...

Give me an E...

Give me a View...

What's that spell? REVIEW!

What's that spell? REVIEW!

(please, please, please, please, please, please, please...)

I'll even throw in a chocolate-covered Edward...I'll even make him promise not to whine about how disgusting the chocolate is and how this behavior is completely improper, blah, blah, blah...just review! :)