A/N: Things I'm thankful for: my awesome betas twicrack83 and MarchHare5, my twilighted validation beta nowforruin, you my amazing wonderful creative readers, free online word processors, dictionary(dot)com and thesaurus(dot)com, a moleskin notebook that holds all my ideas, crazy and sane, fantastic fanfic for which to use up all my spare time, a silly cat named Jack who likes to attack my hairbands, creepy old men in Borders who like my hair, my hubby who is currently making my dish for thanksgiving dinner so I can post this, teapots, 50% off coupons, almost 300 reviews, and Twilight, because that is why we are all crazy obsessed, right?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Warning: adult content and violence. **Mention of physical and sexual assault. ** Language **

Disclaimer: all recognizable characters and Twilight belong to Stephenie Meyer, the rest is copyrighted 2010 ElspethGordie

xoxo

Chapter 26: Consternation

Today was going to totally suck balls. I wasn't sure if I'd survive the day

One: I had to arrive without puking.

Two: see Renee.

Three: talk to the police without wanting to go all homicidal.

Four: confront my rapist without having a horrendous flashback that shows just how weak I really am.

That would be just fantastic and give Jimmy another advantage over me. It was enough that the thought of coming within hundred miles gave me hives, let alone the ramifications of a flashback in his presence. I'd wake up and it would be like the dream wasn't a dream after all.

The idea of it made me want to swear or hurl... firetruck. Time to go back to the old standbys.

I gazed dismally at the evergreen landscape from the plane's tiny window. The pines were as they'd always been. Tall and dark emerald with a mist making them seem more majestic and mysterious than they really were.

I missed the heat. The dry heat that sank into your bones, taking away the numb feeling in your toes that never goes away in the wet, dank Pacific Northwest.

I missed the earth. The hundred tones of brown. Everyone thought that brown was just brown, but the different shades were taken for granted when all you could see was a pervasive green. Green was supposedly a symbol of life, but it just looked fake to me. Like one of those Thomas Kincaid paintings they try to sell in a commercialized gallery in the mall, the picture was too perfect to be taken seriously. Life isn't a painting, and it shouldn't look like one.

But then here we were. Washington State, in the good ol' U.S. of A.

I knew that I was complaining and I had no right to complain. Even to myself. I'd agreed to this. I told Charlie that I was willing. To come back to Forks, the scene of the crime and make him pay. He was going to get what was coming to him, whether he knew it or not. My baby would not suffer her life with him as a father. He would not be a part of her life. Over my dead body.

It took a little bit of time to plan this trip, longer than Charlie had wanted. We were a week behind the desired schedule but it couldn't be helped. We couldn't fly without approval from my doctor, especially since I'd finally entered my third trimester. I was officially twenty-eight weeks along and Thanksgiving was next week.

Dr. Randall hadn't been pleased with our plans to fly to Forks, but she understood the reasons. Since my pregnancy was going so well, without any complications... well, except for the conception, Dr. Randall seemed to be more amiable with our plans despite my "high risk" case. She cautioned me to have as many sick bags near me as possible. My tendency to puke could be heightened due to the motion of the airplane. Fortunately, her predictions hadn't come true yet. I attributed it to my nerves of steel. At least, that was what I kept telling myself.

Randall did give me one restriction, to not place me or the baby in risk of any harm. She understood my desire to see Jimmy slaughtered, but our health came first. I couldn't help but roll my eyes, because that was a "no, duh" in my mind.

Edward was not as understanding as Dr. Randall. The green outside my window blurred and changed as I remembered.

"You're going to do what?" Edward's voice raised in volume, probably enough to start a small avalanche.

I gritted my teeth and smiled. "I'm going back to Forks."

"Why on earth would you do that?" he retorted. I watched as he gripped the life out of my poor comforter.

"Charlie has a plan. He says that now is the best time. As soon as I'm cleared by my doctor we're going to fly up and file official charges against Jimmy." I ran my fingers through my hair, holding it out of my face.

Edward stood up and paced the length of my bedroom. I'd taken him in here to give us some privacy. I didn't want Charlie to think less of him if he didn't react well. So far, I was glad that we didn't have an audience.

"Didn't you do that? When he raped you?" His back was to me, and I winced at the word. I hated that word.

"No, by the time I went to the police they had already 'solved' the case." I rested my neck against the head board of my bed.

Edward paced back toward the bed, forcefully placing his hands on the foot board. "Then, why now? What's the rush?"

I looked up into his eyes. His eyes softened when they slipped into mine. I still wondered what he saw when he looked at me. A girl? A victim? A mistake?

Someone he cared about?

I managed a small smile, which for some reason despite his obvious frustration he returned. "Why now? I don't know. Charlie says he has a plan."

"Says he as a plan? You don't know what it is?" His face went rigid again, like it could crack at the slightest provocation.

I looked down at the white embroidery holding my comforter together and shrugged my shoulders. I really didn't know. Charlie had been more tight lipped about the whole thing much more than I liked. It was my life! My case, I thought I deserved to know, but he hadn't budged.

Edward didn't seem to like that either. He rammed his hands down on my bed frame, causing me to jump.

"No!" My eyes shot up to his, they were wild. "No way. You aren't going." My eyebrows raised at his command, but he only pleaded with me. "Don't go. It's not safe."

"I have too," I sighed.

"No. You can't go, not without me." He said it like it was an absolute. "If you're going, so am I."

I smiled but shook my head. "How are you going to convince your parents? They barely let you out of the house to go to school and see me! And how are you going to get away with missing school? They watch you like a hawk! Dr. Banner said that if anything else happens, no matter what, you'd be expelled!"

He waved his hands in the air dismissing my reason. "Who cares about Banner? He's a fucktard anyway!"

I gave him a look. We'd talked about language. We'd agreed to no more swearing because my baby's first words were going to acceptable to share in public.

He smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, sorry. And who cares about my parents? I'm eighteen, what can they really do?"

I rolled my eyes. "They can ground you forever."

"Already there."

"They can take away your car... and cell phone, computer, ipod, you name it!"

"So, I'll live without modern technologies. People lived once without them. So can I," he snorted.

I searched for another valid reason. "They can refuse to pay for college!"

His face went stony again at the mention of higher education. "As if I'm going to get into any respectable colleges right now anyway. The only school I'm going to attend is the community college, and that I can pay for myself," he said confidently.

I gave up. "Fine. Whatever. You can come... as long as it's okay with Charlie."

He beamed triumphantly. Edward walked around the bed, taking a seat next to me. Unconsciously, I snuggled into him. His side was strong and warm. I could almost feel the waves of masculinity rolling off him.

His hand gently cupped my cheek, tilting my face up to his. "The only way you are going back there to that freak show is with me by your side. That ass... jerkface won't come near you."

Edward kissed my smiling cheek softly then whispered in my ear, "You are mine."

A nervous giggle escaped my lips. I hated Jimmy's possessiveness, but Edward's sent a thrill through me. "Then you must be mine?" I whispered back.

He wasn't possessive of me as an object, but taking me as a part of his own self, he was quickly becoming a part of me.

"Always," he breathed before his lips caught mine.

I sighed, thinking back to his kisses. They sent a butterfly feeling throughout my whole body, ending in my core. I wanted to arch my back and moan at just the memory.

Unfortunately, Edward's plans didn't go over well with Charlie. Despite his repeated insistence, Charlie thought he was a liability. Even with me around his anger was volatile. Charlie didn't trust Edward to keep his temper in check if we came in contact with Jimmy, which according to him was inevitable.

Edward said he would control it. He said no matter how much he wanted to ring Jimmy's neck.. or tar and feather him... or build an old fashioned rack and "lengthen" him, he would keep his cool.

When he made the argument that I was worth more than pummeling Jimmy, part of me melted inside. My safety was worth more.

But once again Edward put his large foot in his even larger mouth. Charlie did not appreciate Edward's insinuation that he could not protect his daughter. I could tell Charlie was taking this just a personally as Edward was. My protection was a matter of pride to him... and he'd already failed once.

So, here we sat, Charlie and I on an evil plane that was more a toy than a mode of transportation, and I didn't even have Edward along as comfort.

Speaking of evil, Dr. Young, the evil shrink, thought the whole expedition was an excellent idea. I was surprised she hadn't invited herself along to watch the experiment.

I'd been to her twice in the last week to prepare for my "confrontation with my past" as she liked to call it.

Both times I'd sat on her newly upholstered yellow sofa, counting the plaques on her wall. She had a surprising number of them. Most of the fonts were too small to read, so I wasn't sure what they were actually for, but they did create the look she was going for, "smarter-than-thou." Though for all I knew she could be certified in nose piercing, and placed the plaque up there to make her look better. It would be just like her to do that.

"What are you going to say, Isabella, when you come face to face with him?" She looked over her glasses at me, then back at her notes like she had a pre-decided list of questions to ask me.

"I don't know."

"Are you going to tell him about the pregnancy?"

I snorted, "Don't you think that's going to be a bit obvious?"

She smiled softly. "You'd be surprised how dense men can be."

I nodded my head back and forth, unable to keep from agreeing with her. It was true. "I don't know. I think I'll probably avoid it if I can. I don't want him to think he has any say or any possible future involvement."

"Let me ask you this. What are you going to tell your daughter one day when she asks where her daddy is? Why she doesn't have a daddy like all the other children?"

I clenched my teeth. How dare she infer that she would want him in her life? I glared at her. I didn't say anything. I didn't know what I would say.

She sighed lightly and turned the page in her notebook. "How are your flashbacks? Are they improving at all?"

I crossed my arms over my chest resting them lightly on my extended belly. "I haven't had one in a few weeks, but I haven't tried to touch anyone since Jasper."

"And what can you recount of that experience?"

I leaned back in her couch, counting the frames again as I retold the flashback.

"Hmm, this dependency on this boy concerns me. Why can you touch him and no one else?"

I didn't like how she talked about Edward, as if we had a creepy co-dependent relationship. We understood each other. We weren't exploiting each other's weaknesses. "I don't know." I looked away from her prying eyes, studying the floor.

"Did you know him before? Was there any kind of relationship that would cause this?"

I shook my head. "I never laid eyes on him until August. I didn't even know he existed, and he didn't know about me either."

"Tell me about Edward."

I answered her prying questions, finding no more answers than any of the times I'd thought about it on my own. I tried to adequately explain what Edward was to me, but I was pretty sure that I didn't get it across. I could tell that she viewed me as a love sick teenager.

She was very pleased that Edward would not be coming on our trip. Her eyes twinkled when I vaguely explained the situation.

"This is fantastic, Isabella-"

"Bella."

"Closure is very important to the process of moving on. Much of your symptoms are residue from the experience that has not been resolved. You will remain the victim until you take charge. Only when you have control can you move past your flashbacks." She nodded to herself importantly. I almost expected her to be taking notes on herself.

Her words sounded all nice and flashy, but I didn't think it would be that simple. I'd gained control over my life three months ago. I'd taken charge and responsibility for my life. Confronting Jimmy might create closure, but more important than my closure, it would create a safer world for my daughter.

I smiled and nodded, giving her what she wanted. I hoped that she would help me, but at this point it didn't seem likely. I didn't buy into her mumbo-jumbo. But I knew that I might be able to learn something, pick and choose what would actually work for me.

"Please buckle your seat belts. We'll be landing in Port Angeles shortly, at 2:25 pacific standard time," the pilot came over the intercom, fuzzy and distorted, pulling me out of my mind.

Charlie began to reassemble the dozens of papers he had spread over his little lap tray. At first I tried to read over his shoulder and figure out what they were, but I couldn't make any sense of them.

He stuffed them in his briefcase and flipped the tray up, locking it in place. Turning, careful not to bump me accidentally, he smiled. "Bells, you ready? We're almost there."

Pressing my lips together, I returned a smile that didn't reach my eyes. "Sure." I turned my whole body to look out the window; the mist and fog in the middle of the November afternoon mirrored my mood perfectly.

OoOoOoOoOo

Charlie rented a small SUV and drove like an old lady, as if he'd forgotten how to drive in the rain in the years he'd been gone. I would have volunteered to drive if my belly wasn't so big. I could if I wanted. It just wasn't as comfortable as it once was. I could still see my feet, but they felt a long way down.

There was a light drizzle outside, but the rain wasn't the problem. It was dark. The clouds obscured the sun from reaching the ground. The gray haze made it feel like it was perpetual twilight. Not day, not night, but always in between. It was like it gave cause to living in the gray areas, not black, not white, but always ambiguous.

I sent a quick text off to Edward. I'm here. I'm fine. Call you later. -B

A few minutes later I received his reply. Call me if you need anything. I'll be there. -E

I sighed. I really wished Edward could be here.

I watched Charlie as he drove hunched forward, concentrating. "What's the plan, Dad? You promised you'd tell me." His focus was visibly taken from the road.

"I will, Bells. Just give me a little more time. I need to check on a few things. Once everything is in place, I'll fill you in."

I shook my head, tired with the whole beat around the bush routine. "What is there to get into place? Me? Well, I'm here."

"Bells, patience. Just a little more patience, please. It's for your benefit," he pleaded.

"Fine," I said and rested my head on my elbow as watched the mist and trees blur by.

Before I knew it we reached the city limits and we passed the sign welcoming us to Forks. The wooden sign was older than I was, and it had been about that long since it'd been painted. I gave myself a promise right then and there that I'd never come back. Once I was truly free, nothing could ever bring me back to this god-forsaken place.

The houses soon began to add up. A single house in the outskirts, and then a cluster, and exponentially more the closer we got to town. We'd have to go all the way through town, past the school, past the diner, past the grocery store and the gas station, past the police station and town hall, past Mary Jackson's house and Bree's before we'd finally reach Renee's.

I wondered if I'd see them, any of them. And what would they say when they saw me. But I already knew the answers to my questions.

"Iz! Oh my gosh, Iz! You won't believe what I just heard?" Bree came barreling to our typical lunch table. We'd been sitting in this corner of the cafeteria for the few short weeks we'd been at Forks High School. Being a freshman was hell. I still wasn't used to High School, the drama, the gossip, the popularity contest. Mostly I'd kept my head down and gone with the flow.

I discretely wiped any crumbs from my mouth and faithfully gave my full attention to my best friend. "What did you just hear?"

Bree erupted in a fit of giggles. "It's just too good, you'll never believe it!" She said this almost every day as prelude to sharing the latest gossip. I didn't know how she knew the things she did, but somehow she heard things before anyone else. Sometimes I thought she had super hearing, or at least sneaky spy skills.

"Chelsea Afton got knocked-up at the Homecoming bonfire!"

"What?" My attention was fully grabbed.

"Chelsea Afton, you know the head color guard, girlfriend of Felix Corin? She's pregnant!" Bree beamed, proud of her intimate knowledge.

I fiddled with my apple, rolling it back and forth between my hands. "Aw, that's terrible, poor girl."

Bree rolled her eyes. "Poor girl? My mom says that she shouldn't have opened her legs if she didn't want a baby! But I'm sure that Felix will pay for the abortion. He's going to UDub next year, and she can't ruin her life with something like that!"

"But she must be so scared." I looked at my apple, unwilling to disagree with Bree much more.

"I guess... but, she'll get over it. If she does have the kid, can you imagine how fat she's going to get? I bet she'll blow up like a blimp."

Bree kept going on about the details, but I blocked her out, nodding only when necessary.

I watched as Chelsea entered the cafeteria, the whole room hushed. Her face blotched up, matching her red rimmed eyes. She looked for support, for her friends. The girls in the color guard just giggled, and spread out at their table, so there was no room. Chelsea looked to Felix next, but he was almost as red faced as she. He threw away his uneaten lunch and tromped out of the lunch room without a backward glance. At his rejection all the color drained from her face. She looked from table to table searching for a friendly face to sit with. When she reached our table, I dropped my eyes, unable to invite her over.

Eventually she gave up and sat alone at an empty table.

Charlie pulled into a familiar gravel driveway; it led to a small cape-cod with a single gable. My home for the past eighteen years.

"We're here, Bells," Charlie said, stating the obvious.

We sat for a few moments in the drive, each gathering our own thoughts. I was prepping myself for the impending encounter with Renee. She didn't know we were coming. She'd been bugging me to visit for Thanksgiving, which was only a week away, but I'd given no promises. She probably wasn't going to like our reasons for coming. We'd rented a hotel room in Port Angeles in case she didn't want us to stay. Honestly, I felt like it was a toss up, she could welcome me with open arms or throw me out on the curb.

Moments later I was standing on my own front porch, knocking on my front door, unsure as to whether I'd be received favorably. I hadn't received Renee well when she'd showed up in Phoenix. It would only be fair.

"It'll be fine, Bells. Breathe," Charlie said. I let out a shuddered breath, resolved again.

I knocked again, harder this time. Shifting from foot to foot reminded me that I had a full bladder I needed to empty soon. No one was coming to the door. It was almost four in the afternoon on a school day.

"She's probably still at school."

"Do you think she'd mind if we let ourselves in?" he asked.

I shrugged. "There's a spare key in the fake rock under the hydrangea bush, Dad." I pointed to the flower bed to our left.

He gave me a closed lipped smile. "I remember."

"Yeah." I picked my nails awkwardly.

Charlie quickly got the key from the purple, plastic rock with yellow specks that didn't blend in with the flowers even in the spring.

The inside of the house was just the same, albeit a bit more messy than when I lived here. Bright yellow cabinets with blue kitchen supplies everywhere. The old wooden table was covered in stickers, stamps, and glitter.

I walked through the house, noticing little changes here and there, mainly from her lack of cleaning. She probably hadn't done a load of laundry or vacuumed since I left.

"I'm going to use the restroom and put my bag in my room," I called back to Charlie.

"I'll just be making some calls, 'kay?" he replied.

"Okay."

I made my way up the stairs. The pictures on the wall chronicled my life. Each embarrassing school picture, each staged Christmas photo hung framed on the wall like it always had. I stared at that girl and barely recognized her. She wasn't a part of my life anymore.

After using the small bathroom, I dumped my bag on the floor at the foot of the twin bed. Everything looked like it hadn't been touched since I left. Two of my drawers were still open from my last minute packing. A few books lay on the floor near my bookshelf when I'd decided to leave them behind.

I picked up the old ratty teddy bear that Charlie gave me when I was three. I held it to my face breathing in the comforting smell of childhood. Sitting on my bed, I released a sob I didn't even realize I was holding in.

I held the teddy bear against my face to silence the noise. Holding my breath, I forced myself to regain control. I could do this. I had to do this.

Despite Charlie's love and support I felt alone, terribly alone.

My cell beeped in my bag. I lay down on my side on the bed and picked my bag up off the floor. I had a message from Alice.

We r on our way. We'll b there late 2nite! -A

My eyes widened. We? What? Coming? What? I texted as much back. Not a minute later I got a reply.

Edward, me, and Jazz. U didn't think we'd let u go w/o us? -A

Suddenly, a huge burden was lifted from my chest. A burden I knew was there, and had been willing to bear alone. But I didn't have to anymore.

Taking a deep breath I squared my shoulders and walked to my closet door. If I was going to do this, I was going to do it right. I stood on my tippy-toes shuffling some shoe boxes out of the way and untapped the flash drive I had from the top shelf. Shoving it in my pocket, I pushed the shoe boxes back into place.

Feeling lighter, I bounced down stairs. Well, as much as a seven months pregnant woman can bounce. I knew that Charlie was not going to be happy about our impending guests. This was a kink in his plan, but it was my life and I was glad they were coming.

I walked in on a phone conversation. All of Renee's elementary crafts had been pushed into a basket and set aside. Charlie's papers were strewn in their place.

"We'll be there in an hour. We're just waiting for Renee to get home... Thanks, Pete. I owe you one." He shut his phone and gave me a small smile.

"So Bells, it's all set up to go down to the station around six." I nodded and sat down in a kitchen chair. "I made a few calls, one to your mother. She's on her way now. She said it's fine that we stay here."

I nodded again. "I got a text from Ali."

"How's she doing?" he said, routinely.

"She said that she's on her way."

His head shot up, and a few papers slipped from his hands. "What? On her way here?"

I leaned my head on my hand. "Yeah, Edward and Jasper, too."

"What? I told him he couldn't come! He could jeopardize the investigation!" Charlie's fist pounded on the table for emphasize. I couldn't help but flinch away.

Tolerantly I said, "Dad, they're coming and I'm glad they are."

"You don't know how they could interfere!"

"I need them. I need their support. I know I have you, but I need them too. They'll arrive sometime tonight. Ali said late." I took a pony tail holder off my wrist and pulled my hair back. "Now, tell me what's going on."

Charlie kept eye contact with me for a long time before lifting his hands in defeat. Something in my face or eyes must have shown how serious I was. I was glad he didn't fight me over it.

He pulled out another chair and sat down across from me. Shuffling his papers, he pulled out three separate ones from each of the piles.

Charlie looked up, watching my face carefully. "There are witnesses."

"What?"

"That's what I've kept from you. We have three witnesses." He set the three papers in front of me.

My brain was spinning from this sudden information. "What?"

"We have three witnesses. Two from the Jackson girl's party, and the nurse at the hospital." He clasped his hands in front of himself, the picture of a collected cop.

I ran a hand through the hair that had already escaped my pony tail. "Why didn't they come forward before?"

Charlie shook his head in disgust. "Scared, confused, I don't know. You name a weak excuse and one of them has it."

I looked down at the papers. Each of them detailed the witness and their story. I knew the witnesses from the party. I'd seen them every day at school. They knew what'd happened; I was telling the truth, and they let me burn.

"Why now?" I glanced back and forth between the papers searching for an answer.

"You just asked, and you need to know before anyone else gets involved."

"No, why now? Why would they be willing to come forward now, when they weren't before? It's been seven months!"

"I've told them about you... your conditions."

My face froze. "Dad!"

He waved his hands to explain. "I had to convince them somehow! I barely got the information from the original police report. It was buried. Despite that, they weren't that surprised when I called."

"Are they really willing to back up my story?"

Charlie rubbed his hand together nervously. "As long as we get to them first, and no one scares them off."

I nodded, and read back over the papers. It was a definite possibility that Jimmy's father could get to them first. He was a powerful man in this tiny town. No one wants to rock the boat of a small community. One mistake could ruin your reputation or your life.

Handing the papers back to Charlie, I leaned back in my chair, shifting back and forth, fixing the belly band that held up my unbuttoned jeans.

"Will they be there tonight?"

Charlie shook his head. "No, but as soon as we give their names, the officers will interview them to double check your statement."

"Okay." I nodded. This was much better than I expected. I hadn't even known we had any kind of witnesses when I decided to come.

Still stuck in my reverie, my bubble burst when the door opened, and a voice called out, "Isabella! You're home! Finally!"

My chair scraped against the floor as I jumped to my feet. The screeching sound was almost as bad as nails on a chalkboard. I hunched my shoulders inward as I gazed at the shadowy figure in the door way.

"Isabella! Aren't you going to give your mother a hug?" Renee stepped into the light of the kitchen, no longer obscured by shadows.

I gave a sigh of relief, unsure as to what I was relieved about. "Hey, Mom. How are you?" I moved awkwardly around the table straightening my clothes as I moved. The green plaid shirt I wore over a simple t-shirt did nothing to hide my belly, which was now more than clear. Alice would be horrified at my choice of attire. I was glad I brought some of the maternity clothes she purchased for me.

I gave Renee a loose hug, but she pulled me in tight squashing me against her. Actually, she squashed herself against me, not much of me was budging nowadays.

"Oh, honey, you are getting so big! Are you taking weekly pictures with the camera I sent you for your birthday?" She smiled largely.

I quirked my eyebrows. Who was she? And what did she do with my mother? "Mom?" I asked.

Her smile faltered. "Isabella, you know how I feel. There's no point in arguing anymore, is there?" She began to bustle around the room, creating more clutter with the papers she brought from school.

From my left Charlie cleared his throat and shifted awkwardly from foot to foot. "Renee."

"I saw you, Charlie." She gave him a look that made him shift all the more awkwardly. I didn't know what it meant, but they had been married for almost ten years. "This isn't a social call is it?"

"No, it isn't." He walked forward and placed his hands on the back of a kitchen chair. I took this opportunity to sit down, and part of me was dying to watch the show. Just how he was going to explain this to Renee... I couldn't wait to see what he had to say.

"I made a few breaks in Bella's case." He looked pointedly at Renee.

"Bella's case? What case?" She sounded just as clueless as usual. I withheld a well deserved eye roll.

"Renee, you may act dense, but we both know that you aren't."

"Fine. You are going to accuse the poor Crawford boy of assault or rape? What makes you think that you can prove that?" Renee asked. She pulled out her own chair and sat down like she was trying to make a point.

Charlie glared at her and gathered the papers on the table, placing them haphazardly in a file. Handing the entire file to her, he said, "See for yourself, Renee. Use the brain that I know you have and put two and two together. Or maybe you could have trusted your daughter in the first place. I know you are going to wish you had." I snorted internally. I wished she had too.

Renee flipped her short brown hair over her shoulder. "You don't know anything about me, Charles. You haven't in a very long time. As for trusting my own daughter, at least I've been here, can't say the same for you."

Charlie winced at her low blow. I shook my head but it didn't remove the disgust from my face or my voice. "Enough. I'm right here in case you forgot. Deal with your own problems on your time. This is about me." I tried not to grind my teeth. "Renee, just read the stupid file. And, Dad, it's time for us to go."

Renee released a whiny breath and set the file on the table. "How come I'm Renee and he's dad?"

I placed my hands on the table and rose to my feet. "Because he's the one who's on my side and you haven't been in a long time."

Reaching across the old table, she placed her hand on top of mine. "I'm always on your side, Isabella."

"It's Bella. And just read the file." I crossed the kitchen trying to not release the string of swear words that she made congregate on the tip of my tongue.

Charlie handed me my coat and watched while I struggled to put it on. After a second of searching for the left arm hole, he looked away, probably so he wouldn't be tempted to help. I took my purse off the hook, while he opened the door for me.

Calling over my shoulder, I said, "Oh Renee? Three more guest are going to arrive tonight. Pick up a bit?"

I didn't look back to see her expression. It was petty to pick on something that she could barely help. I'd always been the one to keep things neat. But I was feeling petty tonight. Don't screw with the pregnant chick.

Charlie smiled tightly at me. "Ready, Bells?"

"Sure." I slid into the rental's passenger's seat. What the heck? It was time to set things to rights.

Thanks again to everyone who has reviewed on the last few chapters! I really appreciate them. I'm sorry I haven't replied to most, if any of them. I love them, they keep me writing!

So, what are you thankful for?

Recs:

Sibling Rivalry by RooseGirl Interesting premise, right?
Summary: What if Bella was embraced by the Denali coven before the Cullens? After Bella finds happiness and sisterhood that she never had, how have would her relationship with Edward panned out then?

A Rough Start by ItzMegan73 Ultimate daddyward and teachella
Summary: Overnight irresponsible Edward goes from bachelor to father of a 5 yr old. Meanwhile responsible, prepared Bella begins her first job as Kindergarten teacher at Forks Elementary. When irresponsible meets the epitome of responsible, sparks will fly!

Boy in the Red Sweater by Starrynytex One of the first ff I read, a classic.
Summary: Complete. Laced in silence and bound by his black web of a backpack, the new boy dressed in the faded red pullover is driving Bella insane with curiosity. Don't judge a boy by his sweater. AH. M for future chaps, language, dark themes.