So Emily, who'd have thought it!
This chapter is longer than the others. It'll probably be the longest in the story.
Thanks for all reviews for the last chapter.
EPOV
I've never been so relieved in my life as when I saw Bella and Carson begin to emerge from that house.
Sam had already gone by and apologized, as if that made a difference.
As soon as I got to my girl and the baby I pulled them into a bone crushing hug. When we parted Bella passed Carson to me and my dad was at my side. I saw her begin to sway and called out to my dad before she fell.
"It's okay son. It's probably just the events of the day catching up with her plus she has taken a blow to the head. We'll get them both to the hospital and get them checked out. You coming?" as if he had to ask.
We made our way to the ambulance and I rode in the back with my family. Whether Carson had my blood running through his veins or not made no difference to me. They were both my family. And unbeknown to everyone else I was making it official as soon as I possibly could.
When we got there my father had a team waiting for them. As soon as we got out he turned to me.
"Edward, I need you to go with Carson and get him checked out. I'll go and look after Bella. Once she's settled I'll send someone to tell you where she is." I must've looked as unsure as I felt.
Don't get me wrong I wasn't letting Carson out of my sight but I didn't want to leave Bella either. I felt torn.
"Edward what would Bella want you to do? Would she want Carson examined straight away or would she want you to wait? Come on son. You need to go with Shelly. She'll take you to the room where the paediatrician is waiting."
"Okay. But I'm coming to find Bella as son as he gets the okay." I said firmly.
"Okay. Go!" he ordered.
I followed Shelly down the hall to the private room and found a doctor already in there.
"You must be Carlisle's son. I'm John Dunn the on call paediatrician. This must be Carson." he smiled at Carson but he just snuggled further into my neck to avoid the doctor.
"Come on now son you have to see the doctor. You want to see mommy right?" I asked.
He nodded.
"Well the sooner you let doctor Dunn check you over, the sooner we get to go see mommy."
"Otay." he nodded.
He turned to face the doctor and let him check him over but he wouldn't leave my knee. Eventually he was given the all clear. We headed for the reception area. As soon as we got there we were surrounded by Alice, Rose, Emmett, Jasper and my mom.
"Oh Edward, how are they, are they okay? Where is Bella? You're father hasn't come out yet" my mom rambled.
"Carson is fine. Bella passed out shortly after leaving the Uley's house. I'm just going to find out about her now."
"Well let me take the baby," my mom reached to take him but he clung to me and wouldn't let go.
"Come on sweetie. Let Edward go and check on your mommy." she tried again.
"Mom he's fine just leave him. I'd rather he was with me anyway."
I walked over to the desk to find out where Bella was.
"I'm sorry Mr Cullen. It's family only."
"Well this is her son and we're the only family she has here right now. Plus the fact my father, your boss, already gave us the okay to go and find them once the little man here had been checked out. So if you'd be good enough to give me the room number I wont have to page my dad and have him leave my girlfriend, who he thinks of as a daughter, to come out here and do your job for you." I finished.
I knew I sounded like an asshole but right now I couldn't give a shit.
"It's exam room 6." she spat at me then marched away.
I told my family where we were going and we headed for the exam room. When we got there I fond my dad and a groggy Bella.
"Hi baby," I said softly.
Her eyes filled with tears.
"Hey come on now. Shh, I'm here baby. And look who else is here,"
I took Carson over and we sat on the edge of the bed. He crawled over and lay on top of her. He snuggled into her neck .
"Momma," he breathed, as though in relief.
"Hi my baby boy. Have you been good for Edward? Did you let the doctor check you over?" she looked to me.
"He did and he got the all clear. He needs to eat though. I thought I'd get Em to run and grab some food. You hungry?" I asked her.
"Yeah a little." she nodded.
"It'd be better if you ate Bella. Then I can give you a painkiller and you can sleep. Once the nurse comes back I'll get your head stitched." he smiled.
"So what's the verdict?" I asked.
I was trying to keep things light so that I didn't upset her. She didn't appear to be listening to us, she was hugging Carson tightly and running her finger over his face as though she was memorizing every inch.
"She has a mild concussion and a wound that needs stitched but other than that and some bruising she's fine. She's a very lucky lady. Once she eats I'm going to give her something for the pain as well as something to help her sleep. She's going to get moved upstairs and we'll get a cot moved in for you and Carson. I take it you won't be leaving?"
I shook my head. Just then there was a knock at the door and Charlie came in.
"Hey honey how are you?"
"I'm okay dad. Well, I will be. We all will be." she smiled at me.
There was another knock at the door. My dad opened it and two orderlies and a nurse came in. The room was full.
"Okay. We'll get Bella moved if you guys want to follow us up. She'll be on the fifth floor room 507. If you wait in the waiting area I'll come find you once she's settled. Bella, can you give Carson to Edward or your dad?"
She looked nervous at the thought of giving him up. Her dad went over and tried to take him but he clung to his mom.
"Carson buddy come with grampaw. We'll see mommy in a minute."
"No!" he yelled.
"Carson come on now. You have to let her go. Me, you and Edward will go see mommy soon." he tried to pull him again but Carson hung on in there.
"Baby you have to go with grampaw or Edward. Mommy will see you very soon okay? You gonna come and see my new room?" he looked from her to me and then to Charlie.
"Ewa?" he called.
I went over and his arms shot up for me to lift him. Part of me felt guilty for him wanting me instead of Charlie but the other part, the bigger part, didn't care.
"Come on then. Will we go and send Emmett for food and then take it to mommy?" he nodded, "Okay then. Tell mommy you'll see her soon."
I bent him over to give Bella a kiss.
"See you soon momma," he said sweetly and then clung to my neck again.
We left the room and I could see Charlie eyeing us.
"You know I've never seen him like this with anyone but Bella. I hope you know you'll have a heartbroken boy on your hands if you two ever finish," he commented.
"Well it's a good thing I don't plan on it finishing then," I said back as we reached the waiting area where my mom and the rest of my family were.
"Hey how is she?" Rosalie asked.
"She'll be okay. She's banged up and needs stitches in her head but she'll be okay. I need to get them both some food. Emmett, would you run to the diner?"
"Sure bro, what do you need?" he asked and stood.
"Maybe get Bella some of the soup she likes, the chicken and dumpling one. Get some of that for Carson too. And a chicken club sandwich for her, she likes those. Get a coke and some milk as well. If there's any of the brownies she likes get her one of those as well."
"Geez Edward, she eating for an army?" he laughed.
"I know it's a bit much but I'm not sure what she'll want and dad said she has to eat so he can give her a strong painkiller. Can you get me a burger, some fries and a strawberry shake?" I asked as I shifted Carson to the other side.
"Sure. I won't be long. You wanna come with Rose?"
"No, I'm going to wait and see Bella."
"I'll come with you Em," Jasper piped up.
Alice was probably driving him crazy.
"Guys, she's being moved. We've to go up to the fifth floor. I'm not sure if you'll get in to see her tonight." I answered.
"Edward Anthony Cullen you will not hog my friend. We have as much right to see her as you do." Alice growled.
I knew her heart was in the right place but really I wanted to tell her to fuck off.
"Actually, no, you don't have as much right to see her as I do. Just like if Jasper was in the hospital I wouldn't have as much right to see him as you do. And I'm not hogging your friend. She's a person Alice, not a toy. She's been through a traumatic experience and may not want to see everyone tonight. Once she eats dad's giving her a sedative to help her sleep so she may want to hold off and see you all tomorrow. This isn't about what you want. It's all about what she wants and needs." I finished my rant and turned for the elevator.
"Edward, I didn't mean it like that. It's just that we've all been worried too. We just want to see with our own eyes that she's okay. I wasn't trying to take anything away from your relationship." Alice said quietly from behind me.
"I know, I just need to focus on the two of them right now Alice and I can't deal with your moods right now." I said sincerely.
"I know. I'm sorry. Maybe we could go in a couple at a time for a few minutes. I'm going to ask Charlie if I can get into Bella's just now, pick up some pyjamas and clean clothes and things for them. Do you want me to grab some things from mom and dads for you?" she asked.
"That'd be good. Could you grab me some sweats and a t-shirt for tonight and the same for the morning? Hopefully Bella will get released in the morning."
The elevator came and I got in followed by my mom, Charlie and Rose.
"I still can't believe Sam would go to this length to hurt Bella. I mean, are you sure that Jacob Black had nothing to do with it?" Rosalie asked Charlie.
"It wasn't Sam." was all he said.
The elevator opened then and he got out leaving the rest of us behind him wondering what the hell he was talking about.
"Charlie what do you-" he cut me off.
"Let's talk to Bella first. When is your dad going to knock her out?" he asked.
"Once she's eaten." I answered.
He pulled out his phone.
"Deena? It's Charlie. Can you send two of the guys over to take Bella's statement? It needs to be now. Okay. Bye."
I looked at him like he'd grown another head.
"We need to get everything from her while it's still fresh in her head." he said simply.
Just as we approached the waiting area my dad came down the hall.
"Hey guys. She's all settled in. She's anxious to see Carson so you'd better take him in. Did you get her something to eat? She said she won't eat the food here." he laughed.
"Yeah Emmett and Jasper have gone to the diner."
"There's a perfectly good cafeteria downstairs Edward," he chided, "She needs rest."
"I know but the cafeteria sucks. Anyway, she needs to give a statement so Charlie's having his guys come over now while Em's gone."
"Okay, but I will warn you, if she gets too upset I'm stopping the interview. She needs rest not more stress." he said sternly to Charlie who nodded in agreement.
I went to Bella's room with Charlie on my heels and soon enough we were in a similar position as we were downstairs. This time though I was sitting on the bed with Bella leaning against me as she held Carson. He had fallen asleep.
"How are you feeling?" I asked her.
"Sore and tired. I can't wait to eat and go to sleep. Are you going home?" she asked quietly.
"No baby. I'm not leaving here until you do. You should know though, you have to give your statement tonight." she looked horrified.
"Can't it wait until tomorrow?" she looked at me pleadingly.
I looked at Charlie.
"Honey, we have to get it while you still remember everything clearly. Plus if you do it now that's it done. I'll be with you." he answered.
"Fine. But you should know Carlisle is giving me a sedative soon so that I sleep tonight."
"I know. The guys will be here soon."
Just then the door was knocked and two of the guys I had seen at Charlie's earlier came in.
"Can you tell us what happened. Start at the beginning." One of them said.
The other put a small tape recorder on the table at the end of her bed.
"I was driving to Esme Cullen's when I noticed a car driving very erratically behind me. It was a dark coloured truck. Black or dark blue, I think. I pulled over to let it pass me but it rammed into the side of my car. Carson started crying and when I managed to get the car to stop I turned in my seat to get to him and I was hit in the back of the head.
When I woke up I was tied up in a dark room. It was practically empty. I heard a woman and a man arguing. The woman's voice I kind of recognized but I had no clue who the guy was. Then she came in and I saw it was Emily Uley. I asked why she had took us and she started ranting on about how bad a mother I was and that I didn't deserve to have Carson so she was going to take him and make him hers. She said that her, Sam and Carson would be the perfect little family.
When I told her she was mistaken, that Carson came first in everything with me, that he had been hurt under Jacobs care and not mine she knocked me out again. When I came to Sam was home. He tried to talk her into letting us go but she was threatening him with a gun. He told her she wouldn't shoot him and she told him that it didn't matter because Brady had a gun too and would hurt Carson if Sam didn't do as she told him. She let Sam clean my head and he convinced her to let me stay in the guest room and then he told me to get to the window as it faced onto the Clearwaters. Eventually Leah came home and saw me and I'm guessing called you guys." she poke in a monotone voice that I had never heard before.
I could see she was barely holding it together and I looked to Charlie who was also looking concerned.
"Okay Bella. I know it's hard going over it all but the sooner we have it the better. Can you tell us how Brady Whitefield got shot?"
"I was still inside the guest room. When Sam retied my feet after looking at my head he did it loosely so that I could get to the window. When I heard the sirens, Emily started freaking out, so I made my way to the door. Before I opened it I heard Brady beg her to leave with him. He said they could have their own family. She told him he was just a way for her to get what she wanted and she didn't love him. Then I heard a gun go off and a thud. When I got out of the room he was on the floor, dead, and Emily looked like she couldn't believe she had actually done it. Then she took off. Did you guys find her?" she looked at her dad.
Him and the officers looked at each other then Charlie cleared his throat.
"When we pulled up we heard an engine start and saw a truck speed away from the back of the house. While I came in to get you two, two of the other cars followed the truck. She headed for the cliffs and there was no way for her to get back past our cars. She drove straight off the cliff. We pulled her body out a short time ago." he said quietly.
I looked at Bella for her reaction, not sure what to expect. She just nodded and looked down at Carson.
"So what happens now?" she asked, almost in a whisper.
"We check your statement against Sam's and then basically the case will be closed. The two of them are dead there's nothing else to be done." Charlie answered.
"Well if that's all can I have some time alone with Edward please?" she asked, still looking at the baby.
"Bella, I was going to hang around for a while. Just to make sure you don't need anything." her dad protested.
"Dad, I appreciate that, really I do, but I need some time with Edward. Please don't take it that I don't need you because I do, but right now I just need him. Him and Carson." she answered.
"Okay. Well I'll be out in the waiting room." he answered.
The three of them left and Bella shifted so that she was snuggled tightly against my chest, well as tightly as she could be with Carson in between us. She never spoke for a long while. I held her and stroked her hair and rubbed her back, at a loss for what to do. I thought she had fallen asleep when she finally spoke.
"Is it bad that I'm not sorry they died? Does that make me a bad person?" she asked.
"No baby. They did something terrible to you and Carson. It's perfectly okay to feel the way you do." I assured her.
"Don't get me wrong I feel sorry for Sam, and I never thought that would be possible. I just can't bring myself to care that she died."
"Me either baby. Let's change the subject. Rosalie and my mom are outside and they wanted to know if they could see you for a few minutes. Alice has gone to get us some things to sleep in and Em and Jasper have gone to get food. I told them you'd maybe want to wait until tomorrow but I said I'd ask."
"It's fine, as long as it's just a few minutes. I don't want to sound ungrateful but I just can't handle a room full of people just now." she answered.
"Okay I'll go get them." I kissed her and wriggled out from where I was laying.
My mom and Rose came in and fawned over Bella for a few minutes. My mom didn't want to leave but I told her she would see them soon and basically forced her out the door. Emmett and Jasper came back with the food but said they would see Bella soon. Alice was actually quite reserved. We had just finished eating when a timid knock came on the door before she stuck her head round.
"Hey guys. Don't worry I'm not staying. I got you some clothes to sleep in. There's pyjama for Carson too. How are you feeling Bella?"
"Ok. Tired. I think I'm going to try and crash now that I've eaten." she answered.
"Dad said for you to call the nurses station once you're changed and he'll bring in your medication. I'll head out and let you two get settled. Call if you need anything."
"Thanks Alice." I replied.
She left and I helped Bella get changed. We got Carson settled on the other cot, Bell didn't want him to rely on her to sleep. My dad gave her the medication and she drifted off in my arms. For now she was content but who knows what tomorrow will bring.
Thanks for reading.
Characters not mine.