Summary: Isabella has been searching for her brother for years. But she never imagined that by finding her brother, she would find her mate and so much more. (Bella/Emmett)
Edward felt like he was living a half-life. Granted, he had a mate and a family that he loved more than anything, but someone was missing. His twin sister. Isabella Elizabeth Mason. She had been perfect. He missed her so much, but at least she had a life. At the age of sixteen, she had gotten married to a man twice her age, but at least he treated her like the princess she was. Her husband had been the Chief of Police. Charles Gregory Swan. He had moved himself and Isabella to a small town in Washington after he had gotten a job offer. It hadn't taken very long for Isabella to give birth to a set of twins. A boy and a girl. Gregory Edward and Lizzie Ann Swan.
But Edward himself was stuck at the age of seventeen. He was frozen in time. He was a vampire. Furthermore, he had watched over his sister and her family for years and still watched over them even after Bella had gone missing. Edward and his family assumed she had been killed or changed, but they never found a body, and they never came across her as a vampire. They weren't sure what happened to her. Charles had spent years looking for her after he had come home and found signs of a struggle, but he never found her. He never moved on because he had genuinely loved her. He couldn't see him loving another as much as he had loved Isabella. All he could do was take care of their children, and make sure that they knew how much their mother loved them.
When he was on his deathbed, Isabella came to Charles's side. He was stunned. She had always been beautiful, but she hadn't aged a bit. "How?" he asked. "My love, when I went missing, I was in truth changed into a vampire. I was made to fight in a war, and if I didn't comply, they would kill you and our children. Please know, that I would never willingly leave you or the children," she explained, kneeling at his bedside. "I believe you, my Bell. As you have protected us, I will protect you after I'm gone. I love you," he promised as she leaned forward, kissing him one last time before he passed away. "I love you," she whispered before blurring away as her pain consumed her. She knew he wasn't her mate, but he was the man she loved, and it was painful that he was no longer living.
When she was in the wars, her only salvation was knowing that her family was safe and that she would always be watching over them. Before Isabella had noticed it, a lifetime had gone by, and she had somehow known that Charles was dying. She killed her sire, Benito, and ended the wars, along with killing the other southern covens, before making her way home. Nothing was going to stop Isabella from beinging at Charles's side when he needed her the most. The one thing she never did was have relations with other men. She stayed true to her marriage. They tried to take her against her will, but she was both a physical and mental shield, along with having the ability to control fire.
"Bella," she heard from behind her. She turned around, stunned when she saw her brother. "Edward!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around him. "Bella, as in your twin sister?" Rose asked her mate, trying not to rip this vampire apart for touching her mate. "Yes. Bella, where have you been? I thought you were dead, or a vampire, which you clearly are, but I couldn't find you," Edward asked. "My sire took me and changed me to fight in the newborn wars," she gave the cliffs note version. "That would explain why we never found you considering we never venture south for that reason," Edward mused. "It's only Mexico and the borders of Texas that you have to worry about," Bella said, as they ran, not knowing where Edward was taking her but trusting him anyway.
"Do you own anything?" Rosalie asked. "No. But I am a very wealthy woman. I ended the southern wars and warlords before coming up here. I took their wealth," Bella explained. "Well, you still have your trust fund from mother and father," Edward explained as they arrived at the house. "Why can't I read your mind?" he asked as they entered the house. "I am a shield," Bella explained. "That would explain it," she heard from a familiar southern voice. "Jasper!" she exclaimed. "Hey, sweets," he greeted as he took his mate, Alice, by the hand, bringing her forward to meet one of his best friends. "Why do you insist on calling me that?" she asked, amused. "Because you always seemed to be happy in the wars, no matter the environment," he mused. "It wasn't the wars that made me happy, or the killing. I was finally able to defend myself. My brother would never teach me how to defend myself growing up, nor would my husband after we were married," she started explaining, but when she started talking about Charles, she got a depressed look on her face. "When did he pass?" Edward asked.
"Today. After I ended the wars, I knew he was dying, and I wasn't going to let anything stop me from beinging there when he needed me most," she said. "That's very commendable, dear," a caramel-haired woman said, coming around the corner with someone that Isabella knew from her trips to the hospital. "Dr. Cullen," she greeted. "I knew there was something different about you," Bella said, smiling. "Hello, Bella. It's a pleasure to see you again, dear," Carlisle greeted the young woman that he had known the first two years of his time in Chicago. "You two know each other?" a man with endearing dimples asked.
"I was a frequent visitor in the emergency room when I was a kid," Bella said, trying not to stare at this bear of a man. She was drawn to him, but her husband just died, and she wasn't ready to move on. She may have been in the newborn wars for years, but it didn't change the fact that she just lost her husband. "And that is why I wouldn't teach you how to defend yourself. You were clumsy then, and you would have been just as clumsy if I had taught you how to defend yourself," Edward explained. Not knowing how she was drawn into a memory from long ago, she saw past childhood bullying that she had endured growing up, and before she knew it, Bella ran outside just as her hands erupted in flames.
"Woah, sweets. What caused you to get so angry?" Jasper asked, itching to help his friend. "Childhood memories. There is a lot of stuff from my childhood and a lot of people that I hated and that I would much rather forget," she explained as she marched back and forth. For some reason, marching always helped her calm down. It was a habit that she couldn't break. "The bullying," Edward muttered. "You knew about it? How? I thought I hid it so well," Bella said, coming to a stop in front of her brother. "You did. After I was changed, I could read minds, and I found out what had happened to you as a child, I was enraged. I left Carlisle for a while because I wanted to try the human diet, and I went after the scum. Though, I did kill your tormentors," Edward explained, stunning his family into silence. They hadn't known that he got revenge on the people who hurt his sister. They understood the impulse, so they didn't judge him.
"What are you planning on doing? The others attend high school," Esme explained, and they noticed the expression of disgust on her face. "Well, I'm not doing that. I am older than all of these people in this town. I will find something to do," Bella said quite firmly. This was something she would never budge on. "Jasper. You were a major in your human life, and you've commanded armies in this life. Why in the hell would you attend high school over and over again. It is pointless, and it's wasting your talents," Bella mused, aloud. Jasper didn't know how to respond to that because he agreed with his friend. He was tired of beinging disrespected by the humans in the school system.
"I will finish this year, but after it's done, I am through with high school. I am not a child, and will no longer be treated like one," Jasper declared, sweeping from the room. "You know that Jasper is a coven leader, right?" Bella asked. "Yeah," Carlisle said. He was ashamed of how he treated Jasper like a child. "He is a warrior, and you have him attend school with the humans. The only reason why I am still in this town is due to my children. Once they leave, then I am not staying. There are too many memories," Bella said, as she left to hunt. "Do not expect me to change my diet. I go after the scum and junkies," they heard before Bella was out of hearing range.
"Now what?" Rosalie asked, knowing that her husband would not want to be separated from his sister after years of missing her. "We'll figure something out. I am not losing my sister again," Edward said before blurring out of the house. "She's a human drinker. She can't stay in town," Alice said, and they could hear the disgust in her voice. "Lose the tone, Alice. I am not forcing her to do anything she doesn't want," Carlisle said sternly. "He's right. This is Bella's life. Her choice," Esme said before going outside to tend to her garden.
"I have no problem with her staying, and I don't have a problem with her diet either," Emmett said before playing his game. He knew Bella was his mate, but he wouldn't push her due to her husband's recent passing. "She stays," Jasper said in a firm tone of voice. Bella may be a nomad, but she was still a member of the Whitlock coven. Hell, he viewed her as a daughter after years of protecting her even though they were on opposing sides. He had set up a home and a trust fund for her, and he knew that Bella was in touch with Peter and Charlotte.
"She stays," Rosalie agreed before leaving and setting up a bedroom for her sister-in-law. Well, not really a bedroom, more like an apartment with how large the basement was. There wasn't room for another bedroom, so she hoped that Bella would be okay with staying in the basement. Well, she was a nomad, so Bella might be more comfortable with her own space.