So yesterday I posted a teaser for this chapter over at the Fictionators, but since I tinker with my stuff until the last minute, it's changed slightly. Sorry LOL. I should quit with the teasers LOL.

Alot of you have some very interesting theories on this story which have entertained me. Just remember... this is as canon as I can get. That's why Rose is a bitch, Esme is a sweetheart and Alice is certifiably insane. :)

I don't own Twilight. I did see Zero Dark Thirty the other night. Awesome movie.

Chapter 3

"I'm flying blind here because I have no medical history on this woman, but from the ultrasound, I think it's safe to assume she's at least 34 weeks along, which isn't ideal, but I have no choice. We have to perform a C-section," Carlisle states firmly as Rosalie appears at his side, eager to assist in any way she can. She has no formal medical training, unlike Carlisle who has been a practicing doctor for hundreds of years, but back in Rochester when she was still a human, Rosalie helped her friend Vera give birth to her son, Henry. "Can you read her mind? Get me something?"

"I told you before, there's nothing," Edward answers coolly, as Carlisle and Rosalie adjust the woman, spreading her legs open so that he can examine her properly. They would have all held their breath, if only they could breathe, waiting on the outcome of the exam. As Carlisle pulls his bloody gloved hand from her body, he immediately begins barking orders at both Edward and Rosalie.

Edward rushes back up to the house to get the anesthesia which Carlisle has insisted on, and when he returns, Carlisle and Rosalie are both clad in surgical masks, with rubber gloves on, ready to cut the girl open. The entire scene is very surreal to Edward and he can't help but pause as he watches the situation unfold before him. "The heartbeat on the baby is faint, Edward. We have to hurry if we are going to save her."

"Her?" Edward questions, as he steps forward. Though usually any sort of medical emergency has no effect on him, he can't help himself now. He knows this is his fault.

"Yeah, the ultrasound shows that this woman is expecting a daughter." Carlisle administers the anesthesia and he waits as long as he can before he cuts into her abdomen to free to struggling baby. "Rosalie, make sure the blood is the ready for the transfusion, she's losing a lot more than I expected."

Edward watches Carlisle operate, his anxiety and remorse at an all-time high for not being able to save this woman from this horrendous fate.

He first saw her earlier in the night at the bar, clearing off tables and being genial to most of the patrons, with the exception of Marcus, of course. Edward never in a million years expected Marcus to show any interest in her because based on the visions in his mind that Edward was able to see, Marcus had a specific type, and women who were 8 months pregnant were not it. The only thing this woman had going for her that Marcus liked, was that she was weak and blended into the background. He obviously assumed she wouldn't be missed by any family or friends.

She was quiet, kept to herself and very discreet. Hell, it wasn't until she came out of the bar with Marcus, that Edward even noticed that he couldn't hear her thoughts. Surely, he should have heard thoughts of distress and fear, right? Perhaps even thoughts of her pleading for mercy for herself and her unborn child? In fact, it still concerns Edward that he can't hear her, but it also makes him wonder… what makes her so different than everyone else?

The sound of Carlisle cutting into her skin pulls Edward from his mind and he returns his focus to his family, while he's also in awe of how strong Carlisle and Rosalie are. They are having no reaction to the scent of her blood, which is currently burning Edward's throat with the intensity of a thousand suns, but to him this is his penance for not being fast enough to save her from this hideous destiny.

As he looks on in the bright light of his bedroom, Edward can't help but notice that she's pretty, but he wouldn't call her beautiful. Her skin is dull, her eyes are closed but the skin there is dark, like she is lacking sleep or is severely troubled. Edward wonders about her life before today. Where does she live? Where are her parents, or the child's father, for that matter? Why was she working so late on a weeknight at a dive bar on the seedy side of Port Angeles?

Each question breeds more, until finally his train of thought is completely interrupted by the sound of a screaming baby and the sight of a woman writhing in pain, convulsing and jerking madly, before stilling completely, as she begins to die on Edward's bed.

"Carlisle, do something," Edward pleads, imaging the baby struggling to survive without its mother. The Cullen's certainly couldn't raise the child without arousing suspicion and how the hell would they explain everything if they turned the infant over to the proper authorities. This was a clusterfuck of epic proportions and Edward knew it. Regret begins to sink in, but he refuses to leave this baby without its mother. Though Edward has very few memories of his own mother, Elizabeth Masen, he knows that she sacrificed everything for her son. He can't help but think that this woman would do the same if she was placed into a similar situation. "She has to live. She has to…"

"I'm trying, Edward." Carlisle attempts to stop the bleeding from the woman's abdomen, sewing her up as quickly as he can, while he insists on Edward giving her mouth to mouth resuscitation. He pumps rapidly at her chest and tries to breathe life into her, to no avail.

A few minutes later, unable to make any headway in reviving her, Edward does the only thing he can think of to make this situation better, he bites her, sinking his teeth first into her neck and then into each wrist. The burn of her blood singes his tongue, but he manages to resist temptation as he pulls away, to face the shocked expressions of both Carlisle and Rosalie.

He will turn her into one of them, so that she can live for her daughter, if that's what they do.