Disclaimer: I am NOT Stephenie Meyer and I don't own any of the Twilight series' characters or stories. I borrowed the dialogue and storyline from Breaking Dawn, but the rest is my own take on the story, as seen through Edward's eyes.

Chapter 13

Unknown

I paced the floor of my, I guess it was now our, bedroom. Bella lay across the golden comforter, her eyes closed, drumming her fingers lightly on her distended belly, keeping tempo with the pattering rain on the windows. Every few minutes, she would peek out from under her lashes to see me pacing, a small frown turning down the corners of her mouth.

We were awaiting confirmation from Carlisle, although at this point it hardly seemed necessary. The first test given was a urine analysis. For the sake of simplicity and time, Carlisle handed a small, white and pink plastic stick to Bella - your typical drugstore pregnancy test. I couldn't see past my current emotional state to appreciate the beautiful blush that crept up her cheeks as she took it from him. She had shot both Rosalie and me a disapproving glare when we attempted to follow her into the bathroom. We were instead exiled to wait in the hall, locked in a tense silence, like opponents who wordlessly sized each other up before a fight.

When the door opened, a grinning, pink faced Bella emerged, holding up the plastic device which now proudly displayed a pink plus sign. Pregnant. It may have well been the inked signature of a death warrant - for both Bella and myself.

Against Carlisle's ardent opposition, both Rosalie and I insisted to be present for the blood test. Bella gripped my hand as she leaned back on the couch, taking deep breaths through her mouth, her eyes squeezed shut. For someone so willing to become a vampire, it still amused me that she was terrified of blood.

Carlisle cast a glance at Rosalie who stood against the wall and she responded by halting her breath. "You'll feel a little pinch," he whispered soothingly to Bella as he gently stroked her forearm. I could see the flow of blood pumping beneath her translucent skin, watch as it rushed toward the needle as soon as an exit was presented. Carlisle gave me a wary look as we watched several small vials fill with the red nectar. He pressed a swab of cotton tightly to the tiny puncture on her arm, concealing the drop of blood that bloomed there when the needle was removed, and adhered it down with a small strip of surgical tape.

And now we waited - waited for further unnecessary confirmation. The wait was driving me mad, precious minutes ticking away, Bella's limited existence disappearing before my eyes. While Carlisle confirmed beyond the shadow of a doubt what we already knew to be true, we wasted valuable time that could be spent figuring out exactly what it was that Bella carried within her and what needed to be done to ensure her survival.

I was, however, thankful for this small respite, for some time alone with my wife without Rosalie hovering about. Bella needed to rest after the long journey and Esme insisted that we be left alone. If not for Bella's reassurances, Rosalie would be sitting right beside Bella, throwing daggers at me with her eyes. As it was, even if she wasn't in the room, it was clear that a large portion of her brain function was dedicated to listening in should Bella need her. The other portion was bent on breaking my will down piece by agonizing piece, displaying what a horrible man I was for even considering the notion of destroying my own child.

Ignoring her mental ribbing, I continued to pace, growing more anxious until I heard light footsteps and the thoughts of Carlisle and Esme coming near. I halted and Bella sat upright when they appeared in the doorway. Their thoughts were a mixture of tentative hope and concern. Esme crossed the room to sit on the bed beside Bella, taking her hand and cupping it in her own. Carlisle walked several paces into the room, his mannerisms vacillating between his medical bedside manner and a father about to discuss something very personal with his son and new daughter-in-law.

"Well?" Bella prompted.

Carlisle glanced up as though she had broken his concentration. He looked at Bella and then at me. It's irrefutable, Edward. She's pregnant. I stared at him as though he were speaking in an alien tongue. Why, when I knew what he would way, when we had already known what the result would be, did the confirmation from his thoughts terrify me so? I felt my muscles freeze in place as my body once again revisited the now very familiar state of shock.

"Carlisle," Esme whispered. "Care to share with the rest of us?"

He smiled sheepishly before unnecessarily clearing his throat. "It's been quite some time since something came along in this life that surprised me. Not since Bella came into our lives and changed us all..." Rosalie appeared in the doorway, eliciting a low growl from my lips. Carlisle paused, glancing between the two of us. This is neither the time nor the place for that, Edward. Take up your issues with your sister when Bella isn't present to witness it.

I clenched my fists and stuffed them in my pockets as I leaned against the glass wall. Carlisle shook his head sadly before continuing. "I've witnessed some miracles in my lifetime, but nothing could have prepared me, prepared us, for this. Bella, you are indeed pregnant. I don't understand yet how it happened and still have trouble believing it was possible, but it can't be denied."

Esme and Rosalie exchanged smiles and the even Carlisle was trying to stifle the smile that was tugging at the corners of his lips. Never thought I'd be a grandfather.

I can't believe it. A grandchild.

A baby...we've always hoped. I will keep my promise to do everything possible to protect it...no matter what.

Even Bella had a flush in her cheeks and a huge grin on her face as she lovingly stroked her swollen belly. Everyone in the room was imagining a tiny baby, a tiny human, with rosy cheeks and brown curls. Had they all gone completely mad?

"You're happy about this?" I asked, although with my tone, it came out as more of an accusation.

Bella tugged her bottom lip between her teeth as she turned to me. I could smell the salty tears building in her eyes and hated myself for hurting her once again.

"Of course we are, dear. You're going to be a father. Bella's going to be a mother," Esme reasoned.

"To what?" I snarled through gritted teeth. "Are you all delusional? Have you forgotten what we are? The thing inside of her is not human, at least not entirely. We have no idea what it is. It could be a monster for all we know."

"Edward!" Esme reproved, wrapping a comforting arm around Bella as the threatening tears began to slip down her cheeks.

"We don't know that," Carlisle countered.

"My point exactly. You have no idea what we're dealing with."

"Neither do you." Carlisle crossed his arms and took several calming breaths before speaking again. "I understand your concerns, Edward, I really do. But you have no more reason to expect that the baby is a monster than we do to expect that it will be a perfect child. Let's be rational about this. I haven't even performed an ultrasound yet. Perhaps that will give us some of the answers we are looking for." Please, Edward…be reasonable.

Bella nodded emphatically and turned to me, her eyes pleading. I breathed a sigh and shrugged. I was clearly outnumbered and Carlisle was right – we didn't know anything at this point. I was basing my conclusions on what I knew about my own personal demons and the words of a superstitious Ticunan woman. I only hoped that I was wrong, that an ultrasound would show us the image of the small baby Bella had envisioned in her mind.

"When can we..." Bella began.

"Whenever you like," Carlisle replied with a smile. "Let's just say that because of the unusual nature of the pregnancy, I decided to bring my work home with me. We have all the equipment we need right here in the house."

"Really?" Bella squeaked in disbelief. "And I'll be able to see our baby?"

Carlisle laughed at her enthusiasm. "That's the general idea."

"Then let's go," she exclaimed, scooting herself to the edge of the bed to stand. I reached out for her as she began to wobble, but Esme caught her from behind to keep her upright.

Progressing so quickly...already affecting her equilibrium, Carlisle thought to himself. He gave me a cursory glance as he held an outstretched hand to Bella. She took it gladly and followed him out the door.

I moved to follow, but Rosalie stood in the doorway with folded arms and a stern expression on her face. Don't try anything. I held back the growl that began building in my chest and shoved past her, following Bella to Carlisle's office.

The room had been rearranged to accommodate an examination table and several large pieces of equipment. Bella was easing herself onto the table when I walked in the door.

Carlisle had begun wheeling an ultrasound machine to the side of the table. Ready for this? he thought as the machine switched on, the small display empty and waiting for an image of whatever it was Bella carried inside her. He glanced my way briefly and smiled, trying to project some reassurance. I walked to Bella's side and she reached for my hand, smiling softly as she watched Carlisle work. Esme and Rosalie hovered by the door, both nervous and excited. Alice's absence didn't go unnoticed.

Carlisle held up a wand and explained to Bella the function of the machine. "May I?" he asked and she nodded timidly. He reached across her, gripping the hem of her shirt on both sides and slid it up just far enough to expose her belly.

Her sweatpants hung low on her hips, a distinct round shape protruding from her abdomen. It hadn't even occurred to me that, in the past several days, she had worn nothing but loose clothing and sweatpants. Not even a week ago, her stomach was completely flat. The rate of growth was both astounding and alarming.

He pressed his fingers gently around her growing abdomen, taking note of the height of the fundus to determine the gestational age of the fetus. I would have said two weeks, but listening to Carlisle's mind, the estimate was closer to twenty. His brow puckered and he chanced a quick glance my way. This is progressing so much faster than a normal, human pregnancy. Try not to overreact. We should be able to get a better idea of what were dealing with when get a view inside.

He picked up a large, plastic bottle of gel and held it over Bella. "This will feel a little cold," Carlisle explained as he began to apply a liberal amount of blue-tinged gel to her exposed belly.

"Oh," she yelped as the cool gel made contact with her heated skin. It was a wonder she didn't have that same response whenever I touched her.

Carlisle began waving the wand back and forth, spreading the gel across her abdomen. All eyes turned anxiously to the monitor as we waited to get the first glimpse of what was growing inside her. Strange, he thought as he continued to maneuver the wand over her belly. The screen glowed brightly in the dim light of the room, but we saw nothing. It was as though the screen were filled with static, varying shades of gray, displaying none of the discernible features that one would expect.

The crease in Carlisle's brow deepened and I listened as Bella's heart rate began to pick up. Her bottom lip began to tremble. "Carlisle?" she asked in a hesitant voice.

His movements halted and he froze, like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car. I don't understand. I've never seen anything like it. I cleared my throat, shattering the tense silence and gaining his attention. He looked up, his eyes meeting mine first before his gaze slowly shifted to Bella.

"Is there something wrong with the machine?" Esme whispered.

Carlisle opened and closed his mouth, but no words were spoken. I couldn't recall ever seeing him so dumbfounded. "Well," he began. "I'm not sure. The equipment seems to be functioning properly. Bella would you mind..."

He pressed his hands to her abdomen once more. A solid mass. Some type of tumor, perhaps? But the rapid growth...the positive tests... Carlisle's mind worked while his fingers traced the outline of the growing bulge beneath her skin. It doesn't make sense.

Then, without warning, Carlisle's hand jerked, like a reflex from touching a hot stove. Fascinating. He pressed his palm flat against her stomach again in the same spot. After several seconds had passed, a smile broke across his face and he began to chuckle. Amazing.

"Edward, come here." He took my hand and pressed it to the same place. He smiled as he watched my face expectantly. Moments passed as I waited, both intrigued and unnerved by Carlisle's enthusiasm. And then it happened. A distinct thump vibrated through Bella's skin and into my own. Carlisle's smiled widened when he saw the expression of recognition on my face.

And it happened again. Thump. Thump. The thing...baby...whatever it was that grew inside Bella was making its presence known even if it couldn't be seen on the screen of the ultrasound. I knew from Carlisle's mind what to expect, but seeing something in the mind of another and experiencing it for yourself firsthand are vastly different.

Bella placed her hand over my own and smiled at me, a lone tear trickling down her cheek. A shot of warmth flowed from the connection straight to my heart. For the briefest of moments, I allowed myself to live in this moment, to acknowledge the emotions that filled me, to know what it was like to be a father connecting with his offspring while still in the womb. But the moment was fleeting.

"Why can't we see it on the monitor?" I asked.

"I'm not entirely sure," Carlisle replied, rubbing his thumb across his chin in quiet contemplation. "It is merely a theory, but perhaps, because you are the father of this child, it already possesses some of your physical traits. Our bodies are impenetrable by human medical devices. Ultrasounds, x-rays - they all bounce uselessly off of our skin. What if the cellular structure of the amniotic sac possessed the same attributes? It would be impervious to our attempts to see the child within it. I would venture to guess that, like us, it's a sort of early defense mechanism." Fascinating, simply fascinating.

"So you're saying that what's growing inside her is like me...like us?" I envisioned a tiny vampire, like the immortal children, one too young to show restraint or to grasp the concept of an ethical code. The idea of something like that was disturbing, but even more so was the thought that the infant monster with no sense of restraint was currently residing within my human wife. The possibilities of what it could do to her from the inside were horrifying. My eyes grew wide and I jerked my hand away, silently chastising myself for feeling a connection to such a heinous creature.

"We don't know what it's like, Edward. This baby is just as much a part of Bella as it is a part of you. Until it's born, we really have no means of knowing which traits it will have adopted from each parent," Carlisle reasoned. "I would suggest an amniocentesis, but if I am correct in my assumptions about the protective barrier around the baby, the needle used to collect the fluid would be utterly useless."

"It doesn't have a heart beat," I added, my voice cold and detached.

"What?" Bella sat up on her elbows and stared at me, her head cocked to the side. "It doesn't have a...well, I guess that's possible, but I kind of expected..."

Carlisle moved to flip a switch on the ultrasound machine, but I grabbed him by the wrist. "We won't need a machine for that. Can you hear a second heartbeat in this room? I certainly can't."

"Edward," Esme hissed. You're upsetting Bella. Stop this.

"Well, can you?" I pressed.

Esme's brow furrowed, but she was silent. She could hear just as well as I could that the only heartbeat in this room was Bella's. Carlisle frowned and slowly shook his head. But it's possible...

"Isn't that proof enough that the baby, or whatever it is, shares more in common with us? How do we know that it's not just as dangerous to her as we are? It doesn't know restraint or the difference between right and wrong. It would no sooner distinguish Bella as its mother or its prey."

No! Bella inhaled sharply and folded her hands protectively over her stomach. Rosalie appeared at her side, her body tense and her mindset vigilant. Even Esme had shifted forward in a protective stance.

We don't know, we just don't know... Carlisle was pensive as he shifted the equipment back to it's place along the wall. I wonder. "Edward, how do we know that your heart is not beating?"

"Excuse me?"

"How do you know?" he pressed.

"Well, I can feel that it doesn't beat, for one. But I can't hear it either. No one can, Carlisle...why...?"

He smiled softly as his mind opened to reveal his theory.

"You think that the amniotic sac, like our bodies, is impervious to sound as well?" I asked.

He nodded. "Think about it for a moment. An ultrasound machine sends high frequency sound waves through the skin that are intended to bounce off the objects within. In this instance, the protective barrier around the baby is like our skin and reflects the sound back to us rather than allowing it to penetrate through it. Wouldn't it stand to reason that any sounds within that same protective barrier would be contained within it?"

Bella nodded emphatically and Rosalie shifted her chin slightly forward, challenging me to argue against Carlisle's logic. The argument was sound, but did nothing to prove or disprove the perception that the baby would be a danger to Bella.

"I'm not going to tell you that this pregnancy will be without complications," Carlisle continued. "All I'm saying is that it would be prudent to allow it to progress until it is deemed necessary to intervene."

My shoulders slumped. In an unexpected turn of events, it appeared that the only person on my side of this issue was me. The entire family, it seemed, had sided with Bella in allowing the pregnancy to continue. Didn't they understand that we needed to do something before it hurt her? What good would come of waiting for her to be injured to prove that I was right in my initial assessment?

Bella eased herself upright and placed her palm against my cheek. My eyes closed as I leaned into her touch, unable to resist her, but hating myself all the same for my desire. It was my need for her, my inability to stay away, that brought us to this place. I should have stayed in Alaska after our first meeting, walked away instead of trying to prove that I wasn't a coward.

Her blood pulsed hot and quick in her veins, the artery in her wrist throbbing delicately against my chin. It would be all too easy to lean in, to press my lips to her wrist, to sink my teeth into her velvet skin and deliver the venom that would save her before any harm could befall her. It was our plan that she one day become like us. I could do it now before the thing inside her had a chance to do it's damage, before it was too late to save her.

I winced as the emotions welled within me. The desire to keep her safe was so strong, so overwhelming, that it seemed I would go to any length to save her - even if she would hate me for it later. I would rather see her alive for eternity and hating me than have her go to her grave with love still in her heart.

And so the days continued like this. I refused to leave Bella's side for fear that I may lose precious seconds with her. Thankfully, Rosalie had moderated her guard over Bella, appeased by Carlisle's reassurance that he would do nothing without Bella's consent, although she still kept a keen eye on me.

As the hours ticked by, I watched Bella's health slowly deteriorate before my eyes. Her already thin frame became gaunt and her pallor nearly as pale as my own. It seemed that no matter what form of sustenance she ingested, nothing would settle properly in her stomach. Whether it was her own body or the fetus within rejecting the food, I couldn't be sure, but it was no surprise that her weight was dropping when she was receiving little to no nutrients.

The bulge in her belly was steadily growing. If I could hazard a guess, it appeared that the gestational age of the fetus increased by nearly a week with each passing day. The timeline was quickly dwindling and I sat helpless as I watched my only love slowly dying. Her clothing was ill-fitting - loose in her arms and legs, but stretched thin around her midsection. I had offered to send Alice for some more appropriate clothing, but Bella refused, saying that she would be more comfortable in her sweatpants. I had, however, convinced her to wear some of my own shirts that would have dwarfed her completely if not for her belly. Before long, she would be wearing Emmett's.

I had tried to reason with her, to make her understand my concerns, but she insisted that she was doing this for us, that she couldn't destroy something that was created out of love. I asked her why she had chosen to make this decision without first consulting me and she replied in kind, reminding me that I had acted just the same on several prior occasions. I had nothing else to say after that.

This morning, like any other, Bella was showering while I waited impatiently in our bedroom. I paced back and forth across the room, listening to the wooden floorboards creak under my feet, listening to the ticking clock that seemed to grow gradually louder with each passing minute. The thoughts of my family lazily drifted in and out of my consciousness. Jasper and Carlisle were diligently researching to find anything they could on our particular situation. Esme was in the kitchen, attempting to create culinary alternatives in the hope of finding something that Bella could keep in her stomach. Alice, like me, was pacing the grounds, still berating herself for her lack of foresight and continued lack of sight where Bella was concerned. Emmett occupied himself with his video games while Rosalie flipped through a magazine that she was paying no attention to - her thoughts were completely saturated with the anticipation of the coming birth. I wouldn't be surprised if she took to knitting booties soon.

And here I stood, pacing silently as I listened to the pattering drops of water that echoed through the wall. I turned to the glass wall and leaned my forehead against it, looking out through the trees. If the foliage thinned a bit, I may be able to see the small cottage in the distance. I wished I could take Bella there now, but we needed to be here. Rosalie wouldn't allow Bella to be that far from her and I wanted Carlisle near should anything go wrong. Esme had made a few short trips to the cottage to finish it since we arrived, but chose to spend most of her time here. In the absence of Renée, Bella turned to Esme as her maternal figure during this delicate time.

Bang! My head snapped up and I rushed across the room, my palms splayed on the door as I listened to the sounds from the other side. "Bella! Bella, are you alright?" I called through the door.

I waited...one second...ten seconds...no reply. The scent of fresh blood made its way to my nose and I couldn't wait any longer. I turned the doorknob, but Bella had locked it. I pressed my palm on the door and pushed, bursting through the door and splintering the frame. Tiny bits of wood scattered the floor, crushed under my feet as I ran to Bella.

She was bent over, clutching a towel around her as she sat under the steady spray of the shower. A small trickle of blood flowed freely from a gash in her knee, tingeing the water with a swirl of pink. She looked up at me and her cheeks flooded with color.

"What happened?" I asked, bending down to assess the damage.

The space between her brows puckered and she tugged her bottom lip between her teeth. "I fell", she mumbled, tugging the towel up to her chin.

"I can see that," I whispered as I pressed a cloth to the wound on her knee. "But what happened?"

"I just slipped," she said with a shrug.

"What happened? What was that noise?" Rosalie gasped, appearing in the damaged doorway. She clamped her hand tightly over her mouth and nose when she was met with the scent of freshly spilled blood. What did you do? She cast an accusing glance at me as she crossed the room to where I stood.

"I can take it from here," Rosalie snapped. She pushed herself between us and took the cloth from me. I looked at her, dumbfounded and seething. This was my wife. I was perfectly capable of taking care of her.

Rosalie turned her head and glared up at me. "Well, what are you just standing there for? Go get a bandage from Carlisle." Why don't you make yourself useful?

I stared at her for several beats. My eyes glanced past her and I could see on Bella's face that, although she was already embarrassed, this sibling confrontation was making her uncomfortable.

"It's okay, Edward," Bella whispered. "She's just trying to help."

Perhaps it was juvenile of me to be hurt by this, but that didn't lessen the sting of being sent away, of being deemed unnecessary. I nodded curtly and turned to go without another word. I could hear Bella's whispered concerns follow me as I left the room. Perhaps it was her own pride and not my own that had suffered more in this instance.

I walked through the house to Carlisle's study to gather a bandage and some antiseptic and made my way back to the bedroom. When I returned, Bella was sitting on the edge of the bed in her bathrobe while Rosalie pulled a comb through her hair.

"May I?" I asked, gesturing to Bella's knee.

She nodded slowly and I knelt to the floor in front of her. I pulled back the satiny cloth to gain access to her knee. The wound was only a small scratch, probably caused by a razor. It should have occurred to me that the cause of Bella's fall was her attempt to shave her own legs. Without being acclimated to her new center of gravity, it was no surprise that she took a spill onto the shower floor.

The small cut had already begun to scab over. I gently wiped the swab of antiseptic across it and she hissed. I blew out a slow breath across the wound to lessen the sting before adhering the small bandage to her knee.

"Good as new." I smiled.

Bella reached out and ran her fingers through my hair, her short nails scraping delicately across my scalp. "Rosalie, would you mind…" she began. Rosalie's eyes narrowed at me, but she nodded, leaving the room as quickly as she had arrived.

I stood and lowered myself on the bed beside Bella. She leaned her head against my shoulder, taking my hand between her own. "I'm sorry about that," she murmured.

"You have nothing to be sorry for."

"I was embarrassed...and Rosalie really was just trying to help."

"I know."

We sat in silence, the sound of Bella's heart beating and her light breathing were the only sounds in the room. As she cradled my hand, I took note of the new frailty that seemed to taint every feature. I could almost see the bones through her translucent skin as her hand caressed mine. Even the warmth of her skin seemed to have lessened by several degrees and the blush in her cheeks wasn't as deep a hue as it had been prior to the pregnancy Everything about her, every human trait that I treasured, was gradually disappearing.

Her stomach rumbled and she smiled sheepishly.

"Hungry?" I asked.

She nodded with a small frown on her face. "But I'm afraid to eat. Everything makes me sick. I've heard of morning sickness, but this is much worse than I ever imagined it would be."

"Esme has been trying some new recipes," I offered. "Perhaps we can find something that agrees with you."

"It's worth a try," she said with a shrug. I wrapped an arm around her and helped her to stand. She slowly rose, arching her back as she struggled under the weight of her growing belly. She walked a step or two behind me as we made our way down the stairs to the kitchen.

"Oh," she gasped, pausing mid-step. One hand was pressed against her belly and the other against the wall for support.

"Bella?"

She closed her eyes briefly and shook her head. "It's nothing, I'm fine. Baby's just kicking, that's all."

I studied her for a moment, taking note of her elevated heart rate. The color had drained from her face and I wondered if she would be sick again, even before I had a chance to feed her something.

"I'm fine," she said again. She smiled weakly and waved me on.

We reached the top of the stairs and she hesitated briefly before taking a step down. And, almost in slow motion, I watched her gasp in pain, both hands clutching her midsection as her legs gave out from under her. I reached out, gripping her shoulders before she could tumble down the stairs.

"Bella, Bella!" I pleaded, terrified of what was happening to her and unsure of what I should do. "Carlisle!"

Bella's face was stark white and she took in short, ragged breaths as though her lungs were restricted. Her arms were folded across her stomach and her eyes were squeezed shut, her mouth set in a grimace of pain. Her heart was hammering in her chest and her entire body shuddered.

"Bella, what can I do?" I begged. I felt completely helpless. "Carlisle!" I yelled again.

He appeared at my side with a look of panic on his face as he visually assessed Bella's condition. "Bella, what is it? What's wrong?" She's clearly in pain. His mind began flipping through the various complications that could arise during a human pregnancy. The more severe the possibilities, the more terrified I became.

Everyone gathered at the bottom of the stairs and watched on in horror at the scene that had unfolded. None of us knew quite what to do. The barrage of concerned thoughts was setting me even more on edge.

Bella blew out a slow breath as her heart rate slowly began to descend. Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled weakly. "I'm fine."

"You are certainly not fine," I retorted.

"Bella, can you tell us what happened?" Carlisle asked.

"It's nothing really. I'm fine." She shook her head and moved to stand, but Carlisle placed a hand on her shoulder. She stared at him for a moment and I could swear I saw a look of fear in her eyes. What was she afraid of? What was she hiding? Her gaze briefly flitted to Rosalie.

"I think you should let Carlisle take a look at you, love," I encouraged. If my time with Bella had taught me anything, I knew that she hid her weakness for the sake of others. If there was something wrong, she needed to let us help her.

She shook her head and tugged her lip between her teeth. "No, really…"

"Bella, please. For me?"

She blew out a breath, her gaze once again flickering to Rosalie. I delved into my sister's mind, but she was successfully blocking me with images of herself holding a newborn baby. Something wasn't right here. They were hiding something.

I reached for Bella's hands and she resisted, holding them tight across her belly. "What is it?" I pressed. "What are you hiding?"

Her eyes grew wide. Carlisle looked at me and then back at her, the pieces seeming to click into place for him as well. "You shouldn't hide your symptoms, Bella. We want to do everything we can to keep you healthy and make you comfortable. How can we do that if you don't tell us when you're in pain?"

She closed her eyes briefly before allowing her hands to fall down at her sides. Carefully, I reached out, placing my palms on her swollen belly. I could feel the movement of the fetus as it squirmed and kicked in its confined space. She winced as I reached for the hem of her shirt. The fabric slowly moved upward, exposing a slim strip of skin, and that's when I saw it. The more of her pregnant belly I revealed, the more horrified I became. Her stomach was a patchwork of black and blue splotches, some already yellowing and fading. This was not something new – she had been hiding this for several days at the very least.

"How long?" I asked, trying my best to keep my voice steady.

"Just a couple of days. It's nothing. The baby's just a strong, that's all."

There was a collective gasp from everyone that waited below as her stomach came into full view. The only one that didn't seem surprised by the sight was Rosalie. My eyes snapped to her and I gritted my teeth. She knew about this. That's why she wanted me to leave the room when Bella was in the shower. This was probably what caused Bella to fall. And together, they were trying to hide it.

"You knew about this!" I accused, pointing a shaky finger at Rosalie.

"Edward, don't," Bella pleaded, but I paid her no attention. I couldn't see past the rage that burned in my chest. I had known all along that the thing inside of her was a monster and had pleaded with them to stop it before it went too far, before it hurt her. And now, it was hurting her, destroying her from the inside out, and they kept it from me. Was this thing more important to her than her own safety? Than her own life?

I jolted upright and flew down the stairs, rushing toward Rosalie, but Emmett stepped in front of me before I could reach her. He stood firm, his arms out in a defensive posture. Don't do it, bro. Don't make me hurt you.

I peered around him, my fury building with the haughty look on Rosalie's face. "You knew about this, didn't you?" I seethed. "Admit it."

"I did." She shrugged matter-of-factly, as though it were of no consequence.

"My wife is in pain! My wife is being harmed and you thought it was okay to keep it a secret from me? What gives you the right?"

"I was only doing what was asked of me." For the baby.

"That's all that matters to you, isn't it? That's all you care about. It doesn't matter if Bella gets destroyed in the process as long as you get a baby out of it!"

"At least I'm doing what she asked me to. How many times have you done that? How many times have you made decisions for her without asking her what she wants?"

Her words hit me like a slap in the face, but she was wrong. Every time I made a decision, every time I did something without first consulting with Bella, everything I did was to protect her. Rosalie's actions were doing nothing but putting her in danger.

I wanted to scream at her. I wanted to toss her across the room for allowing Bella to be hurt like this, for keeping me in the dark about her condition. Was I the only one here who understood the severity of this, that the consequences of allowing this insanity to continue would ultimately lead to Bella's death?

"Rosalie, so help me…"

"Edward!" Carlisle yelled.

I spun on my heel to face him, only briefly concerned about turning my back to Rosalie. I looked up at Carlisle. He was kneeling on the stairs with Bella's body draped lifelessly across his arms. Oh God…

A/N: You all are simply amazing – your kind words are the fuel that keeps me going. As I've said before, I'm going to do my best to write through the birth before November 18th so that I can cover all the material that will be in the movie. If you ever have questions or suggestions, feel free to PM me or you can follow me on Twitter ( sunray16).

Thanks to my beta, Nellybear85, for helping me keep the characters in character and providing much needed encouragement. And thanks to misticbutterfly – hoping her little one will let us WC again soon.