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"Hello, Isabella." Laurent's voice was soft…almost kind, and I hurried to wipe my face of the tears I knew he's seen. "Where are the rest of your coven? I didn't think you went anywhere without Edward." I flinched at the implication…that he'd been following me…waiting for me to be alone. Not sure how Edward had missed that, I forced a small smile.
"Hello Laurent." I cleared my throat when it came out as a painful rasp. "They…they're still here…. they just went hunting…they'll be back any time now." I lied smoothly (for me, anyway.) The French vampire just smiled benignly at me.
"Really?" He asked in a conversational tone, his arms crossed in front of his chest, his stance casual. "I thought…well, I'm sure I saw Edward leaving town. That car of his is hard to miss." He was wistful for a brief moment, but then smiled at me again. "I heard about James…pity." I flinched a bit…his tone wasn't threatening, but I still backed up a step, his deep red eyes capturing mine. "You know…I wasn't a fan. He was a good hunter…an excellent tracker, still…a little prone to temper. He liked to play with his food…but you know that of course…" He paused briefly, his smile turning apologetic. Sorry about that…I never meant you any harm." I nodded.
"Um...don't worry about it." I mumbled, stepping back again, eyeing the surrounding trees. It wouldn't matter, of course. I knew enough about vampires to understand that. If he wanted me dead, I was dead.
"That's very gracious of you…I heard that he injured you rather badly. But thankfully your…friend was able to show enough restraint to help you…quite impressive actually." He looked pointedly at the scar on my hand, barely visible to my eyes. "Of course, James didn't stand much of a chance against your coven. Victoria is…upset." My blood seemed to freeze in my veins and he smiled a little, his eyes showing a little pity. "She's determined to kill you." He told me simply, no remorse in his voice. "And she's still a friend."
"Laurent…" My tone was pleading as he began to move closer and closer, his eyes friendly, his posture relaxed.
"I really am sorry, Bella. I have nothing against you personally…I'm doing this as a favor."
"Laurent please…" I started to back away, but even as I moved I knew better…knew how this was going to end, now that Edward wasn't here to protect me. My hands began to shake, adrenaline coursing through my blood, but I couldn't run…I wouldn't make it five feet.
"If it helps, this will be quick…much quicker than if Victoria was here." Reaching out, he caught my shoulder in an almost friendly manner, placing a hand on the side of my face, and leaning in. With a soft, terrified sob, I closed my eyes and waited for the pain, my entire body tense.
'But what does it really matter?' I wondered suddenly. 'Isn't this better? Edward is gone…my new family…Carlisle, Esme, Emmett and Jasper…Alice…they all left me. What do I have left?'
I could feel his breath on my neck, the sweet scent calming me against my will as one hand gently cupped the side of my face, and I was almost completely relaxed when a snarl echoed through the woods and two arms were wrapped around me, pulling me backwards right before Laurent seemed to disappear. Looking wildly around the forest I began to fight the gentle hands that held me, tears pouring from my eyes as I began to shake harder. Following the sounds of snarling and growling, I found Laurent on the ground, pinned by a familiar giant form that bared its teeth and sank them into Laurent's neck. A horrible ripping sound, then the sound like a boulder being smashed, filled the forest and Laurent was still, his head rolling away from his body. I was unable to suppress a terrified cry and my knees buckled, the arms around me tightening and turning me around so that I leaned against someone's chest.
Closing my eyes, I turned and sobbed into the person's cold shoulder. "She okay?" Emmett's voice…I couldn't believe it was really him, so I didn't, came from behind me. "Man that was close." He mumbled, and a large hand rubbed my back.
"Bella? Are you alright?" I couldn't answer, only continued to lay limp against the stone body supporting me as my heart raced and my hands shook. One arm held me up while the other tilted my head back, familiar golden eyes peering anxiously into mine. "She's going into shock…let's get her back. I don't think he hurt her." That was Jasper…what were they doing back? I thought they'd left…I thought they'd all gone with Edward and…I pushed the thoughts away.
'Maybe I'm just dead…or crazy. This is probably all a hallucination. That was pretty quick though, if I'm dead. At least Laurent was kind about it. Oh well…might as well enjoy it while it lasts.' I didn't resist when Jasper scooped me into his arms, choosing instead to lay my head against his shoulder while my open but unseeing eyes continued to leak tears without any conscious decision on my part. Emmett placed a hand on my face…maybe tried to talk to me, but I couldn't make sense of any of his words, and he wiped at my face, removing tears that were almost instantly replaced with more as my mind tried to process what was going on.
"Come on…we need to get her to Carlisle."
'Carlisle.' The name surprised me before I allowed myself to sink back into numbness. So Carlisle was a part of this little hallucination too. Fun. Maybe Jacob Black would show up too…I hadn't seen him in a little while.
The trip was short and I soon found myself in the familiar house. "What happened?" So Esme was here too….I was glad.
"Laurent…it was close." Jasper said simply, tightening his grip on me briefly.
"What's Laurent doing here? I thought he was in Alaska!" She cried incredulously as I was handed to someone else.
"No idea…but he was going to kill her. If we had gotten there a second later…" Emmett's voice was pained. "She hasn't responded to us at all since I killed him." I realized that I was in Carlisle's arms as he placed me on the sofa, kneeling beside me as he touched my face, his cold skin a welcome relief to my hot face.
"Bella? Can you hear me?" His gentle words washed over me and I closed my eyes, not wanting to meet his kind, worried ones. I was afraid that if I spoke, he would disappear. Or maybe I would be dead…either way…. "Bella? Can you squeeze my hand? Squeeze my hand if you can hear me, sweetheart." I didn't dare, instead keeping my cold hand limp in his colder one. Maybe if I didn't respond to him, he would keep talking to me…maybe the rest of the family would appear and it would all be okay …maybe Edward would come back and want me again. "Was she injured?"
"No…she didn't even fight him." Emmett spoke softly, and I could hear the frown in his voice.
"She's conscious…I believe she's in shock. Jasper, get me a blanket…she's freezing...why was she even out there?" I wondered briefly if that's why I was shaking, then dismissed the thought. It didn't matter. He gently shifted me so that my head was no longer resting on a cushion, and placed the pillow under my feet while someone began to remove my shoes. A blanket was draped over me and someone took my hand in theirs, two fingers pressing on my wrist. "Bella? Can you hear me, sweetheart? You're okay...you're safe. Can you open your eyes for me?" Carlisle sounded so worried that I couldn't bear it anymore. So maybe he would disappear…I couldn't hurt him, regardless of whether or not he was real.
Slowly I opened my eyes, blinking heavily against the tiredness that had settled on me. "Bella?" Squeezing the hand that held mine, I blinked again, and this time I had to force my eyes back open. He placed a damp washcloth on my face, gently wiping around my eyes and then leaving it on my forehead. "There…can you hear me?" I nodded slowly, my body sluggishly responding to my commands. "Are you in pain?" He asked, and even though I knew he meant physically, I felt my face crumple as I sobbed, my teeth biting into my bottom lip. "Where does it hurt, Bella?" He asked anxiously, moving closer to me and cupping my cheek. Clenching my fist, I brought it up to my chest where the terrible ache remained, and sobbed. He placed his arms around me, kissing my forehead and holding me close…apparently understanding immediately.
"Oh Bella, I'm so sorry sweetheart. We wouldn't leave you." He promised softly, and I heard Esme speak softly, but I couldn't make out her words. Sighting, Carlisle rocked me gently. "Don't cry, Bella. He'll come back." But I couldn't help it. I could feel his icy arms around me and he was holding me against him and I wasn't waking up. Clenching my fists in his sweater and sobbing softly, I felt him move until I was in his lap on the couch, my body curled against him. "Jasper?" He spoke softly and I could just barely make out Jasper's voice.
"She's terrified." The couch dipped beside up and I felt a hand on my back, and instantly I was flooded with a calm so powerful that I sighed in relief, the hole in my chest seeming to disappear for the moment, my body relaxing against Carlisle as the tension seemed to melt away. "What did the idiot say to her?" He mumbled irritably.
"Where's Bella!" I heard the door being thrown open, and then a loud sight. "Oh thank goodness…I saw it too late…did he hurt her?"
"No. We got her in time. Where is he?" Emmett asked, but I didn't move my head from Carlisle's shoulder despite the cold seeping in through the blanket.
"Here Bella." Another blanket was wrapped around me while I was left in Carlisle's lap, and I felt a wave of gratitude towards Jasper.
"I found him in Canada…I think he's coming back…" She seemed uncertain, and I wondered what she'd told him. "I didn't tell him what happened…" She answered my unspoken question, even though I hadn't moved to look at her. "I was on my way back when I saw what was happening…how did you know where to find her?"
"We were on our way to her house when we caught her scent and his in the woods…good thing too." Emmett told her quietly, his voice a soft growl.
"Jasper…" Carlisle's voice was just as quiet, and he pulled away from me softly, pressing me into Jasper's arms. Looking into my eyes, he placed a hand on my face, kissing my forehead. "I'll be back, Bella." He promised kindly. "Do you feel better?"
I nodded as much as I was capable of, doped up on Jasper's emotional drugs as I was. "I'll be back by morning." He promised. "I'm have to go somewhere…do you want us to tell Charlie you're staying with Alice tonight?" I managed another nod, burrowing into Jasper's arms. He rubbed my back and I felt his cold lips on my hair. Emmett stood as well, pausing briefly to kiss my forehead with a grim smile, then followed his father out of the room. I wondered where they were going, but Jasper's cloud of calm kept me from worrying about it. Alice sat beside us, her head on Jasper's shoulder and she reached out with one of her hands and caught mine. Esme sat on his other side, taking my other hand and holding it tightly.
"It's okay, Bella." Alice promised again, squeezing my hand. Another small hand wiped at my face where tears still fell, much to my surprise. "He'll be back. It's okay." To Jasper, she spoke in a high pitched, almost silent voice, and I couldn't make out any of the words, but I didn't really care. I didn't trust any of my emotions at the time, so I just lay in Jasper's arms, completely unaware of what was going on around me until he stood smoothly, keeping me in his arms, and the clock chimed twice, telling me I'd been out of it for hours. I was strangely tired, even though I'd slept through a lot of the day, and then lay dazed in his arms for hours, but I didn't question it, instead watching emotionlessly as he carried me down the hallway and into a large room I'd never been in, placing me in the large, comfortable bed.
Alice climbed onto the bed beside me and pulled me into her arms, promising that she would stay with me while I slept. As soon as Jasper left the room, the calm seemed to dissipate and I felt the pain return, threatening to rip me apart. Gasping softly at the agony in my chest, I sobbed into her neck. "Shh, Bella. You're okay."
"He…he…" I sobbed, gasping for breath in between words, my breathing ragged. "He said…it was… a mistake…" I managed, barely registering her soft growl or the way her arms tightened around me. "He…doesn't want me…." I winced at how that sounded, how needy it made me look…but was in too much pain to care. I loved him…more than I'd ever loved anyone…and I was finally starting to believe that he loved me just as much. How was I going to go back to my old, ordinary life…cooking for Charlie…saving up for college, one dreary day after another, when I'd been given so much in him…in this family that showed me so much love and affection…something I certainly couldn't find in my real father.
"Oh Bella…" Alice sighed softly, rubbing my back and rocking us back and forth, her slim arms tight around me, then was silent for a moment. "We're not leaving." She finally said. "He wanted us too…Carlisle said no. We're staying in town."
"He…said no?" I asked, pulling away to look into her eyes as best I could in the dark.
"Edward is our family, Bella, but so are you. We weren't just going to abandon you…Carlisle wouldn't hear of it. He thinks Edward is being unreasonable…so does Esme. Emmett and Jasper threatened to beat the crap out of him if he hurt you…I guess they will now." She laughed without humor. "He made me promise not to watch you…I thought he was just going to make up with you…apologize. I never thought he'd hurt you like that…not after we all said we'd stand by you." I sobbed again, ducking my head under her neck and resting it on her shoulder.
He didn't love me…that much was obvious. Actually it seemed like he hated me. So much that he'd abandon his family just to get away from me…but they'd stayed. They had refused to go with him…just because they wouldn't leave me. That had to count for something…still, I sobbed into Alice's shirt for hours before I finally dropped off, and only then because she called for Jasper.
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