Disclaimer: All the Twilight stuff belongs to Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement is intended. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

Author's Note: There was a lot said about the clever idea of using the umbilical cord and placenta stem cells to help heal Edward's arm. That bit of genius did not come from my brain, but was suggested by my amazing friend melanieintn, without whom these chapters would probably be unintelligible!

Chapter 81 Burned

"Oh," I gasped, "Sam. What's going to happen to him, Edward?"

BPOV

It was midday on Friday, my son having been born yesterday, January the 6th, and my family was waiting to see me. I had yet to leave my bedroom since Edward delivered our son, and though everyone had been in to see me, I wanted to go downstairs to the living room and feel a part of my family again.

"Let's go downstairs so that I can see everyone and have lunch," I suggested, "then you and I and Masen can come back upstairs and he can nurse, while your father changes your bandage."

Edward looked up from the rocker with Masen in his arms, "Okay, love, but you'll need to go change pads before we go down there, the bleeding is less but there are still quite a few vampires around here you know," Edward laughed such a happy, carefree laugh. It was amazing just to stare at him, sitting there holding our son. I had all but forgotten about the bleeding. Edward masked his natural desires for my blood so completely that it was sometimes easy to forget that side of him, the part that was forever vampire.

When I came out of the ensuite, Edward had changed the linens on the bed and made it, straightening the room in the process. Masen was sleeping in a bassinet that had been brought into our room. It was just beautiful and I had not seen it before.

"Edward, when and who got this for us?" I asked as I touched the silky soft material. There was a faint hint of blue in the otherwise white material that lined the padded sleeping area and draped down the corners, tying at each corner of the legs to reveal a shelf stocked with diapers and changes of clothes for the baby. It was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful, made of delicate wrought iron in the shape of vines with a canopy just like our bed.

"I got it, love. I had it made to match our bed. I thought you might like it better that way and this could stay in here till Masen is a little bigger. You really shouldn't be carrying him any distance yet and I knew you wouldn't want him in a different room when he was just born," he said as he put his arms around me and kissed my forehead. "It's also a little stronger than most baby beds . . . I thought Masen might need something a bit more difficult to tear apart."

"How did I get so lucky to find you, sweetheart," I told him. Stupid idiotic tears were welling up in my eyes and spilling down my cheeks. I tucked my face into his chest to hid them from him, but I should have known better. He smelled them instantly and pulled away, cupping my cheeks in his hands as I stood with my arms around his waist.

He gently rubbed away the tears with his thumbs, worrying that he had upset me or that something was wrong, "Bella, what's wrong, love? Is something hurting you, did I say something wrong? I can return it if you don't like it or we can let Masen sleep in . . ."

"No, no . . . I love it. It's so beautiful," I told him as I touched the wrought iron vines with my fingers, "It's perfect, Edward, just perfect."

"Why are you crying then, love?" he asked, a puzzled look on his face as he held me to him.

"I'm just so glad to be home and the bassinet is so beautiful and I just love you so much, Edward, you're so thoughtful," I managed to say between sobs, "I'm not sad at all. I'm worried about your arm and no nothing is hurting, just a little uncomfortable I guess you would say."

"Ahhmmm," Carlisle was at the bedroom door looking quite sheepish.

"Come in, Dad," Edward told him, his arms still holding me as he tucked my head against his chest.

"Alice said you might need me, though she didn't say why," he said, stepping into the room with his hands in his pockets.

"We were just about to come downstairs and visit with everyone," my husband continued.

"Well then, I'm here to carry Bella down the stairs," he said as he stepped toward me, "If you'll allow me that is."

"Dad, I can do that if you bring Masen."

"Son, you don't need any pressure on the surface of that arm and even though Bella weighs next to nothing, Masen weighs even less. Please humor me," Carlisle said, turning his attention to me. "And you, young lady need rest. Your body is going a little crazy right now with hormones, you're all of a sudden not pregnant any more and your body is starting milk production and your emotions will be all over the place. It's perfectly normal, just don't let it bother you. Either of you."

"Tears come out of nowhere in a woman during this time and you just have to accept it and not worry, Edward," he said as he looked at my tear stained face and Edward's wet shirt. "Go wash your face and Edward, you change your shirt. Your arm is soaking through it somewhat anyway. I'll wait for both of you right here with my grandson and we'll all go downstairs."

Edward reached in our dresser and grabbed another shirt, following me into the restroom and closing the door behind himself. He walked over to me as I stood in front of the sink and turned me to face him, kissing me softly, his tongue barely tracing my lip as I opened my mouth to him. He increased the kiss and it became full of all the love this man had for me, all there in his kiss.

I washed my face and helped him change his shirt, as much as he protested that he was fully capable of doing it himself. I just laughed at him. We opened the door and joined Carlisle in our bedroom as he stood holding Masen and talking to him. He handed the baby to Edward and gently lifted me to carry me down the stairs. It finally dawned on me that Alice had sent Carlisle, not only to reassure myself and Edward about my crazy emotions. But because he was the only one, other than Edward, that was capable of being so close to me while I was still bleeding, however slightly. You had to love Alice.

Everyone was just doing their typical activities downstairs, Esme, Emily and Sue were in the kitchen cooking something that smelled delicious while Charlie watched the game on the TV in the kitchen with them. Emmett and Jasper played Call of Duty on the flat screen in the living room. Rosalie and Alice were in the library and as soon as they heard me downstairs, they called for me to come in there with them. Edward sat on the sofa with his brothers but it was only moments before Charlie came in and asked to hold his grandson. I smiled at him and slowly walked to see what Alice and Rose wanted me for.

It figured. As soon as I saw the screen and the choices of baby clothes that appeared, I knew that even though we weren't leaving the house, we were shopping. Leave it to Alice to find a way.

"Okay, here are the rules. Masen can not have more clothes than will easily fit in his closet and drawers at any given time. No exceptions. Understood?" I directed my comment towards Alice in particular, "and no outfits that cost more than any one's salary would be in a week." Alice looked at me, her lips pressed together and her jaw set, "Bella, really! You're not giving me a lot to work with here!" She pouted her lips and showed me several dozen choices of outfits that she and Rose liked. I had to admit, they were really cute and soft looking. Alice was big on making sure he was comfortable and liked the feel of his clothes and for that I was grateful. We chose over half of the outfits they had selected and I wandered back towards the kitchen, leaving them to fight over who got to pay for the clothing.

"Carlisle, is Bree able to talk on the phone?" I asked.

"I'm not sure, Bella, she should still be heavily sedated. Would you like me to find out for you?"

"I really would, Carlisle, I want to talk to her before she leaves the hospital. In fact, I probably need to talk to her as soon as she can have a visitor," I added, "She has no idea about vampires, she was completely out of it when Victoria ripped Riley's arm off, but she did see Victoria do some pretty amazing things, like flipping over the bed with both of us on it. I just want to smooth it over, that's all."

"Ah, a true Cullen, dear. Flesh out the facts and cover your tracks," he laughed. I'll call and see how she's doing. Her parents were headed to the hospital when I left, but I doubt she is really conscious yet.

"Thank you," I said as Carlisle headed out on the porch to make the call.

"How are my guys doing?" I asked as I stood behind the love seat. Charlie and Edward had moved from the sofa where the wild video game continued between Jasper and Emmett and Charlie was holding Masen sort of in between them as they both admired the baby and each of his little movements. Edward, of course, knew what Masen thought about the entire situation and I was anxious to hear it. I put a hand on each of their shoulders, my husband and my Dad, and leaned in between them to kiss my son on the forehead.

"What do we do about circumcising him, Edward?" I asked shyly. I knew that it was normally done within a day or so of the baby being born . . . at least that's what all the books said, and I wondered when or if we would have it done to him.

"It might be a bit difficult to manage, sweetheart," Edward told me, looking up to stare into my eyes.

"I just thought it was important for guys, you know . . . ," I hesitated, feeling the heat increase in my cheeks as I was sure I was blushing furiously.

"Of course you'll circumcise him," Charlie humphed, "You don't want him made fun of at school after gym class and in the showers do you? Kids can be kind of brutal about such things you know."

"I'm not sure he'll ever be going to public school, Charlie, at least not till he's big enough to understand that he has to keep our secret, and that could mean years from now," Edward added.

Carlisle walked back into the room, having been listening from the porch while making his call. "Well, there's no physical reason to do it. The foreskin retracts perfectly so there is no problem with cleanliness or function. I guess it's just up to what his Mom and Dad want," Carlisle interjected. The debate that started was not one that I had meant to set in motion. Sensitivity versus cleanliness, natural verses not being made fun of in gym . . . there were lots of arguments both ways. It was Edward that brought up one of the most important points . . .

"Sweetheart," Edward said looking somewhat sheepish, "scissors and scalpel alike did nothing to his skin. I had to bite through the umbilical cord, remember?"

"You what?" Charlie asked, stunned, his mouth remaining open after he finished his sentence.

"Charlie, his skin is much like mine, absolutely impervious to anything that would cut it . . . except vampire teeth," Edward told him. You could hear the sharp hiss my father made by his sudden intake of air. "Well, that's something that is. Really? Huh. Well, we won't have to worry about him hurting himself so much then will we. No skinned knees or worrying about him playing with scissors as a kid," Charlie chuckled.

"Unless you want me to do it with my teeth, he won't be getting circumcised, Bella," Edward said, looking cautiously at me, not wanting to upset me. He had obviously already considered all of this.

"Teeth? Did he just say with his teeth?" Charlie asked Carlisle, clearly still confused.

"Yes, Charlie. The only thing that is capable of breaking the skin is vampire teeth," Carlisle assured him, his hand on Charlie's shoulder as my Dad stared at his grandson. I would have loved to have the capability of reading minds right now, just to know what my Dad was really thinking. Edward chuckled somewhat under his breath and I would have to remember to ask him about it later.

"Hell yea only vampire teeth can hurt the little squirt! See, I told you he was more like us than you thought," Emmett bragged to Jasper, shoving him on the shoulder as they continued to play.

"You actually think having the foreskin removed is worth making Edward bite it off with his teeth, moron?" Jasper taunted, "In my day it really wasn't ever done anyway. I couldn't help but laugh as the males in each group argued their opinion on what seemed to be quite a touchy topic. Jasper and Carlisle seemed to be defending the uncircumcised masses while Charlie was clearly in favor of having it done. Edward obviously did not relish the thought of doing that with his teeth, so it was unclear as to how both he and Emmett felt about it. It seemed to be a serious issue among the guys, no doubt fueled by testosterone.

I wandered into the kitchen, leaving the circumcision discussion to the father, grandfathers and uncles. Though I had equal say in the matter, along with Edward, it seemed more of a Dad thing and I would let them sort it out and discuss it with Edward later. To tell the truth, I was kind of sorry I ever brought it up in front of all of them, but their input would probably be helpful. The only experience I had was with Edward, and he would probably like his son to be like him.

"What smells so good in here?" I asked, nosing around at the stove and lifting the lids of the pots that were cooking. Sue playfully smacked at my hand with a wooden spoon, "Scat! Go sit at the table. Lunch will be ready in a minute."

"I made some fresh sweet tea, dear," Esme said as she brought a glass to me, "You'll need to drink more if you're going to nurse Masen." I laughed to myself. The expression on her face and the hesitation in her voice told me that she really meant Edward and Masen, and it was funny to see her stumble, if only slightly, over her words. Apparently I snorted somewhat instead of laughed and Emily wondered if I was alright, thinking the tea had gone down the wrong way.

"Come eat, Charlie," Sue called and the four of us sat down to have lunch at the kitchen table. Edward joined us, pulling a chair up beside mine and putting his arm around my shoulders.

"This is really great stew, and the cornbread is out of this world," Charlie commented, his eyes showing his pleasure with the taste of the food.

"Well, Esme made the cornbread, so neither of us can take credit," Emily said as she crumbled some into her bowl.

"That's just amazing. A woman that doesn't even eat and she makes food that tastes this good. It's real good, Esme, real good. Thank you," Charlie told her.

"You are just so welcome, Charlie. I love to cook for Bella, and it's nice to have all of you as well. It's not like I can put a deer or a mountain lion on a plate and serve it to my other kids, or Carlisle," she laughed. You would have thought that comment would have been awkward . . . but it wasn't. I marveled at how well Sue and Charlie as well as Emily had become comfortable with my new family. Edward smiled widely beside me, so I knew their thoughts must have been genuine and even somewhat amusing to him. I would really have to remember to ask him about it later, as well as about the circumcision.

"So, where's Jake?" I asked as I ate. Emily's face immediately winced and she stared into her soup bowl, refusing to look up. Edward answered me quietly, explaining that Jake had gone out to find Sam. I immediately dropped the subject, sensing that something unpleasant was going on.

Jasper had talked Carlisle into playing the video game with Emmett, and he sat with Masen in his arms, talking to him about the game.

"Shooting people is upsetting him," Edward called to them.

"Who?" Emmett asked.

"Masen. The game is upsetting to him," Edward said as he stood to go and get the baby.

"He really doesn't like it," Jasper said, amazed. "I can feel it rolling off of him, he's uncomfortable with the images and he doesn't understand. He wants his Mom or Dad!" Jasper told us, absolutely at a loss for words.

Edward took him in his arms and I continued to strain to hear their conversation. It wasn't a large distance between the living room and the kitchen, and certainly the space was open, but the video game was loud and kind of blaring in the background.

"He's calm, Edward. The instant you took him, he settled down," Jasper continued, sitting on the edge of his seat, his face displaying a look of sheer wonder.

"It's alright, son. It's just a game that your uncles and Daddy like to play. No one is really getting hurt and uncle Emmett isn't really mad at anyone, I promise," Edward said to Masen, starring at him in his arms.

"Hell no I'm not really mad, buddy," Emmett told him, "It's just a game. You pretend to be mad, that's all little buddy."

"Yes, I'll explain pretend to you later. I know, you're thirsty. I'll get you something," Edward told him, heading toward the refrigerator. He reached in and took out one of a half dozen or so prepared bottles. They were not see through, and neither were the nipples and I was grateful for that. "Let daddy feed you, yes, I haven't gotten to fed you yet have I little one," Edward cooed to the baby as he sat back down beside me and put the nipple in Masen's mouth. Something was off. The baby's features seemed to shift slightly, the look of a predator skirting his features even at his tender age. I wondered if it was just my imagination, but then I heard the slight purring coming from him. Masen was definitely his father's son, and I accepted it completely.

Edward was good at giving him a bottle and not allowing what was contained in it to run down the side of his mouth, or even out in the open at all. Part of it was probably for my benefit, so that I wouldn't actually see my son drinking blood, but part of it was also because I was sure the blood was human and that it was at least somewhat difficult for the vampires in the room, other than Carlisle, to endure the smell. Luckily, Masen finished the bottle in record time and Edward placed it in the dishwasher and started it immediately.

"Bella, would you come with me for a minute?" Edward asked, holding his hand out to me and handing the baby to a thrilled Esme.

He led me to the far end of the living room, to the piano and had me sit in the chair beside it, no doubt thinking the hard piano bench would be uncomfortable after just giving birth to Masen the day before. He was right.

Edward began to play. I recognized the tune as Debussy's Claire de Lune. As he finished the piece, the tune morphed into Esme's lullaby and then into the lullaby that I knew he had written for me. It was melancholy and full of longing in the beginning and then hopeful before becoming sad and desperate, returning to rich and full of love in the end. I expected the piece to be over, but Edward continued with a new piece . . . heavy and dark and scary for a moment before the richest most harmonious sounds I had ever heard started to emerge, becoming lighter and airier and filled with unabashed joy. He finished and there was not a sound to be heard, everyone entranced with the music that filled the house. My husband got up and came over to my chair, kneeling in front of me and kissed me softly.

"The last song was for Masen, but you probably already guessed that," he said as he kissed me again.

"It was beautiful, sweetheart," I said, tears in my eyes and hugging him to me, his arms encircling my waist," I love you." It was all I needed to say . . . and all he needed to hear.

"Carlisle broke the silence, walking over to us and speaking to Edward, "Let's go upstairs and make sure you keep that arm of yours. We can't possibly do without your playing around here." Edward let out a chuckle, moving to allow Carlisle to pick me up and head up the stairs with me. Masen had just fed, I had eaten lunch and visited with my family, and Edward's arm needed tending.

~oooOooo~

Sam POV

Damned bloodsuckers. We could have had him, we could easily have taken him out and the rest of them would never have been the wiser. He's the one that reads minds. We could have blamed it on Victoria and been heroes to the leeches, killing the vampire that kidnapped Bella and killed Billy and Edward I thought as I trotted along on the crackly snow. Idiot. What the hell did they do to him? He was raised just the same as I was, the same legends, the same customs and beliefs . . . hell, he was the Chief's son for God's sake! He knew the stories of the tribes past as well or better than any of us.

I wonder if it was just his love for the girl, or if it's the money. They set him up for life, that's a fact . . . Black Swan Racing. Damned bloodsucking leeches.

I had the bloodsucker. Dumb as shit. He didn't even know what hit him when I grabbed him as he tried to run past me. I had him in my mouth, the wimp. He didn't even fight back, just kept me from holding him down with my paw so I could rip his fucking head off. Damn that Jake. All he had to do was follow orders, just grab the bloodsucker, I would have done the rest. No one would ever have known that it was us and maybe we could have found a way to take out more of them before we went back to La Push.

We had killed the red headed leech already and her cold stone body lie there on the ground with the very convenient house fire blazing to throw her and the other one into and be done with them. I never considered that Jake would turn leech lover, not when we had the chance to get rid of them. It was fine to uphold the treaty in the light of day, but this . . . an opportunity when no one would ever know . . . blows my mind not to take it. I don't give a damn if they say they only eat animals, him and his kind were the cause of my Emily getting hurt when they came after the other leech lover, Bella. She made her bed, let her lie in it with the filthy stinking soulless damned.

He dropped from my mouth . . . I had no choice. I tried to fight it, to hurry and end the leech, but the Alpha command had to be followed, and Jake was the rightful Alpha and tribal Chief. Damn him for choosing this moment to assert his authority!

I dropped the leech and left, heading as fast as I could to find Emily and get her the hell away from them before they retaliated. I couldn't risk them hurting her over something I had done. I reached the Cullen houses in record time, but they were empty, absolutely no one at home. I could only guess that they all went to the fire to find out if Bella had been inside. I ran back there, hoping to find her and get her away from them before Jake phased and explained or Edward hurt her to get at me.

I rushed back through the forest, my feet flying over the frozen ground in my haste to find my wife before any harm cam to her. They were all there, back at that damned house watching it burn and the firemen work to put out the blaze. I saw a fireman hand Edward something, and him turn and walk towards me with no regard for the fact that I was there, just beyond the tree line. He had to have known, his senses were stronger than that, surely.

I tried to move toward him, to take him out but my paws would not budge. It was as though they were nailed to the ground and the only way that I could move was away from the bloodsucker. My commands were never that strong, I had to give them more than once quite a few times and then they were encroached on. Not this command though, it was so fucking strong that I could not go against it, though I tried with all my might. I sat there, helpless, not 20 yards from where he passed and I could do nothing, not even follow him.

Emily stood with them, her arm around Sue and one of the leeches. She was crying. Shit, how was I supposed to get to her with all of them there? She and Sue and Charlie finally broke off from the bloodsuckers and got in Charlie's car, seeming to head toward the house. She didn't seem like anyone had hurt her. I followed in the woods along side the road, determined to at least protect my mate and wait for my chance to get her away from them.