Bella's POV
"What are they saying?" Emmett asked Edward.
Edward looked at me and then back to Emmett and shook his head. "Carlisle's blocking me, and they asked me to give them privacy, so I'm trying to stay out of Eleazar's head."
Carmen and Eleazar had flown in to Seattle about six hours before. Emmett and Rose had met them at the airport and driven them here to Forks. After greeting the rest of the family and meeting me, Eleazar had gone into Carlisle's office with him, shutting the rest of us out while they conferred with each other. Esme and Carmen were outside, talking in the garden, while the rest of us waited in the living room.
Emmett and Jasper had hooked up the TV and Xbox Emmett had brought when they came to Forks, and they were playing some video game with zombies. Alice and Rose were flipping through magazines, while Edward and I sat huddled on the couch. He was trying to keep me calm, but knowing Carlisle and Eleazar were talking about me was unnerving.
"It'll be okay, love," Edward murmured softly into my ear. "Whatever they come up with or figure out, we'll deal with it together, okay?"
I nodded and buried my face back in his neck. He smelled so good, I just wanted to crawl up on his lap and never leave.
"Get a room!" Emmett boomed, laughing when Jasper nodded. I hadn't noticed they were looking at us until he'd spoken.
"It's worse than it was before," Jasper said teasingly. "They can't keep their hands off each other."
"They're mates, dumbass," Rose said, reaching over to smack the back of Emmett's head. "No worse than we were at the beginning."
"No worse than they are now," Edward muttered into my neck, making me giggle.
I must have been too still for too long, showing my nervousness, because Edward squeezed my hand and leaned over to whisper in my ear. "Let's go for a walk."
Smiling at Esme and Carmen, who were just coming inside, I followed Edward out the back door.
Once we got outside, he took my hand again and led me to the back edge of the property. "We won't go too far. Just far enough to have some privacy, but still be within range so I know when they're ready for us. Okay?"
"Sounds good," I answered, following him into the trees.
The moment we stepped into the forest, the crisp scent of pine and moss, the sound of animals scampering in the fallen leaves, the slight chill in the air—along with the memories of my recent adventures with Edward while hunting—helped ease my worries, if only slightly. I needed to drift away—I'd go crazy if I didn't—and Edward had provided me with the perfect escape.
We were quiet for a few minutes before Edward spoke again.
"Tell me more about Lizzie?"
At the thought of my daughter, I couldn't help the smile that crept across my face.
"She's...wonderful," I said. "I was so worried when I first found out I was pregnant—that I wouldn't be able to love her like she would deserve, I mean. As the pregnancy developed, though, I bonded with her. She became my child. It didn't matter anymore how she came to be, just that she was part of me. I—" I paused for a moment, trying to calm my emotions. "I told her about you and your family, about Charlie, and me coming to live with him. It became a nightly ritual. I would lie down after getting ready for bed, turn on...music, and rub my belly as I told her stories."
"Was the...the pregnancy difficult?" Edward asked gently. When he spoke, it was encouragingly, and he paid rapt attention. He seemed genuinely interested, absorbed in what I was saying, as if he was trying to experience with me, simply by hearing my words.
Shaking my head, I answered softly, "No, it was great. I had pretty bad morning sickness for a while—although I can't really classify it as morning sickness, since it tended to come on throughout the day—but by the end of the third month, that went away. I never had a problem health-wise for me or Lizzie. Delivery went well, too. Angela was in the delivery room with me." I laughed, remembering. "My dad offered to be in there, too, for support, but when I said I was okay with just Ang, the relief on his face was priceless. He wanted to meet his granddaughter, but he didn't really want to be in the room when she came into the world."
Edward laughed softly. "I can imagine," he mused.
"Anyway, she's a good baby. She's only just over two months old, so she isn't sleeping through the night yet, but she's a happy baby and has everyone who knows her wrapped around her little finger—including the chief," I said with a laugh. "Charlie hates putting her down and is already making plans to take her out on the boat to fish when she's a bit older. He bought her a little fishing pole and everything. It's twice as tall as she is, but he's not worried. She'll grow into it, which I can't wait to—"
My voice broke as I realized I might never see her grow into the fishing pole, let alone grow into an adult. I began to sob, the venom stinging my eyes, as Edward pulled me into his arms. We sank to the ground with me on his lap, and he held me as I let out the grief and fear I'd been holding in for what seemed like weeks.
"Shh, love," he murmured, one hand on my lower back, the other stroking my hair soothingly. "We'll figure something out, I promise."
We sat there for a few minutes, Edward keeping me calm, until I stood and held out my hand.
"Ready to keep walking?"
Taking it, he smiled and hopped up.
As we walked, questions ran continuously through my head. I was very glad he couldn't read my mind, because it was a mass of confusion at the moment. I wanted to ask him how he would feel about Lizzie, but until we figured out if it was even possible for me to remain in her life, there was no point. He wouldn't be in her life if I wasn't. I wanted to ask if he wanted me in his life, but I didn't want to hear yes now, only to be rejected again later if he realized he didn't want me and Lizzie as a package deal. So instead of asking anything, I just stayed quiet, leaning my head on his arm as we walked.
Once we were turned around and headed back in the direction of the house, Edward stopped and tilted his head. "They're ready when we are," he said softly.
I nodded, taking a deep breath. "I guess there's no point in putting it off."
On the one hand, I was anxious to hear what they had come up with. On the other, though, I was scared to hear that they'd decided it was too risky and I had to leave Forks as planned.
Edward tugged my hand, bringing me to a stop again. "Isabella, look at me," he said, firm, but full of emotion.
When I finally brought my eyes to his, he leaned down and brushed his lips against mine.
"Whatever they tell us, we'll deal with it together. You aren't alone anymore."
I nodded, closing my eyes and kissing him once more. "I love you, Edward," I whispered against his lips.
"As I, you, my Bella," he echoed. "When you're ready..." He motioned forward.
I swallowed once and then turned to lead the way back to the house.
When we got back into the living room, everyone—including Carlisle and Eleazar—were in the living room. Most were seated around the room on the floor, but Esme was back on the couch, and Carmen was perched daintily on the only other chair in the room. Carlisle and Eleazar were standing beside their wives, conversing quietly until we took our seats.
"A shield?" Edward asked, looking at Eleazar.
"Wanna clue the rest of us in?" I teased, rolling my eyes. "Especially since it concerns me."
"Sorry, love," he murmured, looking properly chastised.
"See, we've had to deal with that for decades." Emmett snorted. "With Miss 'I See-It-All' and Mr. 'I Hear-It-All' over there, the rest of us don't stand a chance." Then he looked at Carlisle. "Do we have another fun talent to deal with?" His emphasis on the word fun made it clear he thought they were anything but fun.
I showed him my middle finger, mouthing an apology to Esme, who was trying to hide her smile, and then looked at Carlisle.
After a moment, he finally said, "We're...not sure."
Wow, I thought, feeling frustrated and more confused than I'd ever felt before. All that, and all we'd gotten was, "We're not sure." Rather than saying that aloud, I asked, "What does that mean?"
Eleazar spoke then, looking at me directly. "I believe you're what would be considered a shield, Isabella."
I could feel my forehead puckering in thought, my mind whirling, even as I answered something automatic to me. "Bella," I murmured, trying to figure out what he meant by shield.
"Bella," he repeated, smiling slightly. "It isn't something I've run into often; in fact, the only other one I can recall is with the Volturi, in Italy."
"You may not remember, Bella," Edward said quietly into my ear, "but I mentioned them once...before."
Search my memory, I vaguely recalled a conversation we'd had while watching "Romeo and Juliet." It was that same conversation where he'd told me of his plans to run to them once I'd passed away. I nodded for them to continue.
"So what does that mean?" Emmett asked, echoing my earlier sentiment, clearly irritated at how long it was taking to get to the point.
"It means that this is virtually unknown," Carlisle said. "Being a shield may be why Bella's safe from Edward's talent. It's a direct mental talent using her brain, like Edward's, but unlike Alice's and Jasper's, which are more physical for Jasper and...however Alice's works, which is why their talents work on Bella, and not Edward's."
"From what Bella, Jasper, and Alice described," Eleazar continued, "being a shield may be why she was able to resist the smell of human blood, even as a newborn, but I have another theory on that, as well.
"I brought several of my oldest books with me, and Carlisle and I did some research. We didn't find conclusive proof, but from a few of the stories we read, we think some of Bella's resistance to Lizzie and Charlie specifically is because they are of the same family. From the things I read, familial blood may be...unappealing to a vampire."
My entire body prickled with nervous anticipation, the need for fight or flight nearly overtaking me. This was it...the moment I'd been both waiting for and dreading. Please, God, I prayed silently, let it be...
"What that means," Carlisle said quietly, "is that Alice's visions may be right. Bella may be able to handle being around her daughter and Charlie."