A/N:I don't own Twilight. Stephanie Meyers does, I am just obsessed with the characters.
This is the first story I've ever written.
If you feel so inclined, please leave a review. I would appreciate any words of encouragement or ideas that would make me a better writer.
Sincere thank you as always to my talented Beta Yeah Her.
Chapter 12: BPOV
It has been twenty days since Edward was taken. Time seems to have been standing still and I feel so restless and useless as we wait for clearance to go to Ethiopia. We finally booked our flights. We would first fly into JFK in New York, then make a connecting flight to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, and then to final destination to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, thirty two hours in total travel time.
Carlisle, Jacob, Ben and I would be staying at the Humanitarian Doctors Abroad campsite, Esme along with Emmett and Rosalie and Alice and Jasper would be staying at The Agape Bole Guest House in Addis Ababa. The guest house had 3 bedrooms and five bathrooms. The house was close to the airport, the campsite and shops and cafés.
Jacob briefed us on the flight that Edward was still safe and was staying in a makeshift campsite along the Omo River with one other adult and five children. The FBI has been working with a travel group that takes excursions along the Omo River to monitor Edward's well being. They have not made any contact with him so as to not raise suspicion.
Even though we reviewed many aspects of our trip prior to travel, we were all provided an interesting packet that contained information about the Omo Valley, Ethiopian customs, Ethiopian food and words interpreted into the native language of Amharic.
There were going to be a lot of things to remember like removing your shoes at the door, shaking hands with each guest individually, you will always be offered a cup of coffee and it would be considered impolite to refuse. Do not presume that because food is eaten with the hands, there is a lack of good manners. Expect a small earthenware or metal jug to be brought to the table before the meal is served which is used to wash the hands, extend your hands over the basin while water is poured over them. Only use the right hand for eating.
Sometimes, guests are often served tasty morsels by another guest in a process called "gursa". Using his hands, the person places the morsel in the other person's mouth. Since this is done out of respect, it is a good idea to smile and accept the offering. The meal ends with ritual hand-washing and coffee.
Food here usually consisted of breads, stews; known as wat, grains and spices. Most meals consisted of injera, or a flatbread and some form of wat. Coffee is also a large part of Ethiopian cuisine, after every meal a coffee ceremony is enacted and espresso is served.
The thing I was most interested in reading about was the remote river expeditions down the Omo River. I knew Edward was there and I was trying to communicate with him the past twenty-four hours to let him know I was on my way. I had such a vivid dream about him last night. He was asking for my help to save a group of children and there was this beautiful little girl there with large oval eyes, the whites of the eyes were so large and bright and the color of her irises was the color of cognac. Her skin was russet colored like the color of autumn and she was so beautiful and seemed to be reaching out to me in the dream. I was reading about the expeditions taken down the Omo River and wondered if I would be able to go and get a glimpse of Edward. We still haven't talked about how the rescue was going to take place.
Once we landed we all went to the Guest House to get the Cullens settled in and to discuss our next steps. Jacob began to explain basic rescue missions and what the plans were for extracting Edward in particular. Edward was taken as a reaction to a stressful situation, sickness of a child. It was felt that chief Ojore was helpless with no control of the situation. Jacob told us that through intelligence, they found out why Edward was moved to another location and now had five children with him. He went on to explain Mingi to us all and I just knew how this would affect Edward. He would not want to leave the children until he could save those children. The plan was to try to establish communication with Ojore and some of the other elders of the tribe and review options with him. They were going in with the premise of a peaceful outcome. While talks were being established with Ojore a separate team would be watching Edward and his guardian and would move in if necessary. It was part of the plan to try to convince the tribal elders that they wanted to be of assistance in helping all the Mingi children.
Jacob went on to talk about the Stockholm Syndrome. It is a phenomenon that occurs when a bond develops between the hostage and hostage taker. It is an emotional response and a survival mechanism. When observed since his captivity Edward seemed very engrossed in his work, he was a healthy weight, well groomed. He seemed to be very invested in the children's well being. Chief Ojore also visits the campsite where the children are being held daily.
A/N: Please review if you wish. I will answer every one. I'd love to hear feedback from you so I can learn to be a better writer. I welcome constructive criticism. Thanks so much for reading and I hope you continue to enjoy the story.
