Being There

Disclaimer; all characters and copyright belong to Stephanie Meyer.

A/N-thanks for the lovely reviews on the last chapter. PLEASE BE WARNED THIS CHAPTER IS NOT AN EASY READ...

Part Thirty Three

Bella opened the door to find Renee standing on the Black's porch, a bright smile on her face. "Hey baby girl I've come to take you shopping. I went to Charlie's house first but when no one answered I figured you would be here."

"Mom?" Bella was still half asleep, she had only just woken up after having a lie in. Jacob had left her a note to tell her he had gone to talk to Sam. Charlie and Billy were still sleeping off the effects of their hangovers. "I'm not ready."

Renee laughed. "Come on sweetie. Jump in the shower, it won't take long. Are you going to let me in?"

Bella opened the door wider and her mother slipped past her into the house. "Mom, you haven't got any money." She said as it finally sank in what Renee wanted to do.

"Charlie loaned me some." Renee told her. "Now, now baby girl don't pull that face. I will pay him back once I get a job."

"And when will that be, mom?" Bella raised her eyebrows questioningly.

"Soon sweetie, soon. Now come on we are allowed to enjoy ourselves. You are going to need some maternity clothes and who better to advise you then me." Renee gave her the bright smile again. It made her look childish.

Bella knew there was no stopping her mother when she was in this mood and in her own way, Renee was right. She did need to start buying some new clothes. Her jeans were getting a little tight around the waist now. "Okay mom." She said giving in. "Let me take a quick shower and we'll go into Port Angeles."

Renee clapped her hands in delight. "There's my girl. Off you go then." She shooed Bella toward the bathroom and then sat down in the living room, kicking off her high heels and making herself at home.

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Emily drove Sam's truck erratically, her mind was filled with images of Bella then Leah and Sam. How had her life reached this low point? When Sam had imprinted on her it had made her feel important and special; all her dreams of living a fairytale had come true. She had spent her whole life living in Leah's shadow, having to stand on the sidelines while her more confidant, vivacious cousin attracted all the attention. Boys flocked to Leah, they ignored quiet and dour Emily, Leah had lots of friends, Emily was just someone who tagged along.

Her irrational jealousy drove her anger. She remembered when her little house had been filled with the pack; she would cook for them and play the big sister offering them advice. Then Bella Swan had usurped her position. As soon as she started a relationship with Jacob the others had abandoned Emily and flocked around her; even Bella's biggest critic Paul had become a fan. Bella took over the cooking and now the pack hardly visited her. Around the same time Sam had become distant and started spending more and more time away from the house. As each day passed Emily had become more lonely and bitter. Now her future had been torn from her. Tears leaked down her smooth skin as she headed toward the Black's house; her foot slipped off of the gas and the truck shunted to one side before she recovered herself.

"I'm going to make you pay." Emily muttered as she gripped the steering wheel and forced her mind to concentrate.

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Renee studied Bella carefully, hands on hips. "Really baby girl, jeans again? Don't you get bored with the same type of clothes?"

Bella tried her best to keep her temper in check, she had forgotten how frustrating being in her mother's company could be. "This is Washington State, not the fashion houses of Paris and New York. Jeans are fine. Shall we go?"

Renee threw her hands up in the air and sighed. "Okay sweetie, no need to fuss. I've hired a car wait until you see it."

"Mom I'll drive if you don't mind." Bella interjected quickly. "We'll take Jake's car."

"Don't you trust me?" Renee pouted. "I'm a better driver then I used to be."

"I drive or we don't go." Bella warned her. She shuddered as she recalled the last time she was in a car with her mother. Renee had rear ended the car in front at a stop sign.

"Okay." Renee gave in and began to walk out of the house, her tight skirt impeding her movement.

Bella followed slowly behind, snatching the keys to Jake's VW Rabbit as she did so. It was going to be a long day.

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Emily had reached the outskirts of the Black's property, she pulled over to the side of the dirt track and took deep breaths. Her whole body was trembling. She forced her fingers to unclench from the steering wheel and stared at them as they shook. What was happening to her? Her mind felt fuzzy and she couldn't concentrate. It felt like she was having a nervous breakdown. She glanced up at the rear view mirror and gasped as she took in her flushed, sweaty face and wide eyes. The scars which ran along one half of her face were on show and she quickly smoothed her sweat soaked hair over it. Seeing them again made the red mist descend over her eyes and she grabbed the steering wheel again and floored the gas as she pulled back onto the dirt track and continued on her way.

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Bella opened the doors to the garage and went inside. The Rabbit was parked off to one side, just next to the bikes. She smiled as she saw the red bike which belonged to her. She touched it with her hand, the cool metal sending goose pimples up her arm. She glanced behind her and sighed, how she wished she could get on her bike and just take off. It sounded much more appealing than a day spent shopping with Renee. Too late now. She reluctantly opened the driver's door to the Rabbit and slipped inside. Jacob had polished the small car to perfection, it gleamed in the dim light filtering through the doors. Bella patted the steering wheel before switching on the engine. She smiled as the engine purred to life.

Renee was waiting impatiently outside, she tapped her foot as she watched Bella drive the little red car out of the garage. Her daughter pulled over and parked beside her. "Well, what do you think?" Bella asked as she climbed out of the car and patted the gleaming bodywork with her hand. "Jake restored this all himself."

"It's very small." Renee glanced at it briefly. "Although it has a certain charm I guess."

Bella smiled to herself. That was about as much praise as her mother was likely to give. A thought suddenly occurred to her; she had forgotten to leave her dad and Jake a note to tell them where she was headed. "Mom, I just need to go back inside and pen a quick note to Jake. I won't be a second."

Renee rolled her eyes. "Only you baby girl. Hurry up."

Bella walked carefully toward the house, it was quite muddy outside as it had been raining overnight and parts of the drive were slippery. She glanced back at her mothers high heeled shoes and saw Renee studying them in irritation as she tried to scrape the mud off with a paper towel. Well maybe that would teach her to wear something more suitable. It was then that the noise of another vehicle approaching made Bella turn her head. She stopped in her tracks as a large gleaming truck headed straight for her; her limbs froze as she stared at it. Her mind was taken back as she remembered the last time this had happened to her when Tyler's van had skidded on some ice and nearly crushed her. It was only Edward's intervention that had saved her life that day.

It all seemed to happen in slow motion. Bella saw Emily behind the wheel; a manic light shining in her dark eyes as she carried on driving at high speed in her direction. The two girls eyes locked and something in Emily seemed to change as she realised just what she was about to do. Bella saw the other girl shake her head and then spin the wheel turning the truck in a different direction. But it was not soon enough. The tires spun on the muddy ground as Emily braked hard, the back end of Sam's truck spinning around, the shiny black metal shining in Bella's eyes and obscuring her vision. There was no time to move, it was too late. She closed her eyes and flung her arm across her face as she waited for the impact.

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"BELLA." Renee screamed her daughter's name as she realised what was just about to happen. At first she had just been as frozen as Bella, her limbs refusing to move as she watched in morbid fascination as the metal monster of a truck headed toward her only child. She saw the driver suddenly spin the wheel and begin to turn the vehicle in another direction, but it was too little too late. Bella was still in its path.

Renee's limbs suddenly unlocked as adrenaline pumped through her. She kicked off her stupid heels and ran toward her daughter, arms outstretched. She had one thought in mind and that was to save her little girl. As the rear end of the truck slid Bella's way Renee finally reached her, using all her strength to push Bella out of its path. Bella tumbled to the ground, the breath torn from her body as her eyes flew open just in time to see Renee get hit by the truck and disappear underneath.

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Charlie sat in the waiting room of the hospital; head in hands and tears pouring down his face. Billy was beside him, one hand on his shoulder as he tried his best to comfort him. He had run out of words about an hour ago. There was nothing that could ever be said that would be any use under these circumstances. Billy had been ringing around everyone trying to get a hold of his son. Finally Seth had answered at the Clearwater's and as soon as Billy told him about what had happened, the young boy had promised he would hunt Jacob down for him.

Now it was a waiting game. Time passed slowly and Billy became fixated on the clock on the wall. He watched the hands turn slowly and he counted each second. He was back in the past when he had been sitting in the same room of the hospital, waiting to hear about his wife's fate.

The door eventually opened and a nurse appeared. Charlie stood up straight away and looked at her expectantly. "My daughter?" He whispered.

The nurse gave him a relieved smile. "She is fine Chief Swan, a little bruised and winded but otherwise physically she and the baby are okay." The smile left her lips as her expression turned serious. "She is asking about her mother though."

Charlie exchanged a look with Billy. He ran a hand through his greying hair. "I'll tell her. Can I see her now?"

"Of course." The nurse said gently. "Follow me."

"I'll wait here for Jake." Billy told him.

"Okay," Charlie muttered distractedly as he followed the nurse out of the room. Billy watched his friend leave. It was only when the door shut behind them that the tears began to fall down his weathered cheeks.

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Charlie sat by Bella's bed and held her hand. Her face was pale and there was a big bruise adorning one cheek. She looked at her dad pleadingly. "Mom? Is mom okay?"

Charlie gripped her hand tighter as he shook his head. "I'm sorry, kiddo. I'm not going to lie to you. It's serious."

"She isn't going to die is she?" Bella begged him. "She saved my life, dad. Please tell me she is going to be okay."

"I don't know." Charlie admitted. "She is in surgery now. Both her legs were broken and she hit her head very hard. The last update I had was she has severe internal bleeding. They're trying, Bells. We have to just hope."

Bella lay back on her pillows and began to sob quietly. All she could see in front of her eyes was Renee disappearing under the truck. Charlie continued to hold her hand while she cried. "What about Emily?" She asked after a while, finally remembering who was driving the truck. "She was driving like a maniac."

Charlie sighed, regretting that she had asked. There was no easy way to tell her. "Emily died, kiddo. She wasn't wearing a seat belt. She went right through the windscreen, she never stood a chance."

Bella stared at him not quite believing what he was saying. "Died?" She lay back on the pillows and stared up at the bright strip lights on the ceiling. This time her eyes were dry.

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For the second time in as many days Jacob ran into the hospital. He searched around wildly for someone to ask. Sam and Seth Clearwater were right behind him. Leah's brother had finally tracked him down outside Emily's waiting for Sam to finish packing up his stuff. Billy heard the commotion and rolled his chair out into the main reception area.

"Dad." Jacob cried out. "What the hell happened? Where's Bells, is she okay? And the baby?"

Billy held up his hands. "Bella is fine son. A few bruises but she and the baby are okay."

"Where is she?" Jacob asked in relief.

"Just down the corridor. Jake before you go there is something I need to tell you." Billy advised him.

"Not now dad, later." Jacob ran off in the direction his dad had indicated, desperate to see Bella.

Sam looked relieved. "Alls well that ends well." He said having no idea of what exactly had happened.

Billy's expression darkened as he looked at Sam. Seth dropped his head and backed away. He could feel that bad news was coming. "Nothing has ended well. I nearly lost my grandchild today." He snapped. "Bella nearly lost her life all because of Emily's actions."

"Emily?" Sam said faintly. "What did she do?"

"She was driving your truck like a maniac, she nearly mowed Bella down. It was only Renee's quick thinking that saved her. As it is, Renee herself is in surgery right now fighting for her life." Billy yelled at him.

Sam staggered back like he had been punched in the gut. "I thought she had gone to give me space while I packed up my stuff. I didn't know she went to see Bella. I don't understand. Where is she now?"

"Emily wasn't wearing a seatbelt. She died." Billy said bluntly.

Seth gasped and Sam stared uncomprehendingly at Billy. "I don't...I can't believe it."

Billy looked at him coldly. "Believe it. You got what you wanted Samuel Uley. It is a pity members of my family have had to pay the price for your so called happiness." Billy said no more. He swung his chair around and followed after his son leaving Seth and Sam standing in the middle of the hospital's reception.

A/N-I know this was a very upsetting chapter. I really would like to hear your thoughts. Thanks...Nikki