Bella did notice the shock on Edward's face but she had no idea it was shock. To her he looked as though he was about to be sick.
They walk through the doors, still hand in hand, but now his hand is squeezing hers to the point of pain. His expression makes her think he's about to either explode or implode.
"What is it?" she whispers as they near their allocated table.
He shakes his head quite firmly and with a grim set to his lips pulls her chair out for her. Expecting him to take his seat beside her, where his place card sits, Bella is confused when instead he stalks away to the cocktail bar leaving her there without a word. The table fills quickly as their friends join them and when all the other seats are taken Edward returns with an open beer for himself and a glass of white wine for Bella. He sets her glass in front of her in silence and then takes his seat. He slides his place card under the coaster that's sitting to its left and scowls at hers.
About to ask him what's wrong for the second time Bella's attempt is thwarted by the announcement that dinner is about to be served. Conversation around their team table turns light and jovial. Tyler and Ben are placing bets as to which of the other tables is the main competition and for once Emmett isn't interested in a wager. That strikes both Bella and Edward as odd.
Feeling bad for not keeping her promise to talk to him Bella does her best to engage him. He's as morose as Edward and she finds herself sitting between two very pensive men.
Bella's mood is noticed by Emmett, as is the mood of his roommate. Bella looked almost frightened, Edward concerned. Emmett was worried because if his roommate had done anything to bother the girl he was going to hate having to beat his ass. He really liked Edward and he felt protective of Bella, but a beat down would still result if the guy had done anything to hurt the shy young woman to his right, friends or not.
Dinner was a study in deliciousness and excess. Huge platters of roast meats were held aloft by smartly dressed waiters and waitresses and each guest could choose for themselves what variety of meat they'd like. Each of the round tables was piled high with platters of vegetables and baskets filled with warmed bread. Dishes of salads and tureens of sauces and gravies were set either side of the flowered centrepieces, jugs of iced water stood at intervals.
Small, elegantly printed wine lists sat beside each plate. On the reverse side was a list of elaborate cocktails and pairs of waiters took orders throughout the meal. The cocktail bar was doing steady business as the meal wore on.
With an open bar Emmett didn't look the gift horse in the mouth and drank more than he ate. Edward chose a red from the wine list and he and Bella both had several glasses of it over the meal, but they'd also both tried two of the cocktails each as well.
Everyone at their table was giggly and excited by the time the dishes were swept away after dessert and were replaced by two white cards. Another card was put in the centre of the table.
One card was filled with a grid, the question numbers down the left hand pane and neat lines for the answers to the right. The other card was a list of rules for the game. The third card, in the centre of the table, was for the groups collective answers.
With a few drinks under their belts the guests, both private and corporate, were excited to begin the game. Edward tried his best to put his worries aside as Rose took to the makeshift podium and ran through the rules.
There were to be one hundred questions all of which would be general knowledge. She would read the question through twice and then the teams would have sixty seconds to debate the answer.
Rose explained that the sections would start off with easy questions and progress to harder and harder ones as the game wore on. That didn't bode well for those who were drinking, Rose explained, and usually meant there were a few 'questionable' answers by the end of the evening. She stressed that the whole idea was to have fun and to 'go your hardest' with regard to the answers.
Each team member had a personal sheet; the separate answer sheet on the table was for the team as a whole, and individuals should feel free to write whatever they liked on their own sheets. The team, however, must reach a majority vote and write that answer on the team sheet.
Rose asked each team to nominate a team leader who would write on their own sheet as well as the team one. Tyler was nominated for the team at table two because he was the only one who would be sober at the end of the game.
It was explained that if a team member didn't agree with the group's decision they should feel free to write down their own answer as individual prizes for the highest personal scores would be given for teams and individuals at the end.
The game would be split into ten equal parts, ten questions each, and in between there would be a ten minute break except for between rounds five and six. A longer break would be had then, Rose would declare half time and supper would be served for those who wanted it. Drink orders would be taken during all the breaks. Any team wishing to default could do so during breaks. That was met with a rousing cheer from some of the corporate tables as they teased their colleagues.
While the prizes were decided at the end of the game there would be music and nibbles and guests should feel free to dance and mingle.
Rose asked if there were any questions and when the room stayed silent she announced the game would begin.
The first ten questions were easy. What did the four 'C's stood for with regard to diamonds, how many blank squares are there in a game of Scrabble, and the like.
The team at Bella's table was quite confident they'd gotten all ten questions right and during the first break they ordered a round of celebratory drinks.
Edward seemed more at ease as he sipped his cocktail and even Emmett had relaxed as the questions were given.
Round two questions were trickier, but not impossible. What wedding anniversary is denoted by the giving of 'Gold' gifts, name the two actors who played Batman and Robin in the original television version of the comic and how many stripes are there on the American flag? Emmett and Tyler were pleased they had some 'Seppo's' at their table and when the break came they thanked their international friends by ordering a flaming cocktail for each of them that was delivered in glasses so big they looked like crystal buckets.
Bella wondered if Edward was setting out to get deliberately drunk when he started ordering two drinks at a time from the passing waiters during the breaks. He gulped the first drink and took a little more time with the second, but his intention was becoming more clear. Emmett just drank both of his in quick succession. Emmett was obvious about wanting to be inebriated, Edward not so much, but Bella noticed.
By the time round five started the whole table was more than a little tipsy and getting quite mouthy. They weren't alone. All of the tables were getting steadily drunk and the debates about answers were getting decidedly serious.
When half time was called Bella excused herself from the table, citing the need to powder her nose. Edward rose from the table but stayed in the dining hall as she made her way back to her cabin. She was disappointed with his absence. She had hoped he'd follow her, or at least offer to walk with her so she could question him about his mood shift.
She took her time using the bathroom in the cabin and wasted another few minutes staring off into space trying her hardest to think what his problem could be. Was he upset about a remark one of the other guests had made in line? She didn't think so, everyone had been very friendly. Had he and Emmett had 'words' before coming to the hall? Did he not like what she was wearing? Was his stomach upset? Was he worried that she wasn't smart enough to contribute to the answers? Was he second guessing being with her, in her company? She had no clue and it didn't look likely that Edward was going to give her one either.
Deciding to ask him as soon as he was sober enough to answer the question Bella made her way back to the dining hall. This time, when she approached the table, Edward was nowhere to be found. Emmett mouthed the word 'mensroom' and then went back to watching the podium. In fact Edward missed the round six questions altogether. He came back during the break and again ordered two drinks for himself. He only nodded at her when she asked if he was alright.
But Edward wasn't alright. He'd raced back to his cabin the instant Bella had disappeared from view on her own break. He turned his cell phone on for the first time in weeks and ignored the incessant beeping of all his missed texts and messages. Opening a browser page he typed her family name, the area he knew her family to reside in and her father's title into a search box and hit search. Running his thumb up and down the edge of the page he read the information as quickly as he could as the page scrolled and cursed over and over at what he read. Squinting at the tiny picture at the bottom of a profile page he cursed. She was Isabella Swan! He'd only twigged to it when Rose had put her name tag on but the instant he'd seen her full name printed he'd known. He hadn't needed the internet search to know it, he'd known it before, but now that he had the proof of it in his hand he felt ill.
The sick, churning feeling he'd had in his gut all night made him gag as he read the family bio. She was Judge Charlie Fucking Swan's youngest daughter!
Alcohol and a roast dinner made their way out of his stomach and out of his mouth with a fiery urgency and he only just made it to the bathroom when they did. He retched and retched until his chest and cheeks ached and then he rinsed out his mouth and swished some of Emmett's mouthwash around and around.
He looked like hell. Half cut from drinking so steadily and pale and ill from worry as he looked at himself in the mirror. "Judge Charlie Fucking Swan," he hissed as he ran a hand through his hair. "Just my fucking luck," he growled before wiping his face with the hand towel.
He waited outside the dining hall until Rose announced another break. When she did he slid back into his seat beside Bella and waved down the first waitress that came even remotely close to the table. He waved away Bella's concern with the best smile he could muster and downed the first of his two new drinks in quick time. With his gut empty he knew the alcohol was going to hit him hard and for the first time ever he didn't care. He'd welcome the hangover the next morning. Anything was better than the prospect of admitting to Bella that he knew her, and her rotten father, and her sister, her mother – aw hell, anything was better than admitting he'd played a part in her fucked up situation.
The room was rowdy now so quiet conversation was almost impossible and Bella had to let go of her need to question Edward. He refused to respond to her in any way other than to smile weakly. The drink was flowing freely and the corporate guests were taking full advantage of it, as were the men at her table. Minus Tyler who still refused all offers. Ange had given up the alcohol and had started ordering soda between rounds three and four and Bella had only ordered one more glass of wine since then. She wanted a clear head for the questions and hoped she'd be able to question Edward at some point too. Doing that drunk would do nothing.
Rose had seen it all before. The questions were getting harder and harder. The alcohol was loosening everyone's tongues and their normally shy interactions at work were tossed aside as team member pitted themselves against team member. She knew there would be quite a few 'dissenters' who would be writing down their own answers and going against the pack mentality by the time round six came to its end.
Bella was nervously conscious that at home a woman being smart wasn't a plus and nor was it particularly encouraged. In the earlier rounds she'd gone along with the general consensus with the answers, but with a few more drinks under her belt she began to get frustrated that the four guys at the table were riding roughshod over her and Angela. It wasn't that their opinions didn't count it was more that the four men were voting against the two women continually, even when it was clear that the women knew what they were talking about.
By the third question of the seventh round Bella was fuming mad. Totally sober now, while the men – minus Tyler – were rolling drunk she thought her opinion would carry more weight than three drunk guys and was pissed to find that it didn't. It was an economic question and Bella was sure she knew the answer, and it wasn't the one the men had come up with. She pled her case in the time allotted but they wouldn't budge. In a rare act of defiance Bella wrote down her own answer and ignored the group.
Most of the players were sipping water by the time round eight began and those that weren't were no longer taking the game so seriously. Emmett was nicely socially lubricated and had started talking smack with one of the guys on the table behind them. Edward was slumped in his seat and no longer had an opinion of his own. He threw his vote in with the guys out of habit in the end. One of the corporate tables had thrown in the towel altogether and another, to avoid being teased by their colleagues, had taken to answering the questions with only filthy answers. The table closest to the podium had torn up their sheets and two women at another table were snoring.
Edward was drunk and incapable of giving an opinion by the time they finished the eighth round. His head was swimming with other thoughts, none of which were helpful to the team, so he sat quietly while the others debated the answers and wrote down the majority voted ones on his sheet.
Round nine always separated the men from the boys. When the question 'What man has the most statues dedicated to him' was asked the table of private guests was divided. Tyler, Angela and Edward wanted to write Jesus. Bella, Emmett and Ben wanted to write Budda. For the first time all night the team was divided evenly. There could be no majority vote. Edward, much to Bella's disgust, shouted across the table that it should be 'bros before ho's' and the boys decided they would go with Jesus and that they'd leave Angela and Bella to choose for themselves.
'Which continent is divided into the most countries' caused another rift. This time it was five to one, Bella being the one. Angela actually had no idea. Everyone else was sure it was Asia but Bella was sure it as Africa. Again the group was divided. Bella wrote down Africa and shook her head at the stubbornness of the others.
With two questions of the game left to go Edward gave up. He doodled on the reverse side of his answer sheet and chuckled quietly when Bella threw him an exasperated look for drawing a penis with an eye patch.
Emmett was beyond caring and drew boobs on his answer sheet where the next answer should go. Tyler went with what was left of the group and Ben was nodding with glassy eyes as the last question was posed.
'How many gold medals did Russia win at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles' was the question and immediately Bella knew it was a trick.
"They boycotted," she announced as she wrote zero on her sheet.
"Nah, that was when they were in Germany," Emmett slurred and drew a caricature of Snoopy on his sheet.
"I'm telling you," Bella began through gritted teeth, "Russia boycotted in '84."
"Whatever," Emmett shrugged and took another swig of his beer.
The others, Edward included, said they didn't care what Tyler wrote on the team sheet.
A loud cheer went up when Rose announced the game was done. Waiters collected all the sheets from the tables and then Rose gave over the stage to a hired DJ who cranked up the music as streams of people made their way to the cocktail bar.
The mood at Edward's table was hardly pleasant. None of them were confident they'd be visiting the local winery as a prize but they were sure they wouldn't come last either. Over yet another round of drinks for the men bets were taken that that honour would be bestowed on the bakers apprentices who had been less than serious during the game.
Emmett watched Rose take the answer sheets into the kitchen and sat back in his chair to watch the door. He ignored everyone else at the table, including a mouthy Edward who was doing his best to get his roommate involved in the conversation so he wouldn't have to talk to Bella.
Bella, fed up with being ignored by Edward, laughed at by Ben who was convinced she was wrong on those two questions and was not making it subtle that he was looking forward to being proven right, and being looked at with something between pity and confusion by Ange.
A few couples took to the dance floor while the DJ did his thing. Bella, risking a look at Edward as he downed yet another drink, was shocked to see his bloodshot eyes over the rim of his glass. Hoping to distract him from ordering another drink, or accepting one when either Ben or Emmett ordered again, she leaned over to him. "Would you like to dance?" she asked.
Thinking about the irony that just the day before he would've accepted her offer, or offered himself, Edward shook his head. "I can't," he answered instead.
"Can't or won't?" Bella asked before she could stop the impulse.
"Can't," Edward croaked, looking slightly ill again.
Bella returned her eyes to her place setting and tried to reconcile the Edward she knew with the man sitting beside her now. He'd been cold towards her all night. He'd joined in Ben's ribbing and had drunk far more than she'd ever seen him drink to date. But what bothered her more than any of that was his lack of affection towards her. For weeks he'd been anxious to be near her, to hold her hand at any opportunity. He'd spent hours kissing her in the past week and now, nothing. It was as if he was deliberately keeping his body angled away from her as he talked to Tyler to his right.
Bella thought about her predicament and decided on the lesser of two evils. Edward was being awful towards her but Emmett was simply being quiet. So, leaning over towards Emmett to her left she whispered, "Can I have one of your cigarettes please?" and when he handed her his pack, along with his lighter, she took both and excused herself from the table to go outside. Edward made no move to follow.
The minute she was out of the room Ange leaned across the table and pointed at Edward. "What's wrong with you?" she demanded with a scowl.
"Drunk," Edward slurred, using his inebriated state to cover for the fact that he was being consumed by guilt on the inside.
"Drunk is no excuse for being an asshole," Angela scowled but was met with a glare and a shrug by way of a retort from Edward.
Ange huffed and turned back to Ben, angry and hurt on Bella's behalf that Edward had been so obviously mean to her half the night. She had no idea what was going on with the couple but she was going to ask as soon as she got her roommate alone.
The awkwardness at the table was broken when Tyler's mobile rang. Checking the caller ID he winced before answering and asking his caller to please hold while he found a quiet spot to talk. He made his way outside and looked for Bella. He saw her with a small group at the end of the dining hall so he turned right out of the doors and went in the opposite direction.
Bella stood away from the other smokers and drew on hers slowly. She was in no hurry to get back inside. When the first was down to its filter she lit another and leaned back against the wall of the dining hall and stared out at the night.
She had no idea what was going on within her group. Emmett looked catatonic. Ben was patronising and Angela looked as stunned as Bella by the guys behaviour. But what struck Bella hardest was Edward. Even on their first day at camp, when they hadn't known each other from Adam, he hadn't been this outwardly disinterested in her. He'd been shy, sure, but he had been polite and well mannered with everyone despite that.
He'd been chatty and attentive during the days prior. They'd had lunch together and even though they'd been apart in the afternoon – while Bella read and he played the piano in the conference centre – he'd come to her cabin to collect her in good spirits in the early evening. In line, before dinner and the game, he'd been perfectly fine. They'd chatted with those around them and he'd held her hand throughout. He'd been smiling and laughing and had seemed himself.
What had caused his mood shift she didn't know? She couldn't even blame alcohol because he'd been totally sober when they'd stood in line. It was only after going in through the doors that his demeanour had shifted and Bella had no idea why. Plus he'd been drunk before and if anything alcohol made him more affectionate towards her. But not this time.
Stubbing out her second cigarette with her toe she looked back up the path towards those very same doors and decided right then and there that she'd had enough for one evening.
Taking a longer route she made her way up the slope of the path and went to cabin number two. She left Emmett's pack and lighter on the table under its awning and then went back to her own cabin.
She showered quickly and slid between the cool sheets of her bed with a heavy head and heart.
Edward wasn't surprised that she didn't return and he was pleased that she didn't. His gut was churning and his brain wouldn't switch off as he sat with his arm along the back of her abandoned chair in the dining hall. Emmett threw him a few 'looks' but he shook his head as minutely as he could and returned his eyes to the others at the table each time.
When Rose took to the podium and the music died down Bella's absence became like a hot poker to his gut as he turned in his seat to hear the results of the game. He'd driven her away with his behaviour and even though he felt bad about that it was just a tiny piece of what he deserved.
"I'd like to thank everyone for taking part," Rose began. "There were certainly some mature audience answers this time," she chuckled and two of the baker's apprentices stood up and took bows to the delight of the rest of the room.
"Dickheads," Emmett grumbled to the amusement of the rest of his table.
"The results have been tallied," Rose announced as a hush came over the room. "In third place overall we have table number six on eighty four points." A loud cheer from that table – a group of accountants. "Second place goes to table number two on eighty seven points."
Ben gave Tyler a high five and held his fist out for Emmett to bump at the win. Angela rolled her eyes and accepted a fist bump too but Edward ignored the rest of the group and stared at the podium stony faced.
"And that leaves our winners," Rose began, the excitement in the room reaching a fever pitch. "Just three points ahead on ninety points is table number thirteen!"
"Fuck," Edward hissed as the group of librarians got to their feet and accepted the congratulations of the tables around them.
"What's the problem?" Tyler asked Edward, confused by his reaction.
Downing the rest of his drink Edward wiped the back of his hand across his lips and stood. "We bullied Bella out of exactly three answers," he sighed and pushed his chair back under the table.
"You don't know those are the three answers, mate," Emmett attempted to soothe but Edward was beyond hearing logic.
"Whatever, I'm done," Edward announced and made for the door.
As he reached it Rose tapped the microphone. "Our individual winner for tonight is Isabella Swan from table number two. Bella is one of our private guests and I have to say she kicked your asses," Rose chuckled. "She won by four clear points on ninety eight," she said but frowned when she looked towards the table and saw the two empty seats.
"Motherfucker," Edward griped as he made his way to his cabin.
The second report wasn't as vague as the first Mary Alice thought as she read over it. There was a lot more detail – detail she knew was a lie – but it still wasn't going to be enough to placate her mother. She knew that as she read over it.
"There isn't even any indication of her progress," Renee whined before lifting her dainty tea cup to her lips once more.
"I'll speak to someone," Mary Alice assured her mother, all the while wishing she'd had the foresight to contact Rosalie before the next report was due. "I might not have made myself very clear when I spoke to the therapist the first time," she conceded though it was anything but the truth.
"Any therapist worth his salt would know to include a projection of performance," Renee huffed. "How am I supposed to know if she's getting closer to being cured?"
Guessing that silence was by far the better option Mary Alice nodded and appeared to continue to read the report. Her mother's choice of language was abhorrent. What on earth was a projection of performance? Did she expect to get an itemised list of all the things 'wrong' with Isabella and watch them steadily marked off week by week?
And as for a cure...well, in Mary Alice' opinion Isabella wasn't ill. She was suffering, that was true, but it wasn't because of any illness.
Yes, she was going to have to contact Rose and see if a few more 'details' of recovery could be added to the next report.
"I'll call early our Monday evening. I should be able to catch the director then," she told her mother and waited for the obligatory grilling.
"I don't know why they refuse to speak to me," Renee whined and Mary Alice had to work hard not to show the amusement on her face.
Wanting to say 'because then you'd find out that Crossroads isn't quite what you thought it was, mother' Mary Alice told her mother the story she and her husband had cooked up instead. "You know why, mother. Think about your reputation if it ever came out that you sent your daughter to a sanatorium to be cured. You know its better that it's Jasper's name on her admittance papers."
Hoping she'd injected just enough protectiveness into her spiel Mary Alice held her breath while Renee considered the statement. She knew she'd successfully outsmarted her mother again when the older woman's eyes softened and she reached across the table for her daughter's hand.
"You're such a good girl," Renee simpered. "Always thinking of me. Why Isabella can't be more like you I'll never know."
Later that evening, as Mary Alice reclined on her husband chest in their bed, she once again questioned the wisdom of the choices she'd made.
"Sweetpea, you have to give it some time," Jasper consoled. "Rosalie chooses who to help carefully. She's smart and I trust her and you should too. If she didn't think she could help your sister she never would have taken her on. You know that. We've talked about that."
"I know," she whispered. "I just wish that place was here, at least on the same continent. I just wish I could see her, see that she's okay for myself."
"I know darlin," he crooned as he stroked her hair. "I'll call Tyler in the morning; see if he's got anything else to add."
"Thank you," Mary Alice whispered into the dark.
True to his word Jasper called Tyler the very next morning. It was midnight in Australia and Tyler explained that it wasn't too late to call because he was on a break from a rather amusing trivia night.
"Ah, trivia night at Crossroads," Jasper chuckled, "That was a pretty good night from what I remember. Let me guess, free drink and the last night of camp for the corporate pirates equals loud, lewd and plenty of cheating."
"You got it in one, mate," Tyler laughed. "I've got ten minutes, fifteen max, shoot," he told his friend, knowing it wasn't a social call.
"Mary Alice is worried," Jasper began. "The reports are great, but Renee is questioning the lack of detail. Any chance you can ramp it up, just a little?"
"Will do," Tyler agreed. "And tell Mary Alice that her sister is just fine. She's been to town almost every day this week and she's becoming more and more openly affectionate with Ed each day. There's something brewing, if their behaviour tonight is anything to go by, so I'll update you as soon as I know something. But for now everything is on track and on target."
"Something brewing?" Jasper asked hopefully. "Do you think she's nearly ready to go against her parents?"
"I don't think so, not yet," Tyler told his friend. "She's still very timid but I think pairing her with Ed was a good idea. They're good for each other. I can see that already. But they aren't exactly playing happy families tonight. They might have had a fight, I'm not sure."
"Are you ready to give me an actual name?" Jasper asked cautiously.
"Mate, you know I checked him out thoroughly before he even set foot here, just like I did with you," Tyler laughed. "He's not an axe murderer or anything."
"Yeah, I know you would have," Jasper sighed. "I'd just really like to know who this Ed guy is for myself, and for Mary Alice too I suppose."
"Rosie and I would never have let him anywhere near your sister in law if we didn't think he was worthy," Tyler chuckled. "And normally I wouldn't divulge that information, you know that. But in this case I think you might actually be able to help me, and Rosie agrees. He's not contacted home since he's been here. No contact with anyone outside the country either that I know of. He's made friends easily here so I have no idea what his issues were at home. He's nice too. Friendly. A bit shy but everyone who comes here is at the start. But, he's come here without a dollar in his pocket even though the family is loaded, and at his age you'd expect him to have either come with trust fund money or he'd have been earning on his own for a while. So why he's come with nothing is the big mystery, mate."
"I came with nothing," Jasper offered only to be cut off mid sentence.
"That was different," Tyler interjected. "You were so high you didn't know where you were. Plus, you were just eighteen. This guy is a grown man. It makes no sense to me. This guy was and is as clean as a whistle. No drugs and I'd be willing to bet that the first beer he had here was the first ever. He's been paired with an Aussie guy who's got a bit of a thing for raising money in some pretty interesting ways, so Ed's not missing out on anything. But there's something I'm either not seeing or some piece of info I'm missing."
Jasper, reeling from being reminded of his drug habit so long ago, was just as intrigued as Tyler was about this Ed. "And you have no clue why he's there? Was he sent, like Isabella?"
"Yeah, the parents made the booking. As far as I can tell the guy himself had nothing to do with the planning. The only thing in his file is that he had some sort of breakdown on the job. No specifics. No reports. No references. Nothing."
"Could it just be a holiday?" Jasper asked.
"Nope," Tyler clucked. "The mother is pretty specific when she calls for updates. Like Renee she wants to know if he's cured yet. Is he eating? Is he sleeping? All that sort of thing. He's been sent here for a reason but I have no idea what that might be."
"So what makes you, and Rosie I suppose, think that this guy is good for my sister in law?"
Tyler had to chuckle then. "Because they are so fuckin cute together. I don't need this guy's entire history to know that he's a good guy. Apart from tonight I've never seen either of them together without a smile on their faces. But I'll admit that without a bit more info I haven't a clue how to help him."
"He's American, right?" Jasper asked.
"Yeah. From near you, actually. So if I give you a name will you check him out for me? Just something about the family that isn't already available online. Maybe a bit about his job or his friends. His earning history and maybe, if it's possible, check out any trust funds or any other annuity he's got coming to him? Like I said, all his application said was that he had a bit of a breakdown on the job. Nothing else. Total mystery. So if you can give me anything else I'd appreciate it. Might help me work out better why he's here."
"Give me a name and I'll see what I can do," Jasper agreed.
"I don't want to say it out loud; these walls have ears and all that. So I'll text you as soon as we hang up. Look, I've gotta go back in, they're announcing the next round. As soon as I have news I'll call you, and you do the same. But for right now everything's travelling nicely here."
"Thanks, we appreciate it," Jasper assured his friend and ended the call. He called out for his wife and once she'd joined him in his home office he relayed the conversation to her.
"Did he say whether she was still wearing the ring?" Mary Alice asked after a few moments silence as she digested what she'd been told.
"I didn't ask and he didn't say."
Smiling at the thought of her sister being openly and publically affectionate towards this boy Ed. That was certainly new. Bella had never shown an interest in anyone before. Rose obviously knew what she was doing. Smiling to herself she leaned across the desk and kissed her husband square on his lips. "Remember to ask next time, please," she purred and left him to his work.
When Tyler's text message announced it presence Jasper jumped on his cell phone eagerly. The name he saw made him gasp in shock. "Well, wouldn't that just kick a guy right in the nuts," he muttered before deleting the incriminating text message.
There were quite a few sore heads at Crossroads post-trivia-night and none more sore than those in cabin number two.
Edward had hit his pillow within seconds of leaving the dining hall the night before, so his was your standard hangover. He was groggy, his brain was pounding up a storm and his mouth felt like a parrot had shat in it.
Emmett's hungover state, however, was something to behold.
With an open bar he'd gone to town. He'd downed what was probably close to his body weight in alcohol over the course of the night and when he'd been too drunk to lift another glass to his mouth one of the bakers apprentices had shoved a straw in his beer for him. Such helpful lads those bakers!
So he'd drunk some more. And then some more. He was loud, obnoxious and having a blast by the time Rose announced last drinks at two in the morning. The music had wrapped up at one thirty even though the dancing had ended half an hour before that. The DJ had long since packed up and the waiters and waitresses were dead on their feet after such a long night, but Emmett hadn't been done partying.
Still reeling from his less than satisfying interactions with Rose during the week he'd been out to not only drown his sorrows but to strangle, stab and bury them as well.
Emmett had been on a mission.
Only total sensory oblivion would take away the pain in his chest and his mind.
Ordering two 'travellers' from the bar Emmett had taken the two beer bottles out of the dining hall and was heading towards his cabin when the bakers had called out for him to join them on the playing field for an extension of the party.
Never one to drink alone when there was an audience to be enjoyed Emmett had readily agreed. He thought he'd found some likeminded companions when he got to the low-level bleachers that lined the far side of the field and spotted an esky brimming with more beer.
Introductions had been made and the traditional 'wadda ya do for a crust mate' give and take was had. Emmett might have been the oldest member of the group, but he was far and above the most irresponsible and he set about proving that with tales of his years of pranks and escapades.
The younger boys had everything Emmett was looking for. Beer, cigarettes because Bella had taken his, and an appreciation for all things funny and dangerous. Emmett had been their new best friend.
The apprentices were enthralled by his tales and being just as inebriated as he was settled in for a big one. They had more than enough beer under their belts before going to the field. Now they were merely 'topping up' their drunkenness in an effort to keep up with Emmett's extraordinary tolerance for alcohol.
At four, when the beer finally ran out, Emmett had gotten to his feet and announced that with no more social lubrication available he was going to head back to his cabin.
The four younger boys had looked at each other pointedly. Dave, the youngest of them all at just eighteen, had gotten to his feet and put a shaky arm around Emmett's shoulders. "We're out of grog but we've got something else to play with if you wanna stay," he'd slurred.
Matt, the oldest of the group at just twenty had lifted a small plastic bag from his hip pocket and swung it from his fingers. Emmett had never had much to do with drugs but in his already pliable state he'd shrugged and thought why the hell not.
He'd been asleep for just three hours when he heard Edward moving around in the cabin. If Edward's mouth felt like a bird had taken a dump in it then Emmett's felt like an elephant had.
His tongue felt swollen and his cheeks felt achy and raw from laughing and talking all night long. Even his teeth ached. He was used to waking up with the taste of stale beer on his lips but the musty tang of the weed residue made him want to gag.
His whole body ached, which was new too. An alcohol binge usually just made his head pound, but as he opened his eyes and stretched he felt the ache in every muscle and bone he possessed.
Weed really wasn't his thing he decided when he finally did manage to sit up. He raked a hand through his hair and closed his eyes to stave off the nausea as he stood and had to fling a hand out to steady himself as he did.
"Jesus," he muttered to himself when he was finally standing on his feet.
He shuffled out into the living room to find his 'living dead' roommate lying on the sofa clutching his own head.
"You alive?" he asked in a voice that sounded more like Darth Vader than his own.
"Just," was all Edward could manage.
"I don't know what your problem was last night," Emmett said through gritted teeth that barely held back the bile in his throat, "But you've got about twenty minutes to plan what to say before I get out of the shower. Use the time wisely," he suggested before he got his newborn giraffes legs under control and headed in to shower.
Edward waited until he heard the squeak of the shower door before making his move. As bad as he felt physically and mentally he couldn't hang around to be grilled by Emmett so he snatched up his cabin key, his wallet and his cell phone and hightailed it out into the bright midday sun.
When Bella answered the door he had to squint to make out her features. He'd rehearsed what he was going to say to her so many times that the words tumbled out of his mouth without him needing to think on them.
"I know who you are," he told her simply.
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