I'm sorry these chapters are so short, but they just seem to end this way. Hopefully they'll get longer! This chapter is much less intense.
EsPOV
Carlisle took Seth into his office to examine him for major injuries. Everyone else was searching the house and the area for clues as to where they had taken Sydney. I was slowly straightening things up in the living room. I felt numb. I felt so empty without Sydney here.
I felt terrible that we hadn't gotten here in time to help her. We should have known that it wasn't safe yet! I should have been more careful.
"It's not your fault." Edward put a hand on my shoulder. "This was inevitable. No matter what had happened, they would have found a way to get her."
"But, I'm her mother." I sobbed quietly. "I should be able to protect her and I wasn't here."
"Esme, none of this has to do with your capability as a mother. You are an extraordinary mother to Sydney and to all of us. Nothing could change that. We're going to find her. Everything will be alright."
He embraced me and I returned it. I took in a breathe and sighed again.
"Thank you, Edward." I said.
"You're welcome, Esme."
He helped me finish with the living room and cleaning up the mess. I went back upstairs to the bedroom Carlisle and I shared. I took a shower and got dressed in something more comfortable.
As I looked through my dresser I moved a t-shirt aside and found a box in the back of the drawer. I finished dressing and opened up the box.
I opened it up and found videotapes. I looked at the labels and they were all events of the past sixteen years, most of them centering around Sydney. Fifteen Christmas tapes, Halloween tapes, birthday tapes, and tapes from various vacations and activities.
I decided to sit down and watch a few of them. There was a tape of Sydney singing the alphabet song and the days of the week and months of the year. There was a video of her learning how to ride a bike with Carlisle. There was a tape of the Summer we went to Isle Esme and she learned how to swim. I watched all of the videos of her opening Christmas presents and Birthday presents.
There was a tape of her when she was about twelve and she and her sisters decided to put on a fashion show.
"Emmett, no!" She commanded. "One foot in front of the other, like this."
I laughed as I watched Sydney teach Emmett how to walk properly, especially after she had coaxed him into letting her do is makeup. There was one of the biggest men you had probably ever seen with red lips, pink eyeshadow, and a sparkly blue feather boa with flower clips in his hair.
"You look ridiculous!" Sydney laughed. She fell back into a fit of giggles as Emmett tried to mimic her walk.
"Mom, are you getting all of this?" She turned toward the camera.
"Yes!" I heard myself. "Let me get a close up of that makeup, Emmett."
Emmett did his best seductive face into the camera lens.
"Tell Dad that when he gets home, he's next!" She smiled.
"He might take more convincing than Emmett did." I laughed.
"What are you doing?" Carlisle walked into the bedroom and sat next to me on the bed.
" I just found this old videos and decided to watch them." I said, leaning into him.
"I remember that." He smiled as we watched a younger Sydney paint Emmett's nails.
There was another video of her when she was about fourteen. She had put about five pieces of bubble gum in her mouth and was blowing huge bubbles.
"Don't swallow that, or it'll stop up your intestines." Rosalie warned.
"Urban myth." Carlisle corrected. "It digests just like any other food."
"Look!" Sydney said. She began blowing a bubble that grew and grew until finally it popped and all of the gum covered her face.
I could feel the melancholy again and I sighed.
"We'll find her." Carlisle whispered. "I promise."