Chapter Eleven: Heartache

Madness. That's all he felt inside. Chaotic, psychotic, wild madness. The connection between heart and soul was severed carnage. He felt like lead, heavy and thick, weighted by gravity and misery. Swallowed by assumptions, Eden lived within the belly of prejudice and would never be digested. To be digested meant one day released as waste, accepted, but not well liked. She wouldn't even be granted that; She was below even feces to these people. Alec couldn't understand how she didn't see and comprehend that. He glanced at her as she stared beyond the window, grayness staring back.

"You're wrong."

Alec snapped his neck as he turned to face her, "Pardon?"

"About what they think of me," Eden said. She didn't look at him, but rather drawled quietly to herself, "You're wrong."

He couldn't believe what she was saying, how she could even begin to run with such a notion. Had she not been in the same room? Had she not heard every word?

"I did, but you don't understand them the way I do."

"Oh, yes, pardon my insolence," Alec scoffed, "Your life most certainly has not been confined to the four walls beneath our feet, always an invisible presence, but never acknowledged or even so much as spared a shred of humanity."

She smiled softly, bowing her head as she moved away from the window. He watched her, his emotion bubbling beneath a cool demeanor. When Eden looked up, however, his body felt like ice. Her glossy eyes twinkled in the twilight sunset that glimmered into the room from the west, thick blood drops trickled down her cheeks, but she smiled and she laughed.

"Yes. My life has been no more satisfying than a bottle of wine collecting dust below the floorboards, I was never given a chance, and I may never be accepted into my own family, but if one thing is true, it's that they see my value. I'm dangerous and I wouldn't be granted that without consideration of what I'm worth. They don't like me, they don't trust me, but don't think for one second that they think I'm lower than the shit in the woods. If they did, I would be dead right now. Maybe they regret not getting rid of me when they had the chance, but I'm here now and they know it. They feel it. They fear it…" she trailed off, then finally said, defeated, "They fear me."

"As they should." Alec murmured, moving towards her.

She stepped back.

"I beg of you, an inquiry," Alec said. Eden inclined her head, so he went on. "How did you fight the immortal you crossed in the woods? You've had no training. It's unheard of that such a young immortal could take on an elder in battle, let alone execute them."

She blinked, pausing for a moment. "I'm not sure. I just… did."

"Did what?" he asked.

"I just knew what he was going to do. I could hear his thoughts and I saw his plan of action before he even moved. I reacted. It was like breathing."

Alec nodded. Silence fell between them. A moment passed, then Alec left the room. Eden sighed, taking a seat back at the window. She watched him jog into the rain before shooting off into the woods. Her heart felt heavy, like a wet towel. Alec was sunlight. He was air, the sky, the wind, he was to her what the earth is to the moon. Like a gravitational pull, it was natural. Effortless. They were connected and always near, but at that moment, she had never felt further from him.

It was half past eight when Bella finally made her way to the door. Her chest felt heavy and she knew Edward would be pissed if he knew what she was doing, but this was her daughter. She could handle her on her own. She raised her fist to knock, but stopped short. She pulled her lip between her teeth and hugged her arms around her torso.

Bella never thought of what kind of mother she would be. She never expected to find love with a vampire, but nonetheless, motherhood wasn't what she expected and she wasn't sure how to be a mom to anyone other than Renesmee. Eden had been forgotten, a distant memory, a fleeting dream; Now, she wasn't. Bella didn't even feel that connection to Eden, though she knew she felt it when Eden was born. Perhaps time weathered even that. What she was about to ask of her is not what a good mother should. Then again, none of her choices were that of a good mother and she was fully aware of that fact. She couldn't take it anymore.

She knocked.

Eden answered the door immediately, her beautiful face stealing Bella's breath for a moment. Her resemblance to Edward wasn't apparent, but subtle and captivating. Eden was stoic, unaware. She had sensed her mother, but she hadn't heard her thoughts. She hadn't tried to hear her thoughts. Since the incident with Renesmee, she was trying to stay out of people's heads.

"May I come in?"

Silence. The door opened wider.

"Thank you."

Bella sat down. She heard the door close, the soft click of the knob locking in place. Eden sat in front of her and stared.

"How are you?"

"Fine."

"Good, good. Um… Ren- Ness is fine." Bella stuttered, turning her head away from Eden's penetrating gaze. She had to get this off her chest, so she said, "I want it to stay that way."

Eden looked at her inquisitively, brows furrowed. She leaned forward, closer, and put her hands together, "I don't understand."

"I'm asking that you stay away from Renesmee. You're a danger to her and we all think that it would be better this way. She has a whole life ahead of her, with Jacob and school and all. I know you care about her, so I'm sure you understand and realize that this is what's best. If you just leave her alone, I mean. We're all getting used to this situation and you seem to be prone to... incidents. Very dangerous incidents. You can imagine how scary that can be for us, can't you?"

Eden's eyes flashed, before shifting to the floor. She said nothing. Bella stood, prepared to say more, but Eden was suddenly across the room. The door opened, smacking against the wall with a thud.

"I just want to protect-"

Eden remained a statue beside the door stiffly, with tension rolling off of her in waves. "I understand, Isabella. I will keep my distance from Renesmee, but I feel it's best if you keep your distance from me… seeing as I'm a danger."

"Are you threatening me?" Bella gasped, irritated and unsure all at once.

Crimson clashed with gold as Eden appeared in her face. Eden was taller than her by a mere two inches, but her presence was dwarfing. Intimidation filled Bella, swallowing her immortal instinct.

"If I was, you would know," Eden growled, her voice rumbling and low. "I'm asking you to leave."

Bella darted out of the room, straight to Edward. He heard her coming and after hearing the situation, rage filled him. He bolted to Eden's room and threw open the door, ready to finally give that arrogant child the beating she deserved. He came face to face with an empty room. A breeze danced with the curtain, drawing his attention to the open window. The moonlight danced over a retreating shadow, a flicker in the night. Edward only hoped she stayed gone.

"Alec."

"You found me."

Eden smiled, "You're not hard to find."

Alec stood from the rock he'd taken residence on and approached her. His arms closed around her. They shared an embrace, exchanging heartache. She need not even tell him what happened once he had left, he had felt it when her heart broke, hardened, and broke again. To menace her mother scorched her throat, leaving her stomach churning bile and regret. To truly lose her sister… she had no words. Eden still didn't believe what Alec had said about her worth to them, they wouldn't treat her the way that they do. She's a stranger to them, as much as they are strangers to her, but that wasn't ever going to change. She was so sure it made her head hurt. She nuzzled in to Alec, needing his support, his comfort, his love.

"I'll take you away from here." Alec said, "Somewhere far away, where no one can find us."

"Where would you find a place like that?" Eden asked as she withdrew from him. A heavy sigh passed her parted lips, "Those places only exist in fairy tales."

"I don't know yet," he admitted. He took her hand and held it to his chest. She almost felt the faint beating of his heart, "Rest assured, dove, we'll find it together."

She stepped closer.