Speak Now Or Forever Hold Your Peace

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to Stephanie Meyer.

A/N-thank you for the awesome reviews. Nikki :)

Part Eight

Now that Charlie had regained consciousness he had to undergo several tests to determine just how serious his injuries were. These all took place over a week and by the end of the seven days he was exhausted and extremely crabby, although it was only to Billy he showed his true feelings; to Bella and the others he pretended he was optimistic about his recovery, even though he was far from it. There was also the police investigation to be dealt with. He had already been interviewed by the officer who was covering the case, and he found it hard to be on the other end of an interrogation. Alcohol had been found in his bloodstream, which would have put him over the limit, both to attend the scene of the crime alone and deal with the suspects. Charlie knew that this was probably going to end his career, even if his injuries had not done so anyway. With all this weighing on his mind, he felt gloomy. The only highlight had been Bella's return.

He wanted to be alone when he received the verdict on his future prospects of making a full recovery, but Billy was insistent that he be there too. He, more than anyone, knew how hard it was to hear bad news. He remembered the day clearly when he had been told he was going to be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. It had been hard to take on top of losing his wife. So Charlie caved in, secretly relieved that his best friend was going to be there. Billy had been a calming presence over the last few days. Keeping up the happy act for Bella and the others had begun to wear Charlie down, but with Billy he could just be himself.

The surgeon came into Charlie's private room and took a chair next to his bed. Charlie could tell by the look on the other man's face that it wasn't good news. "Would you like me to be blunt, Chief Swan?" He asked.

"Aren't you always, Tom." Charlie said wryly. He had known Tom for a long time. In his line of work he was a frequent visitor to the hospital and knew most of the top doctors personally.

"I always find it best." Tom adjusted his reading glasses and looked at Charlie's notes. "I'm sorry but it doesn't look good. Some vertebra along your spine have been seriously damaged, impacting on the nerves that run alongside. Even though we have established that you have feeling in your legs, walking again will be somewhat difficult for you. I am not saying you won't be able to for short bursts, but forcing it will only cause more damage. Your spine will not be able to support it and you would be in considerable pain."

Charlie's face paled as he ran a hand over his face. His eyes became moist as he tried to take in the import of what Tom had just told him. He was going to be confined to a wheelchair for most of the time, just like Billy. He glanced to the side and saw the look of sympathy on his friend's face. Charlie had to look away again. It was all too much. This wasn't supposed to happen. It couldn't! He wouldn't believe that he was going to be an invalid for the rest of his life.

"There has to be something you can do." Charlie snapped. "The tests must be wrong."

"I am sorry but they are quite correct. It is a hard thing to hear, but with the right help and..." Tom stopped speaking when he saw the livid expression on Charlie's face.

"Would you leave us alone for a few minutes?" Billy asked Tom politely.

Tom nodded. Perhaps talking to his friend who had lived with a wheelchair for a good few years would help. He stood up and quietly left the two men alone.

"Don't you dare, Billy?" Charlie warned him, his face red with anger and self pity.

"I will dare." Billy ignored Charlie's tone and pushed forward.

"I will not be a cripple for the rest of my life." Charlie roared, his fists clenching.

"Is that how you see me?" Billy yelled back at him. "Is it?"

"It's different for you." Charlie rubbed his hand over his eyes again to hide the angry tears that were threatening to spill down his cheeks.

"It is not different for me. You will adjust. We are all here to help you."

"I don't want help. I want to be able to walk out of here on my own two legs. I have feeling in them. I will walk again." Charlie insisted.

"Oh you will walk on and off I am sure of that. But you heard Tom, pushing yourself too hard could do irreversible damage. Don't be a stubborn old fool." Billy chided him.

"How am I supposed to climb the stairs? I live in a two storey house for god's sake." Charlie felt despair wash over him. This couldn't be happening. It was too surreal.

"Sell the damn house." Billy stated bluntly.

"Never, that's my home." Charlie said heatedly.

"It's just bricks and mortar. That place hasn't been a home since your wife walked out on you. It's a museum to the past. There are plenty of nice ground floor apartments around here that would suit you fine." Billy was being practical.

"Easy for you to say. You don't have to leave your home." Charlie muttered darkly.

"Actually I do." Billy revealed.

"What?" Charlie raised his eyebrows in surprise at this statement.

"I will be moving out in the next few weeks. I will be leaving the house for Rachel and Paul. It is becoming too crowded with Jake back, so he and I are scouting around for another smaller place for the two of us." Billy saw his words sink in as Charlie's face returned to it's normal color and he calmed down a little.

"But that is your home."

"That stopped being a home when Sarah died." Billy said pointedly. "It's time for a change old man. You know it and I know it." He said firmly.

Bella and Renee sat in the canteen as they absorbed the news about Charlie. Billy had come to tell them personally. He said that Charlie was still feeling a little fragile and was digesting the news himself, so he would just like to ask them to give him a while until he saw them. Bella and Renee could do nothing but agree to Charlie's request. Billy left them again and returned to keep an eye on his friend.

"I was hoping that it wouldn't come to this." Renee said sadly as she sipped her cup of coffee.

"Me too." Bella agreed. "But I'll deal with it."

"You are taking on a lot, baby girl." Renee was worried. She reached across and took Bella's hand. "Are you sure you'll cope?"

"Jake does." Bella replied firmly. "I will too. The most important thing is getting dad home and settled."

"He won't be able to live in that house, Bella." Renee pointed out.

"I know." Bella leaned down and pulled out some brochures from her shoulder bag and passed them to Renee.

"What are these?"

"They list specialist apartments that have disabled access. They are already fitted out with everything we need. Jake and I went to look at them a couple of days ago. They are still close by so dad won't be leaving the place he loves." Bella saw Renee's eyes widen in surprise.

"You really have thought about this, haven't you?" She said admiringly.

"Yes. This is what I want to do." Bella assured her. "It is not something I am doing on a whim. Jake and Billy are moving too."

"Yes, Billy did say something about that." Renee took another sip of her coffee. "I am proud of you, baby girl."

"Thank you." Bella smiled in response. "I feel proud too."

With all the arrangements that needed to be made for Charlie's care and for his subsequent return home, Bella was extremely busy sorting the house out. With Jake's help and Billy's invaluable advice they turned the main living room into a temporary bedroom for Charlie. Jacob offered to stay with Bella the first week to help with Charlie's care and show her the ropes so to speak. She was extremely grateful. Jacob was an expert at looking after Billy and she knew his help would make the transition so much easier on all of them.

Renee decided to hang around for another few weeks to make certain that Charlie was settled in and that Bella was coping. Bella wondered why her stepfather, Phil, had not made an appearance in all the time that her mother had been in Forks. When she pressed Renee on the subject she closed the conversation down. Bella wondered whether everything was alright in her mother's second marriage. But she agreed to back off when she saw how flustered Renee was getting.

With all the stuff that she had to deal with, contacting Edward had been the last thing on Bella's mind, but she knew that she couldn't put it off any longer. She wanted that part of her life over with before her dad came back home. So, with trepidation, she fired off an e-mail to him and arranged to meet in Seattle. Edward's reply was prompt, almost as if he had been expecting her to write. Bella read through his flowery words and sighed. It was not going to be easy telling him that this meeting would be their last.

It was a nice evening, cool and cloudy, but comfortable enough to sit outside on the porch swing without a jacket. Jacob was sitting next to her, his arm across the back of the swing sweat, his fingers playing with Bella's hair. "I contacted Edward." She confessed suddenly.

Jacob turned to look at her. He was wondering what she was going to do about Cullen. "Did he accept that it was over?"

"I'm meeting him in Seattle next week. I owe it to him to tell him face to face." Bella waited for Jacob to talk her out of it, but to her surprise he didn't.

"I want to come with you, Bells. I won't intrude on your talk, but for my own peace of mind, I want to just be there. Please?" He held his breath, waiting for her to protest.

Bella frowned and studied him carefully. "If you come, then you wait outside. You let me handle Edward alone?"

"I promise. I know that you have to do this, for closure." Jacob assured her.

"Okay, then you can come, and thanks." Bella smiled at him as he continued to play with her hair.

"What are best friends for?" He flashed her his sunny smile, making Bella laugh. She felt like a heavy weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She leaned against him as they both stared out into the night.

A/N-thanks for reading!