Chapter Fifty Seven

Bella

I had fallen asleep again and when I woke up I thought maybe the strangers had been in a dream, that I would open my eyes and find myself back with Kat and baby in the cellar waiting for food and possibly another beating but then I felt the ground beneath me was soft not hard and damp and the air smelled clean and fresh, so it hadn't been a dream after all. I was terrified, when he found me would he think I was responsible for our being taken? If he did I could expect a severe beating, he would be so angry at me for running away from home. The it hit me, I couldn't feel baby in my arms, they were laying at my sides and I sat up afraid of what I might see.

I was lying on a bed, a real bed and I was alone, there was no sign of baby although I looked round the room very carefully. I'd lost her, my sister, he had trusted me to look after my new sister and I had lost her, allowed these strangers to take her from me. I got up very cautiously, maybe I could escape from here while the stranger was gone. I could get back to the cellar and explain that we had been taken against our will, bring him back here and then he wouldn't hurt me, he might even love me for being such a good obedient daughter. I had no idea where I was or how to get back but I would find a way, I had to before he found me.

I had almost reached the door moving on tip toe when the other door opened and the stranger came out smiling at me,

"How do you feel now Bella? Better after having some sleep?"

I looked at the door but I knew I would never make it ahead of him so instead I turned and attacked although I knew I wasn't going to be as strong as he was, all I had was surprise on my side. I flew at the stranger biting and scratching but his skin was too hard, I couldn't hurt him even when I tried to punch and kick him so I collapsed onto the floor crying in my frustration and fear of what the stranger might do and what he would do when he found me here alone without Kat or Aggie. The stranger crouched down and I flinched but the hand he raised was only to tuck my hair behind my ear so he could look into my face. I lowered my eyes hoping he would see I was contrite. I was sure if this stranger hit me it would hurt more than when he had hit me.

"I'm sorry Bella, don't worry, the baby will be well looked after I promise you but she wasn't yours and I can't cope with anything else right now. I am so sorry but I knew you wouldn't hand her over willingly."

"He's going to kill me for letting you take her. He'll find me and he'll kill us both. Why don't you just let me go home. Take my sisters and go home before he finds out we're gone. You have no idea how angry he will be, or how he will punish us for leaving."

The stranger touched my cheek with the back of his hand and I cringed away which seemed to hurt him but did he really think I was going to let myself think for even one moment that he wouldn't come through that door any second and beat me to a pulp for what had happened? I knew much better than that.

The stranger stayed where he was and I noticed how clean he was, not like him at all, then I looked at my hands which were dirty, the nails either broken or grazed, the broken ones bent at a strange angle which meant I couldn't use them. I knew they had mended wrong but all I had was a couple of drinking straws and a strip of rag to bind them, they hurt so much, and the straws had bent but he hadn't cared about my pain and I didn't believe for one second this stranger did either.

I learned to trust no one any more, not even Kat since she tried to hurt baby and I hated it that she blamed baby for losing daddy's love. Why could she not see that he would always be trying to replace us unless we could make him happy with our behavior. He supplied us with all we needed to survive and if we could make him happy, proud of us, then we would get nicer things, a better place to live but while we disappointed him we didn't deserve any better and now we would never have anything nice, we may not even have our lives. We had betrayed him by allowing ourselves to be taken from home. While I thought these things something deep inside me tried to make itself heard but I didn't want to hear it, if I did then I might find myself worse off than I was now, I was too afraid to listen.

Jasper

I could feel Bella's terror but there was a sadness there too which I didn't understand. How could she be sad that we had rescued her and the other two?

"Why are you sad?"

She didn't answer just bit her lip apprehensively and I could smell the thin trickle of blood that ran down her chin.

"Why can't you tell me Bella? I can help."

For the first time she raised her head and I saw anger in her eyes,

"You ruined everything. When he finds us he's going to kill us for being wicked. All we had to do was make him happy, be really good, and he would have loved us. He wanted to love us but we were so bad he couldn't and now its too late, you ruined everything."

She really believed it was her fault she was in this state, that she had been so wicked no one could love her. How was I going to get through to her? I couldn't lose her again, I just couldn't. I decided to lessen her terror enough that I could talk to her without making her numb with it.

As I worked my magic I saw her eyes clear a little and decided to try winning her trust by offering her food and drink so I went to the table and opened the bag taking out a can of soda and a sandwich still sealed in its packet and coming back I offered them to her.

"You can see they are still sealed, they are safe to eat."

She looked at them in my outstretched hands desperate to believe me so I took away a little more of her fear and she took them slowly unwrapping the sandwich and smelling it,

"Ham salad, not your favorite but I hope you like it."

She unwrapped it looking at me puzzled,

"How did you know?"

"That it's not your favorite? Because I used to make your favorite for you, cream cheese, salad and pastrami on rye."

She bit into the sandwich uncaring of the Mayo that trickled down her chin so I leaned in and wiped it away, leaving a trail of cleaner skin. She didn't flinch away because I was controlling her emotions. I hated doing it to my mate but I didn't know any other way to get close enough to get through to her.

When she finished eating she popped the soda and took a small sip smiling as she recognized the taste,

"My favorite."

I smiled,

"Sure is, after coffee that is, Dr Pepper."

"Coffee? Its been so long since I tasted that, he wouldn't allow us anything hot, we had to earn that but I haven't discovered how to do that yet."

"Would you like some coffee?"

She looked tempted then shook her head decisively,

"No, I have to earn it, that's a reward but I don't think I'll be getting any rewards, not now when I lost Aggie."

"Aggie?"

"My little sister. I was in charge of her and I lost her. He's going to be so angry."

She shivered and rubbed her stomach wincing. Feeling my anger building up once more I shut it out, if I allowed myself to feel anything like that I would never be able to keep her calm enough to talk and I had to find a way to keep her talking until she remembered her life before the kidnap.