Chapter 6: Crazy

Edward's POV

Insanity. As a noun the definition of insanity is being seriously mentally ill.

I had come across plenty of people who had perfectly fit the definition of insanity throughout my long life. I had personally looked into the minds of people who were clinically insane.

I had never thought much about insanity until recently. More specifically the day my daughters miraculously returned to our lives. Which was only a short few days ago.

Never before had I questioned the possibility of vampires going crazy or insane until that day. I preferred to think that I was the one losing my grip on sanity because the only alternative would be that my daughter Nessie was the one with mental health issues. No. I'd much rather it be me then her.

I just couldn't shake what seemed to happen every time I looked into her mind. More specifically when animals happened to be around.

The first time, when Nessie was walking her dog, I could've sworn those two were actually communicating with each other. I must be going insane. Then in the cafeteria, when she supposedly heard rats of mice running around. I knew for a fact that there had been rodents at the school. I could smell them and hear their tiny heartbeats. So I knew that I wasn't imagining the animals. I must've been hallucinating the voices though.

Bella looked at me with worry. I hadn't been my usual self for the past few days and she couldn't understand. None of them could. No matter how hard I tried to pretend that I was okay they seemed to know that something was not right. Especially my extremely perceptive wife.

Bella has always been very perceptive of me. Even as a human. That trait in her only seemed to amplify with her transformation and sometimes I could swear it was a secondary power of hers.

"Edward what's wrong? You're really worrying me"

"Nothing"

"Edward"

"Nothing is wrong Bella I swear. I'm fine"

"Then why don't you look happy Edward? We've finally found our girls. Yes they don't remember us. Why? We don't know. The important thing is that we have them back and we're going to help them remember. But that doesn't mean you have to be so-honestly I don't even know how to describe you right now but it's scaring me"

"Bella please" I begged. "I'm fine I swear"

I couldn't tell her what was truly troubling me. I didn't want to worry her even more. She didn't need that. She didn't deserve that. None of my family did. No. This was something that I'd deal with on my own. They didn't need to worry about me defying all known logic as the first vampire to go insane. I would not put them through that.

Bella left. She was already upset with me. That much I could tell.

I tried to focus on something else. Anything else. I listened in on Alice's and Rosalie's plan to go on a shopping spree with Nessie. I could only hope that Nessie actually liked shopping if not I felt bad for my poor daughter.

Tomorrow they were planning on talking to Clara, my other daughter, as well. They had tried to do so earlier today but it did not go over very well. My daughter seemed to have issues that no one, not even Nessie, realized.

My daughters. My precious girls. We had lost them so many years ago. We searched and searched and searched for them to no avail. They had simply vanished without a trace. Someone took them but somehow managed to avoid us. We never gave up hope though.

That's why Bella didn't understand my reaction to finding them. I am happy we found them but now I'm wondering if I'm starting to develop some form of mental illness because of the whole talking animal thing.

It was not something I could talk to my wife or anyone about. I was worried enough as it was. I didn't need to worry the others. Especially her. This was my secret to bear and mine alone.

I sighed and headed out the door. I hadn't gone hunting in a few days. Maybe some blood would help me clear up my mind. It was already 9pm. An unusual time to go hunting. But I didn't care.

I stalked a small herd of deer. I pushed all thoughts of talking animals from my mind as I took one down and effortlessly sank my teeth into its flesh and drank the creature dry. I did that three more times with several other members of the herd.

I let the rest of the deer run away from me in fear. I had caught the scent of a more delicious animal. Mountain lion. Female mountain lion.

She was feasting on a deer with two cubs when I found her. I attacked her easily. The Cubs ran away in fear as their mother tried to fight me off unsuccessfully.

Suddenly the idea of these creatures being able to communicate at all seemed ridiculous. More ridiculous then usual. So why was I still worried about insanity?

As I approached the house I heard what had happened as they explained it to the others. Nessie had gotten hit by a car. Esme's nonetheless. Yet somehow she was able to get away for a time any by the time she had gotten to the hospital her injuries were already halfway healed.

That was extremely weird.

"But she is all human. They both are" Jacob commented.

"Exactly so how could this happen?" Bella asked.

"I don't know that's why I decided to take a sample of her blood. I told her I was going to run some tests but really I wanted to analyze her DNA. That's why I'm coming home so late.

I looked into Carlisle's mind and knew that he had already analyzed her DNA and was very worried about what he found. He was trying hard to keep me out though.

"Well what is it? What did you find?" Jacob asked.

"Her DNA has been tampered with. How? I don't know. Whoever altered her DNA made it more vampire like. That's why she is super strong and fast-"

"Wait altered DNA?" I questioned.

"Yes. Her DNA has been tampered with and drastically altered-"

"What does that mean?" Esme asked worriedly.

"I don't know" Carlisle says looking equally worried. "I just know it's altered. Her vampire side is much more pronounced then it was before. She still has human in her but there is something else in her genetic makeup that I just don't understand. Something that is neither vampire or human. Something that was inserted into her DNA binary code"

Carlisle was completely baffled, worried, and intrigued at the same time. I knew right then and there that he was going to spend countless hours studying my daughters severely altered DNA in hopes of finding out what happened to her.

...and if there was anyway to fix it and undo whatever was done to her.

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