AN: Wow wow wow, thank you for those reviews! Shoutout to guest reviewer Heron for such in-depth reviews, I also look forward to reading your analysis of my latest post! Just a shorter chapter for you this time. The week ahead is looking pretty busy so I preferred to get this posted for now in the hopes of continuing next weekend.

Though I am curious, how do we feel about adding more POV's? Specifically Edward's? Or should I stick to Bella and Carlisle? Let me know what you think! Happy reading!

Carlisle's POV

Before we could react to his message, the others burst through the door; I hastily put my phone into my back pocket. I wanted a moment to process what Edward's arrival would mean for the family before I spoke to them about it. Though I suspected if Alice hadn't seen his decision yet she would know soon enough. She had been trying to keep tabs on him ever since he had left Ithaca the previous fall. Much to her disappointment, his movements had often been too impulsive for her to have any kind of reliable prescience, leaving her more or less in the dark when it came to her drifting brother.

"Esme!" It was Alice's panicked voice that rang out now. She raced over and wrapped her arms around her adoptive mother, her eyes grief-stricken. I took a small step back but kept Esme's hand in mine, unwilling to break the contact just yet. Emmett and Rosalie were not far behind, slipping into the room and casting uneasy glances in Esme's direction. Jasper stood further back. I knew it was impossible for a vampire to feel fatigued but that was the only way to describe how Jasper looked then, worn down. The emotional atmosphere this week had been anything but peaceful and I found my concern for him growing. He met my eyes from across the room and gave a small grimace, giving a slight shake of the head to try and allay my concerns.

Alice pulled back from Esme's embrace and released a flurry of words, "I'm so sorry! I don't know what happened! I didn't see anything until it was too late. All day I had the same vision of the guard arriving and then leaving minutes later with no problems arising." She had no need to breathe and so no need to pause in her stream of consciousness, "And then a new vision began to play before my eyes and before I even reached the end you had begun to scream. I could feel Emmett struggling to restrain himself next to me. It didn't help that the guard members next to us looked eager for a fight."

"They would have gotten one, too, if Jasper hadn't had me feeling so out of it. Christ, Jazz. For a second there I thought I might actually fall asleep." Emmett rolled his eyes.

"Or maybe if I had seen something sooner we could have-"

"Alice- had you seen what was coming you would have stayed put." Esme cut in. "You all did exactly as Carlisle asked. Had any of you intervened I'm not sure we would all be standing here to talk about it."

I nodded my agreement, "Esme's right, and I'm proud of all of you. I know it can't have been easy, it certainly wasn't for me. Jasper- thank you."

Esme gave Jasper an appreciative smile, though it just as quickly melted into a discouraged frown as she continued, "But I must apologize to you all, my rash actions could have placed us all in danger. I'm not sure what happened. I would never have imagined challenging Jane in such a way. But when I saw her get closer to Bella it was as though I was no longer myself. Something inside me cracked and I just couldn't bear it. The instinct to protect her in that moment was almost as strong as the pull of blood itself. Before I realized what was happening I had protested Jane's orders and then, well, you know."

Turning my head in Esme's direction I sought to reassure her, baffled that she could fear our disapproval. "You love her as your own daughter, it was only natural for you to want to protect Bella. We would never hold such a thing against you, love." I squeezed her hand as the others voiced their agreement.

The sound of Bella's cries had quieted into pained moans since the guard's departure. But now she cried out once more and we all turned to watch her, her chest seeming to rise into the air as though pulled up by an invisible cord. Then she collapsed back down and her eyes squeezed shut even harder than they already were. It looked as though she was trying to flinch away from the invisible source of the pain. Rosalie ducked out of the room, an uncomfortable look flickering across her perfect features as she gave Bella one last glance. Emmett followed wordlessly behind her.

"Please, somebody, please. I can't-" Bella's words became unintelligible beneath the tearless sobs.

Esme took a slow step towards her and spoke to us without taking her eyes from Bella's trembling form, "If it is alright with everyone, I think I'd like a moment to sit with Bella."

Alice looked as though she wanted to object but then joined Jasper in the hallway. I knew she would not go far, though. Finally, I turned and kissed Esme lightly on her forehead. While I ached to be next to her, I knew she needed time to process what had happened. And she would not be leaving Bella's side anytime soon. Instead I retired to the study, confident that she would seek me out when she was ready. A gust of air greeted me as I opened the door, carrying the scent of ink and musty book pages. I sat down behind the antique cherry desk and placed my phone on the polished surface. With a couple of clicks the message from Edward stared back at me once more. He was on his way.

A wave of relief flooded through me. And apprehension. More apprehension than I was willing to admit. For what was I to say to him when he arrived? On the one hand I wanted to comfort and reassure him, tell him as many times as necessary that all would be well. But I had not forgotten what Bella had shared with us, the cutting lies he had fed her before he left. I could not suppress the disappointment and chagrin I had felt ever since learning what he had said to her in the forest that day. Did that mean I should admonish him? The thought left me with a fair share of misgivings. In all of our time together I had never gone beyond a mild reprimand, a subtle nudge in the right direction. But he had never caused such grievous pain to someone we both loved. Even his occasional spats with Rosalie had never come close to the destruction that his leaving wrecked on Bella. And I hated to even think it, but it was not difficult to imagine that had Edward not insisted on leaving, had I not accepted his pleas to do so, Bella would still be human. He would be devastated when he learned that I had been forced to change his mate. And I was afraid that a reproach from me would only serve to cause him more pain.

But then, isn't that what caused this mess: my inability to deny Edward what he so ardently demanded? My misplaced need to protect my son at the cost of those around him? Had my need to shield Edward from the inevitable pain of either changing or losing his mate blinded me to the possibility of Bella's own suffering? The shame that flooded through me was palpable, filling the room like a noxious gas. I had failed her and I had failed Edward. And now Bella was now in my care. My own venom flowed through her veins. More than that, Esme and I loved her as though she were our own daughter. And had anybody else besides Edward spoken to her the way he had, I would not hesitate to say something. I owed it to Bella.