22

While Bella and Edward sat vigil at her parents' bedside, everyone else, minus Tanya and Jacob, dug into the lore, as they referred to it, to find out any connection to the supposed writings Jacob talked about and any connection to the newborn armies that Jasper told her about. From what Bella gathered from their constant updates there wasn't any connection, no concrete proof that the writings Billy Black was convinced had been about Bella existed, and nothing that would lead to her being the end of the world. The only person who could give them any real insight was Billy Black himself.

"You need to hunt."

Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, she lobbed her head to the side, finding Rosalie standing in the doorway. Edward had gone for a walk, saying all the voices in his mind were too loud. She had tried to use her shield to block them, but she hadn't been able to tap into that part of her power, so he went for a short walk, just needing five minutes of peace he said.

"I'm fine," she replied, shifting her eyes back to her parents.

Rosalie snorted, but didn't say anything as she walked into the room and sat on the floor next to Bella. She leaned against the wall, bending her long legs in front of her, her arms coming to rest on her knees. Bella hadn't really spoken to the tall, curvy blond. Rosalie was standoffish, quiet, and maybe even snobby. Had they been human she would have been the kind of girl Bella stirred clear of, and the feeling wasn't much different as a vampire.

"The first time I met your father," Rosalie said, "He'd stopped me for speeding." She laughed, throwing Bella a smirk. "I was furious, of course, but to be fair, I was going one-ten in a fifty-five."

"Surprised he didn't arrest you," she quipped. "Not that he would have been able to, though, right?"

"I would have let him pretend," Rosalie laughed, the sound so different coming from her than one would have expected. "It would have been worth it just to see him face when I climbed out of the car, let him put the handcuffs on me."

Bella grimaced.

"Not in a kinky way! I only play with Emmett like that," Rosalie insisted with wide eyes. "Humans are fun to play with. They get real red in the face, stammer a lot, just overall nerves."

"Not so much fun for the human, though," she quipped. "Sorry. I was that red faced, stammering, nervous human and that's when I was around other humans."

Rosalie frowned. "Suppose I never thought of it that way."

"What did he say when he pulled you over?"

She smiled. "He ran through the usual questions: do you know how fast you were going, where are you heading, can I see your license and registration. When he saw my license, saw my last name, I guess it clicked with him that I was one of Carlisle's 'children'. He got this strange look on his face and he asked how old I was, what year I was in, where I planned to go to college," she added, rolling her eyes. "Of course I couldn't exactly tell him the truth, could I? He wouldn't have understood that I'd been through dozens of high schools and graduated from multiple universities, but he was. . . so sincere, so real, that I found myself telling him how I was eighteen, trying to decide between schools, blah, blah, blah. He listened so intently before handing me my license and registration back and told me to slow down and be safe. Be safe. I'd never had a father tell me to be safe before," she said, almost like she was saying it to herself. Rosalie shook her head, smiling as she looked back at Bella. "My point is Charlie was always kind to me, to my family, Bella. So many people look at us and are automatically . . . repulsed, yet fascinated at the same time."

"You didn't want to change me," Bella said, and when she frowned, she added, "I'm sorry, was that supposed to be a secret?"

"Of course not," Rosalie replied with the wave of her hand. "You're right, though. I didn't want to change you. My life was safe, comfortable, and normal. Well, as normal as it can be for a vampire. One might even say boring, and you brought danger and it scared me, Bella. It scared me because my family is everything to me. You don't know my story, and this isn't the time nor the place for me to share it, but I didn't have parents who would have cared if I lived or died. You did, and I can admit to being jealous, worried about what it would mean when the wolves found out. Even I didn't expect them to go as far as they did, though. Charlie and Renee, they were the innocence the wolves were supposed to be protecting from us, weren't they?"

Rosalie stood swiftly, elegantly and strode to the door, pausing and looking down at her. "For what it's worth, Bella, they were right to change you. The way he looks at you . . . they were right." She gave her a smile and looked back at Charlie and Renee. "It won't be long."

"Thanks, Rosalie."

Rosalie pushed open the door and stepped out just moments before Edward stepped back into the room, looking calmer, yet just as tense as when he left ten minutes ago. He walked over and knelt next to Bella, leaning his forehead against the top of her head.

"Can you hear it? Their hearts?"

Bella closed her eyes, honing her senses toward her parents. Though faint, she could hear their heart beating, slowly thudding against their ribs. "Yes."

"Normal, healthy human hearts are faster because they have blood pulsating through it. Theirs is slower because their blood is changing to venom, which slows them down until they stop completely. They should be awake very soon."

Bella nodded. "Stay with me?"

"I'm not going anywhere, sweetheart." Edward pressed his lips against the top of her head. "Ever."

—Stay—

It happened in the blink of an eye. One minute Charlie and Renee were laying perfectly still on the bed, and the next Charlie raised his hand in the air. Bella felt her stomach flop as she shifted onto her knees and crawled to the side of the bed, reaching out slowly and wrapping her fingers around her father's. His hand was firm, warm inside hers.

"Daddy," she said, and when he lobbed his head in her direction, she smiled. "Hey, Daddy."

Charlie's eyes darted around the room quickly before landing back on her. "Bella? Is it really you?"

"Yeah, Daddy, it's me," she whimpered, pushing herself up off the floor and crawling onto the bed. "Just stay calm, okay? Everything is all right, just . . . just stay calm."

Charlie swallowed thickly before he turned and looked at Renee, his eyes widening as he scrambled upward. Though, much like when Bella had woken up, he hadn't expected to move so quickly, and in the blink of an eye, he was pressed against headboard, his chest heaving and his eyes locked on Renee.

"Dad," Bella said, putting her hands up as she shifted to her feet. "Look at me, Daddy."

Charlie shifted his eyes to her. "Bella?"

She smiled. "Yeah, Daddy, it's me. It's Bella. Everything is okay."

Charlie reached out, placing his hand on the side of her face. "You look . . . On my God, you're so beautiful."

She laughed, covering his hand with hers. "You look pretty good yourself."

Charlie reached out, placing his other hand on the side of her face, his head tilting from one side to the other. "You . . . look like you. I didn't think you'd still look like you after they changed you."

Bella smiled, covering his hand with hers. "The changes are subtle, but they are there, but I'm still me, just like you're still you."

Charlie dropped his hands against the wall, his eyes shifting around the room, landing on Edward last. "I think I remember you."

"I'm Edward, sir."

"Carlisle's youngest boy," he murmured. "You were there. You took her away. You saved my Bella."

Edward smiled and nodded. "I did."

Charlie put his hands up in front of him as he stepped off the bed, turning around until he was facing Renee. "Why isn't she awake?"

"She'll wake up soon," Bella told him, stepping off the bed and slowly, ever so slowly placing her hand over his. "Daddy, do you remember what happened?"

Charlie's face crumbled as he dropped to his knees, his arms wrapping around himself. "I . . . I thought he came to make amends. He said he wanted to make peace, that's what he said, but . . ."

"Who?"

Charlie tilted his head back, looking her in the eyes. "Billy Black. He came to us in Arizona, said . . . said he realized how cruel he had been, expecting us to just let you die." He fell backward onto his butt, bending his knees in front of him. "I knew better than to trust him, but Billy . . . Billy used to be my best friend, and I wanted to believe him, so I invited him in and got him a drink. We talked about the weather, and fishing. And then he asked if I'd heard from you," Charlie murmured, shifting his eyes to her. "I lied and said no. I don't know why, but I lied to him. Mom came home from running errands, and I helped her with her groceries, and when I came back into the living room, Billy wasn't alone anymore."

"Who was with him?" she asked. "Harry? Quil Ateara?"

Charlie nodded. "And Sam Uley. I asked what they were doing there, and Billy laughed and said taking care of business. And then they attacked. Sam and Billy came for me, while Ouil and Harry went for Mom. I tried to fight, Bella, but. . ."

"What happened next?" Edward asked, moving over and settling on the bed next to Bella. "How'd you end up in La Push?"

"Is that where they took us?" Charlie asked, shaking his head. "I remember passing out, and when I came to, we were in the basement. Mom was bound to the chair, and I was on the floor."

"Was Billy there? In the house when you came to?" Bella asked.

Charlie nodded. "Said . . . He said I started a war, but he was going to finish it. And he said I should have known better than to mess with fate the way I did, that I should have just let you die. Can you believe that? He thinks it would have been better if you died, Bella!"

"So I've heard," she groused, frowning. "What happened next?"

"Billy left, and Sam, Paul Lahote, and Jared Cameron came down, they wanted to know where you were, how to find you, but we didn't tell them anything. We didn't, Bella!"

"I believe you." Bella reached out and placed her hand on his. "They hurt you."

Charlie nodded. "Guess they thought we deserved it, you know, for wanting you to live."

She sighed, shaking her head. "Did you see Billy again? Or Harry or Quil?"

"No," he said, darkly. "I heard Sam talking to them, though. On the phone. Said something about letting them know when everyone was ready. I didn't understand it, to be honest."

"I'm sorry, Daddy."

"I'm not." Charlie brought his hands up, cupping her face. "Seeing you again, happy and healthy . . ." He smiled. "Worth all of it, baby girl."

"You're not mad that I changed you?"

But before Charlie could respond, Renee screamed, and shot out of the bed, slamming against the wall on the far side of the room. Her eyes were wide, full of fear, her body rigid and tense. Bella stood up, her hands in front of her, but before she could say anything to her mother, or try to calm her down, Renee turned and leapt through window, sending glass flying outward.

Edward and Bella shared a look before they sprinted out of the bedroom, through the living room, ignoring the questions coming at them from every direction as Bella tore the door off the hinges, and chased after her mother, hoping they would be able to stop her before she did something she would regret.

Thank you for all the AMAZING reviews! Things are getting a little tense.