I own nothing, all recognizable characters and settings belong to Stephenie Meyer. As all song lyrics are owned by the artist listed. I only own any original characters found within this story.

Chapter 1:

Please Don't Believe Me

There's footsteps in the bedroom where someone shouldn't be Somebody whispers I'll hurt you if you tell She keeps the secret and blames it on herself, her smile is just a shell

Please Don't Believe me

Terry Sue Crawford Version

A six year old little girl sat huddled on a ratty dirt caked pink blanket inside a darkened closet; her heart racing with every slam of the cupboards and the breaking of glass. A silence filled the cold damp home only to soon be filled with heavy boot clad feet that stomped up the stairs, causing her stomach to tighten in fear and her breathing to slowly start to hyperventilate as each thud from those steps drew closer. Her eyes welled with tears at what she knew was coming.

This was something she was use to happening; something that came every day when he was home. Her body winced in pain from its soreness as she pushed her tiny body tighter into the corner; her bruises never had time to heal, because the punishments never relented.

The harsh steps had arrived, casting a shadow to seep through the small crack between the doors. In a flash the doors whipped wide open, there he stood, a tall dark skinned man. Her Daddy. The look of anger painted on his face as his dark brown eyes bore down onto his frail daughter.

She could feel her little body shaking so hard, as her dull peridot eyes darted to his clenched fists. She knew there was no reason to fight or run anymore; he would catch her and fleeing made it worse if she tried. It was a lesson learned long ago. She didn't even know why she hid from him. What was the point, he always found her. Yet she always hid in her cubby hole hoping maybe one day those walls would keep her safe; that somehow the out of sight out of mind would play true. As much as she wanted that, a part of her believed she deserved this; this was her punishment for taking away Mommy.

A sharp pain jolted through her already bruised abdomen, causing a stream from the well in her eyes to flow down over her soot covered face. A large wet sniffle would be the only noise to escape her. She knew better than to wail or scream; it just made things worse. In a sense she just bit the bullet, as her two yellowish front teeth bit down on her quivering lower lip to keep her from crying out. The rusty flavor of blood filled her mouth and as much as she was disgusted by the taste, it was worth it to keep the whimpers at bay.

"All you do is take! You are nothing but a leech, a fucking drunken mistake." His usual hateful degrading words spate through his clenched teeth, as he stared down at the shaking girl, his daughter. Slowly she opened her eyes to see his fist coming forward again, bracing herself for what she knew now would be an onslaught. The tears began to stream harder. She never wanted to look, it was bad enough to have his words ringing throughout her head, but seeing that hateful face haunting her made it all so much worse. Yet like a train wreck, she couldn't look anywhere else; she wanted to know when the next strike would come so she could brace herself. It forded her some protection. As his fist was about to make contact, the front door slammed shut. An over flooding relief filled her as he stopped dead, pulling back and standing up to his full 6'2" bulky frame

"Bella! Dad?" a small voice broke out.

As those words rang out and at the sound of small feet running up the steps, their father loosened his fists, backed away from the girl but not before giving her a warning glance before turning and leaving the room, bumping into his son as he made his way down the steps.

"Dad", the voice greeted with a fearful twinge.

Bella quickly wiped her lip, eyes, and nose with her blanket, making herself as presentable as possible.

"Bella," her name made her look up and into the soft brown eyes of her big brother, Sam. A door slammed causing both children to jump. "You can come out now, we're good for a day or so," he said softly. As soon as the words finished their way across his lips, she launched herself up and into his arms making sure not to wince as his arms encased her tightly.

This was truly the only place she felt safe, when she was with her big brother, her Sammy. She hated that he had to go to school but he was two years older, so he didn't have a choice. Sam might have only been eight but he acted so much older as he took on the responsibility for him and his baby sister's care.

He also hated leaving her alone to go to school, but he knew if he didn't go somehow someone would find out and report them to the State, which could separate the family. Not that he minded being taken away from his father but he couldn't take the risk they would separate him from Bella. That is exactly how he explained it to her when it came time for his first day of school.

He knew he got it easier than his baby sister when it came to their father. Believe it or not, Sam could remember a time when he wasn't hateful. Those days died when their mother died. The day that Bella was born. Hence their father's disdain for his baby girl.

As his mom got sicker and sicker, Sam remembered her making him promise to watch out and care of his little sister like a good big brother; and how she knew he'd make her proud at how he would do just that.

It wasn't long, maybe a year after their mother passed, that their father became even more irrational and moved him and Bella from their small home town to LA. He didn't remember the home town name just that it was surrounded by luscious trees and the air smelled of pine and salt. They settled into one of the worst sections of LA and into a decrepit house. Long gone was the beautiful two story white home with green grass he barely remembered. Now home was a two story hovel that was falling apart from neglect, or from where his father had put his fist or foot through the wall. Long gone was the green grass, now it was just concrete. Long gone were the clean floors, now they were covered in soot, cockroaches and rat droppings. Long gone were the cupboards full of food; now it was a struggle to eat, or even get clean clothes or bathe. Which was evident, when he looked at his sister and he too was worse for wear. It hurt worse seeing it in her, she was so frail, her face was sunken in, her what should be honey colored skin was pale, and her should be black shiny hair was brittle from lack of nutrients, just like her teeth and nails. But she never complained; she just did what she was told and seemed fine doing so as long as she had him.

With a heavy sigh, he pulled back the blanket giving her a visual once over. Giving her a small smile, he gazed at his faded blue watch. 6 pm. Had they really been this caught up in each others comfort for over an hour? It was past time now, slowly he took ahold of his sister's hand, leading her down the steps and out the front door not even bothering to lock it. What would anyone steal anyway? The beer, the whiskey, the pot, the heroin? In his mind, they were welcome to it.

A stumble caught his attention and had his arms flying out to steady his wobbly sister. It worried him that her gait was always off; he wasn't sure if it was because of her lack of food or just stiffness, or maybe something even worse. Not like he could take her to the doctor to find out anyway; it would raise questions.

With a small smile of reassurance, he continued to lead her down the darkened streets with only dim street lights to guide their way. Finally they turned the last corner, it seemed as if they were walking forever; when in reality, it was only three short blocks. Sam stopped dead. He felt panic as his eyes and mouth were wide in shock at seeing the local food shelter's doors closed and the lights off. It wasn't often but it did happen that the shelter would be closed either due to no volunteers or low amounts of food donations. Sam could feel a tugging on his hand and quickly shaking his shocked and nervous expression off his face, he looked down at his sister and gave her a smile. Something he didn't do often, seeing as his teeth were as yellow as Bella's teeth. He was always trying to hide any kind of tip off.

Slowly he tugged on her little hand as they set off through the streets, forcing his and her tired body another four blocks and into the back of an alley where a dumpster stood behind a pizzeria. Letting go of her hand, he quickly went to work stacking milk crates to give him the height he needed to be able to forge for what scraps of food that may be within. Quickly he climbed his make shift ladder and dove into the heaps of waste, digging for something to put in his sister's stomach. Disappointment quickly hit him as he could see it was mostly paper and boxes. What food was available was to rotten to eat and he couldn't risk them getting sick. As he was about to pull himself out, he heard the back door creaking open; quickly he threw himself into the far corner to avoid being seen. He hoped Bella would have heard the door as well; she would know it's her cue to get out of sight.

With a grunt a black bag was hoisted into the dumpster, followed by the sound of a slamming door. Cautiously he waited a minute to make sure he was alone before scurrying to the bag and ripping it wide open as he probed the contents. More cups and paper tumbled out, causing him to want to cry before he saw it. A half ate ham sub maybe about six inches was left. This was good yet bad; it wouldn't be enough for both, only for one and he knew who that one would be. Bella. He would rather be hungry then let her starve. With a firm grab on his prize, he pulled himself up and out of the dumpster, jumping down onto the pavement below. As if on cue a small frame slowly came into the dim light. A small smile crept up on Sam's lips; Bella did good, she got out of sight and kept her eyes on him. At seeing her brother's small smile, she too let one grace her chapped lips.

Sam grabbed her hand and they both darted out of the alley as they needed to put distance between them and the pizza shop. It was amazing how people could be so angry when someone took what they threw away. Obviously they didn't want it, and because they didn't want it didn't mean they wanted someone else to have it either.

Quickly they darted into the small park and perched on a picnic table under a street light. Laying his score on the table he began to unwrap the contents before handing it to Bella with a smile. She didn't raise a hand to take the offering, she just eyed it. Sam could see the shimmering from her unshed tears in her eyes. Bella didn't have any issue with eating out of the trash or not eating at all, she had an issue when there wasn't enough for both.

"Halves?" he sighed. Her little head bobbed up and down agreeing that's what it would take for her to eat. Sam ripped down the middle unevenly, Bella was to young to notice complete equals. He handed her the larger piece which she took happily. As the two began to eat their only meal for the day, another soft smile graced his lips as he watched his sister nibble on her sandwich as her jean clad legs and scuffed white tennis shoes swung back and forth innocently.

Sam could see and feel her sweetness even through all this hell; she never focused on only herself. Just like now, if Sam didn't eat she wouldn't eat, if Sam was cold she would give up her covers to keep him warm. Watching her he really didn't think there was a selfish bone in her frail body. As much as that warmed his heart, it broke it too because she was so frail and so tiny. He wished at times like this she'd be more selfish so she could gain a bit of weight. Sam knew he was underweight but he managed to score a bit more food here and there at school when the teachers brought things or when the parents would bring in cake for their kid's birthday. At times what kids did associate with him gave him some of their lunch. Every time he ate any of that, he felt a knot in his stomach with guilt that he got such a treat while his sister was at home hungry and hiding from their hateful father. At first he tried not to eat out of guilt, but again that led to suspicion and he needed to keep up appearances.

After the food disappeared, he again took his sisters hand and led her away. Bella knew where they were going now, it was the same place they'd go after every meal.

After a block of walking, they came to an old Chevron station where the bathroom door lock was broken. Pulling on the door, Sam led Bella inside and pushed a small step stool up to the sink and turned on the cold water. After a minute of letting it run, Bella lowered her head, cocked it to the side and began to drink from the spigot. After her fill, she hopped down allowing Sam to take his turn; as he finished he could see Bella automatically turned to face the corner allowing her brother some privacy. Quickly he turned the other handle to find a warm temperature before grabbing a few paper towels and loading one or two with hand soap. He stripped and washed himself before drying himself with few more paper towels then just as quickly as he undressed he redressed.

"Okay," was all he said. Bella knew it was alright to turn around, and with a nod he made his way out of the bathroom to stand in front of the door to keep guard.

He wasn't sure why she never allowed him to stand in the corner when it was time for her to wash or go to the bathroom. He only wanted to be close to keep her safe, that's why he had her in there with him when he washed. There was no way he was leaving her outside and out of sight.

He wasn't sure if it was a girl thing about modesty. Or maybe it was because of the lessons he taught her about where people are not allowed to touch her or what they aren't allowed to see. He knew as of about a year ago she no longer allowed him to assist her; she was very edgy about keeping her clothes on. To him it had to have been about the talk he had with her.

Bella copied her brother's routine with the paper towels before slowly removing her baggy clothing. Little did Sam know that it had nothing to do with modesty or his talk, the answers were bright and clear, which was spelled out in a yellowish green and dark purple; the results of one to many hits from her father. Bella might be young but she knew that Sam had a lot to deal with and she didn't want to add to his worry, or make it worse for him by confronting their father and having Sam receive these

bruises. She couldn't let that happen to him, but more importantly she didn't want anyone to know because it could lead her to be taken away from Sam. Sam told her they had to make everything look okay like the other kids at the playground or they could be taken away from each other. When she quirked her brow in question, he explained all the things that could tear them apart. She could never say anything; this was her cross to bare.

As Bella finished and pulled her clothing back on, she called out, "Ammy". With that the door pushed open and her brother held out his hand to her. Limping forward she took his hand as they made their trek back to their home.

As they walked, Sam again looked down at his wobbly sister and worry filled his heart. Next year she would start school and it scared him so much. Bella could hardly walk straight; she limped and wobbled from time to time, and she would always fall for no reason. She needed to get more life back in her skin, eyes and hair to be able to appear at least sort of healthy. His biggest worry was her speech. Bella didn't talk much; there wasn't much they had to talk about but she barely spoke; and when she did, it was only to Sam and her speech took an expert ear to understand. He knew she needed help with her speech, and he tried the best he could but well there is only so much he could do. He started bringing home books from school to try to get her to read a bit. When he first realized she just memorized what he would read, he soon changed his tactic and put the book out for her and taught her a word at a time. It seemed to work; but her speech still was off. He wasn't sure if he wasn't doing something right when teaching her how to talk or if there was something bigger wrong. In the small picture it didn't matter to him, he loved his sister more than anything; but in the big picture where other people were in it, it did matter because it would cause attention. He knew he'd have to work harder in this next year to try and fix it.

In a blink they were opening their front door to their dark home, flipping the light switch allowed them to be able to see and for Sam to get an unstable Bella up the stairs safely. He sighed, the house reeked of alcohol as he took a look around the kitchen. It was littered with broken glass from broken bottles, used needles and food wrappers. Sam could feel such disappointment and anger at his father; he could feed himself but not Bella or him. Sam knew the only reason they had electricity was too keep the refrigerator running to keep his beer cold. With a heavy sigh, he pulled Bella in front of him as he helped her up the stairs. Even though the house was a nightmare, at least the Devil himself would be out tonight selling drugs, not only to support his habits but to pay for the leaky roof over their heads and electricity to keep the beer cold.

As they reached the top of the steps, he flicked the light off before following Bella into the room to the right that was lit dimly by the street light out front. She bypassed her book and went to the pile of blankets on the floor. Sam couldn't remember what a real bed felt like anymore. They only had blankets now; blankets that Sam regretfully had to steal. With a sigh, he made his way over to their so called bed and crawled in behind his sister. It might seem strange for an eight year old boy to be sleeping with his six year old sister, but they needed each other's comfort from the nightmares that haunted their dreams. Pulling the bulky yellow blanket over them, he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her tight to him, kissing her atop her head.

"Wuv you, Ammy," her soft sleepy voice made him smile.

"Love you too, Bella," he said. He placed another kiss atop her head before lowering his head and following his sister into the nightmares that awaited.