A/N- Ok gang, as some of you have maybe guessed, this chapter is a biggie. I've had the main part of the last chapter and this chapter written for over a year.

This chapter contains references to physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, brief mentions of eating disorders and blood, as well as centering on pregnancy loss. Please consider this when deciding to read.

Bella

"Bella, what-?" Bella spun and fell onto the pile of sheets under her. To her horror, Charlie was standing in her doorway, witnessing her panic.

"Charlie, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to, I didn't know-" She felt her sobs still racking around her chest as she looked up at him. He was in boxers and a white T-shirt, but that wasn't what caught her attention. What almost made her stop sobbing was the look on his face. He was horrified, his eyes on the bed, then the sheets. He looked nearly as scared as she felt.

Bella didn't even have enough time to start worrying that he would hurt her or threaten her before what looked to be genuine fear drove him to say, "Bella?" His eyes now met her tear-filled ones, seeing the fear and pain in her. It was what she was worried about. Was she bleeding out? Had the accident caused internal bleeding?

Bella sobbed, the tears still staining her face and Charlie jumped into action, his police training making him move, to act instead of panic.

Charlie reached into her dresser and opened the top drawer where he'd put his sweatshirts before she had come to Washington. He grabbed one and tossed it to her.

"I'll be right back, put that on, it's cold." Charlie disappeared from the doorway, and she heard a fair amount of banging around. Bella was a bit shocked, frozen even, but the creeping cold on the wetness of her pants brought her back. She threw the sweatshirt on and Charlie was back.

Charlie had thrown on a Forks PD sweatshirt and longer pants, slippers now on his feet. Without another word, and with a gentleness that Bella wouldn't have expected after his other frantic movements, he slid one arm behind her, the other under her knees. Despite the constant 'oofs' and groans due to body aches she'd always heard from him after a long day, Charlie picked her up now with only the smallest sound of effort, adrenaline on his side.

Walking carefully but very quickly out of the house, Charlie carried Bella. He sat her down momentarily, her feet not even getting a chance to freeze while he threw open the passenger door to his police cruiser.

Looking her in the eyes, he helped her into the car. Bella couldn't help but cringe at the way her bloody pants would surely stain the seat. He reached over to buckle her in and he said "It's ok, Bells, you're going to be alright. I've got you." Though he sounded like he was reassuring himself as much as he was reassuring her.

He closed the door carefully and ran back to close the front door, not even locking it, with a speed Bella assumed he saved for police work only.

And now you.

Charlie returned, throwing himself into the driver's seat and he sped out, turning his lights and sirens on. Bella had certainly hurt this badly before, but she had never, never bled like this. She couldn't help but be scared. For the first time, it wasn't fear about the man beside her. Something in Charlie's faraway expression, and the way he paused his whirlwind to be so, so gentle with her left her absolutely positive that he would not be hurting her

Whenever Phil saw she was hurt, he would only hurt her more. Only when it got bad enough that Bella needed care, Phil would finally get her to a doctor, but he would only perform kindness with witnesses. Her dad had seen her in pain and panic after she had damaged something he owned, and completely ignored the objects, instead only reacting to her . It didn't matter what Phil said, what anyone said. Charlie was a good man.

Bella felt another spasm in her abdomen and couldn't hide the low groan, clutching her stomach. She heard the car accelerate further.

"Dad, I'm sorry, I-" She started, worrying about the stained sheets, mattress, and now car seat, She knew her dad was good, but she couldn't ignore the guilt she had, causing damage to his things. Before she could find her words, Charlie interrupted her.

"I don't want to hear any of that Bella. You have nothing to be sorry for, our only priority is making sure you're alright. The problem I have with you bleeding on things is that you are bleeding ."

When they pulled up the the small Forks emergency room, Charlie flipped off the sirens and hurried out of the car, not bothering to turn it off or take the keys. Instead, he got to Bella and carefully pulled her out, carrying her through the automatic doors.

"Chief, what's going on? Who-" the nurse, apparently recognizing Bella, stopped himself. Instead, he just led Charlie back. Bella heard the sound of a curtain being pulled back quickly, and Charlie set her down carefully on a bed.

When Charlie straightened back up, she noticed some of her blood staining Charlie's sweatshirt. Instead of blushing or even feeling guilty, Bella could only feel a strong cramp.

People started asking Bella questions, poking and prodding at her, taking her blood pressure. It was a lot like this morning. Bella went through the motions and Charlie sat in the corner the whole way, even when they told him he should leave. Charlie told them that they were just lucky he knew they needed room to work, because he wanted to be closer to her.

Bella felt a bit queasy, but she didn't think it was due to the way Charlie insisted on staying near her the way Phil always had. At first, Phil would make sure Bella never left his line of sight. Though Charlie was doing the same thing, Bella saw the difference in the two men's actions.

Someone asked Bella if she knew where the blood was coming from, and Bella nodded. "It's- I think it's my period. It's just… more."

When the copious nurses, aides, and other medical people determined Bella wasn't dying right away, they wheeled her into a room where she was told she was to meet with Dr Cullen after she changed into a gown. The nurse who dropped her off put a thick, absorbent cloth on the examination table. Charlie stood in the hall while Bella changed, and she convinced the nurse that she would be able to get into the gown by herself, so the nurse joined Charlie.

Bella took her first deep breath since she had woken up surrounded in her blood, certainly less than an hour ago. She stripped and put the gown on, throwing her sweatshirt over it. She didn't care if they didn't like it, she refused to be nearly naked, especially in front of strangers. Not to mention how cold she was.

They had given her a little bag for her blood stained clothes and she crammed them in, putting it on the floor next to the table, trying to hide it as best as she could.

Bella settled herself and called Charlie in. He entered in a rush, taking her hand again. She still had a hand free to wrap around herself, which she did when another wave of cramping hit. She tried to stay inconspicuous but Charlie squeezed her hand a little, his thumb moving back and forth on her hand in a way that felt so foreign to her. But she found she liked it.

They sat in silence for a few minutes before a knock came from the door and Dr Cullen entered with a nurse behind him. It was odd seeing him again. Normally when Bella went to hospitals, people remained nameless, nearly faceless beings who she never saw again, or didn't remember. Now Bella saw this man twice only a number of hours apart.

"Hello Bella, Chief Swan." Dr Cullen said, his expression likely honed over years of being a doctor. It was concerned, but not so much that it scared anyone. It was happy to see them, but not so much, considering the circumstances.

He went over her chart and nodded to himself before looking up again.

Dr Cullen turned to Charlie and said "Chief Swan, I'm going to have to ask you to step out" and Bella felt his hand tighten slightly on hers.

"I'm not leaving my daughter alone right now." Charlie's voice was gruff, though a little surprised, like he couldn't believe Carlisle would ask that of him.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to insist, Charlie. At Bella's age, she has a right to privacy when it comes to her medical history, even from her father." As he saw Charlie about to respond, Dr Cullen added gently "Maybe you can bring Bella a clean set of clothes? I'm sure she'll feel much more comfortable in her own clothes instead of whatever the hospital can scrounge together." He wasn't wrong. Bella had come in barefoot and in blood soaked flannel pants.

Charlie looked at her and she nodded, "It's ok Dad, I'll be ok."

He gave her hand a quick squeeze again. "If you need me, Bella, just call and I'll turn right around. I'll use the flashers and everything. I'll uh, I'll be in the waiting room until you ask for me." He nodded, more to himself this time.

"Wait, uh, dad?" Charlie turned to Bella and she nearly wimped out, but she had to try. "Can you not tell mom? Not until tomorrow anyway? I don't want her to worry." She was hoping he couldn't see right through her. Bella didn't want her to worry, but more than that, she didn't want Phil to punish Renee before Bella could try to make it right.

"Uh, sure Bells." He said, and left, leaving her alone in a room with Dr. Cullen and a female nurse, who sat behind him. Bella realized she was only there as a witness.

Dr Cullen gave her a small smile, which actually felt warm to her, despite everything. "Well Bella, I can't say I'm happy to see you again so soon. Why don't you tell me what happened?"

"Uh, I just got my period, but I bled through the sheets. Charlie freaked out, but I'm fine." She said calmly. Now that she had a chance to come down from her panic, and the nurses had told Bella she wasn't dying, she was more embarrassed about the whole incident. Though it looked like Charlie wasn't going to be punishing her for the bed, he would certainly be upset when he realized she was just not up on her feminine hygiene, and he had taken her to the hospital for no reason.

Bella felt the cold wet tracks on her face where her tears had flowed freely. She couldn't help but wipe at them with her sleeve, despite how long it bad been since.

"It sounds like it was quite a lot of blood." Carlisle eyed her file, apparently already updated.

"I guess it's a heavy period." Bella countered, shrugging. She just wanted to leave. Maybe if she left soon enough Charlie wouldn't get too much of a bill. Unlikely.

"And those cramps, how bad are they?" Dr Cullen picked up a pen, ready to jot notes on her chart.

"They probably weren't even that bad, I think I was just surprised after not having cramps for such a long time." Bella murmured, embarrassed. She had been through plenty of pain before, why was she suddenly being so weak about it?

"If you had to give it a number, one to ten?"

"Five? Maybe six?" Bella wanted to play it down, but another wave hit her and she grit her teeth, trying to not let it show. Judging by the look on Carlisle's face, she wasn't succeeding.

"Bella, when was your last period, before this one?" Dr Cullen looked at her expectantly.

"I, uh, I don't know. I stopped getting my period a while ago, like a year or two? The doctor in Phoenix said I got too skinny. I guess I'm gaining weight again." Bella shrugged, embarrassed at talking about her body and weight. Dr Cullen wrote something down.

"Are you on any form of birth control?" She shook her head this time. Phil would never have agreed to pay for something like that, he wouldn't have even considered it.

"How many previous sexual partners?" Dr Cullen asked casually, keeping his eyes down on her chart, but Bella's heart sank.

He knew. He knew she'd been ruined. This man whose house she played at endlessly as a child saw Bella for the wicked woman she had become. Hell, he was probably glad that Phil kept her away, if Bella had been here the whole time, she could have infected his kids.

She kept her eyes down, and tried to push down the bile creeping up her throat. "One." she said, her voice softer, cracking at the word.

"Bella," His voice was softer now and she looked up, despite her instincts. "We did a few blood tests and it shows that you're pregnant. What you're experiencing now is not your period, but likely a miscarriage."

Bella couldn't breathe. It was so much like this morning when Edward had tackled her to the ground. Her ears started ringing, it felt impossible to get air. She thought on all the times she'd thrown up since moving to Forks, how often she felt sick to her stomach. She had always attributed it to her fear and anguish.

It was Bella's worst nightmare, getting pregnant by Phil. He had never mentioned it, not really anyway. It's not like he used protection, and she'd lost her period a long time ago. She thought that meant she wasn't fertile, right? Bella nearly threw up imagining it. Not only had Phil beaten her, berated her, and used her body in the worst way imaginable, but a vile, disgusting part of him had taken purchase. Had been… growing?

But, it wasn't. At least, not anymore? Bella's mind was reeling, she couldn't focus on what else Dr. Cullen was saying until he was nearly shouting.

"Bella? Bella take a breath." she inhaled quickly, but it was shaky. She held her breath, trying to hold back the hyperventilation her body seemed so desperate for. Tears filled her eyes and spilled over quickly, she didn't have a chance to stop them.

Bella balled up her sweatshirt sleeves in her hands, holding them to her eyes to hide the tears.

Tears make men angry, Isabella. Or, even worse, it encourages them. Some men just want to see more, and they'll do whatever they have to do to get them.

"Bella, are you alright?" Dr Cullen's voice was gentle, and Bella nodded, trying to get herself together before she uncovered her face. She forced herself to take slow, deep breaths. Her tears had been absorbed by the sweatshirt sleeves, and she willed herself to not shed anymore.

After a minute, Dr Cullen spoke up again. "We will have to do an ultrasound to confirm, but with the amount of blood you seem to be passing, we may need to help it along under observation. We can discuss methods once we confirm." Dr Cullen's voice was soft, and Bella slowly lowered her hands, trusting herself to keep it together.

"Alright." Bella said, nodding. She knew her eyes were empty, and her face was tear-stained, but she would do whatever she could to get the remnants of Phil out .

It turned out, when Dr. Cullen mentioned an ultrasound, it wasn't the kind that Bella had expected, the kind that would have her bruised stomach on display, a wand pressing against it. No, the ultrasound he meant was transvaginal.

Bella willed herself to stay numb as an ultrasound tech performed the ultrasound, lowering the lights for her to better see the image on a large screen across from her. The tech seemed to be trying to be as gentle as possible, but Bella still felt silent tears roll down her face, wetting the paper on the table.

"I'm just focusing on getting a clear image, let me know if you're feeling uncomfortable."

Bella nodded and tried to zone out, to stare directly at the ceiling like she had always tried to do with Phil. Of course she was uncomfortable, but she would never admit it. A fearful part of her said to look at the screen, to find out what was inside of her.

Bella peaked at the screen, but it was too grainy for Bella to recognize much of anything. There was a black spot, and some shapeless gray lump inside of it. Bella, who was still crying, and holding her hands to keep them from shaking, was relieved. She didn't know what she would have done if she did somehow recognize it as anything vaguely human.

Her stare returned to the ceiling for the rest of the exam. When the tech was finally done, she withdrew the wand and puttered around the room for a while before telling Bella that a doctor would be in with her results in a while.

When Bella heard the soft click of the door closing, she could no longer hold in her sobs. As though she needed a reminder of how little control she had over her body, Bella's body shook entirely without her permission, no amount of trying stilled her.

She was sick of it all. Sick of the way she felt like a ragdoll in her own life, being thrown from situation to situation, Bella entirely unable to affect anything around her, but especially if it had anything to do with her body.

She had only started to slow her tears when a knock alerted her to Dr. Cullen's return. Bella used the panic to still herself as he entered the room and sat on a stool in front of her.

"Well Bella, it looks like you were anywhere between six and eight weeks."

Six to eight weeks? Bella could remember when it must've been, right before school started in Phoenix. Phil had called it his end of summer break celebration . Bella had thought of it as the last day before her actual break. School meant less attention on her. It meant some of the only times she would be allowed to be out of the house. Her summer breaks had been hell. Phil managed to work as little as possible so he could be home alone with her. Even when he had to work, Bella never knew when he would be back, what expectations he would have for her, what new rule would be put into place.

Bella tried to remember all of the suffering her body had put her through since then, including a few times he had gotten her on the ground and had kicked her in the stomach. Why had it been able to hold on this long?

Bella felt woozy, and said "Was it the accident today? Is that what did it?"

Dr Cullen must've gotten the wrong idea, because he gently said "Bella, it's hard to tell at this point. It could be, or it could have been in the works before this. Miscarriages are very common, about 15% of known pregnancies end in miscarriage, and it's estimated that 40% of all pregnancies end in miscarriage. There is nothing you could have done to prevent this, and it isn't your fault."

Carlisle continued in what was likely the softest tone he had, for his most on edge patients. Bella couldn't imagine what her face must have looked like to evoke that kind of response. "Bella, The miscarriage is not complete though, so you'll be able to go home and pass it naturally, and you can come back in a few days and we'll do another ultrasound to see if all of the tissue is out."

A few days? How was Bella supposed to go on like this for a few days, knowing what was inside of her? She felt sick enough knowing it had been there, but she couldn't imagine continuing on as though everything was alright when it was not alright.

"I want it out of me tonight. I need it gone. Now ." She felt hot tears down her face again and her mind just went to what could have been.

That part of Phil that she had tried to scrub off of her skin wasn't on her, it had been in her, growing in secret. If she hadn't gotten pushed out of the way, how much longer would it have grown before she found out? She was almost sick imagining what it would have been like to watch as it took root in her, as she was forced to host it.

Carlisle saw the far away look in Bella's face, and noted the way she started shaking.

"Bella, I have to ask. Do you feel safe at home?" Bella's eyes snapped to him. Dr Cullen's expression was so kind, and Bella couldn't stand the idea that he thought Charlie was anything like Phil.

You thought he was like Phil, her little voice reminded herself but she shut it down.

"Charlie would never. I'm safe with him ." Bella couldn't help the emphasis on 'him', but she hoped Dr. Cullen didn't notice. He just nodded and smiled softly.

"We can get a D&C going soon. You may have to wait a while, but we should be able to get you out of here before the morning." Dr Cullen was about to step out but Bella stopped him.

"Dr Cullen? Can you get my dad back here? I didn't bring my phone."

He nodded and stepped out, followed by the nurse.

Charlie

Charlie had become a parent when he was barely more than a child himself. Everyone told him how hard all the late nights would be, the diapers, the crying, the never getting to be alone. Charlie had struggled, but eventually had figured it out, and he fell in love with being a father.

Renee had never seemed to find the rhythm like Charlie did, but he had reasoned that she was always a bit flighty, and her postpartum depression hadn't been helping any when it came to taking care of another person. In those days, Renee was having a hard enough time taking care of herself.

Eventually, when Bella was old enough that Charlie didn't have to worry about her dying at a moment's notice, he realized that Renee had never really gotten better, she had just been managing. He had tried to get her help, to get her to talk to doctors, therapists, anyone who would be able to help her get the shine back in her eyes.

Renee had outright refused, telling him that doctors couldn't help. She tried to say it was Forks, but he knew that wasn't true. They had grown up there together, and she didn't change until after having Bella. Eventually, he gave up on the idea of doctors, but he kept trying. He tried to force her to open up. He needed to try something, anything, or at the very least be there for Renee. Instead, she had up and left, taking their daughter. At that point, he would have traded the world to have to deal with the newborn stage, because at least he would have had his Isabella.

Charlie got Bella for summer break, and for winter break in the custody agreement. Charlie tried to make it enough. But then Bella stopped coming. Renee told him that Bella had friends in Phoenix, and she didn't want to visit anymore.

Charlie started to understand what the darkness that had been in Renee's eyes must've felt like.

But then, after the years of solitude broken only by friends who never felt close enough, Charlie got a call. Renee told him Bella had some problems at school, socially. She asked him if Bella could get a fresh start and live with him again. He was so excited to see his little girl again, he could hardly stand the week wait.

When she finally came back to him, Bella was empty. She wasn't the quiet girl, so full of life, that he had known. He had been expecting a change, certainly. Based on what Renee had said, he had assumed she would be wild, rebellious. He would have preferred that.

What he got instead was a waif of a girl he didn't know anymore. He was horrified, but he tried to reason it away, then just tried to be welcoming, hoping that she would come out of her shell when she was ready.

All he knew for certain was that he couldn't push.

He had lost his wife by pushing, and now that his daughter was a teenager, he imagined she would only shrink in the spotlight of his concern. So she left her be.

Charlie did what he always did: watch baseball and drink beer. But every time she closed herself in her room, he felt a pull, wanting to demand answers, know why she was so withdrawn. Bella had always been a quiet child, but she had never been so much of a shell.

He had thought Bella was getting better. She stayed out a bit, he saw a bit of life in her, and she had even been to a party that he knew had unsupervised teenagers drinking. It was enough to make Charlie nearly cry in relief. He thought it had been the slower pace of Forks, maybe her anxiety was made better by the peace and the childhood friends.

When Charlie had seen Bella crying, scrubbing at her bed, he was brought back to a time, not long after Bella's second birthday, that her mother had left a similar stain on their bed.

Renee had started to get a bit of her spark back. Charlie was hesitant to try for another child since it had taken Renee two years to come back to herself after Bella, but Renee was so excited. She had painted a pretty picture with her words of Bella having a sibling. After Renee's miscarriage, her spark only came back when they were fighting.

After his night in the emergency room with Bella, the night where he realized that not only was his daughter pregnant, but that she was losing it, everything about this new Bella started to click.

He hated being away from Bella, but when Dr. Cullen had sent him away, Charlie finally had space to think, to figure out how to help her. As he drove home and packed some clothes for Bella, Charlie ruminated.

Renee hadn't been much older than Bella when she got pregnant, so he didn't have any room to chastise her, even if he thought she had just been careless, wild. But that wasn't this new Bella. This new Bella was too anxious, too careful. He knew that if this was who Bella was when she got pregnant, she didn't have control when it was happening.

There were two possible causes for why Bella was in her current state, and in both circumstances, someone had taken advantage of her.

Either Bella had been attacked in an isolated event, one that had caused Bella to become this shell of herself, and had left her pregnant. Or, Bella had been in a relationship with someone who had been hurting her, and made her change over time. Either way, she hadn't told Renee.

Even in the depths of Renee's depression, she had loved Bella fiercely, and he couldn't imagine any boy hurting their girl, not if Renee had anything to say about it.

Charlie wondered if Bella had been just as anxious and timid with Renee and Phil, and if so, why they hadn't said anything. Maybe Bella's change in personality was just as much a surprise to them as it was to him, maybe that's why they sent her to Washington to begin with.

Bella wasn't just suffering with the anxiety so common in teenagers, and the depression she inherited from her mother. She apologized too much, stayed quiet, to herself. She was too good of a teenager, terrified to step a toe out of line. That wasn't normal teenage anxiety, he wanted to kick himself for not realizing his daughter was clearly traumatized.

Either possibility would also explain Bella being far too thin, either due to the stress of the situation, or her attempt to gain control over her life.

He wanted to give Bella all the control she so clearly needed, but this new realization just made him want to tighten the reigns, to keep her close.

If Bella asked to go back to Phoenix, he didn't think he could let her. He had lost his wife by pushing, but he wouldn't let Bella go back to the place where she had either been attacked or abused. Either way, Bella would be safer with him.

Charlie made a plan on his drive back to the hospital. When he arrived, Bella still wasn't ready to see him. Charlie had plenty of time to wind himself up, then remind himself of what Bella needed, then get upset again. And back and forth until Carlisle called him.

None of the trials of parenthood could compare to what he was dealing with now; the pain of seeing his child on the brink of adulthood, so broken, knowing that he couldn't help her. Not the pain of seeing his wife slowly lose even the smallest of embers in her eyes. Not the pain of losing his daughter and his wife in one night. Not the years of barely even hearing from the two people who had become his whole world. Not even when his daughter had come back a husk of her former self. Nothing compared to the pain of being so helpless when it came to his daughter's happiness. He wanted to help, of course, and he did what he could, but he knew he couldn't take away the pain in her eyes, the pain he hadn't been able to prevent.

But maybe, he could do something about the person who had put that pain there.

While he still wouldn't push Bella, he would support her however he could, in every way she would let him. But for now, he needed to do this, just in case. Because someone had hurt his daughter, and Chief Swan was going to do everything in his power to put the man behind bars.

Carlisle

Carlisle walked down the hall, the familiar feeling of helplessness growing. He had been just about to finish his shift when Bella Swan came in again, this time with her lower body covered in blood. He took her case immediately. It was definitely inappropriate, but he couldn't help his concern for her, as he had known her since she was young. Seeing her crying, clearly distressed, was so hard for him. He wished Esme had been there, his wife was so good at comforting people, regardless of her relationship with them. Knowing that he couldn't share his concerns with his wife took a toll on him.

He took a moment to collect himself before turning the corner to the waiting room, where he saw Charlie Swan pacing, a small bag sitting on a chair near him. Carlisle couldn't blame him for his restlessness. He couldn't imagine how he would react in Charlie's shoes, and he didn't care to try imagining one of his daughters in Bella's position.

"Chief?" Charlie immediately spun to look at Carlisle and rushed over to him before remembering the bag of Bella's things and doubling back.

"Carlisle, how is she?" Charlie was clearly panicked, but he knew as well as Carlisle that he couldn't say a word.

"Charlie, you know I can't answer that how you want me to. She is going to be alright. The details are up to her. Father to father though, she needs your support right now. I heard she didn't want her mother to know, and that's alright, but she does need someone ." Carlisle looked at him meaningfully, hoping Charlie would understand. Teenagers were difficult, and Carlisle couldn't imagine Bella would be open or that Charlie would be the best person to speak to, but seeing the way Charlie held Bella's hand, Carlisle could tell that the simple act of support meant so much to the girl.

Charlie just nodded and started walking back towards Bella. As Chief of Police, Charlie was no stranger to the ER. Before they could make it to her room though, Charlie turned to Carlisle. It didn't escape Carlisle's notice that the panicked father had led them to a more secluded hall.

"Carlisle, I know you can't tell me anything, so I'll tell you." Carlisle was taken aback by the Chief's intensity, but he nodded. "Bella has had a hard time of it, especially back in Phoenix. She's safe here, now. I don't know anything for sure, but…Well, could you possibly collect a DNA sample? I have a feeling Bella could use it later, proof of paternity."

Carlisle was stunned at Charlie's words. Both that he knew the situation, and that he anticipated a legal matter. The implications of it weren't good. "Charlie I-"

"Consider it a police matter. Please. I won't use it behind her back. I want her to have the choice, but I don't know if she would make the right decision right now. I just want to make sure it's available should she need it. " There was a moment of pause, and Charlie added "I am her guardian, and she is a minor."

The police had very few reasons to need fetal tissue samples. Carlisle felt sick to his stomach, but nodded. It would make sense, with everything Edward had said, and everything Carlisle had seen. But it was clearly not Charlie who was the problem. The perpetrator wouldn't have wanted to save evidence, and the concern Charlie showed today, both after the accident and when he brought her in tonight… that was pure parental panic. Not to mentioned the way Bella had asked for him, she wanted him near her in her time of need.

"I'll, uh, I'll add a note to her file."

Charlie relaxed a bit, "Thank you, Carlisle, thank you." He didn't wait any longer, going off towards Bella, and Carlisle wished more than ever that he could speak to his wife.

Bella

Bella sat in the passenger's side of her fathers police cruiser, a quilt from Grandma Swan wrapped around her shoulders. She was wearing her normal clothes that Charlie had brought from the house, but she felt entirely alien in her body, her clothes, and her life.

In her hand was clutched an appointment card she had been given after the doctor who performed her abortion had talked her into getting on birth control. It wasn't something Bella had ever actually considered before, but after this horrific event, she had been prepared to beg.

She had floated away during the procedure like she wanted to do during the ultrasound. Like she often did with Phil. Luckily, no one tried to pull her out of her daze tonight, the way Phil did, when he wanted her to feel her suffering. Bella was barely there, for which she was grateful. She felt so vulnerable in that position, in pain, everyone around knowing what she must've done.

The approaching morning was only barely breaking through the horizon, a bare lightening of the sky visible above the trees. Charlie hadn't said a word since he'd helped her into the car and made sure she was comfortable. He was driving a lot slower this time, no longer fueled by fear for Bella's life.

By the time Charlie pulled up to the driveway, Bella's body felt so heavy, she didn't know how she would make it up the front steps, let alone the stairs to her room.

As Charlie put the car in park, he cleared his throat. "Bells… I'm sorry. I know this is hard for you, whether you wanted to go through with it or not. I want you to know, you don't need to tell me anything you don't want to tell me. I know it would be better if your mother was here, but if you want to tell me… anything, you can. If you'd rather keep it private, that's ok too. I love you Bells, and I just want you to know that."

His hands were clutching the steering wheel, and when she looked to his face, she found he was looking back at her with love.

"I don't want mom to know. Any of it."

Charlie nodded silently, apparently truly fine letting Bella take control. She just nodded in return, her gaze far away.

Bella didn't flinch from him as he helped her inside, and she didn't fear his touch when he helped her get settled on the couch. Charlie ran up to her room and returned with her pillows. Bella could have told him it was unnecessary, as she had slept on far worse than the old, plush couch, but she didn't. She just thanked him as he continued to fret over her.

Bella drifted off, waking every now and then to the sounds of a vacuum in the distance. Eventually Bella woke to Charlie waking her up, helping her up the stairs and into her bed, tucking her into fresh sheets.

In the haze of her tired mind, Bella realized that everything Phil had said about the accident was very, very wrong. Bella knew way deep down, that the accident wasn't punishment from the world, it wasn't karma, or anything else. The accident had happened to do this . To stop that in its tracks, to save her from the lowest low she hadn't thought to fear: carrying Phil's child. Apparently, whatever power existed in the world didn't think even Bella deserved that , no matter how she'd been acting.

The last thought Bella had before she fell into a deeper sleep was that the universe had sent Edward to save her.