I decided that it would be best to just get ready for bed and try to sleep. I wasn't sure if this would be possible tonight. The agony was the only thing my mind could register. And as I curled into a ball in bed my sleep was full of nightmares. It was nothing like I've ever dreamt before. They were meaningless. Terrifying images, brutal acts of violence. There were times that I could see myself and for some reason, I would end up finding a way to commit sucicide. Darkness surrounded me, I held a knife to my neck. There was a smile plastered across my face and in one swift motion, I plunged the knife into my throat.

Suddenly I jerked awake, launching myself up in bed. My back was drenched in sweat. I struggled to catch my breath. The mark that Emmett had given me was burning, as if someone had stuck my entire arm in a pot of boiling water. There was a harsh ringing in my ears. I scanned my room, taking note of the weak light shimmering through my curtains. The clock above the bed was ticking loudly. Two in the morning. I hadn't slept very long.

I kicked the sheets off me and made my way to the bathroom. I needed more Tylenol. I needed to get ready for work and pull myself together. It was hard to not think of the nightmares. They felt so real. I glanced in the mirror, noticing the dark circles under my eyes. I still felt tired, but it didn't matter. I had to get to this new job.

But first, I had to make a call home. Ana would be going in today for an appointment. They would find out if the new medication was working. The company phone that Edward had given me, had fallen between the cushions of the couch. I snagged it and began dialing the number for home. I was expecting to hear the voice of my mother, but instead Ana's voice sounded.

"Hello," She spoke softly. She sounded weak, tired and very sick. Her breathing was erratic and a sound of gagging could be heard, along with a gush of fluid splattering against something. "Hold on a sec." There was now a noise of a toilet flushing.

"Ana, are you alright?" I winced, feeling my stomach tie in a knot. It's been a really long time since I've talked with her.

"Bell, is that really you?" Her voice perked up.

"Yeah, how are you doing, your appointment is today, isn't it?"

"Yep, I'm a little nervous about it. But I'm hanging in there."

"Have you been puking a lot, with the new meds?"

"Only in the mornings, or after I eat something. It's not a big deal. Enough about me, how is the big city? Meet any cute guys?"

Of course she would ask me something like that. Ana was a little boy crazy. She was always on the hunt for a boyfriend. This was something we didn't share in common. Boys were trouble. I never went out searching for trouble. But trouble always had a way of finding me. Especially when alcohol was introduced.

"Maybe, one or two." I admitted. "But really Ana, I'm more worried about what's going on at home. Uncle Charlie mentioned finding some beer cans in the barn. Is that true?"

Ana was quiet for a moment. "Yeah, well momma isn't in the best shape either. All she does is sit around and fret. You know how she gets. I'm sure she will pull herself together soon."

"Well, if she doesn't ... please call me. I don't want anything bad happening."

Again I heard Ana begin to gag, after a rough burp, more retching. It sounded miserable. I wished that I was there to comfort her. I could tell that her voice was getting a bit strained when she returned to the phone. "We should be back home around noon, if you want to give us a call. I gotta go sis."

"Alright, hang in there Ana bean."

That's what our father had called her. Ana bean. She was so small when she was born. Always the shortest of our family. All our cousins and friends towered over her five foot frame. She was the skinny little girl that always clung to my pant leg. Our little bean. I hated being apart from her. But I knew this was how it had to be for now. I'd visit her soon.

We both hung up, I dabbed at the tears in my eyes. It was painful to hear my sister having such a rough time. Moments like this, a person realizes that they take life for granted. Here I was out living my life. Meeting mysterious, handsome men, getting drunk at the bars. Having a decent enough time. And at home my sister was suffering. I felt guilty. For Ana's sake, I would do better.

I tossed the phone back to the couch and walked back to my room. I didn't know what I was going to wear. I wasn't sure that I even cared at this point. The conversation with Ana really put a damper on my mood. I flopped back down on my bed, causing a quiet creak. Turning on my side, I hugged my pillow to my chest and quietly watched out the window. It would have been peaceful, if not for the waves of pain that trickled around my heart. Edward was dancing around in my thoughts.

Suddenly a thought occurred to me. I had no way of getting to the other side of the city. My scooter was stolen last night. I groaned in frustration, swinging myself back out of bed and out to the living room, where I had left the company phone.

I chewed my bottom lip as I attempted to use the thing. I managed to find a contact list, there were only two names on it. Edward and Emmett. If I told Edward that my scooter was taken, he might lash out on Stenton. So calling him wouldn't be the best idea. Even though the thought of hearing his voice sent my heart fluttering.

So, Emmett was my only option. I swallowed hard as I pressed on his name and put the phone to my ear. It rang for a long time, before I heard a furious sounding Emmett on the other end of the phone. "What the hell do you want?"

At the sound of his voice, I felt the mark on my arm cool down. But his harsh tone caused a lump in my throat. "U-umm, this is Bella… I'm sorry to bother you…"

There was a low gasp on his end. "Bella, sorry, I didn't realize it was you. Good morning." He sounded pleasant now, actually, he sounded overjoyed.

"Good morning, I'm calling because I have a little issue, I was hoping you could help me with."

"Anything," He replied.

"Well, my scooter was stolen last night and I have no way of getting to the office, do you think you could send someone to pick me up?"

There was a slight pause and I heard another voice in the distance. "Why the fuck would she call you?" The voice sounded annoyed. I felt my heart leap in response to that rich voice. My palms began to sweat. Edward was there and obviously listening.

"No problem Bella, I'll send Stenton to pick you up." Emmett said with a smug inflection in his tone.

There was a sound of a scuffle heard now over the phone, before I heard Edward's voice only. "Why didn't you tell me? I would have come to pick you up myself."

"I didn't want you to get upset with Stenton." I muttered quietly. "It isn't his fault."

Edward clicked his tongue, not making a comment.

My heart dropped in my chest as the silence continued.

"Edward," My lips quavered.

I heard him breathe out quietly. "Yes,"

"I'm sorry if I upset you." I hung my head.

"I'm not upset, but I'm not convinced that Stenton should go unpunished for this. He was to make sure you made it home safely."

"I did make it home safely." I argued.

"I will be having a talk with him."

"Just don't be mean, he is a good guy. Please."

"Fine, but you and I are going to have a talk as well." He warned, before it sounded like the phone was passed off.

Now I was in trouble?

"Bella, I'll have Stenton come get you in the next thirty minutes. We will see you soon." Emmett said cheerfully.

"Alright, thanks." I sighed and hung up the phone. I tossed it back to the couch and went back to getting ready. I didn't know what made me more nervous, starting this new job, or getting scolded by Edward. I wondered what he was going to say.

It didn't take me long to get ready, but I couldn't help but feel a bit self conscious. I didn't wear dresses. It's just something I didn't do. Ever. So when Ana had talked me into buying one, I thought I'd never have to wear it. But after being at Edward's office, and seeing that everyone was in formal attire, with name brand labels, I knew I had to do better than jeans and a t-shirt.

Ana picked this dress out for me, it was a goodbye gift, when I made the move to the city. It was pretty, sleek black, sleeveless and form-fitting. Thankfully, I have lost a good amount of weight, so the dress didn't cling tightly to my body.

As I waited outside the front of the apartment, I kept trying to pull the dress down in the back, it was a bit short, more so than what I was used to. Today, I decided to keep my hair down for once. My brunette locks reached the middle of my back, but if I pulled a bunch of it forward it offered me a little cover over my cleavage.

I was relieved that Stenton ended up arriving early. His black SUV was becoming more comforting to see. Although, Stenton remained somber as I slid into the backseat. His eyes remained straight forward.

He was mad at me as well?

"Good morning Stenton," I muttered quietly.

"Good morning, I trust that you slept well?"

Not even a little bit. With all the nightmares, I felt drained. But I wasn't about to tell Stenton that. He was already in a mood. I wonder if Edward already had a talk with him. I wonder how bad it was.

"Yep, I'm ready to get this day over with."

Stenton glanced at me for a second, before returning his eyes to the road. Traffic was light today, probably because it was still so early in the morning. It probably won't take half as long as it usually takes to get to the other side of the city. The sun was just starting to rise in the sky, bringing a blanket of pink vibrant colors. It was beautiful.

"You don't sound too enthused."

"Just a little nervous, I don't really… fit in with the crowd of this business. I don't know how they will react to me."

"I wouldn't worry about that," Stenton sighed, his wrinkled hands gripping the steering wheel harder. "The young masters would easily eliminate anyone that would dare offend you."

Eliminate, I wasn't sure I liked how that sounded.

"I wouldn't let that happen." I said firmly.

A hint of a smile touched Stenton's lips. "I don't doubt that. I'm not sure what you said to master Edward, but I believe you saved my life today."

My jaw dropped open. "Are you serious?" A glare came to my face. I told him not to be mean to Stenton. I asked that he would go easy on him. He is just an old man, he shouldn't be so hard on him. Now I would be having a talk with him.

Stenton chuckled gruffly. "Edward had every right to be upset with me. He trusted me, with the most important person in his life. Of course he is going to be critical of everything I do, when it comes to you. So don't be too mad Bella."

I huffed, folding my arms across my chest. "Still, he shouldn't be going around threatening to kill people. If that is even possible…"

"It's very possible, I assure you." Stenton commented.

"I thought reapers were… immortal?"

"Immortal yes, but not indestructible."

At this point I noticed that we were going a slightly different way than we did before.

"Where are we going?"

"After a little chat with master Edward, he insisted that I make sure you get an adequate breakfast. There is a place he had in mind. So hopefully you are hungry."

In honesty, I hadn't even thought of eating. It wasn't really something I was used to. I've gotten used to living off very little food. I usually skipped breakfast. But I wasn't about to argue. It wouldn't hurt.

"Fine with me," I allowed, letting that conversation drop.

We drove for a while, but like I thought, we made it to the other side of town much faster. I wasn't quite sure how far we were from the office. This particular part of town looked sharply different than I expected. There weren't many people out walking around, it was still too early for most places to be open. But Stenton pulled into a tiny fast food place.

I made a face as we approached the first window. The entire place looked like it was closed. The lights were all off inside. There wasn't a single car in the parking lot. The building didn't look to be in the best shape. I found it hard to believe that Edward had this mind in place for breakfast.

Stenton rolled his window down smoothly. "I'll take the reapers special."

In response to his words, I watched a figure come to the window. It was too dark to get a good look at the person, but judging by the long hair and sparkling violet eyes, she was a reaper.

"Awfully early Stenton," She replied, her voice was hoarse, as if she was a hardcore smoker. Her strange purple eyes peered into the backseat, noticing me. "You have a human here?"

"I do," He replied patiently.

"And she is marked, I could smell her soul a mile away," The woman grimaced. "Whose claimed her?"

"Master Edward."

At the mention of Edward, there was a pause. I strained to see her reaction. It was too dark, I couldn't tell, but her sudden sharp intake of breath suggested that she in the very least was surprised. Or was it horrified?

"Poor wretch, the grub is on the house today." The woman spat, before pulling her window shut.

Not what I thought she was going to say.

Stenton drove the car forward, stopping at the second window. He chuckled sheepishly as he peaked back at me through the rearview window. "Don't mind Jane, she just has a unique way of thinking. She has a history with master Edward."

"What does that mean?" I blinked a few times.

"Well, they dated briefly,"

Ice was running through my veins. Jealousy chilled me to the bone. My hands clenched into fists. The urge to hurt that woman was intense. I was never an aggressive person. I've never been in a fight, but my rationality disappeared. I was bewildered by my sudden fury.

"And he wanted us to stop here for breakfast? He wanted me to run into her. Did he think we would become friends?" Venom leaked through my voice.

"I assure you, Edward would never want to cause you any stress, Jane doesn't normally work on Mondays, she usually is only here over the weekend."

We both stopped talking as Jane appeared at the second window. She locked eyes on me, expressionless. The sunlight draped over her for a moment, revealing a woman of a very conflicting face. Half of her face was pure beauty, soft features, mesmerizing eyes, perfection. But the other side was severely scarred and battered. Flesh was missing, I could easily see her teeth, even with her mouth closed. Her neck appeared to be partially crushed. Which explained her voice. If I was to describe this side of her face, grotesque would be it.

Jealousy turned to pity in an instant.

I lowered my head, avoiding eye contact with her. I didn't want to offend her by staring. I couldn't imagine what could have caused something like that.

"Have a good day Stenton, if you run into that bastard, let him know that if he destroys this girl too, I'll send him straight to hell." It sounded like life was drained from her as she handed over a single bag of food. The smell coming from the bag was mouth-watering.

"Hang in there Jane," Stenton sighed, giving her a gentle smile, before we drove past. He passed the bag back to me. "I think you will really enjoy this miss Bella."

There was a lump in my throat as I dug through the bag. Inside was an egg sandwich, glazed in bacon jam. Avocado was freshly sliced at the top. It looked like a masterpiece. I couldn't wait to take a bite.

As we pulled back onto the main road, I took a big bite. Warm juices filled my mouth, sending me over the edge. Without thinking I leaned my head back with a moan. It was delicious. The best sandwich I've ever had.

Stenton glanced back at me with an amused smile. "It's good isn't it?"

"Best thing I've ever had." I said with my mouth still full.

"That little restaurant has been around since reapers entered this city. It had at one point been our base."

"So, only reapers can eat there?" I wondered, taking another mouthful of complete perfection. I choked back the urge to moan again, but my body shuddered.

"That's right, you should feel honored, you are the first human to ever get a meal from there." Stenton said with a throaty chuckle.

"Well I'm very grateful. I hope that won't be the last time I get to eat there." I said as I finished the sandwich.

It didn't take long before we finally made it to the glass tower. The place I would be calling my job. Assuming I can catch onto this book-keeping thing. Butterflies bounced around in my stomach as the SUV came to a stop in front of the doors. I didn't move. I couldn't find the courage to leave the comfort of this car. I didn't know what awaited me inside.

Staring. Pointing. Whispering. And an angry Edward.

"Looks like we got here a bit early. No rush to go in just yet." Stenton commented casually, turning the car off to lean back more comfortably in his seat.

I was thankful that Stenton sensed my apprehension. It would only be a couple minutes until I had to go inside. I needed a distraction. And I had a few questions burning at me.

"So I noticed that Jane… is very beautiful… but umm, the one side of her face…" I wasn't sure how to tactfully ask what had happened to her.

"You're wondering what happened to her?"

I nodded warily.

Stenton sighed, turning his head slightly away from me. "That's really not my story to tell."

Understandable, but that didn't mean I wasn't disappointed. "I didn't know that reapers could get hurt like that. It looks like someone attempted to kill her."

"Looks that way, doesn't it?"

"Come on Stenton, give me some details, you don't have to tell her complete story. I just want to know, what caused it, or who." I begged.

Stenton looked conflicted, it was silent between us for a moment. Time was ticking by quickly. His wrinkled face now spun around to look directly at me. "Esme caused it, as for why, you will have to ask master Edward."

Esme. The same Esme I would be meeting at the end of the week to remove Emmett's marking. Edward and Emmett's mother. I was nervous about meeting her before, but now I am terrified. I could see that Stenton wouldn't speak any further on it. So we just remained quiet, until I could build up the courage to open the door.

"Good luck Bella, I'm sure you will do fine." Stenton muttered to me as I got out of his car.

"Thanks," I sighed heavily, before closing the door behind me. I stood there awkwardly for a moment, just staring up at the glass tower of doom. I could already see some reapers staring at me from inside.

Stenton didn't hesitate to drive off, leaving me no options of changing my mind. I watched, until his SUV was completely out of sight, before making my way to the building.

Sweat trickled down my neck, my heart was pounding hard in my chest.

Come on, stay calm. Smile. Act like you are excited to be here. My father's words entered my mind, 'You can do anything 'lil brownie.

Tensely I entered and just as I feared the entire room seemed to go silent. The entrance was decorated in a modern style, pristine white floors that matched the walls. Marble and obviously expensive. There were several desks lining the immediate area I was standing in. Each of them was a sharp contrasting onyx. None of the desks had any personal items on it, just computers and files piled up.

I assumed everyone here was a reaper, but it was hard to tell. Afterall, they just looked like me. The one thing that tended to be different was the eyes. But everyone in this room had a mixture of brown eyes or shadowy gray.

"You must be Bella," A girl came marching over to me. Her voice was pleasant enough, but with one look at her, I was intimidated. She stood nearly a foot shorter than me, her features were razor sharp, with high cheekbones and the way she moved was cat-like. Graceful, quiet and confident in her each step. She shifted her hands on her wide hips, looking at me from my toes to the top of my head. "I hope you're prepared for a long day. We are jumping right into this, so pay attention and don't ask me any stupid questions."

I nodded quickly. "Yes ma'am,"

She rolled her eyes and cleared her throat as she pushed one of her fallen black curls behind her ears. "Call me Alice," Her heels clicked as she guided me out of the room and over to the elevator.

So this was Alice. The one that Edward had planned to fire. I would be taking her position. This was a very awkward situation. I wonder if she was aware of all of this. She probably hates me already.

"Nice to meet you," I offered her a smile.

She stared at me, not seeming impressed. As the elevator doors closed behind us, her eyes flashed with a striking gold color. "Listen, I don't like you, I don't trust you, I don't want to be friends. I'm only doing this because Edward demanded it." Her tone was full of malice.

Well, I saw that coming.

I shrank back a little from her, uncomfortable at how close she has gotten. Her demeanor was threatening. Instead of replying, I just keep my eyes forward. I pretended that she wasn't even there. The elevator took us almost to the top, we were just below Edward's office. I knew he was close. I felt warmth wash over my body. My thoughts become muddled as they turn to Edward. I thought of his body, his devilish smile, the feeling of his lips grazing the top of my head. I shivered, but stayed quiet.

The moment we stepped off the elevator, Alice threw a fake smile on her face. "Welcome to master Edward's support team and Reaper core. As you can see most of our people are out on jobs, but if you follow me, I will take you to the book-keepers office." Her voice was now bubbly and cheerful.

She was putting on an act for the few people in the room. But I knew her true feelings. The stares continued, but unlike the reapers downstairs, they all bowed their heads in respect as the two of us passed.

Alice took us to a small office at the back of the room. It was completely isolated from the rest of this room. Four walls divided us from the others. Like the entrance on the ground floor, the walls and floors matched, a crisp white. It was a nicely decorated room. Full of blooming plants, fine artwork and a soft sound of piano music lingered in the background. There was a large desk and two leather armchairs sat directly across from it. One of the walls was completely glass, from ceiling to floor. The view outside was stunning. You could see out past the city, past most of the buildings. There was a treeline I could spot out in the distance, full of oak trees.

Alice closed the door behind us and flopped down at her desk. She kicked her heels off with a huff and pulled her blonde locks down from the bun on top of her head. Like mine, her hair was curly and wild, but unlike mine her hair was cut very short, just reaching to the bottom of her ears.

I waited, but she ignored me, leaning down to pull a bottle of wine out from under her desk. She poured herself a drink, slouching deeply in her seat. I was afraid to speak up. I was afraid to even take another step from where I stood.

A full five minutes passed of complete silence between us, she pulled out a magazine and began reading. At this point, I couldn't stand it anymore. She either was going to say something, or I was just going to leave.

My hands balled into fists at my sides. "So, where do we start?"

She didn't look up from the magazine. "We wait for the new lists to arrive."

"Okay and when do the new lists come?"

"They get here, when they get here. No point in worrying about it," She muttered. "So take a seat and shut up."

Arrogant bitch.

I did as she said, moving to sit down on the leather armchair. I wished that I had brought something to do. I didn't know I would just be sitting around. After a while I found myself gazing out towards the woods, far off in the distance. It was a calming sight. It reminded me of home. I couldn't tell how far away it was, but I'd love to head in that direction to check it out someday.

About fifteen minutes had passed, before I heard a single knock on the door. Alice lifted her head from her magazine and quickly tucked her bottle of wine back down under her desk.

"Come in." She instructed

The door creaked out and a man walked in with slumped shoulders. He was careful to avoid eye contact with both of us. It was clear that he lacked a lot of confidence. His hands trembled as he held out a stack of files. "H-here are the new l-lists, miss Alice." Even his voice was thick with uncertainty.

Alice ripped the files from his hands with a dark look in his direction. "It's about time. That will be all Hecktor."

He flinched, backing up slightly. His eyes darted between Alice and I. His eyes lingered on me. "O-oh, your Bella…" He stuttered, but quickly he shut his mouth. Bracing himself for someone to yell at him for even speaking.

"Nice to meet you, Hecktor." I smiled at him warmly.

"Don't bother making friends with him, book-keepers are in a very highly regarded position. He is just a support worker." Alice hissed at me. She rolled her eyes, before shifting the first set of files open. "Like I said, get lost Hecktor, we are trying to work."

He bowed his head slightly. "Y-yes, sorry for bothering you." Quickly he left the room, closing the door behind him.

I felt bad for the guy. There was no reason for her to treat him like that. It was fine that she wanted to treat me like crap, I was human and by all means… I was taking her job from her. But the guy was harmless. The whole situation left a bitter taste in my mouth. It made sense that Edward wanted to fire her. Regardless, I had to stay on her good side, if possible. I needed to understand how to do this job.

"Now pay attention," Alice snapped at me, waving for me to come closer to her.

I choked back my irritation and made my way around her desk to stand right next to her. She gestured to the stack of papers. Each a list of names, and a location. There was no particular order or patterns.

"Edward's team is comprised of ten, full-fledged reapers," She paused, a slight smirk coming to her face. "Well, I guess nine now. Since his whore of an ex-wife was terminated."

"Tanya was fired, alright." I nodded quietly.

Alice glanced at me with slight surprise, but she composed herself with an icy stare. "Right, so nine reapers will be assigned the names of the people on this list. Divide it as evenly as you can. Try to give them at least a five minute window of time, for them to travel between each job."

"You mean only nine reapers, have to take on this huge list?" I raised a brow, glancing over to the huge stack of files. "In one day?"

"If you would let me finish," Alice glared at me, impatience was clear in her expression.

I closed my mouth, pulling my arms behind my back. I really just wanted to haul off a hit this woman. But it's not like it would do any damage. I'd probably just end up getting myself killed.

"This stack is for the reapers," She moved five files to the corner of her desk. "This stack is for the grim core," She pushed two files to the other side of the desk. "This is for the support team," She held up a single file. "Finally, this stack is just for Edward." She nodded to the files left in the center of the desk. Ten files.

"That is a lot for just one person," I muttered with a frown. No wonder he was always running off to do a job. This just didn't seem fair at all.

"Nothing is too much for Edward, he is the boss of this entire corporation. This is how he wants it to run. So that's how we are going to do it. Am I clear?" Her tone was hard and unwavering.

"Crystal clear." I sighed, trying to shake off my doubts. I just didn't agree with this. Sure, Edward was the boss, but that didn't mean that he should work himself into the ground. That's what he had employees for. If I really was to become his book-keeper, I would be changing things. There should be a more balanced system.

"Perfect, so I have a simple way of dividing lists like this. I'll pick a random reaper, pair them with a support member and give them the first page of the file. They can decide on how to tackle this list. It gives them the freedom to try and plan out their days." Alice said as she began to scan over the papers. Using her computer, she filled out an email and sent the information that she typed to someone. "All reapers receive their lists through email."

I nodded when her cat-like eyes shifted to me. It seemed to annoy her less, if I didn't make comments. So I just remained silent. I listened to her talk on and on, for what felt like forever. She often got off topic, as she complained about a few particular reapers, as she filled out their lists. It sounded to me like she didn't have the best relationship with any of them. It wasn't hard to figure out why.

Her lists were half-assed. Lazy. There was no thoughtfulness in them. At one point, she had a reaper traveling back and forth, from one side of the city, to the next, over and over all day. It just didn't make sense. No wonder some of the reapers were having trouble making it to their next jobs. She only gave them a window of five minutes.

Only an hour had passed and she was already finished and had sent the last email out to the teams. She smiled at me now for the first time. A real smile.

"On a side note, if a reaper is near a replenishing station, it would be best to give them a job near one, especially if they have another job that's far away from where they currently are."

"A replenishing station, what's that?"

Alice snorted, a glare clouding her face now. "I told you not to bother asking any stupid questions."

"I'm not trying to ask any questions at all. But I have no idea what a replenishing station is. I'm not a reaper. I don't know what half of these things mean." I didn't mean to use as much attitude as I had used.

Alice narrowed her eyes at me now, she kept her eyes locked on me as she reached over and began dialing her phone. She put it on speaker. There was a solid three seconds of ringing before I heard a very familiar voice.

"How is it going Alice?" Edward's voice floated from the phone. My heart skipped a beat. I felt my body slowly begin to relax.

Alice's voice came out sickly sweet. "I'm so sorry to bother you. But I'm afraid Bella just isn't suited for a book-keeper position. May I send her home?" She smirked darkly in my direction.

Bitch.

There was a distinctive smash on the other end of the phone. "No you may not. You are to train her. What is she having trouble with?" Edward growled into the phone, sounding annoyed.

Alice flinched, confusion highlighting her face. "She's human, she doesn't know the first thing about reapers, she doesn't even know about replenishing stations. Not to mention she is extremely rude and disrespectful."

There was a slight pause, before I heard Edward's voice again. He sounded like he was getting even more mad. "How dare you speak about her like that, one more comment like that and I'll transfer you out of this company entirely. Do you understand?"

Alice looked outraged, she was gritting her teeth in obvious frustration. She avoided my gaze now. "Just what is this human to you?"

"Did you fail to notice the eternal marking on her arm?"

Alice's eyes flashed in my direction, her eyes landing on the mark that Edward had given me. "Yes, I saw the marking, who does she belong to? Shouldn't she be paired with the reaper who gave it to her?"

"She is mine," His comment had an edge of possessiveness, but it sounded as if he was attempting to calm himself down. I heard him taking several deep breaths. Each word getting softer.

My cheeks were scorching. The urge to find Edward was strong. Images of his arms wrapped around me, entered my mind. So warm and safe.

Alice had practically turned to stone. She stared straight ahead of herself. Not really looking at anything in particular. But I could see that she realized she made a mistake. "I wasn't aware…" Her voice trembled. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't feel it was necessary. I thought I could depend on you to train Bella, without this knowledge. She may be my life partner, but I wanted her to get a fair chance at making connections in this business, without me being involved."

So, no one knew that Edward marked me. He didn't want everyone's opinions of me to be tainted because of his reputation. It was understandable. I could see it going two ways. Those who highly regard Edward, would naturally feel obligated to feel the same way about me. And those who resent him… well they would also want to resent me as well. Just because of association.

Alice hung her head. "I think I've made a terrible mistake. I haven't exactly been the best mentor. I don't think I can continue training Bella."

Edward snorted. "There is no one else that can do it. If I were you, I would apologize and get back to work. Because when I come to get her for lunch and she has any complaints at all about your performance, don't be surprised if you find yourself in Esme's office by the end of the day."

Alice's face paled, her entire body began to tremble. There was no denying that this tiny brute of a woman was paralyzed with fear. No, more than fear. Horror.

I recalled my last conversation with Stenton, before walking into this place. He had mentioned that Esme had caused those awful deformities on Jane's face. I didn't know any further details than that. But it sounded like a trip to Esme's office was something everyone here should be afraid of.

"I'll do my best, from this point on." She shakily began running a hand through her short locks. She shuffled around in her desk to pull out a pair of thin reading glasses. Determination entered her dark eyes. She set her shoulders straight as she turned her attention back on me. Now she looked serious.

"Great," Edward yawned, unimpressed. Another pause. "Bella?"

I loved how my name rolled off his lips. A chill ran down my spine. "Yeah?"

"I'm looking forward to seeing you." His voice sounded so warm and gentle. I felt like my body was about to melt.

I swallowed hard, feeling a smile tug at my lips. "I am too."

With that, he hung up. Silence once again filled the space between Alice and I. She looked at me with conflicted emotions. I couldn't tell what was on her mind. But as she stood up, I could tell she was still afraid. Her hands were balled into tight fists. Her eyes sparkled gold.

"I won't make any excuses for how I treated you. I won't apologize. This is who I am. I'm a miserable bitch. I don't want friendship with you. I don't respect you, even if you are Edward's life partner." Her tone was sharp. She was sticking to her aggressive nature. This was who she was. Take it or leave it. She was willing to face Esme.

"Who ever said I wanted to make any friends here. I'm here to do the job that I didn't even ask for. If my sister wasn't sick, I wouldn't even be here." I grumbled, folding my arms across my chest.

Alice's anger faltered for a moment. "Your sister is sick?"

I nodded, not meeting her hard gaze. "She has cancer. I've been trying my best to make enough money for her medications, I've been able to do it so far, just barely. But now, she will need to get surgery. It's a lot of money. I have no hope of making enough money, unless I take this job."

I didn't know why I was talking about my sister. Especially to her. I don't need to justify myself. I didn't need to explain my intentions of being here. Edward offered me this job, to help me. It has nothing to do with her.

Tears started slipping down my cheeks before I realized that I was crying.

Alice rested her hands on her desk, her shoulders slumped just slightly. Again she pulled out her bottle of wine from under her desk, this time pulling out two glasses. She filled them up both to the brim, before sliding one over to me.

"Looks like we both need a drink." She sighed.

A/N: Thank you so much for reading and reviewing on these chapters. A lot more is on the way.