Edward's P.O.V.-
"Where did you guys find her?" Sam asked as we placed Bella on the hospital bed that Carlisle had in his office.
"She was further south. Was there no one patrolling the area?" I asked him.
"No. We usually just guard the front and sides. No one heard anything." Embry said as he shook his head, "Sorry, we didn't know." He said.
"So what happened exactly?" Carlisle asked as he came back, grabbing fluids as Bella slept soundly. She was exhausted, she had to be. Her injuries were stable enough that it was not a complete emergency. We made sure that there was no internal bleeding. It was surprising that there was not in her condition. She had two small head lacerations, a leg laceration, and bruising in her abdomen with scratches scattered from head to toe.
"I can't describe it." Emmett said as he shook his head, "When I first found her...I saw a figure, but it was somehow clear. It was shaped exactly like a wolf. As I continued to fight it, it became visible. I could tell it was Chuy in a heartbeat." He said.
"When I got there it was like I was seeing the dead." I said back, "I could see him as clear as day. It was Chuy. His blood was blue. I knew it couldn't be but it was." I said as I paced back and forth as Carlisle began to clean Bella's wounds.
"I think Bella....I think Bella made him real. She was projecting the pictures in her mind as real." Jasper said as he stayed in the corner of the room, "She was letting you guys see what she was seeing." he said as he looked at her.
"I went to search the entire area that you guys said this happened and there is no scent, no blood, no tracks, nothing that leads to Chuy." Jacob said as he watched over Bella closely. I could feel my jealousy spike but I held it back as Bella furrowed her eyebrows.
"We saw him. I know it's crazy but he was there." Emmett said back, "I knew as soon as I saw her, she was in trouble." He said.
"It was real. I touched him." I said back as I looked at Sam, "I touched him with my own hands." I said.
"I thought Bella was lying when she kept saying he was near. I feel bad." Alice said.
"She's going to be fine. That's all that matters right now." Leah said, "Let's leave Carlisle to it." She said as she motioned for all of us to head to the door. We all walked out as I saw Carlisle moving faster and faster, getting Bella completely hooked up. I hated seeing her that way. It seems like that the only way I had seen her in a long time.
I didn't know if I should have felt relief yet or not. It was weird to think that there was a possibility that Bella's mind could create something else. Something much larger and Chuy would be haunting her all over again. I tried to push the thought out of my head as the hours passed and Carlisle checked up on her every now and then. I couldn't see her in the state she was in. I refused to.
"You okay?" Esme asked as she came over to where I was sitting in my room. Carlisle's office was just across the hall.
"I think so." I said back as I looked up at her.
"Carlisle found something. Bella's hand was clenched around this." Esme said as she showed me the mp3 player that I had given Bella. I was shocked as I saw that it had the imprint of her hand. It was crushed with how hard she had been grabbing it.
"She had the song." I said as I smiled to myself.
"She did." Esme said as she sat next to me, "Carlisle wants to show you something." She said as she motioned for me to go into his office.
I nodded as I walked across the hallway. Downstairs I could see some of the pack sleeping. My siblings had already gone into their rooms for the night. I stopped for a second at the door. It was painful to know that I was going to walk into Bella on a hospital bed again but I pushed the thought to the back of my head as I walked in. Charlie was inside as well. He had fallen asleep on the chair next to her, his head resting on Bella's hand. Bella was sleeping as well.
"Come." Carlisle said as he saw me hesitate to come in.
"What is it?" I asked as I walked in and saw where he seemed to have scans of the previous time he had scanned Bella's brain.
"There is a huge difference after what happened this morning." Carlisle said as he placed other scans that he had in his hands over the light.
"That's hers?" I asked as I saw the difference in the way she was presenting. The areas that were lighting up before seemed to have diminished to almost nothing. As she rested she wasn't even close to how alert she was before.
"It's almost gone." I whispered as I stated in awe.
"It looks like the part that was making Chuy real finally went away." He said as he smiled at me and patted my shoulder.
"We can see the progress." I said as I could feel my eyes stinging with venom. I couldn't stop smiling as I turned to see Bella finally completely relaxed in her sleep. She was relaxing. Her face was finally not furrowed, she was okay.
"It doesn't mean that we can immediately think she's okay, but it is a huge jump in what she was showing before. I think she is going to pull through just fine now." Carlisle said as he sighed with a smile, "Now go hunt. You and Emmett both had a rough day." He said as he motioned me to leave, but it was hard to think of leaving her.
"Okay. Let me know as soon as she wakes up. Please." I told Carlisle.
"I promise, now go." Carlisle smiled at me as he looked at Bella and Charlie, "She's going to be out for a really long time." He said.
———
Bella's P.O.V. -
I felt sore. Very sore.
I opened my eyes slowly, trying to get used to the dim light that was above me. I finally wasn't questioning where I was. I finally knew what had happened and why I was in Carlisle's office. I fluttered my eyes as I looked around. Charlie was on the sofa off to the side, his snores filling in the silence of the room.
There was no one else inside as I sighed. I could feel the cut on my right leg and I knew there was a laceration on my head. I remembered the fight. I remembered killing Chuy again. I remembered everything. Edward and Emmett had both seen him. They knew I wasn't crazy.
I looked around and I could see an IV set on both sides on my arms. I could see the fluids being placed in me as I sighed softly. I knew what I had to do. I was feeling safe and this was my only chance. I had to do what scared me the most. I didn't know when I would feel this good again. I listened to the world downstairs. It was completely quiet and it was dark out. Everyone was in their rooms for the night I supposed. I could hear who I believed was Sam sleeping downstairs. I had no idea how much time I had been down but I knew I needed a way to get out before anyone would stop me.
I sat up slowly, feeling the pain begin to shoot through me. I clenched my eyes shut as I finally finished sitting up. I grabbed the tape that was holding the I.V. s in and ripped them out. I prepared myself as I began to inch towards the side of the bed. I watched as Charlie moved slightly as I turned, the pain beginning to burn now. I winced quietly. Shit. Jasper.
Maybe he was out? I would think the pain I was feeling would alert him but maybe he was hunting or something. I needed to get out. I was in some sweats and a random long sleeve shirt. Thank goodness Alice didn't pick out something else. I had socks on, but there were no shoes around for me to take. I tip-toed quietly around Charlie as I looked through the cabinets that were off to the side. Until I saw exactly what I was looking for. I could see the clothes that I was wearing when I fought Chuy again. They were torn up and my sneakers were there too. I put on the sneakers, fumbling with the laces as I tried to be as fast as possible. I took the clothes as well. I needed to plant them if I was going to explain my wounds to them. I winced as I felt the would on my leg stretch. I clenched my teeth so I wouldn't make noise.
I walked to the window, looking out into the night. It was still snowing but it wasn't too bad. I unlocked the window and raised it slightly. I felt weak but I knew I needed to do this now. I could feel the cold rush in as I propped myself on a chair and climbed out. I drowned out the pain as I swung my legs over the edge and looked at the ground below. Besides being unsure how all of this would turn out, the fact that I was on the second floor scared me the most. I was okay. I was going to make everything right while I had the courage.
I closed my eyes for just a second before I wrapped my shield around myself, not wanting anyone to hear me jump down. I let myself fall and I groaned slightly as my feet touched the floor and I fell back, not being able to catch myself. At least they couldn't hear me. I made my way to the trees, looking for cover.
I knew that the pack had been patrolling the area, but was it possible that had finally stopped? I mean, I was in a house filled with surveillance that never slept. Sam was in the living room. I hoped that they laid off of patrolling but there was only one way to find out. I began to run towards the "abandoned" home. The one that the detectives were supposed to believe I was in all this time. I needed to make sure the place had me all over it. I ran with no sign of any of the wolves patrolling, sighing in relief. I took my shield off as I hit the area where they had built the house.
I saw it come into view. It was more like an abandoned shed at most. I clenched the clothes in my freezing hands. I was shivering as I walked into the shed, opening the creaking door. They made it look so believable. It was extremely small but livable...barely at most.
I walked through it. It was just one room. There was a broken sink that had my old toothbrush on the side. The toilet was...another story, but I needed to know this place left and right if I wanted to come out from the dead and make my comeback. There was ripped up sheets on the small foam mattress that was on the floor. They had placed small pieces of my hair on it strategically. I could see a tiny brush with my hair thrown to the side. It was perfect. The cabinets held nothing but three cans of beans and two half filled bottled of water. I could almost swear they placed my DNA on it. There was dirty clothes and everything seemed to check out. I placed the bloodied clothes inside as well, running the shirt under the cold water in the sink so it looked like I had tried to clean it. I made sure that there was blood left on the sink and on the floor. My hands shook like crazy as I stopped and left the shirt on the sink. I draped the pants over the window. I could see my breath as I walked around, making a last inspection.
"Bella?" I heard someone at the door say. Jake.
"Jake, hey." I said shakily as I shivered.
"What are you doing out here? You're freezing!" Jake scolded me as he took off his jacket and wrapped me in it.
"Shhhh." I said as I sighed at how warm his jacket was.
"We have to get you back in the house. I can't believe they let you leave." Jake said as he pulled me in towards him. He wrapped one arm around me as he led me out the door.
"N-No. L-Listed to me. P-Please." I tried as he closed the door behind us.
"What is it?" Jake asked me.
"I have to go to the police station. This is the only time I have felt the courage. I don't know if Chuy will come back and I won't be able to do this." I tried.
"Bella...I don't think this is the right time for this." Jake said back.
"Please. Please let me. It'll be more believable. Especially in my condition, don't you get that? Chuy will be painted as the bad guy. I need to do this now." I said as I forced Jake to look at me, "Please don't tell on me. I promise I'll be okay. You can stay close and listen in." I said.
"They're going to be pissed." Jake said as he sighed and stared at me for a while.
"Since when has that ever stopped us? We don't have much time before Charlie wakes up and sees that I'm not there." I said, "Or if Carlisle walked in to check on me." I said.
"Fine. What do we have to do?" Jake asked.
"Thank you. I have to get dirty and rip up this clothes some. I'll give you the jacket back before we get to the station." I said.
"Good enough." Jake nodded as he grabbed some dirt and began to rub it softly on my clothes, laughing slightly as he ran some dirt through my hair. The dirt mixed with snow only made me colder but I knew it was necessary.
"Here." Jake said as he grabbed my hand in his. He began to rub the dirt on my hands, being gentle as he saw some cuts on my hands. I looked up and he was already staring at me. I could feel a rush of blood go to my cheeks as he looked at me.
"Don't look at me like that." I said quietly as I looked down. It was weird but I felt something I shouldn't even be thinking of at this time. Jake was just...all it was...he was just there. Whatever. I could hear Jake chuckle slightly as he ripped small parts of my clothes, making it look like they had been ripped my shrubs and branches.
"That should do it." Jake said, smiling as he looked down at me.
"Now for the hard part." I said as I leaves down and pulled my baggy right sweat pant up. I grabbed the dressing that was over my open wound and tore it off.
"What are you doing?" Jake asked as I looked at the stitching that Carlisle had done. The wound was barely healing. Almost nothing considering how unhealthy I was.
"I have to take them out." I said back, "No one can know I was getting any kind of medical attention. I have to make it as real as possible." I said as I looked up at him.
"Bella no! You're going to hurt yourself." Jake said as he grabbed my hand that was reaching for it.
"They'll put me in the hospital and take care of me after. It has to be like this." I said back, "I'll just-" I stopped and reached down to grab most of the stitching as I gave it one hard pull, feeling my wound open wider and the string bounce out. I yelled slightly and Jake gasped at the sudden move.
"Bells!" Jake scolded as he helped me stay on my feet as I cried out.
"F-Moth-Shit!" I yelled as I tried to keep my voice down.
"Bella, that looks really bad. It's starting to bleed again." Jake said as he shook his head and I grabbed onto his shoulder.
"That's the point. The holes from the stitches should heal and not make it look like it was closed to begin with. I need it to look bad." I said as I winced, "Just don't let me fall." I said as I took off Jake's jacket.
"What are you doing?" Jake asked as I grabbed my left arm sleeve and ripped it off. I ripped it again, cutting in in two.
"Help me wrap it around my leg." I said as I passed him part of the ripped sleeve, "Just so it at least looks like I tried to keep it together." I said as Jake sighed, looking unsure.
"Please trust me." I said as I begged him with my eyes.
"Fine. Just- Just let me know if it's too much." Jake said as he got down on one knee and wrapped the cloth around my leg, "Ready?" He asked. I nodded as I closed my eyes and I felt him give it one quick pull. It stung but he was gentle.
"Ow." I whispered as I bit my tongue.
"Sorry..." Jake mumbled, "One more." He whispered as he did it once more, making sure he didn't hurt me much.
"Thank you." I said with a shiver as I placed his jacket back on me, "You have to take me to the station now." I said.
"Are you absolutely sure about this?" Jake asked me, "I don't want you to get hurt." He said.
"You can stay with me, just hidden. I promise I'm still a good liar." I said back to him.
"Fine." Jake said as he softly grabbed me, gently picking me up bridal style. I shivered slightly, moving closer to his body, feeling his warmth. Jake moved quickly it made sure not to rock me too hard. I closed my eyes as he ran, focusing on just getting warm. That's all I desired.
"We're here." Jake whispered as he slowly set me down. I winced as I placed pressure on my leg, "Are you sure?" He asked me once more.
"I promise I'll be okay." I said as I looked inside and I could see Officer Brown talking with some detectives that were about to leave. This was my chance.
"I haven't been able to get anything out of Charlie. No signs of Bella yet." Mr. Brown said. I knew he was lying. Charlie told me he was aware that I was hiding.
"Well, let me know if that changes." The detective sighed as she shook her head.
"Stay close." I said, giving him his sweater back. I shivered as Jake stayed behind a couple of bushes and trees as I made my way slowly down the slight slope there was coming off from the woods.
"Is that- it can't be." I could hear Officer Brown say as I came into view.
"Ms. Swan?!" The detective yelled out as she closed the door to her car before she got in. I stumbled on the last steps as I walked out of the woods, my adrenaline seeming to spike.
"Isabella!" Officer Brown yelled as he ran past the detective and came towards me.
"B-Brown." I whispered as he grabbed me off of the ground and picked me up easily. I cried out as I felt my wound hit the side of his leg.
"She's injured!" Brown called out as he looked at the detective behind him and I saw Emma walk out of the station.
"Bella?" Emma asked, shock written all over her face. At least her reaction was not going to be seen as weird to the detectives. It was complete shock. Emma was in the clear for now.
"Get her inside. She's freezing." The detective said as she gave me a sincere look. I guess I looked worse then I thought.
"I got you." Officer Brown said as he carried me towards the station. I looked back into the woods and I could see Jake hiding in between all of the vegetation. I closed my eyes as I heard Emma running to me.
"Bella? Bella, what happened?" She asked frantically.
"Emma, please. Calm down and let me speak to her." The detective said as I felt the warmth of the station as they Brown carried me inside.
"What happened to your leg?" Officer Brown asked as he and the detective took me into a room.
"I was running...I fell on this rock and it split open." I said as I felt the heat from the station finally surround me, "Sorry." I said quietly as Brown finally set me down on one of the chairs.
"It's okay. You're here now. I got you." Brown said as he gave me a hidden look.
"Is Charlie here? Is he okay? Has he been okay?" I asked, pretending to be frantic as I shivered.
"Charlie is just fine." The detective said as she sat next to me, "My name is Miriam and I have been one of the detectives on your case. It's a relief to know you are okay." She said as she gave me a small smile.
"I'll be right back with some bandages to cover this up." Brown said as he walked out of the room and I could hear him walking quickly. Emma was pacing outside, I knew she was scared and I could hear her calling Charlie.
"We have to get her to the hospital." Brown said as he came back with some gauze.
"I agree." Miriam said as Brown began to place pieces of gauze on my injury before beginning to wrap it in kerlex.
"I want Charlie. Please." I said as I felt tears in my eyes. I did want Charlie but I was petrified of the questions.
"I think we should wait on that, okay? Let's get you fixed up and then we can talk about where you have been, okay?" Miriam asked as she looked at me. She was buying into me. She was going to buy into the lies that I was going to trap her in.
"Okay." I said as I heard Emma at the door, opening it.
"Bella, what-" Emma started.
"Emma, please." Miriam said in a harsh tone, "Not now. Bella has been through enough and we have to get her to the hospital. I don't need you pressing." She spat. I'm guessing she was still not fond of Emma. Miriam was feeling protective and I knew Emma felt the same way.
"Charlie will be at the hospital." Emma said in a tight voice, "And so will I sweetheart." Emma said as she directed herself towards me with kindness.
"Okay." I nodded back.
"I told you not to tell him just yet." Miriam said as she shook her head, "Call the hospital ahead of time. Tell them we need a private room with little to no patients. Just one doctor can see her. No one else needs to know she's in there. We'll conduct everything over there once we can." She said as she looked coldly at Emma.
"Okay." Emma said in a tight voice as Officer Brown took off his jacket and wrapped me in it.
"It's going to be a little cold." Brown said as he smiled softly, "We have to keep you hidden so no one sees you. We don't want commotion just yet." He said.
"Thank you." I said back with a nod as Brown helped me to my feet slowly. I clenched my eyes closed for a second, regretting the decision to pull out the stitches. It hurt so much worse.
"I can carry you." Brown offered as he looked at me, his face in pain from seeing me like this. I hated that look.
"I'm okay, promise." I said as I forced myself to walk alongside him. I was nervous. I didn't have all the answers yet but I knew the pressure would help. It always did. I limped as we walked outside and I covered myself up tightly with his jacket and he quickly opened the passenger side of his cruiser and let me in.
"I'll follow you." Miriam said as she got into a different car. I watched as Emma did the same. I could hear Jake beginning to run as we drove off. He made me feel safe. He knew what was going on.
"What are you thinking?" Officer brown said as we pulled out of the driveway and he turned up the heater, "We don't know exactly what we are going to say yet." He said as he looked at me.
"I don't know when I'll feel comfortable enough again." I said back, feeling my eyes water as I looked at him. It was weird seeing him after all this time, "Don't be mad." I said.
"Oh, Bella." Officer Brown said as he reached over and softly wrapped his arm over my shoulders while he drove with his other hand, "I can never be mad at you. I'm so happy to see you again. Now, what did you really do to your leg?" He asked.
"I really did fall while I was trying to go outside again. Stupid sharp rock." I said as I shook my head.
"We're close." Brown said as he continued to drive towards the hospital, "Keep your head down and the hoodie on. They should have a hallway cleared and just one staff notified." He said as we began to pull into the parking lot. I wondered how long it would take my dad to get here. I don't think they would even let him back in the room with me.
"Okay." I said as I looked around and I could see hospital security at the back corner.
"Miriam is calling." Officer Brown said as he grabbed his phone and began to circle the parking lot.
"The back left corner of the hospital. Security is waiting for us." Miriam said through the phone, "He doesn't know why we are coming in but keep her hidden." Miriam said.
"Yes ma'am." Officer Brown said as he motioned for me to cover myself in his jacket. I hid myself as we approached the door. Officer Brown stepped out first, walked over to my door without saying a word and opened my door.
"Slowly." Officer Brown said in a whisper as I got up and took a shaky breath. I kept my head down as the security let us in and immediately directed us to the first room in the hallway that had been cleared.
"Thank you. Make sure no one else comes in through here." I could hear Miriam say from outside. I heard her walk in right behind us as Officer brown helped me sit on the bed.
"Those clothes are filthy. I'm sure they're going to want you in this gown." Miriam said as she grabbed one from the counter table.
A gown? I could feel my heart speed up as I looked at her. My arms and legs would be fully exposed. They would see my scars. They would see everything Chuy had done. The clothes I had on right now didn't show how skinny I had gotten. How malnourished I was.
"No." I said as I shook my head.
"Do you want to shower first?" Miriam asked as she looked into the restroom of the hospital room.
"No." I said as I shook my head, "P-Please." I said back. I wasn't ready to show her that part of my life yet. I know I had to but not now. It would set things into motion too fast. I wanted to just get a little bit of a break before anything happened.
"I'll go see what doctor is coming in. Just let her get comfortable." Brown said as he gave Miriam a look. She nodded as I gripped the cold sheets that were on the bed. I shook a little as Miriam sat next to me.
"Can I see the cut?" Miriam asked as she looked at my ripped pants that were still somehow covering the entirety of the wound. I watched as her hands softly took the fabric off of me. As she took the gauze that Brown had placed off.
"When did this happen?" Miriam asked as she looked back up at me. The wound was deep and I knew it was making her slightly queasy.
"A couple of hours ago...maybe a day. I can't keep count." I said as I shivered on the uncomfortable bed, "I don't know how long I have been gone." I said as I played with my fingers, feeling anxious as I heard another set of steps walking in with Officer Brown.
"Well-" The doctor said as he walked in the room and then fell completely silent as he looked at me, "Isabella Swan?" He asked as Officer Brown closed the door behind him.
"Yes." Miriam said as she faced the doctor. I had never seen him before. I was always treated by Carlisle, "You will be the only one allowed here. There is an investigation going on and you cannot let anyone else know who we have in this room. We need you to close the injury and do tests and make sure she's stable." Miriam said as she gave him a hard look.
"O-Of course." The doctor said as he stuttered over his words, "I'm Doctor Mason. I'll take good care of you. Can I take a look?" He asked as he walked over. I was scared of him, but after fighting off Chuy it wasn't as bad as it had been. My head was hurting but it wasn't nothing like before. I nodded as he came over and looked at my injured leg.
"Goodness, how did you manage to do this?" The doctor asked as he gently touched the sides, making me flinch as I felt the pain run up my side. He took the fabric that I had tied it off with off.
"I took a hard fall." I said in a tight voice.
"I'll get some pain medicine going and ill have to stich this up." Mason said as he looked up at me, "We're going to have to clean you up as well. Do you have pain or any other injuries?" He asked me.
"N-No." I said as I shook my head, "I don't want to be cleaned, or weighed, I just need this stitched up." I said as I struggled to find the words.
"Why not? With how long you have been gone we need to assess you and make sure everything is okay." Mason said as he shook his head at me.
"Not- Not yet." I said back.
"If she is not comfortable with it yet, we are not doing it." Officer Brown said in a harsh tone.
"Yes, sir." Mason said as he sighed, "As we go along, I'll make sure you are comfortable with what we are going to do. I know you might be scared, especially since you haven't been around for a while. I'll be back soon." He said as he began to head to the door.
"Just confirming that no one else is to know that Bella is in this room, understood?" Miriam said as she stopped him from reaching the door.
"Yes ma'am." Mason said as Miriam moved out of his way and let him through.
"Officer Brown, can I have a word with Bella alone?" Miriam asked.
"You okay?" Brown asked me.
"I'm okay." I said as I watched him begin to walk out..
"Make sure Charlie or anyone else is out of the way. We don't need any interruptions right now. Get other officers here to make sure they don't get through." Miriam whispered to him, thinking I wasn't going to hear.
"Charlie is her father. It'll help her calm down." Officer brown whispered back to her.
"He's not her fa- Listen. We need her to be alone for a while. No distractions. Who know what she has been through all this time. I want her to feel safe with me." Miriam said, "She's of age. She doesn't need any kind of parental consent. I don't want anyone else her with her, please." Miriam said. Her words burned me. I knew what she was trying to do but I was already on edge. Maybe Charlie would help, maybe it wouldn't. I knew she was just trying to help. Miriam seemed to be genuine.
"Okay, just know that if Bella wants to see him herself...not even you would be able to stop her." Brown said as I heard him walk out. Miriam stepped back around the sheet that covered the door entrance.
"Bella, we have to talk about what happened." Miriam said as she pulled up a chair and sat next to me, "I'm on your side but a lot has happened since you've been gone. We need to know everything you went through." She said.
"What has happened?" I asked, acting as if I did it know. I didn't know how to start the lie but I had to remember.
"I need to know what you know first." Miriam said to me, "I want to know what happened when you ran away." She said to me.
I could feel the lump in my throat as all the memories of being away tackled me. I could remember when I was in Canada, I can remember when I was forced to return, when I was captive, when I was beaten. I looked away as I tried to blink the tears from rushing and the memories I had tried so hard to suppress flooded my system.
"Hey, hey..." Miriam said as she showily reached for my hand and made me look at her, "I'm here to protect you. I'm not here to hurt you. I just need to know what happened." She said.
"I just need..." I tried as I struggled to talk.
I could hear cars rushing in. I knew the sounds of them.
"Where is she?" I could hear Charlie say as I heard him rush to the entrance of the hospital. I could feel myself go rigid. Would he be angry at me?
"Charlie, we can't have you be there right now." Officer Brown said as I heard him hold him back.
"That is my daughter in there." Charlie said extremely lowly, his anger projecting through his voice. I could feel myself getting worked up.
"Where is she? I need to know." Edwards voice said next.
"I'm fine. Please just let me handle this." I whispered extremely low, covering my mouth with my hand as Miriam watched me.
"Charlie, please. Bella has this handled." Officer brown said, "How did she hurt herself?" He asked lowly.
"She took a bad fall. I need to see her. Whose greeting her?" Carlisle's voice asked.
"Doctor Mason." Brown said back.
"He's good. Hell let me in." Carlisle said.
"No, no." Officer Brown said back, "You're too close to this investigation. Don't make me use more force. There are other officers on their way. Miriam asked for them." He said.
"Bella's going to be fine." I heard Jake say.
"Of course you would help her do something like this." Edward growled at him, "We don't have a story yet." He said as I heard them getting closer.
"Don't fight. Please." I whispered as I felt the tears beginning to flood over.
"Cool it!" Officer Brown yelled.
"Bella, hey don't cry. You're safe with me, I promise." Miriam said as she moved my hand away from my face.
"She's getting upset. Both of you cool it." Jasper hissed, "It's done. Bella's in Miriam's hands now, let her handle it." He said sternly.
"We're going to be close Bells." Jake said, "Just like you wanted me to." He said.
"Can I wait to tell you?" I asked Miriam, "I'm just upset." I said as my voice cracked.
"Of course. We'll get you treated and we can go from there." She said sweetly as she patted my hand.
"Okay." I nodded back. She made me feel safe. I hated the way she was trying to keep everyone away from me but I guess it made sense. She cared to some extent about keeping the story safe. She didn't want me under pressure.
"Alright, here we go." I could hear Doctor Mason coming back into the room with a rolling cart with different equipment, drugs and other things into the room
"So, Is it okay if I hook you up to this monitor?" Doctor Mason asked as he pointed to the monitor that was hanging to my left, "I also have to ask, do you want Miriam in the room while I get you ready?" He asked.
"I- I don't want her inside for that." I said as I looked at Miriam, "Sorry." I said.
"That's fine dear. Trust me I am not one for looking at wounds or seeing them getting stitched. I'll be right outside." Miriam said with a smile. I watched as she walked out.
"What are you going to do?" I asked as I looked at all the wires next to the monitor.
"I would put a blood pressure cuff on you, a pulse ox, and two stickers on the sides of your arms and the other two on your stomach." Mason explained nicely.
"Not the stickers. I...I don't want those." I said. They would expose too much. He would see everything.
"That's okay. I'm not too concerned about your heart being a problem." Mason said with a small smile. This was weird. Usually I was so afraid of having someone I didn't know around me. Less if it was a male. But I was okay. I knew I was.
"I'm going to place the pulse ox on your finger." Mason said as he softly reached for my hand and placed it on my pointer finger, "Oxygen is looking good on you." He said.
"Thanks." I whispered back., my hand shaking as I took it back.
"I'm going to wrap this cuff on your arm here." Mason said as he began to wrap the blood pressure cuff around my arm. I watched as his eyes widened slightly as he felt my arm. I knew I had lost a lot of weight but his concern showed through his eyes. His hand could fit around the top of my arm easily. Maybe too easily.
"Bel-" He tried but I stopped him.
"Don't. I know." I said as he finally got the blood pressure cuff on after shortening it.
"When was the last time you had something to eat?" Mason asked gently as I felt the blood pressure cuff tightening around my arm.
"I can't remember. I wasn't counting time." I said as I swallowed hard as the blood pressure hurt my arm.
"I'll bring you something soon. I have to do blood tests to make sure everything is functioning normally." Mason said as he looked at me with pity, "And from the looks of it, you also haven't been getting enough water in your system." He said as he looked at my slightly-low blood pressure.
"I'll be okay, right?" I asked him.
"I'll make sure of it. Now, I'll need to start an I.V. in order to give you some pain medication so you won't really feel what I'm about to do. Then we can start some fluids to get your pressure up a bit, how does that sound?" Mason asked with a small smile.
I could see all the needles on his cart. The pain medicine was not going to even touch me. I was going to get through the meds quick and It would be useless. He would have to ride up my sleeve and see all of the markings and bruising on my arm. I wouldn't be safe from the questions if he told Miriam or even if he himself asked me about it. It would be too much.
"Are you okay with that?" Mason asked again.
"No, I'm okay. I don't want blood tests. You can just do it without medication." I said as I took a deep breath.
"Are you sure? I- I really think we should get these things going." Mason said as he looked at the wound on my leg again.
"I'll be okay. I promise." I said as I looked away from him and took a deep breath, "I'm going to be fine." I said as I tried to convince myself.
"It's going to hurt. The wound is...one of the more hefty ones that I have seen." Mason tried again.
"I can handle it." I said back.
"Okay." Mason said as he sighed, "Let's get started." He said as I saw him being out equipment to clean my injury along with needles and everything else that only seemed to work me up. I stiffened on the bed as he pulled the sides of my ripped pants off.
"Are you sure you don't want to change out?" Mason asked.
"I'm sure." I said as I closed my eyes and I could feel his cold gloves hands begin to touch my skin. This was going to hurt so bad.
"Jasper, I-." I whispered lowly, hoping that he was there.
"I got you." Jasper said back comfortingly from outside as I began to feel calm and my leg almost began to feel numb. His power was getting stronger than it had usually been.
I could feel the pressure of Masons hands as he began to clean my wound but it was just that. Pressure. No pain. I closed my eyes as Jasper continued to work with my emotions and I even felt sleepy at some point. I would open my eyes from time to time as I saw him stitching me up once again. It felt good to feel nothing.
"Almost done." Mason whispered as I felt him tie off the stitching. I could feel the pressure as he slowly lifted my leg and began to wrap it in gauze.
"You did very well." Mason said as he finally tied off the bandaging.
"Thank you." I said as he placed all his equipment back onto his cart.
"Are you sure I can't give you any fluids?" Mason asked as he looked at the monitor above me.
"I can drink water." I said back.
"Compromise. I like it." Mason laughed softly, "I'll bring you in some food as well, something light so I don't upset your stomach. If you change your mind, please let me know. Is there anything else I should be concerned about?" He asked. I had two lacerations on my head but my hair covered them and Carlisle had already taken care of them.
"The rest of me is okay." I said back, "I'll let you know if I need anything."
"Okay. I'll be right back." Mason said with a small smile as he walked out and Miriam came back in.
"How are you feeling?" Miriam asked me.
"Okay." I said back, grateful that Jasper was still keeping my pain under control.
"I know you are wanting to see Charlie. I know you probably want to see everyone, and you will. I just need to have your story first, okay?" Miriam asked me.
"I know." I said back, "I just don't think I can right now." I said.
"I understand. I'm not trying to pressure you." Miriam said as she lightly placed her hand over mine, "Is there anything I can do to get you out of these clothes?" She asked.
"I'll shower and change...but by myself. I want big sweats and a big sweater." I said back. I didn't need her seeing anything too crazy until I could force a story out of myself. I usually did good under pressure but this was different. Everything was different.
"I can get that for you. For now just rest and take it easy. We'll get you fed and feeling better, okay?" Miriam asked.
"Okay." I said back, nodding.
"Alright, let me give someone a call to get you some clean clothes." Miriam smiled. I watched as she paced and talked over the phone.
This was going to finally change everything. Nothing was going to be "normal" for a very long time. I was going to have to adjust to being the talk of the town...I was going to have to come up with a believable story. What if I didn't have one? What if I gave myself away? I bit at my nails as I watched Miriam talk on the phone.
What if I made the wrong decision?
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The horrible updater has returned :)
But not for long haha
-jellyroll101