Bella stood silent next to Liam's hospital bed. Edward studied her. She seemed beyond sad. He walked towards her and placed his hand on her shoulder.
'Carlisle told me he is going to recover fully.' He reassured her.
Liam was asleep, in result of his medication. He had a head trauma, but considering how much worse it could have been, the boy was lucky. His grandparents had not been so lucky. After getting rid of the last of the newborns, Kate, Jasper and Emmett chased after Maria, Edward, Carlisle and Bella rushed Liam to the hospital, Rosalie and Alice went to Liam grandparent's house to call the police and fabricate a believable story. As they expected they found both his grandparents dead. Maria had no use for the elderly couple, so she had killed them ruthlessly.
'He isn't...' Bella replied, but her voice died out.
He couldn't stand seeing her this unhappy. In these moments he hated the fact he couldn't read her mind. It would have been so much easier to understand what she was going through.
'What is on your mind, Bella?' He asked gently.
She was quiet for a long while and Edward grew more uneasy with every passing second. He wished he could know how to comfort her.
'Please, talk to me.'
She sighed deeply.
'He is not going to be okay.' Her voice was steady again, but layered with sadness. 'He just lost both his grandparents and was attacked by monsters.'
Edward flinched by her use of the word monsters and cursed himself immediately after. He was banned from showing his self-disgust. He checked her quickly to see if she caught his reaction, but to his relief she seemed to have missed it. She was wallowing too much in her own sorrows.
'It is all my fault.' She whispered, but Edward caught it crystal clear.
He turned her towards him and looked at her.
'It is not your fault, you hear me.'
'It is!' She replied immediately. 'If he wasn't my friend, this would have never happened to him.'
Edward swallowed. His first response was to comfort her, to tell her it wasn't true, but he knew better. She responded in exactly the same way he would have responded if he was in her shoes. Maybe he wasn't the right person to talk to her right now.
'It was better if I never existed.' She said with a hard voice.
Edward inhaled sharply out of shock. It pained him to hear her say that, but it pained him more to let her think of herself in that way. He had to do something.
'I almost got you all killed,' Bella responded to his shock, 'Liam's grandparents died because of me and Maria isn't the only one who is going to hunt me.'
Tears began to fall over her cheeks.
'You should get as far away from me as you can. All of you.'
'Bella! Stop talking like that, right now!' He said agitated.
It wasn't the right move, he knew that, but it was the only response he had in him. Fear of losing her prevented him from thinking straight. Her face turned angry. Bella was never angry.
'What are you going to do, Edward? Fight off everyone who comes for me, until you get yourself killed?'
'That is exactly what I am going to do.' He growled.
It was their first somewhat argument and Edward didn't like it. She shouldn't have doubts she belonged with them. She needed to understand she was worthy of their love and protection. She never had any doubts before. He was struggling to find the right response to convince her she was wrong.
I heard the end of your conversation. Need some help?
Edward was glad to accept. He gave Jasper a nod. He walked in the room and joined them. He immediately used his powers to calm Bella down.
'Maria?' Edward asked, temporarily distracted.
'We lost her trail a few miles out of town. She has escaped.'
Edward growled again.
'This is bad.' He whispered.
I know. Maria isn't going to stop. She will use any means necessary to get her hands on Bella. Bella will not be safe until we kill Maria.
Edward gritted his teeth. He ached to hunt Maria down and rip her in tiny pieces. The urge was so strong he gripped the pole of Liam's bed to keep himself in place.
Bella had calmed down. Her eyes were on Edward and her expression changed.
'I am sorry for upsetting you, Edward.' She said through her tears. 'I don't think I can stand it if any of you got hurt because of me.'
He kneeled down to her eyelevel and caressed the tears from her cheeks.
'I can't promise you we will never get hurt, but the same goes for you. You can't promise me either.' He said, wishing profoundly that she could. 'We can do our very best to protect and to care for each other. I love you, Bella and that will never change.'
'We all love you very much.' Jasper added.
'I love you too.' Bella answered without hesitation.
Her eyes went back to Liam and she was silent for a moment.
'I can't see him anymore, can I?' Her voice was small, hurt.
Edward wished with all his heart he could tell her differently, but Liam's involvement with them was not healthy for the boy. He was too vulnerable.
Jasper used his powers again on her, also knowing what the right answer was.
We probably have to move anyway. Jasper thought.
Alice walked in.
I saw Bella getting upset, so I came as soon as I could.
She pulled Bella towards a chair and sat down with her. Tender and caring she began to ran her fingers through Bella's hair, entangling the knits that were made during their encounter. Bella relaxed immediately and sighed while she leaned into Alice.
'Everything is going to be alright, sweetie. Whatever happens, we will always be there for you.'
Edward raised his eyebrows at her. He knew she was psychic but even she couldn't see that far into the future.
Don't start, Edward! It is what she needs to hear right now.
Besides I believe it is true and you should too. She may not always act like it, but she is still a child. She needs to feel safe.
Alice was right of course. He was happy Bella had all of them to care for her. He loved his family for it.
'How did it go at his grandparent's house?' Jasper asked Alice.
'The police bought our story. They are sweeping the house for DNA and stuff, which they are not going to find of course. They questioned us for a while, but it seems we are still safe. Liam's parents are talking to the police and are on their way here. We should go soon.'
They went home. Everyone was at their house, even all of the Denali's. They had a lot to talk about. Eleazar was very interested in Bella's new gift. He was sitting next to her, asking her questions.
'What did you do exactly when you froze Maria?' His eyes were gentle, but curious.
Bella bit her lower-lip and thought deeply.
'I don't really know. It kind of just happened. I wanted to save Liam so badly, it came out of me without making a decision about it.' She hesitated. 'The second time with Maria I wanted it badly as well and it happened again.'
'Can you freeze me?' Eleazar asked eager.
'Maybe, do you really want me to try it on you?'
'I don't think it will hurt me.' He answered with a smile.
Bella looked at him intently and concentrated deeply. Eleazar waited patiently. Bella was clearly using all her willpower in making it happen. The moment Edward thought she was giving up, Eleazar froze. It lasted only two seconds, but Bella was breathing heavily. Apparently it was a lot more difficult for Bella to do this now than when she really needed it.
That felt odd. Eleazar thought.
'Only once in my very long life have I come upon one of our kind who had a similar gift as you, Bella. He could control other vampire's movements. He did it like a puppet master, controlling them simply by the force of his will. He had been something like a hypnotizer in his human life, but you transfer your energy through your eyes into your target's body. It is quite unique.'
Edward was interested. Eleazar knew so much about abilities.
This child is so powerful and she is still just beginning to grasp her abilities. No telling how strong she is in a few years. It is frightening and amazing at the same time.
'Frightening how?' Edward whispered to him.
All the vampires in the room heard him and he had their attention in a blink. Carlisle watched them questionably. Eleazar spoke aloud to let the others in on their conversation, even Bella.
'Bella's increase of power is frightening for multiple reasons, but the most significant one is that she is now more than ever a target for the Volturi. She has proven her value now.'
The room was quiet, but nobody responded as Tanya did. She shuddered at the mention of the name and her eyes filled with fear. Edward saw it and he wasn't the only one. Bella's eyes were on Tanya's face and the question in her eyes was easily seen. Edward growled so harshly, Esme chided him. He did his best to control his anger.
'Alice, check the future.' He said through his teeth.
Alice did and her face fell. Edward hissed when he watched the vision with her.
Oh, damn it! Alice thought.
Edward felt like cursing himself. Even one day of peace was apparently too much to ask.
She was lost in thought. Her sisters were going about their business as usual, she couldn't concentrate. There was something wrong. She had felt it for some time now, but she couldn't press her finger on it. One of her sisters looked up from her book.
'Are you alright? You seem distracted lately.'
She shook her head uncertain.
'It is just a feeling.'
'What kind of feeling?' Her sister asked immediately.
'A general feeling of dread. We are missing something.'
She stared away from her sister's concerned face and shrugged.
'It is probably nothing.' Her voice was casual, but underneath it she heard her own fear.
Her sisters knew her better than she knew herself, so she was sure they heard it as well.
'Maybe we should investigate.' One of them suggested.
'No, leave it be. I am just being paranoid.' She assured them.
'Are you sure?'
Her eyes turned serious.
'I will let you know if I find a rational base for my fear. We can act then.'
The day went on normally, but still her fear grew. She had no idea why. Maybe she should talk to her mother about it. They hadn't seen her as regularly as they normally did, but that wasn't the first time. When you live together long enough you learn to respect each other's personal time. Their mother came and went as she pleased. It was the same for all of them. Their relationships were strong enough to survive everything. They lived in a small castle, so it was easy to avoid each other when they wanted it.
In the evening she and her two sisters had gone hunting. They were just returning home when they smelled the unfamiliar scents. They didn't got visitors often, so they were all surprised when they heard voices in front of their gate. They walked closer carefully.
What she saw made her cringe in fear. Many vampires were roaming around their property. They had come to kill them, was her first thought. Her sister hissed angrily. She had always been a feisty one, known for not bowing down, not even for a majority of strong and gifted vampires.
'Maybe we should flee while we still have the chance.' She suggested to her sisters.
But even during her words they saw something that prevented them from turning away. In the middle of the vampires stood their mother. They ran closer immediately. The vampires prevented them from closing the distance to their mother. They hissed and growled loudly.
'What is going on here?' She demanded. 'This is our home.'
Three ancient and legendary vampires stepped towards them.
'The Volturi.' Her sister gasped.
'Good evening, ladies. So glad you could join us, saves us the time of tracking you down.' The middle one spoke to them with a small smile. 'I am afraid we are here for a delicate matter.'
He stepped aside and showed them their mother. Her head was down, in a defeated matter, but behind her legs, they saw something move. She looked closer and gave a shriek in terror. Her sisters responded in similar ways.
'It can't be.' She muttered.
The middle vampire spoke again, his eyes twinkling with interest.
'Are you saying you didn't know?' He asked.
They were too shocked to respond. No, it couldn't be true. There had to be some kind of mistake or some kind of explanation for this. She needed to be sure.
'Let me talk to her, please.' She begged.
The three leading vampires looked at her. One shrugged, one was annoyed and one was intrigued. He stepped aside again.
'Go ahead.'
She walked closer slowly, feeling her pain triple with each step. In her mother's eyes lay the truth. She had betrayed them.
'Mother, what have you done!'
Her eyes were wide open in fright. Some naïf part of her still hoped it wasn't true.
'What have you done?' Her voice lost the force it had the first time.
Her mother didn't answer, her eyes on the boy at her feet.
'I had to. He would have died. I had to.'
She shook her head devastated, unbelieving.
'You have doomed us all.' She answered hopeless.
Her mother looked up shocked.
'No, no. I kept him a secret for a reason. They will spare you.'
'They will not, they will kill us all in punishment.'
Her mother's expression turned pained, hopeless.
'I love him.' She whispered.
'Don't you understand?!' She shouted to her mother. 'That won't matter at all! They will kill you and the child as well!'
The pain she felt was overwhelming and she gave a cry.
'What about our love? Didn't you care about us? Is he more important than all of us?'
She could hardly speak. Betrayal was always the most painful from the ones you loved and she had loved her mother deeply, maybe even more than her sisters had.
'We have been with you all these years and you throw it all away for one human child, that isn't even yours.'
It was no use to make these accusations, it was already too late, but she couldn't help it. She just didn't understand.
'You had no right.' She said hurt.
Her mother's eyes were filled with guilt, but there was nothing she could say that could make her understand.
'I had no choice.'
'There is always a choice.' She replied angry. 'You chose death for all of us.'
She turned her back to her mother and walked away, trembling out of anger and disbelief. Her sisters' faces mirrored her anger. She almost embraced her coming death. Living with this pain and betrayal was worse than dying.
'Let us continue. The evidence is overwhelming. They must burn.'
His hateful voice made her quiver, but the middle vampire still looked at them with interest.
'I think these three are innocent.' He answered.
'How could they be, they lived in the same house.'
'We can find out the truth easily, brother.'
His brother seemed extremely annoyed, but the middle vampire ignored him. He stepped towards them reaching out his hand.
'If you would be so kind to give me your hand.'
She gave him her hand without thinking. The pain was too fresh to let her think about anything else. He held her hand for a while and then let go with a smile. He repeated the same process with her sisters.
'I was right, they are innocent.' He concluded. 'They knew nothing about the crime committed by their mother.'
'I think we should still burn them, for their involvement with this woman.'
'How is that fair, brother?'
They went on with their discussion for quite some time, but the rest of it went by her unnoticed. The pain had caused a numbness inside her. She was just standing there, staring into nothingness. She didn't even fully register it when her mother slowly went up in flames, protecting the boy she had in her arms with her body.
So here's another chapter for you guys. I hope that you guys will vote this time. Thank you all so much. Hope you enjoy you're day.. •~•
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