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prattle incessantly."
Esme tsked and was about to reprimand his attitude when Jasper, Emmett, and
Rosalie entered the house. As they filed into the room, Edward puffed his chest
slightly and inched toward the stairwell.
"Well, well, well. The reclusive vampire captor has descended from his mighty
fortress," Emmett whispered forebodingly before breaking into a grin. "Sorry
about the arm, bro. You okay?"
"I'm fine. Don't worry about it." Edward's answer was stiff.
"Hi, Edward."
"Rosalie," he acknowledged bitterly.
Jasper could feel the anxiety rolling off him like swells in the ocean. "I'm surprised
to see you down here, Edward. Is something wrong?"
Edward opened his mouth to tell him off but was distracted when the stairs above
him creaked. He turned around to see Bella standing at the top. While upstairs
alone, she had decided she wasn't going to wait around for Edward or starvation
or anything else to kill her. It was time to take matters into her own hands. If it
was as hard to resist her blood as Edward claimed, then at least one of the five
vampires in the room would take the bait.
Bella raised a triangular shard of the broken plate to the crease of her elbow.
Edward's eyes widened in horror as he watched it slice down the length of her
arm. Blood immediately ran from the cut, coating her arm in rich crimson. In that
moment, Edward didn't know what to do. He wouldn't have time to get her back to
the safety of his room. He would have to defend her here.
Once the scent of her free-flowing blood filled the room, it was all over.
"Bella, run!" someone yelled, but it was too late. Edward had already made it to
the top of the stairs. Protecting her was no longer an issue. Only one thought
repeated in his mind.
Kill. Kill. Kill.
Bella closed her eyes and waited for the attack, but it never came. There was a
loud crash. She jumped and looked behind her. Emmett and Jasper were trying to
subdue Edward. There was a large crack in the plaster where they must have
pushed him into the wall. This time, he didn't put up much of a fight. He gave Bella
what appeared to be an apologetic look before collapsing under the weight of the
other two vampires.
"Someone has to stop the bleeding." Rosalie's voice was strained, weak from
conserving the air in her lungs.
"I'll call Carlisle," Esme whispered before flitting from the room.
Bella looked down at her arm. The cut wasn't as deep as she'd hoped. Definitely
not bad enough for her to bleed out. She looked around again. The two males were
still occupied with Edward, but the blonde vampire at the bottom of the stairs was
fixated on her. Bella held out her arm and approached her.
"Don't!" Rosalie said sternly. "You stay away from me." She turned abruptly and
followed in Esme's path.
It didn't work, Bella thought. Why didn't it work? She looked behind her again.
Edward's eyes were closed, his eyebrows drawn together, his jaw clenched. He
was completely motionless, yet the other two had him restrained as though they
weren't taking any chances. She could tell none of them were breathing.
She glanced at her bloody arm again. The sight of the jagged flesh nauseated her.
She sank to the floor, wrapped her arms around her knees, and cried.
o.O.o
"You need to hunt," Carlisle demanded.
Edward sat in the hallway, self-exiled from the room that Bella occupied alone. He
shook his head slowly. He felt lethargic. Even keeping his eyes open sucked the
energy from his body. "I can't leave her."
"You will leave her."
"I don't know what's wrong with me," Edward muttered.
"You're starving. How long has it been?"
"A couple of hours."
Carlisle sighed, exasperated. "How long since you've had a proper feeding?"
"I don't know. Not long. Three weeks, I think." His memory was becoming fuzzy.
He rubbed his eyes vigorously, as if it would somehow help.
It didn't.
"Edward, you're going to kill her. I know you don't want that."
"I don't want her to die, but I can't . . ." He groaned. "I've never felt so out of
control."
"It's the blood."
"What blood? Her blood?" he asked in disbelief.
"Human blood," Carlisle clarified. "It's making it difficult for you to separate
yourself from your true nature. It's why you've been irritable and making rash
decisions."
"I am a monster."
"No you're not, Son."
"Yes, I am. I lost it, Carlisle. I completely lost it. I let my instincts, my desires, take
over. And that was before I drank from her the first time. Everything I've worked
so hard to be "
"Hunt, Edward. I won't take no for an answer."
"What about her?" Edward nodded to the door behind him.
"Bella will be fine. No one will bother her."
"No! Will you stay with her, please? I don't want her to be alone, and I don't trust
anyone else."
"I will look after her if that's what it will take to get you to eat."
Edward stood begrudgingly. He knew he should trust Carlisle, but without being
able to hear anyone's thoughts, he had become paranoid. This could all be an
elaborate plan to take the girl away. Or kill her. What would he do if he came
home and she was gone? What would he do without her silence? He didn't want to
go back to the way things were. He couldn't!
"I'm going to let her know I'm leaving." Separating from the girl was going to be
difficult. He didn't want to go, but he had to feed. There was no way he could taste
her blood again without killing her. He could barely be in the same room with her
anymore. Just the thought of opening his bedroom door caused venom to pool in
his mouth. He knew it was best to go now, to get out of the house as quickly as
possible, but he couldn't leave without saying goodbye.
He might not get another opportunity.
Carlisle sensed his hesitation. "Everything will be okay." He squeezed Edward's
shoulder reassuringly. "I'll be right here if you need me. You'll be fine."
Edward nodded, comforted by Carlisle's encouragement. He inhaled deeply and
took a moment to mentally prepare before entering the room. Bella was curled up
on the bed. She quickly wiped away her tears. He approached cautiously, making
sure he could keep himself in check, and sank onto his knees.
"I need to hunt."
She pushed herself up to a seated position. "You're leaving?"
"Only for a little while." He took her arm and gently traced the sterile, white
bandage with his fingertips. "If you keep bleeding all over my clothes, I'm going to
have to walk around naked," he tried to joke, but it fell flat. He slid his hands down
to her wrist before dropping her arm. "I'll be back by morning. Carlisle is going to
stay with you while I'm gone. If if that's all right," he added, recalling Esme's
advice to be nice.
Bella gave him a quizzical look. She wasn't sure which was more unexpected,
Edward asking for her approval or leaving her in someone else's care. "Okay."
"Don't get any crazy ideas while I'm gone." He grimaced, her unsuccessful suicide
mission still fresh in his mind.
"Are you hunting animals?"
He nodded. "Don't worry. Bambi won't feel a thing." His attempt to lighten the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]