EPOV
A blown radiator hose, I suppose
it was possible after all stranger things have occurred. However from the
moment I semi-agreed with Bella making a stop at the grocery store I had a bad
feeling in the pit of my stomach. Instead of putting my foot down and demanding
that Bella adhere to the terms she agreed to, I against my better judgment
relented to her request. All under the excuse that I didn’t want to come off as
an overbearing inflexible bully.
To say I was anxious was an
understatement, I sat in the kitchen staring at the clock with my thumb perched
over the accept bottom on the phone. My edginess growing with every second and had
it taken two more minutes, I would have caved and called her. As it was even
with Bella on the line talking about the most mundane things all I kept
thinking was how stupid the plan was. The whole time we talked the voice in the
back of my head whispered ‘if something
happens…what are you going to do about it?’
Worse was the fucker was right, there was nothing
I could do, not while Bella roamed around the store and not when she called me
frantic about the car. Then – holy-mother-fucking-hell
– my heart stopped at hearing a man’s voice and the terror of her scream and
there wasn’t a god-damn thing I could about it.
I didn’t even know where she was
or how I could find her, and even if I did there was no way I could get to her
in time. That was a stupid thought to have because of course my mind started
recalling every episode of
Criminal Minds I ever saw. How it only takes a short
time for an attacker to incapacitate their victim and for some strange reason
my brothers voice kept shouting in my ear ‘FIRE!’
The few seconds of suspended time
it took for Demetri to get the phone, robbed ten years off my life. I was dizzy
from the adrenaline running through me and not recognizing the voice
immediately I demanded into the receiver “Who is this?”
“It’s Demetri”
My mind was so muddled it took me
a second to comprehend who I was talking to before I could ask the rest of the
questions that needed to be answered. He
assured me Bell was unharmed, the car was in a secure place and most important
he would take care of her until I could get there. Those little bit of
reassurances did wonders to ease my nerves yet I couldn’t totally relax. The drive to his shop was the longest fifteen
minutes of my life. The tension didn’t leave my body until I could see for
myself she was indeed unscathed and I vowed then and there– never again.
Call me an over protective dictator
all you want, it wasn’t going to happen again because there was no way in hell
Bella was ever leaving the house alone until the mess was settled. And if she
didn’t like it – tough shit!
I’d chain her to the fucking wall
in the playroom for the next month is that’s what I had to do. It might have
been selfish yet there was no way I was going through that HELL ever again.
I was eager to get back to
Demetri’s store before Jacob arrived, I had already set the appointment to
commission Bella’s ring and I was heading there anyway. He had wondered while
we transferred the packages Bella bought from one car to the other if perhaps I
wanted to postpone the meeting. And in all honesty I thought about it because I
didn’t want something so significant to be overshadowed by stress.
Then the most ridiculous thing
happened.
The wetness from the rain caused
the last bag to slip out of my hand, leaving the contents on the bed of the
trunk. Trashy Hollywood tabloid rags and women’s magazines spilled out along
with the one thing I was sure Bella did want me to know about, and I started
laughing.
Demetri chuckled along with me
commenting on the bold black subtitles “Ten
Things to Blow Your Man’s
Mind in Bed”
But my humor was directed at the
box of cereal and all I could do was mutter “Damn Fruity Pebbles” through my laughter.
It took me a few minutes to gain
my composure and I told him I’d be back
in half-an-hour, then pulled myself together because I couldn’t wait to see
what Bella had to say. It took everything I had to keep a straight face while
she stuttered and stammered out an excuse.
“Y..Y…Y…Master you said…your
exact words were …You can get them on the next
shopping trip.”
Oh my girl was a sneaky one
It was Monday morning far outside
of our usual and maybe it was my fault, I had called her Isabella and she in
turn replied with a Formal title. My submissive was in the car with me along
with all the etiquettes that come along with the label.
Questioning her memory I asked. “Those
were my exact words?”
“Yes Master…” Completely secure
in her recollection Bella’s eyes grew as if she was trying to convince me. “…exact
words”
“Uh…” Grunting in cynicism I
placed the cartoon covered box in Bella’s lap before starting the car and pulling
out into traffic.
Sitting in the seat with her eyes
trained on the sugary cereal, her fingers flexed in nervousness against her
legs while her teeth bit into her lip. Leaving her to stew a little bit while I
drove all the while knowing she was waiting for my response. The thing was, I
wasn’t exactly sure how to react Bella knew damn well what she did was scheming
and underhanded, my problem was getting her to admit it.
“Mast…”
Shocked by her speaking out of
turn I quickly retorted “Quiet”
She immediately went back to the
same stance and I told her the truth “Don’t worry Isabella; you will get a
chance to plead your case. However before I decide what to do about this there
are a few questions I need answered. And believe when I say your answers are
going to be the deciding factor. So if I was you, I would be very careful in
what I said”
At the continued silence I asked
the main thing I needed to know. “When you talked me into going to the store
this morning was it with the intention to purchase the sugar coated cardboard”
“No Sir…it was an impulse buy”
That’s my girl – impulsive
“And the whole time we were on
the phone and you had them in the cart, it never dawned on you to inform me?”
“Your girl didn’t tell you
anything she bought”
That was true
“Yet you knew that particular
item was something you should not have gotten.”
“Master you did say…”
Again I interrupted her
“Isabella, believe me when I say your tenacity is withstanding and I can
completely understand your endurance with the whole ‘that’s my story and I’m
sticking to it’ thing. If I was in your spot at this moment I would be trying
to pull the same shit. However do not for one minute think that I was born
yesterday or that I am not aware of the fact that you knew exactly what I meant
by the next shopping trip”
After a brief moment of silence I
stopped for a red light, there was one thing I had to know and I needed to see Bella’s
face while she answered “Now look at me Isabella”
That wasn’t such a good idea
because she turned her head giving me the biggest pout I had ever seen. So
dramatic was her expression I was forced to bit the side of my tongue to keep
myself from reacting to the antics.
“Were you planning to bring the
box home or was your impulse purchase something you were going to hide?”
Not getting a reply I prompted “Isabella?”
In the blink of an eye the
endearing pout was gone, squaring her shoulder the forlorn eyes and sulky lips
were replaced with a glaring scowl.
Holy Shit!
Talk about a demon processed, she
gave me a look of pure unadulterated fury and then yelled
“Alright…One bowl, that’s all I wanted. One damn bowl and then let the kids have the rest. Why can’t I get em!”
Even after watching the exorcist
occur right before my eyes the petulance caught me off guard. We were not in a
total D/s mode and that knowledge truly was the only thing that saved her ass.
However she’s the one that took us to the Master and sub level so she was going
to fulfill her end. Besides respectful tones at all times is a mandatory rule
that was not negotiable and that included raging hormones.
Narrowing my eyes I gave the
sternest voice I could muster on short notice “Watch your tone young lady or
what you’re going to get is put over
my knee for a good spanking. Now calm yourself, speak correctly to me and
apologize”
The beeping horn had me driving
again while Bella spoke with a much more rational tone. “This one shouldn’t
have yelled at you Master, she was just angry”
“And why was that Isabella, what
made you angry? Was it my asking for an explanation or was it being caught at
something you were trying to hide?”
“Wasn’t hiding it” she grumbled
“Really?” I question “Then can
you explain why you very nearly almost shit yourself when I put the box between
the seats. If you truly thought buying that junk was something you could do
with a clear conscience then I would think the reaction would have been much
different”
Always so damn stubborn she was
sticking to her point for all it was worth “You did say…”
“Are you honestly going to sit
there and tell me you didn’t know that the next shopping trip I referred to was
the one we did together?”
“Your exact words wer…”
Getting frustrated I figured it
best to put an end to that line of defense and interrupter her “Be very careful
here Isabella and make sure you know what you’re getting into. If that’s you’re
only contention then you had better be damn well positive it’s something you
are willing to do…live by exact words.”
Glancing over I gave a pointed
look and asked “Is that how you want it?”
If Bella really wanted to go down
that road I would make sure that would be a lesson she would never forget.
Thinking before answering the
pout returned “No Sir, this one would rather not”
Smart girl
Pulling up to the gate for the
underground garage Bella rattled off the code for the door to open. Once I had
pulled into a space and I could give her my undivided attention I asked again.
“So what had you angry?”
Unfastening the seatbelt Bella
turned to face me “Not angry, that was a poor choice of word. More disappointed
that I wasn’t going to get to eat them and well…sort of feeling bad that I was
being conniving.”
Shocked by the word I asked “So
you admit there was no misunderstanding in what I meant”
“At the time I wasn’t thinking
about it and yes I sort of talked myself into justifying getting them because
…well…I just wanted them”
Nodding I got out of the car to
open her door, Bella sat there for a moment looking at the box on her lap and
then started to move it to the console. “I don’t want that crap, take them with
you”
“I thought…” taking my offered
hand she stepped out of the car questioning me “I can have them?”
“You’re a big girl…you decide”
Opening the trunk to get all the
bags, Bella just stood staring at me “That’s not fair”
“Should I tell you to ‘go ahead Bella devour the whole box’ or
would you rather I forbid you the bowl you want so very badly?”
“I want you to tell me what you
really think”
“You already know that…so no I
won’t make the choice for you, it was your decision to buy them so you decided
what to do with them.”
Continuing to watch me while I
gathered a few bags in my hands and then finally relenting, Bella followed my
lead in helping to empty the trunk. It took two trips to get all the stuff
upstairs where the offices were and once that was done I kissed Bella goodbye
telling her to have a good day and left.
The rain had let up just as Jacob
arrived with the tow truck at the same time I did, getting out of the car I met
him and Demetri came out of the store. “I’m glad you’re here Edward because you
didn’t leave me the keys”
Truthfully I hadn’t thought about
it and besides I assumed Jacob had a set - which he did – after making the brief
introductions Jacob pulled a key ring from his pocket.
“I have three sets. Bella can be
a bit ditzy sometimes and had a thing for losing the keys or locking them in
the car. Hell one time she shut the trunk on them and I had to rip the whole
backseat out. Not a hard thing to do in a ninety-four Honda, but this thing…”
pointing to the Silver Saab A3 “…I couldn’t imagine what a pain in the ass that
would be. So now I keep a set at the shop, one at home and one on my key ring”
Demetri chuckled but I wonder “Bella
had a Honda; I thought she drove that old truck”
“Yeah well…” Jacob gave me a
knowing look “…It was a long drive to Port Angles every day and the truck used
a lot gas. That caused more…grief, I had the Honda it needed work, so I rebuilt
the engine and that was what she used. Not that it made much difference …there
was always something to…”
Trailing off Jacob changed the
subject “Overheated? Uh…” he huffed, probably having the same thought I did –
weird
“When was the last time Bella
drove?”
“Two weeks…before we left…” not
remembering the exact day
Demetri went back inside to get
out of the rain that was once again starting to fall while I finished up with
Jacob. It only took a matter of minutes before the car was hoisted up and ready
to go. I asked if he would please let know what the problem was because
somewhere in the back of my mind it just didn’t seem …logical.
Jacob must have had the same
thought as he assured me “I’ll give it a thorough inspection and get back to
you.”
Shaking my hand Jacob got in his
truck and was still idling in place while I went inside to meet with
Demetri. He had an area set up on top of
the glass display case that housed the collection of ‘engagement rings’ at least that’s what the etched calligraphy sign
called them. There was a nervous excitement building inside me as I glanced at
all the rings. It’s not that I doubted the decision of wanting Bella to become
my wife…
Wife? What a strange word
Yet that was what she would be,
my other half, my better half.
It was a stage in my life that I
never contemplated happening to me, meeting someone who I couldn’t imagine not
being there. Throughout the year’s woman have come and gone with nothing more
than a passing good-bye. In all that time I can’t say there was ever anyone who
I missed or who I couldn’t live without. They were easy to physically replace,
maybe that’s because there was never an emotional connection. Bella was
everything I could have ever wanted she completed me in the most basic ways. In
her own imposing style she challenged me to become a better person, someone
worthy of her love and respect.
I wanted the ring she wore to be as splendid as
she was, a treasured and cherished jewel as timeless as the love I had for her.
“Are you buying a ring?”
My attention was so focused on
the shiny gemstones I hadn’t heard Jacob step up beside me.
“Yes”
“For Bella?”
Who the hell did he think?
Grinning I gave the same one word
answer “Yes”
Several emotions played across
his face, confusion, surprise, indecision then finally clarity. “Like a real diamond?”
What the
hell did that mean?
Demetri spoke for me “This isn’t
Walmart, I don’t sell fake ones”
“No offence dude…” Jacob held his
hand up “…I’m just a little shocked here; give me a minute to process this...ok?”
Turning back to me Jacob asked “Does Bella know…or Charlie?”
“No…I was going to get the ring
first and then speak to Charlie” I wasn’t exactly sure how I was going to do
that because it didn’t seem like something you talk about by phone. He would be
here for the weekend but I highly doubted the ring would be ready by then. So I
was considering making the three hour trip out to Forks but as of that moment
hadn’t come up with any concrete plans.
“Well that will be a first for
both of them” Jacob muttered eyeing the display
“What do you mean?” I questioned
not understanding the comment.
Jacob’s eyes narrowed “The
asshole never asked Charlie…” he laughed “…wished he would have, Charlie
probably would have shot him…and Bella never had a diamond”
What?
Seeing my expression Jacob
explained “Yeah, it was just a cheap piece of glass. When she got to Dartmouth
Bella needed the money so she took it to the pawn shop. They told her it wasn’t
even real gold, just some plated piece of metal that wasn’t even worth fifty
bucks.”
Stunned…that was all I was,
completely stunned and then even more nervously excited. I would be giving the
woman I loved more than life itself something she had never had before. That
made my choice even more important, my girl was going to receive from me the
first and only ring of her dreams.
“Wait a minute…” Demetri was just
as stunned “…we’re talking about Isabella, that funny, charming, enchanting
woman…”
At the description Jacobs eyes
narrowed “enchanting…how do you know Bella?”
The suspicion in Jacob’s tone had
me speaking quickly “Demetri is a friend of ours”
Purposely including Bella in the
group, for one thing my friends were hers and also from what I saw of their
exchange it would appear she was comfortable enough around Demetri to agree
with me.
“Sorry I just use to knowing all
of Bella’s friends”
Yeah well…not anymore
The chimes on the door sounded
and for a second I wondered why I hadn’t heard them when Jacob came in. Before
I could turn around to see who it was Felix called out “Hey why is that tow
truck in our loading zone?”
“I better go” Jacob clapped me on
the shoulder “Don’t get anything to big, Bells doesn’t like that”
I didn’t like the advice, Jacob
meant well however I didn’t need anyone to tell me what my girl liked or didn’t
like, and if I wanted to buy her a fucking ten karat diamond, I would and there
was nothing he could do about it.
Jacob shook his head “Leah’s
going to freak”
“Don’t tell her” it was bad
enough that he knew I didn’t want everyone to be aware of my plans. It just
seemed wrong that Bella would find out last after all.
“Are you kidding, I like my
fucking balls where they are” Jacob laughed without humor making me wonder if
Leah was going to be a problem.
We had come to a bit of an
understanding during the weekend I spent in Forks; still she wasn’t my biggest
fan. Yet with a ring on Bella’s finger my intentions towards her should be a
whole more obvious to Leah.
“Leah?” Demetri questioned when
Jacob left
“Bella’s sister” was all I said as
Felix stood next to his brother looking over the selections that had been
prepared for me.
“Hey Edward, you’re going to take
the plunge uh?” before I could answer he got a smirk on his face “And here I
thought you were allergic to diamonds”
I chuckled “Yeah well I guess I
been immunized”
“Well congratulations, Isabella’s
a hell of a vaccination”
Felix excused himself leaving me
with Demetri who eyed me suspiciously.
“Speaking of Isabella, did you
let that girl have her Fruity Pebbles?”
That was a question I could only
partially answer “She took them with her…”
“But?” amusement clear on is face
“But I’ll have to wait and see
what she does with them”
Pursing his lips Demetri wondered
out loud “I don’t see what’s so bad about letting her have a bowl of cereal.
Then again I don’t regulate eating habits”
“You would if Gianna’s nutrition
was insufficient to the point where she was underweight”
“Isabella’s not underweight”
“Not now…but before…”
Demetri thought for a moment
before asking “Is that what she’s hiding? An eating disorder…”
“No…” I couldn’t let him think
that “…Isabella isn’t hiding anything…” adding with a chuckle “what you see is
what you get”
He chuckled along before fixing
his eyes on me “If she’s not hiding anything …then what’s she afraid of?”
“That’s a story for another time
my friend” I wasn’t about to get into all the drama with him. There might come
a day or time when Demetri becomes privileged to the information, but it wasn’t
this day.
Putting off his question for a
later time I looked down at the display before me and set about making one of
the biggest decisions of my life.
An hour later I was leaving secured in the choice of style, cut, size and clarity. I never knew there was so much involved in picking out gems. Vintage, modern, Edwardian, princess, pear, marquee, gold, silver, platinum, the choices seemed to go on and on. I had finally settled on something Demetri had drawn out, it was a design that encompassed all the aspect I had wanted. The scrolls Bella loved so much along with a representation of the binding bands I desired. He had tried to talk me into getting a sapphire as the center stone.
“She loved that ring I had her
try on Edward, her whole face lite up”
I thought it was ingenious that
Demetri would use small talk to ascertain Bella’s correct ring size; after all
I had no clue.
Still I was adamant, even more so
after hearing from Jacob about the bubble gum ring she had received before “No,
the center stone has to be a diamond and no more than two karats”
After all even though I didn’t
need the advice Jacob was right, flashy gaudy excess wasn’t my girl’s style. She
was timeless, classic and unique just the way the ring that would hopefully
adorn her finger would be.
The last thing we discussed was a
price point, giving Demetri a range he could work within to fulfill what I
wanted with the best possible stones. He assured me it would be no problem but
he highly doubted it would be ready for the weekend. Leaving the jewelry store
with the idea I had two weeks to decide how and when I was going to speak to
Charlie.
Sliding behind the wheel my phone
rang with Bella’s tone telling me I had a message, opening up the app I smiled
at her words.
Master, your girl was impulsive and it is not
something she is proud of. She knows you understand and wants to assure you she
did not eat any of the ‘sugar coated cardboard’. Your girl will wait until she
can enjoy them with her Master’s full approval – the children however had no
problems eating the whole box. :)
Isabella signing off until Wednesday 6 pm.
P.S. Carol
will bring me home tonight. I love you – Bella
She truly was amazing, we had slipped
into our roles and honestly I wasn’t sure how to stop that from happening in
the future or if I even wanted to. There didn’t seem to be any confusion on
either of our parts when it happened. I could tell by Bella’s mannerisms when
she was behaving more like Isabella and needed my firm hand. And there really
was no mistaking my reactions on her part, there were times when she wasn’t
going to allow me to get away with it. Those were few in comparison yet swift
in rebuttal, telling me and everyone else within ear shot she was no doormat to
push around. Yet when we both needed the reassurance that our D/s bond provided
we could utilize the connection to gain the security it brings.
Arriving back at home the first thing I did
was check on the workmen, it was just noon and two men who had been there all
morning were breaking for lunch. Inspecting their work I was rather please to
see the progress they made. All the fixtures had been removed; the plumbing
shut down and close to half of the room was devoid of wall tiles.
While I was gone, Seth had been locked
in Bella’s room, she had called in such a panic that I needed to do something
with him quickly. He might have been just fine being allowed to roam freely
however with two strangers in the house I didn’t want to take the chance.
Opening the door the poor little guy was over excited to see me. Following me
downstairs I let him out while I made myself a toasted ham and cheese sandwich.
Getting a glass of milk I had just started eating when my phone rang. Looking
at the caller ID it didn’t surprise me to see my uncle’s name. His meeting with
Mike was set for the late morning and I assumed he was calling to tell me how
it went.
“Hello Aro” I said before taking a
drink of milk.
“Edward, I just wanted to let you know
Mr. Newton never showed up today. I tried phoning him but the number I have has
been disconnected.”
That didn’t really surprise me “He
probably heard about Laurent and figured he was next”
“Yes, that was the same thing Marcus
and I thought. We are sending a registered letter to his residence informing
him of his termination along with a no trespassing clause.”
That was all well and good but there
was another problem Aro had to deal with “What about his theft of the alcohol?”
Aro sighed “We’ve spoken with the
police, other than Laurent’s admission that he was aware of what Mr. Newton was
doing we have no proof. The police will be investigating by speaking with all
involved parties and they will take it from there. I did however mention Mr.
Newton’s other enterprise, they were interested in his afterhours club” Aro
chuckled “Seems the city frowns on unregistered businesses, cuts back on their
tax revenue.”
I laughed swallowing another bite of
sandwich “I imagine it would”
“Yes well, I can only guess they just
might be making an unexpected visit there one night in the not too distant
future”
Normally that piece of information
would have no bearing on my life, I could care less what happened to Mike
Newton. In fact had he not pilfered the alcohol from New Moon, the underground
strip club or whatever the hell it was could have went right on operating. His
mistake was going to cost him, I just was wondering how soon.
“They didn’t by chance give you an
idea of when that might be, tonight, tomorrow, next week?”
“No, however I understood it to be a
raid which would take place while the bar is open for business. I don’t know if
it’s open every night or only on weekends…”
“Mike works at New Moon on
weekends…rather he did so he couldn’t be in two places at one time.”
“That’s true Edward but you are
forgetting about his partner in crime one…” I could hear the papers shuffling
“…Benjamin Cheney. I’m sure while Mr. Newton was here, Mr. Cheney was holding
down the fort, so to speak. After all the weekends are the most lucrative for
that kind of business.”
True, if people were going out
drinking especially that late it would stand to reason they would not be out on
a work night.
“So, more than likely it will be
towards the end of the week?”
As I was asking the question the
doorbell rang. Thinking it was the workmen coming back from lunch we continued
the conversation as I went to let them in.
“That would be my guess…” pausing for
a moment Aro asked “…are your concerns centered around the extra work at New
Moon or Ms. Swan?”
“I’m not worried about the club at
all…Emmett and I have that covered” I assured him as I opened the door and then
stopped dead at who was on the other side “Aro I have to call you back”
“Alright Edward”
Closing the phone without even saying
good-bye I held open the outer storm door “Officer Hawk…please come in”
“Mr. Cullen” The man was all business
as he took a look past the entry way into the living room “Is Ms. Swan
available?”
“No she’s at work, was there something
you needed?”
Taking the small note pad from is
front pocket he thumbed through a few pages “I spoke with you on Friday about Jessica
Stanley; you had mentioned Ms. Swan was with you when you had the confrontation
in the store…”
“I wouldn’t call it a confrontation…”
Narrowing his eyes the officer used
his normal diplomacy to interject “You told me Miss Stanley approached you and
Ms. Swan, the three of you had words and she all but admitted to breaking into
your house, is that correct?”
“All except for the fact she flat out did confess to breaking in my house with
the intention of planting some kind of listening device.”
He nodded “So you say”
What the hell does that mean?
I didn’t get a chance to ask because
his next question caught me off guard “I was curious if either you or Ms. Swan
had seen Miss Stanley since then”
“No, I assumed the police were going
to question her”
“Hmmm…well it seems that Miss Stanley
is missing”
“Missing? Missing how?”
“I thought maybe you could tell me Mr.
Cullen”
What
the hell was wrong with this guy?
“I have no idea…”
Taking out his pen Officer Hawk
started jotting things in the notebook then asked “Do you know of any family
members or friends she could be staying with?”
I was still too stuck on the word
…missing to answer his question “How long has she been gone?”
And
why the hell was he making me feel guilty, like I had something to do with it?
Flipping back one of the pages in his
little book Officer Hawk irritated the shit out me with his heavy sigh
“Miss
Stanley left work early on Friday after which she had the confrontation with
both you and Ms. Swan in the Safeway which is rather far from her home..”
lifting his eyes from the notebook he asked me “Do you know of any reason why she
would have been in this neighbor?”
The accusatory tone was totally
uncalled for but I kept my calm “No…Other than a brief hello I haven’t had any
interaction with Jessica in months and I have no idea where she would go…I told
you I don’t even know where she lives.”
"She resides in Beacon Hill Mr. Cullen
and the last person to see her was a neighbor. Who reported she saw Miss.
Stanley carrying a large black garbage bag out of her apartment Friday
afternoon. No one has seen her since and she did not show up or call into work
this morning.”
He eyed me suspiciously “Admittedly
you know Miss Stanley for several years yet you have no idea where she lives or
any family she may have. You can’t even give me a name of a friend…”
“I can give you names of people she
talked to…I don’t know if they were friends. I know she had been…” choosing my
words carefully “…associating with Michael Newton, he’s the one who put her up
to coming to my home that night. Maybe he knows where she is”
“Do you have a contact number for him
or any of the other people Miss Stanley speaks to?”
Mike’s number I still had programed in
the memory of my phone all the others were women and I had deleted them. Giving
him the only contact I had there was only one other way I could think for him
to speak to someone else.
“Jess was friendly with some of the
waitress from New Moon, particularly Lauren Mallory and Angela Weber. If you
give me a few minutes I can call my uncle for those numbers or I’ll be in the
office at New Moon most of the day tomorrow, I can give them to you directly.”
“Tomorrow will be fine; in the
meantime I have a few more things to check on. Based upon the information you
supplied a complaint has been filed and a warrant issued for her arrest. Right
now it is for felony breaking and entering so should Miss Stanley be sighted or
stopped for any reason she will detain. In the meantime I will contact this
Michael Newton and see what he has to say about his part in what happened and
maybe he has a better idea of where she could be. If you think of anything
else, let me know after all I’d hate to have to explain to the Chief of Police
from Forks why I’m not doing my job...again.”
I knew Charlie had said he was a good
cop, but as a person he was an asshole.
The workmen return as Officer Jackass Hawk was leaving and after
letting Seth in I returned the call to Aro giving him the new information and finished
my lunch. My brain was swirling from the fact that Jess was missing. Was she
gone on her own accord or did something happen to her?
Aro didn’t have any answers however he
would make a few inquiries and get back to me. The whole thing was turning into
a major clusterfuck and the more I sat around thinking about it the more fucked
up it became. The biggest fear I had was that Karen in some way freaked out.
That she had gotten off her meds and was so unstable she took it out on Jess.
After all the only real piece of information the police had was Jess was last
seen taking out a bag of trash.
Great…just
fucking great
Jess was taking out the garbage, not
twenty feet from her house and she’s gone. And here I was letting my girl walk
around the goddamn fucking store with nothing but a freaking cell phone.
Dangerous…fucking
insanely dangerous
As if sensing my tension Seth came
over to me, stood on his hind legs with his front paws planted on my thigh. My
hand automatically rubbing the fur behind his ears as I thought out loud.
“Do you know what I did today?” His
ears perked up “I bought mommy a ring…shhhh…don’t tell her but that’s why we
have to watch out for her…she’s going to be my wife”
His tail started waging in excitement
“I know…that’s some pretty great stuff uh?”
It was just a week earlier we had been
sitting on the beach in our own little bubble, far away from all the crap that
seemed to be zeroing down on us. My mind went to our last day in Oregon when
Bella suggested we extend our trip…in hind sight it wasn’t such a bad idea. “Mommy
was right boy, we should have went to Mexico”
Seth let out a small whine “I know you
would have missed her, but I can’t let anything happen to her, it’s up to us to
keep mommy safe”
He looked at me as if in agreement or
maybe he was just really enjoying the ear rub, either way I couldn’t keep
sitting there. If I did I would have gone insane or worse raced down to that
center and whisk Bella away to some secluded island where none of the bullshit
could affect us.
“What do you think boy hmmm…should we
take mommy to Bora Bora…we could go with Aro…no one would find us there” The
more I spoke the more his head moved earnestly against my scratching fingers.
He would have been content to stay there the rest of the afternoon, however I
had things to do.
“Come on boy” I said patting his back “let’s
go clean up the playroom”
I still hadn’t had a chance to
sanitize the leather mattress pad from the weekend or the swing we used when we
came home from the party. The bed was a simple procedure that did nothing to
reduce my fears; the swing on the other hand was a more tedious project. The
woven leather needing extra attention to make sure every part was properly
cleaned helped clear my head.
Better still while I was doing that my
mind started conceiving a nice little scene for Wednesday night. I wasn’t
exactly sure how long Bella would be bleeding however with what I had planned
it wouldn’t be a problem. Once I had finished with the swing I put my
imagination to work, setting up the room and equipment. Covering the toys I
choose with the cloth to keep them clean and setting Bella’s mat in its normal
spot. With that done I grabbed the dirty
towels out of the bathroom and the sheets still piled in the corner, turned out
the lights and went to start the laundry.
The workmen were ready to leave for
the day; the bathroom was down to the bare walls. The same two men would be
back in the morning with the plan to rip out the existing closet and gutting
the room to the studs. With them gone I had about an hour before Bella came
home so I switched the laundry and started dinner. The rice was cooking and the
chicken was broiling when Bella came into the kitchen looking
rather…distracted.
Jesus
what else could have happened?
Giving me a kiss she smiled slyly
“Just what I like to see after a long day at work…my man in the kitchen
barefoot and cooking”
Replying to her giggle with a deep
voice “Hey…I’m not barefoot, I got socks on” Lifting my foot to show her the
added conventionally “How was your day?”
“Ohhhh…” she groaned
“That bad?” not sure if I even wanted
to know.
“Actually no… it was a good day…” she
moved to the refrigerator taking out the orange juice she asked “do you want
some?”
“Sure…” watching her get the glasses I
wondered “…if it was a good day what was the groan for?”
“Well…” placing my juice on the
counter while I stirred the green beans in the steamer “…Carol had ulterior
motives for bringing me home.”
Leaning with her back against the counter
Bella looked at me “One of the speakers at NCADV cancelled and…”
I cut in asking tentatively “NCV…?”
“NCAVD…” Bella clarified “Nation Conference
on Domestic Violence” at my nod she went on “It’s held in different cities
every year…this time it’s in Anaheim…”
“California?”
“Yes…” she grinned “So like I said the
speaker cancelled and the organizers contacted Carol to see if someone from the
Seattle Center would fill in. She told them yes…” the rest came out so fast I
barely understood her “…andshewantsmetodoit”
“Excuse me…what did you say?”
“Carol wants me to do it”
I didn’t understand the look of worry
I was getting “When is it?”
“The end of July, it runs from the
thirty-first through the fourth of August”
Turning off the heat under the pot I
gave Bella my undivided attention “Did you already have something scheduled for
those days?”
“No…that’s not it…I wasn’t even
planning to go. And I certainly don’t want to stand up there on a stage in
front of a thousand of people giving a Speech”
Setting the half empty glass of juice
on the counter Bella reached into the pocket of the dark green suit jacket she
had on, pulling something out. Twisting the small silver flat-bottomed tear
dropped shaped candy in her hands before popping the Hershey Kiss in her mouth.
She
was eating candy?
“We’re going to eat in a few minutes
Bella”
“I know”
Bella ignored my shaking head instead
going about setting the table while she went on telling me all Carol had said. The
focus of the speech was on ‘Living as a Survivor”
and was slated to be given on the second last day of the convention. Carol
offered to pay for Bella’s airfare and the hotel would be provided free of
charge for all presenters. So none of that was a problem the biggest obstacle
was Bella herself, even though I thought she’d be a great speaker, it was not
something she really wanted to do. I tried to lure her with the possibility of
a small detour trip to Disneyland but she just wasn’t going for it. We talked
some more about it through dinner however most of the conversation centered on
my visit from Officer Hawk.
Bella’s eyes narrowed as if in deep
thought and she questioned “Missing? Where would she be?”
“I have no idea” shrugging in
ignorance while she continued to have a look of concentration on her face until
finally seeming to remember something.
“Friday night while I was walking
around the club with Dougie looking at all the stuff, Angelia said something
about Jessica and then told me ‘it
doesn’t matter, she’s gone now’…I thought she was talking about Jessica
being banned from New Moon…but maybe…”
“You think Jess left?”
Pursing her lips Bella nodded her head
“If she was scared enough…and you did tell her you were going to call the
police…” she thought for a moment “…I’ll bet she went home, threw everything
she could into garbage bags and high tailed it out of there”
That little scenario not only fit in
with how utterly senseless Jessica was, thinking that by running the problem
would just miraculously disappear, it also did wonders for easing my nerves. Because
no matter how much I tried pushing the thoughts of an irrationally delusional
Karen from my mind they were always there. If she wasn’t taking her medication
or even if she was and something exceptionally traumatic occurred, with her
fragile mental state it was completely possible she could become violent,
especially if she felt threatened.
Considering Bella’s theory was a whole
lot better than the thoughts I had been having and I found myself grasping onto
the idea of Jess leaving town as if it was a bona fide truth.
“I’ll bet Angela knows where she is”
The certainty on Bella’s face along
with her tone reminded me of the morning “Well you are quit the little parrot
today, repeating people’s words”
Chagrin covered her face turning it
the prettiest shade of pink making me chuckle and for a moment all was right
with the world. My girl was with me; she was safe and was her normal intuitive
self with a natural girlish way that made my dick hard.
I should have known it wouldn’t last
Feeling more at ease I made up my mind
to give Officer Hawk the extra information Bella had passed on to me. When I
had called Aro back we had discussed the idea of making the phone calls to Mike
and the girls myself. He quickly talked me out of that, pointing out it was a
police investigation so it was best to allow them to handle it. He understood
my fundamental need to protect Bella, telling me to use my head instead of my
heart.
The unexpected ringing of the doorbell pulled
me from my thoughts and Bella started clearing the table while I went to see
who was here.
Jacob was standing on the porch with a
white plastic bag in one hand and a manila envelope in the other.
“What can I do for you Jacob?”
“Do you have a minute; I have
something to show you”
Following me out into the kitchen
Bella was by the sink starting the dishwater seeing him she smiled “Hey
Jake…did you bring me a present?”
“Ah…yeah…come here” he said putting
the envelope on the island and opening the bag while Bella sat on a stool and
that bad feeling returned in my stomach.
“So all the antifreeze from your car
was gone and when I went over everything I discover what the problem was.”
Pulling a curved piece hose from the bag he explained “This is the bottom
radiator hose from your car Bells” flexing it to show a hole “…someone sliced
it”
“Are you sure it just didn’t rip?”
Bella asked
“No…it’s a clean cut probably made
with a utility knife or some kind of straight edge blade”
“Why would they do that?”
I fucking knew why but Jacob answered for me
“To disable the car Bella, without the fluid it would overheat…just as it did
and you would have to pull over”
They must have done it when Bella was
in the store but that made me wonder “Wouldn’t the hose and fluid have been too
hot to touch?”
Jacob shook his head “No. The top
hoses carry the hot fluid back to the radiator, the bottom hose pumps the
cooled water back into the engine so they are always cold. Usually due to the
high heat it is a top hose that blows but damage to the bottom one will cause
all the fluid to drain out too.”
Handing me the hose I examined the
damage and came to the same conclusion – it was definitely a clear slice. They
had fucked with her car in order to get to her.
“Jesus Christ Bella…next time you’re
going to fucking listen to me!”
Her eyes widened “Nothing happened”
“How can you say that…something
happen!” roaring in frustration while shoving the hose at her.
“I wasn’t hurt Edward”
“Only because you happened to break
down outside of Demetri’s shop…what if it would have happened someplace else
and no one was around? You would have been standing there all alone.”
I couldn’t even begin to think about what
could have happened to her or how Bella was trying to write this off as some
little incident. Taking a few deep breathes I calmed down and listened while
Jacob talked some reason into her “Whoever did this Bella had the intention of
stranding you someplace”
“How far can the car drive before
there would be a problem?” Maybe if I knew when it would tell me where and
perhaps that had some significance.
“Less than ten minutes”
Bella however had another concern
“When will my car be done?”
“You’re not fucking driving anywhere”
becoming indignant Bella glared at me “We agreed”
“That was before this happened.
Besides you already reneged on that agreement by stopping at the store. That
makes our bargain null and void.”
There was no fucking way I was backing
down and there was not a chance in hell she would be out driving again.
“What’s this” Bella asked picking up
the large envelope with the word ‘IMPORTANT’ written on it in permanent marker.
“It was on the seat of the car, I
thought you might need it”
“It’s not mine”
My world was coming to a fucking end
and she’s sitting there calm as can be having a discussion with her friend.
Opening the envelope Bella gasped
“Edward”
Seeing what was in there my heart
dropped, photo after photo of Bella, walking Seth in the park, getting out of
her car at the house, one she was pulling a push cart up the front stairs of
someone’s house. Some she was alone others she was with people in those a
circle was drawn around her head, clearly marking her as the intended target.
The last one was of us coming out of New Moon, from the dress she had on it was
clearly taken at the Anniversary party Saturday night.
Stuck to it was a post it note with
the message
See how easy it is
I don’t know how long I stared at the
words but suddenly I heard Charlie’s voice. Jacob must have phoned and placed
him on speaker phone. He was asking all kinds of question, who, when why,
trying to get a grasp on what the hell was happening. Looking at Bella my worst
fears were coming to life, her eyes were finally filled with their own terror
at the enormity of the situation. Paging
back through the pile of a dozen photos the rage built inside me and meeting
Bella’s eyes there was only one thing I could think to do.
“Now you’re fucking grounded!”
Jacob agreed wholeheartedly
“Definitely”
From the phone came Charlie’s
“Absolutely!”
