Chapter 05
It had surprised Bella that things between her and Kol hadn’t changed simply because they kissed. She had been afraid of that, seeing as Edward became possessive after their first kiss and Kol was unpredictable according to his siblings. Bella didn’t see it that way, Kol liked to keep everyone on their toes and he tried to be the best person he could be.
She had felt him slipping out of bed when it was still dark outside and she had to admit, him going on a fishing trip with Charlie was amazing. Not so much that she had to miss Kol’s company but because it showed how much Charlie wanted to care. There was no doubt Charlie – and maybe Billy too if he came long – would interrogate Kol and he would pass with flying colors.
Rebekah waltzed into the bedroom a few hours after Charlie and Kol had left and removed Bella’s sheets before opening the curtains and tugging on Bella’s foot. “Rise and shine, little dove, we’re going shopping and if there’s still time left, we’re going to pamper ourselves at the spa.”
Bella groaned at that as she practically rolled out of bed.
“And maybe we should get you some new sleep attire too…”
“There’s nothing wrong with a pair of boxers and a shirt,” Bella said with a yawn as she motioned for Rebekah to leave the room so she could get dressed. It took her half an hour to get dressed and down a cup of coffee to be completely awake while Rebekah impatiently walked through the house. The moment she put her cup down, Rebekah pulled her out of the door and stuffed her in the car before driving off towards Port Angeles.
“We have a lot to do in a short period of time. You are going to wear a dress because you are graduating and you’re a lady,” Rebekah said as she sped out of Forks. Bella quietly told herself Rebekah was lucky that the local cops didn’t like to do speed traps. “While we’re on the subject of ladies… what are your intentions with my brother?”
“What do you mean, my intentions?” Bella said confused.
“As much as I despise my brother on occasion due to his habit of going up against me and my other brothers, he is my brother. Even now when he’s stuck in this body until he grows old and dies. I do not wish to see him hurt for the short period of life he still has left.”
Bella frowned at that. “Short? Humans have an average lifespan of 80 plus years, your brother still has a long way to go.”
Rebekah smiled at that before continuing. “My brother is over a thousand years old, love,” she said. “Granted, he spent most of those years boxed up… Elijah told me about your spat with him about this. The thing was, it was easier to box Kol up than Niklaus, regular daggers don’t work on him.”
“Nope, still not liking that,” Bella shook her head. “I get it that he’s a thousand years old and 80 years seems like nothing, but trust me, it’s a lot when you have to do everything at normal speed,” she defended herself. “And I do not plan on hurting him, Rebekah. I’m more worried he’ll end up losing interest and hurt me.” It was out before Bella realized it was.
A faint smile appeared on Rebekah’s lips as if she was thinking of something. “You have nothing to be afraid of, Bella,” she said quietly. “He’s different with you. He’s likable, he’s careful. Maybe he did get a false start the second time he was human and now that he’s on his third… I think he’s decided he needed a change.”
“Third?” Bella blinked.
“He didn’t tell you, did he? That he died because our other brother Finn had hexed him and there was no turning back while he was still alive?”
She shook her head.
“It was terrifying when he died. And sad, really sad. Mostly because Niklaus finally accepted Kol as one of us, a part of the terrible threesome… Always and Forever, is our thing. Kol said he wasn’t afraid, he smiled, but…” Rebekah sighed as she kept her eyes fixed on the road. “I’ve lost a lot of loved ones over the last thousand years, but none hit me harder than Kol’s passing… Davina, the witch he was involved with, was beside herself. She even caused a scene during Kol’s consecration and burial…”
“I’m sorry, Rebekah,” Bella said, not really being able to relate. Yes, she missed Seth, but to lose a relative that was so close to you was something else entirely.
“While Kol was dying, Davina tried to stop the hex or stop Kol from dying. And she failed. Which is not her fault, we didn’t blame her. Davina couldn’t bring him back or stop the hex as Finn was still alive back then. Bastard had a habit of jumping into other bodies when feeling threatened, just like our darling mother.”
“He told me about her.”
“Right piece of work she was. Every few years or so she manages to slip back into the land of the living to make our lives hell, wanting to correct the wrong she did by making us immortal. She’s right, of course, we haven’t exactly been angels and we have been living for a long time but…” Rebekah slightly shrugged. “Kol had put me into another body as a prank while we were trying to take on Mother for the last time and he always promised to put me back. After he died, I lost hope, but if I have to be honest, I didn’t mind being mortal again because it was an opportunity for me to finally have the life I’d always wanted.”
“But you’re back to being immortal now.”
“Oh yes,” Rebekah said with a small smile. “You see, Davina and I turned Kol’s old lair upside down, surely he had kept notes of his run-ins with other covens across the globe and maybe he had the solution all along. At the same time, my brothers went after Finn as he had come back to New Orleans. We even turned to a witch in Mystic Falls, her ancestry is as long and old as the witches of the French Quarter. She warned Davina and I that magic requires balance and that she had learned the hard way not to interfere with death. Dead is dead…”
“I kinda understand that…”
“Yes, so do I, but Kol didn’t deserve to die. He didn’t deserve to be hexed by his own brother. Davina and I wanted to bring him back at all costs. And after a while, we succeeded.”
“How?”
Rebekah shrugged. “The details are quite foggy but the next thing I remember is waking up in my box, in my own body, with Kol fuming over me, berating me that I shouldn’t have done this and that the ancestors eventually allowed him to return because not only me and Davina, but apparently Kol as well, were stubborn idiots. I paid the price by being returned to my own immortal body and Kol and Davina were punished by having their love for each other erased from existence. After he finished berating me, he left New Orleans for a few months, too angry and too distraught to face any of us.”
“Wow.”
“I suppose Kol is the one who paid the dearest; he eventually will die again. We offered to bite him, but he’d rather be human and I don’t blame him. So this is why I asked you what your intentions were with my brother. Because he deserves to be happy and not suffer from heartbreak.”
“Rebekah, I—”
“I know, little dove,” she smiled at Bella before looking back to the road ahead of them. “There’s no pressure, none at all. Right now, you make him happy and he has a good influence on you as well, so all is good.”
Bella thought for a moment and then snorted. “It’s that you’re stronger than I am, Rebekah, and currently driving but otherwise I would have smacked you.”
“Excuse me?”
“You want to give your brother the best human life experience ever. This means you can’t interfere in his life.”
“I’m not!”
“Yes, you are. You’ve just told his recent story to the girl who’s kissed him and then tell her that if she breaks his heart that it will be bad news. I get it, you want to protect him and make sure he’ll be alright but he’s still young. I am still young. Anything could happen and if there’s potential heartbreak, so be it, but for now, it’s not my intention to break his heart because things seem to be moving in the right direction.”
“But I …”
“I’m only eighteen years old, Rebekah. If you expect me to make the decision now to stay with your brother forever you’re crazy and no better than the family of my former boyfriend. Things need to naturally evolve and that takes time.”
“He doesn’t have any time, Bella,” Rebekah said as she slammed on the brakes while parking the car. “He only has this lifetime to make something of himself and it has to be perfect. He deserves it to be perfect! He deserves to grow old with someone he loves, have children, the whole dance that comes with mortality. Because he’s the only one of us who can.”
“Exactly,” Bella pointed out. “Rebekah, haven’t you noticed that in your whole thousand years that we mortals are fucked up beings but in the end, everything comes together as it should? Who knows, maybe Kol will get fed up with me and dates a string of girls after me. And when he’s fifty, he can have his midlife crisis and have a girl half his age.”
“Are you implying he’s promiscuous?”
“I’m saying, he’s human. And we humans are flawed. We’re not perfect, but we try our hardest to make something out of life without interference from other people. Kol can have anyone he wants, he has a beautiful soul and your mother picked a great body for him to inhabit. You don’t have to be afraid that he’ll end up alone, he’s got everything working for him,” Bella replied with a calm tone of voice; she didn’t want to anger the vampire even further. “And I told you, I understand you want to protect him, but humans are not as fragile as you think.” She unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the car door. “You shouldn’t worry about him, he’ll be fine.” Bella then got out of the car and shut the door.
“Are you done?” Rebekah asked as she had gotten out of the car herself.
“Are you?” Bella could tell Rebekah was still pissed, but Bella felt even worse and all of a sudden found this whole idea of them helping her to get free of Edward completely crazy. She scolded herself in silence, the time of being a victim was gone. She was a victim of the Cullens, but no longer. It was weird to realize that because she had always refused to see herself as a victim. She’d thought she willingly stayed with Edward. But she hadn’t. She had done it out of fear. And she sure as hell wasn’t going to allow Rebekah to make her a victim again. She was a survivor now, she could stop this before it even started. “You vampires are all the same,” she muttered as she shoved her hands in her pocket after adjusting her backpack.
“Excuse me?”
“I totally get it,” Bella said as she turned around to look at Rebekah. “You’re older, you’ve seen more, you want to protect your brother, I get it. But the way you make it sound is as if you want to make me or Kol into a person we’ve yet to discover for ourselves. You make it sound as if you want to mold me into something I’m not.”
“You’re mean.”
“Am I? Really?” Bella shot at her. “Kol and I only kissed. Yesterday. We have no idea where we’re going to end up and we made a deal that we were going to see where it goes because he knows I’m not ready. Especially after just two weeks. You sounded like you want us to get married already and make each other happy, but newsflash, Rebekah, things like that don’t happen in the real world.”
“I just don’t want to see his heart broken!”
“Yeah well, neither do I but we’ll never know what will happen in the future, will we?” If it was possible, steam would have started to come out of her ears just like in the cartoons. “Just because you’re in a rush to make his life perfect, have you even given it a thought that maybe it’s better to back off and see what happens first? It’s his life, not yours.” When Rebekah just stared at her with her mouth open, Bella continued. “Look, I know you mean well, but please, allow him to find his own path in life. If he needs your help, he’ll ask for it. Don’t guilt trip me into a relationship with him because he’s had a difficult time so far because that will make you like them. We all have baggage.”
“But we’ve been so rotten towards him and…” There were tears in Rebekah’s eyes and Bella felt sorry for her. Maybe she had been a little bit harsh, but she simply didn’t want to end up being treated the same way as Rebekah and Kol tried to help her free herself from.
“I know, Rebekah,” Bella said knowingly as she leaned on the car with a small smile on her face. “But life is too short to try to right the wrongs of the past. All you can do now is move forward and do better. Be his little sister, not his prison.” The smile grew wider on Bella’s face. “Be my big sister.”
Rebekah let out a squeal of happiness as she rounded the car and hugged Bella tightly. “Let’s go shopping, little sister,” she smiled widely after she let go of her.
The thing Bella hated about shopping the most was the endless visits to the fitting rooms. She must have tried on several dresses before she felt comfortable in one Rebekah liked as well. She didn’t quite understand why most girls seemed to like shopping; clothes had to be practical and last for a long time. The odds of wearing that dress more than once were astronomical and basically a waste of money but as Rebekah said; you only graduate once.
They didn’t really have time to do anything else and when they arrived back home, Bella could tell Charlie had started the barbecue because of the smoke that rose from the back garden. “It looks like they’ve caught plenty of fish,” Bella said as she got out of the car and took her bags. Rebekah had also told her to buy new underwear that looked less ‘boyish’ but were still extremely comfortable and Bella herself bought a few new tops and jeans.
“Oh, good, you’re here,” Kol said as he came running towards them, looking slightly panicked. “Charlie’s friend opened the wrong fridge. He didn’t say anything, probably because his son is a shifter but…”
“On it, brother,” Rebekah said with a wide grin on her face. “Will you be so kind as to help us with getting our bags inside?”
“Of course,” Kol replied as he grabbed the remaining bags from the car as his sister walked off. “Did you have fun?” he asked Bella.
“Is shopping fun?” Bella retorted with a snort. “It wasn’t pure torture if that’s what you mean. She got you a suit.”
“What?” Kol whined as he followed her into the house. “Why?”
“Something about us girls dressing up and you’d look out of place,” she flashed a smile at him as she set down the bags on the dining table. “How was your day?”
“Your dad grilled me about our family,” Kol replied wincing. “And since the best lies are the ones close to the truth, I replied that our family is well-respected, well off and that I have a brother who tries to keep us all in check while another brother likes to break the rules after the death of our parents.”
“That about sums it up,” Bella laughed as she poured the both of them some juice. “Did you get to ask him what you wanted to ask him?” She had sort of suspected Kol would try to pry some stories out of her father and if she had to be honest, she didn’t mind. He had gone fishing with her father and that made everything alright in her book.
“Cuddles!” he tried to sound shocked but there was this huge smile on his face so he was joking. “How dare you think such a thing of me?”
“Well?”
“Yes,” Kol grinned. “He even showed me a picture of yours that he keeps on him.”
“No!” Bella said horrified. “The one with pigtails?”
“Oh yes,” A big smirk was plastered across his face as he took a sip of his drink. “Very adorable. You should definitely put your hair in pigtails when we go to school on Monday.”
“No.” Bella shook her head as she walked out of the door to the backyard. “Hi Billy,” she greeted Jake’s dad before giving her father a hug, holding him tightly as she did. “How dare you show him that picture.”
Charlie gaped at her, surprised he was found out.
“He told me.”
“I’m sorry,” he replied with a smile on his face. “But that day was one of the best days ever.”
“True and it’s okay, just slightly embarrassing,” she smiled at him and kissed him on the cheek before letting go of her father. “How was the fishing?”
“He caught most of it. Must be beginner’s luck.”
May wasn’t the ideal time to put up the barbecue and grill some fish and meats, but Bella loved it. She could tell Billy was having a hard time being around Rebekah. She hadn’t compelled him out of respect for him and she suspected he was good at keeping secrets himself. She merely explained that she wasn’t here to hurt anyone he loved.
Much to Bella’s surprise, Jacob arrived as well and he had a healthy appetite that Charlie couldn’t help but commenting on. Bella wasn’t much into any sport activity at all, but when Jacob and Kol teamed up against Rebekah and her to play soccer, there wasn’t much that the girls could do but to accept and horribly lose. Not only did she really have to shape up a bit because her lungs and legs felt as if they were on fire, she also really had to do something about her falling over and tripping over her own feet while moving at a higher speed than normal. Or fall into other people. Fifteen minutes in, she fell on her ass and decided not to bother getting up.
“You know,” Jacob said as he sat down next to her in the wet grass. “I prefer you like this. All human with a beating heart and some color on her face.”
“I know,” Bella chuckled as she playfully punched him in the shoulder. “You don’t have to tell me nearly every time we see each other.”
He grinned as he gave her a playful shove. “Are you going to beg Rebekah now to turn you into one of them?”
“No.”
“One of her siblings then?”
“No.”
“Okay, who are you and what have you done to Bella?”
“I’m still me,” she chuckled as she elbowed him in the side. “I just… gained some much-needed perspective.”
“Even if it means you’re never going to get rid of your clumsiness?” Jake grinned, happy to hear that his friend finally got the idea out of her head to become a vampire. Just the sheer thought of her being one made the hairs on his body stand up.
“It’s what makes me me, doesn’t it?” she said with a shrug. “I can live with it.”
“As long as you have someone around to catch you.”
She sighed as she looked over to Kol for a moment before looking back at Jacob who had this huge smile on his face. “What? You and I won’t work, you know that.”
“Well, you’ve never given it a real chance anyway… it was always Edward this, Edward that. And now that you’ve dumped him…”
“Jake, no.” she tried to interrupt him but he continued anyway.
“I’m sad you didn’t choose me but I’m sort of glad you found someone else who makes you happy, even if it feels like it’s moving too fast.”
“How do you know?”
“Please. Us wolves have nothing else to do but to keep an eye on you and those Cold Ones, we see a lot of stuff.”
“You’re following me?” Bella didn’t know whether to feel angry or relieved or surprised, even. “Jake!”
“Hey! Just because you have new friends doesn’t mean we have to trust them, but we do. So instead of two wolves, we have one wolf on you when you’re in Forks. But it’s clear there’s something between you and him. And for what it’s worth, you deserve it. I may not like it, but you deserve it.”
“Ugh. To hear you speak like this is so unlike you.”
He snorted. “Look, Bells, you deserve to be happy. From what I’ve seen, he’s a good guy and should you decide to move away to get to know him better, then you should go. We’ll make sure Charlie’s safe.”
“I can’t ask that of you…”
“Which is why I’m telling you, loca.” He grinned. “Besides, we’re all convinced that when you leave, they’ll come with you and your dad will be safe anyway so…”
“Why?”
“Just a feeling,” he said with a shrug. “So, you just do whatever your heart tells you to do and everything will be fine. Even if it’s not what I want.”
“You want me to leave?” Bella said after a moment of silence.
“No, but you have to do what you want. And I know that graduating is your short term want, and after that, we’ll see. If you do whatever makes you happy, then I’m happy. Even if it involves you moving away and get in touch with a new side of you.” Okay, so he was lying. He didn’t want Bella to leave but making her stay would be bad, wouldn’t it? It wouldn’t make him a better person than Edward. No, if he gave her enough room to move, maybe she’d stay anyway.
Bella smiled as she hugged him. “You’re the best best friend ever, Jake, thank you.”
“That’s me, forever stuck in the friend zone…”
Bella sighed as she got to her feet and walked over to Billy. She sat down next to him and looked around if Charlie was present, but he had gone for a moment. “Tell me about vampires again?”
Billy blinked at her. “Vampires are bad, Bella, you know that. They survive off of blood and have been known to slaughter entire civilizations. You shouldn’t involve yourself with vampires. As I told you when you started to date the Cullen boy.”
Bella smiled at him. “Thank you!”
“But Kaleb isn’t a vampire,” he pointed out with a smile on his face.
“Billy!” she whined as she threw her hands up in defense before burying her face in them, it was better to hide from the real world than to hear anyone else tell her what she didn’t want to hear. On the other hand, however, it was great that at least Billy and Jake were accepting of Kol, although she had the feeling Jacob had something to hide. Bella knew she was going to figure it out eventually, and it would probably be as simple as Jacob not wanting her to leave Forks and stay with him.
And as much as she loved Jacob as a friend, what he wanted was not going to happen.
It was funny how the weeks leading up to her finals had flown by so quickly. It had been made easier by the Cullens dropping out of school – it wasn’t as if they needed school anyway. They were probably up to something, but Bella didn’t care. She was glad for the reprieve so she could focus on her studying although Kol had made it a challenge, to say the least.
Every day he’d think of something that threw a wrench in her self-made studying schedule. It usually started with him telling her that she studied too hard for her finals and that she didn’t need that much studying as she was a bright cookie.
Rebekah had offered to teach Bella some sword fighting as distraction from her studies and the Cullens. She refused, afraid that they’d scare Charlie into a heart attack, so Kol came home one day with staves. He thought Rebekah had been on to something and Bella needed a way to learn how to defend herself at least a bit against other people if she’d be hanging around in New Orleans. That way, she wouldn’t have to rely on her, currently still unstable, magic.
Bella was sporting a few new bruises, but she was surprised how quick she picked things up. Both Kol and Rebekah were great teachers and didn’t mind her falling flat on her face every so often when she lost her footing again. As long as she didn’t have to move her feet, she was pretty decent after only a few lessons.
A part of Bella was glad that Renée had canceled her trip to Forks as her new husband Phil was dealing with a broken leg, but another part of her was relieved. Even with the Cullens laying low, Bella found it still too dangerous for her mother to come over. She had to admit, she was missing her mother, but for now she was safer where she was, and her safety was more important than Bella missing her.
Despite all the distractions that the siblings provided, she had a good feeling about her finals and after her second day of finals, she took them to the ice cream parlor for a well-deserved treat. While Kol and Rebekah had found a seat outside, Bella was inside to order. She was in the middle of her order when someone bumped into her. Before she could register what was going on, she had been taken out of the ice cream shop and brought somewhere else by someone cold and strong as hell.
When she finally realized what had happened and who was to blame for this, it was too late. She got tossed into some place with a locked door, and Esme was standing in the corner with her arms crossed over each other.
“What the hell!” Bella breezed.
“Calm down, Bella,” Esme said with a gentle tone of voice. “Please. I just want to talk.”
“No, if you wanted to talk, you would have started a conversation at the ice cream shop.” Bella looked around for something she could use to hit Esme with into letting her go, but the room was bare. She was not going to hit Esme with her hands because she had learned her lesson when she had kneed Edward in the groin. “What’s wrong with you people?”
“I’m worried about you,” Bella was wondering if Esme had ever been angry, the woman seemed to be incapable of doing that. “Do you have any idea what you’re putting my family through? Haven’t we always been kind to you? Are you on drugs?”
“Not this again,” Bella was frustrated and started to pace around the room as if she was a caged animal. “You have to let me go, Esme.”
“I am only trying to understand, Bella. You’ve been acting strangely after your trip to New Orleans. Jasper….” her voice was thick with sadness. “Was slaughtered right in front of you. You’ve been ignoring Edward, and you haven’t come by the house.”
“Why don’t you people understand that I don’t want anything from you? That I don’t want Edward anymore? That I’ve finally come to my senses on how you’ve been treating me?”
Esme pursed her lips. “I see.”
“Do you?”
“They’ve obviously brainwashed you or they cursed you while you were in New Orleans, unprotected by my children.”
“Unbelievable…” Bella muttered to herself. “You’re really not giving up, are you?”
“We care about you, Bella,” Esme said quietly. “Maybe a few hours alone will do you some good.”
The moment Esme opened the door was the moment Bella tried to make a run for it, but why was she even trying? The vampire was faster and stronger than her and with a simple push, Bella almost flew through the air and got knocked against the wall.
She must have passed out or something because when she came to, the light that had shimmered through the cracks in the wall had disappeared. There was no light in the room either, and that was freaking her out. Not being able to see your attacker was always a bad thing. Bella’s head was throbbing, she felt thirsty and hungry, and it was cold. When she got to her feet, the world seemed a little bit wobbly but she managed to steady herself and made her way to the door and much to her dismay, it was still locked.
What else did she expect? Esme would go soft on her and regret taking her?
Bella then remembered she had her phone on her and hoped that she’d be able to get reception. She felt around her pockets and sighed when they were flat and empty. Of course, Esme had probably taken it from her while she was out cold.
Grumbling, she tried to find the wall and used it to guide her around the little room. Maybe she could find something to help her do something at least. She didn’t freak out – who wouldn’t freak out when taken away by a supernatural being you can’t do anything against because of their tough skin? – Because she knew what she was up against. Esme wouldn’t hurt her, at least not intentionally, as the Cullens wanted her back.
Instead of freaking out, however, Bella could feel herself becoming angry, and that wasn’t a good idea either. While she knew that she wouldn’t get hurt, it still wasn’t a wise idea to poke the bear with a stick and hope it wouldn’t lash out.
When she had made her way back to the door, finding nothing in her path to help her, she sighed. She made her way to the wall with the cracks to see where Esme had taken her, maybe if she could see something familiar in the darkness she could call for help or something. Vampires had super hearing, right? She knew that Jake had it, probably only in wolf form so maybe she could get lucky.
She was glad she didn’t get her hopes up in seeing some light or anything she could identify in the darkness. It was almost as if she was in some bubble. She started calling out to Rebekah, Kol – Kaleb – and Jake but after a while, she found that it was leading her nowhere. Surely they were looking for her, right? At least Rebekah and Kol?
When the door opened, Bella nearly jumped ten feet in the air, she hadn’t expected that. In walked Esme, carrying a gas lamp and she set it in the corner, but all Bella could do was to keep an eye on the woman. “Please let me go, Esme.”
“I’m sorry, Bella, I can’t do that,” Esme said with a kind voice and retrieved a carefully wrapped plate of food out of her bag. She also produced two bottles of water which she set down next to the light.
“Sure you can. Just allow me to walk out that door.”
Esme looked at her with a smile on her face. “You shouldn’t yell as you did, Bella, it’s bad for your voice. They won’t be able to hear you. Nor find you, not even your witch friend can.”
“What did you do?”
“Carlisle and I were well aware of Alice’s true identity when we took her in even if she hadn’t offered the information herself. We suspected she was on the run from someone or something, and it didn’t matter to us. Alice has always been special. After Jasper’s death… she went to retrieve a box with items from the past, saying that they contained magic for various ends. She placed two in this area; one to conceal and one to stop sound.”
Bella felt the panic rise inside of her. What Esme was saying was that there was no way out for her. No one was going to be able to find her, end of. There was a little bit of hope that Rebekah would ask Jacob for help seeing as he had a well-developed sense of smell. She knew that Rebekah had a heightened sense but would that be enough?
“You must be familiar with Dark Objects, Bella, seeing as your witch friend planted them all over your house.”
Bella huffed. “What do you want from me, Esme? Keep me as your human pet or are you going to turn me after all?”
“You and Edward are destined to be together and yes, eventually we will turn you. But not right now, you’re too angry and as a newborn you could kill us all.”
“We are not destined to be together! He’s a controlling, manipulative asshole, and you’re not better!”
“We’ll see,” Esme smiled at her. “Enjoy your late dinner and make sure you drink. I’ll be back soon.”
.
Bella couldn’t help but watch as Esme closed and locked the door again. Once she was sure that Esme had left, she took a good look around now that the gaslamp was giving off some light to see. She was in some bunker, and the reason it was so cold was because it was half way tucked into Mount Olympic because that was the only bunker she could think of. Unless Esme had taken her to Canada. Bella sure hoped not.
“Just great,” she muttered to herself and despite her being hungry, she didn’t want to eat whatever was on that plate. However, she knew that she had to drink something. She sat down in front of the lamp and stared at the plate. The clingfilm couldn’t hide the fact that it was one of Esme’s infamous salads and Bella shuddered at the thought of having to eat that again. Grabbing one of the bottles, she could see that it had already been opened once, which was nice. At least Esme had thought about Bella’s inability to open bottles from time to time.
The water was nice, it was probably going to cause her to have to go to the bathroom which was non-existent at the moment but she had to drink something. If she wanted to survive this, she had to drink. She didn’t want to sleep that night and spent the night thinking about her future while making sure she didn’t down the water in one go.
Was she really going to move to New Orleans? Sure, why not? It was a lot warmer than Forks; it was where her family originated, and she liked to find out more about that and the witch stuff, and most importantly, Kol was there. Maybe she was this stupid young girl who left one boyfriend for another in a short amount of time but wasn’t that what she was supposed to do? Live and see where life would take her?
Kol was simply amazing; he made her discover sides of herself that she didn’t know she had. He excited her and yes, he had a playful mean streak but that was mostly in jest. His pranks could be cruel, not towards Bella though, his sister always seemed to be on the receiving end of it, and she endured it. Bella wished she had Rebekah’s confidence though, the girl didn’t seem to be fettered by anything and simply marched on through.
When the sun seemed to come up, Bella couldn’t resist not eating anymore. She was going to give herself a good talking to when this was all over. She was the worst kidnapee ever, but she hadn’t eaten the whole day yesterday, nervous for her last day of finals and her stomach had started to make these stupid growling noises. The food was there for a reason; she had to eat it.
Esme’s famous salads usually contained a few leaves of lettuce, a handful of wildflowers and a chopped up apple with some cheese. Bella wasn’t surprised to find all that when she removed the cling film from the plate. She picked on the apple for a bit, rethinking her decision to eat something and decided that the apple and cheese would do as the lettuce and wildflowers had already started to wilt.
She settled against the wall so that the cracks could continue to bring in the cold air and keep her awake while she hoped that she was going to be out of her prison soon. By now, she realized that Charlie would be worried. Charlie would come looking for her. He’d mobilize the police force, and he’d come looking for her. No need for supernatural beings, he’d come. He had to. He was her dad.
She woke up with a jolt when she could feel her being pulled to her feet. “Esme.”
“I’m here,” Esme said kindly and caressed Bella’s hair. “How are you feeling? Better?”
Bella nodded. She was a little bit sleepy, but Esme was here now. All was good.
“Good girl,” she smiled as she handed her a new water bottle. “Drink this, it’s time for you to come home. Would you like that?”
“Yeah, of course.” Bella managed to smile at Esme before curiously looking at the bottle of water.
“We’re not leaving until you’ve drunk the whole bottle.”
“Okay,” Bella said as she greedily started to drink the water. When she finished, she wiped off her mouth and proudly smiled at Esme. “Can I use the bathroom when we get home?”
“Of course, love,” Esme lifted Bella in her arms. “Hold on to me, we’re going home. Edward can’t wait to see you again.”
“Edward?” No, that wasn’t right, was it?
“Yeah, we were all worried about you, sweetheart,” Esme said as she carried Bella out of the room. “You caught something while you were away.”
“I did?” Bella yawned as she settled her head against Esme’s shoulder.
“You’re not out of the woods yet but it’s time to come home.”
“Okay.”
“Go to sleep, before you know it, you’ll be home.”
The cold air hit her like a truck and all of a sudden she felt as if she was drunk. Bella giggled as she tried to get out of Esme’s arms, wanting to experience walking while drunk. Who knows, maybe she wouldn’t fall over for once. Reverse psychology and all that. Or was that physicality? She doubted that her falling over would have had anything to do with Einstein… or was it Freud? Or both?
“I said, go to sleep,” Esme made sure she didn’t squish Bella but held on a little bit tighter.
“Maybe she doesn’t want to, love.”
“Kol!” Bella smiled widely and made use of Esme’s surprise to roll out of her arms and to land safely on her feet. She then smiled proudly at Kol for not falling flat on her face.
“Bella, no,” Esme said as she reached for the girl but she had already found her way into Kol’s arms.
“Hi Cuddles,” he smiled at her and held her tightly. The girl was out of it, just like Rosalie had told them she would be. It had all made sense, but that didn’t mean that it was wrong. Rebekah had taken pleasure in ripping off Rosalie’s head and burning the remains. He looked at Esme and managed to cast a spell to keep her in place. “Dark Objects, I’m impressed,” he said with a nod. “I suppose Mary-Alice learned a trick or two.”
“Give her back.”
“See, I can’t do that. She voluntarily came over to me, that means you have no say in the matter.”
Esme smiled at that. “Go on, ask her.”
Kol shrugged and looked down at Bella, who was clinging on to him with the biggest smile on her face. “You’re in no shape to answer questions, are you, Cuddles?”
“I love it when you call me that,” she said with a giggle.
He smiled at that and caressed her hair. “Would you rather stay with me or go home with Esme?”
“Esme said I had come down with something. She cured me.”
“Bella, answer the question, sweetheart. Would you rather go home with your friend or me, Edward can’t wait to see you,” Esme tried. Kol registered that she sounded desperate. He had every faith that Bella, even in her drugged state, would make the right decision as she had made the decision to leave Edward while she was on a lower dose.
Bella huffed. “Kol, of course. If that’s okay with you?”
“No, it’s not okay.”
“Of course it’s okay,” Kol said as he could see the confusion on Bella’s face. “It’s your choice, isn’t it? She asked for it.”
“Bella, it’s not okay,” Esme said sternly.
“Oh, of course it’s okay,” Rebekah said as she came from another side of the building. “I’m impressed, we were unable to find you, you had your remaining children keeping the wolves busy and blondie was keeping an eye on us. Did you know that she didn’t even want Bella around? That she thought she was better off without you lot so she could live the life that Rosalie badly wanted for herself?”
When Esme didn’t reply, Rebekah continued. “Of course you did. Any good mother would know their children’s deepest secrets. After a little bit of persuasion, Rosalie was more than happy to tell us where you took Bella. Hurts, doesn’t it? To be betrayed by the one you love?”
“I’m confused,” Bella whispered to Kol. “Is it okay or not?”
“It’s okay, Cuddles,” he chuckled as he caressed her hair.
Bella giggled again. “Can we go home then? Esme cured me; I’m fine now.”
Bella’s eyes grew big as a big brown wolf rounded the building followed by several other wolves. “Puppies!”
The wolf snorted before looking at Esme and bared its teeth.
“Can I pet the puppy?”
“No, Cuddles, we’re going home.”
“But the puppy…” Bella pouted at Kol.
“You can pet the puppy later, come on, the car is close by.”
Kol was glad that they had compelled Charlie to go and camp out on the reservation the moment they had realized that Bella was missing so that the house was empty, and Charlie was safe amongst the wolves. Bella slept on the way back in the car, but the second that Kol turned the engine off, she was awake again and getting out of the car. “Don’t wander off, Cuddles, we’re going inside.”
“Okay,” she said as she walked towards the front door and tried to open it. “It won’t open.”
“Pull, don’t push,” he said in a gentle tone as he had caught up with her and opened the door for her. Whatever they had given her – even Rosalie wasn’t sure as it was something Carlisle had developed specifically for Bella – he hoped it was out of her system soon.
She had been missing for a couple of days, and she may not feel like it at the moment, but graduation was only in a day or two. Kol sinceriously hoped she’d be back to normal by then. “Get to the kitchen, Cuddles, it’s time for some real food and some acidity in your stomach.” He hoped that the drug would be something compared to Rohypnol. If she started to feel better by drinking orange or lemon juice, he could whip up a magical antidote for it.
Rosalie had also mentioned something about Bella being more susceptible to outside influences while on the drug, and he desperately hoped that Esme hadn’t caused any long lasting damage. And as much as he wanted this to be over with – for her sake -, he knew it was a matter of simply waiting it out and look after her as well as he possibly could.
Bella sat down on a chair and watched as Kol pulled something out of the fridge and popped it into the microwave. “No salad?”
“Chicken. A whole roast chicken, just for you.”
“For me?”
“Yes, and you’re going to eat it once it’s done.” He watched her as she leaned on the table and rested her head on her arms with a smile on her face. It was so tempting to take advantage of her drugged state; to satisfy his need, to have her do things against her will. To interrogate her about her real feelings for him, to want to know everything there was to know about her. The old him would most definitely have done all the above, not caring about privacy. But Kol wanted Bella to stay Bella; a cute and vibrant little thing that his heart yearned for.
Bella drank the orange juice he set down in front of her and then realized something; she still had to go to the bathroom. “Can I be excused? I need to use the bathroom.”
“You don’t need to ask,” Kol chuckled as he watched her get up from her chair. “Do you need help?”
“If you must.”
“No.”
“No,” Bella quietly muttered to herself as she walked towards the bathroom. Upon her return, she eyed the whole chicken that was on the plate on the table. “That’s too much, what about you?”
“I’m not hungry, Cuddles, it’s all yours.”
Bella giggled and cocked her head as she looked at Kol for a moment. “You’re gorgeous.”
“I know I’m very gorgeous thank you very much, look at this face, how perfect is it?” Kol grinned as he sat down in front of her. “And you’re very beautiful yourself.”
She giggled again and then started to pick on the meat of the chicken with her fingers before carefully started to eat. “Edward won’t like it that I’m eating this entire chicken.”
Kol groaned as he ran his hand through his hair. “You don’t have to speak to him if you don’t want to, Cuddles.”
“But Esme said…”
“Esme could have said a lot of things, it doesn’t bloody mean you have to agree with all of it.”
“You’re angry,” Bella observed as she started licking her fingers as she looked at Kol.
Oh, she didn’t just go there, he thought as he tried to look anywhere but at Bella. Even drugged up she managed to tease him so very much. The thought of those fingers touching him… He swallowed hard before pinching his leg underneath the table to distract him as he looked at her. “I am.”
“What did I do? Can I fix it?”
“No, Bella,” he smiled at her. “I’m angry at Esme.”
“But why? She cured me, didn’t she? She was nice, and she was taking care of me. She gave me water to drink and food… Esme missed me very much.”
“Cuddles, we’re not having this conversation right now. Eat your chicken.” Kol said sternly as he felt the anger inside of him grow. He hoped that the wolves were true to their word and that they’d kill Esme for kidnapping Bella. It was bad enough that they’d probably have to start all over again when it came to her independence, although secretly he wished she’d snap back once the drugs were out of her system. He set down another glass of orange juice, but this time with a splash of lemon in it.
“I’m not thirsty.”
“I don’t care. Drink. It’s good for you.” He had told himself not to tell her what to do but he didn’t have a choice right now. Was she like this when she was with the Cullens? They’d just boss her around, and she obliged without any major opposition? Figuring it was best not to engage in a conversation with her right now, he watched her eat and drink, and when she had eaten most of the chicken, Kol smiled at her. “Well done. Now, how about you take a shower and get changed into your PJ’s, Cuddles? Settle in for a movie marathon with Rebekah?”
“And you?”
“Of course, someone has to take care of you girls,” Kol said with a wide smirk and watched Bella as she took the stairs. The moment she was out of earshot, he grabbed his phone and called his sister, hoping that she wasn’t on her way home just yet. He needed her to pick up a few ingredients at the nature store so that he could feed it to Bella to help her body get rid of the drugs.
Half an hour later, Bella walked down the stairs clutching her duvet and wearing her pajamas. “I feel like crap,” she sulked as she plopped on the couch and snuggled under her duvet. “I threw up in the shower… sorry.”
“That’s okay, Cuddles,” Kol said as he sat down next to her. “Glad you’re feeling better.”
“But I don’t. I’m sick. Esme can help me.”
“No,” he said as he caressed her damp hair. “You’ll be fine. Bright as rain tomorrow evening.”
“How do you know?”
Kol shrugged. “It’s what I hope, for your sake.”
Bella snuggled up against him while still snuggled up in her duvet and closed her eyes. “Don’t think I can stay awake for movies…”
“That’s okay, Cuddles,” he said softly and put his arm around her. “You’re safe now, that’s all that matters. Get some rest.”
“I love you,” she said with a yawn before instantly dozing off.
