Broken Hearted on the Mend

Rhiannon's Point of View

It was time to give an explanation for what was happening to me. I didn't fully trust anyone yet, not even Emmett sad to say. I felt that there was something they were keeping from me and I was afraid that if I told my secret then I would just be treated like a charity case and I didn't want to be treated like that. I've finally come to terms with the fact that my parents are dead and won't be coming back. I still blame myself for their death because I had driven them out of the house that night they were killed because I was selfish. If I could go back in time and stop the events that led up to my parents' death I would, but I can't and I've finally accepted that. I was sitting on the couch and Bella and Esme were sitting next to me. Emmett was standing behind Edward's chair.

They were waiting for me to start explaining what had happened to me at the hospital. I don't know how to start this explanation, but I knew I had to. I cleared my throat to begin when the knock on the door came. Edward stood up and answered it. My Aunt Lorelei was here to take me away and I thought that she was dead. My mother's sister hardly ever visited and she was a real bitch to me when she did make the occasional visit. All that crap about giving me a better home from my uncle was a load of bullshit and I didn't buy it at all.

Edward looked at me and must have gotten the impression that she was an imposter. He fed her an address in Washington from what I heard from my aunt because she was such a loud mouth. I hated her just as much as I hated my uncle. Bella had whispered to me that they would send her on a wild goose chase in order to protect me. I nodded my head in thanks. Edward came back into the house and then stood by the door.

They were all looking towards me expecting me to talk. I was scared because this was about to be a huge step for me to take. I had never told anyone about my troubles before mainly because I was scared that my uncle would find out and then actually make due to his threat and kill me. When he first threatened to kill me I thought that he was bluffing, but ever since I saw him and videotaped him take a knife to my Aunt Maria I realized that he wasn't kidding about killing me and that really scared me. I cleared my throat again getting ready to speak when Emmett walked over and handed me a bottle of water. I smiled at him and took a drink and then began to speak.

"I know that you all want to know what happened and why it happened, but I can't speak about that right now," I said.

"Rhiannon if you want us to help you in any way we have to know," Bella prompted.

"I understand that. I really do, but I don't think I'm ready to speak about what's happening to me right now. I can, on the other hand, explain why I moved here after living in Southern California for seventeen years of my life," I said.

Everyone just seemed to straighten their spine and they were all sitting ramrod straight it was really creepy, but it was actually also really nice to know that I had good listeners who were ready to help me if I needed it. I took one deep breath and after I exhaled I began to talk about my parents.

"It all started at the beginning of my junior year of high school. I was doing really well until I met the two friends that started leading me in the wrong direction. I never drank or smoked or did any other type of drugs, but I did party with them a lot. Their names were Kristy and Kaitlyn. They were like sisters to me the rest of my junior year. During the summer though after my parents had received my report card for that year they were a little upset with me because my grades weren't the best that I could achieve and they knew that. My dad wanted me to attend his college in New Hampshire and my mom wanted me attend hers in Missouri.

I didn't want to attend either one, but I applied to both just to make them happy. The one I really wanted to attend was the New York Academy of Art. I wanted to become an artist since I had discovered that I had that talent. I've also dreamed of becoming an author as well, but first and foremost an artist. I loved to draw and I always kept a sketch journal with me at all times.

"I felt like my decisions didn't matter and that they were suffocating me so that summer night that I had come home super late from a party with my two friends my parents were furious. They told me that my grades weren't my best and that I could do better when I started my senior year of high school. It was late and I was a little irritable because someone at the party was trying to push me to drink or have a joint and I wouldn't so he got a little mad, but I was able to get away from him. The conversation became a shouting match mainly between my mother and me.

My dad, who was always the calm and collected one, had yelled at me for the first time in years. It shocked me, but it also piqued my anger. I yelled at them even more. My father grounded me until the next afternoon and told me that if I was to get into Dartmouth or Washington University of St. Louis then I better shape up and party less. That comment alone drove me over the edge that night. I screamed at them to stop hovering and let me make my own decisions and mistakes in life.

"I didn't know at the time that I was making the first mistake that I would always regret. I yelled that they weren't my parents anymore, that I didn't love them and that I hated them. My mom was on the verge of tears, but I didn't care at all. I was furious at them for hovering over me all the time and trying to tell me how to live my life and where to go to college. I had stormed up to my room to sulk and take my anger out threw drawing. As I was drawing I distinctly heard my father say through my door that he and my mom were going out for a drive.

It was about eleven at night. I didn't care where they were going. Midnight rolled around though and my parents still didn't return. I was actually beginning to get worried about them even though I was still angry with them. I had resolved most of my anger so that I could make up and apologize. I stayed up until one in the morning. I had just turned out the lights and went to bed when the doorbell rang followed by a knock. I had stared at the ceiling for about ten minutes when the knock at the door came again. I tossed off the covers to my comforter and walked down the stairs to the front door.

"When I opened it I found a police officer standing on our porch. He asked me a few questions and then explained to me that my parents had been in a car accident just outside of San Diego. I thanked him and then went back to bed. The next morning though I almost broke down. I sat down at my desk and wrote both parents a note of apology. I went to the florist and asked for two red roses and two strips of red ribbon. I tied the each note to the rose and then planned the rest of the funeral. Kristy and Kaitlyn deserted me when they found out that my parents had died. I realized that their sole mission in life was to take down the smartest kids in the school and turn them into bad-ass people.

The funeral went without a hitch and when I had placed the roses on top of each casket I had let the tears finally spill over. I held in every bit of emotion as I could because I didn't people to think I was weak. The house was sold along with most of the furniture. I kept my father's car so that I could drive out here. I kept my parents' wedding bands and their drivers' licenses. My aunt had wanted to make sure that I was okay so she told social services that she would take care of me. I didn't really care who took me in because my parents weren't alive anymore. I withdrew from the outside world a little too much, but as I said before I didn't care. I didn't see anything worth living for anymore. My parents were gone and as far as I was concerned it was my fault," I finished my story at last.

The room was silent for hours it seemed like. I had taken a few more drinks from my water so that the dryness in my throat would go away. I waited for someone to speak afraid that if I spoke another word that I would be rejected and that I would be forced to go back to my uncle's house. I didn't want to at all, but he was technically my legal guardian until late April so in retrospect of everything I did have to go back to that house where I saw my aunt being stabbed to death. I continued to wait patiently, but my nervous habit of tapping my foot kicked in almost instantly.

"Rhiannon, your parents' deaths was not your fault," Esme finally said.

"Rhiannon, keeping things like that in can end up hurting you really badly," Bella added.

Edward and Emmett remained silent. I felt my heart breaking again with Emmett's continued silence. He made me feel special like no one else ever had. It was true I had my boyfriends back in California, but they all turned out to be jerks and assholes. Emmett seemed different for some reason. I couldn't place it yet, but I could feel something deep in my gut. The silence lasted for hours. When no one spoke a single word for five hours straight I got up and walked home, not even caring that I left all my evidence against my uncle at Emmett's house. If they found it and then asked then maybe I would be able to come forward and talk about it.

Four months and two weeks passed since I told Emmett and part of his family about my parents. We talked at lunch as if nothing was revealed. It was nice to know that they still wanted to be my friends, but I could tell that they wanted to know more about me. My uncle still abused me continuously now that my aunt was dead. He didn't even mourn during her funeral. I had cried into Emmett's chest after her casket was buried in the ground. I had also explained that she had been murdered, but when I didn't divulge the name they didn't press me, but I knew it was only a matter of time when they did start pressing me for details.

The local police was still trying to figure out who killed my aunt and I was happy that they hadn't given up yet. These past few weeks have been out of the ordinary though. Each day was unnecessarily sunny and I hadn't seen Emmett or Bella come to school. Bella had called to tell me that she and Emmett wouldn't be at school, but I could drop by to give them their assignments. I did each day they were absent. The first week they claimed to be seriously ill, the second and third week that they were gone their excuse for not being at school was because they had to go on a family camping trip, but the fourth week that they were still gone they claimed that they had to stay home to help their mother because she was really sick and couldn't get out of bed. None of these excuses though seemed legitimate to me though because they sounded really bogus and full of crap. During the fourth week of their absence though, I met the new girl in school, who ironically in my opinion moved from Washington State. Her name was Leah Clearwater.

She was very slim and fit with dark tanned skin tone and long black hair. She was real bitter to me at first, but as the week droned on she started warming up to me. When Bella first started coming to Salem High School I found it a little odd that she had every single one of my classes. She wasn't very good at art class, but it was fun to have someone to talk to. Anyway, Leah had some classes with me, which was awesome because she was a lot of fun to talk to. We became good friends real fast as if there was something that we both knew about. It was refreshing to not have to hide something from someone. I liked it. It was like Leah had helped me understand the true meaning of a friendship in only just a week or at least part of the concept of friendship.

After I had told Edward, Emmett, Bella, and Esme about my parents I had gone back to live with my uncle. It was unfortunate that he kept beating me though. I continued to take pictures of all my bruises and cuts when I received them. My sides were always tender from where he punched and kicked me. Sometimes he even gripped my wrists so hard that I could feel the bruises forming under my skin. My neck was also a favorite spot for him to hit. I was just lucky that he hadn't decided to hit my face yet. The places where he did hit me I was able to cover them with clothes and I was glad about that. He beat everyday now and not just for punishment.

He wanted the videotape of him practically killing my aunt, but I kept my lips sealed tight. I wasn't going to let him know where I hid it because then that would put my friends in danger and I wouldn't allow that. The week that Emmett and Bella returned to school and I introduced them to Leah their reaction wasn't what I expected. Each day when Leah sat with me at lunch along with Bella and Emmett the table was completely silent as if everyone was trying to ignore everyone else. It was unnerving and annoying at the same time.

Every time I got the courage to tell Emmett and Bella at lunch what was happening to me I would always chicken out for some unknown reason to me. I couldn't figure out my brain and how it worked, but I knew I would someday. The days blended into weeks and before I knew it, it was my eighteenth birthday. I was excited. I was finally going to receive the trust fund money from my dead parents and be able to move out of my uncle's house. I was dead wrong there. According to the state of Massachusetts since I was still in school I still needed a legal guardian. The school year was almost over and then I could move out. I couldn't wait another three months.

That was too many days and weeks of my uncle beating the shit out of me. When I heard that I was pissed. I wanted out of my uncle's house and I didn't want to ever look back. My Aunt Lorelei never returned for me because I figured she didn't want to be sent on a wild goose chase just so she could her grubby hands on me. I was thankful for that. She was almost just as bad as my uncle, except maybe she wouldn't punish me through beatings, but through something else entirely. I wasn't sure and I personally didn't care. My birthday was a very odd experience to begin with. My uncle was actually nice to me for once. He woke me up to go to school without kicking or punching. I was shocked, but I was also afraid that he would turn back into the horrible monster that he was.

I went to school really calm and happy for once instead of self-conscious about my body. Out of habit, though I still covered my arms and legs. School passed by like a total breeze. Emmett invited me over to his house for a party with him and his family. He even said I could invite Leah, which made me happy. I asked her if she wanted to go and she said she would be there for my birthday. The minute I got home from school though my life finally made me snap. My uncle cornered me by the front door and he grabbed my wrists super hard. I felt bruises starting to form, well mainly because I was trying to get out of his grip. It was vice-like and very painful. He held on tighter and started using his legs to kick me. I thought I felt a rib crack so I screamed in pain. He threw me across the living room and I hit my head against the softness of the couch. He then took his hands and started punching me everywhere he could find.

His fist connected once with my mouth, once with my left eye, and once to the side of my head. I couldn't do anything to protect myself because I didn’t know any self-defense moves. I was completely scared. He kept at it for at least a good hour or two. When he finally stopped I could barely move. One of my ankles had been broken because pain was shooting up my leg. He stepped on it a little too hard. Tears were streaming down my face. He managed to push my skirt that I had worn today and molested me first and then raped me. My uncle had taken my virginity from me and I couldn't do anything to stop him because I was already in too much pain.

"Happy Birthday Rhiannon," he sneered at me.

He then went up to his room. I used the couch to help me get up off of the floor. I gently put weight on my broken ankle and the second I did I clenched my teeth from the pain. I fell back to the ground and started crawling towards the door. I had to figure out a way to leave in order to call Emmett. It was time to finally let him in on my darkest secret. I grabbed my bag and dragged it behind me. Once outside I crawled towards the woods at the corner of my street. I couldn't fight the tears from falling and truthfully I didn't want to. Once at the edge of the woods I grabbed for my phone to call Emmett. Before I could get it open though a car stopped at the curb that led towards the forest and my curiosity peaked. I was slumped up against a nearby tree. My breathing was labored from the exertion I made to get to the woods.

"Rhiannon is that you," a female voice asked suddenly.

"Who's there," I asked in a whisper.

"It's Leah, I thought I'd come and pick you up for your birthday party," she answered.

"Leah help me please," I begged.

"Where are you," she asked.

"Over by the trees," I whimpered.

"OH MY GOD, Rhiannon what the hell happened to you," she exclaimed worry clouding her eyes.

"I'll tell you later," I whispered feeling my eyes grow heavy.

"Come on let's get you to Emmett's," she said helping me up.

I leaned on her as she led me to her car. She put me in the passenger seat and then quickly got into the driver seat. She drove off pretty fast and I couldn't help but close my eyes.

"Rhiannon, don't fall asleep. I know you're in pain, but falling asleep now could be bad for your health," Leah chastised me.

I fought to keep my eyes open, but my left eye was swelling badly and it was hard to keep it open, but I did. Leah parked next to Emmett's huge Jeep and before I knew it I was being led into the house. My brain was foggy and it was getting harder to stay awake.

"Rhiannon, stay with me baby please stay with me," I heard Emmett really faintly.

"Emmett," I whispered.

"I'm here Rhiannon, I'm here," he said.

My eyes finally closed because it became too difficult to keep them open. The pain was too much to handle for my weak body. I felt cold hands on my face and a cool cloth on my forehead. It felt really good and it helped ease my pain a little. I realized that I had fallen asleep because everything around me suddenly dark.

Emmett's Point of View

Today was going to be perfect. It was Rhiannon's eighteenth birthday and I was going to throw her a surprise party. When Bella and I got back to school after the four weeks of sunny weather I was a little disgruntled to find Leah Clearwater of all the shape-shifters to be there. I played it cool because actually Bella had called for her assistance. I could tell that Bella was really fretting about Rhiannon and how she was keeping a secret from us. I didn't care. The day that Rhiannon had told us about her parents I was shocked because I finally realized what Alice meant by her grief at the beginning of the school year. She blamed herself for her parents' deaths.

I knew it wasn't true, just like I had finally come to terms that it wasn't my fault that Rosalie was taken from me. When Bella had perfect grades after she started school I couldn't help but joke around with her because the first time through she did okay. My joking nature was returning and I was finally laughing and smiling again and it felt good. When I had noticed that Rhiannon had left the day she told us about her parents I was going to go after her, but Esme said leave her be.

When her birthday finally came around I was completely excited. Alice had called and said that she wished she could be here so she could help decorate the house. I just laughed at her because she could be relentless when it came to decorating or even shopping. I reassured her that I would decorate the house as best as I could and she said okay. I went to school for half day because I wanted to make sure that the house would be in good order. Esme was there to help me decorate. I had arranged for Leah to pick up Rhiannon at six o'clock to bring her over to my house and then spend the night. I spent most of the afternoon with Esme decorating.

When Bella came home she baked a German chocolate cake. She also made chocolate covered strawberries and some other party food. Even as a vampire she was a good cook. I set up a guest bedroom for her and as I was cleaning up the bathroom I found her bag from the last time she had come here. I didn't want to feel like a snoop so I just picked it up and placed it in the guest room. After everything was cleaned up and organized I looked at the clock and it was 5:30. I was getting anxious for her to come over and it was apparently getting on Edward's nerves.

"Emmett would you stop pacing already," he glared at me.

"I'm sorry, but I can't help it," I said apologetically.

"She's going to thrilled that you did this for her," Edward smiled.

"You really think so," I said.

"I believe she will," he said a little irritated.

"Still can't get a clear read on her mind," I asked.

"No and it's making me frustrated," he glared.

I was about to say something when his entire body went rigid.

"Edward what's wrong," I asked.

"Rhiannon's hurt badly. Leah's bringing her in now," he said.

I bolted for the door. Before Leah could even get out of the car I had Rhiannon in my arms and on the couch. She had a black eye, bruises covering her wrists, a lump on the side of her head, a split lip, and bruises covering her feet. She was injured. Edward was already on the phone to Carlisle to see if he could make a 'business trip' out here to maybe help her heal. He was the better doctor even though both Edward and I had a medical degree.

"Rhiannon stay with me baby, please stay with me," I pleaded.

"Emmett," she whispered lightly.

Leah walked in with Rhiannon's bag slung over her shoulder. I wanted to yell at her, but Edward shook his head at me. I slumped to the floor and sat by Rhiannon as she fell asleep. When I gently touched her side she winced in her sleep. Her ankle was also swelling. Bella had a covered ice pack resting on her ankle and Esme put a cool cloth on her forehead.

"So is the entire family just going to be coming out here," Bella asked.

"No, Alice and Jasper are staying in Forks with Renesmee. Carlisle is on his way here, but he's only staying for two weeks," Edward said.

"Emmett, I found her by the woods this way. I didn't do anything to hurt her," Leah whispered.

"I know Leah. Thank you for bringing her here instead of to the hospital," I answered.

"She's going to be okay dear," Esme soothed.

I sat with Rhiannon all night long. I hope she would explain what happened to her because this seemed to be a repetitive pattern. I was getting worried about her safety and beginning to wonder how strict her uncle really was. I looked at Edward and he went up to the room that he was staying in. I was thinking that he might be starting his own investigation concerning Rhiannon's predicament. I felt helpless because I don't know what was going on with her. I want her to be able to confide in me, but if she doesn't trust me then I'm not going to push her. I heard whimpering coming from Rhiannon just then and my head whipped around to face her.

"No stop please, Uncle Kyle no more," she whined.

Her uncle did something to her. I was angry now.

"Emmett stay put," Edward called down the stairs.

He was right. I had to stay for Rhiannon's sake. I knew that she most likely wouldn't want to go to school on Monday unless the bruises were completely healed or at least not so noticeable. I wasn't sure. It would be up to her. I kept my eyes on her and watched as she thrashed on the couch uncontrollably. If she didn't stop she would injure herself even more.

"Rhiannon baby calm down, you're safe now," I whispered to her.

She thrashed more so I put my arms on hers and started pressing lightly. She continued to struggle though so I let her go. It seemed that she was seizing or something. I was at a loss for what to do. Carlisle's plane wasn't going to be landing until tomorrow. I may have a medical degree, but I wasn't really good at it. Edward was by my side in a heartbeat and examining her.

"She's seizing from something," he said.

"Like having a seizure," I asked.

"Yes. She needs to go to the hospital," he replied.

"Fine, let's go," I said getting ready to pick her up.

"Wait until she's done seizing otherwise moving her might do some damage," he said.

"But what if her heart stops because we didn't take her straight to the hospital then what do we do," I asked becoming frantic, which was odd because I was a vampire who was supposed to keep cool in situations like this.

"Edward we need to take her now. Carlisle will care for her when his plane lands tomorrow, but Emmett is right she needs to go to the hospital," Bella interjected.

"Fine, Emmett pick her up gently and don't jostle her because if you do it might damage something," he said exasperatedly.

I picked up Rhiannon and carefully carried her to Leah's rented Acura MDX and laid her down across the back. Bella, Leah, and Esme piled into the Ferrari and Edward and I climbed into the MDX and we immediately drove to the hospital. All I could think about was that Rhiannon would be okay and live through this. That's all I wanted was for her to be alright and get better and hopefully be able to trust me with her secrets.