The Denver Paranormal Society

Chapter One — Case No. 186

Case No. : 186

Date: November 14, 2010

Client Name: Rosalie Hale

Subject: Client claims that her children have seen a woman in their bedroom. The entity leaves behind wet spots and footprints at the foot of their beds. Ms. Hale is widowed, her husband had been imprisoned due to domestic abuse and later killed in the facility. The children have been the only ones to have seen the entity, yet Ms. Hale has seen some of the water left behind. The sleepless nights of her children have been affecting them deeply. The case has moved up in priority for this reason.

Edward

Since leaving the office, Bella had been on edge. The drive to Ms. Hale's home was a little over forty miles away, so I hoped to get her to talk to me. Something scared her or made her angry and I was positive it had something to do with me, and possibly the young man with whom she was talking with before I interrupted.

I wasn't sure why I was compelled to walk across the street and find out who the man was. Perhaps it was the fact that they looked so comfortable around each other. I was never one to be jealous. However, it was the emotion I felt when I had seen them embrace.

"Angel," I whispered, my fingers tightening around the steering wheel. "Please tell me what happened back there."

I watched her eyes close as a small sob escaped her. I stomped on the brakes immediately and pulled onto the shoulder. "Edward," she gasped, grabbing the handle above the passenger door. I heard the radio squawk as Emmett complained about my driving skills.

I grabbed the radio and talked to the rest of my team. "Go on ahead," I said. "We'll be behind you in the few minutes."

"All right, boss," Emmett said, albeit warily. "Don't you think it's a little cold to be getting it on in a car?"

I rolled my eyes and refused to reply to his question. I watched the van and two more cars pass us, all filled with members of my team. After a short minute, I turned to Bella and asked my question again.

Taking her hand in mine, I played with her fingers and pulled her chin up to meet my eyes. "Please tell me," I said softly.

Her bottom lip trembled as tears filled her eyes. "That was Jacob back there."

I felt my eyebrows furrow in confusion. "He's dead, Bella," I said flatly, cringing at the sound of my voice. "I wouldn't have been able to see him. Even with Hayley, my own daughter, I wasn't able to see her."

She nodded and took my face in her hands. "He walks amongst the living as something else."

Whatever he was, it scared her. "Tell me," I pleaded as her lips brushed against mine. I allowed her to linger there, kissing me seemed to alleviate some of the tension between us.

"He's an angel of death."

"All right," I said cautiously. "You can see him because of your gift." She nodded. "But others wouldn't be able to?" She nodded again as more tears fell from her eyes. "That's why you're upset, because I could see him."

"Yes," she said softly. "I was angry that he chose to become this in the first place, but then when I realized you can see him…" Her breaths were coming out in short pants, a panic attack was at the cusp of her awareness. I tried to calm her by taking her in my arms, but it was as if she couldn't hear me. "It was a warning of sorts. He came to let me know that you may die in the next year."

Her sobs continued as I pulled her onto my lap, crying against my neck. "I can't lose you," she whispered. "I just can't. It's too soon."

"Tell me what he said," I said in the softest voice I could manage. I had to remain strong for her, show her that I wasn't scared. Death wasn't something I feared, it was the thought of leaving her alone that scared me much more. Protection and love was something Bella needed, so that she'd thrive.

I had given that to her since she allowed me to love her. I feared what would become of her if I died suddenly. I wouldn't allow that fear to force me to leave, that would only serve to make us suffer needlessly.

Through broken sobs, she told me how Jacob's powers worked. In essence, I could die the next day or months from now, or not at all. It was all subjective. "Bella," I said so softly, kissing her gently as she stirred in my arms. "I wasn't the only one that saw you talking to him." She stiffened, and I ran my hands down her back to soothe her. "Jasper and Lauren were the ones that pointed out you talking with Jacob."

"Do you know if anyone else saw him?" she asked as she looked up at me. I shook my head. "Three people, the odds are that can't be a coincidence."

"What are you thinking?" I asked as I tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

Bella sighed and laid her forehead against mine. "It may be something that happens that will cause all of your deaths at the same time."

"We need to talk to the rest of the crew," I said thoughtfully. "We don't have to tell them exactly why, just ask if they saw you talking with someone outside of the office."

"Whatever it takes to figure out when or why," she said, her bottom lip trembling again.

"Shh," I whispered and took her face in my hands. "We can't live looking over our shoulders everyday, Bella." I kissed her then, for it was something we both needed at the time. "We'll live each day to its fullest as I intended to do with you, before all of this."

She nodded. "I love you so much," she said softly.

"And I love you," I murmured, kissing her again. "Let's get this case done and we'll see about taking a week long vacation. What do you say?"

She smiled then, her tears lingering at the corners of her eyes. "How about we stay somewhere with a big fireplace and it's always quiet?"

"Sounds like our house," I said with a laugh. She climbed off my lap and settled in her seat.

"Yes," she mumbled. "It's the only place that I know of that still has a feeling of peace filling it."

I smiled as I started the car. The house did feel like that, but I knew Hayley wasn't the only reason. Bella filled it with love, since the day I met her.

We arrived almost ten minutes after the team arrived and we found them waiting for us just outside of the client's home. I knocked on the driver's side window of the van Emmett was driving.

"Has she come out yet?" I asked, looking over my shoulder at the large, gloomy home. It was in a bad state of disrepair and in need of a paint job.

"Not yet," Emmett said, lowering his window further. I could see a shiver pass through him, the cold Colorado wind quickly making its way inside the van. "Doesn't look like anyone's home either."

"She's home," I said. "I asked her to stay long enough to give me, you and Bella a tour."

"Where is she staying tonight?"

"At a neighbors with the kids, thankfully."

Emmett nodded and rolled up his window to step out. "Fuck, it's cold," he said, zipping up his jacket.

"Hope you wore layers since the hub will have to be basement."

"Oh right," Emmett said with a grimace. "Put me in the room with the most spiders."

I had to laugh at that and clasped his shoulder. "I still don't understand how you're willing to do anything to get something paranormal on video, yet you're scared of little eight-legged creatures."

"Don't even joke about spiders," Emmett said, looking horrified and brushed imaginary spiders off this jacket. It'd become a nervous habit of his whenever someone mentioned bugs of any kind to him. I smiled at him as Bella made her way over.

"Ready?" she asked, holding out her hand for mine. I was happy to have her with me but I could already see she was nervous.

"Do you see something already?" I asked, concerned of what she may have seen.

She nodded and gave me a small smile. "It's nothing to do with the case," she said as she looked over my shoulder. "It's just a residual spirit that's lingering along the street."

"Cool!" Emmett said, looking around. "Who is it?"

Bella smiled and shook her head. "It's a dog," she said, grinning. "He's trying to lick my feet." She started to giggle and bat her hand at her leg.

"Dude," Emmett whispered as he watched Bella kneel to talk to air. "The reading on your girlfriend and man's best friend are off the fucking charts." He held out the meter for me to see and it was well above normal.

"I wish I had a tennis ball," she said as she stood up and wiped her hands. "He looks like he wants to play."

"Does that happen often?" I asked as I took her hand again.

She shook her head. "Not really. At least, he's the first I've ever seen."

"If you take him in, at least you don't have to worry about feeding him," Emmett said. Bella smacked his shoulder and called him mean. I laughed at them as she lectured him about respect for the dead.

I gave a heads up to the rest of the team to start unloading the gear while we took a tour of the home and spoke with Ms. Hale.

Once Jasper and his camera were up and ready, we headed toward the house. His sound guy, Ben, had met us here, having lived nearby. "The air is so cold around here," Jasper pointed out. "The river nearby has to be the reason."

Emmett nodded and rubbed his gloved hands together. "Yeah, the damn house is in such bad shape, it has to have tons of drafts in it."

"Any history with the land and house?" Bella asked as Jasper turned the camera in her direction. Having a camera right behind my shoulder was going to take some getting used to.

"Alice and Lauren did a thorough search on its history. The house has been in her family for a long time. Her parents left it to her after their deaths, but they were in debt and Ms. Hale has been forced to pay off their bills to keep the house."

"How about the client herself?" Bella inquired, seeming to know exactly what the camera would like to see and hear. I was reluctant to share our findings online, but she was right. We were going to charge a small subscription fee and that would help with expenses. The equipment alone was very expensive, and I had my eye on a few more toys.

I had to wonder, though; had Bella done this before? It seemed so natural to her.

"Ms. Hale has some bad history. There was a series of domestic violence calls made to the police, and it was only after the last time that she finally decided to press charges against her husband. Well, that's not true," I said thoughtfully. "The DA claimed that he could make a case without her testimony, based on her injuries alone, but she agreed after he convinced her."

"So her husband was charged and convicted for assault?" Bella asked, wrapping the scarf around her neck in an attempt to keep warm.

I nodded. "He died about eighteen months after he was convicted, killed in a brawl against a few other inmates."

"All right," Bella said and smiled. "I think I know what needs to be asked then."

"What's that?" I asked, poised on the front porch of the house.

"Who died recently?"

I nodded. "Good question. Her parents died years ago, more than a decade. So it would be someone recent, since her and the children have lived here their whole lives."

"Ready?" she said sweetly, looking up at me with a small smile. I knew she was only doing this to offer me some sense of comfort. Yet, I felt very little comfort by having her with me at the time. The team knew of the possible dangers. However, I believed that with Bella's perception, that she was at a much greater risk of harm.

I bent to brush my lips over hers. "If at anytime it becomes too much for you, let one of us know and we'll get you out of here." Her brows furrowed and her lips pursed. She didn't like my idea. "Promise me, Bella. Or we leave right now."

"But—"

I placed my finger over her mouth to stop her from arguing. "I've seen first hand, on more than one occasion, what a presence can do to you. You are my first priority." She pouted as if she was thinking about what I was telling her. "That's why you're going to be with me throughout the investigation."

She breathed deeply and nodded. "Fine," she said softly. "I don't have to like it."

"Of course not, you're stubborn," I said with a grin.

"Man," Emmett said while laughing. "When's the wedding date?"

"Next year, dumbass," I replied automatically.

"Oh really," Bella said firmly. "When was I going to be informed?"

I blushed and shook my head. This was hardly the time to talk about our future. I lifted my hand to knock with the door flew open. Emmett jumped back and fell on his ass, as Bella yelped and fell against my chest.

"You are all so damn loud, that I'm sure you scared away any ghosts," a woman said, she stood just inside her house with a smile. Ms. Hale was stood tall at about five foot eleven, her long hair was dark blond and all pulled back with a rubber band at the nape of her neck. She was in her early thirties, according to her birth certificate. She was dressed as if she were ready for bed in a long sleeve sweater and matching sweats.

"Sorry," I said. "It's our first time working together," I pointed between Bella and me, "And our first time that we have a camera following us around."

She waved away at my apology. "It's fine, I found it amusing. I was about to pop a bag of popcorn in the microwave to pull up a chair and watch."

Emmett laughed loudly behind us as he stood up and brushed off his behind. "That's exactly what I was thinking."

"All right," the woman said. "I'm Rosalie Hale, you can call me Rose. Come on in."

Once I had introduced Rose to everyone accompanying us on the tour, I told her to try to pretend that the camera wasn't there. I asked for the basic information of the house, including the layout.

"It's two stories, there's a basement, three bedrooms, two bathrooms on the floor above us. The basement is accessible by a door in the kitchen and by a door in the backyard." Rose was quick to point out some of the tricky stairs and boards throughout the house. I had known most of information from the blueprints I had procured from the county records, however, owners tended to make changes without notifying the city. Ms. Hale's house hadn't gone through any major renovations since the early nineties.

"My son Zane's room," she said as she paused and opened the door to allow us inside. "He's only five years old, and after the first incident, he refused to sleep in his room. He now shares a room with his sister, who's across the hall."

Bella walked inside the room, touched a few surfaces; a desk, a book and a blanket. She suddenly removed her shoes and stood at the foot of the bed, swaying a bit. She looked drunk.

"Bella?" I placed my hand on her shoulder and she shook her head, looking up at me in confusion.

"Sorry," she whispered. "Residual emotions and I don't know what that was."

Rose walked over to Bella and pointed to the floor. "The first night that Zane saw the woman, she had left behind a small pool of water, exactly where you stood."

Bella nodded and bent to touch the area. "The wood here is warped," she said as I joined her. Emmett looked up and made a comment of the possibility of leaky roofs.

"I had a professional come out to check out the roof, attic, ceiling and plumbing. He hadn't reported any problems," I said as checked the windows for any leaks and evidence of break ins.

"When my children and I inherited the house," Rose said as she stood behind us. "It was the first thing I had fixed and updated. The roof, plumbing and electricity."

I nodded. "Yes, the inspector pointed that out."

"Show us where your daughter's room is," I said as I pulled Bella to her feet.

As Rose stood aside to allow Bella to enter the other bedroom, she spoke in a whisper, "This is Rebecca's room. She's nine years old and the spitting image of me." She smiled as she walked past us to fluff a pillow on the brightly colored bed. "She's fiercely protective of her brother."

"Has anyone died recently?" Bella asked. "Anyone that you knew, or perhaps didn't?"

Rose shook her head. "Royce, my ex-husband died in prison four years ago. I have no other family, and from what Royce told me before, neither did he."

Again, near the bed was another warped section of flooring, lighter in color than the surrounding wood. It felt much colder too. Bella walked slowly from the spot and out the door. Her steps were cautious and she turned to look down the hall, to either side, before heading toward the left. Rose tried to stop her from going to the last door, I held out my hand and shook my head.

It was obvious that Bella was picking up something; it was best not to disturb her if she wasn't at risk. Bella's lips curled in a slight snarl as she stepped into a softly coffee colored bedroom.

"I haven't seen her, I swear," Rosalie gasped. "But as you can see, she visits me often."

Her bed stood between two small windows, the flooring was a dark hardwood, yet, all around the bed were lighter spots. Larger ones seemed to be on the right side. "You sleep on the right?" I asked Rose and she nodded.

"Emmett?" Bella said softly as she looked out the window. "Tell Alice not to touch anything here. There's so much pain and fear among the things in the house. It would be too much for her." She turned to Rosalie. "You were so brave to finally say enough was enough."

Rose bit her lip as she pulled at her long ponytail of dark wheat colored hair. "I should have done something much sooner. I was afraid of him, of the power he had over me."

"Just because he was an officer of the law, didn't give him the right to abuse his power over you."

I was in awe of the information that Bella had already determined just from a tour of the house. I hadn't told her and the others about Rosalie's husband. I hadn't wanted them to be influenced by the information; Alice and Lauren were the only ones aware of that Royce King was a police officer.

Rose nodded. "Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you for coming out here and helping."

"We'll do what we can," I said to Rose as I ushered Bella from the room. Once we were in the living room, I gave the orders to Emmett of where to set up cameras and recording devices. Bella sat with Rosalie, speaking in whispers.

11:03 pm

Rebecca's room

Ms. Hale left to her neighbors shortly after the tour, as my crew set up the cameras. Once I was able to determine from the computer screens that all the cameras were set up correctly, lights went out at 9:48 pm. Since Alice agreed with Bella's assessment of the use of her ability and potential harm, she had first watch downstairs along with Lauren. All the connecting wires for the cameras ran along the basement stairs, and everyone was fitted with walkie-talkies and equipment.

Emmett and Eric decided to take Ms. Hale's bedroom, while Bella and I took Rebecca's room. The camera followed us but remained in one corner of the room. I radioed Emmett, letting him know that I wanted to trade rooms around midnight.

Bella lay curled to her side on Rebecca's bed, looking at me as I sat on the floor against the wall. "I remember," she whispered softly. "My dad telling me how boring stakeouts were."

I gave her a smile and shrugged. "You can log in hundreds of hours of doing this and only gather a few seconds of evidence."

She nodded. "So you've had experiences before?"

"Yes," I whispered. "Only two things, one's a recording and the other was about 2.3 seconds of video of something strange."

"Wow." She smiled and held out her hand. I took it, kissing her palm softly. "There's a heavy tension in the room, but it's not bad compared to the hallway and Rose's room. I don't think this spirit is out to hurt the children."

"You haven't seen a spirit?"

She shook her head. "I know something's been here. I sensed residual feelings, what she did as she walked around the house."

"Are you certain that it's a woman?"

Bella nodded. "She doesn't like Rosalie very much at all," she said lowly. "That's why there's so many spots around her bed. She stands watching over her, probably every night."

Around midnight, we did an group exchange. The camera continued to follow Bella and I, but Emmett went downstairs to watch the video footage as it was being recorded. Lauren and Eric took Rebecca's room.

Alice joined Bella and me. Alice held onto a small digital recording device and placed it on the bed. Bella turned to me and said that it'd be a good idea to explain to the camera what an EMF detector was. I nodded, scratching my head as I did a sweep of the normal EMF reading was. Emmett had said that it was between 0.78 to 1.2, so it was well within normal parameters. I started with gentle motions from right to left, walking from each corner of the room until I reached the center. I followed that pattern with an up and down motion until I was able to determine that the normal readings for the room were under 1.2.

While I explained to the camera the Trifield Meter that measured EMF, Bella and Alice took stations near the bed. Alice removed her gloves and was about to touch the bed when Bella stopped her.

"Don't Alice," she whispered. "It's not pretty and I really don't think you'll survive what you'll see." I was curious to what Bella was referring to, but I was sure it had to do with Rose's husband. Alice sighed, but agreed and put her gloves back on.

As I continued to explain to the camera, I demonstrated the sweeping motion to use to get an accurate reading when it fluctuated. Jasper looked at me from behind the camera with a raised eyebrow. I did the motion again and it repeated, the same peak occurred toward the window. Right in Bella's direction. Jasper gave me a "what the hell" look as Bella stood beside the window.

Again, she looked drunk, swaying where she stood. Alice pressed a finger to her lips, to keep us from talking. Bella's shoulders slumped and she regained her balance by holding on to the window sill.

"She's here," she said in the same voice she used when the dead were near. "Outside."

I quietly stepped into the hallway and called up Emmett. "Grab Eric and Lauren and head outside. Take one of the handhelds and get some readings of the backyard."

"Will do," Emmett radioed back. "Anything else we should take?"

"Just a DR and an EMF," I answered before returning to the bedroom. Jasper stood directly behind Bella as she made her way around the bed in stilted movements. I tried to make my way over to her but Alice stopped me.

"Nothing's wrong," Alice whispered. "It's just that since the spirit is near, Bella can get a better handle of its emotions and what she's doing here."

Bella looked up to meet my gaze and gave me a small smile. "I'm fine," she said. "As I said before, she's not here to hurt the children. She's their grandmother, Rose's ex-husband's mother."

"Rose had mentioned that her ex hadn't had any family," I said as I walked toward her. I brushed her cheek with the tips of my fingers. "Are you really all right?"

She nodded. "She was a drunk, so I think that's why she moves like she does."

"Yes, there were a few times you looked drunk yourself," I said as I took her hand in mine. "Which was why I was asking if you're all right. I'm sorry if I seem overbearing."

Bella smiled and shook her head. "I understand. It's not everyday you see your girlfriend take on traits of a spirit."

"No, it's not," I whispered and kissed her softly. "So let's keep that to a minimum please."

She nodded. "I'll see what I can do."

"All right, why don't we meet up at the hub, see what everyone has gotten so far."

~TDPS~

We all stood behind the screens on the table we'd put downstairs in the basement. Emmett sat in one of the chairs and pointed out that the camera in Rose's room had fallen. I sent Eric and Lauren went back upstairs to fix the camera.

"Did you get anything while you were outside?" I asked Emmett.

"Not sure," he said. "I felt someone behind me, swear I heard someone whisper in my ear. Got the fucking shudders after that. But Eric found a trail of wet footprints leading up to the back entrance of the house. He said he recorded it."

"Once they get back, we're heading outside to take a look closer to the river," I said as I looked at the screen where Rose's room should be, looking toward the bed. Instead, it was on the floor, pointing at the direction of the foot of the bed.

"What the hell is that?" Emmett asked, pointing at a spot on the screen. I leaned in closer and was able to see drops of water forming on the floor near the camera. I tapped Emmett's shoulder to get him to move.

"Get up there with a hand held," I said, turning toward Bella. "Is she in the house?"

Bella nodded and bit her lip. "She doesn't know I'm here yet," she said. "She always angry when she's in that room. It might not be a good idea for me to go up there if she is."

"Agreed," I said.

Emmett nodded and took off with the camera and a meter. I watched as the video camera in Rose's lifted and Eric's face came into view. He was completely oblivious to the presence in the room. Right behind him, Lauren was looking in the direction of the bed. She was a little more open to the idea of ghosts and more perceptive of them. Though nowhere near the level of Bella and Alice.

I watched as Lauren tapped her husband's shoulder and pointed toward the bed. The camera wasn't rigged for sound, but the recorder picked up their conversation.

"Look on the floor," Lauren said to Eric. Eric looked over his shoulder and cursed. He quickly mounted the camera and angled it toward the bed again. "Where's the water coming from?" Lauren asked as she directed a point-and-shoot thermometer toward the center of the room. Previously, the room had ansteady temperature of sixty-eight degrees. Bella stood behind me and together, we watched Lauren walk closer to the bed. The reading on the thermometer was dropping rapidly.

Emmett slipped quietly into the room with the camera in his hand. He stepped out of range when suddenly Eric cursed.

"What the hell is that?" he asked, pointing toward the window.

Though nothing stood at the foot of the bed, something was reflecting off the window. "I don't know," Emmett said. "The camera's picture looks distorted."

I turned toward Jasper and gestured for him to get his ass up there. He nodded and was about to make his way upstairs when he stopped. "Where the hell is Bella?"

Alice cursed and removed her glove. At the table's edge was a bottle of water Bella drank from earlier, picking it up with her ungloved hand, she whispered, "She went outside to call Rosalie and maybe get the spirit's attention."

I called up to Emmett who tried to tell me something, but I stopped him. "Bella went outside, I think to lure the ghost. Get back there once you think the activity is gone upstairs."

"What the hell is she thinking?" he said through the radio. "Shit, Edward, that thing is gone. All the equipment was going crazy and now, it just stopped. We'll be right down."

I ran past Alice, Jasper and Ben, and found the door to the backyard from the basement. "Bella!"

"Bella," Alice called out along with the rest of us as we made it out to the lawn. Behind the house, Rose had a small play area for the kids, a deck with a covered barbecue grill and what looked like a herb garden.

I turned toward Eric. "Show me where you saw the footprints," I said firmly. I followed him toward a side yard where there was a trellis that led to Rose's room. I cursed and asked him what direction they looked they had come from.

I prayed we weren't too late as we ran toward the river. Even though the backyard was fenced in, it was in need of fixing. There was missing slats here and there. Bella stood just outside one of the openings and held her hand out. Surrounding her was a pool of water, though she seemed to be dry. I opened a nearby gate and made my way toward her, the others following close behind me.

"What is it?" I asked.

"I called Rose for her ex's last name and called my dad," Bella whispered, swaying again. I captured her before she fell as she continued to explain. "He said his mother, Beth King, died a few months ago." I cursed under my breath, she died around the time the occurrences started in Rose's home. "She had accidently drowned while she was intoxicated."

"Let's get some readings out here," I whispered to Emmett and Eric. They nodded and turned to walk along the slow moving river. It was relatively cold, and there were patches of ice along the banks. I brushed my lips against Bella's cheek and held her close. "Don't do that again."

"I only meant to call, I couldn't get a signal inside the house." She looked up to me, the tip of her nose and the apples of her cheeks were flushed from the cold. "I'm sorry."

"I can't lose you," I whispered as I laid my forehead on hers. "I can't, sweetheart."

"I know," she said, laying her head on my chest. After a few minutes, we decided to split up again into groups to see if we could get anything. I was speaking to Jasper as Emmett and Eric made their way to the house when Lauren said something.

"What the hell is happening?" Lauren murmured, pointing toward the river. Water seemed to creep over the edge and in our direction. Slowly, in an almost snakelike movement, water pooled at our feet.

"Get back," Bella said in that voice that she used to talk with the dead. "Get the hell back!"

I watched as fear came over the delicate features of Bella's face. Her pale complexion almost glowed under the moonlight as we stood by the river's edge.

"What is it, Bella?" I asked as I stepped closer. She held up her hand and shook her head, tears forming in her eyes.

What the hell is wrong with her?

I took one step toward her and the puddle of water in which we stood suddenly pulled back. As if it was being suctioned back toward the river. I looked up at Bella in confusion, shock clearly evident on her face.

Alice and Lauren screamed as Bella fell face first on the ground. Her eyes snapped back to mine, her fingernails digging into the dirt. Her blood-curdling scream echoed around us as I, and the other members of my team, reached for her.

"Edward!" Her body slid backward toward the water, dust and forest debris whipped around her. Bella's fingers left gouges in her wake as she tried to fight whatever had a hold of her.

I lunged toward her; damn it, I shouldn't have left her side. "Bella!" I cried out as I scrambled for her outstretched fingers, falling to the ground as she continued to scream.

"I can't swim," she screamed. "Help me!"

I missed her by a mere inch as she disappeared under the dark water. "Fuck!" I said as I crawled toward the edge but felt resistance as Emmett and Eric held me back. "Let me go!" I roared as I fought against their hold. "Bella!"

AN: Thanks to kyla713 for your help and encouragement. The second part to this will be up at midnight. I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of the sequel to She Speaks Fear and Truth.