An Eternity of Misery

Part 2

It had been over a hundred years since Charlie had died of old age, in complete peace and happy to know that his daughter was happy and safe. She hadn't done anything against Edward since that moment, wanting him to think that her father's death had pushed her to give up on her revenge, on the eternity of misery that she had promised him, but, in truth, she was just preparing one big blow for him.

Bella had thought about it a lot, used Alice's and Peter's help. With their gifts, she had been able to prepare a plan that was, according to everyone involved, perfect. At the moment, she was standing in front of a 16 year old human girl who had bravely volunteered to play the most important part in this revenge play. Without her, nothing would even be possible.

After the girl's mother discovered that she had cancer, the woman had followed rumors and gone to one of Bella's vampire towns. Since she was dying anyway, she had volunteered to carry a vampire's baby in exchange for the safety and well being of her two other children.

At the time, the girl was 12 years old and had a 1 year old brother. Rosalie and Emmett took them in happily while the woman carried Carlisle's child for Esme. The young girl, Cassie, had immediately formed a strong friendship with Renesmee, who was now married to Jacob and had two children, and, once told about how her father had reacted to her birth, she had offered her help.

Now that she was 16, almost 17, she'd move to the town where Edward was living and, with all the information everyone had given her, she knew exactly how to act to get him first intrigued, then falling in love with her. They had made it so that she looked a lot like Bella had when she was human, she was the type of girl Edward liked and everyone they trusted with powers of premonition or able to sense if a plan would work or not sensed that they'd succeed.

It was a long plan, it would take a few years if everything went well but she owed them all and she really wanted to be useful, to help them.

Cassie would play the role of an orphan girl who had run away from an abusive foster family and refused to go back. They had seen that Edward would help her to redeem himself and that he would stay around to get to know her, protect her and, slowly, fall for her. Cassie would tell him that her parents were killed by white people with red eyes and that she was afraid they would come back for her, so she was trying to hide. They saw that, with the evidence they planted, Edward would believe her, especially since Cassie's mind was protected with a shield, similar, though a bit weaker than Bella's.

"Are you sure that you want to do this? You know, you don't have to." Bella asked the young girl before she was driven to her next living place by one of the humans working for the Voltury.

"I'm sure. It will be fine." Cassie smiled.

"Just know that you can get out at anytime, all you need to do is to call us. We'll be there as soon as you want us." Rosalie insisted.

"I know, Ma, don't worry. I want to do this, everything will be fine, I just know it." Cassie replied.

"You're a very brave girl, Cassie. Thank you." Bella smiled.

"He deserves what he'll get and it doesn't matter how nice he acts towards me, I won't let him get in my head, I know the kind of man he is." Cassie assured them before she hugged and kissed them all and climbed in the car.

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Cassie stayed alone in her motel room for two days before she received the signal that she could move out so, knowing that Edward was around, she got out, looking around, acting like the scared runaway teenage girl she was pretending to be. She snuck out of her motel room, acting like she hadn't paid for it, and made her way to the store where she shoplifted a sandwich and a bottle of water before she made her way to the local park and sat under a tree to eat her stolen lunch.

She knew that Edward was watching her from afar so she kept her act up and she wandered around town before she stole some more food for her dinner and snuck into another empty motel room with her backpack.

"You shouldn't do that, you know." A male voice told her as she tried to pick the lock of the room she had chosen.

"Some of us don't have a choice. Mind your own business." She replied, knowing immediately who that voice belonged to.

"What about your family? They must be looking for you." Edward asked her in a disapproving voice.

"My family's dead and I'd hardly call a family the place I ran away from. I was only a meal ticket and a punching bag to them, I was tired of it." She replied, hardly looking at him.

"You should go to a competent adult, a professional, to help you." He suggested as she pretended to fail at breaking the lock.

"You obviously don't know what you're talking about. Now leave me alone and go back to your own life." She complained.

"I could help you. I'm Edward by the way." He offered.

"You? How could you help me?" She asked him, finally turning around to look at him fully.

"First, I could offer you a place to stay you wouldn't have to sneak in and second I could give you some food you wouldn't have to steal. Then maybe tomorrow I can help you find a more permanent solution." Edward insisted.

Knowing that she couldn't act like she trusted him too easily, Cassie argued:

"You sound like some kind of pervert. Plus, look at you! You can't be that much older than me."

"I've inherited some family money. And I assure you that I am not a pervert, I just want to help you." Edward replied, managing to stay calm.

"That's exactly what a pervert would say." She told him, looking him up and down angrily.

"You're really stubborn, aren't you?" He asked her, with an hint of nostalgia in his eyes and Cassie knew that he was comparing her to Bella in his mind.

"I'm not stubborn, I'm careful. Life taught me that." She shook her head, acting like she was afraid and hiding something.

"What happened to you?" He asked her.

"Why do you care?" She glared.

"Maybe I did something in the past and I want to make it up by helping you." he told her.

"What did you do?" She asked him, even though she knew what it was.

"It's a long story, but let's just say that I caused someone some pain a long time ago and I can't do anything about it. So, will you let me help you?" He asked her.

"Fine, just for tonight." She agreed.

She followed Edward to his appartement and he even offered to order her some food. She asked for a pizza and, once the food was there, Edward tried once more to find out what had happened to her that made her afraid and careful.

"Someone that wasn't normal killed my parents. He was tall, strong. His skin was just as white as yours and his eyes were bright red, though nobody believed me, or they thought that it was because of some contacts... They didn't believe me when I told them that the man drank their blood and was too strong to be human." She replied, well trained tears pooling out of her eyes.

"How are you still alive?" he asked her.

"I was 8, I had been very sick for a long time and was extremely thin. He looked at me with disgust, like I used to look at broccoli or Brussels sprouts, and turned around, like I wasn't worth his attention, like I was just trash, a reject." She explained.

"Didn't anybody else like him come after you?" Edward asked her.

"Someone did, at the hospital, a few days after it happened. They wore a dark hood, like they just stepped out of a renaissance festival or something. They asked me questions and I was afraid they'd hurt me, do to me what the other one did to my parents so I told them that I had a big fever that day, that everything was fuzzy and that what I saw didn't make sense, so it was probably the result of my fever. They believed me and the big one asked the girl, he called her Jane I think, what they'd do and Jane said that the Queen would want me to live so they told me that I was right, it was the fever and they left, assuring me that the man who had hurt my parents had paid for his crimes and that he'd never hurt me or anyone else ever again." She explained, telling him her well rehearsed tale.

She could see in his eyes that he believed her.

"Bella..." he whispered.

"No, my name is Cassie."

"No, I... Bella, that's the name of the Queen they spoke of." Edward replied.

"How do you know?" She asked him.

"Because I know her. I used to be a big part of her life." He replied.

"Used to? Why not anymore?"

"She's the one I cause pain to. Now, you should go to bed, get some rest. We'll talk about what to do next in the morning." Edward told her, looking like the last thing he wanted was to talk about Bella.

Cassie nodded and went to lay on the bed, knowing that everything was going exactly like they had planned.

.

The next morning, Cassie woke up the find a warm cup of hot chocolate, a glass of orange juice and some pancakes ready for her. The table was set for her breakfast and there was only one place set up.

"Good morning, come and eat your breakfast. Then we'll be able to try and find a more permanent solution for you." Edward greeted her with a smile.

"You're not eating?" She asked him, knowing perfectly well that he wouldn't eat with her.

"No, I... I ate already." he replied, a nostalgic smile on his face as he remembered the time when Bella had asked him the same kind of questions.

"You're a terrible liar." She frowned, looking at the food he had prepared for her like she was expecting it to explode or something.

"I just have a different and very specific diet, that's all." He told her before he invited her to sit once more.

"What's your diet?" She asked him, sitting down and sniffing the glass of orange juice before she drank a sip from it.

"It's complicated and telling you would put you in danger." he tried to wave it off.

"You're like him, right? Like the one who killed my family? You drink blood too?" She asked him.

"You're a very smart girl. Don't worry, I don't drink human blood. You can tell by the color of the eyes. If they're red, they drink human blood, if they're amber like mine, they drink animal blood." Edward told her in a reassuring voice.

"So you're not a teenager? You're very old then?" She asked him.

"Well, I was turned when I was 17, but it was in 1918. I... I know that you have no reason to trust me, but I want to help you." He told her, looking very sincere.

"Because of her, right? The Queen you talked about yesterday? Bella? The one you hurt?" She asked him.

"Yes, I feel like, maybe, if I help you out, help you get the happy life you want and deserve, then maybe I would help make it up to Bella. Make amends for what I did to her." Edward told her as honestly as possible.

"What did you do to her that's so bad?" Cassie asked him.

"I... I didn't respect her wishes, I didn't believe in her enough and it ended up causing her a lot of pain and anger. I don't want to talk about it." he shook his head.

"Fine." She shrugged, eating one of the pancakes.

"So, will you let me help you?" He asked her.

"It can't be worst than what I've been through so far, I guess I'll let you help out." She agreed after pretending to think about it for a while.

"Good, so, I'll let you finish your breakfast and get ready. After that, we'll go do some shopping to get you better clothes and then we'll sign you up at the local high school. You need to finish your education, it's important." he suggested and by the tone of his voice, it was clear that he was letting her choose.

"One thing needs to be clear: I've been taking care of myself for a while now and I don't need a parent. If you want to help, then that's fine, but I will leave if you start giving orders or trying to control my life. I know what I want and what's best for me." She warned him, knowing that she couldn't make it too easy for him or he'd end up being suspicious.

"Don't worry, I believed I knew what was best for Bella and it ended up pushing her away and hurting her. I won't do the same mistake again. You have an independent mind, just like she did. I won't do the same mistake twice." he told her with a sad smile.

For the next few days, Cassie and Edward settled in their new life, learning to live together while respecting each other's boundaries. Cassie knew that everything was going according to their plans and she was confident in the fact that Bella and Renesmee would have their revenge in the end.

As the days passed, Cassie could see Edward opening up to her. He started looking at her a bit differently too and she was happy about it. She didn't fall for him, she knew who he was and made sure to remind herself of what he had done to her friends and family every time she was tempted to let him in or believe him but she did fake her own fall for him. She made her believe that she, too, was falling for him.

.

It had been months, almost a year, since Cassie met Edward and he was head over heels for her, completely in love. She was still strong, still pretending she loved him and all she wanted now was the "big finale" to come. Alice had seen that he would propose to her soon and had informed Cassie discretely. This was the moment they were waiting for, the moment they would tell him the truth.

Cassie missed her friends and family and she couldn't wait to join them so, when Edward proposed, he took her joy for happiness at his marriage proposal. Of course she said yes, the plan was to break it to him at the small private ceremony they'd have.

.

"Are you ready Mom?" Renesmee asked her mother as they were about to leave for the wedding location.

"Of course I am honey. What about you?" Bella asked her daughter.

"I"m ready to face him. I want him to see me, my happiness. I want him to suffer." she nodded.

Felix and Jacob were waiting for them in the car. They wanted to be present for the women they loved, to show their support for this last blow to Edward.

Rosalie, Emmett and Cassie's brother were already on the way and would meet them there.

Before they drove off, they saw most of the Volturi wishing them good luck.

.

Edward was happy to see that his future bride was so excited for this wedding. They'd have a small ceremony, just the two of them and a priest. Of course, he didn't know that the priest was one of the humans who worked for Bella.

"Oh Edward, A few old friends of mine are coming today. I didn't know if I'd be able to reach them but I was able to get through. They should arrive just in time for the ceremony. You'll be able to meet them after." Cassie told him.

Edward was surprised, but he nodded. he knew that Cassie had been in touch with old friends on Snapchat. He had never been able to see what they were talking about because, well, he promised her privacy and the conversations never stayed on this app. He didn't mind, he just wanted her to be his wife.

"I'll let you get ready. See in inside." Edward smiled at her tenderly before he went in the church to wait for her to finish getting ready.

He didn't understand why a church needed insonorized rooms but he let it go. He trusted Cassie and he knew that she was safe.

Cassie quickly put on her wedding dress for dramatic purpose and she sent a message to Renesmee telling her that it was time. She slowly made her way to the central alley and started slowly walking towards Edward.

"Sorry I'm late." Renesmee declared when they arrived, making Cassie turn with a smile and Edward look in horror. He had never met his daughter but he had seen her through other people's thought over the years.

"Yes, centuries of evolution and technology, and we still get stuck in traffic." Bella said when she, in turn entered the church, followed by Jacob, Felix, Emmett, Rosalie and their son.

"Mom, dad!" Cassie exclaimed, running in the arms of her adoptive parents.

"What... What's going on?" Edward asked.

"You didn't think this was real, did you?" Cassie asked him.

"I don't understand... Bella..." Edward shook his head.

"None of this was real Edward. Renesmee is one of my friends, I jumped at the opportunity to make you pay for what you did to her." Cassie explained.

"Surprise!" Renesmee chuckled.

"I... I'm sorry..." Edward tried to tell his daughter, unable to form a coherent thought.

He was shocked, heartbroken, surprised... Even his vampire ability to process several things at once weren't enough now. He was lost. Crumbling down.

"You didn't think this was over, did you, Edward? You really thought that Charlie's death would have changed things? It didn't. You still tried to kill my daughter, you still hurt me, you still went against my wishes. Of course, things turned out for the best, considering everything, but still... You needed a reminder. Every time you reach happiness, someone will come to take it from you, until Renesmee decides that she's forgiven you for what you did to her or until someone manages to truly and sincerely love you and comes to us, begging for your freedom and for forgiveness for you." Bella declared, the last part being new but she was a nice person and she figured that, after all this time, he did deserve a tiny chance at making things better.

They left Edward there, on his knees, in the middle of the church, in his tuxedo, with Cassie's ring on the ground in front of him.

"Goodbye." Cassie said coldly before she followed her parents out.

I don't know if you think I was too cold or not. I tried making it worthy of the first part. Maybe there will be a third part eventually, but it won't be soon. I am however working on a version of the first chapter where the baby dies. A much darker and colder one. If you follow many of my stories, you know that I don't publish often lately, being a single mother doesn't leave me much time to write but my son is now a year and a half, I should be able to find some more time to write and publish.

Still, a review would be nice, to know if you like it or not, what you think I should have done, what you think should happen in the darker version, what you'd like to see happening in the third part of this one...

Thank you for reading,

Lorelei Candice Black

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