Author's note at the bottom

If time could slow down, it did in that moment. But sadly so did my reflexes and reactions. I watched in horror as Victoria pulled back her top lip and brought the knife swiftly across Renesmee's throat, painting a perfect red line in her creamed skin. The pain resonated through Renesmee's body immediately.

A strangled cry fell from my throat as I helplessly watched. Victoria took my moment of despair to push Renesmee over the side of the cliff face with a flick of the wrist, her body hurtling toward the rocks and water below.

Instead of reacting to the triumphant smile on my enemy's face, I pulled away from Edward and dived over the cliff after my daughter, not caring about the protests that strayed behind.

My mind screamed for one thing and that was her: Renesmee, Ness, Nessie...

My body hit the water, its chill enveloping me in its trenches. There was no sign of her. The depths of the water were a midnight abyss and despite my perfect eyesight, I couldn't see her. I let out the air that was situated in my lungs in the form of a frantic sob; I was panicking. I frantically looked around, determined not to leave the depths until I'd found her. I swam deeper, forcing my way into the depths, looking for anything: minute air bubbles, a flash of light against the dark from the pale green shirt she was wearing, paying no attention to the noises that filtered through the waves from the surface. Being able to hear that but no echoing heartbeat scared me.

Then I smelt it… Blood. Following the trail, I tried to remain hopeful that the water was to blame for the sheer amount that swirled, but as I swam deeper, the blood became darker and more potent the deeper I went.

Then there she was… resting on the bed of the ocean. She looked peaceful, and so young, save for the trail of blood that still seeped from her neck. The water was causing her hair to flair, pulling the curls into the current and stretching them into a black underwater twister. Graceful – a twisted image. Her eyelashes rested on her cheekbones and her plump lips lay central on her square jaw. She looked asleep save for the lack of colour to her lips.

I swallowed a cry and gently cradled her. The movement swirled the blood, creating a circle of red mist around us. I kicked up, pulling us out of the deep; swimming with my legs and using my strength to propel us through the water until it became too shallow to swim.

I broke the surface, standing to my height and ran until I reached the shore, not taking my eyes from my daughter's immobile form. Without the interference of water, I could hear clearly. Her heartbeat was faint, extremely faint… too faint. She wasn't breathing.

Now in the light, she looked ghostly. There was no blood in her cheeks, her skin was cold and her lips held a blue tinge instead of their usual rose coloured hue. And the blood, the water hadn't made it look worse; it was seeping steadily from her neck, her shirt soaking it up into a black puddle at her chest.

"Bella!"

I couldn't think, my chest felt heavy and I was choking on breath. My throat constricted at the sight that lay before me. My hands flew around her not knowing where to rest for the best. My baby girl - she looked dead.

I had to stop the bleeding. Venom pooled in my mouth but it made me feel sick. I swallowed it back, letting it coat my tongue before I lent over her and licked the slit, sealing the blood loss. I licked a second time, allowing the venom to heal the indentation. That time her body convulsed, her shoulders jolting as if she'd been electrocuted.

Completely distracted in trying to save my daughter, I didn't notice my attacker until my body left the ground before being slammed back down into the sand. I growled, bearing my teeth, my initial reaction telling me it was Victoria. I fought back, pushing my body up and throwing their weight off me. From my peripheral, I saw a body kneeling by Renesmee and panicked. I ran forward only to be grabbed by the waist and flipped over a shoulder. I steadied myself and spun, a snarl erupting from the base of my throat. Fury pulsed in the veins behind my eyes, until I saw who it was.

Edward stood in front of me, his body poised for fight and his jaw clenched. The wind frayed his copper hair, sending the smell of him toward me. I growled and went to move past him, but he took hold of my wrists, keeping my stationary.

"Let me go!" I yelled, pulling my arms out of his hold.

"I can't let you, Bella, you'll kill her!" He shouted back, getting in my face and forcing our eyes to meet. His sweet breath overruled my senses, but my anger overrode my desire.

Clenching my teeth, I spat, "How dare you insinuate I can't control myself, you don't know me-"

"Your eyes aren't dilated," he commented, frowning.

I felt my brow furrow to match his expression. My eyes weren't dilated because I wasn't hunting.

"Of course they aren't."

Now my fury had somewhat abated, I recognised Carlisle by Renesmee. He was checking her over, calling her name trying to evoke a response from her.

Pulling away from Edward's grasp, I darted back to them. I landed hard on my knees, putting myself up by her top half as she lay unmoving. A sob escaped me again and my vision clouded - I hadn't experienced a fear as paramount as this.

An uncontrolled growl fell from my lips as he ripped open her shirt abruptly.

"There's too much blood, Bella, and I need to be able to see clearly. Her heartbeat is slowing and she's not breathing. I can't do anything else until her lungs work again. Help me perform CPR?"

I nodded eagerly and skirted into position, waiting for Carlisle's indication. "Are you sure you can handle this? You're still considered young."

I glared at the blonde haired vampire I'd always respected. "She's my daughter. I'd die before I lost control around her."

He started the chest compressions, circling her blood around her body. It was audible. As he completed his thirty, I pinched her nose, wrapped my lips around hers and blew in a deep breath of air, twice. As Carlisle resumed another round of chest compressions, I looked at my angel. She was so innocent in all of this. She was the result of this mess - the mess that was created in my final human year. None of this was her fault. She didn't ask to be part of it, she shouldn't have been, yet right now she'd been the innocent victim of the aftermath. She was suffering thanks to my naivety ten years prior.

All around me I could hear the waves, the birds calling to each other, the howls of the wind… there was a whispering too, and cry that I'd never heard before. That noise was echoing the despair lacing the scene.

I kissed her forehead, brushing the hair away from her face, praying to whatever God or deity that was real that she would survive, that she would be okay because I wouldn't know how I'd survive if she didn't live through this.

I didn't realise I was shaking until I was gently pulled away.

I saw Edward. He was looking into my eyes, his hands on my cheek and his mouth was moving. The whispering, it was him. Then I realised that the crying came from me. I was hyperventilating, but the fact that I didn't need oxygen curdled the noise, scratching it against my dry, unnecessary windpipe.

"She'll be okay, we'll save her… you're okay..."

He manoeuvred me gently and took my place by Renesmee's head, supplying her with the air she needed to breathe independently.

I didn't know how much time had passed: nanoseconds, seconds, minutes, hours. I was conscious of the light dimming slowly, as it did every day. I was also aware that no one else came to find us.

Whilst my instincts noticed this difference, my eyes, mind and heart remained with one person: the small girl who was being resuscitated by the two men I equally detested, but trusted to save her. As Edward supplied her lungs with air, Carlisle relentlessly pumped her chest.

I watched the continuing cycle waiting for that one exhale, that one compression that would revive her.

My turmoil quickly morphed into a burning anger; a fire that burned through my body, igniting the pit of my stomach as if it was hell itself and the devil happily resided there. The flames wrapped my heart like barbed wire, puncturing my long dead organ as if extracting any remaining blood that still lingered in the tissue to fall and feed my body: the monster.

I wanted her dead. She needed to be. Never before had I felt this urge, this unwavering desire to kill someone. If she'd died at the hands of someone else, I wanted to revive her and kill her all over again just so she could feel an ounce of pain that she'd bestowed onto me.

Edward inhaled sharply, snapping me out of my thoughts. I knelt beside them, panic surfacing at the possibility that the next words would be the worst I would ever hear.

But then we heard it. The double beat of a heart, followed by a shaky, wisp of an inhale. The cry I'd been holding back fell from my lips as I took her still cold hand. I listened as the air in her lungs curdled and came to the surface full force, expelling the foreign substances in her body. Her head lurched up with the force as she coughed up blood and sea water. My hand shot to the back of her neck to support her head as her body convulsed with the force of her vomiting. She took a few deep breaths before it regulated into a continuous pattern. Her eyes never opened.

I lifted her hand and kissed it before resting it against my cheek, treasuring the fact that she was still alive.

I felt a hand on my shoulder. "Bella?" Carlisle spoke softly, "Bella, we need to move her to the house. She needs monitoring."

I flicked my eyes up to him. She wasn't going back to the Cullens', she was coming home with me.

Clearly seeing the stubbornness in my eyes, he explained: "Her body temperature is far too low for a human, I need to check her over so she doesn't get sick."

"She isn't just human," I protested.

A small smile of compassion graced his face, his eyes full of worry. "I'm aware of that. But she is clearly still as vulnerable as one, and as of now, I need to treat her like I would any other patient and make sure she is fully recovered before I can let her out of my care."

He was only doing what was best for her welfare and health, and I had to respect that. I nodded and kissed the palm of Renesmee's hand, then placed it across her torso. Carlisle immediately scooped her up, cradled her against his chest and ran in the direction of the house. My breath faltered as he lifted her; her body slumping against him flaccidly as if she were nothing more than a well-worn doll.

I felt Edward take hold of my hand as he came to my side, giving it a gentle squeeze. I looked at him - I really looked at him for the first time. His face was a mirage of emotion, his eyes flicking wildly around my own. He swallowed, and then tugged on my hand, not letting his eyes leave my face. It was all he needed to do. He was comforting me without being overbearing and allowing me to maintain my distance from him - both physically and emotionally. He tugged again and took a step in the direction I so desperately wanted to follow.

I took off, Edward by my side, my hand secure in his, tracing the path that was tainted with Carlisle's scent. We didn't speak. The only thing that we could hear were the light sound of our steps as we ran in unison. The same sounds that I'd heard approaching the house a few hours ago were the same: birds, the stream, the heartbeat. The heartbeat that was no way near as prominent as it was.

Inside the house, murmurs came from the lowest floor, all voices I easily recognised. Carlisle flitted about on the second floor. Running up the porch, I let go of Edward's hand and headed to the stairs.

Our approach was expected, either that or the audience lining the foyer to the staircase had heard the commotion when Carlisle entered the house less than a minute ago. I ignored their burning gazes and ran into the room next to Carlisle's office. The low fuzz of machinery appeared louder than I'd ever heard it, especially with the repetitive beep reverberating through the white room, monitoring her heartbeat. Carlisle had placed Renesmee on a white bed and had already connected her to the monitor. He was currently attaching her to an IV drip.

I walked to her other side and took her hand. Her top was still ripped open revealing her bra and pale skin; blood still stained her skin and the delicate white lace. Looking closer, I noticed hundreds of goose pimples littered her skin; every surface possible. Through the lace, her nipples were prominent in response to the cold. A blue hue could be seen at her hands, nose and lips. And she was shivering, violently.

I cleared my throat. "Carlisle, what's wrong with her?"

Still intent on injecting medicines into her IV, I would have suspected he was ignoring me if it weren't for the quick reply: "It's the height of winter, the water temperature was below 50 - low enough to kill a human." I couldn't contain my gasp of shock. I didn't pay attention to the footsteps that advanced. "She was in the cold too long while we tried to resuscitate her. An estimated guess is that she's developed moderate hypothermia."

"How estimated is that guess?" I asked sharply - far more sharp than I'd intended.

He stopped his movements; his eyes met mine. "I'm fairly certain."

I nodded in understanding and resignation. It was hypothermia; he just couldn't confirm it without written proof. He continued: "It's not life threatening yet because her organs are still functioning-"

"What do you mean 'yet'?" I hissed, not caring about manners or dignity or professionalism. He was implying my worst fear. "She can't die, she's immortal!"

"You don't know that for certain, Bella. You saw what happened a minute ago," his voice was soothing – doctoral. "I told you I was treating her as I would a human patient."

Silence passed between us, neither one of us breaking gaze until the tension subdued. A movement from the doorway caught my eye. I turned and saw the Cullens at the threshold. Not all of them were visible, but I knew they were all witnessing this.

"What did you mean by 'yet'?" I asked in a voice so small that a human wouldn't have heard.

"Our priority now is to warm her up so that her vital organs don't fail. When body temperature drops severely, blood surrounds the vital organs to keep them warm - that's why her hands and lips are coldest. However, she lost a lot of blood, meaning that her organs might not have enough blood to keep them at the required body temperature, and I can't give her a transfusion because her blood is completely different to a human's," he explained. "Her temperature needs to return to normal and the nutrients need to re-enter her body so that she can re-develop the blood she lost. I can't judge which needs to be prioritised, but we're running out of time."

I nodded then turned to the door as someone stepped forward. Esme inched forward, holding some folded blankets and clothing in her arms, a look of compassion - or pity - and worry on her beautiful face.

"I brought some clothes for her to change into, and some blankets. I thought they'd help." She hesitated, not certain of my reaction. "I also brought some spare for you too, Bella, you can't be comfortable."

Her eyes flickered down my body and back up again before a small smile spread across her face in a friendly gesture. I followed her gaze and noticed my own clothes heavy with water, droplets falling and pooling around my feet. I forgot that I too had been in the water.

I nodded in thanks before I asked, "Where's Jacob?"

Her eyebrows furrowed, so I asked again.

"As soon as it happened" - indicating to a comatose Renesmee - "Victoria took off. Jacob led both packs after her-"

"Someone find him, he needs to be here," I ordered. "He can help."

Small footsteps ran out the door at my words, closely followed by another set – Alice, presumably, along with Jasper.

I startled at Edward's low growl. Ready to defend my friend, I looked at him with disdain only to notice his attention wasn't on me but on the door. Rosalie stood in the frame like a portrait, her arms folded across her chest and a glare in her eye. She raised a perfectly sculpted brow at him.

"Shut up, Rose," Edward muttered. She snorted in response.

I huffed impatiently. "Look, whatever silent discussion you're having about Jacob, you aren't going to stop him from coming into this house, not while Renesmee is here."

Rosalie went to bite back but was halted in her attempt by Carlisle.

"Stop it, all of you." He had a way of chastising without needing to raise his voice. "We don't have time for this, this is not helping a dying girl."

I whimpered at his words. He was worried too, you could see it in his blazing, molten gold eyes.

"Please leave. Esme, Rosalie." Esme deposited the load she carried at the foot of the bed then left, pulling a scowling Rosalie with her. "Edward."

"I'm staying." Edward remarked, crossing his arms as he drew into the room and away from the door.

"Edward," Carlisle protested.

Edward walked towards the door but instead of exiting, he closed it then turned back to us. "I'm staying."

Not set to argue, I turned away and set to work, ripping off what was left of Renesmee's tattered shirt. Carlisle disconnected the IV so that I could remove her bra and re-dress her in the baggy white t-shirt Esme had supplied. He reattached the IV as I ripped off her jeans. Edward came forward and draped a folded blanket over the top half of her body, shielding the rest of her from his and Carlisle's view as I tore at her wet underwear and pulled on a pair of thick sweatpants. I pulled the blanket over her completely and tucked her in as if she were two-years old again. I pulled her wet hair from underneath her and began to pat it dry with a towel.

"Bella, do you know her normal body temperature? I suspect it isn't the same as a regular human," Carlisle asked as he took her axillary temperature.

I answered without hesitation: "Ninety-four."

We heard a commotion downstairs. Edward moved toward the door and wretched it open before Jake appeared in the doorway. As usual, he was just wearing a pair of cut-off jeans, his torso and bare feet on display. His eyes were wild and full of pain, his hair stood in disarray, and the aftermath of his phase still lingered in his body: his palms shaking, his chest muscles flexing and his jaw tense.

His eyes darted around the room before they landed on Renesmee and his entire body deflated. His pained expression matched mine as he found my gaze. I could see myself clearly in his shining, black eyes: wet, haggard, utterly broken.

"She's too cold, Jake, she needs to be warmed," I whispered; the agony evident in my voice.

Understanding filled his features before he strode forward and came to my side of the bed. I took a step back, allowing him enough room to pull back the blankets and climb onto the bed with her. He wrapped his body around Renesmee's; his arms pulled her against his torso until they were flush from head to toe. He gently tilted her head with his hand, letting her face rest in the crook of his warm neck. He hissed as his bare skin touched her frozen body, completely dwarfing her.

I looked up at Carlisle, a smile playing on his face. The look in his eyes conveyed everything: he understood what Jake was doing and wasn't protesting. He'd done what he could for now; he had faith. Edward, still by the open door, was scowling as he fixed his gaze on the two forms on the bed. In the doorway next to him stood Alice. Her arms were folded over her chest and a frown sat somewhat elegantly on her petite face.

"Bella, why don't you get changed and meet us downstairs?" She suggested. "I think we all need some answers."

I hesitated. Briefly looking at everyone in the room, my eyes settled on Ness before I looked back at Alice.

"She'll be fine," Alice stated with conviction. Carlisle nodded in agreement before he walked to the door.

I whispered to Jake that I would be downstairs if he needed me, but he didn't appear to be listening; his focus remained with his priority.

I nodded my consent to Alice and she flitted down the stairs, closely followed by Carlisle. Edward hesitated, unsure of what to do or if he should approach me.

"You can use my room to get changed if you'd like," he offered, pointing his thumb over his shoulder to where his bedroom was situated across the hall from Carlisle's office. I knew where it was.

"Thank you," I replied then moved past him, taking a final glance over my shoulder before stepping through the door to his bedroom.

Everything was the same - a shock to the system actually - the floor to ceiling windows, the music collection, the black couch, the white rug on the floor. Shaking my head out of memory lane, I changed out of my wet clothes and into the dry ones, preparing to face the music.

I stepped out of the room and descended the stairs at human pace. Stepping into the living room, the members of the Cullen coven stood solitary, much like they had earlier, except this time it was only me that stood as an offence.

I hung my head and sighed. "You said you had questions, so..."

Edward was the first to speak: a deep, sorrow filled sigh giving him away. "Is what she said true?" One arm was tense across his chest, the other rubbed at his jaw. "What Victoria said… I need to hear it from you."

My eyes met his and of all the emotions on his face, I couldn't extract one that was identifiable.

He spoke slower, the control of his voice a direct contrast to his indirect hand movements. "Please, I need to hear it from you… is she...?"

I nodded, straightening my shoulders before looking directly at him, "Yes, she's..." How do I put this? "Biologically..." Is that right? "Renesmee is our daughter."

That was it. Simple and honest. It was the first time I'd spoken it out loud.

"She's our daughter."

A huge THANK YOU for all the love and support I received from my last update. Unfortunately, nothing can be done to recover the lost files - I've tried everywhere - it seems my hard drive was that broken that not even a specialist can recover any data. It is thanks to some of my wonderful readers who saved the original story that these updates can now continue. I cannot promise when updates will happen as the editing and re-writing is taking it's time, as it did the first time round, but they are coming and will keep coming until the end.

Thank you all for your continued support and I hope this rewards your patience.

Lots of love xx