AN- Here's the first chapter of The Secret of Truth. It starts in Carlisle's point of view, but it will mostly be in Edward's. When I started writing this story, I didn't post because it makes me really uncomfortable to have part of it out there when I haven't finished the rest….but now I see that its way more fun like this. And hopefully I'll be more motivated this way. So I have about 30,000 words so far and I'll post as I edit and keep writing.

Also, this story has very little to do with Bella. Sorry if you're into her and Edward, that's not what this is about. Edward's more interested in somebody else ;)

Enjoy, let me know what you think.

Disclaimer- Stephanie Meyer owns all things Twilight.

CPOV

Sunday, November 14th

"Thank you for making the drive on such short notice, Dr. Cullen," the man said as he shook my hand. He turned to my wife, addressing her as well before leading us further down the hall. "I understand you don't know much, I'd like to get you caught up privately. The staff has secured a conference room for us to use."

Esme and I had received a call last night, the unexpected number that showed up on my phone had confused me. It had been several years since we had been in contact with the foster care system in Seattle, as both of our children were now officially adopted. I answered with some trepidation, and the person on the line did in fact shock me.

Now we were being ushered down a Seattle hospital hall, the man in front of me, Mr. Johnson, has told us essentially nothing, except that he wanted to see about an emergency foster care placement. He had refused further explanation over the phone, only said that it was a time sensitive matter and he simply wanted us to hear him out. After all he had done for my family, we had no choice but to make the trip up to Seattle.

Once seated at the end of the large table, I got a good look at the man. He seemed stressed, which wasn't unusual given his profession, however I hadn't remembered him letting the job take such a toll on him personally before.

"We've been dealing with a bit of a shock here since yesterday morning. Before I start I want to assure you that we understand if you feel unable to help in this situation. This is an unusual case and it does nobody any good to force a placement like this. However, as you can see, we're in a hospital, not a group home. I'm afraid that's not an option in this case and your success and….home situation, caused me to think of your family. I believe this would be the best fit for all right now, even if just in the short term." The suspense was taking its toll on Esme, I could see her shift and fidget. She was agitated, and I was getting frustrated. This man was rambling.

"I'm sorry, what could be such an emergency? Is the child injured? Do they need medical assistance?" I asked, not understanding what our home situation had to do with anything. Maybe he wanted a doctor to watch after the child.

"No, no, it's not like that. To be honest, right now we're fighting a battle with the press. Getting the boy out of the city is important, and your property would help in keeping unwanted eyes away…" I was lost now. I started to shake my head. Mr. Johnson held up a hand. "I'm sorry. I'll start over." He took a glance at my wife, gulped in some air, and started his real story.

"Early yesterday morning, the police recovered a missing child. Well, he's not so much a child anymore. He's 16. He was previously believed to be dead. His parents were killed in 2002. The killer was never caught, and the boy, then 8 years old, was never seen again. Until yesterday." I'm sure the shock on my face explained my feelings adequately, but Esme's gasp probably did too. "His name is Edward Masen. It appears he has been held captive by the man that killed his parents, in a house east of the city. He turned up at a neighbor's house, injured and yelling for her to call 911. He told her his name, before collapsing. His captor was found in his home, knocked out on the floor. He's in custody, but as you can imagine, it has caused quite the stir in the community.

"Edward hasn't said much, he didn't want any treatment at first, but we've convinced him to at least cooperate for observation purposes. He didn't want to stay put, but he's calmed down quite a bit. It's apparent to his doctor and the psychiatrist who have seen him that he has suffered from physical and emotional abuse, and although he wouldn't let anyone examine him, they suspect sexual abuse as well. As you can image, I can't exactly just put him in the system like any other kid. He has been isolated from the world for half of his life and will need extensive therapy to get him reintroduced to society. There are plenty of people who would want to take advantage of him, and I wanted to place him with people he could become comfortable with, in order to have even a chance at healing. If we are not able to place him with a family, he will end up in a hospital for the foreseeable future. If the boy's parents were still with us it would be a different story, a hospital would be the right place for a while, however our team has come to the conclusion that essentially isolating him from a family experience will only cause more harm.

"I understand that this is a lot to take in, and I will give you some time to think it through. Do you have questions for me at this moment?"

Esme, who had grabbed my hand about half-way through his speech, slowly turned to look at me. Her eyes held shock, fear, and sadness. I didn't know what she would want to do about this, but we would discuss it. I did have a few questions first though.

"He doesn't have any family? Surely he would feel more comfortable with someone he knows…"

"There is nobody. His only family, other than his parents, was a grandmother in Illinois, unfortunately, she has passed since the kidnapping. His parents were only children, and there are no other relations we can find."

"How is he physically? You said he was abused, and that he collapsed," I prompted. His physical state would have no effect on our decision, but I found myself caring for this boy already. I didn't want him to be in pain after everything else.

"He seems to be doing better. He's thin for his height and age, we'll watch out for signs of vitamin deficiencies and malnourishment but unfortunately the only test he would allow us to do was a CAT scan. He has plenty of visible healed scars, he was obviously hurt in the past, but nothing too recent. Signs of past head trauma are present, but the only things we're really worried about currently are a concussion and dehydration. Both are being treated, he's expected to be just fine in a few days." I nodded, understanding. I would have expected nothing better from such a situation, although still heartbreaking that this young boy had gone through such long term abuses.

This time Esme had a question. "And what about mentally? How is he coping with all of this? The poor boy must be terrified…"

"His mental state is obviously our biggest concern right now, yes. Like I said, he's not talking much. He has told the doctor a bit about what he remembers from before, he remembers what happened to his parents, and although he hasn't talked about what happened in that house, he says he remembers everything. He doesn't seem to be developmentally behind, although it's clear he hasn't been around people in years. He was 8 when he was taken, so depending on the interaction he had with his captor, and the progress he makes now, it is completely possible that he recovers from this. Right now what he needs most is a place he can feel safe and process what has happened, while being introduced to a world that isn't out to get him," he said, a bit quieter and sadder than before. "Only time will tell how well he can cope with all of this." I nodded, agreeing. I looked at Esme, wondering if she was done with her questions. She seemed satisfied, so I asked my last one.

"Does he know that we are here? What does he think will happen to him?"

"He hasn't asked, and I did not want to get his hopes up. I have assured him he will be safe and well taken care of from now on, but didn't want to give him many details about the process. I'm sure you can understand, I didn't want to scare him or worry him. I will only tell him about you if you agree to take him home with you."

"Okay. I'm glad you called us, and thank you for taking the time to speak with us. I think my wife and I need to talk this over and talk to our other children before making a decision. This was a bit of a surprise, we weren't really prepared for it," I explained to the man. I had all but made up my mind on this matter, but I would not make a decision without knowing what Esme thought about it or discussing the matter with Alice and Emmett.

Mr. Johnson nodded, gave us a smile, and said he would be waiting outside when we had a decision.

We were silent for a moment, both thinking through the situation. For me, this matter came down two possibilities. We could turn and walk away, never tell our children what could have happened today, and our lives could not be changed at all, whether it be for better or worse. Or we could take a gamble. We could take in a third child, one who would no doubt struggle and be much needier than our first two. One who would likely be lost and broken and need months and years of help just to feel safe. One who could either cause wreckage in our family, or could inspire more love and happiness. If Esme and I were the only ones in the picture, that would be the choice we had, to take the gamble or play it safe.

But, although we hadn't even seen the boy, I knew he was close by, and he needed somebody to take care of him. He had nobody, and no realistic way of helping himself. If somebody didn't come through for him now, who knew if he would ever make it anywhere.

"This is crazy….yesterday I was worried about Emmett's speeding ticket and Alice was upset about that boy, and now look! We could have another child. Just like that…." Esme said. She sounded a bit dazed, and I worried that she and I weren't on the same page with this.

"We don't have to do this you know, we could walk away. He would never know anything about us." I tried to keep the disappointment out of my voice, but it was hard.

"You don't want to?"

"I didn't say that. I think we could do this. But it's hard to imagine what would happen to him…"

"Carlisle? I want him. I don't know why, it's crazy. But I don't think I can leave knowing he is alone." The smile on my face was hard to stop. But we had to think about this. We couldn't just leap.

"I am inclined to agree, but this won't be like Emmett. He will probably test us a lot more than we know. Just because our other children worked out so well doesn't mean Edward will be the same way…"

"I know that, but if we don't help him, who will? And besides, I don't think I want anyone else helping him. I don't…trust anybody else with him."

"So we're going to do this?" I asked, hesitantly.

"Should we call the kids?"

"You don't think they would be set against this do you?" I asked.

"No, of course not. I know Alice will be thrilled, and Emmett will want to help. I know neither of them will object. But we had better ask them just so they aren't upset we made the decision without them."

As we expected, neither of our children had problems with our plan. Alice was very excited and completely open to the idea of a new brother. She wanted to know all about him already and was disappointed to know that we hadn't even met him yet. Emmett was a little bit more reserved, but still accepting. We promised to call and tell them more when we knew more ourselves.

Over the next few hours, we talked to the police chief from the town he was found in, our lawyer, and Mr. Johnson and surprisingly quickly, we got all the paperwork ready to go for us to take temporary guardianship over Edward Masen. Once the papers were faxed over, we got the go ahead from Mr. Johnson to be able to speak with his doctors and meet Edward.

We met the doctor that had been treating him in a family room on Edward's floor. He filled us in on the state of Edward's physical condition, which wasn't much of anything to worry about, compared to his mental state.

"He does have a concussion, and there are signs of other previous head wounds. With the CAT scan we did yesterday, we're not worried as it's not that severe of an injury this time, just some bruising and I'm sure he'll have some headaches. He's dehydrated, but we're giving him fluids so again, he should be fine. As for the healed injuries, he has quite a few cuts on his arms that I could see, all healed, and also I suspect his collar bone has been broken and not healed correctly. He wouldn't let me do a thorough exam, however he doesn't seem to be in much physical pain. The only think he would let me treat was his concussion, and I think that was because it was giving him a good deal of discomfort. We didn't want to force any exam on him, but as his guardians, if you would insist, we can sedate him."

"No, I don't think that's a good idea either. I want him examined obviously, but if he says no, we need to respect that at this point. Unless he is in serious danger or in pain, I think it's more important that he trust us now. Perhaps we can convince him. Can we see him now?" I asked, eager to meet our new family member.

"I believe his other doctor wants to speak with you first, but I can check if they're ready. Just wait here and I'll see what the situation is." He got up and left, leaving me somewhat reassured with his physical condition, but concerned that he refused treatment.

Soon a woman entered whom we had not met yet. I stood to greet her and she introduced herself as a physiatrist for the hospital. She had been the one speaking with Edward.

"Edward isn't saying much right now, which is somewhat expected. He's got a lot to take in, he probably doesn't know what to do with all the excitement. I'm fairly confident that even though he isn't responding, he is listening to me and that's a good sign. This case, although unusual for sure, is not unique. The difference between Edward's situation and other children recovered after long periods is that they usually have a family or other support base when they get back. It's vital that because he doesn't have that automatically, he understands that he is safe and has a home with you. It's expected that he's anxious about where he goes from here, but hopefully we can put some of his fears to rest today.

"I've got to ask, are you aware of the press situation?"

"Well, not really. His case worker mentioned it being a problem, but we haven't seen anybody," Esme answered her. I too, was wondering where the press situation was. Understandably, the public was bound to be interested in such a case, but to be frank, it wasn't any of their business right now.

"Yes, the hospital is trying to keep them at bay while Edward is here, however there is a lot of interest in him and I'm afraid it will need to be dealt with. It might be better to take matters into your own hands before it's too late." I nodded, understanding.

"I don't want Edward to have to deal with them, surely you don't mean having him-"

"No, Mrs. Cullen, of course not. He should not feel pressured to speak to anybody about his situation until he is ready. I merely mean that the two of you may want to release what you want on you own terms, in a controlled way, before you are bombarded with reporters. There is a PR person for the hospital who I'm sure could help you if you choose," she reassured us. I thought this was a good plan. I didn't want Edward to be questioned, and if I could prevent it from coming to that, I would.

"In the meantime, I think it's time that he meets the people he's going to live with, don't you?" I smiled at Esme and took her hand, standing up and preparing myself for this. "I'm going to go in with you, just so he sees a familiar face. As soon as I think he's okay with you, I'll leave you to it. Just remember, right now it's important that he knows this wasn't his fault and he is safe now. He needs to be comfortable. Talk about what he wants to, don't force anything. Ready?"

The suspense was killing me, and I was ready for this. It was amazing how much life had changed in just the few hours since we had stepped foot in this building. We could have never guessed that this would be happening even yesterday. I hoped we were doing the right thing, for us and for him.

As we approached the door, I braced myself for any direction this first encounter could go. We would remember this moment for the rest of our lives. I remembered the first minutes with both Alice and Emmett so clearly, hopefully this would go just as well. With a final deep breath, we entered his room. I had put a small smile on my face, trying to look welcoming and reassuring. I had no idea if it was working or not.

The boy lying in the bed was thin and pale. He did not look healthy, no matter what his doctor had told me. He had on a hospital gown, which all but fell off his shoulders. A thin paper mask covered his nose and mouth. His hair was short, and a red-brown color. His eyes were not looking at us, but at the far wall. I could see green, but that's not what got my attention. She dark bruise peeking out of his mask on one side of his face, including his left eye, looked pretty bad. He should have some ice for it. I couldn't see any other obvious signs of injury, but his arms were twisted in his blankets. He seemed cold. He was sitting up, but seemed far from relaxed. He was stiff and unmoving.

"Hi, Edward. I have some people here to meet you." Edward blinked and looked up at her, not saying anything but clearly paying attention. He looked over at us too, watching us. We walked in closer to him, but the doctor stopped a few feet from him, I assumed not to intimidate him. "This is Carlisle and Esme Cullen. They're going to take you home, when you're ready. They're your foster parents. They live in a small town a few hours from here, you'll be very safe there. Carlisle's a doctor, but Esme will be able to work from home so she can be close by."

I put an arm around Esme and pulled her to my side. She spoke first. "Hello, Edward, it's nice to meet you," she told him with a little smile. I looked at Edward, who had directed his gaze towards us again. He didn't talk, but it was clear that he was looking us over. We waited for him to say something, and when it was clear that he was not going to, his doctor spoke instead.

"Alright, Edward, I'm going to leave you to talk. If you need anything, you know how to find me. I'll talk to you tomorrow. Have a good night, Dr. and Mrs. Cullen," she said with a smile, leaving us alone.

"It's good to meet you, Edward. Your doctor said you're doing fine, but are you feeling okay? Your head doesn't hurt too bad?" I asked him.

Edward only shrugged, looking away from us again and scrunching up his eyebrows. I looked around, before spotting a rolling stool and a chair. I grabbed the chair for Esme, before sitting on the stool myself. I thought we would appear less intimidating from the same level as Edward.

After a somewhat awkward silence, Esme spoke up again. "So, the doctor says that you'll be discharged in a few days, probably Tuesday, and then we can take you home. We live outside a town called Forks. We have two other kids, Emmett and Alice. They'll be thrilled to have you there too. Emmett's about a year older than you, but Alice is your age…." She continued to tell him about our lives for a few minutes. I hoped that the more she talked, maybe it would open him up a little, but when she had run out of general things to say, Edward didn't respond. She looked at me and gave me a weak little smile, but I didn't know what to say either.

"It's getting late, have you eaten dinner yet, Edward?" she asked. He looked up at her, a little warily, and then shook his head twice. "Carlisle, why don't you go out and find us some food, I'm sure nobody wants to eat hospital food. Would you mind?"

"Of course not, anything in particular you want, Edward?" He gave a faint, humorless scoff, but said nothing. With a good portion of his face blocked from view, it was hard to get a good hold on what that meant. I looked at my wife, wondering what to do.

"That's ok, why don't you just grab the first thing that looks good. I'm sure everything will be fine."