𝐀𝐒𝐇𝐄𝐒 ⸻ 𝖻𝗅𝖺𝖼𝗄𝗐𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗋

→ chapter seventeen.

Carlisle's "friends" continued to flock to the Cullen house. As such, due to proximity, more and more boys were Phasing, the youngest a twelve-year-old Brady Fuller. Leah prayed to whatever God heard her that this was over soon. If she had to watch one more child's life get turned inside out because of these fucking jackasses, she'd truly go feral. 

Every time they came across the red-eyed vampires, she was reminded of how unwilling the Cullens, who claimed human life was sacred, were to set boundaries with their fellow leeches. How they hadn't truly cared about the Forks or La Push residents.

Leah had just finished Phasing and was pulling on her T-shirt over her chest when Rosalie, the frigid blonde, appeared.

Noticing the usually crowded lawn was now acutely barren, Leah asked, "Where's everyone?"

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "Ren's playing," was all she said, and Leah knew that either Edward or Bella had insisted all come listen to their prodigal daughter. She'd seen it once and had no desire to see it again; it had taken everything within her not to Phase and rip every single head off all those who crowded Renesmee. It was clear Bella only encouraged Renesmee—Christ, what a mouthful—to boost her own ego. Both her and Edward. Of course their child would love music! And be a natural because her daddy was just so talented. That was how talent worked, after all.

"Is that the nickname she goes by?" Leah was curious.

Rosalie smoothed a hand down her tunic blouse and puckered her full, cherry-red mouth in concentration for a moment. "Or Nes. Sometimes Nessie if Jacob is here. She seems to like him the most. Maybe it's because he doesn't treat her like some miracle." A pause and then, "She really likes you both. You guys make her feel like just a regular kid." A smile plumped her cheeks.

"She's a good kid," Leah admitted and glanced over at the monstrous white mansion. "It just sucks they treat her like some sort of...experiment. Like she's the second coming of Christ." She hesitated before she asked a question that had been burning her from the inside out. "Why don't they call the Volturi? Wasn't Carlisle a part of them at one point, right?"

"I've tried telling them but no one wants to hear what I have to say. What Alice and Edward say goes." She paused. "But my calls never go through and neither do my emails." Rosalie swiftly looked away, her voice growing thinner, a tremble in her chin. "I don't want my family to fight. I don't want more kids to Phase because of us—because of all of us here. To help poor little Bella, a victim of circumstance. But each of them owe Carlisle in some way or another, so he's cashing in on that now."

In front of her was both a vampire with all the strength, tenacity, intelligence in the world and a worried young woman who wanted no harm to come to her family.

Leah blinked hard and, had she been human, would've squeezed Rosalie's shoulder. Who knew she'd ever sympathize with a bloodsucker.

"Leah! Rose!" Alice called. "Come see Renesmee play!"

With a groan, both Rosalie and Leah reluctantly entered the house.

As soon as Leah walked in, she was overwhelmed with the bleach scent of vampire. She wrestled to keep her form human as scanned the multitude of vampires crowding around the baby piano.

With her delicate feet barely pressing the pedals and her fingers striking each ivory key with the precision of pianist concerto, Renesmee Cullen didn't look like she was only a few months old. She looked like at least an older child, perhaps close to twelve years of age, her brown-red hair braided in a simple fishtail that draped her shoulder.

At her side was Bella, wearing expensive heels and cream cashmere sweater. Her smile and expression was expectant as though she were waiting to receive praise.