Forever Dawn

14.Bandaged and Bruised and Not All That Okay (Bella's POV)

14.Bandaged and Bruised and Not All That Okay (Bella’s POV)

The person was standing in the middle of the river, teeth barred and dripping venom. I was almost sure it was a vampire, but I couldn’t see its eyes. The current swirled around his waist, dragging downstream a trail of blood.

He was holding something, and promptly dropped it as he heard us approaching. Then he fled.

Jake stood, teeth bared too. He started running towards the vampire. He was a fast russet streak. I wanted to rip it limb from limb, but I couldn’t right now. My attention was focused solely on the form bobbing down the river. The form with a bright pink cast.

“Jake, no! I need help!” I pointed at the person bobbing down river. “Renesmee!”

He turned around, running towards me. I dove into the water as fast as I could. In mere seconds I was turning my daughter face-up, and dragging her to shore.

I hadn’t ever bothered learning CPR, but now I was cursing myself for not. My daughter was dying before my very eyes, and I was absolutely helpless to stop it.

I pressed down on her chest and started breathing into her, trying to revive the life that had fled from her body.

“Jake! Do you know CPR?” I shouted. He phased, then ran over, pushing me out of the way. I scrambled up and started running. I had to tell someone. Carlisle wasn’t home, and Alice couldn’t really see Renesmee, and I was far out of the range of Edward and Jasper’s powers.

Then I remembered the cell phone in my pocket. I pulled it out, and hit Carlisle’s speedial.

“Hello?” he answered.

“It’s Bella. Please come, I’m by the river, Ness isn’t breathing!”

“I’ll be right there.”

The dial tone buzzed in my ear. I was almost too numb to put the phone away. It was as though I had become the true being of rock I was. But my daughter needed me.

I felt sick.

I was moving through syrup. It was sucking at me, slowing me down, stealing away my breath. A horrible, jagged pain was opening up in my chest.

I had to get to Ness.

She had to be breathing. She had to be alive. She had to. I had to stay together for her. For Edward.

I felt empty. I wanted to sink down onto the grass and start heaving dry sobs. I wanted to be anywhere but here. I wanted this to be some terrible dream.

I stopped and pulled out my cell phone again. “Edward?”

“Yes?” he asked.

“By the river. It’s Renesmee.” I told him in a shaky voice.