Kayla’s POV

I sat, my legs pulled up in front of my chest with my arms wrapped around them, next to Edward waiting for him to wake up. I still had the bloody dagger in my hand, a sign of my deed. I felt numb inside. I still couldn’t come to terms with what I had done. Mitchell was still lying on the floor next to Jacob. Not too close to him, Jacob wasn’t covered in Mitchell’s blood like I was. I felt a nudge from my baby. I killed Mitchell so the baby would live. Was that bad of me? I just wanted to protect my baby. I would be committing murder anyway if I let Mitchell kill me.
I heard footsteps upstairs. Fast, light footsteps accompanied with voices.
“Are you okay?” I heard Esme cry out to someone.
“Alice, where are you?!” Jasper shouted.
“Rose?” Emmett called out worriedly.
“Wait, I smell blood,” Carlisle said.
I stayed where I was. I didn’t want to move. I was waiting here until Edward woke up.
“It isn’t hers, is it?” Esme seemed on the verge of crying if that were possible for her. I heard the Cullens’ fast feet flying down the stairs and heard their gasps of surprise when they took in the scene before them.
“Carlisle look!” I heard Alice. Jasper must have found her. “Isn’t that Mitchell!”
They must see Mitchell now. See what I’ve done to him.
“Who did this?” Emmett asked. “Edward?”
“No,” Alice said sadly. “Jasper is she here?”
I heard footsteps again. No one could see me, I was hidden by the TV and the table. I waited, knowing Jasper would find me. It didn’t take him along. All he had to do was scope me out by feeling my emotions. If I had any.
“Hey,” he said, crouching down next to me. I saw his nostrils flare as he took in Mitchell’s blood but he forced himself to concentrate.
I didn’t reply to him. I couldn’t. I knew that if I spoke I would break down in tears.
“It’s okay,” he said. He touched my shoulder with his hand.
I shook my head. It wasn’t. I had just killed someone. That was not okay. I felt another nudge.
“Edward will be okay,” he said. “He’ll wake up soon.”
I nodded. I knew that.
“Jasper,” I said, taking in a deep breath. “Could you do something with his body? Mitchell’s? I can’t….I mean he’s there….I just….”
I felt a sudden rush of calm and smiled up at Jasper.
“For you and the baby,” he said, smiling back at me. I watched him, stunned, as he stood up and motioned to the others. How did he know? Had Edward told him?
“Alice?” he called and Alice whizzed to his side. “Sit with her.”
She nodded, sitting beside me and wrapping her small arms around me. I leaned into her, grateful for some support.
“Carlisle, Emmett, help me move the body.” Jasper stood up. “Esme, Rosalie, find her some clothes and something to eat and drink.”
Jasper walked away and I closed my eyes as Carlisle and Emmett came into view. I didn’t want to see it.
“I’m sorry,” Alice whispered. “I had the vision too late. He was here less than a minute after I had it. There wasn’t enough time to do anything.”
“It’s okay,” I whispered back.
“No it’s not. You shouldn’t have done that. Look at you.”
“I’m fine,” I told her, even though I wasn’t.
“Kayla, honestly, Jasper is almost as upset as you are. Look at him.”
I opened my eyes to see Jasper staring at Mitchell’s body with horror. Mirroring mine. He backed away slightly but after sending some more calmness my way he was able to help Carlisle and Emmett.
“I didn’t think it would be this way,” I said to Alice. “I was sort of fine when I killed Loren. I didn’t react like that.”
“He wasn’t your friend.”
He wasn’t. He was some nut job who wanted to kill me. I hadn’t put my trust in Loren, I hadn’t been worried for Loren or scared for him. He wasn’t my friend but Mitchell had been.
“Edward will wake up soon,” Alice said, cheerfully.
I nodded.
“He wasn’t here when we were attacked,” she continued. “Mitchell had these little bottles of some red liquid. He threw them at our feet and this red smoke came up and we all fell asleep. That must have happened to Edward.”
I nodded again.
Esme and Rosalie appeared then. Rosalie had clothes in her hands and Esme had a hot drink. Rosalie held the clothes out but I didn’t take them. Getting dressed meant moving and I didn’t want to move until Edward had woken up. She glanced at Esme who held out the drink for me. I took it but I didn’t drink. I placed it in front of me.
“Kayla, you have to get changed,” Rosalie crouched down in front of me. “You’re covered in blood.”
I shook my head. I wasn’t moving.
“Rose, maybe we should wait,” Alice suggested. “She just wants Edward’s comfort.”
“She can’t sit there covered in blood,” Rosalie sounded outraged. “What if Edward attacked her? And in her condition.”
“What condition?” I asked Rosalie.
“Your pregnant,” Rosalie said and a huge smile lit her face. She wanted children. Obviously this would be a way for her to fulfil her wish. Through me.
“How do you know?”
“Jasper told us Edward thought you were pregnant,” Esme said, smiling apologetically. “It must be true as you wouldn’t kill someone for no reason, Kayla.”
“You would only kill to protect,” Alice said, squeezing my shoulders gently.
I looked at all their beautiful faces, seeing the hidden joy there. They were all ecstatic I was pregnant. Well good for them, I didn’t feel so happy. Didn’t they understand I had just killed someone? Of course, they had probably killed people, bad people, because I don’t think Esme is capable of killing any other kind of person. But was it right for me to kill Mitchell? Did I have any right to kill anyone? Did he have the right to kill me? To kill anyone?
“Was I right to kill him?” I asked them.
“Of course you were,” Rosalie answered first. “He wanted to kill you. You were protecting yourself and your unborn baby.”
I looked at Esme.
“It wasn’t the right thing to do,” Esme said, slowly. “But you did what you thought was best. He was going to kill you and your unborn baby and I know how mothers can be. I would do anything to protect my children. I believe you acted in your baby’s best interests by eliminating a threat.”
I turned to Alice.
“It’s what any of us would have done,” she said, hugging me. “You only beat us to it.”
I nodded and she froze in my arms. She was having a vision. I gently pushed her away and held her straight until she came back to us.
“Edward’s waking up soon,” she said, smiling. “I think we should leave you guys alone. You need to talk.”
She stood up quickly and grabbed Rosalie’s hand.
“Come on,” she said to Rosalie and Esme. “Let’s give them some space.”
“Should we leave her?” Esme looked worried so I smiled for her. I knew the smile did not reach my eyes.
“Edward is waking up in less than two minutes, she’ll be fine.”
Alice grabbed onto Esme’s hand and pulled both Esme and Rosalie out of the house. I shuffled closer to Edward and waited the less than two minutes for him to wake up.


Edward‘s POV.

I could hear someone breathing. I hadn’t opened my eyes yet for I didn’t know what dangers would still surround me. I could hear someone’s slow deep breathing, as if they were trying to calm themselves. My eyes flew open as I heard someone’s thoughts. I sat up fast and saw Kayla sitting next to me, covered in blood.
Panicking I pulled her onto my lap and began to check her over for any injuries. I knew she could self heal but that was besides the point. She might still be hurt.
“Where are you hurt?” I asked her as my hands skimmed over her body. The blood was damp, not completely wet so the injury had been recent but not in the last five minutes.
“I’m not,” she answered. I didn’t like her voice. She sounded defeated and depressed. I looked into her eyes and saw nothing. Her eyes weren’t shining bright like usual. The light was gone.
“So who’s blood is it?” I watched her carefully, listening to her thoughts which seemed to have died since she registered my consciousness.
“Mitchell’s.”
“And how is Mitchell’s blood on you?” An image flashed in her mind of a dying Mitchell, a dagger in his chest. It was her vision, I remember her telling me that one. Then she showed me her collapsing over his body in tears, sobbing hard.
She looked at me questioningly.
“Don’t you know the scent of my blood?” she asked me. I could hear the annoyance in her voice when she thought I didn’t know the scent of her tantalising blood. Of course I did. What kind of a husband did she think I was?
“I’m not breathing,” I told her. “Mitchell attacked me. He had this sleeping potion. He threw it at my feet and the smoke appeared. I shut off my breathing but it still affected me.”
She nodded, her annoyance gone. She wasn’t thinking much.
“Kayla, I’m sorry,” I said, not understanding why she was like this. “I know I should have been here to protect you but I couldn’t stop him. Well, I could have, but he had that damn sleeping potion.”
“Did you dream?” she asked. She tilted her head to the side and watched me.
“Did I dream?” I repeated. I thought for a few minutes. I think I did dream but I couldn’t remember it.
She nodded and leaned into me. She rested her head on my shoulder and I felt a wetness on my shirt. She was crying.
“Love, what’s wrong?” I asked her. What was making her cry? Did she still think I was going to abort our baby? I wouldn’t do that. I couldn’t do that. It would be like killing a part of myself.
I wrapped my arms around her, holding her safe in my arms.
“I’m not going to hurt our baby,” I said. “I wouldn’t do that.”
“Changed your mind?” she sniffed.
“I had time to think,” I replied. “And I realised what an utter idiot I was being. I was acting like a monster. I apologise.”
“You know you’re already forgiven,” she said. “By one person at least.”
“Who?”
“The baby,” she said, taking my hand she held it to her stomach. I felt several excited nudges. Did the baby know me? Know who I was? Did the baby hate me because of what I was going to do?
“Edward, calm down,” Kayla said and I saw her roll her eyes. “The baby adores you. Why else would it save your worthless ass from me?”
“Is that what you think of me?” I asked her. “Are you still angry at me?”
She sighed.
“Of course I am but you know I won’t be angry for long. I can’t hold a grudge against you.”
She sighed again and buried her face in my shoulder. She wasn’t herself. This wasn’t her. She would be screaming at me not sitting in my lap. This wasn’t her.
“Kayla, you killed Mitchell, didn’t you?”
She nodded and I felt her tears wet my shirt. I knew what was wrong with her. Rosalie was right. Killing Mitchell would scar her. But what do I do? I can’t rewind time and kill him for her. I can’t resurrect Mitchell so her deed is undone. All I could do was hold her and hope time would heal her.
“You didn’t do anything wrong,” I told her gently. “You were protecting your baby. Any mother would do the same. I know Esme would kill a thousand people to protect us.”
“He was my friend!” she cried. “And I killed him!”
“Mitchell was not your friend!” I held her face in my hands so she would look into my eyes. “He was your enemy. He set out to kill you. Do you understand?”
“I understand but it doesn’t change anything.” Her tears rolled down her cheeks and onto my hands.
“It changes everything. If he was your friend he wouldn’t have wanted you dead, wouldn’t have still tried to kill you even when he knew you were pregnant and would have realised what his father was and what he had done and understood why Charlie killed him. He isn’t your friend.”
More tears fell from her eyes and I wiped them away.
“Why do you always make complete sense when I’m trying so hard to be depressed?” she half laughed.
“I don’t want to see you hurting over him. He isn’t worth it.”
I pulled her close to me again and she sank tiredly into my arms. It would take some time but she would realise she shouldn’t feel guilty. It was absurd that she should feel guilty for protecting our baby.
“Our baby,” she murmured, placing my hand on her bump again. I felt more nudges and chuckled. Kayla was right. That baby did adore me but I loved it more.
“Don’t be too sure about that,” she said. “I think I love our baby more.”
“Are you going to argue with me?” I said, playfully.
She laughed and I saw something sparkle in her eyes. Was she feeling better?
I heard the thoughts of my family. Carlisle, Emmett and Jasper returning from somewhere. Kayla’s eyes went dark again, light gone. Where had they been?
“I asked Jasper to take Mitchell’s body away,” she whispered, and looked around when my father and brothers walked into the house.
“It’s been taken care of,” Jasper said to Kayla, smiling gently. Kayla sighed with relief as a wave of caring emotion washed over her, courtesy of Jasper.
I guess she wasn’t feeling better.