分节阅读_143

  all wooden stand,
  were ihwest er of the room. aional sofa curved
  around in frov, a rouable in front of it.
  ”the phohere,” i whispered, pointing.
  two pairs of eterared at me.
  ”that's my mother's house.”
  alice was already off the coue in hand, dialing. i stared at the
  predering of my mother's family room. uically,
  jasper slid e. he lightly touched his hand to my shoulder, and
  the physitact seemed to make his fluerohe
  panic stayed dull, unfocused.
  alice's lips were trembling with the speed of her words, the low buzzing
  impossible to decipher. i 't trate.
  ”bella,” alice said. i looked at her numbly.
  ”bella, edward is i you. he a and carlisle are going
  to take you somewhere, to hide you for a while.”
  ”edward is ing?” the words were like a life vest, holding my head
  above the flood.
  ”yes, he's g the first flight out of seattle. we'll meet him at
  the airport, and you'll leave with him.”
  ”but, my mother… he came here for my mother, alice!” despite jasper, the
  hysteria bubbled up in my voice.
  ”jasper and i will stay till she's safe.”
  ”i 't win, alice. you 't guard everyone i know forever. don't you
  see what he's doing? he's n me at all. he'll find someone,
  he'll hurt someone i love… ali't —”
  ”we'll catch him, bella,” she assured me.
  ”and what if you get hurt, alice? do you think that's okay with me? do
  you think it's only my human family he hurt me with?”
  alieaningfully at jasper. a deep, heavy fog y washed
  over me, and my eyes closed without my permission. my mind struggled
  against the f ening. i forced my eyes open and
  stood up, stepping away from jasper's hand.
  ”i don't want to go back to sleep,” i snapped.
  i walked to my room and shut the door, slammed it really, so i could be
  free to go to pieces privately. this time ali't follow me. for
  three and a half hours i stared at the wall, a ball, rog.
  my mi around iryih some way out of
  this here was no eso reprieve. i could see only one
  possible end looming darkly in my future. the oion was how many
  other people would be hurt before i reached it.
  the ohe only hope i had left, was knowing that i would see
  edward soon. maybe, if i could just see his fa, i would also be
  able to see the solution that eluded me now.
  when the ph, i retur room, a little ashamed of my
  behavior. i hoped i hadn't offehem, that they would know
  how grateful i was for the sacrifices they were making on my at.
  alice was talking as rapidly as ever, but what caught my attention was
  that, for the first time, jasper was not in the room. i looked at the
  clock — it was five-thirty in the m.
  ”they're just b their plaold me. ”they'll land at
  y-five.” just a few more hours t till he was
  here.
  ”where's jasper?”
  ”he we.”
  ”you aren't staying here?”
  ”no, we're relog other's house.”
  my stomach twisted u her words.
  but the phain, distrag me. she looked surprised, but i was
  already walking f hopefully for the phone.
  ”hello?” alice asked. ”no, she's right here.” she held the phoo
  me. your mother, she mouthed.
  ”hello?”
  ”bella? bella?” it was my mother's voi a familiar tone i had heard
  a thousand times in my e i'd gotten too close to the
  edge of the sidewalk or strayed ht in a crowded place. it
  was the sound of panic.
  i sighed. i'd beehis, though i'd tried to make my message as
  unalarming as possible without lessening the urgency of it.
  ”,” i said in my most sooth