Chapter 9: Edward Fires the Shots

Furiously, I put the phone down. My client had just finished giving me an earful about how I had ruined her life because I should have read her mind about the color of her drapes.

I had simply followed instructions.

Her instructions had been to give her light blue drapes. How was I supposed to know that she was on her menstrual cycle and actually wanted green ones?

I rubbed my temples. As soon as I could, I would get an assistant who would deal with this for me.

Angela poked her head in from her cubicle and gave me a thumbs up. She was going through stuff like this too.

Why am I starting off a chapter like this? Why would I give such a detailed explanation of my boring life?

It is in moments like these that I relish "boring".

Here is where the true calm before the storm starts. This is where the hunter finally catches his gazelle.

This is where my fate is sealed.

Writing this is so painful, because it is so easy to stray from the truth. Yet, writing a lie won't change what really happened.

Edward disappeared again from some time. I'm assuming that his work finally gave him enough to do to keep his thoughts from me.

Emmett and Rosalie managed to stay together. After a time, I stopped doubting Emily. The man did try to make it up to me. After all, I was the one who took care of Rosalie in her darkest moments. I took care of her after he swept through.

Emily made sure that Rosalie was always happy. He made sure that I knew she was, which is how he made it up to me. No one can deny the devotion in the mans eyes. After a while, I backed off and let the lovebirds be.

Rosalie was planning to move out. She hadn't told me yet, but even she couldn't deny the stack of boxes that were overflowing with her stuff in the closet.

Me, well, I worked.

I did go on a couple of dates. They were time fillers. It was evident after a couple line of conversation that the only thing that these men wanted was my vagina. That was fine with me, but at the end of the night they went home alone. As did I.

I tried to ignore the impending crush of loneliness. Rosalie's stuff may have been at the apartment but Rosalie was always gone. My bed was filled with nothing but blankets and books that I read while battling the insomnia.

I took up running. I decided that I liked it.

My weight plunged. The bags under my eyes were unmistakeable.

I went to a doctor. He prescribed supplemental pills and a therapist. I took the pills but threw away the list of therapists the doc had given me. I'd had enough of them to last me into the next millennium.

It was at this strategic moment, Edward showed up again. He claims that he knew nothing, but I don't believe him.

He was a wolf dressed in sheep's clothing. I was the piglet that believed him.

The pasta smelled delicious. I hummed to myself as I put the plate in front of myself and gently placed a sprig of basil on top of the steaming red sauce. The bottle of wine was a splurge. I had decreased the amount of alcohol intake to further better my running.

I was about to take my first bite when a gentle knock on my door startled me. I checked my watched. It was nine in the evening. This person knows my schedule, since I usually work until eight thirty.

I padded towards the door.

"Who dares disturb my lair?" I said, taking my wine with me. It could prove to be a weapon.

"It isn't much of a lair, is it?"

I hadn't heard this voice in exactly three months, but I recognized it immediately.

I stopped cold behind the door. Opening it, was a risk. Keeping it closed, was a risk.

"You know nothing of lairs, Monsieur." My voice was cold, emotionless. Everything was calculated, and weighed.

"Perhaps, but I do know the phantom that resides within." There was a sad tone to his words.

I met his words with silence. I simply wouldn't decide wether to open the door.

"Open the door, Isabella."

I hated my full name. But there was something to the way that he said. A tone within the many sounds that constituted his voice, that made it sound beautiful. A sigh. A plea. A vow.

I gripped my glass tighter. I was going crazy. How could he make me feel this way? I hadn't even seen his eyes.

The door slowly opened and I finally looked at my tormentor, my saving grace. Loneliness is a magnifying glass. My lenses, in that moment, saw a beautiful man. A man who I could at least spend some time with. A man who I could learn to trust.

Loneliness made me delusional. I made sure he couldn't see the delusions I was having.

"What do you want, Edward?"

He didn't answer, but procured a lush bouquet of roses from his back. Red roses.

I quietly accepted them. There was a note taped to one of the roses.

Isabella, Be Mine.

"Will you do me the honor, Isabella Swan, of being my valentine just for tonight?"

A smile grew from the frown on my face. In that moment, this was exactly what I needed.

I nodded.

"A kiss would do nicely, darling."

I kissed him. With that kiss, I sold my soul to the devil.

The gun fired.

The game truly began.