Red Dawn - Book 6

Chapter 8

It took us a weeks worth of travel to get through the Panema Canal. It was difficult, like we predicted, but it wasn't impossible -with money- as Nic mentioned. Once we made it out the other side, we set sail for Isle Esme. By mid-week we dropped anchor a half-mile off the shore of the island.

"I was wondering when you would wake up." Nic said as he kissed each of my eyelids.

We had spent the majority of the past three nights, awake, bartering with the canal guards. They easily gave in, but not before subjecting us to a series of searches. Last night, as we left the bay and entered into the tropical waters, was the first night of decent sleep I had since we were sailing south-east through the Pacific Ocean.

I let out a yawn as I did my morning stretch routine. "How long have you been awake?" I asked, mid-yawn.

"A while. I was talking to the Captain and going over our new route with him."

I sat up and moved towards the edge of the bed. "And how did that go?" I asked as I rose to my feet and grabbed my robe.

"He thinks we should cut our anchor times in half. He was going over the weather patterns and seems to have forseen a lot of bad weather in the future for the northern hemisphere. He doesn't want to risk getting caught in it."

"And what do you think?"

Nic slid out of bed and came up behind me, wrapping his arms around my mid-section. "I trust his judgment. He has sailed for me for over ten years and not once has he let me down or been wrong on a weather prediction."

"How much time does that give us on the Island?"

I needed my time here. This was where I was conceived so maybe we would have a bit of luck. Of course, the last time I was here I didn't exactly have good memories. Unless you count waking up from what I had thought to be the end of my life.

"Three days."

"Well then, lets get to shore." I said as I turned and strode towards the balcony.

In one swift jump I broke through the water, only to resurface seconds later. The water was luke-warm. It felt nice on my skin. I turned towards the boat and looked up.

"Come in, Nic, the water is nice."

Turning back towards the island I began to swim towards shore. It was an easier swim than the last time, I was stronger, much stronger, and I had better stamina. I reached the island in no time.

"Caught you." Nic called as he playfully tackled me to the ground.

The sand stuck to our wet skin as we rolled around on the shore.

"Hey, come on now. I'm going to get dirty." I whined as I could feel the grittiness of the sand sticking to various body parts.

He released me and rose to his feet. "Well then, lets go and get you cleaned up." That look in his eye told me that we would be doing more than just cleaning. He reached out and pulled me to my feet and then we made our way to the house.

"It's different than the last time I was here."

"In what way?" Nic asked me as he closed the front door.

"Happier. Last time I was here there was nothing but a large cloud of misery floating everywhere."

He slipped his fingers through mine and towed me down the hall and into the over-sized bathroom. Very slowly he began undressing me from what little clothes I had wore. When both of us were bare he brought his lips to mine. Very slowly, between kisses, we moved into the shower.

He grabbed a loofah and squirt some body wash onto it. Then he began bathing me in the most sensual way. He made sure he cleaned every bit of my body. His touch against my skin was like satin caressing me. It was so soft, so brilliantly soft.

"Are you hungry?" Nic asked me while we were getting dressed.

I finished buttoning my blouse before I answered him. "I was thinking I'd make us some dinner, maybe steak and potatoes?"

"Steak and potatoes sounds good. Would you like any help?"

"Na, I'm pretty sure I can figure it out on my own. I mean, I've only ever made sandwiches and burn stir fry-" I laughed at the memories that flooded my mind. "I want to try making an actual dinner by myself."

"Okay. Well, I am going to go for a swim, let me know if you need any help at all." In the next half second he was gone.

I took a deep breath and walked into the kitchen. I pulled a couple steaks from the freezer and filled the sink up with hot water to thaw them. Then I moved to begin the process of peeling and seasoning the potatoes.

Once I got the potatoes into the oven I moved back to the steaks. I threw them onto a skillet and turned on the stove. I sat on the counter and listened to them sizzle and pop in the pan while they cooked. When they were ready I flipped them and then took my seat again.

Just as I flipped the steaks onto a plate the timer went off for the potatoes. I portioned everything out onto two seperate plates before moving them to the table.

"Nic. Dinner is ready!" I called as I stuck my head outside the door.

I saw his head pop up out of the water and glance in my direction. Then he began a simple breast-stroke towards shore.

"Smells good." Nic said as he entered into the house.

He began stripping out of his wet clothes before he pulled a robe around himself and joined me at the table. He pulled his plate to himself and began cutting his steak.

"This steak is good, very tender." He said as he took another bite.

"Thank you." I said, cutting into mine and sticking a large piece into my mouth.

I chewed a few moments before I paused. My meat tasted off a bit. I chewed a few more times and forced myself to swallow.

"It needs salt." I said, grabbing it from the center of the table. I poured a bit onto my steak and then cut another piece and took a bite.

I chewed for a couple seconds, taking the time to mull around the taste. It was alright but it wasn't as good as I hoped for. But I continued and finished the rest before I moved on to the potatoes.

Now these were better. I loved the taste. The blend I seasoned them with was perfect.

"I cooked, you get to do the dishes." I teased as I stood up from the table.

"Okay, I'll bite." He smirked as he picked up the plates and walked them over to the sink and began running water.

Suddenly my stomach churned and I heaved. Everything that I had eaten just minutes before came back up and splattered at my feet.

"Oh god." I gasped as my stomach gave another heave. I dropped to my knees as vomit continued to spew from my mouth. I could feel the burn of the stomach acid in my nostrils.

"Renesmee?" Nic said as he pulled my hair away from my face.

I shook my head as I began dry heaving. This felt so much worse than actually vomiting because there was nothing for my body to expell.

When I opened my eyes I looked down at the mess I hate made. In the middle of it all was several pieces of meat. Red meat.

"Renesmee, are you okay?" Nic asked as he began rubbing my back.

I shook my head again. "I didn't cook my meat all the way." I gagged again, spitting up a little more stomach acid. "Food poisoning."

He chuckled. "Food poisoning."

I gave him a weak slap on his shoulder. "Shut up, Nic. That's not funny."

"I wasn't laughing at you, love. I was just thinking of how funny it is that instead of burning the food you didn't cook it well enough." He gasped out of shock as I smacked him again.

Once I managed to get my breath, Nic helped me to my feet.

"I need to clean this..." I paused as I dry heaved again. "I need to clean this up. This vomit stinks."

I went into the kitchen and grabbed the cleaning supplies before I returned to dining area and began the process of cleaning up. After thirty minutes of scrubbing I was finally satisfied.

"Wow, am I exhausted or what."

"Ness, you just woke up not even three hours ago. Are you feeling alright?" He brought his hand to my forehead and then moved it briefly to my cheek. "No, you feel a little warm."

I brushed his hand away. "I just need to rest but I am okay. It's just been a rough last couple days." I yawned. "I'm going to go and get some rest."

"Do you mind if I lay with you?" He asked as I closed my eyes.

"I would like that." I mumbled.

I heard his footsteps cross around to his side of the bed and then he carefully climb in beside me. I smiled to myself as he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me against him. His scent overwhelmed me, it was a handsome musk that had a bit of a sweetness to it that was barely detectable. It was so slight that I was confident the human nose would never sense it. His scent and his warmth. The perfect combination that lulled me off to sleep.

"Merry Christmas, Renesmee!" My mother and father said as I entered the living room of our beautiful house.

I beamed brightly as I looked around the room. Everyone was there. My aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins. Even Nic's family was there, including his newest siblings, Jamie and Tyler.

In the far corner of the living room, standing erect before the large bay windows was a massive Christmas tree. I could smell the pine needles. Nestled under the tree, and in a three foot circumfrence, were massive boxes. Every one wrapped beautifully with bright, shiny wrappings and big red bows.

"Here, open this one first." Nic said as he carefully carried a large box and set it down at my feet.

"All these are mine?" I asked as I glanced around at the decadent amount of gifts.

Nic slowly shook his head. "No, just this one.... and maybe a few more. Come on, open it." He grinned.

Very carefully I reached forward and lifted the lid.

"Momma!" A beautiful little boy said as he jumped up.

He looked to be no older than 3 years old. His eyes were a beautiful silver blue and his hair a mess of dark brown curls. He toppled from the box and wrapped his arms around my leg.

"Merry Christmas mommy!" He said in his tiny bell-like vocals.

I looked at him in shock. Then very slowly I looked to Nic and then around the room to our families. This little boy called me mom. I didn't have any children.... Then it hit me.

My last memory I was round with child and I was dying. Blood was everywhere and my parents were in a panic. But here I was. I was alive. Even so, I couldn't die. I was half-immortal. It made me curious, how long had I been unaware?

When I opened my eyes and rose from my bed it felt like I had just gone to sleep and woke up like I did every day. But if I indeed had this child I had to have at least been out for a few months in order for him to look like he did.

"Mom?" I said, as I looked to her and my father for answers.

"Everything is alright now, Renesmee." She said to me.

"What happened to me?"

"There were some complications during birth, it took your body a while to recover from the stress and havoc it went through. But you are alive and you have a beautiful, healthy baby boy." My grandfather Carlisle explained.

"So I am a vampire?"

My father shook his head. "We couldn't subject you to that sort of life. You healed on your own."

"How long have I been out?"

"3 months..."

I opened my eyes. I could feel my heart pounding in my ears at a rapid pace as a reaction to the nightmare I had. Taking a deep breath, I pulled the covers closer to myself and closed my eyes only to reopen them again.

The little boy was there in my thoughts.

"Renesmee?" It was Nic.

I had almost forgot that he was here beside me. He tightened his hold around me and pressed a kiss to my shoulder.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

I bit my lip, should I tell him about the dream? Part of me didn't want to because I knew he would worry that I wasn't ready for that next step in life. Only, I felt that he was right. Part of me wasn't ready. Part of me feared the unknown, like I always had. And there was no denying it.

"I'm.... I'm...." Here came the sick feeling. I pushed myself into a sitting position and threw my hand over my mouth before jumping to my feet and running to the bathroom.

"Renesmee?" Nic called as I heard him follow after me.

I had barely made it to the toilet when what little contents were in my stomach came back up and splashed into the toilet bowl.

I cluched at the sides of the basin as I grew violently sick. The noises I made were unbelievablely gruesome. Just hearing them made me grow ever more sicker. As my stomach began to heave harder I started to feel a pain in my head. This hurt.

"Renesmee, are you alright?"

I couldn't answer or move as I continued to be sick.

"This isn't right. Your partial vampire genetics should've pushed the food poisoning from your system in a matter of hours."

Finally I managed to get a break and my stomach relaxed. I took several deep breaths and then opened my eyes. Then I sat back on my heels and brushed specks of the vomit from my mouth using the back of my hand.

"I need a shower. I feel so disgusting." I groaned as I turned to look up at him.

He helped me to my feet and then turned on the shower, adjusting the taps.

"Would you like some company?" He asked me.

I bit my lip. "I don't want to chance vomiting on you."

"I could sit over there on the vanity and talk to you while you bath." He suggested.

I gave a simple nod and then began to undress. When I finally removed my shirt, Nic gasped.

"What is it?" I asked as I stared at him looking at my mid-section.

He didn't even have to tell me as I knew. That dream, the sickness, the exhaustion. Without tearing my gaze away from Nic I brought my hands to my abdomen. There it was, I could feel, right there beneath my finger tips, a small but definate bump.

Then Nic spoke. "You're pregnant."

I was pregnant. I was going to be a mother.

I wanted more than anything to be estatic upon discovering the news but I was in shock. After that dream, I had lost what little bravery I managed to muster over the month.

"Oh god...." I gasped.