Bab 17: What happened after...
-Extra: What happened after the last chapter-
(General POV)
Carlisle didn't know what to make of the scene before him.
The curious boy, the foster child of Chief Swan, and the target of the rogue vampire that infiltrated their territory was currently passed out while his kidnapper's body was burning a couple of feet away.
Glancing at the unconscious body of Alan, his lips thinned.
'What could have happened here?'
"What on earth..." breathed Rosalie. "Hey, is the kid alive?"
Emmett kneeled down next to the boy and pressed his fingers against his neck.
"He is."
"Urk!"
Just then, the group noticed Jasper tensing behind them. His pupils were dilated and his jaw was tightly clenched. He was staring thirstily at Alan's body.
"The blood...Leslie, get him away from here," ordered Carlisle as he and Esme blocked off the blonde's vision.
Leslie nodded and forced Jasper to look away before holding his hand and tugging him.
"C'mon dear," she whispered.
Jasper clenched his fists and with much effort, took off running to the forest with Leslie behind him.
After the couple left, Rosalie and Emmett went to inspect Rowan's burnt form while Carlisle and Esme checked Alan's vitals.
"He'll need to be taken to the hospital. His ribs are broken and there is some internal bleeding," Carlisle said. "I'm surprised he's still alive."
"It's weird," Rosalie chimed in looking at Rowan's charcoal body grimacing. "How did that kid survive with just broken ribs?"
"..." Carlisle was silent. "We'll discuss it later. Right now, he needs medical attention. I'm taking him to the hospital," and without another word, the man cradled Alan's body in his arms and took off.
After he left, Emmett looked at Esme and asked, "How are we going to explain how we found him? Chief Swan, from what I've heard, isn't fooled easily."
"You don't need to worry about that. Carlisle will naturally think of something," the lady replied. Glancing at Rowan's body, she continued, "For now, we must dispose of the body. We cannot let the humans find it no matter what."
"I don't think we need to anything seeing as it's about to become a pile of ash soon," muttered Rosalie. Turning her attention away from the body, she looked at Esme with a troubled expression, "The Volturi will be coming soon to investigate."
"I know," Esme responded. "But I doubt they'd do anything other than ask questions. We will just tell them what we know. As for the boy..." she contemplates before saying, "They can't touch him since he is human and Carlisle wouldn't allow them to either."
Rosalie doesn't seem convinced but she says nothing.
The trio wait around for a couple more hours till the burning body is reduced to ash. They then take off back home.
****
"I don't remember anything."
An expected answer but nevertheless, a concerning one.
Charlie's face contorts to a frown as he attempts to rouse any memories from the boy regarding his disappearance without scaring him.
Alan had gone missing for over a day but turned up at the hospital entrance, bloodied and wounded. Doctor Cullen had operated on him and was able to patch up his damaged internal organs.
The injuries on his body spelt out that he had suffered a beating of some sort but with the boy having zero recollection of the event, it was impossible to reach a clear conclusion.
Charlie had a feeling his disappearance had something to do with the recent murder case but with a lack of evidence and information, he couldn't be sure of his assumptions.
As the days went on, Charlie's investigation continuously led to him to dead ends until eventually, the cases were treated as cold cases. Unsolvable.
It was difficult to let go of but there was nothing he could do.
As for Alan's mysterious disappearance and reappearance, it was also treated as an unsolvable case but Charlie continued digging. Considering Alan was the child he was supposed to take care of, for something like this to happen to his ward was obviously a reason for apprehension. If social services caught wind of this...
Charlie hated to think what might happen.
Though he wouldn't admit it, he had grown fond of the boy and regarded him closely as a son. To have him forcefully taken away was something that made him uncomfortable.
Besides, even his daughter was fond of Alan. He knew the two of them kept in touch. She probably wouldn't be able to contact him anymore if he was sent to another foster home.
Bella would definitely be unhappy if that happens.
"Have you checked the CCTV cameras?" Charlie asked his subordinate. The latter responded grimly, "Sir, the hospital entrance doesn't have CCTV cameras."
Ah right.
How could he forget that?
Running a hand down his face, Charlie sighed. There really was nothing to go on.
"And there are no witnesses?"
"None sir," the subordinate replied. "I'm sorry Chief."
"It's not like it's your fault," Charlie muttered. He could feel a migraine coming on. Rubbing his temples, he dismissed the man and closed the file in front of him.
Checking the time, it was time to visit the hospital.
Packing up his things, he bid an emotionless farewell to the workers at the front desk and walked outside to his car before climbing in.
However, a slight shiver passed through his spine and he instinctively felt like he was being watched. Looking at the rear view mirror and the side mirrors inconspicuously, he searched for the source of his discomfort but found nothing.
Letting out a sigh, he thought, 'Perhaps I'm just getting too sensitive these days.'
Brushing off the earlier suspicions, he switched on the ignition and drove away.
A couple of feet away, two pairs of red eyes watched the human drive away.
One of the figures mutters, "So that's the boy's father? Both human it seems."
"How unfortunate," the other says. "I was hoping to break some necks today."
"If it were not for the treaty, we could have had a feast," the first one continues. "However, we cannot touch the Cullens or their territory."
"Let us return. We must report to Aro."
With another regretful sigh, the two figures vanished from their hiding place.
----
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone