Gentle Touches

Chapter 1 - Little Girl Lost (EPOV)

Chapter 1 - Little Girl Lost (EPOV)

The blood ran hot down my throat, the sweet substance not completely satiating the burning of the flesh there, but quenching it to bearable levels. Slowly, as the creature became lifeless, the flow of life fluid stemmed and came to a stop.

I sighed and released the now still and stiff carcass of the deer, turning to find my brothers waiting in the shadows of the nearby trees.

"Are you finished?" Jasper asked; one eyebrow rose in question. I nodded and prepared to run with them back to the house.

Normally, we would avoid any frequented human campsites, but something seemed to be drawing me away from the others, begging me to investigate. I came to a stop and sniffed tentatively at the air.

Emmett ran back to my side, eyeing me cautiously. Dude, what's up? He thought to me. I responded with a shrug, distracted as the breeze changed direction, carrying a recent scent of...something.

"What is that?" Emmett frowned, tensing slightly.

"I don't know," I murmured back to him as I bolted towards the source, keeping the scent in my nose at all times. Edward, what's going on? Jasper was demanding as he followed me some way behind.

An old, abandoned cabin lay ahead. The wood was clearly rotting and the roof of the shelter had partially collapsed. My feet stilled as I took in the detail and waited for my brothers to catch up.

Jasper was the first to reach my side, tense and alert, scanning the area with both eyes and nose. "The scent must be coming from inside," he noted. I nodded, but made no move to approach.

"So, what are we doing standing here?" Emmett asked, his thoughts showing his eagerness to investigate whatever this was. He led the way over to the cabin, me and Jasper following after exchanging a shrug.

Inside, the state of the cabin was no better. The floors were filthy and the place smelled strongly of damp and mildew; not ideal conditions for anyone to be living in. "Whoa, this place is a mess," Emmett stated bluntly.

"Nicely observed, Emmett," Jasper said dryly. He was heading to one of the doors and started poking around in the room there, Emmett and I mimicked his actions with the other doors. "What brought you here, Edward?" Jasper asked, "This place is empty".

"I'm not so sure about that," Emmett whispered before I could have a chance to answer his question. We both looked over to him and he waved his arm as if sensing our hesitation.

He stepped out of the doorway to allow us to peer in and we simultaneously let out a breath at what we saw. Curled into the far corner of the room, on her side with her arms and legs bundled together tightly, eyes shut, was a young girl. I couldn't guess her age because of the state she was in, but I would say she was no older than seventeen or eighteen.

She was obviously in a poor way, from here with my enhanced eyesight I could see her ribs standing out despite the loose clothing that hung to her frame and she looked very weak. "What do we do with her?" Emmett asked in a whisper.

"We can't leave her here," I said firmly, not moving my gaze from the innocent, helpless form that was now shuddering further into the corner.

Neither of them argued, but Jasper added, "What do we do then?"

I knew she needed help and that we should probably take her to the hospital, but I didn't feel that was the right thing to do; to just take her away only to dump her in some other foreign place. "We take her to Carlisle," I said decisively.

"You'll have to carry her," Jasper said, thinking about the risk of having her blood so close to them, knowing I had the best restraint. "Careful though, she's very afraid, I think she's aware that we're here".