**Chapter 14: The Price of Revenge**

The Cullen house was eerily quiet, the weight of the recent events hanging over them like a storm cloud. Rosalie's cold departure from the conversation had left a rift that needed mending. Bella felt the tension in the house, a discomfort that seemed to settle in everyone's bones, even as they tried to continue as normal. But Bella knew that normal was long gone. Too much had happened.

Rhea, however, was different. She was still adjusting to her new life, but she had an understanding of pain—of loss—that seemed to have made her more empathetic than anyone else in the room. It wasn't a perfect empathy, but it was real.

As Bella walked down the hall toward the living room, Rhea was already there, her posture relaxed but watchful, her gaze focused on Rosalie, who stood by the large window, staring outside. Bella hesitated for a moment, but Rhea, without a word, turned and nodded toward Rosalie, urging Bella to go to her.

"Do you think she'll talk to me?" Bella asked softly, her voice tinged with doubt.

Rhea's expression softened as she crossed her arms. "She will. But only if you're ready to listen. And understand."

Taking a deep breath, Bella moved forward, stepping into the quiet space where Rosalie stood. The vampire looked out the window, her back to them, her posture stiff and tense. For a moment, Bella was unsure of what to say—how to begin. The last time she had tried to approach Rosalie, the conversation had ended in a cold silence, with Rosalie retreating behind her usual walls.

"I didn't ask for this life," Rosalie said abruptly, her voice breaking the silence like a crack of thunder. Her words were low, barely a whisper, but there was an edge to them that made Bella stop in her tracks.

"I know," Bella said softly. "None of us did."

Rosalie's shoulders stiffened, and for a moment, Bella wondered if she had said the wrong thing. But then Rosalie turned slowly, her gaze piercing.

"I didn't ask for *this*, either," Rosalie said, her voice filled with bitterness. "You—this life, Bella—it's not what you think it is. It's not some romantic notion that everyone seems to think it is. It's a prison. A beautiful prison, but still a prison."

Bella swallowed hard, her chest tightening. She could feel Rhea's presence behind her, but she didn't turn to look at her. Instead, she focused entirely on Rosalie.

"I never wanted to be a vampire," Rosalie continued, her words heavy with emotion. "I was human. I had a life. I was just beginning to understand what it meant to be *me* before it was all stolen away. It wasn't just the transformation. It was the *reason* I was turned."

Bella's heart skipped a beat. She had never heard Rosalie speak so openly, so vulnerably. There was a desperation in her voice now, an ache that had been buried for decades.

"When I was nineteen, I was living in the 1930s—a time when women didn't have much power. My parents were wealthy, and I had everything a girl could want—except freedom. I was supposed to be a good, dutiful wife. I was supposed to marry a man of my father's choosing and live out my days in comfort," Rosalie's voice quivered with disgust. "But I didn't want that life. I wanted to make my own choices. And I wanted someone who would see me as more than just a pretty face. Someone who would love me for *me*."

Rosalie paused, her lips pressing into a thin line as she looked down, as if gathering the strength to continue. Bella waited patiently, feeling an overwhelming wave of empathy for her, but also curiosity.

"One night, I went to a party. I thought maybe I could meet someone who might understand me. I had no idea Royce King, the man my parents had been pushing me to marry, would be there, or that he would think of me as his possession—something to be *used*." Rosalie's voice was seething now, her anger still raw. "He and his friends—they attacked me. They beat me, they... they..." Rosalie stopped herself, a shudder running through her as if reliving the pain.

Bella's heart ached for her, for everything Rosalie had endured. She knew the Cullens had all suffered in their own ways, but this—this was something that felt too cruel, even for a vampire's reality.

"I was left for dead, broken. But then—Carlisle found me." Rosalie's voice dropped, and there was an unmistakable shift in the air, the bitterness melting away into something softer, almost... grateful. "He saved me. I was dying, and he turned me."

Bella felt her stomach twist. She hadn't realized how Rosalie had ended up in Carlisle's arms, how her life had been defined by this one moment of cruelty. Rosalie's pain had always been buried behind her cold exterior, but it was clear now that it had shaped everything she was.

"I don't regret it," Rosalie said, her eyes locking onto Bella's now. "I got my revenge. I killed Royce. I made him suffer for what he did to me." Her lips curled into a bitter smile. "But I was still left with the scars. I'm still not the same. I can't be. I'll never be the girl I was before."

Bella stood in silence for a moment, processing Rosalie's words. She felt the weight of them, the intensity of the emotions Rosalie had buried for so long. She wanted to say something comforting, something that would make it better, but she knew there was nothing she could say to erase Rosalie's pain. No magic words that could make her feel whole again.

But Rhea, ever perceptive, stepped closer to Rosalie, her voice low and soothing. "You don't have to carry that pain anymore. You've lived with it for so long, but you don't need to hold onto it forever. You can choose to let it go, if you want."

Rosalie's eyes narrowed slightly as she looked at Rhea, as if sizing her up. "And why would I listen to you?"

Rhea smiled gently, though there was a hint of sadness in her eyes. "Because I know what it's like to be caught between two worlds. I know what it's like to want revenge. But you don't have to keep living for someone else's cruelty. You deserve peace."

Rosalie didn't respond right away. Instead, she looked away, her expression unreadable. The air was thick with silence.

But then Bella, finally finding her voice, asked the question that had been weighing on her mind since the moment Rosalie had stormed off. "Rosalie... why do you have such a problem with me becoming a vampire? You've always been so against it, and I've never really understood why."

Rosalie turned to face Bella again, her jaw tightening as she spoke. "Because I know what it does to you, Bella. I know how it changes you. How you lose everything—your humanity, your life. And yes, it might make you 'immortal,' but you also lose what makes you... you. I don't want you to go through that. I don't want you to make the same mistake I did."

Bella's heart sank at her words. But Rhea, ever the realist, gave a soft nod. "I get it, Rosalie. You just don't want her to suffer like you did."

Rosalie looked at her, a flicker of something in her gaze—maybe understanding. Maybe regret. "Exactly. I don't want Bella to be another victim of the vampire's curse."

The three of them stood in the quiet of the room, each carrying their own burdens. Bella now understood Rosalie more than ever—why she was so harsh, why she pushed everyone away. It wasn't just because she was cold or vain. It was because she had been broken, and she couldn't bear the thought of anyone else going through the same torment.

"I not becoming a vampire because of what I think life could be like, I want to be with Edward, that's all I ever wanted," Bella said softly, her voice steady. 

Rosalie didn't respond right away, but there was a brief flicker of something in her eyes. Maybe—just maybe—she was starting to understand.