MATED TO THREE, DESPISED BY ALL.
Then it registered fully, crashing into me with brutal clarity.
That was Bella.
She stood there under the dull torchlight, dressed in white that no longer looked pure but stained and rumpled, clinging to her thin frame. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail, though it was far from neat. Loose strands had escaped, falling limply over her shoulders and sticking to her skin. She looked worn out, physically, emotionally, like someone who had been pushed far beyond her limits. Her shoulders sagged, her posture weak, yet there was something painfully stubborn in the way she held herself upright.