The Man in the Long Black Coat, Chapter Eighteen

"She's sleeping."

"How can you know that? I can't hear a damn thing."

"I just know."

"That ain't good enough. I'm going up there to knock on the door."

"That's a mistake, Charlie. Trust me. She's sleeping and she needs the rest."

"Trust you? Listen, young man. I admire your apparent devotion to my daughter's safety. Really I do. But do not ask me to trust you. I am far from that place, and I don't rightly know if I'll ever get there."

Charlie reached for the door again. Edward put a hand on his arm and stopped him.

"Speaking of mistakes," Charlie said. He flexed his arm and eyed Edward's hand and didn't stop staring until Edward removed it.

"You want me to stay here with you," Charlie said, "you'd better give me a damn good reason."

Edward sighed. He considered his predicament. He was sitting in a cop car outside the Cullen's cabin in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, with the father of the human girl he'd fallen for, the guy who'd just helped him kill a legendary vampire, and he was stuck trying to explain how he had magically read the thoughts of the vampires in the house when the truth was he wasn't even sure how it worked himself.

He decided to start with vampires.

"You already know," he said. "Or you suspect, at least. You have for more than twenty years."

"I don't have the faintest notion what you're talking about."

"The war, Charlie. You saw it. Your entire squad saw the results. But none of you wanted to believe."

"Saw what? Quit playing games and tell me what the hell you're talking about or I'll handcuff you right here and go about my business alone."

"Vampires use wars as a cover," Edward said. He looked into the forest, closed his eyes in remembrance. "It's easy to find victims. Easy to cover it up. Even when the soldiers see, they never believe."

"Now wait a goddamn minute."

"Just be quiet and listen, Charlie. I told you I would explain everything. That's what I'm about to do."

He turned his head so Charlie could look into his eyes as he spoke, see the honesty there.

"I've been a vampire since 1918. That family in there, protecting Bella right now, they're all vampires, too. The big guy you shot in the stomach. Vampire. The girl I shot. Vampire. The man you helped me kill in your front yard. The one whose body you set on fire. Vampire.

"We are stronger and we are faster than humans. We are very hard to kill. And yes, we drink blood. But many of us are powerful in other ways, Charlie. Alice, the girl who is fast becoming Bella's first real friend, sees the future. Aro, the vampire leader we killed, could see a person's every memory simply with a touch. I read minds."

"You've gone off the deep end, boy. I'll be sure you get the help you need when we get back to Forks. The state has a good mental health program. I promise to put in a word, once your trial’s over."

Edward smiled.

"January 1991. It sticks in your mind, doesn't it Charlie? You can't stop thinking about what you saw."

Charlie said nothing.

"Your unit was in Kuwait. It was a few days after the American invasion. You'd performed well. Defeated an entire Iraqi platoon. Mostly, though, they surrendered. You kept them prisoner. Waited for directions from command.

"But they never came, did they? Not before every one of your prisoners was slaughtered.

"An animal, you told yourselves. Nothing else could have done it. Nothing else could move that fast. No human could do what you saw being done. A single figure, alone, massacring dozens of prisoners.

"You were right in one respect. It wasn't a human. It was a vampire, Charlie."

"How? How can you possibly know about that? It's classified. All of it. Officially, the Army never acknowledged that we'd even taken prisoners, let alone what happened to them."

The two men sat in silence.

What if he's telling the truth, Charlie thought.

"I am," Edward said.

"You are what?"

"Telling the truth."

Holy shit. That's creepy.

"I thought it was creepy too, at first. But I've learned that it’s a useful tool to have when you're on the run."

Wonder why he's been on the run.

"Because I don't fit, Charlie. In that sense, Bella and I are alike."

"Stop doing that," Charlie said. "It's freaking me out."

He sighed. "I'd always wondered. I thought, hell, I don't know what I thought. I went through every possibility in my mind. There just aren't any animals in that part of the world that could do that, you know?

"A werewolf, I thought. A zombie. And yeah, maybe a vampire. It sure would explain a lot."

Edward laughed. "Mind if I smoke?" He drew a Marlboro light from its pack and put it between his lips.

"Not in my car you don't," Charlie said.

Edward opened the door and stepped outside. He patted his pockets, looking for his Zippo, and leaned against Bella’s pickup.

Charlie got out of the car and tossed Edward the lighter. "You forgot this."

"Thank you." Edward lit up. The smoke hovered over him like a raincloud in the still air.

Charlie leaned against the police car. "Your big friend. The one I shot. He healed. I told myself I must have missed him. Maybe I just clipped him. That's why he was able to get up and talk to me. He told me to burn that corpse before he ran off to chase the female you wounded.

"The look in his eyes told me he knew what he was talking about. I burned it, but I don’t know why."

"It's a lot to take in," Edward said. "I know."

"First time I killed, it was a garter snake that had snuck its way into the laundry room. Momma screamed. Daddy wasn't home. I saw it wasn’t poisonous. Went to the shed out back. Grabbed a shovel. I cut its head off and went back to my peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I was seven years old."

Charlie paused. "You got another one of those?"

Edward handed him the pack and the Zippo.

"Killing never bothered me much,” Charlie said, exhaling smoke while he talked. “I suppose it was because I figured the things I was killing were meant to be killed. I grew up hunting and fishing. Later on, after high school, I joined the Army. It was either that or the paper mill, maybe salmon fishing in Alaska. Ain't a whole lot of options in a small town for a guy like me. I took a liking to the long guns. The rifles. The Army had the sense to put me through sniper school. I'd always been a good shot."

He took another drag on the Marlboro, flicked the butt to the ground, crushed it with his boot.

"It wasn't much different in the Army. Not at first, anyway. I killed because it was my job. I killed because the things I killed needed killing. Special Forces came calling, and I signed up with enthusiasm.

"Nicaragua. Columbia. Grenada. Panama. I killed dozens. Maybe more.

"Then came the Gulf War. These people weren't fighting back. They just wanted food. Clean clothes. It didn't feel right, killing them."

He stopped and shook his head. "That night you talked about? I can't get it out of my head. Dream about it damn near every night, still. We had twenty seven prisoners. Supposedly Saddam's elite, the Republican guard. Truth was, they were just a bunch of scared kids.

"I had my guys clean 'em up. Feed 'em. I took the night shift guarding them because it seemed like the right thing to do. Lead from the front, that's what my daddy always said.

"It came from out of nowhere. Like it had been there all along. Red eyes. Moved so fast you couldn't hardly see it.  

"I got off a couple of shots, but it didn't seem to do any good. I don't miss, mind you. I never miss. But whatever that beast was didn't give two hoots about me and my weapon.

"Whatever it was killed all twenty seven prisoners in less than two minutes. It took off when my guys woke up. Left behind nothing but a pile of mutilated bodies.

"I never could figure out why it ran away. But after tonight, I'm gonna guess it was the sight of a rocket-propelled grenade launcher. If a shotgun loaded with armor-piercing rounds can do one of you people in, I suppose an RPG ain't gonna bounce off, neither."

Charlie leaned back on the hood of his police cruiser and put his hands in his pockets. The first hint of dawn showed over his shoulder, framing him in the glow. Edward studied his face as he probed his thoughts, curious.

What he’d just told Charlie was a lot to take in, but the man seemed to be taking it in stride, as if he wasn’t surprised at all.

“I told you I had my suspicions,” Charlie said, looking across at Edward. “You understand? I’ve seen enough in my life to know that it ain’t always gonna make sense, the things that happen. Renee, Phil, that whole mess.” He sighed. “That’s pure evil, right there. A man like that, well he’s more dangerous than any vampire. A man with no soul, is what he was.

“Now I don’t know you well, and you’ve still got to answer for Mike Newton, Waylon Forge and, to a lesser extent, Tyler Crowley, though lord knows he probably deserved what you gave him. But even with all that, something tells me you ain’t like Phil. You ain’t soulless, Edward. I don’t know if you’re a good man or not. Only time and your actions will tell me that.”

He ceased leaning against the car and stood up straight, taking two steps forward. He took his hands from his pockets and put one on Edward’s forearm.

“You asked me to trust you earlier. I can’t do that. Not yet. But I’m gonna promise to try. You’ve done me right. You’ve done Bella right.”

“Not yet he hasn’t, Charlie.” Bella ran down the steps and jumped into Edward’s arms. She closed her eyes and kissed him.

Edward stole a glance over at Charlie, who quickly looked away.

Bella broke the kiss and Edward laughed as he let her down carefully.

"Sorry about that, Charlie," he said.

"It's all right, I suppose. There ain't much in this world that ruffles my feathers, Edward. You ought to have figured that out by now."

"Hold on a second here," Bella said. She punched Edward in the arm, then looked from him to Charlie and back again.

"I never thought I'd see the day when Charlie Swan and Edward Masen were acting like best friends. What the hell is going on?"

-30-

A/N I am almost to 1,000 reviews. This shocks me more than you can possibly know. I didn’t think anyone would like this Edward. I really didn’t. I wrote him for myself alone. Lucky for me, crazy Bella came along for the ride.

Anyway, thank you. Every single one of you.

The Man in the Long Black Coat, Chatper Seventeen

Edward froze. He looked Charlie in the eye and shook his head slowly, mouthing the words "not now." Explanations would have to come later.

His coat flowed outward in the light breeze, effectively hiding his hands from Aro and Jane, who remained behind him in Charlie’s front yard.

Charlie stood in the doorway gripping the shotgun, its barrel at a downward forty-five-degree angle.

Edward followed the barrel with his eyes and continued on, to Emmett, who’d moved to the porch steps. His shotgun wound had begun to close. A few more minutes and he'd be on his feet.

Everything was still for a moment. Peaceful. Edward knew it would not last.

He used the silence to scan Aro’s mind. As he suspected, the Volturi leader was planning to kill them all. There was no other choice, really. They’d seen too much, done too much damage for Aro to let it go. A tracker was dead, humans had learned the truth. He would lose all credibility in the vampire world if he did not act swiftly and harshly. The Volturi would crumble.

Edward closed his eyes and concentrated. He breathed in deeply and exhaled. The ritual, though unnecessary, helped him relax. The next few moments would determine his fate, and he would need to keep a level head.

Jane moved first. In the split second that Edward began to feel pain, he cocked the shotgun, still in Charlie's hands. He yanked it an inch toward him while pointing the barrel behind him. The movement caused Charlie's trigger finger to flinch. The gun fired. Jane shrieked and went down.

The world slowed down. The scent of the woods filled the air. Edward heard the rapid beating of Charlie’s heart, the swirl of the wind through the trees. His head pounded. He watched Charlie's eyes grow bigger as the chief finally began to react to the shotgun blast. His mouth opened. Wrinkles formed on his forehead and his shoulders tightened.

Edward pulled the shotgun away from Charlie and spun around, cocking and firing repeatedly until the gun fired no more. He let out a war cry as Aro tumbled into him. The two men became one, barreling into Charlie on their way over the edge of the porch. The shotgun went flying and they crashed through the railing, thudding to the ground.

Edward came up first. He put his hands around Aro's neck and squeezed with everything he had. He heard bones snap. Still he squeezed harder.

Aro smacked his forehead into Edward's nose, crushing it and temporarily blinding him. Edward released his grip and staggered back.

Aro jumped on him. He put his knee into Edward's gut, wrapped his big hands around Edward's throat. Edward tried to pull Aro's arms from him, but Aro was too strong. He kicked hard upward and was able to lock his feet around Aro's head from behind. He pulled down with his legs. Aro had to let go of Edward's neck to free himself.

The two men stood and squared off. Aro moved his head from side to side, adjusting his neck as the bones Edward had broken healed themselves. He looked at Edward and smiled.

"This is going to be fun," he said. Two shotgun wounds in his body had also begun to heal. Edward's aim had been good, but not good enough. "I have not had the pleasure of personally decapitating a vampire of your skill level in quite some."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

They both looked to see who was talking. Charlie stood on the porch with the shotgun in one hand, pointed at Aro. He cocked it and held it low.

"Don't, Charlie. This is my battle." Edward saw that Emmett was nearly healed. He motioned for the big vamp to join him. "You up for this?"

"Whatever you need."

They separated, moving apart so they flanked the Volturi leader. Aro crouched down, ready for battle.

Boom.

The right side of Aro's head exploded. Charlie re-cocked the gun.

"If anyone's gonna do any more killing on my property it's gonna be me."

Still Aro stood. There was a massive hole in his forehead just above his eye. But it had already begun to heal. Charlie fired again. The round struck Aro in the chest. His body jerked, but stayed standing.

Aro attacked. Wounded though he was, he was still a beast. He was on Edward in a heartbeat. They tumbled to the ground together and resumed their grappling.

But the shotgun had weakened Aro. Edward took advantage. He gathered up his strength and got behind Aro, wrapping his arms around his neck. He put one hand under Aro's chin and the other behind his neck. He yanked up, hard, again and again and again. The aged vampire's head would not come off. God damned vegetarian diet, he thought. It's weakened me.

Frenzied and desperate, Edward tossed Aro to the ground and stomped on his head. He heard nothing and he saw nothing except his enemy. Over and over he stomped. He purged the past and absolved himself of his sins in that stomping. He ceased thinking entirely. All he could do was destroy that which sought to destroy him until his steel-toed boots were slick with a black, viscous fluid.

"Dude! Edward! Stop. He's gone."

Edward snapped out of the coma-like state he was in. Emmett stood before him, his hands on Edward's shoulders.

Edward looked down at Aro, a pulpy black mess. He was thankful that Charlie listened to him and loaded the armor-piercing rounds. Aro's head was virtually gone. There was nothing left but bits of skull and black tissue; a gruesome puddle.

"I ain't never seen nothing like it." Charlie emerged from the shadows, cradling the gun. He shook his head and surveyed the scene. "Twenty years on the force. A stint in the war manning the fifty-cal. Eyeing prey though the scope, squeezing the trigger when it needed squeezing. Was in the Peace Corps in Somalia before that. Some of the most horrible trauma I’ve ever had the misfortune to witness, over there. I've seen my share of death and dismemberment, young man. But I've never --"

“I’m sorry, Charlie. I really am. But there’s no time for explanations.” Edward turned to Emmett. “Find Jane. I don’t see her body anywhere. I must have wounded her, or she’d be terrorizing us all right now. She will heal, and she will come after you.”

“What about you?”

“I've got to find Bella before the rest of the Volturi do.”

Edward ran to Bella’s pickup truck. He yanked the door open. Ripped wires from the steering column, twisted them together the way he’d been taught. The old beast roared to life. He slammed it in reverse and bounced over a curb on the way out.

In the rearview, Charlie stood in the middle of the road, the gun at his hip.

Edward felt sorry for the old guy. His world had been torn apart in the space of a few weeks, the only family he had left was missing, and now he’d helped one vampire murder another in the quiet of his front yard.

He was doomed.

As Edward sped away, he saw Charlie walk back to the yard. He bent over Aro’s corpse. A moment later, flames rose. Black smoke filled the sky. He saw Charlie flip the Zippo into the air and stuff it into his pocket.

He had really done it. Good lord he’d done it. He had killed a three-thousand-year-old vampire, the leader of the world’s vampires. If he thought his life was fucked before, he was dead wrong. He knew there was no way he’d ever get out of this. This was the absolute definition of fucked if there ever was one.

But Bella. She was all that mattered now. If she was with the Cullens, as he suspected, they were in trouble, too. Caius and Marcus, the other two leaders of the Volturi Council, would send reinforcements when they didn’t hear back from Aro soon. They would get their best tracker. They would almost certainly kill Charlie and Emmett, and for that, Edward felt sorrow. He had grown to like both men.

But he wouldn’t rest until he knew Bella was safe, even if it meant others had to die.

He made his way around Seattle on the state highways and picked up Interstate 90 an hour east of town. From there, it was a straight shot into Montana, and then a jag south through Idaho before heading over the Grand Tetons. It would take fifteen hours at the speed limit. He figured he could do it in twelve if the old truck didn’t break down.

The drive gave him time to think, to plan, to ponder what he was doing.

Did he really believe he could change things? That he could change himself?

Everything he’d seen thus far backed up what he’d always believed. Manifest destiny was a dream. A scam. Society’s way of mollifying the masses. It was no different than religion, in his mind. Each gave hope to the hopeless. Hope was for fools. A hundred years of sorrow had taught him that.

But a life without hope was also a life without fear. Edward had always been fearless. He knew he had to return to that state of mind if he was to survive beyond the next few days.

He was reminded of the words of Voltaire, the eighteenth century French philosopher. They had often brought him comfort in times of trouble.

Each player must accept the cards life deals him or her. But once they are in hand, he or she alone must decide how to play the cards in order to win the game.

Life had dealt him a shitty hand. No one could dispute that. But only he could decide what to do with it. He was through following the rules, whether it be the Volturi's or the Cullens' or those the world around him tried to impose. Look where the rules had gotten him.

No more.

From this day on, he would return to being the man he was meant to be.

He pulled up near the main entrance to one of the half-dozen ski resorts outside Jackson Hole. During the summer, they catered to mountain bikers and other adventure enthusiasts. Edward shook his head at the thought of people who risked their lives for the thrill of it. If only they knew what they were risking.

He'd remembered Alice saying the Cullens would go to Jackson Hole next. There was no other explanation for Bella’s sudden disappearance. Either she had run – and he would have smelled her if she’d been nearby – or Alice saw what was happening and the Cullens came to her rescue before the commotion started. He wasn't sure why they didn't stay to help, but there must be an explanation. They wouldn't leave Emmett behind without a reason.

He shut the truck down and closed his eyes. It was nearly midnight. The few bars that were still open seemed quiet, the early-week lull after the constant party that each weekend brought.

He scanned the area as best he could, trying to find Alice, Carlisle, any of the Cullens. They were his only potential connection to Bella.

He picked up nothing, save for the few internal ramblings of the stragglers still at the bars.

He put the pickup back into gear and pulled away. The Cullens were probably at a cabin further from the center of town. Too far away for him to get a reading. He'd have to drive slowly by each set of cabins, hoping for the best.

As he neared the mountain road, he spotted a car in his rear-view. It approached quickly. He stepped on the gas, hoping to find a side road to turn into before the car got too close.

But it was too fast. The headlights got larger, then disappeared altogether as the car rode right up to his bumper. He was about to slam on the brakes so he could take care of the driver permanently, whoever it was, when red and blue lights flashed from atop the vehicle.  

This would be easy. In normal times, he didn't like killing cops. It brought too much attention. But now was not a normal time. Besides, he was hungry.

The officer approached his door, and Edward rolled down the window. He steeled himself for what was to come.

"I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised to find you here, Edward."

"Charlie?"

Edward pulled his hands from the steering wheel and rested them in his lap. He shook his head slowly and offered the barest hint of a smile.

"How the hell did you know to come to the middle of Wyoming?"

"Find my iPhone. Seems Bella got a new phone a few weeks back,” Charlie said, smiling. “She has a terrible habit of leaving it laying around the house where anyone might mess with it. Always uses the same password for everything, too: Her mother's birthday."

He showed Edward his phone's screen. It showed a blue icon over a map of the area with the words “Bella’s iPhone” in black. By the looks of it, Bella's phone, and likely Bella herself, was just a few miles up the road.

"You're a good man, Charlie Swan," Edward said. "Are you sure you're ready for this?"

"You and I ain't through talking," Charlie replied. He fixed his gaze on Edward. "You understand? I got you for three murders back home. And you still owe me an explanation for whatever the hell it was happened in my front yard."

He stopped and shook his head. “Frankly, though, I’m not sure I’d believe anything you told me at this point, outside of maybe aliens or psychedelic drugs."

"You help me get Bella to safety, Charlie,” Edward said, laughing, “and I'll tell you anything you want to know. The truth. All of it. That's a promise from me to you."

"Good to know." Charlie nodded.

"I’ll follow you," Edward said, looking back at the police car.

"Hope you can keep up." Charlie climbed into the driver’s seat and spun the wheels as he maneuvered the Crown Vic around the pickup.

Edward shifted the truck into gear and settled in behind the police car, content to let Charlie take the lead. For now.

-30-

A/N Alls I gots to say about that is whoa.

As usual, the wonderful MazzyStarla made this chapter better than it would have been. I promise you that. The other parts are my fault.

Wondering what the hell is up with Charlie? Stick around. He’ll be talking soon. ...

The Man in the Long Black Coat, Chapter Sixteen

Edward clasped his hands together and got up from the sofa for the tenth time in the last hour.

"Just go," Alice said. "You're not doing anyone any good here."

"Emmett is perfectly capable of protecting her. I know that. It's too risky for me to be out in public."

He'd been holding off making a decision about Charlie. He didn't want Alice to see anything. But the more he thought about it, the worse the idea of killing him sounded. Sure, it would get rid of one problem, but it would cause even more. A dead police chief would attract attention from the state and the feds. Besides, he knew Bella would crumble, despite her tough persona. He couldn't live with himself if he did that to her.

As he lost himself in thought, Alice walked up to him and put one hand on his shoulder. She turned his head toward her and looked him in the eye. "Edward. You may not see what's going on here, but it's perfectly clear to me." She paused and raised her eyebrows. "You're in love, silly boy. Believe me, sitting around and fidgeting on the sofa isn't going to put your mind at rest. So go. Sit in the woods with Emmett and watch over her house. He'll appreciate the company. We're going to our place in Jackson Hole after this. There's not much companionship there."

Edward sighed. "You're right, you know. About everything."

He pulled at the lapels of his coat, checked his pockets to be sure he had everything he needed. His cell phone, his chain, an extra pack of smokes and the Zippo.

"You'll tell Carlisle I said thank you?"

"Get out of here," Alice said, a huge smile plastered across her face. "We'll see you again. I can't see it yet, because you haven't decided where you're going, but I can feel it, Edward. You can tell him yourself when we all meet again."

Edward was ready to move on from Forks. He was ready to start the next phase of his life, whatever it may be. He found himself feeling optimistic for the first time in decades. He knew it didn’t make sense, not with the Volturi after him. But Bella. He’d somehow fallen for her. He had to admit, he liked her attitude. He smiled when he thought about how she was the first person he’d known since he was turned who had the guts to see him as something other than a threat. She wasn’t afraid, even though she probably should be.

Being with her made him feel almost human again, not the monster he’d grown used to being.

He walked slowly through the woods, enjoying what he knew would probably be the last peaceful night of his life for some time. As he neared Bella’s house, he found Emmett by searching for his thoughts. The big bear of a vampire had chosen a spot near the rear of the house, not with a direct view of Bella's bedroom window, but one which afforded a more complete picture of the whole property.

"Any activity?"

"Nada," Emmett said. "She went straight up to her room. Didn't even talk to her dad. Since then, it's been quieter than a whorehouse full of Presbyterians on Easter Sunday, dude."

Edward looked at the house. Everything appeared serene. He scanned for Charlie's thoughts, only to find that he was asleep, dreaming about the war again. He was frustrated once again that he couldn't read Bella's mind. He had no real way of knowing if she was safe.

"I'm going to head down there. Take a look around," he told Emmett.

"Sure thing, man," Emmett said with a smile. "I'll hold the fort down up here."

Edward jimmied the sliding glass door on the rear deck and slipped in quietly. He was glad to see that Bella was asleep. She would need to be well rested for their trip.

His curiosity got the better of him, and he headed for Charlie's room. He wasn't sure why, but he was drawn there. He didn't even pause to scan for Charlie's thoughts. He twisted the knob slowly and eased the door open. The room was pitch black. Even with his superior eyesight, he couldn't make anything out.

He stepped carefully toward where he thought the bed might be. He stopped and inhaled sharply when he heard a click and felt cold steel pressed to the skin under his right ear.

"It's Edward, isn't it?"

"Yes."

Charlie flipped a light switch. "Have a seat, Edward." He nodded toward the bed. Edward hesitated. The barrel pressed in tighter and he heard Charlie’s heartbeat speed up. He knew he could disarm Charlie and put him down before he knew what had happened, but the truth was that he respected the man's bravery. That must be where Bella got it from. Edward was curious where this was going, so he sat. He knew he was in no danger from a small caliber weapon, no matter what it was loaded with.

Charlie remained standing, two feet away. He kept the gun high, aiming with both hands.

“You’re going to answer some questions. Do you understand?”

Edward nodded.

“Did you kill Mike Newton, Waylon Forge and Tyler Crowley?

Edward said nothing. He bit his lip and contemplated what he should say. He knew he couldn’t lie. Charlie surely had it figured out already.

“Answer me. Right now.”

“Yes,” Edward said. “You’ll find Newton’s body about two miles from here, to the west.”

Charlie paused. "Did you come here to kill me?"

“No.”

"To kill Bella?"

"I would never hurt Bella."

"Then why are you in my house? In my bedroom?"

"The truth, sir?” He sighed. “I'm not really sure."

"You had better start talking, young man. Because my trigger finger's getting twitchy." He leveled the gun at Edward's forehead and tightened his grip.

Edward moved quickly. He took the gun from Charlie's hands and ejected the magazine. He slid the chamber back and popped the remaining bullet out, catching it in the air. He clicked the safety on and slid the now unloaded gun back into Charlie's hands before the chief had reacted.

"A bit of advice," Edward said, moving toward the door. "Get the shotgun. Load it with the armor piercing rounds. And take this, Charlie." He flipped his Zippo into the air. "You never know when you might need it."

Edward was gone before Charlie caught the lighter in mid-air. He cursed himself for being so foolish. He should have realized Charlie was awake. But whenever he was near Bella, his mind-reading power seemed to go on the fritz. It either got fuzzy or he'd simply forget to use it. He wasn't sure if it was because she distracted him, or something other reason.

Emmett was sitting on a downed tree when he returned to their spot in the woods.

"How's it going down there? All's well, I assume."

"She's asleep."

Too late, Edward heard movement in the woods behind him. Emmett apparently heard it too, because he jumped up from a crouch and spun around quickly. Edward's instinct was to run for Bella's house, but he stopped himself. He needed to gauge the potential threat first.

"If it isn't the gentle Edward Anthony Masen," a voice rang out from the darkness.

Edward turned to Emmett. "Go! Now! Get her out of there."

Emmett was a blur in the trees.

"Aro," Edward said. He read two others. Jane and Demetri, the tracker. They joined their leader, flanking him on either side.

"Tsk tsk," Aro said. "One should not agree to follow a set of rules one is incapable of comprehending, Mr. Masen. You are no humble vegetarian." He began to laugh, as if the very concept of a vegetarian vampire were humorous.

"What is it you want, Aro? Or have you come all this way simply to mock me?"

"Ooh, so sensitive."

He flipped his long coat outward with a dramatic flair. His eyes glowed bright red against his pure white skin. He kept his jet-black hair slicked back, forming a prominent widow's peak on his forehead. The whole picture brought to mind some forgotten Dracula movie. Edward would have laughed under different circumstances.

"You have no business here, Aro. Leave me be and I'll go on my way. You'll never hear from me again. That's a guarantee."

"Oh, it's a guarantee this time? Let me just pack up my bags and go then."

He turned as if to leave, but spun back around dramatically.

"Except, well, I seem to remember a similar promise some years back, Mr. Masen. It seems you have trouble keeping your promises.”

He put his hands out in front of him, palms up. "Or is it me? Am I perhaps too harsh in my judgment? Are my standards too high? Poor Mr. Masen. He's been entrapped by the evil overlord! Oh, what a tragedy!" He cackled in hideous laughter, rearing his head back. It echoed through the forest like some sort of sick mating call.

Jane smirked. Demetri snorted. Edward said nothing.

"Be that as it may," Aro continued, "the rules, however harsh you may consider them, are there for good reason. I can't have any old vamp disregard them simply because it is convenient. No. That won't do."

Aro rubbed his chin, theatrically furrowing his brow and sighing heavily.

"I suppose I could offer a compromise. Let it never be said that I am not a compassionate dictator." He smiled and pursed his lips. "Yes, then. A compromise."

He turned to Demetri. "You will get the girl. The human. And you-"

Edward lunged forward, but Jane fixed him with a look. He collapsed in pain, his hands instinctively going to his head.

"I was not finished, Mr. Masen. You must learn your manners." He turned to Jane. "You will hold our ill-tempered friend here while I contemplate my options."

Edward struggled to speak. "I'll do whatever you ask, Aro. Just leave Bella alone!"

"The human has a name? Oh, how delightful. Bella the Beautiful!"

He bent over Edward, who was still crouched down in obvious pain. Aro put a hand on Edward's chin and lifted his head.

"The law is perfectly clear, is it not?"

Aro looked around the forest, as if he expected some response from the trees.

"Humans shall know nothing of our existence. It is the first law, Mr. Masen." He bent further and whispered in Edward's ear. "And don't tell anyone I said so, for we can't have people disregarding the rule of law, but it is really the only law that matters."

Screaming rang out from the direction of Bella's house. Edward struggled to move, but he couldn't.

It sounded, to Edward's astonishment, like Demetri. More noise. The sounds of a struggle. Glass shattered. Wood cracked. There was an explosion of gunfire. Edward knew that sound. It was Charlie's shotgun.

Aro perked up. Jane lost her train of thought, freeing Edward. The three of them ran for the house.

They arrived to find Demetri's corpse sprawled across the front yard, his head upside down on the hood of Bella's pickup. Emmett lay on the porch, a hole in his gut the size of a basketball.

"Sorry, dude," he said through gritted teeth. "I killed the tracker, but I didn't plan on a human with military hardware."

Charlie stood behind them both, the shotgun ready. The front door sat askew on its hinges and glass littered the porch. Emmett's wound was already healing, but he would need a few minutes before he'd be able to function again.

Edward put himself between Emmett and Charlie, while Aro and Jane bent over Demetri's decaying corpse, obviously upset.

"Where's Bella?" Edward screamed.

"Now hold on there, Edward. I don't know what-"

Edward was in his face immediately. He put his hand over the end of the shotgun. "Tell me where she is. She's in more danger right now than you can possibly imagine."

Aro stood up and brushed debris from his pants. "Our mutual acquaintance is correct, sir. Charles, is it?"

Edward stepped forward, while Charlie moved the shotgun in Aro's direction. "I don't know where she is, Edward," Charlie said, keeping his eyes on Aro. "I went to get her when I heard trouble coming, figuring it was you, but she's not in her room. She disappeared."

He looked around at the scene in front of his house and shook his head. "Now, before we go any further, will someone please tell me what the hell is going on?"

-30-

A/N Well that was fun. But where the hell is Bella? And what must Charlie be thinking right now? And Aro? He’s crazier than I thought he’d be. What a nutjob.

Thanks, as always, to MazzyStarla for her wisdom. And thanks to all who've reviewed, followed, or faved for validating my existence. ;) Y'all rule.