Disclaimer: I do not own anything Twilight. This was written as an original story and converted to a Twilight Fan fiction piece to garner interest in the story. I will release the original version at the end of each book.

Chapter 2

I move down the corridor with singular purpose. I have more questions that need answers and my father has pointed me in the right direction to get those answers. I see Alice and Jake standing in the hallway with Shenani and Demetri. I barely acknowledge them as I stride past, my eyes scanning the distance, locking on my target. Vladamir is deep in a conversation with Emily Young and I plan on demanding answers from him before he disappears again.

"Bella?" I whirl around as a hand touches my arm. Shenani jumps back as I regard her with a cold gaze.

"What is it?" I hiss through clenched teeth at her. She means well but I have no time for well-wishing or small talk.

"Nothing," she squeaks quietly, completely subdued. She retreats to Demetri's arms like a whipped puppy. He consoles her while Emily and Jake look on in surprise.

"Bella, that wasn't very nice, she just wanted to see how you are doing. She is worried about you, we all are." Alice is using the stern tone that reminds me of her mother.

"I'm fine." I snap at her. "I just don't have time to talk right now." I turn to leave and find Ben blocking my path.

"Make the time Bella," he says in his quiet unassuming voice. I did not expect Ben to be the one to stand up to me. "We all had a hand in planning your rescue, and we all worried about you through your recovery. This is not you, I know you would never treat your friends this way…" he trails off but holds my gaze.

I falter a little under his stare. "It isn't that…" I stammer a little as I look at the others. "I just need some time, that's all. Really I'm fi…"

"Fine" Jake finished my sentence. "Yeah Bella, we get it. After all, it's obvious to everyone; you are the picture of mental health." His sarcasm is biting, he is not happy with how I am treating everyone and he is making no bones about it.

"Guys, give her some space alright? She's been through a lot." Edward steps out of a doorway in the hall and stands beside me.

"So what is this? You are VFF's now?" Demetri might have bungled the acronym but his suspicion is clear. Edward is not very discreet when it comes to hiding our newly made alliance.

"It's BFF you non English speaking Ruskie!" Edward yells at Demetri who gets right up in his face. It is about to come to blows when we hear someone clearing their throat behind us.

"I'm sorry to interrupt…" Ms. Epperson's voice is unmistakable, "I need to speak with you when you have a moment Bella." She regards the group with her steely gaze that betrays no emotion but at the same time seems to dare anyone to challenge her.

"Of course, I can talk right now. I just wanted to speak to Vladamir before he…" I look back down the hall for Vladamir but he is gone.

"Vladamir had to leave, I'm sure you will be able to catch up with him another time." Ms. Epperson's clipped words indicate she is losing patience. "I have set up a meeting area in the library; I will see you there in ten minutes." She is not asking, ten minutes meant now and I knew it.

I make my way to the familiar library and find the area has been setup with a table, laptop and chairs. I am alone in the makeshift conference room but I know better than to think I am not being watched. I sit and wait, this is a power game, I know it well. She will keep me waiting long enough to establish between us who is in charge and who is the subordinate.

After a few minutes Ms. Epperson walks in, she is looking at a datapad which she presses her thumb on and then hands to an aide who hold her chair while she seats herself across from me.

"Leave us," she says to the aide who exits via a side door that clicks shut behind him. Ms. Epperson pulls a device from her pocket and sets it on the desk, it looks a lot like the device Ben and I developed as part of my ill-fated attempt to demonstrate an aptitude for science and gadgets. The device was supposed to use sonic pulses to map a room and detect hidden passages and false walls. What it ended up actually doing was shattering all glass within a fifty foot radius and causing Ben's father Norman to request I not be allowed back in the lab ever again. The device, Ben nicknamed the 'Sonic Shatterer' had been instrumental in our first unauthorized excursion from The Compound.

I wince as I watch Ms. Epperson press the activation button on the device but instead of a shrill ear splitting pulse there is a low volume activation sound, not unlike the sound you would hear when a photographer is using a high intensity flash on his camera.

"Don't worry," Ms. Epperson smiles and looks me over. "Some of my resources have repurposed your invention and now it is very effective at jamming listening devices. I thought maybe we should chat alone for a moment." She folds her hands with perfectly manicured nails in front of her and gets down to business. "I know what you are planning; since you are new to our faction I will let you in on something." She leans slightly forward. "Don't." Her eyes narrow, "You are not the first to have something like this happen to her, nor will you be the last. You will trust the judgment of your faction leader and not seek revenge on your own. Such action could jeopardize the entire organization and would result in... sanctions." Her pause before the last word left no question as to its meaning. I would cease to be an asset and be deemed a liability. People tended to have short lifespans within The Gentlemen when that happened.

"So I'm just supposed to continue on like nothing has happened?" I make no effort to control my anger. "They took me, but the plan is clear. They are coming for us all, in one way or another. Doesn't my desire for revenge and the security of the organization coincide on this particular subject?" I am trying to convince her but in my mind this is a formality. I will do what I need to do with or without her blessing.

"NO!" I jump slightly as Ms. Epperson's small fist bangs on the table and I see a small crack in her otherwise unreadable visage. "You are not listening; I am not asking you, I am telling you. You will comply and you will NOT attempt an individual vendetta." She regains her composure. "Now that we have settled that you must be also made aware of the various resources available to you within the Black Collars."

I suddenly realize what she has been slow-walking me to. "You say I cannot attempt an individual vendetta. Am I permitted to involve my faction, or even the whole organization, using all the resources at my disposal to maximize the success of the operation?"

She claps her hands together slowly. "Very good Bella! And here I thought your ordeal had clouded your judgment to the point where your keen mind had been shut off in favor of blind rage. Yes you may request resources and, as long as your goals will benefit the organization as a whole, we will do our best to accommodate you." She pauses before continuing in a more affable tone. "And if you manage to meet your own goals within those constraints, we shall all walk away from this satisfied."

I stand and face her unflinching. "Thank you Ms. Epperson, I would like to take this time to formally request the resources needed to track down and eliminate the members of the former "New Management" movement. I would request that the enemies of the organization known as Jasper and Emmett Whitlock as well as James Witherdale all be marked for termination on sight. As for the traitor Rosalie Hale, I leave her fate in your hands."

"Agreed, in fact I have already ordered TOS orders on the first three. Ms. Hale however, is a delicate matter; she is to be brought to us, alive. I want no other factions to know of her capture until I have had the opportunity to question her. Understood?" Ms. Epperson rises from her seat, indicating the meeting is over. "Mr. Cullen will fill you in on the resources we have made available to you. Clean this up quickly, and as quietly as possible." She leaves without a backward glance.

I pick up the device she had left on the table. Switching it off I drop it in a pocket, never know when a decent jamming device will come in handy. Turning to leave I see Edward leaning in the doorway.

"How long have you been standing there?" I ask, only half expecting an honest answer.

"Long enough… So who is first?" His meaning is clear, he wants a target.

"Emmett Whitlock" I reply without hesitation. "He is the weak link, a dumb brute that makes mistakes. He will lead us to Jasper and the rest." I stride past him and he scrambles to keep up. "I need you to arrange for a meeting with Vladamir, can you do that?"

"Sure, it might take a few days…." Edward stops as I turn and regard him with icy calm.

"Can you or can't you? 'Might' doesn't help me, neither does 'a few days' I need specifics and precision on my team." I turn and continue down the hall.

"I can get you a meeting with him within the next forty-eight hours." Edward is on board with the new way of doing things. For now, he is an asset.

I walk to the breakfast nook and find Garrett talking to one of his security staff. I wait impassively while he finishes and the security detail leaves. "Hey, Bella, what's going on?"

I cut him off, "I'm putting a team together. I'd like you Ben, Jake, Alice, Shenani and Demetri in my room as soon as possible if you are willing to help." I turn to leave, no time for niceties.

"Hey, whoa! Hang on there. Of course we are willing to help but the whole; 'All hail Bella' way of doing things is wearing a little thin. Let's just take a breath and not forget that you are a relative newcomer here." He puts a hand on my shoulder to stop me from leaving.

I slowly turn and look at his hand on my shoulder and then at him, then back to his hand until he slowly removes it. That accomplished I address him as a parent would address a child who did not understand what was going on.

"Garrett you have been a loyal and valuable friend and ally to my family and me for a long time now. I don't want what I say next to change any of that or make you think I do not appreciate all you have done, because I do." I take a breath and change my tone. "This is the new way we are doing things, I have a singular purpose at this point and you are either with me or you can get the fuck out of my way. They are going to pay for what they did and no one but me is going to see it done the way I need it done." My meaning is clear; I am going to make the kill, nothing short of that will satisfy my need.

I look into his eyes and see his look soften as he chooses his next words like a man on fire navigating a minefield in the dark while being chased by bees... and the bees are also on fire. "Bella, you know you can count on me for anything you need, but you need to understand something about killing – something that Jorgie or Demetri or Jake won't tell you. It opens up a part of you, a part you can't ever put away again. Everyone calls it something different but it is a universal truth and no one can escape it. It will change you Bella and neither your father, myself, nor any of the others who care about you want that for you." He put his hands on my shoulders and forces me to look at him. "Let me do this for you kid… I will kill them all, however you want. I will make them suffer, beg, bleed and regret every horrible thing they did to you. All I ask is that you trust ME to do it, your hands are still clean, and I aim to keep it that way."

I move out of his grasp… my anger starts to slip away when he talks to me like that and I am not ready to let it go. I keep my face impassive, not letting any emotion show. I pull my rage around me like a security blanket, like a suit of armor that protects me and keeps me warm at the same time. "No Garrett, not this time, this time they are MINE." I spin on my heel and continue to my room.

I have a war to plan.