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Chapter 2,

Was I ever happy? Did I ever run around and play with my beloved parents? It seemed like so long ago. Like a dream. Two faces full of love, arms to hold me tight and dry my tears when I cried. I didn't cry anymore. I hadn't for ten years.

Fifteen years since the House of Volterra stole our kingdom. I was twenty one and I could still remember the day King Carlisle was thrown at us as if he were nothing. It used to be so sad for me. How could someone be so heartless? How could someone slaughter a happy family like that? Shatter happiness in it's purest form. I remembered when Alice turned seven. She had a magnificent party and all of the children were invited. On that day I had a terrible flu so I couldn't go. I was sad, but the next day a messenger appeared with a slice of the magnificent cake.

That was when times were good. Now, as I looked out of my window, there was nothing but pain and sadness. It was everywhere. The children ran through the streets with tattered clothes and smudges on their little faces. They never knew the happiness we had under Carlisle Cullen. They would grow up knowing pain and suffering. That's what this world offered them. A part of me was jealous. They didn't know how good things were before. How happy we all were.

I hugged my knees and sighed as I watched them skip happily around. I knew what had been, and I knew what was. Even though he never could control it, the skies seemed brighter when Carlisle ruled. It rained a lot these days. It was cloudy and dreary. Life was pain and that was all there was to it.

This wasn't what my father wanted for me. But because of Volterra we had no choice. I wasn't Bella Swan anymore. She died on that winters night. I didn't smile and laugh, carefree and innocent. I was an assassin now. I worked to destroy the rule Aro and his deranged brothers had over us.

It broke Billy's heart. He half heartedly tried to make me stop. But he knew it was no use. My eyes burned with rage for the regime and more importantly, the man who took my parents away from me.

I stood up and went to my bedroom. I lived in a small apartment downtown. Much to my dislike, Billy lived directly below me. But happily, Jake lived right across the hall. He usually came over to bother me and sometimes I would go and annoy him.

I pulled my shirt off, ignoring the fact that I was now completely topless and I always ran the risk of intrusion by Jacob.

Like now.

"Yo Bells...Jesus!"

"They're called breasts, Jake," I said casually. "Women have them. Some fat noble men have them too."

"Why is it fifty percent of the times I come over here you're doing something to make the little wolf jump into action?"

"I don't see why you worry," I sighed, opening my dresser and grabbing a tank top, "it's not like I ever see when you get one."

"Oh burn," he groaned falling back onto my bed. "At least you weren't giving yourself a...hem...exam."

"God that was one time!" I moaned.

"I should have mounted you right there!"

"You're such a pig," I sighed, pulling the top over my head. "Besides, your little wolf wouldn't be near enough to satisfy me."

"Wow girl you know how to sting," he sighed. "But seriously, you know they have this invention called the bra right?"

"I'm about as developed as a prepubescent boy," I reminded him, "it's a waste. You have bigger breasts than I do."

"You realize that everybody in the squad has seen your nipples right?"

"You realize that I don't really care because nobody sees me sexually."

"Well duh! You'll cut their head off! Both of them!"

I laughed and changed into sweatpants.

"I liked it when you had long hair," Jacob sighed.

"Well it got in the way," I reminded him, running my fingers loosely through my cropped hair. "Besides, when I do have to go undercover long hair makes it hard to wear wigs."

"That's why you ignore going undercover and just shoot the bastards."

"Or I can seduce them, get info out of them and then shoot them. There is nothing like shooting a noble in the face right after going down on him."

I loved to tease Jacob. I never slept with my prey or done anything remotely sexual with them beyond a kiss on the neck and a breathy request to find a bed. They loved that. Right up until I slit their throat with my knife or lodged a bullet in their empty heads. But for fun, I let him think that I used my body to trap men.

--

Meetings usually proved to be exceedingly dull. Ass numbingly really. I walked with Billy and Jacob into the Nest. Feeling the ground shift ever so slightly I ducked, jumped and rolled as electric shocks shot across the tunnel.

"Show off," Jacob muttered, stepping around them. He missed the last one and yelped. I burst out laughing and Billy did too.

"She may be a show off but at least she isn't getting electrocuted!"

"Help...me..." he moaned.

I grabbed his foot and dragged him into the nest. Then I went to get a Buzz Pill from the first aid kit. A pill specially designed to help with the paralysis from electric shock. "Here."

"Dumbass," Billy mumbled.

"Shut up I forgot!" Jacob grumbled after swallowing the pill.

It was our trap. The shock wasn't enough to kill, just temporarily immobilize. If it's one of our own we give him or her a pill and tease them for a few hours but if it was an enemy...well we'd have a little different kind of fun.

"Way to go Wolf."

"Oh bite me Ripple!" Jacob snapped.

We didn't have names here. We had code names. Jacob's was Wolf (his own lame choice). Mine was Shadow. Billy gave it to me. His was Dark and my father's was Light. It made me happy that he gave much such a good nickname.

"Surely you could teach your little friend how to dodge."

"Ripple if you don't want to lose a couple of teeth I suggest you shut the hell up!" Jacob snapped, standing shakily.

I rolled my eyes and took my seat. Ripple sat across from me. I didn't know how I felt about him. We had been working together for a few years now. He was a skilled assassin, specializing in projectiles and hand to hand, much like myself. Though I had a soft spot for knives. There was something satisfying about sweeping a blade through a patriot's skin.

I didn't know much about where he came from. He just showed up one day while he was running from an MP. Spider, our leader, found him and brought him in. I don't know why his nickname was Ripple. Probably because Bronze and Copper were taken. I called him Red to make him mad. But he said it was because his work caused a "Ripple Effect". Billy said it was because he was a dumbass.

I was more inclined to agree with Billy. More because I didn't know if I liked Ripple or not yet. He was handsome enough. Bronze hair and beautiful green eyes. A slender but muscular build. He wasn't a bulking mass like some of the other members. He was stealthy and strategic, just like Fox.

"Shadow, you're looking tired."

Speak of the devil.

"I didn't sleep well last night," I said.

"I'm sorry to hear that," he said sitting.

Fox was also one of those that was a little too pretty to be real. But that was to be expected. He was from a noble family and was at one time the betrothed of Alice Cullen. I actually knew quite a bit about him. His name was Jasper Whitlock. He was the only son of Lord and Lady Whitlock. His mother had been close friends with the late queen and when he was three he was betrothed to Alice when she was born. His mother was eternally loyal to the Cullens, unlike his father who joined ranks with the Volturi.

I could relate to him. He, like Jacob and myself, knew what it was like to lose everything so quickly. When his mother was discovered at a protest against the House of Volterra his father locked her away and when she refused to denounce her loyalty to Carlisle and Esme as the true king and queen he killed her. Jasper, who had been thirteen at the time, witnessed it and narrowly escaped death himself when he escaped.

Much to my dislike, he and Ripple were best friends.

"I think he fancies you," Jasper whispered to me.

No need to ask who. There was only a few men in the room with us at the time and two of them were in my adoptive family.

Ripple didn't like me. Ripple wanted to fuck me. I wasn't going to lie and say I didn't feel the same. He had a delicious body. But still, there was something about his emerald eyes that was...enchanting. That was why he was put on assignments where he could dazzle his prey. Not that he ever resorted to that. He didn't like deceiving his targets before killing them if he could avoid it.

Fox had absolutely no problem with it. He was old school like that. Deception before assassination. Because of his upbringing he was very charismatic and could charm anyone, man or woman. Everyone knew that he had died as a boy. Lord Whitlock's tragic loss of his family.

Jasper thirsted for revenge. I could see it in his eyes. When his father flashed on Spider's radar as a threat he would be the first to assassinate him. Just like myself. I was waiting for Spider to say that they found the man in grey or Phil. My father's friend. My mother's friend. One of my uncles. That night flashed quickly through my mind again and my fists clenched.

"You okay?" Jasper asked.

"Thinking," I mumbled.

He patted my hand. "Don't worry, you'll dance on his grave soon enough."

"Will you dance with me?" I asked, nudging him with my shoulder.

"Haha funny."

I was about to say something else when a pair of huge arms wrapped around my shoulders.

"Hey Wolf," I sighed, leaning against him. "So the paralysis wore off?"

Jasper snorted and Ripple flat out laughed.

"What's so funny?" Spider demanded as he walked in. None of us answered but we stopped laughing immediately.

I respected Spider with everything I had. But he was a heartless bastard and I didn't like him. He didn't like that his squad was overrun by "overly enthusiastic teenagers"

He liked me. I was different than the rest. When he grumbled about being overrun by teenagers I stood and pointed out that he should see himself fortunate. When he asked why I thought so I told him it was because we were all idealistic and convinced that we would never die.

Yes, Spider thought I was amusing and intelligent.

Billy thought I was a smartass that needed to calm down. But I knew that secretly, he wouldn't have it any other way. He loved me as much as he loved his own son (maybe more sometimes). But lately he had been watching me with pained eyes. As if he didn't like what I was doing.

"Alright, alright, alright settle down!" Spider said, taking the head of the table. "All here? Good. Dark, report."

I hated the morning reports. They were so boring. Billy talked about the movements of the nobles and more importantly, the fake royals.

"Aro is holding a ball this weekend," Billy said.

"Let's go bomb the crap out of all of them while they're trapped in the ballroom!" Jacob suggested, banging his fist on the table, "wipe them all out at once!"

"It's too risky," Spider said. "But I like the idea of them all in one place."

"The security will have been increased," Jasper said calmly, "such a large gathering of the heads of state will bring tight security. I can think of a few individuals for sure that will be standing on guard."

"Like?" Jacob growled.

"Demitri for starters, Jane, Alec and Felix, just to name a few. I'm sure you know the danger Jane alone proposes," Jasper said grimly.

"I say we should just bomb the palace," Ember said from down the way. Ah Ember, so young and innocent. Stupid enough to pick that nickname when his real name was Embry, but he was eager and had potential.

"No," Ripple said suddenly, "we don't bomb the palace."

"Why the hell not?" Copper asked.

"Because," he said quietly, "destroying that would be destroying the last scrap we have of King Carlisle. It gives people hope."

"Well said boy," Billy said with a nod.

There was something else in his voice. Something...sad. I didn't care enough to read too deep into it though. It was true, Cullen Palace was all we had left of our beloved rulers. Our true rulers.

"I think we should plan an attack..."

"I disagree," Jasper said standing.

"Fox, I am the leader here."

"Going in will be suicide! If you'll recall King Carlisle had security at his balls too, and he had nothing to fear!"

"Obviously that wasn't the case," Spider growled, "leaving us here."

Ripple stood up suddenly. "We aren't debating the Cullens," he said angrily, "we're discussing if attacking the ball would be suicide. Which it would!"

"They're waiting for an attack," Jasper said loudly. "If we attack them we'll be doing exactly what they want."

"He has a point," Ripple argued. "Aro seems like the type that would be using this party as an excuse."

"Think about it logically," Jasper said, leaning on the table with both hands. He reminded me of a lawyer from old movies. "The Volturi know that we want to kill them. They know that there is a rebellion boiling and they aren't going to take chances. If you go, or send us in there, Spider, our blood will be on your hands. They will slaughter us!"

"Fox, sit down and be quiet. We need to take the offensive. We've been hiding for too long..."

"NO! I WON'T LET YOU KILL US!" Jasper yelled, banging his fist on the table.

I had never seen Jasper so riled up before. Nobody had. He was usually so calm and reserved.

"I know what I'm doing."

"Fine then," Jasper growled.

"Spider, we can't do this," Billy said quietly, "Fox is right. If we attack we die. I know you want to take them down. We all do. But we have to be patient."

Spider looked at Billy and backed down. I didn't know much about my leader's personal life beyond that his name was Sam and he was a born leader. Skilled at what he did and highly lethal. But he knew that Billy knew what he was doing. Billy was his right hand. Only a few years older than him.

"I know you want them dead," Billy said in the same quiet voice, "we all do, we have all lost ones that we love to those bastards, for the lucky ones it was only our beloved king and queen. But we must be smart about this. Pick them off when we can, when they stray away from the pack."

"Fine," Sam said, holding his hands up. "You win. I give up."

The meeting continued. Duller after that point. Assassination reports were given and we assessed who was the biggest threat. Pretty boring after watching Jasper scream at Spider.

I glanced over at Ripple. His jaw was hard and his lips a strait line. His eyes were focused on his hands which were clenched tight.

"Ripple, you and Shadow will take this mission."

"Yes sir!" we both said. I eagerly accepted my task, avoiding Billy's eyes. He hated when I accepted assignments.

"Spider I don't think an assignment of that magnitude should be handled by two kids."

"I'm not a kid!" Ripple and I both said at the same time.

"Fine," Same sighed, "Wolf you go with them."

Jacob and I grinned at each other and Billy closed his eyes, mentally counting to ten. I knew for a fact that he hated the lifestyle his son chose. Especially since he used to have a say in the matter. But Jake was an adult now, and legally able to do whatever he pleased. I had always been the exception. While Jacob had lost his mother and sisters, I had lost everything. Betrayed by the man I looked up to as another father. He knew that talking me out of my revenge was useless. I would find the man in grey, and I would find Phil. I would kill them both.

I felt Jasper's gentle hand on mine. I wasn't going to lie. I used to have a monster crush on him. But now, he was my brother and one of my best friends. He always knew when I was upset or riled up. Jake, on my other side squeezed my hand. He was excited about the mission.

Ripple on the other hand, was rolling his eyes at my immature friend.

TBC

Enjoy and please review! I hope the code names aren't throwing anyone off too badly. I just can't imagine a rebellion squad that would use actual names. For the most part the squad is made up of the pack because let's face it...it works. I'm having fun with them!

To help out here are the code names so far as Bella knows them:

Shadow - Bella Swan

Dark - Billy Black

Wolf - Jacob Black

Light - Charlie Swan

Fox - Jasper Whitlock

Spider - Sam Uley

Copper - Quil Ateara (or however the hell you spell it)

Ember - Embry (don't kill me I don't know his last name!)