AN: Okay, here you go! I'm so shocked by the amount of reviews I had last time! They were amazing thanks for your support! I hope you like this chapter and please please please tell me what you think!

Justalil'obsessed

I woke up slowly, painfully. I was numb. Not dead inside, just . . . numb. I rolled onto my side to watch the door until Edward came in. My fiancé, apparently. I cringed.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed and rested them on the cool floor. I needed to shower. I needed to not think about this.

I dreamt last night about Edward again. He was in the bedroom, the setting that had taken a hold of all my dreams lately. And he was kneeling in front of me, with a diamond ring in his hand. His lips were moving and I knew what he was asking, but I couldn't hear him, his voice, anything.

He got more desperate the more I couldn't hear what he was saying until finally he stood up, took my hand and placed the ring on my finger. And then he looked at me with those green eyes and suddenly his voice rang clear through the dream. "You're mine."

And I woke up. It was my own nightmare and I woke up in a cold sweat and a racing heart. I was terrified, yet I didn't even think about doing anything about it. This was saving everyone I loved.

My shower was fast, after realizing that the warm water was doing nothing to relax me. I changed into the shorts and tank top I brought in with me, brushed my hair and teeth, and moved back into the bathroom.

It was strange, how instantly I noticed the door was open. I never looked at it first when I left the bathroom. After the first two weeks or so, I stopped looking, because I always knew it would be closed. But I just saw it. Wide open. Staring into that lighted hallway.

I looked around the room quickly, but I didn't see Edward, or anyone for that matter. But the door was open. My first thoughts were that this was a trick. But Edward had to have known I would literally find some way to shank him with a toothbrush if I walked through that door and he came out laughing and locked me back inside.

Slowly, so very, very slowly, I walked across the room. I stuck my head out and looked both ways. No one. Nothing. Was this a mistake? If it was then I was taking full advantage of this. I couldn't leave, of course. My mom wouldn't be free and my dad wouldn't be released from dept if I escaped. But if I could get out of that god awful room for just a few minutes . . .

I moved quickly down the hallway, down another. It was like a confusing maze. I couldn't remember how many turns I had taken before I came into a dining room. I remembered this room. Very well. I sat in here and was shitting my pants when I escaped from that infirmary room. Which would mean that doorway would lead to the front room.

I stepped out into the familiar checkered tiled room. I moved to the door. The alarm would go off, I knew that. But I just wanted to see outside, see where I was, smell something other than the air in this house, my room. I'd get caught in a heartbeat. But the allure was almost too much.

My hands trembled and shook as I reached for the handle. The brass was so cold. It sent a shock of Goosebumps up my arms. Something shot out from the corner of my eye and I gasped, moving away immediately.

Edward.

He was reaching for the alarm pad, his long fingers pressing buttons. He was wearing a black button down shirt and jeans. White shoes. His face was blank. Not upset, not happy. No smile or scowl. I couldn't read him at all, and all I could do was stand and watch.

A series of beeps sounded off and Edward stepped back, away from me. "It'll be easier to go outside without an alarm and five guys with guns pouncing on you." Edward explained.

I swallowed, thickly. He was letting me go outside. He was letting me do it. "Bella, it's okay." Edward said softly. "You can go outside."

And he just looked so convincing, so serious. He couldn't be joking, could he? Slowly, so slowly, I moved to open the door again. He stood and watched me and I waited to see if he would stop me. If someone would stop me. But I was turning the handle and I was opening the door.

And he was just watching me.

"Thank you." I said quietly, my chest tightening.

And I moved outside.

I had never seen the world so beautifully before. I had never appreciated the blue sky or the fresh air like I was right now. I stepped onto a wooden porch that wrapped around the front of the white house. The boards creaked beneath my bare feet when I moved down the stairs.

I paused before I stepped onto the pathway and moved faster along the path until I was on the lawn, until I was on the grass and the dirt. "It's so beautiful." I said in awe, looking around me. The house was huge, I soon realized. A mansion. Didn't really surprise me. It seemed to have an older look to it, but I knew the inside was anything but old.

The farmer's porch added a beautiful touch, with a patio in the right corner wrapping around and out of sight. The house was surrounded a huge lawn, and the perimeter was scattered with dense trees. I turned around and around and I felt as if I could not get enough, couldn't see enough.

I turned around until I grew so busy that I fell down, onto my back. I stayed there, though, and looked up at the sky. So clear. And blue. I counted a total of five clouds. It was cool outside, perfect, for what I was wearing anyways.

I could feel him watching me. Could feel those eyes trained solely on me and I found it hard to ignore the man I would soon be married to.

"Are you going to put me back in there." I asked finally. I couldn't hear him walking but he was suddenly sitting next to me, resting his arms on his knees.

"No." he said after a while. "I'll never do that to you again, Bella."

I sighed. I found another cloud when I spoke again. "You already did it once, Edward."

Silence.

"Are you going to stay out here?" he asked quietly.

"For a while, yea."

He sat next to me for a moment longer before he finally stood up, where he paused once again. "Things are going to be better from here. From now." He promised.

I nodded my head, to fancy him into leaving me. He must have known, because he did just that. Leave. I rolled onto my stomach when I heard the front door close and started picking the grass beneath me.

Things were going to be different? He was still a cocky prick. Could still lock me up if I pissed him off. But I would do it, live with it. If he could deal with the shit I did to him while in that room, he could deal with anything. I had thrown everything I had at that guy inside that room. Everything. And he was unfazed.

I heard someone moving around the house and I sat up quickly, watching until a man moved around the corner. He wore a lose top, khaki shorts. His skin was tanner, darker, and his hair was black. He looked to be about Edwards age. He paused when he saw me and smiled before nodding.

"No need to be scared." He called out. "I'm one of Edward's men. Seth. You must be Bella, right?"

I nodded my head slowly. I saw the gun clearly on his hip. That seemed to be all I could look at. He followed my gaze until he found what was making me freeze and turned quickly, moving the gun out of my sight.

"Oh man, I'm sorry Bella. That's just for protection. I'm here for you. For your protection I swear." Seth said quickly, moving towards me with raised hands. I stood up quickly.

"Why do I need protection?" I snapped, backing away from him. He looked ripped, strong muscles, strong jaw and demeanor. He seemed nice enough though. But . . . he had a gun.

I watched him stop once he realized how horrified I was of him. "Well . . . you are Edward Cullen's fiancé."

I looked at him, waiting for him to explain, but for him, that seemed to have been enough. "Am I in danger?" I asked slowly, lowering my hands.

Swallowing audibly, Seth took a step back. "I'm not sure if I should be the one telling you—"

"Seth." I snapped, moving forward, not so much afraid of him and his gun anymore. More afraid that someone real might actually hurt me. Not this big teddy bear.

"Bella, please, I think Edward should tell you—"

"Seth damn it if I am in danger tell me." I was in front of him now, and I was poking him in his rock solid chest, hurting my finger probably more than I was hurting him. "And if you don't tell me then— I don't know I'll do something. I'm going to be Edwards wife, I'll figure something out."

"Okay, okay, calm down." He rushed out. Huh, I guess the Edward threat would be useful. "Edward's a—a high profile criminal. He's- um- notorious and has a lot of connections and he's one of the top on the food chain."

"I don't care about that." I groaned. "I know he's bad ass and shit. What I want to know is why the fuck I need a man around me who has a gun!"

Wincing, Seth took a cautious step backwards, which I followed. "Alright, okay. With Edwards connection and rise to the top with his entire family, you know, he, um, he has enemies, too. He has people whom he stole the top from and they want it back and, well . . ."

"Well?"

"Well, they're willing to-er- kill. They want to kill for the spot back." Seth said quietly. "I thought he told you already. I'm sorry Bella I thought he had told you already."

But it was like he was trying to stop a moving train, because I was already walking past him and into the house.

You know, I had to have been on a different level of anger to willingly enter the house that I had been trapped inside for weeks. I was . . . livid. Furious.

Scared.

I knew the kitchen or cooking area or whatever was to my right, and the dining area and rooms were straight. The only other way was to my right. Fuming, I stomped past the staircase and into a sitting area. No seats were occupied, although I heard voices in the connecting room. No . . . not voices. Music. Beautiful, but—horrible. Ever heard of someone transferring their emotions into music? Yea, I never thought it was true either. Until now. I slowed down, only slightly, and listened to the heart wrenching music, the pain. It ripped through me at a surprisingly fast rate and I was . . . shocked.

But it did nothing to stop my anger. Nothing at all.

The door swung open and I hit it with such force it slammed into the wall behind it. The room inside was large, open. I noticed the piano in the corner, resting atop an elevated area. The floor was a light brown wood, and on top an elaborate carpet was a set of white furniture. A man sat behind the piano, Edward.

Edward had made that music? Impossible. But obviously it was.

He sat frozen, the music stopping, looking over at me as I stood panting with rage in the doorway.

"Bella." He said, pushing the piano stool back and standing up. He had the audacity to look concerned. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong, Edward?" I said slowly, staying where I was. If I got closer to him I might hit him. And I had never hit anyone before and that was a fact I prided myself on. But . . . I would hit him. I was sure of it. Then what would happen to my mom and dad? "When were you going to tell me that I might die? That I need a guy with a fucking gun to breath down my neck at all hours of the day?"

"Bella—"

"Edward! No! You are going to tell me what's going on here." I yelled, pointing a sharp finger at him. "You are going to tell me what I am up against here, what's going to happen in the next year, or month, or week, or for the rest of my fucking life, Edward. I deserve to know if I'm going to get shot in the head the minute I go get some strawberries at the fucking grocery store!"

Okay. I was done. My tantrum was over.

And Edward was looking at me odd.

"Fucking Seth." He muttered quietly. "Fine, sit down." He sighed, moving to the sickly white love seats. Pausing for only a moment, I moved over to the couch and collapsed into the corner. Edward sat on the same couch, but oddly I wasn't as disgusted. Which was a good thing, figuring I was going to be called his wife and all.

"What did Seth tell you?" he started.

"How do you know Seth told me anything at all?" Which he had, but I hated how he thought someone had to tell me for me to figure out I was in danger. Which I did… but that was besides the point.

"Bella, please."

"Fine." I snapped, crossing my arms. I wanted to know, anyways, might as well not be a bitch. Or at least not a big one. "He said you have enemies willing to kill to get you and your family out."

He nodded his head slowly, agreeing, looking at me closely. "My great grandfather Stephen started working for the local mob organization during the alcohol prohibition. He started working on the docks first and helped smuggle the alcohol in past the cops. Then he worked himself up from the inside until he started organizing the distribution of the alcohol.

"Sooner or later he got his own men and was able to start running his own operation next to a man called Aro. Together they flew to the top of the organized crime scale but suddenly alcohol was legal again. So they had to move to a new . . . product."

Edward paused here and looked away from me for the first time. "You're not talking about drugs are you? Holy shit Edward you're a drug dealer!"

"Bella, for fucks sake calm down!" Edward snapped. "My great grandfather wanted to do more specific jobs. Aro was the one who wanted to do drugs and organized crime. Stephen persuaded him to go down a different route, okay?"

"Which was?"

Edward scowled. "Robberies. They became high profile robbers."

I snorted and crossed my arms. "You expect me to believe that your great uncle stole shit for money?" like my mom did.

"No, he didn't 'steal shit'." Edward mocked in a snobby voice. I glared. "His robberies were extremely precise. He stole things for people, they paid him to do it. They became the best around. But that wasn't enough for Aro. It was too soft for him, not enough danger. He wanted the drugs and the weapons and the fear. He wanted people to control and he wanted people who wouldn't go against him. Stephen only wanted to stick with robbery. So they broke apart.

"The men who followed Aro from the beginning left too, and they became two different gangs. Stephen led the Cullen's. Aro led the Volturi. Ever since the split they've each been struggling for the spot at the top. Stephen fought back because Aro would control the entire drug trade, corrupt everything, if he had that power. He passed down the belief to his son, his son to his son, and so forth, until now.

"The Volturi are still very much alive. They fund and sell more than half of the drugs on the streets around the entire world. But they still want the top. We have the connections in the police stations that far exceed theirs. They need our resources and our power. We need to keep it away from them. And it's gotten to a point where blood is being shed continuously about the entire debate."

Edward sighed and shook his head. "Look, I do illegal shit, alright? Everyone knows I do. But I don't get into the drugs or the prostitution or executions. I just rob places for very important people."

Biting my lip, I looked at him closely. He looked . . . sincere. And stressed. Worried? About what? That I'd take back my deal to be his wife? Come on he was getting my mom out of fucking jail I wasn't going back on that.

"Edward, I just need to know how real the threat of me getting shot in the fucking head are." I said finally.

He looked up at me then, sternly, his eyes solid and severe. "I will never let any member of the Volturi or anyone else close to you. Ever. You will forever be safe, Bella. And as a person who can break through any security system, I can promise you one I can't even get through."

I bit my cheek and contemplated this.

Maybe I believed him. Maybe I didn't. That didn't matter. What mattered was if I was willing to die for this. But was this, specifically.

"Edward, what are we doing?" I asked. "What is this? What's going to happen?"

He sighed long and loud again. "You will be my wife." He said simply.

I rolled my eyes and fought the urge to shout. "No, Edward. Tell me how things are going to go the minute I stand up to leave this room. What's going to happen to me, my life. How is it going to change. When is it going to change. I need to know Edward."

He contemplated me for a moment before nodding. Agreeing? "Yes, you're right. You do need to know. But I can't be the one to tell you because I don't know." I swallowed my anger back thickly. He had more to say. "But my mother, Esme, knows. You'll be meeting her at dinner tonight, and I can give you a seat next to her so she can explain. I'm just not equipped to tell you how mentally unstable things might get."

"But how can your mom tell me?" I asked.

He looked at me as if I were stupid. "Carlisle abducted her from her house when she was eighteen and locked her in a room for three weeks."

…..

How did I feel about dinner, you might be wondering.

Allow me to tell you.

I had thrown up four times already and I hadn't even eaten. I felt like I had a tape worm in my intestines and a migraine was ripping through my skull. My hands hadn't stopped shaking since about an hour ago, and I started sweating maybe thirty minutes ago.

Oh, but I got a different room, at least.

It was a lot smaller, since I could have the rest of the house and didn't need as much space as the other room had. Although being in there for as long as I did made it seem smaller than the one I had now.

The room was darker, with a deep green and gold bed spread and pillows and a carpet beneath it with gold and black intertwining threads. The walls were a dark purple, and my dresser was dark wood. The floor, beside the carpet beneath the bed, was a darker wooden floor than the wood I had seen in the rest of the house. I got my own bathroom again, too, which I loved.

I personally thought the room looked like shit, though.

I mean, everyone says green a purple go good together, like their complementary, but they look horrible together, in my opinion. But I refused to spend any more than five minutes in a room this small anyways.

Funny, how suddenly I had claustrophobia . . .

But the thing was, I had been inside this room for close to three hours now. I came in to check it out, then I had my panic attack. After I felt like my breathing had leveled out again, I took a shower and brushed my hair.

After my second panic attack was when I started throwing up. Knowing I would throw up on the hallway if I left the room, and knowing that I might get shot in the head for doing so, I stayed in the room.

And why, you might ask, was I freaking out?

Because I was going to be eating at the same table as Emmet, Jasper, Edward, Esme, and mother fucking Carlisle.

Edward himself had admitted that they were the top of the top.

So Carlisle being the top of the top of the top meant he was the fucking bomb. He was the bomb with a gun and could shoot me under the table any minute he wanted to.

Edward said dinner was being served at seven. Which mean it had ten minutes before I either died or . . . well I wasn't sure what the other option could be.

The one thing Edward did tell me to expect about this whole marriage scam, however, was that I had to do things with him. Like eat dinner with his family. And be paraded by his side as a trophy.

So . . . I either do as he says and get my dad and mom free of prison and debt, or I sit in my room until Edward tells me the deal is off and returns me home so I can look at all the money my dad owes every time I get the bills from the mailbox and I can look at the empty rocking chair my mom used to sit in when she was still here.

So yea, I knew I had to go to dinner. Didn't mean I wanted to.

I had what I was wearing on already. Just a simple gray dress. It fell to a few inches above my knees, and hugged my bodice tightly before flaring out at the hips. It was a chalky grey too, which I liked.

It looked good on me, what could I say. And I wasn't trying to impress anyone, don't get me wrong. I just didn't want to under impress anyone either.

I still had no idea what could get me thrown in front of a train here.

I put flats on, since I thought heels would be pushing it. Red flats, with this cute little flower on the toes. Slowly, I stood up and stared at the flowers, clicking my heels together like Dorothy. Maybe I'd wake up in my own bed, and this would be a terrible nightmare . . .

But it wasn't, because I was walking from my room, and making my way to dinner.

I was about to eat dinner with the fucking Cullen gang.

They were all there, when I walked in. The men looked up when I entered the room and upon seeing me, they pushed their chairs back and stood up. I froze. Had I already done something wrong?

"Bella." Edward said, looking me up and down. Ah, this was the first time he had seen me out of sweats and baggy shirts. He looked like he was enjoying what he was seeing enough, however. Too much. I cleared my throat, bringing his eyes back up to my face. "Please sit."

I looked around the room at Emmett and Jasper, closest to me. They were smiling at me warmly, as if they knew secretly that deep down I wanted to shit my pants. And Carlisle sat at the head of the table, with Esme sitting next to him, and an empty seat between her and Edward. At the other end of the table were a few more men. Seth I recognized. Then there was a guy I vaguely remembered, with a faint scar on his temple. There were five more men, crowded around the table, standing up and watching me.

Esme was the only one sitting right now, I noticed. Apparently standing up was polite or something for the men. Slowly, moving so I didn't trip on anything, I walked around the table to the opposite side and stood there. Was it rude to sit before they sat?

"Just sit, dear." Esme whispered quietly next to me. I looked at her nervously, but her smile was too soft and sweet to make me nervous for too long.

Slowly I lowered myself into the plush chair. The minute I was sitting, the men followed suit, and before I could utter a word, four people in white uniforms came strolling in with salad bowls, placing them in front of us.

I looked to Edward, surprised. Of course the rich fuck had cooks. He smiled cockily at me as he pushed a pike of lettuce into that sexy mouth of his.

"So Bella," Emmett said from across the table, snapping my attention back to the terrifying situation at hand. The men at the other end of the table, the men I assumed were their top body guards or something, had begun conversing loudly again, moving into their salads like animals. I mean, come on. It was fucking salad. "Do you plan on going back to high school?"

This had been another thing I talked to Edward about. High school. I had every intention of going back, and I argued for at least an hour on the subject with Edward. He said it wouldn't be safe there for me to go. I told him I'd keep the engagement a secret or something. Somehow, I wasn't even sure maybe it was my sexy voice, but somehow he caved in. Apparently we were only about an hour outside of Forks anyways so he'd just get a place a bit closer and drive me in or something.

"Oh, yea—I mean yes. Yes, I'm going back to High school." I winced at my stuttering stupidity. "I talked to Edward about it and convinced him. I just think it's important for me to finish out my education you know."

Nodding in nervous embarrassment, I dropped my head and stabbed a cucumber, popping it into my mouth.

"You're not nervous about the other students and their reactions to . . . the engagement to Edward?" Esme asked. She really had a kind voice, and she was beautiful. Her black hair was pulled softly behind her shoulders in a piece of blue twine. She wore a dress as simple as mine that flattered her in a stunning way. It was kind of hard not to hate her as much as I hated everyone else at this table.

Edward snorted next to me, and I kicked him under the table, shutting him up. "I was going to wait a while until everyone found out on their own about it." I said. "But no, not really. If they find out, I know I can take care of myself."

Edward was shaking next to me, trying not to laugh. Yea, keep smiling you fucker. Just know that you are locking yourself down into a sexless marriage.

"Oh, yea, Edward's told us about your . . . independent attitude." Jasper commented, smiling at Edward. I looked over in time to see the smile disappear off of Edwards face.

"What did he say, exactly?" I asked.

"He said you could make a sailor cringe." Emmett snorted. I stuffed my mouth with lettuce to give myself a reason not to talk. Fucking Edward. I hated him.

"Bella." I looked over to Esme, smiling. "Don't you think kids are going to become suspicious, when you go back? You've been gone for two months."

I choked on my food and had to have Edward slap me on the back a few times. By the time I had gagged the lettuce up into my bowl again, the entire table was silent and staring.

"Two months?" I asked Esme, just to make sure. I had to have heard her wrong. But she was nodding, concerned, rubbing my back to sooth me once Edward backed off.

I looked back down at my plate and tried to control my anger. I had thought it had been a month. Not two whole fucking months. I can't believe I was marrying this guy.

Shaking my head, I turned back to Esme, having every intent to ignore Edward the rest of the night. "I guess people are going to ask question." I admitted, shrugging. Slowly everyone eased back into their conversations, and my blush could ease off a little. "But they can shove it because they know they're not getting anything out of Bella Swan. They know better."

Esme smiled and chuckled to herself, turning back to her salad. "I guess I can see why Edward noticed you." She said quietly. I wasn't sure if she had been talking to me, or to herself, but I heard it either way. And either way I ignored it.

They gave out chicken next. Looked way to fancy and complicated for me. I looked at Esme, since she had become my sort of alliance at the table. "What is this?" I whispered.

"I'm not sure. Looks like chicken, but that sauce looks funny." She whispered that, picking through the things on the table. "Carlisle thinks I shouldn't be slaving over a stove because I'm his wife. He just doesn't like to see me on my feet. But I love cooking. And it certainly is a lot simpler than this."

I smiled and grabbed my knife and cut through the chicken breast. Edward was talking across the table to his brothers, who were talking to Carlisle, who was shouting down at the end of the table to the men sitting there. It was all very loud and crazy. I tried listening in but got too confused and stopped trying.

But Edward was speaking next to me and his voice was just too sexy to ignore. "We can't get in through the top window. The weight of the dome with a piece missing will collapse it in." Edward said, completely ignoring his food.

"Right, but what if we apply metal beams for support?" Emmett suggested.

"Attach it to what? It's complete glass." Jasper said, his mouth full of chicken.

Seth leaned across Emmett then, wiping the sauce or whatever shit was on the chicken off of his mouth. "Jasper's right. There's no place to suction the supports on. It's a unique dome. I'm not even sure how it was constructed."

Emmett pushed him away and grabbed whatever drink was in front of him, looked like coke. "Well the ring's in the vault. That's easy enough to get in to." Emmett said, placing his cup down. "That's in his study. Which would have been too far from the dome anyways. Too risky. He has two cameras set in every room except his bedroom and the bathrooms. Those rooms have their own separate ventilation systems and their own drainage systems and are not set against an outside wall. There's no way to get into those rooms."

"What if we can disable the cameras?" The guy next to Seth asked. He was the one who looked familiar. Where from, though? I hadn't seen anyone outside of the room until now.

"How do you plan on doing that James?" Edward asked, annoyed.

"I don't know, cut some wires." He said stupidly. I couldn't help it. I snorted. Their heads turned my way and I blushed. "Well do you have some genius plan?" the guy named James asked, insulted.

With everyone's eyes on me, I blushed once again and shrugged. "I don't even know what you guys are talking about."

"Nothing—" Edward tried.

"We need to get into some guys house." Emmett said, cutting him off. I saw Edward shoot him a warning glance out of the corner of my eyes, which he ignored, just like me. "Their alarm system is less advanced than ours, but their response time is outstanding."

They were still looking at me. Might as well say something. I looked at Esme who seemed just as confused as me. "Um, okay." I said nervously. "Why doesn't one of you set off the alarm at the opposite end of the house? Then someone breaks in on another side and disables the system while the other guy who first set it off gets away but everyone is going crazy at that end of the house trying to get him. Then you guys sneak in easy peesy lemon squeezy."

James snorted, but the rest of the guys were looking contemplative. James sobered up. "You can't be seriously." He asked. "That is so beneath what we are known for doing!"

"Hey, buddy." I snapped. "Is, I don't know, cutting some wires what you guys have a fucking reputation for?" That shut him up.

And then they were back in the conversation as if I hadn't spoken. "We could send Casper and Vincent in towards the back window. Then maybe Karl and Hugo through the other corner. Send some shots off to get as many guys over there as possible. Then we can send Jeremy in to get the fucking alarm off through the front door. Get him out. Get us in through the top windows like we had planned anyways."

"I don't want Hugo though." Jasper said, shaking his head. "He gets too excited when he hears the guns going off. Too immature. Let's put Kevin on it. Maybe get three more guys."

"Too many." Edward disagreed. "No way to get them all out."

"How do we get them in?" Seth asked. "Through the fence I mean."

"Dig under it." I joked. Again they stopped for a minute and stared at me. "Oh you have got to be kidding me you guys don't but sensor shit under the ground?"

Silence.

I shook my head. "Stupid." I muttered.

"Alright that works out great, actually. We want them to seem amateur anyways, like a couple of punk kids, so digging under the fence suits that perfectly. Jeremy can set up his bug too. We'll get him to log on and get some footage tomorrow to replace with later."

And then I tuned them out. Got too complicated for me.

Fancy robberies my ass. They just took a plan from a seventeen year old girl who was joking around. I felt something brush my leg gently and I peeked over at Edward. He was talking to his brothers as if nothing had happened, but I knew it was on purpose.

I just didn't like that electricity that was shooting up my legs right now.

"So, Bella." My head snapped up, cheeks stuffed with chicken, to Carlisle. This was the first time he had spoken to me. He smiled softly at me, which did nothing in the slightest to calm me. "About your mother."

And I swear to god I almost passed out. I really did. I felt it swoon over me and the world disappeared for a minute. But something sharp hit my leg and I snapped back into the real world. I focused on Carlisle, made his shape become one instead of two. I ignored Edward, instead silently thanking him for pinching me.

That would have been the most embarrassing thing imaginable . . . But Carlisle went on as if nothing had happened.

"She seems to be locked in maximum security. She's been pinned for numerous things, so it should take us about a week to release her. If everything goes to plan, she should be out by next Tuesday." Carlisle said. "Now, the people who locked her in got her because someone ratted her out. So we are going to have to give her a false identity to hide her from the people who want her in jail."

"Wait, I'm sorry." I said, holding my hands up. "Someone wants her in jail? Besides the entire government and whoever she stole the cars from, I mean."

Carlisle looked at Edward, eyebrows raised. "Well, yes. She became too much of a risk for the people she was working for."

"That is complete bullshit!" I yelled standing up in fit of my rage. Just as quickly I sat back down, realizing what I was saying, and who I was saying it too. I'd talk to someone else about this later. Specifically Edward.

"Okay." I said, calming my breathing. "Alright. So I'll see her soon. That's all that matters." I didn't really mean to say it out loud, but I meant it. I would see her later. It would be alright and I could see my mom again

"I was wondering, Carlisle said slowly, causing me to look back over at him. "What exactly did you do when your mother brought you along?"

This surprisingly didn't upset me as much as I had thought it would. No one had really asked me outright so I guess I never would have known if this subject would have upset me or not. I swallowed the food I was eating and looked over at him. "Well mostly I'd fit down beneath the wheel because I was small and hotwire the car. Sometimes I'd have to go in through the engine to start it up, depended if it was automatic or not." I shrugged.

"Hm." Carlisle hummed, resting his folded hands on top of the table. Someone in a white coat came out and grabbed all of our empty plates. "Would you say you still know how to do it?"

"No." Edward snapped., standing up. "No way, Carlisle."

I looked up at him, and then back to Carlisle. I looked to the people all around the table. They all seemed to know what he was talking about. Everyone except me.

"Edward, please, sit." Carlisle asked politely.

"No, Carlisle." Edward snapped, grabbing my arm lightly and standing me up. "I will stand by you for anything else just not this. We do not bring her into it. We can find another guy."

"Carlisle, Edwards right." Esme said quietly. "She's just a girl."

"Edward, you're bringing her into this life, might as well do it willingly." Carlisle sighed.

"No." Edward said, moving me away from the table. I stumbled along behind him, looking over my shoulder at the table watching us leave. "And that's the end of it."

"Edward, he could totally shoot you in the balls." I whispered furiously.

"He's my father, Bella. Please remember that." Edward said coolly. He was walking me back to my bedroom, and didn't let me go until I was inside. I pulled my arm away instantly and kicked my shoes off, rubbing the red spot where he had held me so tightly.

"Screw you Edward." I spat. "What was that all about?" I asked, sitting on the bed that was too big for me. Edward was pacing around the room, looking agitated.

"Nothing."

"Edward, come on." I groaned.

"We've been having problems on a job and Carlisle made a reckless suggestion that I refused so it's off the table and it doesn't matter anymore." He said.

"Fine, whatever. I don't even care." I sighed, throwing my hands up in the air. "I'm going to bed. Get out."

I got up and moved to the bathroom, but he stepped in front of me and stopped me, placing his hands lighter on my shoulders. "Bella, listen to me." He said quietly, his eyes hot and sincere. "Nothing is ever going to happen to you. Ever. I'm going to spend every second protecting you. You're safe here. I promise."

I nodded, shocked by his sudden mood swings.

"I'll care about every little request you have, Bella." He continued, his voice lowering. "Every little thing you want or need or like, it's yours. I promise you. I'll care about every word you say. I'll care about everything you do. I'll care about you, Bella, and this life will be one you won't regret, I promise."

That was . . . a lot. Definitely a lot. The way he said it, while he touched me so lightly on the shoulders and stared at me so strongly, made my heart race and butterflies erupt in my stomach. I felt as if he was going to kiss me. I really thought it, just by how he looked, how he was acting.

"Oh, and I forgot to do this earlier. Properly, at least." And he was letting go of me and I could breath normally again. It must be his touch that sent me off. Like when he brushed my leg in the dining room. I can still feel the electricity from that touch.

But he dropped to his knee in front of me, and for a stupid moment I thought he was hurt. He pulled something from his pocket and looked up at me.

"Isabella Swan," he said slowly. Those eyes. Those eyes were so deep and bottomless and capturing. I couldn't look away, not when he looked at me like that.

"Will you marry me?"

And there was a small box, showed in front of me.

I spent countless hours thinking of this. Numerous dreams, fantasies, of how this would happen. I always thought it'd be in a fancy restaurant, with white table clothes you couldn't draw on with provided crayons. With two candles and a vase and a man, dressed in a suit, kneeling in front of me and smiling.

And I thought I'd love him too.

This wasn't so bad though.

I was standing in a dress more expensive than my entire wardrobe, in a house bigger than ten of my houses put together, and in front of the sexiest man I had ever seen. Spending the rest of my life like this? Could it actually be so bad?

Could it really?

Slowly I nodded my head, numb. Except it wasn't such a painful numb as I had felt just this morning. Was it only this morning?

I could do this. I could do it. I had dealt with breaking the law since I was five or something. I knew it. I guess I was even okay with it, no matter how screwed up that was. And Edward was rich. I wasn't one of those girls to need money to be happy. But it was a change that I think I could like.

He smiled and took the ring from the box, a band covered in tiny diamonds with the biggest one I had ever seen in the center. It felt so heavy on my finger. I couldn't look away from it, not until Edward grabbed my hand.

"I promise." He whispered.

And, oddly enough, for just a moment I believed him.