Thank you to 2brown-eyes, ceceprincess1217, gabby1017, and DICATAKADD for pre-reading, and to SunflowerFran for editing. Any remaining mistakes are my own.

Songs for this chapter are Lonely Boy by Paul Anka and Heartbreak Hotel by Elvis.

**We're going to hear from our boy first this chapter. He's got a little more to say this time around.**

Chapter 11

The Boy

The morning of Bella's birthday, I wake up while it's still dark, with a mood to match. The day has crept up on me, and I'm not prepared for the ever-present ache in my chest to be so much worse. I shower, shave, and eat as fast as I can so I can escape the simultaneously suffocating and empty tomb my house has become.

Once I reach Jerry's to wait for Felix to go make our pick-up run, I find a quiet corner to sulk in and attempt to avoid conversation. But a few of the guys try, and they find out pretty quickly I'm in no mood to exchange pleasantries.

"Heard his wife's still outta town," Mikey shouts from behind the bar to no one in particular.

I scowl in his direction as the rest of them pounce on his comment, making crude remarks about not getting enough pussy and where I can find some.

"Yeah, I hear that dame Tanya is still sniffin' around." Laughter rings out, and all the guys have one thing or another to say about her and her ... 'expertise.'

I ignore them and watch the minutes tick by as I wait for Felix to get here. He doesn't waltz through the door until almost noon, and he's in no rush to get started. He can also tell I'm in a pissy mood, so he acts like I'm not even here, deciding to play a hand or two in the back to kill some time.

The rest of my afternoon isn't much better. Every mention of my less than pleasant disposition and the possible reasons for it only grate on my already shot nerves. Everyone in my presence suffers right along with me, though. I'm grouchy and morose, and more than once I snap at someone. I'm beginning to think one of these guys might put a bullet in my dome just to put me outta my misery ... and theirs.

Felix slides into the booth across from me. "Kid, why don't you go on home. We don't have anything lined up for today anyway." He leans close and points a finger in my face. "And don't come back until you've either gotten laid or you're off the rag."

A wry grin colors his expression, and it takes strength I didn't know I had not to knock his block off, but I don't argue. I grab my hat, the hat Bella picked out for me for my birthday, and head for the door. The heat of a few weeks ago is gone, but it's still a warm seventy-three degrees. I roll down the windows in my car and drive home. It's odd to have the day to do with as I please, and I have no idea what I'll do with myself once I get there.

Things I need to do—laundry, dishes, dusting—all sound about as appealing as having a tooth pulled. So instead, I decide to ignore the growing pile of garbage my life has become and pick up a pizza and try my luck with the television. But the more I think about it, the more I don't like the idea. Even if I had an appetite, the tomato sauce would probably be a bad idea with the ulcer I'm pretty sure I've got.

When I step through the doors of my empty house in the middle of the day, I feel like a stone rattling around inside an empty tin can. The stale air turns my stomach, bringing with it an all too familiar ache. Until now, I've been able to avoid being here when the sun's up, only staying long enough to bathe and sleep. And when I can't avoid being home, I usually find a bottle to numb the loneliness.

I shuffle into the kitchen and open the refrigerator in hopes of finding something passable to eat, maybe calming my stomach in the process. When my search comes up empty, I turn to the cabinet and find a sleeve of saltines. They'll have to do.

They're bland and tasteless, dry and pasty on my tongue. I turn and grab an empty glass from the counter, rinsing it out and filling it from the tap before pulling out a kitchen chair. The leg scrapes against the linoleum, echoing loudly in the all but empty room, and I plop my ass in the seat.

And that's where I am—sitting alone in my kitchen eating dry, tasteless crackers in my suit and tie—when the phone rings. I take a drink of water to clear away the dryness so I can actually answer the damn thing. I stand from the chair and reach for the phone.

"Hello?" I cough into the receiver.

"Hello? Is this the Cullen residence?"

"It is."

"May I speak to Mrs. Cullen, please?"

I clear my throat, the dryness returning as I think about my wife. "She, uh, she's not home right now. Can I take a message?"

The woman on the other end sighs. "Well, we've been trying to reach her for weeks, actually. She missed her appointment last month, and we've been trying to contact her to reschedule."

"An appointment? I'm sorry, but who is this?"

"I'm so sorry. This is Dr. Sullivan's office."

"And Dr. Sullivan is ..." I lead, feeling agitated.

"I'm sorry, sir, but I don't feel right about giving just anyone more information than—"

"Well considering this is her husband," I say a little indignantly, my voice rising. "I would hope you could tell me what might be wrong with my wife!"

"Oh," she says with a light laugh. "Mr. Cullen, I'm so sorry. Of course. Dr. Sullivan is her obstetrician. She missed her prenatal appointment, and we just wanted to follow up with her."

I'm stunned silent ... speechless. Prenatal? Another baby?

"Mr. Cullen?"

I shake my head, once again clearing my throat. "Sorry," I rasp. "And when was she last in to see the doctor?" I try to blink the stinging from my eyes.

"Let me check her records," she says, her voice trailing off. "Says here we saw her back in June."

"June?"

"Yes, sir. June seventeenth."

Two days before my birthday party.

"Mr. Cullen?"

"Yeah, sorry. She's, uh, been out of town, visiting family, but I'll have her contact your office as soon as she can."

"Thank you, sir. And have a nice day."

I mumble a reply and blindly put the handset back on the cradle. I stumble out of the kitchen and fall onto the sofa, collapsing against the back of it and stare blankly at the ceiling.

What have I done?

I made my wife believe I was having an affair, used her vulnerability, insecurity, and naïvety against her, and drove her away. It made me sick with myself to be able to sink that low, to manipulate her that way, but at the time, I didn't feel like there were any other options.

To find out she's carrying another child is just another blow to my already pummeled, weary soul.

I reach for one of the frilly, lacy throw pillows Bella insisted we needed to 'complete' the living room, hold it over my face, and all the self-loathing and pain boils over in a scream. I scream for the loss of my wife, watching her grow our child, for my son ... for my family. I scream for the impossible spot I've put myself in. I scream for being conned into thinking this would be the life I wanted to live. I scream for all the frustration I feel at being trapped in a life I no longer want, with no end in sight. When the screams finally die, I pull away the pillow but don't move.

When I sent Bella away, it was to keep her safe, and I hoped one day I'd find a way out of this life, a way to go back to her and know she'd be protected. Even if I didn't get out, if I was stuck in this self-imposed hell, I knew she'd be safe. I was promised as much before she left.

Her safety, and the safety of my son is the most important thing to me, and I will do anything to protect them ... at any cost. But now that I know she's having another baby, the guilt and shame I have over driving her away twists in my gut. She's alone, raising our son, and in her current condition, she's vulnerable. And I'm the one who put her in that position. This wasn't part of the plan. Besides my own selfish reasons for wanting to be by her side again, I know I've sentenced her to an even more difficult life than I thought she'd have.

My head falls back, and I close my eyes. I've never wanted anything more than to leave this life and start over somewhere with Bella than I do now. I need to make it right. I need to man the fuck up and do what I should have done from the beginning. I need to make decisions and plan to find some way out of this so I can get back to her; if she'll even have me after making her believe I was unfaithful. But I have no idea how to get there.

"I can't get over how bad the guy looks." Felix nods his head toward the television in the corner. "I mean, I heard he just got outta the hospital, but he kinda looks like death warmed over compared to Kennedy, ya' know?"

I nod in agreement, not really paying much attention to the presidential debate everyone seems to be focused on for the last hour.

"He sure doesn't look like he's in any shape to take the oath of office." He leans back in his seat, shaking his head. "Don't know which one of those two mamalukes is any better, but that Senator Kennedy makes me a little nervous. I'm not sure what to expect from the guy. He doesn't seem like your typical sleazy politician. Smiles too big." He chuckles then shrugs. "I dunno, he seems like the type to get into office and shake things up. At least with Nixon, we'd know what to expect. He'd just keep the status quo, and we wouldn't have to worry about too much changing, you know?" He leans toward me, over the table and lowers his voice. "You know, they're in Chicago."

"What? Who's in Chicago?" My heart starts to pound a little faster. I focus all my attention on him at the mention of Chicago, where my wife and son are essentially hidden away.

"That's where they're broadcasting the debate from." He looks over his shoulder then back to me. "Not too many people know this, but the boss sent a couple guys up there, you know, to have a quick meeting with a few guys that've been advising both campaigns."

I nearly choke on my tongue, but instead, I grab my glass, taking a gulp to calm my nerves. I can only pray my twisted insides and speeding heart rate aren't visible from the outside. "Yeah?" I finally manage to ask.

He nods. "Yeah."

"Ain't that kinda stupid? To be poking around in the Outfit's territory, asking questions?"

"They ain't really nosin' around in Outfit business. Just puttin' some feelers out there to see how things might go after the election. There's a lot riding on this one, with the unions and all."

I'm not looking at him, but staring back at the flickering black and white image on the screen. "Who'd they send?"

Felix shrugs. "Nobody too important. It's just an informal meeting with a couple'a nobodies."

I nod, seemingly uninterested, like it doesn't really matter that connected men are right now in the same city as my wife and son.

"Maybe Jimmy went. I'm not sure." He shrugs. "But yeah, I'm pretty sure they'll be back in a couple days. By the end of the week, for sure."

I continue to nod in acknowledgment, trying to stay cool. Meanwhile, my head is spinning. The only thing keeping me sane is knowing Chicago is a big city, and the chances my mild-mannered wife is hanging around questionable establishments where she could cross paths with any of LaRocca's goons are slim to none.

But it's not a chance I want to take.

Friday rolls around, and I keep my ears open for any whispers about me or my family, but I hear nothing. All day I'm on edge, waiting to hear about the crew that returned from Chicago. When I get a call from Tony on Saturday, and it's not for a job he wants me to do, I know there's a problem.

The address he gives me is for a building in the Strip District. I pull up and cut the engine, and the abrupt silence is unnerving. I know he's waiting inside for me, but the dark windows make me question if my own uncle would be the one to drag me to some remote location and kill me. I shake off the nerves and decide to go in.

As I walk through nearly vacant, dark warehouse, my footsteps echo in the silence. Skids and crates surround me as I weave through the building.

"Ed? That you?"

I follow the sound of his voice until I'm face to face with my uncle. He reaches his hand to me, and I take it. What surprises me is when he brings me closer for a hug.

"Your ma is gonna kill me," he mumbles as he pulls away from me.

"Why is she gonna kill you? What's going on? What's with all the sneaking around? Couldn't we have just met at your place?"

He shakes his head at my rapid-fire questions. "No. I didn't want to risk anyone eavesdropping."

"Maria?"

He shrugs. "That and other things. Can't be too careful."

"So what's this all about?" I slip my hands in my pockets and lean against a support pole.

He studies me for a moment, and the expression on his face is one I've never seen before.

Regret.

"What happened at my wedding, Eddie?"

"What?" I ask, my brows furrowed in confusion at his strange question.

"What happened at my wedding?" he repeats. "For some reason, Amato won't stop bringing you up in conversation, and it started after my wedding."

I look down at my feet. "His nephew decided to throw around some words, threats against me and my family."

"And you didn't think it was important to come to me with it?"

I meet his eyes and narrow my own. "And how would that make me look, Tony? Somebody threatens me, and I come tattle tale to you about it? No,"—I shake my head—"I'd just look like even more of a disrespectful pussy than they all think I am."

"Well, you've been on their radar since that night you ducked out of the club."

I nod. "I know I have."

For a moment, our breathing is the only sound in the room before he speaks. "I had a meeting with Amato this afternoon. Said he met with LaRocca this morning."

"And?"

"There's a problem."

"Would you cut the crap, Tony? What's going on?" I yell, my frustration boiling over at him not getting to the point.

"They've been looking for a reason to go after you, and I think they found it." He stares intently at me, and I stare right back. "One of the guys saw your wife, kid."

My heart speeds up, and sweat begins to form on my forehead and the back of my neck in an instant. One hand goes to my hair, pulling at the roots while the other pulls at my tie, loosening the sudden stranglehold it has on me.

"What?" I rasp.

"One of the guys who went to Chicago decided to take a walk through town and happened to cross paths with Bella. He tailed her, Ed. They know where she lives; they know she's not in Florida. So they know you're lying to everyone about where she is for whatever reason." He pauses to get my attention and looks me directly in the eyes. "And they know she's expecting."

I slide down and drop to my ass, leaning against the pole.

"Why do you have her hidden away, Ed? You gotta know how that looks to lie to everyone about where she is." He's quiet, thoughtful for a moment. "Or did she leave you?"

I stare up at my uncle, and I wonder just how much I can trust him. I decide I don't have much choice if I want to know what they're planning.

"I did enough to drive her away." My answer doesn't seem to satisfy his curiosity, but I don't elaborate.

He lowers himself to the floor across from me and waits.

"So what are they gonna do?" I finally ask. "Go after my wife? Me?"

The look in his eyes makes my gut twist. Along with the regret, I see sadness. "Amato made the call to me today as a courtesy. He told me he's not gonna touch your wife, but he's letting Jimmy make the call on how to take care of you." His words hang in the air between us.

"Take care of me?"

He nods, his mouth turned down. "Yeah, kid."

I lean my head back against the pole and close my eyes. "And just when I thought I could come up with some way to get the hell outta here," I muse quietly.

"Well, that's the thing, kid. I think I have a way to fix all this. It's gonna break my sister's heart, but I don't see any other way. And if I just sit by and let it happen ..." He shakes his head. "I've done enough to guarantee a first class ticket straight to hell, but I'll do what I can to make sure you're not sitting beside me when I get there."

I meet his eyes. "You're gonna help me?"

He nods. "The organization is my family, but you're my blood, Eddie. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I didn't do what I could to help." He pauses, mulling over what he wants to say before meeting my eyes. "Besides, I'm the one who got you into this mess. It's only right I help you get out of it."

"If you're helping me, if there's some kind of plan, I want a crack at Jimmy before he gets to me."

He nods. "I'll see what we can do."

"I mean it, Tony. He threatened my wife, and I can't let him get away with that!"

He puts his hand up and shakes his head. "I know, kid, I know. But it might not be that simple." Tony's gaze meets mine. His eyes are sad as he exhales a breath so deep it sounds like it's coming from the depths of his soul. "I'm so sorry, Eddie. I should'a never brought you into this life."

I shake my head. "It was my choice, Tony. At the end of the day"—I jab my thumb into my chest—"I made the choice." I lean forward, ready to finish this. "So, what do I need to do?"

"First, you're gonna go have Sunday dinner with your family; your ma and pop, your brothers and sisters. You're gonna hug your mother and make sure she knows how much you love her. You're gonna talk to each and every one of your brothers and sisters and remind them you're more than the punk people are going to try to tell them you were. Give them a good memory to hold onto. Because this will probably be the last time you see any of them."

Bella

"Oh, come on, Bella. Please come out with me tonight." Maggie's pout is almost ridiculous; her lower lip out so far from the top, EJ tries to grab it.

"No, baby," I tell him, grabbing his hand away as I take a step back from my pesky roommate. "I'd love to, but you know as well as I do how hard it is to find a sitter." I kiss the top of my son's head as I sway us back and forth. EJ wiggles from my hold and slides to the floor, toddling away.

"Ah," she says her eyes bright. "That's where you're wrong. Mrs. Turner—I ran into her when I stopped at Roeser's to pick up your birthday cake a couple weeks ago—she said her daughter was looking to start babysitting to earn some extra pocket change and asked me to keep her in mind if I knew of anyone needing a sitter. So, problem solved!"

"But, Maggie, I don't know the girl. I'm not sure I feel comfortable leaving my son with a stranger."

"Oh, he'll be fine. EJ is the most easygoing little boy I've ever met. He'll be fine." She walks over to the chair where she tossed her pocketbook when she walked in from work. "Just let me give her a call, and then you and I can get all dolled up for a night on the town." Her mischievous eyes meet mine. "And it's my treat."

"But he—"

"Will be fine," she finishes for me.

I carefully lower myself onto the sofa, and EJ toddles over to hand me a wooden block.

"Thank you, baby boy."

His answering smile is beaming. Maggie's voice carries down the hall to us from where she's on the phone.

"Oh, that would be great ... Oh, yes, I'm sure he'd be more comfortable here ... An hour? Yeah, that would be fine. We're waiting for our other roommate to get home, so that would be perfect ... Okay, see you then. Goodbye."

The clack of her heels against the hardwood as she walks toward the living room grows louder until she reaches us.

"All set. Emily will be here in an hour." She settles next to me on the sofa.

"Maggie, I still don't—"

"Stop," she whispers as she rests her head on my shoulder. "You need some time to yourself, Bella. It's you and EJ all day, every day, and even other kids are here most days. And before you know it, you'll have another one underfoot." Her hand gently rubs my growing belly. "You need some time for yourself, okay?" She tilts her head, looking earnestly into my eyes.

Unable to argue with her logic and well-intentioned plot, I relent. "Okay."

"Yay!" She claps her hands as she hops to her feet. All the excitement gets EJ's attention, and he's cheering us on with his own clapping.

"That's right, little man. Mommy is going out tonight for some big girl fun, and you're going to stay here and play with a new friend. Isn't that exciting?" she asks him with wide eyes and a smile. EJ giggles and claps again as his honorary aunt carries him down the hall toward our room, her voice fading as she walks away. "Now, let's see what we can find for that beautiful mom of yours to wear tonight."

I'm struggling to get myself out of the well-worn couch cushions when Rosalie rushes through the door.

"Sorry I'm late," she says as she tosses her things on an armchair. When she sees me trying to get to my feet, she steps to my side and offers me a hand.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome." She eyes me carefully as I straighten my shirt. "You sure you've only got one in there? I don't remember you being this big this soon with EJ."

I offer her a scowl. "No, they only heard one heartbeat, Rose. And the doctor said in second and later pregnancies you grow a little faster." I straighten my back and raise my chin defensively. "It's perfectly normal."

She laughs and wraps an arm around me. "I'm sorry, Bella. No need to get all upset. I just thought—"

The ringing of the phone cuts off whatever she was going to say.

Maggie's muffled voice carries down the hall. "Can one of you get that? It's probably Emily calling back for directions. I'm a little ... busy." Her laughter is matched with my son's giggles.

I answer Rosalie's questioning look. "She's probably buried in my closet trying to find something that still fits me."

"Then maybe you should go help her," she says as she walks toward the ringing phone. "Hello." Her words grow faint as I walk past her and into my room.

As I suspected, Maggie and EJ are deep in my closet, a rainbow of fabrics cover them as they pop their heads out of the small space. "There's Mommy!" she says to EJ. He wiggles from her arms and crawls toward me before pulling himself up by my pant leg to stand.

I sit on the edge of my bed and pull him up to sit beside me. "Did you help Maggie find some pretty clothes?"

He nods enthusiastically, his eyes bright, making me smile.

"We certainly did." Maggie walks toward us, a few dresses thrown over her arm. She trades me the clothes for my son and disappears from the room.

I spend the next ten minutes trying on the few most promising dresses. I'm finally able to zip a generously cut sundress all the way. The higher waistline makes it work, but I know this will be the last time I'm able to wear it until the baby is born in a few months. Knowing there will be a chill in the air, I rummage through my closet until I find a sweater. I slip it on and do a final check of myself in the mirror. Once I've decided it's as good as it's going to get, I step from my room and toward the living room.

"Well, how do I look?" I ask as I twirl. When my feet come to a stop, I'm met with the somber faces of my two friends.

"You look great." Maggie's tone is one I can't place. She almost sounds sad.

"What's wrong?" My eyes jump from hers to Rosalie's and back again. "Something's happened. What is it?" I scan the room, looking for EJ, but he's fine; on the floor playing quietly with his toys.

Rosalie clears her throat, getting my attention. "I ... uh ... I got a call from home."

"From home?"

Maggie gets to her feet and takes my hand, leading me to the sofa.

"No," I say, pulling from her grasp. "I'll stand right here until you tell me what's going on."

They exchange a look and dread settles low in my belly.

"I think you really should sit, Bel—"

"No," I nearly shout. "I said I'll stand."

Rose's shoulders slump and her gaze drops to the fidgeting fingers in her lap. "It was my cousin on the phone. There was some news she thought I would want to know. Especially since I was with Emmett for so long. She wanted me to—"

"Stop stalling and tell me! Please."

Maggie wraps a supportive arm around me as Rosalie meets my eyes and speaks words I wish she could take back.

"Edward is missing."

A/N: Are you still with me? Things are about to get dicey, but a resolution is coming! Next week, we'll take a step back and see how events led to the end of this chapter from Edward's point of view.

Just to give you some context, the first televised Presidential debate mentioned in the chapter took place on September 26, 1960. It was said by some Nixon's post-hospital-stay appearance counted against him in the end, causing many to believe he lost the debate. And HIPAA laws didn't come into effect until 1996. So considering the times, the doctor's office wouldn't have thought twice about sharing Bella's information with her husband.

And just to reiterate, WitSec/Witness Protection wasn't officially available until 1970. I had a guest reviewer who may have missed that point in a previous author's note.

Thanks for all the love you've shown this story, even though it's ripping your hearts out. *insert kiss-blowing emoji* Replying to each and every review isn't happening right now, but I'm making an effort to respond to direct questions and concerns. Please know if I didn't respond, I have read each and every one, and they all mean so much.

I'm making some headway with the expansion of Dominion, and I hope to begin posting it this coming spring!

For up to date info about upcoming stories, please join me in my Facebook group, Sunshine Fics. I share exclusive weekly teasers and offer you the chance to chat about how frustrated you are with this boy and Bella. ;)

See you next week!

Lots of love,

Sunshine