Happy Friday! I hope everyone had a great week. I am eternally grateful to My Bella and Hope4more. They are the best.

Stephenie Meyer owns the everything except for the story plot. That belongs to me.

hold on to me love
you know i can't stay long
all i wanted to say was, "I love you and I'm not afraid"
can you hear me?
can you feel me in your arms?

[Chorus:]
holding my last breath
safe inside myself
are all my thoughts of you
sweet raptured light it ends here tonight

i'll miss the winter
a world of fragile things
look for me in the white forest
hiding in a hollow tree (come find me)
i know you hear me
i can taste it in your tears

[Chorus]

Closing your eyes to disappear,
You pray your dreams will leave you here;
But still you wake and know the truth,
No one is there...

Say goodnight,
Don't be afraid,
Calling me, Calling me as you fade to black.

My Last Breath by Evanescence

~*BPOV*~

July 1, 2010

Edward and I had just arrived at my work. It was Thursday and I was really looking forward to the long weekend off. Edward and I had talked more about the trip to Forks this weekend and had decided on leaving early Saturday morning and then we would see how late it was and how tired we were Sunday night before we made the choice to drive back to Seattle then or wait until Monday morning.

Entering the series of offices that made up my department, we were about to knock on Emmett's office door to let him know I was here when Emmett opened the door. "Oh good you're here," he said and he appeared to be somewhat excited over something.

"Just got here. What's up?" I asked, curious to know what had him so fired up this early in the morning.

"We got a tip on a house through the anonymous call line about a half hour ago. Apparently in this house we will find what we need to end this mess." He was buzzing with energy and had me hopeful we had gotten some sort of lead that would help us end this nightmare.

"A house? What did the call say?" Edward asked. His jaw muscles were twitching in anticipation and I could see the gears in his head spinning a hundred miles an hour, much like it had felt the wheels of his car were spinning on the way here. I was amazed we hadn't been pulled over yet due to the high speeds he drove at.

"Let's go into my office and I'll fill you both in," Emmett stated as he turned and motioned for us to follow him. "Bella, you up for some action today?" Emmett asked while sitting down at his desk.

"You bet your ass I am. So what's this tip you got?" I asked with a huge smile. I was eager to do some investigative work out in the field. It had been far too long.

"Just what kind of action are we talking here?" Edward piped in.

"Sit and I'll clue you both in," Emmett commanded pointing at the two chairs in front of us.

He began to talk as Edward and I sat in the two chairs in front of his desk. "According to the call that came in this morning through the anonymous hotline, if we go to this house located out on Old Monroe Lane, we'd find the answers we've been searching for as to who's been sending the apples."

"So we're going right?" I asked eagerly.

"Yeah. How fast can you be ready?" Emmett asked as he grabbed his bullet proof vest and his standard issued FBI jacket to throw over it.

"Give me five to change out of these heels and grab my vest and jacket out of my office," I said popping up out of the chair and starting to head for the door.

"Make it quick, Agent Swan," Emmett urged impatiently.

Just as I reached the door, I turned to Edward and said, "Um, I guess I'll see you later then."

"No, I'm going too," he stated.

"Excuse me?" I asked, walking back towards him. "Emmett, please tell me you aren't going to let him go." I stood there staring at Edward while waiting for Emmett's response. I figured there was no way Emmett would allow a civilian to tag along on official FBI business.

"Here's the way I see it," Edward offered, "if just the two of you are going you need a third person for a lookout if nothing else. You have no idea what you could be walking into. I've dealt with this type of shit when I was in the Army. I've been places and seen things you can't even imagine."

"You really know how to be a pain in the ass, don't you?" I snapped at him.

He smiled that cute ass grin of his and then retorted, "You can choose to look at it however you please, but in my opinion I am simply doing everything in my power to keep you safe. If that makes me a pain in your ass or a thorn in your side then so be it."

"Alright Bonnie and Clyde, enough with the theatrics," Emmett bellowed. "We've got a job to do. Bella, another pair of eyes or set of hands can't hurt anything. I would prefer to have Seth with us, but he is out of the office this morning so that's not possible. Now go get your shit, Bella, so we can go."

Ten minutes later I was back in Emmett's office ready to go. Since Edward was going with us, Emmett tossed him one of our FBI jackets along with a bullet proof vest.

Looking over at Edward putting them on, I shook my head in annoyance and said, "This is really ridiculous, Emmett. Protecting me in my home is one thing, but this is official business we are going to do. What are you going to do if he gets hurt? How are you going to explain that?" I spat.

Edward walked over and stood in front of me. After taking my hand and placing a kiss on it, he locked eyes with me and said in a cocky tone, "I love that you're looking out for me, Sweetness, but I'm a big boy and can take care of myself. And thanks for proving me right-you do still care about me."

"Yeah well I'm a trained FBI agent and I can take care of myself too, but I don't see you two jackasses giving two shits about that."

Edward reached out for my hand again, but I jerked it away and folded my arms across my chest. I was pissed. It irritated me to no end that he was treating me as a less than trained individual. I had the diplomas that stated I was more than qualified to do my job and I did it well.

"Bella, I'm not the one with a madman out to get me," he replied trying to plead his case.

"No, you don't think so? Well let me clue you in. You are what is standing between him and me, my line of protection, Edward, so your ass is just as much on the line as mine is."

"Bella, Edward, enough of this shit. The two of you said you could keep your personal feelings out of this, so shut the hell up, we don't have time for this. Save it for when you're alone. Now let's go. I'm driving so the two of you need to get your asses downstairs and in my suburban now."

I turned from where I stood facing Edward. Glaring at Emmett I said, "Fine, Special Agent McCarty, you're in charge so it's your ass not mine. You can explain in court how you had a civilian with you on official business and you can explain to Rose when you don't have job anymore, when your career is ruined."

"Damn it, Bella," Emmett growled. "Edward, come here," Emmett ordered as he reached in his desk and pulled out a bible. For the life of me I couldn't figure out what the hell he was going to do.

"I was given permission to do this only if the situation were to become necessary and it appears it now has. So welcome to the FBI, Edward. Now raise your right hand and place your left one on the bible and repeat after me."

"What the hell, Emmett. You're swearing him in?" I huffed raising my hands and letting them fall making a smacking sound on the sides of my legs.

"Yes, Bella, I am. When I went to my boss with the news that Edward was going to keep protecting you, he gave me permission to swear him in since he was privy to classified information. He's been thrust smack dab in the middle of this investigation. Edward is with you damn near twenty-four/seven while protecting you and because of that he could have to apprehend someone, shoot someone and the possibility exists that he may discover important evidence. We don't want anyone cut loose or any evidence to be thrown out because it was considered to be obtained wrongfully."

There wasn't a whole lot I could say to that. Emmett had covered all his bases. I stood there hardly believing what I was seeing as I watched Edward being sworn in.

"Now repeat after me. I, Edward Anthony Cullen…"

As we left Emmett's office, Jake was standing there as if he had been waiting for us.

"You need something, Black?" Emmett asked.

"Yeah, I overheard you telling them you got a lead on Bella's case and I wanted to say I'm ready to assist you guys."

"You standing outside my office eavesdropping?" Emmett accused.

"No. I heard you before you went in your office and I know that Seth is out this morning and he's been working with you so I am just trying to be helpful. If you're going to case a house you need more than just the two of you," he explained.

"Three of us," Edward corrected.

"Who the hell are you?" Jake asked.

"I don't see where that's any of your concern," Edward retorted.

"Jake, I don't think it's necessary for you to come with us," I added. There was no way I wanted him along too.

"You're going to case a house with only two agents and a… whatever he is," Jake said nodding at Edward, causing Edward to quirk an eyebrow at him as if he were challenging him to say the wrong thing. "You know you should have more agents with you. You have no idea the size of this place or what you will find when you get there, or who you might find when you get there. The way I see it the more you have the better off you are."

Jake was right and Emmett knew it. But I had no clue how Emmett would handle discouraging him without tipping him off to the fact that he could be a possible suspect.

"Fuck," Emmett muttered. "Are you ready to go 'cause I don't have time to wait for your ass? I've already had enough delay caused by these two," Emmett said motioning towards Edward and me.

"Yes."

"Then let's go. Change in plans, kids. Bella, you ride with Edward. Jake, you're with me in my suburban."

"Oh this just keeps getting better and better all the time," I mumbled as we headed to the elevators.

On the way down, I found myself standing in between Jake and Edward. Remembering my last encounter with Jake just before I had left, I moved to place Edward between Jake and me.

As soon as I moved I saw Jake smirking as he raised his arm and sniffed his armpit like some kind of idiot. "Do I stink or something, Bella?" Jake asked.

"No," I answered coldly and turned my head to stare at the floor indicator buttons, leaning against Edward in the process. As if sensing my unease, Edward draped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer to him. I knew I might be sending Edward mixed signals, but Jake creeped me out. He always had.

Once we got to Edward's car he opened the door for me. I slid into the passenger seat and buckled my seat belt while letting out a sigh of relief to be away from Black even if it were just until we reached the house.

As Edward pulled out on to the street following Emmett's suburban, he asked, "What's up between you and that Jake guy?"

"He's a jackass."

"What makes him one? Do you two just not get along? What's the deal? You acted as if you couldn't stand to be around him, Bella," he prodded as he changed lanes and sped up to get on the highway.

"I can't stand him."

"Can you elaborate a little?"

"He's like a fucking dog in heat every time he's around me. Jake's been hounding me to go out with him since the day I began working here. For three years I have been putting up with his never ending advances and innuendos. He's never taken no for an answer. Just keeps trying to wear me down I guess. I probably should have turned him in for sexual harassment a long time ago."

"Has he been doing this since you've been back?" he asked and I could see the where he was going with this. He was about to go all Possessive Edward on me again. You're mine, his words from last Saturday echoed through my mind.

"I haven't had any issues with him asking me out since we've come back from Capri, but Tuesday he had the balls to tell me I looked like shit. I can't stand the guy. He makes me want to vomit."

"He told you what?" Edward practically growled.

"In his opinion I should have come back to work looking well rested and been bouncing with energy. Apparently I didn't measure up to his vision. I don't really give a rat's ass what he thinks of my appearance as long as he got the message during our last encounter that I wasn't going to date him. As long as the asking me out shit stops I can deal with the rest." And I could. Dealing with him being a smart-assed jerk was nothing compared to constantly fighting off his advances.

"Your last encounter? What happened then?" Edward asked.

I went on and explained to him how Jake had cornered me in the elevator and what I did to him. Judging by the look of pure hatred on Edward's face and the veins bulging at his temples along with the death grip he had on the steering wheel, I think if Edward could have gotten his hands on Jake right then... well… Jake might have a hard time walking away once Edward was finished with him.

About a half hour later, we exited the highway and drove until we were in a rural area. Soon we were going through a series of back roads that led us to a long driveway entrance sitting at the bottom of a hill.

Edward made the turn, following Emmett's vehicle up the dirt driveway until we were both parked in front of a large wood-frame, Victorian style home. I took my hair band off my wrist and pulled my hair back. I then reached into my purse and grabbed my gun and placed it in my holster.

Edward handed me his keys and asked me to unlock the glove box and get his gun out for him. I did and then we both got out of the car and walked over to where Jake and Emmett were standing.

"Jake, check the perimeter and then come inside and get the basement. It looks like it's got a third floor or an attic, I'll get that. Edward, you take the ground floor, Bella, you take the second."

We all nodded and as Jake began his walk around the outside of the house, the rest of us headed up the porch steps to the front door.

Emmett turned the knob and it clicked instantly causing the door to start to open. Emmett held on to the door as he opened it very slowly and cautiously.

Quickly glancing over his shoulder at us, he warned, "I don't like the fact that this door is unlocked. Keep your eyes open for traps."

Emmett slowly entered and we followed; all of us with our weapons out and ready to shoot if necessary.

As we entered the house, it smelled stale and musty like it had been closed up for years and there was a light coating of dust on the floor. Otherwise the house was completely empty from what we could see so far as we looked around the entryway.

Emmett nodded for Edward to go search the first floor and then for me to follow him up the stairs. Just before I took the first step, Edward grabbed my hand and whispered, "Be careful."

"I will," I whispered back. I couldn't explain why, but I suddenly found myself fighting the urge to tell him I loved him.

Despite our best efforts to take the stairs quietly, it was lost on the fact that the worn wooden stairs creaked and moaned with nearly every step we took.

Once we reached the second floor landing, Emmett continued on up to the third as I made my way down the hall to the first room. The hall was lined with several doors. The first door was standing wide open and the bright morning sun was pouring through the tall windows fully lighting the room.

Entering the space, I first checked behind the door. Nothing. There was a small door which I assumed was a closet. I slowly opened it and saw it was as empty as the room. Nothing to see here so I went on to the next.

The next door I opened was a small bathroom that was barely big enough for the claw foot tub that was in it. I could hear Emmett's heavy footsteps above me and from the sound of things he was moving pretty smoothly from room to room.

I made my way back and forth, up and down the hall checking each room, closet, nook and cranny until I came to the room at the end. I was frustrated that I hadn't found anything and since I hadn't heard from anyone else, I was assuming they hadn't either.

Opening the door, I saw that this room was much larger than the last. The carpet in this room was in sad need of replacement. The color was so faded it was impossible to tell what it had been originally and there were even a few holes here and there. The only reason I noticed the carpet right away because the other rooms had hard wood floors that had appeared to have been refinished at some point. Maybe they hadn't gotten to redoing this room yet, I thought.

I walked across the room and peered out the large window facing the side of the house. Glancing sideways, I saw the cars parked in the driveway and the huge front yard, and in the opposite direction was the back yard which was surrounded by a wooded area.

This bedroom must have been the master as it had an adjoining bathroom and dressing room. Walking through the dressing area into the bathroom, I noticed it was bigger than the one off the hall and the tub had been modified with a shower. Exiting the bathroom I noticed a closet door that was partially open in the corner of the dressing area. The closet was fairly deep, small for a walk-in but bigger than your average closet. It was pretty dark and hard to see into the closet since there was only a very small window in the bathroom and none in the dressing area.

Flipping the switch on the wall by the entrance did me no good. Either the light was burnt out or there was no power on in the house. It was then I wished I had remembered my flashlight. I could see a few boxes on the floor near the back wall. Wanting to see what was inside, hoping that maybe this was where the clue was hidden, I stepped inside the closet. As I took my second step I noticed the floor seemed to give a bit, almost as if there was something under the carpet. The door suddenly slammed shut behind me while a puff of air hit my face. I was instantly coughing as I reached up to pull my blouse over my mouth, realizing it was some kind of gas. In the few seconds it took me to turn around and start banging on the door, my lungs were burning from the coughing as I continued trying to pull in air, but all I got was the gas and my head felt light and my vision was getting blurry. I was trying to keep banging on the door, but my arm was feeling heavier and heavier and it was getting harder to raise it. I began to struggle to hold myself upright and was leaning on the door. I tried to bang one last time, but all I was doing was slumping to the floor.

~*EPOV*~

I had been searching the first floor when I heard a door open and close near the front of the house. Raising my gun and as quietly as I could, I made my way up there. As I rounded the corner of the hall I saw that it was Jake who had come into the house.

He looked over at me and asked, "Find anything yet?"

"No," I answered as I lowered my weapon. I wouldn't have told him if I had. As far as I was concerned he had no business knowing any of the details concerning anything we might find unless he was the one to do it. No one did unless I was given instruction to do so by Emmett.

"Anything from Emmett or Bella yet?"

"No. Anything outside?"

"Nope. I'm going to head to the basement then so we can wrap this party up," he remarked in a sarcastic tone.

I nodded and started to walk away. I hadn't taken more than a step or two when I heard several loud thuds and Jake spewing curse words coming up from the basement. I turned around and headed towards the basement door. Pulling it open I found him hunched over at the bottom of the steps clutching his ankle.

Looking up at me he called, "Watch your step, there's some kind of rope or string strung across one of the steps. I caught my foot on it and well… here I am," he groaned.

"So I see. Can you get up? Or do you need help?" I asked him.

What I really wanted to say was you can sit your ass there until Emmett comes to get ya. I was still pissed over what Bella had told me about Jake in the car. I would have done a lot more than knee the prick in the balls if I had been around when he had cornered her in the elevator. He had better hope I never caught him pulling any shit with her or his ass would regret it.

I made my way down the stairs using my cellphone as a light to see where I was going.

Once I reached Jake, I helped him stand while leaning on me and soon realized that there was no way I was going to get him up the steps. I was over six feet tall and he was taller than me. That combined with him being unable to put any weight at all whatsoever on his left foot, and there being a trip wire on the steps, I wasn't taking any chances of sending us both tumbling back down the stairs.

I helped him sit in a more comfortable position on the steps and made my way back up to the first floor to see if Emmett or Bella had come back down yet.

Looking around a bit I didn't see or hear either one of them so I called Emmett's cellphone after calling down to Jake and letting him know what I was doing.

"Edward, you find something?" Emmett asked anxiously.

"Yeah. Your agent at the bottom of the basement stairs with an injured foot."

"Jake?" he asked sounding surprised.

"That's the one," I replied.

"Damn it," he muttered. "I'll be right there."

I heard Emmett coming down the stairs a few seconds later and looked up to see if Bella was with him. She wasn't.

"Hey, where is he?" Emmett asked as he came down the last few steps.

"He's sitting on the bottom of the basement stairs. There's a trip line that someone set up close to the top," I said as I relayed the information.

"Ok, I've already called the paramedics and they're on their way. Has Bella come back down yet?"

"No. Did you find anything?" I asked, thinking it had been I while since I had heard any of Bella's footsteps overhead. I didn't like that. I had been able to hear her footsteps as she walked across the old wooden floors most of the time she was up there.

"No, nothing. You?"

"Same here, not a damn thing."

"Then I am going to go check on Jake and then wait out front for the ambulance. You go up and see if Bella has come up with anything," he ordered.

"Sure," I answered as I took off up the stairs taking them two at a time.

I got to the second floor and peaked into a couple of rooms and there was no sign of Bella. This struck me as extremely odd since if she were searching the rooms, we should have bumped into each other in the hall at this point. My thoughts instantly went to the trip wire that caused Jake to fall. I became concerned that there may have been some other trap rigged up here as well.

"Bella!" I called out and waited to get a reply from her.

Nothing. Not a sound, a footstep, nothing. My heart started beating frantically in my chest with worry. I tore through a couple more rooms, checking bathrooms, hall closets and everything. There was still no sign of her. My adrenaline was in overdrive and I was starting to sweat by the time I reached the last room at the end of the hall.

"Bella!" I screamed over and over. "Damn it, Bella, if you can hear me, answer me."

As I entered the last room, I could feel the hair on the back of my neck standing on end. She was in here somewhere, I could sense it. But where? Scanning the room around me I saw another small room. Taking wide brisk steps towards it I saw a small dressing room with an attached bathroom.

I checked the bathroom and no sign of her there. Going back into the dressing area was when I noticed a closed closet door. I had missed it the first time heading into the bathroom due to the room being so dark. Had she accidently locked herself in a closet and couldn't get out?

I tried the knob and it was locked or somehow jammed. "Bella, are you in there?" I asked as I beat on the door.

"Fuck," I yelled as I yanked on the door as hard as I could trying to force it open but having no luck. The damn door knob wouldn't even turn. It was as if it was jammed in place.

"Bella!" I yelled again hoping that she'd hear me and respond.

My next thought was to shoot the fucking lock off the door, but knowing the bullet could hit Bella if she were in there ruled that out as an option.

I dug my cellphone out of my pocket and called downstairs to Emmett.

As soon as he answered I bellowed into the phone, "Emmett, I need your help. Get up here now!"

"What the hell is going on Edward?" he exclaimed. I could hear him climbing the stairs as he did. "I'm on the second floor, where are you?"

"The last room at the end of the hall."

Emmett entered the dressing area breathing heavily as he tried to catch his breath from running up the stairs.

"Where's Bella?" he asked as his chest heaved.

"She's nowhere in any of these rooms. I checked every room and this closet is the only place left. The door's locked and I can't get it open."

"You think she's in there?"

"I know she is, Emmett. I can't explain to you how, call it gut instinct or whatever, but she's in there and something is very wrong, I can feel it," I said trying not to panic.

Emmett took his turn trying to pull the door open but he didn't have any more luck than I did. Frustrated and eager to get the door open to see if Bella was indeed trapped inside, Emmett looked at me and said, "Stand back."

"What are you going to do? If she's in there the bullet could hit her."

"Not if I shoot the hinges from an angle out here. They will either ricochet out this way or imbed in the door frame. So back the hell up," he ordered.

I backed up several feet as Emmett did also until he was standing far enough away to hopefully avoid the bullet bouncing back at him. Raising his gun, he held it aimed for the area right next to the door hinges.

As he fired off the shots, the wood surrounding the hinges shattered. I pulled the door but it was still jammed in place.

"We need something to pry it out with," he said as he began looking around the area.

I went into the bathroom to see if there was anything in there to use. I knew I had found what we needed when I saw a metal towel bar screwed to the wall. It didn't take much to rip the thing from the old plaster walls.

"Here," I said as I handed the bar to Emmett.

He took the piece of metal from me and after a few minutes of wedging it under the bottom of the door we were finally able to pry the door from the frame.

And there was Bella slumped where she appeared to have passed out right next to the door. I felt my chest ache as I took in her lifeless form.

Entering the closet we both began to cough and choke from what I assumed was fumes from some kind of gas. I knelt beside Bella to check for a pulse. She had one but it was weak.

"Let's get her out of here," I rasped, having a hard time breathing due to the high levels of gas remaining in the small area.

Wanting to get her into clean air as fast as I could, I picked her up and carried her out to the bedroom. Emmett followed right behind me.

I laid her down and immediately began talking to her calling her name and asking her to wake up. "Hurry she's barely breathing," I hollered as Emmett took off running downstairs to get the EMT's attending to Jake. Come on, Bella, stay with me, Sweetness, help is on the way.

It took all I had to not lose control over my emotions as I waited for Emmett to get back with help. I prayed repeatedly over and over in my head asking God not to take her from me now. To let her be ok, that it was too soon for me to lose her. I had just found her and we still had so much life to live.

It felt like forever but I was sure it had only been a matter of minutes before Emmett was back in the room with two EMTs hot on his heels.

As the EMTs entered the room they ordered me to back away while they immediately began hooking her up to oxygen and doing what they needed to stabilize her for transport to the hospital. I turned to Emmett and told him, "I'm going with her."

"I figured you would. I've got to hang here and wait for Seth to get here. He's bringing a few uniformed officers with him to make sure the house stays secure so no evidence gets tampered with. This feels like a set up to me," Emmett said, rubbing his eyes trying to relieve the irritation from the gas.

"To get Bella?" I asked, coughing again as my lungs tried to clear themselves out.

He nodded. But I already knew in my head that his answer was going to be yes. It was all too convenient. Anonymous tip that led to a booby trapped house. Reynolds and his goons either wanted to scare the shit out of Bella, or incapacitate her long enough to take her.

I wasn't a betting man, but if I did I'd bet on the latter of the two. And the thought of anyone associated with that monster getting their hands on Bella scared me more than anything ever had before.

Once Bella was hooked up to an IV and oxygen mask, they strapped her to a medic board to carry her down the stairs. It ripped me apart to see her so frail and weak looking. She was normally so full of life and energy and it killed me to see her in her current state.

Emmett and I followed the EMTs with Bella down to the ambulance. They had called a second one to take Jake since Bella was in greater need to go first.

I was allowed to sit in the back of the ambulance for the ride to the hospital when I had a second coughing attack while waiting for them to load Bella in.

Once we were on our way the paramedic checked me out and said I'd probably suffer some irritation of my eyes and lungs for a couple of hours, but since my exposure was minimal it shouldn't last beyond that. However even though I wasn't exposed to the gas for long, due to the coughing fit he witnessed me having, he insisted I wear an oxygen mask for the short trip to the hospital. I didn't want to at first, but once the mask was on me the irritation I felt in my chest began to disappear. It made me cringe to think about how irritated Bella's lungs must be after having been exposed to that shit for a much longer period of time.

This led me to question him about Bella. She looked so lifeless as she laid on the gurney. If it weren't for the oxygen level monitor and other devices they had hooked up to her, it would be hard to tell she was alive.

The paramedic said that her side effects were going to linger for a few days and would be much more severe and that the ER doc would fill me in more thoroughly after they examined her.

We pulled into the ambulance bay of the hospital and after they unloaded Bella, they took her back to be examined immediately. I was asked to give the admission attendant Bella's registration information.

I gave the girl as much information about Bella as I could. Once she had taken all the information, she instructed me to have a seat in the waiting area and they'd take me back to be with Bella just as soon as they could.

As I waited to get an update, I realized that my car was still at the house. I called Emmett to get the exact address of the house and let him know that I was going to be having someone, most likely Jasper, pick it up. He said he'd inform the officers there and it wouldn't be a problem.

I then called Alice and asked her to go by my loft and get my extra set of keys and change of clothes for me and take them to Jasper at our office. I wasn't leaving this hospital until Bella did.

Next I called Jasper and filled him in on the situation and he said that he'd have Mike run him out to get my car and drop it off here at the hospital for me.

I found myself unable to sit still while I waited. I paced back and forth across the waiting room floor as my mind raced with worry over Bella. She had turned my life upside down since the moment I met her, but I didn't regret one minute of it. In such a short span of time, my world had come to revolve around her.

I noticed I was starting to receive irritated looks from the other people in the small space so I forced myself to sit.

I tried closing my eyes, but all I could see was Bella's limp form lying on the floor of that closet.

Frustrated, I leaned forward and cradled my head in my hands as my elbows rested on my knees.

I had been sitting like that for a few minutes when I heard a male voice call, "Mr. Cullen?"

Glancing up I saw a doctor standing at the entrance to the room. I stood up and walked over to him.

"Edward Cullen?" he asked.

"Yes sir," I answered and held my hand out to shake his.

"Dr. Warner," he introduced himself as we shook hands.

"How's Bella?" I wasted no time asking.

"Come take a walk with me and I'll fill you in on Miss Swan's condition," he said. He pointed out which direction to go and pushed the large button on the wall causing both doors leading to ER area to open.

We passed three or four exams rooms before he stopped and held open a door and motioned for me to enter.

Entering the room the first thing I saw was my girl lying in the hospital bed with several monitors hooked up to her.

I looked over at the doctor and asked, "She's still unconscious?"

"Yes she is and it's likely she will be for a few more hours. It usually takes somewhere in the area of four to six hours for the effects of the gas to wear off. And even when she does wake up she is going to be very groggy for a while."

"But she will make a full recovery right," I asked praying he gave me the answer I wanted.

"Yes. It will take her a few days for the effects to completely wear off, but after that she should be fine."

"What kind of effects will she have?"

"Well for starters, as I explained she will be out of it for a few more hours. When she wakes up she is going to have a pretty severe headache. Her eyes will be irritated and that along with her headache should gradually degrease in intensity by tomorrow until it's completely gone," he explained.

"Ok, what else?"

"Her lungs and voice will take a few days. But after that she shouldn't have any lingering after effects."

"How long will she have to stay here?" was my next question as I walked over and sat on the chair next to her bed and took her hand in mine. It was a bittersweet feeling to be able to touch her and hold her hand, but to be doing it while she was in this condition.

"We will definitely be keeping her overnight for observation. All her vital signs are stable and her respiration is much better than it was when she first arrived. So as long as she continues to improve and there are no concerning or unexpected symptoms in the morning, we will release her. However she will need to take it easy for a couple of days. She's going to have some minor side effects that will keep her a little disjointed for a day or two."

I nodded. Dr. Warner then checked the readings on her heart monitor as well as the pulse oximeter and made a few notes in her chart. Afterwards he excused himself to go check on having her moved up to a regular room.

I sat there watching the love of my life sleep. She had gotten a touch of her skin color back. Her lips no longer had a bluish tint to them and her breathing was steadier than it had been before. I ran my fingers through her hair and let out a strangled sigh as I battled with my emotions once again.

"Oh, Sweetness," I whispered as leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "What have I done? I promised you I would keep you safe and not let anyone or anything hurt you and look at you now."

"That's one way to get her pissed off at you again," I heard the booming voice of Emmett and looked up to see him standing in the doorway to Bella's room.

I just stared at him not really knowing what to say. He walked over and sat in the chair next to mine.

"How is she?" he asked.

"Good from what the doc said, although she will be out of it for a while still," I replied and then went on to fill him on everything the doctor had told me about her recovery.

"You know she's already going to be pissed this happened when she wakes up. Don't let her catch you going all emo on her like you were earlier. I know it's your job to protect her right now, but what happened today is part of her job. It's also something that none of us could have known about or prevented," Emmett said like he had been through this a million times.

"Doesn't mean I have to like it though," I retorted.

"No, Edward, you don't. I don't fucking like it. When you take on a job like Bella and I have, there is always going to be a certain amount of risk and even danger involved. Not all the cases we investigate involve psycho pricks like Reynolds. But one thing I can tell you is that this will certainly not be the last time Bella gets hurt in the line of duty. So if you are serious about being with her, it's something you are going to have to come to terms with and accept."

"I know."

"Do you? Are you sure about that?" he chided.

"I know it in my head anyways. My heart…well…that might take a little longer to get the message."

"Can I ask how things are going between the two of you?" he asked changing his whole demeanor like someone had flipped a switch; he went from boss mode to caring friend mode.

I chuckled at him causing him to then ask, "What's so funny?"

'Pumping me for info, old buddy, 'cause Bella won't spill any details to you?"

"Sue me," he laughed. "I only asked because I care about Bella."

"Yes, we're getting along better. Well at least until she got pissed about you letting me come along this morning," I said tugging at my hair for what must have been the millionth time since finding Bella in the closet. It was a wonder I had any left.

He chuckled again, "Yeah she wasn't too happy about that was she?" He stood up and walked over, stopping in front of the only window in the room. After bending a few of the blinds so he could peak between them, he turned around and leaned against the window sill. Lowering his head and scratching the back of it he said, "Just don't give up on her ok. She's barely dated in the three years I've known her much less had a man inserted in her life at the level you have been recently. It's a huge adjustment for her and I really believe if you just give her time to sort things out she'll come around. I wou—"

Emmett was cut off by the sound of someone knocking on the door. He took a few long strides to cross the distance from where he was standing to reach the door and pull it open.

I instantly recognized the tinkling voice of my sister informing him that she was looking for Edward Cullen. Emmett let her in and standing behind her where she couldn't see, I saw him raise his eyebrow and nod at my sister as if he were asking me who the hell she was as she stood on her tip toes and planted a quick kiss on my cheek and give me a hug.

I shook my head and fought the urge to laugh at Emmett's reaction. He obviously didn't remember my sister. In his defense it had been quite a while since he had last seen her. Alice, being a year older than Bella, was only a freshman in high school when Emmett and I graduated.

"Emmett, it's been a while. Let me reintroduce you to my sister Alice," I said as Alice turned to face him.

"This," he said pointing to her, "is little Alice?" The surprise and maybe a touch of embarrassment were evident in his voice.

"Emmett? Emmett McCarty?" Alice asked.

"Yup, it's me," he said popping the "p" as he did. "You obviously have a much better memory than I do. Of course you were a lot different last time I saw ya. What the heck happened to your hair?" he asked remembering the waist length hair she had back then as he noticed the short spikey style she wore it in now.

"Oh I got tired of it. It's so much easier to take care of it this way," Alice told him.

"If you say so. I don't know what I'd do if Rose wanted to cut her hair off. Look it was great to see you again, but I really need to be going," he said to Alice before turning his gaze on me. "Edward, let me know if there is anything Bella needs. I am going to head back over to the house and help Seth finish things up."

"Ok, I'll be here as long as she is," I told him.

"I had a feeling you might be. Talk to ya later man."

"Later."

"Alice, it was good to see you again," Emmett said waving to us both as he left.

"So how is she?" my sister asked the second Emmett was out the door.

"She'll be ok."

"Good. You must have been scared," she said.

"Yeah I was," I muttered, my gaze once again focused on where Bella lie sleeping.

"I'm glad she'll be ok. Um… I really have to go too. Jazz and I are having a late lunch with his parents. Your car is here and I brought what you asked for. Oh and I also brought something for Bella. I figured she would need something to wear home once she was released. I took a guess at her size so I hope what I brought fits."

"Thanks, Alice. I really appreciate that and I'm sure Bella will too," I said giving her another hug. She really was a great sister even if she did annoy the shit out of me half the time.

"It was no problem. I was at the mall when you called so it was no big deal to grab her something."

"Well thanks again. Now get out of here. Go have lunch," I said turning her around and nudging her towards the door.

"Want us to bring you anything later?" she asked reaching for the door knob.

"No. If I get hungry later, I'll grab something from the cafeteria."

"Ok, well give us a call if you change your mind."

With Alice gone, the room was once again quiet aside from the sounds coming from the machines monitoring Bella. Watching her sleep I wanted so badly to lie next to her and hold her in my arms. Not knowing how she'd react waking up to find me in bed with her, I settled for lacing my fingers through hers and resting my head on the side of her bed. I closed my eyes and hoped that the time it took for her to wake up and let me see those gorgeous brown eyes of hers passed quickly so I would know that she was really ok.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Let me know what ya think. The teaser for chapter 12 will be on the blog Monday morning. Thanks for reading, EA~