So, my lovely readers, here is a gift for you in celebration of 200+ reviews! See, give me your feedback and I'll give you more (and longer) chapters.

Thanks again to ShowtunesJesus and Ragsstone. I even got a little smiley face back with my lovely beta's comments. Sad, I know, that such small things give me a thrill.

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SMeyer owns it all and now lives in a fancy mansion on some big estate. I live in a modest house with neighbors who complain about my wind chimes, therefore ruining my Feng Shui.

Chapter 12

Edward

It was early Friday morning, and I was in the basement gym trying to work off some of my nervous energy. My sleep the previous night had been full of vivid dreams, but as I fell into a deeper sleep sometime in the early hours of the morning, they had melted away. When I woke, I was left with only vague impressions and half-recalled snapshots of images, and I couldn't shake the impression that these dreams were something I wanted to remember−to hold onto.

I was on my back on a bench, pressing weights, well in the zone. The stereo was blasting out some hyped-up dance music. I hadn't really been paying attention to who it was; it was the beat that I needed, it led me, helped me keep my pace. My fierce concentration was broken by a huge, block-shaped head leaning over me.

"Hey, dude, I could smell the stink of your sweat from the top of the stairs. Got a few things on your mind to work off? Something going down on the job?"

Emmett and I were like chalk and cheese. I was tall at six-foot-two, but Emmett towered over me by another three inches. Where I was lean and built like an athlete, he was solid and beefy, more like a wrestler. While I took great pains to keep in shape and my muscles were nicely defined, Emmett had arms and legs like tree trunks. He had the perfect shape for a football linebacker or a seriously intimidating bouncer.

Appearances were deceiving, however. The bulging, seemingly menacing exterior hid a sensitive and highly perceptive man−qualities which made him an excellent school counselor. With his easygoing and playful nature, he worked well with kids, relating to them easily. Emmett also seemed to have a sixth sense when it came to people in some sort of turmoil. He had an uncanny skill at getting people to purge their deepest secrets and worries without being aware of quite how it happened.

I continued with my reps, pushing the weights up and down as I tried to reach my targeted number. Knowing it was wasted effort to try to hold out on Emmett, I tried to sort out the tangle of thoughts in my head.

"It's this girl," I managed to grunt out between reps.

Emmett whooped out his enthusiasm and squatted down next to me.

"I've been waiting for the day, Eddy boy, that you'd come to your big bro for advice about women. I do have a certain amount of expertise in that area. I mean, c'mon, look at the hottie I landed!"

"It's not like that," I replied, glaring at him. "It's a case. I just can't get her out of my head. I keep thinking about what was done to her and how it will affect her. I keep thinking of her, all alone. She's got no one to care about her, to help her get over it."

"Yeah, I know where you're coming from with that. I get that way too, sometimes. It's a constant risk, considering our respective lines of work. Comes with giving a shit." He rested his chin on his hand, looking thoughtful. "But you must see a lot of crap go down−worse stuff than this. What makes this girl different?"

"I don't know." I rested the weights back in their cradle, sliding down the bench before sitting up. Emmett passed me my towel, and I wiped my face brusquely.

"I just can't let this one go. It's like..." I struggled to put my feelings into some coherent sort of statement.

"It makes me feel angry, that someone could hurt her that way. When we catch the bastard, I want to pound him just for that. I feel sad that she is in pain and has no one to look after her or make her feel better−to protect her. She looks small and fragile, but she put up a good fight and hung on beyond the point where most would have given in. She has an inner toughness you can't see now, but I know that it's there." I looked down and stared intently at the towel I had unconsciously balled up in my lap.

"I wonder what she's doing when I'm not there to see," I admitted in a strained voice.

"Whoa, Edward! I think this girl has gotten under your skin. Is that a good thing or a bad thing for you?" Typical Em, cutting right to the crux of every matter.

I sighed in frustration. "I've got no fucking clue, Emmett."

Emmett spotted me through a few more exercises before he had to get ready for work. When I finished up, I did a few things to fill my morning until it was time to head to work again.

That day we had some training exercise, which took up the first hour of our shift. We had barely finished our detail briefing after the in-service session before Jasper's cell rang. I could tell by the change in his posture that something was up. He spoke briefly and curtly before finishing the call as he strode out of the meeting room, giving me a meaningful look as he inclined his head to the door. Understanding his silent communication, I followed in his wake as we headed towards the motor pool.

"It was the hospital. Something has happened with Isabella Swan." He drove again today, as I radioed our destination to the dispatcher. My mind whirled with possibilities. From Jasper's body language, it wouldn't be something good, like the miraculous recovery of her faculties. I had to physically restrain myself in my seat, mentally willing him to drive faster.

When we arrived, we headed straight up to her room, almost running in our haste. The hallway was full of milling security staff, some speaking into two-way radios, and a few administration-type people, probably there for damage control.

"Officers Whitlock and Cullen. We're heading the investigation of Miss Swan's case. What's going on?" Jasper turned the full force of his steely stare onto the nearest security guard.

"Someone came into her room and attacked her. The nurse called you as soon as she knew what happened."

Before he could say anything more, Jasper bolted ahead, with me barely a step behind.

Jasper gave her a quick but thorough visual once over before turning back to the security guard who had followed us in. I could feel my stomach clench as I took in the sight of her.

She lay rigid on the bed, shaking like a leaf, her whole body twitching and almost convulsing with the force of it. Her eyes were wide and fixed, terror clear in their endless depths. Her forehead was sweaty, as if she had run a marathon, and her hair was a tangled bird's nest around her pinched face. She was still panting, her chest heaving under the twisted t-shirt she was wearing. She looked as if she would bolt if she could move off the bed on her own, or scream if she had the air, or possibly both.

I slowed my pace and tried to talk to her in my most soothing voice. I could hear the pace of her breathing slow a little as I got closer. When the bottom of my thighs touched the mattress, she grabbed me and started crying.

So I did what felt right, what felt natural. I hugged her. I did it without even thinking how it might look or who might see. She was scared and in pain; I knew it with every fiber of my being. She just needed…someone, somebody to comfort her. So I did, and it felt like the space on my chest was just made for her to fit into. She sat there and cried out all her fear and tension, until she was reduced to a snuffling boneless mass as she finally relaxed.

My mind was racing with various scenarios and explanations. It had to be the same perp. It was too much of a coincidence that we had identified her and then less than twenty-four hours later, someone attacked her again, and in a hospital no less. That this girl had been the victim of two separate and random attempts on her life was beyond belief, and I did not believe in coincidences like that. The perp must be bold or stupid, or maybe just desperate.

Security had been informed of the nature of her admission when she first arrived and were supposed to be keeping tabs on her. There was no way she could remain here now the perp knew where she was, and it would require too much man power to safeguard her better at the hospital.

Since we still didn't know the exact nature of the initial crime, it would be almost impossible to get approval for one-on-one protection from our department. She had no family to take her in either. With her combined injuries, it was unlikely that she could manage on her own, even if we found some sort of safe house for her. We had to think of somewhere where she could get the care she needed that was both secure and unknown.

I started to prioritize what needed to be done. We needed to know exactly what had happened and if Isabella had seen or recognized her attacker. We had to find out how he found her, and check if there were any CCTV images of the perp. We then had to find somewhere to place Isabella, preferably tonight.

I was brought back to reality by the sound of Jasper pointedly clearing his throat; I might have even jumped a little. He gave me a look under drawn brows, one communicating that I was in deep shit and owed him a huge explanation. I quickly stood and gently placed her back onto the bed. She then relayed the details of the attack, at one point starting to slide into a panic again. I quickly locked eyes with her, willing her to calm down. She seemed to recover some equilibrium then and pulled herself together, and even said she thought she might have gotten some skin from the attacker.

I felt almost proud on her behalf that she could think of an important piece of information like that despite the terror of her ordeal.

I discussed some of my thoughts from earlier with Jasper about the need to relocate Isabella−or rather Bella, as she had informed us. Jasper returned to our squad car to get an evidence pouch and a collection kit while I tried to divert her thoughts from what had happened. As she told me about her parents, she seemed to transform back to the carefree child she had been at that time. Her eyes shone and when she smiled, and she was glorious to watch, luminous and so beautiful. I could feel that swelling in my chest again. My hands itched to sweep her into my lap, just like before.

I was saved from myself by the return of Jasper. Once he collected the scrapings, he indicated it was time for us to continue with our work. I brushed her hand again, unable to stop myself, reassuring her that one of us would be standing guard outside at all times. The chumps from hospital security had their chance and failed dismally, now it was time for the true professionals to take over.

As soon as we cleared the doorway, Jasper turned to me, hissing "What the hell, Edward? We are on the clock here. Since when has it ever been considered appropriate behavior to cuddle up with a victim like that? This could cause some serious shit for you, for both of us, if she decides to complain and say you made a move on her. Joking about things is one thing…what I just saw is a whole other issue."

"I'm sorry man; I don't know what happens to me when it comes to her. I forget everything else. I'll try harder to keep it together better." I felt my body stiffen in discomfort, struggling against my own sense of guilt and having also disappointed Jasper. After giving me another probing and analytical look, Jasper moved a foot away to talk to the hospital supervisor.

I felt conflicted. Nothing like this had ever happened on a job before. Hell, nothing even remotely similar to this had happened to me, period. I wanted to do the right thing as a professional and as a partner. But I also felt myself becoming more and more conscious of wanting to do the right thing for the girl−for Bella. Not just as the victim of a crime, needing justice and punishment for those responsible. No, I wanted to do the right thing as someone….something other. I was so confused, and I detested the feeling. It was like I had no control over my own actions and feelings when it came to her.

I had to put a stop to this now, before it went any further. Less than professional relationships with anyone involved in a case were strictly forbidden and could jeopardize a potential conviction.

I steeled myself, pushing down all of these unnerving emotions.

I would do what I always did–do my best to do the uniform proud. I could and would be the consummate professional. I would perform my duties without allowing my personal feelings to intrude. I kept repeating this mantra in my head to reinforce it. I slapped my game face on, took a deep breath to fortify myself, and went to join Jasper.