Streets of Fire

"I'm wandering, a loser down these tracks
I'm dying, but girl I can't go back
'Cause in the darkness I hear somebody call my name
And when you realize how they tricked you this time
And it's all lies but I'm strung out on the wire
In these streets of fire"

From Streets of Fire, by Bruce Springsteen; off Darkness on the Edge of Town, 1978

The first thing Edward did when the plane touched down at Atlantic City International was turn on his cell phone. He was desperate for a sign, any sign, that Alice was okay. He'd been consumed by panic as soon as he entered the kitchen earlier that morning, and found Carlisle and Bella involved in an intense conversation. He'd instantly demanded to know what was going on, and immediately after they filled him in, he almost wished they hadn't.

Aro was collecting people. He was taking people, forcibly if necessary, that he deemed 'useful' to him. Some went willingly, like Jane, Alec, Felix, Heidi and Chelsea, to name a few. They were no doubt offered money and power for their subordination and service.

Then there were those who were fooled- the pawns- like Edward. And some were taken by force, like Bella and Alice. Edward managed to get Bella away, but Alice…

He shuddered to think of where she was, whom she was with, and what could be happening to her.

Bella believed, and Carlisle reluctantly agreed, that when Aro figured out that Edward wouldn't follow his plans willingly, he had to coerce him by using a bargaining tool. Sadly, that 'tool' was Alice. The closeness of their relationship, when they had first met all those years ago, could not have gone unnoticed by Aro.

What confounded them all was what Aro's end game was. It was obvious that he wanted property, money, and power, but to what end? Once Edward agreed to come back and meet with the governor, would he let Alice go? If he did, what was to stop Edward from running again, this time with Alice in tow? The questions running through his mind were starting to give him a migraine.

His also wondered about Alice's ultimate fate. He feared that Alice would somehow be convinced to stay willingly, thus forcing Edward to stay nearby and protect her. Of course, once he found her, Edward could take her against her will. But would that make him any better than Aro? He liked to think so, because his motivations would be in her best interest. He just hoped it wouldn't come to that.

While he vehemently denied that his sister was as ill as their father claimed, he would be a fool to deny that she had issues. She wasn't a strong person, and she did have manic tendencies. She was as gullible as she was hyper. Aro could tell her all kinds of stories and somehow convince her that her place was with him. He just hoped that if it came to that, he could talk her out of it, and not need to take drastic measures to ensure her safety.

There were three messages on his phone. Two were from Aro, reminding him of the meeting that day, and that his presence was required and expected. The meeting would be at two in the afternoon, giving him a few hours to get ready.

The last message was from Emmett, stating he was worried and wanted Edward to call him back. Edward did so, realizing that he was going to need an ally before he went into the Lion's den.

"McCarty," Emmett answered.

"Emmett, it's Cullen."

"Edward man, where have you been? I haven't seen you around for like two days, and then I hear you quit? What's going on?"

"I need a favor. Can you meet me up in my suite in about an hour?"

"Sure. Are you okay?"

"'Okay' is relative. So you'll be there?"

"Yeah. Where are you?"

"At the airport. I'll explain everything when I see you."

"Alright, man. Be safe."

Emmett was already waiting for them outside the door of the suite when they arrived.

"You're early," Edward commented. "Thanks for coming."

"No problem, I was worried sick. What's going on?"

"Not here; inside," Edward said, swiping his keycard to allow them access. When they entered the suite, Edward noticed that the maid had been in, and cursed himself for not putting up the 'Do Not Disturb' sign. In the past, he didn't mind the cleaning service. In fact, he welcomed it. Now he had trouble trusting anyone. He wouldn't put it past Aro to have maids spying on him too.

He gave the room a quick once-over, and nothing seemed amiss. The bed was neatly made now, the glasses were washed, and the clothes that had been strewn haphazardly around the room were now hanging in the closet in dry cleaning bags.

Bella made herself comfortable, sitting cross-legged on the bed. She then pulled her oversized bear to her chest, hugging him against her.

Emmett laughed as he sat in one of the armchairs. "You still have that thing?"

Bella smiled. "Of course. It's the most ridiculous present anyone has ever given me."

Emmett chuckled softly. "Well I aim to please. Seriously though, where have you guys been?"

Edward sat down next to Bella. "We were in Vegas," he explained.

Emmett's eyes immediately dropped to their hands, and Bella noticed.

"Not to get married, jackass!" she exclaimed.

"My sister was in trouble. We went there to get her, and we found that she was taken."

"Taken? Like… kidnapped?"

"We think so," Edward said solemnly. "And we think Aro is responsible."

"That's… a lot to take in," Emmett said, sitting back with his brow furrowed. "I heard you quit your job too. Why?"

"Didn't Maggie fill you in?"

"She said James showed up and you beat the shit out of him. Good job, by the way. Then she said you walked out when Aro came to his defense?"

"You remember when Bella was taken, then Felix erased all the data on the security monitors? Felix was given the job by Aro. He's working for him. That's why I didn't trust him. Then when Aro came to James' defense, I lost it, and I quit. Then less than an hour later, my sister goes missing. It can't be a coincidence."

"So, not to put too fine a point on it, but what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in Vegas looking for her?"

"Aro called when I was there. He said that he didn't accept my resignation, and he expects me to meet with the governor today. He wants Denali to appoint me to take Marks' place at the CCC."

"What? That's ridiculous. The governor would never go for that. He hates Aro," Emmett said automatically.

"Wait, what?" Bella asked, eyes wide.

"The night of the Amazon show, when we all met up… Rosalie and I were in the bathroom… I mean… anyway we were talking. The Governor and one of his bodyguards came in, talking about how they couldn't stand Aro, and they didn't trust him; they thought he was up to something. That's why they left the show early."

"I thought something was up with him that night." Edward murmured. "Did you see the photos of Marks and the woman?"

"Yeah, it was Heidi. I was going to tell you that if you didn't already know. Rosalie showed me. She found some of the unreleased ones online too. That woman's a tramp."

"And a con-artist," Bella added. "We're pretty sure she went after Marks on purpose, to get him out of the position and then getting Edward in. Aro's probably behind that too."

"But… that's his daughter!" Emmett exclaimed, disgusted. "Why would he let her do that?"

"Heidi is Aro's daughter?" Edward asked, shocked. "I didn't know that."

"Well, I'm pretty sure she is anyway… Rosalie heard her say 'bye daddy' to him once, and just assumed."

"This just keeps getting fucking better," Edward muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose in disgust.

"So you're actually going to meet with the governor?"

"Aro may have implied that if I ever want to see my sister again, I'd better be at this meeting. Besides, I'm hoping to fish some information out of him."

"We should get the cops involved."

"To what end? There's no damn proof. The police in Las Vegas basically shrugged their shoulders and said, 'oh well'."

"I'll call my cousin at least. See if she knows anything, and at least get some advice."

"I'd appreciate that, thanks. But I just don't see it doing any good. I have to be at this meeting."

"Want me to come along?"

"No, I think I can handle it. Aro won't try anything with the governor present. I did need a favor, though."

"Anything, man."

"Just… take Bella back to work with you. Don't let her out of your sight. She's not safe."

"Edward, that's really not necessary," Bella started to object, but Edward cut her off.

"Please… don't argue with me on this. It's only until I'm done with the meeting. My sister was taken… I can't lose you too."

Bella leaned over and kissed him softly. "I'm sorry, and you're right. Of course I'll go with Emmett."

They talked for a few more minutes before it was time for Edward to get ready for the meeting. After he disappeared into the bathroom to shower, Bella bit her lower lip in frustration.

"What are you thinking so hard about?" Emmett asked her curiously.

"I just feel like I'm missing something obvious."

"You mean like a way to take the bastard down?" Emmett asked with a wry smile.

Bella ignored him for a minute while she tried to make sense of her thoughts. Suddenly, her eyes lit up. "The governor!" she exclaimed excitedly. "That's it!"

"What's it?" Emmett asked, confused.

"He's the key. If we can get him on our side, he can help put an end to this madness. He's already suspicious; you overheard him say that. If we can give him the information needed to confirm his suspicions, then maybe he can do something about it."

"How are you going to contact him? He can't be easy to reach without going through one of his staff, and there's no way Aro's going to leave him and Edward alone to talk."

"I'll just write a letter. Edward can slip it to him. Easy."

"If he even bothers to read it," Emmett said skeptically.

"It's worth a shot," Bella insisted, reaching into the drawer of the end table and pulling out a pad of paper.

After pondering for a few minutes on what to say, and how to say it, she wrote as quickly as possible with it still being legible.

Governor Denali,

My name is Isabella Swan, and I'm involved in a relationship with Edward Cullen, the man you are meeting today. Governor, we are in trouble, and we believe the following:

First, that Aro Volturi has taken extraordinary and unlawful measures, in order to assert an extreme amount of influence in Atlantic City. Second, that people have been taken by force, and possibly died, in order for him to secure a position of power, and third, that both Edward and myself are in immediate danger.

Before you dismiss these claims, please read what we know:

-Over the past few months, Volturi has been sending associates from Las Vegas, including his own daughter, to work at Volterra in strategic positions.

-His daughter, Heidi, was the woman responsible for the Marks scandal.

-Edward recently had an altercation with Mr. Volturi, and hours after he resigned his position, his sister disappeared. Volturi has implied that Edward must meet with you and him today in order to ensure her safety.

-Aro wishes Edward to succeed Austin Marks in his position at the Casino Control Commission, in order to have an 'inside' member to overlook his indiscretions. He is so fixated on this plan, that he will do anything to achieve it.

While we do not have all of the information, we're fairly certain that Aro is manipulating, coercing, and kidnapping people that he deems useful to his plan.

I don't know if or how you might be able to help us, but I wanted to make you aware of a serious situation going on right under our noses. We also have reason to believe that Aro is involved in underground crime in Atlantic City, including, but not limited to, prostitution, drugs, and illegal gambling.

Unfortunately, as of this time, Aro has covered his tracks extremely well, and we lack any evidence to involve the police at this time.

I will list my number at the bottom if you have any questions, or if you feel that there is anything you can do to help us.

Sincerely,

Isabella Swan

When Edward was finished getting ready, Bella gave him the note to read. He was skeptical that her plan would work, but agreed to find a way to pass the note to the governor during the meeting. He figured it couldn't cause any more harm, and if it worked, then that was even better.

As they readied to leave, Bella could hear Edward and Emmett talking quietly near the door, both unaware of her presence.

"Emmett, I know you probably think I'm crazy right now, but please, just keep her safe. She is my life now."

"You've got nothing to worry about," Emmett responded. "And I don't think you're crazy."

Edward left, and Bella followed Emmett down to the security offices.

"Here it is," Emmett said proudly. "My home away from home."

"It's lovely," Bella commented dryly, taking in the grayed walls and the hundreds of monitors, the images displaying every inch of the casino. Half a dozen workers were sitting at cube like terminals, staring intently at monitors, occasionally writing something down on legal pads. Nobody was smiling.

Emmett pulled out an empty chair at a terminal and loaded the computer. "Here," he said, "Make yourself at home."

Bella laughed when he saw that Emmett had loaded a game of Solitaire for her. "Ah, my favorite. Thanks, Emmett."

Emmett took a seat next to her as Bella absent-mindedly started to drag cards across the screen. "So Edward tells me you're some kind of super math genius?"

Bella scoffed. "I wouldn't go that far. I'm good with numbers, and I remember things easily, that's all."

"I think you're being modest. The way Edward tells it, you and your boyfriend made a living for years off the grid, exploiting weaknesses in casino games using your mad math skills, and ripping them off."

Bella rolled her eyes. "Rumors of my talents have been greatly exaggerated. And Edward didn't tell you that."

Emmett shrugged. "Maybe I took a few liberties to make it more exciting in my mind. Pretty bad ass though."

"If you say so," Bella murmured.

"So there's some pretty epic shit going on around here, huh?"

"Seems that way," Bella said sadly. "It's been driving me crazy, trying to put all the pieces together. Usually I'm pretty good at that kind of stuff - solving puzzles - but when I factor everything in, I can't come up with any kind of solution. I can't make both sides of the equation match in my head."

"You said you weren't some kind of math whiz, yet you clearly see everything as an equation."

"Everything is an equation," Bella argued. "Everything can be factored in by numbers. That's why I love it. You can put in all the data, solve for "x", and everything comes up equal on the other side. No gray area, just pure hard facts. Every problem has a solution. But I'll be damned if I can find the answer to this one."

Emmett furrowed his brow for a minute, lost in thought. "Then maybe you're missing some factors, some data points?"

"I'm sure I am, but missing factors can be accounted for. I just can't make sense of the solution."

"Then maybe the solution itself isn't logical. You're basing your problem solving process on there being a logical, concrete, solution at the end. What if the solution isn't concrete? What if there are holes in whatever plan Aro has?"

"You know Emmett, that actually makes sense."

He shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm not as stupid as I act sometimes."

"I'm beginning to see that."

"Alright, well, I'll be in my office working on my resume. I'm pretty sure I'll be out of work soon, one way or another."

"I'm sorry you got dragged into this mess," Bella said, sincerely. "And I'm sorry you have to play babysitter, but I do appreciate it."

Emmett smiled warmly at her. "Anytime, Swan. Let me know if you need anything."

"Will do," Bella said, turning her attention back to her card game.

"You're anxious," Maggie commented, setting a cup on the desk in front of Bella.

Bella smiled meekly. "I'm fine," she said. "Thank you."

"You're lying," Maggie said gently. She leaned over to the terminal in front of Bella and pushed a few buttons. An image of Edward popped up on the screen. "He's alright, see?"

Bella couldn't help but smile in relief as the image of Edward, sitting with Aro and the governor, appeared in front of her plain as day. It was a hazy image, but enough to relax her and see that things were okay, for the time being at least.

"There's no blind spots in the casino," Maggie explained. "There's no sound, but at least you can see he's alright."

"Thank you," Bella said kindly, sipping her coffee. Her card game forgotten, she watched the screen. Edward and the governor both looked tense, yet Aro kept smiling jubilantly, very animated about whatever he was talking about. She watched as the governor seemed to be excusing herself, then he disappeared from the image.

Edward and Aro then became involved in a heated conversation. She saw Edward bang his fist down on the table, causing a water glass to topple.

"Careful, Edward," Bella whispered anxiously at the screen. She jumped when her cell rang. With a last look at the live feed, she knew it wasn't Edward calling. She looked down at the caller id and saw that it was a local area code. She hoped that it was the governor, who was still missing from the table, before she realized he probably wouldn't have an Atlantic City code. She sighed and answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Isabella," a voice hissed on the other end. The familiar, unforgettable voice made her blood run cold.

"James," she answered, through gritted teeth.

"I hear you're looking for someone," he said. "I'm willing to offer a trade."

Bella's breath caught in her throat. He could only be talking about Alice.

She was silent for a minute as she waffled between simply hanging up or hearing him out. Images of Edward, so broken and defeated at the news of his sister's disappearance were at the forefront of her mind. He had saved her, more than once. Perhaps this was her chance to return the favor?

She knew he would be pissed at her for what she was about to do, but she had to try. She had to save Alice, and she wouldn't forgive herself if she didn't take that chance. Even if she ended up dead, or worse, it was worth it to reunite Edward and the person most important to him.

"Where should I meet you?"

A/N- I can't thank everyone enough for the kind words, praise, theories, and support. You all mean the world to me! Please review!

Next chapter, we'll find out what happened at the dinner with the governor, and what James has planned for Bella.