A/N: Thanks for your reviews and messages!

Thanks to my personal cheerleader and kickass beta Dinx.

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters you recognize. This story is rated M, and is not suitable for younger readers. Story contains some violence, very foul language and may eventually contain sexual situations. Please do not read if any of these things offend you.

Chapter Twenty Four

Bella groaned at the dull ache in her right arm. The room she was in was cool and dimly lit. She made a move to sit up, but found that it was nearly impossible. Her head was aching worse than her arm.

"Oh, you're awake," a soft voice said from across the room.

Bella tensed. She didn't recognize the woman's voice. She lifted her head and looked toward the corner, where the attractive brunette sat.

"What ... who are you?" And where the hell am I?

"We've never met, have we? I'm Victoria Yorkie," the woman responded, her voice laced with sadness.

Bella gasped. Oh my God, she's here to kill me! They didn't do it, and she's going to...

"I'm sorry I startled you," Victoria said, standing. She approached the bed Bella lay on and took a seat in a chair.

Bella tried to clear the webs from her mind in an effort to figure out what was going on.

"You're in the hospital, dear," Victoria added. She glanced around the room before her eyes settled on Bella.

"The hospital," Bella repeated. A closer look around the room afforded Bella the chance to see that Victoria was being honest, and she let her defenses fall. "Where's Rose?"

"Your dad's outside," Victoria said quickly. "I asked if I could come in and see you. I was just going to leave this, but..." Her voice trailed off as she held up an envelope, then laid it on the bedside tray. "It's from your mom."

Bella stared at her. "I don't understand."

Victoria shook her head. "I know you don't, honey. I don't, either. But out of all of us, you're the one who lost the most. My son and his father..." She paused. "My husband. They'll finally pay for all the pain they've caused everyone. And for what? Power? The man I married is not the man you know. And my son ... I don't know where I went wrong."

Bella looked at her incredulously. She didn't know whether to laugh out of the madness she felt or cry out of pity. So much had happened. Was she dreaming?

Victoria stood. She gently laid a hand on Bella's shoulder, a slight smile on her face. "It's all over now, Bella. You can move on with your life. We all can."

Bella's mouth fell open. She wanted to speak, to ask the woman more questions, but Victoria disappeared through the door so quickly that Bella wondered if she had been an apparition.

Her eyes darted to the envelope Victoria had left. The door swung open, and Charlie entered, followed by a nurse.

"Dad-"

Charlie leaned over her, placing a kiss on her forehead.

"Where's Rose?" Bella asked.

"She's in surgery," Charlie said, shoving his hands in his pockets. His eyes flitted across the envelope.

"Is she okay?"

"She should be fine," Charlie replied, occupying the same seat Victoria had just vacated. "They're just … well, she'll be okay."

Bella settled her eyes on his face. It was obvious he had been without sleep for some time. He looked worn down and much older than his age. Their relationship was one that they could sit in easy, comfortable silence, but at the moment, the tension in the room was thick.

"Dad-"

Charlie lifted his eyes from the floor and looked at his daughter. He cut her off. "Bells, I'm extremely upset with you at the moment."

Bella blinked. Okay...

"How could you put yourself in danger like that? Do you have any idea what ..." He paused, searching for the right words. "If something had happened to you, it would have-"

"Dad," Bella interrupted. "I know. It was stupid. But I'm okay." I think...

Her arm was still aching, but beyond that, she felt fine.

Charlie shook his head. "Yeah, you're okay. You got lucky, Bells. The bullet that hit your shoulder? A few centimeters to the left and you wouldn't be here. Can you comprehend that?"

Bella sucked in a breath. "I …" She tried to move her right arm, but to no avail. "What the hell is wrong with my arm?"

"Regional anesthesia, they called it," Charlie replied, sitting back. "Should be wearing off anytime. They numbed it after they removed the bullet."

"I got shot," Bella said, though she meant to form it into a question.

Charlie tsked. "There are three words I never thought I'd hear from my daughter."

"Dad, for Christ's sake." Bella lifted her good arm and pressed her fingers to her forehead. "Did you know Mom was seeing him?"

Charlie cleared his throat, shaking his head. "No, I had no idea. Your mom didn't share much of her life with me. Our bond was you, and that's it. And apparently, she didn't see fit to share that stuff with me either."

Bella looked at him. Oh God! That meant he knew...

"Bells, why did you feel like you couldn't tell me what happened? Why do you feel that way now?"

Unsure of what to say, Bella began picking at the blanket.

"I don't know everything, and to be honest, I don't know if I want to. But I'll be damned if I would have let some self-entitled little shit get away with doing that to my daughter. Had you told me-"

"Dad," Bella finally snapped.

Before she could say anything else, the door swung open and the doctor walked in, followed by a nurse.

"Well, good morning, Miss Swan," the doctor said, smiling. "How are we feeling?"

Charlie stood, moving across the room. Bella looked at him, then back at the doctor. "I'm okay. Can you tell me anything about Rosalie Hale?"

"Miss Hale should be coming out of surgery soon," he replied, making some marks on his clipboard.

As the doctor examined her, asking her all manner of questions, Bella kept her eyes on Charlie. He was looking out the window, his hands shoved into his pockets again.

"Alright, you're looking good," the doctor said. "I'll be sure to have someone let you know how your friend is, okay?"

Bella nodded, thanking him before he left the room. She looked at Charlie again, who was rubbing his face in an effort to stay alert.

"How long has it been since you slept?" Bella asked, concern in her voice.

"I don't know. Monday, I guess. Last couple of days haven't exactly been the easiest."

"I'm sorry," Bella said softly. "I'm sorry I put you through that. But he needed help, Dad."

Charlie glanced at her, then out the window. "I don't want to discuss Edward. Not right now. I'm too tired, and you're too emotional."

"Go get some sleep. Go home," Bella replied, letting her head fall back on the pillow.

He didn't want to leave, but now that he knew Bella was safe – especially with a guard stationed outside the door – he desperately wanted to get some shuteye. So, he kissed Bella on the forehead, told her he loved her, and left the room.

Bella stared up at the ceiling. She didn't know if it was the haze of hospital-induced sleep or the after-effects of what she'd gone through, but her mind was running rampant, her thoughts switching so fast that it was making her dizzy.

She couldn't remember anything that had happened after the first couple of gunshots rang out. Who had shot her? And who else had been shot? Everything was blurry in her head.

And what about Edward?

She wanted answers, but right now, it didn't appear as if she would get any right away.

The envelope with her mom's handwriting went untouched where Victoria had left it.

Edward was pacing inside a small conference room at the King County Courthouse in Seattle.

He seemed to be pacing a lot lately.

"Brought you some coffee," Dan Webber said when he returned to the room. He held up the styrofoam cup before placing it on the table.

"What's taking so long?" Edward asked, crossing his arms. "Has there been any word from Port Angeles?"

Dan shook his head. "I'm sorry. I've put two phone calls in, and one to the sheriff, but they're being tight-lipped."

Edward pressed his forehead against the cool cinder-block wall and closed his eyes. "But she's alive, right?" He had asked the question at least a dozen times, and the answer was always the same.

"She's alive, Edward," Dan said, pulling out a chair. "She and Miss Hale were extremely lucky."

Edward squeezed his eyes shut. The previous night, he had thought Bella was dead. The drive to Seattle was lengthened because the investigator had to stop the car twice for Edward to vomit on the side of the road. The guilt that had settled into the bottom of his stomach made him want to just tell the guy to turn the car around and take him back to the prison.

If Bella was dead, he didn't deserve freedom.

The previous night...

The investigator's phone rang, but Edward could barely make out what was being said. Once the man snapped his phone shut, Edward leaned forward.

"What's a signal seven?" he asked.

The man hesitated before speaking. "Death investigation."

Edward's eyes widened and he gripped the top of the seat in front of him. "What … who? Do you know-"

"No information right now," the man said.

Dozens of miles behind them, in a heavily wooded area of Clallam County, sheriff's deputies were guarding a gruesome – and altogether unbelievable - crime scene. A helicopter was hovering overhead, and a medical chopper was en route.

"Well..." the sheriff said, removing his hat. He scratched the top of his head, then shook it. "I've never seen anything like this."

Charlie was keeping a watchful eye on his unconscious daughter, who was being tended to by an off-duty paramedic that had been nearby and responded to the scene.

Emmett was pacing back and forth, watching another paramedic work on Rosalie. She was more concerned about Bella than herself.

"Fuck, just set them! I don't care! Go help them with Bella," she told the paramedic, who was attempting to wrap her swollen broken ankles.

No one paid much attention to the two covered bodies, lying in the exact same position they fell, their skin already beginning to turn cold as darkness settled.

"Christ," Charlie mumbled. "She was going to burn the place up, wasn't she? With them inside."

"It appears so. At least, that's what the boy is saying. Her brother."

Charlie glanced toward the squad car that held Tyler, who was seated in the backseat, his wrists cuffed behind him. He had his head down, his eyes closed.

When Emmett had told the sheriff about the cabin, three people worked on locating a record of it, but as Laurent had said, he had wiped his family's name clean some time ago. It had taken nearly a half hour of checking a year's worth of record changes to find it, and then the call went out – and not a moment too soon.

Charlie jumped into his car and followed the sheriff, with Emmett trailing them both.

When they first arrived, Charlie could see how the place may never have been found. The two-lane road hadn't been paved in some time and was riddled with potholes and large cracks. A squad car, its lights flashing, told them they had reached the right place, and they were directed down a dirt road, moss growing along the trail and dense trees overhanging.

Three squad cars were parked askew in front of a cabin, its front door wide open.

Neither Charlie nor Emmett wasted any time in getting out of their vehicles. A short time before they pulled up, Charlie had heard the call on the scanner about two signal-sevens, and his heart had shattered into a million pieces.

"Now wait a minute, fellas!" the sheriff yelled. Two deputies stepped into their paths, halting them immediately.

"You can't go in there, chief, and you know it," one of them said. "Neither of you," he added when Emmett made a move forward.

"Where's Rose?" Emmett asked.

"What's the situation?" the sheriff asked. He gave Charlie and Emmett the side-eye before looking at the deputy.

"Two dead, four injured-"

Emmett cut him off by letting out a feral yell. "Rose!" He darted around the deputies, heading for the front door of the cabin, but was quickly waylaid. "Fuck you! Let me go! She needs me! Rose!"

"Don't make me handcuff you, sir," the deputy said.

"Status of Rosalie Hale?" the sheriff asked.

"Alive," a deputy responded.

Emmett relaxed immediately, but was still trying to get inside the building.

"And Isabella Swan?" the sheriff continued.

"Alive," the same deputy said. "Both are seriously wounded, though."

Charlie's eyes slid shut as tears pricked at the corners of his eyes. "Where are they?" he asked.

"Out back. There's a barn, mostly used for storage. I have to warn you, though. It's not a pretty scene."

The sheriff allowed Charlie and Emmett to follow him back. The barn was awash in flood lights, casting a bright glow across the otherwise serene landscape. When Emmett laid eyes on Rose, who was sitting up against the back wheel of her car, he nearly broke down. She saw him and gave him a small smile.

"Fuck," Emmett said, jogging to her. He dropped to his knees, hesitantly reaching a hand to her face. "Rose? Baby?"

"I'm okay, Em," she whispered. "Just a little banged up, that's all."

Emmett looked at Bella, who was lying prone a few feet away, blood soaking through the right side of her shirt.

"Oh god, Bella-" Emmett said, quickly crawling to her side. "Bella?"

"She knocked herself out," Rose said, snorting. "She's fine, Em. I managed to put some pressure on her shoulder to stop the bleeding. Deputy Schwartz is tending to her now. She'll have one helluva headache when she wakes up, poor kid."

Rose continued to babble on about how Bella had taken a bullet, and as she fell, her head struck the fender of her truck. Charlie had since joined them and was now sitting at his daughter's side, helping the deputy until the medics could arrive.

"Aro's dead," Rose muttered. "He … he's the one who shot Bella, I think. Or maybe it was Jane. It all happened so fast."

Emmett finally allowed himself to look at the carnage. He had to keep himself from going to Eric Yorkie's limp body and giving it a good kick. He wanted to do the same thing to that Tyler kid, who was currently handcuffed and sitting next to his sister's body.

"Tyler just got a flesh wound. I swear, you'd think the kid had been kicked in the nuts or something, the way he was screaming," Rose said, laughing. "But I'll hand it to him. He saved us, in his own twisted way."

"She's delirious," Charlie said to Emmett, who had turned and looked down at her with wide eyes.

"Well, fuck," Emmett replied. "I guess I would be, too."

Charlie merely nodded, then smoothed his hand over Bella's forehead. "This is like that night all over again. Finding her this way."

Emmett frowned, then quickly stepped aside when the two off-duty paramedics arrived.

As more police began to arrive, and ambulances hit the scene, Charlie had pulled the sheriff aside, wanting answers.

"Tyler Crowley has confessed already, when they read him his rights. One of my men said that as soon as he arrived, the kid was ready to go. He didn't resist or anything. He just requested a few minutes alone with his sister," the sheriff told Charlie.

"Jane," Charlie said, looking at her sheet-covered body.

"Died of a gunshot wound to the head," the sheriff replied, shaking his head.

"Self-inflicted?" Charlie asked.

"Hard to tell. We'll leave that one up to the coroner. Aro's wasn't self-inflicted. He was shot straight through the heart."

"By who?"

The sheriff let out a short laugh. "Your guess is as good as mine."

Baffled, Charlie surveyed the scene. How had Bella ended up in this mess?

Soon after, the injured were taken away – Bella and Rose via helicopter – and Charlie and Emmett left the scene. Both spent a restless night in a family waiting room, though Emmett spent most of his time on the phone trying to call his parents and Jasper.

Neither of them knew anything more than what the sheriff had allowed them to know. Aro and Jane were dead, Laurent had been apprehended while trying to flee the scene, and Tyler Crowley had confessed. Eric had also been taken into surgery, suffering a gunshot wound to his right lung.

Security had been put on alert, since no one knew just how many people may have been involved, and also to help keep the gathering media at bay.

Bella slept through the night, with Charlie attempting to get some sleep on a lumpy cot inside her room. He stole a few minutes here and there, but the effort proved fruitless when he caught sight of a lurking Victoria Yorkie outside the door.

He stepped out into the hall, closing the door behind him. "Mrs. Yorkie," he said, nodding.

"Hello, Chief Swan. I'm sorry to bother you. I was hoping I could just leave something for your daughter."

He looked at the envelope she held between them. "What is it?"

"It's a letter from her mother," Victoria replied, her voice even.

"From Renee? How did you end up with it?"

Victoria cleared her throat. "I found it inside a box at my son's home. To make a long story short, the box was in his attic, and I was looking for something when I found a box full of photos. This letter was in it. I didn't know what it was. It was addressed to Bella, and I didn't read it. I just … I saw Renee's name at the bottom."

Charlie appraised the woman. "You didn't read it," he stated rather than asked.

She shook her head. "No. I didn't need to. It's not my business. I can only imagine what it says, given what I know."

"Did you know that your husband was dating Renee?"

Victoria sighed, sadness falling across her features. "I didn't know until I found that box. I confronted Eric with it, and then his father. Both of them were … well, they weren't forthcoming. I left my husband two weeks ago."

"I'm sorry," Charlie said, pausing. "You're as much a victim as my daughter."

Victoria shook her head. "No, I'm not. I feel extremely guilty that I didn't know about this sooner. Perhaps this wouldn't have happened."

"But you had no way of knowing that they were involved in Renee's death. How could you?" Charlie questioned.

Victoria merely nodded. "May I step into her room? I won't be long. I just want to leave this for her, maybe give her my apologies."

"She's still sleeping, but you can go in," Charlie said, glancing at the guard, who nodded.

Victoria thanked him before stepping into the room, her eyes brimming with tears.

Edward had finally settled down considerably, and had taken a seat at the table as Dan went over his file.

They had been waiting for over an hour to see the judge. Dan had sent two of his assistants to monitor media coverage and what was going on with the prosecution.

The judge had called the hearing for nine a.m. It was now quarter after ten. The only excuse that they had been given was that new information had come to light, and the judge had cleared his schedule for the day to focus on it.

Dan's phone rang, causing Edward to jump as the shrill sound of it bounced off the walls.

"Webber," Dan answered. "Yes … uh huh … we're still holding …"

Edward wished he had a dollar or two for every time over the past two years that he had been 'holding.' He let Bella and Rose occupy his thoughts, thankful that they were okay, though he couldn't allow himself to believe it until he saw them.

Dan looked at Edward after he hung up. "Are you hungry yet?"

Edward shook his head. "No, thanks."

"Do you want to try your brother again?"

Again, he shook his head. "No. He's probably still at the hospital."

"Your parents?"

"Definitely not," Edward scoffed. They were the last people he wanted to see at that moment. He didn't know what was going to happen, and if things didn't go as well as Dan had said they would, he sure as hell didn't want to see the look of disappointment on their faces – again.

"I've been told that Tyler Crowley entered a guilty plea about a half hour ago at his first appearance," Dan mentioned, closing some file folders.

Edward looked at him. "What does that mean?"

Dan smiled at him. "What that means is that you're likely to walk out of here today a free man. He's pleading guilty on all charges, including the murder of Renee Swan, which he confessed to last night when he was arrested."

The air left Edward's lungs in a big whoosh. "Is it guaranteed? He won't back out or-"

Dan shook his head. "That's unlikely. He understands that it's in his best interest."

There was a knock on the heavy wood door and Dan stood, walking to answer it.

"Edward," Emmett said, causing Edward's head to lift.

He stood and quickly embraced his brother. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm not going to let you go through this alone," Emmett replied.

"What about Rose?"

"She's fine. The doctor said she'll be out for awhile, and I know if she were awake, she'd kick my ass to Seattle anyway."

Edward allowed himself to relax a little more. "Have you seen Bella?"

"She was still sleeping when I left this morning, but she's good, Edward. She's okay. She's tough, you know."

Edward ran his hands through his hair. "Fuck. I was so scared, Em. Last night, I didn't know what was happening. I thought she was-"

"Hey," Emmett said, cutting him off by placing a hand on his shoulder. "It's all okay now."

The door opened and one of Dan's assistants appeared. "The prosecutor and his team just arrived. The judge will be ready in ten minutes."

Dan looked at Edward. "Are you ready?"

"Fuck," Edward mumbled. He was still waiting to wake up. A month ago, he had been hopeless. He was coming to terms with how he would live the rest of his life. Then Bella showed up, and everything began to change.

"Edward?" Emmett said, breaking Edward's rampant thoughts.

"Yeah, I'm ready," Edward replied, looking through the door that Dan was holding open.

Chapter End Notes: Prisonward is close to becoming Freeward. Yay!

How many of you are dying to know what's in that letter from Renee?

Be sure to check out my Fic A Pic contest entry. The link to the contest and all entries is www . fanfiction . net/~ficapiccontest.

Ch. 25 will post on the weekend :)

Outtake question: All three outtakes posted so far have been letters. Is there something you'd like to see as an outtake? Another letter? Something you feel should be revisited with more depth? Let me know.