Chapter 25

Jets and Time

"We're in trouble. Edward's going to Italy." Alice's words shattered the silence. I had no idea the significance of Italy, but apparently Bella did. Her heart-breaking sobs broke the through the quiet of the room.

"What? He can't… do this… Why?" Bella begged Alice. Bella hadn't started crying but she seemed to be breaking down as the seconds passed.

Alice struggled for the right words. "He thinks you're dead. After the incident with Laurent, I called him. We had all been leaving messages for months that he never listened to. We didn't want to go find him to talk to him because we were afraid we'd push him further away. But the message I left wasn't clear because I had been in a tunnel. My exact words were 'Bella is in danger because we're not with her. Laurent almost hurt her. Luckily, he's dead now.' It was just incentive for him to come back. But he just heard 'Bella…Danger…Laurent... Hurt her…. Dead now.'"

"But Edward's smarter than that. Why didn't he call any of us for confirmation?" I asked.

"He did. He just called the Swan's pretending to be Carlisle. Billy picked up the phone and said that Charlie was arranging a funeral. Edward assumed Charlie was arranging Bella's funeral. But now he's going to the Volturi to ask them to kill him." Alice reported.

"We'll go stop him." Emmett said moving to the door with Jasper.

"Wait! He's not going to stop and listen to you. Even if you guys are thinking that Bella's alive, he's going to think you are lying. He'll hear your thoughts and just act sooner." Rosalie warned.

"The only way we can stop him is if he sees Bella first." Carlisle added.

"And we can't all go or the Volturi will get suspicious." Alice added, matter-of-factly.

"Just Bella and you should go then." Jasper responded to his wife. Everyone nodded in agreement. They all wanted to go save Edward but no one wanted to object the accuracy of Alice's visions.

"Jake, go with Bella to pack her bag. Make sure Charlie and Billy don't hear you. Go through her bedroom window. Bella make sure to bring your passport and a change of clothes." I ordered.

They walked out of the house. Jake helped Bella get to her bedroom by scaling the wall. Secrecy was key, because Charlie would object if he was told about this now. I'm sure that if I told Charlie he would argue less. I could lie better than Bella.

"That'll work." Alice told me, already seeing that my explanation would work better than anything Bella could think of.

"I'll call the airlines to get tickets for you two." Jasper offered. His fingers already dialing the numbers on his cell phone.

"Sissy, why don't you fly them?" Amy asked, looking up to me. How could I have forgotten about my flying license? And the plane sitting in a hanger.

"Yeah, I could fly you both to Italy. So there is no need for switching planes or buying boarding passes. But we would need to stop and refuel, that's not really a big deal." I offered looking at blank stares all across the room. "Remember how I told you that Greg's Dad was a stunt man in Hollywood? Well, he did flying stunts too. Naturally he had Greg and I get licenses to be able to fly. When Greg passed on, his dad bought me the plane Greg always wanted. An actor in Hollywood gave it to him at a discounted price." I fought the tears that were about to fall. Greg's Dad had lost his only son and through all of the pain he managed to have kindness in his heart. The plane had been a gift to me, so I would never forget Greg. As if that were possible. I pushed back the tears, and managed to respond to the Cullen's. "I can fly us to New York and then all the way to Volterra."

"Great." Jasper responded, hanging up his phone.

I picked my phone out of my pocket and texted the man who owned the barn where my jet was being housed. He had always had a love for planes so he took it out every once in a while when I couldn't. Anytime I needed to fly he had it ready for me at a moment's notice. After he replied saying it was ready, I turned to the people arranged around my kitchen.

"We'll go back to the house. Fix everything up a bit." Esme offered.

"We were coming to tell you that we were planning on moving back in to the house. Esme and I will go see how much work needs to be done." Carlisle added, taking Esme's hand and rushing out the front door. What a happy decision in such a distressful moment. At least with the Cullens around there would be someone to help watch Amy while I was in Italy.

"I'll go get a bag of my stuff from the house. I'll meet you at the hanger." Alice replied, dragging Jasper with her. They were going to need a moment alone before the three of us stepped into perilous danger.

"Amy, could you go get my emergency bag while I talk to Embry, Rose, and Emmett?" She nodded and went to go find the bag I had always packed in case of an emergency. It had my passport, driver's license, flying license, clothes, toothbrush, picture of Amy, and cash. Amy had an emergency bag too but hers was filled with more mementos than mine.

I faced the remaining three people in my kitchen. I took a deep breath, preparing myself. "I want the three of you to mutually take care of Amy. Not just while I'm in Italy, if anything happens to me. You know I will fight to make it back, but if I don't you need to take care of her. My will leaves her to the custody of you two," I nodded towards Rosalie and Emmett. "But Embry, I'd like you to spend time with her too. As much as you can." I tried thinking over what Amy had planned for this week. "She doesn't have anything to go to this week. No birthday parties or anything like that, but make sure she gets to bed at a reasonable hour. There's enough food in the refrigerator to last you as long as I'll be gone. Amy can make food for herself, but make sure she isn't eating just sweets and chocolate. And she does all of the work to take care for Lobo, but some other chores will have to be done. She knows what they are. Mostly laundry and washing dishes." I thought back over everything that needed to be done. "I think that's it. I'll have my cell phone with me in case of emergencies." Amy, with Lobo at her side, came walking into the room with the backpack sitting on Lobo's back. Those two had really bonded. Amy would be fine without me for a few days. I picked up the bag and set it on the counter. I lifted Amy into my arms with a grunt; she had really grown in the past few months.

I brushed a kiss against her forehead. I looked into her eyes to see fear, worry, love. Tears started to brim at the corners of her eyes. "Oh, Amy!" I nearly started to cry too. I brushed away her tears and mine as I held her tightly to my chest. "I promise I'll be back by the end of the week. Maybe sooner." I tried to say that with as much assurance as possible but she and I both knew the amount of danger I'd be walking into. There was a very high possibility I may not come back. "You'll have a great week with Emmett, and Rosalie, and Lobo, and Embry, and maybe Charlie too. You won't even notice I'm gone. And I'll call every night before you go to bed and every morning when you wake up. And… you can call me for anything. Even… even…. even if it's because you can't remember where you put your socks." I ended, trying to lighten the mood.

I gave her one last squeeze then handed her over to Rosalie. The admiration for what I was doing shone brightly in her eyes. I hugged my Dad and my Mom, fearing that I might not ever again see my second set of parents. I ended the embrace quickly, fearing I would never let go. I turned to my other half who looked heartbroken but brave. He lifted my duffle off the counter, wrapped an arm around my waist, and walked me to the door. Mom, Amy, Dad, and Lobo followed with silent footsteps and even more silent sobs. My feet were shoved into boots, my arms were thrust into the sleeves of a jacket, and my heart shattered with every passing second.

Embry helped walk me to my car. Bella and Jake were already standing next to my car, saying their goodbyes. I turned to Amy and hugged her one last time. I did the same with Mom and Dad. On the head, I patted Lobo, who licked my hand in return. It appeared even he understood the levity of the situation. Embry took my hand and walked with me to the car. I slipped into the driver's seat, he took passenger, Jake and Bella sat in the back. I waved goodbye to my family without looking, knowing I wouldn't have the heart to leave if I saw Amy's tear-filled eyes one more time.

We drove in somber silence. I pulled up to the farm where my friend, Morgan, lived. I had first met him when I brought my plane to Forks. He maintains and houses my plane and, in return, I let him fly my plane whenever he chooses. It was late at night but Arnold stood there, checking over the plane. He filled her up with enough fuel to get us to New York. I walked over to him and chatted for a bit. He said that she was in perfect condition and ready to fly. I would have to take off on his make-shift runway, but that would be no problem. His cousin in New York would help refuel the plane when we landed there in about five hours. I thanked him and went to say goodbye to Embry.

Jake was helping Bella get situated in the plane. Jasper drove up with Alice in the passenger seat. They said their good-byes before Alice headed to the jet. "Take care of her," Jasper whispered to me before driving off himself. Apparently, waiting for her to fly off would be to heart-breaking for the both of them.

As I had been talking to Morgan, Embry threw my duffel bag into the plane and sat next to my car, waiting to say good-bye. The night had a certain chill about it, making my breath appear in front of me. I tugged my jacket tighter around my body and walked to Embry. This would hurt, saying good-bye. We could see each other in three days, or never again. I wanted to drag him with me, so I wouldn't have to leave his side. Still fifteen feet away, I ran into his waiting, warm arms. He held me against his heated chest and I burrowed my face into his chest. I wanted to cry, I should have cried, but for his sake, I didn't. Embry wouldn't let me go if anymore tears fell. He'd say what I was doing was too dangerous and I should never go. So I held the tears back as I frantically kissed him. He kissed back, holding me tight against him, as if his arms alone could protect me from the awaiting danger, could keep me bound to his side. My hands roamed over his face, arms, shoulders, torso, wanting to commit the feel of him to memory. But his lips broke apart from mine, our bodies both striving for oxygen.

Still panting, he said, "You're going to come back to me. You're going to keep yourself safe. You're going to get back as soon as possible, without a scratch on you. And if any of those vampires lay a single hand on you, I will hunt them down and rip them apart." Such a terrifying statement would make most girls scream in fear. It made my heart melt. "I mean it. If anything happens to you, no matter how small, I will burn all of them."

"You would take on twenty vampires? Alone?" I asked in admiration.

"No, but I'd have the pack help me. They'd know what it's like and they'd do it. And I mean that as a promise to you and as a threat to them. Use me as a shield, please. I can't lose you." His eyes were begging for me to accept his strength as a shield.

"I love you, Embry Call. I'm going to come back to you unscathed and if I have to threaten a bunch of vampires to do it, I will." We kissed one more time, for strength. We would both needed it to be able to walk away from each other. Laying a hand on my stomach, he kissed me one last time before I headed to the plane. Jake passed me and went to wait with Embry by the car. I stepped up the steps and turned back, before entering the jet, for one last look at Embry. He waved good-bye to me. I blew a kiss to him. I entered the plane and headed for the cockpit.

Alice closed the door to the plane and took her seat next to Bella. I had never realized how luxurious this plane was until now. This multi-million dollar jet seemed out of place in the forest of Forks. Luckily, it wouldn't be in Forks for long. But there was still one more thing to do before taking off. Call Charlie.

I whipped out my phone and dialed the Swam house. Charlie picked up on the first ring,

"Hello?" Charlie asked.

"Hey, Charlie. It's me, Abby. Don't worry, Bella is with Alice and me. We're flying my plane to New York for a few days." I spoke, making up my lie as I went.

"Why? And why didn't you tell me sooner? And who is taking care of Amy?"

"Alice had some problems with some of her designs so were going to New York to fix it. She insisted Bella and I come to get a breath of fresh air. Well," I tried to think of a different phrasing, the air in Forks was as fresh as you could get, "just a different breath of air. Anyways, we'll be gone for a few days. Rosalie and Emmett Cullen will be watching Amy and the house. I know that you have a job to do, and with it being spring break, Amy would need constant attention. They are great with Amy and she couldn't be more thrilled to spend time with them. I'm sure they'll stop by while I'm gone."

"Okay," Charlie seemed to be taking this in stride. He handled this surprise all very well.

"Bella wanted me to make sure you eat and don't burn down the house trying to cook while she's gone." I added.

He chuckled. "Tell her I love her. Have a safe trip."

"Bye, Uncle Charlie." I hung up my cell phone and turned it off for the flight. Bella and Alice did the same. I went through the routine start up of my Emivest SJ30 jet, and in no less than six minutes, we were in the air. Once we reached a steady time in flight, I had Alice tell me everything she could. Aro, Marcus, Caius, Felix, Demetri, Jane, Alec, and so on and so forth. She gave me as much information as possible. Bella sat there too. Trying to absorb the information but not really taking much in. Her thoughts must be on Edward, trying to figure out why he was doing this.

After Alice told me as much as she could, she went back to concentrating on the future and Bella fell asleep. I kept flying, and although it took much thought and concentration, I could do it effortlessly. After reloading on fuel in New York, we flew straight to Volterra. Bella slept, Alice told me what she saw. Edward asking for death. The Volturi thinking it over. But nothing much aside from that. This would not end well if they agreed. If they said no, we would have time, Alice explained. He would try to commit suicide more theatrically if they denied him, which would give us more time to stop the ordeal.

Alice went back to concentrating. I went back to flying. Bella stayed sleeping. But we were all racing the clock.