A/N: Thanks to my ladies, Tiffany, Sherry, Cristina & Paige. X x

Chapter 26

"Edward, I think I'm in danger."

"What do you mean? What's going on Isabella?" Edward asked, he sounded frantic.

I watched as Marcus made his way into the hall, motioning for me to stay put. "Kate called about twenty minutes ago. She said she was in Detroit, that she had realized you weren't good for me and she wanted to help me get away from you. She called and woke me up. The phone call confused me. I couldn't make sense of it, but now that I've talked to you, it's all starting to fall into place. She said that 'we' were going to take care of Marcus, and that I would never need to see you again. I think she plans to hurt me, Edward."

"Where's Marcus?"

"There was a bang outside. He went to check it out," I said, glancing towards the hallway door, hoping I could see Marcus, but there was no sign of him. I was all alone, with no idea what was going on.

"Where are you?"

"In the kitchen?"

"Do you have your gun on you?"

"No," I said, frustrated, "I'm in my sleep shorts and a t-shirt. I basically just woke up."

"There is a gun taped to the bottom of the sink. Go get it."

"Okay," I said, hurrying over to the sink to find it. I was starting to freak out. I was worried, frightened. I had no idea what was really going on and I still couldn't believe that my sister would want to harm me. "I've got it," I said as Marcus entered the room, his expression giving nothing away. "And Marcus is back."

By this time I could hear more noise coming from outside, Princess had also woken up and was beginning to yelp.

"Good. Let me talk to Marcus." I handed the phone to Marcus, watching him as he talked to Edward. He spoke in a hushed tone, so I had no idea what was being said or what he had found. After a few minutes he hung up my phone and tossed it into the sink. "Come on," he said, grabbing my arm and pulling me towards the patio doors.

"What about Princess?" I asked panicked, looking back at the dog, who now looked as terrified as I felt.

I think Marcus swore under his breath, but he went over to get the dog, picking her up and shoving her into my arms. He then grabbed me again, hurrying me towards the doors. When we got outside, it was freezing. There was a strong, bitter wind blowing, and all I had on was my sleepwear. I didn't even have any shoes, but I got the impression there was no time to stop for shoes. "Where are we going?" I asked, as he led me across the backyard, towards the dock. Princess was wriggling in my arms and yelping, making it hard to hold her and the gun.

"The boat."

"Then where?"

"Then-" Marcus stopped mid-sentence as someone fired a shot. He grabbed onto me harder and yanked me lower to the ground. "Keep down!" he shouted as he dragged me along.

I glanced back as we ran, to see three men in suits chasing after us; all three of them had their guns drawn. "They're going to kill us!" I screamed. Surely,they couldn't be working for my sister? Surely, this had to be some kind of a mistake?

Marcus led me to the dock, where he quickly lifted me into the boat. "Lie down on the floor," he ordered, "and keep your head down."

I did what he said without question, cuddling Princess into my chest, hoping that she would stop wriggling and lie still. Marcus untied the boat and managed to start the engine before the men reached us. I could hear them shooting after us as we sped away. I didn't dare move the entire boat ride.

About twenty minutes later we came to a stop. When Marcus helped me to my feet, I saw Jasper and several men were waiting on a grassy embankment for us. We had arrived at a large, stately looking building, though I had no idea where we were.

Jasper took Princess from my arms and handed her off to one of the men, before taking the gun from me and handing it to another. He then took my hand, gently helping me out of the boat. "Don't worry, you're safe now," he assured me. I nodded, wrapping my arms around myself. I had never felt so cold in all my life. Jasper took his suit jacket off and placed it over my shoulders without a word as he and Marcus took their place on either side of me, leading the way to the old building. "I'll take you to my office, you'll be comfortable there. Once you're settled, we will see what we can do about getting you some clothes." I merely nodded, chittering from the cold. "Edward is on his way to the airport. He'll be here in a few hours. He said to tell you not to worry. He's going to take care of everything."

The old building turned out to be a Casino, on Belle Isle no less. I guess that was how Jasper had managed to get to me so quickly before. He took me to his office and introduced me to his wife, Alice. Apparently she had been at the wedding, though I never noticed her. Alice provided me with some of her clothes and a hot shower. I was feeling much better after I had washed and dressed, though I couldn't wait till Edward arrived. I still couldn't wrap my head around the fact that my sister had tried to kill me. There had to be more to the story. Though, I was starting to think that Jacob had been right, perhaps Billy had been setup, not that I wanted to believe my sister was capable of doing such a thing. Did this mean that she had been acting the entire time? Was she the one who was behind our parent's murder?

Alice sat with me the entire time, trying to distract me with idle chitchat. While I appreciated the company, I couldn't focus on one word she said. I was too busy trying to work out everything in my head.

I longed for Edward to be here, I knew I wouldn't feel safe until he was. He arrived a few hours later, calling my name as he walked into the office. "Isabella?" I practically jumped off the couch, knocking Princess off my lap as I raced over to him. I jumped into his arms, holding him tight, as tears streamed down my face. I was so relieved to see him. "It's okay," he assured me, as he stroked my hair. "I've got you, you're safe."

It took me several minutes before I was calm enough to talk. "I don't understand," I said, shaking my head. "Why does Kate want to hurt me?"

Edward sighed, cupping my face. "I'm not sure. I can only assume that she and Garrett planned to take over from your father and that plan backfired when your father stated in his will that he wanted me to take over New York."

"Did you talk to Garrett?"

"No. I sent my men to find him when I was on the phone to you, but he had already disappeared." I didn't like the sound of that. "Don't worry," Edward said, squeezing my chin. "I will take care of him. I will protect you. I won't let them get to you."

I sighed, resting my head against his chest. The one thing I knew for certain was that Edward would protect me, with his life if need be. I just hoped that it didn't come to that.