A/N- Just wanted to clear up some confusion about a typo in the last chapter. Bella should have yelled to Edward that Alice was at the Marina, not Eclipse. Sorry!

What Love Can Do

"…Darlin', I can't stop the rain
Or turn your black sky blue
But let me show you what love can do

Well, now our truth lay shattered you stood at world's end
As the dead sun rose in view
Well, if any of this matters, with a kiss my friend
Let me show you what love can do

Darling, we can't stop this train
When it comes crashing through
But let me show you what love can do

When the bed you lie on is nails and rust
And the love you've given's turned to ashes and dust
When the hope you've gathered's drifted to the wind
And it's you and I my friend

Here our memory lay corrupted and our city lay dry
Let me make this vow to you
Here where it's blood for blood and an eye for an eye
Let me show you what love can do…"

From What Love Can Do, by Bruce Springsteen; from Working on a Dream, 2009

"Alice is at The Marina, thirteen floor. Hurry!"

Edward's entire existence slowed down as he watched Bella crumple to the floor. Enraged, he lunged at Demetri, the sudden movement startling him enough to drop his weapon as he fell to the ground.

Edward landed on top of him, landing a punch on his jaw. Seeing only red, he continued to pummel Demetri until his knuckles were bleeding. After he landed a few well-aimed shots, a pair of strong arms wrapped around him from behind.

"Edward!" Emmett shouted. "Enough, man. Kate's got him."

Before Edward could blink, Kate had Demetri rolled over, face down, her knee in the small of his back as she applied handcuffs. Several other officers, the backup she'd already called, were approaching now, and Kate screamed at them to call an ambulance for Bella.

"I'm going to get Alice," Emmett yelled to Kate, and was gone before she could object. A handful of officers ran in the same direction, presumably to check the location that Bella had given them.

Edward dropped to his knees at Bella's side. She lay in a heap, completely motionless, but she was breathing. He rolled her over gently and whispered frantically, "Wake up baby, please. I need you to wake up."

He breathed a sigh of relief as his pleas were answered, and Bella's eyes fluttered open.

"Thank you, God!" He cried, dropping his head to her chest, sobs of joy erupting from his chest.

"Alice…" Bella groaned. "You have to get Alice."

"Emmett's on the way, baby. Oh God, Bella… I thought you…"

"I'm okay," she soothed, stroking his jaw gently as she struggled to sit up. He helped her and wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace.

For a few blissful moments, the world around them ceased to exist. There were no cops, no chaos, and no screaming casino patrons. They were just Edward and Bella.

"I love you, so much," Edward cried, holding her impossibly tighter.

"I lied," Bella told him, tears forming in her eyes. "When I said I didn't love you, I lied."

"I know," Edward soothed, rocking her gently.

"It hurt me so much to say those hateful things to you. I love you, Edward. I love you so much. I couldn't ever not love you. To see the pain in your eyes when I told you that, it was too much. It killed me."

"I almost believed you," Edward admitted. "You were so convincing. And I believed you because I never thought I could be enough for you."

"No, Edward! You're everything. You're fucking everything to me."

Together, they cried, content in their reunion, until an insistent EMT inevitably broke them up. An incredibly tall Native American man was standing over them. Though his size was intimidating, his eyes were warm and his smile was comforting.

"I'm Jacob," he introduced himself as he knelt next to the pair. "I'd like to check you over, okay?"

Bella nodded her assent, and Edward scooted over just enough so that Jacob could check the back of her head, though he refused to let go of her hand.

Bella answered Jacob's questions robotically. Dizzy? No. Nauseous? No. Headache? A little.

"Alright, I think you're going to be okay, and there's no bleeding, but let me help you up onto the stretcher, okay?"

"What? No!" Bella argued. "You're not taking me to the hospital. I'm fine."

"Bella, love, you blacked out. You should go get checked out. He hit you pretty hard," Edward argued, stroking her knuckles soothingly.

"No! I won't be apart from you again. Absolutely not. I'll sign whatever you want, but I'm not fucking going to the hospital!"

"She's feisty, isn't she?" Jacob asked Edward with a raised eyebrow.

Edward smirked sadly. "You have no idea."

Jacob came back a few minutes later with a form to refuse treatment, and Bella signed it quickly. "I want to go home," she told Edward. "Wherever that is for the moment. I don't even care, as long as it's with you."

"I've been staying at Emmett's place." Edward answered. "But I doubt they'll let us leave just yet." He motioned to the array of police officers that had gathered.

"Sweetheart, are you okay?" Kate asked quietly. Bella struggled to stand, and Edward helped her up, his arm around her waist to steady her.

"I'm fine," Bella insisted, though the pitch of her voice indicated otherwise. She started to tremble violently, and Edward could tell she was on the verge of hysterics. "I just want to leave now. Please," she begged.

"I know you want to go home, Bella, but we really need you to come to the station to give a statement. Do you think you can do that for us?"

Bella nodded reluctantly, tears starting to flow from her eyes, causing Edward's heart to clench painfully. He had no idea what she'd been through, and he could only hope the horrible things he'd imagined in his brain over the last few days weren't the true reality.

"Bella," Edward murmured. "I know that you've been through so much, and you're so brave for what you did. You really need to talk to the police, though. The sooner they catch these guys, the sooner it will be over. I'll be right there with you, okay?"

Bella sniffled into his shoulder as he held her. Eventually, they were lead outside and into the back of a police cruiser, curious eyes from all over staring at them. The officer driving the car was older and gruff, and didn't say anything apart from a curt "hello."

"Bella, what happened to you?" Edward whispered, as the car pulled away. "Are you really okay?"

"Please, just let me tell it at the station. I don't want to have to go through it twice," she begged.

"Of course," he murmured, pulling her into his lap, ignoring the disapproving stare from the cop in the rearview. "I'm just so glad you're okay now, and that you're here with me. I was so worried about you."

"I hope Alice is alright," Bella said. "Maybe I shouldn't have said what I did. Someone could have heard. Aro's got people all over. They could have moved her by now."

"You did the right thing. You did what you could to save her, regardless of what Demetri could have done to you. It was very selfless. I'm proud of you."

The station wasn't far, and as they pulled up, the first person they both saw was Emmett, sitting on a bench outside the station, his head in his hands.

Edward didn't even need to ask.

"She wasn't there," Edward said, stating the obvious.

"I'm sorry. I tried," Emmett said, his voice pained.

Edward placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I know. It's not your fault. I'm sorry for the way I've been treating you. You didn't deserve any of it. Thank you for trying. You're a good friend."

"That doesn't change the fact that I fucked up, again," Emmett said harshly.

Kate pulled up then, in her own car. "Emmett, I heard on the radio. I'm sorry. They're looking for her. Now we have a lead, at least." Turning to Bella, she said, "Come on, let's get you some coffee, and you can tell us what happened." When Bella hesitated, she said. "I know it might be difficult to talk about, but whatever you can tell us will help us find Alice."

A look of determination crossed Bella's face at the mention of Alice's name, and she strode confidently into the station, hand in hand with Edward.

Just like a cop drama, Bella found herself in a small, sterile room, across the table from an officer. There was an ashtray in the center of the table, and a large mirror lining the wall. She knew Edward was on the other side of it, that he could hear everything, but the fact that she couldn't see him made her incredibly uneasy.

"Can't he come in?" she asked, annoyed.

"Sorry, it's protocol. You'll see your boyfriend in a few minutes. Cigarette?" He offered, sliding a pack across the table.

Ignoring the cliché, Bella took one gratefully, with a nod of thanks.

"So what do you want to know?" she asked hesitantly.

"Why don't you just start at the beginning?"

Bella took a deep breath and forced herself to focus on getting her facts straight. The last thing she wanted to do was miss anything vital that could potentially lead them to Alice.

"It started a few months ago. I was traveling with my friend, Jasper…"

On the other side of the mirror, Edward's stomach was in knots. Bella was busy telling the officer her history, and about how she came to be in Atlantic City. That part was easy enough for Edward to hear. He just feared what he would hear when she got to the parts he didn't know about. He wasn't sure he was ready to hear about the past week.

As she talked about when they first started having problems with Aro, Edward kept going over the events in his mind. He was making himself sick thinking of everything he could have done differently. He knew he should have gotten to Alice sooner, before she even called him. He could have taken Alice and Bella away somewhere. He could have…

"I know what you're doing, and it's not helping anybody," Kate said, sitting beside him. "You're blaming yourself for things that aren't your fault. Emmett is doing the same thing outside."

"It's hard not to, you know? I just can't understand it. Why her and Alice? They're both such good people."

"And this week, at Volterra, you were present for the bombing?" Edward heard the officer's voice ask Bella.

"I was. I was in the security room. Edward didn't want to leave me alone while he met with Aro."

"And then what happened?"

Edward listened intently as Bella explained everything that happened. There had been so much chaos that day that someone managed to carry her out of there in broad daylight. Unbelievable.

"Where did he take you?"

"I'm not sure. I was thrown in the back of a car and told to keep my head down. Next thing I knew, we were pulling up in front of an abandoned warehouse or something. Then James came. I was thrown down the stairs."

Edward tensed at hearing James' name, knowing nothing good was going to come next.

"I refused to talk to him. He hit me. Then the other guy, Afton, said something to make him stop. James told me that he couldn't wait to fuck me. I was terrified. They left me alone in the dark, I don't know for how long, but I was waiting for him to come back. He never did."

Edward had a heavy heart as Bella told the rest of her story- being taken by Aro, James getting shot, and being brought to a hotel with Alice.

"So I told him that I would do whatever he wanted if he would let Alice go. He told me he wouldn't let her go, though. He still expected me to do what he wanted. He had Demetri follow me, and he always had a gun. That went on for three days until today."

Bella's expression during her entire interview hadn't changed; it was stoic. However, as soon as her interview was over, and she emerged from the room, she collapsed into Edward's waiting arms, overcome by sobs.

"Shh, it's alright. I've got you now," Edward whispered to her. When her sobbing finally ceased, she looked away, embarrassed.

"I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm this emotional. I know it could have been so much worse, and they didn't really hurt me, but I'm so glad to be back now."

"You have every reason to cry," Edward insisted. "You were taken against your will, terrified, and threatened with a gun. You don't have to be strong now. It's okay to cry."

"I'm scared for Alice. I know James is gone and can't hurt her, but I don't know what Aro's capable of. I wish I knew where she was."

"They'll find her," Edward said in a choked voice. "They have to."

"You guys ready to go?" Kate asked quietly.

"Please, yes, get me out of here," Bella said, sniffling.

"I'll give you a ride. Edward can get his car from Eclipse later."

The followed silently to Kate's sedan, and sat together in the back, holding each other. As Kate began to drive, Edward realized the roads weren't leading them back towards Emmett's house.

"Wait, where are we headed?" Edward asked her.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought someone told you already. We're putting you up in a hotel, for tonight at least." Kate explained. "There will be an officer on the floor. Emmett and Rose are staying there too, just in case. And your mother, as well. We don't want anyone staying at Emmett's place until we find Aro, and get him behind bars."

"Thank you," Edward said sincerely. In fact, the idea of going back alone to Emmett's apartment was eating at him, and he felt safer knowing that there would be an officer on the hall, guarding the love of his life.

Bella had been quiet for the entire ride. He knew she'd been through a lot emotionally over the last week, but it seemed something else was bothering her as well.

When they entered the room that was reserved for them, Edward noticed a large dish and two plates sitting on the table for them. He read the note and chuckled softly.

Edward & Bella,

I'm so happy to hear that you are okay, Bella. I wanted to leave you two alone tonight, but I didn't want you to go without eating. I hope you enjoy it, and we'll see you tomorrow. Edward, your father is arriving tonight, so we'll see you in the morning for breakfast. I'm sorry about Alice, but I do believe she will be found, and that she is safe. Call it a mother's intuition.

I love you,

Mom

Edward smiled sadly. "I was awful to her," he admitted. "I was awful to everyone while you were gone. I just wasn't myself."

"I'm sure they understand," Bella said, coming from behind him and wrapping her arms around his waist. "Are you hungry?"

"Not really, no," he answered. "It was a nice thought, though. Moms always think things can be fixed with food."

"I wouldn't really know," Bella said with a shrug.

"Bella, are you really okay?" Edward asked, cupping her face and staring into her eyes.

"I'm fine now. Just happy to with you again. And you? Are you alright?"

"I don't know," Edward admitted. "A part of me wishes James was still alive so I could kill him myself. Him even thinking about putting his hands on you…"

"I'm yours, Edward. Only yours," she said, pushing him back towards the bed as forcefully as she could. When he was perched on the edge, she straddled his lap and ripped his shirt off, then attacked his mouth in a forceful, needy kiss. He responded in kind, their lips, tongues, and teeth mashing, battling for dominance.

"Mine," he growled, as they broke apart for air. Everything else was forgotten as he felt the overwhelming need to claim her, to make her his again. He fumbled with the button on her jeans, and reached his hand down to her sex, groaning in appreciation when he found her already wet and ready for him. She fumbled with his buttons as well, and a few moments later, they were free of the confines of their clothes.

Bella sat astride him, reaching behind her to grab Edward's cock, and stroked it firmly, readying him for her.

"Wait!" Edward cried. "We don't have a condom."

"Doesn't matter," Bella mumbled, positioning herself above him. "I can't get pregnant now."

"What?" Edward asked, stilling her hips, preventing her from lowering herself any further onto him.

"I'm expecting my period within the week. I could draw you a graph of my ovulation cycle, but right now, I'd really rather just fuck you," she said with a wicked smirk. He released his grip on her hips, and she lowered herself onto him, both of them moaning as he was buried to the hilt.

He met her thrusts as she started to ride him. It was fast and needy, and the sight of her tits bouncing as she rocked on him almost sent him over the edge. In a quick movement, he grabbed the small of her back and rolled them over, sitting back on his knees and pulling her to him. He continued to thrust, and she was so tight he could practically feel every ridge within her. When he felt her walls start to flutter around him, he reached down between them and rubbed her swollen clit, until she was screaming his name in bliss. Watching her orgasm sent Edward over the edge, and he spilled into her, yelling her name.

Still connected, he leaned down and captured her lips with his own. "I love you," he whispered against them. "You can't ever leave me again. I won't survive it."

"I won't," she promised. "You're stuck with me forever."

A/N- Reviews would be lovely. Thank you!