Chapter 36 – The set-up of all set-ups

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The afternoon was a quiet one. Bella kept dozing on and off, and when she wasn't sleeping she tried to read up on the material Seth Clearwater had left behind from his visit earlier in the day.

In fact, she had her nose deep into one of the case files, when Seth returned for the afternoon visiting hours.

"Look at that, she's awake," he teased as he discarded his coat and hung it over the back of one of the two plastic visitor chairs in the room. "I take it you're done being a lazy bum then?" he continued and then brought the other chair close to the bed and sat down.

"When am I ever a lazy bum?!" She slapped him indignantly with the folder she had in her hand. "I have gotten a few catnaps in, but then again, the whole reason why I'm here in the first place is to rest and get well, so…."

"Sorry, you're right, bad wording on my part. If sleep is what you need, then sleep away," he apologized, with a serious expression now. "You still look a bit peaky though, if I may say so."

At his words, Bella scooted herself to sit more upright, making her pregnant belly protruding in all it's eight month gestational glory. "I feel fine. Better than before anyway. You should be happy to know I've actually gotten some reading done. I'm about halfway through this," she said, waving the thick folder in the air. Claiming to be halfway through was a bit of an exaggeration, but he didn't need to know that.

"Well, that's great," Seth said, not sounding entirely convinced. "I wasn't expecting that, seeing as I checked in with Ateara on not one, but two different occasions and he said you were asleep both times."

Bella ignored the jibe, instead asking, "Quil's still here?"

"Yes, he's still right outside the door and we'll have an agent stationed there until you're ready to leave this place. Safety is a priority."

"Yeah? Jenks is involved then?" Unnecessary questions, but she felt it had to be addressed somehow. "I figured he must be, after those bodies surfaced." She picked at the sheet, wishing she hadn't thrown off the blanket earlier.

"Don't worry, I've been singing your praise to the boss man. There is a newly put together special unit that is assigned to work on this. I wouldn't have been appointed head of your protection detail, if he didn't feel like everything is above board. "

"As far as he knows, anyway," Bella cut in with a nervous laugh.

Seth was shaking his head. "He isn't stupid, he knows I've been supplying you confidential and sensitive information. Everyone knows we talk frequently and work closely together, bouncing ideas and theories on each other."

"Alright then, but nothing you say will convince me that you got Jenks to sign off on leaving all this paper trail behind. It doesn't exactly comply with the safety protocol, now does it?" She pointed to the folder again. "Also, I'm pretty sure the boss man wouldn't approve of some of the research I've saved on the HD of my laptop, for the very same reason. "

"You're just worried your secret porn folder will get discovered now that your laptop is in the lab for access and usage analysis. Don't try to deny it. I've seen the nudies and the-…"

"Yeah, yeah," she interrupted him, rolling her eyes. "The only nudies I have on that thing is of the cheating, lying, idiot that was my husband. Browsing through those photos doesn't turn me on one single bit, that's for sure."

"About that," Seth paused, his expression turning somber in a matter of seconds. "There is actually something I wanted to discuss with you... about Black."

"About Jake? You knew that folder existed. I had you check the authenticity of those photos, remember? Back when I first got them." She reminded him. This was something they had dealt with over a year ago.

"I know," he nodded. "I didn't tell you everything when we discussed your hacked email account earlier. I found something else, something quite alarming when I went through the records. It's about Black, sort of... I didn't want to bring it up when baby daddy was here, because it kind of paints you in a bad light and I know that's the last thing you need right now."

This had Bella rolling her eyes. "Because you care so much about my relationship with Edward," she shook her head. "It's just you and me here now, so spit it out already. What is it that you didn't tell me?"

"Alright." He scooted his chair even closer to the bed and settled back. "I've stumbled upon what looks like an encrypted email conversation between you and your mother. A total of 23 emails, the oldest one dating back to when your pro-biker hubby was still alive."

"Encrypted emails? Between me and Renee, really?" Bella asked, her surprise genuine. "We don't email each other. We speak on the phone, or in person, or we don't speak at all. And encrypted? Why would I use my gmail account for something like that?"

"Because you shouldn't use your work mail for delicate, private matters," Seth suggested calmly. "Especially if you have the suits from internal affairs peaking over your shoulder. "

She opened her mouth to contradict what he had just said, but was interrupted before she could even begin to protest.

"Save your energy, Swan. I personally don't believe you had anything to do with those emails. You wouldn't be that careless. The subjects talked about includes your hubby's extramarital affairs and nasty drug habits, but also goes into details about Cullen and some of his less favorable traits. Encrypted or not, those are hardly subjects that someone with your training and background would discuss in an email. Especially not with Renee, of all people."

"To be fair, Renee has brought up all of those subjects, at one point or another, but never in written form, never in any emails. That never happened," Bella shook her head, feeling a little bit calmer now. "I don't see why we couldn't have talked about this with Edward here, though. He already knows all there is to know about my past and my history with both Jake and Renee."

"That's good for you, but I wasn't kidding when I said the content paints you in a bad light. There is something not quite right about this. I'm still working on decrypting the content, but what I've read so far is a bit, how do I put this… macabre… macabre and incriminating. "

"Macabre and incriminating?" Bella repeated, feeling her throat tighten and her stomach instantly tie in knots.

"Macabre because of the way Black ended his career and days on this earth. The tone of the first few emails... there is a foreshadowing of something bad happening to him. It's all worded in a way that makes it sound like he was a problem that needed to be dealt with," he explained, slowely as if chosing his words carefully. "Those emails were obviously planted there for one reason, or another… But not by Renee, definitely not Renee. She is too smart to incriminate herself like that."

"So you're talking about James, then? You're not being very specific. "

"That's because, like with everything else going on right now, I really don't know all the specifics yet. Let's put it this way, if anything were to happen to Cullen - not saying anything will happen, just that if anything were to happen - it would look hella suspicious. It would look like it was another 'problem' taken care of."

"What the hell! That's real messed up. How can a few emails stir up so much crap?" Bella closed her eyes, her mind replaying the TV footage of Jake's crash. She would never allow something like that happening to Edward. NEVER.

"Tell you what, I'll let you have a look at them, to form your own opinion," Seth suggested, before going on adding, "But you've gotta wait until I have them all decrypted. How's that?"

"That's your best plan?" she asked a little abjectly.

"Sorry Swan, but yes, I think that's how it has to be done, for everyone's sake, really."

"Fine…But I'm still telling Edward about all of this," she grumbled. "He's still very much in the proverbial dog-house, as far as I'm concerned, but I don't want any more secrets, or misunderstandings get between us at this point. He might not share the same sentiment, but…."

"That's fine. That's your decision to make. If you want to tell him, tell him."

"I will…the next time I see him." That reminded her. Where was Edward anyway? "I thought he'd come back here at some point this afternoon, but visiting hours are almost over. Is he home, or what…?"

"He's with his boy," she was informed.

"Alright, good. So, I'll see him tomorrow then? " Bella asked, narrowing her eyes, realizing she had no clue what to expect of the next few days. "I'll probably be released around noon."

"You won't be seeing him off in person, you realize that right, Swan," Seth answered, absentmindedly checking the time on his watch.

"Seeing him off?"

"When he leaves," he clarified. "Tomorrow morning. Bright and early…"

"Wait, you're telling me all this talk about him leaving town is not a stunt?"

"Cullen has work obligations out of town, that's nothing new. Not sure how much he'll actually get done, but this trip was always in the plans for him."

"Not like this, though," Bella protested. "There's a big difference between going away over a weekend and being gone for… what are we talking about here?… a week? two weeks?! Especially when the security situation has changed gravely."

"I thought we'd been over this already," Seth glanced at her worriedly, "Edward is leaving. You had a falling out and as a result your relationship is in tatters. You'll be bedridden, too weak and emotionally fragile to pose a threat to anyone. Next, we'll remove the child from the equation. Then all focus should be on-.."

Bella cut him off before he could finish. "My God, you've gone and made us freaking baits, haven't you?"

"I prefer decoys." Seth pulled a weird face. "If Cullen asks, he, alone is the decoy. However, you know as well as I do, that there is no telling how this will play out. Who knows what Turner will do next? If he's looking to silence anyone who he thinks knows too much, then he might go after either one of you to set an example. If he's seeking revenge on the people he feels have wronged him, then he might go after Eddie. Or snatch the kid from him as some sort of punishment. Or he might see through all of this and decide to go into hiding again. It's a gamble, it's always a gamble, but we have more to go on this time than we've had in the past. You know this already."

"A gamble?" This had her seeing red. "That's my kid you're talking about. You're not gambling with the safety of my kid. I won't have that. Tony needs to be protected from all of this, he shouldn't even notice that there is anything out of the ordinary going on." She was getting herself worked up and she knew it. But she wasn't being unreasonable, was she? "He's just a baby. I'm sure Edward will agree with me on this... He would-… "

"I'll tell you what he has agreed on," Seth cut her off. "He has agreed to let us remove the child from this situation. The boy is in a hotel right now, but will be moved again in the morning. He'll be accompanied by his grandmother; they'll be staying somewhere safe until this all has blown over."

"That's not going to work, though, " Bella shook her head vigorously. " Nuh Uh. Have you all forgotten that Tony has separation anxiety issues? As much as Tony loves his Nana Esme, he won't be happy about this. I'm telling you, this won't end well." She meant it. She might not be an expert on child psychology, but she spent enough time with the boy to know he did not react well to changes and new surroundings. "I'm calling Edward," she announced, groping for her phone on the bedside table.

"No, you're not. Remember what we've said about your cell phones." Clearwater was actually rolling his eyes at her. "Take a minute to breathe and think about this. Your hormones talking louder than reason at the moment."

"You don't understand," Bella protested, feeling sick to her stomach. "Tony will see this as punishment. You're taking away everything he knows and loves," she added, clutching her phone to her chest. She knew in her heart this was a lousy idea. But he was right she wasn't thinking rationally.

A few seconds passed, then she put her phone back down. She didn't make the call. Not right that very moment, anyway. However, as time would tell, this was far from the last word on the matter.

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…

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-About this same time, in a hotel room in another part of town-

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"Hey Tony, look what I have here. I brought you your favorite cars. Your fire truck and the blue crane truck. Look!"

Edward was sitting on his knees on the floor in the hotel room, holding one toy truck in each hand, trying to get the boy to show some interest.

Tony was unimpressed, though. He was sitting with his back turned, thumb in mouth, fiddling with his beloved stuffed tiger.

"Don't be that way. Don't you want to play with me and have some fun before it's time for you to go to bed," Edward tried again, with no success. "I thought you liked your cars…."

A little hand came up, making a dismissive wave, as if to say 'stop bothering me, old man'.

"Fine, suit yourself," Edward sighed. Apparently he was chopped liver right now. After watching the child for another minute or so, he gave up and moved away from the pile of toys to sit with his back leaning against the wall.

The child muttered something that sounded like 'want-my-Bewah'.

So do I, buddy, Edward thought… so do I… He didn't say that though, instead he tried another, more pedagogical approach. "Remember what I told you, Anthony? Bella is sick right now. She needs lots and lots of sleep. Just like you did when you were sick the other week."

"Can see?"

"No we can't go see her. She's in the hospital, so that the doctors can take care of her and make sure she takes her medicine."

"Is nasty," the boy made a sour face, then moved to the furthest corner away from his father.

"That's right. Medicine can taste a bit nasty sometimes. Other times it tastes perfectly fine though. You like your vitamin drops, don't you?"

"Bewah sick? Little bit?"

"Yes, she is a little bit sick. She needs medicine and doctors and sleep, so that she can get better again."

"NO," the child growled in frustration. "See lator. See in a little bit?"

Oh, boy… How does one explain the concept of time to a 3-year-old?

"You will see her later, yes, but not tonight and not tomorrow, or the day after that. Not until she's feeling well again, alright?"

"How many night nights?" Tony asked, frowning.

"I don't know. Maybe this many," Edward answered holding up ten fingers. It could potentially be a week, or two, maybe even longer, before the child would be reunited with his Bewah. He might not even be the baby of the family anymore, by that time.

There was a deep-drawn sigh and then, "No. I see Bewah morrow, kay."

"Are you tired, Tony?" Edward asked, changing the subject somewhat abruptly. "You want your pyjama so that you can go to bed and go night night right now?"

As predicted Tony immediately began protesting. "No bed, no sleeeep," he exclaimed throwing his little arms in the air.

"Are you sure?"

"Don't want bed, don't want Edda," he sneered unhappily and then made a big production out of turning his back to Edward again.

"Gee, thanks. I might as well leave then." He rose to his feet pretending to leave.

No reaction.

"Come on, buddy. Don't I get a hug before I leave?"

Still no reaction.

"I love you Tony," he tried again. "I'm your daddy and I love you more than pancakes and cookies and yam combined. That's how much I love you… and Bella loves you too."

"Is my Mommy? Fam-lilly?" a small voice said. "And a bubba."

"Yes, we're a family, you, me, Bella and the baby. You'll always have a Daddy and a Mommy and we'll always love you, even if we can't always be together."

"Why?"

"Why we love you? Because you're a very lovable little guy. Because you give great hugs and makes us smile all the time."

"No, why no fam-lilly today? No Bewah, no bubba, no Edada."

"Tony-…" Edward felt his throat tighten. "We'll be together soon. I promise. In our new, big house, with Bella and the baby. Maybe we can get a doggie too, but first…. but first I have to go away for a bit. You're going to have so much fun tough, because you're going to be with your Nana Esme."

"Don't want nana." The boy pursed his lips together.

"But you've had so much fun with her today. She told me all about it. You guys built a pillow fort and everything."

No verbal reply was given, instead Tony hugged his knees to his chest and buried his face in them.

Another five minutes passed in similar fashion; Edward would say, or do something to try and get Tony to open up and interact with him, but the boy's only response was to grunt and sigh and curl himself up into an even tighter ball.

Edward's patience was beginning to wear thin. His frustration was most likely evident in his voice, because his mother was giving him concerned looks from across the room.

She didn't say anything about it though, actually she couldn't say anything about it, as she was in the middle of a phone conversation with her business partner. She did, however, pick up plastic bag full of kiddie-sized raisin boxes from a nearby side table and throw it at him, while pointing at Tony.

When all else fails, resort to bribery….

Edward shook the bag in his hand a few times, letting the boxes rattle against each other until Tony turned his head to check what the ruckus was about. Upon recognizing the boxes of fruity, sweet treats, the boy immediately stretched out a demanding little hand.

"You want some? Come here, then."

Tony scrunched up his face unhappily, but after a few seconds of internal deliberation, he did end up inching closer.

By the time Esme ended her call, Edward had lured Tony into his lap, where the boy was sitting, happily munching his way through handful after handful of raisins.

"He's just tired, Edward," Esme said softly, picking up the discarded stuffed tiger from the floor. "It's been a long, and probably confusing, day for him. He was up early and I haven't managed to get him to nap at all today, so…."

"I know," Edward sighed, combing his fingers lightly through the boy's soft hair. "You've told me that already."

"It's going to take him some time to get used to this arrangement. We'll have to take one day at a time. I'm sure tomorrow will heaps better."

"Do you really think that?" Edward looked up. " Do you really think this is going to turn out alright? That I'm making the right decision?"

"Of course, I do," she replied without hesitation. "The situation is not ideal, but what other alternatives were there? I can't think of any."

"Neither can I. He's just a child. He has to be kept safe and out of harms way. It's just that I feel like everything is spinning so fast I can't keep up. I haven't even had time to stop and think about where things are heading and what the consequences will be. I've had a freaking FBI agent following me around all day. I cant believe it has come to this… again."

"I only know bits and pieces, obviously," his mother said slowly. "But Edward, if this is what they say is the best, the safest, route to take, then it probably is. It's a tough decision to make, but they are the professionals after all…"

"I know, I know. As long as everyone comes out safe in the end, it's all that really matters, right? It's just… How am I supposed to leave town when every cell in my body is telling me to stay and protect my family, to not let anyone, or anything split us up? Why do our lives have to be turn upside down, when we were just getting it together?"

Just then, Tony let out an unhappy sound, making grabby gestures with his hands, demanding attention. He was out of raisins by the look of things.

"Uh nuh, slow down, buddy," Edward grumbled, having all but forgotten the little boy situated in his lap. "You're going to choke if you don't chew and swallow."

"More," Tony pouted, despite the fact that his cheeks were stuffed to the point making him look a bit like a hamster. "Have more, puhlease."

"No, Tony. I mean it," he shook his head, trying to exert some kind of fatherly authority. "Chew and swallow. You can do it."

"Here, have some water, honey," Esme suggested, offering Tony his sippy cup.

The boy huffed and shook his head, unwilling to be even the slightest bit cooperative. Edward tried a second time to get him to take tthe cup, but as predicted, Tony wouldn't have it and began kicking his feet and flailing his arms in protest, sending the cup flying.

Everything quickly turned into chaos from there. The crying and screaming spell that followed was exhausting for everyone involved.

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…

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"He should sleep through the night," Edward said, pulling on his coat, getting ready to leave. "And if he doesn't, if he wakes up crying, just speak to him, cuddle him and let him know you're there. That's usually do the trick, but keep the lights off, or he'll never go back to sleep again. "

While he took a quick glance in the mirror, fixing his beanie, his mother came over and gave him a big hug.

"He'll be fine Edward," she assured him. "Bella and Tony will both be taken good care of, you know that right?"

"Right," he nodded and shuffled his feet, not sure what to say next. "It's only temporary…"

"Exactly, you'll all be together again in no time. It will be fine, you'll see."

"I wish I had your optimism," he admitted, offering her a sad sort of smile. "I know you'll do your best with Tony, no doubts there. As much as I love him, I'm well aware that he is not the easiest child to deal with, but then again, I am not the perfect father, either so…. Anyway, there is no one else I would trust him with than you."

"Aww, thanks, hun."

"Fair warning though, I expect his anxieties to be at an all time high with all these changes happening around him right now."

"That's probably what will happen, yes," his mother agreed. "Poor baby, he's been through so much in such a short time. You know what though, Edward? You were exactly the same when you first came to live with us. There were all sorts of acting out and testing of boundaries going on for a little while there. You were a few years older, of course, but essentially, I've seen this all before. "

"I imagine you have." Edward closed his eyes briefly and sighed, one hand on the door handle. "Of all the things I could have passed down to him, it had to be my short temper and my anxiety issues."

"Not knowing how to handle a new and stressful situation doesn't make you a bad or lesser person, it just makes you human."

"Try telling that to a three year old, though."

"I'm wasn't necessarily talking about Tony. Listen, gut feelings shouldn't be ignored. If your instincts are telling you that leaving is a bad idea, then you should probably give this all another think-through, yeah? Maybe, even discuss it properly with Bella this time. "

"I kinda wish I could, but-..."

"But what? What's stopping you?"

"I'm pretty sure visiting hours are over by now and it's not a conversation I'd feel comfortable to have over the phone. And also, Bella needs her rest."

"So, go see her in the morning. Tell the suits you won't be ready to leave until you've had a chance to speak with girlfriend in private. That's not too much to ask for, I reckon."

"I'm not sure what good it would do though. It's not like talking about it will change the outcome. I'm still going to have to leave, there is no getting around it."

"Talking about your fears can take away some of their power. Just promise me you'll sleep on it, alright?"

"Alright, I will," he promised, opening the door, checking to see if the agent he had arrived with was still there, which he was.

Turning back to his mother, Edward said, "Thanks for the talk and for.. you know everything."

"You're welcome. Now, take care and call me in the morning," she said, waving him off.

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…

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Ten minutes later, Edward found himself leaving the hotel in a laundry wan.

He wasn't particularly keen on going back to the silence of the empty apartment, but those were his instructions; 'Go home and finish packing your bags, if you haven't already.'

He wasn't bringing much - just his work laptop, two guitars and some clothes - so packing took less than half an hour. This left him with way too much time for doubts and negative thoughts… and loneliness.

The only glimmer of light in this whole depressing scenario came in form of three short little text messages. All from Bella, and all received within a time span of roughly two minutes.

The first one came when he'd just dropped himself into the sofa, preparing for a long and sleepless night in front of the TV. 'Ignoring me won't make me go away. We need to talk,' it read, which was a bit odd.

No one was ignoring no one. There was no ignoring going on. Hospital policies and cell phone restrictions were keeping then apart. That and the fact that they were suppose to have had a falling out just a few hours ago.

Five seconds later there was a second message, 'I know you're eager to skip town, grown up trappings and responsibilities, but I don't think a 10 min convo tomorrow before you leave is too much to ask for…"

Again, odd…

Edward knew from his visit at the hospital, that while Bella had seemed more than a little miffed with him (and rightfully so), she hadn't acted unreasonably upset or anything (not a bad outcome all things considered. It could have been so much worse…).

She was definitely playing up her annoyance with him with these messages, adding more fuel to their fakery of a fight. But then what, exactly, was she trying to tell him? Because he was certain she was trying to tell him something. She was just being super careful about it. He knew she wasn't just texting for the sake of texting. They had both agreed to limit their phone usage, for safety reasons.

So, was she suggesting that they needed to talk in the morning, a proper face-to-face talk? Could that be it? Or, was that wishful thinking on his part?

He wondered briefly if this was his mother's doing, if she had contacted Bella, despite having received clear instructions not to. It was definitely a possibility. Not that it mattered whose idea it was. If Bella was suggesting a meet-up, then he was all for it. Any way to procrastinate was a way we would take.

The third and final message read, 'Fuck your ego, fuck my ego, this is about Tony and Dave.'

The mention of baby girl Daveney Dave had Edward smiling despite himself. They were so NOT naming their little girl Dave. Not a chance…

He typed up a quick reply, 'Dave? Really? Low blow, even for you." Then after giving it some more thought he added, "I refuse discussing this in a friggin text message,' and then finally 'Go to sleep. Don't make me have to block your number,' before he put his phone away again.

He didn't received any more messages after that. He hoped it meant Bella had gotten at least some reassurance from their exchange of texts. He hoped it meant she was getting the rest she needed. He hoped it meant he'd get a chance to see her in the morning.

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….

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AN:/ I'm sure it feels like the story is moving in circles and not forward at the moment, but think of it as a necessary setup to make the ending worth while. I promise there will be more of Anthony in the next couple of chapters, that usually lightens things up a bit.

It frustrates me to no end that I can't write faster than this, but there is a lot of fact checking involved. With fact checking I mean going back checking for plot inconsistencies in what I've already written in previous chapters and with a plot that spans over three individual stories (128 chapters!) there is a lot of back story to stay on top of.

To wrap this all up, not everything is realistic (obviously ;) and I'm sure some things are a little far-fetched, but this is fanfiction and therefor a little bit of imagination is required to make it a smooth read. That being said, you guys are great for sticking with me this long!

My question for my readers is, do you want me to do a Q&A with whatever plot questions you may have? It's something I like to do occasionally with my stories, but I haven't had that many plot specific questions lately so…. I'm sure I'm not the only one having plot-related memory gaps with this one (128 chapters, that's crazy…).

The other option is that I do a short write up with a summary of key plot points that might come in handy to fully understand where this is going. I've done that twice before in the two previous installments, so maybe it's time I do something like that again?! Which option do you prefer?

Thanks for reading this long ass author's note (If you made it this far…). I do love the feedback I get! Keep doing your awesome stuff.