One Hour Earlier…

"Harry, there's too damn much ground to cover!" Charlie says, his frustration showing.

"I know, Charlie," Harry's voice comes over the radio through Charlie's Bluetooth in his car. "But my gut tells me we don't need to head to the active ports. I lost her around here, and I'm damn sure she didn't know I was tailing her. If she was going to a working port, she would have headed directly there; no point going out of her way to cut through these run-down areas."

"Okay, well, your gut is about all we have to go on right now," Charlie replies. "We're only a block away from you, so we'll take the next turn and continue our grid search down the next block. Any word from Emmett?"

"I touched base with Pete about ten minutes ago. They're working their way to us, but haven't spotted anything yet," Harry replies.

"Damn! Okay, we'll call you again soon." Charlie disconnects the phone and takes the next couple of turns, driving down the next block.

He drives slowly, Edward scanning cars on the street. They pull into every parking lot, circling slowly to view each car and looking for spots where a vehicle could be hidden. Their conversation is limited to brief directives like "turn here" and "what's over there?"

After about fifteen minutes, Charlie's phone rings, and Harry's caller ID pops up on the screen.

"Yeah . . ." Charlie says by way of greeting.

"Charlie, I spotted the car; positive ID on the plate. It's in a pretty abandoned area; I don't see any activity outside. I'm staying out of the lot for the moment. I'm texting you my location. I'll call Emmett next."

"Okay, we're on the way. Stay out of sight, Harry."

Edward picks up Charlie's phone and watches for Harry's text, which comes through a moment later. Quickly, he enters the location in the phone's navigation. "It's only about 5 minutes from here. Head east, then take the first left."

Charlie follows the directions, and within a few minutes, they are pulling up beside Harry's car. He's parked behind a dumpster on the edge of the near-empty lot. There are a few cars nearby, in front of a neglected building.

Edward and Charlie exit their car and go to stand by Harry, who is peeking around the dumpster with a pair of binoculars checking out the building.

"Whatcha got, Harry?" Charlie asks.

"Well, that brown sedan is definitely the one Victoria borrowed from her neighbor. There hasn't been any activity that I've seen since I arrived. I don't know what this building was originally used for, but it doesn't appear to have any legitimate use now."

"What are you waiting for?" Edward asks impatiently. "If you're right and Victoria is in on this whole thing, Bella could be just inside! Let's go get her!"

"I'm gonna need you to be patient for just a little while longer, son," Charlie says. "If she is here, then the people responsible for taking her are here, too. Human trafficking is a serious business. We have no idea what we'd be walking into, other than the fact that they are probably heavily armed. We only have one chance to do this right."

"Emmett and Pete should be here any minute," Harry says, lowering the binoculars and turning to face them. "I can't see anything through the windows. I would expect there to be a loading dock or cargo door somewhere. I'm guessing there are other exits as well. It's too open out here for me to do any real reconnaissance without the risk of being seen."

"I agree," Charlie says, nodding. "There hasn't been any activity in the area?"

"An occasional car passing by on the street. When I first came down this road, before I spotted Victoria's vehicle, a car pulled out of either this lot or the next one and passed me as I came this way. It was a nice vehicle, two men in front and two in back, but I was too far away when they pulled onto the street to say for sure if they came out of this lot or the neighboring one."

Edward has been pacing back and forth along the short distance provided in their hiding place behind the dumpster. He stops as a car comes turning into the lot, pulling to the side to park next to them. Emmett and Pete jump out and hurry over to the other men.

"We've called for some backup," Emmett says. "If Bella's inside, we're going to need some help."

"They're coming in silent," Pete adds.

"That's good," Charlie says.

They huddle, starting to formulate a plan for entering the building when movement at the door catches their attention.

They stand, frozen in shock, as they try to make sense of the scene unfolding before them.

The door opens slightly, then a bit further, until someone slips through. It's a woman.

A naked woman.

As soon as she clears the door, she starts running across the parking lot, heading almost directly for them.

At the same moment, Charlie and Edward both realize what they're seeing.

"Bella -" Edward gasps at the same time that a whispered "Bells –" slips out of Charlie's mouth.

Edward takes a step forward, and Charlie's arm shoots out, stopping him. Edward whips his head to face him, quickly noting that Charlie's attention is still on the building as he reaches back with his free hand and grabs his gun from its holster.

"No, Edward!" he commands. "Not yet."

By the time Edward turns back to the building, a giant of a man has followed Bella through the door. The man pauses for just a split second, quickly raising his arm and flinging something toward her.

The small crew behind the dumpster watch in horror as Bella stumbles and crashes to the ground, knees and hands skidding on the rough, broken asphalt before her head bounces against the surface.

Before the man can take a second step toward Bella, both Charlie and Emmett have fired their guns. The first hits the man's right shoulder. It's his throwing arm, and it jerks back as one bullet finds its mark. The man raises his head in surprise, looking in their direction for a split second before his head is flung back by the force of the other bullet entering the center of his forehead. Before his body starts to crumple, Charlie and Edward are racing toward Bella, with Harry and Emmett on their heels as Pete yells into the radio of his car that the backup they requested needs to get there NOW.

Emmett and Harry keep their guns trained on the building. The door opens again, and two men start to exit.

"Freeze! Police!" Emmett yells.

The men take in the sight of Caius lying motionless on the ground and quickly retreat into the building.

At the same time, Pete brings his car around, parking in front of where Bella lies, providing a shield of protection for her and the men.

Moments later, things become more chaotic as multiple squad cars pull into the lot, tires squealing. Uniformed police officers jump out of the cars as Emmett and Pete yell commands, telling them to watch the exit as they coordinate a plan for surrounding and entering the building. While they do their job, Edward and Charlie are laser-focused on the woman lying motionless before them.

"Bells! Bella, can you hear me?" Charlie says loudly in order to be heard over the other commotion.

"Hold on, Charlie. Let me assess her," Edward demands. "And get an ambulance here!"

Charlie leans into the front of Pete's car and uses his radio to call for an ambulance. He grabs a blanket he sees in the back seat before turning back to Edward.

Bella is lying on her left side; limbs flung haphazardly from her fall. Edward kneels at her back, closely examining the knife and the wound it has caused.

"There's not much blood," Charlie says. "You think you can take that knife out?" he asks anxiously.

"No. There are too many things it could have damaged. Until we have the equipment to address any injuries, removing it could cause more problems. We need to keep her as still as possible," Edward answers, working to cap his emotions and be the trauma specialist she needs him to be.

He takes the blanket Charlie offers him and uses it to cover Bella, careful to keep it clear of the knife. He checks her pulse and pupils as he mentally reviews all the injuries the knife may have caused. If she's hemorrhaging internally, she could go into cardiac arrest; organs could start shutting down from blood loss. All he can do is keep her as still as possible until the ambulance arrives, though he damn sure wishes she was conscious and talking.

Without moving her, he checks for other injuries. Her cheek has a severe bruise where she's obviously been struck. He makes a mental note to check for a facial fracture at the hospital. Her forehead and chin are bleeding from hitting the pavement, but those injuries seem superficial. Her hands and knees are also scraped and bleeding, full of dirt, stones, and cinders from her fall. As his eyes travel down, he notes the angry welts on her ass and the back of her thighs. He has to swallow hard when his mind unwillingly provides ideas of how they got there. Lastly, he looks to the front of her torso, and his breath freezes when he catches sight of the fresh tattoo near her hip. He can't help the tears that spring to his eyes.

"It's okay, baby," he whispers near her ear, "we've got you now. You're safe. Hang in there."

As Edward and Charlie watch over Bella, more police cars swarm the parking lot with officers surrounding the building, undertaking a systematic search.

Finally, the ambulance arrives, and Charlie waves it over.

"What've we got?" one of the EMTs asks as he approaches.

"Not a lot of time," Charlie says. "This place is not secure. To keep everyone safe, you've got to get her out of here fast!"

"Okay, got it," says the second EMT. "Can you tell us anything about the patient?"

Edward starts speaking rapidly, with all the authority of his medical training. "Twenty-eight-year-old Caucasian female with a knife wound to lower right back. That's our major concern. Possible facial fracture and minor abrasions that all can be looked at later. Her pulse is weakening. I'm concerned about internal bleeding, so we can't remove the knife until we get to the ED."

"Hey, you're Dr. Cullen, right?" the first EMT asks.

"Yes, and the patient is my wife. We have to move. NOW!" he barks.

Everything goes quickly then. They gently slide Bella onto a backboard, keeping her on her side and strapping her down, trying to keep the knife as stable as possible. Lifting her onto the gurney, they put her into the ambulance, Edward hopping in with the EMT as the driver jumps in the front and exits the parking lot.

Harry urges Charlie to follow, promising to keep him apprised of what happens at the warehouse.

In the back of the ambulance, Edward is helping the EMT. They get an IV into Bella's arm and start pushing fluids as quickly as they can. They monitor her heart rate and blood pressure as the driver calls ahead to the ED, giving details about the case.

"Tell them to have O-positive blood ready," Edward shouts to the driver.

Several minutes later, they pull into the hospital's emergency entrance. The EMTs pull the gurney out and Edward walks alongside it as they enter the emergency department. He greets the nurses he sees as Bella is brought into a trauma bay. His colleague, Dr. Owens, immediately enters.

"Edward, I didn't know you were coming in today," he says.

"I'm not here officially, Rick. This is my wife, Bella. She was kidnapped several days ago, and we just found her. She was trying to escape, and this guy threw a knife into her back. We've been pushing fluids, but I suspect she's got some pretty serious internal bleeding, and she's going to need emergency surgery."

Rick's face shows his shock at the story Edward shares, but he recovers quickly and starts examining Bella.

"Okay. Edward, anything else we need to know at this point?"

"Nothing as urgent as the knife wound. I think she needs to be checked for a facial fracture and she has minor cuts and abrasions, but all that can wait. She's been unconscious for nearly thirty minutes now."

"Okay, team," Rick says, "Let's get Mrs. Cullen onto her belly, so we have a better view of her back. We need to get some IV antibiotics going and give her some blood."

Everyone starts moving to do as directed. "Edward, we've got this," Rick says. "I need to ask you to step out of the treatment bay. I'll keep you informed."

Edward rakes his hand through his hair but nods his head in understanding.

"You do whatever it takes to make sure she's okay."

"You know I will, Edward. We all will."

Edward parts the curtains and steps into the hall, where he leans his forehead against the wall.

He takes a deep breath, and his professional demeanor disappears as he is suddenly overcome with emotions. So many feelings are tearing through him fast and furiously. Relief that they've found Bella. Fear that they could still lose her due to her injuries. Nausea at the thought of what she's been through. White-hot fury at the recollection of the tattoo on her hip.

He doesn't know how to process everything he's feeling. He's so wrapped up in his thoughts; he's startled by Charlie's hand grasping his shoulder. He turns to face his father-in-law, unaware that his face is tracked with tears.

"Edward? How's Bells?"

Edward sniffs and sweeps his hands roughly across his cheeks. "She's being assessed. Owens is taking care of her. I can't treat her –" he trails off.

"No, of course, you can't, son. But what's your professional opinion, Edward?" he asks.

"They're still assessing her, but if I had to guess, I'd say that she's got some serious internal bleeding. They'll need to take her into surgery to find it and try to stop it. Maybe the knife lacerated some organs – her kidney or liver. If we're lucky, it didn't hit the artery."

"What's your gut say?"

Edward meets Charlie's eyes. "My gut says we were lucky to find her. But maybe we've used up all our luck for today. They're pumping her full of blood and fluids trying to get her stable."

Charlie's face has paled at Edward's less than encouraging words. "The doc who's treating her, he as good you?"

Edward gives him a rueful smile. "Almost, Charlie. Almost."

"Okay, then. If he's good, we've got to let him do his job. Is there anywhere we can wait that's more private than the regular waiting area?"

"Um, yeah. We could go to my office."

"Okay, let's do that. I called Rose, and she's on the way. I'll text her where to find us."

"Okay." They walk to the nurse's station, where Edward lets the staff know where he'll be. "Rick said he'd keep us informed, so you can call my cell, or simply page me. I won't be leaving the premises."

"Sure thing, Dr. Cullen," the nurse replies with a kind smile.

Edward leads the way to his office, around a few corners from the treatment area of the ED. Pulling out his keys, he opens the door, with Charlie following him into the room.

While Charlie gets busy on his phone, Edward's gaze flits around the familiar place.

"You know, I haven't been in here since she disappeared," he remarks. Then he's struck by a sudden thought and goes to stand by Charlie, talking in a low voice. "Angela said J and his girlfriend made that sex tape in my office, didn't she?"

Charlie meets his eyes, trying to catch his train of thought. "Yeah, she did say that."

"Do you think the camera is still in here?" Edward asks.

Charlie's face lightens with understanding. "I would be surprised if Esme didn't make sure that loose end was tied up, but I'll take a look."

Charlie makes a thorough inspection of Edward's office, checking around picture frames, lamps, and bookshelves, finding nothing.

"It's clean, Edward," he says, just as Rose comes flying into the room.

She rushes to Edward and pulls him into a tight embrace. "It's true?" she asks. "You really found her? Is she going to be okay?"

Edward hugs her back. "Yeah, Rose. We found her. She's got some pretty serious injuries, so we'll have to give them time to get her stabilized. We'll know more once they've done a thorough assessment."

"Oh, thank God!" Rose pulls back, placing her hand on Edward's cheek and giving him a smile before walking to Charlie and hugging him as well. After a moment, she steps out of Charlie's embrace and sits in the chair.

"So, tell me everything. What are her injuries? Where did you find her? How did you find her?"

"She's in a pretty precarious situation at the moment," Edward explains. "They haven't made the call yet, but I'm expecting they'll take her to surgery to try and repair some internal bleeding. Hopefully, no critical organs were injured, but they won't know until they get a good look. Frankly, it could go either way."

"Well, that's scary as fuck," she says quietly, disheartened by the bad news. "But, Bella's strong and healthy, she's got everything going for her." Even to her own ears, it sounds like she's trying to convince herself of this.

Charlie clears his throat. "Right. Well, I can tell you how we found her. Harry spotted the neighbor's car that Victoria borrowed," he says. "Emmett and Pete arrived, and we were trying to decide how to investigate the building when Bella just . . . busted out one of the doors and started running across the parking lot. We didn't know what was happening at first, but this big goon came out right after her. He . . . Well, he threw a knife that struck her in the back. She fell to the ground, and Emmett and I both shot the guy."

"Well . . . shit." Rose sits motionless, contemplating what she's heard for a moment before her face brightens, and she chuckles lightly.

Edward turns toward the sound, so out of place, given the circumstances. "Care to share, Rosalie?" he asks, his tone laced with disapproval at whatever she's finding amusing.

She lifts her eyes to meet his gaze, and her smile widens. "She got herself out. Bella found a way to escape. And she did it!"

She moves to stand in front of Edward, placing her hands on his shoulders. "Don't you see, Edward? She didn't give up. She didn't give in. She fought. I have no doubt that she's been through hell. But they didn't defeat her. That gives me a fuck-ton of hope that eventually she's going to be okay."

She squeezes his shoulders and turns to face Charlie, who's standing with his eyes closed, one arm across his waist, the other hand covering his mouth. When he opens his eyes, they're watery with unshed tears. He nods his head as he lowers his hand. "You're right, Rose. God damn if you aren't right!" He pulls her into a crushing hug that she returns.

A/N: How ya' feeling? I'd love to hear what you think.

Thank you to Owlsarebirdstoo, Ann Rodfranco, Sunflower Fran, Tiffany L Cullen, and EdwardsFirstKiss.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.