Capitolo Ventine

An angry woman is vindictive beyond measure, and hesitates at nothing in her bitterness.

EPOV

When Bella and I discussed her ideas for taking care of my father, I was equally turned on and disturbed. Bella seemed like a kind, generous, and sweet woman, but I was learning more and more that there was something under the surface that was a fighter and would rage if pushed. By now, I should have known better than to expect less of her. She had shown me several times to expect the unexpected from her. The revelations of the night had put us through the emotional wringer. As each horrible truth about my dad came out, I found myself questioning some things I held to be true.

Was my dad's advances the reason for several of my girlfriends hightailing it out of my life, or had he been paying them off to disappear? Did I have a real reason to not believe in love and withhold that from Bella when she had proved time and time again that she wasn't going anywhere? She just found out my dad was most likely at fault for her parents' murders, and she didn't pull away from me. She had never pulled away from me. I was the one who always withdrew when I couldn't deal. I had a desire to talk to her more than I ever had before, but I was currently stuck on the phone with Jasper and Emmett. They were both joking around with each other, but as always, I brought them back on task. "Did you guys have something to tell me, or did you disrupt a night with my pregnant wife for no reason?"

Jasper cleared his throat. "Sorry, Ed. Santiago and I talked to the doctor, and he said he should have a concoction for us tomorrow. So, once we have it, all we need to do is get together to interrogate your dad."

I nodded even though they couldn't see me. "Great. Emmett, how is my sister?" She had been chomping at the bit to come to our house. Ted was still on house arrest, but he wasn't being nice about it, so Emmett had been letting Rose stay at his house.

He sighed. "She's fine. Just tired."

"Okay, come drop her off here, and then go get the warehouse ready. You can stay over here tonight as well because Rose isn't stepping foot back into that house until this is finished." I knew it would take him a while to get everything ready. There was no reason to come get Rose, go home, only to turn around and come back the next day.

"What about Bella, Edward? Is Dem going to really sit this one out?" Jasper asked.

"No, Felix is. He will stay here instead," I said with no explanation. Besides Dem, Bella and I were the only ones who knew how tomorrow would go. There was no doubt the guys would question me—hell I was questioning my sanity myself, but it was just another example of how that woman had me wrapped around her finger.

"Why the switch?" Jasper hedged.

I sighed. "Because I said so. Come on, man, have I ever had a bad plan?"

Jasper and Emmett chuckled, and I smirked in response. "All right, smart guy. Rose will be there in a little bit, and I'll get this taken care of," Emmett said.

"Okay, until later, gentlemen," I said, ending the call. I stood up and stretched before leaving the office. When I entered the living room, I found Dem and Bella playing checkers. Bella was sitting on the couch and Dem in an armchair across from her, using the coffee table to play on.

Bella saw me and she gave me a bright smile. I came over and sat next to her, and without hesitation, she took my hand in hers and then double jumped Demetri. He chuckled and simply shook his head.

"I suck at this game. Take over for me, Boss. I gotta go check the perimeter," he explained, and I got up to take his seat.

Bella and I were quiet for a couple minutes before I felt the urge to tell her what I had realized. "Hey, Bella. I've been thinking about a lot of things, and I need to tell you something."

Bella looked at me with wide eyes. Her hand that was about to move a checker piece stopped midair and then fell to her side. "Okay. What do you need to tell me?"

"No, god, I can see you're thinking all bad things. This isn't one, I promise." I rose from my seat and crouched in front of her and took her hands in mine. "Principessa, I think that I have been pretty selfish in this relationship. You have never given me a reason to question that there could be more between us, but I have been leading you to believe that I would never be able to love you. It feels like the biggest lie because I have already fallen for you. I'm in love with you, Bella."

Bella gasped and her eyes grew watery. I wondered if she was upset or happy, but before I could wonder, she answered my unspoken question by smiling. "I am too, Edward. I have been wanting to say it for a while, ever since the night at the hospital, but I was scared to tell you—"

I cut her off by crushing my lips to hers, and she was just as enthusiastic about it because her hands threaded into my hair. I pulled her closer to me and she cried out. Fuck, I had forgotten about her rib. "Shit, are you okay?"

She winced a little bit and nodded. "Yes, I'm all right. We just can't get that carried away yet."

"Tesoro, are you sure that you are ready for tomorrow?"

She gave me a hard look, and I realized that I had misspoken too late. "I want to be there, Edward. Your dad made the mistake of thinking I'm a meek little girl. Am I gonna have to prove to you I'm not?"

I held my hands up in surrender. Her temper still surprised me. "No, I am one hundred percent aware you are capable."

"That's right," she snarked.

I was about to kiss her again when Rose's voice sounded from the front room. "Fuck." I hissed. My sister—ever the cockblocker.

Bella laughed and cupped my cheek. "Cucciolone, we can't even have sex, so while I am so happy you've told you love me, I'm sorry but you're not getting laid."

I sat down next to her again on the couch as she called out to Rose where we were and put the checker game away. "We have mouths," I grumbled.

Her head whipped in my direction, and I could see the gears turning in her mind. Her eyes darkened like they did when she was turned on. Rose came walking in the room, and like that, the look was gone.

We just relaxed for the rest of the evening, and when Emmett got done at the warehouse, he hung out with us too. Bella and Rose ended up going to bed before either of us were really tired, but we still headed to bed early. Tomorrow was going to be trying and exhausting. We all needed to be firing on all cylinders.

In the morning before anyone else was up, I went over the plan with Dem. He was going to keep Bella out of sight during the whole interrogation because I didn't want my dad to see her and say something that would just cause me to slit his throat before we could get any information. She wanted to be there to hear him say the words. I was trying to detach and let that mask fall into place. My dad raised me, so he knew every button that he could push, every insecurity, and how to use my previous loyalty to him to his advantage. What he didn't know was that it wouldn't work. To care what he thought, I had to respect him. I had lost every ounce of respect I had for him when he held that gun to my wife's head.

Emmett was the next to get up, and he guzzled a mug of coffee before I even tried to talk to him. Talking to him before his caffeine fix was like poking an angry bear. A quick breakfast of eggs and toast was all that I was in the mood to make, and the girls stumbled into the kitchen as it was being plated. As I handed Bella her plate, she grabbed my hand and gave me that look. I kissed her chastely and led her over to the table where I sat down next to her. She was the only one that could reach me with where my head was at. We ate silently, the only sounds echoing in the room were utensils scraping against china. When we finished and the dishes were put away, Bella went to get dressed, and Dem left to get my dad and take him to the warehouse. I had planned for Bella, Emmett, and myself to ride together. I told Rose that Felix was going to stay at the house until we got back.

"Edward, what is going on?" Rose asked. "I know Dad attacked Bella, but I don't know much more than that. I think I have been pretty patient and not asked any questions, but I deserve to know."

"Dad attacked Bella, broke a rib, gave her a concussion, you know all that. There is also evidence that the people that have been coming after Bella were sent by Dad as well. On top of all that, Dad is possibly behind Renee and Charlie's deaths."

Rose gasped. "Are you kidding? He started this whole fucking thing. Why?"

"He wanted Bella and me to get married. But he wanted Charlie and Renee to give their blessing and willingly hand her over." I explained, trying to keep my tone calm but firm.

"Bastard! Edward, he went against the rules when he targeted Bella."

"I know, Ro. Believe me, we're handling it."

She looked at me with wide eyes, then her eyes flicked to Emmett. She nodded. "You're taking her with you aren't you?" It wasn't a question because she already knew the answer. She knew my wife and her sister in law well.

"Yes." I nodded, trying to maintain my calm demeanor.

Emmett's head snapped up to look at me. He sighed and scrubbed his face because he finally got it. He just nodded at me since he understood all about making bad decisions when you loved someone. He got his boss's daughter pregnant right under his nose. It wasn't the pinnacle of smart thinking. Bella came downstairs, dressed in all black. I stifled a laugh and shook my head at her. She looked like she was getting ready to rob a bank. When Felix arrived, I gave Rose a kiss to the forehead and left with Bella and Emmett.

We were all quiet on our way to the warehouse. Emmett and I were similar in that we needed to focus on the task at hand, not all the shit outside this situation, this point in time. The problem I was having was this had everything to do with my world. My mission was loyalty to the family, but also to Bella and our kid. That was my world, and my dad had threatened both of those things. I had worried that Bella wouldn't be able to handle what she would see in that warehouse, but she had shown that beside her gentle nature, she was also fiercely protective—no one messed with her family.

Demetri met us outside my vehicle, telling me that Jasper, Alec, Carlisle, and Santiago were already inside. Bella gave me a kiss and walked off to enter the warehouse with Demetri through the back door. I checked my guns that were holstered to my side, pulling out the clips, making sure they were full, then slid them back in. Emmett did the same, then with a nod at me to say he was good, we walked in to end this.

My dad was strapped to a chair, a blue vinyl tarp underneath him, his head covered by a burlap sack. When we were all standing in front of him in a half circle, Carlisle was the one to pull the bag off his head. My dad blinked against the bright lights, and then he took in all of us standing in front of him. He chuckled. "So, this is what it comes to, Edward? I rough up your little slut, and I am put under house arrest only to be brought here to what? Confess my sins?"

I had to clench my fists to keep from punching him after he called Bella a slut. I took a deep breath, reminding myself he was going to keep pushing. "You know my entire life, growing up, I was awed by you. I wanted to be exactly like you. Once I became a teenager, I realized what that meant. Cheating on my wife, treating everyone less fortunate than me like they were inferior, using my kids like pawns in my game, and grabbing money and power like it's all that matters. Despite all that, I still respected you, still listened to you. But after what you've done, all that is gone now. I have no respect nor loyalty to you. So yes, it's time for you to pay for your sins."

"You don't have to tell me you're an ungrateful traitor. I didn't hear you complaining when you were reaping the benefits of all that money and power that you're so quick to turn your nose up at now. You think you're better than me and above all that, but you're wrong. Is her pussy really that good to have you turn your back on your own flesh and blood? I should have tried harder to get a taste when I had the chance." His face broke out into a menacing grin as he licked his lips.

My vision grew red at his insinuation and it took all I had not to just end him right then and there. I shook my head, blowing out a breath. I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction and argue with him. I didn't need to tell him how disappointed I was, especially since he wouldn't care. I gestured to Emmett, and he grabbed a large knife from the table.

"To the rest of the world, you are a powerful businessman, but to me, you're just an old man who thinks he's more important than he is. Shall we see who's right?" Emmett asked. He walked over to my dad and slit his shirt open then cut a long line across his chest.

I grabbed the desk lamp from the table and walked over to them. My dad tried to get out of his bindings when he saw this. He knew what I was gonna do and that it would hurt like hell. The light bulb in the lamp was burning hot, and when I touched it to his skin, it would either cauterize the wound, or if he was really unlucky, it would shatter, embedding glass into the flesh. I gestured to Santiago and he helped Carlisle to restrain my dad. The scream of pain and the smell of sizzling flesh would usually cause me to pause, but not this time. My dad had caused too much pain.

"I think you will confess your sins. And you'll start with how many more men you have out there with orders to kill Bella," I said through gritted teeth.

"Fuck off," he yelled.

"Wrong answer," I seethed.

Emmett grabbed my dad's forearm, cutting it, going a little deeper than he did on his chest, and I was there to cauterize the wound again. The scream that came from him was tinged with fear, and the part of me that wanted to make him pay for hurting Bella, for letting Royce beat my sister, for all the horrible things he did—that part rejoiced. "So, feel like talking?"

"You won't get away with this," he said, hoping to move me to stop.

I chuckled. "You see everyone standing here with me right now? These men all seriously question your leadership. I think I will get away with this."

After the fourth cut, the lightbulb still hadn't shattered, and it was starting to become ineffective. Santiago pulled out his signature pair of pliers. He started asking my dad the same questions while Emmett and I stood back to watch as Santiago removed first a fingernail, followed by a toenail.

Jasper walked over to me. "He's not going to break, guys. If we don't want to be here all night, we need to move this along. His screams are starting to piss me off." Dem walked over to us, looking annoyed too.

"How's Bella doing?" I asked, unsure. Jasper looked over my shoulder and then arched his eyebrow at me. I shook my head not wanting to have that conversation.

"She's holding up just fine." Dem replied. "She hasn't even flinched."

I nodded and sighed, looking at Jasper and gestured to my dad. "Give it to him."

While Jasper pulled a syringe out of his suit jacket and walked toward my dad, Dem nodded at me and went back to stand with Bella. Carlisle pulled my dad's head to the side while Jasper took the cap off with his teeth, pushed the plunger to let out the air, and then stabbed into my dad's neck, injecting the fluid. We waited a few minutes before Emmett started asking questions again. My dad shook his head a few times and then started speaking.

"There are no more orders to kill her. After the last one failed, again, I decided to take care of it myself. Since I have been monitored 24/7 after that happened, I haven't been able to call anyone else in," he spat angrily.

I was surprised that Jasper's idea was working, but my dad looked like he was high. His eyes were heavy, and it was actually good he was strapped to the chair otherwise he looked like he would have fallen over.

Jasper and Emmett continued to ask questions about various business dealings we had. I gestured for Dem to bring Bella over to me. My dad was too out of it to realize that Bella was there. I kept her to the shadows so he didn't find out.

"What's going to happen to him after this, Edward? Does he just go free?" she asked, her voice shaking with emotion.

I shook my head and tipped her chin to look at me. "He won't leave this warehouse alive, principessa. If he does, it won't be for long."

She didn't say anything and nodded.

"What happened to Charlie and Renee? Did you have something to do with their murders?" Emmett asked.

He scoffed. "Of course I did. Renee was mine, but she didn't want to be a mistress. So, instead of losing her from my life completely, I introduced her to Charlie, knowing that they would be great together, but I wasn't expecting them to fall in love. Love just makes you weak, and Charlie couldn't see the big picture. I tried to convince him that he would be able to do so much better as an inside man for us, having the cops in our pocket." His voice was flat, emotionless, like he was telling a story from memorization. I wondered if it was the drugs.

"So, that's why he wanted to move to Washington?" Jasper asked.

"Yes, he and Renee wanted to start a family. After they had Bella, we started to drift apart more, but I always kept tabs on them. When it became apparent that Edward couldn't choose women who fit, I called on Charlie and Renne." Again, he had no emotion. His voice was monotone.

"What did you ask them for?" Santiago asked. Everyone was paying attention now to the story that he was confessing.

"I asked them to make an arrangement with their daughter to marry Edward. Neither Charlie nor Renee were receptive to it. I flew out to Washington and tried to appeal directly to Renee. She could see how this would benefit all parties, but she was too weak to make that decision for Bella. So, I planned to get rid of the roadblock," he replied.

Bella moved forward like she wanted to rush Ted, but I held her back and shook my head. My dad still had more of his story to tell. She deserved to know everything.

"I had my men watch Bella for a day or two, so they could find out her routine, when she wasn't home. I left back to New York and told them when to strike. They took care of her parents when she was at work. Then I called in every favor I had between here and Washington to make sure that Bella made it to New York. The rest you all know."

Bella was shaking, angry tears tracking down her cheeks, and the look on her face was pure hate and disgust. "I want to kill him, Edward. He took my family from me, my parents, who never did anything wrong but stand up for me, their daughter."

I pulled her to look at me to try and talk her down, but I had never seen her this angry and distraught. Figuring that she would probably just maybe cut him or stab him and not be able to finish it, I gestured toward the table. When my dad saw her emerge from the shadows, grab a knife from the table and hold it in her hand, he looked like he was about to have a come to Jesus moment. He was visibly afraid and I was a little concerned that she had grabbed what looked like a very sharp meat cleaver.

"You stole something from me. Do you know what the most infamous punishment in the Bible is? Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. In the Middle East, if you steal something, they just cut off your hand. Two hands, two parents." Before me or anyone else in the room could react, Bella raised the cleaver and swung it down with all her force, cutting the bones and tendons of my dad's hand from his arm. The blood that spurted from the wound splashed on her face and across her chest. The blood didn't seem to bother her nor my dad's howls of pain. Not letting it deter her, she proceeded to cut the other hand off the same way, more blood spraying and causing my dad to pass out from blood loss and shock.

I rushed to her side, taking the knife because she suddenly looked like she was about ready to collapse from exhaustion. She started sobbing, letting out all the emotions I was sure were swirling inside her. I pulled her to me as best I could and alternated between stroking her hair and rubbing her back. "It's okay, principessa. I got you. It's all over now," I promised, knowing that was one promise I would be able to keep.

A/N: May is hijacking the posting of this chapter cause cullenlvr83 is out of commision today!

What cullenlvr83 wants me to say at the end of this chapter... As always leave a reivew and let me know what you think. Thank you so much and until later lovelies!

What May is actually saying... nothing cause I am dancing on that stupid twats grave! Bye Felicia! Enjoy hell you pompus sack of shit!