Author's Note:

Thank you for your continued support. 3

Alice waited for Edward and Bella to pull away. Once she heard him turn the corner, she grabbed her purse and headed for the door. She should have anticipated that her first night back wouldn't turn into a family game night. No, instead, every one of them couldn't wait to make their escape…from each other.

She started her car and waited for the heat to kick in before she took off to her destination. Her stomach was knotted, for this would be a not pleasant reunion. Alice wasn't even certain if the person she was going to see was expecting her, but she knew that they had what she desperately needed.

When she passed Forks High, she was reminded of some rather horrible events that transpired during her time there. She then passed the police station where her father would have been if his "indecent incident" hadn't happened. This led her to the other side of town, the one where the people she knew were too afraid to drive. Alice had been through worse than the ghetto.

Pulling into the underground parking garage, she took the elevator to the third floor. She knew he had a thing for threes, so his office would naturally be there. Just like the time in high school, where they almost had a threesome. Thankfully, Michelle Newton walked into the bathroom before things got even more wilder.

Ding

Alice arrived at her destination. She looked around and saw the freshly renovated hallway. What a step up from the abandoned warehouse he used to deal in, she snorted, remembering some of their crazier times.

She read the plaque on the door and knew it was his office based on the logo.

She knocked.

The doorknob turned at a punishingly slow pace before she was met with a sleazy yet unsurprised grin.

"Alice." Royce King announced, waving his arm to invite her into his office.

"Royce, it's been a long time.",Alice 's voice cracked. They shared history, whether she liked it or not.

"Too long; when I heard you were back, I knew you'd come as soon as you could break away from the house of horrors. Renee still fucking Carlisle?" Royce asked bluntly, his brashness used to be one of Alice's favorite qualities about him.

Alice nodded, confirming her mother's ongoing affair. There was no point in denying it. It was only a matter of time before Bella found out.

Royce laughed; the Swan's family drama was a significant source of entertainment for him in high school and now almost eighteen years later.

"I'm kinda in a hurry. I don't want Bella to return home and find me gone. You know, she worries. Do you think you can help me with this?" She hands him the incidentals that have been burning a hole in her bag since she was back in New York.

Royce's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, "This isn't you Alice." He knew her; he didn't have to question it. This request would change a lot for Alice, and she didn't need that.

"It's been four years, maybe you don't know me as well as you think you do." She quipped, her mind unwavering in her decision. She waited far too long as it is.

"I'll have my guy right—"

The door opens widely, "Hey boss, got a sec–woah sorry! Oh, hi Ally!" Jake's jaw drops and he starts playing with his fingers. Judging by the look on Royce's face, Jake could conclude that he fucked up. "Get the fuck out." Royce threw a stapler at Jake's head. It didn't hit him; Royce didn't intend for it to, Jake would have known if he did.

Royce King was meek and mild where Alice was concerned, but he was not a man to be

messed with to the outside world. Standing at his six foot two stature, his blue eyes are menacing, piercing into anyone's soul who was unfortunate enough to be in his path. Royce was considered cruel and gruff, even to his wife, Rosalina Hale. The three of them had a long history dating back to high school, most of which Alice has tried to forget.

"I'm on it, Alice. You better go before Rose stops by with my dinner…Last thing I need is for that bitch to ride me like that. I'd rather her ride me in other ways." He stuck his tongue out. He didn't look at Alice like everyone else, fragile. He just saw her for her, Alice, not Allyson.

She thanked him, giving him a hug. Making her way to the elevator, Alice sees a flash of brunette hair about to open the stairwell door. She ducks into the office space next to the elevator. Inside are shelves and shelves of cocaine. Alice swallows loudly, and throws her head back. Temptation was never so enticing as it was right now. Her knees buckle as she loses control of her body; she's not the puppet master anymore. Her fall brings her right in front of the white powder wrapped like a present on Christmas morning. Grabbing it with both hands, she brings the substance to her face, clutching it for dear life. Once upon a time, it was a lifeline for her.

Tethering between one of her lives and another, The door slams open, the hinges hiss from the force. There stands Royce, looking at Alice pleadingly. He approaches her slowly like an animal stalking their prey. This isn't his first rodeo. He holds out his gigantic, callous-ridden hand, but Alice refuses to part with her drug of choice. He takes her perfectly manicured fingers and uncurls them from her Christmas present, gently placing it back on the shelf. Royce chances a look at Alice, who is now nodding at Royce and lets out a groan. He spins her, so she is facing the door. Giving her a gentle nudge, she leaves the drug den the same way she entered.

Empty.

LtD~

Edward pulls into the driveway of his home, where he doesn't see any of his family's cars in the driveway. He opens the garage and confirms he's arrived home to an empty house.

He dials his mother's number, "Hello my love." Esme always answers by the second ring.

"Hi mom, where are you? Nobody's home; I thought I was going to get the riot act for driving Bella to the Black's house."

"Oh honey, I'm sorry. I had to meet with the caterer for the gala. That reminds me, did you pick up your tux from the cleaners? You did bring it, right?" Esme rambled. This gala was her pride and joy. All the proceeds went to children of domestic violence, a cause she knew all too well.

"Err, yes Mom, I dropped it off yesterday." He didn't even start looking for it, let alone drop it off at the cleaners.

"Great baby, now only if I could convince Emmett to dress up. Do you know he threatened not to attend? Please talk to him; he respects you. I would ask your father to, but he's very stressed with his new patients."

"Will do." Whenever the fucker decides to come home, Edward added mentally.

"Also please don't argue with your father if I'm not home before him. I really don't want this friction between you both. He's a terrible communicator, but he loves you and wants only the best for you." Esme tried to make excuses for Carlisle and his harshness towards Edward. But she knew how the wrath of Carlisle could be. Esme was usually the one who yielded most of his disgust. After all, she wasn't the ideal doctor's wife.

Esme and Carlisle were a match doomed from the start. Esme came from an alcoholic father and a drug-idled mother and she was often neglected. She worked hard to escape her hell and started a successful career as a counselor. Truth of the matter was, she couldn't care less about Carlisle's money when she decided to marry him. What she did care about were those two defenseless little boys who would grow up lonely, much like Seth Black, and Esme's heart was not able to tolerate that for them.

Edward agreed to pacify his mother and allow her to have a nice night out alone. There weren't many times Esme left the house without being Carlisle's arm candy.

Still, Edward and his father were oil and water. Carlisle disapproved of Edward and his lack of ambition. He wanted a protege. Instead he got a carbon copy of Esme, a bleeding heart, just in male form. Emmett, on the other hand, was in a league of his own. As captain of the football team, he constantly felt the need to show off and he ached for his father's approval. And more times than not, he received it. According to Carlisle, "Emmett was set for life with football."

Speaking of Emmett…About half an hour later, Edward heard the car horn going off like crazy. Esme's two poodles were barking like maniacs and clawing at the front door. Edward grabbed a baseball bat for precautionary measure and made his way to the driveway. He squinted his eyes in the darkness and saw his idiot brother attempting to get out of his car and failing miserably. Edward stalked over to the BMW and looked down at his drunk little brother. He inhaled, only for his lungs to feel with the smell of whiskey, strong perfume, and pussy.

"What the fuck, Em? Driving drunk seriously? You could have killed someone!" Edward reprimands his younger brother, helping him stand to full height, reminding him there's nothing little about him.

"Shut up, man. You're killing my vibe. I gotta tell you this girl I'm seeing is the bomb; who knew women could do so many things with their hips. Has Bella ever–"

"Finish that sentence, and you're dead."

Emmett put his hands up rolled his eyes. His brother was pussy whipped. But in his eyes, Bella wasn't really all that.

"You know Dad was questioning your guidance counselor earlier today on the phone, I overheard them talking about your college applications." Emmett slurred, pointing his finger and rolling his eyes. Edward shoved his brother inside, ignoring what he already suspected.

Emmett's star status might have risen, but even he couldn't shake the feeling of being pigeon-holed. He would always be just the football star, not the compassionate angsty artist like his brother or brilliant surgeon and philanthropist like his father. No, he was always just football, and there wasn't anything else that was real and tangible for him. Even Emmett's so-called 'friends' were really just fans. Emmett found himself jealous of his brother's lack of 'useful talent', as their father would say.

Once the boys made their way inside, Emmett started texting on his phone while Edward fixed himself something to eat. A few moments passed, and the garage door opened, alerting them that their father was home. Esme never used the garage; she was terrible at remembering the codes.

Carlisle made his way into his house, looking for anything out of place. After doing his once over, and feeling satisfied by what he saw, he looked to his boys. Taking a breath, he immediately smelled the remnants of Emmett's good time. Instead of looking in his direction, he pointed his attention to his eldest. "Edward, are you kidding me –alcohol?". He stalked toward the wrong child. Taking another breath, he smelt sex and perfume. Bella.

"You were with Bella tonight." he started; he already knew Edward had driven her to the Black's. Carlisle knew everything that transpired in his house.

Edward opened his mouth to speak but looking at his father's harsh glare; he snapped his mouth shut.

"Honestly, I do not know what you see in that girl."

LtD~

Edward sat in the interrogation room, nervously bouncing his leg and running his hand through his hair.

Detective Biers and Charlotte Montgomery stood in a small room facing Edward, watching. Except he had no clue he was being watched. The glass between them made sure of that. "Poor schmuck." Charlotte almost laughed at how naive and young the boy looked. He was in over his head.

Riley wasn't convinced by Edward's show of weakness. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. This town was proving to be more complicated than anticipated.

As the pair made their way into Edward's room, they exchanged a glance. Their thoughts were aligned; they knew what to do.

"Hello, Mr. Cullen, my name is Detective Biers, and this is my partner Charlotte."

Edward nodded somberly and folded his hands on the table in front of him. Pleasantries were long gone now.

" , I think you know what we are going to ask, and it's probably best to start with the truth." Riley articulated, aggravated with the lack of cooperation. Fucking rich people and their kids, he thought bitterly in his two thousand dollar suit. Riley sat back in his chair, having a good idea of the whos and whys where Edward is concerned, but wanted to see how far Edward will take them. Thankfully he's more chatty than his brother…

"Bella and I fought the night of the gala. I was upset, she was upset, we both…overreacted. She had gotten very secretive these past few weeks, even more so in this past week with Alice. Bella has blind loyalty to the ones she loves, and I've been trying to open her eyes about many wrongdoings for quite some time." Edward tip-toed across the truth.

"Jake Black says you threatened him the morning before the gala. Why? Jealous?" Riley implored, bating Edward.

"No. I mean…they have history–He and Bee, they were each other's firsts. How can I compete with that? Sure, love is great, but the lengths that she went through for Jake, just in the past week… I mean, it's a lot."

"Do you believe she cheated?" Charlotte interjected, gaining control of the questioning.

Edward debated his answer. Considering everything that transpired just in the last forty-eight hours, he shrugged his shoulders. Just thinking about his Bee and Jake made him queasy.

"I'll take that as a yes. Next question, why was your car at the scene?"