A/N… Okay, guys… I'm updating a day early because of scheduling tomorrow. So…everyone, take a deep breath, let it out slowly, and off you go…

~o~H&E~o~

Chapter 6

BELLA

"Roger that, sweetness. I'm on my way ba—"

There was so much noise coming through my earpiece that I could barely hear Carlisle asking me what was wrong. It was then that I felt it – a barely there rumble beneath me. The glass rattled in the windows, the chandelier above Carlisle's desk clinked, and the lights flickered and went out, but immediately they came back on.

"Edward? Edward, check in!" I practically yelled over the radio.

Mickey and Dean rushed to the window, looking down. When I joined them, the sidewalk couldn't even be seen due to smoke and fire down below. For a heartbeat or two, my breathing stopped and I couldn't speak because my husband was down there.

"Pretty boy, do you copy?!" Mickey urged, but the radio was silent for a brief moment.

"Bella, I've got fire alarms in the lobby. What the hell?" Alice asked in my ear.

"Edward, please come in," I begged this time, but I only received radio silence, and that sent Alice into a frenzy.

"IGOR, engage," she stated firmly. "Give me status reports on Twi Tech Tower, show me the last sixty seconds of security feed, and activate all Gravity crew GPS chips. Mack, call 911. And Rose, get Jasper, Emmett, and Alec down there. Now!"

I faced Carlisle, who was looking at his phone. He met my gaze, saying, "Cell phones are down."

"Edward's not checking in," I countered, my eyes drifted to the bookcase, where I knew Esme and the kids were, but Carlisle shook his head firmly not to say a word.

We both turned and eyed Cho and his daughter, both of whom looked confused and scared, especially after we'd asked him about Chang…or really, it was Kim Min-Jun. The name alone had sent Cho into a panic, so I was pretty certain the guy we'd been hired to watch was in some deep shit. Even his two security men were nervously shifting from one foot to the other.

Gazing around Carlisle's office, I took a second to assess everyone. Jake, Seong, and Cho were sitting on the sofa. Dean and Mickey were still trying to get Edward over the radio, not to mention listening to Alice, who was really communicating with IGOR.

"Alice, talk to me," I demanded.

"Edward's GPS chip shows him at the front steps of the building, but there's no movement. I've got emergency services in route, and cell services are down, so we're still trying to get Jasper. From what I can see from the security feed in the lobby… Jesus, Bella…" She trailed off for a second or two. "Bella, there are several armed men moving about the atrium, rushing the stairs, and working through every floor. They're corralling employees. Looks like they're shifting them to…to…to the auditorium. The entire building is being taken."

Carlisle and I moved at the same time, and he ordered Mickey and Dean to stand firm where they were. When I reached for the doors of his office, they were suddenly yanked out of my hands. Several men in ski masks stood tall, armed, and in front of them with a gun to her head was Angela, who had tears in her eyes.

"No one move," the man holding Angela commanded, pushing her into the room and shifting the muzzle of his gun from her to the middle of Carlisle's forehead. "Move, and he dies."

Two men worked the room quickly, taking every gun Mickey, Dean, and I had, not to mention Carlisle, who was carrying at the small of his back, which had been hidden beneath his suit coat. Cho's two security men were dead before we could blink, and they were dragged out of the office before the doors were shut.

I counted a total of five men. Two at the door, one at the window, one with his automatic weapon trained on all of us, and one sitting down at Carlisle's desk.

"Oh, hell no, he's not…" Alice muttered, and over the earpiece I could hear her typing. "IGOR, lock down Twi Tech's system and keep everyone out. Now!"

The frenzy of fingers over another keyboard met my ears, and I wanted to smirk at the frustration sitting at my godfather's desk. He typed, he clicked with the mouse, and finally, he shook his head. Mickey and I locked gazes for a moment, knowing this was about to get ugly.

"Log in," the one pointing his weapon at us ordered Carlisle.

"He can't. It's been locked down as a security measure as soon as the fire alarm started," I lied smoothly. "He no longer has control of the servers."

"Good, good, good," Alice muttered in my ear. "Tell them the access is now off site."

"It's not even accessible here. It locked down remotely," I continued with the lie she was feeding me.

The one at the computer picked up a bag and rummaged around in it, bringing out a tablet and cable. He was going to try and break in. The mere thought made me want to laugh, but really, it would buy us time. The sound of distant sirens caught everyone's attention, but so did four loud, glass-rattling explosions, and my heart sank because I'd still yet to hear Edward check in over my earpiece.

I assessed the room again. The men were holding their positions at the doors, the windows, the desk, and directly in front of Carlisle and me. My gaze drifted to Cho and Seong, who were nervous and quiet. Jake looked like he could cry while he was sweating bullets. Angela was pissed to the point of tears. I locked gazes with Mickey and then Dean. The latter was doing exactly the same as I was, which was looking for the weakest link. He shook his head once, which I was pretty sure meant we needed sit tight for now. The former, however, was absolutely fucking livid. Mickey was red cheeks and black eyes, her mouth tight with her anger. When she looked to me, she quickly sent nonchalant hand signals to stay quiet, that she was still armed, and that we could fight them, but to hold our position. The last thing she said was to keep our earpieces secret. I nodded once that I'd understood.

The guy who'd pointed his weapon at Carlisle shifted the muzzle of his rifle to Cho and engaged it. Seong cried out, starting to shake and lose her shit. I had to give Cho credit, because he looked his enemy in the eyes with an unwavering gaze, and when he spoke, it wasn't in English.

Dean's eyebrows shot up, but he stayed silent. He'd explained in his interview that he understood some Korean, but I wasn't sure exactly how much. And if I knew Alice, she already had a translator program running.

Carlisle started to shift, and I grasped his hand to keep him still as IGOR finally came through with his status report.

"Miss Alice, Twi Tech Tower is offline and in your control. Emergency services have been dispatched and are surrounding the building now. However, there are four recently stolen garbage trucks on every side of the building, all of which contained several men, four of whom had rocket-propelled grenades. Those were aimed and fired at every entrance and exit of the building. The garage, the front atrium, and the first floor sustained massive damage.

"The following GPS chips are online and transmitting: Alec Moretti, Emmett McCarty, Jasper Whitlock, who are all mobile and five blocks away and closing. Michelle Giovanni-Malik and Isabella Cullen are currently on the seventieth floor of Twi Tech Tower. Edward Cullen is transmitting from the ground level.

I wanted to demand more information on Edward, but I kept my mouth shut.

"Lastly, the safe house has been contacted not to leave."

My eyes betrayed me, I was certain, not that these assholes knew what the fuck I was doing. If anything, I was simply glaring at the wall with the bookcases.

Carlisle gave my hand a squeeze, and he faced our attackers. "What do you want?" he asked with barely contained hatred.

The man who had threatened Cho swung that gun back to my father-in-law, tilting his head in curiosity.

"We're going to take back everything we need from you, Mr. Cullen," he answered, and Carlisle's nostrils flared. "And if you don't cooperate, we'll start executing everyone in this building every hour you make us wait."

He jerked his chin toward the desk, where the computer guy was working. He spun the tablet around, which showed the auditorium full of Twi Tech employees and guests. On the stage were five people, two of whom I knew – Lauren Mallory and the young Jessica from payroll I'd met several years ago. Gun fire was loud, not to mention bright as the muzzles flared on the feed. And all five people dropped to the wooden stage floor.

My mouth dropped open, and I turned to face Carlisle, who looked like he was about to launch himself at this guard in front of us, but I grabbed his hand again.

Jacob, however, lost his mind, because Lauren Mallory had been the mother of his son, JW. When he moved, he met the ugly end of the butt of a rifle when our captor swung it like a baseball bat. Jake collapsed to the floor in a heap.

I swallowed nervously, looking to Mickey, who tapped her ear for me to listen.

I heard the most beautiful voice in my life. "Everyone check in!" Edward sounded shaken but okay.

"Edward, they can't," Alice told him.

"Why?"

"Because the building has been taken."

"Fuck," he hissed, and it sounded like he was on the move. "Well, not for long."

"Edward, get low. You're surrounded," Alice warned him. "I've got backup heading your way."

"Roger that," he muttered. "And sweetness, if you're listening… Be safe, and I'll be there soon."

I collapsed back against the sofa, muttering a thank-you to whoever was listening.

~oOo~

EDWARD

Through the ringing in my ears, several sounds started to bring me around. The low, deep growl of two dogs, the sirens of firetrucks, and several more explosions all filtered through.

"Mmmph," I felt against my face more than heard, and the warm, wet tongue slurped up my face, ending with a soft, "Boof."

"Okay, okay," I grunted, squeezing my eyes closed before opening them.

My surroundings looked like a fucking warzone. Glass, fire, broken concrete, and injured people were everywhere. Another growl from in front of me made me sit up, and Lock was practically feral at the movement coming from the now obliterated lobby of my dad's building.

"Fuck," I hissed, getting to my feet and staying low. "Lock, Load…on me."

Both dogs snapped to attention and stayed at my side as I used cars, broken bits of building, and trees to get into the park we'd just left minutes ago.

"Down." I told them, and they dropped to their security-vest covered bellies in front of me while I assessed my pounding fucking head, my weapons, and finally my earpiece.

Touching the side of my face by my temple made me wince, and my fingertips came away with spots of blood, but nothing worth worrying about, so I tapped my earpiece to check that it was still working.

"Everyone check in!"

Alice wasn't the first voice I expected, but she was welcomed, at least. "Edward, they can't."

"Why?" I asked, turning to face the building from my hidden spot in the park.

"Because the building has been taken."

From where I was, I could see three Seattle garbage trucks in strategic positions around the building's exits. They were not only covering several armed men, but they'd been destroyed so they'd collapsed as a permanent barrier. I caught sight of several Type 58 assault rifles, RPGs, and more ski masks than I could shake a fucking stick at. Moving my gaze farther away from the building, I could see emergency vehicles and personnel trying to move in, but as soon as they got close enough, they were stopped by gunfire. The building was, indeed, fucking taken. My heart dropped because my entire life was seventy stories above me. I raked my gaze up the side of Twi Tech Tower, looking for anything crazy, but all glass seemed to be intact after the first floor. I willed my eyes to see something on the top floor, but if there was anything going on up there, I couldn't see it. My wife, my kids, my dad, and Esme were all up there. I looked to my right and then left. I needed to get the fuck inside that building or die trying.

"Fuck," I sneered, grabbing the dogs' leashes to move again. "Well, not for long."

"Edward, get low. You're surrounded. I've got backup heading your way," Alice warned me, and still I couldn't understand why my wife, Mickey, or Dean hadn't answered me, but if they were in trouble, they'd know what to do.

Hopefully, Bella was at least listening, because I know she'd be losing her mind.

"Roger that," I responded, catching sight of movement surrounding me. I guided the dogs a little bit farther into the park and darted into an alleyway to hide behind the dumpster. "And sweetness, if you're listening… Be safe, and I'll be there soon."

I wasn't quite sure how to make that fucking happen, but I reached for my Glock in my shoulder holster, checking the clip. Lock and Load shifted on their feet, rumbling short growls, and I simply reached down and unclipped their leashes. They'd stay with me, no problem, but I couldn't have that restriction of those things tying them or me down.

"Alice, give me everything you fucking know," I commanded over the earpiece, leaning back against the brick wall of the building behind me to get my wits about me.

"Okay, okay, okay," she chanted. "You stay where you are for just a moment. Starting from the bottom up… The lobby and the atrium are completely surrounded and destroyed. From what I can see from the last few minutes of security feed, this was planned and implemented from the inside out. Edward, this is those same terrorists you and I have been watching. Only this is fucking huge."

"Yeah, pixie, I can see that."

"These assholes were inside the building as guests, or cleaning crew, or even the construction crew working on the remodel from the forty-fifth, -sixth, and -seventh floors. They've been working on this for a while." Alice's typing sounded just as rapid as the gunfire in the building. "They worked every floor and moved every employee and civilian, who are now being contained in the auditorium – you know, where they held Charlie's funeral?"

"Copy that. Keep going."

"Edward, I need you to focus on me, please, and stay calm. Bella, Carlisle, Dean, Mickey, Jake, Angela, and the Chos are being held in your dad's office on the top floor by five men. All weapons have been taken away from them. Those assholes are trying to break into Twi Tech's computer system, but IGOR is keeping them out for the moment."

"And the safe house?"

"It's untouched and secret, and all my minions made it upstairs before things went bat-shit crazy. I saw the footage with you in the lobby. But they are up there."

I smirked a little at Alice keeping things a bit cryptic, just in case someone was listening. I rubbed my face on my shirt sleeve, wincing a little.

"There's something else you should know, Edward," she said softly. "They've already executed five Twi Tech employees. One was Lauren Mallory. You know, Jake's…"

"Ah, fuck," I groaned.

"Yeah, and that girl from payroll. Jessica, I think. They've threatened to continue to do so every hour they don't get what they want."

"Jesus," I barely breathed aloud. "Anything else?"

"Backup. I've got Jasper, Alec, and Emmett in route to you, but they aren't in range yet, and I can imagine getting to you is going to take some maneuvering. Ben is leading this on the FBI side of things, and Eleazar is most likely going to take it from him because he and Felix are bringing the military with them. Which means, if you're going to do something, you'll either need to stay low and out of sight or wait for Eleazar."

"I'm not fucking waiting for any-goddamn-body, Alice. I'm going in for my family."

Alice started to speak, but then a brief moment of chaos came over the radio.

"Edward, you clear that safe house first," Bella suddenly ordered in an almost inaudible whisper. "Hide and seek."

"Shit," I hissed, pushing away from the brick wall to sneak a peek at the top floor from my position. "Copy that, sweetness. Can you tell me anything, baby?"

"No, pretty boy, the porridge is too hot," Mickey answered just as softly as Bella had spoken.

I grimaced at the use of the old code. It was a code my dad had developed way back in the beginning of his mercenary days. Somehow, Goldilocks worked, and we'd only had to use it a handful of times. That was way before Bella had come along, but if Mickey was using it, then shit was pretty heavy upstairs.

Sighing, I glanced up and down the street. Authorities were moving in, people were scared and were being evacuated from all the buildings surrounding Twi Tech Tower, and no one could get anywhere near the sidewalk around the building. The whole block was locked down.

Several dark cars and SUVs screeched to a halt on either side of the park. Federal agents piled out of the vehicles, and I recognized Ben from a mile away, but he was walking too fucking close.

"Ben, stop!" I yelled, running up the sidewalk, and the dogs followed me.

I could see I wasn't going to make it, because from my angle, I saw several men behind the garbage trucks shift and aim their weapons, and Ben's men were blind.

Even faster than all of that were the silent, high-powered sniper bullets that suddenly rained down on all of them.

"Sniper!" I called, and Ben finally heard me, but not before I tackled him to the ground and rolled him behind one of his own SUVs. "Everyone down!"

"Christ, Cullen," he groaned, leaning back against the tire. "Where the fuck did you come from?"

"Don't fucking ask," I said, leaning around the bumper to make sure all his men had listened. "This block is covered six ways from fucking Sunday, Ben."

"I've got to get in that building, Ed. Angela's in there," he whispered, his eyes filling with panic.

I was shaking my head. "She's… For now, she's in my dad's office with Bella. They're being held at gunpoint. There's no getting to them right this second."

"How the fuck do you know this!?"

"Alice. Tap into the usual frequency, Ben. She'll give you everything you need, but I'll tell you this… This is bigger than you. This is… Benny, this is North Korea. I'm fucking sure of it."

He groaned, his head falling back to the fender of the truck. "I need my wife out of there, Ed."

"I need mine, too… And my kids. And my dad and Esme," I agreed, glancing around me. "I need to get into that motherfucking building, Ben. In order for that to happen, I need to take out those goddamn snipers."

Ben grabbed the front of my shirt in a shaky yet tenacious grip, which caused Lock and Load to give him a warning snarl. His eyes were wide and terrified. "Ed…please! Ang… My wife is pregnant again." He rambled about Hannah, his daughter, and not having a chance to tell anyone yet, but he quickly trailed off, silently begging me.

"Ah, Christ, Benny," I groaned, patting the side of his face. "Let me do what I do, copy?"

Ben studied my face, snorting a little because he knew he couldn't stop me, nor could he deny what I could do. "Where's the crew?" he asked, reaching up to open the back door of the SUV. Staying low, he reached for a black bag and then tossed it at me.

"Some are up there, and some are on their way. My info team is in Forks live and online," I told him, raising an eyebrow at him.

"I'll get with Alice," he said, pointing to the bag. "Take it. It's a few clips, some binoculars, and a radio should you need it. Maybe some other shit, I dunno. How long until El joins up?"

"Soon, I'd imagine," I told him, pulling the bag across my shoulder. "I'm doing this with or without permission, Ben."

"You're Twi Tech security, right?" he called as I started to walk away from him, calling the dogs.

I snorted and waved a hand as I turned the corner. Ducking into a recessed doorway, I told the dogs to sit, and I pulled the bag around to my front. Inside were, indeed, binoculars, some ammo, a couple of flash disks, and a radio, which I pulled out and clipped to my belt. It was the binoculars I needed the most, because I needed to find those sniper bastards and take them out, or I'd never make my way inside that fucking building.

"Alice, come in," I called over my earpiece, but she didn't answer immediately.

"I'm here, I'm here, I'm here," she chanted breathlessly. "Sorry, Edward. I'm doing a million things…"

"I get it. Just… Alice, I need inside that fucking building, and from my position, I have no access. I need to know another way in. Anything… Garbage chute, air vent, or the sewer, for fuck's sake. Anything."

"Copy that," she said, typing as fast as I'd ever heard her. "Give me a few."

She went silent, and I took a moment to scan the windows of Twi Tech and the buildings around us. The dark-glass building on the next block had balcony-type windows, and scanning up the side of it, I saw at least five snipers trained down onto the street.

"I've got five snipers in the building to the east, and there are automatic weapons behind each garbage truck…and those bastards are positioned on every side of the building." I studied the front doors and the small part of the lobby I could see and sighed. "The lobby is a no-go; I'm seeing movement just inside."

"Of course it is," Alice muttered. "Stand by, Edward. I'm checking the garage, the north entrance, and even the cargo bay. Just give me a second."

The familiar thump-thump-thump of helicopter blades met my ears, and I glanced up. Several news choppers, a police chopper, one that could've been an emergency unit, and an unmarked helicopter circled above the city. It was the latter I looked to because the side bay doors were wide open. Kneeling in the bay was a man with an RPG, which was aiming for the police chopper. The police chopper tried to maneuver away, but it was too late and the other one was too close. The hiss and explosion were loud above my head, and then the police chopper started to drop and spin out of control.

"Oh, fuck, they do have air support," I breathed, glancing from one end of the street to the other. "Shit," I grunted, running up the sidewalk. "Everybody down! Get the fuck down!" I yelled, waving officers, emergency-service personnel, and civilian onlookers off the streets. "Go! Get out of the way! Incoming!"

The pop and whine of the chopper's dying engine grew louder the closer it came. I'd been where that chopper pilot was, trying like hell to set it down, but there was no controlling the freefall of it all. Truly, it was like trying to control a runaway train. There wasn't any way to avoid crashing, and he was about to drop it right in the middle of Fifth Avenue – on top of cars, ambulances, firetrucks, and people.

Lock and Load ran along either side of me, barking, and finally, people saw what I was trying to do. They scrambled out of their vehicles, aiming for the alleyways, the sidewalks, even the doors of some of the businesses.

An elderly man was trying to help his wife in a wheelchair up the sidewalk ramp, and they were the last of the lingering people.

"Go!" I pointed to the corner of the building. "I've got her… Go!"

I pushed the chair up the ramp at the same time I heard the chopper finally crash down. "Lock and Load, on me!" I ordered, shielding the elderly woman as debris from the chopper blades slung every which way possible. Windows shattered, shrapnel rained against the building walls, and cars exploded under the massive impact of the police helicopter. Fire burned bright and hot, igniting everything in its path – cars, newspaper and hotdog stands, stores. It was an enormous ball of fire and pieces of the helicopter.

I flinched when debris landed around us, and the dogs darted back a little. The woman I was shielding cried out in fear and her husband got low, but as far as I could tell, they were untouched.

"You guys okay?" I asked them, and they nodded.

"Thank you," the man said, checking on his wife, which made my heart hurt. I needed to set eyes on my Bella. However, in order to do that, I had to kill these bastards.

"No problem." I gave a sharp whistle. "Lock, Load…let's go."

I turned back around the corner to what looked like hell itself on earth. The chopper crash was everywhere, engulfing the entire street in fire and chaos. I'd have to go around in order to get back to the building with the snipers. I took the block at a run, dodging people and vehicles.

As I rounded the last corner back at the park, I finally heard Alice's voice again.

"Edward! Come in!"

"I'm here," I panted.

"What the fuck just happened?"

"You were right, pixie. They have air support." I glanced up again, and the news choppers were absent, but the unmarked black chopper was still hovering around Twi Tech Tower. "It looks Canadian? Maybe? Robinson 22 or 44… I can't tell."

"Copy that. And Edward, you'll have backup in less than ten minutes."

"I don't have ten minutes, Alice. I've got to get inside that goddamn building! But I can't do that until these snipers are taken out. They're on every side of the building. I just need to know which side to remove."

"Edward, come in," I heard over the earpiece, and I leaned against the building next to me.

"Alec, where the fuck are you?!"

"Kid, hang in there. Our ETA is five minutes. North end of the building. But your best bet is the garage, no matter what they've got aiming at that building. You'll have more coverage in there, and there are entrances up to the fifteenth floor."

"Roger that. Heading that way."

"But guys, you've got company on every level of the garage!" Alice warned.

"And snipers in the balconies of the building on the east side."

"Let us worry about the little things," Emmett piped up. "We're armed and at the ready. Anyone got contact inside?"

"I've got the security feed, that's it," Alice replied. "Carlisle's office. Everyone is fine, except for Jake, who's been knocked out cold, but they're at gunpoint and are quiet for their safety."

"Ten-four," I said softly, my nostrils flaring in anger. "I'll kill every last motherfucker if I have to in order to get to that office."

"Edward," Rose piped in. "You heard Bella. You have to clear the safe house first."

"I'm gonna clean this whole fucking building!" I snapped but stopped myself. "But I know, Rose."

"Ed, let's take the snipers, replace them with me, and then you can work your way into the garage. Copy?" Jasper suggested, and I glanced around the corner of the building.

"Roger that. Meet you there." As I ran up the street with Lock and Load, I called for Rose again. "Rose, do we have communication to the safe house?"

"We do. Radio and video communication. Though, Alice has Mack working on cell phone service."

"Good, you tell them to sit tight and stay quiet. I'm coming for them," I said, darting across the street and into the alley of the building next to Twi Tech.

"Will do, Edward."

~o~H&E~o~

A/N… Please remain seated, and keep all hands inside the vehicle until it comes to a complete stop. ;)

FYI, this fic may be the most action I've ever written, which was why I brought warnings with me. So keep that in mind.

I'll be back next week with the teasers on Thursday/Friday, and back on Sunday with the next update. Until then… Mooches, Deb ;)