YOU'RE WHAT!

Disclaimer: The Cullen's, the Swans, and most of the characters mentioned in the story that are known from Stephanie Meyer's beloved Twilight Saga, are all hers and hers alone. I neither have nor wish to pass them off as mine. I do appreciate the fact that she did bring them to life and allows us to play with them in our imaginations. The only thing I will claim is the current storyline.

The awesome and talented dowlingnana searched out my errors and corrected them.

"So, it seems that we're all in the dark for the time being." Alice told the three guys. Then she suggested, "The best thing to do at this time is to keep ourselves occupied with other things until we hear from someone, either Bella or Sam and Felix."

So, that is what they all did.

CHAPTER 42: EPILOGUE: TIME MARCHED ON

TEN YEARS LATER

"Aren't you ready yet? Damn, Bella, we're going to be late if you don't hurry up!" Edward yelled upstairs to his wife.

"We aren't going to be late and you can stop yelling at me." Bella responded.

And with Bella saying that Edward knew that it would be at least another fifteen minutes before she walked down the stairs, ready for them to leave. They were heading to meeting up with Alice and Jasper, Rosalie and Emmett to help celebrate his parents' wedding anniversary. So, with that knowledge Edward took a seat as he waited on Bella and let his mind take a trip back through the years.

It didn't seem possible that ten years and two kids later had passed since that first meeting between his, Emmett's and Jasper's first seeing their elite FBI protectors, three women that were destined to become each of their loves and wives.

Things had gotten a bit hairy with the tying up of loose ends surrounding the takedown of the Volturi crime family. Marcus Volturi had survived being shot by Bella and Aro Volturi was taken into custody by surprise as he was getting into his vehicle to go meet with some of his lieutenants.

It seemed that all had gone down without a single shot being fired where Aro Volturi and his subordinates were concerned. Felix's suggestions concerning coordinating and timing factor for the takedowns were dead on. And, from what everyone had been told later by Sam and Felix, Aro got violent once he found out what had happened to his brothers.

Once everyone was arrested and booked, it took but a matter of a few weeks for Edward, Emmett and Jasper, along with Michael and Janie Warren to be called to testify at the trials telling what they had seen or knew firsthand. The outcome was as expected, Aro and Marcus were found guilty and sentenced to death. The rest of their bunch had received various prison sentences, depending on whatever they had been charged with, that would keep them off the streets for nearly a lifetime.

Of course, there had been the matter of clearing up the mole in the Attorney General's office and the leak that came from the police department. And the publicity that covered those two events brought about more changes within the departments. The father and son, the police chief and the attorney, were both sentenced to ten years in prison for their involvement with the Volturi's and supplying information to that crime family.

The next set of problems were with Bella, Alice and Rosalie. It seemed that the press had made quite a fuss over their roles in protecting the witnesses and the bringing down of the Volturi's, that it was near impossible for the three to continue in their jobs with the FBI since their faces became too well known. So, because of all of the attention brought on by the press coverage, the three women decided it was time to retire from the Bureau and to branch out into another area that seemed to be suited for their training.

Because of that, the three, Bella, Alice and Rosalie, started their own security company. Once it was known that they had left the FBI and had started their company, they had to appreciate to a certain extent, the news coverage that had surrounded them from the Volturi affair because it brought a treasure trove of business to their new company almost immediately.

Edward was able to return to his Public Relations firm, Jasper returned to his Accounting firm and Emmett was once more at his Construction Company. All three men were able to pick up their lives once more without the fear of harm coming from any of the Volturi crime family. And, they felt relief that all of the undercover guards watching over the safety of their families were assigned other duties since everyone was now safe.

The three continued dating their loves, Bella, Alice and Rosalie even beyond the three ladies' resignation from the FBI. In fact, each of the guys was relieved the ladies had resigned from the Bureau and made sure they were able to contribute to the starting of the Elite Security Company. After having a realtor help locate property for construction of their office, Emmett's company drew up the plans for the building and built the office on that site.

Edward's parents helped where they could in getting the new business up and going. Esme helped with the interior designs and she would put Carlisle to work with some of the smaller area painting or moving of furniture. The couple was more than happy to help since the girls had kept the guys safe, but, also because they were extended family. After all, Bella was the love of their son's life.

Jasper took over handling all of the accounting for their company and Edward personally handled all of the PR work that went beyond what the press coverage had contributed in bringing the girls the business that helped to get the Elite Security off the ground. Because of all of the contributions coming to the business, it seemed, almost at once, the girls felt overwhelmed in the beginning of opening for business.

As time moved on all of the appeals that Aro and Marcus Volturi filed had been exhausted. The two men finally met their full punishment and were put to death by lethal injection five years after their sentencing.

Jasper and Alice were the first to marry. They each sold their separate homes and bought a place on the edge of town in a gated community. Alice had nearly driven Jasper, as well as everyone else, crazy with her ideas for decorating. She was so serious and intense about everything being just right. So, Esme was asked to aid Alice in the interior decorating so they could get settled and move on with their life together.

And, as the years passed, Emmett and Rosalie got married after their first child, a bouncing baby boy, was born. By that time Alice was pregnant with hers and Jasper's first child and Bella was still refusing to marry Edward because she didn't feel like they needed a piece of paper to make them into a family.

Emmett and Rosalie found a house not far from Alice and Jasper in the same community and they got settled with a lot less fuss than what Alice had caused. It was the type of place that allowed room for children to grow and have fun in the backyard, as well as giving the adults plenty of room to entertain.

Edward and Bella found a plot of land and had their home built which Emmett's company did the building with Emmett having a helping hand in the house design. They lived a fifteen-minute drive from the other two couples.

It wasn't until after Bella had given birth to two sons that Edward had finally convinced her to marry him. However, she agreed reluctantly since she felt a marriage certificate was not necessary; she and Edward were deeply in love and considered themselves soulmates.

There were difficult times for the three couples as life wasn't all sunshine and roses. They had disagreements amongst their spouses and even amongst each other, but never anything that was serious enough to damage the relationships or the partnership or the friendship that existed between all of them.

Michael Warren had to stand trial, however, but since he had never committed any serious crimes, he was given probation. Also, he had been given custody of his sister, Janie and he took the position very serious.

Edward, Jasper and Emmett, each offered him a job so he could comfortably support himself and Janie. But, Bella, Rosalie and Alice weren't able to offer Michael a job because of his criminal background being too current. They would not have been able to get him bonded to be able to handle any sort of serious security detail work.

Jasper and Alice would travel to visit with his family from time to time, as well as Emmett and Rosalie doing the same with his family. But Bella and Edward didn't have to worry with doing any traveling since Charlie decided to rent out the family home in Forks Washington and moved to be close to his girls and grandsons.

And, not to be left out, Esme convinced Carlisle to move to be closer to Edward, Bella and their grandsons and told him he could apply for a position at one of the local hospitals. So, like Charlie, they also moved to be closer to everyone.

It was as Edward reached this point in his trip down memory lane, that he was jerked back to the present with a throat being cleared. He looked over toward the stairway and saw Bella standing there in all of her wondrous glory. The passage of time had been nothing if not kind to Bella. She appeared to be just as youthful as she had the day he had first seen her. Even after the boys had been born, Bella continued to keep herself in shape just like Rosalie and Alice did. Looking at any of the three women, no one would know that they had given birth.

"What were you thinking about so deeply?" Bella asked her husband as she advanced to where he was sitting.

"Just thinking back over the last ten years and finding it hard to believe that time had passed so quickly." Was his answer.

"Let's go so we aren't late. That was what had you so anxious a little earlier."

Edward reached out to take her shawl from her and passed it around her shoulders as he bent down and placed a slow, tender kiss on each of her shoulders and then upon the back of her neck as he lifted her hair to one side as Bella finished settling the shawl in place.

"You have made my life more complete than I had even thought it could be. Thank you for loving me and giving me my sons and a life that I believe will last forever, even beyond this lifetime." He whispered to Bella as he put his hand into the small of her back and they moved toward the door.

Once at the door, Edward paused once more as he looked at the beautiful woman at his side and said, "I love you with all that God graced me to love you with. You are and shall always be my forever and a day."

THE END

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