Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual events is purely coincidental. The original characters belong to Stephenie Meyer.

A/N Thanks again to loopylou992 and Alice's White Rabbit for pre-reading and betaing.

Previously:

"My current assignment is connected with an intrusion into the MOHAI archives. Our old man, Carlisle, happens to be the brains of that operation. Emmett here is his accomplice." Jasper lifted his gun for good measure. "Sorry, Emmett. You have to stay where you are. Don't make me cuff you."

Emmett huffed as his slumped shoulders seemed to carry a heavy burden. He sat back, after having just jumped to his feet, but had to obey the gun pointed at his head.

"Oh, man." Emmett gulped twice and buried his face in his palms.

Edward blinked and stared into the empty air next to his left elbow. The meaning of the whole situation evaded him. What now? Was he supposed to be afraid of Jasper? He lifted his gaze to try and look behind the blond's eyes, to understand. He was even more confused because Jasper fucking smiled.

"Don't worry, Emmett," Jasper said. "I know you're the good guys. We will just have to prove it."

Next, Emmett broke down and cried.

Chapter 9

"There, there." Edward patted the slumped shoulder of the huge man, who now looked almost fragile. "We're all going to help."

"Oh, yes, we are!" Bella added. Edward met her delighted eyes, and his heart skipped a beat. Guilt was molding a sharp-edged, heavy object in his stomach; it shifted and pierced his insides at the prospect of having to reject her next advance. Somewhere within the previous hour, he had come to the conclusion that he was irrationally attracted to Jasper, and after the realization he could have lost him, his emotions were set in stone. He knew he wanted to be close to Jasper. He wanted to be very close to Jasper, and soon.

He didn't want Bella as a girlfriend any more. Fuck. He had no idea how that had happened. He had no idea what would happen next.

"Now we start with the nearest hospital, Marcus."

Marcus held the passenger door open for Aro then sat behind the wheel and drove off with a huff.

They got lucky.

The young nurse they met in a side corridor was too frightened of them and not selfless enough to guard the patient's safety and the hospital's good name. With her right pinkie broken, she was left sobbing, snot coming down her pristine, ironed, formerly sterile light blue uniform. She had told them where to find one Mr. Carlisle Cullen.

"Still no news from the hospital?" Emmett's voice was asking. Edward shook his head to clear his mind a little. Too much for one day, he thought.

Bella gasped and suddenly punched Jasper's arm.

"You bastard! I don't have my phone now! How is he going to call us if he needs us?"

"He has my number too, Bells. No worries."

"You owe me a new one, you know. Jerk."

"Yes, ma'am," Jasper drawled.

Then his phone rang. "Got it, sir. I'll be there," he said after listening to the buzzing voice for a while and hung up. He straightened his shoulders, turning to his companions. "I've been summoned for an emergency. At the medical center."

"Is it …" Bella couldn't finish her sentence.

"Yes. A nurse just called 911; I'll tell you later," Jasper answered in a rush.

He turned to leave and was quickly followed by the whole crowd.

"Whoa!" Jasper stopped in his tracks. "Where do you lot think you're going? Emmett! You're wounded. And, Bella, you're a girl for fuck's sake. Sit back down right now!"

"Yes?" Bella was again shouting at him. "Girls stay at home and do dishes, polish their nails, and knit? Is that right?"

Her yelling was disrupted by Edward's palms grabbing firmly at her shoulders. He stood, towering behind her, and calmly spoke into her ear. "I'll go. Stay with Emmett, okay?"

"Not you too!" Jasper wanted to exclude Edward from the action as well. He just didn't need complications. Plus, he didn't want to put anyone's life in danger despite the fact that danger had obviously taken aim at their little league.

"Jasper." Edward started, then kept silent for a couple seconds before he went on. "Nothing on Earth is going to separate me from you at this moment."

Jasper knew he had momentarily lost this fight. Something in Edward's long, fixed stare spoke of unbreakable determination.

"Fine." Jasper shrugged at last. "My car is around the corner. Hurry."

Carlisle realized his left leg didn't serve him well. He tried to kick Marcus's chest when his attacker leaned over his bed, but his foot only grazed the tall man's trouser leg and fell back on the bed, limp. Aro watched his useless attempts at self-defense and traces of amusement lit his evil eyes.

"You're a pathetic old man," Carlisle's enemy spoke. "Stop fighting and let Marcus do his job."

"What do you need me for?" Carlisle hissed. His weak hands were held tight with a thin rope now, which Marcus's long fingers knotted skillfully. "I didn't get my files; I can't harm you."

"As much as I enjoy the fact that you're aware of your own worthlessness, we still have issues to discuss, my friend. But the medical center is not the greatest of places for our conversation." With his last words, Aro shot a glance to the door and waved his hand toward it. "Let's take him to the museum now, Marcus."

Carlisle's body was lifted by the attacker's strong arms with minimal effort and thrown over his shoulder like a ragdoll.

He hated his useless left arm and leg. He hated his miserable being. He could do nothing but pray for a miracle.

When the miracle happened, he couldn't believe his eyes. His peripheral vision had caught a blurry movement to the left, and the next moment, Aro was on his knees, then falling in slow motion, until his body was sprawled on the floor. Jasper's smile appeared in Carlisle's field of vision, the blond hair tussled, a gun shoved into Marcus's neck.

"Surprise," Jasper sneered, and next he knocked the tall man's temple with the back of the gun.

Edward was there too, Carlisle realized, when his new acquaintance outstretched his arms and held his slumping figure, helping him stand on his feet while Marcus's senseless body joined Aro's on the floor.

"Okay, we're going home," Jasper announced. A knife's blade glistened, and Jasper cut the rope around the old man's wrists with one swift movement, then he pocketed the remains. "Can you walk, Carlisle?"

Carlisle nodded but snaked his good arm around Edward's neck.

"I can use a little help."

"What's happened to them after you left?" Bella asked when Jasper finished his story.

"My colleagues must have taken care of them. We shouldn't worry about them any more. They revealed themselves as criminals, trying to kidnap our friend here."

Carlisle sighed heavily. Something was off with the picture and the way his enemies had stupidly exposed themselves, but he dismissed the odd feeling. He felt good in his own bed, surrounded by four young people who turned out to be his closest friends and allies. Bella touched his hand gently then brushed his cheek with the tips of her fingers.

"I'm sorry you had to endure this," she said. "You're a weird old man, but you're a good person; such things shouldn't happen to good people."

Her smile touched his soul, and for the first time, he realized his neighbor was a really fine young lady.

"Okay, now." Carlisle felt uncomfortable with all the attention he was getting. "Leave the old man to rest. I'm good, just tired. I need my beauty sleep."

Bella chuckled and stood up.

"Okay, but I'll stay for a while. I'll cook dinner for you. If you need something, just shout."

"Coming with you." Emmett spoke for the first time in a long while. "I hope you don't mind the company."

Bella wondered why he wasn't going to his home, now that it was safe, but just shrugged and confirmed she didn't mind.

"It's good that we gave Edward and Jasper some alone time, you know. Something's going on between them; I can tell."

Something was going on, indeed. At the same time Bella spoke her prophetic words to Emmett, Edward and Jasper were kissing.

It began with a mild caress of lips. The moment they closed the third floor apartment's door behind their backs Edward's lips were on Jasper's, then Jasper's lips parted, and Edward's lips parted too, and their tongues met. The sensation brought tears to Edward's eyes. This was so simple. To give in to the attraction, really simple. Relieving.

He had watched in awe the way Jasper neutralized Carlisle's kidnappers. So confident, efficient like the strike of fate, a true force to be reckoned with. Jasper had been amazing, fantastic. Marvellous.

Straight out of a Marvel movie. Edward couldn't help it and chuckled, breaking their kiss.

"What?" Jasper pressed a firm palm on his neck and crushed his lips into Edward's once again, giving him no chance to answer.

Edward's chuckle died, replaced by a gasp when Jasper's hand ghosted over the cotton material right under the lowest button of his jeans. Something moved down there; oh, hi, pal, Edward thought and shifted his hips to push forward, harder, into the exhilarating tingle of the realization that Jasper's hand was palming his erection.

Guess I'm gay now, Edward concluded and deepened the kiss.