Chapter 22 – Showdowns and Paybacks

Dinner was nice, but it was very quiet. I could tell Billy was beating himself up about the way Jacob had behaved. He apologized several times and promised he'd take care of it. I could tell by the look on Edward's face that he wasn't counting on it.

It was weird being back at my house in Forks. I'd always thought it'd feel like my home, but now, after staying with Edward and mentally making the decision to live with him, it all felt different at my father's home.

Edward brought some empty boxes in and set them on the coffee table. "Do you want to do this tonight? We can always work on it in the morning. I know you have a lot on your mind right now."

"No, it's fine, we can start packing things up. The boxes go to the house, right?"

"Yeah, and the rest we'll have put into a storage unit by movers. Are you still okay with doing this?" he asked, looking worried.

"I can't leave it vacant, and I don't think Jake is going to listen to his dad. I can't stay here," I said, fighting tears.

He pulled me into his arms and let me cry myself to sleep. I woke up on the couch, when I heard a heated argument coming from the back porch.

"You have no right to keep her from me!" It was Jake.

"She doesn't want to see you. Didn't your dad tell you to stay away from her?"

"This is all just a huge misunderstanding. You're nothing to her. She loves me! I'm her family!" Jake shouted back at Edward.

"You need to leave now, or I'm calling the police," Edward warned coolly.

"Go ahead, we'll see who's side they take," Jake taunted. I had heard enough, it was time to stop things now, before they got out of hand.

I stepped out onto the screened porch and into Jake's view, wrapping my arms around Edward. "Jake, you need to leave."

"Bella, you've got to tell this guy we're family. Is he forbidding you to see me? Is that what it is? Are you scared of him? Because I can take him, Bella, just tell me and I'll-"

"NO! Jake, please, just go. I don't want to see you anymore. I don't want you anywhere near me. I'm sick and tired of you TOUCHING ME! Just leave!" I screamed and broke down.

Jake looked confused. Edward glared at him and carried me inside, locking the back door behind us. Once again, we were saved by the locked screened porch. Once Edward set me on the couch again, I noticed that there were several boxes already packed. "What's in these?"

He pointed to the bare mantel and empty walls. "I figured you'd want to keep all your pictures and knickknacks. I figured if it looked personal, I should pack it. Is that alright?"

I nodded yes. I wasn't sure how long I'd been asleep, but there were a couple of boxes in every room. The shelves and walls were all cleared off. It was mostly just furniture that was left behind.

"Do you think this will all fit in your house?" I asked.

"I have a very big attic. Since you'll be my wife, half of that attic is yours. We have plenty of room for it. Besides, a lot of this stuff will be up on our walls and out on our shelves, not hidden away. I want the house to feel like yours, too."

He was so sweet. I pulled him close and kissed him soundly. He hugged me, sagging against me. "Are you tired," I asked.

"Just a bit, I didn't get a catnap like you did," he teased.

"Come on, let's go to bed." After such an emotional day, we were both ready for some sleep.

We both woke the next morning to loud banging. I was worried Jake had come back and quickly looked for my phone. I would call the cops on him if he started something with Edward. "Where's my phone?" I asked.

"We must've left them downstairs. Stay here, while I check to see who it is," Edward ordered. There was no way I was letting him go face Jake alone.

"What the hell, man? I've been trying to get ahold of you since five o'clock this morning. Why aren't you answering your phone?" Emmett shouted.

"We left them downstairs. Why are you trying to get ahold of us?" Edward asked.

Emmett heard my footsteps and pushed past Edward. He tugged on his hair and paced.

"Emmett, what's going on?" I asked, stepping in front of him.

"It can't be her. Tanya should be able to give her an alibi, not to mention the trouble it'd cause with her customers," Emmett babbled.

"What are you talking about?" Edward asked.

"I don't think it's Rosie. She wouldn't do something like that. It's not her style, and she was just as freaked out by it as I was, when she saw it."

"Saw what, Emmett?"

"The front window of the shop has been smashed out. The rest of the shop wasn't vandalized, just the front window with the name on it."

I felt sick to my stomach. "Was it Jake?" I worried.

Emmett looked at me confused. "I don't know who it was. Do you have a security camera or something?"

I shook my head no.

"Did you call the police?" Edward asked.

"Yeah, Rose is waiting for them to come by. Apparently, vandalism isn't high on their list of emergencies. They'll get to us when they can. It's bullshit. I have Tanya and Rose taking pictures, but we need the insurance information, and since you guys are the owners, you have to make the formal report."

"Yeah, okay, let me just get dressed, and we'll head back right away," I said, stunned.

I fumbled up the stairs. I hadn't realized I was shaking, until Edward pulled me into his arms.

"Bella," he whispered my name.

"Did I do this? Did I cause this?" I fell into his arms.

"No, you had nothing to do with it."

"Are you sure? What if it was Jake? He was so upset last night. This is all my fault."

"No, it's not. If he did do it, it's his fault. But we don't know if he did. It could be anyone."

"We weren't robbed, Edward, just vandalized. People don't go around smashing windows for fun."

"Stop, Bella. We need to get dressed, and this isn't helping. For all we know, it could've been some kid who was dared."

"Edward-"

"I said stop it. We don't have security cameras, but the buildings on either side of us and across the street do have them. I'm sure they caught something. Now, let's go. We have reports to file and claims to make."

He was holding it together so much better than me. I was sure it was Jake. I couldn't see how Edward didn't think it was, too.

Rose, Tanya, Laurant, and Angela were all standing out front when we pulled up.

"The police are not here yet," Angela said in way of explaining why they were all outside.

"Where's Jessica? Is she alright?" Edward asked. I saw he was looking down at a piece of glass with some blood on it.

"Yeah, I guess she stayed at her new beau's place last night. We sent her a text, and she replied that she was fine and out with a friend," Laurant answered.

"We have to find a way to secure this window," I said, looking at the mess left behind.

"Emmett is getting some plywood and said he'd put the order in for the replacement glass. It should be here by the end of the week," Rose answered.

"Angela, could you please call and cancel all the appointments scheduled for today and tomorrow. Unless it's a special occasion, then we can see if we can't work something out, maybe have them come in the back door," I said, looking toward the back of the shop.

"Are we sure nothing's been taken?" Edward asked everyone.

"It doesn't look that way. Whoever it was didn't touch your office door, computer or cash register. We checked our stations, and nothing seems out of place. Even Jasper's tip jar was still there and half full," Rose answered.

"Where's Jasper?" Edward asked, looking a little upset.

The girls all looked at each other and stayed silent.

"Well?" Edward shouted.

"He's going to find out one way or another," Tanya said, looking at the others and then turned to Edward. "He's taking Alice home. She stayed the night with him."

"MY SISTER WAS HERE?" he shouted.

"It's not that-" Rose started, but Edward ran past her and went straight for the office door. He used his keys to unlock it, and the beep of the alarm let us know it was still set. He quickly turned it off and checked the safe. He fell back on his heels in relief, when he pulled out his grandmother's jewelry.

Laurant stepped into the doorway. "The police are here finally. Is everything alright? Did they take anything?"

Edward shook his head no. I looked around the office a little more. "It doesn't look like it. We'll be right out. Thank you," I answered for Edward. He looked like he was on the verge of breaking. It was my turn to be strong for him. I took the jewelry boxes from him and set them back in the safe and closed it. I let him pull me back into his arms. He took a few deep breaths, and I knew he was trying to fight off tears.

"She didn't get them," I whispered.

There was a knock on the open door. "Is one of you the owners?" an officer asked.

"Yes, we both are," I answered.

"I have a few forms for you to fill out, and then I can give you the case number for you to file with your insurance company."

"Thank you."

We spent the next hour talking with the cops about items that weren't missing and the estimation of the cost of damages. The cinderblock that had been thrown had broken the coffee table and damaged a chair, and it had completely smashed the window. I think we were all appalled, when the cop didn't even suggest looking for fingerprints and brushed us off when we did.

Our insurance guy, Andrew, showed up with donuts of all things. I think Tanya was about to throttle him, when he offered her one. "You stopped for donuts? You were called to come out to a crime scene, we're waiting to repair the place so you can see it," she jabbed her finger in Andrew's direction, "and you stopped and got DONUTS?"

Rose put her arm around Tanya and pulled her up the stairs. Once they were out of sight, Andrew held the box out to us, "Donut, anyone?"

"Sure, I'll take one," Emmett said, grabbing two and shoving one whole into his mouth.

"So, I take it he's your repairman?" Andrew asked, nodding in Emmett's direction.

"Yes, he has boards for the window and has already put in an order for the glass," Edward answered, while Andrew walked around, looking at things.

"Would you normally be open right now?" he asked.

"Yes, we cancelled all of our appointments today and tomorrow. We didn't know how long it'd take to get things under control here," I answered.

"Okay, that loss of revenue will be part of the claim as well. I'll leave you some paperwork to fill out. Do they have any leads?"

"We don't know," Edward answered. I wanted to say yes. I wanted to say that Jacob had done it, but when I'd brought it up to the cops, Edward had been dismissive of my theory. It was really pissing me off. He didn't incriminate his sister, either. Who knew if that crazy freak had decided to exact her revenge on us and had conveniently used Jasper as an alibi? Something was up with Edward, and I didn't know what it was. As soon as I got him alone, though, I planned to find out.