Disclaimer: I do not own these characters. No copyright infringement is intended.

Author's Note: Want sneak peeks for ACW's currently posting fics? Go to my blog at acullenwannabe dot blogspot dot com! I'm warning you right now. You thought you hated Aro in the last chapter? Yeah, you haven't seen anything yet! Just repeat after me, he WILL get his in the end….HE WILL GET HIS in the end!

Thanks as always to my brilliant, speedy, talented beta AgoodWITCH.


The Eyes of A Soulless Man

I rushed through the city streets, looking for a café where I might be able to buy some sugar for Aro's coffee. Finally, the third place I tried gave me some after I paid for three times the cost of a single cup of joe. I was huffing as I rushed back to the building, thankfully catching Marcus just as he was walking toward the front door.

When I explained about his father, he blanched, his eyes growing wide with panic. I explained my need to rush back up before suggesting he make himself scarce and call in to inform me that he was detained across town and was going to be late getting in, figuring that would at least buy him another hour or more. He nodded before rushing down the street in the opposite direction.

I rushed back up to our floor, pouring the coffee on my way to the office and adding the sugar, sitting it on the desk next to Aro's right arm with less than a minute to spare. He sneered up at me as he spoke on the phone.

"I know and I don't care, Caius. I want those mills up and running as soon as possible with my modifications. Inform the board that we will be sending out the dividend checks next week, along with the executive bonuses."

He looked up at me with a glare before waving his hand at me as though shooing a fly away. I turned and rushed out of the office to the safety of my desk, collapsing into my chair as I felt my heart beating in my extremities.

"This cannot be good for the baby at all," I mumbled, trying to get my body to calm itself. I rested my head back with my eyes closed, jumping up when I heard the door open swiftly.

Aro stomped out throwing a pile of papers on my desk. Stamp these with Marcus' seal and send them out immediately. No delays or it's your head. I nodded as he disappeared behind the doors, collecting the scattered papers. My eyes bulged as I looked at the papers before me, knowing Marcus would never agree to these. I hadn't worked with him long, but I knew his signature well and these were obvious forgeries.

Making a split second decision, I yanked out some similar forms from my drawer, while tucking the papers he had given me into my purse. I made a show of loudly stamping the forms and folding them, glad that Aro observed the last envelope being stamped with the Cullen New York seal before a stamp was added to the corner.

At that same moment, the phone rang. I answered in my professional voice, relieved to hear from Marcus. I made a big show of informing him of Aro's presence and asking if I could make arrangements for him in his difficulty. Somehow, Marcus had managed to concoct a story about his meeting having been moved to New Jersey before calling, making his difficulty in returning all the more believable.

As I hung up the phone, I broke the news that Marcus would be arriving at one in the afternoon at the absolute soonest. Aro huffed loudly and stormed back into the office with a loud slamming of the door. To my great relief, he did not emerge again or page me for the rest of the morning.

Before I left for my lunch break, Aro opened the door abruptly stomping by, mumbling something about lunch. Relieved to be free of him, I took the opportunity to stow the papers he had pushed upon me earlier into the safe along with the papers from the Chicago office before going with Alice to lunch. Before I left, I drafted a note on my desk to inform whoever arrived back first that I had gone for lunch and would return in half an hour.

After a nice relaxing lunch with Alice, a wonderful break from the stress of the last day and a half, I returned to the office to find chaos. The yelling of the two men could be heard all the way down to Mrs. Cope's office. I cringed as I shuffled as quietly as possible to my desk, taking my seat and looking at the massive pile of random papers that had accumulated there in my short absence.

After another hour of nonstop yelling, the door finally flew open, bouncing off the wall as Aro stormed out. He glared at me as he passed, smacking my desk on his way by. "Just so you know, little secretary girl, you are fired."

I blinked at him in surprise, unsure of what I had done to be fired. "Why?" I squeaked out in my surprise.

He glared at me. "You left your post without permission. I gave you no leave to go to lunch and Marcus was not here to allow it. Simply leaving a note on your desk is not acceptable as I had no secretary when I returned ten minutes after I had left."

I shook my head in confusion. "But it is not our practice here to have to be dismissed. I have a set lunchtime every day and I left a note to inform anyone who returned. These are not grounds to fire me, Mr. Volturi."

He sneered at me, leaning in so that he was nose to nose with me. "I RUN THIS COMPANY! I get to say who is in my employ and you are not!"

I swallowed the bitter bile in my throat as my heart raced in my chest. I stared nervously into the eyes of an evil man without a soul. I could see without having known him for an entire day that the man was cold and heartless. He didn't care about the company or the people who worked for him, and he most certainly didn't care about the people that the company's product was meant to protect. His only motivation was money and power, and he didn't care who he crushed to keep it.

I never looked away from him, even though I wanted to, grateful when Marcus spoke up from the doorway, making the devil's spawn look away first. "Leave her alone. Your quarrel is with me."

He turned to me with an exhausted look of apology. "Nevermind him. He doesn't get to decide work policy or hiring practices at this branch, even if he is the CEO, unless he wants to bring a board vote into it. To do that would be a show of weakness on his part that he couldn't control the situation on his own. He can do nothing without hurting his powerbase, so just ignore him."

I nodded, feeling the tears that I had been suppressing well in my eyes at the desolate look on Marcus' face. Aro growled next to me before sweeping all of the supplies on top of my desk to the floor. He snarled, leaning in close once more with a shaking finger less than an inch from my nose.

"Mark my words, little girl, you WILL be without a job and soon."

With that last threat, he turned and stomped down the hallway, shoving the poor mailman to the floor as he walked past. I looked nervously back at Marcus who watched the man retreat before rushing to the front of my desk in panic.

"Bella, please tell me you didn't send those papers. Please!"

I smiled brightly as I reached down to open the safe, pulling them out and fanning them in front of him. He took them with a sigh of relief, his shoulders slumping as he shook his head.

"Oh thank God for you, Bella! You don't even know what you just saved us from."

I sighed, nodding my head. "I have a pretty good idea."

Marcus ripped the papers to shreds before dropping them into my wastebasket and setting a match to them. He watched the curl into black strips of ash before assisting me in putting my desk back in order and asking me to join him in his office. He sat behind his desk with a moan as he rested his forehead against his palm.

"We have to do something, Bella, or Edward will be left with nothing when he returns."

I sighed with a nod. "I know, Marcus. Tell me what to do and I will do my best to see it happen."

He chuckled darkly. "Figure out a way to bring your husband back, that or find a way to get the controlling vote back in our favor."

"What would that take?" I asked quietly.

"Short of Edward coming home? You taking over his shares, but neither one of us want the events to transpire that would give you that power."

I sucked in a strangled breath as tears trickled from the corner of my eyes at the thought of my husband dying halfway across the world. Marcus looked up realizing what he said before rushing to my side and hugging my shoulders.

"I'm sorry, Bella. I never should have said anything like that. Especially with you in your present condition…" His eyes grew wide as he looked me over again.

"Oh geez! I told you to go home hours ago and then he showed up and kept you from leaving. You must be exhausted Bella. Go home right now. You deserve the rest of the afternoon to yourself. Catch up on your rest and eat a good meal. I'll see you Monday."

I looked at Marcus appraisingly. "Are you sure? I can stay if you need me. I'm really doing okay, considering."

He shook his head. "No, please go rest. We'll discuss this on Monday. With any luck I will have been able to see our way through this."

I nodded before getting up to gather my things and head home. I was on the verge of passing out when I finally climbed the stoop to the brownstone, fumbling with the keys to get inside. I paused to grab the mail from my mailbox, finding myself instantly awake. I rushed inside, desperate for the comfort of my husband's words.

I carefully opened the flap and unfolded the pages written in his meticulous script as one long letter was laid out before me.

My dearest love,

I cannot sleep to save my life tonight, so I decided to take the opportunity to write you a long letter to ship out on the mail plane expected tomorrow. Things are difficult for all of us. Jasper, Emmett, and I retain our sanity by telling stories to one another of our girls. I now feel like I know Alice and Rose nearly as much as I do Emmett and Jasper. Those two guys are far more than head over heels. I look forward to attending their weddings when we return, watching you stand up with the girls. From what I understand both girls want big church weddings.

Hearing them go on and on about the weddings they plan to have, I can't help but wonder if I stole that from you with the way I married you. For the rest of my days, I will never regret making you mine, but I hope with all my heart that I didn't steal a lifelong fantasy from you. If you wish it so, I would be more than willing to throw you the most beautiful vow renewal ceremony the states has ever seen when I return. Since you are already my wife, it's the best I could think of. If that is your wish, then please let me know and tell my mom. I'm sure she would have it planned the second I stepped back on US soil.

I so wish I could sleep right now, because every time I do, I am haunted by the most wonderful images of you. I say haunted because it hurts to wake up and not have you by my side, but I still wouldn't trade the glimpses of your smiling face, your hair falling down your back as you toss back your head in laugher, and all the other beautiful images that engulf me nightly for all the money in the world. You are what gets me through each wretched day.

I can't say too much because the censors will block it out. I can't give places, dates, or anything of the sort, but things are getting rough up there. The skies seem to be getting thicker and thicker with Hitler's fighters, and they are ruthless and cunning. Pray for me, Bella…me, Jasper, and Emmett, because we all need it. We are fighting to come home to you, but it's harder than we ever expected.

I live my life for you, my love. You have all of me that is worth having. I love you with every fiber of my being. Please keep yourself safe as you promised. I love you more than life itself.

Forever yours,

Edward

I sobbed as I read his words over and over. It was so easy to get wrapped up in the war we were fighting right here in our own country, that it was easy to forget that in our worst moments, what we were dealing with was nothing in comparison to the peril my Edward and our friends were in. I stripped my suit off my body, not bothering to remove my stockings as I curled up on the bed, his letter fisted in my hand as I slowly sobbed myself to sleep.