A/N: Thanks to jilburfm for betaing! Here ya go:

Carlisle POV

I saw her before she saw me. She was a beautiful vampire, her dark hair drenched by rain, her pale skin even paler with her transformation.

I sucked in a deep breath as soon as the cool air hit my face, not because I was suffocating, but because my lungs were filled with smoke. Black smoke of ones lost, of lives that never came to be.

The vampire at my side was doing the same.

I found my wife and I left him there to breathe, to fill his lungs with something that would ease his pain.

Together, we watched Alice handle Bella, opening her mouth and allowing the rain seep in, helping her sit. "I'm so sorry," she whispered, over and over, stroking the dark, damp hair of the vampire before her.

Slowly, Bella regained awareness. She rolled to her side with a great effort and spat the water that had filled her throat. She coughed and hacked until it was empty, and when her eyes met mine, they were masked with such desolation.

I smiled then, knowing something she had not yet discovered, and she followed my gaze to the man by the gate. Her vampire, his weight still half falling on Emmett, smiled too, even though he was about ten seconds away from a death that he would not recover from.

Bella's eyes met his and they shared a single moment of what could only be described as love, before our attention was once again diverted.

Bella POV

"Edward," the girl said happily, approaching. "So glad you made it out alive. Aro was so disappointed at the idea of losing you."

I was unable to control the growl that escaped me. My emotions were at war with themselves. Alive. He was alive. He was alive! I wanted to throw myself into his arms. I wanted to tackle-hug my vampire and never let him go. I wanted to kiss his trembling lips and I wanted to tell him it was alright. That no one would ever touch him again. And I would mean it, too.

But it was an imperfect world, and I needed to wait. Reluctantly, I broke eye contact with Edward and found the little vampire girl in all her psychotic glory. Behind her, the Guard loomed ominously. Perhaps stupidly, I no longer feared them. They had something I wanted, and I had no qualms about taking it from them. The man the Guard had in tow was disheveled and seething, but my memory of him was permanently etched into my mind. I had a promise to keep.

Edward moved to step in front of me, seemingly an act of defensiveness. Protection? He must not have known. This is what I'd been waiting for. This was what I needed, and this was what I intended to get. Emmett put his hand on Edward's chest, blocking him, his eyes wide in a desperate warning.

"Bella, no," Carlisle said, no more than a whisper. I didn't care.

I turned my attention back to my target, and the confidence with which I approached them surprised even me. The girl, who was clearly in charge, had her head cocked to the side as if to say, excuse me? And she smiled.

It was terrifying, in its way. I wondered if maybe I should be afraid of her. I'd come too far to turn away now, though.

"Brave, stupid girl," the vampire hissed when I was close enough to touch.

"Jane, please," Carlisle said from behind me. "She doesn't know."

I turned to regard him and found his eyes pleading. Know what? I wondered. She didn't ever take her eyes off of me, though. The rest of the Cullens wore similar masks of horror, and not for the first time, I realized that this little vampire girl might be more dangerous than her size let on.

Oddly, it was Alice who reassured me, her expression familiar. It was the look that so often said, I'm amused, but I'm trying to hide it. Her lips twitched when we made eye contact, and I figured she would know better than anyone.

I took another step forward, and Jane frowned. Jane? The name rang familiar, and I remembered. The one who could take you down with a mere look. The one who could torture you for hours without lifting a finger. The one who could make you wish you were dead.

She looked at me now with confusion, muddled with anger and bitterness. The change in her expression troubled me, but she was not yet acting against me. I braced myself for the pain to come, willing to make the sacrifice to have this man, but it didn't.

It didn't necessarily come as a surprise to me when her eyes slowly shifted from my frame. I saw her target before she did, and when he screamed and went down, I slammed my body into hers.

It broke the spell, but his cry still rang in my ears. We fell together, but she pushed me off of her with ease, once more turning her gaze to my vampire.

Before she had a chance to unleash her maddening power on him, I was in action. I threw my body in front of him, wrapping myself around his core. I didn't know if it would work. If she had any view of him at all, could her power be used?

In the background, I was vaguely aware of the rest of the Cullens, frozen as audience to a fight that did not and could not involve them. If they attacked the Volturi, we were all dead. And frankly, I seemed to be holding my own against the most sinister one of the bunch.

I felt my body reacting to her threat, my brain bursting with an energy that I didn't understand. All I knew was that if she wanted Edward, she'd have to get through me.

We stood like that, her dark crimson eyes narrowed and mine challenging. Try, I thought.

I wasn't sure why she didn't do it, but Edward stood safely behind me.

She hissed.

The selected few from the Guard around her stiffened.

"Stop," I said, my voice low and commanding. I'm not sure if it was in response to my command or to something else, but she did.

"It's interesting." Jane said, walking up to me slowly. Circling me. Briefly I considered it might be an attack on Edward, but she made no such move. "Aro will be most intrigued. Alec," she spoke to someone behind her and a small male vampire stepped forward.

The human in the suit trembled, I noted with satisfaction. Good.

I stood there, wondering what was coming, feeling nothing but a strange tickling of my nerves. I waited for what seemed like an eternity before Alec's face contorted in frustration and he stepped back. He shook his head infinitesimally.

"Oh yes," Jane whispered, her forefinger trailing along my cheek. I wanted to shrink, to cower away, but I refused. What?

When I finally found my voice, I said to her, "I want him."

Jane turned, looking where I looked.

She shrugged then, nonchalant, and the Guard released him. Reluctant as I was to leave Edward's side, I had a promise to keep.

When I lunged, there was only one man in my wake.

I decided not to make a spectacle of the act. I had one end goal, and did it matter if it was quick or slow?

As I ripped out his throat, quashing any hope he had of screaming, his eyes went wide.

I tore the man to shreds, as slowly as I possibly could (which was to say, pretty quickly), not yet satisfied when his heart stopped and his limbs went limp. The feeling was perversely glorious. Never again would he harm my vampire; I'd seen to that.

I'd have continued shredding him to pieces, but I felt a hand snake around me, pulling me away. I knew who it was by the tremor in his grip before I even turned around.

Edward wrapped me in his arms and I turned into him, finally letting it go. All the emotion I'd held for the past few months, the fear and the pain and the anger. I felt my body quivering with empty sobs and his hand pushed my hair off my neck, stroked my skin, and his lips found mine. It occurred to me that I was the dangerous one now, I was the one covered in blood, and if a human approached, they needed to run from me. Still, I hugged him back for all I was worth.

When I felt like I could finally breathe, really breathe, I let go. I closed my eyes and tilted my head toward the falling sky, and I inhaled, feeling his hand tighten on mine.

The Volturi Guard had disappeared, leaving us standing in the middle of the field, front and center to a century worth of torture going up in flames.

We all retreated then, making our presences those of ghosts, garnering no attention of the authorities or the public onlookers. When we were far enough away, we stopped.

My vampire and I collapsed into a heap onto the ground, and we watched with a terrible sadness as the lives of twenty-eight others were burned away. Any one of them could have been mine. Any one of them could have been capable of love, capable of trust and goodness, and they were all dead.

The smoke did not represent freedom or happiness, it represented something else entirely.

For all the men and women that burned today, we grieved. Wasted life, for what? For the chance to be God.

It was disgusting.

When Edward finally broke down, I held him. Light tremors that I wouldn't have even noticed as a human flowed freely through him as we sat in the moist grass, both so completely lost.

"It's okay," I whispered, both to him and to myself. "It's over." And it was. The flames before us completely enveloped the building. There would be no survivors. No vampires, thin with hunger and mad with pain, would live to tell about it. It was just me and Edward.

We sat like that, watching the black smoke of our fellow prisoners rise, not sure whether to stay or go - to pay some sort of homage to the other people who endured his pain. It killed me to think about them. How many families had suffered their disappearances? Did those vampires shake as mine did? It was so hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel; it was clouded by the thick smoke that emanated from this hell.

Finally, Edward pulled my body close to his and we wrapped each other up tightly. I could feel his frame jolt with each crackle of the flame, with each rustle in the surrounding acres of land.

When I was certain that I had my own emotions more or less under control, I looked him over. I noticed the wrist band was back and took the chance to run my hand along his arm. He looked at me then, searching my eyes for hope or love or peace, I'm not sure which, but I think he found it. Because he buried his head back into my neck, and his body started to calm.

Now, now it was over. We were safe now, with the world at our feet and eternity ahead of us.

I absently ran my hand across his shoulders, waiting for his body to still. The others were keeping their distance, watching the flames with the occasional wary glance in our direction.

Eventually, Alice began her walk toward us.

"Are you alright?" she asked Edward, loud enough to include me in their conversation. He nodded his head, but we both knew he was just trying to spare us. Of course he wasn't alright.

"When can we go?" I asked, eager to be home. Eager to cleanse him of this place, to let him drink. The dull ache in my own throat had become just that, and I was far more concerned with Edward's thirst than my own.

"I think the Guard is still around somewhere, making sure all the ends get tied up," she began. "But I don't think they'd give us any trouble if we left. I don't think that it's us they're after."

My vampire curled tighter beside me, watching Alice intently as they silently communicated.

Alice sat down beside us on the hill, resting her head against my free shoulder. I let mine fall against hers. "Thanks, Alice," I whispered, my fingers running through Edward's hair.

"Bella," she whispered, her voice weighted with sadness. I knew her well enough to know what she was thinking. How could she possibly feel responsible for this?

"Don't worry about it," I said, before she could apologize again. I nudged her shoulder with my own.

She only smiled in response, returning her gaze to the flames. They grew taller and I wondered how long it would take for them to be put out. The sirens blared loudly, but they had become background noise.

When Emmett came over, he looked both hesitant and exhausted. I'd never seen him so shaken by anything, so cautious to approach us.

"We're okay," I told him, and he sat down next to Alice, creating a loose circle.

"Pretty badass back there, Bella," he said, his returning smile a comfort. "You gave Jane a run for her money with that trick you pulled."

I was too exhausted to ask what he was talking about. I was certain I'd find out eventually.

Edward leaned in closer then, pulling me to him. I obliged, squeezing him harder than I thought possible, his head still nuzzling into my neck. He didn't kiss me, and he didn't speak, but we held each other like that forever, still getting a handle on our feelings. Fear, weakness, sadness. Love.

"I missed you," I whispered into his ear. "I love you." I kissed his jaw, his cheek, making my way up to his eyes and his brow, loving him. Breathing him in; never wanting to lose him again.

"I love you, too," he finally whispered.

Carlisle POV

I sat next to Esme, holding her hand. I took a mental inventory of our family.

Emmett, who had gotten the worst of the fire when he'd pulled Edward from his cell, was curled with Rosalie. Her arms were wrapped protectively around his shoulders and she kissed his closed eyes.

Alice and Jasper's fingers were entwined. They watched the black sky grow darker and darker with deep regret, each feeling the pain of the burning vampires in their own way.

And Edward and Bella. Edward and Bella were beautiful.

It was Edward who eventually broke the silence. "Let's go home."

No one argued with that.

When we arrived back to the mansion some time later, there was a package on our door. I hope this helps, Garrett.

We took it inside and opened it gingerly, finding a small thumb drive covered with layers and layers of newspaper, all with the face of Bella Swan, the chief's missing daughter.

She did not laugh, nor did she cry. She'd wished it could be different, but had come to accept that it wasn't. With time, Charlie would heal.

On the plane ride home, Bella had written a note. Short, yet lovely in its simplicity.

Dad,

I'm with Edward, and we're happy. I'm safe, and I'm loved. I love you.

Bella

There was a smudge, so light that no human would ever detect it, from where she kissed it.

She then put it in an envelope, and would send it to him as soon as we were away.

Her heart would heal, as would his. But watching it would never get easier.

As my family gathered around on the basement floor, well hidden from anyone who might come looking for us, we loaded the files.

"I don't get it," Emmett said, sitting on the small table in the corner.

Edward looked at him curiously.

"Don't get what?" Bella asked, for those of us who were not privy to his thoughts.

"If Alice didn't see Bella in the vision, how did they get you to go with them?"

I looked up from my work, interested.

Alice did, too. All eyes were on Edward.

"Number Three…" Edward said, taking a deep breath. "They had Number Three with them. When… after a while, it feels like you'll do anything to eat again. He was the only vampire they'd ever controlled with high success, but I guess… I guess they were ready to see how far their hold on him went. If he captured me, he'd eat. If he ran, he'd starve."

"They had a vampire with them?"

Edward nodded. "But we ended up outside… When they saw Bella – I could see it in their minds. They saw her, and they spared themselves the fight."

I cleared my throat. He looked at me, expectant. He already knew what I was thinking. "With the inhibitor, how were the vampires ever fed? If that was their main bargaining chip, they had to have a way to feed you."

"The blood they had… had something in it. I don't know what it was, but it allowed us – them – to feed."

I nodded, as if it made perfect sense.

They'd been able to successfully control a vampire. It was astounding. And why wouldn't they be able to? Any living creature would eventually bend to their will, after so many years of starvation, just to end their suffering. Any creature but Edward, I amended. I looked at my son and smiled.

Edward held Bella's hand tightly, and she leaned into him. Her eyes were black as night, and would remain so until the antidote took effect and she could hunt. It wouldn't be long.

The first file we pulled was titled 'Emily Masen, 1911.'

It contained pictures, medical records, testimonies and statements.

Emily had been a willing participant, and one of the first. Edward Masen Sr. had encouraged it. He'd injected her with the synthetic venom himself; there were countless photographs of the process. She'd died on her second day, the venom not bonding correctly to her human cells.

Next came a handful of other trials. Another day.

When we came to Edward, we all knew that the choice was his. Did he want to see? He nodded vaguely, watching the screen with casual disinterest that seemed to disagree with his actual morbid curiosity.

Edward Masen considered his grandson to be his greatest victory. The first of many — a superhuman who would rule the world. Edward fell sick with the flu and the scientist took it as a sign. His parents had both died already, but Edward was stronger. Youth and good genes had made him fend off the disease, giving way for his rebirth. Hospitals had been over-crowded, nurses underpaid, and one patient would never be missed. But when approached, as it turned out, the vampire was not easily managed. He'd killed as many assistants as the laboratory could spare before setting him aside. Starved, they attempted to feed Edward on several occasions throughout the years.

The blood, which contained another version of the antidote that I'd conjured, would be used in an effort to control the wild thing that had become his grandson. Something went wrong, though, and after a period of time, the vampire refused to attempt to feed. He slowly rotted, his keepers monitoring him daily. Eventually, when Edward Masen Sr. was committed, and the facility was handed off, a renewed interest in the older vampire was taken.

How long until a vampire starves to death? Is it possible for a vampire to go mad with isolation? How can you penetrate a vampire's skin without using the teeth of another vampire? These answers were all obtained conducting frequent and horrific experiments on vampire Number One, until in 2009, when his untimely escape put an end to the appalling acts.

I opened a file entitled '10071986' to find a slew of gruesome photographs, and quickly closed it.

As I removed the little data drive, it occurred to me that somewhere, someone was likely sitting behind a computer screen, analyzing the events of yesterday.

Perhaps as we spoke, plans of rebuilding their facility were in place. And I knew implicitly that eventually, the time would come where we might have to reopen these deep wounds.

As a race, we would always be battling monsters who wanted the answers to the universe. No matter what, there was no way to completely eliminate the human threat. But that was a lifetime away.

For now, we'd retire. We had an eternity to learn these secrets, if it was ever something we needed to revisit. We'd rest well on the knowledge that Edward was safe, though, and that alone was more than we could ever hope for.

I trudged quietly to my office. Everyone had retired to their bedrooms, except for Edward and Bella, who opted for the basement. I had to agree it was the safest place for a newborn vampire who couldn't feed. Her body was desperate for it, and any human within a three mile radius was technically in danger.

We'd closed the door and all found our own respites, Emmett and Alice carefully guarding that basement, lest someone try to disturb them.

It was midnight when my phone rang. Tomorrow, we'd go to Isle Esme, let Bella become acquainted with being a vampire, with hunting and drinking and sleepless nights. Give her time to become accustomed to an overactive yet under-stimulated mind. There was much to learn, and to be away from humans was the best place to do so.

"Chief Swan," I answered, exhausted but determined not to let it show.

"What the hell are you people?" The cop was irate. I didn't immediately answer, momentarily dreading that he might have finally put it all together.

"I don't understand."

"I ran a check on Edward Masen," he said. "Far as I can tell, he goddam died in 1918!"

I pulled in a deep, pained breath. To keep the secret was the number one rule in the vampire world. Humans who learned of our existence without the intent to become one of us were given no mercy. Not only would the Volturi eliminate our entire family, but Charlie, too. I needed to be convincing. I had to. "You must have gotten the wrong Edward."

"My ass!" Charlie bellowed. "First Bella has me looking up some laboratory in Ohio, then she runs away, then it burns to the ground, and then Edward is a goddam ghost. So what is it, doc? You gonna tell me or am I gonna have to bring this to the press?"

Think. I sighed, dejected. If I could get Edward into the system tomorrow, it'd be just as well. He could go to the press, but they'd write his story off as a grieving father's rambling antics. Charlie deserved better, but it was all he could get.

"I… I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am, Chief Swan. I don't know where they are. I can only offer my best guess, and I… I think if they don't want to be found, it won't be easy. But," and I needed to tread lightly here, "I think that this is what they wanted. I truly believe in my heart, that they are happy."

And then the Chief did what I expected he might but dreaded the most: he broke down on the other end. Deep, relentless sobs overtook him and I closed my eyes. This life, this choice. I would never understand how Bella could make it. And maybe she wouldn't have.

Maybe she'd have grown up, fallen in love again, realized that it wasn't something to envy. It was a curse. But the maybes would never come to fruition, because in that moment, with her father sobbing openly on the phone, praying for the life of his baby girl, Bella was locked in my basement, wrapped in the arms of a vampire.

I hoped she wouldn't regret it.

Bella POV

The irony wasn't lost on me, as Edward and I wrapped each other up tightly. Four months ago, I'd spent countless nights in this basement, on this floor, with this vampire. Because he was dangerous, and because he had no other place to go.

Now, there we were, same room, same situation, roles reversed.

"Are you okay?" Edward asked.

I nodded.

"Did they hurt you?" His question came as a surprise, his voice low and dangerous.

I didn't answer. Had they hurt me? I guess, in a way, they had. "I… I could hear you," he said, his brow creased with concern. "When they turned you, I thought… I thought that was it. I was going to find a way… to kill them, and then…" He trailed off and I cupped his cheek, running my hands across his jaw.

In the end, they had hurt me. They'd taken my choice away. Forced me to become what many would consider a monster. Forced me to abandon my father, my friends and my family.

I considered that, before saying, "This was always my choice, Edward. I've never wanted anything more than you, and…"

I smiled, turning to face him. We laid on the floor, perfectly comfortable, the lights all off but still seeing each other with a clarity I'd never known to exist.

Edward was flawless. His constant trembling was a reminder that he still carried the scars of his past, but he was beautiful. I moved closer and brushed my hand over his face. I kissed his closed eyes, which would never shed a tear but would always want to. I kissed his nose, his forehead. His cheeks. His neck.

Finally, I kissed his lips, and his shaking hand came to my neck and he kissed me back. And it rocked.

A/N: Only the epilogue is left. /cry. So glad to have made it here :) Epi will be posted soon, hopefully tomorrow! Reviews are ftw.