Warning: This story deals with domestic violence and the struggles to recover. If you have problems with this issue please don't read this.

Disclaimer: Ms Meyers owns Twilight and all its characters.

Big thanks to my Beta's Taloolah, dizzygirl28 and Beate73. You girls are awesome, I appreciate all the work you do for me, helping me make my stuff presentable. Love you guys.

Thanks to my prereader VanPireNZ for your input, you rock.

Okay on with the story.

Witness

Jake's POV

For the first forty- eight hours after the accident, I was unable to let Edward out of my sight. I blamed myself entirely for what happened, kicking myself for not going with Edward to the bathroom. I wanted to give him his independence, so I went against my own instincts so he wouldn't think I was being controlling. It was the worst decision I had ever made. Now Edward was almost broken in his heartbreak, Alice was lying in a hospital bed and Jasper was a complete mess, all because I let my emotions cloud my judgment.

How Sam managed to get past us still baffles me. I was watching the bathroom door almost the entire time, only taking me eyes away when Jasper kicked me under the table and Alice told me to stop worrying so much. My gut churned, though. I knew something was off, and my suspicions where confirmed the moment I saw Edward's expression as he ran from the restaurant, a trail of blood and a horrified expression tainting his beautiful face.

Alice was the first to react, screaming out Sam's name as she ran towards him, both Jasper and I too slow to stop her from flying through the window. Jasper's tormented cry as we watched - almost in slow motion - as Alice crashed through the glass would haunt me forever.

Edward's frantic cries brought me out of my shock and put me in motion, I made it outside just in time to see him in the middle of the street, a car coming directly for him. I screamed "Nooo," which caused Edward to stop dead, Sam's hand reaching out for him as I sprinted to where they were. The crash caused me to freeze, and my eyes blinked repeatedly, as if I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Sam, the car hit Sam.

Edward had dropped to his knees screaming out my name, and I bolted to his side wrapping him up in the safety of my arms. I had to hold back the tears as he explained he thought it was me who had been hit, and the way his hands roamed my face and body, so filled with love and relief that I was there with him, damn near broke my heart. If it was even possible, I fell more in love with him right then.

It had been one hell of a week waiting for Alice to wake up. And even after the first forty eight hours, it was still hard to not be physically touching Edward; every time he was away from my grasp, panic seized my chest. A very big part of me prayed that Sam would die from his injuries, but I knew whether he did or not, the damage was already done and it would take me a long time to be able to leave Edward's side without the panic taking over.

Sitting with Edward on the chair, with him pulled securely to my lap was comforting. He had been pretty playful in the last few weeks before all this happened, and our relationship had blossomed, growing in strength and intimacy. I was feeling very blessed that we could tease each other so much. We hadn't progressed to much past kissing and occasional touching, but we were talking more and more about what we were going to do to each other, and I was looking forward to getting Edward alone after all this was over.

I drew Edward into a kiss after our Sam talk, but we were once again interrupted by Jasper. I swear he had a sixth sense when it came to Edward and I being intimate, and it drove me crazy. Taking Edward's hand I led him into Alice's room, still concerned about what her injuries would mean. There was some pretty bad damage to her limbs, and I was worried about her walking ability, as were Carlisle and Jasper, but no one would mention it around Edward. He was suffering with enough guilt; anything else would just drive him over the edge.

"Hey there woman child," Edward said softly as he leaned over to embrace Alice. She swiftly slapped his arm playfully and chuckled, but anyone who knew her could see the pain register in her eyes. She tried quickly to cover it up before Edward's eyes met hers.

"Hey handsome, how are you feeling?" Alice asked him. Her concern for him was heartwarming. I had to hide my face behind Edward, as my emotions got the better of me, when she woke up and the first thing she asked about was him.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Edward replied, with mock annoyance. "After all, you're the one laying in a hospital bed while I'm up and around. Really, did you hit your head harder than we thought?" He chuckled before leaning back down and kissing her cheek.

"Smart ass." She muttered under her breath. I chuckled at that and pulled Edward to my lap.

"Good to see ya still feisty as ever there, Alice." I said, hiding my face in Edward's back while I laughed.

"Psh, takes more than a window to keep me down. Isn't that right, Jasper?"

"That's right, darlin'. But just to be safe, how about you stay away from anything breakable in future?" He chuckled, but it was strained and his voice was tight. Jasper was concerned about something, and as his eyes met mine and he tilted his head to the door, I knew I was right.

"Be right back, baby, give you some alone time with Alice, okay?" I said to Edward, and kissed his cheek. He gripped onto my hand tightly before sighing softly and letting it go.

"Okay," he whispered, "but don't go far, please." How could I deny him anything? Especially when he looked at me like that.

"I won't, baby, I promise. I will be just outside the door." I kissed his lips this time and said a quick, "be right back" to Alice before following Jasper out the door.

We made our way over to the chairs and sat down. Jasper stared straight ahead, grinding his teeth in his aggravation. "What's up, man?" I was very curious what was going on with him, to make him this visibly upset. "Alice is okay, right? God, tell me she is fine?" I stared to panic slightly, if anything happened to Alice, it would be the end of Edward.

"Alice is fine." Just saying her name made him loosen up and a small smile cross his lips. "It's Sam I'm worried about; I've been so focused on Alice I didn't even...fuck Jake. He could have killed her." He spat the last words out with a fierce intensity. I understood exactly where he was coming from; he could have and would have killed Edward, given the chance.

I reached over and squeezed his shoulder, silently letting him know I was on the same page, my thoughts clouded with the 'what if's'. There were just so many, what if Edward hadn't run and Sam had managed to sneak him out of there? What if I had listened to my instincts and gone with him in the first place? What if Edward had ran to us instead of out the door? But all those things didn't happen and we had to live with what did.

"I checked on Sam and he is still in a coma. Doc's don't know if or when he will wake up." My voice was low, trying to keep the anger out, Jasper was angry enough for the both of us right now. "I have to know where he is and keep an eye on his status, for Edward..." I sighed and turned to look at Jasper. "I'm going back to check on him later, I will be keeping a close eye on him."

"Keep me informed, cause if that fucker wakes up, I wanna be the one that slaps the cuffs on him." I nodded my head, though in reality I wanted to arrest the fucker too, but Jasper needed this right now. "Don't worry Jake, you can be there too, you can read the son of a bitch his rights. Not that he has any, in my opinion..." At that moment Edward poked his head through the door, a huge smile taking up his face when he saw us sitting across from the room. Just looking at him, just knowing that I could hold him and kiss him and love him... That was enough to make it through anything.

The next week passed in a blur of games and laughter as we spent most of our time keeping Alice company, until she was allowed to go home. Her rehab was set to begin the following week, and Edward, being the champ of rehab, decided he would be with Alice every step of the way through hers, just like she had been for him. Something happened between the two of them I didn't think was possible - they became closer, almost bonding over their scars from Sam. It's almost like they were war veterans, and even though a small part of me was jealous at the bonding, which I knew was ridiculous, I was grateful for it.

Half way through the second week, Edward asked me to take him to see Sam. I knew Sam was still unconscious, but I was still weary. I wasn't sure how Edward would cope with seeing him again, but as always, I could deny him nothing, and I figured it could only help his recovery.

So that's where we were now, Edward standing over Sam's sleeping form while I hovered in the background, close enough to touch Edward, but remaining silent. Edward's fist would clench and unfurl as he stood there, just staring at Sam; his face would contort into different emotions until finally his hand came up and he slapped Sam across the face. I was stunned for a moment, but caught his hand as he went for the second swing.

Edward was not the kind of man to cause violence, especially to someone who was completely helpless. He turned to face me and as his eyes locked on mine, his expression of pure, unadulterated hatred, changed to one of sorrow and pain, with a hint of regret. His voice was very low as he whispered, "I've always wanted to do that, but I never had the courage before." Then he turned back to face Sam and looked at him again for a moment longer before he broke. Sobs ripped from him as he hurled every thought and every feeling at Sam.

"Why would you do this to me? I thought you loved me? When we first met you were so sweet, so nice and then you turned into this monster. The things you did to me, I have to live with those for the rest of my life. But what you did to Alice, I don't know if I can live with that. I hate you so much, do you hear me you bastard, I HATE YOU If I never see you again it will be too soon. I want you to leave me alone, and never come near me and my family again." He took a deep breath as his hand came back to find mine, and he squeezed it, hard. "You know, even your friends didn't like you much, they couldn't. Paul used to hit on me all the time, did you know that? You would beat me so bad for being rude to him when all I was doing was trying to obey you. What a joke. But I never have to worry about you again. I finally found love. Real pure love that has taught me to be strong and to give myself to another without losing who I am, and I guess I have you to thank for it. If you hadn't been a complete monster and tortured me the way you did, left me beaten and broken so many times that I finally found the courage to leave you, I never would have met Alice and Jasper, and in turn, I never would have met my Jake." He squeezed my hand again and turned to look at me, his eyes alight with his love for me. My breathing hitched at the sight of it, it was so pure and raw that my legs almost buckled under the weight of his gaze. The smile that took over my face was huge, I could feel my cheeks straining trying to contain it. I loved this man.

He turned back to face Sam and said the last thing I ever expect him to say, and he was very calm saying it. "So Sam, I guess finally, I want to say thank you." And with that he turned back to me and said "I'm done here," and led me out of the room. I was completely gobsmacked, and more surprisingly, utterly turned on. Maybe Edward's affliction of getting turned on by me in the most unorthodox places was rubbing off, 'cause I was hard as a fucking rock. Maybe it was the look on his face, or the fact that he had basically said he was thankful for taking a beating cause it brought him to me, or maybe it was because he had finally got out what he needed to say, even if Sam was unconscious for it. Whatever the reason, it was inappropriate and wrong, but fuck me my man was hot.

I heard a chuckle from Edward and saw his eyes on my package. I laughed self consciously and tried to readjust myself discreetly, and I felt a blush creep up my cheeks. Only Edward could ever have this effect on me under these circumstances. He cleared his throat softly, "I thought I was the only one that had inappropriate reactions at inappropriate times." He chuckled again.

"Well, apparently you being all strong and shit affects me in a very primal way." I said all nonchalant like this shit happens all the time. Edward stopped in front of me and pulled me to him, rolling his eyes at me.

"If I'm going to get that reaction, I will hit coma patients more often..." he broke off as his eyes teared up, and he buried his head in my chest. This was a classic position for Edward and it told me all I needed to know. He felt vulnerable, disappointed in himself and a little afraid. I place my hand gently under his chin and pulled his face up to look at me.

"Edward, you did nothing wrong, baby. I'm so very proud of you for what you just did. I know how hard that was for you, but it was also very important too. You astound me every day with your progress and I love you all the more for every little step you take." He sighed and placed a soft kiss on my lips, which caused me to moan in my current state. "If you don't stop that, I will have to throw you down in one of these spare rooms and do very naughty things to you."

"Promises, promises." He said as he pulled away from me laughing and started to run down the corridor back to Alice's room.

"Little tease," I grumbled as I gave chase. I caught him just outside the door and wrapped my arms around him twirling him around, causing laughter to spill from him. Jasper, as usual, interrupted by sticking his head out the door.

"Everything alright out here?" He chuckled as he took in our childish behaviour. I placed Edward down and pulled his back to my chest, sighing softly in his ear.

"You know Jasper, your timing really sucks." I muttered as we made our way into the room, causing both Edward and Jasper to laugh out loud.

We took our usual places beside Alice's bed as Jasper explained to her what we had been doing, causing her to laugh as well. Edward looked at me with a small smile, but his eyes showed just how upset he was over his confrontation with Sam. It wasn't exactly ideal, but it was the best we could hope for, and I knew it was one step closer for Edward to be able to face him when he was awake. Alice seemed to pick up on Edward's look when he faced her, and Alice being Alice had to ask.

"Edward, what's wrong? What happened?"

"It's nothing Alice, I'm fine really." He said giving her a weak smile. Alice wasn't buying it at all.

"Edward, don't give me that shit, I can tell by the look on your face something happened." She gave him a look that broke no argument; she was determined to find out what was wrong. There was a little fear in her eyes too. "Did Sam wake up?" She whispered.

"No Alice, Sam's still unconscious." I said pulling Edward tighter to me as he tensed up. Just the thought of Sam being up and around was bad for all of us. Edward shook himself slightly before clearing his throat.

"I just went to see him is all, Alice, and I got a few things off my chest. I guess it was harder than I thought it would be, but Jake was there, as always. I don't think I could have done it without him." He leaned back into me and rested his head on my shoulder, turning his face and placing a kiss on my neck, causing a shiver to run through my body and my dick to respond. Edward felt the reaction I had to him and shifted on my lap, like he was trying to get comfortable, but he was really just grinding his ass into my now very hard member.

I leaned forward and whispered in his ear, "You are so gonna pay for that, Mister. Don't think I don't know what you're doing." He laughed softly and shifted again.

"I think we all know what he is doing." Alice said, causing Edward to turn bright red and hide his face in my neck. Jasper and I chuckled, and I squeezed Edward's waist.

We spent the rest of that night talking about Sam. It was painful at times, but it was healing for both Alice and Edward. He tried to apologise to Alice for what Sam had done to her, but just like Jasper had predicted - Alice wasn't having any of it. She told Edward that if he ever tried to take the blame for that psycho, she would personally kick his ass. I shuddered just from her tone of voice. Edward told her he would like to see her try, causing both mine and Jasper's eyes to widen in shock. Things just went downhill from there. By the end of the night we were all exhausted but happy.

Alice had been in the hospital for two weeks and was going home tomorrow. We were all running around getting things organised, and Jasper was beside himself at finally being able to take Alice home to their bed. I was happy to be able to get Edward home. I decided to take one last trip down to see Sam before we left, since he had finally woken up and was spewing shit about wanting his Edward. I didn't know what I was going to do, and I had to try to keep myself in check, because I knew if he said one thing to piss me off I would kill the son of a bitch.

I excused myself saying I needed to use the bathroom and went to Sam's room. What I found there was a surprise. Esme. She was talking to Sam in a very calm voice, but the words left no interpretation for how she was feeling. She was laying it all on the line for Sam, telling him what a monster he was. I was shocked to say the least, that Esme, sweet, charming, caring Esme, could be so... I was lost for words. She was clearly protecting her children, Edward long ago included in the Cullen clan.

But what happened next had me frozen on the spot. Esme pulled a needle out of her bag and injected something into Sam's I.V. Moments later, Sam was dead. Killed. Murdered by Esme. The cop in me was frantically going over protocol for arresting a murderer, trying to cope with what had just taken place. Rationally, I knew that as a cop it was my job to uphold the law, but this was Esme, and she was doing us all a favour. I must have been stuck frozen in the doorway for a while because the next thing I knew, Esme was walking towards me, her head hung low as she muttered something about 'going to hell'.

"Esme?" Her head snapped up at the sound of her name and the look that crossed her face was first shock, and then relief.

"Are you here to arrest me, Jake? I'm ready to pay for my crime, just let me say goodbye to Alice, Edward and Carlisle." I was speechless for a moment before I snapped out of it.

"Esme, we have to move now, the nurse will be here any second to call a code."

"I know, Jake, I wasn't going anywhere; I did the crime I am more than willing to do my time." She had a resigned look on her face, like she didn't care what happened to her.

"Esme, move now." I said grabbing her arm and pulling her away from Sam's room and into an empty one across the hall. The sound of nurses rushing to the room echoed through the halls.

"Esme, you...we...fuck." I couldn't form a coherent sentence with the shock radiating through me. This was Esme, she was not a killer.

"Jake, I did what I had to do to protect my family, and I would do it again. I have no remorse for the death of Sam Ulley. The things he has done to Edward... I'm sure you haven't heard all of them yet, and trust me, if you don't vomit when you do, it will be a miracle. Then to make matters worse, he almost killed Alice. What would you have me do, Jake, stand by and watch as he healed enough to do it again? 'Cause we both know, he would have stopped at nothing to get Edward." As I listened I knew everything she was saying was the truth. Sam would not have stopped until he had Edward with him, or dead. Alice was lucky to be alive. Fuck.

"Okay Esme, here's what we are going to do..."

A/N Voting is open on the NO BELLA ALLOWED CONTEST. Vote here: http://www(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/u/2216993/ !!!!!