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res·o·lu·tion - Noun; A firm decision to do or not to do something. A formal expression of opinion or intention agreed on by a legislative body, committee, or other formal meeting, typically after taking...

Chapter 15

EPOV

I'm relieved when I realize I wasn't that far from Bella's apartment, but I'm quickly disgusted by the condition of her apartment complex. It's not fit for a dog to live in and, yet, Bella - my Bella - has been living here for years. I feel my fury start building up again, but I push it away. I remind myself that she's only lived here because she's had no other options. My love for her grows as I truly understand how much she's struggled and fought to survive. She is a survivor and I have to believe that she's okay; that this is all some sort of horrible misunderstanding.

Rose points me to Bella's door and it takes every fucking ounce of strength I have not to tear it from its hinges. I beat on the door instead, seeing it shake and splinter right under my hand.

Two seconds pass and I'm beating on the door again. If I have to wait much longer, there won't be anything left of it.

Finally, the door flies open.

I'm not sure what I expected to find behind the door, but it wasn't this.

I fall to my knees, my body wracked by so many emotions that I can't decipher them.

All I'm able to say is, "Oh, my God, Bella!"

"Edward! What are you doing here?" she exclaims, obviously caught off guard by my appearance.

Her scent washes over my body, sending relief to every cell, while the sound of her voice is like a chorus of angels to my ears. Seeing Bella, still very much alive, is what ultimately frees me from the hell I've been in these last few hours.

"Bella," I gasp. "I thought you were dead!"

Looking into her eyes, I see sympathy and something else. Apprehension, maybe? I stand up quicker than I probably should but I don't really care anymore. Soon, she'll know the truth about me and I'll have no reason to restrict myself.

Bella takes a step back and opens the door wide enough for me to walk through. "Come in, Edward."

Her apartment is only marginally larger than the master suite of my penthouse. I keep my expression neutral; Bella doesn't need or want my judgment right now. If she takes me back, though, she's leaving this hell-hole immediately.

Stepping into her living room, I'm surprised to see two men sitting on the sofa.

"Edward, this is Jake," she says, pointing to a dark-haired man who's clenching his jaw tightly. She then points to a tall, lanky man with shaggy hair and says his name is Garrett. "They were just telling me about Tanya," Bella continues.

"Who's Tanya?"

"She's the girl who was killed last night," Bella says softly, before gently running her finger along the outside of my hand. I grab her hand and pull her body to mine, unwilling to ignore my need to have her close any longer.

"I'm sorry about your friend, but I can't even begin to explain the relief I feel knowing it wasn't you." I tuck her hair behind her ear before running the tip of my finger along Bella's jaw. I force myself to turn and look at the two men again.

"What the fuck happened last night? Why did that girl die? Why didn't you help her?!"

Jake is instantly in my face. "Who the fuck do you think you are, questioning us like that? You don't know what happened so you better back the hell off, asshole!"

I move Bella behind me but my hand never leaves her body. The calmness of my voice is a mask hiding the rage within me. My voice is low but I know he hears me.

"You are not ever to speak to me like that. Do you understand? I want to know what went wrong and I want to know now! You should consider yourself and your partner over there extremely lucky to be breathing today. If Bella would've been harmed in any way last night, it will be your names in the obituaries tomorrow."

Jake stares at me for a few moments before taking his place back on the couch. His hands are shaking and his breaths are labored. I'm sure he hasn't slept much, if at all, in the last 24 hours, but I'm finding it hard to care right now.

"I guess it's a good thing you're here, then, Mr. Cullen," Garrett says.

"Why is that?"

"I'm hoping that you'll have some information on the whereabouts of James Stanley."

"James? What does he have to do with this?" I'm not sure how much I'm supposed to know about Bella's work with the FBI so I'm assuming it's better to play dumb. Just the idea of James being involved with that hooker's death, though, makes me sick to my stomach.

"James is the one who murdered Tanya."

I hear Bella let out a gasp while I mutter "fuck!" and run my hand through my hair. Grabbing Bella's hand tightly, I pull her to a chair and sit next to her.

"Tell us everything," I command.

BPOV

I'm not sure what to think. My brain feels completely muddled with images and information I can't process right now. Being awakened by Jake and Garrett was enough to make my stomach drop to my feet but, when I opened my door and saw Edward standing there, I thought I was truly losing my mind.

He looked so distraught and lost, like he'd been to hell and back. I've never seen him look anything less than immaculate, but today he looks like his world is coming to an end. It can't be because of me, can it? He thought I was the one killed last night, but is that the reason he's so disheveled? I can't even begin to wrap my head around what that might mean. Besides, I need to know more about what happened to Tanya and find out where James is.

"Can I get anyone something to drink or eat? Coffee?" I blurt out.

"Yeah, Bella, coffee would be great, thanks," Garrett says. Jake looks up and nods in agreement but Edward doesn't even look at me. While I'm in my tiny kitchen, I think - yet again - about how Edward never eats or drinks anything. It's possible I've just missed it but I spent almost two weeks with him and, not once, did I see him put anything in his mouth, although he always made sure I had food to eat. This only serves to frustrate me, realizing I've professed my love to a man that I still have so many questions about. The simple fact is that I love him regardless of his secrets. I guess love truly is blind.

I hand Jake and Garrett their mugs before sitting next to Edward again. I quickly shake my head a couple of times, forcing myself to pay attention to what they're saying.

"From what we can gather, James must've suspected Tanya was working undercover," Garrett begins. "We watched Tanya get into his car and could hear their conversation through the wire she was wearing. They didn't talk about anything special, just the usual shop talk between a prostitute and a john. We followed them to a nearby hotel and parked on the side of the building so we wouldn't be noticed as they walked inside.

"It was quiet for a few minutes but I just assumed Tanya was standing off to the side while James paid for the room. After a few more minutes had passed, we realized something wasn't right. We drove back to the front of the hotel and saw that James' car was gone." Garrett hangs his head as he leans his forearms against the top of his legs.

Jake picks up where Garrett leaves off. "We found her wire on the curb. That, and some of her hair, tells us there was a struggle. We searched the surrounding areas for hours before we found her body in a trash dumpster, her neck broken."

I can feel the tension pulsing through Edward's body just by sitting next to him. I know what he's thinking. I know he assumes Jake and Garrett didn't do enough and that if he would've been there, he would've done better. He's wrong, though. Jake and Garrett did everything humanly possible to save Tanya. Edward wouldn't have done more than that either.

The bones of his hands crack as his fists tighten, and I wait for Edward to explode. His voice is eerily serene, though, and I know he's trying to be calm for me.

"What about James?" he finally asks.

"Took off. He just dumped her body and left. We have no idea where he could be. Do you?" Jake asks, pointedly.

"No, I fucking do not know where he is! I am his employer, not his warden!"

I place my hand on his thigh and notice how hard his body is. This isn't a sexual type of hard; his body is like stone - like he's holding all his anger and tension inside his bones, bracing himself for more. My mind wants to wonder over the many ways I can help rid his body of these emotions, but now's not the time for that. We have so much to talk about, I'm not sure when the time for 'that' will be, but it doesn't stop me from wanting him. I'll always want him.

"Edward, they're just trying to get as much information as they can so they can find James," I say, hoping my words are soothing.

He lets out a deep breath and I feel his body relax minutely. "I don't know where James is. I haven't spoken with him in over a week."

"We'll be searching his office as soon as we get a warrant from the judge," Jake warns.

"Get your damned warrant! I'm not hiding anything."

Garrett huffs before standing up and walking toward my front door; he's as tired of the pissing contest between Edward and Jake as much as I am.

"Come on, Jake, let's go. We have a lot of work to do and we're wasting time here. Bella, your help won't be needed unless Jake or I speak with you directly, telling you otherwise."

"Wait, what?!"

"The original case you were working on with us is now on hold. We're still looking for James, obviously, but instead of looking for a guy working in a drug and prostitution ring, we're looking for a murderer. We don't want you involved in this part unless it's absolutely necessary."

Garrett doesn't give me a chance to respond, he simply walks out the door with Jake following closely behind.

Staring at my door in disbelief, I just barely hear Edward say, "I'm glad that's over," before I turn to him, my eyes blazing.

"What do you mean, it's over? Nothing is over because James is still out there!"

"I know that, Bella. I meant that it's over for you."

Now I'm pissed. "The hell it is! Edward, he killed a girl - someone I knew - and I can't sit around and do nothing while he runs free!"

The fury in his eyes now matches that of my own. "You most certainly can and you will! You heard Jake and Garrett; they don't need your help right now. If you stay involved, you could jeopardize the case!"

My face crumbles at his words. "I thought you understood. I thought you supported me."

Edward walks to me and cradles my face in his hands, his eyes the soft amber that I love. "I do support you, Bella, and I understand your plea. Believe me, I want James captured, too, but the thought of you in that kind - or any kind - of danger . . . it kills me. I just can't bear it. Please, let the FBI take care of James."

For a split second, I think he's going to kiss me and I want him to, so badly. I'd even consider his request for me to forget about James for a while if I could feel his lips on mine one more time. Before he moves closer, though, I try one more time to reason with him.

"You could help me, Edward."

He pulls aways so quickly that I swear my eyes blur.

"What do you mean?" he asks.

"I mean, with all your money and power and connections - not to mention how well you know James outside of the office - you could help me find him!"

I recognize Edward's frustration when he pinches the bridge of his nose, taking a deep breath before looking at me again. "Just what do you think you'd do if you were ever to capture James?"

"I'd turn him into the FBI, of course."

"You think he'd just let you take him to Jake and Garrett? Bella, he killed Tanya simply for wearing a wire. He can't be reasoned with!"

"Then, I guess I'd have to kill him."

He scoffs at me. "You say that like it's an easy thing to do."

"If my life or the life of someone I love is in danger, it will be easy," I reply, hoping my voice conveys the truth of my words.

Edward moves closer to me, so close I can feel his breath cover my face like a much-needed breeze in the stifling heat of summer.

"Have you ever watched someone die?" he whispers.

I shake my head 'no', my eyes never leaving his. "Have you?"

He doesn't hesitate. "Yes, and I don't want you to go through that."

I'm not sure what to say. I want to ask him to tell me more, to help me understand what he means but, before I can get a word out, he changes the subject.

"Let's get out of here."

"Where would we go?"

"I want you to meet my mother."

A/Ns:

JIff: *toes ground* Soooooo...is anyone still reading this story?

Jenny Kate: Is that crickets I hear? Hellooooooooooooo….*echoes*

Jiff: Hopefully, SOMEONE is out there, happy we finally posted!

Jenny Kate: Well, I'M happy we finally posted! LOL. I'm also hoping this is the end of our funk. I donut like the funk.

Jiff: Me neither! I'm ready to leave Funky Town and stay in our happy fic place forever! Kudos to those of you who guessed it was TFD who bit the bullet in this chapter!

Jenny Kate: Yep, some of you are very sleuthy. So, Edward wants to take Bella to meet his mom...wonder what that's all about?

Jiff: I don't know. I'm kinda thinking it's too early to be meeting the 'rents but I'm sure Edward has his reasons.

Jenny Kate: Well, this is fic...they could be married and expecting a baby by the next chapter. I know some of our readers are looking forward to finding out more about Rose's past. Don't worry, we haven't forgotten, it's coming up soon!

Jiff: It is! I know it's been awhile since we last posted but we want to thank everyone who voted for Bella Donna on the Fic of the Week poll a few weeks ago. We really appreciate your support!

Jenny Kate: We appreciate everyone who takes the time to read our stories, pimp us out, or leave reviews...you guys make all the drama worthwhile. So, thanks for being awesome!

Jiff: Thanks to Mauigirl60 for being our kick-ass beta. She had her work cut out for her with this chapter!

**Also, thank you for all of your reviews! We're so sorry we've been such a fail at replying lately, but we read and love every one! XOXO**