A/N… This starts with a bit of a flashback. I'll let you get to it. See me at the bottom.

~oOo~

Chapter 13

EDWARD

Alarms started to sound just as I hit the exit of the Sound's hospital. I slammed out the back door into the late night, catching sight of movement ahead.

"Go, go, go!" I hissed to Bella. "We're gonna have company."

We'd had a feeling this would be a close call, so we'd planned for it. We needed medicines and bandages, but most importantly, we needed the shit to counter the virus. Mr. Weber's clinic was overrun with people with high fevers and terrible coughs. We'd already lost a few people – some elderly and a few little kids. That shit had to stop, especially when we knew that they had a way to make them better.

So we planned to steal it.

Shots pinged around us, and Bella ducked into an old building, saying, "Time for a diversion."

She pulled the pin on a small round canister, tossed it out the door into the street, and then led us through the empty building to the other side. The whole intersection started to fill with billowing smoke. Her ability to remember streets and safe houses was what made us the best team, along with her instinct on when to run and when to fight.

I'd rather fight, but we were alone on that side of the wall, so any fuck-up, any pauses, would give them time to outnumber us, and we couldn't afford to fail. We needed this medicine.

We started to lose the raiders, and they wouldn't be able to track us with the direction Bella was taking because she was using more empty buildings to cut the distance. We were getting farther away from Oz, but it actually would save our asses because the raiders would assume we'd head straight back. We weren't. And once we outran them, they wouldn't know where to look.

The safe house was on the far side of the Sound. From what I could tell, it used to be a fairly nice neighborhood. Small homes and townhomes sat on the edge of a now overgrown park. Bella slipped into the side door of a rather large house that had been split into four separate apartments. She ran up the stairs, taking the key down from the molding above the door.

Once inside, I dropped the bags I was lugging. "Check the streets, love."

We split up, leaving the place dark while we peeked out the windows. I was in the bedroom, studying the street down below, when I heard her beside me.

"I think we're clear," she whispered, gazing out the window with me.

"Me, too." I closed the curtain, looking around the room for something to block the light if we decided to light a candle.

"Here," she said, handing over a roll of aluminum foil. "We'll just cover this window and stick to this room. I kinda thought this would be a twenty-four-hour wait."

Snorting, I covered the window. "They'll figure it out when the raiders hit Oz in the morning looking for us."

"Assholes," she muttered, shaking her head a little as she sat down on the edge of the bed.

Damn, she was beautiful. It honestly didn't matter to me that we'd just run about two miles. It didn't matter that she was sweaty or flushed or that her braid had come loose in our escape. No, none of that shit mattered to me. I think I'd loved her from the get-go. But we'd been a couple since the raid where she sprained her ankle. That was a little over a year ago. The two of us were eighteen now, almost nineteen, and closer than ever.

I covered the window, lit a few candles we brought with us, and shut the bedroom door as I let my mind wander. I'd meant what I told her then when we were stuck in a safe house like this one. I wanted to marry her one day. Maybe when the fighting was over, or maybe when we got our own place.

Frowning, I wondered if the fighting would ever stop.

"Why are you pacing?" she asked me.

Spinning around to face her, I froze. I hadn't even realized I was. "Do you think… I mean, do you think we'll ever stop fighting? Do you ever think we'll get to the point we don't have to steal the shit we need?"

Bella's brow furrowed, but she huffed a soft laugh. "I don't know, Edward. I hope so. Why? You want to retire?"

Grinning at her snarky remark, I shook my head. "No, I just… Maybe I want us to be safe and at peace. Maybe I want your dad back on the other side of the walls."

"What about your parents?"

I sighed, sitting next to her. "I dunno, Bella. They seem okay. When I stole his ID tonight, they were healthy and safe, but I'm still pissed off at them. They accepted you as a… I dunno." I shrugged a shoulder belligerently. "They… They made this big deal about doing the right thing when I was a fucking kid, but then they… You just…"

I trailed off, because my rambling wasn't going anywhere, and I tried to get my temper under control. Bella was never as angry about my parents, and it was all over that beautiful, patient face as she waited for me to figure out where I was going with this shit.

Gazing over at her, I brushed a stray hair from her face. "You've never held it against them, but I can't seem to stop from holding a grudge. I mean, I know you said Aro kinda shoved you my dad's way…"

She smiled sadly. "He did, baby. Your dad looked like a deer in headlights, you know?"

Snorting, I nodded and gazed slowly around the dark room, deciding to change the subject. "Maybe I just want a place like this for us. Just the two of us. Grandma Sue is great, but…"

"You tired of sneaking around?" she teased with a giggle – a sound I fucking adored.

"Yes!" I said with a laugh. "Fuck, Rose and I practically shot each other in the hallway night before last."

Bella laughed, covering her mouth to keep quiet. She fell back on the bed, and I did the same, rolling to face her.

"Emmett just about pissed himself laughing," I told her, propping my head up with my hand as I gazed down at her with a smile as she continued to laugh. "I just… Maybe I'm just ready to not be considered a kid anymore."

Bella's laughter tapered off, and she reached for my face to bring me in for a kiss. "Edward, I don't think any of us have ever been kids. Like, we never had what our parents had. We've been shoved into this…this…shit since the beginning."

My nose wrinkled because she had a point, but I couldn't keep the truth from escaping. "I still want to marry you."

She grinned, kissed me quickly, and nodded. "And the answer will be yes. Always yes. Do you want kids?"

"Is it fair to have kids we may or may not be able to protect?"

"You think we can't protect them? Seriously? Edward, you smuggled me out of the Sound, you brought me home, and you fight every day. We've lost a few here and there, but those weren't on you."

"But I can't stand the thought of something happening to you. You, Bella. Does that make me a danger to everyone else? And if we have a kid, I'll be a thousand times worse!"

Bella grinned. "Maybe." She pulled me until I was braced over her. "Life has to move on, Edward. In order to beat down the people who've done this to us, we have to keep living our lives. We have to keep going."

"Do you?" I asked randomly. "Kids, Bella. Do you want kids?"

She nodded nervously, raking her fingers through my hair. "Not now, Edward. But someday. Maybe after you've managed to get me to marry you."

Chuckling, I kissed her softly. "I make a deal with you, love," I whispered against her lips. "Let's give it a few years to see if shit calms down. Then we'll get married. I'd rather not be fucking drowning every damn day when we—"

She kissed me to stop me. "We could be in the middle of a damn raid, Edward, and the answer will still be yes, but we may never stop fighting. We might still be fighting when we become elders." With both hands flat on either side of my face, she studied me with those deep, beautiful brown eyes. "I love you, and I love that you fight for the possibility that there could be peace someday. Funny that only I know that about you. Everyone else thinks you just love a good fight."

Her tease made me grin. "Maybe."

"Mm," she hummed, smirking up at me. "We're alone for twenty-four hours, baby."

Bracing a hand by her head, I slid my other arm beneath her to scoot her up to the middle of the bed. Clothes were peeled away and shoes were kicked off, leaving us bare and alone and a tangle of limbs, skin on skin. Sometimes, I really just preferred time alone with her. She was comfort and ease, love and all things soothing.

As I kissed her, her hands slid over my skin, lighting me on fire. They slipped up my chest, down my back, and over my ass, urging me closer, for more. I couldn't wait to be inside her, but I loved even more that she lost herself to my hands, my touch, my mouth. And since there was no one here to hear us, I made sure my name escaped her lips more than once before I slid deep inside her.

We'd lucked out with a medical raid last year which gave us vials of birth control. Rose and Bella both decided to start using it because of Emmett and me but also because it slowed down their periods. Sue didn't even argue; she said that pads and tampons were harder to come by than food. I wasn't sure she knew we were all sneaking around. If she did, she never mentioned it.

One of the candles flickered out, and I pulled the covers up around us, gathering Bella into my arms.

She linked our fingers together, kissing my knuckles. "Maybe we should get our own place."

Grinning, I dropped kisses to her bare shoulder. "Soon, my Bella."

~oOo~

I came up out of that memory almost dazed. The plans we were making were very similar to that particular mission, and when Bella had pointed out that safe house, the memories came flooding back.

"Are you listening to me, Edward?" Bella asked from behind me as I stared out the window of the auto shop. "Please don't make me get up."

Sighing, I turned to face her. Emmett, Alice, Jasper, Rose, and Alistair were waiting for me to say something.

She pointed to the map on the table. "You have to know this shit inside and out. You'll be guiding my dad. We don't have time to teach him, and he can't get away to help with this plan. He only knows where to be when the signal goes off."

I nodded, gazing back out onto the streets of Oz. Our little community was busy. We were packing up and fortifying the buildings. It had been a few weeks since Alistair had sent Sam and the cousins over the wall to spy on Demetri. The end of the month that Aro had given Demetri was fast approaching.

Flash was busy organizing the move to the island. Sector D was first. It was the hospital and the elderly, along with the school and my parents. Sector B would be next – the livestock, the crops, which were being transferred to pots and boxes, and the food stores. Sector A – the resistance – and Sector C – the scouts and supply storage – would come together last.

Every leader from each sector had taken a boat ride to Anderson Island. We'd laid out the issues, the plan, and the options. Once we'd set foot on that island, we all agreed how perfect it was – enough space, enough housing, and plenty of room for farmland. It was empty and abandoned. There was wildlife and trees, a port with plenty of boats, and some rich asshole at some point had to have released their horses, because they were running in wild herds. Sector B was ecstatic because that would be the future of farming and probably transportation.

And that damn island had its own power grid, which Flash's people had already repaired. That alone was worth the move.

My parents and Sue were already there, setting up the clinic and assigning housing for the people in this room. My mother assured me she'd find a place perfect for Bella and me…and soon, Emily. They'd promised me they'd take care of it.

"Edward?" Jasper called me.

I turned to see their anxious faces. "I hear all of you. I was just thinking." I walked back to the table, sitting down between Jasper and Bella. I kissed Bella's temple, giving that now bigger belly a gentle rub before pulling the building plans in front of Jasper to me.

"Where are we on explosives?" I asked, and Emmett pointed toward the far corner of the auto shop.

On the table, there were several jars and bottles, all with rags sticking out the tops. There were also grenades and C-4 – all rigged, wired, and at the ready.

"And we're good on ammo, Ed," he added with another gesture to several boxes of bullets.

Nodding, I studied the maps with all the locations of the raider barracks and safe houses. There were marks as to where each of those jars were to be lit and when and where we were all supposed to be throughout this entire process.

The plan was big, meticulous, and detailed down to every step. I rubbed my face because once we started, I wouldn't see Bella until it was all over, which could take up to a few days. We were sneaking into the Sound and getting into position to destroy the raider barracks and render Demetri useless until we could meet up with Charlie.

After Demetri saw who and why he was about to burn in hell, Charlie would escort Emmett, Alice, and me up to Aro's apartment. Lined up in a row in the middle of the table were four thumb drives. They were identical, all carried the same virus, and we each would carry one on our person, hidden and at the ready. Whoever saw an opening was to plug it into Aro's computer.

I glanced to Alice, who was sitting on Jasper's other side. "I'm gonna ask this shit again, Alice. Are you sure you can face this motherfucker? If you can't, say something now. He has enough hate for Emmett and me to get this job done without you putting yourself back in his presence." Before she could say anything, I went on. "When I smuggled you out, all you asked of me was to get you away from that asshole. You said hell would be better. What I'm asking is… Can you do this without freezing or losing track of why we're there? He won't touch you, I swear it, but you must maintain a stone-cold demeanor while we are up there with him."

Alice nodded, her hands fidgeting on her lap until Jasper reached over and covered her hands with his. This was a slowly developing relationship between the two of them. The girls threatened Emmett and me if we said something, so we left it alone. Honestly, I was sure they needed each other, which was why I was asking this question again. But Jasper piped up.

"Alice?" he asked softly. "You can trust what he says. By the time Charlie gets you upstairs, Demetri will be dead and the raiders will be next. So if Aro tries to touch you, Edward, Emmett, and Charlie will protect you. You're there just long enough to get to his computer, tell him he's done, and then haulin' ass outta there."

"And if I want him dead?" she whispered, and I flashed a grin.

"I'll personally hand you the weapon," I vowed to her. "But you have to stay strong, stoic, and cold, Alice. You have to let him think he's won, because by the time we get up there, Aro will have no fucking clue that his raiders are about to roast alive. And that his bestie, Demetri, is dead."

She was the key to truly getting upstairs. We knew that as soon as Charlie announced to Aro that he'd captured not only Emmett and me, who had given him more hell than he could shake a stick at, but he was also returning one of his prize slaves, Aro would open his door without even thinking.

And we needed that more than anything.

Those thumb drives were the final blow to ending every walled city Aro had created with his evil friends. We weren't sure if any other city had fallen, but we knew this would help them no matter what, because that virus would travel their exclusive network and lock them out of their own servers. No communication, no shipping, no trains, no control. It would play Aro's deception loud and clear over every device, radio signal, and TV. Other places like Oz would be free from their oppressors. They could fight back or leave. But they'd be able to make their own choices.

Alice glanced between Jasper and me and finally nodded my way. "I'm good. I need to do this. For Mary. For myself."

"Hell, yeah," Rose cheered her softly, nodding once. "Atta girl."

I locked gazes with Jasper, who looked proud yet worried, but he nodded at me to go on.

Taking a deep breath, I let it out slowly as I eyed the plans and maps in front of me. The last thing I pulled closer were the plans to Aro's building. It was built similarly to my parents' old place – a dozen floors of high-end living spaces, with video surveillance and rotating guards. Aro's place was at the top.

Where we used to use the back stairwell to get to my parents' apartment, we were going in the front damn doors this time. We had to make a show of Charlie's capture. However, getting out would be the issue. By the time we'd set the computer virus in motion, the other half of the resistance would be eliminating the raiders. It was possible that the raiders downstairs would swarm that apartment in order to protect Aro.

We needed an out. We needed an exit plan. That building had to be wide open when we were ready to haul ass.

"No fire escape, though the balconies would lead us down…" I muttered to myself, shaking my head because Alice was too damn short to take that route.

"No," Bella countered, shaking her head and tapping the plans. "You're going to use the service stairs. They're on the backside of the building, and because Aro's place is the top floor – not to mention he's the lead asshole – he has an entrance for cleaning crew and kitchen help." She pulled the plans closer and tapped them again. "Here is his office…just off the living room. The door to those stairs is in the kitchen."

"And the slaves? Because we'll have to make sure the innocent aren't trapped in there," Emmett asked.

"Here," Alice answered, pointing down the long hallway to a room at the end. "It locks from the outside. Deadbolt."

My upper lip twitched in hatred, but I nodded that I heard her and glanced at Emmett. "You and I have to make sure we have this memorized. We'll be leading this once we've plugged one of those in." I pointed to the thumb drives on the table.

Alistair stood up and paced a little, stopping occasionally to eye the pages on the table. "We have four days. At the end of the fourth day, we need to be on the other side of the wall, setting explosives. Rose and Bella will be sending the signal for Charlie, which is a bonfire. Once you see the fire, you three will be meeting up with Charlie, who will be luring Demetri away from the barracks.

"In the meantime, we need to empty Oz. I want the residents out of the line of fire just in case they decide to start early," he continued, holding up a finger. "And if they do, then they are in for a world of fucking hurt, because that"—he pointed to the table in the corner—"is only a fraction of the explosives we have. That last train raid we did gave us enough to take down the entire Sound, but we're going to use it to create a trap. We'll be gone, but if they set one foot in Oz, they'll blow sky high."

"Where are we in the move? Sector D?" Bella asked him.

"Sector D is done. Sector B is moving as we speak… They'll take a little longer than everyone else. The livestock alone will take a minute. Apparently, the goats and cows aren't fans of the ferry."

I shook my head, chuckling a little.

"Flash is also using whatever extra space to move his own stuff from Sector C," Alistair added, turning to me. "Your parents and Sue have located a small section of houses for us." He gestured a finger around the room. "They're also working with the leaders of each sector so that the residents of Oz can simply move straight into homes without much fuss." He smirked a little. "By the time the girls start the bonfire, they'll be taking the last moving ferry to the island."

I turned to Bella, placing a hand on her head. "We should pack, huh?"

"We're almost ready. Your parents took everything from Emily's room already," she said softly. "We just need to finish packing our things, which is mainly little stuff and clothes."

Standing up from the table, I offered her a hand to help her up. "Okay, everyone do the same so all they need to do is load the truck for the ferry. Then, I want one more meeting before we separate."

Bella was quiet as we made our way back to our apartment. I didn't have to ask. Her worry was practically walking with us hand in hand. And I wasn't stupid enough to ask if it was pregnancy hormones, because it was but it wasn't. Once we were upstairs with the door clicking closed behind us, I gazed around the living room.

Not much of the stuff in there was ours, and we weren't taking anything big. I walked over to the end table and unplugged the music player and its little speaker, setting it on top of the box by the door.

Emily's room was sparse. They'd taken the crib, all the ocean decorations, and the rug. There was a small duffel bag filled with a few things like baby clothes and small toys, so I zipped it up and set it by the box at the front door.

I found Bella in the bedroom with two open backpacks on the bed as she added stuff to one of them. One would be for me to take when I left, and the other was hers. The only things left out as of that moment were clothes that we'd be wearing over the next couple of days.

I sat down on the edge of the bed, gazing around. We had so many memories here, and they were in every room.

"I'm going to miss this place," I muttered, my brow furrowing a little as I gazed at the floor.

Bella's stomach appeared in my vision, and I pulled her closer so I could press kisses to Emily through the oversized sweater Bella was wearing over some sort of legging things. She raked her fingers through my hair and then pressed a kiss to my forehead.

"Well, we've been in here since before we got married," she said, echoing my thoughts from moments before.

Smiling, I set my chin on that baby bump to gaze up at her. "Yes, ma'am." She didn't say anything but continued to play with my hair. "Bella, love… Look at me."

She shook her head but did as I asked, tears welling up in those beautiful brown eyes. I hated the tears; I'd hated the tears when she'd been given to us as a slave, but I hated them even more now. She'd cry herself to sleep in the room on the other side of my bedroom wall. It had been those tears that finally made me pull her out of the Sound and set her safely back in Oz. I'd promised myself back then that I'd do anything to keep those eyes happy, but this was different.

"I know," I whispered, pressing a kiss to her stomach before cupping her face. "If this could be done any other way, you know I'd do it. But look at me, love." When her eyes locked with mine, I went on as I wiped the tears away with my thumbs. "This is the last one. The last raid we'll do over the wall. And your dad is the last 'slave' I'm getting out. Me, personally. Understand?"

"Y-You… P-Promise m-me…"

I smiled sadly at that. "You don't need me to promise that I'll be safe, baby. It's a given." I placed my hands gently on either side of that growing belly, my eyes never leaving hers. "I have every-fucking-thing to live for, my Bella. And we've busted our asses to get to this point. I can feel the end approaching. Can you?"

She nodded, sniffling a little before she leaned in to kiss my lips roughly. "We need you, Edward. So you'd better be smart and safe. You need to come home to us."

"And I need you safe, too. Both of my girls need to be on that ferry once the bonfire is lit."

She nodded, wrapping her arms around my neck and pressing her forehead to mine. "I'm aware that we're giving you more than a twenty-four-hour waiting period, and I know that there will be no way to signal us – other than the radio signal that Flash's virus will put out – but I will lose my mind if you're longer than two days, Edward Cullen."

Nodding, I kissed her lips to calm her down, and Emily shifted underneath my hand. I rubbed the spot, pressing my lips to that movement and vowing, "I love you. Both of you. I'll get this done, and I'll meet you at our new home when I'm finished."

~oOo~

A/N… I'm doing my best to work on the next chapter. I'm hoping to get a start on it in the next day or so. Best case scenario is that it'll be ready for next Sunday. Worse case? We skip a week. We'll see. Keep your fingers crossed.

So this chapter gave everyone of my team all sorts of anxiety. They're all nervous as hell. Deep breaths, everyone. Keep all hands inside the fic until it comes to a complete stop. ;)

Until next time… Mooches, Deb ;)