A/N… Happy Mother's Day to everyone – that's for kid moms, fur moms, and those that simply take care of others. Hope you have a happy day.

I'll let you get to it.

~oOo~

Chapter 19

BELLA

The sound of Emily's cry snapped me out of a deep sleep, and I started to push back the covers to go get her, but a strong arm stopped me.

"I got her, love," Edward whispered, tucking the covers back up around me. "Get some more sleep; the sun's not even up. It's my turn anyway."

I smiled sleepily, nodding as kisses were pressed to my lips. Emily, however, was apparently growing impatient with her parents, because she got a bit louder…and angrier. She'd totally inherited her father's temper.

"Okay, okay," I heard him soothe her over the video monitor that Flash had finally gotten working for us.

With bleary vision, I watched the small screen as Edward scooped up our daughter and kissed her forehead, chuckling at her grumbles and tiny waving fists. She was pushing two months old, and she owned that man. He was her living, breathing, snuggly teddy bear. She slept better on him than she did in her own crib. She preferred him, actually, but we tried to keep her to a pretty decent routine of naps and bedtimes in her own room.

But he liked to spoil her. Hell, he spoiled us both.

I fell back asleep to the sounds of him talking to her as he changed her diaper – something we were hoping that Flash's people could hunt down. We needed more disposables, or eventually we'd have to shift over to cloth.

When I woke again, the sun was completely up, and the house was quiet. After a quick stop in the bathroom, I went in search of Edward and Emily. I came to a stop in the living room, where Edward had our baby on his chest, stomach to stomach. Both were fast asleep, his hand protectively on her little bottom to hold her as she had a fistful of his T-shirt. Music was playing softly on the player, and on the coffee table, there was an empty baby bottle and a couple of toys he'd used to appease her.

I hadn't been sure I could love that man any more than I did, but it seemed to grow and change once Emily was born. He was amazing with her.

In between defense classes for the residents of Oz, he'd help Jasper with the horses or Flash with the general store. No matter how tired or sore or stressed he was, he'd light the hell up at the sight of her when he got home.

I left them to their nap and smiled at the biscuits he'd baked still sitting on the stove. The ladies down at the store had learned to freeze them so all that needed to be done was pop them into the oven. I ate one with some apple butter, peeking out the kitchen window toward the water.

Things had been quiet since our move to the island. Everyone was settled in, and they were slowly finding a renewed sense of community. The people of the resistance were now essentially the security of the island. We all took shifts monitoring the water, not to mention handling any scuffles or trouble between neighbors, though that last one was rare.

On days when Edward and I were both needed, Sue or Esme would come watch Emily for us. Even sweeter was when my dad would show up, because he'd strap Emily to his front with the little sling we had, and he'd sit down on our dock and fish, telling her stories or singing softly to her.

Outside was dark and gray, an overcast summer day. As much as I wanted to stay home and bask in my family, we were needed for a resistance meeting. And yes, Emily would attend because every member had fallen in love with her. Plus, all her grandparents would be there.

In the three months that we'd been on the island, so many changes had occurred. Aside from Emily's arrival, there had been a few more people to join us from not only the Sound, but also from a tiny community just on the other side of Olympia. They'd barely been making it, but they brought with them an impressive collection of farm animals and pets. Now the island had goats, sheep, and turkeys, but it also had dogs and cats. And those last two things hadn't been seen much since the walls went up. Most domestic animals were lost or went feral when their owners died of the virus, and the majority of the survivors didn't have enough food to feed themselves or their family, much less a pet.

At least that was what the elders had told us, and now everyone wanted a pet, specifically all the kids.

That thought made me shake my head and turn around to face the living room when I heard Emily stir. Edward's eyes cracked open, and he sat up with her, pressing kisses to her head.

She was wide-eyed and sweet, her hands in little fists between her and her daddy's chest. He glanced up when I stepped into the room.

"Morning, love," he said, lifting Emily so I could take her. "She put me to sleep."

Grinning, I let out a light laugh. "I saw that. You were both too cute to wake."

He smiled crookedly, shaking his head as he stood up from the sofa. "Did you eat breakfast, Bella?" he asked instead of saying anything to my teasing.

I glanced down at Emily, who was watching me with big eyes. "I did. Did you eat breakfast, baby girl?"

Her sweet face broke into a grin, and an adorable sound escaped her, which made us both laugh.

"Guess that's a yes," I answered, leaning into Edward's kiss to my temple. "I need to pump some more, and I have to get her dressed, get my own shower…"

I trailed off, shaking my head that I had so much to do before the meeting that we needed to attend today.

"Well, since I can't pump…" Edward stated seriously, holding his arms out to take Emily back.

Snorting into a loud laugh, I nodded. I pressed kisses to his lips and then Emily's forehead. Edward and I approached parenthood pretty much like we'd approached any resistance mission we'd done. Only now it was on a daily basis. We'd made an amazing team in a fight, and that seemed to be something that carried over when Emily arrived.

By the time we'd accomplished all the things we'd needed to do, Emily was sound asleep in her carrier strapped to my front, wearing an orange shirt that said "sweet potato" on it. I'm pretty sure someone hand-painted that for him – by request. However, he'd put a matching headband on her, along with the cutest, tiniest pair of jeans.

I noted the changes Oz had gone through since we'd moved to the island. We had slowly gathered as much medical equipment as we could from the Sound and some of the surrounding areas. Carlisle's clinic was a fully functioning hospital, save for a few large machines we couldn't move. A few men volunteered to be firefighters, and that included most of the resistance as well. The firehouse wasn't far from the school, which Sue was starting to get organized, and they'd switch shifts every other day or so.

Flash had taken over a small warehouse near the docks, moving in as much of the Sound's computer equipment as he could get his hands on, along with all the things that his people could scrounge. I was pretty sure today's meeting was about communication with the other walled cities, along with possible phone lines or a network on the island. Flash had finally shut Aro's continuous confession down, but he'd also put up what he called a firewall to keep the other cities from accessing us or each other.

We'd also moved the resistance to what used to be some sort of community club. The farmers needed the café for food storage, so we let them take the spot across from the general store. The people who could cook used it to bake bread, smoke or cure meats, and clean and freeze fish. They also stored and canned fruits and vegetables, not to mention made butter, cheese, and preserves.

Edward pulled into the parking lot of the community club, and I shook my head at all the golf carts along with a few horses tied off along the fence. Sam, Jake, and Seth had stepped up to help Jasper train the horses to accept riders. Apparently, they were making headway with it, because there were three gorgeous horses saddled up and tied off. Two were auburn-colored with black manes and tails. One was what Jasper called a "paint." He stood tall, mostly white with splashes of light brown all over him. His mane and tail were white, as well, but his eyes were as blue as a summer sky. Clearly, he'd become Jasper's favorite.

The first one out the door of the building to greet us was my dad. I honestly didn't know who to thank that I had him back in my life on a daily basis. Edward said that my dad saved his life, but Dad told it the other way around. So apparently, the two of them were just damned determined to get home to me. I was grateful no matter what.

"There's my fishing buddy," Dad sang low, pulling Emily and me in for a hug. He dropped a kiss to my head and then Emily's soft cheek; she barely stirred. He studied her for a moment. "She looks more like you every day, except…" He trailed off, running his hand gently over her head.

Emily's eyes were going to be dark like mine and his. However, her hair was starting to lighten to show the auburn highlights like Edward's. She was truly a mix of the two of us.

"Want her?" I asked him.

"When she's awake. Let her sleep. She's got all that growing to do," he said, wrapping an arm around me to guide me inside.

Edward grinned at all of that because he told Emily every day that she was her mother made over. And he loved it.

The room was full when we walked in, and everyone waved or came over to see Emily, but they kept their voices subdued when they realized she was asleep. They'd set up a spot for her in the corner next to the table Edward and I always used.

"Here, love," Edward said softly, lifting her out of the carrier and laying her down in the playpen. She barely even moved once he put her down.

Flash was sitting at the table at the front of the room, and next to him was the IT worker we'd brought from the Sound. Nolan was an older gentleman and had known Flash's father. They'd both started working for Aro early, but Flash's dad had gotten out. Nolan, however, was happy that he could continue to do what he loved, which was program computers and fix electronics.

Today's meeting was definitely going to be about communications.

A box sat at the edge of the table next to Flash, but he stayed typing away for a second or two before closing the laptop and standing.

"Okay, the elders asked for an update on the network and communications. Nolan and I checked out the phone lines, and they seem to be in working order. Sadly, we'll have to locate some old landline phones," he began, stepping around the table to address all of us. "Before walls and viruses, everyone had pretty much stopped using landlines. Cell phones had become cheaper and way more convenient. People used wireless connections everywhere. Landlines had been pushed aside.

"Now," he continued, "finding old phones is what my people are trying to do. Once we find some, we'll see if we can even get them connected. We may have to travel into Tacoma or Olympia to the old phone companies to see if we can get shit started."

"What do we do in the meantime? And what if you can't get phones working?" Sue asked him one question after the other.

"Yeah, I thought the same thing. A backup of sorts." Flash turned to the box behind him. "I sent my guys back to Fort Lewis. There was a communications hub there, and I wanted everything they could get me." He held up a portable radio. "Walkie-Talkies. We've used radios before, but these are military grade, stronger. We should have enough here for each household, along with charging stations. Nolan and I have tested them, and the main radio is at our lab. Their range is perfect for this island."

"The battery life is impressive too," Nolan piped up in his raspy voice. "With radio, we risk being found out, unless I can figure out how to encrypt a channel. Just…give me time."

My dad stood up, taking one of the radios. "Until that point, I say we change channels every day. And we'll need to have someone go through other channels to see if there are others out there using the same concept." He held up the handset. "This should help should there be an emergency – fire, someone sick or injured, or someone approaching the island."

"We'll continue to work on the phones, but this should carry us for quite some time," Nolan said from his seat at the table. He barely glanced up from his laptop.

Flash watched him for a moment, asking, "Anything?"

Nolan smirked and shook his head. "No more than before. New York is free. Boston is free. Los Angeles has gone quiet. And Atlanta? Jesus, Caius is a tenacious and angry little bastard."

Alice snorted, nodding a little. "He is that."

Nolan smiled her way but went back to his screen. "New York responded by showing those leaders – Alec and Jane – behind bars with the promise of an execution. Boston decided to hang Heidi on the City Hall steps. Washington DC has never been on Aro's network. Not one time. It seems that the man he used to dispose of the White House, the heads of state, and the military never showed back up on this network. Hell, I'm not sure he ever had another conversation with him after he told everyone he released the virus." He glanced up at all of us. "He either went into hiding or succumbed to the virus. Either is possible."

"Okay, then talk to me about LA," Garrett stated from his seat at the table across from Edward and me.

"Not much to talk about," Flash replied with a shrug of his shoulders. "Their network has been silent since the Sound fell."

Garrett sat forward. "I wonder if we shouldn't scope out LA. They are close enough that they could pose a problem if they decided to head this way."

That statement caused a stir in the room. I glanced over to Edward, who had a fierce and almost angry expression on his face.

"You agree?" I whispered to him.

He shook his head, glancing my way. "He's not wrong about their proximity, but going to another walled city? I dunno. That's dangerous as hell," he whispered back to me. "I get it, but going would be a challenge. We'd have to take a boat or ship. We'd need weapons and ammo, and we couldn't exactly walk up to the front fucking door. We'd have to sneak into the area in order to see how they're set up or if the damn city is even still standing." He sighed, glancing around to see that everyone was listening to him. "It would have to be planned very carefully."

I studied Edward's face. He didn't seem to be volunteering for that particular mission, but he was considering the details. However, I had a question of my own.

"What's Caius doing?"

Nolan glanced up from his computer. "Threatening the people on the other side of his wall. We either start back the trading, or he'll kill those 'infected piles of shit.'"

"We're not fucking trading with any of those assholes," Emmett ground out through gritted teeth. "Threatening innocent people isn't going to change that, no matter how tempting it would be to drive a train up that little weasel's ass at top speed."

"Very tempting," Jasper mused, getting up from the table where he'd been sitting with Alice. "Do we know anyone who can drive a train?"

"We could figure it out," Jake volunteered with a big grin at our laughter, gesturing to his cousin. "I mean…how hard could it be?"

"It's not like you have to actually steer the thing," Seth finished.

"Hold that thought for now, boys," Sue said, barely holding her amusement back. She turned to my dad. "Will you help them set up these radios? Get everyone on the same page?"

"I'll help him," Emmett said, nodding a little toward my dad. "Anything else? Because we've all got shift changes."

"That's it for now, but next week, we'll talk about LA again, if they continue to stay silent," Garrett replied. "Aro talked to them pretty often – James and Victoria. For them to shut down completely isn't a good sign. I imagine they're as tenacious as Caius."

"It was their idea for slaves," Alice piped up softly. "Apparently they had some people giving them trouble at the beginning, and as punishment, they forced them into labor." She glanced around the room. "When they offered up that information to Aro, he followed their lead, and he introduced it to Caius. They started trading slaves because the best way to keep them in control was to send them to someplace they didn't know – no family looking for revenge, no chance of escape, and all easier to control." She ticked those things off on her fingers, like she'd been told that before. "They sent me to here from Atlanta to keep my family helpless."

The room went quiet for a moment, but Jasper looked toward Flash and Nolan. "Anything on Houston?"

Nolan shook his head. "Houston was never really a part of the original set of cities. In other words, Aro or one of the others had to have sent someone to take control of Houston for the farming. They needed food, and food for the long term. But they aren't in the network, unless they're controlled by Atlanta or LA."

Jasper nodded in acceptance, but he kept his expression neutral. He lost his family when they moved here, so I was certain that his question was merely curiosity.

Emily stirred in the playpen, and my dad grinned like it was Christmas. He was up and out of his chair faster than I could even turn around.

"Ah, ha! My girl is awake," he sang softly as he scooped her up.

"I imagine he was the same way with you," Edward muttered sarcastically next to me, grinning when I let out a light laugh. "He said he was happy when they found out that your mom was pregnant with a girl."

I chuckled. "He was, and he worked a lot when I was really little, but when the walls went up, he quit everything to make sure that we were safe, fed, and had a roof over our heads."

Edward leaned in to press a kiss to my forehead. "I understand."

I met his gaze, whispering, "I know you do. We're safer now than we've ever been. Could you imagine trying to protect her when the raiders decided to come through the gates for slaves? Jesus, I'd lose my mind."

"No fucking shit," he breathed against my lips. "We need to get on patrol, love."

Nodding, I stood up from the table to walk to my dad. "Is she your other partner for distributing radios today? Emmett might get jealous."

Dad grinned down at Emily. "Yes, ma'am. We got this."

"Okay, well, Esme's watching her later, so take her to Edward's parents when you're done training her," I told my dad, who simply chuckled.

Edward and I walked outside after telling everyone goodbye, getting back into the cart to start our patrol. We tended to work those together. Occasionally, Edward was needed to cover one of the guard points that he and my dad had created, or he'd teach a defense class with the fishermen who patrolled the water. If he and I weren't together, Rose and I would partner up.

Our route on the island was along the water, through the docks, and we'd touch base with each guard station. That path would take us across the farms, around the church and cemetery, and near the clusters of homes scattered throughout the island.

Over the next several weeks, closing in on August, the new Oz found its routine and life started to take hold on the island. Patrol schedules were set, a few more people joined us from small, rundown villages, and Emily got bigger every damn day.

One morning before July was about to turn into August, I knew that we were due to get up soon, or at the very least, Emily would get us up soon. The sun wasn't up yet, but Edward sure was.

"Shh," he breathed against my cheek as his hands slipped beneath my T-shirt. "She'll be up soon. Let's take advantage."

I giggled, burying it into his shoulder as we shifted. I rolled onto my back once my shirt was made to disappear, and Edward loomed over me, settling between my legs.

"If we're not careful, we'll end up giving her a sibling."

Edward grinned, leaning in to kiss me softly. "Would that be so bad?"

I pulled back, placing my hands flat on either side of his handsome face. "No, not really. But maybe not so soon. I kinda want to keep her to ourselves for a bit, so…"

Edward reached for the nightstand drawer. Condoms weren't something we could easily get our hands on very often. And Carlisle had been talking to us about an IUD. He had them – something taken from the Sound's hospital, along with a ton of other medicines and supplies – and he was willing to do the procedure, but we hadn't made our minds up yet. He'd offered it right after Emily had been born.

Soft laughs and silly grins escaped us as we tried to hurry and keep quiet. Whispered words of love and pleas for more were breathed against skin and lips. And soon Edward had me barreling toward an orgasm that was probably not going to be quiet, but he covered my mouth with his own when I fell over the edge.

He buried his face into my neck when he finally came, whispering, "Love you, love you," over and over.

"Love you, too…" I trailed off as the unmistakable sound of "dada dada" came floating out of the baby monitor. "I got her. She'll save me from pumping this morning." I kissed his lips. "Go get cleaned up. Your girls have breakfast duty."

He smiled, kissed me one more time, and whispered, "Thanks, love."

I wasn't sure if he was thanking me for the sex or the breakfast or Emily, but he sounded so damned sincere when he said it. He got up, took off the condom, and padded into the bathroom as I tugged my shirt back on and slipped on a pair of shorts.

Emily was giggles and waving arms, squirming around in her crib.

"Hey, beautiful girl," I sang to her, scooping her up.

When she was cleaned up and changed, I toted her into the kitchen. Once I had biscuits in the oven, I sat down at the table to get Emily started feeding, and I could hear Edward in the shower.

As the sun started to come up, my gaze drifted to the doors leading out to the back porch. It seemed that the day would be gray, but so far it was still dry – no rain yet. Emily finished, and I pulled her up to burp her, softly patting her back as my eyes stayed out on the back deck.

Movement caught my eye, and I frowned, thinking it was too early for my dad. In fact, we didn't really have plans other than our afternoon patrols, where Sue was taking Emily for a few hours.

Emily let out a rather unladylike belch, which usually made me laugh, but I wiped her face, keeping her cradled in my arm. However, I quickly walked to the living room, reaching with my free hand for the .45 that Edward liked to keep on the fireplace mantel since Emily had arrived.

I wasn't sure if she was reading my mood, but my baby was wide-eyed and quiet as I stepped silently to the back door to peek out again into the early morning. Movement caught my eye again, and this time a board on the deck creaked. I took a step away from the door, about to run toward the bedroom for Edward, but suddenly, my husband's voice rang fierce and strong from outside.

"Drop the fucking weapon, or you won't live to take another breath."

My eyebrows lifted, and I looked out the window of the door. There was a man in full camouflage gear slowly dropping an automatic rifle to the deck floor. Behind him, Edward stood shirtless, wearing just his jeans. His hair was still wet, his feet were bare, and droplets of water from his shower still clung to his skin.

"I'm with the US mil—" the man started to say.

"Motherfucker, I don't care if you're the goddamn President. You're gonna drop that weapon and keep your hands where I can fucking see them," Edward barked back, pressing the muzzle of his 9mm at the back of the man's head.

I waited until the man did as Edward asked before finally turning the knob on the door. Edward met my gaze, saw that I was armed, and nodded once. He had to have slipped out of the bedroom window to beat this man to the door.

My gaze slid to the man whose arms were now up, his fingers linked behind his head. Something about the guy seemed familiar, and I'd seen Alistair's old military photos, so the man's uniform wasn't unusual. However, the name on the chest made me break out into a sweat and take a step back.

"Volturi," I whispered, bringing my weapon up on the man. "As in Aro Volturi?"

If Edward was pissed off before, he was absolutely livid now. Suddenly, the soldier found himself pressed into the side of my house.

"She asked you a question, asshole." The sound of a safety being flicked was loud in the early morning.

For a man who was being threatened, I had to give him credit for staying calm as he nodded.

"Y-Yes. Aro is…was my brother," he answered softly, flinching when Edward shoved him even more into the side of the house. "I was tracking the people who used to live in Seattle… I wanted to know how…to know who killed him."

Edward grinned evilly, grabbing the man's shoulder and spinning him around. "You're Marcus, aren't you?" he asked the man who still wasn't nervous for having two guns trained on him; Edward's was pointed dead in the center of the man's forehead. Marcus nodded, and Edward lied through his damn teeth. "I killed your brother, asshole."

Marcus's eyes widened, but all he said was, "I see."

My brow furrowed because Edward seemed to be testing this man. Alice killed Aro; I knew that for a fact.

"Are you here for revenge?" Edward asked, still grinning as he stepped closer.

Marcus shook his head. "No. I…I came to thank you…and ask for your help."

"Whoa," I breathed.

Emily's patience finally gave out, and her tears and crying pulled Edward out of his concentrated fury.

"You alone?" he asked Marcus.

"No, but we're not here to harm this place. We just needed information." His eyes drifted toward our dock, where a black rubber boat was tied, which meant there was a bigger ship somewhere else.

Edward met my gaze as he pushed Marcus down into one of the deck chairs. "Get Charlie on the radio. Bring them all, love."

~oOo~

A/N… Again, have a wonderful Mother's Day. I hope to see you next week. The odds are pretty favorable, but we'll see.

I know that alerts for the web version of this site have continued to stay down. I will tell you the app isn't bad. Notifications can be set however you want, and you can adjust the font size to read on it. I have it on my phone and my Kindle Fire. Just food for thought if you're struggling with update notifications. Clearly, email isn't working.

Okay, until next time… Mooches, Deb ;)