EPOV

When I arrived at the training hall, I was the only one here as I had to wait for Jasper and Emmett to come from James' compound with Bella. I felt a little guilty at taking them away from her, but I know they would have made sure she would be fine for a few hours and I know sure as shit that my Aunt wouldn't let anything happen to her either.

That woman could be scary when she wanted to or needed to be.

I let myself think of tonight while I set up for my sparring session with the boys. I have no idea how this is going to go and that has me on edge. I don't like going into anything without having more information.

I know this is a meeting where we are giving out the information and not gaining it, but I can't help but feel like there is something I am missing. I know this man is like the big boss, the head honcho of the American-Italian Mafia and he basically had eyes and ears everywhere. There wasn't a damn thing that happened in this town, more like the whole country, that he didn't know about and that had me thinking about his whole comment about not lying. Did he know what Bella and I did?

I mean we were given the mission to take out James, his two bodyguards and Victoria, but that was from someone we normally get a lot of our higher profile cases from so I didn't think anything of it at the time. Could there have been more to who gave it to us than we thought?

We are going to have to be even more careful about this if I was right and I pray I am not, as it would bring up a lot more questions. As I was lost in my thoughts and trying to set up, I got crash tackled to the ground by a big ass bloke. I throw him off and roll out of the way of a foot coming down on my head.

I turn around and I see that Emmett was the one who crash tackled me and Jasper had tried to stomp on my head. I was about to shout at them for doing this, but then remembered that this is probably one of the only times they caught me distracted and I did tell them I needed a training session.

The cheeky buggers must have come up with this on the way over to make the most of their time away from helping Bella. I see Emmett try and rush me again, ever the brute and for the straight forward attack.

I easily dodged it, but as I moved to the right to avoid him I ended up almost missing a swinging kick from Jasper. This is why these two were so good at what they do and why when us three are together we become a great team. I quickly duck out of the way and take a step away from them.

They advance on me and as I look at them both, one at a time, I remember when my dad would be where I was and us three were kids advancing on him. I smile at this forgotten gem of memory and then, just like in my memory, I feign to my left towards Jasper and when he reacts I use my momentum to crash into Emmett expectantly knocking him to the ground and then kicking out at Jasper's legs while his back was still turned from my quick movement.

We fall to the floor in a heap and laugh our heads off. Emmett breaks the silence first.

"Man, we thought we had you there for a minute" he almost whines, making me and Jasper laugh so much harder. Jasper was the first one of us to next speak.

"Didn't think it were possible for ya to have yer head so focused dat ya would ever be caught off guard. Couldn't resist tryna jump ya." He says in his southern drawl that has my sister so head over heels for him.

I just smirk and shake my head and then reply

"Yeah I didn't think it was possible either. Ever since I have had Bella in my life and our father's bright idea to have this arranged marriage and then with the mission we just finished and Bella having my babies, I have just felt so out of my depth and like I'm in a tailspin that I haven't been able to get my head back in the game yet.

Bella has her head already there, but this has made me feel…..." I didn't know what to say or how to even say anything about how I feel. I am not that in touch with my humanity and the side that Alice and Esme always saw in me that now is completely Bella's. I sit forward and put my head in my hands for the second time that day and give a heavy sigh.

Thankfully these two know me so well that they just put a hand on each of my shoulders and Emmett says

"I know how you're feeling man, but you got to pull yourself together. Be the strong man you have always been and learn to adapt as you'll end up in an early grave quicker than being in our world will!"

I take a deep breath in and nod my head

"You're right, Em, I just don't know how to deal with all these new emotions is all."

"Ya just need ta learn how ta shut dem off again, like a switch" Jasper says

"We do it all the time since meeting our gals." Emmett adds.

Then it really hits me, I have seen these two do exactly that with my sister's whenever we had missions. They would spend the night before leaving to go do the mission with Alice and Rosalie being tender and loving to them, but as soon as we had left to go take care of business the part of them that was with their partners were nowhere to be seen.

"I need to learn to do that. How do I do that?" I said and asked them, which made them laugh. I look at them like they have three heads at first and then I give them a glare that has them sobered up quickly.

"Right there is how you do it, just imagine your feelings and your heart are something with a lock and then when you need to shut your feelings and heart off then lock them up and have Bella be the only one that can open it.

For you it's going to be easier in a way because you get to have your woman with you on missions and shit and she can kill just as good as you, if not better I'd almost say after seeing what she did to James and Victoria, while preggers no less. We don't get that so it's easy for us to detach ourselves.

I'm sure that is what Bella does. You haven't seen her at James' compound, man she is scary as fuck! Talk about a drill sergeant, but the almost carefree, kind but firm woman we have seen with you and have gotten to care for as family is not the woman we see bossing everyone around there."

I smile at Em. Sometimes he really did know how to say the right things. Then it hit me on what he said about Bella so I ask

"What do you mean about Bella?"

"She really is taking her job seriously Edward, and you need to start to get back to who you were before she was in the picture as she is a strong woman that I think needs to know her man is her equal. I'm sure she loves that she has melted your heart and how gentle and loving you are with her, but our world is what she was born and raised to be a part of and so were you.

You can't be fully happy without both sides of yourself, ma man!" Then he playfully punches my arm, hard enough to know that I will have a bruise there later and with that I announce that I need to do some work out with them for tonight and then we get up and get into it.

~~oOo~~

It is now 6:30pm and I am in my midnight blue Aston Martin DBS V12. It's a nice luxury sports car that I like to use to look a little flash, but still has a professional look to it. This is also similar to one that was used in the newer James Bond movies and I'd like to think that like him I have to live double lives in order to complete my missions, only he is doing it for his country and I am not.

I drive towards Silky Oaks as I know that it takes about 30 minutes in good traffic so I want to make sure I can get there on time. Even if I am a little early I can wait at the bar attached to it before I have to go in, or wait till I see Bella.

As I drive I think about what I need to do and the head space I need to be in. I need to not be worried for how Bella will react because she will most likely be doing the same thing as I. Emmett and Jasper are right, I need to get back in touch with who I was before Bella and use this part for times like these and have my side since Bella for just for her and the family.

I know that tonight I don't need to be as much a hardened killer as I would have normally been, but I need to get my business poker face on. Bella may be strong and be putting on a strong front if I know her as well as I have gotten to know her in the last few months, but I know that under that she is just a big softy and being pregnant may make her need my strength to feed off of more than she would ever let anyone ever know.

So I will be her quiet rock tonight. This isn't only something I want, but it's something we need in order to fully finalize everything with the Volturi's. I just can't shake the feeling that something big will be revealed or happen tonight and this is something that has me on edge as I don't know if it is good or bad.

I know that we were not able to bring weapons, but that wasn't going to stop me from wearing my bulletproof and fireproof Kevlar suit and the matching vest under my shirt just in case. The good thing about this suit and vest is that when worn together no one can see or feel or detect the switchblade at the bottom in the small of my back that is a part of the vest.

All I have to do is untuck the back of my shirt and I can reach it. I made sure to do some training with this vest earlier before the boys left to go back to Bella tonight. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Bella beat me to make sure they were going to be with her tonight.

Jasper was going to be her driver and Em was going to be the bodyguard with his body size compared to hers. It made sense, but if you truly knew Bella you would know that it was her you should be worried about not him.

I pull up outside the restaurant and take a deep breath and make my face a blank mask and then step out to give the keys to the valet. The Silky Oaks restaurant is situated in one of the older parts of town and is in a building that looks like it was once a mansion, however it was more of a huge manor house built for entertainment than anything you would live in.

It has a wraparound driveway out front so that you can drive right up to the front door and not get wet if it were raining. The Building itself is white stone with a grey roof that was built in mid-late Victorian period, but the builder was heavily influenced by the Gothic architecture of English castles and it has this bay window prominently over the awning of the front door.

This Window is actually the main office of this building as Jack Skellini likes to do most of his business here. The whole second floor is just offices and a self-contained apartment for him when he needs to stay in town instead of his main home.

The bottom floor and the mezzanine level are the restaurant, with the basement being for more 'shady' dealings. It was a building you would absolutely love to convert into a house, I am sure it once was one before 1920 during the prohibition days as this was one of the main buildings that high society socialites gathered to drink alcohol and many other illegal things during that time. It still even has escape tunnels under it, some that the public knows as part of the historical society and some that are not known and are still used to this day I am sure.

The inside kept the old world charm of the original building while being very modern with its light hardwood floor boards and white walls. The Silky Oaks makes you feel very welcomed with its warm and inviting open plan dining area to the left of the main entrance, the cocktail bar is what would have been the parlour of the original manor house and is to the right of the main entrance and it isn't decorated in dark tones so as to be more inviting.

The whole place gives off a clean cut, no nonsense and transparent building holding an upstanding highly rated restaurant vibe that couldn't be further from the truth. I walk up to the reception desk in the main entrance hall and state my name and that I was a little early and I was waiting for Isabella Volturi's arrival.

I was told to go to the bar and wait for someone who would come to get us when Mr. Skellini was ready to see us. I also got thanked for being early. I went and waited at the bar as I was instructed to do and ordered a cola.

You're probably wondering why I wasn't drinking, well I figured that there will probably be wine with dinner so I don't want to get too drunk or be impaired in any way tonight, plus I wanted to get home driving without being pulled over by the cops.

My drink gets put in front of me as I see Bella sit beside me. She was wearing an electric blue knee length dress that flowed freely from under her bust while showing off a little cleavage. I almost groan seeing her in this as I just want to fuck her, but I know I can't…. yet!

I'm going to have to have a few words with Alice for this as while Bella looks gorgeous as ever, I need to concentrate. I take a gulp of my drink wishing it was something much much stronger.

"Good evening Isabella, you look positively glowing." I say to her in my professional tone so as not to alert anyone who may not know the truth about us yet, or that could be in contact with Aro and we don't want that yet.

I see Bella give me a small smile and she replies in the same tone as me

"Good evening Edward, thank you. You don't look so bad yourself, might I add" If anyone was watching us they would just think that we were two business associates and I give a small smile at the thought that we could do this.

I motion for her to take a seat next to me and ask her what she would like to drink, to which she replies just water. I ordered one for her and then asked how she was doing since I last saw her. I figured this was a safe question to ask so I could know how she was while not raising too much suspicion that we know each other more than what we do to the public eye.

I mean we didn't get to announce that Swan Industries' merger with Mason Corp yet officially to the public, only the crime circles knew of rumors. I see a ghost of a smile play on her lips before she answers

"Yes I am doing quite well. I am almost 15 weeks pregnant now and I think I am making headway in cleaning the mess back home. How have you been?"

"Yeah I am good, just been going through the mess of what I just got myself so haven't had much time for too many things. Did you need help with anything as I wouldn't want you to get too stressed out or anything?"

"Nah I am all good, I am pacing myself really good and this is nothing I can't handle right now. However, thank you for your concern and if it does become too much I'll let you know."

I detect a small amount of annoyance? Or is it indignation? At the end there so I reply

"Fair enough, just making sure I keep my end of the deal is all and I'm not implying that you can't handle things." Before either of us could continue, we were interrupted by the same lady that I spoke to when I entered the building.

"Mr. Skellini will see you now. Please follow me." We get up from our seats and I motion for Bella to go first and then I follow behind her, trying not to look at her gorgeous rear end.

Seriously dude right now is NOT the time to get a boner! Head. In. The. Game

I know, I'm trying alright!

I really need to have words with Alice after this. I take a deep breath and start to pay attention to my surroundings. We are walking through the main dining room now walking towards the wide spiral stairs to the mezzanine level.

The staircase is gorgeous, it is gold chrome covered metal and dark tinted glass tread steps. It could have been really tacky, but it actually fits in nicely. Probably gold plated come to think of it.

Once up the top we come to an area this is more where the VIP's and private party tables are. There are big booths around the sides and a few big round tables directly in front of us and a few longer rectangle tables along the railing overlooking the main dining floor.

We continue through to a door in the back, where I know this is where Mr. Skellini does his main illegal business discussions, or just where he wants a little privacy for dinner. Once in the larger than I expected room we see there is a table that can sit 10 with an older man sitting at the head of the table that is facing the door we just came in.

He is looking at us with a cold hard stare that seemingly looks right through us. I see a lovely older lady is sitting to his right, I assume this is his wife. Bella and I are shown our seats, I am sitting directly opposite Jack and Bella is to my right.

"Welcome to my restaurant, please let us order before we begin." He says before we could even introduce ourselves and before we could rely he is motioning for his staff to bring us a menu each.

We look at them and order something. I don't know how much I will be able to eat though as I am really rather nervous, which isn't normal for me. I make sure to keep my features neutral though as I don't want him to think I am easy to shake or anything like that. Besides I think that this nervousness is most likely a by-product of not being able to have better weaponry and from the general unknown of how this will go.

Once we have ordered and the staff have filtered out I look at Jack and see him looking at us. I wait for him to be the one to speak first as I don't want him to see all my hands till I know his hand. Thankfully I don't need to wait too long before he steeples his hands in front of his face while leaning against the table.

"Hello, Edward and Isabella. I just wanted to start by introducing my Wife, Sally" He motions a hand to his right, she is a stunning lady with long sleek bright red hair and an oval shaped face with bright blue eyes. You can tell she is an older lady, but she still has a youthful look to her. The term aged gracefully comes to mind.

I nod my head towards her and she gives a warm smile back. I think that's a little weird, but again keep my face neutral, but friendly.

"Now that, that is done I am just going to come out and say that what I am about to say to you may be strange considering my position and you may think that I have alternative motives by showing all my cards first, but I don't want to spend too much unnecessary time on bullshit lies because frankly I just can't stand them and I think that too many lies have already been told in the Volturi name."

Bella and I look at each other for a moment and we look back to Jack as he just chuckles at our reaction. Again we don't get to say anything before he is speaking again, totally dominating this meeting and making me even more on edge than I already was.

"I can see that how I am choosing to conduct this meeting shocks you a little, so let me explain. Before I rang you, Edward, I had some interesting rumors reach my ears. As you know I am the head of the American-Italian Mafia and I report straight to my family back in Italy. I got a call from my brother in Volterra that Aro had returned to his country estate and that he was letting Jane take over the winery business and they were no longer a part of the illegal side of our life anymore, but were still going to be loyal to the family.

You see Jane approached by brother for aid in fixing the vineyard because her father had missed managed it and it was almost in ruin and that she wanted help to take him out for all the trouble he has caused for the same reason, she also informed my brother of the abuse she has suffered at her parents and brother hands.

He also told me that when pressed for more information on why they were back in the country after so long away and how Aro left things in Italy, which by the way wasn't very good as he was almost banned, Jane confessed to both of your involvement but didn't say how or why other than that her father was forced to name Isabella his heir till her unborn children were born and old enough and of selling everything else to you."

He pauses here as the food was brought in. I see Bella look like she wanted to eat, but didn't know if it would be safe too.

'Good girl' I think, but like most things this evening we get shocked again by Sally speaking up in a clear, but soft tone

"Please eat, we wouldn't poison either of you, especially not a pregnant woman." Bella smiles and I say thank you and we take a few bites before Jack speaks again.

"Not that I was surprised to hear this, but I had already gotten your message to call you back, however, I have been so busy that this message had slipped my mind till my wife reminded me to call you and see if you could clear some things up for me.

For one Jane said that she thought that the two of you were up to something as things were just so quick, not that she cared but it was just more her observation. She actually was adamant that whatever you two were up to, if you were working together outside of what her father knew, she didn't care as it meant that she was back home where she preferred and that she could finally be free from her father with my family's help.

So you can imagine my surprise at this information and I would like a full explanation of what is going on and I want to assure you both that my family and I will not retaliate in anyway shape or form to anything you may say to us as we have been trying to find a way to eliminate the Volturi's since Aro took over from his father under suspicious circumstances, that is as long as you tell me the truth."

He looks at us with a stern expression that is almost like how a parent would look at their kids after telling them not to do something, but knowing they will possibly do it again but wanted to know you mean business.

As I was trying to come up with something Bella answers first and her answer shocks me from how honest she decides to be.

"Well Mr. Skellini..."

"Please call me Jack."

"Ok, Jack, first please call me Bella because Isabella makes me feel old." Jack and Sally both chuckle with Bella and I just give a small smirk and then Jack motions for her to continue.

"I don't know where to begin really, but I guess I'll start by saying you have left us floored with what you have just told us. We came here tonight thinking that you didn't know all that much as we know what the rumors are saying about what happened to the Volturi, but not anything specific.

I won't insult your intelligence and I will start at the beginning. My Father, Charlie Swan, and Edward Mason Snr met to discuss something that would prevent an all-out confrontation between Edward here and Myself. They decided to set up an arranged marriage between us, we agreed and then before we could set this into motion we got a job to assassinate James Volturi, The Danabar brothers and Victoria (James' mistress).

We accepted and thought to take it on together. We started to organize our attack plan, but during this we caught a spy, whom by the way was working for the Volturi's and about half a dozen other top criminals around this city, and after finding out what he knew we eliminated him, but had to change our plan that thankfully wasn't fully complete yet.

James was the one who killed my mother in retaliation for my parents not holding up their end of a deal that they made with the Volturi's before I was born. They didn't want to follow through knowing the kind of person James was to women as soon as they learned I was going to be female and I have always thought Aro took advantage of the desperate situation my parents were in back then.

Anyway we set up a meeting between James and myself under the fact that I left my father and Swan Industries and was going to honour the deal my parents made. They fell for it and so I married James, but Aro added in some conditions to the marriage contract and made it so I had to fall pregnant on our wedding night. Before we could do anything James cheated on me with Victoria.

Edward, with the help of his Uncle, who is a Doctor, made sure that James thought we had been intimate when we weren't and it was just our luck that I was already pregnant with Edward's child as I was a virgin when I met him. Fast forward and I killed Victoria in a fit of rage when Aro and myself caught James and her screwing each other in a BDSM playroom that they forgot to lock the door, which would have made it soundproof."

She paused here to take a sip of her drink and I look at Jack and Sally who are looking shocked that she is being so forthcoming with information, but they are fully engrossed in every word she is saying. Guess Bella is working her magic with these two as well.

She picks up after she puts her glass down.

"After this Aro seemed to start wanting to train me and being very creepy and handsy with me wherever possible, even rubbing his erection into my backside when trying to 'train' me to throw knives at his son, whom he tied up as repayment for all the crap he had done in ruining the Volturi family name.

Especially when I told him of the information we had on the Danabar brothers and their double dealings, they are dead now by the way. Aro then got me to go over the books and I found that Aro was micromanaging all of his businesses and deals to the point that they were bleeding money so badly that they were lucky they could keep the vineyard where they are now.

Jane expressed to me that she didn't care what was going on, but that the vineyard was all she ever wanted and she wanted her father to see how business savvy she was and how thankful to me she was for finally showing Aro that women are not as useless as he thought we were. She also said a few things that seemed to confirm that her parents were paedophiles.

Aro's wife even tried to rub my clit when giving me a bath under the guise of saying it was a tradition to give a bath to the expectant mother of the first grandchild of each child or some other crap like that. Finally, Aro let me kill James. I know that Edward has it on a recording as a show of proof and you're more than welcome to get a copy of it before we destroy it so the cops don't get their hands on it.

After this was done while everything I told Aro was true, we made his affairs look worse than it was even though this wasn't so hard to do as it already was massively screwed and made him turn to Edward to sell everything that didn't need to stay in the Volturi family so that they could live in peace and quiet.

We then went on holiday for a week to try and distress as I was only 14 weeks pregnant with twins and we don't want to lose them, since being back we have been trying to sort out the mess that Aro and James have both caused and left behind for us to clean up."

When Bella was finished, to say that they looked stunned was an understatement. They gave each other this look as if to say what Bella said to them was the answer to their prayers. Jack then lets out this laugh that makes us jump slightly.

"Well, it seems thanks are in order." He finally says in a cheery tone that just confused me.

"What do you mean?" I reply

"My family and I have been embarrassed by Aro and his son for a while now and we stopped helping out with his affairs for just as long because we knew he wasn't a very good business man. He and his son were too greedy and loved to spend more than they could make. With your information and Jane's combined we can eliminate Aro and his wife for good. My nephew seems to be taken with Jane anyway so she is fine for now and like I said, put in a good word for you.

I never thought you were going to be so forthcoming with information, but you have surprised me and this is not something that happens a lot, so I am pleased that I did agree to this meeting. I had heard some rumors about you Bella that don't do you justice and I have to admit that you really are a lot like your father, but with your mother's looks.

And you Edward, do you have anything to add?"

"Not really she surprised even me and has done so since the day our father's forced us to play nice. I have since found that she has thawed my cold heart to the point that I gave her my mother's engagement ring."

We hear a gasp and Sally got up and moved to Bella picking up her left hand to look at the ring in question. Jack clears his throat and she apologies and moves back to her chair with her eyes shining a little with unshed tears.

"Sorry for my wife, she knew your mother Edward and I am sure she misses her dearly. Your father came to us to get that ring made and it is some of the Skellini family jewellers finest work. Your father would have killed anyone if they knew how romantic he really was to your mother; it seems like you are much like him under all the coldness that I have seen all these years.

We were all friends once, you know, but Aro got too ambitious and that caused a rift. Because his family and my family were related by both marriage and very distantly blood related my family and I were forced to take his side of everything. Over the years though we could see the crap he was pulling and started pulling away as best we could without raising suspicion."

He pauses for a moment and looks down before ordering everyone else in the room besides the four of us to get out and then once they are all gone he presses a button and we hear the unmistakable sound of the doors locking. I assume so no one can interrupt us and I also assume the room is now soundproof.

I really need to ask where they get their gadgets from!

Again I have to force my mind back into the game just as Jack continues

"I have somewhat of a confession to make, I am the one that gave you the contract to take out James, the brothers and Victoria."

WHAT! HE SAID WHAT NOW?!

I am just looking at him in amazement at his confession because this is some wicked luck on top of meaning he and his family really wanted the Volturi's gone long before we came into the picture and Aro didn't know a goddamn thing.

I didn't have to look at Bella to know she had the same expression as me. Jack takes a deep breath and then replies to our reaction.

"I had to do this anonymously so I shouldn't have to tell you twice to keep it between us, but when I got told that Aro's son and his friends were messing up big time and they needed to go, I had to act. Just I couldn't have an active part in this as Aro couldn't expect a thing. Had I known of his involvement as well and him and his wife's mistreatment of their children, I would have acted sooner on my own.

I hope you don't hold this against me and my family and can accept us as both your associates and friends once again?"

Bella and I look at each other and while we do not exchange a single word or gesture, we know the other's answer and I answer for the both of us

"Yes we can accept you and we don't hold this confession against you, as long as you'll accept my confession that I wore my bulletproof suit and vest and that I have a knife underneath my vest against my back."

Jack just laughs and tells me I am so much like my father as that was something he used to do all the time and that he trained me well. He also presses another button and the doors sound like they unlock.

"Please let us enjoy the rest of this good evening as we have something to celebrate now." He lifts up his glass and says

"To new friends and a bright and prosperous future!"

We clink our glasses and then the rest of the meal and meeting went smoothly after this.

I really can't believe our luck and I can't wait to move forward now as this is going to make us the most powerful family in America with this association.