A/N… I want to thank everyone for their patience. I was able to get caught up with Oz.

Demetri is gone, and Aro is next on the list. I'll let you get to it.

~oOo~

Chapter 15

BELLA

"I hate that we can't see anything," Rose muttered as we both stood on Carlisle and Esme's back deck.

It was true; we were now just southwest of Tacoma. The Sound was no longer in sight. The inlet curved us away from being able to see, so unless the entire Sound was suddenly on fire, we wouldn't know.

It was a waiting game now.

Gazing around, I took in what I could see so late at night. Carlise and Esme had picked a cluster of homes just off the water. They'd pointed out the houses they'd reserved for all of us. Edward and I would be down on the end of the street, though I couldn't really see it. Emmett and Rose were in the opposite direction at the stop sign.

Jasper had told Edward's parents that he wanted something closer to the farms. He'd grown up on one, and if the resistance was over, then he wanted to help with horses and maybe cattle. We were all pretty sure Alice would join him. She'd come from a farm, too. That relationship was slowly, sweetly budding, and Rose and I had threatened Emmett and Edward to leave them be, not to tease or make fun. Alice had been through some really hard shit, and Jasper was kind and patient with her, so we cheered them on silently.

Sue was waiting on Alistair and my dad to pick their own places. There was a rustic little motel closer to the other side of the island, and that's where she'd set them up temporarily. I think we were all terrified as to how this night would end. Come morning, all our lives would be different, and some of people we loved may not survive it.

Across the water, Tacoma sat in shadow. This was the farthest away from Oz that I'd ever been, and it was unnerving just how empty the world was. When Aro unleashed that virus, only a fraction of the population survived. Most of the surrounding cities died out, and those people who survived moved away or into Oz.

According to Flash, there were a few small towns here and there in Washington, but most people were gone. And we were now the population, including the people stuck in the Sound.

"Girls, come eat something," Esme called from the deck doors.

Rose and I turned around. Rose's laugh was soft as she said, "And I thought Grandma Sue was the epitome of mom."

Grinning, I nodded and tugged her back inside the house. Rose was right, though. Esme was all things sweet and kind. Occasionally, Edward would be filled with guilt about having left his parents behind, but they were just happy. They'd settled into Oz, wrapped us all up in love and warmth, and they were now amazing members of the community. They were elders, with a wealth of knowledge about life before walls and viruses, but they also knew so much about the Sound. They'd slid into place like missing puzzle pieces.

Rose closed the door behind us, and we took a seat at the table. The house Esme had picked was comfortable. Not too big or ostentatious, but neither was it small or cramped. In fact, they said all the homes on this street were about the same.

Carlisle held the chair for me like Edward usually did. The four of us were quiet as we ate, worry filling the room like a fog. And there wasn't much we could do about it. No matter what happened in the Sound, we wouldn't know for at least twenty-four to forty-eight hours, because the teams would have to stay out of sight and quiet.

I was certain that was what worried us all the most. The inability to know anything.

Esme had set Rose and me up in a bedroom together. It wasn't the first time we'd shared not only a room, but a bed as well. We'd essentially grown up together. We felt like sisters.

When we finally crawled into bed, I expected to stay awake all night, but sleep took me quickly.

The sun wasn't even up yet when I snapped awake what seemed like minutes later, but it must have been a couple hours. Rose was at the window that faced out over the water.

"What is it?" I whispered.

She glanced back at me. "The Sound's on fire." When I started to get up, she came to help me. "I swear, I felt the explosion from here. I think it woke me up."

From the window, the orange glow burned in the distance. We were too far away to tell whether it was tall buildings or the barracks. We could only see the bare minimum of it, like a sunrise on the horizon.

I gasped, leaning into Rose when she wrapped her arm around me.

"We have to trust that they're smart and resourceful, Bells. We don't have a choice but to have faith that every team is doing their part," she whispered, and we both turned when the door to our room cracked open.

Esme stepped to the window on my other side. "I don't know whether to call this the end or the beginning…" She trailed off, glancing our way. "Either way, change is here." She reached out, tucking my hair behind my ear and tapping Rose's chin lovingly. "Come, girls. I'm making us some tea. Maybe we can get a bit more rest before dawn."

We nodded, but I couldn't help but give a glance out the window to that burning sky as Emily shifted a little. Rubbing the spot where she kicked, I nodded once more before following them.

I just needed Edward back. I needed my dad back. And that fire scared the shit out of me.

~oOo~

EDWARD

"Here," I said, tapping Charlie's shoulder from the back seat of the Hummer where I sat behind Garrett, who was driving. "We all have one. We just needed to make sure one of them makes it into that asshole's computer."

Charlie took the thumb drive I was passing him, turning it over in his hand. With a nod, he slipped it inside the palm of his gloved hand. He made a fist and wiggled his fingers. If I had been a betting man, my vote was that Charlie would be able to beat us all to the task.

Garrett came to a stop at the front doors of Aro's apartment building, turning to face us. "We have to restrain you," he stated, holding up a pair of handcuffs.

"Aw, man," Emmett groaned. "I don't like those without Rosie here…"

Garrett chuckled, but Charlie merely shook his head a little. It was Emmett doing what he did best – easing the tension. I was used to it, but everyone else in that transport needed it.

Alice snorted, rolling her eyes up to meet mine when I glanced her way with a grin. She didn't say anything; she simply sighed deeply and wore a small smile.

"You good?" I asked her, holding out my arms while Charlie attached the cuffs loosely. Clearly, this was going to be all for show.

Alice nodded. "Just this one more step, right? We do this, set off the virus, and Alistair can finish the raiders off."

"Exactly. We won't let him touch you, Alice. You're here just to get his attention," I vowed to her, and it wasn't for the first time.

Once the three of us were cuffed, Garrett opened the driver's-side door. Charlie followed out of the passenger side, and they opened the back to let us out. I slid out next to Garrett. Emmett and Alice went to Charlie.

Emmett leaned closer to him. "We're gonna need our bags, Charlie. I need the flair gun for the signal to Alistair and our weapons if shit goes sideways."

As Charlie helped Emmett, Garrett looked to me. "You still armed?" he asked me, and when I nodded, he pressed the cuff key into my palm. "Good. We're going to do this as chill as we can, Cullen."

My brow furrowed at his knowledge of my last name. I really wanted to know Garrett's full story.

"I know your dad," he said with a crooked grin. "I led one of the teams searching for you when you left the Sound as a kid. You and Charlie's kid. Bravest shit I've ever heard, Edward. No lie. But when they called for the execution of two kids, I told your dad to call the search off. Let you go."

"That was you?" I gaped at him.

Garrett nodded solemnly. "This virus Aro unleashed killed my wife and son. He was your age back then. Thirteen. I didn't… I wanted to trust Aro…and Demetri, but… When they put children on the execution list or brought them in for free labor…" He shook his head again. "To protect you and Charlie's little girl, I urged your parents to let you go."

"You've been a member of the resistance a long damn time, Garrett," I pointed out, shifting my wrists in those metal cuffs. "Haven't you?"

"Yeah." He grimaced a little, shrugging a shoulder. "And your dad, he's stitched me up a few times after some scuffles. So…I kinda owe him."

"Well, let's finish it. You take lead to get us upstairs," I told him, tilting my head back to rake my gaze from the first floor to the top. "And if you really want his attention, tell him you not only have his slave back, but also the two men who killed Demetri tonight – along with a shit-ton of other offenses. That'll give us an expressway right up top."

Garrett grinned, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Let's go."

Aro's building reminded me of my parents' old one. They were similar, and I hadn't been inside the lobby of either since before Bella had been given to my dad. I used to explore everywhere in the Sound, not thinking about what it represented. Now, however, I saw it for what it was – a seat of power. It was a way to look down upon everyone else.

Three raiders sat behind a reception desk when we walked in through the front doors. When they saw Garrett and Charlie, all three stood at attention. Seeing Emmett and me made them place a hand on their weapons.

"Stand down," Charlie commanded gruffly, and I noted he wasn't limping as badly as before.

"Call upstairs. We have something Aro will want to see," Garrett stated, keeping a hand on my shoulder at the same time he jerked a chin toward the phone.

"Yes, sir," one of the kids behind the counter said, picking up the receiver. When someone on the other end picked up, he said, "Garrett Ross and Charlie Swan are here to see you, sir. They have… I mean, they've got…" He paused a moment, seemingly calming his nerves. "They have the wanted men from the Outer Zone, sir. And…they have…" His eyes drifted to Alice, who remained expressionless. "Your missing girl, sir." He ended the call with another affirmative reply, hanging up the phone.

He swallowed thickly before saying, "Go on up."

Garrett and Charlie guided us with weapons drawn toward the elevators. When the doors slid closed, they didn't really relax. I gazed surreptitiously around that elevator car, finally finding the camera. The little shits at the front desk were watching us. Maybe Aro, too.

There was so much tension in that elevator that I could feel it practically pressing against my skin. Everything was about to change as soon as those doors opened, but we had to face that egotistical bastard first.

We came to a stop, and the doors slid slowly open to reveal a nervous, frail girl who couldn't have been more than sixteen years old. If that. However, it was the bruises on her upper arms, around her neck, and her split lip that had my temper flaring hot, like a lightning strike.

The young girl, though, gazed at us with wide eyes. "Alice?" she barely asked aloud.

Alice nodded, leaning toward the girl. "Get all the girls out of here, Jessica. Now. The back stairs. Don't say anything. Go!" she hissed, glancing up when a door opened at the end of a short hallway.

Jessica took in the rest of us, and I almost laughed at the small, slightly evil smile that curled her lips. It seemed this was the first glimmer of hope she'd had in quite some time.

"Do it quietly," I added in a soft tone. "But take us to Aro's office first."

She nodded, waving us to the open door and inside the apartment.

"For fuck's sake," Emmett said through an exasperated sigh. "This motherfucker…"

I snorted, taking in decadence in the most disgusting display. Artwork, rugs, and furniture – it was gaudy and overwhelming. Reds, golds, flower patterns, and stripes were everywhere. The scent of something floral wafted in the air as classical music played from speakers on a bookshelf along the living room wall.

"This way, please," Jessica said, pointing to the door to the side.

The layout was exactly the same as the plans we'd studied, and with a quick glance, I noted the kitchen door, the hallway to the bedrooms, and the exit behind us. It was the kitchen we'd need if we made it out of this shit. The back service stairs were in there.

"Master?" Jessica said, pushing Aro's office door open. "The raiders from downstairs are here."

"Ah, yes! Excellent!" we heard from inside the room. "Swan! Ross! Come in and bring your detainees with you."

I'd met Aro when I was just a kid – before Bella, before I knew just what a huge, steaming pile of shit he was – and he honestly looked the same. Maybe smaller. Or perhaps that was simply perspective, since I wasn't a kid anymore.

Aro focused on the group in front of him, but Jessica gave Alice a terrified glance before she scurried out of that office. Aro was sitting behind a desk, a .45 in front of him, and I noted that Alice had been correct; the back of Aro's computer sat right on the edge of the desk with the back of it facing us.

"Well, look what we have here," Aro sang, wearing a sickening smile that was more predatory than happy as he stood up and walked around to the front of his desk. "Edward Cullen and Emmett McCarty – you're here on terrorist charges." When he slammed that eerie gaze of his on Alice, that creepy-ass smile got even bigger. "Alice, my dear… You were stolen from me. I've missed you so."

My lip curled in hatred, but I checked on the girl in question. I'd vowed to my wife, to Rose, and to Jasper that I would protect Alice. I'd meant it. I remembered exactly what she'd looked like when I smuggled her out of the Sound – beaten down both physically and mentally – bruised, broken. I stepped just slightly in front of her.

Aro saw the move, and he grinned again. "By the time you've been executed for your crimes against the Sound, she'll be punished severely for ever thinking she could get away."

I huffed a light, humorless laugh. "Just get on with it, Aro. No need for your theatrics. Or don't you have the balls to do it yourself?" I asked him, stepping forward aggressively until I was almost face-to-face with him. "C'mon, you twisted asshole… Pick up that gun and pull the fucking trigger!"

Charlie reacted instantly, gripping the back of my jacket and tugging me back. "You'll wait for his say," he snapped, squeezing my shoulder.

Aro didn't even flinch at my temper or challenge. In fact, that creepy smile never left his face as he studied me.

He tilted his head a little. "You know, son, I understand most of the hatred toward me, but I simply don't get why you hate me so. You were comfortable and safe on this side of the walls, yet you chose to associate with those people, betray your own family."

"Did I, though?" I countered lightly. "Betray my family? I mean, it took some time, but…Dr. Cullen is not really accessible to you anymore."

That seemed to knock his ego down a notch, and he sneered a little. "I assumed he was dead. All you vermin from the Outer Zone are riddled with diseases."

Emmett outright laughed, causing Aro to pause. He stepped closer, flexing his arms and shoulders. "Do I look sick to you, motherfucker?"

I grinned, stopping him with my cuffed hands. "Maybe he doesn't know, Em. I mean, his head raider probably hid the fact that I stole enough vaccines to protect Oz."

That was merely a guess on my part. Demetri seemed to hunt us with voracity like he was trying to cover shit up. I wondered for a moment just how much he'd reported to his superior.

Aro's face paled even more than its natural color.

"Oh, you didn't know?" I sang, letting another laugh out. "Aw, Aro… We haven't been sick in years."

Charlie's mustache twitched a little, but he was still holding on to my shoulder. Garrett remained the most reserved, standing just behind Emmett.

"Demetri needs to be her—"

"That asshole is dead," I told him coldly when he started for his desk, and it stopped him immediately. "And good fucking riddance. He's been on my ass since I was a kid. His death was fucking satisfy—"

Aro punched my face before I could dodge it. "Lies!"

I groaned, doubling over in laughter and the pain of a split lip. Although, I was using the opportunity to unlock the cuffs with the key Garrett had given me.

"Your raiders here will attest to his death, Aro," I said, standing up straight and licking my lip. The metallic taste of blood hit my tongue, and I shook my head as I glanced to Garrett. "Tell him."

Garrett nodded. "He's telling the truth. Zone Six. At the school. He'd been worked over and then had a bullet put in his head."

I nodded, gesturing to Garrett with my hands still in those now open cuffs. "Yup. That. It was completely deserved. And I smiled when the light left his eyes, Aro."

That wasn't exactly a lie, either. The second Charlie's bullet hit Demetri's forehead, it had felt like a weight had been lifted. Bella and I had been running from that man forever, and now, he couldn't chase us any longer.

"Looks like you have to dole out your own punishments, asshole," Emmett added, giving me a look before he stepped forward toward Aro.

It was then that I saw Alice shift a little. Apparently, she'd been using our taunting distractions as a way to get closer and closer to Aro's desk. Her small hand was in a tight fist, so I knew that her thumb drive was ready.

Charlie shifted a little to cover her movement. We were going to let her have the moment. She'd earned it. She probably needed it more than any of us. It wouldn't just be revenge; it would be vindication.

However, Aro decided he needed his weapon, so when he turned around to go to his desk, he grabbed Alice by the arm. She fought him, and she gave a hell of a fight too. When she'd lived here, he'd kept her weak, submissive. In Oz, she'd gotten strong, and she'd been surrounded by women who could fight like men.

Her knee caught his balls just before he slammed her face down onto his desk with one hand and reached for his gun with the other.

"Shit," I hissed to myself.

Even I could hear the safety flick off in the room. My heart hammered in my chest, and I shot a quick glance to Emmett and Garrett, but it was Charlie who stepped forward.

"Aro, sir," he started with that calm tone of his. "If they're set for execution, then perhaps we should detain them until—"

I started forward, and we all froze when Aro's computer fan whirred into life along with the sound of a small beep. I glanced from Alice's splayed hands that were flat on the desk to the back of the computer tower. She'd done it. In the struggle with Aro, she'd managed to pop that thumb drive into its slot.

Before he could walk around to see what his computer was actually doing, I dropped my cuffs to the floor of his office and snatched him up by the back of his shirt.

I slammed him into the closest wall, grinning a little when he grunted in pain. The lights dimmed, glowed brighter, and dimmed again, finally shutting off. Whatever Flash had programmed on that thing didn't stop the power, just shut down some of the essentials – the lights went out, the AC shut off, and the phone stopped blinking.

"I need you to listen to me," I told him fiercely. "Your reign of unchecked power is done. You like viruses? We just sent one all the way to New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Houston. There will be no more walls."

Aro froze, turning blue beneath my grip to his throat.

"Oh, you didn't know that we knew all about you? That you set this shit in motion like twenty-five years ago?" I asked him, and when he shook his head, I went on. "You really underestimated us."

The lights dimmed again, but Aro's computer continued to work. More beeps, more flashes on the screen. Emmett scurried around to the other side of Aro's desk to see what was happening.

"Swan—" Aro called, but I cut off his airway a little more with another squeeze of my hand.

"Shut him up," Charlie told me, gathering Alice into his arms and looking to Emmett. "Is it working?"

Emmett grinned, nodding a little. "Oh, hell yes! It's already cut off the shipping, the hospital, and it's already arrived at the other walled cities. In fact, someone just tried to contact Aro, but it was denied."

Garrett walked to the window, gazing down at the Sound. "Yeah, the lights are flickering everywhere."

I was just about to turn back to Aro, when he brought his knee up to my balls. I lost my grip on his throat as I bent over in pain. He shoved me aside to get away, pushing roughly past me and diving for his gun.

He was a scrappy fucker; I had to give him that much. However, he wasn't expecting three more guns trained on him by the time he'd pointed his weapon at me. I stood up straight, though it was it painful as hell. Someone handed me my gun back, and I faced Aro again.

Over the speakers, Aro's own voice started to echo across the room, over the announcement system, and even the phone lines. I didn't even have to look at the monitor because I could remember that video conference call Flash played us like it was yesterday.

Aro held up a vial filled with a yellowish liquid. "Meet the answer to this overpopulated planet. Pulmonis Mors Pestis."

Caius leaned forward. "You invented a plague, brother? Lung Death Plague?"

Aro smiled. "I've sent each of you a forecast as to how this will remedy our situation and how each and every one of you will not only survive, but you'll also rule the city in which you're standing."

The video played. The virus he'd dubbed PMP was released in all the major cities. And it spread. And spread. And spread. There were dots on a global map that showed what I assumed were human beings. They started white, turned red, and then evaporated completely. And the map showed billions of people wiped off the planet.

Aro focused on his little vial, finally smiling back at the computer screen. "And it'll even remove the government," he sang softly. "We'll strip this world down to its basics, and we'll rebuild it better and more…malleable."

"And just when do you plan on releasing this nightmare, Aro?" Caius asked.

Aro chuckled evilly. "It's already been released."

There were gasps throughout the video, but Aro held up his hand.

"I suggest you follow my plan if you want to survive it. Santiago, I'm assuming you're already in place?"

"Yes, sir. I'm in position," a man with dark features answered him.

"Perfect. Then let's change the world."

"Is that whiny little fucker in Atlanta really your brother?" I asked him.

Aro's face turned pale and then an angry red. "What have you done?" he hissed at me.

"Did you really think we didn't know your secret? That you were responsible?" Emmett asked him.

"No, he didn't," Alice piped up. "And yes, they're brothers." She pointed to a picture on the wall where three young men posed for the camera.

One was definitely Aro, with dark hair and a smarmy smile. The middle one was what I'd call an old hippy – long hair, jeans, and a lazy smile. The tiny one on the end was blond, wearing a bitter scowl and spoiled child's demeanor.

"The one in the middle is Marcus… Aro's disowned him," Alice said, pulling her knife from the inside of her boot. "Made the mistake of interrupting that video call once. Marcus was in some sort of government position, but his beliefs didn't match his brothers' desires…both of them."

"I should've killed you then," Aro snapped, swinging that gun in her direction.

"Hmm," I grunted, sneering at Aro and raising my own weapon. "Drop it."

"Put it down, Aro," Garrett said, adjusting his stance.

"It's over, Aro. You're done. This experiment you unleashed on the world is over," Charlie told him.

The video was on a loop, so it played again and again. It was on its third time when Aro's control evaporated. However, he wasn't sure who to fire at first. He really wanted Alice, but she wasn't a clean shot for him, so he swung his aim toward me, pulling the trigger.

Before I could move, I was tackled to the floor of the office, Charlie wrapped around my middle as several gunshots rang out in the small, enclosed space of that room.

I expected the pain of a bullet wound, but nothing came other than the rough tackle I'd received. I glanced down my front to see Charlie wincing in pain.

"Aw, shit. Charlie!" I grunted, pulling myself from beneath him, and rolling him onto his back. "Where are you hit?" I asked him. "And just what the hell were you thinking?"

I glanced up when Garrett kicked Aro's bleeding body out of the way.

"He was probably thinking that he had a vest on and you didn't," Garrett explained calmly. "And then he was probably thinking that Bella was gonna need you." He gently rolled Charlie to his side to check his back. "He's gonna be bruised, but he'll be fine."

I gazed down at my father-in-law, shaking my head. "She needs us both, Charlie," I whispered to him, not knowing whether he heard me or not, because the panes of the glass rattled with the explosion from downstairs.

Emmett met my gaze before he ran to the window. "What the fuck? Alistair set shit off early! We gotta go!" He spun around to Alice. "Make sure those girls did what you told them." He jerked a chin toward the door as an alarm started to sound throughout the apartment building. "Flash's virus will have locked them all out of the system by now. And remember, that's security, elevators, and communications. We gotta go."

Nodding, I checked on Charlie. "Can you walk?"

He scoffed at me. "I'm old. Not useless."

Snorting and rolling my eyes at his belligerence, I helped him to his feet. "No one would accuse you of uselessness, Charlie."

"Yeah, well… We're about to find out, because if Alistair blew off the plan early, then he's got a problem downstairs," he said, checking his weapon as he leaned against Aro's desk.

Speaking of that asshole, I walked to the man who'd killed most of the world, who'd brought back slavery, who'd segregated the world in a deadly way. He was barely breathing, but his eyes met mine.

"You don't understand…" he wheezed. "We had to… We needed to remove the lesser…"

"I don't care. That's the difference between me and you," I told him. "No one is less than anyone, Aro. Your blood and mine are the same fucking color."

Alice appeared back in the doorway. "They're out. The apartment is empty."

I nodded, standing up and handing her my weapon, grip first. "You've earned this, Alice."

Charlie met my gaze, but he barely flinched when Emmett stepped with Alice to steady her shaking hand.

"Beautiful gir—" Aro tried to call her, but the sound of the gun firing ended his plea.

"We gotta go!" Garrett said, flinching when another round of explosions shook the building. "That felt like the goddamn lobby."

Emmett led the way out of the office, through the living room where Aro's TV was playing his confession over and over, and into the kitchen. He dragged his hand across the stove's switches, turning on the gas on his way through the kitchen and grabbing a candle.

"Fuck, Em!" I groaned, pushing everyone through the door to the service stairs. "Move! Go, go, go!" I told them. "He's gonna blow it."

We'd made it down two flights by the time he caught up. The alarms were still wailing as we ran as fast as we could down a few more flights. By the time that gas hit the flame of the candle he'd left burning, we spilled safely out onto the sidewalk outside.

"Couldn't help it," Emmett panted as he took the lead again. "I didn't want anything of his to survive."

No one argued with him. There was a touch of guilt that the building would not survive, which would leave people homeless, but that thought didn't last long, especially when we finally turned the corner to see Alistair had essentially started a war on the streets.

"Old coffee shop," I told them. "And then we'll head for the water."

As much as I wanted to get my ass back to Bella, we needed to dig in and fight to make sure none of the raiders would survive. As much as I wanted to see my wife and our new place, this fight wasn't over just yet.

~oOo~

A/N… This fight was always going to be big, and I wasn't sure it could be done in just a couple of chapters. So brace yourselves for more. Everyone still strapped in? ;)

This chapter caused my team all sorts of anxiety. Specifically with Charlie, I think. But there's more action coming.

I've got a nice start on the next chapter, so next week looks okay for an update. So until next time… Mooches, Deb ;)