Mafia Princess

Chapter One-Hundred Thirty-Eight

Twilight...not mine (sigh).

Chapter 138

Three days passed and there was no clue to where Bella was. I was becoming more and more agitated with each passing hour. My co-workers were ready to kick my ass and Carlisle was ready to fire me. Too bad he needed me to help him with the extraction of Bella.

On the fourth day, Jacob and Alice found a warehouse in Portland that was recently acquired by Aro. It was currently in escrow, not closed on but the previous owner explained that he had given the keys to Aro as part of the condition of the immediate sale. We had a location. We just needed confirmation.

I pulled up the satellite feeds, checking on the warehouse, noticing several cars going in and out of there on a daily basis. I also hacked into the Portland red light cam system, moving one of the cameras to look directly at the warehouse. After I got clearance to do so. I sat in front of my computer, watching the comings and goings of the warehouse. Around five the following day, a huge black SUV pulled up.

James Cacciatore and Riley hopped out. Riley helped someone out of the backseat and he looked directly at the camera. It was Aro. He had a smug smile on his face as he scuttled to the entrance of the warehouse.

"He's there," I hissed. "With James and Riley."

"Do we know if Bella's there?" Charlie asked, his voice rough and sad.

"I didn't see her, but something big is going on in the warehouse," I explained. I snapped my fingers as the door opened again. Riley was carrying out a white sheet covered in blood. He looked pale and drawn, almost sick to his stomach. As a result, my stomach turned. Was that Bella's blood?

"We can't just go in there, guns blazing," Carlisle chided.

"I could contact Aro and negotiate a truce or something. Meet him at this warehouse and explain that I'm cutting back on my dealings with the syndicate," Charlie suggested. "Pass over my territories to him as a sign of good faith. I've already lost my wife to this life. I refuse to lose my daughter."

Jacob picked up his phone and dialed Leah, his girlfriend and lawyer for the syndicate. "LeeLee, call up Aro and schedule a meeting at some warehouse in Portland," he commanded. He hung up and we waited to hear back from her. It wasn't Jacob's phone that rang, but Charlie's.

"Put it on speaker," Carlisle said. "No one speak. Only Charlie."

"Del Cigno," Charlie barked, sounding gruff.

"Ah, my dear friend. It's Aro," he said in his slithery, slimy voice. "Your attorney contacted me and said you had some business to discuss. Can't we do it over the phone?"

"No, Aro. I need to go over a few things and it would be better if we met up to discuss it in person. I need to retire. My daughter's missing and..."

"I've heard about dear Bella. Her face is plastered all over the news. It's such a shame. Do they know who took her?" Aro asked with fake sincerity.

"Not yet," Charlie replied, gritting his teeth. "Look. Do you want to meet or not?"

"I'm in Portland at the moment, dealing with a situation. Perhaps, once I return?" Aro said. A sharp cry cut through the phone line. I knew that scream. It was Bella. "I need to go, Charlie." He hung up before we could respond.

Carlisle was on the phone, hissing with the director of the bureau. With an abrupt nod, he hung up. "We've got a helicopter on its way. We take off in twenty minutes and should be in Portland in an hour. Edward, Emmett and Charlie, you need to be placed in Kevlar. I'd prefer body armor, but if you're going in the warehouse, you have to go in as civilians."

"Carlisle, you come, too," Charlie said. "You can be my long-lost brother. The man who convinced me to step away from the syndicate."

"That works," Carlisle said as he began barking out orders. He pressed the phone to his ear and began speaking with someone from the Portland office.

Alice came by, giving all of us ear pieces to wear along with instructions for Charlie and Emmett on how to use them. I dragged Emmett and Charlie into the guest bedroom, strapping on military grade Kevlar vests onto their bodies. I looked at both of them as they got dressed again. "Under no circumstances are you to shoot your weapons. This is a FBI raid but you're helping us walk in."

"Can we have weaponry?" Emmett asked.

"You can. But do not fire. Carlisle and I are both trained marksmen. Jasper will be our eyes in the sky and there will be a hoard of FBI agents waiting for the signal to enter the building. Your job is to get us inside and then get Bella to safety. Do you understand?" I asked. They both nodded. "I need to hear it. Do you understand?"

"Yes," they replied.

"Good. Let's go," I responded.

A/N: We're getting closer to the 'raid' on the warehouse. Now, I'm taking liberties with this. I'm not in law enforcement. I'm a teacher with a very wild imagination. Up next will be the 'pretense' of diplomacy. Leave me some!

sk thou76