𝐐𝐮𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐃𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐬 (𝐄𝐝𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧)

𝐒𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐡𝐚𝐬

Waving her hand, Harley gives the crowd a dazzling smile. "One, two, three," she counts down with the audience. She gives the signal to start the clock and a loud buzzer rings through the air, dropping into the tank of water.

Charlie and Esme can't watch.

They have to look away.

Having rehearsed this several times, she is doing great. While holding her breath, she makes quick work with the locked handcuffs, and successfully unhooks them. She lifts her arms with triumph and shoots the audience a bright smile as they applaud. On his seat, her Chief Swan releases a sigh of relief, and leans back in his seat. This girl is going to give me a damn heart attack, he thinks. Nearby, Jacob leans into his chair, watching her with fear. Esme says something about how she can't look, and hides her face with her husband's chest. Carlisle holds her to him, shielding her from the horror.

The performer, Harley, goes to float up to the surface, but something holds her back. It's the bottom chain. It had gotten wrapped around a metal bar on the ground of the tank. A frustrated growl escapes her lips as she sinks down and begins to tug at it, her glittery heels still on her feet. This is when she begins to panic. Her mind drifts to how being surrounded by an enormous amount of water took the life away from her Buttercup, and how it almost took hers. Of course, she trained for this stunt plenty of times, even in Gotham, but you're never really prepared for things like this. She struggles to control her breathing as she weakly pulls on the chain. After trying numerous attempts to separate herself from it, she gives up and begins to pound on the glass.

Time quickly runs out.

"Help! Stop it," she shouts from inside the tank, panicking. Still, no one does anything. The crowed continues to cheer her on, failing to notice the fear in her face. She starts to kick and bang on glass when someone finally notices her struggle.

"Oh, my God! She can't get out," Richard shouts.

"She's serious," someone else says.

"She can't get out," others shout.

"Son, go get some help! Find Queenie," Mr. Haly demands.

His son disappears into the back room.

Seconds from hearing the commotion, Charlie and Harley's friends and family stand from their seats and make a run for it. Jacob sprints into action and joins the group with his father. Everyone runs down the stairs and enters the stage, against the ringleader's warning. Harley sees the horror in her uncle's face as he bangs his fists on the glass. "Harleen! Harleen," he frantically shouts her name.

She points to a pipe behind him, and just as he goes to reach for it, he finds Edward already there. "Hey! Out of the way," he shouts. At human speed, he runs toward the tank and hits the glass with the pipe.

It doesn't break.

He tries again.

Nothing.

An animalistic growl escapes his lips as him and his family hold onto random objects and hit on the glass, trying to release her from the water. Still, nothing. The room grows tense, and people are beginning to panic. The audience screams with horror as they watch the young girl struggle to survive.

"I'm a doctor," Carlisle announces. "Harleen, just stay calm, alright? We're get you out. Let's get some help here. Everyone, grab anything you can."

After stepping out of shock, men and women from all over the crowd help Charlie and the Cullens throw heavy objects at the glass. Harley continues to kick on the strong glass, out of oxygen. Their attempts fail, but they still keep going at it while she changes direction and tries to get the chain loose. Finally, she finally manages to break free, but then the time runs out, and as soon as she bursts for air, the piranhas are set loose.