Chapter Three:

AN: Sorry for the long wait, in between being an avid reader and writing other stories, this one will be one that takes awhile for it to come to life. Last time on RPWT, Bella had just taken Masen to the bathroom when the gunmen burst in the bank.

EPOV:

"Place all your watches, jewelry, wallets, and purses in the bags. Hand me all cell phones," one thief announced.

"If anyone here triggers the silent alarm, the place will be detonated," another thief screamed. He held a detonator in his hands, but I couldn't see any bombs. I hoped that he was only bluffing on that, but in this day in age, anyone with the internet and who knows how to read can find out how to make a bomb.

A couple of the women screamed, and a woman pulled her infant closer to her, trying to calm down her wails. It was an escalating situation, and I kept praying that Bella figured out what was going on and that she was able to get Masen out of harm's way. I watched, as the three masked-men (or women) made their way through the bank, taking the requested items, frisking the men.

They came to me and I calmly stood, handing them the requested items, hating the fact that I would be losing my watch from Masen, but it was replaceable. Everything was replaceable. When I handed them my watch, I noticed that one of the robbers was sporting a tattoo of the mascot of Louisiana State University. He saw me notice the tattoo as he pulled his shirt back down, hiding the offending mark.

He raised his gun and pointed it at my face and I held up my hands. "I won't say anything, I don't want any problems," I whispered.

Some of the women whimpered as he cocked the gun, and I closed my eyes waiting for the end to come. I prayed for Masen and my parents. He was getting ready to pull the trigger when the security guard flew out of nowhere and fired at the assailants.

I ran to the closest wall, and threw a young teller under me, shielding her from the spray of bullets. She was scared, I knew she was, but we all had to keep calm in this situation, which was easier said than done.

"Where's your son?" she whispered.

"My friend took him to the bathroom," I told her. "As far as I can tell, they are hold up in there."

"There is a window in there, maybe they can climb out through there," she replied, giving me some hope that maybe my son would come out of this unscathed. Masen already had been through so much with his mother, I couldn't imagine him having to go through this as well. This just wasn't fair to him.

"You're going to go down for murder!" One of the women cried.

"We ain't goin down fo nothing," one proclaimed. There was a thick southern accent that leaked out, which was odd sounding for a place as big as Seattle.

One of the robbers pulled off a mask, revealing a woman. "I disabled their camera's. Anyway, stop being such a dick James, we are here for money, not to murder anyone."

"It's a little too late for that," he sneered, pulling of his mask. "Laurent already KO'd the security guard."

I whipped my head around to where he pointed, and sure enough, the security guard was down, with a gunshot wound to his chest. He was breathing, meaning he wasn't dead, but there was blood pouring out of the wound.

"Look," I said calmly. "I'm a doctor, and I think I can try to stop the bleeding long enough until you guys can escape. You don't want to have murder on your conscience, do you?"

"Doc, who says we have a conscience?" James said lazily, scratching his head with his gun.

"James, we need to be charitable, after all, they are being charitable to us," Laurent told him, holding up rucksacks that were being tossed over to tellers.

James sized me up, his cold, dead eyes penetrating into mine. I was itching to try to take him down, but now wasn't the time. I needed to try to save the security guard first, this guy was someone's brother, son, father maybe.

"Fine," he pointed over to the guard. I ran over to him, and started assessing the damage. A through and through gunshot wound to the left shoulder, it shouldn't be too bad, unless an artery was nicked. With the amount of blood loss, that seemed to be the case. All I could do with this was try to slow the bleeding and pack the wound. I glanced around, looking for a first aid kit.

I glanced up at the clock on the wall, it had already been thirty minutes since the robbery had started.

It had been the longest thirty minutes of my life.

Where in the hell were the police?

Was Masen and Bella okay?

Another customer dropped down to his knees next to me, giving me the first aid kit. I started searching through it when I heard a crash from the bathroom.

NO!

Not now!

Not them!

"Victoria, go check to see what the hell caused that. I told you morons to canvas this place," James spat, shooting his gun aimlessly into the ceiling.

Plaster fell all around us, causing the women to scream and the lone infant to cry.

"Fuck James, I checked the damn bathrooms when we first came in, no one was in there."

"Apparently you were wrong Laurent."

I caught the teller's eye, who looked worried for Masen and Bella. These crooks were definitely not in their right minds, I could tell it in their eyes.

I held my breath as Victoria stood, with her semi automatic making her way over to the bathrooms. She kicked open the man's bathroom first and started shooting aimlessly in the door.

Please God no!

As she made her away across the hall, she kicked open the women's bathroom and stepped in. I held my breath, hoping, praying that she wouldn't fire her gun.

BPOV:

I sat holding Masen Cullen in my arms. He was whimpering, but other than that, being really quiet. I could tell that he was worried for his father, but there was nothing we could do right now. I had convinced him that his father would have wanted him to be safe with me, and not out there with the chaos. He was content with that for right now.

I reached into the phone and texted my stepbrother. He was a sniper with the Seattle PD where my father was the Chief.

Jasper, help. I'm at Seattle First Federal Bank. There has been a hold up with three gunmen. I'm in the restroom with a little child. We need to get out of here.

I waited, knowing that he always had his phone on his hip. Occupational hazard, I guess.

I rocked, Masen, knowing that he would need some comfort right now. His shaking was getting worse.

"Mif Swan? Are we going to be otay?"

I held him close, stroking his unruly hair. "Yeah Baby, I called for help," I whispered.

I started whispering a story to him, telling him a story of a brave boy named Masen who was really a super hero. In the middle of the story, my phone starting buzzing.

Bella, Dad and I are coming with the cavalry. Try to get out of there. There has to be a window or something in the bathroom for ventilation. I'm coming to get you out! Hang tight. We need to devise a plan.

Hang tight? Easier said than done bro. I'm the one in the bank with a small child trying to keep us safe. I calmed myself and listened to the chaos in the main part of the bank. I was thankful that I was able to get Masen out of there. Jasper would be proud of me.

I smiled thinking of my stepbrother. Charlie, my father, had married after the fling with Renee, when she was pregnant with me. Did I mention my mom was flighty?

Siobhan Whitlock was pregnant with no place to go. One night, after coming home after a late shift at the station, he found her on the side of the road. She had gone into labor and was writhing in pain. He actually delivered Jasper, and when he was visiting at the hospital, found out that Maria and Jasper where homeless. He took them into his home, and fell in love with the both of them, and that is how Jasper Charles Whitlock Swan came into my life. He was six months older than me, and didn't let me forget that.

I looked around, seeing a small window. I didn't think that I could get through it, but Masen could. I balanced him on my hip and walked over to the window. It was one of those windows that propped out, not completely opened.

"What are we doing Mif Swan," Masen whispered.

"I'm getting you out of here," I told him quietly. "I need you to sit here and be really quiet. I'm going to have to unscrew this part of the window."

I looked around in my purse and found a nail file. That was going to have work for now. I looked over at Masen, who was sitting quietly on the chair. I started working quickly to loosen the screws. It was long work, since I didn't have the right tools, but it was moving, none the less.

It had been thirty minutes since I sent the text to Jasper, and I knew that we wouldn't be able to hide in here forever.

I looked over at Masen Cullen, taking in his tear stained face. His eyes were as green as his father's. I had been worried about Masen, being raised by the bitch of a mother. Gretchen had tried to help out her daughter, but Jane was difficult to say the least. Meeting Edward eased my mind a little bit.

I know you aren't supposed to play favorites, but in all my years of Masen Cullen was my favorite.

I loosened the window, when I heard unmistakable sound of gunfire in the next room. Masen leapt up and ran over to me. I scooped him up and held him close to me, stifling his cries. He shook in my arms, and I wanted to shake with him, but couldn't. I had to be strong for him.

I smoothed out his hair, and sang quietly in his ear.

"It's okay baby. I got the window open, and I'm going to get you out of here. My brother will be here soon to get me you and your daddy out of here."

He nodded into my shoulder.

"Bella!" Jasper whispered/screamed at me. I looked over and saw him at the window.

He was wearing his SWAT uniform and looking a little intimidating.

I shifted Masen so he could see Jasper. "Masen, do you see that man over there?"

Jasper shifted his gun, handing it over to someone I couldn't see to the left of him.

He nodded as Jasper waved to him.

"That's my big brother, and he is going to get us out of here. He's a good cop, and it is going to be your job to stay with him or another policeman until your daddy or I can come and get you. Do you understand me?"

"Yep."

"Okay, so I'm going to lift you through that hole I made and Jasper is going to help you through it."

Masen and Jasper nodded, so here went everything. I lifted Masen and he scurried through the opening. I heard some of the glass break a little, and I looked around to see if anyone was alerted. Hopefully not.

Once Masen was out of the window, Jasper looked to me. "Your turn baby sis."

"I can't fit through there Jasper."

"I'm not leaving you in there, you have to try."

I studied the opening and figured if I could just squeeze myself through if I shifted my shoulders the right way. I hoisted myself up, and started to crawl through when the window pane, which was balancing precariously on the ledge shattered. My upper arm was sliced, but not too badly.

"Shit Bella, move!" Jasper told me, trying to keep his voice under control.

Gunshots were being fired across the hall.

"Take Masen and get out of here. You will figure a way to get me out."

"I'm not leaving you."

"Jas, you have to. Dad and you are the brightest cops, you will figure something out."

I pulled myself out of the window, hearing Jasper curse. The door burst open, and a fiery female burst through. I stood in front of the window, that way she couldn't see Jasper and Masen moving out of the way. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see them pressed flat against the wall, with Jasper holding Masen close to him. Masen was in good hands now.

"What do we have here?" She sneered. "Laurent and James will have some fun with you." She cocked her gun and pointed it at me. I closed my eyes, as she grabbed my injured arm, forcing my out in front of her. I would have tried to fight her, but Masen was still right outside the window. I didn't want the gun going off and hitting them inadvertently.

She pushed me out into the main area, and I frantically looked around, trying to find Edward. He needed to be okay for Masen.

My eyes met his as he was attending to an injured security guard. His eyes were filled full of questions that I couldn't answer for him right now.

"James, Laurent! Look what I found, lurking in the bathroom. Seems that Laurent didn't do such a good job when he checked them. She was trying to climb out the window."

Victoria threw me, and I caught myself, which wasn't easy to do in pumps.

A cold callous hand reached out and stroked my face, and I flinched from the contact.

"Ain't you a pretty thang. I might have some fun with you later."

Images flashed through my head, and a gut reaction ran through me. I spit in his face.

He wretched my wounded arm, and I cried out in pain. He threw me across the floor and I hit the could tile hard with my knee. That was going to leave a bruise tomorrow morning. If I lived to tomorrow morning.

"Go sit and help the good doctor, and then have him check over you. I don't want you dying before I can have some fun with you."

I crawled over to Edward, pretending to break out into sobs. Thank God Renee made me take that acting class with her when I was ten.

"Doc, calm her down and shut her up." Victoria screamed.

Edward grabbed me into his arms, and I buried my face into his shoulder. It was oddly intimate for the moment, but then I figure out why he did that.

He started whispering in my ear. "Are you okay?"

"Nothing too bad. I got a nasty gash on my arm from trying to climb out the window," I hissed. "Masen is okay. He got through the window. The cops are out there."

"Break it up you two!"

He reluctantly let go of me, and started checking over my arm. He used some of the steri-strips on it to close it up, luckily nothing to deep that would need stitches. Edward then pulled me over to the wall with him and I put my head on his shoulder.

"It's okay, we are going to be okay." He whispered in my ear. I prayed to God that he was right.

AN: As always, reviews make writers happy.

Let me know what you want to see.